12 Days of Christmas Day 5 & 6 Stockings and Stocking Hanger

On then fifth and sixth days of Christmas

Beyond the Picket Fence gave to me,

Stockings and a hanger that are delightfully.

Ooh, the rhymes are getting bad. And the days are getting closer to Christmas so I decided to combine two days because there are several thrift store finds in this stocking display.

Ladders are a pretty common find at thrift stores or building reuse places like Habitat for Humanity Restores. This tall one is pretty rickety and past its prime for safety standards, but makes a perfect stocking holder or hanger (which do you call it?).

12 Days of Christmas Day 4 Christmas Card Holder

On the fourth day of Christmas

Beyond the Picket Fence gave to me,

a Christmas card holder that is super easy.

Sunday Verses

Happy Sunday! During a recent stop by the local ski hill (which was not open yet) to check out the new ski lift, this safety panel caught my eye. I thought, "Gosh, how many of us wish we had a similar control panel on our lives?" What if we could simply cancel the tough stuff, slow life down, skip a trial, or use the emergency shut down button when we didn't want to go through something? But, unfortunately, life does not work that way and we ALL have hard things to experience and endure. Persevering through the trials makes us stronger, more mature, and transforms us more into the people God wants us to be. Jesus knows life is not easy, he sees us struggle, and through it all he promises to never leave us, he promises to comfort us, and he promises to turn our defeats into victories. These promises encourage me and help me to endure during the trials and I hope they encourage you too. Have a wonderful week!

12 Days of Christmas Day 3 Upcycle a Thrift Store Wreath

On the third day of Christmas
Beyond the Picket Fence gave to me,
an upcycled thrift store wreath!

Have you priced out faux greenery and wreaths lately? Yowsa! The thrift stores I have been perusing lately have had no fewer than three pine wreaths--some pretty good looking ones and some not so much. I purchased this one for $1.99.

The key to upcycling what may be a tired looking thrift store wreath is to  add to it. You can add Christmas balls, small toys, berries and twigs, kitchen utensils, mittens, etc. Check out the thrift store aisles to find the perfect wreath filler that fits your decor!

Sunday Verses

Happy Sunday! This past week we started hauling the Christmas boxes out. It seems that no matter how well we put things away, there is still work to do to prepare everything before we can use it. The lights are typically the biggest challenge, untangling them and making sure each bulb works. We find that it is best to start at one end and work light by light--it is much less overwhelming and easier than trying to work with the whole strand at once. Life often feels like a tangled strand of half-working lights. It is messy and all of the parts aren't working for us. But...God is with us, untangling each "knot", and if we let him, fixing each piece that needs it. It may happen bit by bit, but he promises us that HIS strength and peace is with us through it all. Let's rest our jumbled, muddled lives in that truth.

12 Days of Christmas Day 2 Game Board Garland

On the second day of Christmas,
Beyond the Picket Fence gave to me,
An old game board garland for my tree.

12 Days of Christmas Day 1 Porch Chair

On the first day of Christmas,Beyond the Picket Fence did share,a cute, thrift store, red porch chair!

12 Days of Christmas Thrift Store Style

Y'all, I am soooo behind on my annual 12 Days of Christmas Posts! I typically start on November 1st, and here it is the middle of the month and I have not started. But, I have been thinking and planning. I really liked what I did last year (You can see it HERE) so I decided to not switch it up too much. 

So, for my eighth year of 12 Days of Christmas I decided to make some simple things to add to my rustic decor using thrift store finds. I will be using items that are pretty easy to find at thrift stores, rather than one of kind things. 

Vintage Snowshoe

So, to be honest, when I spied a pair of vintage snowshoes at a garage sale, I hesitated. They were metal, not the older wood type and well, I just wasn't sure what I was going to do with them. 

But, the price was too good to pass up so I purchased them and I am glad I did. I few twigs from my yard, some pine boughs from the craft store, and ribbon dressed the snowshoes up for the holidays.

Sunday Verses

Happy Sunday! If you have ever been on the Going-to-the-Sun Road in Glacier National Park you know that it is quite the engineering feat. The road was designed in 1918 and not completed until 1933 (some sections were not paved until 1952). Parts of the road that were constructed prior to 1925 had to be rebuilt because they had been built to lower standards. God's ways are similar to building an amazing road. They take time, but following a plan and doing things HIS way is always better. We may not instantly see the end results or understand what he is doing. We may think that trying doing life our way is easier, but our God is good and he wants good things for us and he will work all things out for the best if we trust and follow HIS way.