holiday diy | painted animal ornaments

Lions and tigers and dinosaurs, oh my! Dinosaurs? Yes, dinosaurs!!

Remember when I said I wanted our tree to be colorful and whimsical? Well, that was just a nice way of saying I actually wanted our tree to look like a rainbow and a toy store met in a dark alley and had a tussle over a can of gold spray paint. The aftermath? Surprisingly beautiful.

a friday fave (or five) | little holiday lovelies

It's been a rough few days around these parts. While I won't get into specifics, I will say that sometimes it's the simple things in life that bring us comfort. Right now I'm holding on to the holiday spirit desperately and allowing the joy that this season brings to wrap me up like a warm blanket. As lights go up around us, holiday specials begin airing on TV and Christmas tree lots pop up on every corner, I'm reminded of cherished Christmas memories from my childhood. The excitement, the tradition, the joy of it all.

And so today I thought I'd share with you five simple holiday items that are filling me with the holiday spirit. These things have me counting down the days until Christmas and they make me smile in spite of whatever kind of day I'm having.

i hate running and why that's okay

Saturday was a bit of a milestone, friends. I did something which seemed virtually impossible to me. I ran my very first 5K.

Now, I know what you're thinking... 5K? Really? Philanthropic college students can run 5Ks when they're hungover. Elementary school kids probably run a 5K in laps around the jungle gym. And I'll be honest, whenever I heard of people competing in 5K races, it's not like I belittled their accomplishments, but it just never occurred to me that it would be something huge enough to celebrate.

UNTIL NOW.

holiday diy | colorful ribbon wreath

Christmas time has officially begun in our household. I spent four hours yesterday visiting countless dollar stores, Walmart, Target, and the list goes on, trying to snag inexpensive holiday decor supplies. As I mentioned before, I decided I wanted most of our holiday decorations to be handmade since I can never really find decorations that are exactly what I'm looking for. (They're either too country, too traditional, too plastic-y, too cheap looking... I could go on and on. Whatever, I'm picky!)

This year, I didn't care as much about having a central look or theme, I just knew I wanted everything to be whimsical and colorful. So that's what I'm going to try and do with everything I make. Yesterday I got supplies for handmade ornaments, embellished stockings, and... today's DIY - a new holiday wreath!