.Our Living Room Today.

Adam and I wake up everyday and smile. 

We pull into the driveway with a smile.

Yard work is completed with a smile.

There is one reason:

We own a home.

God has blessed us tremendously and our house is a daily reminder.

We take pride in our home and are striving to create a dwelling place that not only makes us feel warm inside, but our guests as well. Adam and I truly feel joy and are energized by living life with dear friends and family. Last time I shared our living room with you we were only moved in 6 weeks. Remember this room?

After a few weeks of hard work, a few paychecks cashed, and a few visits from family..our living room looks like this today..(some of you noticed a sneak peek in this post!)

The furniture is purchased and set in place so it's time to decorate! The walls and sofa table Adam built are calling our names--stay tuned for the crafts, DIYS, and accessories we will be adding to our new room along with holiday decor :)

Couch, Curtains, TV Unit: IKEA

Rug: Found on Amazon

Woven Ottomans: Found on Amazon

Curtain rod: Target

Pillows: Target

Sofa Table: Home Depot + ADAM!

.Early Morning Snuggles.

The life of a nanny.

.We have a Dining Room.

Adam and I finally have a room to entertain our guests and enjoy meals together..

Introducing our Dining Room!

We are both loving our office to dining room conversion and cannot wait to start decorating! Those curtains are still begging me to hem them but it will wait until after the holidays--the walls are taking first priority! Time to fill those babies with homemade art work and photos along with a few Christmas decorations--so excited! Thanks for following along on this room's journey, stay tuned for all the fun accessories and our first time using the new space!

Happy cooking and gathering everyone!

Curtains: IKEA

Table: IKEA

Chairs: Target (go on sale in stores!)

Paint: Benjamin Moore

.The Crafts of Christmas Past.

Christmas is in the air.

Neighbors are decorating their homes sharing Christmas cheer.

Radio stations are playing Nat King Cole.

Holiday drinks are being served at coffee shops.

Red bows are gracing wreaths everywhere.

Memories are being made by all ages.

Cookies are baking in the ovens of many households.

People are rejoicing in the birth of our 

Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Here's to wishing the air you breath will fill your heart with warmth and peace this Christmas season. This post is simply to share the Christmas crafts I completed last year in hopes it may bring inspiration and joy to you. Enjoy and happy Christmas Crafting!

Almond Tree

Birch Bark Welcome Sign

Rustic Snowflakes

See tutorial here.

(and now for a few Christmas gift ideas!)
 Felt Flower Fun

Book Letters

See tutorial here.

Happy Living--Merry Christmas

and remember

--Little Things Bring Smiles--

.This Holiday Season.

..has had a spectacular start.

Adam and I spent Thanksgiving in NJ with my side of the family. We had a lovely visit filled with lots of food, hugs, and laughter. I was reminded this week how dear family is and how fortunate I am to be loved. God has revealed Himself to me through answered prayer and has shown me love through members of my family. 

As I reflect on the past week, I am grateful for..

my Heavenly Father.

family.

conversation.

embraces.

laughter.

stories.

shared meals.

prayer.

miracle of babies.

quality time.

friendships.

investing.

and l o v e.

How did you spend your Thanksgiving?

Did the Lord reveal Himself to you this week?

.25 and Feeling Alive.

Today is the day,

I am officially in my mid-twenties.

25 to be exact.

This fact honestly causes me to giggle and cringe at the same time. 

I am getting old.

As a little girl, I dreamed up plans for age 24. The biggest one was to have my first baby because my mother was 24 when she gave birth to her first baby, my older brother--it just made sense in my little girl mind to do the same. Well, my 24th year has ended and there is obviously no baby to show. Little did I know back then, the Lord would bless my 24th year with a beautiful house I can call home, a family I can call for love and support, and a best friend I can call my husband.

My 25th year has been set up for great things.

Jeremiah 29:11
"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm, plans to give you hope and a future."

I am 25 and feeling alive!

Happy Living--Happy Celebrating

and remember

--Little Things Bring Smiles--

.Getting Closer.

We are finally getting closer to having a real 

dining room. 

Adam and I bought our house with a lovely little coat closet, pantry, and front office/small bedroom. 

Take a look:

Our coat closet is now a large walkway into our dining room. The little pantry was taken out completely to allow more room in the dining area. We had the entire hallway/office wall knocked down to create more open space for entertaining. The entire kitchen/living room/hallway/dining room were painted. Our carpet was patched where the walls were knocked down. A chandelier was hooked up and curtains were hung. Still lots to do but this is what we have so far, like the title says:

'Getting Closer'

and just in time for the holiday season!

Curtains, throw rug (which will be moved), and chandelier all purchased from Ikea. Dining room paint is Benjamin Moore's Pottery Barn Stonington Gray HC-170. 

Final touches include:

 Getting crown molding installed.

Having trim added around the tile in front of the entrance.

Filling the room with a table and chairs.

Adding art work/wall Decor.

Hemming the curtains. (Any advice? This is entirely-out-of-my-comfort-zone!)

At least we are getting closer!

What do you think of our room conversion so far?

.Arg.

I had photos ready to share with you of our 'let's turn a small office into a dining room' plan however another headache has struck. Annoyed and frustrated but I know God is faithful and He is revealing answers to me slowly.

Prayers appreciated today, back to bed for this gal!

.ONE YEAR.

November 12th marked my first year of blogging. 

365 days + 220 posts = 

ONE AMAZING YEAR OF GROWTH AND CREATIVITY.

I thought I would share some blog stats from the past year.

Total Page Views:

211,734

Total Comments:

1,880

Total Followers:

602

Top 5 Audience

1. United States with 170,913 views

2. Canada with 7,763 views

3. United Kingdom with 3,128 views

4. Germany with 2,212 views

5. India with 1,525 views

Top 5 Most Viewed Posts:

1. Felt Fun with 25,629 hits

2. More Felt Fun with 15,247 hits

3. Book Letters with 11,012 hits

4. Canvas Logo Art with 8,314 hits

5. Acorn Wreath with 7,984 hits

Top 5 Traffic Sources:

1. Pinterest with 18,151 hits

2. littlethingsbringsmiles.blogspot.com with 10,840 hits

3. Aetuts with 9,391 hits

4. Google with 5,486 hits

5. Green Submarine with 5,067 hits

Top 5 Most Commented Posts 

(excluding giveaways):

1. Spring Wreaths with 66 comments

2. First Yarn Wreath with 63 comments

3. Book Letters with 57 comments

4. Fall Flashback with 53 comments

5. Canvas Logo Art with 53 comments

Top 5 Personal Posts:

1. This is Me with 46 comments

2. Choosing to be Gluten-Free with 28 comments

3. Cysts and Migraines with 17 comments

4. About Me with 17 comments

5. My Journey the Last Four Months with 15 comments

 Thank you for all who read and keep me motivated to write and share. Blogging has been the source of much happiness in my life and has truly blessed me. 

Have a wonderful Monday everyone :)

.Our First Ever Garage Sale.

Well, we did it.

After days worth of cleaning and organizing, staying up late last night, 

and waking at 5am this morning we.. 

MADE MONEY!

I never thought getting rid of things would be so fun, social, and profitable! Adam and I met many wonderful and kind neighbors and found out people our age and newly married live around us--

not just old people :) Imagine that! 

It felt grand being a homeowner today and sharing how the Lord has blessed our family.

My teammate, love for life, and best friend.

What would I do without you Adam Everett.

Here are a few photos from our Miller family collection:

(Thanks to my Mother-in-law, brother-in-law, college dorm rooms, college townhouse, 

and first married townhouse we had lots of goodies for everyone of all ages!)

I'm proud of us, we did real good.

Oh..and in case you were wondering how I felt about hosting our first ever garage sale..

I think this picture says it all! (including how cold it was!)

Happy Living--Happy Garage "Sale-ing"

and remember

--Little Things Bring Smiles--