One Artsy Mama: Year in Review

Well, friends, it's almost time to say good-bye to 2011...can you believe it?

As we look back on the year, I wanted to take a few minutes to do a year-in-review of some of the highlights for this little old blog.

Here's One Artsy Mama's TOP 10 of 2011!



10. My first post: Where it all began!

One Artsy Mama was created on March 17, 2011.  Earlier in the week, I had been searching online for crafts my son and his friend could do during a playdate on St. Patty's day.  I came across a blog where an art teacher was sharing her ideas and it hit me, "I could do that!"  I was suddenly inspired to start my own blog where I could share all the projects Little Crafter and I do, and well, the rest is history!

9. My most popular post ever: Homemade Holiday Gifts #1

For some reason, this post full of DIY ornament ideas took off on Pinterest like wildfire!  I'm not sure whether the sheet music ornament or the beach one was the real star of the show, but one or both of them brought over 5,000 visitors to this little old blog within a very short amount of time!

8. One Artsy Mama's first party: Falling for Crafts

Back in September, I decided to take the leap and try my first link party and series.  It was called the "Falling for Crafts Challenge" and each week there was a new theme, like centerpieces, door decor, pumpkins, kids' activities...boy was it fun!  I loved seeing all your wonderful ideas each week, and I was thrilled that so many of you came and linked up.  Several of the posts in this series are still among my top viewed posts of all time.

7. My first printable

I wasn't familiar with printables until I started blogging, but when I started seeing the ones everyone was making, I got the bug to make some too!  Here's the first one I ever attempted:

6. My new hobby

In April, my friend Jess taught me the basics of jewelry making, and I've been enjoying it ever since.  Two of my jewelry tutorial posts are in my top 10 most viewed, and they happen to be among my personal favorites too!

Dictionary Pendants

 Anthro Knockoff

5. Starting an Etsy shop

Shortly after realizing that I enjoyed making jewelry so much, I took the plunge and offered some of it for sale on Etsy.  I was thrilled by how much business I got over the holidays and it was so exciting on Christmas morning to think about the people who were opening gifts I had created.  This customizable family birthstone necklace was the top seller for Christmas gifts!

4. Joining with Kara to host a weekly link party, Shine On Fridays!

In November, we joined forces to provide a fun place to share and gain inspiration, and I am loving it!  Hope you are too!

3. Reaching 677 followers in nine months!

You all totally rock my socks!  I was jumping up and down in September when I hit 200 followers {remember Great Givewaway Weekend to celebrate?}, and never even dreamed of adding almost 500 more in three months!  Wow!  I am blessed!

2. Being recognized {thanks to YOUR votes} as one of Parents Magazine's top 10 Kids' Craft blogs!

Again, this was something I never ever expected.  I'm so honored.  Thank you!

1. Making a difference through my first UN-Giveaway

I think one of the real highlights of 2011 for me was having the opportunity to coordinate the Un-Giveaway for the Cure.  Seeing so many fellow bloggers donate their time and talents and seeing others bid on the items was a real blessing, as was being able to contribute $250 to the Susan G. Komen Foundation.  Things like that remind me why I do what I do.  Thanks to everyone who was part of such a special event.

And my most favorite thing about it all...

the FRIENDS I've made.

There are so many of you who brighten my day with your sweet comments, your contributions, your willingness to guest post and host giveaways, and your "likes" and words of encouragement on Facebook.  I loved how many of you spoke up and gave me your opinions about my recent haircut, just like I'd ask a girlfriend to do in person.

I can't tell you how often I wish you and I lived in the same neighborhood so that we could grab a coffee at Starbucks {my treat, I have lots of Christmas gift cards!}  I'd love to craft with you, share stories in person, and for our kids to play together.  If only...  But I'm thankful we've "met" and I look forward to continuing those friendships in the coming year.

Wishing you a happy, healthy 2012 filled with blessings, love, and joy!

{Our} Home for the Holidays: Dara's Post-Christmas Traditions

Happy New Year's Eve, Friends!

Today, I'm excited for you to meet Dara from Mum of All Trades as she shares some of her post-Christmas traditions with us.

I'm delighted to be guest posting for One Artsy Mama. Her blog is one I visit regularly and I have especially enjoyed reading everyone's Christmas traditions these past few weeks. It's lovely to see how different families have their own little rituals and also how many families the world over are so similar in the way they celebrate.


Although the main hustle and bustle of Christmas is over, we are still traditionally within the 12 days of Christmas. That is still the case in our house. Everyone here is enjoying the time off work and school as the Christmas break here in Ireland is 2 weeks.

We've spent this past week receiving guests, eating lots and playing with all the toys that Santa left. It has been funny to watch 4 boys all getting more fun out of their little sister's kitchen than they have out of their Transformers!

Today is New Years Eve. I always think it can be a mixture of emotions. Although I love to celebrate the New Year, I also am sad that its another year gone. Our children are so happy and fun at the stage they are at, I just want to freeze things. Do you ever feel like that?


Tonight we will be having freinds and family around to help us welcome in 2012. Many of them play musical instruments and will bring them along. It will be a very traditonal Irish evening with plenty of song and fun. Before all that starts I will take a few minutes to sit down to write a little 'time capsule'.
This is something my mother always did every New Year's and I have kept it going.
I write a little description of the year past and if the children are around they will add a little note to the bottom. I put it in an empty sweet tin and place it in with the Christmas decoration box. It is lovely each year to look back on these.

Tomorrow we will  finish off the festive season with a visit to the theatre to watch a pantomime. This year we are going to see Cinderella. If you have never heard of a pantomine, it is a play of a traditional fairy tale, but with lots of songs and audience participation thrown in. The costumes are very over the top and it really is a noisy enjoyble production for all the family.

I will take our decorations down the following day and do a house tidy before returning to work on Wednesday. I am happy to say that 2011 has been a wonderful year and I only hope the New Year will be every bit as good!

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Thanks, Dara!

And thank you for stopping by today!  Be sure to hop on over to this week's Shine On Fridays party for some fun projects, recipes, and craft ideas and to add your own!

Wishing you a New Year filled with love, joy, and happiness!



{Our} Home for the Holidays: Amanda's Cabbage Burgers

Hi, Friends!  Are you getting excited for 2012?  What are your New Year's plans and traditions?  Today, I'm excited to say that my friend Amanda from Joy in the Jumble is here to share one of her New Year's traditions with us; enjoy!
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I am so excited to be here Guest Posting.
I I have followed One Artsy Mama and her Little Crafter for a while now and love her blog.
Traditions are hugely involved in my life, and this post today will introduce you to one of the best:)


Growing up, New Years Day was always one of my favorite holidays.  

New Years Day meant Cabbage Burgers.  

It is the only day of the year we get them, which makes them taste extra good.  

For the first time in my 27 years of life I have broke the tradition and made Cabbage Burgers early, so that I could take a picture for you:)

The legend for New Years Day is...  however much cabbage you eat on the first day of the year, that is how much fortune/prosperity you will have in the coming year.  

We eat Cabbage Burgers, 

Homemade KFC Coleslaw, 

and yummy Oriental Cabbage Salad.  

A southern tradition is to also eat as many black eyed peas as you can for luck.  

My great grandma who originates from Louisiana, brings those every year.  

I don't need luck that bad, because those are not my favorite:)  

When most people hear about cabbage burgers they're like, "What is that?" 

 I think it comes from Germany, though my heritage is French, so who knows how it came about:)   

Cabbage Burger Recipe

A double batch of Homemade Bread Dough rolled out 1/4 inch thick and cut into 5x5 inch squares

1 large + 1 small head of Green Cabbage- shredded

approx. 2lbs Ground Beef

1 medium Onion- minced

Salt and Pepper to taste

Makes approx 30 burgers

Drop the ground beef and minced onion into a large stock pot and start browning the beef and onions. 
 Do not drain.  Start adding cabbage until it reaches the top of the pot.  You probably won't be able to fit all of the cabbage in at once, so wait until it cooks down, add the rest until it all fits.

After everything has been in the pot for about an hour on medium heat you are ready to add it to the bread dough.  Roll it out 1/4 inch thick and cut it into 5x5 inch squares.  Place a spoonful of the cabbage mix in the middle of the dough square.  Pull all of the sides up and pinch it in the middle so that no filling falls out.  Flip the burger over and bake at 350 degrees until the bottoms of the burgers are browned. 
 I start checking at about seven minutes on my oven.  As soon as they are browned pull them out and butter the tops.  Let it cool for a couple of minutes then dig into the deliciousness:)

My mom and I use homemade dough, but to simplify, you could totally use Rhodes Rolls and Cole Slaw Shredded Cabbage bags.


I hope you enjoy this tradition and have much
Prosperity and Luck in 2012.

When people hear about it, they are skeptical until they try it.  

I think my mom got the recipe from my dad's side of the family and it has spread to multiple family members now.  Now I spread it to you.

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Thanks, Amanda!   Here's to a happy, healthy 2012 for all of us!

Shine On Fridays #8!

Hi, Friends!

It's FRIDAY again, so you know what that means...Party Time!!

Since I'm on vacation from the internet this weekend to celebrate our 10th Anniversary {wooooohoo!}, there aren't any features this time around, but things will be back to normal next week!

In the meantime, it's time to let your light shine and show us what you've been working on this week.



<center><a href="http://oneartmama.blogspot.com/"><img alt="One Artsy Mama" src="http://i212.photobucket.com/albums/cc86/dancers4life/shine3.png"/></a><center></center></center>

Show off your fabulous creations with us and be inspired by what others have created!

   

Please link up crafts, recipes, home decor, etc.

We can't wait to see what you've been up to lately!!

If you're going to play along with us, pretty please:

- follow both co-hosts via GFC
- grab a party button and put it somewhere on your blog
- have fun and visit some other friends
- no commercial sites

Linking up your photos gives us permission to use them in features on our blogs and Facebook pages.

Ten Years of Fabulousness!

I can't believe hubby and I have been married 10 years!

To celebrate our milestone anniversary, I thought I'd give you a quick walk down memory lane with us...

Our Wedding Day

December 29, 2001

Don't we look like such little kids?! 

At this point, I was still in college.  I had finished up my fall semester and was on winter break, which included having the entire month of January off to get the house set up and adjust to my new role as a wife.  In February, I started my student teaching at the middle and high school levels, and in May, I graduated from college with a Bachelor's in English and a minor in Secondary Education.  The week we returned from our honeymoon, we found out that hubby's company was struggling and he lost his job.  God provided for us in amazing ways while he was unemployed {and I was student teaching, which is a full-time job, but brings in zero income!} and eventually led him to the wonderful job he has now.

December 29, 2006

We spent our fifth anniversary in Charleston, South Carolina.  At this point, I had decided to make a career switch after four years as an English teacher in the public school system and become a ballroom dance instructor!  On the actual day of our anniversary, we took a carriage tour around the city, ate dinner at Circa 1886, and found a dance studio where we could dance the night away together.  It was my favorite anniversary so far!

December 31, 2007

{couldn't find a pic from our actual anniversary}

This was a special one for us because we had just found out on Dec. 12 that Little Crafter was on the way!!

We decided to stay home to save some money, but we had a great dinner out at The Melting Pot.

December 29, 2010

Last year, to celebrate my, um, second 29th birthday and our 9th anniversary, the hubs decided to take me to one of my favorite place on earth, Myrtle Beach.  We spent New Year's there, and we even had Little Crafter and my parents with us, which was great because we could celebrate as a family and then they could babysit while we had a little Mama-Daddy time. 

We had dinner at my favorite MB restaurant, Thoroughbreds, and we saw Voyage of the Dawn Treader at the movies while Little Crafter had fun with Grandma and Pop-Pop. 

I have to confess, though, for the most part I was straight-up miserable. 

I had come down with the worst cold I've had in years on the day we drove to SC, and it hung on until the day we got home a week later.  Fortunately, there's no visible snot in the photo, but you can probably tell I wasn't feeling 100%. ;)

December 24, 2011

Our life looks a lot different now than it did ten years ago; we both have different careers than we did when we tied the knot, and we have expanded to become a family of three.  But the promises we made to each other that day are still just as real, just as true, and just as important to us as they were then.  DL, you're still the only one for me.  I love you more today than yesterday...but not as much as tomorrow!

A Very Artsy Christmas

Well, friends, how was it?  Was your Christmas full of joy, laughter, and love?

I certainly hope so.  I can't believe it's over and we're headed fast into a brand new year!

Hubby and I are excited to be celebrating our 10th anniversary this week {look for a special post about that tomorrow!}, but first, I thought I'd invite you over for Christmas to show you the highlights of our Artsy Family holiday.

Our Christmas Eve actually turned out differently than we had planned because my father-in-law was sick, so hubby's whole side of the family wasn't able to come.  My parents came over for lunch and gave us each a few of our gifts, one of which was Little Crafter's Ravens comforter...apparently it would have been just as exciting if they'd wrapped up the empty box.

Then, we headed to church for a candlelight service.  Don't my boys look sharp?  Thanks to Nicole from Three's{4}Me for LC's adorable "frosty bob" tie, as he calls it.

Christmas morning was SUCH fun...he's saying "Woah, baby, that's a big present!"  It was a Ravens poster for his room.

He was thrilled to get the one thing he asked for, a Boldin jersey.  That's my boy!  He said, "Oh, I hoped that I would get this!"  Too cute!

...and the Leapster Explorer was a big hit, just like we thought it would be.

 My favorite gift from hubby was this gorgeous ring; it says "I am my beloved's and he is mine" in Hebrew.  Beautiful.  Well done, honey!

 Little Crafter had insisted on buying a gift for Big Elmo...thoughtful, huh?  He got him a shirt and jeans and he got himself a shirt to match.  He loved helping Elmo open his gifts.

My dad loved his retirement countdown...you may remember that from a post a few weeks back...

Both sides of the family were able to get together for dinner, which was such a special time.

 Four generations: my dad, my grandma, Little Crafter, and yours truly.

 LC got a cool shark hat from his surfer uncle, Jon.

 ...and it wouldn't be Christmas without the ugly pin tradition. 

I think this year we were tied for most awful-looking!

 Uncle Steve tried taking LC back to Manhattan with him, but I caught him just in time...

We had a wonderful holiday with loved ones and special memories.  It was such a joy watching Little Crafter enjoy everything, and we loved spending the day with family.  Hope your holiday was just as merry and bright.  Forgive me if you don't see any new projects or see me on here or Facebook much this week; I've got a very special anniversary to celebrate, and a special family whose company I want to enjoy as we celebrate the new year.

Hugs and Warm Wishes,

{Our} Home for the Holidays: Meagan's Pickle

Hi One Artsy Mama readers!
I couldn't be happier having the opportunity to participate in the {Our} Home for the Holiday series.
 I'm Meagan, the heart behind 2 Little Love Birds.
 The place where I share a little crafting,
a little cooking,
and a lot about my everyday life as a newlywed to my husband Nic.
The man who swept me off my feet with his gorgeous blue eyes and charming wit.

source 

Those of you who are married know that the first year is a time of transition.
A time where his friends become yours.
His happiness become your happiness.
And at this time of the year in particular, his traditions become your traditions.

Well, after unpacking all of our childhood Christmas decorations that our parents had so sweetly packaged up and gave to us,
I watched as Nic's face lit up with pure joy when he pulled this bad boy out of his box.
 

Please tell me you think it is ridiculously GIANT to you!
I couldn't even help myself but to laugh that his parents filled this whole thing every year!
Then I open my box to discover the funny little tradition from my own family that I get excited for every year.
His reason to laugh at me this time.

After setting up our Christmas tree, this pickle ornament is hid amongst the branches.
The person who finds it gets to hide it the next year!

Look who won this year - I'm convinced it was beginners luck!

If you have little ones, it is even more fun! They love it!
A big thanks to Amy for letting me be a part of this series.
I hope you will stop by 2 Little Love Birds.
I'd love to meet you!

{Our} Home for the Holidays: Amanda's PJ's

Hi, friends!
I hope you had a blessed, wonderful Christmas!
Can you believe it's over?
Amazing, isn't it...all that preparation, then the day comes and goes so quickly!  To keep the Christmas spirit going a little longer here at One Artsy Mama, my friend Amanda is here today to share one of her special traditions with us.
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I’m so excited to be a part of One Artsy Mama’s {Our} Home for the Holidays series.  My name is Amanda, I blog about all things crafty at ScrapProject365.  I love sharing my projects and getting new ideas from all the great people out in the blogging community.  I have been truly inspired by One Artsy Mama and love to see all the fun and creative things she comes up with.  With a five year old of my own, Miss Kellie, I try to do some kid friendly crafts a few times a week as well.

I grew up in a large family; I’m number three of five girls and two boys. Along with my parents and grandmother we had a full house – to say the least.  Every year for Christmas my saint of a mother would sew each of us a new set of pajamas.  On Christmas Eve we were allowed to open one gift – and surprise they were all pajamas.  I always loved having something new to sleep in while I tried to sleep that night.   As I grew up and moved out of the house when I would come home for Christmas I looked forward to being home and again getting a new set of pajamas.  They were no longer handmade – but the feeling was there.  When I started a family of my own my husband, Jon, thought it was so funny the first year when he got his new pajamas from my mom.  A few years latter she had ironed on a label on each shirt that said, “Our Family Sleepwear – Jon” (customized for each person), this was also the last year she had the energy/means to put together so many pairs of pajamas, we were all getting married and having kids by this time. 

As soon as Miss Kellie joined our family I knew I wanted to start this tradition with my family as well. Each year on Christmas Eve we open one gift and it’s always pajamas. Usually something Christmas themed for Kellie and something nice for Jon and I.  Then, being the scrapbook mama that I am, we take a picture by the Christmas tree before bed.  Christmas morning we get up and are all ready presents and lots of pictures in our new jammies!!

This is by far the best picture yet – taken Christmas Eve in 2009 – in my opinion it shows the true personalities in my little family.

A big thank you to Amy for letting me share my tradition and Happy Holidays to her wonderful readers!!!

Amanda

Merry Christmas!

 


In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world.  (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.)  And everyone went to his own town to register.
 
So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David.  He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.  Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”
 
Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,
 “Glory to God in the highest,
   and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.”
 
When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”

So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger.  When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child,  and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.   - Luke 2:1-20

Merry Christmas, Friends!

May the joy, love, and peace of our Savior fill your hearts and homes today and every day!