Better late than never....

So, I know I am a little late getting a pic of our tree on here, but the holidays were just so hectic! We enjoyed lots of time with family and I am a little sad to take this beautiful tree down tomorrow! This was by far the biggest tree we have ever had, thanks to our 10 ft ceilings. We were looking for an 8-8 1/2 footer, but ended up with a 9 1/2 one. Oh well, I love every inch of it. We used 1100 lights and lots and lots of ornaments. We collect ornaments from our travels and are getting quite a collection now. I added the snowflakes ($1 for 12 from Dollar Tree) and the gold shimmery bow on top. I like that both the snowflakes and ribbon allow the lights to shine through. It made our entire living room glow all season long!

Balloon Ornaments

I was just catching up on some DVR'd HGTV and saw this creative idea on Celebrity Holiday Homes. It is a simple balloon, spray painted gold with a ribbon tied around it. They used a magnet to attach it to a can light. Even though Christmas is over, I think these would look divine spray painted silver with black bows tied around them for New Year's Eve. Can you imagine walking into a party and seeing a ton of these hanging from the ceiling?!? I love that it is so budget friendly too.

Holiday Kitchen Gifts

Nothing shows how much you care like giving a gift you made yourself. Check out these beautiful kitchen gifts from Whole Foods! You can probably wrap up your holiday shopping without leaving the house. Now to decide what to make for everyone....



maybe Citrus Salts...


or Marinated Olives....



or Spicy Wine Mustard, that would be delish on left over ham sandwiches....


or Dried Fruit and Herb Tea....


oh, definitely Mulling Spice Satchets! Have fun in the kitchen!

101 Party Do's and Don'ts

This time of year is all about the parties. Whether you are throwing one or attending four, here are some great tips from House Beautiful to help you along the way. (Warning: It is a loooong slide show. Use it as a nice break from Holiday madness, while enjoying a cocktail.)

**Above image: Hubs and I on our way to his work Holiday party.

Christmas in the Southwest

Let me start by saying this is the first Holiday season I have prepared for outside of my home state of Missouri. With that said, I wanted to share a few images of Christmas in the Southwest.

The first is this funny guy above. I mean, only in New Mexico would they create a snowman out of giant tumbleweeds. Yes, folks, they do grow that big around here. Not that I have seen them personally, but I have heard the tales. Tumblin' along with the tumblin' tumbleweeds......



The second is this gorgeous blue poinsettia. Isn't it divine? Now, I am sure that blue poinsettias are not only available in the Southwest, but I have never seen them before, so I just had to have one! I think it is so perfect it looks artificial and the hubs said it looks more New Year's Eveish than Christmasy, so let's hope I can keep it alive until then.

The purple leaves are my favorite part. :) They look like velvet.

This last image is sorta corny, but I thought we should have some chile pepper lights for our first Christmas here. They really brightened up a corner of our dining room.

Happy Holiday preparations to all!!