Decorating, Outside Edition

Young Adult Progressive Dinner

Friday night, our young adult group at church had a progressive dinner.  We had delicious appetizers at Britt's house, followed  by a great chicken entree at the Shiedler's house, and had desserts and did a white elephant gift exchange at our house.  We had a great time!

We love having our fireplace on during the holidays!

The torte, whipped cream, gingerbread, and egg nog

Ready for our guests!

Youthville

This year, Kevin and I decided to participate in the Youthville Christmas ornament program.  Children in foster homes make lists of things they would like for Christmas, and the lists are put on ornaments.  We chose an 11 year old girl (almost the same age as Kevin's sisters).  We had such a wonderful time picking out the gifts from her list!

They included:

A bike

photo courtesy of Target.com

Build-a-Bear clothes    

photos courtesy of buildabear.com

We hope she has a wonderful Christmas!

Christmas in my Office

Can I just say, I love working at a Christian institution.  There are many perks, and one of my favorites is decorating my office with not just holiday items, but Christmas items. 

 My tree! We have enough artificial trees at TCW for everyone to have one in our offices.  I picked the purple ornaments - I can still show my Alma mater colors at another higher ed institution...just in small ways.

My Advent calendar - I enjoy opening a new box every morning. It's sort of my brief morning devotion, and it always puts a smile on my face.  

 

Christmas Decorations 2010

We trimmed the tree! The nativity is out! The stockings are hung! It's looking like Christmas at the Reynolds' house!

We love our tree!  We have many ornaments that we've collected together since we first started dating. Every year, we get at least one new ornament (usually two or three, though), and we get sentimental ones for special occasions, too. 

Our First Christmas Ornament from last year

Our fireplace

Merry Christmas!

Oh Christmas Tree, Oh Christmas Tree

 This Saturday, Kevin and I picked out our Christmas tree!  We ventured to Prairie Pines, and we had a great time finding our tree!

 The horses took everyone out to the different fields. 

 We found the perfect tree!  Instead of waiting for the wagons to come back, my dad (who came with his truck to help us bring our tree home since we both have cars) and Kevin decided to just walk it back to the store.

 I loved the horses! So pretty

 This chandelier was really fun!

All in all, we really enjoyed Prairie Pines.  We will likely make this a tradition every year, especially once we have children. And, we LOVE our tree! It's a Virginian pine, and our entire house smells so wonderful!

A few of my favorite things

This post was inspired by Oprah, although I do apologize that no one reading this will receive any of these gifts, at least not from me.  However, in case anyone is still searching for Christmas ideas, here are some items that I am in love with, many that have multiple uses. I apologize if this seems silly or self-indulgent, but I thought it would be fun.  I would love to hear what other people consider to be their top items!

1.  Portable Corningware (casserole dish with plastic cover, carrying case)- Love not worrying about food spilling in the car on our way to gatherings.  It also comes with a heating/cooling insert, which I am embarrassed to admit doubles as an ice/heat pack for my neck sometimes...don't worry, it doesn't come in direct contact with me or the food. :)

 2.  Crate and Barrel Miranda Trifle Dish - Works as a centerpiece for our island, but we also use it as a "trash bowl" inspired by Rachael Ray with a clear vegetable bag. 

3. L.L. Bean Boat and Tote Bag with zipper top - I love this bag for work.  I can stuff my lunch bag, purse, papers, calendar, etc. in it, and I don't have to carry a luggage-sized purse.  Kevin gave it to me as a gift for my birthday right before our wedding, and it was so special because it had my new initials (DLR) on it. 

4.  Pure Beech Jersey Knit and Sateen sheets - They are so soft, and the colors they come in are great.  We have sets for our bed and our guest bed, and they wear well.

5.  Pampered Chef bamboo cooking utensils - They are dishwasher safe, and work with our nonstick and hard-anodized pieces.  We've had them since our wedding, and we hardly use anything else!

6.  Dyson Ball Animal Vacuum - I am distressed/intrigued every time I vacuum because I see how much pet hair is shed for a supposedly moderate-shed dog.  It really picks up the hair.

7. Tupperware Stuffables, Crystal Wave, and Modular Mates - Kevin and I both take our lunches everyday, so we love the Stuffables for odd sized leftovers and Crystal Wave for soups and messy leftovers.  The modular mates really helped us organize our pantry.  Remember this?

8.  Mary Kay tinted moisturizer with SPF 20 - I wear it underneath my normal foundation during the week, and it saves time because it moisturizes and allows my foundation to cover better.  

9.  Small portable air compressor - SERIOUSLY! I had a leaky tire for about a month (yes, Dad, I know I should have gotten it taken care of sooner), and this was so great to have because whenever my low tire pressure light came on in my car, I could fill it up at home.  Of course, Kevin had to teach me initially how to use it and use a tire pressure gage, but I have done it on my own since then.  I do find it ironic that this was a gift to Kevin from my parents last year, and I have used it many more times than he has. :)

10. Gap Long and Lean Jeans - Enough said! :)

11.  Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University course - We finished it at our church over a year ago, and we still follow all of his guidelines, even the envelope system.  It can be a pain at times, but it really works for us.

12.  Rum Raisin WoodWick Candle - Holiday in a jar