Hot Chocolate Bar

Today is Polar Express Day at school for these two cuties....

 

All cozied up in their jammies about to have pretty chillaxed day at school.  They've been listening to their Christmas playlist and switching back & forth between watching Home Alone &  Rudolph more times than I can count.  I feel like life has finally come full circle :)

 

Currently these are their Top 10 Christmas songs...in no particular order.  Bless.

As they were all cozied up in their jammies on the way to school this morning, they were singing at the top of their lungs (and you can bet I was belting out the tunes right along with them) and exclaiming their excitement for a morning full of movies, popcorn, and hot chocolate.  Oh, to be a kid again..sigh....

Speaking of hot chocolate, today's post is all about our little hot chocolate bar.  

I originally set up this little space for my sister-in-law's bridal shower, but we loved it so much we decided it should stay put during these next couple of winter months.  The boys absolutely LOVED that idea and ask for hot chocolate treats often.  I only oblige if I can indulge, too ;)

The Keurig is on display for hot water purposes.  We keep disposable traveling cups with lids in the bottom portion of the buffet as well as coffee mugs.  The top right drawer holds all of our coffee K cups and I have a little Christmas dish full of creamers set out next to the Keurig, too.  Coffee & hot chocolate = dreamy.

We have 4 jars full of different flavored hot chocolate...salted caramel, milk chocolate, peppermint, and hazelnut.  I found all of the hot chocolate mixes at Marshall's. The boys' favorite mix is the tried and true milk chocolate.  I'm a sucker for the salted caramel and the peppermint runs a close second.  Hazelnut is pretty darn good, too.  Heck...I like 'em all!!!  HA!

All of the jars were found at Wal Mart (about $4 per jar).  The vinyl chalkboard labels were also a fun Wal Mart find.  They came in a pack of 24 for about $3 and all I had to do was use a chalk marker to add the edging and label.  I found them hanging next to the large jars.  Score!

The red containers are full of toppings and fixin's.  Caramels, chocolate chips, crushed peppermint, and marshmallows.  I don't leave these out on the reg because I don't want them getting stale, sticky, and gross.  I keep them in baggies inside those drawers on the buffet and pull them out when we have company.  If it's just us and the boys, we pick straight from the bags. #lessmess  

I found the chalkboard labels on clothespins at Michaels...they came in a pack of 2 for $1.50.

The red containers were a fun find in the baking/holiday section at Michaels ($1 each) and the spoons are from Amazon (pack of 10 for $8.50)

I personally love adding caramel candy to my salted caramel hot chocolate and then topping it all off with the Reddi Whip I love so much.  When I reach for the peppermint hot chocolate, I toss in a few chocolate chips, a handful of marshmallows, a little crushed peppermint, and of course, my beloved Reddi Whip.  Don't forget the candy cane stirrer, too!  #straightupsinful

I also have a few little things set up in mason jars.  Candy cane stirrers, pirouettes, peppermint marshmallows, and straws.  I found those fun and festive Christmas straws at Michaels and no one ever uses them.  But they look cute, so they stay :)

As if you didn't know what this display was all about, I decided a little chalk art was necessary to tell you ;)  #captainobvious

When the adults come over to play, I make sure to set out a few mixers in case they want to partake in the hot chocolate, too.  Our favorite hot chocolate "spirits" are Rum Chata, Baileys, Peppermint Schnapps, & Butterscotch Schnapps.  You can find some rather delicious hot chocolate drink recipes HERE.

I fancied up the jars with some fun and festive ribbon (totally unnecessary and excessive...just the way I like it).  This has become the most visited little spot in the house.  We decided that we're going to do this every winter starting during the Christmas holidays.  Not only is it fun to look at, but it's functional, too :)  I'm sure I'm missing a few things I could've added to the mix, like butterscotch chips and gingerbread marshmallows, but we were running out of space :)  

This really is the most wonderful, fattening, indulgent time of the year :)

A Christmas Bridal Shower

{tap, tap, tap} Hello??  Is anybody there?? {tap, tap, tap}

We've had a bit of radio silence here on this little blog for the better part of the last few weeks.  All good reasons, I swear.  LIFE.  It gets in the way of other stuff.  I always let go of the blogs when life gets a little crazy and these last few weeks have been all that and then some.  

If I'm being totally honest, I love it when I look at my planner and see NOTHING planned. Truly.  I love spending time with my friends...I love having family functions to attend...I love helping out at the boys' schools....I love traveling to present...but I REALLY love those quiet nights at home doing absolutely NOTHING with the people I love most.  Can I get an amen?!

In the past 2 weeks, I've planned/prepped/hosted a bridal shower, chaperoned two field trips, traveled to Michigan and back to Houston, presented 8 sessions to some amazing educators, attending a late night dinner & earring exchange with my girlfriends, took the boys to a milk/cookies/pajama party with Santa, planned/prepped/hosted an Ugly Sweater Party for our friends, helped my old team decorate for our Christmas Around the World, and now...NOW...I'm finally home.  And ready to start Christmas shopping. #everythingissoldout #waitedtoolong #iloveamazon

I don't want to glorify the busyness.  I just tend to over commit too often.  Saying no is NOT my strong suit.  Putting that on the list of things to consider for New Years resolutions.  I had to invest in this book for our upcoming trip up north...I really need to learn how to say no so that I can save the "yes" for the big things God wants for me :)  But darnit...that's HARD!!!!!  

Moving right along...

A couple of weeks ago I hosted a shower for my soon-to-be sister-in-law...she's the one in the middle.  

A few family friends, my aunt, & my sister all helped with this little party.  Everyone was in charge of bringing their favorite dish(es) for our little soiree slated to start at noon on the first Saturday of the month.  I absolutely LOVE the group of hostesses that helped out.  These women are some of my mom's best friends and they are just that...the best!!!!  LOVE them!!!!  And they always go above and beyond with things like this. 

We had a great little turnout and the bride-to-be scored some amazing swag.  I'm SO happy for her & my brother!  I just love them to pieces!!!!  

My aunt brought these delicious bundtinis from Nothing Bundt Cakes.  I love serving these as opposed to the traditional bridal shower cake....easier to hold and they taste WAY better than anything I could even attempt to conjure up in the kitchen.  This was the only picture of the spread that I got :(  SAD...because the rest of the food was equally as delicious!!!

I also set up a hot chocolate bar.  I took away all the random Christmas decor on our buffet in the living room and set out several jars of different flavored cocoa mix, all the fixin's & toppings, stirrers, and the Keurig {for hot water}. It was a HIT!  

large jars - Wal Mart / red containers - Michaels {$1 each!!!!} / wooden serving spoons - Amazon

I decided to keep the hot chocolate bar up for the rest of the winter.  My boys are OBSESSED and it's seriously the perfect little indulgent treat.  I'll post more about the hot chocolate bar tomorrow!!

Instead of games, I decided little "stations" would be better.  I guess that's the teacher in me ;)  My house has a really open floor plan, so this worked out really well.  

In our little sitting room, I set up an ornament decorating station.   I wanted to do this not only to go along with the Christmas theme, but because the couple-to-be doesn't have a big collection of ornaments and I thought it would be so fun for them to decorate their tree with little bits of their friends and family before they have a collection that can replace it.  

chalkboard & ornaments - Michaels

It worked just perfect!  I set out plain, matte ornaments and gold/copper/silver metallic sharpies.  The guests could decorate the ornaments however they wanted and if they were stumped for ideas, I wrote down a few that might help get their creative juices flowing.  I wish I would've taken a picture of the finished products...they were adorable!!!

We also had a bible signing station.  I loved this idea when I first saw it.  I bought the couple a large print bible and then set out bible highlighters and pens. The guests were instructed to highlight their favorite verse about love/life/and/or marriage and then sign their name next to the verse.  I also had the iPad set up to Bible Gateway in case they needed help remembering where to find their favorite verses!

chalkboard - Michaels

Someone said this would be a great to use as a "traveling" bible...taking it to future showers...both wedding & baby :)  LOVED that idea!!!  

Stay tuned for more details about the hot chocolate bar tomorrow!!!

It's Beginning To Look a Lot Like Christmas! (Christmas Decor - Day 3)

Welcome back to day 3 of Christmas Week!

Yesterday I shared some of my most favorite family Christmas traditions, but I forgot to mention one....

SHOPPING FOR ORNAMENTS

Every year before Thanksgiving, I take the boys to Hobby Lobby to sift through the vast assortment of ornaments before they're all picked over {Hobby Lobby for the win....it's just the easiest.  HUGE assortment and they're always half off...which really means that's probably the real price, but whatever.  It's easy!}  I let the boys choose 2-3 ornaments a piece.  They have no restrictions on what they can choose.  Basically, anything goes.  As gaudy and ridiculous as the ornament might be, everything is fair game.  I absolutely love to see what they choose because the ornaments tend to reflect their interests and things that are on their hearts at that particular moment in time.  I like to think I have frozen moments of time hanging on my tree.  One day those moments won't be on my tree anymore.  I'll give them to the boys when they get married and they can use them to decorate their own tree.  Their wives may hate me for it, but I think it's a pretty sweet and sentimental idea...and it sure will give them a head start on tree decor!

That to be said, today we're taking a tour of our Christmas decor and while we're on the subject of ornaments, let's start with my trees.  This year, we have 2 1/2 trees.  1 at the front of the house, 1 in the kitchen, and a tiny tree in the boys' room.

Here's the tree in the front room....

Stuffed with lots of "filler" and sentimental ornaments.  I'd love to have a "catalog perfect" tree with matching ornaments, but that's just not my life.  I love the random variety.  I love that each ornament has a little story to tell.  That's what I used to love most about my grandma's tree and the tree my mom put up every year.  I hope that's something my boys love about ours, too!

Here's the tree in our breakfast nook...

This one is a little more matchy-matchy.  I didn't intend for it to be that way, it just sorta happened.   I absolutely love this tree!  It's teeny and flocked and it reminds me of a tree my Grandma Gloria used to have in her house.  

Now let's head back into the front of the house.  This is the space you see when you walk in the front door...

I always struggle to decorate this space.  It's just a bunch of Christmas greenery, some chalk art, and a random assortment of apothecary jars filled with ornaments, pinecones, and tree beads.  

Chalkboard - Marshall's last year {I wrote the wording}

Apothecary jars - all from Marshall's, collected over the last 5ish years {give or take}

Baskets on the bottom shelf - Ross { within the last month}

On the opposite side of that couch table is our living room.  Is this what's referred to as a "great room" up north?!  I can never remember.  Anyway...moving right along...here's our fireplace and mantle this year...

I LOVE the way it turned out!!  Mostly because I'm in love with my print from Lindsay Letters :)  (I got the 32x36" just in case you're wondering!)

O, Holy Night Canvas - 32x36 - Lindsay Letters

Stockings - Hobby Lobby {last year}

White pitchers - part of my ever growing collection, from Marshall's/HomeGoods (I've been collecting these for about 2 years now!)

Artichoke finials - Ross {within the last week, always hit or miss!}

Here's a bigger view of that space.  I have bookcases flanking either side of the fireplace and they are the BANE of my exisitence!!!  Such a BEAST to decorate!  I decided to keep it really, REALLY simple this year.  

                                                      Here's the shelf to the left of the fireplace.  

                                        

All of my Santa figurines are Possible Dreams and they're gifts from my mother-in-law (it's a tradition!  We get them every year!!!}

My Willow Tree nativity set is also a gift from my mother-in-law.  It's my most favorite piece of Christmas decor.  They freak my husband out because they have no faces.  Bless him.

The two Christmas trees on either side of the nativity are from Hobby Lobby {$5 each!}

The Santa Claus sign is from Marshall's {last year} and so is the "Get Your Jingle On" sign {this year}

These are the top two shelves of the bookcases to the right of the fireplace.  The bottom two shelves are blocked by the TV {praise Jesus!! Less to worry about!}

My mother-in-law used to own the most darling little shop.  She's an AMAZING florist and she has a KILLER eye for decorating.  She had tons of the most amazing Christmas goodies a few years back and that's where I scored the trees, Santa bucket with berries, the two glittery fat Santas, and the funky old Santa to the left of the barnhouse on top. (Speaking of the barnhouse, I love that thing.  It was made with the wood from the barn my husband grew up with.  My in-laws recently had the barn torn down and rebuilt and they used some of the wood to make these little bird/barnhouses. LOVE.}

The "Have Yourself a Merry little Christmas" sign is from Hobby Lobby {this year} and the Santa next to it is from Marshall's {this year}.

The subway art from "Elf" is from Ross {this year} and the Santa to the left of that is from Marshall's {a few years back}.  

My brother just built me this AMAZING coffee table and it's the perfect space for my little tray filled with Christmas greens, pinecones, candles, and a random reindeer :)

The tray is from Ross {this year}.

I've had the candles and hurricanes since we got married 10 years ago and I have NO clue where I got the random reindeer.  He's like a little gnome.  He just follows us wherever we go.

Sitting right on the fireplace are a little collection of trees that were gifted to me by my mom...I think. 

We also have this ridiculously hilarious "Santa bust" that a friend of mine laughed and laughed about every time she saw it.  I think of her every time I look at it!  I've had him for at least 6 years and he was an after-Christmas find at Hobby Lobby.

The Santa wish list was a fun find at The Nutcracker Market this year and I got it from The Round Top Collection.  One of my FAVORITE booths there!!! 

My boys are OBSESSED with it and they're constantly wanting to draw pictures on it for Santa.  It might not be in the "cutest" condition, but it's pretty darn precious to me...their hearts are all over it!

On the wall opposite the built-in bookcases is this little gallery wall and buffet.  Pretty simple.  Nothing too exciting.

Again with the white pitchers.  I have so many in my collection that I wanted to use a few as part of my decor this year.  They're sitting on top of an old distressed shutter.  The red jingle bell garland-y stuff was also another fun find at the Nutcracker Market and that was from The Round Top Collection as well.  I had NO clue what I was going to do with it when I bought it, but it was only $5 so I knew I'd find somewhere to put it!  HA!!!  

The little Santas were from Marshall's {this year}.  Can you see a theme here?!?!

These bookcases are far from finished...and a little scary...and they're in the same room as the Christmas tree.  Another little space for all the Santas from my mother-in-law.  Now if I could just finish decorating, I'd be pumped.

I still haven't tackled the dining table...and I'm not 100% sure I know what I'm doing with it this year...but here's a little nook in the dining room.

I got those amazing little trees from Kirkland's in Indiana about 5-6 years ago.  

The "believe" sign was a fun little find at Marshall's {this year}.

The basket on the bottom shelf of the table is from Ross {within the last month} and it's holding a bunch of Christmas greenery.

This little set-up is right across from the table above.

The subway art is from Marshall's {this year} and that little Santa is my MOST favorite in my collection.  I'd also like to tell you that about 10 minutes after I snapped this picture, my boys were running through the house {after I told them 15 times to stop} and they knocked my favorite Santa off the table....and it broke :(  I might have overreacted.  About a Santa.  Not proud of my Mommy Dearest moment at all.  I yelled.  LOUDLY.  And the boys felt awful.  And then so did I.  Because really.  It's a Santa.  A MATERIAL THING.  I get it.  But gosh darnit...I told them about 15 times to stop running!!!  They know better!!!  A little E600 fixed that Santa right up and he's just as good as new.  And I'm pretty sure the boys will never run in the house again...until the next time anyway ;)

Now we're in the kitchen.  We just had the cabinets painted and I got rid of all my top-of-the-cabinet decor so this room is still a work in progress.  I haven't really decorated this space for Christmas other than my little coffee tray.

And really, I didn't even do this.  I came home from the grocery store one day to find it "styled".  Ha.  I did the chalk art and added the Santa {again, from Marshall's this year...I LOVE that place!}, but Mr. Spouse decided to add our ONLY two Christmas mugs to the mix to finish it all off.  I had a couple of my favorite mugs sitting there beforehand and he hid those from me.  He's a living Clark Griswold I tell ya.

The other little tray on the top right is sitting on a different counter.  That "Merry Christmas" sign {Marshall's, this year} is covering an outlet.  That Santa is from WAL MART!!!!!  Yes, WAL MART!  I got that about 8 years ago.  It was one of our first Christmas decorations as a married couple.  I wish they still carried stuff that cute!!!  The apothecary jar is filled with some kind of potpourri business I got from Illuminations when they were going out of business and that little tree is from Hobby Lobby {several years ago}.

Moving right through the kitchen and going back to the breakfast nook is this little random centerpiece in the middle of my tiny table.  SO simple.

I found that ball at Marshall's {shocker!} and filled it with pinecones and set it on top of some Christmas greenery.  The stand is a flea market find and it's sitting on top of a charger I recently found at Target.

To the right of that centerpiece is a wall and on that wall are these shelves {built by my husband}.  

I can't remember where I got those Merry Christmas bocks, but I've had them for YEARS!  The little finnials on either side of that are from Hobby Lobby and I've had them just as long.   That tall Santa on the far right on the top shelf was another find at WAL MART about 8 years ago.  Y'all...I LOVE that Santa.  Every year I pull him out I wish I would've been able to afford to have bought about 10 more at the time.  They had several different varieties.  I just LOVE him!!!  The Santa next to him was a Marshall's find a couple of years ago and the Santa next to the chalk art was from Hobby Lobby last year.

Here's the powder bath in our main hallway that runs between the front room and the living room.  

I love this little space.  It's seriously the tiniest powder bath you've ever seen, but there's something charming about it that I just love.  The shelves are from Target and we {by we I mean my husband} installed them a few months ago.  I drew the chalk art above the toilet and that little tin Santa in front of it is from Target {no lie, about 13 years ago...I remember because I spent one of my first teacher paychecks buying Christmas stuff the day after Christmas that year.  I was FREAKING out because I spent $45 and that was WAY more than what I had budgeted...but I did get what I thought was a lot that day and I still have most of it in random places around the house!}  The Merry Christmas sign on the top shelf is from Hobby Lobby {this year} and the Santa next to it is from my mother-in-law.  She knows how much I love adding to my Santa collection and this was a fun gift from her shop!   The tree on the bottom shelf was another purchase from my $45 spending spree at Target 13 years ago and that Santa next to it is from Hobby Lobby {this year}.  The swag above the mirror was also from Hobby Lobby and I scored that a few years ago during an after Christmas sale.  I really don't like spending full price on ANYTHING!!!!  

Now that I'm about to post, I'm realizing I didn't take a picture of the tree in the boys room.  Not a big deal.  It's not decorated at all.  In fact, it's not fully decorated until December 24th.  We add a new advent ornament to it every day starting on December 1st.  We use the Meaningful Christmas devotional and we LOVE it!!!!   This has been one of our favorite family traditions for the last 4 years!!!  A tree full of ornaments handmade by some of my most precious friends.  Nothing better!

Anyway, that concludes our tour :)  Ha.

I only decorate the main areas because our house has such an open floor plan...and in all honesty, I'm not about spending a fortune on decor for rooms no one will ever see.  I would LOVE to have a tree in my room, but dang...that seems like a lot of extra work.  And while I know the juice would be worth the squeeze, I sure would be cussing myself during the take-down process :)  That to be said, you can bet I'll be looking for a tree on sale after the holidays are over ;)  

I know my decor isn't "Pinterest pretty".  Sometimes I think it would be amazing to change it all up and switch to all things burlap and rustic, but that's not my life.  And that's not what my boys have grown to love.  And in all honesty, that's not what I love either?! {although I am SO drawn to it and I think it's BEYOND stunning!!!}   We love our simple Christmas decor.  I love everything about it.  It all means something to me.  I love all the bright colors.  I love the sentiment behind a lot of it.  And gosh darnit, I LOVE my growing Santa collection!!!  

In my very unprofessional, humble opinion, there's no right or wrong way to decorate for a holiday.  If you want to decorate at the beginning of November, DO IT {we did!!!!}.  It's not taking any skin off anyone else's back.  If you want to put up a tree in every room in your house {God bless you}, DO IT.  If you like decorating with non-traditional colors...or not decorating at all...DO IT..OR NOT.  WHATEVER!!!!!!

 Whatver brings you JOY, do it.  This truly is the most wonderful time of the year, no matter how you decorate or celebrate!!!  

Halloween Porch

I finally got around to decorating the front porch.  I really wanted to last year, but all I could muster was a chalkboard and some pumpkins.  There's absolutely nothing wrong with that and our little porch rocked the minimal decor, but this year I wanted to do a little something different.  Trick-or-treating is a big deal in our neighborhood and I wanted something that would be fun for the kids.

I kept out the same chalkboard I had last year and added a few more pumpkins...

This past weekend I headed out to a local trade days with my little family.  My mom came along and talked us into getting this cute little wheelbarrow.  I'm so glad she did!  I love it and it's a perfect fit for our porch.  I added a few bails of hay {Michaels}, some gourds {WalMart}, and a little piece of subway art I scored for $6 from Michaels!  Simple and fun.

The branches and crows are probably my favorite.  We found some great branches/sticks in our burn pile and they were all a little charred, so I love the touch that added.  I put them on either side of our columns and then placed the crows on the branches for a fun little detail.  I got the crows from the Dollar Tree.  I'm just praying they don't fly away when the weather gets crazy.

I found this fun little party kit at Michaels {Recollections brand}, tied ribbon around the wire, and then hung them underneath our porch.  This is my boys' favorite piece of decor.  I got a "SO COOL!!!" and "THIS IS AWESOME!!!" so I think it's a keeper.  And I'm praying these stay put, too!  HA!!!  Mr. Spouse is certain we'll be seeing these lanterns floating down the streets of our neighborhood in no time.  I got that darling wood banner from Marshall's about 2 months ago and it was only $7!!!  I'm so glad I didn't pass on it because I love the fun little flair it adds to the decor.  Now all I need is a festive doormat and maybe a new wreath.  That one has seen it's better days. 

'Tis The Season To Be Spooky!

This time of the year makes me feel like a giddy little school girl.  I absolutely LOVE all things October/November.  I know, I know...I sound like every other person when I say it, but it's true. I'm notsomuch a fan of the "all things pumpkin" movement...although I do love a good chocolate chip pumpkin muffin...but I love the feeling this time of the year evokes.

For me, this time of the year reminds me of my childhood.  It reminds me of my Mawmaw's homemade pasta...Thanksgiving dinners at Grandma & Grandpa's...my mom's homemade costumes {there were 4 of us to dress-up}...kicking my way through crunchy leaf piles at Grandma Gloria's...trick-or-treating with my cousins...Halloween carnivals & parties at school.  The list could go on.  

I anticipate Fall decorating as soon as school starts.  I'd decorate in August if I could.  Not because I want to rush through life and get on with the next thing, but because I love that feeling I get when this time of the year starts to settle.  I definitely decorate way too early...and I have no plans of changing that any time in the near future.  My boys love it...I love it...and {thankfully} we don't get tired of it...we just like to enjoy the heck out of it for as long as we can :)

This year I started my Halloween decorating the 2nd weekend of September. I love a little holiday creep ;)  I changed things up just a little from last year's display.  I added a few new things...tossed a few things out {those darn squirrels in the attic mangled a few of my things...thank you, country living}...and changed a few things around.  Overall, I'm lovin' it.  I think I like decorating for Halloween more so than Fall because it lends itself to being a little whimsical with the decor...and I really, really love the orange/black/white combo!  Plus, I have a plethora of random Halloween stuff and I sure don't want it to go to waste :)  

Here's this year's mantle...

When I buy seasonal decor, I most usually don't have any idea where I'm going to put it.  As I was unpacking all of my Halloween stuff, I realized I had quite a few 31's, so I figured I'd display those together.  I think there's definitely power in a collection...especially when that collection is displayed together.  

Those white shutters tend to be a permanent fixture on my mantle throughout the year because they give a little height to that space.  Our fireplace goes all the way to the ceiling and the shutters seem to do a pretty good job of centering everything.  I propped up an old window pane in front of the shutters and then draped cheesecloth over it.  I love the way it turned out.

I drew the 31 on the white chalkboard.  The circular 31 that's hanging was a fun find at Ross last year.  I got it for $3.99!!!  I saw the same one at Kirkland's last year...a little bigger maybe??...for a lot more!  I love getting a good steal!  I found the large black and white October 31 sign at Marshall's a couple of weeks ago {$12.99}.  They had it in orange and black, too! 

I made the standing 31 with paper mache numbers, scrapbook paper, mod podge, and a distressing ink pad.  SUPER simple.  I also made the glittery 31 that's adhered to the damask board.  I just took a plain wooden square {Michael's}, painted it black, then mod podged the top with the damask paper, distressed the edges with the distressing ink pad, and then hot glued the numbers to the top.  First, I painted the numbers orange and rolled them in fine orange glitter.

The banner was from Michaels {last year} as were the cheesecloth & glittered spiders.  The jack o'man, the pumpkin sitting on the candlestick, and the BOO sign are all from Hobby Lobby.  I don't like paying full price for anything and was so excited to find those after Halloween one year for 75% off!!   That sweet little pumpkin man on the pedestal next to the black & white 31 sign was from Marshall's this year...$6!!!!  I love him!!!

This little display is sitting on a tray on my coffee table.  Speaking of coffee tables, my brother is building me a new one and I can't wait!  We've had this one for the last 10 years and well...it's about time to retire this one to the game room.  The sweet little Jack with the witch hat was from Hobby Lobby.  It used to stand on a pedestal, but my boys were playing, knocked it down, and it broke.  I actually like it this way  little better!  The cloche is from Hobby Lobby and the pumpkins inside were a fun find at Marshall's.  I think I got a whole box of them for $6!!    The tall apothecary jar is filled with moss covered stones {Dollar Tree} and a little pumpkin that didn't have a home.

I have built-in's flanking both sides of my mantle and they're a beast to try and decorate.  I don't have near enough to fill the shelves with Halloween or Fall decor, so it's all spread out and not cohesive whatsoever.  I need to work on that.  However, I did take a few of my white pitchers from my ever growing collection and I grouped them together with this little Happy Halloween sign {Dillard's last year, I think} and displayed them above our TV.  It's not my favorite, but it's growing on me. It needs more color, for sure.

In the room right next to my living area I have these bookshelves on either side of our little couch.  I know these little jack o'lanterns are cheesy, but Lawd...I love 'em!!!  

This little arrangement is sitting on the coffee table in that same room.  Don't ask what the purpose of that room is.  Really...right now...it's just a sitting area.  The layout of this house still confuses me.

Right across from our sitting space is our "formal" dining area. We have a very open floor plan so you can see all the main rooms from...well...every room.  

These sweet little bats are from the Martha Stewart collection {Michaels}.  Those sticky dots they came with were a joke.  I put them up last year and they all fell down the next day.  This year I have them sticking up with painter's tape.  So far, so good.

I didn't change much about this set up from last year's.  However, I decided to forego the spanish moss this year because my boys enjoyed using it last year as toy.  I was finding random bits of spanish moss throughout the house for MONTHS!!!  Ha!!!  This year I just used a little cheesecloth which I probably could've omitted, too.  But I like it.

The table runner was a new find this year!  I LOVE Marshall's!!!  It was $12 and a great little addition to this little "tablescape".  Is that what you'd call this?!?!?!  Or centerpiece?!!?!  Whatever.  

Right next to the dining room table is this little corner table.  I recently painted it yellow and I'm a little obsessed.  I like having completely random pieces of furniture in the house.  Here's my theory on decorating...decorate with what YOU like.  It's too hard to keep up with the trends and I'm definitely not trendy enough to try.  If you like it, use it :)

I found the mercury glass poison bottle at Marshall's {$7} as well as the burlap covered trick or treat sign {$5}.  The black skull and crow are from the Dollar Tree.

I have this turquoise table set up on the wall right across from the yellow table.  Talk about color clash...but I love it.  All the colors tie in with my curtains, so that's how I justify the randomness :)

This little vignette is a hot mess and I'll probably be changing it up.  I got the sign and the cloche from Marshall's last year {shocker!}

This little table recently got a face lift.  It was brown and I painted it white...now I just need to go in and distress it.  All that aside, here's the random set up here, too.  I'm not a huge fan, but it's growing on me.  It's a space I never know how to decorate.  Grrrr.

The cute witch feet were from Kirkland's a few years ago.  I love them.  I found that Harvest subway art a few years ago at Marshall's for a whopping $3!  I was so excited!  I put my Queen of Halloween sign on top of an old distressed shutter I had lying around and now looking at it I can see that it's slightly askew.  Dangit.  How'd I not notice that?!?!  The big BOO was a fun find from Wal Mart just last week...$3!!!! 

Moving into the kitchen....

This is the only thing I've got set up.  Our kitchen is pretty open, so I don't need much in this area.  And now I'm realizing that my pumpkin blends in with the granite.  #decoratingfail

Mr. Spouse built these shelves for me and they're still a couple of my favorite pieces.  I never really know how to decorate these either, but here's how they look this year...

If you saw my Halloween post last year, you might remember my scary little Halloween boy.  Mr. Spouse says that this figurine gives him nightmares {{{shudder}}}.  I like to torture him with it.  Last year it was on the mantle and it watched him as he cozily sat on the couch watching TV.  He requested I not put it there again.  Now it sits in the kitchen watching him eat dinner instead :)  This little guy makes me laugh every time I look at him.  #winning

And here's my latest little chalkboard.  I'm kinda lovin' this one!!!  

Next week I'll be posting my Halloween porch decor :)  I'd do it today, but I haven't started on it yet...hahahaha.  I'm hoping I can cross that off my to-do list this weekend!!!