Confessing Before Christmas

Santa knows if I've been Naughty or Nice this year, but confessing over the blog seems appropriate before Christmas morning. In case he can't find a way to get into the apartment, I want you to send me a lump of coal this year instead.

In reality, I've been a really good girl in 2015. I might have made some really adult decisions in the process by quitting my job, moving to follow my heart and becoming re-employed by the same company a few months later, but overall 'good' in a sense that my conscience can be proud of. I don't have my 2016 resolutions clearly defined, but I know that communicating with friends and family more often will keep my soul filled while we wait out the warmer Spring and Summer months ahead. 

I've been getting into the holiday spirit a little more this year now that we've got a real tree, parties to attend and traditions to create together. I've even been pulling a few tricks out of my back pocket that haven't seen the light of day in years... or ever. Like these paint sample gift tags. They've been patiently hiding on my pinterest boards for years and I finally got the urge to shamelessly grab samples from the Lowe's paint center just like I would grab the taquitos at Costco and cut them into these uniformly elegant ombre trees.

My latest instagram photos have been majorly filtered but also majorly well-lit. Has anyone noticed that I've posted much more lately, and the photos look a little more instagram professional? It's because after 5 and a half months of living in a yellow-lighting apartment and a yellow-lighting work environment I've found my natural lighting sanctuary. It's not pretty and requires props like bath towels, hand towels and blankets, but it creates a photo that shows just enough of my filtered life to make it to the Internet.

I already know a few of my Christmas gifts thanks to Amazon's 5 emails per item ordered and a few text messages included in there too. One was even spoiled because he didn't thnk the Amazon box was his since it was ordered from Ebay, but turns out I unboxed my own gift and had to place it under the tree like I never noticed. Next year, or at least next gift-giving holiday, we're going to have to figure out a solution for household Amazon-sharing protocol, including putting nicknames on the packages so we really know which package belongs to which giver.

That's all I can write today, looking forward to seeing what you're confessing! 

Linking up with Kathy, Nadine, Sarah, Laura, Lauren, Alanna and .... ???

It's Almost Christmas Confessions!

Welcome back to Wednesday and Merry Christmas (eve)! 

It makes me so happy to be looking forward to an entire day off of work, knowing that it's likely one of my very last for a while. There's quite a big event on Monday that is going to likely take quite a lot of my time over the next few months. 

Since the last time I was here, the following things have happened:

- I planked in front of a crowd at my holiday work party - twice

- I photo-boothed at my holiday work party - twice

- I've sent 15+ triple-chin snapchat selfies to some lucky recipients

- I've scrambled and failed at Christmas shopping

- Succeeded with buying a selfie tripod. Worth a shot, right?

- Mom successfully delivered toys, food baskets, clothes and miracles to seven families in need.

- Seriously, it took a village ^

Now we're ready for  a few quick Christmas confessions as I watch Christmas Story over FaceTime with my handsome guy who has been working way too hard. I'd show you how hard but don't think I'm allowed to show that frazzled look on the internet. Thanks for the extra MCM love this week!

:: Here is our very sad Christmas tree. What's even sadder is that it's at my boyfriend's house across the country, is decorated with $5 worth of "ornaments" from the dollar tree and some lackluster short cord lights. The redeeming quality is a pretty sweet Bear-necessities ornament that we found at Hallmark and wouldn't leave until we were the proud owners. It seriously sings and everything - the perfect start to creating our Christmas magic. 

:: I am probably on Santa's naughty list this year, and mostly for being a jerk to my body. Workouts aren't a priority anymore, #paleo is a guideline and not a rule, more days are "off days" than I'd like to admit and my kettlebell strength is lacking. Ps did you know my mom can swing a 55lb kettlebell? My hero. 

:: I've had the same bathroom hand soap for as long as I've lived in this house. Literally the same bottle. This week as I was goofing around in the same aisle as the pumpkin spice ice cream (so basic) I found a brand new hand soap that I truly couldn't pass up. The smell was heavenly. Here are some other amazing beauty products at Trader Joe's.

:: I still don't have presents bought, wrapped or even decided. It's too late for Amazon Prime to save me now, isn't it? 

That's all - stay merry & bright! Enjoy the time with your loved ones!

Are you ready for Humpday Confessions to return in January with Melissa?

Sweaty and Ready for the Holidays

I'm pretty much the worst at saying "I'm going to the gym tomorrow morning", then falling under the "I'm-too-tired, I-don't-know-what-I-want-to-wear, I-won't-have-enough-time, I-don't-want-to-wash-my-hair" spell the minute my alarm goes off in the early morning. 

Little did you know - The first alarm is at 4:50am and then every five minutes after that, which I chalk up as a personal problem since feet usually don't hit the floor until 5:45, maybe 6am at best. 

The problem however, is that if I miss that alarm and I don't get my morning workout, the chances of me missing my daily sweat increase by somewhere around 80%. I'm no statistician, but that just sounds good. I really do want to work out in the mornings. 

I had a great rhythm going over the past 5 weeks taking a TRX / Kettlebell class at work (TRX is amazing if you've never given it a shot!) - but even that schedule made attending a challenge because it was at 4:15, and I was basically dragged away from work and had to always go back for a few hours after. I need morning classes, I need weekend classes - I need variety! 

Why am I telling you this?

Because it was a serious Christmas miracle when I received an email from ClassPass telling me that they were launching in Portland and they wanted me to test out the program*. 

If you've never heard of it, ClassPass offers a monthly membership that gives you the keys to the city and the top-quality studios in your area. 

The fee is a flat rate of $99 per month, so the cost is all the same for you to attend unlimited strength training classes, barre classes, cycling classes, aerial dance classes, meditation sessions, hot yoga classes or anything else offered in your town. And obviously more studios will be joining in on the fun as time goes on and ClassPass gets more people involved in such an awesome program. 

Really the only "rule" is that you can't attend one studio more than 3 times per month - but overall I think that's a great barrier so that it forces me into trying new things, changing up the workouts and meeting all kinds of new people with serious passion for fitness in my city.  The class offerings I've seen so far include early morning times and late evening times - plus multiple studios offering similar workouts - essentially making the 3 times per month rule null and void!  

My pass runs for the month of December - so consider me holiday-ready! There's no sense in waiting until January 1st to set your goals and work toward committing to your healthy lifestyle. 

Aside from trying new awesomeness (like aerial yoga), I'm looking forward to seeing what my city has to offer! 

*I was offered a free month of membership in exchange for a review on my blog and social media accounts. ClassPass is not responsible for my excitement over this program or the many sweaty selfies that will come out of this experience. You're welcome.  Just living the sweaty life. 

Want to know more? Visit ClassPass FAQs

Thoughts on Christmas Lights?

Want to know why I feel like I have my life together?

Last night when I drove home from work I saw a neighbor with their Christmas lights on outside of the house. I'm cool with leaving them for 1 or 2 weeks after Christmas, you know like when you've already given up on your New Year's Resolutions? But not the first week into February! I suppose it did snow here for maybe 5 minutes yesterday but find something a little more seasonally appropriate than Rudolph grazing in the front yard.

Now I'm all about the whimsical idea of lights on the inside year-round, especially to set the mood for blogging and sleeping. See, look. February 4th and I'm still sleeping under all of the pretty red lights!

I'm embarrassed to share how many photos I took to get that one. Weird hands, weird hair, weird all the things. 

Speaking of a great segue lights and awkward photos, on Friday I had to go under some other lights in a chair at the dentist's office and for my very first (and please oh please my wallet begs my last) root canal. Now what's worse than a root canal? I'd argue a lot of things, actually. Tripping in public, 10,000 spoons when all you need is a knife, being too full for dessert on a dinner date when somebody else is paying.

You're lucky you get to see this photo and I don't even know why I'm sharing this to exist on the internet forever. This is better for a snapchat but I wasn't that clever. What's wrong with it? Look at my collar! I didn't have time to steam my shirt and I wasn't planning on being out in public much for the afternoon.

No but seriously, my face. Who hit it with a skillet? 

That's the smile of a girl who was $650 poorer after her appointment and just a few hours away from the numbness wearing off. Worst part about it? I had to miss the Friday session of my new favorite workout class and I can't wait to get back at it today! 

That's all I've got. I skipped TED Tuesday because my brain doesn't want to get too serious. Thank you for all of the love and support yesterday - I really love the person I'm becoming. 

Prepare yourself for some'a this and some'a that! (hair and wardrobe not included)

Christmas 2013 - A Recap

Hi blog, sorry we didn't spend any time together over the holidays! You've been a huge part of my life in 2013 and the year wouldn't have been the same without you. The holiday's also wouldn't have been the same with you, so I'm happy we took a little break from one another.

Since I'm a horrible holiday blogger, I don't have any photos to share (only the "OMG presents", and "OMG Tree", and "OMG I slept in so late" snap chats) but I can share my top four favorite gifts and share them with you in a collage!

Also, I'm wearing glasses today. That's how awesome this Monday is!

Mom and dad are always so thoughtful, can't thank them enough!

1. Apple TV + brother's iTunes login information

I never watch much TV and didn't know what to think when I opened this gift, but when I realized that the gift included access to my brother's iTunes library, it quickly became a huge hit! My first series has been Game of Thrones and I'm already a season in! 

2. Red Planet SubSonic Speaker

This little guy packs some POWER. It's tiny but don't let it fool you - I've been using it for everything, from amplifying the TV volume, Bluetooth connecting to my phone for music and even playing Pandora in the car on the way into work! Less than $60, it's well worth it!

3. Cash money for a Christmas Wish (any suggestions on how I should use it?)

Mom and dad wrote a check for a "Christmas Wish" and I almost want to just put it in savings and consider it as half of my Mac Book Pro. I know this is the boring way, so what other ideas do you have for a girl who doesn't need anything more?

4. House cleaning help!

I really didn't ask for it, but mom and dad delivered on some house cleaning for 6 months! Mom will be "Maria" and my kitchen will never be cleaner! I'm honestly not too tough on my house, so maybe I won't need 2x a month, let's negotiate!

Hope everyone had a Merry Christmas! Happiest wishes for your last days of 2013!

Elves Working Overtime

Public Service Announcement: My post from Friday about my experience at The Float Shoppe just got sweeter! Leading up to Christmas they have announced a Holiday Sale where you can use the code "perfectgift" and pay only $39. This is such a great price to grab a float for all the loved ones in your family who deserve some extra attention. 

Thing 1 

I am an awful procrastinator when it comes to Christmas gifting. The entire process is a challenge for me. From making a list, physically going out (or online) to purchase gifts and then especially the dilemma I have trying to wrap said gifts. 

Today's the day, friends! And to celebrate wrapping gifts, here's some great links that will hopefully give the grinch in all of us some Christmas wrapping inspiration. 

While my gifts will never be too pretty to unwrap, there's so many ways to take the stress out of wrapping gifts for all of those loved ones. Too time crunched to get fancy? Grab some scissors and tape and get back to the basics. Only have a gift card? Never fear - here's several clever ways to package that thoughtful gift. Good luck on the odd-shaped ones, I can't help you there. 

Thing 2

If you were around here last year, you may remember that my mom creates Christmas miracles every holiday season as a Secret Santa. She adopts families in need, rounds up the wish lists and enlists help from all of her networks to make the holidays magical and memorable.

This year she was at it again, stronger than ever. She adopted 4 families and shopped off the wish lists of all 14 children. Bike, guitar, Ugg's, doll houses, stuffed animals, cozy blankets, board games - so many gifts came in and so many donations were made to make all these gifts possible. 

I'd like to say that I've never seen that many gifts under the tree, but that's not true at all. #Mom&DadRock

How awesome, right? These gifts and much more have been delivered to this year's adopted families. 

All That She Wants

...is another baby! 

No, we aren't talking Ace of Base here today, we are talking about all of the things that I want for Christmas.

Before you go straight to Amazon.com to use your Prime account mom, let me explain that I expect nothing from this list for a handful of reasons. Too much money, impossible to gift to me or just silly things that I might impractically want and don't exactly need. 

Feed the children instead!

:: LASIK Eye Surgery

Not only are contacts a minor inconvenience, I am the worst at keeping them in great condition. I have my contacts in over 16 hours a day and very often find myself falling asleep with them still in my eyes. I have two pairs of glasses, but those just aren't the same. Who wants to fork over the dollars and the gift of a steady eye while they slice away at my cornea.

:: Garage to Park my Car in

I've had my car since November of 2004 and to this day my black stallion has never had her own garage to park in. Sure there's driveways, carports and college student lots - but she's never had a cozy place to rest hear weary wheels at night. My home right now has a 2 car garage but there's a heavy and fragile pool table in there that takes precedent. Maybe someday, focus.

:: A Maid - 2x a Month

A maid to make my bed, to scrub the surfaces, to rinse out my tupperware (and get the sriracha stains out), to wash, fold and put away laundry. To clean out Tiger's fish tank and to mop the linoleum kitchen floor. I saint who does toilets, who applies windex to mirrors and who will organize my scarf collection since I throw them around the house. 

:: Self-Fueling Car (+ Maintenance)

Speaking of my car, it'd be amazing if there was a way to never have to stop in to a gas station again, to never have to go too long past when an oil change is due and to not have to worry about how many times my tires have been rotated. Can we make this happen? And maybe throw in no traffic if we are being generous. 

:: Hair Color & Nails for Life

Hair cut/color trips are expensive and frequent mani/pedi trips would add up even quicker. Currently I treat myself to maybe 2 hair cut/color sessions per year, and do mani/pedi maybe once every 2 months. Right now my highlights are growing out from the roots and this weekend I went to get my nails done in a sassy holiday red. It would be a win/win/win to do all the things more often.

:: Annual Travel Budget

I'm a lady who likes to travel and I like to explore when I do it. I would love to have 3 consecutive weeks a year to take off from work and travel new parts of the world. "You can" is what many of you might be thinking, but I don't have enough money to make that happen with other goals I've set for myself. Where would I go? Australia, South America, Asia, anywhere! Book the trip and let's go!

So, again - these aren't real things that I'm asking for but I wouldn't be upset if any of these became a reality in 2014.

  

Selfish Santa

Uh, so how many of you went shopping the past weekend and ended up coming home with more for yourself than for your loved ones? When I shop in December I'm normally all about glitter reindeer, seasonal hand towels and a new dress for a Holiday party I'll likely not end up going to anyway and I forget that I'm there to get mom something she'll actually use / wear and get dad something that my brother suggested because dad's are sometimes hard to shop for.

This past weekend for Black Friday I was extremely guilty of being a selfish Santa.... again.

Okay wait so hear me out. 

I've been eyeing a new MacBook Pro for some time now but never pulled the trigger. First reason is because I like keeping ALL MY MONEYS and the second reason being that I'm always on my work computer anyway. Why spend those dollars I've saved when all I need to pay for is that high-speed WiFi connection? 

Through my recent life changes I fell into some extra money when I was bought out for some of the bigger ticket items that I'd purchased for us - like a couch and an HP laptop. All the extra money in the bank made me buy-ready for this shiny new super computer.

Okay, so maybe not all the way buy-ready, but it was on my brain that I was going to make the purchase in the next few weeks/months. Thing is that I was using the laptop as incentive to continue to lose some pesky extra pounds through clean eating and a daily sweat session.

Can you tell where this story is going? 

Well I found out that Apple had a Black Friday promotion that if you bought a MacBook Pro at any time of Friday past midnight Thursday, you'd get a $150 gift card. I'm kind of serious about sales for things that don't normally have any special promotion attached to them so Thanksgiving night I set four alarms to make sure the Turkey sleeps didn't take over. Just after midnight I clicked "Buy" on the 13" with Retina Display MacBook Pro and scheduled it for Friday pick-up at our downtown Apple store.

Reward cashed in before the hard work. 

There you have it - my Black Friday shopping experience was all sorts of selfish and impatient - but guys I have a gift card now to spend on things to pimp my mac. #thankful

For a mini redemption, I hit up the Made in Oregon store to get a Christmas gift for my bloggy friend Marisa who I went to coffee with on Sunday morning when she was home over the weekend. I picked up the cutest coffee table book about the city I love: This is Portland.

What kind of shopping do you do for yourself around this time of year? How do you keep on track with buying things for others rather than yourself?

TBT: Christmas Past

It's December 27th and Christmas is over and gone for the next 363 days. Thanks for the drive-by, Christmas - it's been real!

I'm back to work today - from the comfort of my home + New coffee maker - and I am thrilled that I don't have a tree, lights, ornaments or glitter to clean up after. It's the good life.

As planned, I spent some time at home the past 4 days going through old photos and not even scraping the surface of all of the gems that are in my parent's possession. What I can tell immediately from the photos I did find is that my parents have always been just as cool as they are now, that I had a really amazing childhood and that I have always been surrounded by wonderful influences. In all of the photos we are having fun and that's what my parents always wanted for us. I'm looking forward to sharing more with you!

Today's photo is brought to you by brother & sister matching flannel, old film and many gifts under the tree year after year.

And maybe this rack:

Happy Throwback Thursday!

<3 JE

Merry Christmas

Here's to the most wonderful Christmas anyone could ever ask for.

It's 8:30 and we are currently sleeping in sitting in front of the Christmas tree, sipping freshly brewed coffee, finger-lickin' some Great Harvest Bread Co. Cinnamon Rolls and dumping our stockings upside-down to see what Santa brought down the chimney last night. I can only guess good gifts thanks to the 7 Layer bars we left out (yum!)

Here's some of the magic currently happening in Happy Valley:

A very Merry Christmas, indeed!

<3 JE

Fa-La-La-La Friday

I don't know if it's the same for you but the holidays are coming at me quickly!

You mean it's the 7th already and I haven't created an Advent Calendar? Shame on me

I'm happy to share that I knocked out my Christmas cards in one night and they are already in the mail (for those whose addresses I have) - and thankfully had enough stamps to get me there. I was encouraged by the flood of cards I've been receiving and hope to display them in some adorable way like this seen on Pinterest.

Time to share some inspiration I'm using to get myself in gear this holiday season:

• Brooke gave us tips on how to Celebrate the Holidays on a Budget.


• Erin had a Crafternoon with her roomies and they made some seriously amazing Storm Trooper snowflakes.


• My blogroll is going crazy with gift guides (for him, for her, for you).


• Adorable tags to add a personal touch to your gifts.


• Decoration for the home from Fashion Gal.


• All of these adorable tree illustrations.

At least I've got my glitter snowflake:

<3 JE