Counting down.

We're on the COUNT DOWN! 7 Days til Santa comes! :-) Things have been so much fun, I haven't been too stressed. We're able to do something for everyone. It may not be much, or a lot in dollar value, but rest assure that it was very well thought out and it's from the heart!

Having my husband home in the evenings is a big help. He is here right in time to relieve me from my mommy duties, while I start dinner. We get to eat together every night, and go to bed together every night. It's amazing. We thought out all of our Christmas gifts together, and I shopped for most of them. But we're able to wrap them together. We make a great team, he wraps, I decorate. It's my favorite! There may not be a huge gift in the box, but I like to make it pretty and do what I can to surprise you. This year I have been thinking so much about what Christmas used to be like when I was growing up. I've even had some conversations with other friends about how we felt on Christmas eve. Our different traditions and memories and such. I've decided that I want to do away with how we've made things now.  I want to create wonderful memories. It's not about the fancy gifts. It's about the thoughful-ness of the act of giving. The family, and traditions. I want my children ( and myself) to have wonderful memories when they are adults.

We had some friends over and made a " ginger bread community" ( one of the traditions in the making!) Isn't it a cute little community? --- I had my house eaten. HMPH. I am going to let someone build it for me next year and I will decorate it! Kinda the same with the gift idea. hehe. All in all it was great fun. We had a blast with friends too.

My little elf is getting excited to. She just doesn't know what is coming her way!

I'm hosting my first " holiday " event here. Again, another tradition I would like to start having.

I have the Campbell family coming over on Christmas Eve. I'll be making my first HAM! Along with candy yams, whipped cheesecake, and oreo balls. I'm excited to do this and hopefully will be able to do this every year. This way on Christmas day we can just go to the big family get togethers, and we will have our Christmas morning to ourselves as a family.