1. Deck Them Halls
I wanted to wait until we were at least in early December before we started decorating for Christmas - Thanksgiving wore me out, prepping the nursery and baby laundry has been on my mind, and I admittedly wanted it to feel more like Christmas outside (it was warm-ish and rainy a few days this week!). Now that I've had Christmas music playing as my soundtrack all week and am sipping a hot chocolate at my desk, I am officially READY to decorate! We're going to get our tree tomorrow morning, and we'll work on decorating everything throughout the day. There's something about this being our last Christmas just the two of us (three, counting Molly) that makes me really want to just enjoy every second of the month of December that I possibly can. Goodness knows this time next year things will be different with an 11 month old baby girl!
2. Baby Girl Clothes
It has taken everything in me to not buy all of the sweet holiday outfits for CFK to wear next Christmas! Our bank account is going to be in serious trouble if Baby Gap and Janie and Jack are anything like this year (and let's face it, they always nail the holiday apparel for littles!). Not to mention holiday jammies - what's cuter than a little one in Santa jams? Nothing, I tell you!
Full disclosure, this last one might have made its way into my shopping cart. I mean, it's perfect for Valentine's Day, yes?
3. Me Want Cookies.
Call it Christmas, call it cravings... whatever you call it, this gal is wanting COOKIES. I have a million Pins saved of various holiday cookies and (much to Brian's excitement) have decided I'm going to bake a batch this weekend. My plan is to bake a few, freeze a few (for when cravings hit - thanks Mal for that idea!), and to bring a few in to work on Monday. Lord knows if they're in my house, CFK will surely be able to tell and urge her mother to indulge... and indulge again. I'm determined to sample all of these before 12/26!
4. Yankee Swap
We were invited to a Yankee Swap party with a bunch of Brian's friends and their wives/girlfriends. It's been FOREVER since I've participated in a swap that wasn't either with family or girlfriends, and I'm at a loss as to what gift I should take! The limit is $20, and I know zero guidelines on whether or not it's a joke swap or "stuff you can actually use" swap - I tend to prefer to buy for the stuff I can use swap, personally. Any ideas? I'm so bad at this stuff!
5. Kindness at Christmas
Maybe it's being a grown-up at Christmas, or maybe it's the fact that we have a baby on the way, but I've felt more and more of a pull this year to be purposeful with acts of kindness towards others. I know that we want to raise our daughter to know kindness and how good it feels to help others, especially at this time of year when so many people and families struggle. Brian and I put together a huge donation pick-up for Big Brother, Big Sister, and I'm searching for somewhere to volunteer for a day around my birthday. I'm making an effort to do little things that I likely forget about too often - letting someone go ahead of me in traffic, holding the door for a hurried shopper when we're out and about, paying for the person behind me when I get coffee in the mornings, making myself smile when I feel like I'm getting stressed and worked up about silly things, like waiting in line or someone cutting me off in a parking lot.
They may seem small, but it's the little things that build up to make my heart feel really full, particularly at Christmas time when I realize how blessed I am to have a roof over my head, a loving husband, a wonderful family and extended family, our sweet Molly girl, and this sweet little baby on the way.
I made a gift guide of things under $25 the other day that might help you with the Yankee Swap. Those christmas outfits are adorable, and I fully support that heart dress since it is just too cute! Jess at Just Jess
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