{ It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas }

After a somewhat depressing Thanksgiving, it is now officially socially legally acceptable to decorate and start celebrating CHRISTMAS!!!

{Get Excited}



Before we proceed with all the Christmas excitement....I first want to share with ya'll a few things we learned this Thanksgiving:

 {1}

Working in a hospital, on a holiday (where disease and illness know no holiday/day of the week/gender/race/sex/age/social status and shows no discrimination or mercy), will prove your gratefulness for more than just your health. As much as I hated working on a holiday...I'm pretty sure all of my patients hated being there way more than I did. period. After an 8 hour shift...I was about 10x more grateful for the things we were thankful for in our previous blog...and then some.

{2}

Don't try and restrict yourself time wise (or in any other way shape or form) when it comes to preparing a Thanksgiving meal. You will fail at something...and there will be tears. My infamous mac and cheese...was pretty close to an epic fail. However, David (bless his heart), ate it anyway...and the left overs too.

{3}

Don't forget the giblets!!!!!!! Just because the packaging that the turkey comes in says "no giblets, no neck" don't trust those crazy Butterballs!!! There will be giblets!!!!! I however learned this a little to late...as in after we already ate and were dividing up the leftovers. There is a little waxy/plastic bag in the front...full o' giblets. Woops! Sorry ya'll...we probably have cancer now.

{4}

David pulls it together when I fall apart....without him I don't know how I'd make it through life. In our relationship...I fall apart about something insanely silly (like wanting regular lemonade instead of frozen blended lemonade) and David pulls me back to reality (by pointing out that when frozen lemonade melts it becomes plain ole lemonade)--- and this is why we're perfect for each other. David is always right.....and I love him for it.

 

Now that all that maddness is over (and by maddness I mean Thanksgiving AND my 3 day holiday weekend work stretch)....it's beginning to look alot like Christmas!!! Today we decorated....and by we...I mean David...and by decorated I mean cried. Allow me to elaborate....

On mine and David's first Christmas together I said "It's not Christmas unless somebody cries." He laughed and probably immediately thought I was crazy...and over the past few years....I think I've proved my emotional craziness on more than one occasion. I don't know what it is about Christmas...but somebody always cries...and by somebody I mean me. Today was no exception.

My fav thing about decorating day is when David goes up in the attic (which we don't have anymore...sad times #1...) brings down all of our decorations, and we get to go through all the boxes and remember all our fun cute decorations that I forgot we had. I then proceed to gush and cry over every single sentimental Christmas decoration/ornament that we own and reminisce about where and when we got it. This year was needless to say a little different...not only did I get to cry once (over our trip down memory lane) but also as David puts up the tree. This too was one of my fav things...putting up the tree.... (sad times #2 ensues here) however this year....our over sized decorations which looked great in our house....are a little too large for our new tiny apartment....our tree might as well be in the middle of our living room (even though it's against the wall and in the corner)...let the waterworks begin again!!!

David's fav part about decorating is escaping my emotional craziness to put up Christmas lights outside  (where we have cryfest #3).... I watched around our huge Christmas tree and through the siding glass doors as David creatively made the best of our sad excuse for an outside space (aka our balcony)...and had another tearful moment as he made our balcony look like a scene from Holiday Lights on the River at Saluda Shoals Park.

 

 I'm hoping to find some fun "traditions" for us to continue while we're here. First on my list is finding somewhere that hosts the Nutcracker Ballet. We went last year for the Columbia City Ballet's Nutcracker at the Koger Center and had the best time.

{On another brighter note} I'm super stoked to actually have a mantel to hang our stockings on this year!! Stockings are one of my fav parts of Christmas morning....mostly because I stuff our stockings with some super fun stuff!

 

While Thanksgiving might have let us down a little...I know our good ole friend Christmas will pull through! And now that all the tears are over and the stockings are hung, we're looking forward to traditions, a white Christmas, and all the magic and sparkle that is the Christmas Season! Bring on the crowded malls, the Christmas shopping,  and the start of a long winter!

 

{Let it Snow}