Christmas 12'

Better late than never? I have been busy taking down all the decorations and getting the house "back to normal" before the new year. I like the feeling of having a fresh start before the first :)

I gave myself a big pat on the back for getting though the holiday season with ease. This is the first year that I had felt organized and prepared. I did not let my family get me down this year and even thought I had yet another "friend" show me their true colors, I just let it roll off my shoulders. I bought presents on a budget but still feel like I was able to spoil those closest to me. Shopping was done at the beginning of the month and I didn't have to wrap presents at the last minute. We even managed to squeeze in some fun time and baking throughout all the holiday chaos. I did not feel stressed for Christmas and hope to duplicate that for next year.

These were the Christmas treats we made this year. I made the same Rolo Pretzel Bites that we did last year except I added some Peppermint Kisses. I found these cute bags at Target in the dollar section! Three came in a pack, I thought they were the cutest little things ever. 

I went to gingerbread day at my brothers this year. I was hesitant going there as I normally do not feel welcome and there is bound to be some sort of drama. When I first arrived I had felt on edge a little, but it soon disappeared. I actually had a good time! There was no drama, we laughed, had a good time and ate our weight in candy.

 

 

After searching high and low, I found these babies at Walmart! They are super good, kind of taste like pumpkin pie though.

Watching Better off dead while decorating. Nothing better than some old 80's movies to put you in the holiday spirit!

This was supposed to be a guy from the Blue Man Group, but we thought it looked like Cookie Monster!

 

The weekend before Christmas, my mom came over to celebrate with us. She was going to be spending Christmas with my sister, so to avoid conflict, this was the best plan for us. It still kinda stings to know that we cannot celebrate the holidays together and that I feel shunned even though I have done nothing wrong. Instead of letting it bother me this year, I just made the best of it and was happy to at least be able to spend some time with my mom. We had a great breakfast, I made Cinnamon French Toast Bake (my apologizes for not taking pictures, it was absolutely outstanding by the way) and we opened presents. 

 

After my mom left we headed over to the best friends house to have Christmas with her and her family. It was our first time ever having deep fried turkey! It was so MOIST! I don't think I ever want to eat a normal turkey again after that. We played a few rounds of Apples to Apples Sour, opened presents, ate some yummy desserts and laughed until our stomachs hurt. Some crazy guy named Bruce had made an appearance, I hope he isn't invited next year!

 

By request of the best friend, I made my first pudding pie! It was actually really easy to make and tasted pretty good. I grated some truffles on top to add some texture and flavor. *Note to self, grease pan next time!*

I used the Kitchen Aid to mix the filling for my deviled eggs. I will be doing this from now on! It turned out so creamy!

Christmas Eve, I went to a friends house to enjoy a turkey dinner and good company while the husband was at work.

This looked so cozy, but I was too cold to go outside and enjoy it.

Unfortunately, I had a little bit of food poisoning for Christmas day but I got through it, managed to keep some food down and open presents. After all the planning and preparation that I had done throughout the month, it was disappointing to feel so crappy on actual Christmas day!

Santa brought me some cupcake panties! Yay!

The weekend after Christmas we headed to Target to get some Christmas stuff for next year. Everything was 50% off. I felt like they did not have as much stuff as they did last year but we still found a few treasures. Surprisingly, Walmart had the best deals and tons of stuff leftover! Overall, I have to say that Christmas was a success! I am glad that the new year is here and cannot wait to see what next year has in store for us :)