Christmas Cards for Dummies

I have never sent Christmas cards, and this year I really wanted to start.  I originally wanted to get all the pets dressed up in their holiday gear and take a picture, but after Walker passed away the excitement was no longer there!  

We had family photos taken with my in-laws back in November and the same day that the photo disc arrived...so did a coupon from Shutterfly for 10 free cards!  Perfect timing! 

I have used Shutterfly for my prints and have made dozens of photo books, but it never crossed my mind to use them for our Christmas cards!

I'm happy with the end result...what do you think?

(P.S.~ There was a back-side to the card also, but I wasn't sure how to embed that.  I guess I need Blogger for Dummies!)

Wishing You Merry Christmas Card

Customize your Christmas cards this season at Shutterfly.com.

View the entire collection of cards.

http://www.shutterfly.com/

A.K.A. Debbie Downer

I really hate to be a Debbie Downer, but I feel like I'm overwhelmed with every aspect of my life right now.

I am freshly coming off a 9 day vacation and I don't feel any better today than I did 2 weeks ago.  Is that normal?  Don't most people come back from vacation feeling refreshed and ready to face the world?

I don't feel like thinking long enough to write in paragraphs so you are getting bullet points!

• I'm tired!!!  No matter how much sleep I get....I am still tired!  And not necessarily tired like I need to take a nap, but more like I need to sit down and just relax
• My job sucks!!!  Yes, I am thankful to have a job....but that doesn't mean I can't hate every minute of every day that I am there.  I am over used and under paid and it's taking a toll on me.
• I'm sad!!!  The loss of Walker is still affecting me.  And watching Tucker mope around the house doesn't help!  I wonder if I will ever get rid of the guilt I feel over the whole pill incident.
• I'm broke!!!  Between all of the money we have spent on Lainey and her chiropractor appointments, her acupuncture, the surgery, the trips to the emergency vet, her medications, daycare fees, etc...and then the emergency vet appointments with both cats, the cremation fees, etc...we have spent a huge chunk of money the past 4 months.  It is money that we had (in savings), but nonetheless, it makes me stressed to think about not having that "comfort" just in case we need it.  I can probably bet on the fact that this will probably be the year our furnace will go out...just our luck!
• Christmas!!!  My entire life Christmas has always been my favorite time of the year.  It is a time spent with family and friends, everyone is happy, and Christmas music makes my heart skip a beat!  This year it feels different.  This year it is so stressful.  The holiday is losing it's meaning (not to me, but to others close to me).  I am actually thinking of boycotting and spending Christmas with only my husband. 

I just realized that this list could go on forever and I like you too much to put you through that kind of torture so I will end now!

Actually, here are a couple "happy" pictures from my vacation....that way the blog-o-sphere won't consider me a total Debbie Downer.

Lifes Happenings

Here are a few tid-bits of what's happening in and around my world:

• I dropped my iPhone in the toilet over a week ago!  I immediately put it in a bag of rice to dry out, but since then, I've been having problems with my sound.  Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't.  If this was just my personal phone I wouldn't worry about it, but since it is technically a work phone, it is important that I have a ring tone to know that customers are calling me. I have the option to upgrade from my 3GS to an iPhone 4S, but I've been so hesitant to do it.  I know I will love the new 4S, but I am a creature of habit and I am (for some reason) really attached to MY phone and don't want a new one!  What to do?

• Last month I got our electric bill and my jaw dropped to the floor!  I assumed it was because we had all the Christmas lights on in the house and all of the outdoor decor lit up.  Well, I'm still assuming that, but this morning I got our electric bill for this month and it is about $100 more than last month!  I don't know how we are going to keep paying for these.  I checked to see what my bill was last year at this time considering we would have had all the Christmas lights going last year too.  My current bill is over 150% higher this year....what the hell!

• Next Monday Lainey and I start puppy classes.  We both need some serious training!  I've tried and tried to properly train her to walk on a leash and heel when commanded, not to jump on people when they come into the house, to sit on command...every time.  Whatever I am doing is not working.  I just hope that the classes are worth the money and can really teach both of us a thing or two.  I'm also hoping that my spaz of a dog doesn't get kicked out of class on the first night.

• I love my kindle (as I knew I would), but I feel so guilty when I sit down and start reading.  My mind won't relax and instead keeps reminding me of all the things I could be accomplishing if I wasn't just sitting here reading.  I made a promise to myself that in 2012 I would slow down a little and enjoy more ME time, but I'm starting off the year a little rough.  Do you think there will ever come a time that I can fully enjoy putting chores aside for a little relaxation to read?

• I'm loving this Michigan weather.  It has been near 50 degrees about 3-4 times in the past week.  And the sun has even been shining!  They are calling for some snow later this week, but until then I'm not complaining one bit.

What's been happening in your neck of the woods?

Christmas 2011

Between my husband and I both having pneumonia I didn't get any pictures from Christmas.  I'm really disappointed!

But, I was able to find a few on my iphone

This first picture is of our tree after a night of wrapping gifts.  It looks as though Santa had already visited our house!  The amazing part is that these were not all of our gifts.  At the time of this picture, we still had more wrapping to do.  And not to mention, this was only ONE of our trees.  We had another Christmas tree that was full of gifts also.

And of course I have to throw in a picture of our Lainey Bug!!  (The markings on her neck look a little like a beard...haha)

And just so there are no hurt feelings....I had to throw in a picture of both dogs.  Stewie, our Jack Russell is on the left and our "little" Lainey is on the right.

I'm a little disappointed in the entire holiday season this year, but I have big hopes for Christmas 2012!

On the Mend

After a whirlwind few months of constantly being on the go....my body shut down last week.  It was 11 days of getting out of bed or off the couch only in emergency situations (using the restroom, heating up chicken broth, going to the hospital, etc).

If I could only put into words the illness that I just recovered from.  The correct term would be pneumonia, but it was so much more than that.  My body literally shut down on me.  There were days I physically could not move.  Lifting my head for even the slightest thing was exhausting and nauseating all in the same breath.

On the worst of days, I couldn't even get myself to the bathroom to urinate.  My husband was a trooper and kept bringing me clean clothes and washing my soiled ones.

To sum it up....it was horrible.

But, on a brighter note....I am now back to work and the holidays are just around the corner.  And needless to say, the next time my body tells me to slow down I will surely listen!

Shopping, Shopping and More Shopping

I'm not usually one to complain about shopping, but the past 3 weeks have been insane! In a 24 hr period I am only doing one of the following:  sleeping, working or SHOPPING!

Not only have I been shopping for my own family and inlaws, but I am also doing all of the shopping for our company party at work.  This requires purchasing 25 gifts (unisex gifts) and trying to stay between $30-$35.  In my mind this seemed like such a simple task....boy was I wrong!!!

For one thing, gifts are either geared towards a male or geared towards a female.  Purchasing something that both gendors would enjoy is nearly impossible. 

Secondly, most gifts are priced at either $20 or upwards of $40.  Finding 25 items that fall around $30 gives you slim pickin's.  And evidently, it is frowned upon if you buy duplicate items in order to get to your desired spending amount.

I am currently 7 gifts away from finishing this task and I am stumped.  Any ideas would be much appreciated.

Portable North Pole

I seriously just spent an hour on this website.  Check it out

Here is a video to my husband (I also made one for my nephew and brother-in-law).

Oh, the things I do to waste time at work....LOL!

Not Enough Hours in the Day

So today is my 3rd day back to work after having 11 days off.  And to be completely honest....I need another vacation! I was more busy during those 11 days off, than I would have been had I gone into the office.

My time off consisted of a ton of shopping, 3 Thanksgiving celebrations (all on separate days), holiday decorating (both indoors and out), my sister's birthday, laundry and house cleaning, and spending time with family.  All of these items bring me great joy, but I greatly missed having a single minute alone with my husband during those 11 days.  By the end of my time off, we were so physically exhausted from being on the go, that I think we were both ready for me to go back to work.  At least during a normal work week we have dinner together and get some quality time to talk about our day, upcoming events, etc.  It's hard to put into words how badly I missed those simple conversations.

The good news, is that I have many scheduled days off in December and I am counting down the days until then.  I have promised myself that I will SLOW DOWN and enjoy those days as much as possible.

And because this post was kind of a downer....here is a picture of Lainey displaying her holiday spirit as we decorate the Christmas tree.

M.I.A

My, oh my....it's been nearly a month since I've posted here!  Where has the time gone?

Well, for starters...I spent close to 10 days very ill.  I am currently working with a few specialists and have some more tests scheduled, but they are thinking I either have Crohns Disease or Ulcerative Colitis.  Not fun....

Christmas came and passed way too quickly for me.  It is by far my favorite holiday but I was so sick that I didn't get to enjoy myself as much as I would have liked.  Oh well, there is always next year (er...this year)

New Years Eve I was in bed before the ball dropped so no exciting news there.

But, what IS exciting is that I am in the process of getting new floors in our house.  The master bedroom, living room and dining room will hopefully be finished in the next week or so.  I'm so excited for the finished product but oh, what a job it has been!  I didn't anticipate this little DIY project to be so intense.  Pulling up the carpet in all 3 rooms, removing staples, removing tack strips, laying underlayment, laying the new wood floor, new base board, removing door trim, putting up new door trim.........ugh, makes me tired just thinking about all the work we have left to do.  But, we are more than 1/2 way there and it looks AMAZING! (and a HUGE thanks to my mom and dad for all of their hard work in making this happen)

BEFORE:

AFTER:


pic from iPhone...not sure how to rotate it to correct position...ugh!

I hope you all had a fantastic holiday season and are just as excited for this new year as I am.

All I have is Bullets....

• Today I take both cats to the vet for their annual check up.  This will also be a 2 week check-up for Walker following his trip to the emergency vet for his bladder...I hope I get the news I am hoping for!

• Normally during the Christmas/New Year season I get about 14-16 days off from work.  This year I am only getting 7!  I'm hoping that in those 7 days I can find some time to relax and re-energize!  I'm just exhausted lately and my schedule doesn't allow me a day to veg out until after Christmas.

• I'm addicted to the Hallmark channel....I just love the Christmas movies.  Normally during this time of year I get hooked on Lifetime for the 25 days of Christmas but this year it's definitely the Hallmark channel.

• We are done Christmas shopping all but one person.  I also have almost everything all wrapped and under the tree.  Definitely ahead of schedule considering I'm normally wrapping gifts on Christmas Eve.

• I joined Weight Watchers again last week and they started a new Points Plus program the same day I joined.  It's going to take some getting used to.  I understand the overall concept of the changes, but still have some doubts that the system is actually going to work as well as the old one.  Only time will tell.  I've been tracking my points for 3 days straight and only hope I will continue.  I don't have as much to lose this time, but I should have never allowed myself to get to this point.

• We go a little crazy decorating outside for Christmas and our electrical bill doubled from last month.  We have since added more lights outdoors so I can only imagine what next month's bill will bring.  But, it's totally worth it :-)

• My self esteem has taken a toll lately.  Not only have I gained 14 lbs since my wedding in July, but I am so pasty white.  I can't afford to go to the tanner (and it's not healthy to begin with) and I live in Michigan so it's not like sunshine is available, so I'm feeling a little blah lately.  I even try to wear makeup every once in a while and I still don't feel "pretty".  Ugh...I hate when I get into these funks

• This will be our first Christmas as husband and wife.  I have found that every holiday we have celebrated since our wedding has been so much fun.  Who would have thought that picking out hallmark cards addressed to "husband" would be so exciting!

• I miss my family and friends.  It might be the time of year or it might be that the first half of the year was spent getting together so frequently with them for all my wedding related activities and now I feel like I haven't seen anyone in ages.  I don't live that far from my family or friends (1.5 hrs) but this time of the year is so hectic for everyone.  It's like pulling teeth trying to find a free weekend to get together. 

Fed Ex can suck it

On cyber Monday I was scoping out the online sales and came across a 60"x80" photo blanket that was priced rather decent.  (see image below for idea)

I thought it would be a great personalized gift for my husband by using some of our favorite wedding pictures.  While at work, I took the time to upload all of the pictures to the site and get them in the perfect "collage" setting.

Yesterday I get an email from the vendor stating that my order has been sent to the wrong person and they have issued a refund for the item.  At first I was a little confused so I called the 800 number to speak with a customer service representative to get the details.  As they stated...my item was shipped to the wrong person.  Fed Ex delivered my "personalized" item to the wrong address and to the wrong person!!  Someone (a stranger) is in possession of a blanket covered in pictures of me and my husband!  How could Fed Ex do this?  My NAME and ADDRESS were on the shipment...why would they accept signature from anyone different?  And why would someone sign for a package that had MY NAME on it.  They obviously don't know me so why would they sign for the package!  UGHHHHH.....

I don't know if I'm more frustrated at Fed Ex for their screw up or at the person who signed for the package knowing it wasn't theirs.  If they would have looked at the name/address on the package they could have told Fed Ex they were at the wrong location and then maybe I would have my gift for my husband.  But instead...I have no idea where the item is and there is no way I'm taking the time to make another blanket and upload all those pictures again!

I will refuse to use Fed Ex ever again!!!  It is for this exact reason that my place of employment stopped using them years ago!

Bullets

I've been neglecting to blog lately because I feel like there is either nothing worthwhile to talk about or so much to talk about that I can't begin to put it into words.  So today I've decided to update life using bullet points.

• This upcoming Saturday I'm having Thanksgiving with my in-laws
• Thanksgiving day will be spent with my sister and her family this year as the rest of our family has other priorities
• That same sister turns the big "4-0" on Black Friday..Happy Early Birthday Rachel!
• My hometown highschool football team is playing in the semi-finals this upcoming weekend and if they win they will be competing in the state finals at Ford Field in Detroit the weekend of Thanksgiving.  I am planning on going so I'm praying they win this Saturday
• This past weekend I attended a baby shower of one of my best friends.  I have mixed feelings about the day.  I've come to realize that my "best" friends are failing me...I don't know if we are growing apart, if we lack things in common or I've been naive in who I thought they were.  Either way, it hurts to know life is not the same as it used to be.
• I've gained 13 lbs since my wedding in July and I'm having a terrible time getting motivated to lose it.  I hate the way I look, how my clothes fit, etc, but I can't seem to want to do anything about it.  And worse, the holidays are fast approaching which means lots of BIG meals and baked goods.
• My step-son will be living with us full-time starting in December.  If you remember, he was supposed to move in with us before the new school year started, but my husbands ex-wife changed her mind at the last minute.  As of yesterday she has once again changed her mind...
• I am so burned out on life...especially work.  I have never been so looking forward to some time off.  I will have a long weekend next week for Thanksgiving and hopefully 7-8 days off for Christmas. 
• The time change sucks.  I hate that it is dark out before I even get home from work.
• I'm so ready to decorate for Christmas.  I think we are going to begin bringing out the Christmas decor this weekend.
• As I've stated before...I LOVE Christmas music!  A local radio station began playing it on Monday so I even listen while at work.

There you have it...my life in bullets! 

The Soothing Sound of Jingle Bell Rock

I know we are only a few days past Halloween, but I am so ready to start decorating for Christmas!  It is by far my most favorite holiday.  I even started listening to Christmas music at work yesterday.  There is nothing else that can make me feel so warm inside.  I truly believe if Christmas music was played all year long I wouldn't be so stressed.  Case in point...this morning was a hell of a morning when my phone started ringing just after 6:30am with work "issues".  As soon as I arrived to the office I logged onto iTunes and jammed to a little Jingle Bell Rock and all the stress of the morning was gone.  I even found myself smiling a little!

What are some of your favorite Christmas tunes?

Day 2

Today is day 2 off of work.....Yesterday I finished some last minute shopping I needed to do and then wrapped presents for nearly 4 hours. Once I find my camera cord I will take a picture of all the presents under our tree (and Santa hasn't even come yet).

Today is laundry day and clean bathrooms day! God I love vacations! I'm starting to wonder if I could be a stay at home wife!! My house is going to be sparkling by Christmas Day!

Only 3 more days until Christmas....we sure are ready around here!

No More Wake-ups

Today is my last day of work until January 4, 2010. I've been counting down my "wake-ups" all week. And as of this morning I will not be waking up to an alarm for 16 days!!

This afternoon I have our company Christmas party and then after that we are meeting at the local watering hole for some holiday festivities.

For the first time in FOREVER I am totally stress free. I know the remaining holiday season will be busy for me, but at least I won't have to go to the office!! Let me say that one more time...."I will not be working for the next 16 days". Now that is music to my ears!

Happy Holidays to all and best wishes for a Happy New Year!!

Bah Humbug

I love all things Christmas. I wish it was Christmas season all year long (minus the snow and cold weather, of course). But, what I don't like is when the stress of the season causes me to lose my temper!

Yesterday I purchased two $50 prepaid gift cards to Meijer to give to two employees of mine who are truly less fortunate than myself. Well, as I'm sitting at my desk this morning I decide I'll activate the cards for them that way they don't have to worry about it (seeing as neither of them have a phone or access to the internet).

To make a long, disturbing story very short.....the cards cannot be activated and I may not be able to get a refund. And if they do approve my refund than it will take 10-14 business days for a check to come in the mail!!! WTF......so now I have to decide if I'm going to go spend another $100 and get 2 more cards or if I should just put cash in an envelope or should I just bag the whole idea.

I am heading to Meijer right now to see if I can work this out with someone "in person". I pray that I remain calmer than I did while on the phone to the help line!! It's very disappointing to me that by doing something nice for someone it's caused me this much grief! Bahhh Humbug

Surround Sound

My fiance is not an easy person to shop for. He is really picky with his clothes/shoes, which is about the one thing that I'm really good at shopping for. I've been really thinking hard lately about what to get him for Christmas and the only thing I can come up with so far is a home theatre system. Day after day after day he is consistently taking about how he wants surround sound and how this movie would be so much better with surround sound and the music on this channel would sound so much better with surround sound.......yada, yada, yada!

Well folks......here's my dilemma: I have no clue where to even begin shopping for this item. Do I have to go to a store like Best Buy or maybe a department store like Sears? Or would someplace like ABC Warehouse have this? I am stumped. And my next question is....how much does surround sound even cost? I might be in way over my head here!

Dear Santa

This will be the first Christmas in my new house and I'm so excited to start decorating! I know, I know....I just took down my Halloween stuff this week. But, really is there anything better than Christmas and the joy it brings?

We are planning on putting up our lights this weekend so we won't be doing it when the snow comes. Oops....I just said the "S" word! God forgive me.....

This is my inspiration.....

Now I just need to get me a new house......with 2 stories, pillars on the front porch, a long driveway, a brick gate and some pine trees out front! I better start my Dear Santa letter.