christmas at the armstrong's

Christmas is the best time of year! I love everything about it; the decorating, the music, snow, candy making, crackling fires, hot cocoa, Christmas movies, twinkling lights, you name it. And here at the Armstrong house, we are ready for the big man to drop in.

Our Christmas banner over the fire place is filled with welcoming holiday cheer.

Our stockings have been hung with extra special care.

Here's our little tree in the green room (as we affectionately call it). All of the ornaments are made of paper.

Our sparkling little snowflakes ensure that we have a white Christmas.

Our festive dining room is ready for some amazing food.

When I was little, my mom started a tradition of giving us an ornament every year. It is my favorite Christmas tradition that I've ever had. Decorating the tree each year means more because all the ornaments have a special memory. When Curtis and I got married we continued the tradition. This is Curt's Indiana Jones ornament I gave him this year, complete with theme music.

This is the ornament Curt gave me this year; Jack Skellington, complete with light up Christmas Town sign. I love it!

As excited as I am for Christmas, I almost wish we still had another month of celebrating. What are some of your favorite things about the season? What are some of your traditions? Happy Christmas everyone!

crazy foggy weather

So all this fog is doing crazy things to the trees and shrubs in our yard. I went out earlier and took some photos.

happy festivus!

A Festivus for the rest of us! We recently had a little Festivus celebration of our own and it was a success. We slightly altered a couple of the key components so as to ensure that no one shed any Festivus tears. To have a happy Festivus follow these simple guidelines:

1. First, you need a pole. Aluminum is the preferred choice by Frank Costanza, but whatever you have will be just fine. We had a miniature version by using this nail.

2. Next, is the Airing of Grievances. This is typically where you let everyone know all the ways they've disappointed you over the past year. We chose a better and more gentler route and played Catchphrase instead. But believe me, there was plenty of 'Airing of Grievances' between Curt and Paul.

3. As Festivus rolls on, you come to the Feats of Strength. Ours were put to the test by a grueling game of Seinfeld Scene It. Alison and I came out on top (as if there were ever any doubts).

4. If you can squeeze in a Festivus Miracle it would be ideal, but not necessary.

5. We also watched the Seinfeld episode, The Strike, where we first hear of Festivus.

Well, there you have it. Happy Festivus everyone!