One of my favorite things to do (not just at Christmas) is bake. Naturally, one of the things I love most about Christmas is the baking. This year was the first year in five years that I've actually been able to go all out with my baking. I didn't get quite as much done as I'd wanted, but I still had a chance to go wild (B was worn out with all of the baking by the time Christmas finally rolled around).

This year's list:

• Macaroons
• Russian Tea Cakes (both walnut and pecan)
• Cinnamon Spritz
• Rugelach
• Peppermint Meringues
• Two-Tone Christmas Cookies (probably my favorite new cookie!)
• French Christmas Cookies
• Lemon Snowflakes (another favorite new cookie)
• Crunchy Chocolate Cups
• Marshmallow Puffs (favorite new candy recipe)
• Spiced Nuts
• Italian Crackers
• Mexican Cheese Crackers
• Ranch Pretzels
• Chex Mix

The Macaroons and the Russian Tea Cakes are traditional cookies we made when we were growing up. Everything else was new this year as far as the cookies go. The Cinnamon Spritz recipe was in a recent issue of Martha Steward Living and is by far the best spritz recipe I've ever made. The Rugelach was from a recent issue of Everyday Food and was just as excellent. The Peppermint Meringues were from an older issue of Living and were meant to have chocolate ganache between two meringues, but I skipped the ganache and dipped the bottoms of half of the meringues in dark chocolate instead. The Two-Tone Christmas cookies and the Lemon Snowflakes both came from a Taste of Home cookie book and B and I were both impressed with these cookies. I took a few other recipes from Taste of Home books that didn't impress me quite as much. Some of these recipes will be going up over at family_recipes complete with my notes if anyone is interested.

I made trays for friends for Christmas. I didn't make them look quite as nice as I wanted and didn't give them to as many people as I wanted, but there's always next year. I should have taken a picture of the huge tray I made to take over to B's parents since it's unlikely I'll make a tray like that to take somewhere again. I tried to include a little of everything except the savory mixes (the crackers and pretzels).



Once all the trays were assembled, I wrapped them with cellophane and put a little bow and a Christmas card and then B and I delivered them on our way home Christmas night. I have heard back from at least two friends now that they've been able to enjoy the yummy goodness packaged within. This is the whole reason I love to bake. Yay!!

I made one tray that wasn't pictured below since it was taken to a friend's house on Christmas Eve. These pictures were all taken in the wee hours after Santa visited but before the Christmas morning fun (one of the reasons I slept until 10:00 AM, I presume).



I still have a few cookies I'd like to make, but I'm not sure I'll bother. We certainly don't need them here. I need to get my kitchen back in order before any more baking happens. Perhaps I'll make a tray for B to take to work when he goes back. No promises there, though.

:)

Belated Merry Christmas to everyone.

Everything was great here. B's parents came over Christmas Eve for the traditional Christmas Eve soup and a gift exchange. Sophie got a little rocking elephant from her grandparents but is deathly afraid of it. She will go near it now to listen to the music (it's so quiet, which is nice) and pet it, but she refuses to ride it.

Christmas morning we didn't get out of bed until 10:00! I still can't get over Sophie letting us sleep in so late. We got up and took our time with gifts since it was just the three of us. Sophie is still very much into ripping the paper into small bits and seems to be more fascinated by unwrapping than by the actual gift, although we did see some classic "oh wow, how cool" faces. Because everyone else seems to want to rush her so they can see her with the gifts they gave her, we just let her go at her own pace. We really didn't want to rush the whole process since she's only this little once, and we're both so glad we handled Christmas this way. Sophie had so much fun with her presents and was thrilled even by the simplest of gifts (she adored the knotted blanket I made for her). We finally finished up with gifts around noon (there wasn't a lot, that's just how slow we went) and then had breakfast (French toast custard with cherry sauce). After breakfast, Sophie went down for her nap and B and I got ready to head to his parents for Christmas dinner.

Our late sleeper also took a long nap, and because she has been teething and has had several late nights, we let her sleep. This, combined with our late morning, meant we weren't going to make it to a one o'clock dinner with the family. Knowing how Sophie handles crowds, people she doesn't know, teething, and lack of sleep, we knew that to combine all of these would be a recipe for disaster, so we at least tried to eliminate the lack of sleep. Unfortunately, not only did we wind up missing the dinner, but we wound up missing the whole family (they cut out within two hours of dinner, weak). It's just as well when it comes down to it since Sophie would most likely not have handled the whole situation well. I'm just bummed she wound up missing seeing B's Aunt Mary.

We still went over so Sophie could see B's parents Christmas day since my parents are far far away in the Great White North. We had leftovers for dinner, enjoyed the pumpkin pie I made, left a seriously huge tray of cookies and the remainder of the pie, and then took off shortly after 7:00 PM to head home, delivering trays of cookies to friends along the way.

I love Christmas and all the celebrating and decorations and foods and getting together, but I am so glad Christmas is over. I read somewhere that the French have a tradition of sending out cards late in January to celebrate the holidays, but for the life of me I can't find where I read that (perhaps it was a Martha Stewart magazine). Because of this, I'm thinking I might still send Christmas cards this year, playing the French heritage card and all. I just need to get the labels made. If you want a card, please feel free to send your address to me via email (the email in the profile works). Hopefully I'll be able to take advantage of some after Christmas sales this week, too. I need more cellophane for cookies for next year, and now is the best time to buy it.

Pictures will be posted of Sophie, cookies, decorations, crafted gifts, etc.... someday. Right now I am going to work on the knitted blanket for my niece (the one that is almost a year late).

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to anyone who takes the time to read this.

Things are crazy busy here and probably will be until Christmas is over.

• Christmas cards haven't been started yet - still have to make labels.


• Two of the knotted blankets are done - still have one left.


• Decoupage boxes are almost done - need to spray it with some clear acrylic sealer and let it dry.


• The ornaments for the girls are all done - pictures are up (one more to add) in the crafting blog.


• Baking is under way. I cheated yesterday and made three snack mixes and two candies. I should have done at least one harder recipe, but was whipped by the end of the day.


• Chui ran off as we were going in the house after getting the mail, so that took up a big chunk of my afternoon.


• I made chicken stock for chicken noodle soup (the soup itself will probably have to be made tonight after Dream Dinners).


• I haven't started wrapping, but that won't take me too long. That can wait until Christmas Eve if it has to.


• I have to make the Christmas Eve soup (might be eaten on Sunday, depends on the in-laws), Cranberry Waldorf salad to go with the soup, pumpkin pie for Christmas dinner, and sweet potatoes for Christmas dinner.


• I am waiting on one last gift to arrive and the decoupage boxes to be dry before shipping off the Christmas package to the Great White North. I think I'll be spraying the boxes today while Sophie is napping and they should be dry in time for shipping tomorrow. I hope the gift arrives today. I don't really want to send it late, but I might have to just print off a picture of it to send with the package and then send that gift later (annoying because I could have just had it sent directly there).

All of this is put on hold until I get some Sophie playtime in and then get her down for her morning nap. I need to get some pictures and video posted of her again. Her talking has exploded again. It's so much fun!!

Okay, Christmas baking time is here again. I have eleventybajillion things to do, but of course, I can't skip Christmas baking (it's the one time of year I go all out). Cards and wrapping and finishing up the girls' gifts will be done amidst the list making and planning and prepping and baking of the Christmas goodies, I suppose. In order for me to start the baking, though, I need a little help from all the wonderful people who read my journal.

Firstly, the lists:

Cookies

• snickerdoodles
• macaroons
• Russian tea cakes
• cinnamon spritz
• pecan pie squares
• gingerbread people
• rugelach
• peppermint meringues
• two-tone Christmas cookies
• French Christmas cookies
• cherry snowballs
• lemon snowflakes
• crisp butter cookies

Candies

• white chocolate cherry crunch
• crunchy chocolate cups
• butter mints
• marshmallow puffs

Snackies

• spiced nuts
• Italian crackers
• taco cheese crackers
• ranch pretzels
• Chex mix

Secondly, an explanation:

I have actually pared this list down tremendously. I removed 23 items from this list already and am considering removing more, but I'm not sure what I'm going to dump. The gingerbread people might have to take a hike since I'm not sure I want to mess with a cookie cutter this year. The rugelach and the two-tone Christmas cookies might be too involved for me to mess with, along with the French Christmas cookies and the cherry snowballs. We'll see, though.

Thirdly, the questions:

What are your favorite holiday treats in any of the above categories (it's okay if they're already mentioned here)? Do you have a recipe you make every year or Christmas just isn't the same without it? Does anyone have creative packaging suggestions for gifting some of these goodies to my neighbors?

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Hopefully this bug that I've got will keep itself under control. I took an Airborne today since I didn't eat a Clementine. There's too much to do for me to be knocked out from some sort of crazy bug right now. I need to finalize my list and then create a grocery list from it. After that comes the big grocery shop. I would love to either do that without Sophie or have B tag along to help out, but I'm not sure that will be possible. I have to pick up stuff to make chicken noodle soup and I was wanting to do that early tomorrow so I can get it done in time for dinner (mmm). Of course, after the big shop, there's the baking and candy making, and then the packaging (not to mention the testing). I'm not sure how much I'll be able to get done with Sophie awake, but I'm certainly going to give it a try.

Last night Sophie and I went to Target just so we could get out of the house. She was so well behaved I didn't even realize what time it was when we were checking out. I had two people mention to me she looked tired, but that was only when I wasn't looking at her, of course. I noticed it was about 8:30 when we checked out (past her bedtime) and knew she still hadn't had dinner (we had a late lunch). I figured since Chili's was in the same parking lot that we might as well just stop there. Apparently everyone else and their brother had the same idea. The wait was 20-25 minutes! I tried to get her back in her car seat so we could just come home, but she would have nothing to do with that at all, so we walked to the Burger King next door.

Yes, I win the mother of the year award for this one. I fed my 19 month old daughter chicken nuggets and French fries for dinner. How pathetic! She also got her first taste of mayonnaise (quite sneakily, I might add) and ketchup. At least I ordered milk for her drink. She was very well behaved at BK as well, which shocked me for it being so late. When I gave her the toy from the meal (very cheesy "easel" with two pictures that can be scrolled placed behind a clear piece of plastic) she didn't put it down until we went to bed. I was pretty amazed by that. She held onto it at the BK, through the parking lot, in the car, and the whole time she was getting ready for bed. It was quite cute.

In other new. for some stupid reason our Christmas lights outside won't work. I'm not sure how B put them up, but I'm guessing something must have tripped somewhere due to the rain. What stinks is we have two different light strands out there and neither works (one gets plugged in by the door, the other goes on by a switch inside because it's plugged in by the roof). Oh well. At least the tree inside lights up. He'll be home tomorrow and can muck with it then (if it's not raining, that is).

Speaking of him coming home, I can not wait! I miss him a lot, but I'm also going crazy with it being just Sophie and me. I don't mind that so much, but I'm struggling as far as meals are concerned. I have never been a good cook for one, and that's basically what I am even with Sophie around. I much rather cook for B because we're likely to eat better foods. Tonight I had chicken noodle soup and an English muffin while the baby had some noodle-chicken-veggie-cheese combo (that she didn't really dig, I might add). I haven't cooked a real meal since Monday when my Parents were still here!

Tonight, I want to do a little light cleaning so he doesn't have to deal with a huge mess. I also want to work on the blankets and the ornaments so those can be ready when the rest of the Christmas gifts I'm sending up north finally arrive. I haven't started the decoupage yet, but I think I can get that done tomorrow. I might need to make a trip to Michael's, though. I don't think I have sealer for it. I'm also thinking about wrapping B's gifts tonight before he gets home so I don't have to worry about him being a snoop. I definitely want to clean before I do anything else, though.

The first thing I need to do, however, is change a "shewy" diaper and put the stinkbutt to bed. ;)

I am so far behind this year. I haven't sent Christmas cards, made cookies, candies, or other edible gifts, or even made a Christmas wallpaper yet! At least I'm making progress on the gifts I'm giving the girls. I have a few photos up in the craft blog if anyone is interested. Nothing major, but a few progress photos and notes. I might have a finished blanket tonight, but I can't make any promises.

My parents are still here, so we've been pretty busy.

B has the lights up outside and they look wonderful. I"ll have to see if I can get pictures.

Speaking of pictures, I've been awful about taking them while my parents are in town, but I know I need to. I'm such a bad mom. Also, I need to get my pictures on disc or a memory stick and take them to CVS to make a photo book. I'll let you guys know how easy/difficult the experience is when I'm done.

I found a star for the tree. We actually had bought an angle topper but left it at the grocery store (very annoying). B picked that up yesterday but I found a star I wanted in the meantime. We'll just take the angel back the next time we're out. The area over the fireplace is pretty much done, now that the wreath is up.

Curtains are bought for the front room but have to be put up. I'm not entirely positive they're what I want in there, but I won't know for sure until they're up.

Sophie just woke up, so this update is now done. ;) I have three recipes so far to post (cheesecake, baked French toast, Waldorf salad) in family_recipes, but that will have to wait.

I have been busy lately. Between that and just generally not being in an LJ mood, I haven't really been posting or commenting much lately. I have been reading as much as possible from my phone, but Sophie has decided to get picky when I'm putting her down at night, so I usually wind up missing posts. I feel awful for it, but this is the way things are right now.

The tree is missing one or two ornaments because I can't find the box of ornament hangers that I swear I had when I unpacked all my Christmas decorations. It's also missing a star on the top. Other than that, it looks great. There are two ornaments Sophie is allowed to touch without anyone around, and she knows which ornaments they are (pointed them out to Grandma). I have a set of red bells and a set of green bells, both hung low on the tree so she can reach, that she's allowed to jingle, and believe me, she does jingle them.

Every morning on her way out of the bedroom, she greets the Christmas tree, "Hi, Chi-chi!" Whenever I turn off the Christmas tree lights, she says, "Bye, Chi-chi!" The kid is out of control. She even tried to kiss and hug it at one point.

Eventually I'll take pictures of the Christmas tree, but I'll probably have to get B's mini tripod out for it since I want to do a picture with the lights on and my camera freaks with even the slightest movement when I do that.

There is lots of cleaning to do before my parents arrive on Sunday. I've almost got the dining room cleared out again and the kitchen is almost done. Tomorrow will be Sophie's room, both bathrooms, all vacuuming, sweeping, dusting, and mopping (not necessarily in that order), toy moving (I'm getting Sophie's toys out of the living room, I think), and hopefully a reorg of the pantry and fridge. If there's time at the end of the day, I will probably try to work a little in the office to finish getting that set up. We also need to go to the grocery store as well as Linens and Things. If I can get B to help me, which I believe he said he would, it shouldn't take too long to get everything done. I would like to get two of the salads made for Sunday's dinner as well the pumpkin cheesecake. I thought about making pumpkin pie, but I'm just not sure I'll have time. I'll probably buy the stuff for it at least.

I still have to do Christmas shopping for everyone on my list. I've started, but I'm nowhere near being finished. I'm frustrated because many of the things I want are either out of stock, made in China, or nearly impossible to find at a decent price. I'm stumped as to what to get a few people on my list, too. I hate that. B and I will have to put our heads together to think of some good gifts for some of the people.

I need to do a few returns (LNT and BBB) and figure out where I'm going to have Sophie's Santa pictures taken. I'll probably do that when my parents are here and take my mom with me. I also need to find a wreath hanger for our front door (the one from BBB doesn't fit) and the materials for the candy cane wreath along with a wreath for over the fireplace. Maybe we can go shopping for curtains for the guest room, too.

My parents will be here for about nine days, I think. B leaves the Sunday before they leave because he has training in NYC. I'm glad they'll still be here when he leaves. I hate being here alone, especially now that Sophie is around. I will be ready to pull my hair out by the time he comes home, I'm sure. I hope he realizes this is the perfect gift purchasing opportunity for him, though... ;)

Okay, I just realized what time it is. I really need to go to bed so I can get up tomorrow and finish my crazy list of crap to do. *Hugs* to each and every one of you. I would send you all personal notes if I had time, but I don't, at least not this weekend. I hope December finds everyone happy and healthy. Don't let the holidays get you down, and good pregnancy vibes to all you women out there who happen to be "with child" (or with children, as the case may be).

Peace.

I haven't been at the computer much lately. I've been pretty busy getting ready for the holidays and having my parents come to town. There is a list a mile long of things that still need to be done, but I just had to catch up a bit. I know I'm awful about commenting lately, but I am reading, I promise.

The Christmas tree is lit, the cranberries and popcorn are strung and on the tree, and all the ornaments are up as well. We just don't have a tree topper.

Stockings are hung and all the decorations I own pretty much are put out. I need something with a little height for the mantle, unless I decide to go ahead and get a wreath. I've been waffling between a wreath and a swag, though. I think I'm going to make a candy cane wreath for the front door. I just need to get a wreath form. I have all the mini candy canes.

I need to make ornaments for the three girls (Sophie and my two nieces) and I think this year will be cinnamon applesauce ornaments. They're easy enough. Next year I'll probably do a few felt ornaments. We'll see. Perhaps if I'm actually able to pick up my needles again, I'll knit little ornaments for them.

I also need to make the blankets for the girls. Once the ornaments and blankets are done, the gifts for my nieces are all done. I still have a little shopping left to do for Sophie. I'll probably do some of that while my parents are here.

The dining room needs to be cleared out (again) since it's covered in boxes from Christmas decorations. At least I have the Halloween/Thanksgiving decorations put away.

The guest room is complete except for the curtains. I bought some at Bed Bath & Beyond yesterday, but they're not what I want. They're not long enough, but they're also not as plain as I want. I just want a simple white flowing gauze type material. B wants sheers, but that is SO not what I want for that room. I got a gate for the door to the guest room so we can keep it open without having to worry about little critters running around.

The office needs to be organized. My desk has a mess of crap piled on it. I'm not sure how it all got there, but now I have to deal with it. That room and Sophie's room are on the hot list. I need to get those taken care of before the end of the week.

I also need to make a trip to Central Market. There are a few things I want to purchase for Sunday's dinner and I have a coupon for three free knives (nice knives, too!). Of course, this means I need to go through my menu, which I now have to locate and finalize. Yeah, not so organized this year and it's driving me nuts!

To top it all off, both B and Sophie are sick right now, and I'm having to fight off what they have. It's been lots of fun this week, that's for sure.

And because I have so much time to kill, I give you my little Christmas tree (ganked from a_groovy_gypsy):


Get Your Own! | More Flash Toys

The Christmas dishes were washed Friday, but other than that, nothing was done except a lot of unpacking.

It took me all day yesterday to get the lights on the tree. That was the only thing I got done yesterday for decorations, but it took such a long time because I lit the tree as I was putting it together. It is so worth it and looks wonderful.

I've already popped the popcorn and gotten the cranberries out of the refrigerator for stringing today. At some point I'll need to clear the dining room table again. I'll probably start putting out the rest of the decorations since they're all over the table and then wait on the cranberries and popcorn. I plan to at least get the old Halloween tree off of the shelf in the living room.

We've been listening to Christmas music pretty much non-stop (except when Signing Time is on, of course) and I have to admit, I have some crazy stuff. I have no idea how it got into my folders, but it needs to go. Maybe someday I will have time to clean out the music folders, but I don't think it will be any time soon.

Okay, time to get moving! It's already noon!

For those of you interested in going China-free this year, check out this video from Fox News.

Also, here is a random list of links:

• Toy Recall - Toys Not Made in China 500+ - thedailygreen.com
• Made in the USA
• Safe Toys blog entry by kikifitz
• How to Buy American
• Buy American Mart
• American Made Products
• American Made Yes

Happy shopping!

Well, all my running around trying to find a school for Sophie and my interviewing and all was for naught. I am behind on cleaning (and blogging) due to shopping for interview clothes (although I'm ready for the next one now), interviewing (on the phone and in person), and touring schools (technically we only toured one, but I was at that particular school twice and started researching other schools online as well), and I don't even get a job out of the deal. It's funny, when the recruiter called me, I wasn't actively looking for a job, although it had been discussed. Once he convinced me that I was the right person for the job, I was all for it. By the time I reached the face to face interview, I was actually excited about the prospect of working for this particular company and knew I was a perfect candidate. However, the powers that be apparently disagreed and they've gone and hired someone else for the job.

I think my real hunt for a job will start in earnest after the new year begins. That should give us enough time to look for schools and select a few we like the most, although I want the school to be as close to my work as possible. B is planning on taking a couple of weeks off at the end of the year so he doesn't lose his vacation, and if I'm not working it will make it much easier for us to get things done around the house (let's hope). Plus, my parents are going to be here for a week and a half at the beginning of December. I suppose it's just as well I didn't get the job. Besides, I wasn't terribly fond of the COO when I met with him anyhow. I got a pretty rough vibe from him.

In other news, we have the Switch-A-Room (TM) nearly completed. The new guest room is so incredibly wonderful. As soon as it's finished (or at least the books are back on the shelves) I'll take pictures and share. I have pictures of the mess to share as well. I'm about to dump a lot of boxes into the office that need to be unpacked or sorted into keep/toss piles. We have a charity pickup this Monday and it couldn't have come at a better time. There are lots of things we're just going to give away, things that just aren't going to be easy to sell at all.

Thanksgiving tomorrow is going to be at 1:00 PM. I have the turkey brining (almost forgot) and everything else is cake. I'm not going all out for this meal since we're doing another meal when my parents come down (that's when we're having the turducken). This meal is just a basic turkey, stuffing (possibly dressing instead, haven't decided), mashed potatoes, gravy, sautéed asparagus and mushrooms, pumpkin harvest bread (very dense and not sweet), and honey butter. Appetizers will consist of various cheeses (including Lambchopper, which is one of my favorites), gigantic table grapes, and tiropitas (store bought) and dessert will be coffee (from Dunn Bros, I swear theirs is just the best) with pumpkin cheesecake (from the Cheesecake Factory - brought by the in-laws) and a pecan pie (from Central Market). I almost feel lazy not making everything from scratch, but I have no time. As it is, I shouldn't even be sitting here typing this because my dining room is still buried in boxes of crap.

I was very pleased with my floral arrangement decision yesterday. I didn't want the basic browns that most florists offer at Thanksgiving. I had a very difficult time selecting the flowers I wanted. A lot of that had to do with the size vase I wanted to use. The vase is taller, so the flowers had to be taller as well (although I could have put some gems or other stones in the bottom of the vase, now that I think about it... duh). In any case, I selected one bunch of eucalyptus (four branches) that had pods of some sort on it (had never seen pods on eucalyptus before) with three burgundy amaryllis. It is so stunning. It will be nice when I have a dining room table to place them on. ;)

If you've read this far, thank you! I just want to let you guys know I am so appreciative of anyone who takes the time to read my drivel. I am thankful for all of the friends I've made through LJ and the general online world. This is only a small portion of the things for which I'm thankful, but that post will come later.

For those of you who have mentioned doing Christmas cards, I would love to have cards sent to me, but I'm afraid I might not be able to get my cards out (again). I really need to work on that this year. I think I'm going to cheat and make labels. If you posted a request for addresses, please link me to your post if you don't have my address because I probably missed it. If you would like a Christmas card from me (hopefully), please send an email to jodi at pobox dot com with your full name and address. Even if you live overseas and wish to receive a card, let me know. It might reach you a bit late, but that's if I even do them at all. ;)

I want to thank thesynergizer for her post encouraging the people who do blog ads to pick up another blog other than LJ. I have been wanting to do this anyhow and this is the kick in the butt I need. I know the people at PPP said they would be working on a tool that would work with LJ, but I'm not going to hold my breath. I do like the idea that opportunities are not going to be based on rank but on page visits, however.

Okay, I'm done. I'm sure I have more to say. I'm sorry I haven't been commenting much lately, but after Thanksgiving it should be a little bit easier. I have been reading for the most part (I am thankful for Opera Mini 4 on my phone), but hate texting so much that I don't want to respond using the phone. Big hugs to all and a happy Thanksgiving to all of my American friends. Now, back to the big clean.

Ugh.

Vista Cards, the same people who bring the world great business cards, also offer a wide variety of Christmas Cards. They have a great selection of folded cards, postcards, foil accented cards, and collage cards. It's even possible to upload images or photographs to make the cards more personalized. They also offer speedy shipping so it's possible to receive an order within three days!

With all of the toy recall scares this year, I'm trying to decide what sort of gifts I should be looking for when buying for Sophie and my nieces. I would love to avoid toys made in China, but where in the world do I look for toys not made there? Nearly every company has their toys made in China, even companies like Melissa & Doug. I want to get Sophie some wooden building blocks, more books, a bathrobe, some slippers, and maybe some wooden puzzles. Other than that, I'm not sure what else to get her, if anything. If anyone has ideas on where to do the shopping, I'm open to suggestions.

I need to come up with some really good stocking stuffers for her and for B, and figure out what I'm going to get B. I have an idea of what to get for B's mom, but other than that, his entire family is a complete mystery to me. His father loves to fish and hunt, but has all the gear he would want. His brother is probably the biggest mystery, although he would probably appreciate a gift card since money is always tight.

My family is drawing names this year so I'll have to wait until Thanksgiving to worry about who I get to gift, but I still have to figure out what I'm getting the girls. I have a toy bought already (all three girls are getting the same little cloth Noah's Ark toy set - made in China, of course, but hopefully nothing we'll need to worry about being recalled), and I plan to make the no-sew fleece blankets, but need to decide if I'm going to give them anything else.

And now, time for some audience participation! If you are reading this and don't have an LJ account (and decide not to sign up, even though it's free) or an Open ID, please sign your post so I know who you are. :)

1. What is the best gift you ever gave, the one you were so excited to give you could hardly stand the wait?
2. What is the best gift you ever received, the one you still talk about to this day?
3. Are you the type of person to put all your creativity into the gift and then not bother wrapping it, or does the gift get the wrapping it deserves (or better)?
4. Do you do Christmas stockings or some other similar tradition?
5. If yes, what do you typically find in your Christmas stockings?

Every day that goes by now, I am more and more excited for Christmas. It has always been one of my favorite holidays, but Sophie has magnified my excitement for all holidays and I'm about to burst! B is going nuts because I'm already talking about it. He should count his lucky stars that I haven't started decorating yet. I'll try not to go overboard talking about Christmas here, but I'm not sure how much I'll be able to control myself. Expect to see more Christmas related posts, however.

I have to share my sister's creation for my mother's Christmas gift this year. I am so in love with it! This is what she's been talking about wanting all year long and I think Anna did a marvelous job with it. Of course, she did say it was super easy and she was able to just drop photos into the template, but still... She had to coordinate with my other sister and me to get all the photos together and that's no easy task! :)

My mother is going to go nuts when she gets this. Needless to see, I'll be ordering one as well.

She tried to keep with themes for the months. Also, the christening photos are featured in the months the girls were christened, same as birthday months.

I think Shutterfly will basically do the same thing as this, but I think I want mine to look a little more scrappy. We'll see how it goes. Enjoy!

• Sophie actually slept through the night last night. It was so nice!
• The weather here was beautiful yesterday, nice cool weather that doesn't yet require a jacket.
• .
• I made Mexican Meatballs last night for dinner and actually liked them.
• Sophie and I met up with friends yesterday at Boston's and had a wonderful time. She was very well behaved yesterday.
• We also stopped up at the office to see B. We'd been through some rough traffic on the way out to lunch and figured since we were out there we might as well take advantage of being in the area.
• On our way home we stopped at Simpatico Yarns to say hello to MaryJane and to pick up the Holiday issue of Interweave Knits.
• We need to go to Pier 1 today to return a table runner that is too short.
• JoAnn Fabric is also on our list of places to hit. I need to pick up fleece for blankets for Christmas gifts.
• I absolutely love gingersnaps and have decided to make a pumpkin cheesecake with gingersnap crust possibly for Thanksgiving.
• I need to plan Thanksgiving Day dinner (twice). The first dinner will be simple, and most likely during the football game. Seems the silly people around me thing there's only one game on that day. ;)
• The second Thanksgiving Day dinner will actually be in December when my parents are here, so it will be a combination of Thanksgiving and Christmas, most likely.
• Speaking of Christmas, I cannot wait to decorate! I'm going crazy with waiting!
• I need to find a Christmas dress for the Miss Thang.
• We have lots of work to do in the office to get ready for the swap. I have a feeling we'll be hitting Home Depot this weekend for paint, though. Yay!

Sorry for the random dump of nothingness. ;)

This isn't going to be a long post with me going on and on about how much I love Christmas, believe it or not. I've done that recently and don't plan to do it again for at least another week. ;) This post is actually me being frustrated with the retail sector trying to increase shopping time by starting sales in March!! What!?! I see Christmas as a very special time, and that specialness is partly due to the fact that Christmas happens once a year and isn't celebrated all year long and thereby turned into a regular day just like any other. Every year, some store or another puts out Christmas merchandise earlier and earlier and it is SO frustrating!

Don't get me wrong. I love buying Christmas decorations and wrapping paper and such (in December and January). I love making Christmas gifts for people all year long. I love getting my Christmas shopping done early, even if I don't save the big money that sales on Black Friday can offer me. I am just annoyed that stores are putting Christmas merchandise out earlier and earlier. Every year they do this they scrape a little more warmth away from the holiday, a little more spirit.

I realize Christmas means different things to different people. I realize it doesn't mean anything to some people but means everything to others. I don't know many people on either side, though, who believe that Christmas items should be in stores starting in February or March. I think it makes the people who dislike Christmas hate it that much more, and the people who like Christmas become complacent about the holiday and not care if they celebrate it or not. Isn't the loss of wonder partly due to the over commercialization of the holiday in the first place?

There was a time when many of our every day items were reserved for special occasions, when certain events were special because people didn't have access to the items they offered all the time. There was a time when children would be excited to go rollerskating or to a bounce house or even to get a snow cone because they didn't have access to those things at home. There was a time people didn't eat dessert all the time and it was just reserved for holidays. There was a time when family gatherings and various holidays actually meant something because of all the excitement in the air of special treats to be had.

While I can't say some of these things are necessarily bad ideas, it just makes that excitement so hard to find again. If the retail industry is going to take the excitement of all of those special times away by offering funnel cakes at restaurants and corn dogs in stores, or by making bounce houses affordable so every Joe Schmoe can buy one, the least they can do is leave Christmas alone and let it remain a special time of year. Let people be able to experience the excitement they had while growing up. Let them be little kids again. Don't ruin that by selling Christmas items nearly all year long. It does nothing but kill the excitement for those of us who truly love Christmas and make the people who hate Christmas hate it even more.

For what it's worth, Christmas Dreaming, sung by Harry Connick, Jr., is one of my all time favorite Christmas songs, probably because of the fact that I tend to dream about Christmas all year long. I know I've mentioned before that I can't wait to start decorating for Christmas. I hate that Halloween and Thanksgiving have to come before that! I have no patience!

I am really looking forward to watching Sophie open her gifts this year. I also want to start a few traditions as well as carry on a few traditions from my family. I've picked up at least one from my friends list I would like to do with Sophie, which is a gift of Christmas pajamas on Christmas Eve. One of the things I would love to do with Sophie that we used to do is spend the day decorating the tree, stringing cranberries and popcorn, and listening to Christmas music. B will probably explode from Christmas overload, but I'm pretty sure he'll be able to tolerate it for Sophie's sake.

When I was growing up, we almost always had fresh Christmas trees. I used to hate going to pick out a tree with my mother, whether it was a precut tree in a lot or one we had to hunt down and cut. I'm sure I would be just as picky now as she was then. We would spend hours upon hours going out looking for a tree to cut. I think the idea of having a fresh tree shipped right to my door is interesting, although I'm not sure I could handle it because I would want to make sure I picked the best tree. ;)

We'll be sticking with our artificial tree for this year, at least. I want to be able to light it the same way my mother has been doing her tree the past few years (she now has an artificial tree). She puts the branches on one at a time and then puts the lights on that branch. The tree is so beautiful when she's done.

I also think I'm going to try to make Christmas ornaments for Sophie every year so she has ornaments when she moves out on her own. I have made all types of ornaments in the past but most of them have been given away as gifts. I think it's time I started that up again. I miss doing it, that's for sure.

I could ramble on and on about Christmas. I'm sure I will between now and then. In the meantime, a few questions (if you don't celebrate Christmas, please feel free to share with comparable holiday such as Kwanzaa or Hanukkah):

1. What are some of your favorite Christmas memories?
2. What are some of your favorite Christmas traditions?
3. What is some of your favorite Christmas music?
4. What are your favorite Christmas foods?
5. Is it still Christmas to you without snow on the ground?

Since Sophie is so dead set on playing with the tags on all her toys, I will become an enabler and get her a Taggies toy for Christmas. I want to get them all, but that would just be silly. We have two other toys already purchased that we just haven't given her yet that will be Christmas gifts here, and I'm having the Taggies sent to my parents' house in Michigan so she can open those there. I have a feeling I'm going to really have to force myself to not go nuts when it comes to buying her gifts.

I have no idea what to get for B or anyone in his family. I don't even know what to get anyone in my family this year. If I had time to knit, I'd be doing that. As it is, I have a few knitting projects that really need to be finished soon. Becka and I are taking Lucas and Sophie to Grapevine Mills tomorrow, though. Maybe I'll get a little inspiration there.

I actually miss attending the Children's Christmas Eve service (which is not held on Christmas Eve any longer, go figure). I miss spending Christmas with my family. I miss snow and chilly weather on Christmas. I am thankful for the opportunities to build new traditions with my tiny family, but I still long for the familiarity of Christmases past.

Luke 2:1-20

The Birth of Jesus

¹In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. ²(This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.) ³And everyone went to his own town to register.

⁴So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. ⁵He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. ⁶While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, ⁷and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

The Shepherds and the Angels

⁸And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. ⁹An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. ¹⁰But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. ¹¹Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. ¹²This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger."

¹³Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,
¹⁴"Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests."

¹⁵When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, "Let's go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about."

¹⁶So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. ¹⁷When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, ¹⁸and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. ¹⁹But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. ²⁰The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.

( Merry Christmas! )

I'm glad I had my Christmas shopping done early this year. I wish we had had the time and room to really go all out and decorate and bake, but Christmas will still be fine with our few red decorations and our snickerdoodles. Today, we're going to B's parents' house for dinner and Mass, and then we'll head to his godparents' house for a little Christmas Eve party.



( Christmas Quizzes.... )

Whew.

Quizzes behind the cut, of course.



( Read more... )

I am sad that it is a week before Christmas and the only decorations I have up in the house are a couple of snowmen and some candles. We have no tree and no lights. We didn't even put up the garland this year. We just haven't had time. Christmas is my absolute favorite time of the year, but it's been so difficult to prepare this year due to the wedding. Honestly, I haven't really even been in the mood to decorate this year since the weather hasn't really been Christmas friendly. I have had no time to make Christmas cookies or candies and I still have to work on getting my Christmas cards in the mail. I think I'm most sad that our first Christmas as a married couple is going to be so lame because I have no energy or time to get things together. It doesn't help that I have to spend Christmas away from my family.

At least B has been wonderful about letting me listen to Christmas music. I can't wait until he opens his gifts Christmas morning. I am so in love.

Since I've already given my mother and the girls their Christmas gifts (at least the hand-knit portion), I'll post pics here. I think my sisters really liked their Booga Bags. Tracie changed to hers (the blue purse on the left with the flat i-cord) while she was here for the wedding, which surprised me, but made me quite happy. Anna said she would have done the same, but the purse she had with her was bigger and was full.

I'm not so sure my mother liked her purple scarf, though. I can't win with her. I know she wants a red purse like mine, but I made the scarf before I tried to make purses, and made it purple because I know it's her favorite color. Maybe I'll make her the shoulder bag from the pattern book I bought a while back (providing I can find the book, that is).

( pics )

We are getting married in less than a week. I'm excited, nervous, stressed, anxious, and calm all at the same time. This is the most right I've ever felt about any major decision in my life and I'm glad it's so close.

Today we chose the party platters and we'll order them tomorrow when we go to the grocery store. I've decided to be brave and make a few fruit salads. Oddly enough, all of them contain pineapple. I might order a pasta salad or something while we're at the store tomorrow as well.

I still have to put together the CDs, but I'm hoping to get to that some night this week.

In other news, I have all the hand made Christmas gifts for my family finished so I can give them to them while they're here. I'm still waiting on a few things for the guys, but I'm just going to mail all of that later anyhow. I still have to make the blanket for B's mom, and we need to find a gift for his brother and father and I'm all done with Christmas.

B might put up Christmas lights this week. He took inventory of our light stash and found we have red, white, and blue lights. I vote for all red and white. We won't be having a Christmas tree this year (again), which makes me sad. There's simply no place to put it. I do have a few decorations out, though.

Snagged from the lovely euphrasie, I have decided to post this little poll here to encourage friends to give me their addresses for sending Christmas cards this year. I tend to do much better with soft copy than hard copy since it's so darn easy to lose a piece of paper (or an entire address book). Please be sure to include an apartment number if necessary.

My cards will most likely be sent after the wedding, providing I do not overbook myself with cookie baking and decorating, etc. I am thankful the majority of my Christmas shopping is already done. I still have B's family and my father left. The two fathers will be the most difficult, but I still have plenty of time.

Poll #621313 Christmas card fun
Open to: All, results viewable to: None

Name

Street Address

City, State, Zip