Twas the night before Christmas and all through our condo;
Not a creature was stirring,
Because we’re all lounging on our brand new sofa!
The stockings are hung and our fireplace is glowing,
Our tree is gleaming;
And thank God it’s not snowing––it’s a fabulous perk of living in LA.

Twas The Night Before Christmas...

And all through the house,
Christmas exploded everywhere... And. I. Love. It!
Not a corner is left without something red and green,
The stockings are hung on the fireplace with care, and I hope that tomorrow they'll be stuffed with more than just air.
I'm so grateful for my family and friends,
And to spend this evening in our home with loved ones, AND our puppies feels like...
#Christmas
Faith, Family, Friends, and Food.
Ho, Ho, Ho!

A Knock-Off Christmas Poem

Twas the day before Christmas and all through the house,
No one was cooking not even a mouse.
Our stockings were hung, but no presents in sight-
I sure hope Santa comes when I'm sleeping tonight.
Tis the season of love, blessings and cheer,
And before you know it, the start of a new year!
And I have a lot of work to do (which explains the lack of delicious holidays snacks, presents or creativity in my blog posts lately!)

Christmas Eve Stress

Twas the day before Christmas and all through the house,
Not a creature was smiling...
Not even a mouse!

I woke up early this morning and sat with my partner and mother-in-law drinking coffee, eating almond crescents and sharing fun stories.  We opened presents, exchanged laughter and then began discussing plans for the rest of the day.

[Enter Stress]

I've discovered that no matter where you decide to spend the holiday, it becomes tough to escape the stress of the season.  Perhaps because it's the end of the year?
Emotions are high. Money is tight. Everyone is revisiting the goals and dreams that they intended to accomplish throughout the year.
Intentions are always in the right place.  It's the perfect time for family, extended family and friends to gather in celebration.  Rejoicing in the birth of Jesus.
We forget that each family brings their set of expectations, ideas and holiday traditions.  We lose sight of what's really important...
FOOD?
No!
PRESENTS?
No.
FAITH?
Oh, right.
Faith, of course in the Savior we all gather for in the first place.
But what about faith in each other?  Maybe if we all just had a little more faith in the people we choose to spend our precious time with, we would be able to share our patience too!

I will miss spending Christmas with my family in Colorado. Despite our arguments, setbacks and spats, we find time to laugh and love too!
This year I'm so grateful I have my family in California to step in and fill the void...
(The Good. The Bad. And the Stressful!)
It's Christmas, and I'm blessed to have so many people willing to fight for my attention!