Another Apartment, Another Tree

Christmas is really, finally almost here. The countdown is now days and not weeks, and I could not be more excited. Brian, Emily, and I had a jam-packed day yesterday full of holiday fun. It started with a trip to the sidewalk tree lot to pick out a tree for Brian's apartment. We waited until he had Emily for the weekend so we could continue the tradition of Emily and I played around while Brian selects a tree picking out a tree together. It only took a few minutes to find the perfect little Douglas fur with oh so soft needles and branches.

Once we got back to Brian's and got the tree set up, Brian went to work in the kitchen while Emily and I colored, sipped hot chocolate with marshmallows, and watched Elf.

 We ate a dinner of homemade french fries, hand-breaded chicken tenders, and steak as we watched our second holiday feature of the evening: A Christmas Story. I somehow lived for 25 years without seeing this Christmas classic, and am kind of sad I waited so long. I loved it. We built and decorated our gingerbread house and ate brownies fresh from the oven with vanilla ice cream as we watched. I continued to glue down M&Ms and marshmallows long after Brian and Emily stopped working on our house, and worked throughout the rest of the movie until about the last ten minutes or so. I sat with marshmallow powder caked to my hands and jeans as Ralphie almost shot his eye out with his Red Ryder.

My weekends of Christmas shopping, trees, treats, and good movies have really made my Christmas spirit reach new heights. I am excited and ready to fly to Minnesota this week to spend the holiday with my family and friends back home. I am definitely dreaming of a white Christmas. Happy holidays!