One last Christmas-y post...

Well, it's officially here. 2011. Can you believe it? Josh and I had a blast this weekend celebrating the New Year with our friends and family. We went to a fabulous New Year's Eve bash hosted by the awesome Nick and Cindy (of The Flipping Couple). On Saturday we spent some time with Josh's Grandma and his parents, and then hosted a movie/pizza night at our place with my family that evening. Yesterday, we had a huge fondue party at a friends house as well! It was one of those weekends that I wished would never end.

Today is also the day when I must remove all signs of Christmas from our house. Sad. If you are like me at all, it's a little sad to see Christmas come and go so quickly. It's definitely my favorite time of the year!

But before I pack away the goodies- I have to show you some of the deals I scored with the after Christmas sales this year!

Exhibit A~ 3 gorgeous green mercury glass trees, under $10 for all three (Target).


Exhibit B~ 2 lovely ornaments to add to our ever growing collection. $3 each, Macy's.


Exhibit C~ 2 nine-foot tree garlands at $1.75 each. Sure beats the normal $7.99 price tag!


I love after Christmas sales! Last year, we bought our tree for $11.00! Yowza! Do you shop for Christmas decor after the holidays are over?

The hardest part is packing them away and waiting until next year...

Christmas Is Not About Gifts...

Christmas is definitely NOT about the gifts.

That being said, the truth-teller in me must admit that I squeal like a five year old at the sight of a prettily-wrapped package. And this year, I think some people must have read my mind to find the perfect gifts.

Like these lovelies from my sweet Hubby:


1-year subscriptions to 3 of my favorite magazines. I am already picturing myself in a cutting/pasting frenzy creating my very own inspiration file for decorating purposes. Be still my heart.

Also, my beloved got me this (and very slyly opened it to the page with the delicious cinnamon rolls, hint hint):


All of my well-laid healthy-eating plans just crumbled at the sight of this cookbook. Seriously, I would totally sign up to be a sweaty, chaps-wearing, dirt-smothered ranch hand if I could eat this kind of food every day. Sigh.

My aunt and uncle took me to Paris a while back and we have really fond memories of that vacation together, so for Christmas they got me...


I already tried a couple of things, and let me tell you, I felt like I had been transported back to Paris all over again! My sweet uncle (who is a wine connoisseur, unlike me) also gave me a bottle of Cote Rotie (red wine) to pair with the delicious French food. Isn't that a thoughtful gift?



So, what fun things did you get for Christmas this year? I would love to hear some of your favorites!


Note: I was not compensated in any way for mentioning these products. I just talk about stuff that I like here, and these are things that get a definite stamp of "Me Likey!"

Starting Over

Have you ever had a moment in your life where you felt you had the chance to start over? I've been feeling that way a lot lately (mostly because of a new career direction). This morning, I am sitting at my computer with a steamy cup of coffee and watching the sun rise. Instead of writing my blog posts the night before and setting them to go up in the morning, I am actually blogging right now. It feels amazing. Less rushed, more creative and inspiring.

In honor of a New Year and a new direction, I wanted to share some of my hopes for this wee little blog of mine. Here are some of the topics that I'm really excited to delve into:

~Food/Nutrition. I LOVE to cook/bake/microwave (just kidding' bout the last one! hehe), and this year I'm really trying to steer our menus towards healthier choices. To help keep us on track and share the knowledge, I'm hoping to share about a lot of those things right here on the blog!

~Exercise/balanced life. Yup, I am also going to delve into a world that quite honestly freaks me out. I have been an anti-exerciser for the longest time, solemnly swearing that walking to and fro in the skyway is just as good as a workout. But, the few pounds that have been gathering around my waistline beg to differ, so I'm thinking it's time to dig out the exercise tapes and my legwarmers (can you guess what decade I was born in?).

~Organization. I feel like the Clutter Monster has been taking over our house inch by inch lately, and I'm prepared to fight back with all I can muster. Of course, I will chronicle the epic battle right here so you too can taste the victory!

These are just a few things that I'm excited to talk about. Of course, there will still be posts about decorating and crafting and random posts about life as it happens! As always, I'm so glad to have you all along for the journey.

What are some of your hopes for this bright New Year?

A Christmas to Remember...

Christmas this year was... Memorable. It was at times wonderful, fun, horrifying, and even ridiculous. I thought about just ending it with that, but really, I must give you the play-by-play so you can understand just HOW memorable it was!

It all started a week ago from last Sunday... I woke up in excruciating pain and had to go to urgent care. Turns out it was a bladder infection (gah, those are horrible), and they put me on antibiotics straight away. All was fine until... I had a severe allergic reaction to the antibiotic. I had a migraine for 2 days straight and started getting fever symptoms so they had to switch me to a new medication. Ah, sweet relief!

Then Wednesday, I walked out the door of my job never to return. That was a memorable experience in and of itself!

On Thursday, my aunt and uncle were driving up here from Texas to spend Christmas with us. It's the first time in 3 years that they have been home for Christmas! However, Thursday evening we got word that my little cousin Faith was brought to the hospital with severe dehydration and my uncle had a fever pushing 102. Faith was in the hospital overnight, and once she was hydrated she was doing much better, thankfully.

Then on Christmas day, my mom came down with something and had to stay home all day. It was really strange to celebrate Christmas at my grandparent's house without her there! We were able to see her for a little while in the evening and have a family Christmas of sorts, thankfully.

Then, the day after Christmas we were all going to get together with my mom's side of the family (including my aunt and uncle from Texas) at my Aunt Faye and Uncle Dave's house. But, as soon as we got there we found out that my Grandma had been taken to the hospital because she had fainted 3 times that morning.

Let me just pause for a moment here to say OH.MY.FREAKING.GOODNESS.

Grandma was also in the hospital overnight so they could monitor her and find out what was going on. Thankfully, she is doing much better. The doctors think it was an issue with her medication, combined with not eating enough and the excitement of the holidays.

My aunt and uncle from Texas spent about 2/3 of their "vacation" here in the hospital, poor folks! I just hope that they aren't forever scarred by that experience and never want to come back!

So, that was my Christmas this year. I wish I could say that despite the circumstances it was completely amazing and wonderful and filled with laughter and smiles, but it wasn't. To be honest, it just felt weird. But I'm still thankful that everyone is okay, and that we got to see some family members that we haven't seen in a long time.

Also- I left my camera at my in-laws house, so my blog may be a little boring for a while... Hopefully I will get it back soon! I hope that you all had wonderful, non-weird Christmases!

Something Better

(Last night- eating Pho soup with my Hubs and celebrating a new career direction!)

Yesterday was my last.day.ever. working for the Federal Government. As I gathered up my meager belongings, turned in my badges, and giggled at the email I got (exactly 3 hours before leaving) that said my background investigation was finally finished, I felt no regret.

3 years of staying in a job that I (to put it lightly) really didn't enjoy has made for an interesting transition. I had prayed in vain for soooo long, it kind of felt surreal to finally be walking out the door. I said my goodbyes, grabbed my bags and began the walk out to my car, accompanied by my dear friend and co-worker Andrea.

Then, suddenly and completely without warning, the tears started coming. If not for this dear friend of mine, I could have skipped out the door without a second glance. But suddenly the memories of all that we had gone through together came flooding back, along with the knowledge of how significant her friendship has been over the past few years. We have seen each other almost every day, spent countless lunch hours roaming the skyways of Minneapolis, sharing details of our lives and helping each other through challenging times.

(A and I at my wedding, circa 2009)

How can you just walk away and not acknowledge that kind of friendship? So, even though I was wearing mascara and had sworn to myself I would not cry, I let the tears come. Even though I won't miss working at that job, I will miss seeing my friend every day. I know that our friendship will stay strong, but there's no denying the fact that it's a huge change. Especially since she also has a little one on the way (literally any day now!), and the next time I see her she will be a Mom.

Life is full of changes. Some are good, some are bad, and some are just bittersweet. I thought back to my college days and remembered the C.S. Lewis quote that my graduating class chose for our motto, "There are better things ahead than any we've left behind."

There are better things ahead than any we've left behind.

It's true for my friendship with Andrea, the career path I've chosen, the very knowledge of "growing up" and changing from a child into an adult. Change is always difficult, especially when you can't see what is ahead. But it's a thread that is continually woven through our lives and the lives of those around us.

So as you celebrate the Christmas season, maybe you are experiencing changes too. Perhaps there are some people who are absent from your lives, perhaps you are juggling a new marriage and how to split up your celebrations so that everyone around you is happy, perhaps you have welcomed a new child into your life or watched as your adult child is making a life of their own.

I hope you will remember with me this season the goodness that God has laced through our lives, and rest secure in the knowledge that He is still working and no matter what we leave behind, there is always something better that lies ahead.

Inspiration to Share

I can't believe that Christmas is almost here! We have SO much snow up in MN, so let me know if you need any and I'm sure we can arrange something! Everyone should be able to have a White Christmas this year.

So, as I've been browsing around all of the GORGEOUS home tours and Christmas-themed crafts that are all over Blogland, I decided that I wanted to round up some of my favorites and share them here!

So without further ado, here's a bunch of things that have been inspiring me this Christmas season...

First up, the incredible "Winter Berries on Canvas" done by none other than Centsational Girl. Seriously, how does she come up with this kind of stuff? SO beautiful.


Next, Jane from The Borrowed Abode is always Wow-ing her faithful readers with awesome projects. I love the yarn trees that she has worked into her Christmas decor- so fun and vintage looking!


Ashley from The Beautiful Details is so talented with her camera, she really knows how to capture the majesty of the tiniest details. This picture from outside their house just looks so Christmas-y! I love the crisp white snow against the red door.


Sarah from Hennessey House pulled together a striking black and white vignette that features a gorgeous vase that she designed herself! With a Sharpie!


Seriously, you have to see the vase up close. And yes, you heard me right, she made that design with a Sharpie. Are you swooning? Yup, me too.


Well, I guess I should stop now before this post gets even longer. I love being able to show off some work that my fellow bloggers are up to. Isn't it fun to spread a little inspiration this Season?

Christmas Tour of Homes- 2010

Hello, and welcome to our little casa! We are the Marx family, although there's only 2 of us right now (unless you count the little porcelain pig that this blog is named after). Josh and Mikalah are our names, and we LOVE Christmas. Well, maybe Mikalah is a little crazier about Christmas (at least the decorating part), but we both love celebrating the birth of our Saviour, Jesus Christ.


To start off our little tour, we're taking you through our dining area. Here we have a couple of thrifted candlesticks with gorgeous white tapered candles "borrowed" from a wonderful Grandmother. I went all-out with the green this year!


I made some fun, sparkly, mirrored ribbon ornaments to hang from the ceiling. It's hard to see in this pic, but they really do shimmer and send light all over, which helps brighten up our rather den-like townhome quite well!


Next comes the living room! Our tree is right in the center of it all, decorated with white, cream, silver, and blue ornaments.



Want some yummy raspberry filled candies? Help yourself! The mint ones are pretty yummy too...


We don't really have a "mantle" per se, but this little shelf above the couch has served as a mantle of sorts for quite some time. Now it's all decked out for the holidays with some tulle-wrapped trees, a Star of David ornament, and a crafted super-sparkly mirror.




Another "mantle" is above the bookshelf/china cabinet in the living room. The cute little trees were also crafted especially for this holiday season!



Who can resist sparkly things this time of year? I know I can't.


I realized as I pulled this post together how simple our decorations are this year. And really, I don't mind one bit! It's been fun decorating, but it hasn't taken up so much time that we're forgetting to focus on the true joys of the season.

From our house to yours, we wish you a truly blessed Christmas season, filled with the joy and wonder that came to earth in the form of a small child so many years ago. Merry Christmas!