Tacky is our middle name.

Last Thursday we rounded up our friends for a little Christmas cheer.  I spent the day doing some of my favorite things.  First things first a little party favor assembly.  Lucky for me my assistant was happy to work for marshmallows...

I was tickled pink with the finished result (note to all the DIY'ers out there the containers I found were in the dollar section at Target and the rest is pretty self explanatory)...

I also added a little bit of "MERRY" to my dining room with banner made of felt...

At 7 o'clock our guests arrived.  They had been instructed to wear their ugliest Christmas sweaters (the tackier the better) and they did not disappoint.  It was a delightful evening with a rousing game of White Elephant and a photo booth to capture all the smiles...

It was the perfect way to kick off our Christmas Vacation!  Thanks again to my mama who graciously took the girls so we could have a little fun and wrap up our shopping list.  Our girls always love spending a couple of days at Roxi's...

We are all wrapped up and ready for Christmas (well almost...can you guess what everyone is getting?!)  

Merry Wednesday!

Goody Goody Gumdrops

This past Saturday we set out for a local gingerbread workshop....

Now this is my idea of fun...

All the happy memories with zero clean up...

The girls both whipped up a couple of masterpieces.  First up Emme's candy concoction...

Carter's was carefully constructed...

It was a great time with the whole fam (doing our best to get everyone in the shot here)...

I also lucked out later that day when my trusty little sidekick helped assemble our Christmas cards...

They should have made their way to most of our sweet family and friends mailboxes and I would love to share it with you!  I used a new company called Pinhole Press and I'm in love with the results.  Two of the things I love most in life, paper and photos, coming together for one fun trifold card...

To be honest I cannot get over how very excited I am to have photos that I love of our whole family.  It was the best Christmas gift!  We met up with the sweet Savannah of Savannah Leigh Photography (Click here to see her post on our shoot) and she did a FABULOUS job.  I'm going to do a post with all of them sometime soon.  Right now my eyelids are fighting the urge to close so I'm gonna leave ya' with this, my sweet little Carter in anticipation of hanging out with Mr. Clause...

And Emme was all smiles too...

Until she found herself on Santa's lap (don't worry we promptly snatched her back up in .5 seconds flat)...

I was thinking things might be a little different than last year...

But I think it's safe to say she's still not a fan.  You know what she is a fan of?  Brushing teeth (specifically brushing Elmo's teeth)...

Making early morning runs to Target with her mama...

Jammies required...

Double the Binky fun...

BIG kisses (she is really good at those)...

And last but not least (she's totally going to kill me for this one when she's 16) "practicing" on the potty (don't forget to pause the music at the bottom)...

In case you missed it she said it "splashes the poo poo."  I die.  This kid may very well have a comedic future.  Speaking of comedy check this little video out.  The girls have taken quite a liking to my Jillian Michael's 30 day Shred video.  So much in fact that they sometimes do it for fun...

Hey exercise is exercise!  Carter has also found another indoor activity to keep her occupied the good ol' fashioned hula hoop.  It's pretty impressive if you ask me (Emme is quite a fan too and cheers her on with "YAY Sissy!")...

And with that this has officially become the most random post ever.  See what happens when I'm practically falling asleep while typing?!  Night!

Believer

It seems like there is a new wave of blogs popping up.  I've run across a couple of them and I'll admit my first instinct is to feel a bit convicted.  

The gist is that as Believers (aka Christians) we are doing our children a dis-service by entertaining the idea of Santa.  I think the well meaning concern is that by trying to incorporate both Jesus and Santa somehow our children will become confused or worse yet they may not believe in Jesus because we lied to them about Santa.  It is all well articulated and sounds good in theory.  I just have one problem with this train of thought....me.  


You see I was raised in a home where Christmas was magical.  Equal parts presents from Santa and a celebration of Jesus' birthday.  And here's the thing, all I remember is that Christmas was magical.    I can also say that I have never once questioned the validity of Jesus based on the fact that my parent's "played" Santa for the first 6 years of my sweet childhood.  Learning the truth was not a traumatic experience for me.  I was ready...I asked...and without any real heartbreak (at least that I can remember) I no longer "believed".  


I would be lying if I said I have not questioned my faith a time or two over the years.  But I can say beyond a shadow of a doubt the fact that Santa was a part of my childhood has never been the reason why.  As I sit here at 30 I know this: I love Jesus with all my heart.  I also think Santa, St. Nick or whatever you want to call the jolly ol' elf is a part of growing up that is sweet, fun and yes just a little magical.  


I'm not looking for a debate or an argument.  It's just my two cents on what comes to mind when I revisit my childhood.  I think it boils down to this.  As an adult looking back at the lengths my parents went to at Christmastime I feel an overwhelming amount of love and gratitude.  While I'm certain this same feeling exists in homes without Santa I know that "believing" as a child has never once caused me to love Jesus any less.


I think the thing that really stands out to me is the hope that my children will grow up grateful and with a deep understanding of who Jesus really is not only during the Christmas season but 365 days a year.  I think Christmas is a perfect opportunity to demonstrate giving to them in a very real way.  It's not always a concept that comes naturally to a 6 and 2 year old but we're working on it!


Carter was reading to me this afternoon from her Jesus Storybook Bible.  We had flipped to the story of Jesus birth and as she read I was thinking about all of this.  My thoughts were interrupted by her voice as she excitedly got the the moment were baby Jesus was born and Mary laid him in the manger.  Suddenly it seemed so simple.  All this worry over whether or not our children will be able to tell the difference between "real" and "fake".  I think it may be just that...worry.  I trust that deep down in her heart she'll know (just like I did) that Jesus is real.  


I'm reminded of the other day when she and I were having a conversation about those little moments when you know somethings not quite right.  At 6 it comes down to things like telling a lie or being mean to your baby sister.  She was tracking right along with me as I pointed out how sometimes we just have that thing in our heart that tells us something is wrong.  I explained that it was Jesus and that He speaks to us in that way.  She piped up with, "Yeah, and when you lay in bed at night He tells you that He loves you."  And in that moment I realize she knows.  She hears His voice.  And that is what it's really all about.  A baby in a manger and that excitement that you feel in your heart just thinking about Him.  

Imposter a.k.a Why St. Nick needs a REAL beard for crying out loud!

Last Saturday we loaded up and headed for Fredericksburg.  It's oozing with charm this time of year and a lunch date and some quality time with Nate's fam was calling our name.  


Nonna had promised Carter a Sudoku lesson and she delivered...

Emme isn't quite ready for Sudoku (she must take after her mom) and spent her time torturing loving the cat...

She later channeled some of that energy in Nonna's direction...

After a muy delicioso Mexican lunch we headed to The Pioneer Museum for Kinderfest.  They had some special kid themed Christmas activities planned.  The girls hung their stockings by the fire in hopes that St. Nick would fill them with goodies...

Then it was off to see St. Nick...a.k.a the man without a faux beard.  Carter immediately informed us, "He was fake!"  She is one smart cookie...

Thank goodness we know the real guy...he sets up shop right around the corner.  He even has his own little house and we'll be visiting him later today.  Lucky for us there were stockings stuffed with candy to off set the less than authentic St. Nick...

There was also plenty of love from Aunt Kathie and Uncle Bart to go around...

I even managed to sneak away for a few minutes to pop in a couple of my favorite stores.  I have to admit I always have a little bit of anxiety whenever I shop in Fredericksburg.  But after what happened a couple of years ago can you blame me?  It's enough to give a girl a panic attack but I wasn't passing up an opportunity to walk around RED at Christmas...

In other BIG news it is actually cold here!  Cold enough that Carter could bust out her new blue velvet coat that Roxi got her for Christmas last year (she was channeling one of her favorite American Girls Samantha)...

Yay for cold and Christmas!  It's the perfect hot chocolate drinking, lights twinkling, presents under the tree combination...

Happy Friday!

Ladybug Picnic

Last Thursday I spent the afternoon volunteering in Carter's classroom.  I've decided that I kind of love it.  There is a look on her face that says, "Mom, I'm so glad you are here." And it does wonders for my heart.  


Since Emme was hanging with her favorite sitter Kira we decided to have a little "after school snack date" and headed to get a cupcake.  It was the kind of winter afternoon you only get in South Texas...warm enough to enjoy an outdoor table in the sun.  We chatted about Christmas (what else is there) and I soaked her up...

As we were getting ready to leave a ladybug caught her eye...

She was fascinated and quickly named him 2 Spot...

They were inseparable for the better part of an hour (the ladybug even made it through a trip to the grocery store) before I convinced her he would be much happier living in our flower bed.  She reluctantly released him.  I love this kid...

It's a Wonderful Life

I'm that person.  You know the one.  She probably annoys you.  I'm the full time Christmas music, gets her tree up the day after Thanksgiving, constantly humming Fa La La La La La kinda' girl.  And you know what?  I like it...

I have too many Christmas decorations and in our most recent move was threatened within an inch of my life to downsize my wrapping paper collection to a "normal" amount.  Normal is soooooo overrated.  I'm sure Christmas makes some people feel a little Bah Hum Bug with all the added to do's but for me it will always be merry...

I'm pretty sure it's in my genes.  My Mama always had a way of making Christmas seem magical and I'm on a mission to keep the ball rolling.  So we kicked off December with our first day of advent.  I've done several different things over the years but ran across an idea in Martha Stewart aka the Queen of Craft and decided to go for it.  They used really cute striped bags but I fell hard for these chevron ones instead...

I hung them just out of reach down our hallway...

I like the idea of bags because they give you a little more creative freedom when it comes to the size of each day's gift.  I had envisioned the numbers a little differently but decided to make do with what I had around the house (let's face it a trip to Michael's with an almost 2 year old is not high on my list of favorite things to do)...

Overall I'm digging it...

The girls were very excited to get started (Carter is orange and Emme is green).  Today their bags contained a clue...

Off they went in search of gifts...

I decided to wrap up their ornament (I give them one each year) and give it to them for the first day.  A tradition I plan on continuing next year (if I can remember I started it!)...

For Carter this little Cat was purrrrr-fect!  It reminds me of her and all of her crafty, homework lovin', can't get enough of pencils, crayons, glue, etc. ways!

Emme, well that was easy, Elmo of course!

I couldn't be happier that December is here.  Maybe it's watching my girls, maybe it's the change of scenery around our house, maybe it's the Tori Burch moccasins my sister is getting me...but for me it really is the most wonderful time of the year...

Tis' the Season!


p.s. I used an app that's the bees knees called Red Stamp to create the graphics around my photos...check it out!

Sister Suzy Sitting on a Thistle

We've been decking the halls around here.  Lights, garland, glitter and memories are all dancing to the tune of Christmas carols playing in the background.  We all stopped and had a good laugh when this one came streaming through the speakers yesterday...


All I want for Christmas
Is my two front teeth
My two front teeth
Just my two front teeth
Gee, if I could only have
My two front teeth
Then I could wish you Merry Christmas

It seems so long since I could say,
"Sister Suzy sitting on a thistle"
Gosh, oh gee
How happy I'd be
If I could only "whithle"
All I want for Christmas
Is my two front teeth
My two front teeth
Just my two front teeth
Gee, if I could only have my two front teeth
Then I could wish you Merry Christmas

All I want for Christmas
Is my two front teeth
My two front teeth
Just my two front teeth
Gee, I if I could only have my two front teeth
Then I could wish you Merry Christmas

Santa Claus and his reindeer
Used to bring me lots of toys and candy
But now when I try to call their names
None of them can understand me

All I want for Christmas
Is my two front teeth
My two front teeth
Just my two front teeth
Gee, if I could only have my two front teeth
Then I could wish you Merry Christmas
Then I could wish you Merry Christmas
Then I could wish you merry Christmas


The difference is our sweet little Carter is needing a few more than two...

8 to be exact after her rambunctious little sister knocked another loose one out with her foot the other day!  I wonder if Santa knows a good dentist??  Happy Monday!