Ok... One more before I go!

Trees at the Electric Plant Johnson City TX.

Last night we did my favorite Christmas Tradition. Even if this was just the second year we did it. We went out to the Texas Hill Country Christmas Lighting Trail. We just stopped in Johnson City this year (last year we did Llano, Marble Falls & Johnson City) but even still it was down right magical. It is so much fun to see these small Texas Towns all decked out for the Holidays. If you live in Austin or San Antonio (or anywhere in between) you should make this a family tradition as well. It requires a little driving for a whole lot of fun. Miss. S was seriously in heaven!

Signing Off

Christmas Card Photo 2010

We are heading to Utah for Christmas. So posts will be sparse... if there are any at all. I hope that everyone has a lovely and safe Christmas and New Years. We return home January 3rd. Until then enjoy your holiday season!

Gift Recieving 101: On-Line Wish Lists

That's right I said receiving. There is something to be said about being a good receiver too. I've been told I am hard to shop for. Now of coarse I find no truth to that, but in order to help my Husband with his shopping around this time of year I always put together an email complete with links. Per his request of coarse. Sometimes he uses it sometimes he doesn't, but it always gives him some ideas. Amazon has made this really easy with their Wish List feature. I know a lot of people are using this feature more and more, and I would just like to offer up a little advice in regards to using this handy tool. Whenever I create my Christmas List for Denny I make sure to put things on it in all different categories and price points. This year it contained things from a book to a sweater to photography classes. There was such a variety of things that no matter what his budget he could figure out something that would work. Don't I repeat don't put only expensive items on your list. Some people may not have the budget to drop $50 or $100 on you. So include items that are $10 $15 and $20 as well. That way you won't be disappointed when they don't get you something from your list. Better yet just don't be disappointed if someone gets you something that's not on your list. Some people will use it and some people won't, and you know what? That's ok. Receive all gifts with a smile!

Gift Giving 101: Thinking Outside the Box

Our Christmas Gifts last year. I have a serious thing for Hounds-tooth.

I've thought about this a lot lately. As Miss. S is starting to get older there's a lot more I want her to participate in. I would love for her to take dance, swimming lessons in the summer and preschool is right around the corner. I know a lot of people are in the same boat, and thinking about the cost of these things makes it a little overwhelming. Instead of another toy or sweater or book consider something that doesn't fit in a box. Think about your grandchildren, nieces and nephews or even your spouse. Is there something this person is really interested in learning or doing? Grandparents you might want to consider donating to a season of soccer. Husbands treat your wife to a couples cooking class. Get your boyfriend a lift ticket instead of the usual hoodie. Let me be clear I'm truly not throwing down hints for Denny. He has already shopped for me and I am positive I will love whatever he gets me. I'm just giving ideas of things you could do that are different. Something that you can't put into a box. Help them learn a new skill or develop their talents. I'm sure they would love it.

Technical Difficulties

Our internet has been down all day. So please excuse the lack of posts today. I may or may not have one up by the end of the night. Thanks for understanding!

SUPER!!!

I didn't blog yesterday because I spent all day working on these. So I deeply apologize. In my family we have a tradition of drawing names instead of giving to every person every year. Now that we are all grown and have families we draw families. This year I have my sister Stacy. She has three boys. The first two are twins. To be honest I don't know them really really well. I live in Texas and they live in Utah. I adore them and we always have a lot of fun when we do see them. Not to mention they are great with Miss. S. I had a hard time figuring out what to do for them though. So I decided to tap into their love of video games and make them Mario Brothers T-Shirts. Mario and Luigi for the twins (naturally) and Toadie for the youngest (of coarse). I used the tutorial on MADE for Freezer Paper Stencils. It was really fun to make and pretty easy. You can kinda tell that Toadie was my first one though and Luigi was the last, but all in all I love how they turned out. Don't be surprised if I do more with this technique later on. I think this baby in my belly needs some cute onsies or something.

Gift Giving 101: Get Personal

Image found on CocoShack

The last tip was to be thoughtful. What's more thoughtful than a personalized gift (such as the silhouette)? Either handmade or purchased it's always special to get something with your name, initials, or another special element on it. It only takes a few minutes browsing through Etsy to see how many fun options are out there. You could do art work like the picture above. A keepsake ornament like this one from Lisa Leonard. For kids you could do plates or cups like the adorable ones from Sarah & Abraham. You can do a DIY project such as this really cute custom banner, initial pillows, or wall letters. The possibilities are really endless. I'm pretty sure anything can be personalized these days. Giving your gifts a personal touch elevates them into something the receiver can have as a keepsake. Your gifts will be the stars under any tree. So get personal and the people on your list will love it!