seriously??!! already?!!!! okay i'm excited anyway!

its beginning to look alot like well you know, christmas these days in places like hobby lobby, target, walmart & on my cd player. in fact some people are already putting up christmas lights and trees. i must admit we have a few things out, but i'm still holding out on buying the tree, even though i super love the smells of christmas like pine trees & apple cinnamony things.

but it really is hard to believe that thanksgiving is next week. and then black friday. then december. then christmas. then new years. then omg, benjamin will be here.  i feel like time has flown by, which seems to be much quicker the older we get. still trying to figure that one out. 

we still have lots on our to-do list in preparation for benjamin, but i must say i've been quickly piling things onto my "holiday" things i gotta do list since this is like our first christmas in our home & last christmas as just me and husband.

so far my list:

 - ICE! like for serious man. its merry madagascar this year. and if you have seen any of them, you understand.

- decorating our yard. i've already picked out several things i want. now we just need to buy them. yay for being like a griswald.

- christmas light looking accompanied by hot cocoa and treats.  one of my favorites. and oddly, husband and i never have done this.  this year we must!

- real christmas tree! egads!

- stockings from the mantle. never had a mantle in the apartment. so its exciting to have real mantle hanging stockings for santa to fill.

- christmas movie watching night/day marathon.

- our second annual christmas shindig. last year's was mexican. this year italian! bring on the carbs and cannolis.

- christmas music, christmas music, christmas music!

- ugly christmas sweaters.

- personalized butcher paper wrapping complete with bows.

- homemade ornaments

whats on your must do christmas list for 2012??



rollercoasters and christmas lights

during the holidays, i always make it a goal of mine to visit six flags for their holiday in the park. its the only time of year i enjoy going to the park. mainly because of the twinkling lights, 'snow,' and the briskness in the air that hits your face as you speed along in a rollercoaster car.

this year it was special though. we took the dear neice and nephew with us. robert had been in the past, but was not really tall enough for the big kid rides & emilee, well this was her first trip to an amusement park. so we were in for either a great time or a miserable one.

everything turned out for the earlier scenarios. they couldnt have been more thrilled, hoping from ride to ride, enjoying every one. we even managed to get robert to ride his first upside coaster.  it was a moment i wish i could have had on video or camera, but being his accompanying adult, i get to walk away with that everlasting memory. 

can't wait for next year.

on the fifth day before christmas...

twas five days before christmas & all through the land,

i was dreaming of presents,

all pretty and grand!

okay so enough of my christmas rhyme. its tuesday. the tuesday before christmas and 1 more day until i'm offically on christmas vacation. i dont have much to blog about, so i figured i would share a few things, i'm loving right now.

feather eyelashes!

as outrageous and extreme these eyelashes might be, i'm currently swooning over them.  maybe one of these days, new years ever perhaps, i will brave the elements and strut these lashes for all to see.

snow

the forecaster says that maybe, just maybe, a few flurries will fall on christmas day. i'm hoping for more like a blizzard.  but if all else, i will settle for a nice dusting.  anyone want to send some snow to north texas for me?  i will be forever grateful.

chocolate caramel crunch

this yummy tasty treat is what i'm making for all my co-workers this year. the recipe sounds delicious & i plan on adding cinnamon red hots to it for the holidays.  maybe i will get "lucky" & have enough leftover for the husband and i to enjoy.  otherwise i will have to make my own batch. 

what yummy things are you loving right now?



6 days til the best holiday EVER + a few lovely things

this past weekend flew by so fast. i'm sad its over, but that means we are quickly arriving upon the best holiday ever!

our weekend was full of terrificness. yes i make up my own words. 

we ventured with my brother, his wife, & two children (ages 7 & 4), along with one of the most awesome people ever, to holiday in the park at six flags.  it was a thrill.  it was emilee's first time to an amusement park & robert's first time to ride a coaster that went upside down.  oh and i manged to face plant on snow hill.  pictures coming soon.

the husband and i also held the first ever, {g} family christmas shindig.  mexican food & all. Feliz Navidad my friends! i don't have any photos sadly, but it was terrific and i'm glad those who came enjoyed themselves over margaritas & enchiladas. next year, it will be ugly christmas sweaters at its finest. i promise!

we also did a partial christmas together. yes we caved. plus i didnt feel like wrapping any more presents. so i just said, "here, enjoy!"  we still have some stuff under the tree for each other, but this far in the season, i'm beat on wrapping and tying ribbons, so meh. thats how that happens in my family.

so far its been terrific! i will post some of the things i got.  because one of them was featured in a previous post & i've only oodled and drooled over it for months.  and i FINALLY have it in my pretty little possession. it is a wonderful thing.

& those two items featured up top?  i love them.  the eyeshadow i splurged and purchased on saturday.  its wonderful. its sparkly. and it has every eye color that i wear.  what could possibly be better than that?

those super duper, make you want one immediately mugs? i first saw them in the december issue of real simple. then immediately browsed the interwebs looking to purchase the whole set.  yea i couldnt decide on my favorite, so i figured just buy the whole collection.  after much anticipation, i saw this. 

no more til march!! it was such a depressing moment.  but i will hang loose until then, and swipe me up a set as soon as possible! maybe even a giveaway could be in the works to giveaway my favorite of the set.  or winner's choice.  stay tuned for that one.

enough of my random rambling.

what did you do this past weekend?!

christmas tree our christmas tree..

on friday, i asked everyone what their christmas tree style was & told everyone that the mister and i are classic christmas kind of people. with the exception of our tradition of getting a new ornament every year that represents us as a couple.

and with christmas 20 days away, yea 20!, i figured it was time to put my tree up and get into the full swing of the christmas spirit. i've only been talking about christmas for months now. i think decorating for christmas has to be one of my favorite parts of the holidays, putting a little holiday cheer into every aspect of my apartment, office, wardrobe, etc.

i also mentioned a few posts back, more like several, my plans of paper chains and snowflakes hanging from our apartment ceiling.  its finished! well until i decide it needs something more. it doesnt look like much from the picture, but sitting underneath it, lights off, with the christmas tree twinkling, its just amazing and feels a little like the north pole.

notice the reindeer on the window treatment? yea had to have those!! santa is flying in for his landing. i tell the husband constantly i wouldnt mind living at the north pole with santa, mrs. claus, the reindeer and all the elves making yummy treats and toys. but then im pretty sure he already knew that along time ago.

maybe i am still a child at heart, but i'm totally okay with that.

what is your one fantasy place that you wouldnt mind visiting or moving to?

tis the season for drama. makeup that is.

Thanks to L'Oreal for sponsoring my post about my favorite beauty looks, tips and tricks! Check out Makeup.com for beauty advice from the experts.

its that time of year when millions of women are rifling through their closets and makeup compartments looking for the perfect ensemble for the holiday parties that they are dragging their husbands to and vice versa.  and while many women keep the same look all year long, there is a handful of us out there, who dare to be different each and every holiday season.  its a new shade of lipstick or different color nail polish to offset previous year looks.

I for one am no different.  winter brings the opprotunity for a countless options when it comes to outfits and make up.  and if anyone knows me like i know me, I love changing my mind and trying something new all the time.  and this year I'm definitely going to dare to be bold. at least once anyway. tis the season for a drama!

from brilliant reds to handfuls of sparkle, winter needs every pep of zest it can get to overcome the dreary rain, cold gusts of wind and piles of snow that blanket the ground. and I plan on doing just that.

I've gathered a few items that I'm daring to try this year.  Some of them I've already thrown into effect, like the glittery nail polish, which I must say I absolutely love.  Love so much that I plan on adding a few more sparkly colors to the collection, even have it on my Christmas wish list for the year.. And like I tell myself, you never get too old for glittery nail polish.  Its one of those items that makes you smile, adds fun to your life, without breaking the bank.

As far as the other three items go, I've dabbled in them, but never really given a giant commitment into trying them for a considerable amount of time. From winged eye liner to red-red lipstick to the va va voom eyelashes, each of them will find their way into my life this holiday season.

I was able to find several good videos to help me achieve my desired look for each of these items and am happy to share them with all of you.  There are quite a few different tutorials that are offered including the cat eye winged eyeliner & the perfect red lip.  Little did I know there is actually a correct way of acheiving the perfect red lip.  I figured you just threw some lipstick on and tada, good as gold.  But this video definitely changed my mind on that.

I hope this holiday season, you dare to try something new & different. If you do, let me know, and I would love to see your results or tutorials that helped you achieve that look.

I was selected for this sponsorship by the Clever Girls Collective. Click here to learn more about Makeup.com or become a Facebook fan by clicking here.

christmas tree oh christmas tree

for husband and i, we like classic christmas.

we put up our tree yesterday

& our apartments feels all nice and christmasy inside.

its offically here and i couldn't be happier.

what's your style??

hello mr.(s.) december

all i can say is wow! december is here already, which means christmas, my favorite time of year, is just right around the corner. christmas music has been playing for a few weeks now & people are gradually getting their holiday decor up on display.  which reminds me i need to take pictures of our living room since hanging up the chains and snowflakes.  the ups guy even gave the decor a compliment yesterday when dropping off a box, which makes me smile.

the husband and i started making lists in our heads of all the things we wanted for christmas. and i am finally getting to putting them on paper, so i can make wants a reality.  so i figured why not share some of my christmas wants with my blog friends.

1. jcp is my favorite store. they have clothes for just about everything! and the fact i know someone who can spot me the awesome employee discount helps in the persuasion.  so for christmas, i would love me some clothes from jcp. this is one of my favorites.  and this one is even better!

2. lmfao. need i say more? i love their music, it always puts me in a fantastic mood. plus who doesnt think they are sexy and they know it? or like party rock?!

3. a new wallet.  i need one. badly. i currently dont carry one, and husband is getting on me to get one, but i just have a hard time deciding on one. any suggestions on a goodie but still reasonably priced?

4. texas rangers stuff! like shirts.  i love the texas rangers, if you didnt already know. but anything texas rangers will make me smile this holiday season.

5. opi nail polish! and with the coming out of the muppets line, it makes me love opi even more.  i particularly like rainbow connection. it can go with anything!

6. kindle fire.  the husband and i have been discussing this one for awhile and i think i almost have him convinced it would be a good investment for us. 

What are you asking Santa for this Christmas?

i still can't believe its the monday before thanksgiving

seriously, where did november go?! it seems as i blinked & now its time to consume ridiculous amount of tryptophan & catch up on gossip while the boys watch turkey day football.

but while i still have a few days before the ovens crank on & the kitchen mixers begin their chores of whipping a million pounds of potatoes, i figured i would fashionize the blog some, post a little fun find & share some hollywood gossip.  because thats all we need, right?

i'm gradually working on adding a few fun items to the blog, like headers and such. and if you can't already tell, i've gone back to my single sidebar days to allow for a wider sidebar.  i'm still working on it, but i'm liking the way things are turning out. maybe even lure in a few sponsors for december?  you still have a little more than a week left to email me if you are interested in becoming a sponsor.  i would love to have you.


okay is this nail art just not the cutest??  but then i love everything snowflake, winter, etc., so its not too hard to please.  i'm going to have to go on a hunt for something like this, because this is just the thing i need right now for alittle extra added holiday cheer. 

and holiday cheer is what i'm all about. seeing that black friday is this friday! (say what!) i've made it a point to turn my radio dial to the christmas music station and really get this holiday thing going.  have you auto tuned to you city's christmas station yet?

totally random, but i must put my two cents into some hollywood gossip. do people seriously think by going on the bachelor that they will find their true love? yea, i don't think so.  another case in point.  but then i really dont follow the bachelor too much, i just find it rather amusing how many people out there think that this show is really the answer to finding their soulmates.  sad. pathetic. and i kind of feel sorry for those that do.

besides everything else, i hope everyone is having a terrific, productive start to their thanksgiving weeks.  i will be back before thanksgiving to share another recipe or two & a thanksgiving post.  stayed tuned loves.

a recipe - sweetheart cherry cheese danish

so i promised a few days ago that i would start sharing some of my favorite holiday recipes with everyone. 

here's one of my absolute favorites!

its perfect for any holiday, but we love it for Thanksgiving and Christmas!

i dont like cherry that much, but this treat is sure to be a hit around the dinner table, even with non-cherry lovers like me. and the best part, its super simple & can even be eaten for breakfast!

Sweetheart Cherry Cheese Danish

Ingredients:

• 2 8-ounce tubes refrigerated crescent roll sheets or dinner rolls
• 1 8-ounce package cream cheese, softened
• 1 cup + 1 Tablespoon granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 21-ounce can LUCKY LEAF Regular or Premium Cherry Pie Filling
• 1 Tablespoon butter, melted
• 1/2 cup sliced almonds

How-to:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Unroll 1 package of crescent rolls and fit into the bottom of a lightly greased 9x13" baking dish. Bake for 10-12 minutes
3. In a bowl, mix together cream cheese, 1 cup of sugar & vanilla. Spread mixture over hot dough in baking dish.
4. Next, spread a layer of LUCKY LEAF cherry pie filling over the cream cheese mixture. Unroll remaining crescent roll dough & lay on top of the pie filling.
5. Combine 1Tbsp sugar, almonds and melted butter. Sprinkle over top of dough.
6. Bake 35-45 minutes or until golden brown.

Makes 12 servings.

Enjoy!  

Few tips

- they say not to grease the pan, but I experienced extreme frustration when I didn't, so I suggest lightly greasing it.
- i actually make a little more topping (sugar, butter, almonds) so we have lots of nutty crunchiness on top.
- you can experiment with our pie fillings, like blueberry.. its pretty awesome too!

paperchains & party rock!

so you know how i told you yesterday about my glorious plans of christmas decor?? well last night i started cutting my paper strips and the assembling of my paper chains.  i managed to get one chain done (i ran out of staples). and even got the okay from the dear mister to hang it up.  can i say it looks totally christmasy and wonderful! i got more staples and tonight it is on! our apartment is going to be all kinds of festive in no time. it might even resemble this or the apartment buddy the elf decorated.  this guy has to be someone's hero. and he's mine.  who doesnt love a jillion christmas things everywhere, singing everything and love sugar? well most people, but i'm the exception to the rule.


the toy store

& if anyone has a spare $120.00 they want to let me have so i can get these for myself for christmas, i would love you forever! seriously, $120?! i mean i know they have authentic Swarovski crystals and all. but they are shoes.. deck shoes for that matter. but i'm sure someone cool out there has a pair. if so, i would like to meet you. maybe i can get all sorts of crafty and martha stewart and make my own pair.

party rock!

i've also added a few fun new items to my left sidebar - what i'm currently reading & formspring. formspring is probably old school to most folks, but i figured i would add this fun feature to the blog so people can ask questions if they have them. and my books. i love reading, but only if the book is a good attention grabber. i may or may not review the books, but i figured its something fun to let people know what i'm up to.

til then, i hope everyone is having a terrific tuesday! 

its never too early for christmas.

i feel a little like lily from HIMYM during the holiday.. well actually all the time.  but particularly during christmas.  she goes above and beyond to christmas everything.  and yes i just used christmas as a verb.  in my book to christmas, is to put the holiday spirit into everything you see & do.  if you've seen the "how lily stole christmas" episode, you know exactly what i'm talking about.

their apartment looks like christmas vomited all over it.  and thats what i strive for my apartment to feel like at the holidays.  and this year is no different.  actually this year is even better, because now i'm married and i've got the mister in the holiday spirit extra early this year! and i'm currently trying to convince him why we should get a headstart on the holiday decorating.  this has proved to be a little harder than originally expected.  but its a work in progress. 

i even caught myself checking out new holiday cds while at target over the weekend and thinking where i had put the ones i currently have in my possession.  i need to find them soon, because i can always use a good christmas tune on the way to and from work.

but i thought in light of the fact i can't run home and throw up the tree or tinsel, i could preplan my christmas decorating right here!  i hope to make this years decor better than years past, with more tinsel, paper chains, snowflakes and fun. 

this year i want a classic, fun christmas.  no crazy colors or themes.  your basics.  greens, reds, whites & a little sparkle. and of course, snowflakes, snowmen, penguins and SANTA CLAUS!

*side note* i realize i misspelled affordable...  ehh but i'm too lazy to go back to fix it.

WHAT CHRISTMAS DECORATIONS ARE YOUR FAVORITE?!

blogger secret santa 2011

on my drive home last night from work, i kept thinking about this secret santa thing.  i came to the conclusion that this would be a terrific way for people to "give" a little something to someone that don't know quite that well as well as sharing alittle of bit of where they are from with someone else.

so it was decided.  blogger secret santa 2011 is taking place. and i would love for people near and far to be apart of this.  tell your friends. blog about it.  tweet it like crazy. facebook it. whatever you do.

i decided i need to get on the ball if this is going to work out, so if you are interested (which i hope you are, because i think its going to be alot of fun!), send me an email: sugarbearbear {at} live {dot} com with the following information:

name:
address:
email address:

this way i can start getting a list together of people who really want to participate.  the deadline to join the blogger secret santa event is Friday November 11, 2011.  thats LOTS of time to blog, tweet and tell your friends to join us.  once i have received information on all the participants, i will send out a form for everyone to fill out so your "secret santa" can have a little guidance on your gift.  

i do have a few requirements in order to participate.. its nothing crazy, but its to insure fair play and communication can be maintained with everyone who wants to take part.  they are:

a.) must be a follower of my blog - this way all blog updates about the event will show up in your google reader so you can stay in the know.
b.) be willing to spend 15 USD dollars on the person you receive to buy for.  (its only fair everyone spends the same amount)
c. be able to have your gift purchased and shipped to your person by december 15.  (that gives USPS 10 days to get them their present)
c.) must be willing to have fun (of course!)


once everyone has received their gifts, i will host a linky party, so you can link up and show up what your secret santa got you. 

if you have any questions or concerns, let me know.
thanks again!

blogger secret santa??

ehh i'm all giddy thinking about christmas already!

so i know its only october 24 and christmas is a mere 2 months away (thats right friends, better start making lists and finding those sales!), but i had an idea. yes my head is filled with lots and lots of ideas.  i'm scared to know what my brain would look like if someone tried to examine it all.

what about a blogger friend secret santa?  totally organized with the hows and whats and whens.  but i thought this could be a fun new tradition.

anyone, anywhere could participate.  dollar limit would be set.  a list of questions to help the person pick something out for you would be filled out and exchanged. 

totally random. totally out there.
let me know what you think.

a gift for you...

In case I get super crazy busy with shopping, baking/cooking and running around to all the families' houses and forget to blog between now & Christmas day,

Merry Christmas everyone!

I love each of you dearly and hope you enjoy my small token of Merry Christmasness - since I don't have addresses to send real snail mail Christmas cards to, electronic blogosphere Christmas cards will do. XOXOX

CHEERS!

'tis the season to be jolly..

sausage balls

pretzel rods, seasoned pretzels, and rolo pretzel turtle candies. my tote bag was packed to the brim <3

My work week this week is only Monday-Wednesday, with Thursday and Friday being our Christmas holiday time off.  And with a short week due to holidays, we decided to have Food Days all three days.. People have been bringing in ridiculous amounts of food the past couple of days, and we still have one more day to go.  I don't know if I'm going to be able to make it - all I have done the last two days is munch and munch.  And of course nothing is healthy.  But I have some super delicious recipes from this week that I'm going to be sharing later this week when I have some more time for extensive blogging...

I decided to make & share Sausage Balls (which turned out delicious, but a small catastrophe struck and they never made it to work), pretzel rods dipped in white almond bark & sprinkles, seasoned pretzels, & pretzel Rolo turtle candies (which are extremely sinful if you haven't experienced them before.) Pictures of the items I took are above.

Nothing to exciting this post, just filling the eyes of my readers with super delicious holiday yumminess!  Love you all! Cheers!

What treats do you like making & giving out at the holidays?

p.s. i'm super excited to see i have 25 followers.. the more the merrier.  i hope to have thousands one day :0)

happy monday!

-Emilee got Jenny, an Our Generation doll for Christmas from the Mister and I. They baked cupcakes for us-

Have a Marvelous Monday everyone!

The Great Cook-a-palooza

weheartit - edited by me.

We are T minus 12 days until Christmas and the list of what I need to make keeps growing and growing and growing!  Like seriously...  Maybe I'm in over my head.  I know I can do it, but sleep is a little important to me.  

Here's my list so far:

• Cherry Danish - the Mister's dad's family side Christmas party - Saturday the 18th
• Corn Casserole - my mom's mom's side of the family Christmas reunion - Sunday the 19th
• Sausage Balls (Mild & Spicy) - My work's week of Christmas Food Craze Days!  - Monday the 20th
• Seasoned Pretzels - Christmas treats for all the coworkers - thats like 25 people folks -  Tuesday the 21st
• Holiday Pretzel Rods - Christmas treats for all the coworkers - thats like 25 people folks - Tuesday the 21st
• Rice Crispie Treats - Christmas treats for all the coworkers - thats like 25 people folks - Tuesday the 21st
• Pretzel/Rolo Candy Treats - Christmas treats for all the coworkers - thats like 25 people folks - Tuesday the 21st
• Some kind of munchies (TBD) -for Christmas eve w/ my family - Friday the 24th
• Mexican food (TBD) - for Christmas eve w/ Damon's mom and family - Friday the 24th
• Christmas Day food (list TBD) - food required for both get togethers - my side and his side.

And thats just what I have so far.  That's so overwhelming to type out then read.  Eeps.  I can do it!! *sound the Rocky song**

I really would also like to make some holiday cupcakes - maybe those can be for Christmas Eves with the families.

**If I have leftovers of Christmas treats (which I'm sure I will) and you would like me to send you a small sampler, send me an email with your info - sugarbearbear@live.com **  PS must be United States address!

Everyone needs to be able to enjoy the yumminess of the Christmas season!

Cheers to tons and tons of FOOD!

“Kindness is like snow - it beautifies everything it covers”

-author unknown




martha is a smart woman

If we could just get a nice little chill in the air and maybe SOME fluffy snow it would really start to feel like Christmas in Texas! 

 weheartit

Santa are you listening??



dear santa..

gotta love weheartit.com



Have you made out your Christmas list this year?? 

Only 16 days 'til Christmas and COUNTING! 
What are you wishing to receive from the Jolly St. Nick??