Wordless Wednesday: Merry Christmas to me!

Merry Christmas!

And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men. And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us. And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger. (Luke 2:8-16 KJV)

Merry Christmas to all, and to all a goodnight!

Where are you, Christmas?

Here we are, less than 10 days away from Christmas, but... it doesn't quite feel like Christmas. I'm not sure if it's due to the fact that I've been dealing with health issues this year... or perhaps because it's been so warm this year... but I just don't quite feel in the Christmas mood.

This is very strange for me because I am a Christmas fanatic! My husband calls me Mrs. Claus because he says he doesn't know anyone else who gets as excited about Christmas as I do. I think it's a magical time where you get to forget about the cares of the world and tap into that childhood innocence and wonder, even if just for a short time each year.

And I've done everything right. We have a beautiful tree set up, I did some fun crafts to decorate the mantle, I've got Christmas-y smelling candles everywhere, lovely lights on the outside of the house, and presents already wrapped under the tree. But I feel a little disconnected when I'm listening to carols or even wrapping those presents. I don't like it. I want to feel the spirit of the holiday.

I'm hoping this final week will be different and the feeling of Christmas will hit me. Come on, Christmas spirit!!

Merry December!

Oh a day behind on December but that's alright with me. I was hoping to write a lot more over the past week, but it hasn't been the easiest week for me. I've been dealing with a whole bunch of not feeling great. I've been doing my best to suck it up and keep on with my life, but yesterday it hit me like a ton of bricks and I ended up leaving work early and sleeping for most of the afternoon.

It helped. I am feeling better today. Albeit, not great, but better. Jarrod and I are supposed to head to the beach today with my sister and Nate and his sister, Lise, and her husband, Matt, and their precious baby Jordan, but at this point, I'm still unsure whether or not we'll be able to make it. I'm taking it an hour at a time right now.

But I don't want to be a downer at the start of this beautiful month! Jarrod hates it, but I've been very much OK with the warmer temperatures so far. Especially considering that last year it snowed the first weekend of December. It was a little odd, however, putting up Christmas decorations in 60-degree weather.

As you can see, we have the tree up, which I love! We found a much better set up this year that actually seemed to give us more room, rather than less. We've decorated the outside with lights and wreaths and I'm still working on some of my indoor decorations, but that's another post for another day.

Looking ahead this month... there's so much going on. My beautiful cousin is performing in the Nutcracker, there are Christmas parties to attend and, of course, Christmas itself! But a big thing going on this month in my life is my 3rd round of the new meds. That's supposed to be the time when you know if it's working or not. And at this point, I'm not feeling that it is, and that scares me. So I'm a little anxious for that appointment in about two weeks and the follow up appointment with my doctor the week after that. I'm feeling the pressure this month.


As for my goals, I have not wanted to get to this part because I feel that I did pretty lousy this month. But I think I'm keeping the same goals and focusing on getting better and preparing for Christmas.

Health Goals
-I realized this morning (not for the first time) how tense I am pretty much all the time. I want to get up some sort of stretching regiment. That's always so hard to start, but healthwise, I think it's necessary for me. Need to drill that into my head! NOPE
-Also, I've fallen out of the habit of taking some OTC meds that I really need to be taking. Need to start that up again. NOPE

Personal Goals
-Party Planning! And, of course, actually throwing a fabulous engagement party!
-Read! ...something! I should probably pick this out by the beginning of the month. That way I'm probably more likely to stick to it. I'll try to figure something out today. EH, I DID SOME READING, BUT NOT WHAT I HAD IN MIND.
-Help put on a great Thanksgiving dinner with both of my families.
-Finish Christmas shopping. Doable? I have no idea. OK, I DIDN'T QUITE "FINISH" BUT I'M HAPPY WITH WHAT I ACCOMPLISHED, WHICH WAS THE MAJORITY OF IT.
-Decorate for Christmas!! (After Thanksgiving, of course)

Christmas! ...a little early

I hate that I haven't written in a few days because I've had lots to write about! But it's been a busy weekend and even when I had some down time I wasn't feeling that great and tried to get some rest when I could. I've been feeling better today and ready to get back at it and get everything done that needs to get done this week!

But first, some fun stuff from this weekend. My bestest friend Rea and I went out to the Raleigh Christmas Parade. I have not been to the parade... well actually, I'm not sure that I've ever "been" to the parade. When I danced as a kid we used to perform in the parade, so we took part in that every year, but I've never attended the parade myself. So unless I went as a very little kid, this was my first time.

We got there about an hour early and the streets were already pretty packed. But we found a nice spot on Hillsborough right on the front of the curb where we hunkered down. It was actually really nice having that time before the parade started and before it got too crowded. We had such a good time talking. Reagan inspires me more than probably any other person I know. She makes me want to go after my dreams. I get so caught up in life that I forget about these things that I really want to do and she always reminds me. I love having her around. Maybe I'll actually accomplish something now that she's back!

The parade itself was wonderful! It was so fun watching everyone go by and seeing all the floats and participants. I've got lots of pictures! Coming up in a few... The only downside was my stomach started bothering me about half-way through the parade. I can deal with my Crohn's on any given day. But when it starts making me feel like I can't do stuff, that's when I really start getting upset. And I started having thoughts of, "maybe I shouldn't have come," and that really gets to me. I guess it just makes me want to beat this even more.

Well back to the parade. It was the most perfect day! A little chilly so that you had to bundle up in a scarf and blanket, but not freezing so that you're miserable. It was just what you'd want to see a Christmas parade because who wants to get into the holiday spirit in 70-degree weather??

So by the way, there was this adorable little kid that was sitting next to us and I creepily took a picture of him. Please don't think less of me.

Well, I have to say the horses may be my favorite part of the parade. They're so beautiful and make me want to go horseback riding again. Although, I will admit, they kind of stink up the place. Gotta love the guys with shovels and wheelbarrows following along behind them.

And the dogs are pretty cute, too, all dressed up for Christmas. I took a picture of the pit bull group because I knew Jarrod would like that.

I don't remember there being big balloons in the parades we danced in, but maybe I'm wrong. However, they seem kind of odd in the Raleigh Christmas Parade, because, as you can see, they have to bring them really low to get under the trees and pretty much the entire route is lined with trees.

But of course, I love the dancers! I don't feel that there were that many groups that actually danced the parade back when I did it, but there were a bunch of groups now. I'm upset that I didn't grab a picture of the group I used to dance with (well, different group, but same people), but I wasn't taking pictures at that point. But I snagged one of this cute group in Christmas outfits!

And I also saw my high school which now has a marching band! We didn't when I went there.

And finally, we have Santa to top it all off. I know I don't like celebrating Christmas before Thanksgiving, but it was fun to start getting into Christmas mode a little early. Some radio stations have already started exclusively playing Christmas music, which I am not OK with, but I don't mind getting revved up a little. But now, I'm excited to be just a couple of days off from a great Thanksgiving holiday and finally the time to get decorating for Christmas!

A Christmas Picture is Worth... Everything!

So this will be the first year of possibly my whole life where my family won't have a Christmas card picture. OK, so since I decided to write this blog I've realized that's not true and apparently a few years back we didn't do one for a couple of years, but you get the idea.

It's funny, because for the past couple of years of kept thinking, "Really? We're doing this again?? I thought once I graduated college that we'd move on." But now that we're not going to have one, I'm not really sure how I feel about it. I think taking the pictures have always meant a lot because it's been a constant marker at the end of the year and a great way to keep a chronology of my and my sisters' lives.

We had a wonderful time last year when we took part in one of Nancy Ray's portrait parties.

2009

It was really nice having the opportunity to get the whole family together in the picture and have it professionally done. I think the last time we had one professionally taken with all of us was 1990... seriously. We took this one out at Meredith College.

1991

You gotta love the early '90's hair!

And here's my very first Christmas card picture ever!

1986

We have so many fun and crazy memories from taking these pictures, such as last year when Beka and I showed up in the same shirt! And in each of these below, my mom actually made the outfits (at least the sweaters).

1995

1993

 

1992

I remember taking this picture, because I was in the worst mood and didn't want to do the pictures, yet somehow, it turned out alright

1998

I love this picture because I feel like it's when we all really started growing up.

1996

And this one, while definitely not a "favorite" picture, is very special since we weren't sure I'd even be able to be a part of a Christmas card picture that year. I had just been released from the hospital after spending about 4 weeks there in October. You can tell I was still taking a lot of medication at the time.

1999

I had actually considered doing one of Jarrod and me and Rylie (and surprisingly, Jarrod was OK with this), but I'm not sure if I didn't just feel a little too cheesy doing that. I guess I'll end up saving that for my kids. I would, however, like to document this year some how. (As if I don't have enough pictures from this year, with the engagement shots and everything from the wedding!) But Christmas has always been a very special time for me, and I love tradition! I guess tradition in this case more often involves a family member taking the pictures and the whole process taking entirely too long.

Here are a couple more pictures for you to enjoy! Merry Christmas!

1990

1987

1989

1994

1997

2006

2007

There's Magic in the Air

It's finally here! The most wonderful time of the year!

I have this thing about celebrating more than one holiday at once (You will NEVER see me with Christmas decorations up before Thanksgiving!) But once Thanksgiving is past, I'm totally good with putting up the tree and turning on the holiday music. But once it finally hits December, I'm ready to kick it into full swing! I'm actually a little disappointed that my house isn't fully ready for the holidays at this point, but considering it's my first year of having my own home to decorate and prepare, I guess I'm doing alright.

This is the time of year where I revert back to being a little kid. But it's not about Santa and surprises and presents, especially since I never grew up believing in Santa (don't feel sorry for me, I turned out just fine). It's about a kind of magic that seems to enter the world as Christmas nears, where everything just seems brighter and happier. I don't think it could ever matter what's going on in my life, once December comes, I just feel happier and more joyful. The world seems to step away from whatever problems it has and makes the time to be friendly and smile more. For me, it's about pulling out old decorations that I remember as a kid and feeling the same excitement of figuring out where to put them and making up stories involving them. It's about wanting to spend the afternoon baking cookies with my mom or curling up on the couch with my dad. It's about wanting to spend my morning sipping coffee in front of the fire and just enjoy the lights on the tree and decorations around the room (OK, so I didn't drink coffee as a kid, but you get the idea).

And I don't understand those people out there who don't really care for Christmas. Yes, I know that society has twisted it into a consumerist holiday, all about "an exchange of money," but I choose to look past that. So there's no longer that feeling of waking up Christmas morning and running downstairs to see what you got (because Jarrod and I already know what we're getting each other and we're actually getting them a week and a half early), but I always love an excuse to give a present (not to mention getting one in return!)

But getting now to the monthly goals, I'm gonna be honest, between getting my wisdom teeth out, getting sick and Thanksgiving, I didn't get a whole lot done. I did some Christmas shopping and some organizing, and I did have a fabulous Thanksgiving with my family, but everything else sorta fell to the side, and I'm OK with that for now. But this is why I don't want to set a bunch of unrealistic goals for myself for this month, because I know there's just not going to be the time (or the energy) to get them done. I want to enjoy the holiday season and spend some time relaxing and letting the magic of the season sweep me away.