Bouyant~

Do you have someone in your life who makes you feel lighter? carefree? bouyant? I'm lucky enough to have someone like that.

My sister.

Amazing that sometimes we are lucky enough to be given a best friend...to grow up with one...to have that person be a part of our lives through birth and by choice.

That's my sister and me...

When we're together, we act a little younger...laugh a little more...cry sometimes...she is someone who really understands me...who understands the inner-workings of my brain...and loves me despite it all. She understands me in a different way even than the hubby does (and he knows me better than I know myself)...because she and I are very much the same person...like twins...with a few years between us.

I can never express my thanks enough for the gift God has given me in her.

But I'll never stop trying.

(Our matching bracelets from DownEast Outfitters...buy one get one free...just thought you'd like to know.)

Simplicity - A Guest Post by Kasey of Lola B's~

For those of you who have never met my dear friend Kasey, you are in for a treat. She is amazingly stylish with a FABULOUS home. And if you don't know already, you will soon find out that she has a hilarious tongue-in-cheek sense of humor. In fact, since I am not funny at all, you may read this post, visit her blog, and never come back. Please come back. Please.

Hello there. I'm the one in the picture above ....you might know me...you might not....

i am a married mother of three kids...

though sometimes i think they aren't really mine..or better yet...

i will pretend that they are not mine...and wait for someone to raise their hand to claim my

children...

but that's never happened...

so here we are....

and i still have three children. Don't get me wrong though...i desperately love my

wee one's..

but a girl's got to admit...

life in my house is not full of cherries...

you end up with a lot of pits sitting around.

hold on....

wait a minute...

i don't even think i introduced myself properly...

and here i am...

totally opening up my can of worms to you...

and you might not even know who i am.

My name is Allison and i live outside of chicago...

grrr....

you got me....my name isn't really Allison...

it's Kasey.....but the truth is...

my parents almost named me allison...

so i have every right to use that name...

sheesh....

once again i am so off track....

but that's me..

and wendy kindly asked me to pop over here and

do a little guest post.

I hope she approves...

otherwise...

well....

i know the first names of her children...and they are definitely

not called #1, #2, #3, and #4 in her house.




The first thing i thought when wendy asked me to be a guest on her lovely blog..is what the heck am i going to chat about...

because wendy is the all knowing..

the all creative...

and she knows how to sew....

with a needle and thread...

yup...

not me...

i don't have an ounce of creativity in me..

let alone...

do i know how to thread a needle..

but..what i can do, is style my home.

that i know.






So, with the holidays right around the corner...i just thought i would share with you some really simple...

ways to freshen up a room with a minimalistic look.

One thing you won't find in my home are the ever popular

red and greens.

nope.

not here.

I love grey...i love cream...

and i love simple.





I also love the idea of simple ways to give a gift....especially if you are like me..

and on a total budget this season.

no wrapping paper in sight.

Use a simple brown kraft box....some twine...and a hand stamped tag to pull it all together.

I actually got these tags from Etsy....and you can find them {here }.






Right now i'm really into a clean natural look in my home....and a good way to bring

the word natural in...is by really bringing it in.

yes....

what you see is a branch....

and i am using it as a curtain rod...

and it hangs on some crown hooks.

You don't have to worry...

i did let my kids play with the stick first...

and once i made sure there were no

bugs or foreign creepy crawly things on it..

i brought it in and

voila...

a totally free curtain rod....

ahem

it made up for the price i paid for the french curtain.










And here is the twine again....

i used it to tie the curtain back....

so easy and once again...

a bargain.

which is my middle name in case you were wondering....

but don't get it confused with

the town in the south of france called

bargein.








It's been a pleasure chatting with you...and letting you see just a few things i've done.




xo




So didn't I tell you she has fabulous style? Thanks for stopping by today, Kasey!!

Coming up this week: A glittery Christmas project

A Christmas family tree

Have a great day~

Bloggy Friends~

Another highlight of my vacation was getting to meet me sweet bloggy friend Kasey!!

Photo by the Hubby

From the minute we pulled up to her house, it's like we were old friends, hugging and chatting away! And let me tell you all, she is just as charming in person as she is on her blog. And her house....Oh, her house! That girl has sttyyyyyllllle! She warned me that her house was in "less than pristine" condition because it's summer and the kids were home...hmm...I think I know a thing or two about that. Four kids....home all day...my house isn't exactly pristine. I can overlook a little kid clutter. But, pristine or not, (and it really wasn't bad, Kasey, seriously) her house was gorgeous!

She is a gracious hostess...and so funny! She even fed us. And my poor kiddos who were so sick of driving that they couldn't see straight, got to spend a great couple of hours playing with her cute kiddos...they were all fast friends!



A few weeks back, I won a drawing on her blog, and since she knew we'd be stopping by, she saved my goodies for me. What a treat! Fun stuff from her shop!

Here's just a peek of some of the fun things I got from her! THANKS KASEY!

If you've never been by Kasey's blog, pay her a visit. You can thank me later!

xoxo

Wendy @ The Shabby Nest

Winner Winner Chicken Dinner~

Before I tell you all who won the drawing for the $25 RHBDesigns' gift certificate, I have to give a shout out to my good bloggy friend Stacy at 19 Butternut. When she found out how much I wanted one of these coveted shower curtains...

She sent me one! What a great friend. Wait to you all see what I do with it! THANKS STACY!!! Isn't blogland wonderful??

And now on to the business of the day... the winner of the gift certificate (as chosen by Random.org) is...

Jennifer who said "I think Etsy is a wonderful way for talented women to offer their beautiful creations. Thanks for hosting such a fun giveaway."

Jennifer...you didn't leave me any contact info, so please leave a comment or send me an email, and I will get you in touch with Rosalynn.

Have a great Monday~