Have you ever joined a Blog Gift Swap? WW entry

I joined my first Blog Gift Swap over at Stephany @ The Midnight Hershey .   

I was a bit nervous to be paired up with a stranger but loved the concept of gift giving and mailing out packages to new friends.

I received information about my new friend Heather Lawless.  We corresponded via email, Facebook, and reading blog posts to get to know each other better.  The below picture is what I received in the mail from Heather:)  I love my sweet mug in animal print and the smelly scentsy is perfect for this holiday season.  I had to let the kids use the mug a few times in the beginning but now it's all mine!

The second Blog Gift Swap I joined was over at Sassy Lemonade, Shannon was co-hosting with Semperfi Momma.    The theme was Secret Squirrel Warm the Soul Swap.  You could send anything to your new friend that was fall related and warmed your soul.  

This swap, my new friend was Jessica over at Brown Paper Bunny.  I was blessed with her original artwork, a hand painted notecard, one-of-a-kind stickers, and a beautiful Paris notebook.  It was like Christmas early:)

Have you ever participated in a Blog swap?  

What was your favorite gift you have received?

Quote of the week:

"Everytime you smile at someone, it is an action of love, a gift to that person, a beautiful thing." 

- Mother Teresa

A few things for this week...
* Make sure to enter this months Giveaway:)
* If you would like to join our WW Bloghop be sure to leave your link so I can visit your website.
* Happy Halloween!
* Our Prayers go out to those families effected by Hurricane Sandy.

xoxo,
Nicole

Vase Giveaway from The Clay Place

We have a new Giveaway, The Clay Place provided this beautiful vase for this month to help bring awareness to Project Outreach and those people in need.

Jim Rice, is a local potter from Naples, Florida.  You can visit his site for more artistic, unique, and usable pottery at www.naplesclayplace.com

Have a wonderful weekend!

xoxo,

Nicole

a Rafflecopter giveaway

3 Ways To Be a Princess, entry for WW.

I just completed the magazine for October and I fell in love with the Fairy Princess on the cover.  Thanks to Missy K Photography for the great photo!

Here are 3 ways to be a Princess...

1.  Dress up clothes.  Go online or visit a boutique in town to find your perfect princess dress.  You'll start to feel like a princess.

2.  Learn about our modern-day princesses and what causes they support.

3.  Put a crown on, watch a few movies, and act out some scenes.

Quote of the week...

“No man can tell whether he is rich or poor by turning to his ledger. It is the heart that makes a man rich. He is rich according to what he is, not according to what he has.”

Henry Ward Beecher If you'd like to subscribe to our newsletter and receive special offers and updates please click here.  You can also enter our latest giveaway.

Have an awesome week.

xoxo,

Nicole

Do you recall your first memorable experience? WW entry

There are so many firsts in life.  I thought for this weeks wordless wednesday I would share a few firsts.

I love the first blooms of Hibiscus flowers, they are so pretty.  My daughter likes to pick them and put them in her hair.  Lizzie made her first brownies mostly by herself, she got all the ingredients out of the pantry and followed the instructions.  Her dad even made a brownie frosting with her by scratch.  Yum!

I saw, for the first time, a blue heart in the sky the other day framed by white clouds. Then my son had his first orchestra concert this year.  He plays the bass and we are happy that he is enjoying it.  It was fun watching him and the others bring the notes together and create some awesome music.

We recently paved our driveway and today I saw this colorful bug, it looked lost out on the asphalt.  I hope you enjoyed a few of my firsts and I look forward to hearing about yours too.

If you have any firsts to share please leave a comment, I love to read them.  Those that want to join me for Wordless Wednesday please leave your blog post and I'll be sure to visit.

Quote of the week:  Faith is taking the first step even when you don't see the whole staircase. 

- Martin Luther King, Jr.

xoxo,
Nicole Flothe

5 ways to Happiness, WW entry

Happiness: state of well-being characterized by emotions ranging from contentment to intense joy.

Here are five ways to Happiness...
1.  Find quotes online or in books that inspire you, I found these today...

"Happiness is the meaning and purpose of life, the whole aim and end of human existence." - Aristotle

2.  Take pictures of things that make you smile.  I take a lot of cloud pictures and love to look back on them later for even more happiness!

3.  Join a Mug Exchange or Blog Swap online.  I just recently did a Mug Swap and was so happy to get my beautiful present in the mail.  I'll post pictures, in a later blog post.  

4.  Spend time with family celebrating birthdays and holidays.

5.  Capture a special memory with your loved ones.  It could be taking a special trip to Disney or just eating Ice Cream cake while celebrating my dad's birthday.  (Do you see the reflection in the window?)

I hope these five ways will help you make your life a little bit happier!  Do you have any special ways that you find happiness?  

xoxo,

Nicole

To all my blogger friends that participate in Wordless Wednesday...Happy Wordless Wednesday!  Link-up:)

Random Heart Sightings and Quotes for Wordless Wednesday

I used my Heart cutout frame to capture this beautiful rainbow in the sky.

My father-in-law, photographer, Glenn Flothe, took this Northern Lights photo and added a Heart with his headlamp.  The exposure was so slow on his camera he was able to create the heart.

I'm always fascinated that we are made up of so much water.  The person who created this must have been into Medicine, do you see the fine details on the words, did you find the heart?

This quote is so true!  I also love the rich photograph with the apple splashing into the water.  

Off subject, they say, "An Apple a Day, Keeps the Doctor Away:)"

I hope you have an amazing week and please link up here and leave a comment.

Question for the week, have you seen any Random Heart Sightings?  

xoxo,

Nicole