Aren't you excited? It's my first GIVEAWAY!

We had this grand plan to go somewhere and cut down our own tree (for the first time) and go on a horse drawn carriage ride, and sing Christmas Carols and drink hot chocolate (okay, I lied about the singing part, but still, it was going to be an entire "tree getting" event), but instead, the weather was crummy, and we went to Lowes. Come on, somebody has to buy the trees there. 

Just so you know, this is the earliest we have ever bought a Christmas tree. Walter and I tend to think it's funny to go the week of Christmas, to find the cheapest, scrawniest tree, and then laugh at it after it's set up. We're cool like that. 

Considering tree options...

My children refused to take a picture with me, but Stella readily agreed...

Isaac, trying to put on reindeer ears...

I am excited to announce my first giveaway. Share a comment on here or on facebook and you will be entered to win this handmade clutch from The Tiny Bird. Kristen participates in local craft shows and has sold her bags in stores throughout Ohio, including the gift shop at the Cleveland Museum of Art. This is the perfect little bag for you or a friend. Comment on this post and have a chance to win! Also, if you need to finish some holiday shopping, check out her Etsy Shop!

A very special friend of mine, Emily, recently wrote a guest post on a different blog, that you can read here. Also, thank you for the birthday wishes! I had a very nice day, and Walter cleaned out my car for me, so I've been enjoying a cleanliness that I am quite unfamiliar with. I do admit, I peer in the car parked next to mine and then say to myself, "Ooooh, my car is cleaner!" Don't worry, random messy car people, we'll be on the same playing field soon enough.

I also want to thank my mom and my mother-in-law for calling the day before my birthday to remind me that my birthday was going to be the next day. I do forget a lot of things these days, so I appreciated the reminder. It's entirely possible that I'm getting a little senile. Tonight, I said to my parent's dog, "It looks like you have a Stella nose on your hair." Decipher that one. And yesterday, because we have two small cars, we had to take both cars in order to get our tree, so Walter parked next to mine and we all got out and I said to Isabella, "We don't touch other people's cars, you need to move away from their car." She was touching Walter's car.