The Inevitable Christmastime Crunch

First of all, I would just like to say a big THANK YOU to the state of Maine for being 50 degrees in the month of December. It's making climate adjustment so much easier. Yet, we had snow in October? New England makes no sense (but we love it anyway).

So I've got 17 days until Christmas and way too much stuff to do. How about you guys? Three Christmas parties to cook something for, lots of presents to make or buy (and relatively no money to do so). I'm also finding it really hard to just buy things for people. I look at things and they are just so wasteful and such throwaway gifts. I wanted to go out on Small Business Saturday and get some holiday shopping done but instead went to visit my Uncle who had just had his kidney removed. Obviously a visit to a recovering family member was way more important than Christmas gifts. I'm thinking since today is my day off I'll make the rounds down in Norway center and check out the bookstore and yarn store. My mom wants this specific cable needle she can't find anywhere and the one thing my dad will NEVER complain about is a book. Or, even better, I'll check out the second hand bookstore. I have always been frugal (aka cheap) but being BROKE around Christmas time is making me really think about every single gift I'm purchasing. It's a big eye opener. I've also been trolling the internet for good DIY gift tutorials. If anyone has a good link, please post it in the comments. I'm thinking I'm going to try making soap as well to give away with some crocheted washcloths. I'm also thinking that this is going to be the most last minute (and least consumerist) Christmas EVER.

How about you guys? Are you making an effort to buy or make handmade or to buy local? Do you have any good tips? Or any great (and CHEAP) Christmas potluck recipes?

Until next time,

xoxo Stacie

Christmas Cheer & Other Holiday Ramblings

The aforementioned cookie swap went well! All us ladies crowded around my coffee table, drank spiced cider, ate buffalo chicken dip, and just chatted (with my Christmas tree sparkling in the background). Plus, HELLO, tons of amazing cookies! My only wish is that others could have come (5 ladies showed up though, which was more than enough for a successful hang out party). I'll definitely do it again next year, no matter where we are.

All my Christmas shopping is DONE! I have a few more packages to send out to friends and family, and maybe a couple small things to put in my husband's stocking but for the most part everything has been completed. It's definitely taken some of the burden off by being able to give some homemade gifts. I spent a lot of the time my husband was deployed hanging around the Farmer's Market and whipping together some preserved treats, as well as making lots of Christmas ornaments. Last week I also made a batch of dog cookies to give to my husband's aunt and our friends in Florida who have some four-legged children.

This year Christmas is a bit bittersweet; we've decided to nix any travel plans and just spend Christmas here in North Carolina with some friends who are staying as well. I'm excited to start our own Christmas traditions and spend it with our own little Marine Corps family but I'm a little sad to not spend time with our family back home (especially our parents).

Other than that I've just been trying to plan out our Christmas menu. My best friend and her husband will be returning from a cruise so we'll be feeding their tummies as well! I'm trying not to stress too bad but I'd like to do something remarkable. Making Christmas memories and all that jazz.


Well, that's it for now. A merry Christmas season to all!

xoxo Stacie

The lost art of the cookie swap...

I was daydreaming about Christmas cookies yesterday, specifically the cookie walk at my great aunt's church. You paid three dollars, they gave you a coffee can covered in pretty paper and you walked down the huge table of cookies and pointed at which ones you wanted in your container. Every year I looked forward to this event when my mother and I visited all the Christmas church fairs. It was the best feeling to walk out the door with a can of home baked cookies without having to bake an entire batch of each one. Surely, I thought, I could do something like this and get back that feeling of tradition?

I answered, COOKIE SWAP! My friend and I ran to Wal-Mart for a few things and I found the most perfect paper for invitations (gingerbread men!). Last night I wrote them up (including rules, of course) and my husband was pretty impressed. Sometimes he forgets my momma raised me on Martha Stewart. So now I, although excited, feel a hint of anxiety because this is the first "get-together" I've hosted as an adult. I've invited about 8 women and I hope they all come and have a great time. I'm just glad to have my apartment filled with wonderful people enjoying the Christmas spirit and the smell of cookies.

Now...any tips on what to do with my husband from 1:00-4:00 on December 4th?

xoxo Stacie