very blessed

We had a wonderful Christmas visiting with family, giving and receiving gifts, eating, and laughing. I didn't take not even one single pic because I was too busy having fun!

I am so blessed to have the wonderful friends and family God has placed in my life.

Now, onto thinking about my New Year's resolutions....more to come on those later!

Hope you and yours had a very Merry Christmas and have a Happy New Year!

My Thoughts on Christmas: Let's Be Real for a Sec...

This post will probably totally burst your cheerful, cozy holiday bubble...it's not warm and fuzzy-just matter of fact and real...so don't say I didn't warn you...

The older I get, the less I like "Christmas". By "Christmas", I mean the American Traditional Version (of course, I love celebrating the birth of Jesus....aka: the real Christmas).

1) The house too crowded to put up a tree (we live in a 1 BR apt with four bookcases that are stuffed to the brim, if that gives you any idea...). Plus, my hubby has been having a super busy semester and I have not been wanting to make too much of a distraction for him by dragging all the decorations out. Also, I just didn't feel like it.
2) We never send Christmas cards because A) stamps cost too much and B) we don't have any kids yet, so what's the point? Everyone knows cards without kid pics get put in File 13.
3) We are too old to do "Santa presents" with my parents anymore and as I mentioned, we don't have kids, so we wait until the day after to open gifts with my immediate family. Which is totally fine with me--that's not the meaning of Christmas.
4) I don't start listening to "Christmas" music until I am basically forced to (and I refuse to listen to it until after Thanksgiving at all costs). I start listening about 2 weeks prior to try to get in the "Christmas mood"...
5) I hate the mall....(when I was a teenager, I never thought I would feel that way!) Seriously, though. It's too expensive, too crowded, and too overrated.
6) I hate all the light up, blow up santas and penguins and crap people put in their yards. Two words: TAC.KY. I'm ready to see those things come down.
7) One day I will actually get brave enough not to buy gifts for anyone and to tell them not to buy gifts for me. Giving gifts to people simply because it's what you're "supposed" to do this time of year is in no way celebratory of the birth of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

I like what someone told me a couple of days ago, "...I'm ready for Christmas to be over. It's too expensive and stressful and you have to be nice to people you don't like..." LOL Except for the last part, I agree. I'm ready, too.

So, as you are indulging in your "Christmas" traditions this weekend (which I will be doing the same thing, so I'm truly NOT holier than thou, trust me), keep this in mind...."...the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” ~Matt. 20:27 He was born to die. For you. For me. To pay for our sins.

That's the real meaning of Christmas.

Merry CHRISTmas one and all.....

sparkles

I think I love sparkles as much as any eight year old girl.......who cares if I'm 28?

Ahh, so pretty!



Winter....



It's right around the corner....

Time to:

snuggle with the hubs

hang out with family

drink lots and lots of lattes, chai, and hot chocolate

wish for a house with a fireplace

wear cute scarves

wear boots everyday

put all of the blankets in my house on the bed at the same time

crochet my little heart out

buy sweaters on sale!

wish for Spring

make changes for the new year

did I mention snuggling with the hubs? :)

Dear Santa

With Christmas coming up, it's really hard not to see things that I want. I know that's not the meaning of Christmas, and I don't want you to think I'm being selfish in ANY way. It's just that when you go to stores more often, you're gonna see more stuff you want!

Dear Santa,

I've been a really good girl this year and I want....

1. These really cute knee socks...I don't care what color or where they come from...I just want need some!

(Sources: For Bare Feet, kohls.com, littlemissmatched.com, and Absolute Socks)

2. Handmade coffee cozies....as many travel mugs as we have, these are a great idea! (hmm...maybe I should DIY some?!?!?! I mean, unless Santa brings me some, of course) LOL

(all cozies found on etsy.com)

3. Chocolate! Well mainly, Moose Bites....BEST. CANDY. EVER. (I can see why they're sold out...)

4. Toms...one each in all of these styles, please. (Since you're Santa, you already know my size...) :)

5. And last, but not least....a very nice purse....not neccessarily a Coach, but hey the elves usually have good taste...I love this bag (hint, hint)...................oh who am I kidding? I haven't been good enough to get it this year! LOL



Oh, well. Maybe some day.....

xoxo,
Stacey :)

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

Ok, Thanksgiving is officially over. Now, I can concentrate on Christmas :)

(wreath I made last year)

First, let's talk shopping. I wasn't feeling Target-lady crazy enough to hit up the stores on Black Friday, but my sis and I did go out on Saturday afternoon, and it wasn't nearly as crowded as I suspected. My mom sent us the mall with her credit cards (best. mom. everrrrr.) and let us pick out what we wanted for Christmas. I know this doesn't sound like fun, but it totally is! We have been doing this on and off for at least 12 years now...

(source: google)

I only picked out some nice black leather boots (that I cannot afford to buy right now) to replace the cheap ones I had, a hoodie, and t-shirt, and a bra (which, just in case you were wondering, will not be opened in front of the fam or anything! LOL)

(boots from jcp.com)

I picked out some stuff for my hubby, too, but I'm not telling what it is in case he happens to read this post ;) (He loves surprises and I don't want to ruin it!)

Next, decorations...I found these lights that I want sooo bad!

I want to put a tree outside this year with the star lights or either decorate the camellia bush/tree at the corner of our house with them :) So fun, right?!

I haven't been feeling well lately and all I did yesterday was take down my fall stuff and hang the Christmas wreath on the front door, so I hope to do the rest of the decorating this weekend. (Pics to follow!)

And last, but not least, COOKIES! I for one, happen to love making (and eating) Christmas cookies and Real Simple magazine sent me these 50 cookie recipes...check it out! I hope to try at least 10 of them this season....yummmmmmmm

I Want One!

Hey Friends!

Go check out this blog for a chance to win one of these awesome cardis below....

Good luck :)

Still Respecting Thanksgiving.....

Ok, I couldn't resist...

I have been trying really hard not to do anything Christmas-related until after Thanksgiving. This is in response to "Christmas" coming earlier and earlier every year. I, for one, don't like it...I like to make fall last as long as possible...and I love Thanksgiving, (which is sadly becoming passed over as a big holiday in my opinion...) so I'm on a "Respect Thanksgiving" kick!

But today, like a little kid wanting to peek inside of a wrapped present, I went on Pinterest and searched "Christmas".

and found tons of cuteness!

I'm not ready yet, but...

I'm getting there.....

slowly, but surely....

I'm still not putting up Christmas decorations or listening to Christmas music until at least the day after Thanksgiving. This year, I'm even taking it one step further and even waiting until December to buy most of my Christmas gifts!

But, that doesn't mean I can't look, does it???

It's right around the corner...

and though I must respect Thanksgiving, I eagerly await Christmas, too :)

 

(all photos courtesy of pinterest.com)

Thank You...

Thank you and Happy Veterans Day!

Circadian Rhythm

Long time no see...how ya been?!

I haven't blogged in a while because I have been super busy. Of course, I work 40 hrs per week, and then there's laundry, cooking, dishes, grocery shopping, etc to keep up with...not to mention, I have joined a gym and try to go to their hip-hop aerobics class 2-3 times per week. (So far, I've lost 4 lbs---yay!)

One other thing that has been totally killing me is this whole time change thing. It's a great thought that I had the opportunity to get an extra hour of sleep last Saturday night, but that didn't happen. My hubby and I had the alarm set for 8am and we ended up getting up at 7 without the alarm!

This whole week I've been going to bed between 8-9:30 (because my body thinks it's 9-10:30), which means I wake up on my own at 5:30 every morning. Let me tell you---not working!!! I roll over, look at the clock, and try to go back to sleep until my alarm goes off. Problem is, by the time I fall back to sleep, it's time to get up!

UGH! Well, since my circadian rhythm is completely out of whack, I have decided to dedicate today's post to the thing I have been spending the most time with lately---the covers!!!

Cute duvet set!!!

Sleepy Owl=LOVE ♥

Mmm cozy quilt...zzzzz

Cuddle? Yes, please!



Sparkly sleeeeep

Blue zig-zag=pretty!

I ♥ granny squares!

and don't forget the aromatherapy room spray!

Ready? Set. Sleep!