Oh Christmas Tree

Although Christmas vacation was supposed to be a relaxing time full of non-excitement, it proved to be much different than planned.  Overall it’s been good, but very eventful and exhausting.  Because of everything going on, blogging was once again neglected.  If my blog was a plant it would have died by now!  Fortunately it’s not and my readers (whoever is left anyhow) are all still around!  I’m assuming you’ve all had your own things going on as well and probably not too much time to be sitting around reading!  I’m a little behind but I’m working on catching up!  Really, I am!  As promised, I finally have another post with pictures!  

Christmas is my all time favorite holiday.  It isn’t even the actual day of Christmas that I love so much but mostly the time leading up to it.  Everyone seems nicer (except AZ drivers), lights and decorations are everywhere, and beautiful songs fill the air.  Christmas is just amazing!  Because I love Christmas sooooo much, I seem to have accumulated a fairly large amount of Christmas decorations.  I'd post pics of them all but I think I'd be uploading all day!

Last year we decided to upgrade from our little $30 tree we had been using for years.  We found one on sale for an unbelievable price and now have a 9 ft. tree.  We paid less for the tree than many of the other 6 ft. ones so we were pretty proud of ourselves!  We’re renting our house until we decide where we want to settle down and now whenever I look at houses I’m concerned about vaulted ceilings to accommodate the tree!   I guess that’s what I get though!  Every year I typically go shopping the day after Christmas and I had built up a pretty big collection of ornaments.  Luckily, this meant that we had plenty to decorate the 9 ft. tree!  That tree is what I call our “pretty tree”.  The ornaments match for the most part and it looks pretty organized and well-thought out.   Getting the star on top is always a little tricky but Mr. C manages pretty well!

We always have a second tree though, and this is the one I love decorating the most. This tree has colored lights and the special ornaments – the ones that are unique and hold sentimental value.  Every year my mom gets me an ornament to represent something that happened that year.  This tree also holds ornaments from my childhood and ones that have been given to us over our years together.   We’ve bought ornaments from Disneyland over the past few visits and these flank the tree as well. I’m thinking we might need a slightly bigger tree because I had to leave off quite a few this year!

Almost every other room in the house is decorated with the exception of the office and guest room.  I feel like I finally had things figured out this year and the decorating was at it’s best! 

My mom always had a Christmas village that I LOVED setting up.  Over the years pieces were added and the decorating became more an more intricate.  I wanted a Christmas village of my own eventually.  A couple years ago we got our first piece for Christmas.  We’ve been adding to it ever since.  I think the Kohl’s employees know us now because we’ve taken advantage of the sales of their village pieces numerous times this month!  We’ve snagged a few display pieces for great prices and have managed to get everything we’ve bought on sale.  We had a lot of fun this year setting the village up, even though it meant moving our fish tank twice (I picked a bad spot the first time so after refilling it with water, we decided it had to be moved a couple days later.  Oops!).  In the end, it was all worth it.

I love sitting on the couch with all the Christmas lights on, the “normal” lights off, candles lit, and Christmas music playing.  There aren’t usually too many of these moments with the hustle and bustle that always occurs in December, but when I get these moments I try my best to enjoy them.  Every year I think that I’ll leave the decorations up for awhile longer to enjoy but then Christmas comes and I’m ready to take them down right away.  I’m thinking it’ll be pretty busy when we get back to AZ so we’ll see how long they actually stay up.  We did manage to overlook one of our mistletoe balls last year and it stayed up for the entire year because we were too lazy to move it and then at a certain point we figured there was no point!  We'll see if we remember to take it down this year :)  Not that Mr. C complained any.....

Whatever's below the Energizer Bunny. Energy wise anyhow - not actually below physically.

Do you even remember me anymore?  I’ve been pretty crazy busy the past few weeks so I apologize for the lack of writing. I think some days I forgot I even had a blog! Some awesome stuff has happened in the past few weeks so maybe I’ll write about that eventually. Some super non-awesome stuff has also occurred but I will not be writing about that because I don’t want to relive it again and who really wants to read that anyhow?

My mother once told Mr.C that I’m exhausting. Not exhausted but exhaustING. As in, I’m a lot of work to be around. The two of them are constantly amazed at my energy level. If something needs to get done, then it just needs to get done! I do use my Mt. Dew as a sort of power boost. It’s like nitrous for me (the car kind, not the kind they use at the dentist although for the record I LOVE that stuff. It makes the needles oh-so-less-scary)! I’ve also discovered that at a certain point, lack of sleep becomes normal and I’m able to get less and less sleep and more and more done! Unfortunately I’m not the energizer bunny (I'm just whatever's below him on the energizer scale) and at a point I do hit a wall, usually crashing one night and going to bed at a ridiculous hour like 7 pm. One time I actually went to bed at 6 pm. That was just terrible.

Last week was crazy but I feel so free this week (free of homework at least)! I've officially completed my second semester of grad school! That means 12 credits while working 40 hours a week, keeping our house in order, feeding my husband on a semi-regular basis, and trying to have a life! Sometimes I think I do challenging things just to prove to myself that I am capable of succeeding! I also have begun procrastinating which I think is just another attempt to prove to myself that I can still do things (and do them well), even when it seems impossible. The case of my awesome APA formatted 15 page research paper I wrote in one day is a great example of this! The only issue with me doing things like this is that I really have no sympathy for people who complain and really have nothing to back their complaints up with. I definitely buy into the idea that if you’re going to do something then you should do it to the best of your abilities! I do think this leads me to have high standards for everyone around me, something that has proven to not always work out too well.

My advisor told me that taking such a full schedule and working full-time was discouraged. I also love proving people wrong. It makes for some great motivation! Not only have I been fine handling the classes, but I’m also rocking the grades. I’m scared to actually write this and possibly jinx it but I’m hoping for straight A’s this semester. So far I’m halfway there! Apparently my other professors have busy lives and are taking their sweet time with grading final projects and tests.

While the semester was a lot of work, I’m pretty proud of myself. I’m super modest today, can’t you tell? There was a point where I wasn’t sure I was going to make it and considered dropping a class. I know there are plenty of people who think I’m crazy for getting a master’s degree especially when I still don’t know exactly what I’m going to do when I grow up! There are the others that look at me like I’m talking in a different language when I say what the degree is in (M.Ed. in Human Relations in case you’re wondering). It’s like déjà vu because that happened for my Bachelor’s degree too (Design Management – don’t ask!)! I think I’m finally to the point where I really don’t care what these people think! I’m just excited I’ll have my master’s degree at 25. I’ve also learned some amazing things about psychology, child development, and a bunch of other random things! That 15 page paper I wrote was about medical procedures used during childbirth and I can say now that I have a much better grasp of exactly what I want during labor, although we still have some time for that. I should also note that it slightly terrified me. I think I’m just one of those people who loves school (most of the time anyhow).

So anyhow, I guess the point of this post is that I’ve successfully made it through this semester! I wish you all a wonderful 9 more days to prepare for Christmas. We’re flying back to Nebraska in 2 days and I’m elated to be going home. I don’t make it back as often as I’d like so I’m always grateful when I get to see my family for the holidays since I miss them throughout the year. I’m sure I’ll be writing more about that later though. I promise my next post will actually include pictures and won’t take weeks to write!

Where my b*$#@*s at?*

*The title of this post was created by Mr. C.  He seemed REALLY excited about it so I just went with it.  If you’d like someone to blame, please direct your comments to him :

The holiday season is a time for appreciating how blessed I am.  This weekend I was reminded of how fortunate I am to have such wonderful people in my life.   I spent time with some friends, my grouping sister (we met at the Walk to Emmaus), and my husband this weekend.  The Christmas season makes me extra mushy so you’re getting a very mushy post today.  Don’t say I didn’t warn you (yes I do know that the title of this post does not convey a mushy message)!

I love the type of friends you can just hang out with.  There doesn’t need to be any specific plans (although that’s helpful) because no matter what it’s fun.  That’s how my high school friends were and I’ve learned since graduating that friends like that are actually pretty hard to come by so I’m glad I was able to snag a few more since the high school friends I stay in touch with are pretty far away.  This weekend was one of those hanging out with friends weekends.  I NEEDED a weekend like this.  I had been so stressed last week that I just needed to relax.  I did have a few school related things I fit in so the weekend wasn’t all relaxing, but overall it was great.

Friday night was spent with someone who has progressed from an acquaintance five years ago to a super close friend now.  I joke that she’s my free therapist but honestly this woman keeps me sane sometimes.  She’s always there to listen and I know she’s always got my back.  We made dinner, then whipped up some cookies, played Mario bros. and drove Mr. C crazy with our lack of coordination during the game.  It was the first night in awhile where I didn’t do anything productive and it was great!

After doing some group work and running around Saturday morning, Mr. C and I spent the late afternoon/evening with one of my college roommates who also happens to be one of our favorite people!  We headed to the mall and ended up hanging out in the kid’s play area.  I should mention that she does have 2 wonderful little boys who were playing so we weren’t being creepy!  We talked and watched the kids who were way more entertaining than I would have imagined.  I think at one point I was laughing so hard I had tears in my eyes.  I think the other parents thought I was nuts.  We met her husband at Red Robin and got our money’s worth of fries!  All in all, it was a great afternoon/evening.  I then went home and collapsed on the couch.  I made it to bed by 9 that night for some much needed rest. Great day!

Sunday morning we met my mother-in-law at church.  I love that we see her every week.  Normally the three of us do lunch but this week I met my grouping sister after church.  Grouping is basically meant to keep us on track with the changes we made in ourselves during the Walk to Emmaus. My grouping sister and I haven’t been meeting too long – a little over a month now- but I usually look forward to it.  I say usually because some days my bed is very hard to leave but once I’m there then it’s all good!  We always seem to get off topic but it’s okay, that’s part of what makes it so fun. 

After grouping and some shopping I caught up over the phone with a friend from college who’s since moved away.  It was great hearing how her life is going and her future plans.  It seems like we’re always able to pick up where we left off when we talk - something I always marvel at.

Sunday night Mr. C and I had a much needed date night at my most favorite restaurant!  We usually save the Melting Pot for anniversaries; however I decided that we needed an extra nice date this week.  With all the finals stuff, Christmas events, and work I felt like we hadn’t really spent any time together in weeks.  This, I decided, was a requirement for an extra nice date.  I love the food, the quietness, the romantic setting, and the food – did I mention that yet?  It’s just a great place. If we could afford it I’d go there weekly!  Luckily for me we cannot because my pants would not appreciate that after awhile.  It was great though; we enjoyed our food and actually talked!  After heading home, we snuggled up on the couch to watch The Santa Clause 2.  Super cheesy but a great Christmas movie and a great end to a wonderful weekend.

As I was getting ready for bed I thought of how sad I was that the weekend was ending.  But, I also thought of how blessed I was to have such great people in my life.  It’s been said that people come in and out of your life as you need them.  It can be so hard to let some people go, however if I had not done that, I wouldn’t have had anyone I mentioned in this post and I simply can’t imagine life without them now!  So, thank you to all of my wonderful friends and family who are in my life, even if in a small way.  I am truly blessed to have you in my life and I can only hope you feel the same about me!

Thanksgiving, #40 and #41

It seems like forever since I’ve sat down to write anything.  My past few weeks have been packed with so many things  PACKED!.  Much of the past few weeks have left me feeling like I’ve been pulled in opposite directions.  I’ve been stressed, tired, and not always the most fun to be around.  Luckily Mr. C is very understanding and I know he always has my back. I’m so very thankful for him!  Amidst all the pulling and stressing of classes, work, and random commitments, I have actually worked in some fun though!  I can’t really remember that much of the past month or so (fuzzy from tiredness, not from drinking!) but I do distinctly remember thanksgiving so that’s what you get to read about!

Thanksgiving has never been one of my favorite holidays.  I never really understood what all the hype about stuffing one’s face was all about.  I don’t’ like gravy, mashed potatoes are okay, and stuffing just grossed me out.  I’m sure you’re reading this with your mouths hanging open in shock or disgust!  I don’t enjoy watching football either so that’s not really a game-changer.  Did you get that…game-changer!  Ha ha.  Ok, I’m done making jokes.  So, it’s surprised me how my feelings have changed since moving to AZ.  Every year thanksgiving seems to mean a little more to me.  It’s hard knowing my family is getting together and I’m missing it another year.  I’ve come to appreciate the time with family even more now that it’s pretty limited.  Apparently I did also care about the food because every year I find myself missing something – the twice-baked potatoes, cranberry salad, stuffed celery, or deviled eggs. 

Lucky for me, Mr. C’s family is here.  Every year there’s a moment where we’re all together, playing games usually, and I just think of how amazing/crazy it is that these people have all let me into their lives and their traditions.  These people that I didn’t know about eight years ago have become so special to me.  While things may be different with them, they have their own unique offerings.  This thanksgiving I appreciated the candied yams, a VERY long game of dominoes, the um…interesting….things that came out during “the game of things”, and the family that treats me as if I was always there.

Mr’s C’s aunt who we’ll call Aunt W. is an amazing quilter!  As you may remember, learning to quilt and making a quilt were things on my 101 in 1001 list.  I’m super lucky that Aunt W. knows how to quilt and was willing to teach me because I may have been out of luck on this otherwise!  She helped me quilt a pillow and by helped I mean that I would have been totally lost without her!  She was very patient and said that “we” needed to fix things whenever something was wrong, never that “I” needed to, which I loved.  It took a few hours but the pillow turned out great and it’s the perfect Christmas addition to our bed!  While it may be awhile before I’m doing a full quilt, I did enjoy it and am very thankful that I had such a great teacher!

The quilting happened Friday afternoon, after a super exciting morning of Black Friday shopping!  I never really NEED to go out that day but I just like it.  Maybe LOVE it.  I started going out the day after Christmas which is when I stocked up on most of our amazing decorations that make up like 10 tubs in our garage.  Eventually I realized that if I liked the day after Christmas, I would probably love the day after thanksgiving also.  So, one year we headed out to target around 9am to get a Christmas tree.  We decided to actually wait in line for the stores to open the next year and it was great.  I think we got luggage.  That was a dumb idea.  Dragging huge pieces of luggage through the crazy shoppers was not fun!  Waiting in line outside in Phoenix is a piece of cake.  Now this year we waited in line in Flagstaff.  Let me tell you that it was cold.  Apparently it was 7 degrees.  We arrived to Target around 2:15 and got in line.  We had a good spot too.  I asked what time it was and my response was 2:20.  After what had to be an eternity of shivering and trying to imagine being warm, I asked again what time it was, convinced that it had been forever.  Mr. C told me it was 2:30.  I tried to be ok, I really did but it was SOOOO cold.  My feet were the worst.  I didn’t make the best decisions regarding footwear and I couldn’t feel my toes.  I imagined myself telling someone “yes, I lost my toes in 2010.  I was waiting for a GPS that I just HAD to have.”  After repeating that story in my head over and over and Mr. C asking me if I wanted to go, I decided I couldn’t take it for another hour.  I know I used to live in Nebraska but I’ve become a wuss in my seven years here.  I know, I need to work on it.  I’m all over that.  Anyhow, we got in the car and drove to McDonalds to get breakfast only to be disappointed that they don’t serve breakfast at 3am.  Now tell me, what would you be ordering at 3am?  I can’t think of an instance when I would not want breakfast at 3am if I was at McDonalds.  Anyhow, we ordered, waited over 20 minutes, received a messed up order with a coffee that was leaking everywhere, and then drove back to Target.  We got in line again further down and waited for about 35 minutes.  In that time we reviewed our map and strategized.  The last five were by far the hardest. The no toe story popped back in my head but I held out.  The line finally started moving and we all cheered!  We got inside and powerwalked to the GPS and then split up to find the rest of the stuff.  As always, we got everything we went for!   Of course the stuff we went for wasn’t the most exciting but it did make it to the ad!  I don’t know that I should share this but if you’re reading my blog then you must be super cool (or super bored) and I appreciate you reading so I will share a bit of our Black Friday knowledge with you.  The line was wrapped around the store.  I think it was wrapped around twice actually.  The electronics line was about ten people long.  Every year we choose the electronics line.  It rocks!  We walked out with all our stuff about 5 am, an hour after opening time.  After sleeping for two hours we were as good as new!

So, all in all the weekend was great.  I spent thanksgiving being thankful and grateful for my other family.  I spent Friday enjoying the crowds and a patient teacher…and being thankful for my toes.

I also would like to mention how thankful I am to my readers. My group may be small but they are dedicated!  I’ll buy you dinner when I get famous!  I wouldn’t plan on that anytime too soon though….

I hope to be writing more often soon.  My brain feels like a mess trying to keep everything straight but I believe I have three tests and two projects/papers due in the next week or so.  After then my sanity will be restored, I’ll have more time to blog, and I may even find my motivation to work out that’s been hiding all semester!