Love Thy Neighbor

Easier said then done. Am I right?

I believe now more than ever people need to know that they are thought about, cared for and loved. I’m sure we can all agree that 2020 has kinda stunk. People are feeling isolated and alone and that’s not good for anyone’s mental health.

And neighbor doesn’t necessarily mean the house next door. It can mean anyone that is put on your heart to reach out to. Even that grumpy person that never smiles when you wave to them. Especially that person. *smile*

I just thought I’d share a few easy ways to reach out to people without being a freak.

But first a quick backstory. I started walking my street just over a year ago as a means to get more exercise in. Long story short, I have gotten to know a lot of my neighbors this way. So in light of how 2020 is going I thought this would be a perfect opportunity to show God’s love to these people. To show them that not everyone is bad. Which is what you start to think if you listen to the media too long.

So here’s what I’m doing. I am crocheting little pumpkin treat bowls and making handmade cards and handing them out to a few of my neighbors that I’ve gotten to know over the course of this year.

Here’s a few that I have ready to go. I’ve already handed out one and I’m making a couple more.

Now if you don’t know now to crochet, that’s okay. Here are a few simple ideas that don’t involve being crafty at all.

• A card and a just a cute bag of candy tied with pretty ribbon.
• Pumpkin spice coffee and a mug
• Special Autumn flavored tea and a mug.
• A card with a $5.00 gift card to a nearby coffee place.
• Or you could simply give them a nice card or even just a treat bag of candy. One or the other. 

The idea is to not overthink it and to not make it too expensive that you can’t afford to. Simple is best and I believe that even the simplest gesture will not go unappreciated. AND here’s the bonus part, it keeps YOUR mind off all the garbage that’s going on in the world and helps you focus on others, which in turn makes you feel a lot better!

So what do you say? Are you going to reach out to someone around you? Even if it’s ONE person. That one person matters.

If you do something please come back and share. If you’ve already done something please share and kudos to you! Also if you have ideas to add please do so in the comments so others can see. :-)

HUGS!

Kim

 

Making Some Fun Fall Stuff….with links!

Hey you guys. How’s it going? How’s your fall so far? It’s still warm and muggy here in the sunshine state but apparently we are going to have a “cold” front come down on Wednesday to cool it off for all of 2 whole days. Woo! Hoo! I will take what I can get.

Anyhoo, even though the weather outside doesn’t feel like fall, I try my best not to let that discourage me from making the inside of my home feel like fall. With the scents of cinnamon and pumpkin pie candles, it’s nice in here. So I just stay inside and pretend that it’s just as nice outside. Speaking of outside……the first crafty thing I made is actually for the outside but don’t worry I won’t keep you out in this weather for long. If you follow my Homesteader’s Heart facebook page you’ve probably already seen it. It’s my Autumn plaque thingy.

My hubby went around after the hurricane and gathered up a ton of broken fence and now we’re using it for our fun art projects. He put it together and stained it for me and I painted it. You gotta love free wood. Not that I’d want to go through another hurricane for free wood. No sir!

This pumpkin was quick and easy to paint and added a nice decorative touch. It’s funny because while I was painting it my kids were like, “Mom, is this for Fall or Christmas?” The reason being was that the yellow dots were once red and I had to admit that it did look a tad too Christmasy. What can I say I love Christmas, even subconsciously.

Alrighty, now you all can come inside and cool off.

I’ve been on a crochet kick lately. It relaxes me and apparently I’ve needed to relax because I’ve made tons of these coasters since taking this picture. It’s a quick and easy project and for me that’s key. Quick and easy. The pattern I used for the pumpkin coasters is HERE. And the maple leaf coasters is HERE.

 

Now for people that know me, I’m not a great seamstress. In fact I’m not in love with sewing but I do manage to whip out a few projects here and there. And once again, the key to that is quick and easy and that’s exactly what these placemats were. I think I made them in a about an hour. I just measured a placemat I already had and cut out a front and a back and then sewed them together using bias tape. The back is just a solid color that matched the front. Ta-dah! You’re done! Movin’ on.

I made this banner on the mantle a few years ago. But it was quick and easy so I’d thought I’d show you again in case you wanted to make something like it. I wrote a post about it HERE.

And last but not least, another fun project I did a few years ago are these fabric pumpkins. I love em’. They’re so cute! A good tutorial for that is right HERE.

Well I hope this gets your creative juices flowing a little. I have now shifted my focus to Christmas projects and will post about those at a later time.

Have a lovely day my friends.
HUGS!

Kim

A Fun Fall Bucket List

Fall is just around the corner and this year I thought it would be neat to write down some fun things to do this season. It also gets the kids excited as they get to see a glimpse of things to come.

I took the painful pleasure of making mine on Picmonkey. I say painful pleasure because I’m not very schooled in that area, but I thought it came out pretty cute despite my lack of know how.

But if you don’t want to go to all that trouble then here’s one you can just print out and fill in yourself. Easy peasy. And if you need ideas of what to put on them you can go to this Pinterest page I pulled up for ya and see what everyone else is doing. You can even use some of my ideas if you’d like. *smile*

Don’t worry if you don’t have kids, this is still a fun way to plan some intentional mini dates with your hubby and if you’re not married how about a best friend? Either way I think it’s a fun idea and will most definitely get you excited about the upcoming season. Even if you live in Florida where it’s still in the high 80’s and fall is just something you do when you trip.

So what do you say? You gonna give it a shot?

Have a lovely day my friends.

Kim

Winners of the Embracing Fall Giveaways!

Congratulations to Crafting_Jan for winning the Autumn Bliss ebook. I do not have your email so please contact me so I can pass it on in order for you to receive your book.

And secondly, Congratulations to Donna. I’ve sent your gift card to you. Let me know if you receive it okay.

Thank you to everyone who stopped by during my Embracing Fall series.

Have a lovely day.

Kim

Embracing Fall! Day 5: Home Decor’ and a Little Giveaway!

Welcome to day 5 of my “Embracing Fall” series. I hope you’ve been enjoying it.

Today I just want to show you a little of my Autumn decor’. In the past I’ve gotten a little crazy with the scarecrows and had a moment of silliness with my decorating. But this time I tried to change things up a bit. I actually bought a few new things to add to my decor’ and I only used 2 scarecrows in my whole decorating adventure. Yay, me!

Here’s my dining room table. Because you wouldn’t know it was my dining room table unless I told you right?

This is the new stuff I bought this year. I purchased it all from Old Time Pottery. I really like the votive holders.

 

I used some corn feed to put in the bottom of it and then stuck a votive on top. I thought it looked kinda cute.

I added a little something over here by the shoe cabinet. You can check the before and after on this area HERE if you’d like.

  

Here’s a little place by the front entryway. Complete with empty tea light holder.

And last but not least, my Autumn mantel. You can learn how I made the Autumn banner in day 2 of my series.

Here’s the burlap wreath I made, lookin’ all fallish and stuff. You can check that out HERE. I think it looks great in my grandmother’s old window.

Well, that brings us to the end of the Embracing Fall series. I hope you had fun because I sure did.

But wait, there’s more. Let’s wrap this week up by giving away a $5.00 gift card to Starbucks. That way you can have your favorite Fall drink on me. I recommend the Pumpkin Spice Latte’. YUM! Giveaway is closed.

If you want a laugh you can watch the video of my friend Lisa and I making our own version. The Godiva Pumpkin Spice coffee I talked about yesterday would be PERFECT in that recipe. I’m just sayin’.

So in order to win the gift card you must have a valid email address and leave a comment on this post. If you want extra entries go back and comment on the other posts in the series. I will tally up each comment as an entry and pick a name first thing tomorrow morning.

Have a lovely day my friends.

Kim

P.S. There’s also another giveaway in my day one post. So look for that.

Embracing Fall! Day 4: Tempting Your Taste Buds!

Even more so then the smells, I love the flavors of Fall. Once again apples and pumpkins are the center of attention here. I guess it’s because they are in season and at their best.

So just for you, I’ve picked out some of my favorite apple and pumpkin recipes.

This first thing isn’t so much a recipe but it embraces the essence of all things Fall. It’s this. Godiva Pumpkin Spice Coffee. A little pumpkiny Heaven in a cup!

I’ve tasted flavored coffees in the past that left me highly disappointed with their chemically aftertaste, but this coffee walks your taste buds through a forest of spice laden pumpkins that will have them dancing by the time you’re done. Yeah, it’s that good. I’ve had it with and without coconut sugar and of course anything is better with sugar but it even tastes good without it. And the smell when it’s brewing? Phagetaboutit!

It almost seems downhill after that but I’m sure you’ll find these Fall delights pretty worth your while. Click the pictures to view the recipes.

How about something pumpkiny for supper. Better yet, how about a crockpot dish?

These are just a few of my favorites but I have a whole recipe index with lots of pumpkiny and apple recipes perfect for fall. You can check them out HERE.

And don’t forget my friend Lisa is having an Autumn Apples week and has some yummy apple recipes there too.

I hope you are enjoying this little series. I’m having fun doing it. *smile*

Have a lovely day my friends.

OXOX,

Kim

Embracing Fall! Day 3: The Smells of Fall!

There are some smells that you just associate with different things. Like every time I cook a turkey I think of Thanksgiving. It doesn’t matter when I’m cooking it, Thanksgiving is on my mind.

Same thing happens when Fall comes around. The smell of apples and pumpkins really get me in the mood to celebrate the season. (Though have you ever smelled a pumpkin? It doesn’t really smell that great.  It’s more the pumpkin with all the spices that smell good.)

So in preparation I went about ordering me some new scents for the season. Now I’ve never ordered candles online before because I’m one who likes to sniff 100 of them in the store only to forget which ones I liked the best and start all over again. Yeah. Just call me the crazy candle lady.

But I have really started to like a certain brand of candles and they don’t sell them any where real close so I took a chance and ordered online and my choices of scents did not disappoint.

First we have Apple Cider. Not a super strong scent but walking by it will make you crave the real thing. Smells so nice.

The second one is Apple Pie. It smells like fresh apples baking in the oven. Very nice.

But I saved my favorite for last. It’s Maple Pumpkin Muffin. Oh this just fills the house with such a wonderful smell. It really is a glorious mixture of maple and pumpkin spices.

If candles aren’t your thing how about this simmering potpourri I came up with a couple years ago. It smells divine as well. Very fruity and cinnamony. (Click the picture for the recipe)

So tell me. What are your favorite smells of Fall?

If you missed my other posts in the series you can check them out below.

Day One- Fall Fun Around the Web (There’s a secret giveaway in this post.)

Day  Two- Easy Autumn Banner

Oh and in case you are interested I bought my candles from a company called The Lampstand. The prices for the candles were cheaper than going to the store and I spent enough for free shipping. No I’m not getting compensated for sharing that information with you. I just thought you’d like to know. *smile*

Have a lovely day my friends.

OXOX,

Kim

Embracing Fall! Day 2: Easy Autumn Banner

Welcome to Day 2 of my “Embracing Fall” series. If you haven’t already checked out day one you can do so here. There is even a secret giveaway in there somewhere. *wink*

Today I wanted to show you the Autumn banner I whipped out this past weekend. It was two of my favorite things. Quick and easy. If you know me you know that I love to craft but I don’t have all the time in the world so the things I do have to be pretty simple. With that said. Here’s my banner.

 Because this was so easy, I didn’t feel the need for a step by step photo. (That and I completely forgot to take pictures) But it’s so easy I feel confident you can do this. I didn’t have any photos when I was making it and I did just fine. *smile*

Gather your supplies. I used some of the burlap from the wreath you see there in the picture. The same red felt I made the poinsettias out of and some white binding I already had. So basically this banner cost me nothing to make. *If you don’t have a Silhouette machine then use a stencil and paint.*

First decide on what you want to say. I liked “Autumn Days” but you could write “Happy Fall” or Welcome Fall” or whatever you would like. Then cut out your little buntings for the letters.

My mantle is 50” wide and my banner measure approx. 54” long. My bunting pieces are around 4”x 7” and my letters were approx. 2 inches wide. You do the math.

I happen to have a Silhouette machine that I cut my felt letters out with but if I had to do it again I would just use a stencil and paint. Or maybe even free hand it. If you have a Silhouette and want to give it a shot I’d use something besides felt. Just trust me on this one.

Okay you have your pieces cut and your letters stenciled on your pieces. Now simply line them up in your binding, pin them and get them ready to sew. I used a colored thread for contrast and a fancy stitch to run across the top, but you could simply stitch it straight across if you wanted to save a little time and thread.

Guess what? You’re done.

This is easily a one day project. In fact I think it took me about an hour start to finish.

What do you think? You going to give it a shot?

Curious of what’s coming up next? Click here to see the run down of the week.

Have a lovely day.

Kim

I’m linking up to The Thrifty Decor Chick’s Fall mantle party.

Embracing Fall! Day 1: Web Happenings

Welcome to day one of my “Embracing Fall” series. I hope to get you as excited about the Fall season as I can. If you’d like a run down of the week just visit this post.

Today I want to share with you just a few fun things going on around the web. And there just might be a giveaway somewhere in this post.

The first thing comes from my bestest blogging friend Lisa @ Stop and Smell the Chocolates. She’s having a fun apple themed week this week and today she’s even having a fun little giveaway. Click on her button below to check it out.

Next up I want to share a couple of fun Autumn themed ebooks.

The first one comes from Denise Thompson and Lori Ramsey and is called Autumn Bliss. They include delicious recipes, uplifting devotions and scriptures, fall nesting and decorating ideas and much more.

 You can get a peek inside below. It only costs $3.99 but if you’re a Prime member you can borrow it for free right now. Or better yet, how about winning one. That’s right you heard me. Just leave a comment telling me your favorite thing about Fall.

The next ebook is just a delight to look through. Aunt Ruthie always packs her ebooks with such down home fun. I love the pictures she has all through the book and she has such wonderful ideas for being intentional about the season. You can get a wonderful peek inside, right at her blog. Just click the picture below and it will take you there.

 

The last thing just looked fun. Melissa over at The Inspired Room is hosting a Fall Nesting Link Party. She’s sharing a bunch of decor’ inspiration but if you have something to share you can link up too.

Just click the banner below to go there and check it out.

Well that’s it for day one. I hope you enjoy this series and get the kick in the butt you need to get started.

OXOX,

Kim

P.S. Commenting on the posts this week will earn you extra entries in the giveaways. I’m just sayin’. Giveaways closed Friday at midnight EST. Winners will be announced on Saturday. Open to everyone.

P.P.S. The Autumn Bliss is an Amazon affiliate link and I will get a very small percentage if you buy through it.

Embracing Fall!

Most years I don’t really embrace the Fall season to much. I guess it’s because it was 90 degrees here today and it’s hard to wrap my brain around it actually being Fall. But I’ve put the fact that the weather will probably never match the seasons here in Florida, and decided to embrace all things Fall.

With that said here’s a layout of how things will go this week.

• Day One: Fun things going on around the web to get you to embrace Fall too.
• Day Two: Easy Autumn banner.
• Day Three: Smells of the Season.
• Day Four: Fall goodies to tempt your tummy.
• Day Five: My Fall decor’ and a fun little giveaway.

Be sure to stop by this week and say hello.

Have a lovely day.

OXOX,

Kim

P.S. There may be secret giveaways posted throughout this week so be on the lookout. It may pay to actually read the posts. *wink*