New Year's Eve Inspiration

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Happy New Year From New Nostalgia!

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Love sparkly gold and silver.

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I have a clock just like that.  Never thought of sitting it out as New Year's decor!  Fun~

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These make me want to get crafty and pull out my glue and glitter.

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Fun for kids

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Love the champagne "bubbles" on the wall.

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Simple horns on a platter make a fun centerpiece.

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Homemade poppers.

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Had to get mason jar in there somewhere.  How fun is that?

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A great way to display.  Sparklers are so festive!

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If I were going somewhere fancy, I'd want to wear this!

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And my nails would look like this.

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We are going to a fun, family friendly bunko party, so this may be more appropriate.  Minus the snake bracelet and fur.  And maybe a shorter heel!

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Love this.  Nails are a great way to add sparkle without being over the top.

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This is the part I'm looking forward to.  No matter if your party is fancy or casual, a kiss is always appropriate on New Years Eve!

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Cheers to all of you!  What are you doing this New Year's Eve?
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Top "Less Healthy" Recipes From New Nostalgia 2011

Salty Sweet Peanut Butter Caramel Funky Fritos

Just trust me on this...these are funky awesome!

Best Ever Classic Pot Roast

{Photo Credit}

After looking high and low, I finally found my go to Pot Roast recipe.  I make this on special occasions for the family.

Homemade Cheeze Its

These are flaky, tender, deliciousness.  My kids devour them.

Kettle Corn Crispie Bars
They are crunchy, gooey, chewy, buttery, salty/sweet, chocolate-y squares of heaven. 

Coconut and Chicken Curry with Noodles

This recipe is quite healthy, if you are a meat eater.  

My Moms Taco Salad No Recipe Recipe

Taste of home!

Orange Almond Polenta Cake

This is moist, dense but light at the same time.  The pureed strawberries make it.

Easy Salted Caramel Chocolate Cupcakes

These beauties are made with a box mix, frosting mix, and jarred caramel sauce.  Easy!

Quiet Closing Moments of 2011

{Elaine & I, during our fight with breast cancer}

I am so excited to introduce you to one of my favorite writers and people, Elaine Olsen of "Peace For The Journey."  I have never met her in person, but our hearts are entwined despite.  We both were diagnosed with breast cancer in August of 2011.  She was a gift to me, walked with me and is still by my side with her words. Her words got me through and lifted my head so many times during the fight.  Her mouth speaks truth, the type that shoots straight to the heart.  This post she wrote did exactly that, I am so thankful to have her words (despite her lack of voice, as you will see,}here at New Nostalgia!

{from Elaine}

My voice has been silenced in the last twenty-four hours. Literally. Sickness has claimed my vocal cords. This has never happened to me before, not completely in the way it has happened for me this time around.

My whispered shouts for the attention of others are met only by their silence. Not because they don’t care about me, but rather because they can’t hear me. Their listening isn’t prone to my whispering, so mostly… I’m ignored. Probably a relief to most of those in my household, but to a woman who’s used to being heard… a great frustration indeed. 

And I’m thinking…

About my voice. About my words. About needing to be heard. About what I will say when I am, again, able to say. 

And I’m thinking…

About quietness. About the value of forced silence. About going inward with my thoughts instead of outwardly displaying every single one of them. 

And I’m thinking…

About God. About his voice. About his needing to be heard. About his willingness to keep company with silence… with his thoughts, instead of outwardly displaying every single one of them. 

And I’m thinking…

About how very connected I feel to Him in all of this. About how my inability to speak amplifies the volume of God’s witness. 

How many times has the Father whispered my name in the midst of my chaos, only to be ignored because of the noise surrounding my life? My hearing isn’t prone to his whispering. But in silence—in this period of fewer, personal words—I more clearly hear the phrases from heaven.

Beautiful, peace-filled, stilled expressions of understanding from God’s heart.

My ninth grade English teacher once wrote in my yearbook, “Elaine, if silence is golden you can forget it.” Apparently, I was destined for poverty. Thirty years ago, I hadn’t a clue what she’d meant, and I couldn’t have cared less.

Today, I have a clue. Today I care more, exceedingly more. Today, silence really is golden, because silence has given me access to the whispers of home. And whenever that happens, friends, I’m the richest person alive. 

I’m so glad I know Jesus. I’m so glad he knows me. And I’m exceedingly glad for those moments when I am able to clearly hear his voice. What tender grace is mine as a daughter of the King! I pray that you know him, hear him, worship and celebrate him in the quiet, closing moments of 2011. I believe that God has something vital and important to whisper to each one of us. I’ll be anxious to hear from you in coming days. As always…

Peace for the journey,

Elaine is also author of the book: Peace for the Journey.  You can learn more about this amazing guide book to peace below.

I'm so pleased to be able finally tell you that "peace for the journey: in the pleasure of his company" is now available in an e-book format through:

Winepress (DRM free version, allowing you to read it on all popular readers)

Kindle

Nook
Sony 

In addition, "peace for the journey" is available in paperback from many online retailers, including:

Winepress
Amazon
Barnes and Noble
Lifeway

Most Popular Posts Of 2011 At New Nostalgia

Rips Big Bowl For Breakfast

This is by far my kids most favorite breakfast.

5 Reasons To Drink Lemon Water In The Morning

This post went viral and has some very interesting discussion going on in the comments!

Easy 3 Ingredients Chocolate Almond Iced Coffee

I cannot wait for warm weather to enjoy this awesomeness again!

I Hate Cancer

Keeping it real.  Thank you for always allowing me.

Happy Anniversary Husband!

Love this post!  It includes a video of my one year cancer journey. 

22 Simple Ways To Eat Fruits & Vegetables

I hope you find this helpful.  I revisit it myself for reminders.

Healthy, No Fat Pumpkin Bread

I am making this tomorrow.  I LOVE it.

Paper Towel Alternative

It is amazing how much you money one can save by doing this.  Sure wish my towels were still that white.  Time to get out the bleach!

Learning To Dance

Another real post.  One of my favs.  I remember feeling so much better after writing and releasing it.

26 Tips & Tricks To Help Simplify Life

This is my all time most clicked on post.  It got 37,000 hits in one day! Whoop!

Perfect Iced Coffee

This. Is. So. Good.

Portable Puzzles and Lazy Winter Days

We are still working on our Christmas puzzle.  So glad it is portable!

Iced Tangerine Mint Green Tea

This post is VERY popular, and very delicious!

Oatmeal Freezer Pucks

Another one of my favs.  It is so great to just stick a puck in the microwave in the morning,

 heat and serve!

Finding Healthy Fast Food

Many have found this post to be helpful, which makes me happy!

My Favorite Healthy Snack

Isn't that pretty?  Tastes good, too!

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Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU for making 2011 such a great year for me.  Writing this blog brings me much joy and therapy!  You are all so wonderful to me.  Thank you for reading, commenting and sharing my work.  You made my year. 

No Anti-Procrastination Tuesday!!

I spaced AP Tuesday!  Honestly, I didn't even realize it WAS Tuesday.  

We all have sniffles and coughs here in our household.  I am grateful that sickness doesn't come around here that often, (that might make some of you chuckle who have followed my C story..at least viruses don't) and it sure chose a great time to come!  After Christmas, during a time where we don't have much going on and can rest.

I hope this finds you all enjoying those you love.  Do you feel the calm and rest in the week between Christmas and New Years day?  I hope so/  I don't know about you, but it was much needed here.

Blessings to you all, I will be back on track next Tuesday!