Suzannah Hamlin Stanley's Blog, page 56

Create/Enjoy BIG goals for 2018! And an announcement or two

It's that time of year! Reflecting back on the old, and looking forward to the new. In this post I shared top projects we did in 2017; today not only am I sharing what you should expect to hear about on this blog in 2018, I have a BIG announcement/new project to share with you! Actually sort of two!

What to expect on Create/Enjoy in 2018
1. Baby
Baby Stanley is due April 18, 2018. You can follow along with baby posts so far here and pregnancy posts here. So far you guys have loved reading ou...

Best projects we did in 2017!

I often see recaps with a few awesome room redos or home upgrades people did in a year, but am totally intimidated to make something similar for us! We bought the Stanley 90's reno in October of 2016 and we did most of the big-impact projects in 2017 (once the walls were patched, paint was done, and flooring had arrived and we installed it). We touched every inch of that house, most of it in 2017. But I'll try to just hit the highlights!

Here goes. BEST projects I did in 2017!


Best Home...

What does your Christmas list say about you? And, what’s on my wishlist this year

Real talk for a minute, then the fun part.

I get anxiety about getting gifts. I have for a long time now, probably since I started buying things for myself and understanding money. I worry that unless I LOVE the gift, the person who gave it to me may have more than what I would have spent on it, or not found a good deal, or maybe will be hurt if I don't use it ALL the time.

Jason has helped me talk through this anxiety a lot but I still have a hard time making a Christmas list for myself. W...

Fair isle: The practical minimalist's ugly Christmas sweater alternative

I realized something this year. I went to the annual White Elephant-style mug swap some friends do, which is SO fun, and I read last-minute on the invite that it was also an ugly sweater party. I have one red patterned, not really ugly, sweater... but I thought back, and I've worn that to this same party at least once before. Last year I wore a red plaid shirt and black vest. In a hurry, I put on the same thing this year. No ugly sweater for me.

But I realized... I kind of want to get rid...

Our beautiful, FAST holiday cards this year!

I have a new goal for next year--order my holiday cards on Thanksgiving weekend--but I've never been that early before. This year I just ordered them this week and thankfully it was fast!!

This post is in partnership with  Minted , who provided our holiday cards this year.

How to order holiday cards--FAST
I do this every year, but oops--it's time to order holiday cards NOW and I haven't sat down yet to do it. This year we traded taking photos with our friends at the Christmas tree farm...

Fun, practical, affordable stocking stuffer gift guide 2017! For her, him, and anyone

Oops--I always forget about stocking stuffers. Chocolate bars are a tradition in my family, but it's fun to get a little creative and include a few thoughtful, personal small items. And a great opportunity to throw in your faves of the season for others to enjoy!

I did just that with this gift guide. There are fabulous mugs under $5, the coolest jewelry (all on sale right now), treat-yo-self items for men and women, and more!
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21.5 week pregnancy update--and the bump

I've now made it past the halfway point and fully transitioned to maternity jeans and loose tops. Man, this process has been crazy and I'm celebrating that we've made it more than halfway by now!

I wanted to share this update at 20 weeks but we were in the end stages of selling the house and I didn't have a chance. But I figured, most first-time moms don't deliver at 40 weeks, anyway, so maybe I'm still right around halfway there. ;) And it turns out my updates are MUCH...

Our simple holiday decor and my FAVORITE Christmas home item!

Last year at Christmastime our house was lacking flooring, art, furniture... oh, and our furnace was broken for most of that month. We did have a tree, but beyond that it wasn't very Christmassy! I really looked forward to when I could decorate our new home for Christmas, but that time never fully came because of the change of plans and move.

But I couldn't be totally robbed of it. I pulled out a very few of our Christmas decorations, my absolute favorites, and enjoyed them for several...

Why our first offer fell through

Real estate talk. Buying, fixing up, and selling the Stanley 90's Reno in about a year's time was a huge lesson for us in hard work, drywall repair, and real estate risk. We didn't intend to sell it so quickly; we thought we'd be there several years at least (read more about why we sold here) and weren't thinking about immediate profit. But, we were able to sell it to our advantage because:

We bought it for way under appraised value because it was in such bad cosmetic shape!The market imp...

New or expecting mom gift guide--for MOM, not baby!

I'm an expecting mom for the first time this holiday season, and my first thought was to request gifts from our baby registry--but both Jason and my mom immediately said that wasn't right!! Christmas gifts this year for me should be for me, they said, not the baby. But I was a little stumped!

So I asked folks on my Instagram what they thought a new or expecting mom should get for Christmas... lots of good ideas! And a few things in common--pampering, luxury, comfort, pretty things for...