2012: a year in review

Every single day, with every “like” and sweet comment you leave, I am floored and flattered that you find my little blog interesting/amusing/inspirational. 2012 was obviously a big year for the sole fact that I put ~~pen to paper~~, errr, cursor to text box and started sharing my ramblings with you. And you read them! So, thank you, dear readers. I hope 2013 has a lot of great things in store — I know I have a lot I’d like to share! I hope you’ll join me 🙂

I hope this doesn’t come across as self-serving, but I wanted to post a little summary of my “annual report” from WordPress:

600 people reached the top of Mt. Everest in 2012. This blog got about 5,800 views in 2012. If every person who reached the top of Mt. Everest viewed this blog, it would have taken 10 years to get that many views.

I’m not going to do a full 2012 recap, but I will give you the montage version of my most-viewed posts:

#1. My Holiday Ornament Wreath, crafted for the Fall Pinterest Challenge

#2. Weekly Wishlist: Watercolor Art by Jessica Durrant

#3. Autumn Mantel Makeover

#4. Autumn Subway Canvas

#4. Weekly Wishlist: Enamored with Hammered Metal

Thanks for reading, liking, commenting, and coming back for seconds!

A Hoot of a Handmade Gift

I originally wanted to post these for the Dare to DIY: Give Homemade challenge, but I didn’t want the recipients to see them before they received their gifts!

I saw a pin on Pinterest a while back for homemade fabric owls, and I thought they were cute as can be. So, with some major help from my mom, I decided to give them a go. We had some challenges figuring out how to create the pattern (the images from the original blog post were difficult to read), but after some trial, error, and image enlarging, we got them to be the size we wanted! We followed the rest of the blog tutorial to put them together.

Linking this project up to:

My New Year’s Wishlist

I’m tabling my usual “Weekly Wishlist” this week in favor of a more broad look at the year to come, and what I hope it brings, from home projects to life in general. Corny? Maybe. Rife with things resembling “resolutions”? Also maybe. Indulge me.

2013 Wishlist

– paint the following spaces: entryway, my office, family room, kitchen, powder room (pretty much our whole first floor); our master bedroom/bathroom, and maybe our “bonus room”

– reorganize the pantry (and get Tom to follow the system!)

– create a better, combined filing system for all our important documents, tax info, etc

– build bookshelves & a window seat for my office

– install crown molding

– install wall molding if we feel like it / have time to get fancy

– pick out a pattern and fabric so my mom can make us a quilt for our bed

– furnish some of our emptier rooms (dining room, bonus room)

– expand the vegetable garden; try growing some fall/winter items this year! (pumpkins???)

– attend Haven Conference in August

– take a trip to the West Coast (Oregon/Washington) to visit family and friends

– start some personal writing projects (that novel ain’t gonna write itself!)

– try to be more patient and get less discouraged when things don’t work out the way I want them to (oh, this applies to so. many. things.)

– try running again. (reminder to self: take it slowly. starting with intervals is okay. everyone has their own pace.)

Whew. Okay. That sure seems like a lot of stuff. But I think it’s doable! And if it’s not, that’s what the “try to be more patient” item is for 😉

What’s on your wishlist for 2013? A special item? A long-awaited project? A personal goal? I’d love to hear what you’re working on in the new year!

I’m In!!!

I’minI’minI’minI’minI’min!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So… Who else is going?!?!?!?

PS – HAPPY NEW YEAR!!! Clearly, I am excited about what 2013 will bring! Hope your new year has excellent things in store as well 🙂

Holiday Traditions: Krohn Conservatory Pointsettia & Train Display

One big holiday tradition in Cincinnati is the train and pointsettia display at Krohn Conservatory. I remembering going as a young child and being mesmerized by the trains; I always loved watching them wind their way around those tiny tracks, and I still do!
The Conservatory was built in the 1930’s and has a cool Art Deco style. The annual holiday display features tons of pointsettias and evergreens as a beautiful backdrop for an impressive train display that snakes all through one of the main areas of the Conservatory. Scattered among the train tracks are replica buildings of some Cincinnati landmarks, all make out of natural materials! There’s even a lifesize Nativity scene on the grounds outside the Conservatory, with live animals (apparently a lamb was born the day we visited, but I didn’t get a pic b/c there were tons of people crowding into the stable to see it).

This is a replica of the local Roebling Suspension Bridge that connects Covington, KY and Cincinnati, OH. It served as the prototype for the Brooklyn Bridge, which was also built by John Roebling. The “stones” of this bridge were actually tree bark, cut and applied to look like stone.

I have never seen a speckled pointsettia before. So beautiful. I’d love to fill my house with them, but I’m sure Molly would eat them and get sick.

The giant Christmas tree in the Conservatory lobby was full of ornaments made from natural materials. I loved this flower; the petals reminded me of pistachio shells, but I’m not sure if that’s what they actually were.

While we were there, we also wandered through the other Conservatory greenhouses. Here are a few images I snapped in the desert room and the orchid room (my fave!).

Hope you didn’t mind that this post was so photo-heavy. I took all of these pictures with my iPhone 4s… and am pretty impressed with the quality! Not a bad little camera in that thing!

Do you have a favorite holiday tradition in your city?