avatar by on October 8, 2012   •   161 Comments Giveaways Your Home

Velvet pumpkin decor (a giveaway!)

I am not the kind of person to go out and purchase paper (temporary) decor for my home for the Fall. I’m all about handmade decorations, framed art, and pieces that mean something to our family — and even better if they can be handed down (family heirlooms!). It’s such a big deal that I will wait and carefully add to my “Fall decorations” box each year, so that I can make sure to be intentional about it.

I am also drawn to simple looks, and as such am so excited to share these beautiful pumpkins with you today!

Plush Velvet Pumpkins from the LoveFeast Shop

These pumpkins are so luscious, nice and heavy, and perfect for an intentional piece of decor for your Fall spread. Just look at these gorgeous works of art from LoveFeast Shop

I love how you can decorate a gorgeous tablescape with the small hostess set like the Reluctant Entertainer did here.

I love how a basket of them is pure art.

I love how cute they look in my baby’s hands (I might be biased, but still).

I love how beautiful they look on a simple picnic table on the Pioneer Woman’s ranch (ok, I also just love the Pdub!). That teal color is my FAVORITE.

The stems come from organic (real) pumpkin stems, and they are each handmade. The gals from LoveFeast Table are beautiful as well, being purveyors of rustic lux in their shop and wielding words from the heart. I was blessed to meet them in person just a few weeks ago, and it was all truth and laughing and bloggy awesomeness. They are good people.

I’m so excited to be able to give away a set just like this one below, it’s called the Prairie Trio.
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avatar by on September 28, 2012   •   food & drink Giveaways

Desserts in jars: the magic of the mason jar

Written by Simple Bites contributor Shaina Olmanson of Food for My Family.

Desserts in jars. You have likely heard of these cute little treats or seen them on Pinterest. They are hard to miss. It’s the glare that reflects off the glass, blinding you with their beauty.

I’ve been creating these sweet treats for a few years now with great results. I even wrote a book full of them called Desserts in Jars: 50 Sweet Treats that Shine. My friends and neighbors have been quite receptive to receiving them, and I’ve even had requests for them from adults and children alike. When I don’t show up with armfuls of jars there are cries of protest.

Why desserts in jars, you ask? Why not? In our home, we already use them to drink out of, to store spices, to line the pantry shelves. Still, here are the reasons why I personally love desserts tucked into cute little jars:
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avatar by on September 22, 2012   •   Giveaways

Weekend giveaway: Sparkle Stories

Today’s weekend giveaway comes from Simple Mom sponsor Sparkle Stories. You and your family will fall in love with these imaginative audio adventures. From Sparkle Stories:

“Sparkle is an online subscription to high-quality audio stories for children and families. Each week Sparkle Stories delivers delightful audio stories to subscribers around the world.

We offer seven original Story Series, all designed to entertain and inspire the whole family.

Audio stories, or stories told out-loud, are untethered to images viewed on a screen. The child is free and able to paint her own pictures out of her own imagination. She becomes relaxed and entranced – committing herself fully to a fantastic adventure.

Sparkle Stories are fun, Sparkle Stories are inspiring, and Sparkle Stories are good for young minds and spirits! Our stories inspire a sense of wonder and magic in life, encourage creativity and a strong sense of self, and even illuminate common childhood challenges.”
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avatar by on September 15, 2012   •   Giveaways

Weekend giveaway: True Beauty

Today’s giveaway comes from sponsor True Beauty: Be Still, a film and reflection guide created by Lisa Chan. From True Beauty:

“Every woman knows the feeling. Regardless of her age, her income, or her family situation, women today are facing the challenges of a busy life and the stress that comes with it.

Obligations to children, husband, job, church, friends, committees, and the pressures of everyday life have created a spiritual crisis for women. Because in their efforts to be everything to everyone, women have forgotten the ONE who really should be their everything.

Lisa Chan believes that in our quest to do it all, women are missing God. In the first film of her new series, True Beauty: Finding Your Identity in Jesus, Chan focuses on what it means to Be Still. Be Still addresses the issues that confront women when they forget to spend time with Jesus — something that, like most women, Chan struggled with herself.
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avatar by on September 8, 2012   •   Giveaways

Weekend giveaway: Captain No Beard

Today’s giveaway comes from Simple Mom sponsor Captain No Beard: An Imaginary Tale of a Pirate’s Life.

Written by Carol P. Roman, Captain No Beard is an imaginative adventure that both the youngest and oldest pirates in your home can read – or listen to – and enjoy.
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