Traditions

I love how each family has traditions of their very own. It is so great that on Christmas each family does basically the same thing, but in a different manor. Everyone (that celebrates Christmas) wakes up early, grabs their stocking, and rips open the presents. But, not every family does it in that order or in the same way. 

For my family, we wake up when we wake up (there aren't any kids waking up at 6) which is usually around 8. We then grab a cup of tea and our stocking and open them up. In our stockings are individually wrapped little presents that we take turns going around opening (the stocking is by far my favorite part). After stockings, we eat breakfast. When I was a kid, we waited for my grandparents to get to my house before opening presents. Because we became accustomed to waiting for them, it's normal for us to take showers and eat breakfast before opening presents. So, usually after showering and getting dressed, we open our presents. My sister and I usually go around and find whose present is who's and makes little stacks in front of the person it belongs to. We then go around in circles and open the presents one by one. It always really bothered me in Home Alone 2 and in other movies when the kids see their presents and rip them all open, not even watching what each other gets. Those movies make it seem like Christmas is all about gifts, and not appreciating the thought that went into them. After presents, we start cooking for our Christmas dinner. My grandmother is in a nursing home, so we always go visit her and give her her presents around noon. We then come home, eat dinner around 4 or 5, and I sometimes go visit my dad and other grandma in the evening. That's my Christmas!

I have a really busy Christmas day, but it is wonderful in every way! Merry Christmas to everyone!

Oh Christmas tree...

One of my favorite things about Christmas is.... decorating the TREE!

At home, my mom is very anal about our Christmas tree. She perfectly strands the lights up and down the branches, twisting them back and forth. We buy a fresh Christmas tree every year, about 9-10 feet. It's a lot of work to decorate it, but is worth it, because our tree always looks beautiful. I'm not allowed to help her put the lights on it because it has to be perfect, which doesn't really bother me, I'd rather not have sap all over my arms. I am allowed to help put the ornaments on the tree! We have a lot of ornaments that are grouped together, such as all the characters of The Wizard of Oz. It is a lot of fun to place the ornaments in the perfect spot. And we have A LOT of ornaments, my mom sort of collects them. After the ornaments, we twist tie cinnamon sticks and place pine cones on the branches. The final touch are the candy canes!

Here's a look at our Christmas tree to the left!

Christmas lights!

One of my favorite things about Christmas are the lights! I absolutely love going to look at houses with amazing lights. There is a neighborhood that I go to every year in which all of the houses set their lights to music. It is incredible! After I go to that neighborhood, I go to the Florida Botanical Gardens in Largo, Florida which has a wonderful display of lights as well. It's a yearly tradition. Here is a video of a house that has a lot of hits on YouTube, it is very cool. The music is actually my ringtone right now, Wizards in Winter by Trans-Siberian Orchestra (I jam out every time my phone rings!).

Christmas time is here!!

I am so happy that the Christmas season has finally arrived! I love Halloween, but Christmas definitely has my heart. Yesterday, my mom and I spent the entire morning/afternoon decorating the house for Christmas. I love getting all the boxes out and setting everything up. When I was a kid, my mom would let me stay home from school for a day to help decorate the house...I loved that! Not only decorating, I love shopping for my friends and family. It is so enjoyable to me to search up and down for the perfect gift! Here are some awesome ideas for decorating your home that will get you in the spirit of Christmas! You can find all of this on Martha's website...she really is the greatest!

This is such a great idea for stockings! It is in the theme of The Nutcracker.

Such a beautiful pine cone wreath!

What a great way to add a little spunk to your pillar candles!

This is an excellent way to recycle your newspapers! How pretty and festive!

Cheese ball

One of my favorite dishes for Thanksgiving is actually not served for dinner. Each year, I make a cheese ball and we munch on it during the afternoon. It is requested for me to make at every family gathering. It is so delicious and easy to make and I am going to share with you my secret recipe. Guess it's not so secret anymore!

Ingredients
2 packages of 8oz cream cheese. Buy regular, not fat free crap.
1 package of Carl Buddig Beef (in your deli meat section)
3 green onions
2T Mayo
1T Lemon juice
Garlic powder

Directions
1. Let the cream cheese thaw out while you prepare the other stuff. Your wrist will thank me later.
2. Cut the beef into tiny pieces. I usually cut 3 pieces at a time. Cut into thin rows and then cut perpendicularly.
3. Cut the green onion into tiny pieces. Cut off the tip and then cut all the way down the onion in thin strips. Take the pile and chop those up too.
4. Throw the beef and green onions into a bowl and add the mayo and lemon juice. Add the softened cream cheese and mix well. Add a few dashes of garlic powder and other spices to your liking.
5. If it seems a bit dry or dull tasting, add more lemon juice, it will spice it right up!
6. Form the mixture into a ball and place on a serving platter. Tip: wet your hands before forming into a ball, this will make it easier to wash it off your hands.
7. Serve with Tricuits and enjoy!!

Friends on Thanksgiving

One of my favorite shows of all time would have to be Friends. I watched the show religiously when it was on the air and love to catch reruns as often as I can. When I think of my favorite Friends episode, 2 of them come to mind. I absolutely love "The One Where No One's Ready," when Ross is trying to get everyone out the door for an event. There are so many great quotes in that one! "Look at me, I'm Chandler. Could I be wearing any more clothes?"

My favorite episode of all time would definitely be "The One With All The Thanksgivings." All of the Thanksgiving episodes on Friends are amazing, but this one tops them all. I love when Joey gets the Turkey stuck on his head!

Pumpkin spice & everything nice

One of the best things about fall is the return of the Pumpkin Spice Latte at Starbucks. Hot or cold, it's like Autumn in a cup! Enjoy a cup in honor of Favorite Things Tuesday!

Favorite fonts

For a while, I was really wanting a tattoo on my foot. Now, I'm not so sure. To find the perfect font for my tattoo, I would research fonts and download the ones that I loved for free. There are some awesome fonts out there! For this Favorite Things Tuesday, here are a few of my favorites.

1. Jane Austen

2. Black Jack

3. Doctor

4. [ank]*

5. Jellyka, Saint-Andrew’s Queen

Today is also Voting Day, so don't forget to get out there and vote! Don't complain about people in government if you don't go out of your way to make a difference.

Death by candy corn

Halloween isn't just about the spooks and scares, it is about so much more. It is about disguising yourself in an outrageous costume, walking up to a stranger's front door, and asking them for candy. Who doesn't love that creepy aspect? Here are my Top 5 favorite candies during the Halloween season:

1. Candy Corn. What's even better than just the candy corn pieces is the pumpkin shaped candy corn. Don't eat too much of it or you will without a doubt feel sick!
2. Reese's. That commercial got it right. "What's the scariest thing about Halloween? Having to give away all of your Reese's."
3. Skittles. I love tasting the rainbow.
4. Laffy Taffy. I could seriously eat like 50 of these in one sitting. I would never allow myself to do this, but it is possible.
5. Tootsie Rolls. I could probably eat 50 of these too.

Happy Favorite Things Tuesday!!

Bewitched

One of the first things that comes to my mind for the Halloween spooking season is witches. For some reason, I love movies with witches in them! For Favorite Things Tuesday, I wanted nothing more but to indulge in my favorite witches of the season. Here's my Top 3:


1. The Sanderson Sisters. Better known as the witches from the movie Hocus Pocus who come back life to suck the lives of children. I wanted to be Sarah for Halloween so badly when I was a kid, probably the best character Sarah Jessica Parker has ever played. Bette Midler was fantastic in this as well.

2. Wicked Witch of the West. A classic green witch. I am proud to say that I was her one Halloween as a child. I even had the long green fingers and the wart on my nose! Funny story: when I was a kid, I had a dog named Misty which I loved. Each year in my town, we had a carnival for Halloween which included a haunted house. My mom took me into the haunted house one year and a witch said to me, "I'll get you my little pretty, and your little dog too!" I was mortified that she would steal my dog.

3. Hermione Granger. That's right, I'm a Potterhead. I love Hermoine and all her smartness. I thought about including Cedric Diggory (played by Robert Pattinson) to the list, but Hermoine is better and doesn't die in the series (sorry for the spoiler, but you should have read it by now).

Quarter of a century

The 25th birthday is a major milestone for a young adult...and I've reached it!! Seriously, time flies by so fast! When did I get so old?? In honor of my major milestone, I wanted to share with you a few fun birthday cakes I found online made for a 25 year old!

Being that it's Favorite Things Tuesday, I figured it was fair to share with you my favorite type of birthday cake. I don't really like cake, with the exception of red velvet cake, homemade, or Publix cake (I know, I'm a freak). I also like cheesecake and cookie cake, but I don't classify those really as "cakes." My favorite birthday cake, hands down, would have to be ice cream cake. I love Dairy Queen's ice cream cake especially!

Happy Favorite Things Tuesday and Happy Birthday to me!!

Did the little piggy cry wee wee wee all the way home?

Happy Favorite Things Tuesday!!

Sometimes there's those commercials that just make you laugh every time you see it. No matter how many times you watch it, it is always funny. Geico has had some beyond terrible commercials in the past (stupid cavemen anyone??), but they have really turned it around recently. My favorite commercial that's out now is the little piggy one. The combination of the little piggy wee-ing at a high octave then speaking with a deep-ish voice, and the fact that the piggy is holding pinwheels gets me every time.


My favorite commercial of all time would have to the be the Starbucks commercial that was aired a few years ago. It was for the Double Shot Espresso, and was to the song "The Eye of the Tiger." It was magical. I sometimes watch it online just for kicks.


Enjoy my favorite commercials!!

The smell of Leaves

Happy Favorite Things Tuesday!


Being that it's finally Autumn (yay!), I wanted to share with you one of my favorite products exclusive to Fall. In terms of senses, everything associated with Fall is wonderful...I love the sight, look, feel, taste, and mostly the smell of Fall in the air. To me, the smell is somewhat of a mix of cinnamon, pumpkins, apples, berries, and cidar spices. One of my favorite products, that seems to encompass all of those smells into one is Bath & Body Works' seasonal scent Leaves. Last season, they carried everything for it, from hand soap to shower gel. This season, they carry the smell, but only minimally. Just recently, I went into Bath & Body Works in search of a refill for my wall plug-ins, and they carry it in the Leaves! Eurica! It's now been plugged into my wall for a couple weeks now (I had a head start on the season) and it smells delightful everytime I enter the room. I highly recommend it if you want to walk into an Autumn Wonderland everyday!

*Also, today is my mom's birthday! Happy Birthday Momma!!*

Barely there

Happy Favorite Things Tuesday!!

If you are like me, you have tried your fair share of make-up products. For a while, I was an avid Mac consumer, then when I joined Mary Kay as a consultant I had everything of that brand. After hearing wonderful things about it and it being highly recommended from several of my friends, I decided to give bareMinerals a chance. Having some pimples that I like covered, I was apprehensive that it wouldn't conceal enough, with it being powder and all. I have so say, this conceals better than any other product I've tried and I have been pleasantly surprised by all of the products!

My first purchase was the bareMinerals Get Started Kit, in the Fair. It came with everything to start you off, including a few brushes. It was an overall good investment. After I had such good luck with the Get Started Kit, I decided to purchase the Complexion Enhancers Kit. This comes with a few more things for the face, including a Faux Tan (bronzer), Pure Radiance (sparkles for your cheeks), Feather Light Mineral Veil, Well Rested for Eyes (goes under the eyes and makes you look alert) and a few more brushes. I really like this kit and all of its contents. Although the containers are really small, they will last a while because you only use a very light amount of these products. I also wanted a blush of some kind, so I purchased the color Vintage Peach, which is subtle yet a nice pink shade. I'm happy to say that I now love bareMinerals!

How about you, do you love bareMinerals?

Banana bread

Happy Favorite Things Tuesday!

I thought I would share with you one of my favorite recipes for Banana Bread. I can't take credit for it because I found it online, though it is very time consuming to find just the right recipe. This banana bread is delicious and is definitely my go-to whenever I am in the mood to bake, or if I have a bunch of over-ripen bananas on the counter. Follow these directions and you're on your way to yumminess!

1. Gather your ingredients.
2 cups all-purpose flour (I like to do 1 cup all-purpose and 1 cup whole wheat)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 eggs, beaten
2 1/3 cups mashed over-ripe bananas (about 4 average size bananas)

2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

3. Combine. In a large bowl, combine flour, baking soda and salt.

4. Cream together butter and brown sugar in a separate bowl.

5. Stir in eggs and mashed bananas until well blended.

6. Mix banana mixture into flour mixture; stir to moisten.

7. Pour batter into prepared loaf pan (9x5).

8. Bake in preheated oven for 60-65 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into center of the loaf comes out clean.

9. Glaze with an optional crunch topping. (Though it's optional, I tried this the other day, and it rocked my world). In a small bowl, combine 1/2 cup of chopped walnuts, 1 tablespoon water, and 3 tablespoons brown sugar. Add on top.

10. Cool bread for 10 minutes in pan. Then turn out onto a wire rack.

Enjoy! Please let me know if you decide to bake this and how you liked it!

Courtesy of allrecipes.com

All lacquered up

Happy Favorite Things Tuesday!! 

Like Thursday and Friday, Tuesday is now a designated day! I will be bringing out the Julie Andrews in me and telling you about some of my favorite things!

If you're a girlie girl like me, you love nail polish and find yourself in Trade Secret looking at the new colors. BTW, I was told that there will be some fantastic colors coming out for fall! I am pretty much exclusive to OPI nail polish, I just love the way that the brush glides...perfect in every way. I'm a little messy when it comes to applying, so I need all the help I can get. One of the best things about OPI is the names they come up with for their nail polish. Sheer genius and creativity goes into these names.

I just got a pedicure the other day, and chose Bastille My Heart, I love it! It's the perfect darkness with red. (Shown Right).

Another one of my favorite colors, a staple item, is Lincoln Park After Dark. Parents and old people will hate it, thinking you are suddenly goth by painting your nails black...but everyone knows that its not black, its a beautiful deep shade of purple. To stay with the dark theme, I also loooove Light My Sapphire. Its a lovely deep shade of blue with a little bit of sparkle. I've come a long way from those days in middle school, when the bright blue glittery color was popular.

More of my favorite purple shades would have to be "Eiffel For This Color", which is similar to Lincoln Park After Dark, but it's not quite as dark, and "Louvre Me Louvre Me Not." Louvre is more of a spunky purple, fun for toes.

In the pink family, two of my favorites are "Charged Up Cherry" and "Cha Ching Cherry." Charged Up Cherry is more of a pinky girlie girl color, while Cha Ching Cherry has more of an peachy pink color.

I've tried a few of the OPI clear coats, but haven't liked any too well. My favorite clear coat is definitely Rimmell's "Lasting Finish Pro." The brush is more of a square, so the bristles cover your entire nail in a nice swoop. It dries pretty quick too.

These are a few of my favorite things, what are some of your favorite OPI colors?