Christmas Traditions, New and Old

I have decided that the only way I am going to finish this Journal Your Christmas album is to do it digitally. I can't seem to find the time to journal, scheme the page design and then actually sit down and do it. Especially since the kids will be home from school after today – once they are home "real" scrapbooking ends for me. Too many little fingers in the stash!

I am working on documenting our Christmas Traditions. I think I am going to end up with four (!) pages about this because we have a few new ones to capture as well as a few old ones I want to record. This book is going to be HUGE when I finish, but with the digital pages, at least it won't be bulky or heavy.

Here is my Traditions (new) page. I'll add the "old" one later when I get it done. I am waiting to take a photo on Christmas Eve for that page.

Pages are done with Creative Memories' StoryBook Creator Plus and their Frost kit.

MB has been asking for an Elf on the Shelf this year. I think a lot of the kids in her class must have them and she has been hearing stories about the antics of the elves.

So, one Saturday while I was out with Ang, we got one. MB was so very excited and read the story to Ang right away. Now, our Elf, Jingle, makes a nightly journey to Santa's to report on the girls' behavior. Then he picks a spot to perch for the day and keep an eye on things. You never know where Jingle will turn up. The lights, the wreath, the bookcase. He is a crafty elf.

Let there be light(s)

Every year, we tweak our outdoor decorations just a little. This year, we did something totally different. Colored lights (for the girls) on the shrubs and SuperMan added lights to the Tulip Tree. I love it. It looks like an outdoor Christmas tree.

We also have little bitty trees on the front porch. I have seen that for years and loved it so I splurged last Christmas and added them to the decor. I think next year I will add some decorations to them (when the puppy isn't such a puppy and hopefully won't eat them all!)

Pages are done with Creative Memories' StoryBook Creator Plus and their Frost kit.

SuperMan also got all of my garlands and wreath lights working this year so we have a lot of lights in the house, too. It makes things very festive and I am keeping them on pretty much all the time. I like the glow!

The stockings on the mantle are from one of my trips to the UK with work (years ago) and every time I pull them out I remember shopping in Harrod's with Mom and getting them.

I hope your holidays are filled with light, love and good memories, too!

Oh, Grow Up! (just not so fast)

Today was a little bittersweet for me.

My youngest daughter (5) had a Holiday program at school. They sang carols and did a few recitations for all of the parents, showed off their artwork and then we had a “reception” where we shared donuts and muffins.

I loved it. She did such a good job and all of the kids were so adorable. (I love this age) The little boys with their energy just bursting from their little bodies, straining against the structure of standing in a row and reciting in time with the rest of the class… The little girls with their fancy dresses and pretty hairdos, smiling at their mommies and daddies and waving occasionally to be sure they are still paying attention to them.

It was heaven.

And yet, it was a little sad for me.

I couldn’t help but think that this was probably my last Christmas program I’d get to see (at least until the grandkids come along). So, while I was reveling in every moment, there was a part of me that wanted to hit the “Pause” button. Stop! Wait! This can’t be it! Let’s go back a year or two.

Isn’t that funny?

When our kids are little and dependent on us for EVERYTHING all we can think about is that we can’t wait for them to get bigger so that they can do things for themselves. We push, we nudge, we cajole and we threaten.

And then, one day, you wake up from the everyday and realize that that time is here. And, I don’t know about you, but I’m not sure I’m ready!

One girl entering her pre-teen years, thinking she knows it all already; the other learning she can be independent and it’s ok. Don’t get me wrong… I love it for them. I am proud of my girls. I am so excited to see their growth and development, to cheer their accomplishments.

I’m just not ready to give up my babies yet.

I know what is coming. I have seen it with friends. Next, I become the “mean mom” who doesn’t let her stay up all night, texting with friends on her cell phone. Or the mom who won’t let her meet friends and hang out at the mall (all alone) (as if!)

I’m still enjoying being the mom they WANT to be with. The mom they think is cool (and that they think actually KNOWS stuff) I’m not ready to give that up.

I want babies to snuggle in my lap, rock to sleep, and kiss their boo-boos.

So, it’s bittersweet.

While I’m so proud of them and can’t wait to see what they will become, I’m going to miss these little girls of mine. I love them an awful lot.

Lists here, Lists there, Lists, Lists, everywhere

I am a big list-maker. I am also a big paper girl. I love the tactile sensation of writing things down… and then the satisfaction I get from crossing things off the list. Whether it is groceries, gift lists, to-do’s, packing lists, whatever. I have a list for it. (surely I’m not the only one?)

Here are some of my lists:

The obligatory “HONEY-DO” list, the planned dinner choices for the next week, and the grocery list – notice that someone wrote an address on my list – sacrilege! 🙂

My husband laughs at me because I rewrite my grocery list before going to the store. Call me crazy, but I like a nice, neat, LEGIBLE list when I go shopping. But when I’m adding things to my list as it hangs,vertically, on my refrigerator, legibility is not what I’m going for. I’m just documenting things I need. So,I rewrite the list before I go to the store. Invariably, this reminds me of things that are NOT on the list and should be. It also helps if I decide to pull out the coupons. Then I can mark for which items I have coupons and be sure not to forget to turn them in at the checkout.

Christmas is the king of list-making time for me.

I have the “TO BUY” list. The “TO MAKE” list which goes nicely with the “TO GIVE” list as I usually give homemade goodies to our friends and family. (which reminds me that I haven’t made this list yet (eek!).

Then there are the shopping lists for the kids (which has to be very discreetly tucked away as my 8 year old is now getting very snoopy about things like Christmas gifts) and the list of things to purchase for my husband and the stocking stuffers.

I am not doing very good with the list writing this season, though. I have gone almost completely digital this year with my calendar and time management (which was a HUGE adjustment for me – I still carry a little bitty calendar as my “binkie” because I’m so tied to writing things down!) I did a lot of purchasing online this year and used my email confirmations of my purchases (stored in a folder that was mislabeled to discourage snoopiness) as my “PURCHASED” list.

But, I’m feeling rather disorganized because I never made the master “TO BUY” list. So, tonight I sat down and wrote one. Now, I’m feeling a little pressure because I have so much to do! I will have to schedule a shopping day soon and get it knocked out. I am pretty good at that, though. IF I have my list.

What about you? Are you a list maker? Or do you fly by the seat of your pants? (I love that phrase!)

Christmas Ornaments – a little bit of history on a tree

I love decorating my Christmas tree each year. We have ornaments that date back to when I was a little girl and I love pulling the ornaments one by one out of the box. As I pull each one out, I remember a little piece of my history. Ornaments I used to put on our family tree as a girl, ornaments I made myself when SuperMan and I were first married (and I had time to hand-craft things like that!), ornaments I've received as gifts from family and friends…

But some of my most favorite ornaments are the ones that my girls have made for us – and the ones that I have picked up through the years on our travels. Instead of other souvenirs, I always try to pick up a Christmas ornament when we make a journey somewhere.

There's the one I got at the Tower of London:

I went to London for business and my mom tagged along that year. We had so much fun picking out ornaments to decorate our trees. Now, I see those ornaments each Christmas and remember that trip – and all the fun times we had together. (like trying to drive a stick shift sitting on the "wrong" side of the car and driving on the "wrong" side of the road)

And this ornament that SuperMan and I got when we went to Hawaii one year (another business trip – that was a good company to work for!)

The one in the background is an ornament I had engraved for my labrador's first Christmas (he was my 18th birthday present to myself) He is gone to puppy heaven now, but I remember him every year when I put this ornament on the tree – I remember when he was my only baby – and these babies I have now were not even glimmers in my eye.

Christmas, for me, is a time of remembering, celebrating, and hoping. Remembering things past, celebrating and being thankful for the bounty of the present, and hoping for the future.

Counting down the days…

Anticipation….Anticipaaaation… It’s making me wait… It’s keeping me waiting…

(remember that song? or am I dating myself?)

“Mommy, how many more days until Christmas?”

“Mommy, is it Christmas Eve yet?”

“Mommy, is Santa coming tonight?”

I must answer these questions (or some variation of them) at least 10 times a day (per kid!)

And, as Christmas draws ever closer, the anticipation mounts. The girls watch the ornaments go on the tree, the gifts start to appear, magically, under the tree each night, and the annual Advent calendar appears.

Ever since I was a little girl, we have had an Advent calendar. I think we may have even had more than one growing up. But the one I remember the most is the one that was filled with chocolatey goodness.

My husband had them, too, growing up. He is the youngest of six and is always reminding our girls that he had to wait SIX WHOLE DAYS for his turn at the chocolate candy (kinda like walking to school both ways uphill in a snowstorm, I think).

Our girls are really enjoying this tradition. Although, it seems unbelievably painful that they only get one piece of candy every-other day (not every SIX days, mind you) it helps them to count down the days until Christmas is finally here.

For me, there are other things I use to count the days of Christmas… the countdown until the last day of school before winter break, the number of days before I get my vacation time, the number of days before I have to have all the Christmas presents purchased, wrapped and under the tree… My countdowns seem to be more milestone-driven, but I enjoy knowing that this time of year is here and our traditions are still strong.

What are some of your holiday traditions? How do you countdown until Christmas is here? Share them with me in the comments! I’d love to hear.

I’m back! (did you miss me?)

Hi, everyone!

I'm back! I hope you didn't miss me too much while I was gone. I decided to take the week of Thanksgiving as a personal holiday from my computer. Other than to check email occasionally, I did not log in to anything for one solid week. I thought it would be hard to do, but with the kids home for the holiday and travel to see family, it was pretty easy to accomplish.

I was pretty proud of myself because normally I'm sneaking off to check email, blogs, scrapbook, etc. This year, I decided to focus on my family and enjoying the moments we had together. I wasn't idle, however, and you will see soon.

I have some really neat things to share with you this week, so I hope you will come back and visit me tomorrow… Here's a sneak peek:

Also, I will be part of a Cookie Swap Blog Hop this week! Join me on December 1st and you can hop from blog to blog to get some new recipe ideas for your holiday baking.

Until tomorrow, my friends!

Chocolatey Goodness from the Kitchen

Ang has been asking me for a chocolate cake with chocolate icing for about a week.

So, we decided to make one today.

She loves to help in the kitchen and I love teaching her about cooking and baking.

Today, she made the cake herself – all I did was break the eggs for her.

Oh, and pour it in the pan.

But she got the best job of all, I think.

Cleaning the bowl 🙂

I think it turned out pretty well, but we will have to taste and see.

We put the icing on while it was warm so it would sink into the cake. More yummy goodness.

These are a few of my favorite things…

Remember the song from The Sound of Music?

Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens;

Bright copper kettles and warm woolen mittens;

Brown paper packages tied up with strings;

These are a few of my favorite things.

Well, here are a few of my favorite things (this week)

See's Candies
Have you tried their chocolate? It's a west-coast thing and I would've never known about it except that my mom introduced me to them last winter. (which is weird because she is as far east as you can get, but that's another story) ANYWAY, they are good. I mean, REALLY good. I am a chocolate snob. I don't eat "regular" chocolates, unless there is a chocolate emergency, of course. But the chocolates at See's are to-die-for.
I actually ordered myself a box a couple of months ago. I have it stashed on a shelf in my office and when I am having a bad day, I enjoy a piece (no one knows the box is there- it's my secret treasure – and that is why it has lasted so long. If the kids or the hubby knew it was there they would've gobbled it up already)

They have this thing called a Scotchmallow.

YUM. It's got a base layer of caramel, homemade honey marshmallow on top of that and then it is enrobed in dark chocolate. All I can say is when I die, I hope there are unlimited scotchmallows in heaven. Because there should be.
the MyBook Adaptable Planner
This is the coolest idea. I saw one that a friend had a couple years ago and I have been wanting one ever since. I finally found out where the planner came from in September (I'm lame, I know) and ordered one. Actually, I ordered four.

They have a small size (4×6) that is perfect for slipping into your purse or tote and you can put all sorts of decorations in the photo sleeves. I got one of these for my mom and I'm going to decorate it with pictures of the grandkids for her.

The larger size (6×8) is good if you need more space to write. I am going to use one of those as a journal next year. I've already started decorating it. Once I get it finished, I'll post some pictures so you can see what it looks like.
The Couch to 5k Running Plan
Well, I don't actually love this yet. I love the idea of it, though. And, I'm seriously thinking I'm going to give it a whirl. What do I have to lose? I have always wanted to be a runner (something about the sweating part always got in the way, though) and maybe this will help me achieve my goals. I'll have to keep you posted on this one.
My digital camera
We treated ourselves to a new camera last year as our Christmas gift (there wasn't really anything my husband I wanted or needed so we got that instead of a bunch of other stuff) I LOVE IT. It's a Pentax DSLR and I just love the crispness of the pictures and the vibrancy of the colors. I carry it everywhere and I'm always snapping pictures (like this one) of the family and day-to-day happenings.

My camera makes me happy.
Friday Night Mexican
This has become a standard tradition in our house. Mom's too tired to cook, everyone is fried, so off we go to the local Mexican joint (we frequent several around here) and indulge in copious amounts of queso dip, fajitas, tacos, quesadillas and margaritas (for Mom & Dad, of course)
It's a great wind-down to the week and it's so nice to not have a messy kitchen to clean up afterward.

What are your favorites this week? Any favorite traditions your family has? Leave me a comment and let me know…

Oh, and have a great weekend. I'll see you Sunday over on The Lady's page with my weekly scrapbooking post.

William Tell Momisms

I just watched this video and I have to say I wonder if this woman was watching my house when she got the idea to write this!?! This is motherhood in 3 minutes and 25 seconds. Take a few to watch this… too funny.

And thanks to BJ’s Scraps, where I found the video in the first place.

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this: