Christmas Time Is Here

I don't mean to totally skip Thanksgiving. We actually had a wonderful Thanksgiving and it's one of my favorite holidays. We spent lots of time with both sides of the family and everything went smoothly and we had so much fun. Elliana was very happy to spend so much time with her cousins, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and well, most of all her cousins ;-). Unfortunately though, I forgot my camera once again and I have nothing to show for it.

Yesterday was one of my favorite days of the year though. The day that we get to break out the Christmas music and put up all of our Christmas decorations! We also enjoyed some eggnog while decorating. I think eggnog is one of Ellie's new favorite drinks. :)

This is the first year that Elliana really got into it. She had so much fun helping us decorate the tree and yesterday morning she plopped herself in front of the tree just to sit and stare at it. There's nothing like seeing Christmas through the eyes of your child. I really can't wait to see how she reacts to everything else that comes with the holiday season this year.

I put most of our Christmas decorations on the blog last year, but here are some pictures that I took yesterday and I just wanted to share them.

This is the Christmas pillow that sits on our couch.


Here is a view of our stockings. Elliana's is my favorite. Probably because it was handmade by my sister Courtney.


Here is our manger scene and angel candle holder. Oh yeah, and that bowl usually has some sort of Christmas candy in it. You've got to love Christmas candy too.


You can't tell from this picture because Elliana is only half-smiling, but she was so excited to take a picture in front of the Christmas tree.


And of course I can't go without mentioning my new Christmas design. My sister Jenn did another amazing job! I LOVE it! I have to hand it to her, in the midst of waiting for her 4th child to arrive, she's still finding time to let her creative juices flow and crank out some amazing new designs. Thank you SO much Jenn!

I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving and that you get to enjoy some time decorating for Christmas too.

Welcome Fall!

Tomorrow marks the first official day of fall and I couldn't be more ready or excited. I've mentioned it many times before, but this is definitely my favorite time of year.

Unfortunately, the weather around here has so NOT reflected this time of year. It's been in the 80s and 90s and I am SO ready to see and feel the 60s and 70s! I've been dying to pull out my sweaters, jeans, and sweatshirts. (Sigh) Hopefully soon.

Last weekend my mom and sisters all got together for a girls night out. All of our husbands were busy so we decided to take advantage and have some fun of our own. We started out with dinner and then spent the night at Hobby Lobby (I had a gift card that was burning a hole in my pocket) looking at and buying fall decorations. I had a blast, and it really helped to get ideas from my family. I bought some new fall decorations for our home.

Courtney helped me put this new centerpiece together for our kitchen table. The Yankee candle scent is "Autumn Wreath". It's my favorite fall scent:



I bought a new garland of leaves and pumpkins for our mantle:




Here is a close up of the garland:




and, I bought this fall welcome wreath for our front door:

Now I just need a big (real) pumpkin on our front porch. :)

Speaking of pumpkins, this time of year always puts me in the mood to bake. I especially love anything pumpkin (pumpkin bread, pumpkin muffins, pumpkin cookies, and my favorite, the pumpkin spice latte from Starbucks).



Too bad I'm not drinking caffeine right now because of the pregnancy. :( I also LOVE to bake gingerbread or gingerbread cookies. Oh yeah, I can't forget my love for apple cider too. Actually, most any hot drink will do. :)

I also can't wait until the weather cools down so I can make my favorite soups and chili's. There's nothing like hot soup when it's cold outside.

Another favorite about fall? Season premier week. This week some of my favorite shows start up again. Tonight is the season premier of Glee. Yes, I'm a dork but I'm a music lover and I have become a HUGE fan of this show.



and Thursday night is the season premier of The Office, an old favorite of mine and one of the few shows that Caleb actually enjoys watching with me. Truth be told, The Office is one of his favorite shows too.



And of course, fall would not be complete without fall sports. I love watching Football on Sunday afternoons. There's nothing like snuggling on the couch, eating your favorite football snacks and rooting for your favorite team. GO BRONCOS!!

We went to the Broncos game this past Sunday and it was miserably hot, I'm talking the kind of heat where you're begging for mercy. I think I drank a gallon of water during that game. I have always been freezing cold when I've been to a game in the past, so feeling that hot was definitely a foreign feeling. I guess I just can't win, I'm either freezing or baking in the sun. Needless to say, I prefer to watch the game from my couch. Or anyone's couch. You get the idea.

The other fall sport that is a huge part of our lives is Caleb's volleyball team. I don't see Caleb much in the fall due to all of his practices and games, but it's so worth it to see how much joy he gets out of coaching his team. Elliana and I really enjoy watching the games too.

Fall usually goes by way too quickly for us. It's like they say, time flies when you're having fun. With all of the yummy food and fun fall activities to enjoy, I'm sure we'll be having plenty of fun.

It's Beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

I've been so excited to show my Christmas decorations! I've had them up since right after Thanksgiving but I haven't had a chance to get pictures on the blog until now.

I guess that's what happens when you're planning your daughter's first birthday in the midst of Christmas season craziness. ;)

I love how my house looks at Christmas, it seriously makes me want to cozy up next to the fire, drink some eggnog and listen to Christmas music with my family.

Here is the wreath that hangs on our front door.



Here is our Christmas Tree, it's in the corner of our living room. Can you believe that this will be our 5th Christmas as a married couple and we still don't have a star or an angel for the top of our tree?! I seriously just need to go out and buy one on sale after Christmas this year. Right now we're just using a cross ornament for the top. =)


Here is our mantle with lights and stockings and all.


In the center of our mantle, we have a small manger scene. I like this one because it's so unique.


Here is one of our Christmas stocking hangers.


Here is Elliana's stocking. My sister Courtney made it for her. Didn't she do a great job?! I just love it.


Here is our other manger scene, the reason for the season. I love this one because it's almost identical to the one we had when I was growing up.


Here is our beautiful Christmas table cloth.


...and our centerpiece at our dinner table.




I think I got everything.

Can you believe Christmas is almost here?!