…so today I’m sharing this one (and my answers) that I found on Pinterest.
T or T Holiday Edition:
Real tree or fake tree: When we first got married, we bought a tree that lasted for years. Then, we purchased another artificial one and didn’t have great luck. So, for about six years now, we’ve picked out a tree at our favorite place.
That being said, you know I love my two pencil trees from Michael’s. They stay up November-January.
White lights or colored lights: I think one year we had colored lights on our tree (probably a request from the kids), but otherwise I do prefer white lights.
Matching pjs or matching Santa hats: Well, I don’t know about matching, but I’m all about Christmas/winter pjs for myself. The kids have kind of “out grown” that phase, but I still always buy them Christmas (plaid) pjs for their November birthday. I miss the days of little ones in cute Christmas pjs though.
2010
Angel topper or star topper:Neither…and for no real reason other than we never had either, and one year I purchased a big bow that we’ve continued to use through the years.
Santa leaves wrapped or unwrapped gifts: I grew up with Santa leaving unwrapped gifts, and that’s what we do. I remember when Travis and I first had this conversation once we had kids. I didn’t realize Santa wouldever think to wrap presents. haha
Gingerbread houses or Christmas cookies:both. One evening, we usually decorate gingerbread houses. Honestly, I wouldn’t be upset if we didn’t do this, but Hadley, especially, loves this tradition. Now, the kids are old enough to do this themselves. Also, we bake cookies the week before Christmas. I find that we really don’t have time before break, so I just wait, and we usually bake the first day we are out of school.
Home Alone or Elf:Home Alone all the way. It’s one of my favorite holiday movies!
I’ll share this on Instagram. I’d love to know your answers!
What’s scarier than a Halloween on a Monday?! Yikes!
Today’s post is all about Halloween fun with these two graphics I found on Pinterest (c/o @acaracollective). I’ll share them on Insta today. Let me know your answers!
Halloween Favorites
Candy: It’s hard for me to resist chocolate…especially a small Snickers or Butterfinger.
Movie: We always try to watch It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown. While it’s not a movie, it’s a favorite. On Fall Break, we watched The Addams Family which was fun.
Costume: I’ve shared before that my favorite costumes the kids chose were when they were Batman and Robin. So cute.
Activity: Our favorite fall activity is going to the pumpkin patch. For quite a few years, we’d go to Transylvania University here in Lex to see all the pumpkins lit up. Covid changed that, and then we haven’t been able to make it there the past couple of years.
Character: I don’t know that a ghost is a “character,” but he’s cute!
Not so spooky movies or scary movies: I guess I’m a scaredy cat…I prefer not so spooky movies.
Apple cider or PSL: I used to love PSL, but now I prefer a lighter version. Apple cider is good, but I prefer it hot.
Pumpkin patches or haunted houses: Pumpkin patches all the way!
Buy a costume or make a costume: Buy a costume, for sure. Thank goodness for Amazon. I do remember my mom making a few of our costumes when I was a kid. Then again, Amazon didn’t exist!
Craft or carve a pumpkin: We love to carve pumpkins.
Trick or treat or pass out candy: Well, sadly, I’m back to the passing out candy phase. I do love seeing little kids in their costumes though. I just feel like walking around with my kids went by in a blink.
Chic decor or spooky decor: I prefer chic (cozy) decor to spooky. My kids wish I’d make our outside more spooky, I’m sure.
Candied apples or caramel apples: Caramel apples are so good…but too much work to eat. I love caramel apple suckers.
13 nights of Halloween marathon or your own movies marathon: Make your own movie marathon, for sure. I wish we had more time for movie watching.
Early night or late night: Early night is my preference. Trick-or-treating is from 6-8 and on a school night…so hopefully we’ll all be in bed at a decent hour.
I guess since the kids are full on middle schoolers, our Halloweens definitely look different now {sad face}
Hello! It’s been a minute since I’ve done a This or That post, and when I saw this one on Insta (courtesy of @booktalketc), I thought it would be a fun one to share.
Falling rain or crackling fireplace: both? Both are the coziest options, but if I had to choose, I would go with falling rain for fall and save the fireplace for winter!
Spooky Fall or Cozy Fall: I always want September to be cozy even though it’s still so hot. October can be spooky while November start the coziness leading up to Christmas.
Carve or Paint Pumpkins: We always carve. I remember carving pumpkins even when I was in high school. I hope my kids let me carry on that tradition until then as well.
Corn Maze or Haunted House: uh…neither? If I had to choose, I’d say corn maze. I don’t want the scariness of a haunted house. My heart…and bladder can’t take it 😆
Pumpkin Spice or cinnamon: I think my recent Pumpkin Everythingpost can answer that the best! I love pumpkin spice especially when we are talking about muffins and pies! I made the Trader Joe muffins this weekend. So good.
Bonfire or Fireplace: No way to a bonfire. Too smoky. I love a fire in the fire place while the kids love a to roast marshmallows over the fire pit out back.
Black Fridayor Cyber Monday: Cyber Monday. Amen. I think I went Black Friday shopping once…in 2003. I definitely had less people to buy for then, and clearly I was younger with more energy. That being said, it was solo shopping which I much prefer. Anyway, I’d say since 2009 when the kids were only a month old and I needed to buy presents for family, I started buying an online and became Cyber Monday girl.
Witches or Vampires: Witches are fun…vampires are too creepy for me.
Soup or Chili: Kind of like “falling rain” or “crackling fireplace,” I love both. That being said, I can choose soup for fall and chili for winter if needed.
Speaking of soup and chili, I’ve already made chili twice this fall.
Hello! I’ve shared a few This or That posts, and I think they are a fun, quick way to share thoughts on a topic. Shay recently shared her This or That for Christmas on Instagram, and here are my responses too!
Fake TreeorReal Tree: We used to have an artificial tree for years, but have gotten a real tree for the last few years. I do love having a real tree as our main tree in the living room.
…but I love having a smaller artificial tree in the sun room and our bedroom to enjoy for a bit longer than a real tree lasts.
White ElephantorSecret Santa: Why is it that both of these options stress me out? I swear I’m a fun person. 😆 I guess I just feel like it’s one more thing to do / gift to buy when the time comes. I do think if I had to choose, I prefer Secret Santa because at least then you give and get something you’d probably actually want.
Egg nogor Hot cocoa: I love egg nog in December. I’m not a big cocoa person…but Hadley sure is! Hayden prefers egg nog. Sweet story: when the kids were little, my dad started calling egg nog “Christmas milk,” and it’s stuck! Also, my kids prefer the AE brand, and we don’t get that in Lexington. So, my brother bought a few at Thanksgiving, and put them in a cooler to bring back to Lex. Then, my mom brought a few cartons when she visited last week. So, Hayden has been so happy to have some extra “Christmas milk” on hand.
The GrinchorElf: ahhh! I love the Grinch story, but prefer the Elf movie.
Mariah CareyorMichael Buble: Well, 1997 me would have been blasting a Mariah Carey CD in my car this time of the year, but the 40+ year old me definitely loves Michael Buble.
Black FridayorCyber Monday: Hands down, I’m a Cyber Monday girl. I’ve never understood why people Black Friday shop. It’s too much pressure, too hectic, and too crowded! I love to make a list and be ready to go on Cyber Monday for probably 70% of my shopping. Then, I enjoy taking my time while out and about in December to choose other gifts when I have more time to do so.
Christmas Dayor Christmas Eve: I think I’m more of a Christmas Day person. While I love the traditions of Christmas Eve, Christmas Day has a slower pace to it and a bit more time to relax.
Christmas Eve service is a favorite…as is Christmas dinner
Ugly SweaterorMatching PJs: I love pjs! It’s always fun seeing my kids in their Christmas pjs excited for Santa. I hope as they get older, they will still continue this tradition in some way.
Giving GiftsorGetting Gifts: I definitely enjoy giving more than receiving! It’s always fun to see someone open a gift you think they’ll like.
Eating treatsorBaking treats: BOTH?!? I do have quite the sweet tooth, so I enjoy eating treats, but I also love baking them. The kids and I bake some cookies with family this time of the year which is fun.
So, that’s a wrap on those topics! What about you? What are your preferences?
I can’t believe we only have two more school day until break. I can’t wait to not set an alarm and have some time to actually wrap gifts, bake cookies, and have a little extra time to relax.
Happy Tuesday! Today, I’m linking up with Erika and Ashley for this month’s Tuesday Talk.
For Tuesday Talk, we can blog about any topic we choose, and today I’m tackling Thanksgiving with a fun This or That edition!
Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. There’s no stress of gift buying, and the food is the best! I found this graphic on Pinterest, and I’m excited to break down these choices. So, here we go!
TurkeyorHam: Turkey all the way. If ham is also being served, I will grab a slice, but the turkey is the Thanksgiving food for me.
LunchorDinner: Usually somewhere in between. My extended family usually eats around 3:00 or so. Last year, when it was just my brother’s family and mine, we ate later for dinner.
StuffingorDressing: I’m not really a fan of either, but last year, I made sausage dressing for the first time, and it was really good.
Dress UporDress Down: Usually we dress up, but it’s not anything too fancy. I ask Hayden to wear something besides Nike shorts, and Hadley will oblige with something besides a sweatshirt. When the kids were little, I definitely had them wear something festive when they’d let me.
2014
Mashed PotatoesorSweet Potatoes: I’m definitely a mashed potatoes kind of girl. But…guess what?! I don’t like gravy.
Football orMovies: Parade?! First, I watch the parade in the morning and then football does tend to be on in the background the rest of the day.
Black Friday orCyber Monday: Hands down, my answer would be Cyber Monday. I don’t think I’ve ever shopped on Black Friday, and I don’t think I ever will. I usually take the weekend after Thanksgiving to start making lists of what to buy, and then I do try to shop as many sales as possible on Cyber Monday.
Pumpkin PieorPecan Pie: Pumpkin pie is my fave.
How would you answer these? I will post the graphic in my Insta Stories, so if you share your answers, feel free to tag me!
Hello! How’s your week going? So far, so good for us!
Shay shared This or That: Halloween on Insta Stories, and I thought it was so festive and fun.
Here are my answers!
Vampire orWitches: Witches would be my choice. One of my favorite Halloween costumes when I was a kid was when I went as a witch!
Souror Chocolate: Unfortunately, I have quite the sweet tooth, so chocolate all the way!
ApplesorPumpkins: Uh…how many pumpkins is too many pumpkins? The only way I know how to decorate for fall is to just put out more pumpkins!
TrickorTreat: See above when I said I have a sweet tooth. Definitely treat! I have a candy stash at school for my students, and I try to be good and not treat myself too often.
Snickersor Kit Kat: Honestly, I love both, but I do love a Snickers….especially if it’s been in the fridge.
Scary Movies orScary Books: Scary books over scary movies for sure. I love a good thriller!
Costume orGraphic Tee: How about both? Graphic tee (or sweatshirt) for me, and costumes for the kids.
I just purchased this sweatshirt recently from EverlyGrayce Etsy Shop, and I love it. I wore it last Friday to school, and got so many compliments. You can’t be the price tag either!
Costumes for the kids through the years…
Chilior Soup: Again, both! But if I had to choose, then chili. I make chili pretty often whether it’s the Major’s chili or Chicken Chili.
CasperorHocus Pocus: While I like both movies, Casper is so cute!
SkittlesorSour Patch Kids: My kids love Sour Patch Kids, and now I do too. They get them pretty often, and I always ask for a few!
How would you answer this or that? What’s your favorite thing about Halloween? Less than two weeks, and my kids still don’t know what they are going to be. Oh how times have changed…
Hello and happy Thursday….Did you know Thursday is my favorite day of the week? It’s a great day to be productive, but I like knowing that the weekend is thisclose while wrapping up my work week.
I’ve been back to work since Monday, but the kids start back to school today. It was actually nice having these few extra days off for them as we could really use the extra time to ease back into reality.
Today I’m sharing a few odds and ends about what’s been going on.
Blog:
I decided to try a new blog idea for January – A sentence a day. I’ve seen Joanne share her monthly posts, and I thought it would fun to capture the “little” things of each day. That being said, I’ve had to set a reminder on my phone to add to the post each day. Kind of like those “day in the life” posts…It’s easier said than done!
Fresh Start to the New Year:
January 1st started off lazily for me, but then I kicked it into high gear putting up all of the Christmas decorations. (Travis helped too!)
The only sign of Christmas left in the house is my favorite pencil tree that’s in our bedroom. If you remember, this guy (girl?) started out in the sun room on Election Day, and then I moved it to our bedroom. It still brings me joy, so I think I will leave it up until around my birthday (January 14th)
Then, I put the house back to “normal” the next day.
I always get a bit anxious trying to remember where things usually go…but then I also like to move items around. Once everything is back in place, I feel better! (which I know sounds silly) I made a trip to Target for a few organizational tubs, and ended up buying this tray for our coffee table. I actually purchased it for the kitchen island, but I knew if I didn’t like it there, it would look great on the coffee table.
So, I played “musical decor” and put the metal tray that was on the table on the island. So, it all worked out.
On Sunday, I finished getting organized by purging the pantry, the spices, the fridge, and the freezer. I even took the time to wipe down the shelves in the fridge.
Do you know what I still haven’t tackled? My closet. Womp. Womp. That’s been my goal for over a month…I will get to it…eventually.
Self-care:
All that hard work of purging and organizing meant I should treat myself to a manicure. I haven’t had a manicure in a salon for close to a year. Hadley received a gift card to our favorite place, so we went there to get manicures. I got a gel manicure while Hadley got a regular one.
Back to School Pod Skate:
To kick off the new semester, my friend (who runs the kids’ school pod) rented out the local skating rink for just our pod kids on Monday afternoon. It was so much fun…for Hadley…and me…but not so much for Hayden. He tried and he tried, but he could barely keep his feet under him. 😂
I skated as well as a couple of other parents too. It was so fun to have the place to ourselves, and there was no keeping us 80s kids off the rink! My kids were impressed with my skating skills, and I was happy to not be sore the next day!
Favorite Apps:
Over the holidays, I discovered this Shop app. I guess it’s synced up with your email and orders because it stores all orders in one place. That way, the tracking info on orders and status updates are all in one place. It came in so handy with Amazon, Etsy and other orders throughout the holidays.
I’ve used MyFitnessPal to track calories and macros for a few years. I haven’t used it much lately, so that’s a 2021 goal for me. I’m back to tracking everything I eat which has actually provided a great reset for me mentally and physically.
Speaking of tracking…I need to drink more water. Since working at home, my coffee drinking tends to linger until 11:00 or so. I always drink water while working out (and after), but I definitely need to drink more. This app has been perfect for tracking the ounces of water per day that I drink.
Exercise:
I’ve mentioned before that I recently subscribed to the Beach Body On Demand app/program. I’ve done 21 Day Fix before, and have turned back to those DVDs throughout the years. Post-surgery, I decided to ease back into working out with 21 Day Fix “Real Time,” on the app since I was familiar with 21 DF. So, leading up to Christmas, I completed that program. With the new year, I’ve now transitioned to 21 Day Fix Extreme and have committed to getting my workouts in most mornings.
When working out, I’ve been the most successful when I work out in the morning. With Covid and being home, I still did an ok job working out, but often times I would bump it to later in the day …or not at all. Now, since I’m still home this is super convenient, and I’m going to take advantage of completing a 30 minute workout at 7:00 am rather than 5:30 AM when I’m in a normal going to school groove. I love that I can just use the app on our basement tv where I have my workout weights, mat, and bands.
I’m really enjoying these programs so far, and there are many other ones to choose from after I complete 21 DF Extreme.
Books:
After reading all the light hearted Christmas books in December, I was ready to read something a little heavier. Well, American Dirt is A LOT heavier, but I can’t put it down. I’m reading it on my Kindle while reading Make Life Beautiful in hardback. My mom got it for me for Christmas.
Shows:
Travis and I just finished watching season 3 of Ozark. Holy moly can that show be intense. I’ve balanced watching that show with more light hearted ones like Dream Home Makeover and Magnolia Table. Hadley started watching On Pointe on Disney +, and I’ve been watching it with her. It’s so interesting and inspiring to watch these dancers at SAB (School of American Ballet).
So, that’s a little bit of what’s been going on around here! See you back here tomorrow for the first Friday Favorites of 2021.
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