The Christmas TAG - Blogmas Day 12

 Hello Friends,

I hope you are doing well. Today I  am sharing my responses to a Christmas TAG that I found on the site Mums the Nerd. It was fun going through the list and bringing up memories and things to look forward to during the holiday season. I swapped the cookies recipe post for today with the TAG and will share the cookie recipe on December 18th. 

Where will you be celebrating this year? 
At home Christmas morning, then and at my sister's house for dinner

Who are you celebrating with? 

Liam’s dad and step mom on the 18th, then Christmas Day seeing Liam’s mom, sister, and her boyfriend. Then with my sister, brother in law, nephew, and my parents.

Do you own any ugly Christmas sweaters?

None! I used to have one with a reindeer I gave away now thinking I need to get one for Christmas Day!

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How do you spend Christmas Eve? 

I watch it’s a wonderful life usually late at night. If it’s a work day I sometimes work half the day then am wrapping gifts and getting them organized for Christmas Day. This year I will probably do all that and cleaning and getting things ready for brunch the next day.

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When do you put up Christmas decorations?

Usually the end of November I will put up the tree. This year it was November 27th. I put up other decorations around the house early December and add to it throughout December as I buy more décor or make décor.

Do you have a decorating theme?

Not really I like the reds and greens of Christmas and have a lot of festive colors around. My tree is decorated with ornaments collected over the years.

Do you have a tree topper?

We do have a topper it’s an angel. I got one similar to my parents they always had an angel on their tree. This year they have a star.

What would you like to find in your stocking this year?

Socks, chocolate, tea, magazines, beauty products. It is always fun to look through the stocking Liam puts together for me. 

When did you start buying gifts this year? 

I started on Black Friday when there were many sales online.

Have you ever recycled a gift?

No I haven’t. 

What is your favourite Christmas food? 

Probably sugar cookies, I like so many different foods and treats at Christmas it is hard to pick! 

 What do you leave out for Santa?

 We don’t leave a plate out, but he can help himself to some chocolate or cookies we have in the kitchen :)

Have you ever been caroling? 

No, but it seems like a nice thing to do. 

What do you usually have for Christmas dinner?

Turkey, peas, carrots, mashed potatoes. I have also been eating Mac and cheese or butternut squash risotto since I went vegetarian. I am back to eating Turkey and Chicken, so I will be having Turkey this year.

When do you open gifts?

I open pajamas and socks on Christmas Eve and then gifts from Liam in the morning and gifts from our families later on in the day. 

How do you spend Boxing Day? 

It changes year by year. If I am not working the day after Christmas, I’m seeing family or Liam’s family. 

Have you had a Mistletoe kiss? 

Nope! that would be so cute though! 

What's your favourite character from a christmas-themed movie, book, or TV special?

I think Elf would be since he is funny and has the Christmas spirit. 

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If you were Santa Claus, what treats would you want left out for you on Christmas Eve? 

I would want Bubley water and sugar cookies. 

What is your favourite christmas movie? 

The Miracle on 34th Street (newer 90's version). It is one I grew up watching and it is so touches on the Christmas spirit and believing in Santa Claus. I love the story and the ending is so heart warming. 

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Have you ever had a White Christmas? 

Many times living in Quebec and Toronto. I had a white Christmas last year. It was so nice because we stayed home all day and the white show outside made for a lovely walk with Liam. It was a tough year not going for Christmas celebrations due to the pandemic, but the snow on Christmas was special. 

Where do you usually spend your holidays? 

With my family and Liam's family in the GTA. 

What is your favourite Christmas song?

The Night Before Christmas - Amy Grant. It always makes me feel so festive and makes me think of my childhood. 

Do you open any presents on Christmas Eve?

Yes, one gift of pajamas and usually some cozy socks too

Can you name all of Santa's reindeer? (no cheating!)

Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixon, Comet, Cupid, Donner, Blitzen and Rudolph. 

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Which holiday traditions are you looking forward to this year?

Christmas gatherings with family. 

Is your tree real or fake?

Fake, we have had it for a few years now. We tried out real for a couple of years then went with fake less mess and I can put it up earlier :) 

Be honest, do you prefer giving or receiving gifts?

Giving for sure, seeing the looks on peoples faces and feeling happy they love their gifts brings me a lot of joy at Christmas time. 

Thank you for visiting my blog today! Feel free to share this Chrismtas TAG on your blog too if you wish. I hope you enjoyed another blogmas post and see you again tomorrow for blogmas day 13! I can't believe how close Christmas is now and I ordered more Christmas gifts yesterday. I have a bit more shopping to do this week and decorating.

Have a great day! 

Blogmas Day 23- Preparations for Christmas, Knitting, and Reading On

 Hello Friends,

I hope you are doing well. It is so close to Christmas now, and I am getting so excited to start my holidays. I am off work tomorrow, Christmas Eve. The company I work for gave us that day off this year. Usually we are scheduled to work a half day, but this year because of the pandemic and all the hard work we did, they gave us the day off. Tomorrow, I will finish wrapping and preparing for Christmas day, and clean. I did a lot of wrapping last night while watching the Bachelorette season finale. It was good to get more done, wrapping really takes a long time sometimes. I still have a few gifts to wrap and get sorted out, and have to prepare Liam's stocking. I am mostly done and it feels good. We are visiting my family for Christmas, so I wrapped a lot of their gifts last night and some for Liam as well.

I knitted more of the wreath ornaments for family to give as gifts. I still have a couple more to knit up. These are so fun to knit up and I really love how they turned out. I used the pattern from Ravelry the Christmas wreath ornament by Penny Carrington.

I lost my loan from the library for Beach Read by Emily Henry sadly. So, I will have to resume reading it in the New Year when I get it back in a few weeks. It is really good so far, and I like the storyline and the relationship unfolding between the main characters. I am still reading Atomic Habits by James Clear. I stopped reading 13th gift because it didn't grab me. 

Joining along with As Kat Knits for Unraveled Wednesday.

Thank you for visiting my blog today. I always thank you for being here, because I know your lives are all so busy. I appreciate the time you take to come to my blog and read about what I am up to each week. I will be posting here daily for the next two days for Blogmas. I will resume my regular weekly posting schedule after Christmas. I hope to see you tomorrow for Blogmas day 24, Christmas Eve!

Please click here to read my other posts from Blogmas 2020.

Have a great day!

The Christmas Tag - Blogmas Day 13

Hello Friends,


I hope you are doing well. Today is the Christmas tag! I will be answering 20 Christmas related questions. The questions were found on contentcareer site. I like answering these questions because it gets me thinking about Christmas and reflecting on memories. So here we go!

The Christmas Tag

What’s your favourite holiday movie?

I said in a recent post that my favourite movie is Miracle on 34th Street. The 1994 version. I used to watch this movie almost every year. I haven't in awhile and will watch it sometime this Christmas.

What’s your favourite Christmas colour?

Probably red as the red is on Santa's suit and red is so warm and is on mostly everything Christmas related.

Do you like to stay in your PJs or dress up for Christmas?

On Christmas day, I love to stay in Pyjamas all day. Nowadays I leave my house for Christmas and we go to visit family so I don't stay in pyjamas all day long anymore.

If you could only buy one person a present this year, who would it be?

My parents for being so wonderful and treating them to something special.

Do you open your presents on Christmas Eve or Christmas morning?

I open one gift which are pajamas Christmas Eve and then the rest of them Christmas morning and when I visit family during the day.

Have you ever built a gingerbread house?

I have when I was in elementary school. I remember eating way too much candy while decorating it!

What do you like to do on your Christmas break?

I don't have a Christmas break this year. I only took off Boxing day (my office is still open) and I have Christmas. I have a half day Christmas Eve then a couple of days. I spend time with family and look at my new gifts and be lazy mostly.

Any Christmas wishes?

That the new year is a good one and I accomplish a lot.

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Favourite Christmas smell?

Pine tree smell. We have an artificial tree this year so I miss the pine tree smell that comes with a real tree. I should get an air freshener of that smell.

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Favourite Christmas meal or treat?

Fruitcake.

Which holiday do you celebrate?

Christmas!

What are you doing for the holidays this year?

I am going to visit my Fiance's family next weekend and then Christmas day I am going to my sister's house to have Christmas dinner. We will open gifts before dinner as we usually do.

What’s your favourite holiday drink?

Eggnog.

Candy cane or gingerbread men?

Candy cane.

What’s your favourite holiday/Christmas song?

All I want for Christmas is you - Mariah Carey.

What’s the weirdest gift you’ve ever received

I can't remember a weird gift but I probably did! 

Have you ever made a snowman?

I have made a lot of snowmen when I was a child. I haven't in a long time. It is so fun when you are a child and wearing snow pants and the ball starts getting bigger as you roll it along and then the snowman is taller than you.

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What is your favourite winter fragrance?

I don't have one. Probably would be something peppermint.

What is at the top of your list this Christmas? (or whichever holiday you celebrate!)

I want to receive the Sims University expansion pack and also some Fresh facial products.

What is most important to you about the holidays?

Spending time with my family and friends and celebrating Christmas with them.

How about you answer these questions on your blog? Please let me know in the comments below what your answers to these questions would be.

Thank you for stopping by today! Hope you have a great day and happy Friday!

Blogmas Day 5: The Christmas Tag

Hello Friends,

I hope you are doing well. I have been good, last night I went to my personal training session with my trainer and I did squats and weightlifting and I am feeling a lot stronger lately. It has been good on these cold December nights to have the appointment set to meet with him. It is definitely motivating having a set time I have to go each week instead of leaving it up to me to leave my warm and cozy apartment to go out into the cold to the gym haha. Last night I also put away all of my fall and Halloween (late!) decorations to make room for my Christmas decor and started to decorate for Christmas. There are a few things I still want to buy for my decor and then I will share the decorations with you in an upcoming post.

For today, I have written my answers to 17 Christmas related questions that were posted on a blog called The enthusiast and I copied the questions and then answered them myself. I love doing posts like this because I feel like you will learn more about me and I also have fun answering the questions and thinking of past Christmas memories and looking forward to Christmas this year.

So here we go...

1. What is your favourite Christmas film? 

Its a Wonderful Life or Miracle on 34th Street

2.  Have you ever had a white Christmas? 

Yes, many times. Living in Canada it happens almost every year. It is the best when that happens because it is so perfect when I look outside on Christmas day and see the snow, it is so beautiful.

My parent's beautiful Christmas tree and the white snow outside Christmas 2016

3. Where do you usually spend your holiday?

I spend it at my parent's house usually. Growing up we had a lot of fun traditions and even after I have moved out I spend a lot of time there at Christmas. Also at my apartment we have had Christmas Eve and Christmas morning celebrations there a couple of years ago and this year we will spend Christmas Eve together, Liam and I and then visit with family on Christmas day.

4. What is your favourite Christmas song? 

I love a song called "The night before Christmas" sung by Amy Grant. It takes me back to my childhood and driving in the snowy street. It must have been on the radio at the time but it is such a beautiful song.

5. Do you open any presents on Christmas Eve? 

My family and I always had the tradition of opening pyjamas and socks on Christmas Eve. I will be doing that as a Christmas tradition it is always fun to put on some new pyjamas and wear them Christmas Eve and Christmas morning.

6. Can you name all of Santa's Reindeer?

Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donder, Blitzen, and of course Rudolph. So... I got Donner's name wrong but pretty close! Remembering the song Rudolph the red nosed reindeer helped me somewhat remember them haha

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7. What holiday traditions are you looking forward to most this year? 

I am looking forward to all being together as a family on Christmas day and for Christmas night. I love going to my parent's place and opening gifts together and having a great time. They always make it so special.

8. Is your Christmas tree real or fake? 

Liam and I get a real tree for our apartment. There is nowhere to store an artificial tree right now and I like our new tradition of going to pick one out. In future years it might be nice to get an artificial tree so we can put it up sooner.

9. What is your all-time favorite holiday food/sweet treat? 

I love shortbread cookies at Christmas. Melt in your mouth and so delicious. Fruit cake is a close second.

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10. Be Honest: do you like giving gifts or receiving them better? 

At Christmas I think both are fun, but I have to say giving gifts at Christmas is more fun! I have spent a lot of time picking gifts I think my family will love so I love seeing their reactions and how happy it makes them when they open the gifts.

11. What is the best Christmas gift you've ever received? 

That is a hard one. I love all the gifts everyone has put thought into giving me and they all make my year so wonderful. One that stands out is when my sister surprised me with a ticket to go to the Taylor Swift concert in Toronto. I had wanted to go for years but her concerts were always sold out and I just remember being so surprised when I opened the gift.

12. What would be your dream place to visit for the holiday season? 

I would like to go to New York City during the Christmas season and see all the Christmas decorations and how big they go at this time of the year. It is such a busy and fun city to visit any time of the year, but it would be so wonderful at Christmas. Shopping there would be fun too!

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13. Are you a pro-present wrapper or do you fail miserably?

I am good I think... maybe somewhere in the middle of those two. I don't really go crazy on wrapping like adding ribbon and bows and all that. I just try to wrap the gift nicely and then put a gift tag on and sometimes a bow and I am done.

14. Most memorable Holiday moment?

Christmas morning with the tree is lit, the presents crowd the floor under the tree, and we wait in anticipation to open gifts. It is a perfect moment in time where nothing else matters, work, issues, etc.. we are in the moment and spending time together.

15. When did you realize the truth about Santa?

I think I was about 8 years old and I questioned it to my parents. Then on the first Christmas I knew the truth, I was a bit worried that a man dressed in red would come into the house, so I woke my mom up to ask if he actually isn't real for sure and she said he wasn't. haha that was the end of that.

16. Do you make New Year's resolutions?  Do you stick to them?

I always make New Year's resolutions every year. I love setting goals for myself all year round, so this is also the ultimate time of the year to set goals and also to reflect on the resolutions made a year before. I usually end up completing half or more of the resolutions because they are things I am thinking I can accomplish and are also important to me.

17. What makes the Holidays special for you?

Spending time with family and friends and doing traditions that I love every year. I am big on traditions and I love to go to the markets, watch my favorite Christmas movies, drink eggnog, and eating my favourite holiday treats.

Thank you so much for visiting my blog today and reading my answers to this Christmas tag. I had a lot of fun answering all of these questions about Christmas and it make me reflect on wonderful times with family and loved ones. It makes me even more excited for Christmas Eve and Christmas day this year. Feel free to copy these questions for your own Christmas tag and write in your own answers. Also if you have a blogmas post, please let me know and I will visit your blog too!

Have a great day!