christmas meme

so, i got the idea for this post from dena's blog. i haven't done a meme for awhile and thought it looked like fun. i had serious second thoughts, however, when i realized that i should probably include christmasy pictures from around my house. yes, my house is decorated for christmas, but over the past couple of weeks in blogland i have seen SO many beautiful pictures of festively decorated homes that look a million times better than my humble little abode could ever look. i've never been very good at decorating and am sort of in awe of those people who's homes look to me like they should be on the front of a magazine. anyhow, i am including a few pictures even though i'm slightly embarrased to do so, but my blog is supposed to be real. and showing off my tree with crooked ribbon and off-kilter star....well, that's pretty real, right? :)

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags?
something about a bunch of gift bags under the tree just doesn't seem as christmasy as colorfully wrapped boxes, so i prefer the wrapping paper, even though its SO much more work. and more wasteful.

2. Real or Fake Tree?
definitely real. i've often thought of getting a fake tree just to save money in the long run, but the whole process of picking and cutting down the perfect tree is just too fun. not only that but the smell of a live tree in your living room....that has got to be one of the best smells in the world!

3. When do you put up the tree?
i'd totally be up for the day after thanksgiving. but my husband won't even think christmas-like thoughts until december 1st, so i'm forced to wait.

4. When do you take the tree down?
when i grew up, we always took the tree down on new year's day. but since tristan's birthday is on new years day, we make sure to have it down before then, usually the day after christmas.

5. Do you like eggnog?
oh, yes. with rum? why, sure!

6. Favorite gift received as a child?
i was five years old when the thing i wanted most in the Whole Entire World was a cabbage patch doll. i opened plenty of gifts that christmas morning, but sadly even though i had received some handmade doll clothes, there was no cabbage patch doll under the tree. that's when my parents sent us on a treasure hunt and the 3 of us (my sister wasn't born yet) all found our "big" presents hidden in my parent's bathroom. my cabbage patch doll had red hair and green eyes. i named her brenda, after my kindergarten teacher.



7. Do you have a nativity scene?
you should ask josh this question. no, on second thought you probably won't want to get him started. yes, we have a nativity scene. we have plenty of nativity scenes because i LOVE them so much and its really the only thing that i actually collect. i don't think i could ever have too many. i really *only* have about 8 or 9 of them, many quite small, but josh doesn't really share my utter infatuation with them. he thinks we have too many. i think he has too many dvd's. so there.

8. Hardest person to buy for?
my dad. he has such specific hobbies and interests which makes it difficult to find something he will actually really like. i remember buying him "happy feet" socks for christmas when i was a kid. those and dark chocolate bars from purdy's. poor guy.

9. Easiest person to buy for?
up until now i'd have said my mom, but this christmas it was WAY too easy to buy for tristan. this is the first year we actually went christmas shopping for him because the last 2 years he has gotten so much stuff from the rest of our families and we knew he'd never notice if he didn't get anything from us. but this year we wanted to buy him a few things, so we did and tried really hard not to get carried away.

10. Worst Christmas gift you ever got?
ooh, i remember one year i had to tell the guy i was dating that i didn't want to see him anymore. it was christmas eve and he came to my door with a dozen red roses. i felt awful. i still ended up breaking up with him as gently as i could and i'm sure i kept the roses (the mennonite in me would never have thrown them away). it wasn't the gift that was so bad, it was just the timing of it.

11. Mail or email Christmas cards?
i love getting christmas cards in the mail. and i have a special little hangy thing on my wall to store them all in. sending them out, on the other hand... um, sorry guys but you won't be getting a card and a cute little family picture from us this year. i have no lame excuses either.

12. Favorite Christmas Movies?
by FAR "its a wonderful life", which is also my all time favorite movie. josh and i like watching "love actually" and "family man" and i was so excited when i finally got the 1951 version of "a christmas carol" a couple of years ago.

13. When do you start shopping for Christmas?
november. this year we were pretty much done in november, too. yes, i'm a little smug about that.

14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present?
oh, yes. we do a white elephant gift exchange every christmas with our church life group and i've recycled many gifts through that game.

15. Favorite things to eat at Christmas?
peppermint mochas and sugar cookies. oh, and my mother in law's creme brulee french toast on christmas morning. yum!

16. Colored or clear lights on the tree?
i grew up with the big, honkin' colorful lights where if one bulb burned out, the whole tree would go dark. i remember my dad screwing every single bulb in and how magical our tree looked when it was all finished. now, however i prefer the white mini lights. it just looks clean and pretty to me.





17. Favorite Christmas songs?
"it came upon a midnight clear", which is a carol you don't hear too much. and of course "silent night" sung by candlelight at our church on christmas eve.

18. Travel at Christmas or stay home?
christmas just wouldn't seem right to me if it wasn't spent at home. that being said, we did travel last year for christmas, to my old home in canada. i think of california as home now, but for some reason, i still find that i get a little bit homesick during the holidays. i think it has to do with the lack of snow here...amongst other things.

19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer?
dasherdancerprancervixencometcupiddonnerblitzen....and rudolph. i guess it does pay to have memorized "twas the night before christmas" as a child.

20. Angel on the tree top or a star?
a star. a very crooked star. for some reason, our tree this year didn't have a very solid branch coming out the top of it. so i found a stick outside and josh managed to rig it so that it stands up, but it still doesn't stand up straight. i don't mind, i think its kinda cute and quirky.

21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning?
always christmas morning. since having kids though, my mom started the tradition of sending one present that they can open early. and its always cute, warm and snuggly pajamas to wear to bed that night.

22. Most annoying thing about this time of year?
that we spend so much time looking forward to it, but then the whole season and true meaning seems to get smothered under so much busy-ness.

23. What do you enjoy most about Christmas?
the anticipation. and seeing the season through my son's eyes.

24. How did you find out about Santa?
i don't remember. i don't think my parents really did the whole santa thing. i used to think that he filled our stockings, but i can't remember a devastating moment when i realized that he wasn't real.

for those of you who (like me) don't have enough inspiration to write a completely original blog post, feel free to tag yourself and meme away!