These are Few of My Favorite Things….

I love Christmas.

 

I love everything about it.

 

The traditions, family, food, and first and foremost what it stands for….

Jesus our savior was born, and because of that we can all live today! Amen!

 

I also love celebrating, singing songs, the spirit of giving!

 

Through this blog I’ve met so many wonderful people and we’ve shared so much throughout the years.  Ya’ll have given me advice on parenting, food, what kind of concealer to buy so I don’t look like a zombie….etc.  I could go on and on….but that would take forever!
So, in the spirit of sharing and giving I wanted to share a few of my favorite things….now it’s not going to be like Oprah yuns…..but it will be fun and you’ll score some good deals and maybe some free stuff too 🙂
First up is one of my favorite places for paper goodies!  Milo Paper is such a cute shop.  They have an adorable line of Christmas cards and gift stickers this season.  Not to mention they are some of the nicest folks around….they’ll make sure your order is exactly how you want it and the best quality too.

Love these gift labels!
Milo Paper is offering Java Mama readers
40% off anything on their site!!!!
Woohoo!!!!
Use code : java2012
(You have to create an account on the website for the promo to work)
Have fun shopping ya’ll!
I know you will be very pleased with everything you see at Milo Paper 🙂

 

Christmas Photo Tips

I love to use rolls of wrapping paper for photo backdrops.  Instead of spending hundreds of dollars on cloths and vinyls.  It’s all about proportion.  I did these shot pretty close up because I didn’t want to plaster my wall with paper….but you get the point!  They turned out pretty good!
 
He was actually just sitting on the bed, on a stool, in the extra bedroom. 
 
I had the windows open and the light shining in……
 
Candy and bribery go a long way when photographing 2 year olds!

 And eventually it comes to this…”Mom stop this….you crazy yo!”

Thankful Heart

We had a very blessed Thanksgiving today with family and friends.
 
Every day is a gift, but it’s nice to spend a day sharing in thankfulness for everything and everyone around us.  I feel eternally blessed for my marriage, a son I thought I’d never have someday….and the love and grace they show me every day. 

 Thankful God has allowed me to be a wife to this man and a Mama to this little boy…..
Thank you Lord for this life and the grace and love you show us all every day!

Gobble Til Ya Wobble- Branch Family

It was so nice to have both my parents and T’s parents together for a Thanksgiving feast this year.  That hardly ever happens.  I took some photos of the family below.  We are so blessed that we both have such loving families with a strong faith in the Lord.  We are so thankful for everyone and all they bring to our lives. 

As we approach Thanksgiving Day tomorrow remember to tell those you love how much they mean to you, give them a big ole hug….even if they are the “Uncle Eddie” of the family. 

(But if they have a dog named Snots then…I wouldn’t kiss it…

Also remember to wear stretchy pants, because ladies now is not the time to worry about calories!

Also- I’m so thankful to all of you and that you care enough to read my little corner of the Internet! It means so much to me…all your comments show me you care and I’m so thankful that throughout the years I’ve made so many beloved friends through this blog. Thank you.
Well, for me sometimes pictures speak louder than words, so I’m just going to leave you with a few lots of photos of our Thanksgiving together.
My beautiful Mom and I
 My parents
 Grandaddy and my goofy Daddy!

 Oh mercy….the food…..

 The kiddos table
 MY plate. Uhm….

 

May you all have a blessed Thanksgiving 2012!!!

 

And please if you go out shopping….don’t tackle, stab, or bring pepper spray!

A TV marked down $100 bucks just ain’t worth it!

 

Oh!  And a HUGE shout out to Jessica at Diamond Doll Designs for changing up my PAGES and BUTTONS!!!  If you have any blog needs you need to holler at her ASAP!  She is so awesome!

Pre-Thanksgiving with a visit from Mom & Dad

My Mom and Dad drove here from Arkansas Friday night and left this morning….waaaahhhhh!!!!

 

I miss my Mom and Dad so much sometimes.  Mom and I had a great time shopping and talking about life.  We also got to see Breaking Dawn together!  I was so excited about this!  I am a huge Twilight fan (Twi-hard) Fan.  The movie was so good…it was a little surprising at the end because it’s a bit different than the book, but it was SO good!  I’m sad that it’s over, but glad to see it come to life on the big screen.
 
A team divided.
Mom=Team Jacob
Me= Team Edward

 My Daddy got me an eggnog latte 🙂

I love my Dad, he has a heart of gold and is the sweetest person ever.  I love that he and my Mom and been married over 30 years and he still treats HER like gold.  I love them both so very much.  They are the best parents I could have ever prayed for!

My Mom worked so hard on this sparkly green scarf for me to wear.  She made it this weekend while here so I wore it to work this morning.  Someday I want to learn to crochet/knit.

Connor got to take his Bible to church on Sunday….as long as he promised not to tear out any of the pages.  It was nice to have my parents in service with us!  We also celebrated a pre-Thanksgiving at Terence’s parents house Saturday night.  More on that later…but it was great being able to have both our parents there at the same time!  That hardly ever happens if you live in separate states!

 Riding on Poppy’s shoulders 🙂
 We miss you already!!!!
Thank you so much for coming to see us & we will see you soon at Christmas!!!!
WE LOVE YOU!!!!

 

Treat Yourself

Treat is Shutterfly’s exciting new greeting card brand that makes it easy for people to create and send one-of-a-kind greeting cards. Treat cards are perfect for holidays, birthdays, congrats, thank yous and every occasion in between. It’s crazy fun. It’s super easy. And it’s totally personal.

Your holiday checklist just got shorter. Create and send a totally personalized greeting card from Treat for FREE. Whether saying thanks for Thanksgiving, wishing a best friend a holiday birthday, or simply sharing the holiday cheer with a just because card, Treat lets you create a one-of-a-kind card that is sure to impress.
Treat would like to offer one free Treat card to each of you!
{This is good only on Monday 11/19 & Tuesday 11/20}

 

USE CODE : TREATBLOGR

 


California Wine Club

 
A few weeks ago we received a shipment of wine to try from The California Wine Club.  I have to tell you I am very picky about my wine.  I favor white wine, Terence favors red wine.  Luckily we received one of each!  Terence really enjoyed the red wine and I could tell by the empty bottle it must have been good!  I tried the white wine.  It was also very good, not too dry and not too sweet.  The flavor was great and I’m happy to say we enjoyed our first taste of The California Wine Club!

A little bit about California Wine Club:

Since 1990 The California Wine Club has introduced wine enthusiasts to a monthly wine adventure! With four great wine of the month clubs to choose from, we offer a selection of award-winning wine to suit all tastes and all budgets. 
 
Every wine we feature is handcrafted by artisan wineries and guaranteed to delight. Whether you decide to try our most popular wine club, or a wine club specific to collectors, you will receive our guarantee of quality, as well as many other valuable membership benefits.

We are now celebrating 20 years of business and the wine adventures keep getting better! Pam and I knew that there were hundreds of small, family-owned wineries dedicated to producing exceptional wine … and it was this wine that we wanted to share with our monthly wine club members. Each month we travel California’s wine country searching out the wineries, meeting the families and tasting the wines that never make it to local stores or wine shops.

Click here to read about recently featured wineries and the families behind their award-winning wines!

This is why it was so easy to guarantee that our wine of the month club members and gift recipients will never receive any bulk, closeout or private label wines…ever.

Each and every wine we select comes from a real working winery and is backed by our 100% guarantee.
 Enjoying my glass of Sauvignon Blanc.  It was very fresh and crisp!

If you love wine or know someone who does a subscription to California Wine Club would make a great gift this Christmas. 

With four wine of the month clubs to choose from, we have wine selections and wine gifts to suit all tastes and all budgets. To learn more click any of the following links:

I hope you all will check out California Wine Club! 

California Wine Club can be found on:
 
 
 
 
CHEERS!
 
This review was made possible by Mom Spark Media. Thoughts are my own. I received a 2 month Membership to the California Wine Club for the purpose of this review.