life: the sunday review

i can't be the only one thinking..

'holy crap! christmas is 7 days away!'

i am so grateful that i've avoided most of the holiday stress.

i gave myself permission to not do any christmas crafting (for around the house)..

and i have to say.. i'm enjoying not feeling guilty because i haven't posted a bunch of craft ideas.

BUT.

that's not to say that i may or may not have spent a good 40+ hours on one craft this week.

a craft that was a christmas present to be exact.

i was really enjoying every minute of it, up until the day i needed to be done..

and i wasn't... well until the last minute.

when i tallied up all the time put into it..

i was really shocked, because it was a labor of love, so the time flew by.  

so i'm not really surprised i don't have too many pictures this week..

or that i haven't done much other than wash dishes & feed my family & embroider.

1. mr. bells got caught playing with marshmallows in the pantry.

2. we pretty much keep the dude's bedroom door shut.. but i was in there hanging up some clothes & next thing i know i hear 'tap. tap. tap.' on the keyboard behind me.. the babe got his techie gene honestly!

3. with temps dropping into the 40s @ night we've had to put a crate back in the house for the dog (cue major sadface here..).. apparently mr. bells thought it was a jungle gym.

4. i think i pick up measuring cups 1,000 times a day.. remind me why i bought toys for this kid for christmas?

5. i gave in to the pleas for the 'stupid-giant-can't-turn-a-corner-to-save-it's-life kid-germ-infested' shopping cart at publix on a run to pick up milk. we ended up going up & down every aisle just so they had more time in the darn thing. sometimes you have to let go of your mommy-worries & hurries & just let 'em be kids!

6. a christmas card from mason, with a rose drawn on the front. i'm seriously impressed with it. still. (look for a project with this drawing this week!)

7. mr. bells was either really lame or really cool this week. he pulled out the lite brite to shout out a countdown this day!

8. brownies requested by the dude for his class christmas party. dressed up with peppermint icing & crushed peppermints. they were a HUGE hit with the kids. (sharing recipe this week)

9. mr. bells, buzz lightyear, spiderman & moosie played a game of sorry.

10. my big christmas present project almost completed friday afternoon. (i will share a better picture soon!)

11. 6th annual memorial pound cake baking @ my moms (more on that soon too!)

12. christmas card mason made for my brother. he's apparently under the delusion my brother is the nicest person in the world... CLEARLY he has been mislead ;)

13. it's our 'off' year for christmas with my brother & his wife (they take turns between families) so we got together a week early to sit down for dinner & exchange gifts. mason was gifted a lego version of hagrid's house from harry potter & he was SUPER excited.. especially because he had his best lego building buddy there to help him.. uncle ricky! :)

14. another pinterest recipe.. and OH boy. mini pecan pie muffins. SO good. the boys gobbled them right up & even the hubs (who defies the laws of nature by hating pecans & hailing from georgia) went back for seconds.

15. mr. bells is getting ansy for christmas... he was trying to check the stocking for goodies this morning, not yet mr. bells!! :) 

16. those muffins. i'm telling you.. you'll totally want to make these. they taste JUST like pecan pie, and they only have 5 ingredients!

i have a few things to share in more detail as you can see...

along with some last minute christmas gifts i'm finishing up..

so check back later this week! :)

are you done with all your christmas shopping/crafting?

xo-k