Make me pretty

The title of this post harkens to one of my DIY inspirations: my friend and neighbor Karen (aka Darling Octopus) who does beautiful things with old and discarded furniture.

So, my two "Make me pretty"s are a rocking chair I picked up at a church rummage sale 2 years ago and a footstool I bought when I was in high school. Sorry I don't have any good before pictures.

Here's the footstool in the back left of this December 2009 pic:

And I can't for the life of me find a picture of the rocker. But here's the after picture of the two finished projects:

The footstool was actually Callan's first DIY painting project, and I let both the boys help paint the rocker (so don't look too closely--there are lots of drips!).

Thanks for the tips and inspiration, Karen!

Chirstmas 2010: A summary in photos

Snow days. Glad I bought those snow pants and boots at the resale shop in October. Nightly advent devotionals, inspired by Ann.

My angels. Yes, they really were during the pageant, dutifully waiting for their turn to go onstage.

Which is better? Making candy and gingerbread houses with grandparents. Or eating them after Christmas?

A day trip to Bevell's Hardware Store in Blackstone, VA for the largest single train display we've seen yet. The boys were in awe. Me too.

Hope you all had lovely memories and time together this year.