A Song for Sunday- Do You Hear What I Hear?

I seriously cannot even believe that Christmas is simply a couple of days away.

Where has time disappeared to? I guess when December hits, the holiday season just flies by in a blue with all of the bustle and activity. 

I just want to remember the importance and true meaning of the holiday. Thanks to the incessant and annoying ads and  advertisements shoved in our faces, the true message is lost and forgotten. It is the birth of Jesus and it's the season for giving and family. Being together and helping those in need. The true meaning of Christmas is so beautiful and special and it's such a shame to be lost to gifts and selfishness. 

This particular version of the song, sung by the beautiful Vanessa Williams is one of my favorites not only for the true story of Jesus Christ's birth, but for the sound. I simply love the choir and the whole voices raised and sung together feel of it. Plus, Vanessa has a lovely voice. 

I just have so many memories with this song.. Early morning drives to school and the anticipation of doing the admen calendar every morning before breakfast. It's just a beautiful reminder of the true meaning of Christmas. 

Ice Pellets Make Me Roar.

Honestly woman, ice pellets? Is that the best you can hit me with at this point, Madame Mother Nature?

It appears that in lieu of our glorious snowfall, we are also graced with the sting of freezing rain. 

Goody goody. 

So I fought back in my own passion and fury and roared right at 'em! Let them hit me with their best shot for I will roar right back.

Wind and ice pellets are no match for me.

What I wore: gold dangly earrings (thank you Mum), cheetah print long-sleeved OLD NAVY top (thanks to my sister), gold sparkly BANANA REPUBLIC skinny belt (sale), black WORTHINGTON high waisted pencil skirt (used), and high ankle COACH wedges (major sale).

Mad for Mint and Lovely Lunch.

I have finally discovered my favorite color. Well, technically, it's two colors. But today, I'm only talking about one. After searching through Tiffany blue, Dior gray, radioactive salmon, and such, I have settled on sea foam/mint.

It's so classy and chic and I've had a penchant for all things mint since as long as I can remember: mint tea, mint desserts, you name it! It's crispy and mysterious and I always think of those electric York commercials where ones eyes bulge in strong satisfaction.

Now there are many variations of the color, but today I have settled on a light hue. Very clean cut and pristine, like Listerine. Where am I getting all of these comparisons from? Goodness.

Anyhow, asides from my wardrobe, it seems that this mint color has made an appearance in my car choices. I've been using cars we already have in the family, but seeing as how I will be away at college, a car is highly encouraged where I'm looking. Ironically, the Fiat 500 comes in such the color. Great.

See what temptations I'm plagued with on a daily basis here?

Anyhow, today's outfit inspiration came from such a color and I literally felt like a candy cane. A mint one. 

What I wore: pink TASHA collar (onsale at Nordstrom Rack), a striped hourglass mint GAP dress (courtesy of it not fitting my sister- lucky me!), a sparkly KATE SPADE clutch (used), pink ballet tights (thanks goes to my sister again), and gray EARTH boots (used).

And I got to wear this special outfit for one of my favorite occasions- lunch at the lovely Heidi's house. Gosh, Christmas is truly not complete unless I enter her beautiful home for an afternoon. It's truly precious and I feel incredibly homey and comfortable at her place. She has a gift for that, that's for sure!

The drive up was gorgeous, as usual.

It appears that I have magic animal powers for her cat and dog flocked to me and I continued to play with them all during the lunch hour!

Lunch was three types of delicous salads: one included kale, one had this creamy good dressing, and the other had bacon. Can never go wrong with bacon.

Harney&Sons tea continues to hold warm memories for me.

Dessert was gluten free brownies with powdered sugar on top- surprisingly very delicious. And coffee, but of course!

My mom got this lovely mirror from one of her friends- I found myself staring back. What a coincidence we look so much alike!

You can never go wrong with afternoons in Alaska like this.

Throwback Thursday- Give to the Claus.

Every time Glee's We Need a Little Christmas comes on, memories from last year come rushing back to me. Now believe it or not, I was a "pommie" during my time at Horizon High School. A "pommie" is the term for a dancer on the spirit line that competes in dance yet still cheers at the appointed sports games. I had no idea what I was getting myself into ( seriously, the only cheering I have ever done was onstage as I played Patty Simcox in Grease) but by this point, I had many friends on the team and I enjoyed the change of scenery.

S it being Christmas and all, we had a little fundraiser benefit thing deal going on. We all donated gifts to this local cause called "Give to the Claus" which technically gave the proceeds to children in need who weren't as fortunate as the rest of us this holiday season. It was also called "Operation Santa Claus" and aside from the gifts, we put together a little dance- taking one of our sideline dances and putting it to, what do you know, that Glee song. 

What I didn't know is that we were going to be filmed for the abc15 channel and aired on tv. Now I had been on tv once before for an interview on an elephant here in Alaska many years back in the sixth grade, but this felt official. They had the crew telling us the plan, we got set up ( I was in the back, no surprise, but at least in the center), and then there was the whole 3-2-1 countdown and there we were! Since my aunt had recorded it, I got to see it all and I was quite a sight to behold. They Varsity Pom captains happened to be in front of me during the interview and I'm just there in the background being my usual smiley self, quite distracting from the  obvious subject. It was hilarious. And when they shows doing the little performance, I'm just this huge gleeful giant in the background proudly sporting my HHS uniform like a certain Quinn Fabrey. 

I must say that it's the memories like that that make my holiday season so special. It's not always  about the stuff I can hold in my hand that matters, but sometimes the emotional memories that make this season so bright to me.

Braving the -20 Temps.

OH how cold it is. It's the frigid cold that seeps into one's bones and stays stagnant even after one goes inside. It's the type of weather that freezes the buggers in your nose and turns wet hair into crisp white frosts. It makes the air you breath come out in white plumes and makes you cover every inch of your very being.

Let me tell you, it is none too pleasant to go outside in! But me being.. well, me, I decided to take a mini stroll outside for some photos. Since our last snowfall, we have been lucky to have been able to keep the snow and the way it stays frozen to the trees looks like crispy frosty decor. Twas quite lovely out and so I simply had to go out and capture some photos.

Just for the record, I won't be doing it again in -26 degrees. Far too chilly for my liking. I had to step in multiple feet of snow just to reach photographic standpoints and even with my puffy gloves on, my fingers turned purple just from ten minutes outside.

Walking in a Winter Wonderland.

Oh I love fresh powder.

It not only snowed for most of the day Friday, and Saturday, but it continues to fall today! This calls for playtime.

My Ugg's and gloves have now come to official use. And the roads have finally become dangerous for me! I was driving to Coffee Roasters today and was totally doing that Tokyo drift down the back roads. It was awesome.

And it's such a familiar sight to see my dad outside in his beat up "Brutus" plow-truck working away on the fresh fluff. Even dusting off our blowup snowmen outside is fun when they begin sinking to the ground because of the snow. And don't even get me started on my car! I fear that it is trapped in this cocoon of snow and when I open the door, I just know that I will be DUMPED on. But hey, it's a smile on my face. :)

 

And I daresay that it is the perfect season for baking. Yesterday afternoon, my friend Caroline and myself baked Rolo Chocolate Chip Cookies, and White Chocolate Gingerbread Blondies. What a delight!