have yourself a merry little christmas

We've got a few hours before the holiday festivities begin over here and I thought I'd run by and wish you all a very Merry Christmas! Hope this finds you in the company of all your dear ones, feeling joy and much loved.

We went out to dinner last night for Christmas Eve and had a lovely time at Shojin. They are so fun and charming there for special days of the year - when we went on our anniversary they took a photo of us holding a heart wreath and last night they gave us holiday stuff to wear for another photo. While you're eating your meal, someone prints out the diners photos and places them in a handmade card and presents them to you after your meal. So much fun!  And as if that wasn't dear and special enough, they gave us a present of a string of lights and darling origami boxes to cover them.

I chose the xmas tree headband and hubby chose the santa hat. gah! I take the worlds worst pictures. 

 

I leaned in so we'd be closer together in the photo and I look like a hump back whale (or a narwhal with the tree on my head LOL!) with turkey neck hahhahahha. Hubby is holding my hand but the result of my moving closer makes me look like I have no arms - and no one told me I put the headband (at quite a jaunty angle, don't ya think?!) all the way at the back of my gigantic noggin (with hair enough for a family of four, mind you!), with a wee Christmas miracle, most of the tree made it into the photo.

Wishing you the merriest of holidays (and better photos!)
and much joy and abundant good health in 2014!

 

god jul

My husbands off for his holiday break and we've been having fun over here. Saturday we went to hubby's BFF's annual Christmas party and Sunday we went to the Swedish Christmas Fair (at The Shrine in downtown L.A.), then had lunch at our new favorite Shojin (the downtown location for the first time) & then raced over to Carson for a Dickens Holiday Celebration at the International Printing Museum. On Monday we saw "Catching Fire" at the theater ... we've got a long list of movies to catch up on!

I could have sworn that I bought a boat load of stuff at the Swedish Christmas Fair because my credit card was shooting sparks teehee but found out I hadn't come home with nearly enough for my feather tree and our Swedish Christmas we had planned! But then I've got plenty, so it's all going to work out.

Sharing some Scandinavian cuteness this Rednesday!

Please join in on the Christmas Rednesday fun with Melody at Brown Gingham Creations!

what should I do with my Barbie stuff

This is the contents of one of the many boxes I found at my parents house after my father passed away in 2011. Not sure why I had two headless Barbie's LOL. I am determined to get out from under the remaining boxes (so close and yet so far!) and want to find this stuff a new home. I also have another two or three Barbie cases and one Ken case, with stuff in them.

I apparently played very hard with my dollies ... so nothing is in great condition and this batch was left in an open shoe box for more than 45 years and exposed to the elements.

I know a lot of you sell items on Ebay, etc. and I was wondering what your advice would be? I'm thinking of selling the dolls individually (I've read that people will purchase dolls just for parts, so even if the doll isn't in great shape, portions of it may still be of value to some intrepid soul) and the clothes, accessories, etc. all together.  Or should I just give it to the Good Will and be done with it?

holiday home tours online

I'm so loving seeing everyone's holiday decorations on their blogs. And I've found two holiday home tours online going on so far, so much fun. I'm sure there's more out there ... please let me know if you know of other blog holiday happenings. 

If you enjoy seeing homes decorated for Christmas and/or you're looking to be inspired, I know you'll enjoy these blogs participating in holiday homes tours.

The starting spot for Jennifer Rizzo's Deck The Halls 2013 Holiday House Walk is here, beginning with her own charming home. (go to her home page to find links to the participants for days 2 thru 5)

And the starting spot for the Home For The Holidays 2013 All Things Home tour is here. Sorry, I'm not quite sure who is sponsoring this one, or where there is a master list of all the participants - follow the individual links if you can't find the complete list either. 

Switching gears ... remembering Nelson Mandela today. What an amazing human being, such a bright shining light in the darkness.  

"For to be free is not merely to cast off one's chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others." (From Long Walk to Freedom, 1995)

hope you had a nice holiday

(my husband and I are obscured by my cousins friends harumph! LOL)

Did you have a nice Thanksgiving?  We did!

Don't know why the second group photo is blurry???
It isn't when I look at it in iPhoto??? Very weird.