Christmas Memes..... Because I feel like it.........

Hi All!!!!

I realize that all of my December posts consist of "I'm not ready for Christmas!!!!" type frets. I fully admit that I've been all kinds of boring, these past several weeks. Very repetitive.

I've done lots of things over the past month and haven't documented any of it. Eventually, I will.

For now, though, I have big news........

I'M SO CLOSE TO BEING READY FOR CHRISTMAS!!!!!!!

Cards - DONE!

Christmas Shopping - DONE!

Christmas decorating - DONE!!

Christmas movie watching - Halfway there!

Wrapping - Not done, or started, but that's the plan for tonight!

I'm so happy and excited!!!

And, because I feel like it...............

1. Giving is fun! I try to come up with the best gift to suit the person to whom I'm giving. Sometimes, it's really, really difficult. Then, I'll get a brainstorm and just know exactly what to get!

2. Receiving is also fun!

3. The best gift I ever received (for Christmas) was my Barbie dream house with an elevator. I loved that thing. I also got a trampoline, one year, and would spend hours jumping. I always got great gifts, as a child. As an adult, I still get great gifts. :) Recently, my favorites have varied from a weekend getaway to NYC to a simple one-hour phone call.

4. The best gift I ever gave was an engraved picture frame and the picture that went in it. That was for my mom, the frame for Christmas last year and the picture for Mother's Day.

5. Something intangible that I wish I could receive is the love of my life :).... all in God's timing.

6. Something intangible that I wish I could give is hope, faith, and the love of whimsy. At heart, I try to be and am a child. I love the wonder of things around us, magical or not. It makes me sad when people "grow up" too much to have that sort of simple joy.

7. The one gift I always wanted as a child, but never got was ...... I can't think of anything.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

 

  1. Do you regift...and if so, do you have a regifting horror story?


I'm sure that I have regifted, but I don't have any horror stories. When I say "regifted", I'm usually upfront about the fact that I received something as a gift, couldn't use it, and thought the new receiver would appreciate it more.


2. Do you know what you are getting for Christmas this year?


NO CLUE. I'm fine with that. I was never the kid that went looking for presents and would get upset if I found out about a gift beforehand. I like being surprised!!


3. Who brings the most gifts in your family, you or Santa?


Santa (yes, he still comes at 27 years old) brings one special gift.


4. What store do you love to by jeans from?


Right now, Old Navy. I've found that the Diva rise works best for me.

In my "I've lost weight, but not all that I want" transition time, I've recently had to go buy new jeans/pants. My old ones were simply too big. However, I didn't want to spend a ton on them, since I hope they'll be too big, very soon. Enter Old Navy. They fit, they look good, and they are inexpensive.

In the past month, I've spent about $175 with them and, in return, have gotten a small wardobe (5 pairs of jeans/pants, 8 pairs of panties, and 4 sweaters/tops). I still wear a lot of my old clothes, but I now have some better fitting clothes, as well.


5. Christmas meal: Big, All Out Meal or Snacks and Apps?

Big meal.

My mom cooks a feast. Everyone comes over and pigs out. Then, we lay around in a food coma for a while. Later that night, we usually bring out bits and pieces of the meal.

Christmas Card Sneak Peak

I say "sneak peak" because those of you receiving cards from me will NOT be receiving this one.

Fact about Jessica......

I like variety.

So, when I got my 50 free cards from Shutterfly, I split the 50 between 3 different designs. Then, I had a code for another 10 cards, so I got 10 in an entirely different design. As in, I have 4 different designs.

Unless I have a picture with you from 2010. Because, if I have a picture with you from 2010, then you could be receiving any number of designs, personally chosen to suit our friendship and picture.

Do you see why Christmas Cards take me so long to complete?

I'm sure that when I'm married and have kids, I'll have one card design. Until then, I make things more difficult for myself and more personalized for the receiver.

All that to say............

Here's one of my many Christmas Cards (that none of you will be getting in the mail)......

Retro Kaleidoscope Holiday Card

Create modern holiday cards at Shutterfly

View the entire collection of cards.

 

 

If you have a card you'd like to share with the class, Shutterfly is offering up a $25 gift certificate! Head over to your "My Shutterfly" page to get the details!

At least my intentions were good..........

Hello fellow Bloggers.

I stand write before you a confession about my own inefficiency.

This morning, I went into work, took care of the immediate tasks, and then left at 11:30am. I had a to-do list a mile long.........

1) Go to the bank.

2) Pick up Christmas Cookies that Ninny baked for my office.

3) Go to a Gator store to pick up a present for my brother.

4) Go eat lunch.

5) Get my eyebrows waxed.

6) Go to the gym.

7) Do laundry.

8) Go to a local Vera Bradley location to pick up a present.

9) Finish designing/ordering my personalized Christmas Cards.

10) Run by the Post Office to mail two packages that have been waiting to be sent since October.

11) Go to Downtown Disney and order some specialty gifts. This was on the list, but I never expected to complete it.

This is what I accomplished, instead.....

1) Went by the Gator store and bought present.

2) Stopped by Ninny's to pick up cookies, ate 3, and chatted for about 45 mins.

3) Went by the VB store and bought presents.

4) Met my mom and Lydia for lunch.

5) Went to the bank.

6) Took Lydia home for my mom and put her down for her nap.

7) An hour and some change later, my mom got home and actually got her asleep.

8) Finished designing/ordering personalized Christmas Cards while catching up on my recorded programs...... with an M&M break with Lydia when she got up from her nap.

Which means........

* I'm already one day behind on my gym promise for this week and three cookies fatter. Even with 1/2 a day off.

* My eyebrows are still a hot mess. Just yesterday, our Worship Leader at church declared this month to be Decembrow..... the month where women don't shape their eyebrows. Apparently, I'm joining in.

* I'm almost out of laundry. Hope is not completely lost. I'm going to try to do at least one load, tonight.

* I'll probably have to wait until Friday to get to Downtown Disney. Please pray that my items will be ready by Christmas.

Ummmmmm..............

Ok, so I realize that by asking ya'll for help, I might be immature and unprofessional..................

That said..............

This morning, while in a meeting, a coworker brought up a question. A question that I knew was coming. A question that was snide, but masked by fake curiousity (ie, everyone knew that the coworker was being difficult). I answered the question, in a firm and direct manner. Said coworker then "rephrased" the question and was basically told it was a non-issue and to drop it (not by me).

About 10 minutes after the meeting ended, I received this in my inbox..........

Jessica,

I’m honestly tired of you disrespecting me when I mention things here at work that you may not agree with. It’s unprofessional and rude. Please refrain from doing so in the future. If you have a concern or disagreement about something I say, please handle it in a more mature and professional fashion.

Thanks in advance,

Said coworker

(this is an exact copy and paste of the email)

To which I responded..........

Besides this morning when we disagreed about ***********, would you like to clarify?

If you are unhappy with my professionalism and would like to sit down together with Our Manager and/or General Manger and/or Company Owner to discuss it, that would be fine with me.

Coworker's response.........

There have been several instances. I don’t keep track of them or anything, but I will if you’d like me to moving forward. However, I hope there won’t be a need to.

 

I have never mentioned it to you before, so I trust just getting my concern(s) out there with you personally will be all that’s needed. We can cross any other bridge we may get to in the future.

Thanks.

At this point, I've not responded and probably won't. Said Coworker's MO is to continue these email exchanges to the point of ridiculousness.

Thoughts?

Advice?

Knowing that you weren't there to witness the exchange....... but that I wasn't told by Our Manager or the General Manager (who were at the meeting) that I was out of line...... am I coming across as rude, immature, or unprofessional in this exchange?

Too much to do.........

About mid-November, I ordered my Christmas cards. I was super proud of myself for being ahead of the game.

That progress was short-lived, however, because my orange box of cards from Shutterfly are sitting on my nightstand. Unsigned, unenveloped, unaddressed, and most certainly, unsent.

Not to mention, I need to finish......

......... decorating.

 ......... Christmas shopping.

....... present wrapping.

....... Christmas movie watching (I have a list of about 10 movies I *must* watch every year).

........ Disney World visiting (though, I went to EPCOT for Candlelight last night..... post to come).

...... catching up with as many friends as possible.

....... one more weekend of being an elf for my church's holiday walk-through.

Can we please stop time for just a few days, so I can catch up???

My Life In (Cell Phone) Pictures

I'm not quite sure how I've survived the past week. I haven't quite counted up the hours I've worked, but it's somewhere in the realm of INSANE.

I'm so behind in blogging and reading blogs. I'm behind in everything, really.

However, I've managed to try to keep track of a little bit of what I've been up to, lately. Here's a look.....

Yep. I get paid to encounter characters like this..............

In one of the boxes of random crap prizes we receive, regularly, my intern found a pair of rainbow glasses. Naturally, I insisted that we both wear them all over the station.

I saw "Harry Potter" at midnight, the night it came out. In IMAX. However, I was one of the normal ones. There were Hogwarts' students/professors, Harry look-alikes, a giant of a man dressed as Hagrid, and a guy who went all out in Voldermort regalia. In an incident of pure coincidence, I ended up sitting next to him in the theatre and immediately asked for demanded a picture........... 

Lydia made a new friend with our Thanksgiving decorations.....

My mom and I at her birthday present (full post to come)....

So, look what happened in the parking lot of church. They didn't even leave a note. Rude.

My step-sister Megan (the older one) and her husband Brian came down and stayed with us for a week over Thanksgiving. On Thanksgiving night, they went out to the front porch to shave his head. After about two minutes, they burst in the house.... "There is a SNAKE in the grout!!" According to my friends on FB, this is a harmless corn snake.

"Um, excuse me..... I am on a very important call."

I'm hoping to get back into the groove (of everything) very soon!!

Friday Questions

I'm so exhausted. More on that later........................

Mama M's 5QF.....

1. What's on the top of your holiday wish list and why?!

I don't really have anything on my wish list, this year! I mean, there are things I'd like, but I can't say there is anything I'm just dying to receive.

Mainly, I would just like to spend time with my friends and family....... especially the ones I don't see often.

2. What is your favorite Christmas gift from the past?

I remember when I was like 3 or 4, I got a Barbie Mansion with a pull-string elevator. That was so awesome, lol.

Also, my step-dad Mike would always get me something electronic.... a TV for my room, a sewing machine, a new cellphone, etc. The last Christmas before he died, he got me a DVD recorder. Confession..... I've never used it. He would always hook up whatever he got me. That last year, he got too sick too fast to have time to do it and he died in March. It just made me too sad to do it myself or have someone else do it.

Last Christmas, I got a one-hour phone call from a certain someone. That was the best part of my day.

3. If you had life to do over, what would you be when you grow up?

I'd get skinnier faster and audition to be a Rockette. Or, to be on a soap opera.

Other than that, I'd probably do the same thing I'm doing now.

4. When do you put up your tree?

As soon after Thanksgiving as possible. Tree went up on Saturday, this year. Lights just went on tonight. Hopefully, ornaments will be sometime this weekend.

I may or may not have a small tabletop tree in my room that stays up all year long. Allegedly.

5. What is your favorite Holiday?

CHRISTMAS!!!!!!!

Then, Thanksgiving.

Then, my birthday (which is clearly a holiday).

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Fill in the Blanks Friday

1. Holiday spirit makes me SO happy. I love it! Even this week, when I've been in the dolldrums, I've been working up as much Christmas cheer as possible.

2. The holidays are incomplete without a full viewing of all my favorite Christmas movies, at least one White Peppermint Mocha Frap from Starbucks, driving around to look at lights, and the Christmas Eve service at church.

3. My favorite things to do around the holidays is all of the above, plus I love to go to all the Disney parks and as many resorts as possible. Disney goes all out for Christmas and I love heading out there to see it!

4. A holiday tradition my family and I have is going to eat dinner at Chili's on Christmas Eve (after the service). It's a long story of how that got started, but we do it and love it. Also, we make it a point to make a night out of going to ICE! at Gaylord Palms. We do all the normal ones, too, but those are two slightly unique traditions.

5. Holiday music is AWESOME!!! I adore it. Starting on Black Friday, I almost exclusively listen to this one station that plays only Christmas music until Christmas. It isn't one of my stations, but it just makes me happy!! I get so sad when it goes back to regular music.

6. This year, I'll be spending the holidays at home. This will be the last Christmas with everyone living at home, so I'm looking forward to enjoying it to the fullest.

7. Holiday wish list ...... as I said above, I don't really know. I mean, there are things I really, really want, but aren't realistic. So, they don't count.