Our Week - The One with Lights at The Botanical Gardens, all the Christmas Celebrations, Lots of Relaxing, and a Little Productivity

What a beautiful Christmas week we had!  I know I’m behind on weekly recaps, but I intentionally took a little break from blogging the last week of the year to have lots of time with Brian and the kids.  There were several days where I did literally nothing for the blog and it was nice to not feel tied to a computer during my favorite two weeks of the year. 

This week, I’m hoping to recap Christmas week (this post), and I’m also hoping to recap New Year’s week on Wednesday, but both posts are so long and picture heavy that I’m not sure I’ll have the time to do both.  We’ll see!  In the meantime, here’s how we spent our first week of Christmas break.  It was truly a blessing this year.

Monday, December 22

Monday, Brian had to work (his last day of the year!), but thankfully, he worked from home, so he slept in a bit, and I slept in even longer, finally rolling out of bed around 8:45.  I just love sleeping in!

The kids were already up when I got up, so I started a load of laundry, and we all headed downstairs to eat breakfast.  After breakfast was over, the kids built some more of their world in Minecraft, and I caught up on two months of my end-of-year recap.

Mid-morning, the kids went outside and they stayed out there until lunch.  We had a very mild Christmas week, and it was almost 60 degrees and dreary, so that made for the perfect weather for them. 

While they did that, I got the laundry flipped and I put away some of the pile of clean clothes that had accumulated on our bed, and then I tidied a bit downstairs, vacuumed, and read for a bit before lunch.

I got in a two-mile walk/jog after lunch, and then it was time to shower and get ready for the day because the kids had orthodontist appointments.  Both of their appointments went well.  Jacob had to get his first chain, and the orthodontist told us he’ll start rubber bands at his next appointment.  We were also told that he’s likely running ahead of schedule for his braces, so he’ll probably get them off earlier than expected.  Lucky boy!

Olivia has three loose teeth, so the assistant tried to convince her to let the orthodontist pull the one that’s super loose, but she said she wanted to wait a little longer.  She had quite a bit of poking and prodding during her appointment so her mouth hurt instantly after her appointment.  I can definitely commiserate. 

After their appointments, we headed to Publix to grab a few last-minute things we needed for Christmas and then we headed home.  I had a quick snack, did my quiet time, and read for a bit, and then I got some more laundry put away before making dinner.

The kids had been playing the Exploding Kittens Catchables game all afternoon and they were having a blast because it requires you to do all kinds of crazy things.  They were jumping and spinning and running around all evening.

We all sat down to eat turkey and cheese biscuit sliders with chips and fruit, and then after dinner the kids showered and got ready for bed, and I finished reading Ward D by Freida McFadden.  After I was done with my book, we pulled out our new Christmas puzzle and started working on that.  We got the entire edge complete before putting it away so we could settle in for family movie night.

We popped some popcorn and watched Elf, and then Brian and I made Manhattans after the kids went to bed and finished watching Love Actually.  I love that movie so much and I always enjoy every single second of our annual viewing. 

Tuesday, December 23

Tuesday morning, we all slept in, had breakfast, tidied the kitchen, and then I went to my office to finish my blog post for Friday and start this blog post.  I had Christmas movies on repeat while working this whole week.  Serendipity was up Tuesday morning.  Gah, I just love it so much.

Meanwhile, the kids worked some more in their Minecraft world.  They have built so much and it’s so impressive all the things that they’ve built in there.

After my blog posts were done, I spent some time catching up on emails, catching up in my planner, and placing a Target order for some necessities, and then Brian and I finally worked on flattening the rug in our bedroom.  Even though we used carpet tape when we lay the rug initially, somehow, the rug started bunching up on one side shortly after that and it’s been driving me nuts all year.  We purchased some super heavy pavers that are small, but dense, and we put them in plastic bags to protect the rug, and then we laid them all over the part of the carpet that was bunching.  We’ve been laying them out all day every day to try to get the carpet to flatten back out, and it doesn’t appear to be getting rid of the crease that formed when it was bunched.  Boooo.

After that was done, I got the towels folded and put away and then we had lunch.

After lunch, I watered my indoor and outdoor plants, and I started a new book – Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid.  Meanwhile, the kids played outside for a long time because the weather was beautiful and they needed to burn some energy and get some fresh air.

Tuesday was Christmas baking day, and Brian made 72 of his famous candy cane cookies to take to all our gatherings, so I helped him chop the candy cane Hershey Kisses.  We had to chop nearly 80 of those, so it took a long time.  Those cookies are always a labor of love, but they’re soooo worth it.

The kids came inside after that and they both decided to clean out their stuffed animals (Olivia’s collection was seriously out of control), and they ended up getting rid of two small trash bags of them.  Once they were done cleaning them out, I bagged them up, and we’ll donate them to our church’s outreach center.

I paid two bills and filed a couple of keepsakes for the kids after that, and then I settled in to work on my end of year blog post for 30 minutes or so.

It was unseasonably warm Tuesday, so I got out for a two-mile walk/jog later in the afternoon and I wore shorts and a tank top… I couldn’t believe how hot it was. 

After my workout, it was time to shower and get ready because we had tickets to the Botanical Gardens Christmas lights event.  My brother and sister-in-law came for Christmas this year along with my niece and nephew, and my parents and my other brother and his roommate all joined us, too. 

We walked all along and took in all the sights and then we walked through the woods along the star walk where they had luminaries lining the sidewalks.  It was beautiful and we really enjoyed our time there!  I took a ton of pictures, so please indulge me.  ;o)

All 12 of us headed to IHOP for dinner after we wrapped up at the Botanical Gardens, and boy, was that a mistake.  Although there were barely any patrons there, we still had to wait 15 minutes to be seated, and then we ultimately ended up waiting at least 45 more minutes before we actually had food.  There were all kinds of issues with their ordering system and our server couldn’t figure out what to do, so the person running the register ended up coming over and taking our orders manually (with a piece of paper and a pen) and then after that, our food came out quickly.  She totally saved the day!

The food was delicious as always, but by the time we got home it was nearly 10 o’clock.  The kids went straight to bed and then Brian and I started The Family Stone.  That movie hit extra hard this year since Diane Keaton passed away earlier this year.  :o(

 

Wednesday, December 24

Wednesday was my favorite day of the whoooole year!!!!  Christmas Eve!!  We started the day by sleeping in (of course) and then we had breakfast.  The kids both needed to shower, so they went ahead and did that after breakfast, and while they did, I made sure that I was organized for all the events to come. 

When both kids were done, we all settled in on the couch to watch Christmas movies.  First up, was Red One because none of us had ever seen it.  We all enjoyed it!  It’s a lot of action and there are some really funny parts, and it has a good message, so it was a win!

After that, we watched The Santa Clause 2 per Olivia’s request, and we had lunch while we watched.  Towards the end of the movie, I had to get up and start packing since we had to take so much stuff over to my parents’ house for our Christmas Eve celebration.  Brian also made a big batch of Manhattans and put them in a big thermos to take over there, too.

Once everything was packed and ready, we all got ready for Mass.  We go to the children’s Mass every year, and I always love every single second.  This year, since my brother and the kids were in town, they joined us at church, and we sandwiched my niece between Olivia and me and my nephew sat next to Jacob.  They don’t attend church regularly at home, so we weren’t sure if they’d be okay sitting still for so long (especially since we had to get there 45 minutes early to ensure we got seats), but both ended up doing great!  My niece is still little and has a ton of energy, but she was so well behaved.  Olivia showed her where to read along in the missal, so that kept her engaged.

Mass let out late since it was packed, so Brian, the kids, and I hightailed it over to the Mexican restaurant that we frequent to pick up cheese dip and salsa + chips for dinner.  We always did a traditional Christmas dinner – ham, mashed potatoes, casseroles, etc. – for most of my life, but several years ago, my Momma made the switch to making white chicken chili and it was the best thing we’ve ever done!  It’s soooo nice to get a break from all the traditional Christmas food that we eat repeatedly during this season, and white chicken chili is everyone’s favorite!  We always bring cheese dip and salsa from our favorite Mexican restaurant, and we have several different kinds of chips and it’s just so delicious!  It’s also much easier for my Momma to prepare and for all of us to clean up, too!

After we picked up our dips, we headed home to change quickly and grab the two boxes of stuff that we needed for the evening – liquor, glasses, pjs, gifts, wine, cookies B had made, etc. – and then we headed to my parents’ house for the night. 

We had a FULL HOUSE this Christmas Eve since my brother and SIL and the kids were there, so it was packed.  We ended up having 15 people, I think? – my parents, our family of four, my brother’s family of four, my baby brother and his roommate, my father-in-law, and my uncle and his girlfriend.  

The rest of the night was spent eating, drinking, and being merry – we had our batch of Manhattans and Brian made several batches of winter white cosmos for those who don’t like whiskey.  My Momma had made homemade dupes for Twix bars and they were divine.  She also made her peanut clusters that she makes every year.

Once everyone was full, we opened gifts, and then after all the gifts were unwrapped, we all settled in for our annual viewing of Home Alone.  We’ve been watching that movie every Christmas Eve as long as I can remember.  And my brother, Zach, and I always recite the whole thing from start to finish and drive everyone nuts.  It’s tradition.  This year, my dad was sitting between us when it started and five minutes into it, he was like, “Okay, I can’t sit between you two.”  Hahahaha.

We said our goodbyes and got home around 11 PM (it’s always a late night!) and the kids left cookies for Santa + a candy cane for the reindeer, they said goodbye to Cheek, our elf, and then they got into bed.  Brian and I finished watching The Family Stone, we put out the kids’ gifts from us while watching Die Hard (it IS a Christmas movie!), and then we went to bed a little after 1 AM because Santa was right around the corner.  ;o)

Thursday, December 25

Thursday was Christmas Day!  We have a rule in our house that the kids can’t wake us before 7 AM on Christmas morning – YES, WE ARE THOSE PEOPLE AND I HAVE NO SHAME.  Hahahaha.  Brian and I are not morning people, we love our sleep, and 7 AM is early to us, especially when we go to bed so late on Christmas Eve.  So, we’ve always told the kids that they can’t wake us before 7.  I mean, it’s still pitch black outside here this time of year at 7 AM, so it still feels like the middle of the night! 

Anyhoo, every year, I think to myself that surely the kids will sleep in a little bit later since they’re so big now, but every year they prove me wrong and they come creeping in at 7 AM on the dot.  As soon as I heard the door open, I groaned internally.  Haha.  As much as I love Christmas, I love sleep more.  Hahahaha.

B and I got up, turned on all the lights downstairs while the kids waited at the top of the stairs, and then we turned the kids loose.  They were both excited about their gifts from Santa, although, little did they know, the best gifts were yet to come.

After they looked at all their Santa gifts and opened their stockings, they opened their gifts from us.  All Jacob wanted this year was a Pokemon set that he hadn’t been able to get the day that it was released.  Brian had gone out and stood in line for it everywhere for him, but he wasn’t able to get it.  Jacob was heartbroken that he couldn’t get one (thanks to all the scalpers), so Brian made it his mission to get one for Jacob.  He ended up finding one that was brand new on eBay (still shrink-wrapped).  We had to pay more than retail, of course, but it was worth every penny to see Jacob’s face on Christmas morning.  We also got him a Lego set that he wanted and a couple of shirts, one that he’d requested just right before Christmas.

All Olivia truly wanted for Christmas was an iPad and a weighted blanket (Santa brought the blanket), so Brian and I got her an iPad.  We had told her over and over again that she wasn’t going to get an iPad (we are strict with electronic devices in our home) so she was truly shocked when she opened the box and saw it in there.  And ultimately, we decided to get her the iPad because she only wanted it for two things – 1) for the art and design program Procreate that my brother has that she loves so much and 2) to be able to talk to her best friend.  We don’t have a house phone and none of her friends have house phones or cell phones (only iPads), so the only way Olivia could talk to her friends at home was by borrowing either Brian’s or my phone and talking to them on their iPads.  So now she’ll be able to talk to her best friend.

Brian and I also got Olivia a hand-signed Taylor Swift The Life of a Showgirl CD and surprised her with that in a frame.  She didn’t even know that those existed, so she didn’t even know to put that on her Christmas list, and she was so surprised that she cried when she opened it.  I think it was my favorite time ever watching somebody open a gift.  Through teary eyes she asked, “So you mean that Taylor Swift actually touched this?!”  It was just the sweetest thing. 

I’d had it for months and it was the hardest thing waiting that long to give it to her.  I bought one for myself, too, so I couldn’t display my own either because I didn’t want to spoil the surprise for Olivia, so I’m ecstatic because I can finally frame mine and get it displayed in my office after all these months!

And they are 100% authentic because we bought them directly from Taylor’s website.  At the beginning of this release, I signed up for an app called “Alerts for Merch” because they alert you the second that something new is added to her website, and I told Brian that if she released signed merch, I wanted to get my hands on one for Olivia.  Sure enough, one afternoon, I got an alert that signed CDs had been added, so I dropped everything I was doing (and Brian did, too) and I immediately got on my phone and my computer at the same time + Brian got on his phone, and we added them to our carts as fast as we could.  I had to wait around 15 minutes to check out, and Brian had to wait like 40, maybe, if I remember correctly??  But we both lucked out and got them.  I was lucky enough to get two – so between the two of us, we got three of the four signed variants (they all had different pictures).  The fourth one was my favorite (and the one I knew Olivia would love the most), and Brian and I weren’t able to get it, but my friend, Emily, was able to get one, so she shipped it to us, and that’s the one that we put in Olivia’s frame. 

The signed CDs were just barely more than the price of the regular CDs, so I was ECSTATIC to have authentic signed merch from her that didn’t cost an arm and a leg.  And I was soooo grateful to not have to pay a gajillion dollars for one on eBay. 

Each one is truly unique, and she added a heart to each of our copies, and it’s so neat to have something signed!  You can tell that the inserts were all stacked on top of each other, too, because on the backs of each of ours, you can see where the Sharpie hadn’t quite dried yet from the previous one when she laid it on top of the others.  And one of mine has a part of the autograph where you can tell that the Sharpie transferred to the back of the one that she stacked on top of it, because mine has a little white mark in the signature.  I have learned a ton in my TS Facebook group that I joined, and everyone says that it’s those little unique things that make signatures even more special. 

Anyway, after the kids opened gifts from us, they thanked us a million times and both said that it was their favorite Christmas ever (Olivia said the TS autograph was her favorite gift of all… even more than her beloved iPad – ha!), and it just made my Momma heart so happy.  We likely don’t have many Christmases left with both kids at home so I’m soaking up every second each year.

After gifts were unwrapped, Jacob immediately dug into his Pokemon sets to see what treasures he’d gotten, and Brian helped Olivia set up her iPad.  I got to work on breakfast – French toast, bacon, and fruit – and then we all sat down to eat around 9. 

After breakfast, I cleaned the kitchen, and then Brian and I opened our stockings from one another while the kids continued to play with their new stuff.  This year, he and I decided not to do big gifts, and instead, just stocking gifts, and Brian got me perhaps one of my favorite gifts ever – two koozies with Maui on them!  I already have a mug with a few pictures of her on them, so I was so excited to have koozies with her, too!  I’m still obsessed with her even though she’s gone.  Haha.  I laughed out loud at the one of her sitting at the table waiting for a scrap of food.  I love that picture of her so much and I freaking miss her so muuuuch, y’all.

After B and I were done opening our stockings, I lay down on the couch and took my Christmas nap.  I’m always so tired on Christmas Day after a late night and an early morning (not to mention all the prep leading up to this day), so it’s nice to be able to indulge in a nap since I never take them any other day of the year (other than when my neck adjustments / vertigo meds made me so tired this past year).  I was in and out of sleep since the kids were playing downstairs, but it was still a good one and I felt so refreshed when I got up.

It was time for lunch when I got up, and then after lunch was done and cleaned up, Brian and I tidied for a bit.  Even after our tidying, the house was still a wreck, but Christmas is the one day of the year that I just let it go.  Haha.

B had put a few lotto tickets in my stocking, and I won $50 on one of them so that was exciting.  Seems like we never win more than $10 or so.  Haha.

Meanwhile, Jacob worked on building Lego sets and Olivia played on her drawing app.

Mid-afternoon, I decided to get out for a walk because the weather was warm and balmy on Christmas Day, which was not ideal.  It was nice, however, to not freeze to death on my walk.

When I got home, I peeled and washed six pounds of potatoes and got those boiling since I was in charge of the mashed potatoes for our big family gathering.  I jumped in the shower while they boiled, and Brian stood watch over them for me since they sometimes boil over.

I finished getting ready, and then I finished making the potatoes – soooo much butter, milk, and salt and pepper, y’all! – and then we headed to my Aunt Joy and Uncle Greg’s house for our gathering with my mom’s side of the family.  We had quite a few missing this year as they live in other parts of the country and couldn’t make it, but it was nice to be able to gather with everyone who could be there, especially since we missed it last year since Olivia tested positive for the flu on Christmas Day.

Since it was so warm, we all ate outside, and my cousin, Shelby, made espresso martinis.  Towards the end of the night, my uncle pulled out all my cousin, Wil’s, Georgia football championship rings, and I tried on the SEC Championship ring from when we beat Texas last year as well as our two most recent National Championship rings!  Most years he has had to miss our Christmas gathering because the team has to practice or travel for bowl / playoff games, but he got to stay with us Christmas evening since Georgia didn’t play until January 1 this year.

The rest of the evening was spent laughing a TON as we always do, and then we finally said goodbye to everyone around 9:45.  The kids got into bed and then Brian and I collapsed on the couch and started the movie Oh. What. Fun. Before calling it a night.

 

Friday, December 26

Friday morning, I slept in until 8:45 and everyone ate breakfast on their own as they woke up.  I sat down at my computer for an hour to pay a couple of bills, research rug tape, catch up on emails, and catch up on my planner.  Brian went to get a few things from the grocery store late in the morning and the kids and I tidied the whole house from top to bottom.  The kids got all their gifts put away, we got all the trash and recycling bagged up, and we put away all the other random things that were lying around.

After lunch, the kids got showered and then Olivia started knitting her Woobles capybara that she’d gotten from my parents while Jacob built some in his Minecraft world.

Meanwhile, I got started on the Christmas takedown.  I got our tree down in our primary bedroom, I dusted and vacuumed our bedroom, I washed a load of laundry so Jacob could wear one of his new shirts, I washed our Christmas bedding to get it put away for the year, I pulled out our regular bedding and got it back on the bed, and I deep cleaned the countertops in our primary bathroom. 

Somehow during all of that, I managed to throw out my lower back – there wasn’t any specific thing that I could pinpoint that did it – but by the end, my lower back felt awful and it hurt to walk.  So, I lay down on the bed flat on my back to let it rest, and then I iced it and took some Ibuprofen.

I had to get up and make pineapple casserole for our Christmas dinner with my father-in-law, so I did that next, and Brian assisted with getting the dish in and out of the oven, so I didn’t have to bend weird.  Then we all got showered and ready and we hit the road.

On the way to my father-in-law’s we finally remembered to dump some of our egg cartons and plastic bags at Publix for recycling.  We have recycling pickup at home, but they don’t take plastic bags or Styrofoam, and thankfully, Publix does, so we always hold onto ours and take it there when it gets full.  And I swear, we had to have had at least 75 egg cartons in our garage.  We didn’t even bring all of them because we figured they wouldn’t have that much room in the bin. 

The rest of the evening was spent celebrating Christmas at my father-in-law's house.  Our niece and nephew and my niece’s new husband were all able to come to town, so we were able to celebrate my nephew’s birthday with him, too.  And my nephew brought his two-year-old pup who we’d never met, and she is the cutest thing.  She’s a chiweenie, so she’s small – probably 10-12 pounds – and I love small dogs as y’all probably know, so it made me long for another one.  It’s been ten months since Maui passed away and I’m still not quite ready, but I think I’m getting closer to wanting to find a new baby to love. 

We got home around eight, and Olivia Facetimed with her friend, Maren, for a bit.  Then, we started the movie The Best Christmas Pageant Ever.  I’d been wanting to see it since it came out the previous year.  I read the book when I was little and I remember loving it.  Since we started it so late, we got through about half of it and then the kids went to bed.  Brian and I started The Family Man (another favorite from my movie theater days!) and I iced my back since it was still hurting a bit.  We got through about half of that and then headed to bed. 

 

Saturday, December 27

Saturday morning, I got up around 8:45 and I made waffles for breakfast.  Once breakfast was done, I headed to my office, hot tea in hand, to work on this blog post for a bit.  My back felt a little better, so I decided to do a few more things around the house, although I took it slow.

I took down Jacob’s entire tree, I got his room vacuumed, and I got all the decorations off Olivia’s tree… she wanted to keep hers up for one more night, so I didn’t take the tree down completely.

After all that was done, I headed to the kitchen to make another batch of pineapple casserole since we were celebrating Christmas with my mother-in-law and step-father-in-law.

While that baked, I got showered and ready, and then we headed to their house for Christmas, stopping along the way to drop the rest of the egg cartons for recycling at Publix. 

It was a beautiful day – cool and partly sunny – so we ate on the back deck since there were too many people to fit around the dining room table.  After lunch, we had dessert and the kids played badminton and chased the dogs around.  My mother-in-law and I got all the food put away and all the dishes rinsed and stacked for washing, and then we all gathered in the living room to watch the kids open gifts. 

Since my nephew’s birthday had been the day before, we celebrated him one more time with gifts and dirt cake (Olivia’s favorite and one of my favorites, too!), and then we all gathered outside one more time to take a family picture.  My niece also got some action shots of the kids playing outside, so I included those here as well.

We got home at 5 and I watered all the outdoor plants, then I got into pjs and read my book while we watched football. 

Brian and I weren’t terribly hungry for dinner since we’d eaten a huge lunch, so we just made a frozen pizza for dinner and let the kids have most of it. 

After dinner, we finished The Best Christmas Pageant Ever (we all loved it), and then we started Freakier Friday with the kids before they went to bed.  Brian and I finished The Family Man, and then we went to bed, too.  We squeezed in so many Christmas movies this year and it was truly one of my favorite Christmas weeks.

 

Sunday, December 28

Sunday, I had a list of things I wanted to do, but first – cinnamon rolls!

After that, I tackled the tasks on my list:

 

-       Transferred pictures from my phone to my computer

-       Worked on this blog post

-       Listened to my Sunday sermon while I worked

-       Took Olivia’s Christmas tree down in her room and put it away

-       Vacuumed Olivia’s room and the playroom

-       Took the tree down in my office

-       Finished vacuuming the entire second floor

 

I took a little break after that to lay on the bed because my back was hurting again, and then we had lunch. 

After lunch, I got the leftover cookies Brian had made in the freezer since they were starting to get crumbly, and the kids did their laundry and cleaned their bathroom.  I worked on organizing the photos I’d transferred to my computer while icing my back again.  I ended up finishing organizing the pictures which took forever since I’d taken so many due to all the activities we’d done, and then I tidied my office and did my quiet time. 

After that, I showered, we went to Mass, and then we picked up Mama Cass for Sunday dinner at my parents’ house.  Typically, my mom takes a break from Sunday dinner the week of Christmas, but my brother’s 40th birthday was Monday, so we wanted to celebrate him!

When we got home, we finished Freakier Friday with the kids, and then after they got in bed, Brian started Stranger Things that had dropped on Christmas night, and I read my book next to him on the couch.

What a wonderful Christmas week we had!  This was truly one of my favorites, even though Maui’s absence loomed large. 

And now for some current things…

Currently Reading

In December, I read 7 books – Dreamland by Nicholas Sparks (4 stars), It’s Different This Time by Joss Richard (5 stars – I loved this one so much), The Bright Years by Sarah Damoff (5 stars – I loved this one, too!), The Intruder by Freida McFadden (4 stars), What Does It Feel Like by Sophie Kinsella (4 stars – she’s one of my favorite authors and I was so sad to see that she passed away from her cancer in December), Ward D by Freida McFadden (4 stars), and Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid (4 stars – I LOVED the last two thirds of this book, but the first third was really slow… there was too much technical NASA jargon that I didn’t find pertinent to the story.  If it wasn’t for that, it would have easily gotten 5 stars.  It was a beautiful story.).

I also finished my devotional for 2025 – Everyday Gospel by Paul David Tripp and I have to say I didn’t love this one.  His first devotional I read was phenomenal, but this one just didn’t hit the same way the first one did.  I gave this one 3 stars.

And I’m still reading my Bible along with The Bible in a Year with Father Mike Schmitz and I’m loving it. 

 

Currently Watching

With B: In December Brian and I finished season two of A Man on the Inside, we started and finished season four of The Morning Show, and we watched lots of Christmas movies – Love Actually, The Family Stone, Die Hard, Oh. What. Fun., and The Family Man.  We also continued Saturday Night Live and we watched a ton of college football.

With the Kids: In late November and all of December, we watched aaaallll the Christmas movies and specials – Meet Me Next Christmas, Christmas Vacation, The Disney Christmas special, the Christmas tree lighting in Rockefeller Center, The Santa Clause, A Very Jonas Christmas Movie, Home Alone 2, Elf, Red One, The Santa Clause 2, Home Alone, and The Best Christmas Pageant Ever.  We also watched some non-Christmas things like Mrs. Doubtfire, the end of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade Preview, the beginning of the Saturday Night Live Thanksgiving Special, The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, The Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show, The Eras Tour Documentary, Freakier Friday, and we started the new season of Percy Jackson and the Olympians.  We took the kids to see Wicked: For Good at the movie theater and Brian also took the kids to watch Avatar: Fire and Ash at the movie theater.

Alone: I watched Serendipity and The Holiday on repeat in my office while I worked.

 

Currently Listening To

We listened to so much Christmas music, and I’m still listening to The Life of a Showgirl by Taylor Swift.

Happy Monday, y’all!