the post holiday funk

the holidays.  they have come and gone already.  i never realized, until i had children, how fast they really go.  i always start off the holiday super excited.  i set the table pretty for thanksgiving brunch (dinner isn’t at my house).  i try to have my cards, and most gifts, purchased by thanksgiving so that i can enjoy that month between the turkey and the ham.  i look forward to the snow and the christmas lights.  the tree (real or fake) being lit.  the magic that we all kind of believe in around that time of year.  the planning and figuring out exactly what gifts the kids want from us and the big guy in red.

  obviously a couple more beds…kidding.  what can i say…sometimes they can’t get enough of each other   i look forward to the ornament making and the baking and the napping that goes on in a relaxed sort of way that winter brings.

the making of a hello kitty gingerbread house while i made the cranberry sauce.  and watching that house sit unfinished until it sat in the garbage can.  it was a short lived fun haha.

watching the kiddos play outside in the snow with their dad that very first day there is enough to play with.

and then all of a sudden the turkey is a forgotten taste and its almost time for the ham (well the ham is on christmas day at my in-laws…around here it was prime rib for christmas eve).  its time for dinner and church and unwrapping of gifts and goofing off with the cousins…

then, very quickly, christmas eve comes to an end.  its time to feed the reindeer in our new christmas jammies outside.

then its here.  just like that.  santa comes, our elf travels back to the north pole, and christmas morning is done in a blink of the eye.

i am really good there for a while.  then the 26th comes and it looks like santa crashed into my house.  nothing is contained under the tree anymore.  its all over the house and i have to find a place for it.  and as soon as i find a place for the new barbie, the new lego set is back out.  then all those decorations i love seem to be taking over.  and its time to clean up.  this year i longed for flat spaces with nothing on them.  we took our tree down on new year’s day.  i am okay with it all being down and cleaned up.  like that fresh start to the new year i love.  but that holiday funk takes a few days for me to get rid of.  its like a pull of wanting to stay in the magic of christmas and wanting the break from school to last longer verse wanting the house neat and tidy again and a routine back in place.  yesterday morning my oldest went back to school.  i teared up as she stopped outside the van and looked at me and gave me a wave.  normally she marches her little self right into the building with out looking back.  i was so sad when she waved…made me want to rewind a few weeks to have her home again like when she was little.  as i drove away, my preschooler talked about how she couldn’t wait to get to school and what she was going to do when she got there.  that made me smile.  she, like me, thrives on a routine.  then my baby (okay he is two) and i ran an errand, picked up the house, played a little, then picked up the preschooler, picked up the kindergartner and life was back to normal.  the funk is gone…until next year.

hope you all had a very happy new year!  MiUS has a new feature…check out the “coming soon” section where you can sign up to be notified when an item you want arrives. Plus, starting today at MiUS Collection, we are running a sale on our USA Made outerwear!  Take 15% off capes and sweaters on the site.  Use code: layering13   Offer expires: 01/13/13

our first annual wrapping party

my mom (also known around here as GG or G) and i have started a new tradition.  well i guess it isn’t really a tradition yet since this was the first time we had the wrapping party…but we hope to continue it for years to come which would make it a tradition!

i used to be able to close the baby gate and hide/wrap gifts in my basement.  well now those little kids are smart and can open the gate leading to the basement (at least the ones old enough to get that whole “santa” thing can).  so this year i thought we should hide/wrap gifts at my parents house.  who am i kidding…”we”?  i am not sure in ten years i have ever seen my husband wrap a gift.  i wonder if he knows how?  besides that fact…if I go to my parents house…then I get a whole night of good sleep good food and company!

so as i purchased gifts i sent them to my parents house.  here is some of what we had to do:

above is mine…all neat and separated into piles because that is the only way my brain works.

below is my mom’s.  funny…she is an accountant and one of the most organized people i know, but here is her pile:

so first we got the food all ready so gramps could get his grub on and hide from us the rest of the night so he didn’t have to help (too much…he did do a lot of “get this from downstairs” for us).  we had lots of goodies….

and hey…we threw these in for good measure:

but if i am being honest…we did make a dip too (remember…we don’t really get to have dairy in my house, so when i get a chance to eat the devil food without my little girl around…i go all out!)

there was also a little bit of this:

yes…more wine PLEASE mr. cat (i mean seriously…how cute is that wine holder??)

then we got down to business….

this is how santa rolls in my house.  hey…that dude would go through a lot of tags so he just writes on the paper.  al gore loves (my) santa...lazy eco friendly over here!

then our before piles turned into after piles:

looks like that cat poured me a bit too much wine by the time i got to taking this picture…

but alas…i am not done.  i still have 8 nieces and nephews to wrap for…and all the grandparents.  but its a start…and santa is done!

i also got an early christmas present from my parents…i love rose gold and its a pretty rose gold necklace.  i don’t have a picture of it…but am hoping that’s another part of the new tradition (insert evil laugh for my dad…he isn’t a big early gift giver!)

how is your shopping and wrapping going?  looking for any gifts for the favorite ladies in your life?  what about teachers?  i got these from MiUS for my daughter’s teachers…

 and if i am being honest…i got the polka dot one for myself:)

and don’t forget while you’re there to check out the deal of the day!

lastly…i am still participating in HHDE with heather from twigs, twine + thyme.  yesterday i made these yummy snickerdoodles.

image and recipe can be found here.

Are you ready??? Holiday gift ideas

Today, I thought I would give some last minute gift ideas for those out there still searching for holiday gifts…

At MiUS Collection

from big to small…

we have USA made gifts galore 😉

Here are some ideas…

For the purse lover:

Big totes and Small wrislets

pink and black wristlet 🙂

For the accessory lover… we have from simple to statement:

Awesome watch! Makes a statement!

Don’t forget…little cute things sometimes make the best gifts and stocking stuffers:

Made in the USA mugs 🙂

Come take a look and don’t miss out on FREE Shipping Monday.  Use code:MondayFree

Happy holidays!