I found my Santa Paws.

Its always sad for me to see all the Christmas decorations go down. For some reason the room always looks somewhat empty after shoving that tree into its cardboard box and sweeping up all the glitter from the ornaments and decorations. This year was me and Ty's very first Christmas as a married couple. Not only was the holiday that much more special because I got to share Christmas with TWO families that I love- but because I also got a...... {{drum roll please}}

 PUPPY!!

If you know me at all- You know that for the past several months I have had a bad case of puppy fever. I would sit on google all day and just type in the phrase "cute puppies" and swoon for hours over these adorable furry pets that I dreamed of having on day.

After work on Thursday (the 29th)- I came home and collapsed onto my bed. I was beyond ready for some R&R and a long weekend to sleep in and do nothing. Tyler had told me that morning that he was going to be home later since his work was having a Christmas cookout- so when he rolled in around 6:30 I didn't think too much about it. He walked into the bedroom- tossed a mailer envelope at me and said "Did you order something online again?" In my head I was thinking "crap I'm caught" UNTIL I noticed that the envelope wasn't from an etsy shop or one of my favorite department stores, but rather from the North Pole?!

I look up at Tyler and see that he is filming with his moms camera. I start to open the package and inside found a red collar with the name "Sadie" on it. Tyler had done such a good job of convincing me that I WASNT going to get a puppy for awhile that I still thought him giving this to me was one of his cruel jokes. He told me to go look around the house for her. Immediately, I figured out that it wasn't a joke and jumped out of my bed like lightening.  I ended up finding her in the guest bathtub snoozing away looking cuter than ever! I, of course, started crying and jumping up and down like I had just won a million dollars.

So enjoy a ton of pictures of my cute 7 week old black puppy lab... Sadie Swift Toney.

{She loves playing with Jesse! They are slowly becoming BFF's!}

I had the privilege of being a bridesmaid in one of my besties wedding on New Years Eve in Little Rock, AR! That night after her dinner rehearsal, all the girls headed back to the hotel to spend a little more time with the bride and shower her with more goodies :) Little did we know, the bride and another one of the bridesmaid had ANOTHER surprise for us! Not only was Kate getting married, but our best friend Brooke is PREGNANT! We are so excited for her and Warren and can't wait to start having baby showers watch Brooke's belly grow! :) Kate knew ahead of time and had this lovely cake made to announce the news to us. Sneaky sneaky... 

Last night, the whole Toney family plus Tylers grandparents and Paiges boyfriend Andrew, went to the Mavs game!! It was so much fun and I loved watching them pull a victory! And yes, I had my eyes glued to see Khloe Kardashian, but had no luck sadly. 

So now that you are all caught up on my life- How was  YOUR Christmas and New Years??? 

Oh my, How Pinteresting!!

Oh how I love Pinteresting Wednesdays! Even though Christmas is just around the corner (SCORE!! HIGH FIVE!) I still think its fun to share with all my readers things I am {CRUSHIN'} on hardcore. 

So let the fun begin.

{I am lurving...just LURVING..this! The hubs and I have a home in the middle of a "developing neighborhood", which basically means we are getting to know the workers building the homes around us VERY well. As I was leaving for work this morning, I spotted a crate similar to this next to house being built to the right of us and mentally decided that if it was still their after I get home- I will steal it to my project needs. Muaha.}

{I am in no way shape or form....a cook. And I don't mind admitting that. But for somebody who is challenged in the kitchen...THIS was the perfect recipe for me. Its simple and will totally make your house guest think your related to Paula Deen. No bread maker?? NO WORRIES! You don't need one! Check it out y'all...Your taste buds will thank you later.}

{The backyard has been one area of the house that I have neglected. Maybe its because its cold or maybe because I don't have a dog...But I NEVER go out there. But the day that I DO...I would like to make some pots that look like this! I have some stencils left over from when i did my major STENCIL WALL DECOR project (which you can check out here!) so I think ill make some good use out of them!}

{This is such a neat blog for helping you figure out what you want to do with all your different sized frames! Im wanting to do something like this in my study but couldn't think of a neat way to hang them! WA-LA! This blog solves all those problems!}

What are some things YOU'RE crushing on today??? 

Don't be jealous...

I know I know...You're jealous of me and my husbands amazing gingerbread house making skills....

You can pick your jaws off the floor now. 

6 more days till CHRISTMAS!!!!

Recent Design Jobs!

One of my very best friends Kate Shell is getting married to a super cool guy, Adam Cooper, this New Years Eve and I had the privilege of being her personal graphic designer for all her wedding needs! :) Can't wait to watch her walk down the aisle oh so soon!!

One of my EEE Sisters, and fellow pageant competitor had me come up with these two designs for some fun upcoming events she was hosting! :) They were a blast to design!  

This wedding invite was for sweet Abbie Dunham (now Tracy!) She had a vintage/rustic wedding and wanted her invites to capture that look as well! Birdcages were used throughout her wedding reception and so we incorporated them into the invite as well! 

It's Okay Thursday Link Up!

Hey guys! Today I am linking up with A Complete Waste of Makeup for yet another......

ITS OK.....

That Christmas is in 10 days and I still have not finished gift shopping OR wrapping.

That I would rather clean out our drains with a coat hanger then do laundry...

To get super sick after doing my first real Zumba class since college. (Im clearly out of shape)

To have to put a sticky note over the clock on my computer so I don't stare at it all day wishing it was 5..

To only be excited that Lamar Odom is playing for the Dallas Mavericks bc the Kardashians might be opening their DASH clothing store in town.

That I bought "bang extensions" bc I'm too much of a sucker to actually cut my own hair

That I brought an orange to work yesterday but stopped for McDonalds instead. Healthy FAIL.

What are you okay with this week???

New 8x10 Prints in the Shop!

Hey guys! We have some new 8x10 prints in the shop! Just in time for some last minute Christmas shopping for yourself or a loved one! :) 

DIY-Wall Stencil Decor

I've seen a lot of projects on Pinterest that ive thought to myself "I can TOTALLY do that" and others ive steered clear of knowing I could never pull it off. 

When I saw this on Pinterest- my first reaction was "Easy. Done. Where is my paint brush and stencil?" but I have to warn you....

 This project is not for the weak at heart. 

It takes patience...A good leveler....and a husband who will tell you when its crooked after already spending 2 hours painting the design. (But thats a whole other story.)

I found this stencil from CuttingEdgeStencils on Etsy. And I highly recommend them if you want to take on this task. They provide you not only with ballin' stencil designs, but brushes and stencil levelers as well to make the whole process a lot smoother!

{Picture of the study before the stenciling began! The room is painted grey and I planned on doing the stencil in a semi-gloss grey which is a shade lighter then the base coat. It gives it a nice sheen with still keeping the pattern noticeable.}

{You will want to purchase some paint tape as well for sticking up your stencil. It doesn't pull the existing paint of and holds it in place very well! I also recommending starting in the middle and working your way out when placing your stencil on the wall. Those tight corners can get tricky and take more time to work on.}

{For a project like this-Its good to purchase a dense foam roller since you wont be pressing very hard with rolling the paint on. (Cutting Edge Stencils also provides this to purchase as well) Pressing too hard results in "bleeds" on the sides of the cut outs leaving you with a no fun splotched edge. I always started out pressing with a medium pressure and it worked great!}

{Once you have your first section painted on, you simply move the stencil down, line it up, and start painting again! The great thing about this process is that the paint dries really quick so there is hardly any wait time needed when going from section to section. TIP: CuttingEdgeStencil has "stencil levelers" for sale but I recommend taking your own leveler and leveling from the design itself...Not the plastic around it-as sometimes the design might not be cut straight on the plastic making for an uneven paint job. I say this from experience *smile*}

{Sometimes its fun to have a little moral support while you're working! Even from a furry friend!}

{Remember earlier when I mentioned my husband telling me that my paint job was crooked at first? This is what happens when you have a perfectionist watching your every move! TIP: Sometimes you might need another set of hands to help you line up the design or you might end up looking like my hubby on the right! Ha! He was such a big help and I definitely would have completed the project without his encouragement!}

{Almost done! The top was the most tricky since you're standing super high on a ladder and still trying to line everything up to perfection. I recommend purchasing a stencil brush to get those tight corners sharp and crisp like the ones below! (CuttingEdgeStencils also provides these for purchase as well!}

 

{TADA!!! All done! Not the best picture considering the glare but done nonetheless!}

This project took me about a week and half of working on it here and there and all but two melt downs (But you have to remember-ive never done anything like this before so it quite the challenge for me and hitting road bumps along the way was just apart of the learning process!)

 It's a finished project that im super proud of! Now to just get started on decorating the rest of the room! EEK!

What fun and challenging DIY projects have you worked on lately?