merry christmas...a few days late!

hoping everyones christmas was sweet and blessed. i have had such a wonderful time with family and thinking about the simplicity of jesus and his message; and his humility, which is part of his glory. 

here are the top ten highlights of my christmas:

1. having time to relax with boo (i am writing this in bed...and he is curled up, asleep, next to me! we live for days like today.)

2. the sweetest worship service on christmas eve...so simple and humble, like Him.

3. playing with my niece and nephew and attacking them with little kisses as much as possible :)

4. movies, movies, movies! at home, at the theatre, at family's houses...(my whole family went on christmas day...then as we were leaving my house at 10 p.m., boo and i spontaneously decided to go to another movie at 10:20) 

5. wrapping presents! i wish i had pictures of them...im pretty pleased with myself. dr. suess/how the grinch stole christmas was my inspiration for my color schemes and adornments!

6. coordinating my gifts for people: i gave my sister in law an adorable pie dish, pie server and pie cookbook. then i gave my niece a plastic pie making kit so she and mommy can bake together :). i also ordered my mom some rare childrens books that she had when she was a little girl...she cried when she opened them!

7. being completely spoiled by boo. he completely spoils me. i dont hate it.

8. a precious friend getting married to a wonderful man...it was a beautiful wedding.

9. my mom's mashed potatoes. enough said.

10. feeling overwhelmingly blessed by the people God has placed in my life...i love sharing my life with others and having them share theirs with me.

what were the highlights of your christmas? do share!!

glitter is my favorite color.

pinterest 

this girl is right...glitter for life! it's a color...it's an attitude. half the things on my christmas list are glittery. i cant help myself. 

ornament craft exchange.

what a wonderful christmasy day today was! jason (boo's brother) and emilee came over and we went out to lunch, then drew names for an ornament exchange. we decided that we wanted to actually make our ornaments, so after lunch, we headed over to hobby lobby and schemed and shopped for supplies for about an hour, then came home to make our ornament for the person we drew! it was so incredibly fun. 

it just so happened that brian and i drew each other and jason and emilee drew each other. i made boo a UK basketball ornament:

boo made me a huge letter "C" with a snow-globe in the middle...it is very princessy and i am very impressed by his creativity :)

jason made emilee a snowman...it looked like something store bought, it was that good!

emilee's ornament for jason was so thoughtful. it looked like a big present and it had ten reasons why she loves jason inside. 

hanging our ornaments on the tree.

how cute :)

maybe we've started a tradition?

christmas decor.

 garland with lights and cinnamon scented pine cones. 

 pottery barn santa mug.

 our living room.

santa boot salt and pepper shakers & various christmas candles.

closeup of the tree.

greenery around the chandelier with sparkly snowflake ornaments and a table runner. 

oh, and christmas music playing allll the time! 

ahhh!! it's december!!!

hi lovlies!


wow, i am so sad that i have not been a consistent reader/blogger. the past few months have been a little crazy ("little" being an understatement here). school has been rough and made complete with more mental/emotional breakdowns than i ever think ive had in a semester (omg, i sound like an idiot...im not crazy, i promise). i feel like i have been stretched a lot these past few months with so many things, but i have found that when i am weak, He is strong! i feel like im in a season of learning what it means to be desperate. when i literally feel that i have nothing in me, i am desperate for Jesus to strengthen me and somehow work through me. He always does!!! this has been amazing to experience in all different areas of my life. it is a tough lesson, but He gets all the glory and i stand in awe of what He can do. 


thanksgiving was a blast. boo's brother who lives in nigeria, along with his wife, and their daughter, came home and surprised us for the holidays this year! the last we had seen them was last thanksgiving and they had been telling us that they had no idea when they were going to be down again, "definitely not any time soon," then voila, they show up and surprise us one sunday and are here until january 3! i am head over heels in love with their little girl, peyton, who is two and a half :)


anyways, i am getting so excited for christmas! the decorations are up and the shopping has been started. i am hoping to get some gifts wrapped this weekend. 


here's a little holiday inspiration for you!

are those cinnamon sticks around those candles? love them and the reindeer :)

ahhh dyyyyying, i love this so much. 

huge hanging ornaments :)

my mom actually got me a few of these santa mugs from pottery barn! they're on display around our living room.

"we elves like to stick to the four main food groups: candy, candy canes, candy corns, and syrup." okay, guess what movie has been on a lot in our house ;)

all photos via pinterest. 

2011.

happy 2011 y'all. the holidays have been amazing--i have caught up with precious friends, went to the movies about a million times, spent quality time with family, and have slept very, very soundly.

our first christmas as mr. and mrs. munafo was very sweet. we woke up christmas eve morning and dashed downstairs like kids to get into our stockings and exchange gifts. to my shock and surprise i opened up a new macbook pro and a pink case to protect it. my wonderful husband made some sacrifices to provide this for me and i still cannot believe it!

i go back to school on monday (break has gone by much too quickly) and will probably not post anything until after. hope everyone is having a beautiful 2011 so far.

christmas eve morning coffee!

five days.

i am loving this week! our savior/bridegroom/best friend's birthday is in five days!

 this year we are spending christmas eve & christmas morning with my side of the family and then driving to kenucky, christmas afternoon, to have christmas dinner with brian's side of the family. we started a tradition last year where we each contribute something to christmas eve dinner, which we eat after our church's christmas eve service. my dad always makes steak, and the rest of the family has to draw between an appetizer, two side items, a salad, and a dessert. we drew tonight and brian and i will be making a side item. we dont know what we'll make yet, but we are thinking! 

since this is brian and i's first christmas as husband and wife, we want to have something special for just the two of us. so on christmas eve, we will wake up, in our own house, and i will make a spectacular breakfast. im thinking of taking a stab at this cinnamon baked french toast, courtesy of the pioneer woman. 

yessss, doesn't that look incredible? after breakfast, we'll exchange gifts and stockings and hang around for a little before we go to my parents. my aunt and cousins from denver will be here to celebrate with my family as well! it is always such a treat to see them. 

i received my first christmas gift a little early...saw yesterday that i got all a's this semester! (one was technically an a- which is weighted differently, but it's still an a in my book!)   

we have been singing christmas songs for worship during church and veritas the past few weeks and i love it. some of the lyrics are powerful. i love this part in o holy night:

Truly He taught us to love one another,
His law is love and His gospel is peace.
Chains he shall break, for the slave is our brother.
And in his name all oppression shall cease.
Sweet hymns of joy in grateful chorus raise we,
Let all within us praise His holy name.
Christ is the Lord! Then ever, ever praise we,
His power and glory ever more proclaim!

i love that. jesus, your birth changed everything. 

and here's a sweet little picture from our most recent date night out. awww :)

our first christmas decorations.

our first christmas tree. i am excited to start collecting ornaments 

and decorations over the years to come!

christmas decorating tip: hang ornaments from your chandeliers. 

these gold snowflakes work great in my kitchen and i may

 even leave them up all winter.

mint chocolate

 a wonderful christmas baking idea...mint chip brownies or mint chocolate cookies...yum!

unique christmas gifts for $15 or less.

i absolutely love giving unique & meaningful gifts. i have so much fun with the thought and creativity that goes into it. when christmas comes, i want to go crazy. so, i decided to make a budget friendly list of wonderful gifts that i have given or would like to give at some point. these will look great under the tree, passed out at a christmas party, or stuffed in a stocking. be inspired & enjoy!

for the married couple: 

 

mr. & mrs. monogrammed mugs. -anthropologie

$12 for set of two

for the caffeine lover: 

 

woodland hive engraved spoons $13 for a set

...or engraved spoons from sycamore hill $12.50-$13.50 each

for anyone full of personality, young & old:

little miss & mr. books...there's one for everyone! these make funny gifts and work for kids and adults. i found some at barnes & noble for under $5 each

and remember, you can get creative and make your own gifts:

1. put together a sampler. purchase five to six sample sizes of anything (coffee packets, tea bags, hot chocolate packets, candy, soda, perfume, nail polish...you can literally do anything) and place in an appropriately sized basket. decorate with ribbons and bows. 

2. frame a meaningful photo

3. purchase a holiday plate, like this cute one, and put homemade cookies or candy on top. 

...the list is endless

remember to have fun with the gift wrapping! :)

cozy

so cozy.