Christmas 2012

Wow, can you believe it? This is my second Christmas Day post. I have truly grown attached to my blog. It also encourages me to create and share my art and thoughts with you. My mom is hosting our Christmas festivities, that's why I had the whole day yesterday to play hooky with my hubby and kids. It was still kind of a dreary day so we went to our favorite Vietnamese restaurant and had Pho for lunch. Then we went to the movies to see The Hobbit. The theater was almost empty, I guess the crowd was at the mall or out of town. It was so wonderful to spend time with my family. It was the best Christmas present for me to have us all relaxed, laughing and just "hanging out". With my son off to college, I realize times like this will become more and more infrequent. My daughter is also growing faster than I can keep up. Although, I am sad to see her change from this sweet little girl to a tall and sassy teenager, I am also looking forward to see her as an adult. I look forward to seeing her outgrow this awkward stage (and out of basketball shorts) and see her blossom into a beautiful butterfly.

We opened presents last night and since the kids are bigger and they both asked for money, I really didn't shop much for them. However, I am a mom and I must wrap something...just anything. A couple of weeks ago, my daughter walked away from a sweat shirt hoodie she really liked at Zumiez because it was $50.00 and she'd rather have the money. So, she was very happy and excited to open her present to find the same sweat shirt (plus the money). I captured that look on her face and put it in my memory vault. She was surprised and grateful at the same time as she told me, "But mommy, I didn't get you anything." I assured her that she has. My son got a scarf, a really nice grown-up eel skin wallet with gift cards for food. They were both happy with their gifts and I received the best present of all, my family. I just sat there and absorbed all the blessings I couldn't wrap in fancy paper. I have so much and I am so very thankful.

I really like this Wondrous Wishes stamp set from the Holiday catalog. I find water coloring or coloring with markers or colored pencils very relaxing and therapeutic. And this time of the year, I really need to find time to take deep breaths and relax. That's why I just had to have this set - to color.

I used Aqua Painters with the Watercolor Wonder Crayons

Card Recipe

Stamp Set(s): Teeny Tiny Wishes (Wood 115370 Clear 127802), Wondrous Wishes (Wood 126295 Clear 126297)
Paper: Be of Good Cheer DSP (126896), Card stocks in Gumball Green, Cherry Cobbler and Whisper White and Watercolor Paper (122959)
Ink: Classic Stampin' Pads in Basic Black (126980) and Cherry Cobbler (126966)
Accessories & Tools: Watercolor Wonder Crayons, Aqua Painters (103954), 1/2" Scallop Dots Ribbon in Cherry Cobbler (124138), Designer Ribbon Slides (127834), Punches in Modern Label (119849) and Word Window (119857) and Stampin' Dimensionals (104430)

Well, that's all for now. Merry Christmas to everyone!