Creatively Lazy: Christmas Tree Edition

So...

Saturday, we went out yard selling....

And we managed to pick up this monster for a steal of a deal

A 7.5 foot Christmas tree that usually retails for close to $200 for $10???? Ummm...yes, please!

Well, on Monday, Jeff decided to set it up to make sure our steal of a deal wasn't too good to be true...

It wasn't. Besides needing to tape up some of the ends to keep the string that is wrapped around the branches from unraveling, it was in pretty much perfect condition.

Then, Jeff said the words that got my wheels a-turnin'...

"I'm just going to leave it up. I really don't want to have to haul it out of the closet again. It's heavy."

I couldn't just leave an empty Christmas tree sitting up in the corner of my living room.  When guests come over what do you say? "We were just too lazy to take it down..."?

My brain worked in its brilliant fashion and I not only came up with an awesome excuse to put the Christmas tree up in October and LEAVE it up....but also some really neat family traditions that I'm pretty sure we're going to carry on...

So...for all of you that want to space out your holiday decorations, these ideas are for you.

Why not have a Halloween Tree?  Stay with me here...

Think of the movie, The Nightmare Before Christmas.  Watch the movie and put up your tree along with some Halloween ornamentation so that you can please Jack Skellington the Pumpkin King.  on Halloween Night, you can even take it one step further and leave some gross out candy under the tree or something. (Our kids are too young to appreciate it this year, but you can bet your bottom dollar that it WILL be happening when they are old enough.)

Decorations don't have to cost a million dollars either. If you have a steady hand, you can do what I did and, using some craft foam, draw some caricatures of Nightmare Before Christmas characters or, if you're less steady with a sharpie, you can print out some Nightmare Before Christmas or Halloween coloring pages, color them and, using the sticky back foam, make some Halloween ornaments that will last for a while.

Since its mostly for your family enjoyment anyway (and to stop guests from wondering why on earth you would set your Christmas tree up at the beginning of October), you don't even have to cover the whole tree.  I'm still planning on making a few more with my husband when he gets home (since he enjoys drawing, I wanted to let him in on the fun...) but you can see that it looking pretty decent and I've just covered a section of the tree. A few more ornaments and some artsy fartsy fun with my hubby and we will have made it look all the way decent...

And, because I figured you should see some of my free-hand artwork, I decided to zoom in and take a picture just for you (because I know you're just dying to see it!)

So, what do you do for November?  Simple...you do a Thankful Tree.  Everyone in the house takes a piece of construction paper and writes on it what they are thankful for that day.  You can either wrap it around a branch and staple it, add some string, or make a chain that will snake around the tree or along the front of it.  At Thanksgiving dinner, remove the "thankful notes" and read them at the table. It will be awesome to see all the things you've had a chance to be thankful for throughout the month.

My family tradition has always been to decorate the Christmas tree after Thanksgiving dinner.  It was one tradition my biological dad had started with us before his death, and one that my step-dad really enjoyed and kept up after he joined our family.  So...you can just pull out the Christmas decorations and let the kids go to town...

A big hello to all my creatively lazy peeps out there...I hope you enjoy using this idea...and YOU'RE WELCOME...LOL

Hugs and loves until next time darlings!

Independence Day Round-up

Well, another July 4th has come and gone.

We had planned on spending the afternoon at the park, having a picnic and letting the Little Diva play in the splash pad...but the weather decided not to cooperate.

Sadly...this is the only picture I have to show for our Independence Day

We did manage to have our picnic, but it was very windy and heavy rain was threatening to pour down on us at any moment...so while we did have the camera, it didn't even make it out of the diaper bag. We ate as leisurely as the weather would allow and then decided it would be best to take off when the clouds started getting blacker and we started hearing thunder...

The Little Diva wasn't very pleased with all the wind, but she managed to end up pretty content while my handsome husband and I ate our lunch as she had a sippy full of apple juice all to herself.

The weather kind of matched the mood of our day...

Our morning started with us trying to finalize plans...deciding whether or not we wanted brave the fireworks that night with a cranky 8 month old who would, undoubtedly, make it not so fun to be out that late waiting (her bedtime is usually between 6 and 7 at night and the fireworks didn't start until 9) We also were considering what would happen if the weather cleared up and if I, in all my third trimester of pregnancy glory,  could handle sitting in the heat...the plans were decided...we'd definitely shoot for a picnic and bring stuff for the splash pad in case we felt weather was good enough, but after that the tone and the meaning of the day changed completely...

I was logged into Facebook, checking to see what friends were up to and I ran across a piece of news that stopped me on a dime...one friend dedicated their status to one of my husband's best friends in the whole world, who had apparently lost his life the day before fighting for our freedom in Afghanistan.

I shouted out a shocked, "WHAT?!" and Jeff, being a good husband, was intrigued...but I didn't know how to tell him...so I just told him.

He had been playing Call of Duty on Xbox, his controller dropped and he sat there for a minute and then came and took over my computer. He logged into his Facebook account to try to get to the bottom of what was going on...after a few minutes of disbelief I saw my sweet, strong husband cry for only the 3rd time ever.

I think we're still trying to make sense of everything.

Only a few days before his friend had been able to log into Facebook before being sent out on another mission and had left a status saying how much he loved and missed all of his friends and family and that he had hoped they were having a good day.

Only a few months ago, Jeff was talking about trying to get online with his friend to play on Xbox before he left for Afghanistan...I may not have ever had the pleasure of meeting my husband's friend in person, but he was a presence. He and Jeff kept in contact frequently, and it always seemed like they weren't living across the country from each other, like they'd only just seen one another...

My heart is a little sad because its hard to watch Jeff be sad. All day on Wednesday our conversation floated between normal every day life and this big giant elephant that I could tell was sitting on my husband's chest- his grief for his friend and his friend's family.... As we listened to the radio in the car, the kept saying "Happy 4th of July" and Jeff said, "You know, its called Independence Day for a reason."  He talked about how just saying the day of the week doesn't do the sacrifice that our service men and women make on a daily basis justice.

I guess, for my little family, Independence Day took on a whole new meaning, and I hope I never forget it, I hope we never forget it...and I don't think we will. Private Cody Moosman, one of my husband's best friends in the whole world, gave his life while defending a patrol in Afghanistan on July 3, 2012...and because of his brave sacrifice, Independence Day will forever have a new meaning in my heart...I am somewhat ashamed to admit, that while I was fully aware of the sacrifices that the men and women in our military have made and continue to make on our behalf, until this year it has never had the impact that it should have. My dad was even in the National Guard and got a purple heart for goodness sake, and it still just hadn't sunk in. I've always been proud to be an American, but now Independence Day is about so much more than just being thankful for my free country...

There are so many who have given and continue to give so much to keep my family safe, to keep other people in other nations safe...I am in awe of the selflessness that goes into that kind of a sacrifice. My thoughts have been drifting back and forth between normal life and silent prayers for Cody's family, friends and the family and friends of other men and women that were wounded or killed in that fire fight that took Cody.

As my husband said on Wednesday," Freedom is not free, and no amount of money can replace the blood spilled to preserve it." 

It is going to be my humble prayer that I can make sure that my children will know my husband's friend, and his sacrifice...and from now on, our Independence Day celebration will include a moment where we talk about the brave men and women who continue to fight and pay the price with their blood so that we can be free. That our day won't just be about mindless celebration, picnics and barbecues, but that we will have a time that is devoted to those amazing people who love their country, their family, and their friends enough that they are willing to give their lives if necessary to preserve their way of life and keep them safe.

Join me?

Hugs and Loves until next time darlings.