Christmas in July

Those of you who know me know that I love Christmas. I was so excited the other day to walk into Hobby Lobby and see that they've already started putting out Christmas stuff. If I had all day, I would craft Christmas to my heart's content. But I don't, so I have to do what I can when I can.

Another Christmas love of mine is Hallmark Keepsake Ornaments. As many of you know, Hallmark releases their ornaments in July. I really am very excited!  As in:

I really don't know where to start! I think the only downside is that they tend to run over $12-15 each and when you want about, oh I don't know...20 or so...it tends to get pricey. Like own special budget each month pricey. My justification in this, though, is that there are about 2-3 (OK, 2) that I buy for other people:

 Star Trek for the hubby.

And cupcakes for my mom.

The rest are for me!!

 Frosty Fun Decade (3rd in series)

Mickey's Christmas Carol (4th in series)

Visit from Santa (4th in series)

These are the five I've kept up with for the past four years. There were three series I wanted to start last year (Pixar Legends, Angels Around the World, and Twelve Days of Christmas), but due to budget restraints (aka - saving to marry the man of my dreams), I was doing good to keep the series I'd started going. So I'm looking for them online at a reasonable price. The Partridge in a Pear Tree ornament from last year is already selling for almost $50! But that was the one I wanted most, so I may just have to bite the bullet on that one. I'm not too concerned about Pixar and may just buy the ornaments from the movies that I can't live without. Last year was UP, this year is Monsters Inc. I'm OK without those, but I will need Brave and possibly Cars when/if they come out.

Now, if I were only going for the five continued ornaments and picking up last years starters and this years seconds, I might be fine. But this is where Hallmark gets me/you. They continually put out new series!

Cookie Cutter Christmas

Holiday Lighthouse (plugs in and lights up)

Mickey's Movie Mouseterpieces

Really, what's a girl to do!? Guess I'll just have to buckle down and save those pennies. Cause I don't know if I can let these little gems go.

We just might need a second tree this year!
*ornament pictures taken from Hallmark website; gif taken from photobucket*

So What! Wednesday

This week it's So What if...

* I'm doing this at 11:04 pm. It's still Wednesday for me!

* I studied while watching The Sound of Music tonight. At least I studied/read some!

* I've only worked out twice this week. It's better than last week when I did nothing!

* The only reason I caved to taking the Christmas tree down is because it wasn't taking water anymore and was very quickly becoming dry and brittle. If I could, that baby would still be up!!

* I proved last night I can spend my husband's money better than he can on a shopping spree to a "man store". (Long story short, we went to Best Buy with some extra money we had in celebration of his new schedule - woohoo for weekends off - and I had an easier time of blowing the wad than he did!!)

* I should be in bed right now!!

And, because it's so late, that's all I've got this week. That and it's been pretty uneventful around here.

Hugs...

Post wedding week

I can't believe it's all over...the stress, the headaches, the freak outs (ok, there really weren't that many to be honest). But all the wedding hassle is over!!! And the only reason I don't miss any of it is because I can now focus on my favorite holiday...CHRISTMAS!!! I realize it's totally "band-wagon" of me to have Christmas as my favorite, but it really is. I mean, there's the obvious reason: Christ's birth. But, to me, it's one of the prettier holidays to decorate for and there are so many ways to do it: red, green, gold; blue, white, silver; black, white, silver; all white; all green; all red; red, green, white...and the list could go on. You just can't go wrong with color or style: country, fun, Suessical (yes, I've seen a Dr Suess tree and it was UH-MA-ZING), classical, Disney, Victorian Mickey (which is what will deck our "halls" this year thanks to a lovely gift from my in-laws before they were in-laws), and the list could go on (again).

Anyway...Christmas isn't the reason I'm posting this lovely Monday evening. I was going to update on all the fun from the last two weeks.

My parents came in a week early (which we have all agreed was about 3 days too early, even if was nice to have them). Unfortunately, I had to work Mon-Wed week of. Thursday we went shopping for last minute stuff: final flowers (just in case), favor stuff, ribbon, stuff for the kiddos in attendance. Friday was some cleaning and organizing - making sure I had all I needed. The that night was the rehearsal and rehearsal dinner. It was surprisingly painless (really...I thought it'd be worse than it was). Dinner was fun as all the "kids" (bride, groom, bridal party, etc) sat at one table and the adults at the other. Some things never change...we were, as usual, the rowdy table! I love that I can pick up where I left off with my P'cola gang...and Mr. S fit right in!! Saturday I went with my MOH & BM to the mall for nails, toes, eyebrows, and shopping (ok, I was the only one to get all of the first three done, but we still had a good time). Then we did some lunch. I took them back to the hotel as they were coming over with a hubs and friend from out of town for the fight. Once home, more final details (I still had not done the seating chart!). Then the MOH and hubs, BM (who's hubs couldn't make the event), and the Sailor (another P'cola gang member) came over for food and fight night...and MOH, BM, and I quickly left for less violent endeavors: Barnes & Nobles!
*Before we left and before the fight got started, my aunt and her husband and my two cousins also joined us for a bit...then ventured out with M&D for an evening of catching up. It was so nice to see them, though, even if for a little bit. And I was told I was the calmest bride they'd ever seen!!

After the fight was over and the gang left and M&D were back, I started stressing over the seating chart. I had this amazing idea...and it worked about 90%. Close but no cigar...that last 10% would have made it perfect, but without it I couldn't use it. But...my amazing fiance' (now husband!!) came to the rescue and created this:



Yup...he's pretty amazing!! That is my original project backing (a regular old canvas painted black) and he used the paper I'd used for the wishing tree (the branch surrounded by flowers in the center of the table) for the list of who's at what table and then used double sided tape to stick engagement photos around the edges. My husband is AMAZING!!! And he did it while I was in bed, passed out!

Morning of I head off with mom and all our decor loaded in the van...and our dresses...to get my girls and their dresses so we can go get beautified. We met up with step-mom-in-law and little SIL (Jr BM) at the salon and had a great time getting our hair did! :) Then we headed for a QUICK bite to eat then off to Hearts Home Farm to quickly set up and then finish the beautification process in time for photos and 2:30 pm wedding start time. It got a little chaotic...especially after the groom showed up a half hour early and confined me to the dressing room...which actually turned out to be a good thing otherwise we would have started late!!

But the show went on as directed and without any issues (that I'm aware of). The music went perfectly as it should for the moms, the maids, and then me...there were no slip ups with the ceremony...the recessional music blew everyone away (Star Wars Episode IV from the awards scene at the end)...the receiving line was great...pictures were a breeze and fun...re-entry to reception music was awesome (Monday Night Football theme: da, da, da, daaaa)...food was fantastic...no one got the mic for toasts that wasn't supposed to and those that did get it did awesome...cake cutting was perfect (nope, no icing everywhere)...dancing was great...and the exit was perfect!!

Honeymoon was a couple days in Anaheim and two days at Disneyland and California Adventure. Perfect - not crowded, rode a lot of rides, stayed for the fireworks the last night, watched the Christmas parade, TONS of pictures that I still need to upload!!

Then back home on Wednesday via Fry's in Anaheim, where we splurged a little. We used our money on Thursday to supplement the registry items we needed/wanted but didn't get. Then we splurged at Best Buy some more. Friday I went back to work. The hubs went back Saturday while I took the weekend to find places to put all our new dishes and appliances and the wedding decor (there's been two FULL trips to the dumpster as Mr. S left for work on Sun & today and still more to go...plus stuff for donation). And we're almost back to the regular routine except I'm off Wednesday - Friday for Thanksgiving.

And there you have it...not in a nut shell! I'll get some pictures up as I can this week. Wedding pics won't be back till after Christmas sometime, but a lot of people took pictures and have posted some of FB. So that will have to tide you over for a bit...till I can really work at getting some of them uploaded that have been sent to me.

Hope you enjoyed reading.

Hugs...

Friday Fill In #202

This week, I'm going to give you a choice of fill-ins OR a different kind of fill-in (or both). A friend emailed me a list where you have to identify Christmas songs by the initials of the first words of the first line of each song. Each Friday until Christmas Eve I'll post 9 more of these songs and if you'd like to play along, great!

So...here we go!

1. The best thing about a birthday celebration is having friends & family around.

2. I am not a fan the passage of time.

3. I went shopping recently and the most interesting thing I bought was a green bow ring and jangling earrings for Christmas parties this season.

4. I love the child's game candyland.

5. The reason is I remember playing it over and over and over again as a child!

6. I despise the snow and cold.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to going to the city parade to watch my future little sis-in-law with the pageant princesses, tomorrow my plans include another Christmas parade to watch a friend's daughter cheer and Sunday, I want to sleep, but I have a Christmas party at my soon to be grandmother-in-law's!

AND/OR

1. HYAMLC: Have yourself a merry little Christmas
2. TFNTADS: The First Noel (the angels did say)
3. GRYMGLNYD: God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen (let nothing you dismay)
4. ICUAMC: It came upon a midnight clear
5. SNHNAICAIB: Silent Night (holy night, all is calm, all is bright)
6. OTFDOCMTLGTM: 12 Days of Christmas (on the first day of Christmas my true love gave to me)
7. DTHWBOHFLLLLLLLL: Deck the Halls (with bows{sp} of holly, Fa la la la la la la la la)
8. YBWOYBNC: Santa Clause is Coming to Town (You better watch out, you better not cry)
9. JTTWTLHC: Joy to the World (the Lord has come)

*yeah...had to look up some of these from google. :)
Fun stuff! :)

Such a horrible poster

Well...time for another apology! I'm getting really bad at this. And it's not that I'm super busy, I just haven't done it. Which is odd because I'm about to get super busy! It's that time of year!! And I'm so excited!

Christmas is my favorite holiday season!! I love snowflakes and snowmen and gingerbread men and all that fun stuff (not a fan of Santa decor, but to each his/her own). I love getting a tree, real or fake, and decorating...filling that green booger with so many white lights you don't know what color the tree is anymore!! And most of all, I love that it's the celebration of our Lord's birth! :) This year I actually have room for a full size tree...but I have no idea how to get it home and up to my 2nd floor apartment. So I may just do another mini this year...especially since Stephen and I may be staying at his dad's Christmas Eve. Another thing I'm excited about...actually spending Christmas day with the love of my life!!! (Last year he had to work so we did Christmas early and I went to AZ). I'm so looking forward to this year!

On a different note...I've discovered my clothes fitting more and more tightly and it's time for me to get back into doing something about that! I can feel the effects of my weight on my body and it's just not healthy for me, at my age, to be this way! So, effective immediately it's time to start! Slowly, though, otherwise I'll burn myself out of this faster than I start. So, first things first...cutting out sodas. That's a hard one for me because I love my dark, carbonated, sugary goodness!! But that's the start. I need to start back into some sort of exercise regime, but that's the next step...we're doing baby steps for now! :)

And, the final new excitement in my life is that class starts today! Two more courses, to make my life busy, have begun today: Critical Thinking and Industrial/Organizational Psychology! I'm working my way to a BS in Psychology. It'll take a couple years, but that is the ultimate goal! And I'm very excited to finally be back on track with that, even if it means taking some fun out of my weekends.

Well...that's about it for now. I'll try to get back into the swing of some of my original posts: Monday's Mug and Friday Fill-In. And I'll try to do more updates as I can too...but you know me!

Hugs!

Christmas in July

That's probably the thought they're going with this weekend. I mean, they are premiering their Christmas Ornaments...in July. It's trendy, I admit. And for most it works, present company included.
Who?

Hallmark!!!!

Tomorrow and Sunday (July 10 & 11) is the Hallmark Keepsake Ornament Premier Weekend! And I am so there! Good thing I don't have a lot of money to spend, otherwise I'd have no money when it's all said and done with. Yes, I'm addicted...and I have no desire to quit!!

It all started quite innocently three years ago. I bought my first, first edition keepsake ornament in 2007...Doorways Around the World. I'd always been intrigued by the HKOs, but never ventured into purchase mode for any of the series. I thought I'd dabble...give it a whirl. And it probably wouldn't have been that big a deal except for one tiny little problem: my mom. I love her...don't get me wrong...but sometimes she aggravates the schnikeys out me!!

Here's how it happened: I bought the Germany door.
Here's my mistake: I told her about it and how I was all excited about starting a series.
Here's where it went kaput: Christmas 2008 gets close and she tells me not to buy MY ornament this year...she will...and for future years for the series.
Wait....what?!?! Don't get me wrong, I'm not ungrateful or anything. But this was MY thing..to do for ME...I WANTED TO DO IT!!!! ARGH!!! (See what I mean about driving me CrAzY!?!)

So, I blame her for this addiction (yes, that's right, I take ABSOLUTELY NO responsibility). Because if she hadn't decided to steal my thunder, I wouldn't have had to go looking for a new series to buy.
I will say my addiction was postponed a year due to my move to CA. But Christmas of 2009, I started two new series. And I made it EXTREMELY clear to her that she was to keep her grubby little paws OFF!!!

And I plan on two, or more, this year.

Maybe even delving into one or two or three that started in the past few years that I missed...which would mean hunting the interwebs for last years, and previous years, editions and trying not to pay too much for them. What? I can't have a series starting with second/third/fourth in series. The series must be complete!!!
And I can quit whenever I want to...I just don't want to!!

For those wondering, here are the addictions:
*Doors Around the World: Germany (07), Mexico (08), Ireland (09), and Italy (10). Sadly, Italy is the last in this series (oh, and Mom has them all in my "hope chest").
*Visit From Santa: Santa w/Polar Bear (09), Santa w/Deer (10) - this is one I started last year.
*Mickey's Christmas Carol: Mickey as Bob Cratchit (09), Scrooge McDuck as Ebenezer Scrooge (10) - another I started last year...one of my favorite Christmas movies!!

New this year: *Frosty Fun Decade - "Look forward to ten years of fun with this frosty new ornament series. A different snowman will arrive each year to help commemorate the season.
*Oh So Sweet - "Each ornament in this new series will feature a delightfully decorated cupcake."
*STAR TREK™ Legends: "Each of the ornaments in this new series will feature a different character from the original STAR TREK™ television series." (This is a maybe. It'd be for Stephen, but he's not a fan of the original series...he's more of a "Next Generation"-er.)

Potential pick ups:
*Season's Treatings - this is only on the second year. The only problem...all the online prices for last year's are about $100!! This year's ornament is only $10.95. Last year's is apparently very hard to find and very popular...all it has on it is a couple mini cookies and rolling pin stamped with 2009. We'll see how that goes.
*Santa's Sweet Ride - on it's 4th year.

It's just too cute!! Only problem is it's four years in, and I'm not really a Santa person. If it hadn't been for the polar bear (and promise of future animals), I probably wouldn't have started the "Visit from Santa" series. I'm not fully committed to this one: 07 found Santa in a car, 08 was a plane, and 09 was a boat. I can't imagine there's much left in the transportation industry. We'll see...

And there you have it...one of my many addictions that I am refusing to seek help for (unless it's monetary help in the form of you giving me money to buy these!). On another day, I'll discuss a current, year-round addiction: Vinylmation!!