{decking the mantel}

The fall decorations have come down and our fireplace mantel received a Christmas make-over yesterday! I'm really happy with how it turned out...so fun and whimsical. And it includes lots of inexpensive and DIY decorations...

And did you notice we took the fireplace doors off?! It still needs to be cleaned a bit around the doors, but it looks sooo much better.

I made the wreath last year by hot glue-ing ornaments, yarn balls and felt flowers onto a grapevine wreath form.

The drying rack to the left of the wreath used to be on the opposite wall in the dining room. I switched it out with the blue chalkboard to add a neutral white piece to the display.

I created the "joy" burlap pennant banner in just a few minutes with some inexpensive supplies. I cut the triangles out of burlap I had leftover from my table runner project. Then I used a red sharpie and free-handed the letters right onto the burlap. I added a button to each triangle, and then threaded them together with red yarn. Easy peasy!

The two silver trees were one of my first ever DIY Christmas projects that I made when my husband and I were in our first apartment together. They are basic styrafoam cones with fun silver trim and small green berries glued on. Another really simple and inexpensive project.

The cute white tree in the middle was a gift a few years ago from my friend Dusty.

And finally, the cute Christmas subway art is a free printable that I found on Pinterest...isn't it adorable?

The colors and words were exactly what I was looking for. And I already had the frame up on the mantel, so I just switched out the fall tree photo I had in there and voila!

I also hung the boys' stockings on our hutch...

and the boys' little tree on the other side of the fireplace...

 Finally something to fill that corner! Maybe I'll just leave it up year round. ;)

And if you're wondering what I did with that cute blue chalkboard, it is across the room on our record player with a Christmas message for everyone that walks by...

With my button flowers and a sparkly little tree...

Have you started decorating for Christmas yet? Next will be our tree and the entryway, but I've had a horrible head cold the past few days so I haven't gotten around to that yet. I would love to see your decorations...link up in the comments section!

{Christopher Straub Interview and maurices Giveaway!}

I'm still on a high and have a huge smile on my face from my interview Wednesday with Christopher Straub of Project Runway fame. He was extremely fun to chat with and shared some great information about his new holiday line at maurices. And he actually asked me a few questions too!

But before I get to our interview, let's see what Christopher has been up to...

He has created a super fun, flirty and affordable line of holiday clothing and accessories exclusively for maurices, one of my favorite shops.

His line includes some adorable party dresses, including this little black dress, which he told me is his favorite piece in the collection...

And inspired by his first, and winning, design on Project Runway...

 His collection also includes some great separates like this black top...

And I love this pendant cluster necklace...

So now let's hear more about Christopher's new line from the designer himself!

**Please disregard the annoying "call recorder demo" line across the video...pretend it says something like "Best Project Runway designer interview ever", alright? :)



Thanks so much to maurices and to Christopher for giving me the opportunity to interview him...it was an honor and so much fun!

And now for something exciting for my readers! 

maurices has given me and one lucky This Girl's Life reader a $50 gift card! And this is the perfect time of year for a little extra cash, right? Use it to buy that cute little black dress for a holiday party, or use it for Christmas gifts!

How to enter:

1. Leave a comment and tell me your favorite piece from Christopher's new line at Maurices.
2. Follow This Girl's Life and leave me a comment.
3. Share this giveaway on Facebook, Twitter or your blog, and leave a comment for each.
4. Like maurices on Facebook.

Entries will be accepted until midnight EST on Friday, December 2nd. Only available to United States residents.

So what are you waiting for? Good luck everyone!

{so thankful}

Another Thanksgiving has come and gone.

The boys are asleep in their beds.

Some of the Thanksgiving leftovers are still sitting on the kitchen counter.

Our dining room table is still covered with the tablecloth that was hand embroidered by my husband's grandmother.

I just ate my second slice of pumpkin pie of the day...covered with a layer of cool whip as thick as the pie itself.

They hubby and I just watched 50/50...quite the tear jerker. I actually sobbed.

Chloe is sitting by my feet, staring at me and waiting for me to let her up in my lap.

The house smells like the perfect holiday scent of pine thanks to the candle my mother-in-law brought me today.

I get to see my parents and Grandmother tomorrow and decorate the house for Christmas.

I'm so very thankful.

{confession}

I'm already on my second carton of this stuff...

Most people call it egg nog.

At our house it is lovingly referred to as snowman juice.

I know...sounds kind of weird/gross right? Or when you think about it...snowman juice would really just be melted snow, right?

Anyway...to explain how it got that name...last Christmas when Ben saw what looked like a juice carton with a snowman on it he exclaimed "SNOWMAN JUICE!" One of the most adorable things I've ever heard come out of his mouth.

So that's what we call it. And now the boys are hooked too.

What is your guilty holiday pleasure? {I have plenty more but I'll just share this one today}

{sunday morning}

Eating breakfast at the island...

and enjoying homemade buttermilk biscuits...

They make the best egg and bacon sandwiches...

Yum.

{pinch me}

You all. I'm so.darn.excited!!

I have some pretty awesome news regarding this little blog of mine. 

Those of you that have been following my blog for the past few years know that I'm a huge fan of Project Runway. And for the past few months I've been participating in What I Wore Wednesdays by sharing my weekly outfits, a lot of which included pieces that I've purchased from one of my favorite local clothing shops, Maurices.

What do Project Runway and Maurices have in common, you ask?

Wellll if you are also a PR follower, remember this guy?

That's Christopher Straub, a contestant from season 6, and he is launching a new clothing and accessories line at Maurices. And the folks at Maurices contact me, yes ME, asking me if I would feature his new line on This Girl's Life.

That in itself is pretty cool...but then they told me I could interview him as well!

So next Wednesday, I have a Skype date with Mr. Straub.

AND...wait for it...one lucky This Girl's Life reader will win a Maurices sponsored giveaway!

Yeah...you could say I'm pretty darn excited about this.

So be sure to check back next weekend for all of the details about Christopher's new Maurices line, our Skype interview, and a fabulous giveaway!

Did I mention that I'm SO.DARN.EXCITED?! :)

{warmth}

So yesterday I posted a pic of me wearing a heating pad. A super cute one covered in Amy Butler fabric. It has been a constant friend to me the past few days, after I woke up Tuesday morning with an awful pain in my back. Just a few minutes in the microwave and it provides a good hour of deep, soothing heat mixed with the calming scent of lavender.

I received it from someone close to me for my first Mother's Day. A fitting present for a new mom to twins, right? At the time I appreciated it for its cute fabric and sweet smell. But this past week, I've appreciated it for a whole lot more.

The person that gifted it to me is someone I've known my entire life. And things aren't well between us right now. It is difficult. And with the holidays coming up, I'm going to say that I'm honestly very sad about the reality of our situation.

But this cute bundle of lavender wrapped in Amy Butler fabric is such a comfort to me right now. It not only soothes my aching back, it also adds warmth to a place in my heart that has been hurting for awhile now. It is a reminder of a happy day when we celebrated motherhood. And it gives me hope that things will get better.

And for that I am very thankful.

{new etsy shop design!}

I'm so excited to unveil my new Etsy shop design. I've been working on it for a week or so and I'm so excited about how it turned out...

The squirrel is wearing one of my hats! I love how fun and playful the design turned out. It just screams ME! :)

To celebrate, I'm offering 10% off your order today...just enter coupon code NEWSQUIRREL when you check out! {my Etsy shop only}

{accessorizing}

My outfit is pretty blah today, but I added some color with a cute new ring, my lavender scented heating pad {tweaked my back a few days ago...ouch!} and a free Starbucks vanilla latte...

Just the pops of color that I needed, right? :)

How are you accessorizing today?

{burlap + hot glue}

 I don't sew.

I mean, I made a dress hospital gown in 8th grade home-ec class, and a pillow that looked like an ice cream sundae {I wonder what ever happened to that thing...} but since then I haven't layed a finger on a sewing machine.

But like some Project Runway contestants, I do work well with a hot glue gun. We are like BFF's really. So when I decided our newly refinished (!!) dining room table needed a runner to dress it up {and cover the one yucky spot in the finish}, I started brainstorming ideas that could work without a needle and thread.

And then it hit me yesterday...

BURLAP!

So of course I headed to Pinterest to see what inspiration I could find. One of the first pics that came up was this lovely ruffled number...

The person that made that runner probably sewed it. But whatever. I knew all I needed was some burlap and my trusty glue gun. So I headed to JoAnn and grabbed two yards of burlap at just $3 per yard. And while the boys were napping I got to work!

First I laid it out on the table to eyeball how wide I wanted it to be. No measuring here...I just used our centerpiece to figure out what width would look right.

And thanks to the lines in the burlap it was easy peasy to cut a straight piece.

I won't lie...at first I was just going to leave it like this...

But the ends looked really sad and weren't hanging down very well. So I cut two long strips {about 1 1/2 times the width of the runner} and used hot glue to make them into ruffles. I forgot to take pics of this process because I was busy trying not to be burned by the hot glue seeping through the burlap. Ouch!

But here is the finished product!

I think it turned out pretty darn close to my inspiration. What do you think?

Now I just wish we were hosting Thanksgiving so I could show it off!

The cool wooden bowl on the table was hand carved by my husband's Grandpa...pretty amazing huh?

And yep...still need to remove the ugly brass fireplace doors, decide whether or not to paint the brick, and figure out what to put on the left side of the fireplace. Ideas?

Linking up with...

{tis the season?}

 Please forgive me for what I'm about to talk about.

I just can't help myself.

I'm already into the Christmas spirit. Big.time.

It started when I spotted these two old friends at Walmart the other night...

Oh how I've missed them. I haven't broken in the candle yet, but let's just say the mint m&m's are mostly history.

And today I actually got a few Christmas gifts marked off my list. Mom #2 and I took the boys to our local Christmas Village, which is a huge craft fair at our fairgrounds. This year it did not disappoint...about 5 minutes in I had already oohed and ahhhed over quite a few lovely things.

My favorite buy of the day? Button.flowers. Yes...that's right...

Aren't they ADORABLE? Be still my heart. Anything with buttons grabs my attention and these were so darn cute. And $10 for 6 flowers with the vase? Sold.

I picked out colors that would go with our dining room, and for now I have them on our record player cabinet. I have a feeling they will make an appearance on the mantle sometime soon though.

And I'm super excited about the Christmas presents I purchased, which of course I can't share here in case a few special someones are reading. ;)


And I may or may not have listened to some Christmas music today.

But don't worry, I'm SUPER excited about Thanksgiving, and our tree will not go up until the day after turkey day.

So tell me, how excited are you about the holidays? Have you done any Christmas shopping yet?

{holiday shop update}

I've been busy working on santa caps for my shop...do you have a little elf that needs one?

They are available in 0-3, 6, 9 and 12 month sizes and I can do different combinations of colors. Traditional red and white, pink, green...your choice!

I also have other great styles and colors in the shop like this winter white one...

And a super cozy cream button cap...

Perfect Christmas gifts! The santa cap was my biggest seller last year and so far it is looking like it will be again this year. Be sure to get your order in soon if you want one for the holidays!

*And be sure to head on over to my Love Squirrels Facebook Page and become a fan! Find out about new hats in the shop and special promotions!*