A Small Snippet

oh my gosh…i have been waiting ALL week to do this post!  i am just beyond thrilled to get to introduce you to the first round of sponsors here at asmallsnippet.  they are an incredible, diverse group, and i think you will easily find something that interests you!!  

even though December has begun, i still have a few more ad spaces available for this month, so contact me at asmallsnippet{at}gmail{dot}com if you are interested in getting in this month before the holidays!

as well as checking them out on the sidebar, December’s sponsors are also listed below along with a description of their business that they provided for me.  (and if you see red text, those are my own words and thoughts!)  

you can either click on their business name or on their image to be directed to their site.  and all of my sponsors this month are offering special discounts just for my readers, so read on to see the discount codes!!  Happy Shopping!!  (who knows…you just might finish up your Christmas list right here and now )

:: Reina Cookies ::

A Reina Cookie is a chocolate chip cookie made with four different kinds of chocolate chips and walnut chunks. It’s an infusion of flavors that melts in your mouth. This is an extravagant cookie that is meant to be shared with all your friends! Please find us on Instagram (reinacookies) & Facebook.  LeAna’s readers get a 10% Discount when you use the coupon code “asmallsnippet” at checkout.

From me:  Let me just tell you…this is beyond just a cookie! I am actually not really a cookie person, but this is one of my all time favorite things i’ve ever put in my mouth. And i’ll spill a little secret…we always have them on hand in our freezer, for those occasions when we need to break some clean eating rules!  (that’s the nice thing about these cookies…they can stay frozen until you are ready to heat one up and eat it. SOO great for a busy mom….this way we can always have a treat on hand!)  And…they make the PERFECT teacher or hostess gift!!  we sent these to all of our family out west last year for Christmas, and every person I know who’s ever tasted one is BLOWN AWAY!!  wanna know what to get that person on your list who has everything?? A DOZEN REINA COOKIES!!

 :: Transformations ::

*Are you addicted to Pinterest or HGTV?
*Have friends and family told you that you have a flair for decorating?
*Do you walk into a room and know immediately what to do with it?
*Do you need a home-based business making significant income?

Maybe your dreams have been on the back burner and you are just hoping for the right opportunity to come along. Maybe you’ve been subconsciously waiting for something in your heart to say, “This is it!”

Home Staging and Redesign are easy to learn and the industries are here to stay. Retired teachers and nurses, stay-at-home moms, interior designers, real estate agents, etc. have all found true love in this amazing business.

Is your heart beating? Is your soul stirring? Maybe you are one of us!

I invite you to take a look.  All online classes are 50% off with code “asmallsnippet“

from me: i know Becky at Transformations personally, and you couldn’t work with a sweeter, more genuine person.  if you were looking for an opportunity to combine your creative skills and passions, and turn it into a job that you love, this might be the perfect way to do it, especially at 50% off online classes just for my readers!

:: Rowan Montgomery ::

 Shortly after my daughter was born in 2008, I discovered Etsy and was AMAZED at all of the creativity out there and just how many cute things I would find for my daughter! I had taken a sewing class in junior high school where I learned the basics, but sewing was something I never thought I’d do again in my life…let alone create a business around it. But, life has a way of throwing you a curve ball and instead of putting on a business suit and heading back into Corporate America, I found myself digging out my Mom’s sewing machine and making my daughter outfits. Funny thing is…sewing is kind of like riding a bike…you never truly forget how to do it.

rowan montgomery came to be in early 2011 after I had decided that I not only wanted to create things for my daughter, but I also wanted to open up an Etsy shop and share my creations with others. You’ll find different things in my shop including fabric, toddler clothing, burp cloths, wine bottle carriers, pillows, rag quilts, and my most popular item…chevron book slings. Thanks for looking around! Your support of my shop means the world to me!  use code “asmallsnippet” at checkout for free shipping!

:: Nana’s  Nuzzles ::

 Nana’s Nuzzles specializes in home sewn items that keep people cozy.  Whimsical quilts (all sizes), discreet nursing covers for mommas, matching baby carrier covers, and creative notebook or journal covers are just some of the products available.  Quilts vary in size from baby quilts to lap quilts and larger quilts for beds.  All work is carried out with TLC and a lot of heart.  Shop from our small inventory or order a custom-made piece with or without your own fabric.  Custom orders are always welcome. Follow the link to see my store, and thank you for taking the time to look.  Use the code “asmallsnippet” at check out for 10% off.

:: Sweet Bay Crochet ::

It’s the little lovely things that make me smile and feel grateful.  A warm cup of tea, fresh flowers from my garden, a long chat with a friend, a cuddle with a baby, a blue bird outside my window.  I especially love the satisfaction of turning a ball of yarn into something beautiful that will make someone else smile. 

I love working with natural and organic yarns.  I spend a lot of time touching and looking at the yarn, so a high quality, soft, pure material is important for me to love the final product. Because I hope that if I love it, you will too. 

I’m so excited to partner with LeAna and am happy to offer you 10% off your entire order.  Just use coupon code “ASMALLSNIPPET” at my shop at www.sweetbaycrochet.etsy.com

“Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable… think about such things.”  Phillipians 4:8

:: Beso Handbags ::

Beso Handbags was started in 2008 by Johanna Penagos. A wife, mom of three & school psychologist turned handbag designer, Johanna decided to make a business out of a life-long love of art and design. All of the handbags that you see are Johanna’s original designs. She enjoys incorporating fabrics with bright, bold patterns as well as rich and luxurious textures. She designs bags that not only function well, but show off the fabulous fabrics they are made from. And now, our customer gets to be the designer too! Choose your favorite bag style and your favorite fabric combinations to create a bag that’s all your own. Put together your own bag online, or contact us to schedule an exclusive trunk show in your very own home. We will send out one of our fabulous regional representatives with sample bags and fabrics, so that you can share Beso Handbags with your friends!  

This month, Johanna is so excited to introducing the first pieces in her jewelry line.  The jewelry by Beso Handbags is designed like her bags, easy to wear, fun and versatile. These first pieces are designed to mix and match, wear alone or layer. Choose your favorite pieces in silver or gold and in three different lengths. Then put them together to fit your personal style.  So fun!

A Small Snippet readers get 10% off when they use the code “snippet” at checkout.

:: 3 Cords :: 

3 Cords is a social enterprise that trains, employs, and empowers Haitian women and their families.  Our mission is to provide opportunities for physically handicapped women, and to show them that they are both beautiful and valuable.  Check out our website to see the beautiful headbands, purses, macbook cases, and other accessories they make!  Be sure to use the discount code “asmallsnippet10” to get 10% your total purchase for the month of December!

From me:  3 Cords is very near and dear to my heart. If you’ve been reading a while, then you’ll know that we travel to Haiti every year to work with these unbelievable women!  you can read more about them here and here. I love these women, and I can assure you that you will love the products that they create!

:: Knock Knock Creative ::

Knock Knock Creative is a digital agency specializing in design for web and print. We are a team of artists, innovators, and thinkers who want to work with you to create effective solutions for your business. We create experiences, content and products with the intention of opening doors for our clients. Come knock on our door and save 50% off websites when you mention A Small Snippet! 

From me:  So many of you have inquired about my new blog design. I am thrilled to get to introduce you to my designer, Meredith, at Knock Knock Creative. There are no words to tell you just how creative, patient, and hardworking she is. She was able to take the concept in my head and make it into something better than I could’ve ever imagined! If you are looking for a new website or blog design, look no further!!!

now…GO ENJOY SOME SHOPPING!!

and don’t forget to tune into CNN’s Headline News show, Making it in America, this afternoon at 4:00 p.m. E.T. to see our very own Eli the Elf

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hey friends!  happy weekend to y’all!

just wanted to pop in really quickly to tell you to go check out my sidebar to see all of my incredibly amazing December sponsors!  if you plan to do some Christmas shopping this weekend, you can do it from the comfort of your own couch.  check back in too, because i’ll do a post with more details on each sponsor as well as discount codes just for my readers

also wanted to tell you some really fun news…A Small Snippet is going to be featured on CNN’s Headline News channel on Monday, December 3rd, at 4:00 pm E.T, during a show called “Making it in America.”  they will be featuring some Elf on the Shelf ideas, and our very own Eli will be making a few appearances!

Eli arrived again this morning, straight from the North Pole, and he doesn’t quite know what to do with himself, now that he’s found out that he’s going to be on National TV.  he’s a little beside himself with excitement, and a bit overwhelmed by it all if he has to be honest.

 i don’t know if it was the excitement over coming back to Florida or the excitement over his National TV debut that caused him to bust right out of his box, but either way, he’s starting out as our same old naughty elf that we love so much:

according to Santa, Eli has been counting down the days until he got to come back to Florida:

 he brought his calendar to show us just how much he’s been looking forward to coming back here:

 man, i sure do love that little guy!

and Santa’s letter to us this year was so personal for our family, and totally reminded us of God’s Kindness towards us even when we choose to go our own way.  Santa has again asked us to help our friend Eli understand the truths of God’s love over him.  in particular, Santa has asked us to teach Eli about how God’s Kindness leads us to repentance, and that when we choose to go our own way, we can turn back to God, and because of His great love for us, He’s just waiting to sweep us up in a great big hug!

Santa also reminded us of the most important thing this season…that Jesus came to earth as the Savior of the world, to Rescue us, and that’s what we get to celebrate!! that Hope has Come!!

if you’d like, you can download the letter here:  Santa’s Letter

i’m sure there will be lots more to show you about Eli in the days and weeks to come.  i have a feeling he’s got lots of things up his little sleeve

don’t forget to check back soon for those discount codes, and to tune into CNN’s Headline News channel on Monday at 4:00 p.m. E.T. to see our friend Eli!

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hey there!

i am getting SO excited to show y’all the amazing and products and services that are soon going to be advertised on my blog.  get excited!!  there will be lots of great things just in time for the holidays…with some discounts just for my readers!!!!  if you are interested in advertising, contact me at asmallsnippet{at}gmail{dot}com.  i have a few spots left for the month of December

in the meantime, i wanted to pop in with some photos.  its been a while since i’ve posted photos just for fun, or updated you on daily life around this place.  so here it is…a little bit of what we’ve been up to around here.

my brother in law arrived home a few weeks ago from an 8 month long deployment.  you might remember them from this post.  anyway, we let the kiddos miss school so we could go and welcome him home.

it was so fun to finally spot him as the ship was pulling in!

 i can’t look at this pic without tearing up.  such a sweet moment, filled with so much emotion:

i had always seen these homecomings in movies and on the news, but i had never experienced one for myself.  truly something i will never forget!!

we wrapped up our fall sports season, and although i genuinely love watching my crazies play, i must say, this momma was pretty happy to have less on the schedule:

Canaan’s last football game was played in the high school stadium.  those little nuggets sure thought they were big time!

 and what Bella lacks in soccer skills, she makes up for in spirit!  i just love the intensity in her face:

although, truth be told, she’d much rather be chilling on the sidelines, sporting her stylish pink sweatband:

we did not host Thanksgiving this year, unlike last year, but still did lots of cooking.  cooking is always better with a little helper:

our favorite pie turned out just right.  thank you, once again, Martha Stewart!this is one of those classic Thanksgiving pictures, but it totally grosses me out.  just a little fact for you…i don’t eat any meat on a bone.  its not an animal rights kind of thing…its just that it completely grosses me out big time, and i can’t stand the taste.  yuck. my boys on the other hand, can pound some meat!

our Thanksgiving Day ended up being a great day, full of family…

the next morning we went and got our trees.  i love that Thanksgiving was early this year.  that means that the Christmas season starts early too!!  i’m totally one of those people who was listening to Christmas music as i cooked Thanksgiving food….the sooner the better in my book!  i love having our house decorated as long as possible before Christmas, cause as soon as its over, i’m itching to get it all put away again.  hence, the trees bought the very first day we could: 

Bella came out to decorate the trees dressed for the occassion…already sporting the Christmas PJ’s!  love that kid and her spunk!

i know i’ve mentioned this before, but we get a smaller tree for the kids to put in their room.  this is the tree that they get to decorate with all of their ornaments.  that way, i get to decorate our big tree in a neutral way, which i think is SO pretty and festive!

this was an ornament that the hubs handmade for all of his family when he was around Canaan’s age.  pretty impressive, if you ask me!  he has not since whipped out those mad sewing skills, although i’d be thrilled if he would:

the next morning, we started Christmas list-making for Santa.  isn’t that such a fun childhood memory?  circling all the fun stuff in the catalogs and flyers.  although the crazies decided it would be more fun to cut and paste, so we ended up with Christmas List collages.  Canaan’s collage is filled with anything and everything electronic, and Bella’s was just all pink.  

and this next series of photos are courtesy of Instagram and my now apparently outdated iPhone 3GS.  crazy how quickly that happens

the Blue Angels came to town.  that’s one other reason why living where we live is so amazing.  you get to see sites like this simply driving down your street:

and in your backyard:

Canaan came home from school not too long ago and proudly showed me the book he checked out from his school library.

i was pretty thrilled that he still considers Pooh to be cool enough to check out from the library.  he read the whole thing cover to cover, and it made my heart so happy!  i needed the reminder that even though he’s growing up, he’s still a little boy.  and i hope he stays that way for a long time!

and speaking of staying little, i’m not sure i’m ready for what the teenage years are gonna bring.  Bella wrote me this sweet note a few weeks ago, but the next morning, crumpled it up and threw it because she was mad at me.  i can’t help but to wonder what’s in store for us in about 10 years  i’m just praying that she’s working it out of her system now…

its always fun to get to pop in and see her hard at work at school:

and speaking of Bella, is it bad that i want for myself my 5 year old’s wardrobe?

and while we’re on the subject of wardrobe…i’ve been breaking all the rules and wearing my white jeans after Labor Day.  my friend told me that Michael Kors says its okay.  i’m choosing to go with him on that one!

we voted.  and this, my friends, is the future of America, right here:

i lost my wedding ring.  took it off to cook some chicken.  put it on the counter, but when i went to put it back on, it had disappeared.  i’ve never searched for something so hard in my life.  we went through every single stinkin’ piece of trash in our house, pulled out the appliances, drove ourselves crazy turning this house upside down looking for it…could not find it.  i went to bed that night believing that i would never see it again.  woke up the next morning and called a few peeps to ask them to pray.  not 5 minutes later, it showed up in the middle of the floor.  how, you might ask, did we miss it?  i’m gonna believe that we didn’t miss it the night before, cause i don’t think it was there the night before.  miracles still happen, and God cares about all the details, friends:

we’ve had some days where the weather was absolutely perfect.  on days like that, there’s nothing quite like a good playground, is there?

couldn’t be more grateful for this group of Crazies…

and our annual Thankful board.  somehow, something having to do with bathrooms and toilets always makes the cut.  but this time around, i especially like the specified “no outhouses”:

and speaking of Thankful, i’ll close with this…i just happened upon this gem as i was walking downtown the other day.  i need this plastered to the back of my eyelids.  Thank God its true!

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