New colors!

I tried to find a template that was more "holiday"...but since I don't pay for this blog the choices I had were pretty boring. So my only option was to change the colors on an existing layout. Hence the red and green.

We're in the holiday spirit around our house. It's been decorated since November 27th. Tree up, lights on, stockings hung on our mantle (a real mantle this year, not the floating shelves we used as a mantle for the past three years at our old place - why some places have a fireplace but then don't install a mantle is beyond me...don't the two things just go hand in hand?) We had a holiday party with some friends last weekend so I baked Spritz cookies and made peppermint bark. Easiest recipe ever. I ended up decorating the cookies myself since Tito was out doing "guy" things like getting new tires put on our car. So not the fun I'd want to be having. Cookie decorating and baking sounded much more fun to me...plus I got to stay in my pj's while doing it!

It's been COLD here lately. 17 degrees each morning when I leave my house for work. Had some frost on my windows this morning that I had to scrape. For some reason it's been a really dry cold front so it feels colder at 17 degrees here than it ever felt at 2 and 3 degrees back in Maine. Luckily we moved out of our old place (the ice box) to the new place just in time. New place has all new windows that are triple paned and energy efficient. Heat kicks in fast (baseboard in the bedrooms and forced air in the living/dining rooms) so we're not too chilly for too long when we get home. Because of all the baking and heat being on all day on Saturday, we were actually really hot and had to turn the heat down and open the windows to air it out! That's a nice change from our last place. And surprising since we have cathedral ceilings in the livingroom.

Here's our holiday decor:

Tree - with Epi underneath

Mantle with stockings and nativity scene

Dining area

Breakfast bar area

Cookies decorated


Cookies waiting to be decorated and baked


Monet ready to help me wrap gifts (in her holiday scarf!)


Epi showing off her holiday scarf


Tito and I in front of the tree...nice to know we now hide it together since I'm getting so big!

This is a drastic difference from last year's photo of me in front of the tree!

See here:

Ahh...I keep telling myself I'll be thin once again...and have a waist back!

It's definitely all worth it though!