Life Lately

Cam and I started our annual Christmas puzzle last night. That, along with Christmas music playing in in the background (always Amy Grant Christmas radio station on Pandora!), finally got me feeling more festive. 

I feel like it's been harder to get into the Christmas spirit the past few years, and I think it's because my church stopped doing its annual Living Christmas Tree concert, which was such a big part of my childhood. The Living Christmas Tree was a big production and always some of the best memories of the holidays. Our church stopped in 2020 after almost 40 years, and changed it to the outdoor Celebration of Lights. My kids absolutely love the Celebration of Lights, and Cam and I always have so much fun volunteering, so I'm sure it will bring the same nostalgia for them one day. It' just doesn't hit quite the same for me. :)

Cam and I volunteered at the soccer game for Celebration of Lights this year, which turned out to be very fun. It was another FREEZING cold year with temps in the low 30s, but we didn't let the cold weather stop us from having a great time. The kids had s'mores, hot chocolate, cotton candy, cookies, apple cider, and lots of activities to take their mind off of the cold, ha! 

They've added a Christmas carol sing-along at the end of the night in the church sanctuary, and Brian and Cam got recruited last-minute to be a shepherd and sheep, LOL! Never did I think I'd see a day where Brian would step foot on a stage in front of a live audience dressed as a shepherd, but miracles do happen.

Last year I wrote about going to the Historic Oakwood Candlelight Tour, and I am happy to report that this year delivered equally as much!!! It was so inspirational to walk through the historic homes and gather ideas for how to make our own space more personal and recreate that sense of awe. Two words come to mind - minimal and meaningful. I went with a few of my girls from Articles Club and it was a wonderful day!

Pictures can never do it justice, but the lights that line our roof at Christmas always make me smile. Our home is set far back from the street and deep in the woods, so we're limited on Christmas decorations that can be seen, but the lights make it magical.

Last year after the Christmas season ended, I ordered personalized stockings hand-knitted from a lady in Rocky Mount, NC (MamaJeanStockings). We were messaging back and forth on Etsy when I was custom designing my stockings, and I asked her to knit a strawberry detail into each stocking. I found out that she is a strawberry farmer! So neat! Mama Jean's Strawberries (Boseman Farms in Rocky Mount)...I found them on Google and they have rave reviews, so now want to make a special trip to get their produce and thank her for knitting my stockings! 

While the stockings weren't cheap, I really feel like they were worth the investment. The stockings were delivered to me last spring, so I just packed them away and forgot about them until earlier this month when it was time to decorate. When I pulled them out of storage, I was wowed! They add so much charm to our mantle. 

I also went with real greenery for our mantle this Christmas. Not sure if I will continue this for next year - it seems to be drying out quickly. I later read that I should have soaked it first...oh well. I've been misting it with water each day hoping it will last. It still looks good, but I can tell it's super dry so I am crossing my fingers that it won't brown for a couple more weeks so it can at least get through Christmas day.

Well, Christmas cards have been sent, Home Alone has been watched, presents have been purchased, and we have a full calendar these next two weeks! I'll be back on the blog the week after Christmas to share my 2025 recap and 2026 goals!

Wishing a very merry Christmas to all of my blog readers!