Merry Christmas from The Monogrammed Home!

I want to take a moment on this Christmas Eve afternoon to wish you a Merry Christmas! I hope your Christmas is full of family, laughter, food, and celebrating the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ!

I’m sitting here uploading photos to clear off some memory cards, about to make a batch of cookies to leave out for Santa tonight, and waiting on my husband to get home with a new washer. (Our washing machine broke on Christmas Eve. Great timing, right?!) I’ve been incredibly frustrated this morning, but I’m choosing joy now. All of our Christmas decorations are not out, but I’m in a warm house with my little boys, puppy dog (she’s 7, but she’ll always be our puppy.), and my husband almost home. I have the means to go to the grocery store in a bit, and I’m going to smile through the crowds. Things could be so much worse, and I’m especially reminded that there are 27 families in Connecticut that would give anything to be dealing with only a broken washing machine today.

May your last week of 2012 be filled with choosing joy! I look forward to blogging more in the new year. Merry Christmas!!

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Hot Hot Java

Did you sing the post title to the tune of “Hot hot chocolate” from The Polar Express? Am the only one that can’t hear the word hot twice in a row without bursting into that song? Well, I just thought I’d show y’all (yes, I’m southern.) the quick little coffee station I put together in our kitchen. I’ve loved the hot chocolate bar ideas on Pinterest for some time, but I didn’t want something so elaborate as most of them.

Coffee Station {The Monogrammed Home}

I moved our coffee pot to this small counter beside our fridge, & then I stood in my kitchen looking around (literally, I kind of went in circles a few times.) for containers to store the coffee, sugar, & peppermint marshmallows. The marshmallow jar is from the Dollar Tree! I love that style of jars, but they’re so expensive at specialty stores. The porcelain jars that look like cans are from West Elm clearance last year. One of the tabs broke in shipment, & I’ve glued it once. Need to do that again. The large one is coffee, & the small one is sugar. The silver tray they are on is from The Dollar Tree. My DIY chalkboard is another Dollar Tree tray (I actually found this one at Goodwill.) that I spray painted with chalkboard paint. I may have stood over there admiring the setup this morning for an abnormally long time… It does look even prettier in the light of day!

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6 of One, Half a Dozen of Another

Six months that is. 2 posts in 2012? Oh yeah, super mom rocking life over here! Go ahead, I’ll pause while you applaud.

*bows*

You are just too kind. I’m blushing here. Or maybe that’s just the result of the most recent scene of Matthew & Mary on Downton Abbey. Anyway. I have thought of a hundred post topics in the past 6 months, but I keep waiting for the time to make my blog perfect. Hello, Type A personality! So, as with my most recent “project” of reorganizing a few kitchen cabinets that I dove right into (and still have about 1/4 of it decorating my counter tops – There will be before & afters…although maybe not before of the counters; that might be crossing the line.) I’m diving right into this blog. It’ll be hit or miss, because life happens.

I thought I’d start my first “real” post with a free printable. I remember the days pre-Pinterest (do you?) when I would scour the internet for free printables. There’s nothing quite like finding the exact type of printable you’re looking for on an obscure blog. So, I’ll be your obscure. You can lean on me. Unless you didn’t shower and use deodorant. Then you’ll just have to print your free printable and be on your merry way. Okay? Good.

This printable isn’t anything too fancy.  Just a simple Bible verse that I’m going to work on memorizing with my 2 & 4 year old this month. I’m adding it to our growing wall that is the current home to our magnetic chalkboard chore chart. We’re just getting used to the chart for now, and some of their “chores” are things they do daily anyway. Routine & consistency! I’m planning to do a memory verse each month with my boys beginning with this month. I can just swap out the new printable verse from the frame each month, and it’s right in our kitchen by the entrance from the garage. In other words, we’ll pass by it daily for an easy reminder and chance to practice it together!

A few disclaimers – the chore chart isn’t hung straight. The level was MIA when I went to hang it, and I was impatient. I’ll fix it. Someday. The lighting in this nook is far from ideal, and there’s really no great way to get a good shot. The adorable chore magnets are from this shop on Etsy. I love them, and I’m going to be placing another order in the near future for some duplicates of some of the chores we have. She has some other great items too. The frame is from IKEA. I love their frames! It’s a 4×6, and that’s the size I designed the printable. Isn’t it great how that worked out?!

Click on the photo below to get your printable! Right click, and save it. Then print away! Please share this with your friends. And feel free to pin it on Pinterest. If you decide to print it and display it in your home, would you let me know? I’d love to hear that someone else enjoyed this during the Christmas season! If you share it on your blog, comment & link back to me please. Thank you!

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