From Our Family to Yours.

Christmas is just 25 days away so It's Sale Time!

With Christmas just 25 short days away I have decided to offer a different sale each day until December 17th!  

At CadyMayDesigns we offer many accessories that make the perfect Stocking Stuffers!

From newborn to Adult these hair clips may be small but they make a BIG statement in your hair! 

For TODAY ONLY Buy any Daisy Clip get a coordinating clip set FREE! 

(Daisy Clips can be custom ordered in different colors if you don't see any you like.)

If you are not into Hair clips we also offer some other items that make great gifts!  

Be sure to head over to CadyMayDesigns  and get a custom one of a kind piece for the special person in your life! 

Decking The Halls....Yep...I am still alive....I think....

I haven't been around much in Blog land lately but I have been busy around the house Decking the Halls!  Since I should probably be sleeping instead of blogging I will just share some pictures with you for now.  Maybe Ill be able to get back to regular blogging sometime before 2011 exits and 2012 enters.......unless I loose myself in the huge pile of laundry that has been screaming at me for a week or so.....

We also had a little fun after all of our Thanksgiving festivities at our Community Christmas Around Town! Something tells me Nate isn't as fond of Santa as I am.....

Wordless Wednesday: Merry Christmas 2010!

 

For more Wordless Wednesdays visit: 5 Minutes For Mom

Five on Friday!!

Today's Five on Friday is pretty obvious!  It's about CHRISTMAS!!

1) 25th December was not celebrated as the birthday of Christ until the year AD 440.

2) Approximate amount generated by photographs with Santa in shopping malls in the USA in dollars:

$2,255,750,000

3)  From the 18th century, it was a custom to ring the Church bells on the Christmas morning to inform the world the arrival of Savior ,the Christ.

 4) In Australia , It is advised to greet as “Happy Christmas” and not as “Merry Christmas” as Merry has the significance of getting drunk.

5) A wreath is used to decorate the Christmas tree and signifies the birth of Christ. The holly with the sharp needles in the wreath intends thorns in Christ's crown-of-thorns and red berries mean the blood drops of Christ.

I wish Everyone a Merry CHRISTmas today!! 

Merry Christmas!

Christmas Trees From Around the World/12 days of Christmas--Super interesting!

I received this email today and thought it was very informational and brought a great meaning with it!  I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

 Christmas Trees From Around The World

The Capitol Christmas tree in Washington, D.C., is decorated with 3,000 ornaments that are the handiwork of U.S. schoolchildren. Encircling evergreens in the 'Pathway of Peace' represent the 50 U.S. states.

The world's largest Christmas tree display rises up the slopes of Monte Ingino outside of Gubbio, in Italy's Umbria region. Composed of about 500 lights connected by 40,000 feet of wire, the 'tree' is a modern marvel for an ancient city

A Christmas tree befitting Tokyo's nighttime neon display is projected onto the exterior of the Grand Prince Hotel Akasaka.

Illuminating the Gothic facades of Prague's Old Town Square, and casting its glow over the manger display of the famous Christmas market, is a grand tree cut in the Sumava mountains in the southern Czech Republic.

Venice 's Murano Island renowned throughout the world for its quality glasswork is home to the tallest glass tree in the world. Sculpted by master glass blower Simone Cenedese, the artistic Christmas tree is a modern reflection of the holiday season.

Moscow celebrates Christmas according to the Russian Orthodox calendar on Jan. 7. For weeks beforehand, the city is alive with festivities in anticipation of Father Frost's arrival on his magical troika with the Snow Maiden.  He and his helper deliver gifts under the New Year tree, or yolka, which is traditionally a fir.

The largest Christmas tree in Europe (more than 230 feet tall) can be found in the Praça do Comércio in Lisbon, Portugal.  Thousands of lights adorn the tree, adding to the special enchantment of the city during the holiday season.

'Oh Christmas tree, oh Christmas tree': Even in its humblest attire, aglow beside a tiny chapel in Germany's Karwendel mountains, a Christmas tree is a wondrous sight.

Ooh la la Galeries Lafayette! In Paris, even the Christmas trees are chic. With its monumental, baroque dome, plus 10 stories of lights and high fashion, it's no surprise this show-stopping department store draws more visitors than the Louvre and the Eiffel Tower

In addition to the Vatican's heavenly evergreen, St. Peter's Square in Rome hosts a larger-than-life nativity scene in front of the obelisk.

The Christmas tree that greets revelers at the Puerta del Sol is dressed for a party. Madrid's two-week celebration makes millionaires along with merrymakers. On Dec. 22, a lucky citizen will win El Gordo (the fat one), the world's biggest lottery.

A token of gratitude for Britain's aid during World War II, the Christmas tree in London's Trafalgar Square has been the annual gift of the people of Norway since 1947.

Drink a glass of gluhwein from the holiday market at the Romer, Frankfurt's city hall since 1405 and enjoy a taste of Christmas past.

Against a backdrop of tall, shadowy firs, a rainbow trio of Christmas trees lights up the night (location unknown).

There is one Christmas Carol that has always baffled me.  What in the world do leaping lords, French hens, swimming swans, and especially the partridge who won't come out of the pear tree have to do with Christmas?

This week, I found out.

From 1558 until 1829, Roman Catholics in England were not permitted to practice their faith openly. Someone during that era wrote this carol as a catechism song for young Catholics. It has two levels of meaning: the surface meaning plus a hidden meaning known only to members of their church. Each element in the carol has a code word for a religious reality which the children could remember.

-The partridge in a pear tree was Jesus Christ.
-Two turtle doves were the Old and New Testaments.
-Three French hens stood for faith, hope and love.-
-The four calling birds were the four gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke & John.
-The five golden rings recalled the Torah or Law, the first five books of the Old Testament.
-The six geese a-laying stood for the six days of creation.
-Seven swans a-swimming represented the sevenfold gifts of the Holy Spirit-- Prophesy, Serving, Teaching, Exhortation, Contribution, Leadership, and Mercy.
-The eight maids a-milking were the eight beatitudes.
-Nine ladies dancing were the nine fruits of the Holy Spirit--Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self Control.
-The ten lords a-leaping were the ten commandments.
-The eleven pipers piping stood for the eleven faithful disciples.
-The twelve drummers drumming symbolized the twelve points of belief in the Apostles' Creed.

So there is your history for today. This knowledge was shared with me and I found it interesting and enlightening and now I know how that strange song became a Christmas Carol...so pass it on if you wish.'

Merry Christmas Everyone!

And last, but not least:

CHRISTMAS AT ARLINGTON CEMETERY

I wonder why the press hasn't enlightened the public about it??

Arlington National Cemetery

Rest easy, sleep well my brothers.

Know the line has held, your job is done.

Rest easy, sleep well.

Others have taken up where you fell, the line has held.

Peace, peace, and farewell...

Possible Christmas Card!

So, Ive been playing around with Picasa alittle bit and I think I have come up with a possible Christmas Card design! Since we have a 2 year old who doesnt sit long enough to do an actual photo session I thought about using candids instead of professionals and the crazy Wal-Mart pics we took tonight seemed to describe our family perfectly!

So what do you think!?!

Who knew you could have so much fun at Wal-Mart!

Leif, Cady and I took a drive to Portage this evening and had a "Family Date"!  We started at TGI Friday's for dinner where I had my FAVORITE Sizzling Chicken and Cheese!!  Then we found ourselves at Wal-Mart.  I just had to show you some cute pictures that I shot tonight but we had so much fun shopping and we didn't even really buy anything!  Cady is a hoot when it comes to the Christmas section at a store! (Did I just say Hoot??)  She laughs and points and yells "Lights" and is so excited to see Santa and snowmen!  So, naturally since she loves Christmas decorations so much she would want to try on the Santa hats!  So, here is what we did while in the Christmas Section at Wal-Mart tonight! 

 

Before you ask, we DID have people looking at us and pointing!  It never stops us from having a little fun! 

Hope you have a GREAT weekend!

Five on Friday!!

This weeks 5 on Friday is about Christmas Trees!!  I LOVE Christmas!  I love everything about it!  Especially decorating our Christmas Tree!! 

1) Christmas trees have been sold commercially in the United States since about 1850.

2) In the United States, there are more than 21, 000 Christmas tree growers.

3) Christmas trees take an average of 7-10 years to mature.

4) The first decorated Christmas tree was in Riga, Latvia in 1510.

5) The use of evergreen trees to celebrate the winter season occurred before the birth of Christ.