Christmas – Life of kk

This last post is a few days late, thanks to the flu that took me down the week after Thanksgiving. I felt like I had been hit by a truck, but I’m slowly coming back to life.

It was hard to lose a week of my life in prime holiday time, but it wasn’t as awful as last year, when after avoiding Covid for two years both Mr. KK and I tested positive the beginning of the second week in December. And on top of Covid, I also had the flu (I have always been an over achiever), which was a super fun time. Miraculously we were able to keep Little Mister from getting sick (and inevitably missing Christmas), but we did miss out on quite a bit of festivities during the month because WE were sick. My goal was to test negative by Christmas Eve, and I did – on December 23 – when my Mom and I held our cookie making day (which had been cancelled from a week earlier). I was thankful to be able to have that day and then enjoy Christmas and Christmas Eve.

One Balsam and One Frasier Fir

Balsam on the left – check out the difference in color between the 2 trees.

We secured our trees this past weekend. I was still feeling pretty crappy so we didn’t venture too far from home, and the selection wasn’t huge, but we found two pretty great trees. We’re normally a Frasier Fir family, but this year we’re mixing it up and bringing a Balsam into the mix. Right now we have 2 naked trees up in our house and they smell amazing. And, in true kk fashion, I’m more in love with our second ‘kitchen’ tree than I am the tree in the big room. It’s just so round and fat and green.

The Elf Is Here

He arrived on Thursday, a nice surprise for Little Mister when he got home from school. He’s already up to his shenanigans.

The Year Ahead

2024 promises to be a big year. But before I look ahead let’s look back and see what your Unwrapped looks like when you only listen to Spotify when driving your 9 year old around. The fact that Imagine Dragons isn’t listed here is shocking. I remember when each of these songs became an obsession that we listened to on repeat throughout the year. Thanks, Spotify.

So, the year ahead.

First, it’s a milestone birthday year for me. And I have decided that we will celebrate all year long. We’re planning a long Birthday Weekend Spectacular (BSW) a few months after my actual birthday, and planning that will be almost as fun as going. If there’s ever been a time to reflect on life so far, next year will be it for me.

Second, next year is my 20 year cancer-versary! It’s hard to believe it’s been twenty years, the memories are so vivid it feels like yesterday. So thankful for my doctor and the amazing team of nurses at Dana Farber.

So that’s it – another month of blogging in the books. I missed a few days, but I’ve made peace with it! I hope you enjoyed reading…until next year!

Christmas, Elf on the Shelf

Our Elf Arrives Tomorrow!

November 29, 2023 littleshoeprincess

As the last day of November (and my blogging) draws near, the long-awaited arrival of our Elf is here. He will make his appearance tomorrow while Little Mister is at school: find himself a spot in the house and leave a package on the front steps with Christmas pajamas and ornaments for the tree.

If any of you also have an Elf that visits your house, I thought I’d share some of our Elf’s shenanigans from last year for inspiration.

Welcome back, Jack!

Happy Elfing!

(and happy almost last day of blogging!)

Christmas, Decorating, thanksgiving

Inflation Has Hit the Christmas Trees

November 21, 2023 littleshoeprincess

If you’ve gone to a grocery store in the last year, you’ve see the ridiculous rise in costs on just about everything you buy. Items I frequently purchase have gone up $1 or more in the last year. Household staples like mayonnaise, chicken stock and milk have astronomical prices. And don’t even think about produce; since when are strawberries $7 a container? No matter where you go, prices are insane.

This weekend I was at our local produce store and saw a sight that made me almost cry happy tears: the Christmas trees had arrived! This place is usually our first (and only) stop when it’s time for the annual pilgrimage to pick out the Christmas Trees. No need for us to trudge through a field to find a tree and cut it down ourselves (who has time for that?). Instead, we’re able to shop easily (and quickly!) to find the perfect trees. Yes, trees plural. Two. Though I’d get three if we had the room.

I was so excited to see the trees that I took a photo and sent it to Mr. KK. Now, we have already compromised that I must wait until 12:01am on the Friday after Thanksgiving before I can start decorating for Christmas. Perhaps Mr. KK feels our meal may taste differently if he’s surrounded by trees vs turkeys. So the Friday after Thanksgiving is pretty much “Sparkly Friday” over here, because that is when the bins (and bins, and bins) of Christmas decor make their way up from the basement so I could deck the halls all day long. Cue the Christmas channel on Spotify!

In my excitement to send Mr. KK the below photo, I didn’t read the sign next to the trees.

The price for a 6-7 foot frasier fir tree is $89.99.

$90 for a short tree.

No one loves Christmas more than I do, but $90 for a tree that grows naturally outside? Maybe it was my little local shop realizing they could be charging more like the tree farms.

But a quick Google search showed me this: “Data from the National and the American Christmas Tree Associations state the average price of an authentic Christmas tree is between $80 and $100. This reflects about a 10% increase that occurred in the last year, largely due to inflation and drought.”

I looked back in photos from past years of our tree outing, and found a photo from 2021 where Mr. KK is holding up our tree, and the tag on it reads $65. Yep, $25 less only 2 years ago.

“So why don’t you spend $200 on an artificial tree and use it every year it would be so much cheaper?”

Great question! Because I like having a real tree. I love the smell. I love the tradition. I love the slight imperfections. And did I mention that piney smell?

When I was growing up, we had an artificial tree. This was back in the late 70s when artificial trees bore zero resemblance to actual trees. Our tree had a dark green metal pole that snapped into a metal X. Inside the box were about 30 “branches” that you stuck into the holes in the metal pole until you had a plastic-looking, sparse “tree” that would go up in flames if it ever came near fire.

Now you can find artificial trees that are incredibly realistic. I imagine if I had two large boxes with trees in them and we had to find room to store them in the basement, Mr. KK might throw all my Christmas decor on the lawn and light it on fire.

I have designated the first Saturday in December as the day we will get our Christmas trees. It’s early enough that we can enjoy it for weeks, but not too early that it will dry out and drop brown needles before Santa comes.

I will do my homework and price shop real trees before December 2, and find the best place for us to go: a balance of cost and quality of trees. We’ll have our usual discussion on tree shape because Mr. KK likes a taller, tapered tree while I prefer a big, fat, round tree (translation: more lights and ornaments!), so we agree on something between the two. By the evening on Sunday, December 3, our tree will be up, lights on and decorating can commence.

Here’s my time-lapse video of decorating last year – enjoy!

Christmas, cocktails, recipe, thanksgiving

Holiday Cocktails Sampling, With Recipes

November 12, 2023 littleshoeprincess

Now that it’s November, I am in full-on holiday mode. And while Christmas is my most favorite time of the year, I have to give a little holiday love to Thanksgiving, especially since we host everyone on turkey day.

Every holiday needs a festive cocktail. This weekend, we put several recipes to the test to determine which cocktails would be the stars of the gathering for Thanksgiving and Christmas Eve. And you get a front row seat.

First up, the Brown Sugar Cranberry Bourbon Cocktail. This festive cocktail showed up in my Instagram feed from @cheesegal. She had me at sugared cranberries.

Brown Sugar Cranberry Bourbon Cocktail

INGREDIENTS:
3 ounces bourbon
2 ounces 100% cranberry juice (not cran cocktail)
1 ounce fresh lemon juice
3/4 ounce rosemary cranberry brown sugar simple syrup

DIRECTIONS:
First, make the simple syrup by bringing equal parts brown sugar and water to a quick boil until sugar dissolves. Turn off the heat, and throw in a few sprigs of fresh rosemary and cranberries. Let steep for at least 20 min.

She didn’t give exact measurements for the simple syrup so here’s what we used:

100g brown sugar
100g water
30g rosemary whole
150g fresh cranberries

Rim your cocktail glass with some of the simple syrup and dip into brown sugar, then add a festive ice cube*. Pour cranberry juice, bourbon, lemon juice and simple syrup into a cocktail shaker full of ice, and shake well. Strain + pour into prepared glass and garnish with rosemary + some frosted cranberries.

*We did not make festive ice cubes for taste testing but likely will do something for the real thing.

Ours was not as brightly colored as hers was, but the flavor was delicious.

Verdict: Definitely in the running.

Next up: the Spiced Cranberry Sparkler from @cocktails.

Spiced Cranberry Sparkler

Ingredients

1.5 oz bourbon
1 oz spiced honey syrup
Juice of 1/2 an orange
2 oz cranberry juice
2-3 dashes of orange bitters
3-4 oz Prosecco (we used club soda)
Ice
Garnish:
Dehydrated orange slice
Star anise
Rosemary
Cinnamon sugar rim (we skipped this for sampling)

Spiced Honey Syrup:

300 g honey
100 g water
Cinnamon stick
Ground nutmeg
Pumpkin pie spice
Ground cloves

Directions

Put all ingredients for spiced honey syrup in a small pan over heat. Still until all ingredients have melded and honey and water are fully combined. Remove from heat.

In a shaker with ice (she stirred in a pitcher but we were in a shaking mood), mix bourbon, syrup, orange juice, cranberry juice, bitters and shake. Strain into a rocks glass over ice and top with club soda (or prosecco, but we thought that would make the drink too sweet) and garnish.

Woah, this ones goes down easy. It’s the perfect mix of warmth and spice with a bubbly kick at the end.

Verdict: Perfect for Thanksgiving

Next up: Fall Old Fashioned. This recipe is from @thirsywhale_

Fall Old Fashioned with Pumpkin Spice Syrup

Ingredients

1.5 oz Rye or Bourbon
½ oz Aged Rum
½ oz Pumpkin Syrup
4 dashes Aromatic Bitters
2 dashes Orange Bitters
Orange Peel

Pumpkin Syrup
1 can pumpkin pie
2 cups brown sugar
1 cup water
Pumpkin pie spice to taste (you may want more or none at all, up to you). Heat on stove and stir until incorporated, then fine strain.

Directions

Still all ingredients (except orange peel) in a cocktail pitcher with ice until blended and chilled. Strain over a giant ice cube and garnish with an orange peel.

Verdict: this one was a little too potent for me, but the guys really liked it. The pumpkin syrup, however, smelled divine and would be delicious over vanilla ice cream.

Our taste test was a success! The winners are:

Spiced Cranberry Sparkler for Thanksgiving.

Brown Sugar Cranberry Bourbon Cocktail for Christmas Eve.

Cheers!

Christmas, Family, Gifts

On Being the Family’s Gift Buyer

November 29, 2022 littleshoeprincess

It is no secret on this blog that I LOVE Christmas! It truly is the most wonderful time of year for me. Things I look forward to:

Annual Cookie Making Day
Decorating the House
Picking out the Christmas Trees
Decorating the Christmas Trees
Moving Jack the Elf all Around the House
The Smell of the Christmas Tree
All. The. Christmas. Songs.
Christmas Parties
Christmas Eve Dinner
Spending All of Christmas Day in Our Pajamas
Christmas Shopping!

Christmas shopping may be the last one listed here, but it’s one of my most favorite parts of the season. I pride myself on buying really great gifts. I do this by taking cues throughout the year, listening to family members tell stories and gleaning ideas, seeing what they could use in their lives to make them better/easier/more fun, and then just finding gifts I know they will love but they’d never buy for themselves. (There are also the “must have” gifts that I get them; not the “hot gifts of the season”, but the gifts they must have to replace something they currently use or do that drives me bananas.)

My weekly screen report showed that my phone time was up 162% last week for an average of 5 hours and 27 minutes a day. At least 2-3 hours of that time was spent researching Christmas gifts! The remaining hours were spent on Wordle, Instagram and Spotify shame listening to Christmas carols in my car.

Buying Christmas gifts makes me so happy! Most of my shopping is done online, however I do venture out on the Saturday after Thanksgiving each year with a deal friend. Granted, a lot of that shopping is for ME, because I’m not going to pass up a good deal for myself because that would just be silly.

Last year, I wrote about my role as the family’s travel agent. It appears, I am also the family’s gift guru. Right around this time of year, I start to get the requests from family members about what they could get for Little Mister or Mr. KK. So not only do I need to get them gifts for myself, but I need to find enough gifts and ideas that other people can give them too. Oh, and add in the extra layer of figuring out Santa gifts for Little Mister, too. No one needs this many gifts, especially our child.

Because of this, I try and get all of my shopping done early. That way, I have the last 2-3 weeks in December to focus on what others can get my loved ones.

Don’t get me wrong, we have some family members who are VERY difficult to buy for even for me. (They will all tell you that I am the one who is hard to buy for, but that is false! I am SO EASY to buy for.) So that takes extra time and creativity. But there is nothing better than that Eureka “Ah Ha!” moment when I uncover the perfect gift for him or her.

Wrapping Christmas Gifts

One of last year’s themes: Gray Buffalo Check with rose gold accents.

Oh, how I love to wrap gifts! Each year I try and have 1-2 wrapping paper themes/colors, and each person gets their own wrapping paper (this makes it easy to group presents under the tree and it looks really nice, too!). Then, I set aside 2-3 hours (or at least half a day if I’m doing it all at once) and get to it. I put on the Christmas music, spread out all my wrapping supplies, and put myself on Do Not Disturb mode. Sometimes I’m able to take a day off from work to tackle the wrapping. Other times, I start after Little Mister goes to bed, Air Pods in, and wrap until 1am.

So what’s it like being the family gift idea generator?

It’s hard work!

First, I have to think ahead far enough in my own gift planning to ensure that I am giving the gifts that I want to give. Once those are purchased, I will review my Plan B gift option list, the ones that didn’t make the first cut to have my name on them. These are usually low hanging fruit to give away to other people to get for someone. Once I run out of the back up gifts, the challenge begins.

For example, Little Mister needs ZERO things for Christmas. ZERO. It was hard for ME to think of Christmas gifts for him. There is no room in the playroom, we can’t fit another thing. He doesn’t even know what to put on his Christmas list. This says to me he doesn’t need anything!

We are barely getting him any gifts. And to help combat too many gifts, gifts he doesn’t need and just plan STUFF, I have asked the Grandparents to limit their gifts to 5 gifts. AND, they cannot be sneaky and put 20 things in one box and call it a single gift. Even with the gift limit, I’m still having a hard time thinking of gifts for them to get for him. I want this Christmas to be fewer gifts, but more meaningful gifts.

This is a timely post, as it is Cyber Monday! I do have a few deals to catch…happy shopping!

Christmas, Elf on the Shelf

Hello…It’s Your Elf Calling

November 27, 2022 littleshoeprincess

Well, he’s back! Jack made his appearance this morning much to Little Mister’s surprise.

Little Mister woke to find a present on his dresser. Inside was a note from Jack, a pair of Christmas jammies, some ornaments for his tree and a pair of Christmas dinosaur socks.

Then…off to find Jack!

Where could Jack be hiding on his very first day in the house? That sneaky little devil was up high on the curtain rod, where he could get a good look at everything going on…and keep an eye on Little Mister.

The antics have officially begun! My daily 10pm alarm to “do Christmas things” has been set for the nightly moving of the Elf and filling of the advent calendar (which doesn’t start until December 1 so I have a few days reprieve from that).

The trick to the Elf on a Shelf in this house is to be creative while still keeping the Elf out of reach of Bruno, who would chew him to pieces and ruin Christmas. Last year I had my mohter-in-law sew wires in Jack’s appendages so that he could move and pose more easily. LIFE CHANGING. Why these elves don’t come with posable limbs feels like a big manufacturing miss to me.

For a little inspiration, I wanted to share some of our little Elf’s shenanigans from last year…

We started the holiday season last year with a tug of war between Jack and the King of the LEGO jungle.

Teaching math at dino school. We’ll never know if they ever learned anything.

When your truck breaks down on the way to Bethlehem.

“Hey, Wiseman in the back, I can’t see your face. Okay, ready…say CHEESE!”

If you’re Elfing this year, have FUN! Our elf is always up to no good!

Christmas, cooking, thanksgiving

It’s Thanksgiving Week, B*tches!

November 21, 2022 littleshoeprincess

Or, as I like to refer to it: 5 days until Christmas is unleashed!

This is the week when it starts to feel like the holiday season. I spent today in Christmas glory at an inspirational store near her house that was filled with all the decor and scents and greenery you could ever want. It was the kind of place that had decor for houses without children or dogs. So. Much. Glass.

Here are a few photos from how beautiful it was! I could have walked around all day!

I loved this sugar plum themed tree. There were about 10 different themed trees.
Everything was beautiful blown glass; basically stuff I can have in 10 years.

These were some gorgeous christmas tress. I love when places hang them from the tops so you can see what they will look like fully opened! When we go they are all wrapped up and we have to shake it loose and use our imaginations.

So the upcoming week looks like this:

Monday: This is a big week because…(drumroll)…tomorrow is WEIGH IN DAY for the end of the Fit 2 Feast challenge! FINALLY! Tomorrow morning at 6:45am I will find out if my hard work paid off and if I lost any pounds and any body fat. If the scale does not move, I may legit cry ugly tears at the kickboxing studio. If I find out I didn’t have any cocktails or french fries or ice cream or – and this is hard to believe – CHEESE – for three weeks for NOTHING, I will be mucho mad. Then off to a full day of work. Then helping sort pies for our PTA pie fundraiser.

Tuesday: It’s Colonial Day at school, so I’m helping out during my lunch hour. while they kids go from room to room to make different “old timey” crafts. All I know is Little Mister needs to bring in an orange (??) and I donated pipe cleaners and large popsicle sticks. Then Little Mister is double-booked for a hair cut and his first basketball practice. We really need that pre-holiday haircut, but I may have to move it to accommodate the first basketball practice.

Wednesday: Game On! I took the full day off to do all of my Thanksgiving cooking and prep. I’ll be making soup, stuffing, parts of appetizer recipes. I’ll be juicing grapefruits and lemons for cocktails. Then apron down and a manicure and dinner out for some non-challenge-worthy food (hopefully the night before Thanksgiving crowds aren’t too crazy!)

Thursday: Turkey Day! Wake up at the crack of dawn and set my 47 timers and prepare for the day! Every year on this day my blog post is a Thanksgiving in pictures…and this year will be no different!

Friday: Buh-bye gourds, hello garland! I hope to have all the fall stuff put away by 10am so I can start bringing up the Christmas bins. I plan to be decorating for at least 4-5 hours. I did concede and we will not be getting our tree this early. That will be the first weekend in December.

And you know who comes the weekend after Thanksgiving…

Christmas, favorite things, shopping

kk’s favorite things

November 19, 2022 littleshoeprincess

Just because I can’t decorate for Christmas yet, and I get shamed for listening to holiday music, that doesn’t mean I can share my favorite gifts of 2022!

This is my curated list of things that I love, that someone else in your life may love as well. It’s the unofficial gift list of the holidays!

Porte + Hall Area Rug

This summer we built a deck off of our kitchen, and the french doors that used to just open up to a 5 foot drop, now open to a gorgeous outdoor space. Next summer when we start using the deck more and more, I’ll want to have a large rug that spans the doorway to catch dirt. I LOVE the print of this rug (I’m a sucker for orange!). It seems to be sold out now in this color in the Area Rug size, but you can add yourself to the waitlist to be notified when it’s back in stock.

Sea Bags Rose Gold Striped Tote

The long-standing joke about Sea Bags in our house is that every time I pass a Sea Bags store, I go in, but never buy anything. I have been in Sea Bag stores in Maine, Massachusetts and Connecticut over the last 5 years and am yet to purchase a bag for myself. And I LOVE the bags! I have my eye on this one in particular – the rose gold with the navy stripes feels both coastal and classy. The best part? You can customize the bag to have a zip top so nothing falls out.

Pyrex 20-Piece Glass Containers

Adulting is fun because you start putting practical items like food storage containers on your holiday lists! Yay! In an effort to stop using plastic tupperware containers we’re starting to go all glass. Because we’re crazy like that.

Melamine “Solo” Cups

Our summer house rental this year had these melamine cups and I instantly fell in love with them. Their colors were a little different (they had orange! and gray!) but they were so convenient for bringing beverages out to the pool. Plus, they were heavy enough that they didn’t blow over easily in the wind.

Rothy’s Utility Boots

You had me at Rothy’s. My favorite sneakers now come in a boot! I have been looking for the right blank ankle boots for YEARS. I could never find one that I liked; the heel was either too clunky or the boot was too shiny or looking like fake leather. These boots – albeit are ridiculously expensive – have the right heel height, are matte in color, and because they are Rothy’s we know they will be the most comfortable boot on the planet. Do they look like my hi-top black Rothy’s sneakers? Yes. HOWEVER, the sneakers have a white sole and will always look way to casual to wear out at night. Make room for these in your closet.

Duluth Reversible Poncho

It wouldn’t be a “favorite things” list without a poncho! This one is reversible and would be perfect with jeans and boots. And it’s from one of Mr. KK’s favorite stores, Duluth Trading. He’s so proud when I like something from this place. Bonus: it’s on sale!

LL Bean Vista Pants Fleece Lined

It’s not a favorite things list without something from LL Bean! I have these in the non-fleece version for spring/fall, but how awesome would it be to have a super warm pair for winter?! I love this dark gray color. And the best part about LL Bean pants is that they come in petite!

Microfiber Super Absorbent Hair Towel

I will try anything for better, less frizzy hair and this towel gets rave reviews. Plus, this feels like a great thing for after the pool, too. Starting with drier hair before trying to dry it – genius!

Peepers Duke Readers in Orange

Now that I’m – ahem – old, and I need readers, I love how fun and colorful they are. I have a few pairs that are my go-to, and Peepers has so many different styles. How do I not yet have an orange pair? How awesome are these!

****

Those are some of my favorite things this year. Happy shopping!

Christmas, Decorating, Mr. KK, shopping, Target

I’m Torn Between 2 Seasons

November 18, 2022 littleshoeprincess

I think we can all agree that when November rolls around, summer is officially over. (I tend to hold onto summer for as long as possible, and will consider 65 degree October days basically an extensions of summertime). However, global warming is starting to mess with my logic, considering it was 75 degrees and sunny this past November 12th. The next day it was 20 degrees cooler, but that’s New England for ya.

November is a tricky time of year for me. We host Thanksgiving each year, so naturally I look forward to having everyone over, curating a menu and signature cocktail and eating, eating eating! Our house is decorated for fall, with leaves and pumpkins and oranges and browns. This is the first year I really got into fall decorating; and since orange is an accent color of our family room, the decor fits in seamlessly.

I love little houses! I have them out all year round, and decorate around them with the theme of the season.

But the problem with November, is that it’s not December.

While I like Thanksgiving, I LOVE Christmas. Like, LOVE LOVE. It is my most favorite time of the year (even better than birthday week), and each year I am itching to get started early. I am, however, shamed for these thoughts by Mr. KK and Little Mister. In fact, I took Little Mister to Target with me in October, and I happened to find some Christmas decor items in my cart (not sure how they got there?). When we got home, the little tattletale went right up to Mr. KK and yelled, “MOM BOUGHT CHRISTMAS STUFF!”

Thanks, a lot, dude. After I took you to Target for toys.

I also made the mistake of putting on Christmas music one morning while I was driving Little Mister around, and he ratted me out again! Where is this kid’s allegiance?

I’ve had our fall decor up two months now and I’m getting tired of it. I ran the idea of switching to Christmas BEFORE Thanksgiving, however Mr. KK was not too keen on the idea of eating turkey next to a tree.

So, the fall decor will stay up until the clock strikes midnight on Thanksgiving night and then it’s all Christmas, all the time.

When we were first married, Black Friday used to mean a fun day of shopping and lunch. Then we had Little Mister and after a two years of Black Friday fun when he could be in a stroller, we realized that crowded shopping and lunch we not as fun with a toddler. After that, Black Friday became Christmas decorating day!

So this year, the seasonal switcheroo will start early on the Friday after Thanksgiving, and go all day until it’s done. It takes hours to transform the house, and even longer with Little Mister wanting to “play” with my decorations. I’m not particular about much, but the Christmas decorating, that is MY project. Everything has a place, and I use photos from previous years to ensure the decor is where it should be.

And, of course, I have already been ~~secretly~~ purchasing new holiday decor items.

Here are some of my favorites:

Lit Village Stocking Holder from Threshold™

I loved this item at Target from last year, but it sold out quickly. I was so happy to see it back this year! I won’t be using it as a stocking holder; instead, it will fit nice on a shelf in my built in bookcase. And it lights up! How cute is that!

Flocked Bottlebrush Tree from Threshold

My decor color scheme tends to be in the cream, silver and gold family, so this tree will fit right in. It’s pretty tall, too, so will add some great height on the tops of our built ins. Also comes in green with colorful ornaments.

Bottle Brush Trees Gift Wrap White – Wondershop™

The key to a successful Christmas is having a strong wrapping paper game early on the season. I have already identified my wrapping color scheme for the season, and am up to my armpits in new wrapping paper, ribbons and gift tags.

T-minus one week until Operation: Christmas here at the house. Just have to get through turkeys and pumpkin pie, but my eye is on the prize. I’ll even be able to share photos before the end of November!

What’s your POV: Christmas decor before or after Thanksgiving?

Christmas, Decorating, Elf on the Shelf, Life, NaBloPoMo

November Blog Wrap Up

December 1, 2021 littleshoeprincess

Well, I (sort of) made it: 30 posts in 30 days (well, more like 27 posts in 30 days, but who’s counting???)

So on this very last day, I leave you with a summary of the month, that didn’t make the blog.

The Elf Is Back on the Shelf

He arrived the Sunday after Thanksgiving and has already been into lots of mischief. I have a love/hate relationship with this Elf. I love being creative and making him do fun things every day, however, I hate when my “Move Elf” alarm goes off every night (and occasionally after I’ve fallen asleep on the couch!). One BIG benefit of the Elf is that Little Mister pops out of bed each morning to look for him (instead of waxing on each morning for 20 minutes how it’s not fair that he has to get up and go to school), and is dressed, fed, and teeth brushed 20 minutes before we need to leave for school.

I leave with this Elf Inspo from years past (our elf was masked in 2020 because, well, COVID):

We Decorated for Christmas

In lieu of sharing my entire living room Winter Wonderland, I leave you with one of my favorite nooks: My Ode to Boston.

I Have Completely Abandoned Any Thoughts of Eating Healthy

Who wants salad when it gets cold? Not this girl. And who can stay on track with so many reasons to have a cocktail, the multitude of cheeseboards I’ll encounter, and the ease of ordering take out instead of cooking because truly, online shopping is exhausting.

This is my favorite fried chicken sandwich from Mikro Depot, who also happens to have the very best french fries in the universe.

We Have Officially Become a White Board Family

I never imagined I’d succumb to the white board, let alone hang it on my refrigerator; but, here we are. Even with one kid and barely any type of sports or extra curricular activities, our white board is filled with appointments, reminders to return library books, and notes when we are eating the school lunch (LOVE the days I don’t have to make a lunch). My favorite part of the white board is when it’s gleaming – all empty and clean – and awaiting it’s monthly mark up.

I’m the Note in the Lunchbox Mom

It’s me, the Mom putting notes in his lunchbox or snack bag every day. Sometimes I wish him a good day, sometimes I draw a silly picture, and other times, I make Mom jokes:

I Tried to Enjoy the Small Things

Whether it was reading an extra book in bed with Little Mister (and not writing a blog post for the night), or keeping the dogs outside a little extra on the morning walk to enjoy the sunrise, I tried to be present and in the moment. I think that’s my New Year’s resolution this year: be more present. Make more time for what’s important. And to clean out the hall closet.

This beautiful scene is literally in my backyard.

If you read even one of these posts this month, I hope you laughed a little, found a new favorite thing for yourself, or maybe tried a new recipe. Cheers to the end of blog month – and best wishes for a happy holiday season!

Category: Christmas

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