Christmas Top 10 List!!

I have to say I love all things Christmas! I know I'm a product of my environment, given my mom does as well, but I just absolutely love this time of year. If we only had snow, we would be in business!! So anyhow, back to the love of Christmas.... I mean how cool that every year we get to celebrate a Savior being born with all kinds fun that lasts for an entire month. Now I say March is technically my birthday month, but let's be honest, no else cares and really only people care for one day (March 6 if you're wondering)! :) So with that said I decided to do a Christmas top 10 List (in no particular order, because who could decide):
1. love decorating...hence the decked out apartment
2. i love the music and it plays non stop in my car from the day it starts until the day it ends (except this year it's non stop on my iphone/ipad since I hardly drive anymore)
3. wrapping presents...i absolutely love paper and ribbon and bows and it's a bit therapuetic to me to sit down and focus on something so easy
4. the food...my mom's Christmas dinner has got to be without a doubt the best meal I eat all year and we do not take it easy on Thanksgiving....just sayin
5. church....you gotta remember the reason for the season. i must admit i have not been to one advent service this year, but that is something i always look forward to doing with my family....christmas eve and christmas day church service
6. presents....now that we know the reason I can honestly say I love presents...both giving and receiving!!
7. lights....christmas lights put a little happiness in my heart
8. cards...sending and receiving. i love to hear from people by snail mail even if it is 1x/year. and as i said...i love paper, so this to me is an absolute must!
9. holiday baking....i love to bake and eat, and I even hosted a baking party this year
10. Christmas movies....come on, who doesn't love a little Christmas Vacation/Home Alone cocktail?? i mean you really only watch them one month out of the year AND  to be honest, those would make my top 5 move list any day of the year!!
So there you have it folks. These are the things I enjoy most surrounding this fun but short season. I did not mention my family, but I enjoy them all year round and am thankful for them every day. They are a shoe in so why waste a number on them when they already know I look forward to seeing them and how much I love them!! :) Okay, now for the picture countdown....I will do my best to capture all 10 things!!

our makeshift christmas tree....which we loved!

christmas flowers+ornaments....seen before, but still lovely! 

pretty paper...pretty ribbons

Is he more excited about what's inside or the beautiful wrap job....hmmm, I wonder?? 

what was inside..... new bag and perfume for me

new jacket, hat and sweater for him!! we made out well.

zoo lights in chicago!! so fun and so cute!

snow globe!!

this years christmas cards....thanks to my good friend lindy adams!

the products of a 4 girl baking+wine party!!

All Gussied Up....

Anyone wonder where I've/we've been??? Well with good reason. Took a mini hiatus there for a week or so. But do let me explain....We have been a tad bit busy. In a matter of 3-4ish weeks Beer and myself have started three new jobs combined. When I got the official offer for my "big girl" job they were not sure as to when I would start. It went something like this: "it might be November" "it might be December" ORRR "it could be as late as January, will that be a problem?" said to the girl who had already been unemployed for 2 months. December seemed the latest I could start without completely draining my savings and my sanity. So in a matter of sheer panic and remembering how awful ramen noodles taste, I thought a little income is better than none so I just got myself a part time gig at...wait for it....JCREW!!!! That's right I can sell and fold with the best of 'em (aren't you proud mom??). And wouldn't you know it, the day I accepted JCREW the "big girl" job called and demanded my attendance the next week. So it's been hectic, but also kinda fun and let's not even TALK about the discount!!! :) I will be done after/around the holidays, but may stay on with very limited availability.
And then there is AK....he's the big man on campus at our house right now as he landed his dream job in downtown Chicago. He started at this company called Slalom on December 5th and has been loving it so far. Slalom is a local consulting firm and the big bonus of this is, they staff locally, so NO. MORE. TRAVEL!! yipppeee!! But really this is a big deal, because he has worked so hard and totally climbed the corporate ladder (to him that is cool) and really made himself marketable to one of the best companies to work for. I'm proud of him and just the slightest bit jealous as his company is awesome, he works with awesome people and they do awesome things!! For example, AK had seriously been working there for a matter of hours when he got invited to their annual Christmas/Holiday Mascaraed Ball for that coming Saturday  (hence the gussied up title) and we had no idea what we were in for. This party was (I hate to sound 19 again, but I'm going for it) off the hook. Live band, 5 different food stations, open bar (which is nice when your names are beer and champagne), a photo booth, tons of people and the attire was formal/cocktail so you better believe we went shopping. Not only were all those things included, but we got to celebrate at the House of Blues all night...poor us, huh? It was a great event and since my wagon is hitched to his (generally speaking, not formally or legally speaking), I get to enjoy all these great perks as well. Good job Ak....you worked hard and waited for the best and you got it!! Kudos!!
Take a peak at how we clean up and all the fun that took place....

we clean up well....good job us!!

who is that handsome devil behind the mask??

pretty girl...but in all seriousness masks scare me which is why we got ones on a stick!! :)

a picture of our photo booth experience....beer & champagne at their finest!! love it!

shopping on Michigan Ave the night before....had to look my finest!!

It. Will. Change. Your. Life.

When girls get together there is always a theme to the weekend. It always seems as though something funny is said or done in the early moments of the weekend and then it goes on from there. Nothing was different about this weekend. My Mom and our good friend Jackie (a.k.a Fancy) came to Chicago for a visit..... And just so you know, Jackie acquired her name on a Florida trip when we accidentally stayed at a five star hotel that she was clearly NOT too "fancy" for....hence the name! Now that that is explained I can continue to explain our theme for this weekend...."it will change your life!"It all started late Friday night/early Saturday morning....
Mom and Fancy were driving to Chicago for a visit to the "big city" as they call it! They were traveling late because a few obligations kept them in Iowa until 7ish Friday night. We thought this was perfect, because it gave us (AK & myself) time to go downtown for dinner/check out the Christmas lights!! Before we knew it, we ate too much food and were forced into a free bottle of wine (HA!), so by the time we got home our food/drink coma had set in and there was no sign of Mom/Fancy. We decided to put sweats on and hang out on the couch and watch old Friends episodes while waiting. Unfortunately our exhaustion got the best of us and we were asleep in no time....the kind of asleep where you don't hear your cell phone if it rings or beeps even if a person calls up to but not limited to EIGHT times!! Woops!! With one wrong exit mom and Fancy were lost and trying to find their way on unfamiliar roads with their best resources sleeping. One would think your best resource would be your built in GPS, but when it's programmed to NOT take highways or toll roads, you may have a problem in Chicago. But that's neither here nor there, because they were lost, and not only were they lost, they were lost in a very low income part of town....also known as "the hood!" You can about imagine the anxiety of two white women cruising through this part of town in a Lexus at 2am....NOT GOOD!! Luckily for me and Andy they ended up arriving safely and a little bit more well rounded!! And not only did they arrive safely they arrived with Mom's first round of Christmas cookies. When I introduced them to AK at roughly 0230, I said, "These are delicious and will probably change your life!" Fancy responded, "Who needs cookies to change your life, when you can just drive through the hood!" And that was it....the theme was set!
Saturday: Saturday was a fun day! Once we got up, we wished AK well on his trip to Indy to watch the Spartans compete in the Big 10 Championship game and then we just hung out and got caught up. Morning was quickly ending so we hustled to get ready so we could begin the complete Chicago shopping experience. We went out for brunch at Southport Grocery (un-be-lievable food) and hit up shops all along the way to downtown. I'm sure you can imagine how the day went: "you have to eat this, it will change your life!" .... "you have to buy this, it will change your life!".... "we have to go downtown, it will change your life!" This means, we ate too much, spent too much, and went to countless places!! :) Considering the day was so great, we were excited for what the evening had in store. We went out for dinner, took in the first Big 10 Championship game (outcome unfavorable), and then hit the town with some new friends of mine in Chicago, and it ended up to be a really good time. After a long day of good eats, good shopping, good people and a good city....consider our lives changed!! :)
Sunday: All good things come to an end, which is how I feel about most weekends. AK arrived home late morning and we rushed off to lunch so we could squeeze in a few more minutes of Mom and Fancy being in town. They needed to get going so they could be back in IA at a decent time so we just grabbed a quick sandwich. I was so sad to see them go!! After their departure, I was on a mission to clean up and complete my Christmas decorating. I left to run errands and gather my final supplies while AK rested up from his boy/football weekend!! When I finally got back home we put the finishing touches on our week long decorating extravaganza. I tell you, AK was such a trooper with helping me so much and being so excited about all my ideas....he really has changed my life!! :)
And in all seriousness I must say the same about my Mom and Fancy. Without them, I would hate to know where I would be. We are all so similar and think of each other as family which I am so thankful for. We really did share so many laughs, a few tears, lots of advice....all while spending too much money and eating too much great food. It was exactly what the doctor ordered for all of us I think and I am looking forward to the next time I can host such lovely guests. They know they are welcome any time!!! Without question, these two people have changed my life....for the better!!! xoxo.

saturday morning....ready. to. go!

the Fanciest girl I've seen....

Michigan Ave....all light up!

shopping on Michigan....look how happy we are!! :))

shopping on Michigan...take 2. we loved it!

all dolled up!!

my favorite thing we did!! thanks to beer!!! :)

remembering the "reason for the season!!"

Christmas pillows....to die for!

my own little elf and such a trooper!! thank you!

Christmas flowers & ornaments!!