Decorating of the Christmas Sort

Happy December! Some of you might recall one of my superpowers is coming up with super smart ideas at just the right time. Well, I've done it again.

Mother went back to her house on Saturday and I was all set to start moving all the CoasterDoodles paraphernalia into that room so we could use the dining table for eating and playing games like a regular people instead of someone who decided to have an Etsy shop even though her house is too small for all things of the crafty sort.

In the midst of this project which was going to take a mere day or two, I decided it would be the perfect time to tackle the closet in the nursery which had been crammed with everything that had to be put somewhere when one then two of the lovelies moved back home and then stayed there when the last boomeranger moved back out on the very day Mother moved in.

Now, my house is small (1300 sq ft) but the bedroom closets are quite nice as each one is 6' x 6' which is odd to me as they do not look square at all but rectangular anyway they hold tons of stuff. And tons is not an exaggeration when referring to the nursery closet. Those poor shelves. I didn't stop to take before pictures but I do have a couple 'almost there' pix. This is the halfway point in the nursery closet. Can Y'all imagine how bad it was when I started???

 

What does all this have to do with the annual decorating of the house for Christmas? It's the grand idea of 2017 that has put me one week behind in getting it done. One. Week. Though I am determined to have at the very least the trees up this weekend.

It also means I found all the Bitty Babies and their accessories and the Precious Moments dolls and that Bug had the best. time. ever. over here on Tuesday.

And that perhaps people will get their junk out of my house over the holidays and stop using it as a storage unit.

And that I missed out on Bug and Baby R's first excursion to find the perfect Christmas tree.

Not to worry on the last one as my SIL who is the most wonderful, best, most amazing, smartest, sweetest, kindest of all SILs took pictures and shared them with me so I could share them with Y'all!

The journey begins--

Terrible quality but adorable kiddos!

Does our family ever do anything without acting silly? Nope.

As the sun sets on the Christmas tree farm, the family of three...Hahaha! Just kidding. It was still morning.

Look! The one tree with changing leaves in the low-country!

Sisters and babies.

Santa tree with ArtistDaughter and Baby R.

Let's get this tree home, Y'all!

They had a great time! I hated to miss it but when you're up to your eyeballs in organizing closets it's like painting yourself into a corner-- you just can't get out.

Oh, and I've decided to paint a bathroom, too. But I did get new indoor, lighted garland ordered since I've been using the garland in the attic for at least 15 years now. Past time, wouldn't Y'all agree? And that was something Christmassy so...

Have Y'all decorated already?

Please visit my Etsy shop, CoasterDoodles

and feel free to FAVORITE the shop
or buy something! 😁💓

Thanksgiving Recap

It's over and the Christmas season has officially begun. I just hope it isn't a rush but something I enjoy, appreciate, and take time to reflect upon. It's not that easy when I think about all of us being together instead of some here and some there. Having family all together in one place becomes quite special once the kids are all grown up and living their lives out in the wide world.

Anyway, we had nearly everyone here for Thanksgiving the two most important being the grand kiddos, of course, because once they arrive everyone else takes a back seat like the third backseat in one of those old station wagons so they're not even facing the front kind of backseat but come on, they're grandchildren.

So, did we take pictures of the spread? Nope. But there was a spread and the attending lovelies brought dishes this year that were super yummy-lish! AthleticTrainerDaughter (Bug's mommy) even made my grandmother's yeast rolls and they were PERFECT! AND TeacherDaughter made a mac and cheese that nearly equaled Grandmother's mac and cheese! Oh and PLEASE let's not mention those evil cookies TeacherDaughter made that I've had at least 7 of so far and I HATE them. It's so wonderful having bakers in the family who are nearly as good as Grandmother! I say 'nearly' because is anyone ever AS good as their grandmother at baking? Anyway, here's a picture of the pumpkin and sweet potato pies and a ceramic turkey and a pumpkin candle.

We were just too busy talking to loved ones not in attendance and playing in the nursery with the teepee and yes that was made for the grandkids but sometimes grown-ups are lucky enough to maintain a close relationship with their inner child and like to get inside and play, too. That's Tucker getting off the toddler bed where he had been looking out the window while on squirrel watch. 

This is what Bug (formerly known in blog land as, Baby M) does when she sees Grandma which is one of the many reasons she will get the proverbial pony whenever she decides she wants it. That's TeacherDaughter holding Bug. 

We were busy taking pictures. Here's Bug's mommy aka AthleticTrainerDaughter. 

And her daddy aka Best SIL in the world, smartest guy we know, computer guru to the point none of us can tell you what he does because it's just too far over our heads, and all around nicest guy you'd ever hope to meet. And yes, he is wrapped around Bug's little finger already. But then, aren't we all?

And the lovely who is still in close touch with her inner child otherwise known as, Baby R's mommy aka ArtistDaughter. 

 We were also busy roaring like tigers because of course that's one of the first things Bug's Clemson obsessed parents taught her to do and I have to admit she does it quite well. Cutest little tiger roar I've ever heard. Here's a still of it:

Her mommy roared for us, too.

We were busy drawing. Here's a shot of Bug using Grandmas's face as a desk which turned into a hilarious game of peek-a-boo once she realized what she had done. Oh and yes, my arms are both filled with grandbabies these days and there's nothing in this world that makes me happier. Talk about a full heart? That's mine. Full. Every single time these two are around.

Here we are putting our heads together. Ha!

It's always all about the little bits in our family and it is a pure delight to have little ones filling up the house and our hearts.

Baby R playing with a turkey candle.
Did I tell Y'all he is rolling over already? At a mere 3 months old?
Yep, he turned 3 months old yesterday.

That face. Melts my heart every time. 

Oh and, that cutest little roar? Her parents are trying to get it on video but the only time she won't roar like a tiger is when the video is rolling so... Isn't that just like a kid? I'll post it for Y'all when we get one. If it's before she goes to college. Ha!

Have a wonderful weekend, Y'all! Love and hugs to all!

Please visit my Etsy shop, CoasterDoodles

and feel free to FAVORITE the shop
or buy something! 😁💓

Look for upcoming sales at CoasterDoodles!

20% off sale is in full swing!

Code: HOLLYJOLLY

Shelling Out the Hodgepodge

Hello, Wednesday. Do you remember when I looked forward to you each week because of your alias, Hump Day? I do. But I don't love you because of that anymore. I only love you because you bring around the Hodgepodge. Ah, well, at least I do still love you. :)

Speaking of love, I am not loving this hot weather but y'all knew that already. I am, however, enjoying the rain we're getting. There's nothing better than a rainy day. Unless it's a cold rainy day and that tops them all. Anyway...

Here we go, y'all! If you haven't joined in the fun before, why not make today the day? It's fun and you don't have to go out in the heat to participate. 

1. The first day of summer rolls in later this week. What are ten things you'd put on your list of  quintessential summer activities? I wrote a POST all about this a couple weeks ago. If you missed it, it's right HERE.  Will you try to manage all ten this summer? I covered that in the POST, too. LOL

2. Do you collect seashells when you're at the beach? I do not. What do you do with them once you get them home? My favorite thing to do is leave them at the beach. When the beach is 3.1 miles from your back door, you tend to get inundated with shells if you're not careful. Especially if you have 4 daughters. What's your favorite place to comb for seashells? Even if we go out to Capers or other islands accessible only by boat, I leave the shells there. There are creatures who will make homes of those shells. How many of these 'best beaches for hunting seashells' have you visited? Ocracoke and the Bahamas. Which one would you most like to visit? None. I basically live at the beach so, no need. :) 

Calvert Cliffs State Park (Maryland), Jeffrey's Bay (South Africa), Sanibel Island (Florida), Shipwreck Beach (Lanai Hawaii), Ocracoke Island (North Carolina), Galveston Island (Texas) and The Bahamas

3. At a snail's pace, shell out money, come out of your shell, go back into your shell, drop a bombshell, happy as a clam, clam up...which 'shell' phrase could most recently be applied to some event or circumstance in your life? Several of them, actually. But I'll go with, at a snail's pace. Explain. That's how we move down here during the oppressive summers. 

4. What summer activity do you dislike? Anything that involves going outside. Why? Did I mention we have oppressive heat around here? AC is my BFF in the summertime. I will go take Baby M to outdoor places as long as shade is available and the breeze off the water is still coolish and not just blowing heat all around us. Just last week we took her over to Waterfront Park (the Mount Pleasant one not the downtown one).

Here we are under one of the covered spots. They have a bunch of big porch swings for people to sit on and relax under shade frames. The day was HOT but the breeze off the water was cool and the shade was nice. The pier is less than a quarter of a mile long but it's nice. We were partially under the Ravenel Bridge. You can see part of one of the triangles on the right side of the picture, kind of in the middle. Baby M loved being out there and pointed to everything saying, "That. That. That." Seriously, you could hardly get out of your mouth what 'that' was before she had changed directions and saying, "That." again.  I love being around a little one who is learning everything. Their excitement and interest is fabulous. 

5. What's something you see as quickly becoming obsolete? Maps? Landlines? Payphones? CDs? Manners? Boundaries?  Does that bother you? Yes. I'm mostly bothered by the lack of manners and boundaries. Seriously, WTH is wrong with people? 

6. Insert your own random thought here. We had a family gathering Sunday but, shamefully, I have not taken the pictures off the camera yet. Just call me a summer slacker. Or, one who appreciates the slow, lazy pace of a hot summer. Yeah, that's better. HA! It's less than two weeks before Nashville Daughter comes home! We hope to see DrummerBoy too but the band might be in the studio at that time. They've been writing new songs so it's about time to get them recorded. Plus, the guys have been busy- DrummerBoy and Nashville Daughter bought a new house and three of the members had or are soon having BABIES! Two are already here and there's one due in August. Actually, that one is due the same day our little one is due so we're all excited! 

AND---

Our grandbaby boy, Baby R, is due the week after Joyce's grandbaby boy is due. 

I have a feeling it's going to be baby central around here soon! 

For your listening pleasure, here's one of Nashville Daughter's favorite tunes from the second album (isn't the drummer adorable?):

Hope y'all are enjoying your summer! 

Please visit my Etsy shop, CoasterDoodles
and feel free to FAVORITE the shop
or buy something! 😉
I've got brand new additions for your viewing and purchasing pleasure! 😀😁😁

A Comforting Giveaway

Have y'all ever had a comfort jar? The lovelies and I have made these for people we love since the 1990s. I love the idea so much that I made some for my Etsy shop, CoasterDoodles. Usually, I use a plain jar but I jazzed them up a bit for the shop. 

The jars are colorful and have decorative, ceramic knobs on the lids. 

Inside, I have put 20 strips of cardstock on which are printed comforting, encouraging, inspirational, and humorous quotes. 

You could just as easily take those strips of cardstock out and put candy inside. I know candy has provided me with comfort on more occasions than I can count. 

Or, you could add candy to the jars with the strips left inside. Or add more strips of comforting thoughts. 

I'm sure y'all have guessed by now that I am giving away one comfort jar to the lucky winner! All you have to do to enter is tell me in the comments that you'd like to win a comfort jar. That's it!

This time, there are several ways to get more entries if you'd like. Each different thing you choose gives you 5 extra entries. Please let me know what you've done for the extra entries so I can give you credit. Altogether, you could end up with 26 entries.  

1. Like Empty Nest on FB.

2. Follow me on Instagram.

3. Follow me on Twitter. 

4. Scroll down and click on the We're on the Fence button which is a vote for Empty Nest. 

5. Visit CoasterDoodles and make it a favorite. 

Oh, and don't forget to leave a comment here letting me know you're in! :)

ALSO- Remind me if you already do those things so I can give you the correct number of entries! 

That's it, y'all! 

I'll run this until next Thursday, March 16 and announce the winner on Friday, March 17! Just in time for St. Patrick's Day! 

Note Card Giveaway!

It's time for that next giveaway! This time, I'm giving away a set of note cards from my Etsy shop, CoasterDoodles.

I love working on these note cards whether they feature original drawings or original photographs. All of them are such fun to create!

All you have to do to enter is let me know which set you would like should your number be picked.

The choices:

Set 1: Water birds of the SC coast. These feature 4x6 photographs (taken by me) on brown Kraft paper 5 x 7 note cards.

Set 2: More water birds of the SC coast. These feature original photographs taken by me on 4 x 6 card stock quality note cards.

Set 3: Suns and sunflower note cards. These feature a creatively drawn sun, sunflower, or landscape hand drawn by yours truly on 5 1/2 x 5 1/2 square, brown Kraft paper note cards.

All sets include envelopes and are blank on the inside.

AND, if you click THIS LINK to the TOY POST and leave a comment, I'll give you 5 extra entries! :)


Winners will be announced next Friday, March 3! Good luck!

Are You Winning?

(Stay with me, y'all. There's a giveaway after the blahblahblah.)

I'm just going to say it right here, right now: I love to win! I can turn just about anything into a competition and I LOVELOVELOVE to win whatever it is. DRIVES. ME. NUTS.

Wait, what? Why does it drive me nuts? Because I am DRIVEN to win. I MUST win. And, when I don't, I am not that happy about it. I am not one of those 'sore loser but worse winner' types. I don't mope and say mean things or throw something in the direction of the winner when I lose. I keep my unhappiness to myself. But it's there. Because I LOVELOVELOVE to win. You won't see me lording a win over the loser(s) either. Because that's not nice. Ok, because I'm afraid if I do, it'll be revisited on me and I'll lose next time.

Of course, we're all winning with this little cutie:

Grandma is crazy. She's always trying to find a way to include me in her posts. 

ANYWAY--

Today's the day I'm going to give y'all a chance to win something! WooHoo! Let's get excited! We'll start today, let this thing run through Friday the 10th, and I'll announce the winner on Saturday the 11th. (Just wait til y'all see how I include that little cutie pie up there in this part!)

The only thing you need to do to enter is let me know in the comments which set you would like to have. Your choices:

Coastal Bird Set:

Curly Sun Set:

Fruit Set:

That's it! I like to keep it simple, don't y'all?

Of course, if you'd like to hop over to CoasterDoodles and favorite the shop, I wouldn't mind. :) But this not necessary to enter to win a set of coasters!

This giveaway is for one set of coasters. I'll host another one for a set of note cards in a couple of weeks. :)

What's a Cereal Face?

THIS is a cereal face:

And if that doesn't put a smile on your face this Monday, I don't know what will. :)

Have a fabulous Monday, y'all!

Here's the link to my Etsy shop: CoasterDoodles

You can enjoy FREE SHIPPING in the US until December 16th!

Here's a sample of some of the vintage Christmas coasters! 

There are MANY more styles from which to choose! 

AND new ones are in the works!

Vintage Christmas Coasters and a Laughing Baby Video

Hopefully, these will be new at CoasterDoodles next week:

Of course, that depends on whether or not the glossing process goes well. Fingers crossed and a few prayers wouldn't be minded at all. :)

Meanwhile, enjoy the reason I can't seem to get anything done around here:

She's a good reason, isn't she?

Have a great weekend, y'all!

Here's the link to my Etsy shop: CoasterDoodles
I've adjusted the shipping so it should be less expensive now to ship your coasters to you! If you're in the US it should only cost $6.10!

There are plenty of sets for your viewing pleasure! Let me know if you have a question! 

Stay at Home Grandma Goes Etsy

I did it. I opened up an Etsy shop. Yep. Even though I struggled over it for months, I finally decided to go ahead and give it a go.

I'll give y'all a few examples of what this grandma who's taking the burden of the cost of daycare off her daughter and SIL but maybe forgot to consider her own source of income...

Just click on the pix to go to the shop if you'd like.

The photos I took are not great. They're not even good. But the shop is open. And I'll be working on improving those photos this weekend.

Anyway, if y'all feel so moved, head over to CoasterDoodles. Please feel free to share your hints, tips, thoughts, anything. I'm open to any and all advice.

Have a great weekend!

It's day 11 of NaBloPoMo!

Links to my first 9 days of NaBloPoMo in case y'all missed them (because they're so dang interesting and all...Ha!):

1. TWIGS AND ROOTS! Where I introduced y'all to Deanie's new business. 
2. THE BRAVE SIDE OF ME Where I shared my nonexistent bravery with y'all. 
3. BABY M'S NURSERY Where I finally show off the pictures of the nursery!
4. KEEPERS: FALL TELEVISION SHORT LIST Where I shared the few fall shows I watch.
5. SINGING ALONG WITH BABY M Where I shared some songs Baby M and I enjoy.
6. BABY M GOES TO CLEMSON where I shared a gazillion pix and commentary on Baby M's first ever college football game!
7. THANKSGIVING FAILS where I shared that I cannot make holiday meals as good as my grandmother did. 
8. IT'STHAT TIME! where I slacked off and just posted a voting clip art. Don't judge. This is hard. 
9. HOW TO ENTERTAIN A 4 MONTH OLD where I share what I'm doing with Baby M and asking for more ideas. 
10. MY MESSAGE TO MEAN PEOPLE where I give a message to mean people. LOL