Show & Tell Tuesday

The Best Gift I Ever Received.....

 

I mentioned this previously, but for sure, the best Christmas present I ever got was my piano. It's definitely a Christmas I'll never ever forget.

I wish I can remember exactly what year it was, but I know for sure I was younger, maybe not like 5/6 young, but like 10 ish/11 ish.

 

I had been taking lessons on a piano that my mom got from her friend who worked at a restaurant and they were getting rid of it. So it was pretty beat up and had cigarette burn holes in it. But that didn't matter to me. I was a happy girl with my own piano.

Well - the Christmas Santa brought me a piano was the Christmas my Gramma had a stroke. We were woken up to a phone call from her lifeline saying she pushed the button and wasn't responding so we all ran out of the house and down the street (3 blocks) to her house and she was ok - but lying on the floor of the bathroom. So we called 911 and were off to the hospital. I remember all my family being there and my mom saying to my aunt that we didn't get to "do" Christmas yet.... but it just didn't seem to matter... So when we finally went home, we started to open our gifts as if we had just woken up. It was probably about 2 or 3 pm at this point... And at the time our tree was directly across from the piano... I opened just about all my gifts walked past the brand new Yamaha upright with sparkly white keys more than a dozen times and never noticed. My mom had to point it out to me and I looked at it and it still too me a second....

I was SO happy! I'll never forget that. It was such a weird Christmas.

My gramma was ok and came home the next day...

But it was an awesome feeling to get that brand new piano.

I knew it was expensive. My mom was a stay at home mom and my dad was a self employed carpenter, and mind you he did very well, I still knew it was a lot.

 

 

I can't wait to move in to our new home and have it there to play and have it for my children to learn how to play. It's so special to me.

 

Now since I'm pulling from the past, I figured I'd do a recent one as well.

So my favorite gift from my husband, besides his unconditional love forever and ever and everything he's ever given me, is my Kitchenaid Stand Mixer!
I love that dang thing!

He got it for me the Christmas we were engaged.

It's amazing and I use it all the time!!

AND....it's RED! :)

Have a great day!
I'm going to be updating ya'll on our kitchen "mini" renovation...

We spent this past weekend updating our kitchen.

It's not quite done but it's much better....

Stay tuned for that

 

~Tiffany~

 

 

 

 

Show & Tell ~ Christmas Decorations

I just love Christmas time!!

I mean, how can you not!?

Today I'm linking up to show my Christmas decorations!

Since we're still in the old house it's going to look exactly the same as last years link up - with a few minor changes... Either way, I love to decorate and love when the house smells like Christmas trees and has lights all over the place!!

Welcome! 

Come on inside....

And this is my little swag by the front door that I make each year 

This is the inside of my front door 

The wreath is too fat to fit between the front door and storm door, so I have this one on the inside and my smaller one on the outside.

~

This guy hangs on the inside of the front door.

I love that it jingles whenever the door opens and closes 

I got this at HomeGoods last year and I love it.

It's just so cute!  

Here is our beautiful tree!!

One of my 4 pillows

Another purchase from Kirklands this year. Love love 

Our stockings!! (Pottery Barn)

 The best Christmas fragrance!

Fresh Balsam!!

I got this in November when my mom and I went shopping. It's so cute

And my wooden reindeer with my cute elf

And of course my Nativity

This is the corner before my bathroom  

One of my favorite sayings this time of year...  

Another HomeGoods purchase...

I love this one  

My mom gave me this a long time ago.

I love the saying - he hangs by my front door! 

This is my Rodney Reindeer

My mom also gave me this guy a while ago...

Because my pup thinks anything stuffed is his, we keep him high up on the curtain rod! 

 My snowman flag - this guy has been around for a while too.

I want to get a new flag for next year 

I love this Christmas ball candle holder.

I got this a while back from a PartyLite party I hosted.

I believe it was my gift for hosting.

This hangs at the entrance of my kitchen 

My mom gave me this because she didn't like it or didn't have a place for it so I stuck it in my bathroom. It makes a nice night-light in there...

This guy sits on the toilet - glamorous I know,
but it goes with my snowman themed bathroom :) 

And the wall in our bathroom 

~

I just love Christmas. 

It's so cozy 

That's Christmas at our house this year!

Next year, I really hope to be in the new house and have all new spots for my stuff!!

 ~Tiffany~

Christmas Q & A

 

Today I'm doing a little Q&A on all things Christmas!

A holiday tradition: Church on Christmas Eve followed by dinner with my dad's side of the family at my moms is by far one of my favorites. I also love decorating for Christmas on black Friday so I can enjoy the Christmas décor for as long as possible.

 

What you'd love to see Santa bring you most this year: I really love this MK watch and I've mentioned it several times to my Santa...

 

 

I also want some kitchen stuff and of course a new house, which we already have, so I guess I want Santa to work his magic and have someone buy our house! :) Another thing I want but is kind of not practical is a spa robe. The spa I go to has the most AMAZING robes and every time I put one on I want to have one for myself.

 

What's your go-to stocking stuffer item: For my hubby I usually get him chapstick, air fresheners for his truck, gum, Christmas candy from Russell Stover, small gift cards to gross places he loves like Taco Bell and White Castle (things I don't allow him to eat, ever) and other little significant things that may come to mind... It was my dads job to do the stockings at our house and even when we moved out. He loved filling stockings. So after he passed, I kind of took that over for my moms stocking at least. He always over filled her stocking with stuff. She loved it. So I like to keep that going. So I fill hers with kitchen gadgets, usually weird ones, chapstick, candle lighters, small candles, candy, socks



Who is the hardest to shop for during the holidays? My brother and his wife. My brother is just so hard to shop for. He's the kind of person that buys what he wants when he wants it. And my sister in law is hard to shop for too. I mean, there's the go to items like a purse or wallet from Coach but I feel like I've done that too many times.

Favorite Winter Accessory: Coats and Scarves. I love coats. I have a bunch of different styles. I also love scarves. I love them with a coat or with my outfit.

I loved this outfit

Shopping with my mom

One of my 4 blanket scarves

Another one of four

From last years scarf exchange!

Christmas last year

On this day it was about 4* outside!

 

Christmas Tree lights: colors or all white? Color! We put white lights on the house with red bows so I like the color lights on the tree!

Favorite Christmas Cocktail: Eggnog!  I love a nice cold glass of it once or twice around Christmas. My mom however, makes THE BEST homemade Baileys Irish Cream. This year I can't have any, but it's delicious.... One of these years I'm going to get those moose mugs from Christmas Vacation to drink my eggnog from! I need them!!

 

Favorite holiday/Christmas food: Shrimp Dip! Haha.... it seems that this makes it's appearance around Christmas... I just love it. Also Russell Stovers chocolate marshmallow santas! It's been a tradition in my house since as far back as I can remember that when we get up and go downstairs to see if Santa came, and he always did, we grab our stockings and open them up and eat a chocolate marshmallow santa, even before breakfast! I always loved this and thought it was so awesome when I was little that we were allowed to have that!

Do you have a good white-elephant gift idea?
Not really... I don't really  get the whole white-elephant gift thing. Judge if you must, but I think this is a waste of money. Why buy something silly or stupid that someone won't use? I'd rather do like what Shay does with her scarf party...

Do you have a funny picture of you and Santa as a kid? (Post it if you do!)
No... I always loved Santa :)

Do you like candy canes?  I do - but I'm picky. I like the old fashioned ones, not the crappy made in Mexico garbage that breaks if you touch it. So I usually go to a local candy shop and get a few of these to stick in stockings.

 



Hot Chocolate....marshmallows or no marshmallows? No!! But load up the whipped cream!! I've been known to take it all off and eat it with a spoon then add more and so on....

 

Favorite Christmas song: God Rest Ye Merry Gentleman by Barenaked Ladies and Sarah McLachlan - I just love that song. And I also love Do You Hear What I Hear when the children's choir at my church sing it on Christmas Eve. For some reason it always makes me teary eyed. I also like the funny ones like Grandma God Run Over by a Reindeer.... and all the typical fun songs you hear this time of year!

Favorite Christmas movie: Home Alone, followed by Home Alone 2, followed by every single Hallmark Christmas movie that exists... I also love Charlie Brown's Christmas

A funny Christmas story: This isn't exactly funny, but more memorably/ironic...
One Christmas YEARS ago Santa brought me a brand new piano. I had been taking lessons on a piano that my mom got from her friend who worked at a restaurant and they were getting rid of it. So it was pretty beat up and had cigarette burn holes in it. But that didn't matter to me. I was a happy girl with my own piano.
Well - the Christmas Santa brought me a piano was the Christmas my gramma had a stroke. We were woken up to a phone call from her lifeline saying she pushed the button and wasn't responding so we all ran out of the house and down the street (3 blocks) to her house and she was ok - but lying on the floor of the bathroom. So we called 911 and were off to the hospital. I remember all my family being there and my mom saying to my aunt that we didn't get to "do" Christmas yet.... but it just didn't seem to matter... So when we finally went home, we started to open our gifts as if we had just woken up. It was probably about 2 or 3 pm at this point... And at the time our tree was directly across from the piano... I opened just about all my gifts walked past the brand new Yamaha upright with sparkly white keys more than a dozen times and never noticed. My mom had to point it out to me and I looked at it and it still too me a second.... I was SO happy! I'll never forget that. It was such a weird Christmas. My gramma was ok and came home the next day...

 

That's my piano...still at moms... but as soon as we move, I have the perfect spot for it!

 

Have you ever been on a sleigh ride? Yes!! When I went with my mom and dad, my brother and his wife and my friend Tim to New Hampshire. We stayed at the Mount Washington Hotel - AMAZING -

We went on a horse drawn sleigh ride through the white mountains...

It was absolutely beautiful!

 

 

A  fun holiday memory: Christmas shopping with my dad. It was our tradition to go at least once, usually twice. We would go out to dinner, usually Red Lobster because my mom hates seafood and I love it, so he loved that I'd go with him. (We went other times together, but this was part of Christmas shopping) We would go to all the stores we needed and he would get every single thing my mom asked for and then some. He loved her so much and loved to give her gifts on Christmas. I of course wrapped them all because he was awful at that, but for sure, that is my favorite memory. We always had so much fun. I loved spending one on one time with him. And we did it often, especially with the little cars.... but Christmas shopping was my favorite.

 

This is the 5th Christmas without you....

I love you and miss you so much....

we all do....

 

Merry Christmas Season everyone!

Have a great weekend!!

 

~Tiffany~