Happy New Year!

Happy New Year's Eve!

Here's to a great 2014!

I'll have the party up tomorrow, hope you'll join me!

{Freebie} Do Not Open Until Christmas Printable

Well I do believe I'm ready for Christmas!

Having a 4 year old with no concept of time is so challenging!

He's wanted to open presents ever since they showed up under the tree!

So I made a fun sign to share today!

Just something fun!

Right click, save and print!

Enjoy!

Merry Christmas Eve!

Easy Frame Makeover

Can you believe that it might be about 10 years that I've had this snowman Christmas poster? And that I'm just now framing it!!?  In my defense it is not a common size!....11x17 to be exact.  ( I say not common because I found the frame under the 'miscellaneous sizes' section at Hobby Lobby.com!) I never could decide what kind of frame I wanted or if I wanted to try and do a crafty type frame. So a quick frame it was.  And then maybe next year I'd paint it.  Well then I had a thought! (I know a little dangerous!☺)

Glitter tape!

Thanks Target $1 Spot!!

Before......

and after in about 5 minutes!!...

So easy!

Now....I need to see what else needs a little sparkle!

Happy Thursday lovelies!!

Did you see I have a Newsletter now?

Sign up using the form in my side bar today! --->>>>>>

{See my Link Parties page for the shares.}

{Freebie} Christmas Recipe Cards

I know I just made some freebie Christmas lock screens last week but thought I'd make some fun Christmas recipe cards too!! I'm going to my first ever Cookie Exchange on Saturday and am thinking I'll bring my cookie recipe on a card to share with my bunco babes! So I gotta share with my lovelies too!! Can you guess which one I'll be using? ;)

(Oops!! I did these late last night and added the bow and thought I saved over the one without the bow! So take your pick! Ha!)

Just right click and save!

Enjoy!!

Hey! Did you see I have a weekly newsletter now? 

Yep! Click the sign up form in my sidebar!!

Happy Tuesday!

{See my Link Parties page for the shares!}

Introducing the Weekly Vintage Gwen Newsletter!

I'm excited to announce a weekly newsletter!!

Sign up to get the week in review plus a few other fun things thrown in!

Use the form below!

Happy Monday lovelies!

{Freebie} Christmas Lockscreens

Yes I have been at it again.  I've changed my phone 'theme' to Christmas! I must say it's really fun to change it up! Once I figured out that it's easy to do in PicMonkey there was no need to search for themes in the Play Store or even to buy one! And there's a nifty app called CocoPPa that you use to fancy up your icons. It's free so with it and PicMonkey I can be my own theme maker!

Here's my home screen so you can get an idea of what CocoPPa does....

Fun huh? I actually am kinda diggin' the pink deer lock screen I made to share with you but it does take a little bit of time to sit and change your icons! And I'd have to have pink icons so.......

On to the freebies!!

I've made the four featured above plus I'll share my Merry & Bright one too!  Just right click and save and email it to yourself and then save to your phone.  Or if you're on your phone just long press and save!

And these are for Android-Samsung S3 but I'd be happy to make you the size you need! Just leave me a comment below!

Enjoy!!

Happy Thursday!

{See my Link Parties Page for the shares!}

Soiree Day-North Pole Breakfast with Buddy

And we are in full Christmas mode at our house! Just finished putting out the rest of the decor.  

Our Elf on the Shelf, Buddy showed up this morning with breakfast! 

Nothing fancy at all, just pure fun!

I quickly snapped a ton of pictures before we ate and then made a Flipagram.  It just recently became available for Android so I'm still new to it that's why some of the pics are not centered and the lighting was horrible as it was overcast and extremely foggy this morning! None the less, it still turned out fun!

Do you have an Elf?

Lil' Hunkie loves it!!

Happy Tuesday!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Just want to say how thankful I am to have people still reading this here little ole' blog of mine!

I hope you have full bellies and full hearts today!

Be blessed lovelies! 

Truth in the Tinsel Treat

Well I'm trying to not let the holidays sneak up on me but I'm not sure I'm doing a very good job at it!

Still don't have next week plans ironed out and nor do I have how I want to use Truth in the Tinsel with Lil' Hunkie for Advent.  Here's a brief recap of how we've used it so far..

Advent Book

Ornaments

If you're new here, Truth in the Tinsel is a ebook written by Amanda White that guides you taking your children through Advent....learning about Jesus. Last year she incorporated the printable ornaments and so Lil' Hunkie and I just colored them, cut and put them on the tree that was in his room.  And then I still have that book I made the first year! Included in the story of Jesus is a daily craft which I'm thinking about doing or I was thinking about making a coloring book...I can't decide and time is running out!  Lil' Hunkie loves to paint so I know he would love the crafts. 

What I have decided on, is offering you a discount code for the ebook!!

Just use code VINTAGEGWEN at check out to get 20% of the ebook.

Purchase Now.

How do you plan on going through Advent?

Happy Friday!

{Guest Post} Jessica from 4 Interior Design

Happy Thursday! 

Excited to have a guest all the way from the UK today!

 Jessica blogs at 4 Interior Design and shares some lovely interior design ideas.  

Today, she's giving us tips on how to decorate for Fall just in time for Thanksgiving next week!

♦♦♦

Charming Ways to Achieve Classy Fall Decor

Fall is a dreary, grey time of year, with the leaves first putting on a glorious display, then sadly falling and turning into black oozing slime, slippery underfoot and unpleasant to the nose! Make sure that your home is bursting with autumn charm this year, by switching out your summer décor for autumnal elegance and appeal.

Seasons within a Season

Fall is the time of year when we celebrate Harvest Festival, followed by the sweetly spooky delights of Halloween. Thanksgiving in the USA follows, reminding us all of everything that we should feel blessed about. Christmas arrives in the middle of winter, a burst of joy, goodwill and bonhomie to relieve the unrelenting chill and gloom of the season. Allow each of these sub-seasons a place in your home décor, even if it means that you are changing decorations and ornaments every month or so! Harvest speaks of plentiful food and can be celebrated with laden fruit bowls or even an attractive cornucopia spilling its bounty over the sideboard or table.

 Source

If the lurid orange of pumpkins, so prevalent for both Harvest Festival and Halloween does not appeal to you, purchase some of the elegant white pumpkins that are periodically seen in stores. If you are arty, you can pick out the pumpkin with silver elements, creating a surprising ethereal and delicate look, perfect for charming décor, while still acknowledging the bounty of nature! 

Wreath Around

Make not one but several fall wreaths. The first should be packed with berries, seeds and leaves that have changed their colour early. Soaking the leaves in glycerine for a day or two will keep them in good condition for several months, so you will not have brown leaves withering away and ruining your décor. The second wreath should focus more on emphasizing the beauty of autumn leaves with little other ornamentation necessary. 

Source

Togetherness

At this bleak time of year it is nice to commemorate togetherness, either as part of a large family or with a group of friends or even colleagues. Arrange your furniture so that everyone feels part of a large community, rather than permitting the gathering to break off into smaller cliques and sub-groups. Creating a large open eating space will ensure that everyone is brought together, to eat, talk and relax as equals.

Décor and Accessories

Treat yourself to some whimsical and delightful autumnal tablecloths and placemats to change the mood of the dining table – or make them yourself! Add touches of seasonal charm to accessories and ornaments, introducing a subtle acknowledgement of the positives of this changeable season. 

Source

Choose your new odds and ends by deciding, before purchase, on the theme that you want for your autumn décor. Do you want simple yet stunning elegance? Or do you prefer a touch of whimsy that looks pretty and fresh? Once you have a theme in mind, you can set about finding or making the perfect accessories and products that will help you to achieve the desired look.

♦♦♦

Terrific tips!! Thanks  Jessica!  

Be sure and visit Jessica's blog for more decorating tips!!

4 Interior Design

Have a happy day!

2013 Fall Mantle & Give Thanks Banner

Happy Thursday lovelies!

I gotta tell ya....I'm excited about my Give Thanks Banner! I switched out my mantle last week from Halloween to Thanksgiving (or Fall).  I kept thinking "that mantle sure could use something else."  So I knew I wanted to do some kind of banner and in a crafting magic moment whipped one out in about 20 minutes yesterday! Why yes I'm tooting my own horn! Why? Because I free handed my words! 

All I used for the banner was glitter scrapbook paper, well it was more like cardstock but it was 12x12, 4x6 blank notecards, paint, and mod podge.  I drew the letters on the back of the glitter paper then cut out. Next, with pencil I wrote out 'give' and then went over it with a metallic brown paint.  Glued on the letters and done! Had it all on hand too! And tiny clothespins are my way of cheating to hang banners!

And besides the banner,  there's no new decor....I just used all this in a new way!

Not gonna lie....it makes me smile!

How's your Thanksgiving decorating going? 

Have a happy day!

{See my Link Parties page for the shares!}

{Recipe} Peanut Butter Bread

When I was growing up my sister and I baked a lot. My mom had a set of 3 McCall's cookbooks...a cookie one, a cakes and pies one and a home-baked breads one.  We used them so much that the majority of them are no longer bound! Well I was going through them a couple of weeks ago and organized them and discovered missing pages.....pages that contained the best Coffee Cake recipe ever. So I called my mom and asked if she could look for them and praise the Lord she found them! I will be sharing that recipe soon!

Another recipe, though, caught my eye....Peanut Butter Bread.  I had never had such a thing so I gave it a go! And results were yummy!

Peanut Butter Bread

2 1/4 cups sifted all purpose flour

4 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

3/4 cup creamy peanut butter

1/2 cup sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 3/4 cups milk

Optional: peanut butter chips

Preheat oven to 350. Grease a 9x5x3 inch loaf pan.  Sift flour with baking powder and salt; set aside.  In large bowl, using portable electric mixer, or with wooden spoon, beat peanut butter, sugar, and vanilla until well combined.  Gradually add milk, beating until well blended.  Add flour mixture, beating until mixture is smooth.  Pour into prepared pan; bake about 1 hour or until cake tester inserted in center comes out clean.  Let cool in pan 10 minutes.  Remove from pan; cool completely on wire rack.

Notes: before baking I sprinkled peanut butter chips on top.  Next time I will put them on the inside too, they were a great addition!

I used a mini square pan and baked for about 20 minutes with my oven set on convect. 

 They do need to be stored in an air tight container to prevent drying out.

Recipe courtesy of McCall's Home-baked Breads. 

♦♦♦♦♦

I love this kind of recipe because, except possibly for the peanut butter chips, you'd have everything on hand and is perfect if you need to make something in a pinch!

Here's my Instagram of the home-baked breads edition....

.....they are more like a booklet, but you can see where we taped it! Ha!! I did look on Ebay and discovered a variety of these, apparently there was a series so I might have to add to my family heirlooms!

Let me know if you try this recipe out!!

Happy Thursday lovelies!!

{See my Link Parties Page for the shares.}

{Freebie} Breast Cancer Awareness Bookmarks

Happy Tuesday!!

I'm needing to send my survivor mother in law a little something in the mail before this month is up! She's a big reader so why not a bookmark!  And of course I love to share!!  Just right click and save! I created all of these in good ole' PicMonkey!!

{For personal use only.}

Enjoy!!

{See my Link Parties Page for the shares!}

{Recipe} Tostada Soup

For some people fall may be the best time of year to eat soups.  I, on the other hand, love soup anytime! Soup is a great thing to serve if you have a lot of people you need to feed, it's probably one of the easiest things to make a lot of! My mom was given a yummy, feeds a lot Tostada Soup recipe years ago and I recently fixed it for my bunco group and they loved it.  

Tostada Soup

2lb. hamburger meat

1 med. onion, chopped

1 med. green bell pepper, chopped

1 can Rotel 

1 can beef broth

1 can chicken broth

1 large can tomato juice

1 can pinto beans, optional

grated cheese

tortilla chips

In large soup pot, brown meat with onion and bell pepper, drain fat.  Add Rotel, broths, tomato juice, and beans, if desired.  Heat to boiling; reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes.  Place chips in bowl and pour soup over chips.  Top with grated cheese and enjoy! Enough for 6 or more servings.

Notes:  I used a can of ranch style beans instead of pinto beans and added sour cream as a topping.  You can put this in the crock pot on high till nice and heated through and then keep on low. I fed 8 people with this recipe! 

I'd love to hear if you try this out!!

Happy Tuesday!!

{See my Link Parties page for the shares!}

Vintage Gwen Chapel-Bearing Fruit

Have you ever read a scripture that you've read several times but all of a sudden a light bulb comes on and you have a new revelation? Well during our ladies retreat this happened to me! And I loved it....it confirms that God's Word is alive.  Alive!

A simple truth is this....if you want to be in pursuit of God and His heart then you need to spend time with Him daily.  If you want to be ready at all times for what the enemy may throw at you then daily devotion time helps you to store up, to keep your reservoir full. 

Jeremiah 17:7-8 reads...

"But blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him.  He will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always open.  It has no worries in year of drought and never fails to bear fruit."

Hello! Did ya catch that?

Got trust and confidence in the Lord? 

If so, then you have no fear, no worry and you bear fruit at ALL times!

So that means that even when you feel far from God, He is stilling working, there is still something to be learned in dry times.  God wants us to bear fruit always! 

Praying that you are a tree firmly planted by the water today!