{december daily update}

Happy Monday friends!

I know..."happy" and "Monday" really shouldn't go in the same greeting, but I feel good this morning, so I'm going with it. ;)

I wanted to give you all an update on how my December Daily album is going! YES...I'm actually doing it! And I'm so very glad that I pushed myself this year to start it. I'm having a lot of fun with it.

I only have Instagram photos to share so far, but hopefully I'll find the time {and a sunny day} to take better photos.

Those last two are my favorites so far...those boys steal my heart over again every day. :)

One decision that has made this a whole lot easier for me this year is not doing the standard photo a day thing. Last year it just stressed me out too much...some days are just not photo-worthy, you know? Instead I'm just taking photos of the important Christmas stuff, which sometimes means no photos one day and ten the next. 

I'm also doing a combination of full 8 1/2 x 11 pages for the photos I want to print larger, and pages with smaller photo compartments for days when I take lots of photos and can't choose just one. 

I can't wait to share more with you and it comes along!

{instagram Friday}

Is lunch time an issue for you?

I know around our house, I am always struggling to find something to eat on my lunch break. Today I ended up with one of those microwave Kraft mac & cheese bowls. You know...these...

But not the sponge bob kind...even I have limits.


They aren't just for toddlers anymore. ;)

As I was eating the long skinny noodles one of them slid onto the tine {is that the right word?} of my fork and it reminded me of how I used to eat this stuff as a kid. I would fill each tine {this really can't be a word...can it?} of my fork with one noodle. It was like they were created for that purpose, right?

Then I remembered how I would eat a swiss cake roll...

I would carefully unroll the cake layers so I could eat it like one long super skinny cake with icing on top, and sometimes I would peel off the outer layer of chocolate and eat that first.

Isn't it funny how entertaining food is to a child? It isn't just eating...it's a creative game. I know...that was totally random, but that is how I've felt this week so I'm going with it.

Today's post is supposed to be Insta-Friday so here we go...just a few things I was up to this past week...

My little blog broke 400 members!

Took the boys to the local Christmas parade... {no worries...Ben is not drugged ;)}

Enjoyed some "me time" and a little humor with People Magazine...

Did you know that plain egg nog is SO 2011? ;)

I'm enjoying this on a nightly basis...

 Did some fun Christmas crafting with the boys...

Took a little mommy time out while the boys played Angry Birds...

Worked on my December Daily...

Enjoyed a little Starbucks treat thanks to a gift card from a friend...

And noticed that this poor bush in our yard has its seasons mixed up...who can blame it when today it is in the 50's and raining?

What did your week look like?

Linking up with...

{December Daily scrapbooking}

Back in the day, I was a HUGE scrapbooker. And I don't mean I was physically large...I mean I was obsessed. ;) In fact, this blog at its birth in 2005 was solely a place for me to share my love for all things paper crafting. But 7 years and two children later, my free time to scrapbook has dwindled down and I hate to say that I haven't created a new page in probably over a year.

*insert heavy sigh*

I still LOVE scrapbooking. I still bookmark inspiration. Last year I was inspired by Ali Edwards to create a December Daily album. I collected lots of fun supplies and took my daily photos. And then guess what happened...

They all sat in a folder until I discovered them last week.

*insert 2nd heavy sigh*

SO...this year I'm determined to create my December Daily album. It might not follow the daily format, and it might just be all over the place, and I might not finish it until February...

BUT I WILL MAKE ONE.

You'll hold me to it, right? I promise to share photos, OK?

I just ordered a few new supplies to help kick my scrapbooking butt in gear.

But for now...here are some inspiration photos from my Pinterest...

Source: reavespartyofthree.blogspot.com via Mandy on Pinterest

Source: audreysreflection.blogspot.com via Mandy on Pinterest

Source: flickr.com via Mandy on Pinterest

Source: inacreativebubble.blogspot.com via Mandy on Pinterest

Source: aliedwards.com via Mandy on Pinterest

Source: inacreativebubble.blogspot.com via Mandy on Pinterest

Source: inacreativebubble.blogspot.com via Mandy on Pinterest

Do you scrapbook? What is your favorite way to store and display your photos and family memories?