Christmas Comes Late

So, we finally got our Christmas acts together...on Christmas. Better late than never, I say. Here are some photos from our holiday. I hope you don't mind me sharing. : )

First, we celebrated Christmas Eve at my brother's. He and his girlfriend made a huge Italian feast (she's Italian). They made a ton of fresh pasta and veal and sausage. It was delicious! We exchanged gifts and then we had dessert: homemade tiramisu. Soooo good! We ended the night with a grab bag, which was a lot of fun. And then we Skyped my sister and nephew in India. All in all, a successful Christmas Eve.

I'll be damned if one of my brother's grab bag gifts wasn't that stupid wine bunny!

Christmas Day was spent cleaning, and then wrapping gifts only to have them unwrapped a little while later. We decorated the tree right before opening gifts. Then I spent the bulk of the evening roasting a chicken and making a nice dinner or the two of us. Everything took so long that we ended up not eating until 10:30 at night. Oh well. Again, better late than never.

So, that was our Christmas! We got some good gifts. I got a lot of photography related gifts, including a Gorillapod and a Ringflash. I also got an amazing new camera bag, which I can also use as a laptop bag/purse. I'm super, super psyched because I've been using a tote that says my husband's company's name on it and truth be told, it was getting pretty lame. I very badly needed a new new every day bag! A.P. got a lot of things he needed: a new wallet, a new work bag. He also got a book on dogs and a milk and cookies mug. And even though it was a gift for me, it was really a gift for the house, but A.P. got us a TiVo. I am so excited to start using it, I could just wet myself!

How was your Christmas?? Did Santa bring you any great gifts this year? If so, what were they?

PS. Stay tuned tomorrow for more Best of 2011.

(Photos by me!)

Merry, Merry, Merry!

Hi all! I apologize for no Friday dance yesterday, but the holidays have made my brain mush. I wanted to wish you all a Merry Christmas, Happy Hannukah, or a Fantastic Festivus (for the rest of us). Whatever it is you celebrate, I hope you have a wonderful time filled with many memories and great company!

We're celebrating with my family tonight and then having a quiet Christmas together (our first one alone!) tomorrow. Then, the Half-breed Swede and her man (who has yet to receive a good, proper nickname, but who shall get one soon) will arrive on Monday to visit for a week. I'll be back next week with a Best of 2011 series! In the mean time, enjoy the warm, glow of the holidays and be content with the fact that you finally know how Santa gets all those gifts to all those people. Sleigh? I don't think so! ROLL UP, MY REINDEER! ROLL UP!

(Reindeer Photo via Favim)

Oh Ugh, Christmas Tree (and Other Holiday Musings)

So, our tree is finally up, but only because A.P. finally put it up. It's not decorated AT ALL, though. And I'm so nucking futs this week with work that I probably won't get to put it up until Saturday. So, Christmas will officially arrive on Christmas Eve. Awesome. Not my best Christmas for sure. Still, I got most of my Christmas shopping done, even if meant some packages cost me a bundle to have shipped because of last minute shipping costs. Other than that, we're starving for a little holiday spirit around here. Sure, we've had some work Christmas parties and some gifts exchanged and we've of course received a few cards, but it seems like the holidays are catching everyone off guard this year.

This will be the first Christmas we spend just the two of us. Christmas Eve will be spent with my family, but no one volunteered to host Christmas Day. And since the Half-breed Swede is coming in from across the pond the day after Christmas, we figured we could use the calm and frankly the time to straighten up and get ready for our guests. So, really, the only thing we're looking forward to this year is getting/giving each other presents. Here's what was on my wish list this year:

Guitar Pick Punch

35mm film converter

A few of these posters which I love so much

A ring flash adaptor

A new, kickass umbrella that I've had my eye on for FOREVER

A ring to add to my deer collection

A new camera bag for my new DSLR (my Christmas present to myself) similar to this one

A lens cap strap holder

A gorillapod

And clothes. Mind you, I expect to get like three of these things, I just want to make sure that A.P. always has options. ; )

What are you doing for Christmas? What's on your wish list?

(Photo credits linked above)

Marriage Mondays: Combining Family Traditions

One of the things that has been hard about getting married is giving up some of the traditions I had growing up in order to either begin our own traditions or let A.P. have some of his own family traditions. It's sort of strange to think that so much of your identity can be found in the things you ritualistically do with your family and loved ones. And when you get married, you form a new family and with that family comes change.

Growing up, my family had a hearty meal and opened our presents on Christmas Eve. Even Santa came Christmas Eve! He knocked on our front door, and when I went to open the door, my gifts were waiting outside. Then, my mother who sang in the choir at our church, left to go sing in Midnight Mass. My mother sang in a fairly well-known church, whose Midnight Mass was always live telecast. When I was too little to make it through the mass, I watched on TV. We would look for my mother. Then, my siblings and I would wake up Christmas morning, open our stockings, and then get dressed up in our Sunday best for Christmas dinner, which was attended by my great-aunt and uncle each year.

A.P. had a very different experience. He didn't really do much on Christmas Eve, except put cookies and milk out for Santa. Then, Christmas morning, he and his brothers would tear into their million presents (their mom was big on Christmas and giving gifts). They would have a meal, but that's not what really sticks out to him. It was the gifts and the decorations adorning both the outside of the house and the inside that he remembers. His mother's annual Christmas parties and the giant Christmas tree in their front lawn are what stick out now.

Our own traditions are a combination of both, really. We open Christmas presents on Christmas Day, but usually we'll get together with family on Christmas Eve and open a present each. But I'm not going to lie: I still miss what I grew up doing. And I think that should we have kids, I would miss those things even more. Still, I love the things we've created together, too. I love that we decorate our tree together and that each year one of us stabs this crazy, clothespin ornament that A.P made onto the tree. It's a bizarre tradition, but it's ours. And I take pictures each year of one of us doing it right before we put on our tree topper.

I like to think about how these things will become part of the fabric of our marriage and how they all become things we look forward to doing each and every year. Then I think about how one day if we have kids, these things will become part of their holiday memories. It's weird how circular life really is. I may not love giving up some of my traditions, but I love A.P. and I love the holidays we share together and the memories we have together. I love the traditions we've created that I force him to participate in (he's a boy...let's face it, this is girl stuff). And secretly, I think he kind of does, too. After all, it's that time of year, and as we do every year, we just sent each other our wish lists. I'm looking forward to finishing set up our tree and decorating the house. And I can't wait to drink cocoa and eat Christmas cookies and get our Christmas on! Because even if it's not the Christmas I grew up with, it's a Christmas I've created and one I look forward to each and every year.

How did you react to combining family traditions? What are some of the traditions you've created together?

Do you subscribe to Not the Marrying Kind? If not, you should! It's free and fun and it means you automatically get new posts when the blog is updated. No having to check back! Click here for more details!

(Bike Christmas Lights via here; Christmas lights in the snow via here)

Why Don't We Just Dance

The countdown to Christmas is on, people. And the weeks are flying by! This also means that before I know it, The Half-breed Swede will be here! And for the first time ever, I'm meeting her man! Exciting stuff...but also stressful since both Christmas and her visit will be here extraordinarily soon. This gal's gotta lot to do before the holidays! It's time to get my ass into gear.

This week, I'm obsessed with this bride's fashion. When you see the pictures, you'll be jealous of her effortless style. But when I tell you that both outfits were incredibly cheap (1st outfit was a J. Crew maxi skirt and a blouse from TJ Maxx!!), your head will explode. Cynthia and Jamaal married at the gorgeous Brooklyn Society for Ethical Culture and their lovely affair was captured by Elisabeth Millay. Besides the fabulous bridal fashion and the beautiful setting, don't these two just look damn happy??

Don't you love her wedding ensemble? And that rockin' mini is to die for, too! Whenever I see weddings like this, I always wonder why so many of us get trapped into standard white gowns!

Soooo...this weekend we are getting our Christmas asses into gear. I'm putting together my list for A.P. and we're decorating the place for the holidays. We're also going to start cleaning up for The Half-breed Swede. Also, I'm going to end up doing a bunch of work since the intern I've had for the past three months is leaving me after tomorrow. She was doing half of my job (and I'm still overworked!!). I want to cry. But instead, I'm trying to get ahead so I'm not so crazy busy. Other than that, I plan on staying in and cozying up next to our "fire" (aka space heater) and relaxing. What are you up to?? Whatever it is, my dears, I wish it to be wonderful!

In the mean time, here are your dance moves for the week:

Ever heard of sea icicles?? Me neither, but they're fascinating to watch.

Inside out carrot cake muffins

How future generations will remember us

Holiday Inspiration

DIY Wrap Bracelet

Vintage Dior

Two favorite gift guides: One old, one new

Eggnog Pie

Here's a fun fact about me: I only take baths, not showers. So imagine how my head exploded when I saw these!

(Friday dance photo via here; Cynthia and Jamaal's wedding photographed by Elisabeth Millay via Style Me Pretty)