27
Dec

Christmas Joy 2010!

We have had a wonderful holiday season this year and I hope you have as well! We had an extended Christmas celebration starting the weekend before the official holiday with a visit from my mom and her husband, Allen for what we called "mini-Christmas".  We then spent the rest of the holiday with our immediate family and my in-laws. Here are some pictures taken over the last several weeks of our Christmas: Christmas Joy 2010Mom and the girls did some holiday baking.  They made our traditional breakfast pastry called Swedish Tea Logs.  We have had these every year … continue reading

27
Dec

BlogHer.com – { What’s it all about? }

This is a compensated review by BlogHer.If you've visited my blog, The Cottage Home (or many other blogs), I'm sure you've noticed the advertising in my side-bar.  I am part of the BlogHer Publishing Network and I thought I would take a minute to tell you a little bit more about BlogHer.com.Aside from being a wonderful publishing network, BlogHer.com is the web's leading guide to the hottest news and trends among women in social media.  There are 75 contributing editors posting about a variety of different topics such as food, family, life and many more, all … continue reading

22
Dec

Merry Christmas from The Cottage Mama

Merry ChristmasI just wanted to wish you all a very Merry Christmas from my family to yours.  I'm going to be shutting down the computer and focusing my time on my dear husband and sweet little girls through Christmas.  I hope you have a very happy holiday.  I can't thank you enough for reading my blog, The Cottage Home.  You guys make this a truly rewarding and fulfilling experience.  Thank you so much and God bless! … continue reading

21
Dec

Felted Fingerless Glove Tutorial

I wanted to share my Felted Fingerless Glove tutorial with you this week because Christmas is practically upon us and I think this is a great last-minute gift idea.I don't know if you remember this post on felting wool, but I felted SO many sweaters that I am up to my neck with felted wool in my house.  I pulled out my gazillion felted sweaters for another project (to be shared next week), stuck my hand inside the arm of one of the sweaters and thought, "ah, ha!"......Felted Fingerless Gloves!  I had also seen Shannon's "Comfy Wrist-Warmer Tutorial" recently so I … continue reading

20
Dec

Time for Me: Part 4 – Accessories and enter to win $100 Visa gift card

For the last three weeks, I have been focusing on spending a little more time on me.  Being the mom of two little ones (16 months) and (2.5 years), staying at home and maintaining our home, running my own children’s clothing business and blogging doesn’t leave me a whole lot of time for me.  But I think it’s important – why do we women always seem to put ourselves last?This is my final post in my “Time for Me” series.Click HERE to read more and check out my round-up of fun accessories tutorials as well as enter to win another $100 Visa gift card.  … continue reading

18
Dec

It’s Christmas Time at The Cottage Home

I just thought I would share a few pictures of some Christmas things going on over at our house.Here's are cute little Christmas tree that we cut down a few weeks ago.  It's all decorated and ready for Santa to make his grand entrance! Our fireplace mantal.  I like to incorporate holiday decor in with our regular decorations.  My mom made these stockings for our whole family.  My mom's grandmother (my great-grandmother) made a stocking for her that is very similar, then my mom made stockings for our family when we were little, and then she made all the stockings … continue reading

16
Dec

$100 Visa Gift Card Winner – Time for Me: Part 2

 Congratulations!And the winner of the Time for Me: Part 2 $100 Visa gift card is...............#41Please email me ([email protected]) with your contact information so we can get you your gift card.  Again, congratulations!There are still two more $100 gift cards to giveaway.  If you haven't entered the Part 3 giveaway, click HERE to enter to win. … continue reading

16
Dec

Gifts for Guys: Boxy Dopp Kit Tutorial

In case you missed my guest post on Kojo Designs "Gifts for Guys" series, here is my tutorial for a men's toiletry kit (aka Dopp Kit or Shaving Kit). I find guys to be the hardest people to buy for when it comes to gifts.  I made a commitment this year to only give handmade gifts so coming up with gifts for guys has been taken to a whole new level. My husband has had his Dopp Kit since he was 13 years old, yes that's right, 13!!!  It is definitely in a sad state right now, so I decided it was time to make him a new one.  A Dopp kit is also known as a shaving … continue reading

15
Dec

Buckeyes: Chocolate Covered Peanut Butter Balls

About a week ago on The Cottage Mama facebook page I had posed the question "What was everyone's favorite holiday cookie?".  Well, my husband was the first to chime in and said "Buckeyes"! And though I had not anticipated on him participating in our daily facebook chatter, I knew that I better get on top of making him his most favorite Christmas cookie!BuckeyesChocolate Covered Peanut Butter Balls25-30 individual ballsIngredients:1.5 cups creamy peanut butter1 cup butter, softened1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract6 cups powdered sugar4 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips1 … continue reading

14
Dec

Sugar Pop Charm Square Quilt

I am not a quilter.  Seriously.  I have made one other quilt in my life.  It was a pretty elaborate quilt for my daughter Savannah's big girl room from designer Heather Bailey's "Freshcut" line.  I spent so much time piecing the top of this twin-size quilt that I decided I didn't need to mess it up with the quilting, so I sent it out to be machine quilted by a professional.I have seen a lot of quilting popping up during this holiday season and was inspired by Anna's "Sherbert Pips Quilt" she made for her daughter and Rae's most recent "Storytime Squares Quilt".   … continue reading