before christmas.

here is a little peak of us preparing for christmas. the hustle & bustle before christmas prevented me from sharing this earlier, and now that I am on holidays until new years it has been hard to be motivated to do anything but read & sip tea all day. 

 david & marcus being brave and very patient with my detailed instructions for setting up the perfect christmas light display. I was a little upset when we discovered that absolutely no one carries the old style christmas lights  - the clear ones, my favorite! I think a house looks so classic when only clear lights are used. I can't stand the LEDs, but I had to deal with it this year. although, admittedly the 'warm white' color has grown on me. 

kassie also being very patient with me. 

our blue & silver christmas tree, with the newest additions - an eiffel tower & a diamond ring. pretty perfect to represent our year. thank goodness for my parents who donated their old imitation tree to us last year. as grateful as we are, the tree has seen one of it's last christmas'. I'm thinking a pre-lit white imitation tree next year - with gold, silver, brass and white ornaments. 

I tried my hand at being a little more creative with wrapping paper & ribbon this year. I have collected a lot of inspiration from pinterest, and stocked up on wrapping necessities after christmas - so next year's gifts will be even prettier. 

new cushions for the front room couches, a little upgrading to marcus' bachelor pad. thank-you grandma for being a wonderful seamstress!

two items that I forgot we had purchased last year after christmas. it was like christmas morning when I opened the storage boxes to find our new stockings &  eiffel tower stocking hangers. 

we are off to sun peaks to ring in the new year with family & friends. christmas day photos & new years photos to come when we get back. happy new year! xoxo

merry christmas.

merry christmas! xoxo

gift wrap.

grey likes weddings really is a gift wrap guru. this year I think I improved on my gift wrapping skills (pictures to come!), but they are no where near the genius of these sparkly, glittery, jeweled & broached packages. the combination of lush fabrics, royal blues and greens, copper sparkles and jewels is one gorgeous and festive combination. next year, I think I will be searching for sparkly broaches, rings, earrings and necklaces to wrap around packages. the packaging is a gift in itself. lovely. 

oh christmas tree!

we started a family tradition this year - the hunt for the perfect christmas (real - not fake!) tree. a perfect tree to our family is one that is big enough and strong enough to hold years of family ornaments. my brother and I have been getting an ornament every year for christmas since we were babies, plus anything my parents have collected over the years - that's a lot!

we found the biggest and fullest tree standing all on it's own, like it was waiting just for us. 

we left the heavy lifting to the boys!

marcus & I have a imitation tree, but we are so lucky we get to enjoy a real tree (and the smell!) with my family on christmas day! sometimes it just doesn't seem like christmas if you don't have the christmas tree smell. counting down the days  - 10 more days, can you believe it?

snowflakes.

eeeeee! Even though we didn't get as much snow as most of our city last night, those few little snowflakes get me so excited! 'They' say that it's going to be a cold winter, I'll probably kick myself for saying this later, but I'm excited about it. Having a white christmas would be the best. Fingers and toes are crossed!

christmas fever.

I told myself I wouldn't decorate for Christmas until the first weekend in December, just too prolong my excitement for the holidays. Turns out that weekend is going to be busy - so good news, looks like the halls are getting decked this weekend! I can't even remember what we bought last year, so now I have time to take things out of boxes and spend time looking for some additions to our holiday decor. Some decor inspiration to get me going!

38 days till Christmas! In case anyone was curious!

christmas wishes.

I blame it on Starbucks. That red cup gets me excited for the holidays, WAY too early. I've already started listening to Christmas tunes. Michael Buble and Justin Bieber (hey don't judge, its a good album!) if you really want to know. It's comforting to know I'm not the only one in the house that's this excited - I caught a hint of some bing crosby holiday music coming from Marcus' office a few nights ago. I also blame writing a paper on my laptop, for my countless hours perusing the internet for wish list items. My attention span when it comes to analyzing research is about as long as the memory of a goldfish. This list may be more of a lust list for christmas, but nothings stopping me from fantasizing when the most exciting thing I've done all day is make the bed. 

1. Paige Skinny Jeans. These jeans have to be the most popular skinny jeans amongst celebs. I tried a pair on, and it was love at first try!

2. J. CREW velvet schoolboy blazer. Plush velvet is so chic for the holidays, and I've been wanting a blazer that pops and something that is slightly more exciting than black. 

3. Michael Kors jet set ipad case. Seriously how awesome is this - looks like an oversized clutch! Of course this would make no sense without #4...

4. Ipad 2 in white. Enough said. 

5. Aveda lip shine in pomelo. I have another shade of this lip gloss and I love it! It has a minty taste, and lasts for a long time. 

6. Clarisonic Mia. Consider it a super, but gentle, exfoliator for your face. People who have them, love them!

7. Laura Mercier Illuminating Power in Candlelight.

8. Vince Camuto Ellen Flat in Bisque. I've been searching for the perfect nude flat and I spotted these at nordstrom this week.