Visit with the Big Man

Holland asked Santa for Jessie and Woody from Toy Story 3. Eden asked for the Magic Rise Oven to use in her pink cupcake making factory. I bet they will get what they wish for. They have been really good girls this year!

And the Winner Is.....

Thank you all so much for sharing your holiday traditions. I read them to the girls and they really enjoyed hearing about how different families celebrate:-)

So crazy that the very first commenter was the winner! Congratulations Stacy! I hope you enjoy your jewelry as much as I do. Lisa will be in contact with you with details on how to redeem your gift certificate.

And to everyone else...don't forget that you can still use the code preemie15 to get 15% of your jewelry order at Lisa Leonard Designs.

Here is a photo of the finished product (our tree), as well as some of Holland and Eden with their new ornaments from Bronner's (another one of our favorite traditions).

Holiday Spirit and a Giveaway!!

Holland and Eden helped me put up our Christmas tree tonight. Holland was especially interested and helpful this year. She is usually the kid who loses interest in a project pretty quickly, so I was pleasantly surprised that she stuck with me until the last ornament was unwrapped and on the tree. It was very sweet. I must admit however, that it was a bit of a trial for me. I am kinda what you might call...hmmm...a perfectionist?..about the tree. I like everything a certain way and I generally methodically put it up according to my own agenda. John gave up on helping me a long time ago because...I guess, maybe...I can be a little controlling when it comes to the tree. So it was tough for me to relinquish my control and just enjoy letting the girls help. But I did it! I let them help and I didn't freak out. I might move one or two (or several) ornaments (that ended up piled on two branches of the tree) while they are asleep, but I am pretty happy with myself for not getting all stressed and anxious about it! I still have a couple of finishing touches to put on the tree this weekend, but overall I am quite relieved to have it mostly done with. Now for the outside lights...

The girls were pretty healthy over the Thanksgiving holiday and we had a nice weekend spending time with both sides of the family. We both feel very lucky to have such lovely families who adore our kids so much and shower them with love. Holland and Eden enjoy nothing more than spending time with their cousins - they like their aunts and uncles too, but nothing compares to cousins! Last Friday we spent the day at my parents' house doing our annual tradition of stringing popcorn and cranberries for our Christmas trees.

I have had a little bit of trouble this year getting into the holiday spirit. I have that familiar feeling of being overwhelmed by life's usual demands, then pile on all of the extras like family parties, a dish to pass, putting up the tree, decorating the house, and SHOPPING (which I haven't even begun), and it can get to be a little much. But, now the tree is up and I am headed to Bronners on Sunday with my sisters for our annual trip, which will also include dinner at Zhender's and a couple of stops at the outlet mall on our way home. I am sure to be feeling the Holiday Spirit in full force any day now.

I did get an early Christmas gift that has me feeling all warm and fuzzy. I love, love, love my new daisy chain bracelet from Lisa Leonard! When I saw this bracelet on her blog I knew I had to have it. Daisies are my very favorite, and in a way I consider them my "signature" flower. As a bonus, the bracelet is personalized with Holland and Eden's names and I have been wearing it pretty much every day since I got it. Lisa makes such beautiful jewelry. I have a couple of necklaces that I also wear often and I continue to get compliments on them ALL the time. With the holidays coming up, it's the perfect time to get yourself (or pass along a hint to your special someone) a new piece of Lisa's jewelry. She has graciously offered to give my blog readers 15% off their entire order if they use the code preemie15. In addition to that one of my lucky blog readers can win a $50 gift certificate from Lisa Leonard! For details on how to enter your name in the drawing...read on.

I really love, and have always loved, holiday traditions...even when it takes me some time to get in the mood. For me, the holidays are even sweeter now that I have a couple of little munchkins to share them with. I can snap myself out of the funkiest of moods just by thinking about life from their perspective. They continually teach me about appreciating the small things in life and they help me to enjoy the magic and beauty of every season.

To enter your name in a drawing for a $50 gift certificate to Lisa Leonard Designs, please leave a comment on this post. To have your name entered twice, tell me about your favorite holiday tradition, or if you aren't quite feeling the holiday spirit, tell me what lessons the little people in your life teach you. Be sure to leave your name and an email address where you can be reached if you win! I will close the comments at the end of the day on Wednesday and all names will be entered into a hat (or maybe a bowl). I will let Holland and/or Eden draw one name and will announce the winner by next Friday, Dec 10th! That will give the winner time to place an order before xmas:-)