DIY Mini Christmas Wreaths

Last year, early in the holiday season, I saw the MOST adorable mini Christmas wreaths you've ever seen. At the Target Dollar Spot, no less. WIN-WIN, right? No. Not the case. There were only 3. THREE. I wasn't sure how many, exactly, that I would want so I decided against the purchase. (I was in the still VERY early stages of purging non-essentials from our home.... another story, for another day).

Anyone of you who loves this spot as much as we do, which I'm guessing is a large majority ;), knows that it's as good as shopping discount stores or Goodwill. If you want it, you'd better grab it, or IT. WILL. BE. GONE. Two days later, they'd vanished and I have yet to see them return.

Weeks later, I noticed what I THOUGHT were my wreaths. NOW is my chance, I thought.... Only to discover that it was not my beloved wreaths but "greenery garland".

I'd be lying if I said I didn't stand in a brief moment of disappointment, but hey, it's life. I quickly drove past that and resolved to make my own.... sometime. I purchased three rolls and brought them home with intent to craft up my own lovely Christmas wreaths..... Well, ya'll know how that went. With a teenager, an active growing boy, two toddlers and a baby who was now on the move, not to mention spousal and household duties, assisting with one business and running another, my crafting fell quickly on the priority list.

So at the end of the season, I packed up all of our Christmas crafts and activities in their own box and resolved to make it happen this year. I'm quite pleased with the end result and think you'll all be as thrilled with how easy they were to create.

I gathered my supplies: greenery garland, ribbon, hot glue and tape

Note: the most adorable golden dachshund tape dispenser, gifted to me by none other than my friend and avid Disney and Rae Dunn collector, Rebecca :) You can visit her on IG @beccajwayne to see all of her adventures in collecting :)

I divided the length of two rolls of the garland by the number of wreaths I wanted to make, resulting in approximately 36" pieces. (I made 13 wreaths)

I rolled each 36" piece into wreaths similar in size to my original roll, then twisted the garland around itself in order to secure the shape and size. This worked well for this particular garland, as it has some type of wire inside, however, if you needed extra security, I believe a dot or two of hot glue would do the trick. That was my original plan ;)

After doing this, I took my ribbon to the kitchen to approximate the length of ribbon I would need. An extra set of eyes helped in this step by standing back from the cabinet to gauge the length. Think: KIDS.

I then cut and recut 13 lengths of ribbon and hot glued them one by one, with a small loop, around the mini wreaths :)

I proceeded to hang them from each cabinet (with tape), again utilizing a second pair of almost-willing eyes to assist. I am pleased with the end result and while part of me wishes there was a glimmer of gold or pop of red, I kind of love the simplicity and that I could use these for so many festive occasions!

If you decide to take a go at these or are inspired to create some other craft, Christmas or otherwise, I'd love to see the results! Sharing is caring! LOVE to you all!

OH and can you believe there are only SEVEN days until Christmas?! SEVEN, ya'll!! Buckle your seat belts. Santa Clause is coming to town ;)

Ain't it funny how...

Have you ever had one of those days that made you just want to lick the bottom of the cork from the wine bottle? NO? Yeah, me neither ;)

Seriously, though. This season. It has been HARD. Messy and LOUD, repetitive and exhausting.

At the very same time, it is EVERY.SINGLE. THING. I could ever have dreamed it to be. It's slow mornings and breakfast together. It's crafts and questions, reading and dreaming. It's learning and growing together. Ohhhh the growing.... It's breaking me a little inside. It goes too fast. So fast. I don't know about you other mommas out there. I know there are a few of you who have gone through similar transitions. I've been a working mom for 18 years, dreaming of being a SAHM, yearning for the days where I would wake up and breathe in, slowly, the sweet smell of babies from our bed and not be in a hurry to rush everyone off to spend their days away from one another. And man, THAT. That is where it is. If you could bottle that up and share it with the world, wow. What a world it would be.

These days have been so full of love and yet, still this hole exists.... I've been missing my dad something fierce in these recent months. Maybe the fact that it has been so full of love and excitement and adventure in life has left a part of me yearning for him, missing the opportunity to share it all with him.

Time is such a funny, interesting and mysterious thing. It goes so fast and sometimes it seems that there's no possible way that he's been gone for 15 years. Other times, it feels like it was just yesterday. Like I can breathe in and for a moment, replay each of the moments that seemed to have come, and now gone, so quickly.

Sometimes when I remember him, all I can do is smile, knowing that he is right here by my side. Knowing that he is no longer in physical pain, knowing that he is safe and knowing that he's not really missing ANY of this. And other times, these memories, they sneak out of my eyes and my chest is heavy, in selfish sorrow, wishing he were still here.

Hurt is inevitable when you loose someone so dear and we feel entitled to understanding all of the whys. But we're not. If there is one thing that God has made so evidently clear to me, especially in more recent years, it is that His plan is oh-so-much-better than ANY plan that I could work up. He doesn't ask that we not feel the emotions that are so bound to be worked up in this life, quite the contrary, actually. He asks that we FEEL every emotion and bring them to Him, in trust, that He will work things out, all to His glory and for the greater good.

And so I trust. Trust that He will indeed guide me to the path that has been laid for me, allow me to share His story and hope with others, to touch them and help guide them to Him, and to work out all the fine details for the Good. 

*I'm no spiritual or religious expert, by any means. I simply share how He has revealed Himself to me over the years in hopes that it will bring someone else closer to Him.*