christmas! santa and one year old owen. hee hee.
i think owen told him he'd been good which was not really the whole truth.
hee hee he.
i had to put my knitting needles down so i could begin wrapping...
here are some bags i made. this works really nicely in place of paper and tape, and can be reused year after year (the cylinder is an old oatmeal container with paper around it)
i bought a flannel sheet, the unfitted kind, and cut it up. then i sewed some sacks with drawstrings (adding a simple casing) some just have soft twill tape attached to the outside. it doesn't take much time, and the kids seemed to like them a lot. be sure to make extras because sometimes they go home with the gift.
the tags are recycled and reused too, these are made from cardboard boxes...
i'm sure the kids don't mind that i say the same thing year after year...
it's been raining, a new storm is here, it makes everything feel cozier inside...
here is an ornament i won at a christmas party on wednesday. have you ever been a part of an ornament exchange? it's fun to play. we lucked out when we drew a number, we got the last one! i couldn't decide so chuck chose this bird for me.
i love this vintage handmade tree (it's so dark outside with this storm, i'm having trouble getting photos for this post)
our nativity, waiting for the blessed birth
my space (the cleaned up part) looks like the weather might be clearing up (it didn't).
tomorrow this one, my youngest, is turning 20. happy birthday dear hannah rose. have a wonderful birthday in nyc, on your own, for the first time on december 19th...sniff...tear...happy sad.
thank you for taking the time to visit, go safely through the rain, snow or heat this festive season, and...
merry christmas & happy holidays everyone, from our home to yours ~ we wish you peace joy and much love.
♥ lori
Dear Lori,
ReplyDeleteEverything you do is made with so much love ....
My favorite holiday parties are ornament exchanges ... I have so many from years and parties gone by. Merry Christmas to you .. and to your lovely family.
Helen
Lori - you are so clever. I love the idea of the bags and tags instead of wrapping that just gets thrown out. and your place looks beautiful witht he storm raging outside. What is an ornament exchange?
ReplyDeletethe bird is very cool - good choice.
hehehe Owen and Santa :):):)
and happy birthday Hannah Rose!
xxx
Happy birthday, Hannah and Mammah! It is always the mom who should be congratulated, because SHE had all the work! And the fun, and the wet little kisses and the worries and the left-over popcorn and I could go on forever. All the family Christmases, too! We`ll have our first one alone, too. Lovely, actually. I just sent you a picture of Owen in the snow! Show it to the real one, he`ll make big eyes! Love from a place of -10°C!
ReplyDeleteLori, I love the pic of Owen with Santa, made me have a good laugh! Happy birthday to your gorgeous grown up girl, hope she has a lovely safe and happy birthday, and the lovely memories of her warm your heart on this special day. We are doing fabric drawstring bags this christmas too, such a nice alternative to the masses of wasted paper.
ReplyDeleteLori, this post filled me with all sorts of holiday cheer! First, that Santa with Owen cracked me up! hee hee! Your house is just lovely. The idea for the bags is brilliant. We have a wonderful recycling program in the county I live in - they even recycle Christmas trees into mulch! But if I ever live somewhere that doesn't, I will remember this. Happy birthday to your sweet girl! You done good, mama! xox Pam
ReplyDeleteYou are so freakin' creative - I had a "duh" moment when I saw the oatmeal holder as I just THREW one out!!! and I love the flannel sheet gift bags. Happy Christmas to you all
ReplyDeleteI love how you think of every way to conserve and reuse. I love the wrap idea and the oatmeal box.
ReplyDeleteI actually try to unwrap my gifts carefully and fold the paper to be used again. People will often get "wrinkled" gifts from me because of reused wrap! I actually have a friend who does the same thing except she irons the paper!!! Sheesh.
Is Santa choking Owen for any particular reason ;)
Your holiday touches are charming and heartwarming.
Happy Birthday Hannah Rose♥!
Holiday blessings Lori Ann :)
xo
Lo♥
Love you Lori♥
ReplyDeleteHave a Blessed Christmas.
Lori - a Christmas post. I love your wasteless wrapping. That too is always my goal. Last year I used cloth bags I made years ago (still living on) and tea towels as wrapping secured with safety pins. The pins were a hit. Usually here we wish for a white Christmas however in this case I will wish you a green Christmas! I know how much you must be missing your baby girl. Will she make it home for Christmas? Kidlet just arrived and the house is alive once again. Hugs and warm wishes to you.
ReplyDeleteYour home looks lovely and cheery! Cloth bags keep popping up on my...have been wanting to make the switch for awhile, will need to do it soon.
ReplyDeleteHappy, Happy Holidays to you!
My little girl had her first sleep over ever last night..my how fast it all goes!
The reuseable bags are fabulous!
ReplyDeleteVery christmassy your way.
The bird is lovely
Have a fabulous festive season
xxxxx
Lori, how very smart you are! I love the bags and tags! Your house is decorated so lovely. But most, most of all I love that Owen! What a doll!
ReplyDeleteHappy,happy holidays to you and your family! And Happy Birthday to Hannah!
xoxo
Hello Lori, wonderful ideas and it all looks so lovely. Happy birthday to your daughter. I wish her a nice birthday in New York City. A merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you and your family. Have a nice season, Inge
ReplyDeleteThat picture with Owen and Santa made me crack up!! Omg.... your ideas are terrific!! I also love that little vintage tree.
ReplyDeleteI hope that you and your family have a wonderful holiday season, Lori!! See you in the new year!! xoxo
dear helen,
ReplyDeleteoh thank you so much, i appreciate all your kind words. the ornaments are so special aren't they? each one has a story. merry merry christmas to you and yours ♥
lori
dear val,
ReplyDeletestill thrilled over the giraffes- best gift ever.
thank you so much for your kind words, and i'll tell hannah.
an ornament exchange is where each person (or couple) brings an ornament to a party. they are all placed on a table and then everyone draws a number. the first person chooses from the wrapped pile. the second person gets to choose from the pile or gets to take the one (if he likes it) from the first person. and it goes on. it's good to put a limit on how many times an ornament can be "stolen" from another person. It can be funny, but also competitive. When everyone wants the same ornament. we were lucky since we had the last number, we had so many to choose from!
Merry Christmas Val & K xxx
dear geli,
ReplyDeletehaha! owen in the snow, it does really look like him too. it's raining here (going on day 3 of constant rain) and he is a little afraid of it. i imagine snow is quiet when it falls.
i'll tell hannah, hard to believe i have a 20 year old baby, it was like yesterday she was one.
merry christmas Geli & Hans and family! xxx
dear bec,
ReplyDeletethank you so much, when i see your little ones it takes me back like it was yesterday. it's so lovely how you enjoy all your moments with your family right now, and someday, when the children are grown and flown the nest, you can look back and smile (sometimes with a little tear, but at least a happy one).
and great job with the bags!
merry christmas dear bec, to you and yours!
dear pam,
ReplyDeletethanks! xx i'll tell hannah.
it's great you have a good recycling program there, every bit helps! enjoy this wonderful time of year, so glad your feeling better!
merry christmas! xxx
dear mim,
ReplyDeletenow i have to ask for those containers from friends and neighbors since we buy our oatmeal in bulk and bring our own container. the oatmeal box is perfect since it disguses the contents from small (or large) package shakers and squishers! haha
merry christmas!
dear lo,
ReplyDeleteah thank you for the sweet wishes, i'm going to see if hannah can read them herself, so much kindess.
haha, owen. he was such a good boy, and santa (the pet shop owner) is the kindest man in town and loves animals. santa kept hugging owen and owen kept smiling and hardly even wriggled!
i used to do the same with the paper, but the problem for me is having such a large family and they are not as careful. the paper would be shredded! luckily they loved the bags and so they are here to stay!
stay warm dear and Merry christmas!
xxx
dear janis,
ReplyDeleteyou too my friend ♥
dear lyn,
ReplyDeletei do remember that! it was a really clever idea that i may have to borrow. tea towels is brilliant.
i'm not supposed to say, but a little bird mentioned that my nest will be full again on christmas ♥
merry christmas to you and yours!
dear diana,
ReplyDeletein the mere blink of an eye, from diapers to downtown. sheesh! i know you live in the very moment so keep on enjoying these days with your little one.
merry christmas!
dear janet,
ReplyDeletewe will indeed and you too, how ever you choose. i love that now my children are grown the focus is off the gifts and now about being together.
merry christmas xxxx
dear annie,
ReplyDeletethank you! such lovely words, hug hug hug! a secret...owen has a little gift from santa under the tree. hee hee.
merry christmas dear!
xxx
dear inge,
ReplyDeletethank you so much, i wish the same to you. and i hope your staying warm there in all the snow!
merry christmas! happy holidays!
dear manon,
ReplyDeletethank you! i'm hoping the same for you and your family. will your girl be home?
take good care and merry christmas!
hello darling friend, the oatmeal box took the proverbial cake! what an obvious & awesome idea i never for a minute thought of!
ReplyDeletethen there's your tags. super duper.
and the gift bags. soft and fuzzy warm before even getting to the present.
but most of all, know what i love most of all, lori? it's seeing your space, knowing that you live in an open breezy creative sacred place, you and your needles and owen and your family and sometimes a bing-bang text or ring-a-ling from a friend who thinks you are quite the cat's meow
:)
Rain, rain, here to stay. *sigh*
ReplyDeleteHappy Birthday to one beautiful Hannah Rose! I hope she had a good one.
AWWW! Owen sure looks HAPPY!
And oh wow, Lori. Gift bags! That's a new and absolutely brilliant idea! Wrapping is a snap, and no messy bags of shredded paper on Christmas morning. I'm not sure they'd keep the prying eyes in this house out, though. Hehehehe.
Have a very merry and warm Christmas, you and your family all.
xoxo
jeeez, is it that time of year already?
ReplyDeleteYour space looks like heaven!
ReplyDeleteGlad Hannah is coming home :)
I have sent your mandala your way today.
It is so nice coming here and just seeing all these beautiful inspiring pictures and YES!!!!!! a picture of Owen. I was waiting for that!
Enjoy your week dear♥
i always get the best ideas from your blog and will never look at another oatmeal box the same way! ;-)
ReplyDeletelove all your creative ideas, the foto of owen with santa and those precious baby fotos of hannah -- happy happy day to her!! your baby is 20?!!? can it be?? god bless her and i'm wishing you will be seeing her soon - and the rest of your lovely brood.
Love to you lori, and may your holidays be filled with warmth, love and joy♡♡
Merry Christmas and happy holidays to you too, Lori! Your home always looks so loving and inviting... I hope you stay safe and dry in these storms and that you celebrate with all the warmth of your family around you.
ReplyDeleteSo much love,
Tracy
dear kj,
ReplyDeleteyay! more oatmeal box love. I'm so happy you like my idea. and thank you always dear kj, for your kindest of kind words. you are a super sf. :)
dear bella,
oh you are so right, i would not put those bags out either! here we wait for santa so no one has a chance to peek!
this rain is too much! giant trees are falling right over! eek.
dear kid,
yep!
dear marianne,
thank you! i'll be peeking in the mailbox twice a day now! so exciting. yes, christmas just became 10 thousand times better (my girl). i'm so happy.
dear amanda,
yes, it's incredible for me to believe, my baby 20. i know you know this feeling too. when i look at those photos (which stay in my dayplanner) that's how old she still is to me.
thank you so much for the christmas card, i love it!
dear tracy,
xoxo those are the best wishes and i hope the same for you. love and big hugs.
PS Forgot to tell you that I just love that picture of that nighttable with that tree and Kuan Yin! WOW!
ReplyDeleteMerry Christmas Lori. ♥
ReplyDeletewv = sante