ic Kathe With an E: December 2013

Monday, December 30, 2013

You're Gonna Love It Tuesday

Welcome, my awesome friends, 
to the very last 
You're Gonna Love It Tuesday Party of 2013!

Do you have big plans for ringing in the New Year?  

Mr. B and I are big time celebrators!
Yep!  We set the alarm extra loud to wake us up 
at midnight so we can say we were awake when it happened LOL!

One party I always get loud about is this one right here!
This week, since it's kinda special, I want you to not only
link up your latest but, I also want to see your greatest!
I want to see your most viewed post of 2013 too!!

Speaking of greatest, take a look at the most viewed from last weeks party!
Judy from JBiggs Little Pieces shared 
Seeing "Batman" put the star atop the tree just made me smile!  
The true innocence of children is so sweet!
Thank you Judy for this special post! 
Be sure to grab an I've Been Featured button!

Now, get out your noisemakers and let's party!!

Feel free to link up anything you have created.
Recipes, decor, crafts, written or photographed.
Anything you are so proud of you just gotta share it with others.
I will reserve the option of deleting any post that I do not feel fits the
theme of my blog. And please, limit your link ups to just 2 or 3. 

I love to spotlight some of my favorites on my Facebook page and pin them to my You're Gonna Love It Tuesday board on Pinterest so,
be sure to follow me there too! As always, you don't have to be a follower in order to link up. I want you to follow Kathe With An E because you want to, not because it is required.

You can sign up to receive my updates by email right here.
I would love it if you would link back in some way so that others come and party with us. Either grab the party button or add my blog link to your post or on your blog party page. But again, it's not required.

I ask that you please DO NOT link up giveaways, Etsy shops or anything for sale. Save those for the first Tuesday of each month (next week!) when,
Anything Goes!

Please remember, this is a party. So, after you link up, mingle around 
and visit some of the other party guests.

*By linking up your post, you are giving Kathe With An E permission to use your pictures as a feature on this blog and other social media outlets.

Be sure to stop by and visit these other great linky parties this week!
Life on Lakeshore Drive

This week’s party is sponsored by:
You blog. You Profit. Sign up for SocialSpark!

Top 5 Posts For 2013

2013 was a year of highs and lows for us personally.  Mr. B lost both his grandfather and his father this past year making the holidays a bit somber.


We did gain a new grand daughter though!  Lil Miss Sweetpea is the bright spot for us and I can't wait to meet her in a few weeks! I also got to go visit my Lil Peanut grandson this year and I truly believe he is not only the handsomest little boy but, also the smartest! 

Mr. B & I also took on the challenge of selling our first home together and purchasing a new home.  Stressful but oh so worth it!

It was also a very good year for this blog!  I try to learn something new to implement at least once a week and it has paid off in new friends and followers!  I just love that the bestest!  

Looking back at my top 5 blog posts allows me to get a good feel on what you enjoy seeing here so let's hop in the time machine and see what they were!

I look forward each week to the weekly party and, evidently, so do you as several of the parties made it into the top 10 viewed and visited!  The party starts every Monday night at around 6:00 PM Mountain time and I always look forward to seeing what you have to share each week!


As much as you like to party, it also seems you like reviews and giveaways! I plan on having more of these types of posts available in 2014 so keep an eye out for them!

I am soooo enjoying our new home and being able to decorate for the holidays.  I loved taking you on a tour of how I decorated for our first Christmas in our new home!

My very favorite hobby is tablescaping!  The table I set for Christmas this year wasn't only one of your favorites but, was also mine!  I'm looking forward to setting even more fun tables in the new year.

This was not only the most viewed post here in 2013, it is the most popular post I have done since I started blogging!  It got featured on some pretty big blogs and websites giving it hit after hit after hit and it continues to be viewed in big numbers today! 

So, there you have it, the top 5 reasons I will continue sharing my tables, recipes, decor, DIY projects and MORE with you in 2014! I have a whole new house still needing to be shared as well as a new garden space I am anxious to get my hands dirty in!  As always, I love having you visit me, comment and share with me!  On to the New Year friends!!

Click here to see where I may be partying this week.
AND
Don't forget to come by on Tuesdays
for the link party.

Tuesday, December 24, 2013

Merry Christmas!

To all of my lovely followers, guests and bestest little  buddies, I wanted to take time out to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a prosperous and Happy 2014! You've all been such great support to me over the past few years and, after the last few months, I'm certainly looking forward to 2014. 
You've loyally stood by me through the good, the bad and the ugly!  
Thank you!!
I aim to make 2014 the best year ever and I hope you will continue to join me on the fun ride!

I'll be taking a few days off from blogging to rest up and start the new year refreshed and revitalized!  Not to worry though, there will still be a final 2013 link party starting Monday night as always and I hope you will come by and share, not only your most recent creativity but, your favorite post of 2013!

Now, go on and enjoy the holiday with friends and family!!


Love,

Monday, December 23, 2013

You're Gonna Love It Tuesday

Merry Christmas Eve my friends!
Can you believe this is the last party before Christmas already??!!

I wish you all have a very Merry Christmas!

Let's make this the funnest Christmas party of the season shall we?

The most viewed link came from Christina from 
Christina shared with us a wonderful story of her mother and red lipstick.
My own mother has been gone for many years but I still remember the scent of her lipstick as she gave me good night kisses.  Thank you so much for sharing your mother with us Christina, Be sure to grab an I've Been Featured button!

Now!  On to the party!

Feel free to link up anything you have created.
Recipes, decor, crafts, written or photographed.
Anything you are so proud of you just gotta share it with others.
I will reserve the option of deleting any post that I do not feel fits the
theme of my blog. And please, limit your link ups to just 2 or 3. 

I love to spotlight some of my favorites on my Facebook page and pin them to my You're Gonna Love It Tuesday board on Pinterest so,
be sure to follow me there too! As always, you don't have to be a follower in order to link up. I want you to follow Kathe With An E because you want to, not because it is required.

You can sign up to receive my updates by email right here.

I would love it if you would link back in some way so that others come and party with us. Either grab the party button or add my blog link to your post or on your blog party page. But again, it's not required.

I ask that you please DO NOT link up giveaways, Etsy shops or anything for sale. Save those for the first Tuesday of each month when, 

Anything Goes!

Please remember, this is a party. So, after you link up, mingle around 
and visit some of the other party guests.

*By linking up your post, you are giving Kathe With An E permission to use your pictures as a feature on this blog and other social media outlets.

Be sure to stop by and visit these other great linky parties this week!
Life on Lakeshore Drive

This week’s party is sponsored by:
You blog. You Profit. Sign up for SocialSpark!



Wednesday, December 18, 2013

Holiday Home Tour

Can you believe Christmas is just a few days away?  
Soon 2013 will be over and a new year will be greeting us!

I shared our Christmas table with you last week so, now it's time to show you the rest of our holiday decor. 

Since we are in a new home decorating this year was a challenge.  
New surfaces to cover and decisions on how I wanted to have the decor look had to be made.

Although I am happy with how it all turned out, I have decided that since I have bins of decor no longer being used, when I go to pack everything back up, only sentimental and favorite pieces will stay and the rest will be sent off to be re-loved in a new home.  

Until then, Let me take you on a tour of our home for the holidays.
First up is the mantel and fireplace area.


Pretty much everything here will stay. I love Santa and the mantel is a perfect place to display my favorites. You can see the Santa picture above the buffet at our previous home here
At night, the lights I used on my New Year's Eve tablescape come on and add the perfect amount of holiday sparkle! I love that they are on a timer so they turn on and off on their own.
There are four stockings hung, mine, Mr. B's, Max's and one for Mr. B's mother who will be spending the holiday with us this year.
Next up is the space above the TV.  It divides the living room/ kitchen and the dining room and is pretty deep.  I decided to split down the middle and decorate one side for the living room and the other for the dining room. 
This is the living room side and my angels keep watch over us. 
The angels usually sit up on the top of my china cabinet but the space isn't as tall in this house and I like that I can see and enjoy them here.
On the dining room side I have my small collection of nutcrackers, a stuffed snowman and the Joy sign.  I'm not sure what, if any, of these items will stay or be re-loved. 
Sorry for the poor quality of this photo.  4 months in and I still haven't figured out the lighting in this house LOL! We had to buy a new tree this year as our old one blew out a string of lights and after a few days of trying to fix it, Mr. B gave up and bought a new one. Only one tree will work in this house so no more fun for me in decorating our white one (seen here and here). Mr. B is in charge of the tree decorating and he loves a warm homemade feel and I think he does such a great job placing all of the ornaments and other decor on the tree!


On to the buffet. I kept it very simple this year.
I did change out the lampshades to the burgundy ones for the season.
I purchased this sweet Gingerbread piece at my very first trip to a Christmas Tree Shop when I was visiting my grandson in CT.  My friend Kathleen always finds such cute items there that, when I found out there was one near my son's home, well I had to make them take me there LOL! The ornament is a gift that is becoming a yearly tradition from my son and his fiancee.  It is from a glass shop in RI and is hand blown. 
I received the yellow ornament as my gift this year! It sits between a tin sled filled with holiday picks and the little winter church I crafted a month or so ago.
The doors to my office are one of the first things you see as you enter the front door so, of course, they had to get into the holiday spirit!
I purchased a pair of white wreaths and picks on sale at Michael's and hung them from the doors with ribbon held on with Command Strips (Command Strips are my new BFF's! There isn't a spot in the house that doesn't have something hung or hooked with one!).
A little pillow with a shout out to Santa hangs from the handle.



So there it is, a holiday tour of our new home all decked out for Christmas!
Mr. B and I wish all of you a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
I look forward to all that the New Year brings!


Click here to see where I may be partying this week.
AND
Don't forget to come by on Tuesdays
for the link party.

Tuesday, December 17, 2013

Top 5 Christmas Movies

Last week you will remember I shared my Top 5 Non-Traditional Traditional Christmas Movies. Some of you made awesome suggestions of some new ones I need to watch and perhaps expand my list!  
Thank you!


This week, as promised, I am sharing my Top 5 Christmas Movies.  
Movies that Mr. B and I watch every year as part of our own holiday tradition. In no particular order, here they are:


Meet Me In St. Louis - 1945 - Starring Judy Garland


The Shop Around The Corner - 1940 - Starring Jimmy Stewart


Elf - 2003 - Starring Will Farrell


A Christmas Story - 1983 - Starring Peter Billingsley


How The Grinch Stole Christmas (Animated Version) - 1966- Starring - The voice of Boris Karloff


Now, I know every list should include It's A Wonderful Life but, Mr. B finds the movie depressing so it doesn't make our list. 
The Shop Around the Corner can be substituted with In The Good Old Summertime or You've Got Mail as the story lines and even some of the exact wording from each script are the same (which irritated the beejeezus out of Mr. B when he found out by watching all three with me one day LOL!)

And of course, many have Die Hard on their list but, in my opinion, it is an action movie that can be enjoyed anytime and not a must see during the holiday. 

So, again I ask, agree?  Disagree?  Am I missing any other Christmas movies that you just know we have to add to our list??  

Click here to see where I may be partying this week.
AND
Don't forget to come by on Tuesdays
for the link party.

Monday, December 16, 2013

You're Gonna Love It Tuesday

Only one more shopping week before Christmas my friends!

I am done done done!  

And, that includes sending off a box to my new sweet grand daughter!
The sweetpea arrived Saturday morning and mom & baby are healthy!
Out of respect to her parents wishes I am not sharing photos but suffice it to say, she is Bee-You-Tee-Ful!! I cannot wait to meet her in person and hold her in my arms!

In other news, I currently have a giveaway going on right now!  There aren't many entries so your chances are good! I'd love it if you won your own Pfister faucet, valued at $300.00!  Click here to enter now!!

Now how about we get this weeks party started!

Last weeks most viewed link was brought over by my dear friend Hope at Fairhope Supply
Hope shared her friend Ann's home all decorated for the holiday.  From the outside to every room inside, this is one swoon worthy tour!  Thank you so much for taking all of on the tour Hope!  We loved it it!  Be sure to grab an I've Been Featured button!

Now, let's party!!

Feel free to link up anything you have created.
Recipes, decor, crafts, written or photographed.
Anything you are so proud of you just gotta share it with others.
I will reserve the option of deleting any post that I do not feel fits the
theme of my blog. And please, limit your link ups to just 2 or 3. 

I love to spotlight some of my favorites on my Facebook page and pin them to my You're Gonna Love It Tuesday board on Pinterest so,
be sure to follow me there too! As always, you don't have to be a follower in order to link up. I want you to follow Kathe With An E because you want to, not because it is required.

You can sign up to receive my updates by email right here.

I would love it if you would link back in some way so that others come and party with us. Either grab the party button or add my blog link to your post or on your blog party page. But again, it's not required.

I ask that you please DO NOT link up giveaways, Etsy shops or anything for sale. Save those for the first Tuesday of each month when, 
Anything Goes!

Please remember, this is a party. So, after you link up, mingle around 
and visit some of the other party guests.

*By linking up your post, you are giving Kathe With An E permission to use your pictures as a feature on this blog and other social media outlets.

Be sure to stop by and visit these other great linky parties this week!
Life on Lakeshore Drive

This week’s party is sponsored by:
You blog. You Profit. Sign up for SocialSpark!