Gingerbread hearts hooked to our mugs ~

Hi! Happy days after Christmas and happy new year! 

 Thought I would post about my spontaneous gingerbread and sugar cookie hearts for the rim of a mug.  

We had our friends staying with us for Christmas and last night before they left the adults watched the movie 'The Help' (highly recommended) as the kids were tucked snug in their beds and we ate gingerbread hearts hooked to our mugs. ;)

My idea originated from this amazingly cute  idea. Gingerbread houses that perch on your mug.

Really check out the post it is super cute but more time consuming than I desired to put into my cookie making this year...soooo little hearts that fit on the rim of our mugs were my next best idea.  

A bit about the how to:

These were very simple I had a heart cookie cutter just the right size. 

After I cut out the hearts with my cutter I then used a sharp knife to slice/cut out a small spot for the cookies to hook onto the rim of our mugs.  

After they baked and while they were still soft and hot I cut away any dough that had spread and covered my little hook. I mainly eye balled it for where to cut. 

About 90% of them worked like a charm but there were a few I cut that were a little off.  

The only thing is I forgot to sprinkle sugar on the top of the cookies (I was multitasking, getting kids down for bed while making these little guys) so they are not as pretty as they could be, but YOU could pretty them up quite a bit. 

I had done a few practice cookies earlier this week when I was making cookies and that helped me quite a bit.  I used ginger bread and sugar cookie dough for these little hearts that you can dip in coffee or tea. 

A  perfect small and simple treat to eat with your hot drink. 

Well enjoy a little heart 

and 

have a great Happy New Year ~2012

Hope this is fun and useful to you over the next few more days of celebrating. 

Keeping it simple in our west corner.

Becky


I am linking up to these fun link parties. 


I HAVE LEARNED THE SECRET OF BEING CONTENT IN ANY AND EVERY SITUATION, WHETHER WELL FED OR HUNGRY, WHETHER LIVING IN PLENTY OR IN WANT. I CAN DO EVERYTHING THROUGH HIM WHO GIVES ME STRENGTH." PHIL. 4:12,13

Sweet contemplation ~ Merry CHRISTmas

For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulders: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, the Mighty God, the everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace. ~ Is. 9:6

My sweet son. Love this moment I caught.  

Merry CHRISTmas to all of you and to my sweet family that I miss so very much. 

Mom, Vicky and Debby love you deeply and miss you all muchly.

David's family ~ much love to each of you as you celebrate together and skate upon the ice, you are thought of and missed. 

~ Signing off .... until sometime next week. 

have a silent night,
Becky

Free Christmas Printables..like Bingo :)

Here are some CHRISTmas printables we have used this week 

and a few free Bingo card sets.

We thought it would be fun to play Christmas Bingo this year... and give out prizes to the winners. So I thought I would share what I found for anyone interested in some fun ideas for the kids/family on Christmas day. 

Enjoy.

Link: 'Whimsical' Christmas Bingo ~ Simply Fresh Designs

This Bingo set gives 6 different cards and is so sweetly whimsical.

This is what I printed this year for our Bingo time.

Link: Printable Christmas Bingo Cards

They give an option for color or black and white (which kids could color)

There are several more out there but the previous two are the ones I liked and saved. ~ 

Happy Christmas Bingo. :)

Here are a few links to our favorite Christmas coloring pages this year! 

CHRISTmas mosaics or stained glass pages.

These look beautiful hanging in the windows.

Link: Stained glass Christmas tree printable

Link: Stained glass angel

We are lacking in Christmas name tags here in Turkey but NO problem because they are everywhere online.

These may be last minute for lots of you but thought it could be helpful to some.

Here are a  few FREE printable name tags I printed off for our gifts: 

(just click on the link under each picture to view and or print)

Super cute wintery holiday tags

Domestifluff CHRISTmas name tag printables ~pdf

Black apple CHRISTmas nametags ~ pdf

Love the Hot Cocoa and house one!

A Fanciful Twist ~Handmade gift tags

These are perfect for anytime~ I really like these.

The long thread 

 The long thread ~CHRISTmas tree flower gift tags ~pdf

Snowflake flower gift tags ~pdf

The Shepherds and Angels

Reflecting on the shepherds in the story of Christs birth.  Shepherds, simple people with no glorious title, doing their jobs and then they witnessed a show that filled the heavens and they were given the glorious news that Jesus the Christ had been born. They were some of the first to know ~ amazing. Reflecting, considering what that means for me, my family and those around me ... it makes me smile and give a sigh of relief, because God in His splendor and Holiness reaches out to the simple, the everyday person, to me. As the story continues the shepherds shared with everyone around what they had seen and heard. They had witnessed a miracle that changes their simple, every day lives.Those shepherds, those simple shepherds, were the ones to declare the good news that began the beginning of an amazing redeeming story, that I am now a part of.  I am simple like the shepherds and I too want to share the amazing goods news of the Savior, I am NOT an Angel but I too would love to sing it from the heavens "Glory to God in the highest heaven ~ the Savior of the world has come." 

(Luke 2:8-20)

Good night ~ sleep in heavenly peace.

Knowing He is by my side in this west corner,

Becky


I HAVE LEARNED THE SECRET OF BEING CONTENT IN ANY AND EVERY SITUATION, WHETHER WELL FED OR HUNGRY, WHETHER LIVING IN PLENTY OR IN WANT. I CAN DO EVERYTHING THROUGH HIM WHO GIVES ME STRENGTH." PHIL. 4:12,13

A Button Tree ~ and yo yo bows

Buttons ~ easy to find here and fairly inexpensive. 

A button tree ornament makes for a simple handmade gift~

My little gifts wrapped and tied up with ribbon and adorned with sweet  fabric yo yos. 

Keeping it simple here in my west corner and using what I have to create and decorate this Holiday.

Emmanuel God with us 

~ In my west corner, God with us!

Becky

Pom pom Christmas count down

Here is our Pom Pom Christmas tree countdown.

I have this thing with putting up trees on our kitchen wall.(like here and here to name a few) It is close to where all the kids art work is displayed and well it is wall that is always asking me to fill it with something fun. Plus we love having our Pom Pom Christmas tree right next to our kitchen table, perfect for reaching in our little cup and putting up a pom pom during breakfast.  

Nothing like putting packaging styrafoam pieces up on our wall... my mom sent a package and well, they became SNOW. ;)

Oh and I found these pom poms here. :) 

I was delighted... the top one is going to be a hand made pom pom however 

and that will be fun to do with the girls..

Well there you have it our last minute advent/count down Christmas calendar. 

Next year I am determined to have an advent Calendar that depicts the Truth of CHRISTmas, however until then we will pom pom on. ;)

The fun snowmen were made here... Napkin Snowmen.

I will say this about our Christmas decorations and pom pom tree and syrafoam snow, things do not have to be perfect to be BEAUTIFUL. 

Enjoying Christs love and wanting to share it with the world!

~Becky

Re-purposed Sweater to Cardigan ~

Button latch Cardigan~

I was on my way to buy a cardigan and then my 'use what you have' conscience reminded me of my 

sweater drawer and tada:

Here are a few Sweater to Cardigan tutorials 

that were really helpful to me:

The Emma Pillsbury-Inspired Cardi Refashion

&

Sweater to Cardigan

Really this is a great way to save sweaters!! 

Before
I think I wore this sweater once, it was given to me and it just hung out in my sweater drawer.
I now wear it often. :) 


 I am humbled by those of you who follow along, comment and read along.  This is a personal blog and I am so thankful and often surprised that others have come along with me on this adventure and blog. Thank you.


Ok off I go to spend some time with my Savior this morn. 
In my west corner,
Becky

Linking up at these fun blogs: Where I party

Cardboard love part #3~ Super duper Drop box (ages 3 and up)

#3 of my cardboard love series: 

This no cost cardboard toy is one of my sons favorite toys!!!

This toy includes these fun functions:

Pound-a-cork

Button slot

Dice press

Ball drop
(I would only recommend this specific toy for ages 3 and up because of the small pieces)

The handy dandy box inside a box idea, is perfect for storing the pieces to this 

Cardboard Toy and not making this a clutter item.

Using dividers is a great way for sorting. Isaac enjoys this part as well.

It is fun to see his system of putting things where he thinks they belong.

This above picture, shows how I used a pipe cleaner to keep all the buttons, balls, dice etc inside the box and still allowed my little man to see it all.  Seeing all the items drop down in was a big part of the fun for him.

Playing with the cardboard toy.

My son helped out by painting the box with me and encouraging me along the way 

with his excitement of each function I created.

Have you ever had a moment of complete ingenuousness.  An idea that was perfect your family/kid etc maybe not ingenious for the whole human race but for little kiddo, well the drop box day was that day for me... I took action on an idea forming for some time and truly it was a super duper moment.

My middle girl who is 5 had her turn at playing with Drop Box as well.
The button slot are by far the favored item and function.

If you choose to do this it will take you only a few minutes. Our Super Duper Cardboard Toy Drop Box is 3 months old and holding up great. However this cardboard toy can be played with and then recycled  easily because it is no cost and easy to make again. I actually put this toy up and get it out from time to time that has helped in keeping it in good shape I am sure. 

 A few tips on how to: 
 Make sure you get a box that is two ply or more so that it is sturdy enough for the pounding and consistent use.
Instead of corks you could use the small pieces from Lincoln Logs. 
       I used a few pieces of pvc pipe that had been cut for the ball drop


Have fun making your own customized drop box for your kiddos.~

Dropping things in our little west corner,
Becky



Linking up this week to these fun parties: Places I party

I HAVE LEARNED THE SECRET OF BEING CONTENT IN ANY AND EVERY SITUATION, WHETHER WELL FED OR HUNGRY, WHETHER LIVING IN PLENTY OR IN WANT. I CAN DO EVERYTHING THROUGH HIM WHO GIVES ME STRENGTH." PHIL. 4:12,13

Christmas ideas from 2010~

Here are some pics of our Christmas in 2010.  Enjoy and hopefully you can get a few ideas of your own. Most of these ideas can be done here in Turkey without needing something from the States!

Egg Carton Advent Calender.
This project was funny..it was called the last minute 11 day late advent calender.  Tissue paper, red paint and large egg carton. Little pices of paper were placed inside each egg hole.

Annual individual no-bake Ginger Bread (Biskuvi) houses.

Hanging Cardboard Christmas Tree.

This hung in our kitchen and the kids helped paint it green and decorate.

Homemade Clothes Pin Ornaments

They were a gift for my sweet friend Alyssa.

Cutting, painting and hanging Snowflakes.

Check here for our DIY racetrack we made 

last Christmas for our son. 

Ok that was 2010... 

This year I have a different last minute Advent Calendar...however I was a week ahead this year. ;) Maybe I will post it before next year. ;)

Enjoying the Simplicity and joy of Christmas.

In our west corner.

Becky

The Napkin Snowman ~investing in the neighborhood school # 4

Hey, meet the Napkin Snowman 

He is a close cousin of the Orange Napkin Pumpkin (found here)

Last Friday I went to Autty's class and did the Napkin Snowman with the kids.This is my 5th time going to Autty's school and spending an hour or so with them doing a craft I have prepared. However this time was

my first time this year.  The kids were chanting my name when I arrived and were VERY eager to create something. I love going and giving these kids this creative outlet.  

Supplies I used:

I cut the contact paper in advance into a long rectangle

String for the scarf

Foam for the nose

Black paper for the hat 

Napkins for the the snow part of the body

Marker for the eyes, mouth and buttons.

*This project for 25 children cost me 10 lira (6 dollars).

Snowman body how too:

Have the kids take their contact piece and crease it half way 

then have them open only one half  of the contact paper (up to the crease) 

then place the cut up pieces of napkins on the sticky contact paper, 

then have them open the second half of the contact paer and press both sides together. 

Outline a snowmen in marker and let them cut it out and decorate their snowman.

I took my camera but forgot the battery. :) oops. 

So these pics will have to do.

Three of Autty's friends came over after the Friday craft and here are there creation's and

 cute little faces and uniforms. 

Here are the girls and Isaac playing with the fresh play-dough the kids I had made the day before. 

 There is something to be said about fresh soft play-dough....hours of fun, literally!

In my west corner of the world,

Becky

( For anyone who was interested in my post on the orphanage part #1 (here), I will be waiting to post part #2 for a bit I am wanting to find a way to write out my experience without being too negative to the country I now live in. ~ Thanks for your patience.)

Our pumpkin girl, cake and applique

For our little Pumpkin:

Happy 8 year old Birthday sweet Autumn.

She is such a delight to our life. She fills our lives with colors from the rainbow. She has her own unique style and confidence. She loves the outdoors. She is generous and a dreamer. She is honest and loves to share her passion for Jesus. She values her family and traditions (espaically Saturday morning family breakfast ).~

Ever since she was a little baby we (me) have called her pumpkin. This year I wanted to remind her that she is our little pumpkin, deeply loved and cherished for who she is.

A pumpkin shaped birthday cake. 

I made her a pumpkin place mat with the clear contact paper I have found these days for her birthday dinner. David and I then wrote out a bunch of things we enjoy about her.

This year we had a simple family celebration with our dear little friends 

Lindsey and Maddie over for dinner and an intimate party. 

Here is the little pumpkin applique shirt I made for her :) 

it has a few cute little fabric yo yos on the shirt too.  

This girl has a winning smile and a way to make you feel like you are the coolest. She is ridiculously creative and loves things that I make for her. She received ALOT of gifts this year, including two little turtles..Doodle and Toodle. 

My constant prayer for her is that she would be convinced of Gods love. No matter life's circumstances or even our failure at times as parents that Gods truth and word would be rooted deep in her heart and she would know not only our love but the love of her Heavenly Father.

~will post again soon... 

Oh yeah and tomorrow I will be starting up my "investing in my neighborhood schools" again by doing a craft project for Autty's class.  Every time I do one of these projects in the local school I am reminded how I should still be studying my Turkish! 25 students and a ten lira budget. :)

In my little west corner of Turkey to all of you in your corners of the world,

Becky

I HAVE LEARNED THE SECRET OF BEING CONTENT IN ANY AND EVERY SITUATION, WHETHER WELL FED OR HUNGRY, WHETHER LIVING IN PLENTY OR IN WANT. I CAN DO EVERYTHING THROUGH HIM WHO GIVES ME STRENGTH." PHIL. 4:12,13

Orphanage part #1

I went to the orphanage again today to drop off items I had and that I had collected from others. I drove in the gate and the guard was much friendlier this time. My friend Dilek and I got out of the van and gave our IDs and then unloaded the van and left.

I have been on a slow search to find this orphanage that I knew was in our town somewhere. Finally my friend and I went together and she helped me find it one day about a 2 weeks ago.  The place is large and the areas we saw were clean and the whole place smelled fresh.  There was a nice park in the garden area and the people I did see were dressed nice and seemed to each have a purpose and position. We were able to talk to one of the managers, not quite sure her title.  There are 100 children in the orphanage. The children attend public schools for their education and the largest group they have right now is 17 year old girls. We were not offered a tour and didn't press it, however did ask how we could help. I really want to get my foot in the door here. I want to see the living conditions of the children. I want to see the children interact and see where I can possibly use whatever giftings God has given me to reach out and be a hand of love. Praying for an open door.

~

11 years ago I visited Turkey and we visited an orphanage while we were in country. I want to share my story ~ it is heartrending and one that I will never forget.  However it is just past 11:00 pm and it is my bedtime and it is an emotional draining story for me especially when I am already tired, so I will try and finish tomorrow...until then, goodnight.

"Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you." James 1:27


In my west corner,
Becky

I HAVE LEARNED THE SECRET OF BEING CONTENT IN ANY AND EVERY SITUATION, WHETHER WELL FED OR HUNGRY, WHETHER LIVING IN PLENTY OR IN WANT. I CAN DO EVERYTHING THROUGH HIM WHO GIVES ME STRENGTH." PHIL. 4:12,13

Our Thanksgiving ideas, crafts and SHOW

Our Turkey Veggie Tray! (or is it a Dog ??)

We had a few Turkish friends over during the Thanksgiving dinner, we asked one of them what he thought this was.  He thought for a bit and then said a DOG! Ha ha ~ I laughed pretty hard because of course all the Americans said a Turkey because they knew that is what it is suppose to be. So really what does this veggie try look like?(lol)

If you remember our little tp tube pumpkins, they became our napkin and name tag holders!!! This was a great way to reuse our craft for the Thanksgiving table. :)

In order to teach my kids about Thanksgiving and the history  I decided to do a few crafts to help as aids. It helps me to tell the story, I am not the best teacher but I can do much better when I have a craft to point to. So here is what we did..

Thanksgiving Crafts 

Pilgrim paper bonnets and pilgrim paper hat.

Water bottle boats to represent the Mayflower.

Our fun corn craft. Popcorn corn of plenty.

This is a PERFECT craft for little boys. My little guy doesn't love crafts so much right now but he loves to EAT and sooooo this worked out perfect, half in the mouth half on the craft.

Cardboard tube pilgrims and Indians.

We used one long thin tube and turned it into the pilgrims and Indians.

My oldest daughter came to me a day before we celebrated Thanksgiving and asked if she could do a show. She incorporated all the crafts we had made and came up with a show all on her own, that she preformed at our friends house on Thanksgiving day. We were really proud of her. It was fun for her to be excited about her own cultures history and watch her talents come out.

She used the corn to show a great harvest had finally come to the Pilgrims. 

Here she is at the beginning of her little 'show'.

Off I go to start thinking and planning for her 8 year old Birthday and Birthday cake that is in 3 days. ~ 

In our west corner of Turkey having enjoyed a weekend of our American traditions.

Becky