Merry Christmas 2011!

From us to you...have a Merry little Christmas, will you?
 
Love,
Aidan, Toad (Emily), Bob & Ethan

Quick Gifts & A Little Peek

{Quick Gifts}
No time to talk, only time to share...

#1) Toad's Easy Owl Pattern. ($3.50) You can download it right now and staple that baby together. Perfect gift for a sewing friend!



#2 Pencil Holders.
Not the kind that your dad's has when he's fixing the sink. This are super cute and so easy you may be able to make them with your eyes closed.  Well, maybe you shouldn't since you may use your hot glue gun.;) Great for anyone who has a pencil or a counter.;)



#3 Easy Apron.

If you have a few more minutes this a fun gift to give...especially when it will be put to good use with all of that holiday cooking!



#4 Wood Block.
Grandma if you're reading this, close your eyes. 

I just made this today.  It required wood, printing out a design on a regular piece of paper (no vinyl used!), and gluing the paper to the wood. 

The quote was my grandma's request.  Yes, she's a sweet, sassy lady!:)



{Ashby Christmas}
And if you're not off to finish those last minute preps, here's peek into our little home. Please excuse the lack of organization...we are in full swing of Christmas and would rather spend our time making hot chocolate and watching Christmas shows than keeping these orderly. 

The boys are at the perfect ages to really soak up the Holidays.  Everything is so fun. IFortunately I only had to apologize once to the Elf on the Shelf for touching him and both kids are on the nice list (at the moment).

If only I could freeze time...





This was our neighbor gift this year...a cookie kit. We baked and then put this together so they could decorate their own cookies! 












Aunt Diane's cookies...


Games and drive through lights with Aunt Diane and family...



Me crafting an apron.  PS Hot glue doesn't quite work as well as a sewing machine when making one of these...but I had to try.;)


A seasonal fave...



Best wishes to you and yours!

Love,
Toad

DIY Winter Trees & Snow!

{DIY: Last minute gift!}
Still running around like a mad woman (or man?).  Keep the kids busy with some fun winter trees and a snowflake garland!

Last minute gift?  Check!

{For more ideas you can check out a little TV segment on the Ch2 (SLC) 5PM news featuring Ethan! (My little snowflake cutting machine.)}


All you need is some cardstock, fabric, scissors, tape, and glue!


If you don't have glittery fabric, no worries! Just grab an old white pillowcase, glitter, and make your own! 


Roll the cardstock into a cone and tape it together.  Trim the edges so that it will stand on its own...


Put your fabric into 1 1/2" strips long enough to wrap around the cone.  As you work your way up the cone the strips will get shorter.



Put the glue along the top of the strip and put it onto the cone.


(Snowflake & Tree Garland)



Cute? Yep. Easy? Super. 

And here's our resident snowflake making expert!  To see Ethan in action you can watch this news clip.



And when I stop running around for 2 seconds I'll post a few more last minute ideas!

The countdown is on!
Toad

From Santa Tags

{Under Cover Elf}
If you have little readers around you may want to have them leave the room for a moment.  You see, your secret about Santa is safe with me...unless you have kids you can read this. 

Two Elf tips:

#1 Use different wrapping paper for "Santa" or some littles my just suspicous.
#2 Use Santa tags that AREN'T in your hand writing.

You can thank me later.;)

I dedicate these tags to my friend Heather...who requested them.;)

Click here or on the tags to download:


{Years Past}
And a little flash back to last year's "neighbor" gift:


And if you need headwear for your shepherds...




{This Year}
Not sure where the last few weeks have gone. I love how the days in December went so slow as a kid. Boy do I miss that!

At least I know what I've been doing on Tuesdays...meeting Heather for lunch at IKEA.  Kids eat free on Tuesday here. (Nice, I know! Just make sure you don't go around 12!) And it was on Tuesday in November that where I heard about IKEA's gingerbread decorating evening.

You sign up, pay $5 bucks, and show up to this...

a mother's dream...the houses where already put together and were all ready to decorate!






Not sure what Ethan is going to bite that house with!:)



I wonder if that's what I look like when I'm intensely working on a creative endeavor...:)


{Grandma Peggy}
We love her. Visiting us for a few days isn't enough.

{And on a sad note, we lost my aunt Carol a few days ago...we loved her.  Its times like these when we realize how truly blessed we really are to have such great people in our lives.  We are also so grateful for Heavenly Father's plan that allows us to see her again. Our thoughts and prayers are with Uncle Jerry and the cousins and their families during this difficult time.}


Not sure what to do about these monkeys!  No, no, the ones on the right people!;) hee,hee


{Winter Waterland}
I decided that swimming is a perfect winter activity.  Don't get me wrong, I'd rather be outside catching some rays, but I can't thank Brandon (our swim instructor) enough for burning a large deal of energy with the boys!  Bedtime is so much easier on swimming lesson days...




And if you missed last year's Christmas Party, well you can see it now. :)  This year has been a little too crazy for that sort of merriment in our home.  More about that later though.



Don't forget to make yourself a nice cup of cocoa, cuddle those loved ones, and watch a fun Christmas show on TV together!

Love,
Your Secret Elfy Emily aka "Toad"
+Emily Ashby

Free Holiday Tags & A Little Plug: Camera Coats

{Camera Coats}
Are you in the full swing of the Holidays? If not, you'd better get on some merry measures...we're talking 2 weeks until Christmas Eve people!  Need some tags?  Hang on until the end of the post and you'll have cute tags a plenty!

I also have a little help for you if you know someone with a standard size SLR.  You know, the "big fancy" cameras that people carry around their necks?

My latest wild venture: Camera Coats! 

And HowDoesShe is having a giveaway for them right now!  You can also get 25% off by using the code: HowDoesShe (Exp Dec 14)


For the somewhat exciting story behind them you can click here.




{Tag-O-Mania!}
The 12 days countdown is right around the corner! Here's some holiday tags that are sure to pep up your gift wrapping! (Click on the tags for the post with the download link. They're free!)


I posted these last year, but who would ever know if you used them this year! I like these gems:




And NEW this year!
These mod ornament tags! I mixed it up a bit with these ones and added some "Made with love by" and "do not open until dec 25" you might like!




Click Here to dowload these darlings!


(Happy Days!)
And what do you say we enjoy every minute of this great season! 

It is after all the most wonderful time of the year!  (Well, beside summer!:)


Love, Toad

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