Holiday Cheer

Too funny not to share & too funny not to shell out $20 for two 4"x6" prints of it. Santa had all sorts of tricks for us to do, but Henry was on to us. Santa suggested me holding Henry with my back to him & walk backwards so Henry doesn't see Santa and then just kinda drop him in the lap and scoot out of the way. And above was the result.
We have this Japanese maple in the backyard and it has the prettiest red leaves for a few weeks. Here is a more serene Henry enjoying nature in his Santa suit.

I hope you all can take some time to enjoy this month. I know it is so crazy for everyone. I'm loving this Christmas song by Amy Grant-I Need a Silent Night, here is a link to the lyrics. Download it at Itunes. It is great song and sums up the hustle of the holidays and the need to slow down and think about our most precious gift we've been given.

Thanks

Henry with Honey & Big Daddy (this grandfather name was not chosen by him) in the background. I loved this picture.
This is my mom's table at Thanksgiving. Growing up, mom always did these beautiful table centerpieces and I know I took them for granted. Not sure if any of her 4 daughters gave her the proper response. Now as I try to attempt these holiday decorations and table decor-I def try to channel mamasita's touch & realize it is harder than she made it look.
Henry and his cousin Lewis, who is his nonstop entertainment when they are together. Henry laughs at him and that keeps Lewis entertaining.

My niece Clara and mom making gingerbread men. Notice the Piggly Wiggly raisins, I'll be so sad when the Piggly Wiggly is no more. BTW, they have the very best 5 layer Caramel Cake they sell in their bakery-they don't make them there. But they are fabulous, better than our local Primos & half the price.

Thankful for hubby on his bday

Birthday wishes for sweet hubby & my brother-in-law whose birthdays always fall around Thanksgiving. I need to give a belated shout-out to my other half who makes me whole. We are very different, he's particular about loading the dishwasher-I am not. He is completely efficient in all he does and me not so much. But we are similar in what we think is funny and how we love Henry. Hubby is the best dad around-he's so patient, kind and sweet with little Henry. Henry cries when he leaves in the morning and barely bats an eye when I scoot out the door. I am thankful for him and the way he supports all my little projects I get into.


This is after the candle blow-out, when the powdered sugar was blown over everywhere too.

halloween turtle

Halloween was so much fun with henry this year-had to share pics of little man.
(In typical turtle style, henry was at the tail end of the halloween parade.)
he was not into his hat.

much happier without.

cake wrecks

Maybe I was just in a silly mood tonight, but my prego belly was jiggling looking at this blog. Yeah, Tim was not sharing my hoots as much as some of you might-he quit coming over to the computer to see another crazy cake. Henry probably has a contender cake in his future if I keep making them. If you have time for laugh, go visit.

http://cakewrecks.blogspot.com/

g for geoff

This is for my sweet Chattanooga friend, Eun-Jin's new little boy, Geoff. I'm so happy for your new little family and I know you are such a wonderful mother to baby G.

sallie's painting

Sallie is one of my sweetest customers! I love painting things for her because she gets so excited about them-let's hope this is the case this time! This is for her red dining room-she has 2 precious boys who run wild with my niece and nephews in Birmingham.

flea market update

Y'all the flea market was so much fun and I did so much better than I ever thought. These ladies were ready to shop-forget about that silly economy. It was sweet to have friends stop by the booth and I met some very nice people. But really, I felt like it was definitely a blessing to not return home with my loot.

Flea Market bound!

Hope you guys aren't tired of me talking about the Canton Flea Market-hubby sure is. He just told me I couldn't come home with all this loot-so I'm extra motived to spread the word. Soooo, here is where I'll be. Click on the image to see detail. I will sell the remainder of the goodies here on the site. I have these cute little pocket 2009-2010 calendars too! Email me if you need parking recommendations if you are heading to Canton this Thursday & do call my cell if you can't find us once you arrive-506-5265. Goodness, say a little prayer that people want to buy my stuff! You just never know...

t.couture opening

I wanted to share this graphic design project I've been working on. It is an ad campaign for an upscale women's boutique, t.couture, opening October 1 in Banner Hall/Jackson. The owner is Tracy Summers and she has been a wonderful client-essentially the perfect client. And she would definitely be a fun person to shop with. A former co-worker of mine, Wes Williams, copywriter extraordinaire did the snazzy headlines & copy. If you are in the Jackson market, you'll hear the radio spots he wrote. I worked with a super talented photographer-Daphne Nabors, great to work with her. Check out her store-she will have some beautiful things. I don't usually post my graphic design work here, but I thought you ladies may appreciate them.

boo!

This is a BOO hanger for the birthday girl-Edie! Love ya, chickadee & so glad to have you in my life-we've been friends since the early days. If you need one, please let me know-$20. The size is 6"x8".

I love Halloween, 2nd to Christmas. I just wish I could dress up with Henry when we trick or treat this year (guess no one's stopping me). Henry is going to be a turtle-got his costume yesterday!!!!!

welcome, mary clayton!!!!

Miss Mary Clayton Stewart arrived yesterday! I can't wait to meet you. Congrats to Brady, Kathryn & Ford! This is a little door hanger for the sweet baby girl.

shop early

Friends, be thinking ahead to Christmas. If you have any orders you'd like to place, I will take these in October only. Whether it be a custom watercolor for a friend, an existing verse framed up, a painting-whatever you can think of-I'm game. And if there is a just a price you'd like to pay and don't know exactly what you want, I can work this way too. Oh & there are the gift certificates too!

Here's to a not-so-hectic, wonderful Christmas season!!!!

And the winner is...

Well, Rena it is not an Emmy, but you have won a Hershey bar & a verse hanger! With a small amount of assistance, Henry fished your name out of the bowl. Email me at sarahlargen@yahoo.com & we'll talk details! Congrats, Rena Elder-you can no longer say, "I never win anything!"

Thanks so much for all your chocolate faves and putting your name in the hat, it was fun for me to read these little posts. I'll have to keep doing this. I love my little blog familia.

100th POST GIVEAWAY!!

Getting ready for the Canton flea market, have recruited hubby to help cut and assemble! He's a good sport. So I've been crafting even though I haven't posted much lately. Also been working on a fun freelance graphic design project, I'll have to do a follow-up post on this and tell you about it-it may appeal to you fashionistas out there.

So I just realized that this is my 100th post & to make it fun, let's do this....
...comment to this post with name & your favorite candy bar, I'll put your name in the hat & have a drawing this Sunday for a giveaway to one of these verse hangers (along with this favorite candy bar of yours, now I need to get a Skor bar). Free shipping to my out-of-towners. I will post the winner Sunday evening at 8:00 p.m. The choice is all yours on the verse hanger. Hope to hear from you & it doesn't matter if I know you or not. I know how blog world works, I have never laid eyes on half the bloggers that I visit.

(btw, I must give credit to my blogland friend noodle & lou for the 100th post giveaway idea-she is my bloggirl idol).

FLEA MARKET BOUND & other news

Grab your fanny packs, play hookie and join the oodles of other ladies this year at the Canton Flea Market. Put Thursday, October 9 on your calendar! It is something you need to experience once & especially this year because I will have a booth there. I'll be on the south side of the square near the gazebo. Come see me!!!! Last time I had a booth at the flea market, I made these yard signs with quotes like "a weed is but an unloved flower" & other corny things like this-I was sure these ladies at the flea market were the prime market for these lovely hand painted yard signs, BUT NO. I walked away with in the red-I literally lost money. So unfortunately for my friends, they received these as gifts all throughout the following year. I'm hoping to at least cover the cost of my booth this year-we shall see. I will mainly be selling my watercolor Bible verses framed up in different ways.

And on another TOTALLY personal note, little Henry is going to be a BIG brother. We are expecting #2 March 14. We are so excited & feel so blessed. And I finally feel back in the game, been getting back into my freelance graphic design and back to painting. I was a slug there for awhile-Henry & I were watching way too much TV.

While I'm typing away, if you are on Facebook, find me-it is a whole new world for me. I love it.

mae's steppin' up

This is for "wild woman" Mae (according to mae's mama). Get those teefers brushed and help your mama in the kitchen too! Thanks for the order, J!

noodle & lou

Wanted to tell you about a wonderful, sweet artist & her blog. I don't know her personally, but I feel like I do through her blog & work. She is such an inspiration to me, especially for the house & angel below. I felt the need to formally introduce myself to her and to show her my work. I just received an order from her through her etsy shop-beautiful things!!! She has great links to other artists on her site as well. www.noodleandlou.blogspot.com

rebekah's dorm room painting

This was commissioned by one of my sisters, for her favorite babysitter's dorm room. She is going off to college-hope it is a wonderful freshman year. Oh, how much fun would it be to go with you!!!

verse print

A print of a verse framed in a shadow box. It has bead and metallic ink accents. Price is $25. Thanks Lindsey for your order. Hope life with baby Colby has been treating you well!

GIFT CERTIFICATES!

If you want a commission for a friend, but unsure about what she may like. I will mail a gift certificate to the recipient for you & we can be in touch about specifics. Any amount is welcomed! Email me with questions: sarahlargen@yahoo.com

step stool

5"x5" door hanger

henry is one!

Just had to share, little man is 1. So hard to believe. He's turned our quiet little world upside down-made things interesting for us. This past year has been such a gift. Love ya, baby boy.

Colby's hanger

This is a hanger for Colby's new nursery. I weathered this one a bit.

verse hangers

A new creation. It is a acrylic framed verse on a salvaged, rustic piece of wood. I can treat any of my 3.5"x3.5" magnet frames this way (see designs below). The finished size of this hanger is: 6"x6". Would be great to hang on a doorknob somewhere or in the kitchen (that's where this one lives). These are $25 each.
Did I mention Henry is my photo stylist? His services are for hire-he's very precise.

gimme some

This was so funny to watch & it needed to be shared. Here is Henry's cousin-Elizabeth, torturing him with her yummy, ooey-gooey bowl of chocolate ice cream. He had enough and was going in!

gena's verse

This was a thank-you to my friend, Gena, who graciously hosted our ladies bible study at her home. It is a very special group of women and it has been such a treat knowing them. We are all different ages and in different stages in life and I've learned so much from them. I always look forward to my Tuesday mornings!

new orleans

Hubby & I went to New Orleans for our 5 year anniversary the other weekend. Woo-hoo. Great time and hubby was so indulgent and went with me to my Magazine St. hit list. The old & new faves we wandered into: Derby Pottery, Perch (home decor-would have moved in there), Cafe Baby, Gogo jewelry, UAL & La Divina Gelateria (some of the very best I've had-crazy flavors like avocado, spicey chocolate & the like).