• Home
  • Privacy Policy
  • Contact
    • Collaborate
  • Blog
  • Parties
    • Children’s Parties Ideas
    • Holiday Parties
    • Adult Party Ideas
  • Holiday Ideas
    • Christmas
    • Easter
    • Fourth of July
    • Spring
    • Thanksgiving
    • Valentine’s Day
  • Seasons
    • Winter
    • Spring
    • Summer
    • Autumn
  • Recipes
    • Appetizers
    • Beverages
    • Desserts
    • Main Dishes
    • Side Dishes
    • Soups
  • Project Gallery
    • Crafts
    • Decorating
    • DIY
    • Good Ideas
    • Tutorials
  • Nav Social Menu

    • Bloglovin
    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter

At The Picket Fence with Vanessa Hunt

Where Ideas for your Home Meet Inspiration for your Heart

  • Book
  • Speaking
  • Meet Vanessa
    • Featured

February 2, 2011

Launch Party Giveaway Day Three. Who Doesn’t Love A Great Magazine?!

It’s Day Three of our At The Picket Fence Launch Party!
That Means Another Giveaway!


First we want to say again today…wow, wow, wow!  Thank you all for your support.  We hit 100+ followers yesterday which is a testament to the kindness of the blogging community.  So, thank you again for all of your sweet comments and friendship!  And cause we love ya all so much here is yet another little giveaway to celebrate you our friends…at the picket fence!



I am a reformed magazine junkie.  I used to get several different ones.  Reader’s Digest. Rachael Ray, Taste of Home, Traditional Home, Victoria, Good Housekeeping…

I realized one day though that I just couldn’t get through them all before the next batch arrived.  That is when I decided to narrow it down to three of my favorites:


Southern Living, Better Homes and Gardens, and Everyday Foods. 

I love these three magazines.  They provide me just the right amount of decorating, crafts, and recipes.  I can actually read through each of them at my leisure over the month.  I actually get a little giddy when they show up in my mailbox!

When they arrive I try to avoid temptation, setting them aside until I have time to just relax and slowly thumb through them.  For example

in the bathtub.


or

 lounging with Zoe…in my Snuggy. And yes she needs a haircut. And yes that is leopard print.  You’re jealous I can feel it. 


or

even while I’m cooking.  My family never seems to mind if dinners a little burned.  As long as I’m happily enjoying my magazines!


I have several years of these magazines saved and they are well worn and much loved.  These three magazines have provided me with great inspiration, creative ideas and delicious recipes.  Which magazines are your favorite?  The ones you can’t wait to arrive?

Heather

We want you to get a chance to enjoy a year’s subscription to one of these great magazines for our third day of giveaways!  Here’s all you have to do:

We are giving you several options….


Tell us your favorite magazine and which of the three magazines you would select if you win. (1st entry)
Subscribe to receive At The Picket Fence by RSS (reader feed) or email subscription.  Sign up located in sidebar. (2nd entry)


Giveaway Three will be open until midnight EST Sunday, February 6.
That’s 2 different ways that you can enter to win a free year long magazine subscription!


All giveaways are now closed!



So c’mon what are you waiting for?

There are still on going giveaways!  Head on over to our TJ Maxx Gift Card Giveaway and our Adopt Shoppe Giveaway!



33 Comments Filed Under: General, Giveaways

Subscribe

Get the latest goodness straight to your inbox!

Previous Post: « Open House
Next Post: Life, Lemons and a Pie »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Katie @ OhhBaby says

    February 2, 2011 at 2:43 PM

    I LOVE Better Homes and Gardens! I would love to win that one!

    Reply
  2. Red Gate Farm says

    February 2, 2011 at 3:12 PM

    My favorite is probably Better Homes and Gardens for it’s wide variety of information…. but I already receive that one so I’d be picking Everyday Food which I used to get.

    ~Chris

    Reply
  3. Traci says

    February 2, 2011 at 3:26 PM

    I was the same with with all the magazines & not being able to read them before the next batch came! I have Better Homes & Gardens that I love & I’ve been wanting to get Southern Living but I haven’t so that’s definitely the one I’d choose!

    Reply
  4. Traci says

    February 2, 2011 at 3:28 PM

    I subscribed via email!!

    Reply
  5. Jenna says

    February 2, 2011 at 3:45 PM

    Better Homes and Gardens, baby!

    Reply
  6. Jenna says

    February 2, 2011 at 3:47 PM

    Email subscription complete!

    Reply
  7. Sharon @ Elizabeth & Co. says

    February 2, 2011 at 4:28 PM

    My fav’s are Country Living, Souther Living & Better Homes & Gardens. I do get Everyday Food, but I love to cook and could use some new recipes!

    Reply
  8. Sharon @ Elizabeth & Co. says

    February 2, 2011 at 4:28 PM

    I follow via Google Reader!

    Reply
  9. Kim says

    February 2, 2011 at 4:41 PM

    Hey Vanessa! Congrats on your new venture. I will happily follow along. I would pick Southern Living! Thanks for offering such a great giveaway. Good luck!
    xoxo, Kim

    Reply
  10. 1 Buddha's Mom says

    February 2, 2011 at 5:32 PM

    Southern Living:)

    Reply
  11. stephanie says

    February 2, 2011 at 5:41 PM

    New follower!! I love them all and already subscribe to two, so I’d have to pick Southern Living! Thanks!

    Reply
  12. Honey at 2805 says

    February 2, 2011 at 5:53 PM

    I perfer Southern Living.

    Reply
  13. michelle says

    February 2, 2011 at 6:53 PM

    Oooh I love BHG!!! You guys are on a role and everything is so wonderful here! 🙂

    Reply
  14. Tyla says

    February 2, 2011 at 9:01 PM

    I happily follow via Google reader.

    Reply
  15. Tyla says

    February 2, 2011 at 9:03 PM

    My favorite magazine is Southern Living. I already receive it and BHG in the mail, so I would pick Everyday Food as my prize if I won. Thanks for hosting these great giveaways!

    Reply
  16. Judy says

    February 2, 2011 at 9:07 PM

    Southern Living would be my choice. Great giveaways.

    Reply
  17. Taylor Renee says

    February 2, 2011 at 3:23 PM

    Yes! I would love BHG. I never buy subscriptions but I should since I always pay more to pick one up at the airport/drug store!

    Reply
  18. Taylor Renee says

    February 2, 2011 at 3:24 PM

    And I’m a Google Reader follower!

    Reply
  19. Lynn Richards says

    February 3, 2011 at 1:22 AM

    Hmmmm..that’s a tough call, ’cause they are all great magazines, but I would have to pick BHG!!!
    xo
    lynn
    p.s.
    WAY too much fun, girls!

    Reply
  20. Jan at Jewelry4Change says

    February 2, 2011 at 6:34 PM

    Hi! I heard about you on DIY By Design and have signed up to follow you. 🙂
    Jan https:///www.jewelry4change.blogspot.com

    Reply
  21. Jan at Jewelry4Change says

    February 2, 2011 at 6:36 PM

    I like each of these magazines, but I think I’d choose Everyday Foods. 🙂 Congrats on the new blog!
    Jan

    Reply
  22. SavannahGranny says

    February 3, 2011 at 4:35 AM

    Please enter me in the giveaway. My favorite magazine is Traditional Home. I would love an extension of my Southern Living magazine. Thanks for the generosity. Hugs, Ginger

    Reply
  23. Connie says

    February 3, 2011 at 9:30 AM

    My favorite magazine is Create and Decorate. It is the only one that I subscribe to at the time. If I win this I would love to have a subscription to Better Homes and Gardens!

    Reply
  24. Connie says

    February 3, 2011 at 9:30 AM

    I am an email subscriber!

    Reply
  25. Linda@Coastal Charm says

    February 3, 2011 at 4:12 PM

    Southern Lady is my fav and if I’m the lucky winner…I would pick Southern Living for my daughter Haley.

    Blessings,
    Linda

    Reply
  26. jkjkjkb says

    February 3, 2011 at 10:29 PM

    I LOVE Family Circle & would LOVE a subscription to Everyday Food 🙂 Kim B.

    Reply
  27. jkjkjkb says

    February 3, 2011 at 10:30 PM

    I’m already a faithful email follower 🙂
    Kim B.

    Reply
  28. jkjkjkb says

    February 3, 2011 at 10:30 PM

    I’m already a faithful email follower 🙂
    Kim B.

    Reply
  29. Melanie says

    February 4, 2011 at 5:00 PM

    I love a lot of magazines so it would be hard to pick just one but I guess I will go with Better Homes and Garden. Or a cooking magazine;-)

    Reply
  30. Melanie says

    February 4, 2011 at 5:01 PM

    I subscribe through google reader.

    Reply
  31. Katie says

    February 5, 2011 at 4:19 PM

    This is an awesome giveaway!! I would get Better Homes and Gardens! I love their stuff!

    Reply
  32. Patti says

    February 6, 2011 at 8:03 PM

    I already get BHG and would love to receive Southern Living! I’m a follower.

    Reply
  33. Roxanna says

    February 6, 2011 at 7:29 PM

    I already subscribe to BHG so would have to choose Southern Living. I am a google reader follower. Thanks for another great giveaway.

    Roxanna
    roxemor@aol.com

    Reply

Leave a Reply to 1 Buddha's Mom Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

Search This Blog

Take the Quiz

Stay updated!

Get all the latest goodness straight to your inbox!

Get the book!

Invite Vanessa to speak at your event!

Must Reads

Recent Posts

  • Painted Staircase Handrail Makeover March 4, 2021
  • A New French Country Dining Table February 3, 2021
  • Open Now December 17, 2020
  • Tradition and a Christmas Home Tour December 9, 2020
  • Tabletop Hot Cocoa Station November 29, 2020

Get all the latest straight to your inbox

Footer

Instagram

I've been watching our cherry trees bloom for 12 y I've been watching our cherry trees bloom for 12 years now and every year I ohhhh and ahhhh over the blossoms like it's the first time I've ever seen them. I gush and I take photos (that look exactly like the ones I took the year before and the year before that) and I make my family come outside and look at them with me which you know they just LOVE to do. 😉 I think that is one of the main reasons why I love spring so much. On the one hand, it's predictable and yet, on the other hand, it still feels like such a surprise after the long months of barren branches.

And yesterday, as I was staring at the gorgeous blossoms for the umpteenth time, I couldn't help but think that I hope this is how I feel when our lives return to some semblance of normalcy.

I hope that the predictable feels special and that the typical feels anything but. I hope that I ohhh and ahhh over the simple things I've realized I've taken for granted. And, most of all, I hope that feeling doesn't go away for a very, very long time! 💗
Are you living with great expectation friends? Bec Are you living with great expectation friends? Because He is risen!

Happy Easter from my home to yours!
Lemon bars all ready for tomorrow! It’s going to Lemon bars all ready for tomorrow! It’s going to be a different kind of Easter for sure but some things don’t change. Have you been baking and getting ready for tomorrow? What’s one thing on your menu that you have to have every year?
If this is Good Friday, why doesn’t it feel so “good”? It all seems backward doesn’t it?

What could be good about the unspeakable pain he suffered? What could be good about the shame and betrayal?

Easter Sunday is so joyful, bright and cheery. Shouldn’t that be the day we call “good”? It just feels so much better!

But, I don’t know how to rejoice over His resurrection, unless I have felt the pain of His death. I have realized that in life the sweetest victories are the ones which were realized after a pain-filled journey.

And, so it is with Good Friday. I know there will be victory over death, but I can’t skip ahead in the story.

Jesus knew what was coming. He knew what he would experience. And he knew why he would go through it. He did it for me. He did it for you.

Do you know that? Have you felt it down in the very core of your soul? 
Sometimes it makes me squirm a bit. Why would anyone do that for me?

Well, because, I can’t do it for myself!

There is nothing I can do to earn that kind of love and mercy.

That is why it is called GRACE.

His grace is freely given. We don’t have to pay for it. He paid the price for us already.

Do you remember that movie from years ago called “Ransom”? A couple’s young son was kidnapped and the parents went to hell and back trying to find him and pay the “ransom” demanded by the kidnappers.

Well, Jesus is our “ransom”. (1 Timothy 2:6) His life was the payment.

Why is it called “Good Friday”? Because that wasn’t the end of the story….
.
…It was just the beginning!
Raise your hand if there’s a table in your house Raise your hand if there’s a table in your house that’s become the landing zone for ALL THE THINGS! 🙋🏻‍♀️🤪 I’ve never been more thankful for our rarely used dining room table as it’s become command central for school books and laptops and games.

Where are things collecting in your house right now?
“Sighing, tears, frustration, anger.” Every si “Sighing, tears, frustration, anger.” Every single one of these emotions has made their way through our home in recent days and, my guess is, they have in your home too.

I SO needed this reminder today from the new book ‘Adore’ by @sarahagertywrites.

Adoration isn’t just sitting at His feet gazing longingly with stars in my eyes. It’s bringing my fears and my sorrows and gray roots in my hair that desperately needs to be colored and my messy house and all of the things that threaten to send me over the edge right now and laying them down before Him, soaking up His word and His presence so that when I stand back up, I am changed for having spent the time adoring the ONE who is... Healer, comforter, peace-giver, deliverer, redeemer.

What do you need to bring to Him today? I’ll share mine in the comments and I’d love to hear from you too!
I’ve always loved evenings, but since this whole I’ve always loved evenings, but since this whole lockdown thing began, I’ve come to appreciate this time of day even more.

It feels the most...normal. Daytime is strange and foreign right now. My husband has taken over our home office, I’m suddenly taking over the responsibility of managing my kids’ distance learning and let me just say that teaching 7th grade algebra to my daughter is hugely ironic since I struggled with math all the way through school. I’m trying to do my own work but it feels utterly futile with the constant interruptions which take precedence right now. In the daytime, I’m constantly reminded of how upside down life feels.

But, in the evening, I cook dinner like I’ve always done and we gather around the table like we’ve always done and we laugh and tell stories and then clean up and play games or go on a walk or watch a show. And that feels SO gloriously normal.

So now I love evenings even more than I ever did before and I’m so grateful for this little chunk of time where the rhythms we established years ago are helping to sustain us now when so much of life feels outside of our control.

What feels ‘normal’ to you right now? Whatever it is, keep doing it. 🌿
When I was in college I would frequently call home When I was in college I would frequently call home and pour my heart out to my mom, sharing with her all that was happening in my life in that completely unfiltered way that you can talk with the person who potty trained you. These phone calls usually took place at night and my mom would patiently listen as I vented frustrations about professors, roommates, boyfriends and the food in the cafeteria. And, inevitably, they would end with my mom saying, “Everything seems worse when you’re tired. Try not to overthink things or make any major decisions tonight, especially when you are feeling emotional.” Dear friends, may I pass along this advice to you today?

If you don’t absolutely HAVE to make a decision right now, I want to encourage you to wait until life gets back to normal. If you are finding yourself over-analyzing relationships and family dynamics, I want to encourage you to remember that everything seems more dramatic when looked at under a microscope. And, let’s face it, being homebound with our loved ones non-stop makes us all feel like lab rats in an experiment.

If you are tempted to quit a job, start a business, start homeschooling permanently, stop homeschooling permanently, move to a new city, buy a farm, quit pursuing your dream, join a commune or make any other major life decision just…wait. Because, if it is in fact the right decision, it will be made even clearer once our lives return to their ‘regularly scheduled programming’. Instead, in this strange season, let’s all just take a deep, collective breath and let it out slowly, releasing the anxiety that threatens to overtake us. Let’s help each other maintain some perspective and not slip into a posture of over-thinking every little thing in our lives. Let’s remember that the enemy of our souls would love nothing more than to use this time when things feel dark to manipulate us into thinking that aspects of our lives are worse than they actually are.

My prayer for you in these days is that you will have the clarity to know what is true and that you will be filled with peace even while we live in this season of so many unknowns.
Raise your hand if you’re doing more baking thes Raise your hand if you’re doing more baking these days! 🙋🏻‍♀️ I’m trying to avoid gaining the #corona15 but my daughter and I LOVE baking together and it does help to pass the time plus it counts as a science lesson right?

If you’re able to find flour in the stores (for the love people please stop overbuying!) and you’re doing more baking at your house too you need to add this apricot bread to your list of new recipes to try!

Normally I’d point you to my blog for the directions but I’m going to do you a solid and leave the full recipe in the comments.

What have you baked so far during this time of social distancing? I’d love some new ideas!
There are a LOT of people out walking in our neigh There are a LOT of people out walking in our neighborhood right now (but still social distancing!) and she decided that she wanted to bring them some joy and put a smile on their face when they pass by our house. Also, the square with ‘say no to coronavirus’ is priceless. 😂 I just love her so much!
Follow
Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2021 · Divine theme by Restored 316

Copyright © 2021 At The Picket Fence