seeing [blue] dots

my photographer started doing weird things...

like making shadow puppets...

clearly not amused

I call these my "disco ball" earrings

Piggybacking off of my post from Friday, this is what I wore on Christmas. We had a quiet Christmas, just us two (four, if you count the pups), then had some friends over for dinner. We drank glühwein (a German spiced wine), ate yummy food, had delicious homemade Kahlua over vanilla ice cream (divine, I tell you), and played Cranium & Rainy Day Golf.

Maybe I'm just postponing boxing up all of our Christmas decorations, or that we've been busy every weekend since Christmas, OR that we just celebrated belated Christmases with both sets of parents this weekend, but I have to wonder, why is everyone in such a hurry to be done with Christmas (my mom and mother-in-law excluded - they left the trees & stockings up for us)? 

Seems like the preparation and anticipation and start in October (after Thanksgiving for myself), and come 26 December, as soon as gifts are exchanged and the eggnog all drunk up, decorations are put away and Christmas cheer has to wait another year. It seems almost taboo to think about it after that day, let alone talk about it to some people. It's on to the next consumer driven holiday, Valentine's Day (don't get me wrong, I like V-Day, but let's be real, folks - we can all be a little bit guilty of "BUY ALL THE THINGS!" during Christmas). I'd like to advocate for less consumerism and less hype about Christmas & peppermint mochas & stockings & who has the best lights or the best tree - isn't the point of it to celebrate Jesus's birth, and spend time with loved ones? This weekend with both sets of parents, and last weekend with my extended family really drove that home for me - it's about spending that special time with the people you love, not the gifts, or who spent how much money, or whether or not you got that ONE thing you REALLY wanted, but didn't really NEED. Going forward, I plan to be sure that my actions jive with the words I've just written - easier said than done, I know.

So, in the words of a wise man who called himself Dr. Seuss...

“And the Grinch, with his Grinch-feet ice cold in the snow, stood puzzling and puzzling, how could it be so? It came without ribbons. It came without tags. It came without packages, boxes or bags. And he puzzled and puzzled 'till his puzzler was sore. Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn't before. What if Christmas, he thought, doesn't come from a store. What if Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more.”

― Dr. Seuss, How the Grinch Stole Christmas! 

My intent was not to offend anyone who loves the holiday season - these are just my thoughts & reflections

top: Ann Taylor

pants: Aéropostale sort of similar below

shoes: Kohl's sort of similar below

earrings: Kohl's

Festive

This outfit is several weeks behind - it's what I wore Christmas Eve. I had to work (bummer, huh?), but we did get to go home early, so I was able to take outfit pictures outside during daylight! Woot woot! I figured if I had to work on Christmas Eve, I might as well wear something with a bow, something sparkly, and something red - it doesn't hurt that the item with the bow was in the form of my new bulldog tee. 

Christmas Eve started my 5 days in a row off. I'm going to be completely honest with you - it was aaaaamazing. I slept in, wore sweatpants, drank lots of coffee with Irish Cream, and spent lots of time with my favorite men & woman (husband, bulldog & bulldog). I had a huge list of things I wanted to get accomplished, but I hardly did any of them. Instead, I lounged, relaxed, soaked in the time with my sweetheart, and truly enjoyed my down time. We had no plans to go anywhere for Christmas, so the two of us stayed at home and laid low. Going back to work was TOUGH. OY. SO. TOUGH.

Now that Christmas is about three weeks behind us, do you think I'm the worst blogger ever? 

Or, are you thankful that I keep reminding you of the holidays & celebrating well into January?

We're having (belated) Christmas with both sets of parents this weekend - I'm a fan of drawing out the celebrating :)

linking up with:
Two Thirty Five Designs for Casual Friday
Simply Lulu Style for What I'm Loving Friday

shirt: J CREW Factory similar below

sweater: from a friend - Banana Republic similar below

pants: Aéropostale similar below

shoes: KMart similar below

Merry Christmas

This is the Christmas card we sent out this year, and as it's now officially Christmas (mountain time)...

Merry Christmas to you and yours

from our little family to yours