Santa came to see us! And he brought lots of goodies! See the big one? It was from my sister. The label said it was for my stepdaughter. She opened the box to find another wrapped box and a small bag. The bag was for her, the box was for my other stepdaughter. So she opened that box and found ANOTHER box and a small bag. This kept going until we all had opened a box and had a small bag. Nine people all together with one last small box. (Which was for my aunt’s roommate’s granddaughter.) We all opened our bags together and found crocheted scarves in each person’s favorite color!! My sister had been working on this since the beginning of November. She’s brilliant.

Here are my other gifts!

Santa was very good to me this year! And so were all of my awesome family members. I think my favorite gifts would have to be the chocolate pearls from my husband, my waffle maker from my husband and stepdaughters, my scarf from my sister (obviously!!) and the cookbooks from my parents.

My stepdaughters had a good Christmas too. They were both so thrilled to have so many gifts to open! It was fun to watch them open their gifts!

It was a great day. The best part of my day was watching everyone else open their gifts. I love seeing their faces. I surprised my sweetheart with a US Marine Corps NCO Sword. He wanted one for retirement but I surprised him.

Also, my husband and I, my sister and my mom surprised my dad with a share of the Green Bay Packers. He has wanted that for a long time. He is so proud to be an Owner of the Green Bay Packers.

And here is my favorite picture of the day! My sister always does this. I love her!

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My beautiful stepdaughter C has her daddy’s eyes. They are so beautiful. I love looking into them. Of course, she and her daddy both know that and will close their eyes to be mean! But that’s ok. I am so thrilled that I got this picture. It’s definitely one of my favorites. Here’s another one.

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This was from our wedding. So beautiful. (I’m not partial or anything!) C is the sweetest girl I’ve ever met. She loves to cuddle with me. I call her my Monkey because she likes to hang on me. I love it.

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Here is our happy little family the day that my sweetheart proposed to me. I am so incredibly blessed. (This picture is missing her 2 sisters, but they were thought of!)

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Today marks the 60th anniversary of my grandparents’ wedding day. That’s a rare thing these days! I have been so blessed to know them and see how loving and solid their marriage is. They are such an example to me. Even now, after so many years, you can clearly see how in love they are with each other. They still flirt with each other! It’s so sweet. I pray that my marriage will be that good and that long!

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I love my grandparents so much. They have done so much for me over the years. But nothing as important as the love they have shown me. I couldn’t have asked for anyone better.

If you grandparents are still with you, please tell them you love them. Life is short.

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A few days ago was the 5 month mark for my husband being deployed. It’s been a long 5 months. Each month seems to last longer than the one before. Especially this month! I wish I could fast forward. Thankfully in a few short weeks my sweetheart will be in my arms again! I am counting down the days.

Since he missed Thanksgiving, and he’s missing Christmas, we’re having Thanksgiving/Christmas/our one year anniversary/his birthday all in one weekend while he is here. I’m so excited about it! My family and I are all saving the big presents for then. So it’s gonna be awesome. My sister and I are also trying to plan a small get together for a few of Matthew’s friends. Oh, don’t worry. There will be lots of pictures! But I will not be online much at all while he’s here. Not to mention the rest of this week, for Christmas. And after Christmas my bestie is coming to see me (YAY!!!!) so I won’t be online. And I’m working at a wedding on New Year’s Eve. So……. It may be a while til you hear from me again! (besides the quick message) I hope you all have an amazing Christmas and a Happy New Year!

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? Wrapping paper!!!!

2. Real tree or Artificial? Growing up we always had real trees. And then planted them after Christmas. (They are all still at our old house too!!) Now we just use artificial. I’m ok with that.

3. When do you put up the tree?  Usually we will do it Thanksgiving night or sometime that weekend.

4. When do you take the tree down? After New Years. So it’s still up for our New Year’s Day Open House.

5. Do you like eggnog? NO! That’s so gross.

6. Favorite gift received as a child?  Well, I don’t remember actually getting it, because it was my first Christmas, but my stuff dog Big Doggie. I still have him. He’s my favorite.

7. Hardest person to buy for? My grandparents. They don’t need or want anything.

8. Easiest person to buy for?  My husband. He always tells me what he wants. All year long! LOL!

9. Do you have a nativity scene?  Yes. But I still want a Willow Tree one.

10. Mail or email Christmas cards? Mail! Getting real mail is so much better.

11. Worst Christmas gift you ever received?  Oh gosh. Christmas sweatshirts? LOL!

12. Favorite Christmas Movie? The Santa Clause! I’ve seen it dozens of times. Never get tired of it.

13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? September! Sometimes earlier. One year I was done before Thanksgiving.

14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? Yes. But usually just the dirty santa gifts.

15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas?  Grandma’s Macaroni and Cheese!

16. Lights on the tree (colored or clear)? I love both. Even better if they blink! I like to watch the patterns on the wall.

17. Favorite Christmas song? That’s a loaded question. There are too many to name. Although, right now it is “All I Want for Christmas is You”. And it’s true.

18. Travel at Christmas or stay home? My mom always wants to stay home, but we always end up talking her into going to my grandparents’ house. It’s just not the same without them. And we won’t have many more Christmases with them.

19. Can you name all of Santa’s reindeer? Yes. Even Chet from The Santa Clause 2. (I love all 3 movies.)

20. Angel, star or ribbon on top of tree? A star

21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning?  Christmas morning.

22. Favorite children’s Christmas song?  The Chipmunk Christmas Song

23. Most annoying thing about this time of the year?  Annoying? About Christmas? Nothing! Ok, well this year it’s the obvious. My sweetheart isn’t here. This is both of our favorite holiday. It’s not the same without him.

24. Favorite ornament theme or color?  I don’t have a theme for our tree, except that our ornaments are all special. I get them for events, places we go, etc. They all have special meaning.

25. Turkey or ham on Christmas day? Ham!!!!!!!!!!! Honey Baked Ham preferably!

26. What do you want for Christmas this year? A Kindle. And my husband home safely.

27. Does anyone in your family dress up as Santa? Matthew would if he could.

28. Age you discovered who Santa was?  7. We went to my aunt & uncle’s house that year. The parents were all loud. My sister and I snuck downstairs and heard them talking. Fail.

29. Eggnog, hot chocolate, or apple cider? Hot chocolate!

30. Traditional colors (red and green) or other colors? Traditional

31. Do you have any Christmas decorations on your roof? nope

32. How does Santa get into your house? Chimney or magic key? Chimney!!

33. Do you prefer gifts or gift cards? Gifts!

34. Favorite children’s Christmas Cartoon? The Grinch who Stole Christmas

It’s that time again. MilSpouse Friday! How has YOUR week been? My week has been kinda boring. I did get some Christmas shopping done!

Anyways. Here’s my answers!

1. If you were given $1,000 right now, how would you spend it?

I’d use it to pay some bills off, so we can be closer to being financially independent.

2. If you had to choose a movie title (a real one that already exists) for your life story, what would it be?

Oh wow. That’s a tough one! My sister suggested “Sarah Plain and Tall” because it has my name in it! The only one I can think of now is “You’ve Got Mail” because my husband and I met online. LOL!

3. If you were a teacher, what subject would you like to teach?

Arts and crafts! Because I love doing all kinds of crafty things.

4. Has being a MilSpouse changed how you view holidays or how your holidays are celebrated? If so, how? If not, what hasn’t changed?

This year has definitely made me realize exactly how important it is to be with my family during the holidays. Thanksgiving was so hard on me because my husband is deployed. I know Christmas will be even more difficult. But I also know that celebrating the holidays on the specific day is not the important thing. The important thing is spending time with your loved ones.

5. What is your favorite Christmas (or whatever holiday you celebrate) memory?

Oh man. Christmas 2006. My aunt wanted the Tickle Me Elmo TMX. Yes, the year when that was the IT toy and NO ONE had them! Unless you wanted to pay triple the retail price on ebay. Well, I’m amazing and I got her one. For retail price! Here are some of the pics of her opening it.

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I hate that the pics are blurry, but my dad wasn’t used to my camera, and she was moving really fast! She was SO excited!! Hard to top it.

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I hope everyone has a blessed and Happy Thanksgiving. Today is bittersweet for me. My husband is far far away. Our family is not complete this holiday. That’s the bitter. The sweet part is that 2 years ago today, I knew I was going to marry him. That makes this holiday extra special for me.

Well, I’m off to finish cooking. The food is smelling GREAT! Happy eating!

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This week has been so crazy! I have become a cook, chauffeur, nurse, errand runner, house cleaner, etc. It’s worth it though. I love being able to spend time with my grandparents and my aunt. Yesterday was my aunt’s birthday and I made her some brownies. (My sister’s recipe!) She said that they made her whole year!

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I can’t really think of anything else to say. Hope you are all having a great week!

My dad is having surgery today to remove the cancer on his kidney. We will be at the hospital all day. Please keep my dad and my mom, sister, and I all in your prayers.

Also, please keep my aunt in your prayers as she is having surgery today as well. She had surgery a few weeks ago to repair her rotator cuff, and she got an infection. The infection messed up the repair so she has to have the surgery again.

My Grandma has gone home from the hospital, finally. YAY! Please pray for her recovery. It’s been hard on my Grandpa as well.

Matthew is doing great in Afghanistan. We get to talk quite a bit, which I am so thankful for! Please always remember him in your prayers!!

Thanks for your love and support! Hope everyone is having a great week!