Lame

I'll be the first to admit it. I've been a sucky blogger lately but with the holidays nearly over I'll be back, I promise.

Love you guys (and Happy New Year little loves!)!!


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My latest obsession...

Kind of can't get enough of these. Cinnamon hard candy. I'm such an old lady.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

The week off...

Oh you guys, I have the week off and it feels aMAZing.  Nothing to do.  Nowhere I have to be.  My brother is here, and we're all just hanging out.  It's kind of perfect.

How's your week after Christmas going?

My very own Folger's commercial...

My brother came home the other day from Europe to spend the holidays with us (this is the first time in I don't know how many years we've all been together since my dad passed away).  My brother's in the military and they sort of don't care that it's a holiday, so no brother the past few years.

It felt like that stupid Folger's commercial where the brother comes home from Africa and the sister puts a bow on him and says he's her Christmas gift this year.

Because you know what?

He is.

xo

Adventures in weight loss

I'm down 17 pounds y'all!  Yeah, I know.  I'm kind of like a rock star.  It hasn't been super easy, and it takes a bit of gym time on top of the whole eating thing, but I'm doing it!!!!

Scarlette

Look at this muffin.  One year ago she was fighting for her life.  Now she's this little itty bitty with the cutest face ever.  She has struggles, sure, but she made it!  Check out her mama's blog for a good laugh and a reason to squeeze your kids really tight!

Toothpaste murder...

I went into the bathroom yesterday and encountered the following crime scene...

I know.  I should have warned you.

I'm not really sure what happened as both of the potential culprits have denied any involvement.  I will get to the bottom of this.  I promise you.

Christmas pictures...

I've been taking the kids pics for Christmas cards for a few years now.  I always like to do them outside (you know, when it's absolutely freezing (poor things)) and if I can swing it, on an overcast day.  This year I had to get them done and it was a sunny day and I didn't really get any pics I loved.  Here are the two not so horrible ones (sun kind of sucks for pictures - shadows and squinty eyes).

The cards are rolling in and I love to see all of the kiddos in the pictures that arrive, that is, if I can see them before Madeline grabs them and puts them in her room...

Um...11 shopping days until Christmas (thank God for online shopping)!

We've got a reader...

Jack Attack has been stressing about reading.  His sister is a reading phenom and he was feeling a little inadequate.  Well Mr. Man is now a reader and he's on top of the world.  We have a Sunday date now- after Sunday School we head to the bookstore where we pick out a few books, read a few and take one or two home.  I did this with Maddy as well, and it was so nice to spend the one on one time doing something beneficial to the itties.

P.S.  Um there are only 12 days until Christmas...

Shop local...

The other day we decided to head to the Niagara Falls Market in lieu of anything better to do.  So glad we did.  While there, I purchased a couple of gifts and I thought I'd share their sites with you.

One is a company called The Secret Chicken.  They have an etsy shop (love me some etsy!!) and it's mainly handmade stationery items (you know me and my stationery...).  The shop in NF had a ton of things.  I had to buy a few for myself, I couldn't help it.

The other is a cool t-shirt company called &Buffalo and I picked up a little sonethin' sonethin' there as well.  AND the cool owner Joe gave Mad and Jack a t-shirt each.  Quite the sweet one, that Joe.  Besides, who doesn't want to support a company that designed a T that says "I still call it the Aud".  Enough said.

I like looking outside of the big stores for those hard to find people on my list (I'm talking to you, Will).  I've been pretty lucky shopping local.  You?

P.S.  There was ice skating too! :O

Fa la la la la...

So I have a Christmas playlist that houses everything holiday music.  I found myself forwarding past certain songs I'm not a fan of (Blue Christmas?  Christmas Shoes?  Who the hell writes this depressing crap!?!).  Then I just deleted them from the playlist.  Then I thought about what songs I really love this time of year.  Then I thought I'd share that list with you!  Lucky you!!!

1. Anything by Bing Crosby, Frank Sinatra, Burl Ives and Perry Como.  Like Anything.
2. Where Are You Christmas - Faith Hill
3. Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas - David Gray
4. Christmas Day - Dido
5. Do They Know It's Christmas - Band Aid
6. My Bells Are Ringing - Lenka
7. O Holy Night - Kelly Clarkson (my favorite version ever - don't judge)
8. The River - Rachel Yamagata
9. Santa Claus is Comin' to Town - Bruce Springsteen 
10. We Wish You a Merry Christmas - Weezer
11. The Nutcracker (fave being No. 13 Waltz of the Flowers) - Tchaikovsky

There are many, many more naturally.  What are your favorite holiday tunes?

xo

Adventures in Christmas Decorating...

After finding boxes in both attics (why didn't we put them all in one attic last year!?!?), we commenced the holiday decorating.  Oh my LORD do we have a lot of crap holiday goodness.  Here are a few pics of where we are so far...

 And yes, it has been ages since I've picked up my real camera...iPhone photos are just a little too convenient it seems.

Where the hell I've been (and other musings)...

Two days dark on the blog...where the hell have I been?  Well, I was a little sicko last week so I didn't do much of anything.  I did, however, make a list of the things I want to blog about.  I just didn't, you know, blog about them.

In other news:

• I ripped (one by one) the baked on nail polish (the one month manicure - which is amazing - until you jack it up) and somewhat destroyed my fingernails.  They're getting a daily treatment of Essie's Feed Me nail polish in hopes that I can restore them to their gloriousness.  I don't know what I was thinking.
• We had to replace our tree for the family room and decided to go with a monster 9 footer.  Oh but she's a beauty (pics to come this week)!
• I'm off to NYC for business this week, and while I'm gone there's going to be a little kitchen remodel on the cabinets!  Cannot WAIT to see how it turns out (again, pics to come).
• It's time to make an appointment for my 6 month dental cleaning.  And I'm avoiding it (making the appointment - I hate going that much).

That's it for today folks.  Stay tuned for so much blogging goodness this week!

xo

A Fine Tangle

Oh my.  My sister was at a recent Shop Local Event at Monkey See Monkey Do* where she met Brittany Thrun, a local artist and teacher.  My sister was smitten with Brittany's wares and after taking a gander around her blog and shop, I am too!  I'm a lover of homemade gifts (even if they weren't made in a home of anyone I know), and there are a lot of cute things on her blog and in her shop.  Maddy actually purchased a little sonethin sonethin at the event!  Such a fashionista!

(excuse the tired eyes, it was a 7am photo...)

So check out A Fine Tangle, and if you have itty bitties, get them to a class at MSMD!!

*if you haven't been to this bookstore in Clarence, please go!  I can't emphasize the amazingness of this shop.  Its full of books (duh), cute gifts, classes for kiddos, etc.  It's just a little bit of awesome right in Clarence!