The most wonderful time of the year!

I declared on Friday that I was working on Christmas decorations over the weekend - if it didn't get up, it wasn't going up! So in between cleaning & laundry, sleeping & eating, that is exactly what I did.

So now our house is mostly decorated for Christmas, inside & out. I moved a few things out of their "normal" spots this year and kept some of my more meaningful and breakable items stored away to keep my monkey away from them, but it's festive & merry and I'm in love.

How sweet are my boys?

Of course, between everything, I didn't have time to take many pictures ... but, I'll be back in the next week or two with a home tour :)

Happy Monday!

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Lately ...

Whew, it's been a whirlwind!

• I attended a craft fair over the weekend, and had lots of fun looking at the neat items. With that being said, I only purchased one handmade item - a sock cap for Cooper. My other buys were Pampered Chef and Scentsy.
• I totally got in trouble for buying the Pampered Chef! When I told hubby I purchased a can opener (we've been needing a new one and I like my mom's Pampered Chef) he groaned. Turns out, he was planning to buy me one as a stocking stuffer for Christmas. Luckily, he hadn't placed the order yet.
• So as of now, no buying anything for myself until mid February :)
• Speaking of Christmas, I finally finished the first tree - Cooper's :) It's red, blue and silver and has a penguin blanket as the skirt. So far, so good in terms of baby and the tree, but then again, he doesn't spend a lot of unsupervised time in his room, either.

• The diet started back up yesterday. So sweets were tossed.
• I'm also planning to do some working out and utilizing that treadmill ... now just to find the time!
• It was in the 60s and 70s all weekend and amazing! Unfortunately we were on the run and didn't have a lot of time to just enjoy.
• I'm about 80 percent done with my Christmas shopping!
• Highlights from Coop's well check last week:
• He is 21 lbs., 7 ounces - 30th percentile. Totally normal for a very active boy, she said.
• 29 inches, which has him right in the 50th percentile
• Right where he should be or a little ahead in terms of speech and movement.
• We had our family/Christmas photos taken yesterday. LOVE. I can't wait to share :)
• Hubby's work Christmas party was on Saturday, and among other things, I made spicy cayenne pretzels. They went over so well, so I thought I would share the recipe here:
• You need: One bag pretzels, oil, cayenne pepper and 1 packet ranch dressing mix.
• Pour the pretzels in a brown paper bag and coat with about 1/4 cup of oil. Add ranch dressing mix and about 1 T. cayenne pepper.
• Shake about every 15 minutes for an hour.
• Enjoy :) Of course if you like them more or less spicy, just adjust the amount of pepper.
• Someone decided he was King of the House over the weekend. Unfortunately, I wasn't quick enough to snap a picture when he was standing on the boxes with the hairbrush in his hand like it was his sceptor.

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My Christmas list

I realized I never posted my Christmas list to share!

Beautiful wedding to my handsome husband ...

Healthy baby! I could just put a bow on this cuteness for every Christmas!

And ...

This beauty we brought home a week before Cooper was born! 2012 GMC Terrain. Definitely needed something bigger and we fell in love with this :)

Christmas Survey

It's been a busy week! Coop had a needy day on Monday so I snuggled with him lots, my parents came down on Tuesday and my mom and I did some baking (not so good for my waistline) and I've been busy with work stuff the past couple days. 

But today I decided to take a break during naptime and do this fun survey. 

Oh, and thanks for all the nursery love :) 

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? Wrapping paper. Even though I am one of the worst when it comes to wrapping, it just looks prettier under the tree AND is more fun to open. 

2. Real tree or Artificial? I've never had a real one, but would like to some day ... 

  

3. When do you put up the tree? As soon as possible! Ha, hubby makes me wait until after Thanksgiving. This year, I didn't get it up until late - last weekend. 

4. When do you take the tree down? Depends. Hubby's birthday is Jan. 9 and he likes it down before that, but it depends. 

 

5. Do you like eggnog? Yes. Yummy :)

6. Favorite gift received as a child? Nothing in particular sticks out. My parents were "those parents" who not only didn't shower us with all the newest toys we would quit playing with in a few months, but requested we didn't receive toys either. Looking back, I wouldn't have it any other way, because that enabled my parents to have savings to pay for our vehicles, as well as keep us from having student loan debt. 

7. Do you have a nativity scene? Yes. But it got molded and I had to through it out :( Looking for a new one during the half price sales after Christmas. 

8. Hardest person to buy for? My parents. They are just really simple, basic people, who would prefer we didn't even get them gifts. 

9. Easiest person to buy for? Hubby (we walk through Sears and I take pictures of what he picks) and my girl friends - we do an ornament exchange each year :)

10. Mail or email Christmas cards? Mail, although they will probably be late this year. 

11. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? Nothing horrible, but just impersonal things like candles or hot cocoa mixes. Some people love this but I just search so hard for the perfect gift for everyone so it's a little hurtful when I see they put so little effort into gifts they give me. 

12. Favorite Christmas Movie? Christmas Vacation and Dear Virginia. 

13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? All year. I'm a sale shopper and always on the lookout for things. 

14. Ever recycled a Christmas present? Nope.

15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? Sweets: Oreo truffles and my aunt's sugar cookies. As far as real food, our breakfast pizza casserole and mashed potatoes with beef and gravy. 

16. Clear lights or colored on the tree? Clear.

17. Favorite Christmas song? I love them all! I just remembered we have Christmas music stations on our TV package, I think I should turn the TV there this afternoon :)

18. Travel at Christmas or stay home? Since we've been together, I don't think J and I have ever had anywhere we HAD to go on Christmas Day - luckily things are spread out a lot more for Christmas. So far this year we have things planned next Friday, Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve, although my parents haven't decided when to do our immediate family Christmas yet, and his family hasn't set a day either. We like having Christmas day as a quiet time for just our little family - and I know it will be even more fun now that we have a little one!  

19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer? Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner, Blitzen. And Rudolph. 

20. Angel on the tree top or a star? Angel. But since she was molded this year, it's just a bow. 

21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning? Christmas morning. Except our new pajamas on Christmas Eve. 

22. Most annoying thing about this time of year? How my husband is sometimes a grinch. Ha! I love it all, even though it can be a bit stressful. 

23. Favorite ornament, theme, or color? I like them all! I like a sort of eclectic look on the tree. My grandma gave us ornaments each Christmas, so I have a bunch of different ones and they all look beautiful together to me :)

24. What do you want for Christmas this year? Post to come on that :) Honestly, there is nothing I want for Christmas - I've already had the best year and gotten the biggest blessings and most amazing things. I've actually asked for things for Cooper as he grows ...

Merry Christmas!

I'm stuck at work for a few hours today and literally waiting for our last thing to do, so I wanted to pop in and wish everyone a Merry Christmas!


And finally, here are the pictures of our Christmas decor this year. I do have a few things scattered in the kitchen and main bathroom, but this is the gist of it :) And since I'm in a rush, I'm not going to take the time to crop/edit any of these images. Sorry!

Overview of the Living Room. Yes, Married to Rock is on the TV :)

Sofa table at the front entryway. To the left is our card holder, and on the table is my nativity and a couple things of my grandma's. Those are my $2 stockings I got made at a craft fair!!!

Snowflake Jake!

Snowman table ... with Jake in the background!

TV table - I got the "books" at a yard sale for 25 cents each

My nativity from Dirty Santa one year, music box that was my grandma's, and a smaller nativity given to me by my other grandma. 

Closeup of the tree. Which now is overflowing with gifts. 

tree in the dark

My boys by the basement tree

Our little family

Christmas questions

I've seen this on a couple of blogs and decided to fill it out today :)


1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? Definitely wrapping paper. Yes, it's work, but so much more fun to rip into. And, it looks pretty pretty under the tree!

2. Real tree or Artificial? I've never had a real one. I'd like to, some year.

3. When do you put up the tree? Weekend after Thanksgiving-first weekend of December. The sooner, the better for me!

4. When do you take the tree down? Depends. I was raised Catholic, so I argue the Christmas season technically isn't over until Epiphany, which is Jan. 6. I try to get it down by J's birthday, which is Jan. 9.

5. Do you like eggnog? Yup

6. Favorite gift received as a child? My parents were boring and gave us clothes and stuff like that. But I still have a lot of the timeless gifts like board games, etc.

7. Hardest person to buy for? My parents. They are so simple and can afford to buy anything they want.

8. Easiest person to buy for? Jim. I pretty much can just walk into Sears and be safe.

9. Do you have a nativity scene? Yes.

10. Mail or email Christmas cards? Snail mail. But I've decided not to send them out this year.

11. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? A sweater that my sister gave me. The sweater wasn't bad, but she got it off my mom, who bought the shirt while we were shopping together.

12. Favorite Christmas Movie? National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation. Hands down.

13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? I try to do it through the year.

14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? Just dirty Santa ones

15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? Mashed potatoes with kettle beef and gravy! My grandma made this for every holiday and now my uncle, who does our family Christmas, keeps the tradition going! Oh, and my aunt makes THE BEST sugar cookies!

16. Lights on the tree (colored or clear)? Clear, definitely.

17. Favorite Christmas song? All of them. But I love the Church-y ones, like O Holy Night, Silent Night, etc.

18. Travel at Christmas or stay home? Stay home.

19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer's? Yes. Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner, Blitzen and of course, Rudolph!

20. Angel, star or ribbon on top of tree? Angel :)

21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning? Morning. But this year, we're going to start doing Christmas Eve pajamas. 

22. Favorite children's Christmas song? I Want A Hippopotomus For Christmas

23. Most annoying thing about this time of the year? All the scrooges who won't get in the holiday spirit. Blech.

24. Favorite ornament theme or color? Silver and red :) I plan to hit the after-Christmas sales this year and get a small tree and some black and gold ornaments so I can have a Mizzou tree next year, though. 

25. Turkey or ham on Christmas day? Neither. Kettle beef and gravy!

26. What do you want for Christmas this year? To win the lottery :) Haha, just sunglasses

27. Does anyone in your family dress up as Santa? No.

28. Age you discovered who Santa was? I don't really remember.

29. Eggnog, hot chocolate, or apple cider? All of the above

30. Traditional colors (red and green) or other colors? Red, green, silver and gold! Blue can be very pretty too!

31. Do you have any Christmas decorations on your roof? No :(

32. How does Santa get into your house? Chimney or magic key? Since we don't have kids, he meets me to drop off items :)

33. Do you prefer gifts or gift cards? Gifts, unless the cards are to be used toward a larger purchase.

34. Favorite children's Christmas Cartoon? Rudolph/Frosty

12 Days of Christmas Blog Challenge - Days 12-14

1. I am a horrible weekend blogger! I have been on once all weekend because life was crazy busy! So there are three days in one, again.

2. I am SO enjoyed this blog challenge. I've gotten a ton of new ideas and met some great people :)

Alright, on to the catch-up:

Day 12: Show us your decorations.

Sadly, there isn't much. I spent all of last week making yummy food for the big arts and crafts bazaar and had no time to decorate. I snapped these pictures of my decor this morning:

The stockings were actually purchased at the fair (4 bucks each --- can you believe it?!?!), while the poinsettias were 99 cents at Lowes during Black Friday weekend, and Mickey is the JC Penney Black Friday doorbuster gift.
I am off work today and plan to get a lot of my decorations up after I finish the moutain of laundry that has accumulated :)  I'll post pictures in the next week or so, I'm sure.

Day 13: Cookie recipe

I don't make complicated cookies. Seriously. At Christmastime, I do the Pillbury ones from the huge container at Sam's, and one of J's co-workers has requested No-Bakes the past couple of years.

However, my aunt makes THE BEST sugar cookies. I could eat these all day every day. She actually began making them before she married my uncle -- I joke the cookies are what convinced us she was alright :) Sadly, I don't have her recipe, but I should probably work on getting it ...

Day 14: Oprah's Favorite Things --- the items I would want if I were in the audience

1 - An iPad
2 - A new vehicle
3 - Money to pay off my  bills (which isn't too terribly much if you exclude the mortgage.)

And now I'm all caught up! I hope you check back to see my Christmas decorations later this week!

12 Days of Christmas Blog Challenge: Day 11

Day 11 = New Year's Resolutions! 


I love this one! I make lots of resolutions every year. I am not successful at them all, but no one is perfect, right?


1. Be the healthiest me possible. Whether it's baked not fried, exercising or anything else. 
2. Pay off our lawn mower and shed during the interest-free period.
3. Have at least one date night every month. Even if it's just appetizers and a movie at home.
4. Make a budget and stick to it. 
5. Do a better job of eating all the leftovers, and cleaning out the freezer.
6. Make the bed daily.
7. Grow a garden and preserve lots of the produce.
8. Wash the dishes every night.
9. Don't let junk pile up in my car.
10. Focus more on what I think of myself than others' opinions.
11. Make a habit of organizing/mopping the basement at least once a month.
12. Simplify as much as possible. Get rid of things I don't use. And don't buy things I don't really need. 

12 Days of Christmas Blog Challenge: Day 10

Today's blog challenge is all about our favorite Christmas songs. 


I love them all. Seriously.


The other night, the Country Christmas Concert (or whatever it was called) was on ABC and I loved it. I just start singing along with all of them. It SO gets me in the holiday spirit. 


I really love O Holy Night, especially Carrie's version. 







Santa Baby is another favorite.





And I'm a hick, so of course I love Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer!







By the way, I had a blast reading through all the recipes yesterday and tried TWO of the peppermint bark recipes last night. Awesome job, ladies! 

12 Days of Christmas Blog Challenge: Day 8

Today we're talking about our LEAST FAVORITE thing about the holidays.


Well, fresh off of Thanksgiving, I know exactly what it is --- the stress of being overbooked!


Pretty much all day Thursday, J and I snapped at each other, totally due to having a super-busy day. In addition to having three gatherings, we took food to two of them, and were just on-the-go all day. Plus the sink was FULL of dishes, which obv didn't improve my mood.


I'm really not sure how to overcome this --- it's impossible to turn down one gathering! I guess the only solution is to do as much work ahead of time and just chill ...


Christmas will be much better though. Although I work half a day Christmas Eve, we have one gathering that night and no plans for Christmas Day. His family's celebration is on Sunday (the day after Christmas), and we'll also do something with my immediate family when my brother, sister-in-law and niece are in :)

12 Days of Christmas Blog Challenge: Day 3

Day Three of the Christmas Blogging Challenge! Today we're talking about the most meaningful/best gifts we've received. 

This is a really hard one for me. I've mentioned before that I hate giving gift cards or other presents that I think aren't personal. And the reason for that is because so many people with whom I exchange gifts are the exact same way. There's nothing fun about $25 to Best Buy, unless you've asked for that toward a major purchase. But I still think you need something special.

I think the best gifts, however, are those that my grandmothers have passed down to me. Yes, I know that may make me a dork, but I don't care. My dad's mom, who passed away this year, was great about wrapping seven like items for each of her grandkids, then having us draw numbers. A few years ago, I got the small nativity in this picture. The Christmas tree music box was something from my other grandma. 

Another neat thing my mom's mom did was give us money for our savings account every Christmas, in addition to a small gift. It may not be cool to get money for savings versus the cool new game when you're a kid, but let me tell you, it's definitely nice to have once you are an adult. 

My godmother got me started on Precious Moments, and I still love all of those. As I got older, she would give me money, but always with a small item, like a cool candleholder.

Of course, J has given me so many great gifts. The best of those is my amethyst birthstone ring. I think he went to every jewelry store in Cape before he found the perfect one! He also buys me a lot of "luxury" things I want but would never buy for myself. This year, I'm asking for a pair of nice sunglasses. 

I can't wait to see what's under the tree this year :)

** This may be a shameless plug - but please vote for this project. I know this little girl's family and they've been trying for this grant for so long and I really want them to win! You can vote via Facebook, email AND text message once daily through the end of the month!