Blogger app AND Christmas Overkill!

Hey guys! Just trying out this new blogger app...well it's probably not new, but new to me. Lol
Hope you're all having a great Humpday!!


Question...do you use this app? Do you find it useful?

Christmas Overkill!

So I spent last weekend at my Dad's. It was his 74th birthday party and so I figured I would get two birds with one stone and decorate his house for Christmas at the same time.

Every year it's the same thing; put up the tree, village, nativity, lights...yet every year when I begin unpacking it all, I'm always overwhelmed by the amount of Christmas decorations my Mom has collected throughout the years. She always loved Christmas, it was her thing. Everything she has ever received from her four children, she has written our name on the box and, sometimes, the year it was received. I remember as a child, I would sit on the couch and watch her tirelessly decorating the tree. Once she was done, it was our job as the spectators to stand back and point out any places on the tree that needed more or less of something....lights, ornaments, etc. We were not to actually 'decorate the tree' but rather, be the extra set of eyes. lol I always thought this was peculiar. But now I understand, and I have adopted the same peculiar Christmas decorating habits. And my boyfriend loves to point that out to me. Haha!

So since my Mom passed, nearly 3 years ago, Dad has appointed the 'daughters' as the Christmas decorating lackeys. So my sister and I have reluctantly taken on that responsibility each Christmas since. This year, due to circumstances, it was actually the boyfriend and I that got wrangled into it. Again, like every year, I sat in the middle of the living room and nearly got swallowed up by 'Christmas Overkill'. Needless to say, I've slowly (and secretly) been putting things back into the Rubbermaid containers as I unpack. There's only so many ways to 'stylishly decorate' for Christmas with a room full of Snoring Santas, singing plush animals and angels by the dozens. I truly believe, sometimes less is more. My mother, however, may disagree.

Dad and my handy boyfriend got to work on the village, while I set up shop in the tree decorating department. This is where my 'learned peculiar behavior' comes out in droves. I, finally, finish the tree after tirelessly hooking and twisting and hanging one billion things on this poor tree's limbs...then ask the boyfriend to point out the places that need more or less of something. :P I really, truly do understand the need for a second set of eyes at this point. After going around, and around, and around, and around the tree with lights, beads and ornaments...you kinda feel like it all looks the same, at least for the next hour until the wine kicks in. ;)

Of course this is only one room, the Christmas Overkill theme follows through to the entire house. But I think Mom would be in her glee that we continue to take such pride in the upkeep of her tree and village traditions. :)

After that weekend I went home to start on my own place!

So....what Christmas traditions do you have at your house?


Sidenote:
Please visit my other blog, Secondhand Class to see my craftier side. :)

And be sure to comment and subscribe while you're there! :)

Woe is Me!

It's Christmas...already? Well, not yet, but nearly! Wasn't it JUST Christmas...like, the other day? Ugh!
Ok...don't get me wrong! I like Christmas as much as the next (sane) person but there's so much pressure to find the right gift for everyone. And yes I am aware that I am indeed solely putting all that pressure upon myself. No one is expecting greatness or some huge extravagant thing under the tree. However, if I am buying presents I want it to be something useful, wanted, needed, etc. by that person. There's nothing worse than the look of dread on another person's face when they've opened your gift. The look that says to you 'What was she thinking? SMILE and say thank you, like you mean it, I can always pawn it off on someone else later.'

What?? Haven't you done that?? No, me neither! Never! Honest...

Oh...or when someone else already gave them the same gift, which they've already opened before yours. I mean...yes, two baskets of bath products are great and it will probably last them until next Christmas, but is that really what we want? Uniqueness and originality is what we are all striving for. Aren't we? I want you to LOVE my present!! When someone asks 'Was Santa good to you?", one of the first things you think of is the present I gave you cause you love it so much!! :D

Alas, there are less than two months left before that big day arrives. I have started my shopping, I bought two presents so far. But it seems I have the equivalent to writers' block, but for shoppers...shoppers' block? Erm, no. Anyways, whatever it is, I have it. And I know in my heart that what I should be doing is making my presents, since I claim I'm all crafty and shit (pardon my, erm... well, it's not french). Thing is, between you and I, I'm a closet crafter. I have all the supplies in the world and I only craft by myself, for myself. I'm really not confident enough to get out there and show my stuff to the world, craft speak, not my STUFF stuff. :P

But a friend just asked me to make her some Christmas cards....oh my! And as I hate to disappoint, I said yes. I went out and bought what I needed. Now I just have to get started. I've wanted to start an Etsy store for such a long time but can't get the confidence or motivation to do it. Blah!

Anywho, that's my dilemmas lately! Closet craftiness and Christmas woes. lol

 'Just me being silly' :)

So, how do YOU choose the perfect gift?

As always comment and subscribe! :)

And Life Goes Back to Normal...Sort of!

I've been absent for too long here and I've missed it. However, I have a perfectly good reason...err, reasons. But you don't want to hear them....do you? Nah! Long story short... packing, moving, unpacking, working, blah blah blah!

Hey! Question! Is the recession still happening in Canada? Cause I'm gonna tell you, the job scene isn't pretty. There are lots of minimum wage jobs available, as always. But I didn't spend the last 15 years of my life going to college, paying back student loans and busting my ass getting credible work experience and excellent references...just to get a job flipping burgers (no offense)! Touchy subject? ...Perhaps a little.

Anywho...I'm back! So I need to get crafty to keep my idle hands busy...and my mind sane. And thanks to those lovely people that donate their craft supplies to the thrift stores I've got lots of new things to keep me busy.

But for every good misfortune there's always something to counter it. :(

Apparently, I lost a few things in my move. Yes I know, everyone loses/breaks/misplaces things during a move. Right? Well, not me! I'm way too organized for that to happen. I make a list of every box, listing all the contents inside. This is what I always do, every time I move...and I've moved plenty. Well I did the same thing this time but for whatever reason, it didn't go the way I'd expected. First, I lost the list but I'm a trooper and carried on unpacking (after I tore everything apart looking for the list). First I unpacked all the clothes, bedding, linen...then it was the kitchen and bathroom, of course. Everything else could wait (cause I'm an organized control freak and still looking for my list). When we put the furniture together, we realized we were missing 2 couch legs. How exactly does one lose couch legs?? My friends tell me that could only happen to me...c'est la vie. I managed to find identical ones at the thrift store....unusual thing to see but made my day!

Also missing...kitchen knife file (no wait, that resurfaced), brackets/screws for my curtain rod, all the hardware to hang my full length mirror (the handy boyfriend took care of that one on his own) and the hardware required to put my 70s phone table back together (blah! still looking for those, even though everything is unpacked and I'm sure they will never turn up).

Oh and did I mention I found my list? Yup! I found it one night when I was getting ready for bed, after the entire apartment had been unpacked and everything had found a home. It was right where it was supposed to be, exactly where I looked and couldn't find it. Am I a little sore about it? No! ...Maybe :)

So what have you lost in your move(s)?

27 dresses.....or none.

Soooooooo. My best friend in the entire world is finally getting married! I'm so excited for her!! Not because I'm a fan of marriage, but it's because she's wanted it for so long and he finally (FINALLY) proposed! And I'm a bridesmaid!! :) So I have to find a dress. Not an easy task since I don't even own one and don't wear them unless I am forced. As far as being a girly girl, if it goes past make up and hair then I'm out. The last time I wore a dress was my wedding, 10 years ago. This is no easy feat let me assure you. So I've enlisted the help of my very stylish niece. Thankfully she is more than willing to assist her poor, helpless (favorite) aunt. lol

So at least this is more motivation to get my ass in gear and get healthier.

As always, comment and subscribe. :)

Times have definitely changed!

I found this website randomly tonight. I thought it was pretty funny how things have changed over the years. It's a 1938 dating guide for women. I thought it was interesting so I'm sharing it with you! :)


http://alligator-sunglasses.com/post/390543309/1938-dating-guide-for-single-women

As always, comment and subscribe! :)

And Christmas is over once again.

So I wrote an entry last month and thought I should post an update to it. The update is in regards to the blog entry linked below.

http://runrup.blogspot.com/2010/12/merry-christmas.html

This is the result that I fully expected. There was no time to take a picture beforehand as it wasn't standing very long. lol I redecorated afterward and it remained standing for the rest of the week, but I caught one of the cats jumping into the tree to sit in the branches. So I took it down. I got tired of replacing the ribbon and decorations every morning. Haha! Ahh well! (Note one of the cats sitting at the bottom of the disaster).

But I spent part of Christmas at my Dad's with the fam, so it was pretty good all in all. Though Santa played a dirty trick on me and gave me the flu. I would have preferred coal since it's more useful. But he made up for it by finding me the cutest boyfriend, so it's all good. :P

Hope you all had a great Christmas! All the best in the new year! As always...post a comment! :)

A Little Birdie Told Me....

Just saw this blog while I was searching for some decorating tips. Thought I would pass it along, it's a great site.