Posts tagged Christmas

Favorite posts of 2012

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happy new year 2013

 

 

As 2012 comes to an end tonight and we welcome 2013, I am thinking about this year and all the things I accomplished. 2012 has definitely been the year of stepping outside of my comfort zone. I’ve done so many things that I normally would not do. I hope that I continue to face my fears head-on in 2013.

To finish out the year, I thought I’d do a list of my favorite posts of the year. This was really tough to narrow down and I’m probably forgetting something, but these posts meant the most to me. From completing not one but TWO half-marathons, meeting the wonderful women of Tampa Bay Lady Bloggers, my first blog conference, becoming Yelp Elite, starting Jingle Bikes For Kids, wonderful family time, along with several struggles I faced - it’s been a memorable year.  I hope you enjoy this look back with me…

 

 

I love my blog and I really look forward to continuing to blog in 2013 and to see how it grows. I would like to thank each and every one of you for following and showing interest in my babbling. It helps to keep me sane.

Wishing you all a SAFE and Happy New Year!!

Christmas Day FUN!!

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After a very nice Christmas Eve, our Christmas Day was a perfect wrap-up to the long holiday weekend. Another Christmas has come and gone… It seems like I blink and it’s over. It was just Thanksgiving and now we are quickly approaching 2013. I was at Publix yesterday and they already had Valentine cards out. We all seriously need to slow down…. Like Blue! He knows how to relax….

 

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But now, I want to share our fantastic Christmas Day! After a quiet morning at home with hubby and Blue and Ozzie, we headed over to Nick & Jenna’s for the afternoon and a FANTASTIC dinner. Of course much of the afternoon was all about Autumn, as it should be. I cannot get enough of her silliness and laughter. And the older she gets, the sillier she gets. Having a bad day? Listen to Autumn for a few minutes and you will forget every single problem you are facing. I wish she could follow me everywhere.

Anyhow, little miss Autumn got a pink BB gun for Christmas after showing interest in Nick’s which he recently bought to shoot in the backyard. And before you go all “you’ll shoot your eye out” on them, you have to know that it is safety first. Not to mention Autumn is an ace shot. Water bottles and soda cans were being shot with unbelievable precision – by Autumn. No need to worry about her and boys, that’s for sure.

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Nick, Jenna, and Jenni also had fun with the BB guns. Not sure why I didn’t shoot it… Oh I know, I was too busy taking pictures! You can’t really tell in this picture, but hubby is holding Autumn’s pink gun.

 

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There was also swinging and backyard fun. Thank goodness she tolerates all my picture taking and is quite the little poser, both with me and hubby.

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Then it was time to open presents! Autumn very much loved the My Little Pony set we got her. A girl can never have too many ponies, just ask Autumn.

 

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And then there were gifts from Grandmommy and Jenni too. Silly girl asked why everyone likes to give her so many presents and we told her because we love you!!!

 

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Scarlett had to get in on the action too… After presents, it was time for Scrabble. If it’s a holiday and we have time, there is a Scrabble game. It’s genetic in this family. Unfortunately this game did not go my way and I kept trying to sell my vowels…

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For dinner, Nick made a deep fried turkey. If you haven’t had one, you should definitely try one. It is so juicy and tender. So yummy!!

 

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While we waited for dinner to be ready, Jenni and I went outside with Autumn so she could ride her new bike and wear her fabulous helmet and cute gloves.

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Autumn’s Christmas!

 

Autumn’s bike!

 

I couldn’t let the day pass without a picture of me and my honey… The weather was nice, so we sat out on the patio while the turkey cooked and Autumn played on her swing. And because you can never watch it too much, A Christmas Story was on all day. That movie never gets old.

 

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Time to eat! Along with the fried turkey, there were also mashed potatoes, rolls, pasta salad, corn, macaroni and cheese, and broccoli casserole. I’m full again just thinking about it. Thank you for the delicious dinner Nick and Jenna!

 

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After dinner and dessert and we were all stuffed (and discussing how awesome stretchy pants are), we went outside to watch Nick and his new interest, slacklining. Every heard of it? I wanted to try it but I imagined myself throwing out my back and that just would not have been cool.

 

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It was such a wonderful day. Good company, good food, and lots of laughter. My kind of day…. On the way home, we saw a beautiful sunset. I thought of Daddy all day long, wishing he was with us, having a hard time believing that this was our third Christmas without him, and seeing this sunset reminded me that he is with us, always.

 

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How did you spend your Christmas? Do you celebrate any special traditions?

Christmas Eve Magic

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Merry Christmas everyone! As I type this, A Christmas Story is on TV, I’m drinking a hot soy latte, and thinking about the pumpkin pie bars and pasta salad I still need to make for later.

Last night, we all celebrated Christmas Eve at Joey and Devon’s house, my brother and sister-in-law, with their boys Cooper and Cole. The kiddos were in full playtime mode and the sound of laughter and giggling filled the house. There was food, fun, and presents! It was a very nice night. Funniest moment of the night – when Cole went to tell Simon (the Elf, currently perched on the tree) that Cooper wasn’t being good. Classic!

I took so many photos – and a fun video – so I better get to it!

 

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Cole (left), Cooper (right), and Autumn!

 

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Today we will have Christmas dinner at Nick and Jenna’s house and give Autumn her gift! Can’t wait to see her face when we give it to her. (hint, ponies!!!!) Today, as always, I am thankful for wonderful family times!

 

Merry Christmas to you all!

Holiday weekend bliss!

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I love holiday weekends. Time off from work, time to do whatever we want to do with no pressure and no worries…. That’s my kind of weekend. If only I could sleep in (hear that Blue? Your Christmas present to Mommy can be just one morning of sleeping in, mkay?).

Saturday morning, hubby and I went to Village Inn for breakfast before doing some shopping. They have the best whole wheat toast there… So good. After breakfast, we were off to Best Buy for my Christmas gift, a new iPhone 5! I’ve been eligible for an upgrade since just after Thanksgiving and have been dying for a new one. I had the 4 and it was super slow and the battery would die mid-day. I was also getting messages often that I couldn’t take any more photos anytime I had over 3000 photos, which was often. So, not only did I get a new iPhone, but I got the super-duper 64GB one so I can take my picture obsession to a whole new level.

 

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We also went shopping for gifts for our niece, Autumn, and nephews, Cooper and Cole, so that meant a trip to Toys R Us and Wal-Mart. We went to the mall for a bit, enjoying the craziness of the day and even stood in the Starbucks line for 10 minutes. We couldn’t forget about Blue and Ozzie so we went to Petco for their favorite treats. Can we say spoiled?

Speaking of Blue and Ozzie, there was much cuteness this weekend… Ozzie was being a flirt on Saturday night as he lay next to me on the couch. Have you ever seen such a handsome devil?

 

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Yesterday morning, I took a picture of Blue and Ozzie by the tree for the #holidayaday challenge which was Naughty or Nice. Can you guess who is Naughty and who is Nice?

 

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Blue was also being super cute and snuggly with Daddy, and then he was giving me puppy eyes as we got ready to leave. Seriously, how do you resist this face?

 

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Yesterday, my mom and sister came over and we went to the Seminole Hard Rock Casino in Tampa for lunch and some slot fun. Our friend Tracy met us there, along with her mom and sister. It was a fun time, great lunch, and I came out ahead. Anytime we can leave the casino with a little extra money in our pocket is a good day.

 

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Today will hopefully be a lazy day at home before we go to my brother’s house for Christmas Eve dinner and to give our nephews their gifts. This holiday weekend is passing much too quickly so I plan on enjoying today and tomorrow. I refuse to think about going back to work just yet…

 

I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas Eve, whatever your plans and traditions may be!

Fun Fact Friday {Christmas Edition}

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Finally feeling better over here and I have some of my Christmas cheer back… A few hours of work today and then I am off till Wednesday. Seems like the perfect morning for Fun Fact Friday – Christmas Edition!

 

Fun Fact Friday Christmas edition

 

  • When I was little and we lived in Maryland, we would drive to Goshen, New York for Christmas at my uncle’s house. This house was the coolest. It looked like a one-story house, but it had a lower level on the backside that was all wood and even had an indoor pool. There would be two Christmas trees – a HUGE one upstairs in the main part of the house, and then another downstairs.

 

  • One of the Christmas presents I remember most as a child was my record player when I was about 8. Since I have been a music lover since I can remember, and even earlier as my Aunt Darlene tells me from when she would babysit me and listen to her music, having a record player was the coolest. I even remember one of the first records I got with it was Puff The Magic Dragon. Go ahead and laugh, but you know you listened to it too.

 

  • Christmas tradition in our family meant opening one gift on Christmas Eve and then the rest on Christmas morning.

 

  • My dad was the Clark Griswold of Christmas in our family. The more lights and decorations, the better. The bigger it was, the better it was. One year, he had a display made to sit on the pool table to put the trains and gifts on.

 

  • Hubby was originally going to propose to me on Christmas Day in front of all our family, with the gift of a jewelry box and me opening it to see an engagement ring in it. He was also going to tell my parent’s ahead of time, but decided against it because he knew my dad would never be able to keep it a secret until Christmas. He ended up proposing to me Dec. 7, 2000 just before his company Christmas party, just the two of us and then I got to show off my ring to everyone there. Best. Night. Ever.

 

  • When I was little, I would be SO depressed the day after Christmas, knowing it was a whole year until the next Christmas. Time seemed to pass so slowly as a child and now it passes so quickly.

 

  • I have always been the Christmas decorator in my family. My mom and dad trusted me to do it, and do it right. When I moved out and Mike and I started our own Christmas traditions, I still continued to do my parent’s decorations, and I still do.

 

  • When I was little, every year I would get a cardboard Christmas village to put together. Do you remember those? It would come in a book, like paper dolls, and you would punch out the different houses and buildings and then assemble them. So much fun… I haven’t seen one of those in years.

 

  • While our Christmas present traditions have changed over the years, simply due to the size of the family, I still love going to the mall during before Christmas just to enjoy the hustle and bustle of the holiday.

 

  • I could watch Christmas movies all year long. I love the classics, the new ones, the cheesy Hallmark ones, and everything in between.

 

What are a few of your Christmas traditions? Tell me a few fun facts about you today!

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