A Wrapper's Delight

I spent about 5 hours yesterday sitting on the couch, wrapping presents. I can't tell you how much I actually enjoy the holiday chore of wrapping Christmas presents. I do, I really do. There is something about the pretty paper and ribbon that curls with a swipe of a scissors - it just gets me in a Christmas-y mood. Yes everyone, my Charlie Brown Christmas feeling is gone. I started out my wrapping marathon watching the Vikings game. That quickly changed into Santa Claus 2 followed by Love Actually - finished with the end of the Wizard Oz (it was on TV). All the while I was wrapping presents my wonderful husband vacuumed AND did the laundry. Now, if that isn't my Christmas present - I can't wait to see what he got me that is BETTER than that! ;)

Now that Christmas is ever so close, I hope all of you can find joy in the small things that make this season so special (like wrapping presents and gorging yourself on cookies). Its the small things in life that make it so great - agreed? Agreed!

Happy last minute gift buying, baking, and wrapping to everyone! Christmas is almost here!

Being Martha Stewart is hard work!

For the past week I have been cleaning, planning and prepping for a Holiday Party Greg and I are hosting at our apartment tonight. I have been really excited to have this party because I haven't had one is a good while. AND....... Good lord, its a LOT of work. I love party planning - love it, love it, love it! But, I have never had to do all the work that goes into it all by myself before. It has really opened my eyes to how hard being Martha Stewart must be. Obviously, in her life now she doesn't do every thing herself, actually she probably doesn't do all that much at all to think of it - but her Martha Stewart lifestyle it what is really hard to imitate. I guess I can't say I did it all either. My loving husband did do his share of cleaning and running to the store and whatnot. Anyway, back on track. I love Martha, I really do, but sometimes I just don't think all the effort to make everything look absolutely perfect is necessary. It was my good intentions to have wonderful crudites platters and lovely decorated Christmas cookies; however, it turned out more like a veggie platter and some nice cutout cookies with sprinkles. I think that it will taste just as good as the fancy ones, sorry Martha!

A Charlie Brown Christmas

So as everyone knows very well - we are in full-swing Christmas mode. I usually LOVE Christmas. I love everything about it. The reason for the season and all the wonderful things that come a long with it such as deocorating the Christmas tree, baking Christmas cookies, yummy traditional food (oyster stew, Swedish meatballs, rice pudding, pickled herring!), parties and presents and lots of Christmas cards.

However, this year I have been stuck with some kind of "Charlie Brown" downer mood. I don't know. Maybe its the economy, maybe its the fact that my older sister is in Korea, or maybe its the fact that my middle sister and I haven't talked since Sept. 7th - and we even spent Thanksgiving together and STILL didn't talk. I am sure there is a plethora of issues causing this weird funk - I just wish they would go away! I mean, I love buying presents for people, its one of my most favorite things to do. So this year when I realized that I didn't have the excitement to get out there and go shopping, I knew that something was very wrong with me.

"Isn't there anyone who can tell me what Christmas is all about?" and make this cloud of gloom and doom leave my personal space?

Anyway, its just really hard to feel this way when everything around me is telling me to "Be Happy" and to spend lots of money.