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Merry Christmas! Hope your holidays are amazing! Hug your family & get cozy. Here are some of my favorite Christmas pins. They {& their credits} can be found in my For The Hollerdays board!

Merry Christmas!

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Having only had 2 Christmas’s as a family of 3 {the first of which Austin was a month old, so it didn’t count too much} we didn’t have time to make a whole bunch of family traditions. Austin & I get to make new ones. Christopher & Austin will get to make new ones. This year will be okay because both of us will be with Austin on Christmas morning and neither of us will miss it, but I know in the mornings and years ahead it’s going to get a lot more difficult & possibly heartbreaking. But I won’t think about that now ;)

All of my Christmas decorations are in storage and the thing is PACKED literally floor to ceiling. I won’t let myself feel sorry for me because just thinking about the unit makes me so upset and angry, so I haven’t really thought much about it, not much about my childhood ornaments or Austin’s 1st Christmas ornament. What REALLY is important is that I am with my little boy on Christmas and I get to share this time with him.

We weren’t able to get a tree this year, but are house sitting for my BFF. Her tree was begging for more pretty ornaments and I lucked out on some amazing 50% off deals at Kmart and stocked up on some gorgeous ornaments and tree trimmings.

I thought decorating this tree would be a disaster, but I really only got frustrated when Austin kept wanting to stand on the hooks. Boys ;) He had a great time and is super proud of HIS branch with the 3 ornaments hanging from it! I can’t BELIEVE he is old enough to understand decorating it. He says “Christmas tree!” every time we see one. He’s aware that Santa Claus brings presents. But I know he doesn’t totally grasp the concept. I can’t wait to see his eyes light up when he sees all his presents under that tree in less than 2 days!!!! Making new traditions with this sweet little man really does make me excited, and in a few years when my life is a little more put back together, I can decorate a tree and look at these ornaments and they will remind me that what really matters in the Christmas season is my little family & love. I can look at these ornaments and be reminded of how much I have grown this last year and all the things I have learned about myself, being a mommy, relationships, and life. These ornaments are our new beginning!

What are your Christmas decorating traditions?!

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& don’t forget last year’s!!!!

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To prove I’m still alive, here are some recent pics from my iPhone!

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I haven’t been a HUGE Christmas fan in the past, I despise how Hallmark-y and materialistic people can get. But since having Austin, the excitement has come back a bit! With all of our ornaments and Christmas decorations in storage and not much of our own area to decorate, I headed to KMart to buy some new stuff knowing that we were starting new traditions and would have new things to celebrate with.

For once Austin didn’t flip out while we were in the store and sat still most of the time ;) We had a great time picking things out. Austin LOVES his new snowman ornament the most I think!

Not sure what’s up with the lazy eye and funny face lol but he played with that snowman forever!

PINK!

My favorite! And yummy cupcake ornaments! :)

We got TONS of stuff, including a tree skirt and star!!!

I was super excited that they had so much pink and color and not just a ton of old lady decorations ;) We got a lot of really cute tree trimmings that I know I’ll continue to love every single year! Check out my Google+ album with all the shopping photos and deets!

What are your tree decorating traditions? Do you buy new stuff every year? One special thing annually?

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It’s the holiday season, and if you’re anything like me every year that means you’re wishing you had just a little (or a lot!) more cash to play with and buy gifts. Well, here’s just what you’ve been wishing for! I’ve teamed up with some great bloggers to offer not one, but 2 cash giveaways. You can enter one, you can enter both, or you can enter none (but that’s just silly!). Winners will be announced on the 23rd and will get paypal sent directly to them! So enter below, and then head on over to Little BGCG to enter the second giveaway!

Good luck!!!

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Here are some pins that I’ve lately really really loved and keep pretty close to my heart ;) One or two of these actually brought me up from the dark :) Hope you enjoy them, and for more, check out my Inspiring Pinterest board!

Link up!

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As you know, we’re a litte Yo Gabba Gabba fanatical in this house! So when looking for a birthday theme for the big 2! for Austin this year really was a no-brainer and I couldn’t have been happier with how easy it was! I scoured the internet and Pinterest for MONTHS for things to do. I used some things I found online, but in the end, I just kinda went with it and stopped stressing. He is 2! Not sweet 16 :)

As for decorations, I {fyi- when I say “I bought” I really PROBABLY mean “Christopher bought”… It’s good to have a Baby Daddy ;)} went simple. We got a ton of balloons and streamers and one of the helium tanks from Walmart. Thankfully all of the Yo Gabba Gabba colors are primary, so it was super easy to find whatever I needed. I used Austin’s Yo Gabba Gabba toys as props!

Come in!!!

On the entry table were the favor boxes and DJ Lance Glasses. And of course DJ Lance!!!

The glasses were AWESOME, I really am SO glad I got them, and plenty of them :)

I got a Muno & Foofa cut outs from a local mom who also threw a Yo Gabba Gabba birthday for her daughter awhile back. They were seriously a STEAL and were THE HIT of the party!

For cupcakes I used Beth’s Clear American cupcake recipe. I bought the cupcake toppers from two different shops on Etsy. I think they turned out PERFECTLY!

Cake pleeeeeeeease!

I invited a lot more people, but I think anyone else would have been WAY too many! It was a madhouse as it was! The number really was perfect. I missed some faces that couldn’t make it, but I was happy with the turn-out! Is it dorky that my favorite part was the end of the party, my 3 best friends and I were sitting downstairs chatting, while all the boys {kids & husbands, current & ex lolol} played up stairs. I had 3 girls that I have shared the last 3 months to 10 years with in one room and you could feel the love, no tension, just happiness. It was THE perfect moment.

The party was 99% success {we had someone coming to be DJ Lance, but he just DIDN’T SHOW. SO annoyed doesn’t even describe it. & I forgot to do THIS. ugh.}. I did want to do a lot more printing of coloring sheets and activities and making more crafts, but I just didn’t want to spend the printing $$ or the time. It ended up GREAT in my book and I had one of THE best days of my life!

If you have any questions about the party please let me know! I’d love to help you out!!!

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Now that Thanksgiving is over we can chat about Christmas ;) I’m not a huge believer in “no Christmas music until after Thanksgiving” {I do think it’s a little ridiculous to have lights up before Halloween is over… unless your house is dressing up as Christmas for Halloween. In that case, well done} because for ME the Holiday season is more about lights and presents and Santa. It’s about family and values and enjoying. If you’re able to luxuriate in these comforts in life, you’re beyond blessed.

Some of my favorite holiday comforts are:

Scarves & Boots. I hate the cold. Hate it. I hurts. But there is something about pulling up a pair of warm fur-lined boots and wrapping a chunky scarf around your neck that makes you feel all lovey and squishy inside!

Family. I know most of us groan and complain when we have to visit far-away relatives. It can be a pain, it can be stressful, it can be a little chaotic. But there is this one moment when you’re sitting there, snuggled up with your family, laughing and reminiscing, when you realize THIS is home, and THIS was worth all the “trouble” it seemed like it would be at the beginning.

Chili. I love it. I already stated I hate being cold. And chili is warm, which is funny since it’s called Chili, which sounds like Chilly, which means cold. May be the confusion is what makes it so fabulous..? ;) Pair with some crackers and cheese, I could eat it every cold day.

New Friends. You’ll meet them. You may not talk to them ever again, but the joyous atmosphere of the holiday season will absolutely put a smile on your face and make you stop and think for one second & pass the elderly woman your buggy, or hold that door open for just another moment for the busy mom behind you. Kindness is abound and may result in either a quick, breathless “thank you” or the beginning of a new friendship. At the end of the day, we’re all here for the same thing, to love & be loved in return, so we’re all friends ;)

Babies. Okay so Austin isn’t technically a baby anymore… DON’T REMIND ME. He will always be my baby! ;) But watching the holidays through his wide toddler eyes refreshes my outlook on the whole season. When the winter holidays started feeling monotonous and repetitive, I was blessed with the sweetest most amazing little boy in the world. And to SEE things for the FIRST TIME through him is really amazing. Last year he loved the lights and loved the food and loved the happiness. But this year? He will understand it. He will not only enjoy it, he will experience it! I can’t wait to let him decorate our tree and live the family traditions I’ve held close to my heart for so many years.

Austin hanging ornaments on the Christmas tree at church!

Whether it be tangible or abstract, the holidays hold a comfort that everyone can appreciate. What’s yours?!

Comfort is the perfect gift for everyone on your holiday gift list, so be sure to take advantage of Tempur-Pedic’s Buy 2, get 1 free pillow offer! I was selected for this sponsorship by the Clever Girls Collective.

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