Monday Catch-up

I will start off with saying- this is going to be a random post- I have had so much going and lots of things I want to share!

First, I thought it would be fun to link up here:
So I loved everything in my stocking, but a couple of things I really loved:

This is a Spode Christmas Tree salt and pepper shaker. I love all the Spode Christmas tree china, and this was very fun to add to my collection.


I love these chocolates- they have so many layers and are yummy :)

Onto the the next topic! Our New Year's Eve was really fun. My parents were here to celebrate with us. We ate Mexican food for lunch which always makes any day better. Then we watched the movie "The Treasure of Sierra Madre." It's an old Humphrey Bogart movie, and we enjoyed it. Later in the evening we watched the movie "Midnight in Paris." We enjoyed this movie too and found it entertaining. It is different- as most Woody Allen movies are.

We watched the ball drop in Times Square and then watched the countdown in Dallas. My parents anniversary is January 1st, so I got them a cake to celebrate:
I am so proud to say they have been married for 31 years.

And of course New Year's Eve was perfect because I spent it with my best friend:

Yesterday my grandparents drove down and went to church with all of us. We enjoyed spending the day together. My parents left this morning with their dogs, so our house is very quiet now.

We really had a great Christmas- which wasn't just one day- but really a whole month. We enjoyed time with all of our family. We had laughs. We ate lots of food. We watched Gus for hours. One thing I really wanted to do this year was not get stressed out about making sure everything was perfect. Josh and I planned easy meals so I wouldn't spend all day in the kitchen. My house was not perfectly clean, but that was ok. As I was planning for Christmas, I wanted to be a "Mary" and not a "Martha." Things went so well, and I am going to try to do this every year.

You might have noticed this button on the right side of my blog:

I saw this challenge many weeks ago, and wanted to give it a try. Basically, you pick a verse each week to memorize. I memorized scripture a lot when I was young, but it has been a long time since I have made an effort. So this year I am going to try to make a priority. If you would like to try, just click on the link. And I would love to know if you want to join me in this. The verse I picked for this week is:

"Seek the Lord and His strength; seek His presence continually." Psalm 105:4

I picked this verse because I think I try to be strong and do things on my own strength. I need to rely on God more.

Today I am cleaning and trying to get organized. Luckily, I have a great tool to be organized this year!!!! My sweet husband gave me an Erin Condren life-planner for Christmas. Yes- he picked out the design and colors all himself. He knew that I really wanted one. He is so thoughtful!!

I want to say a big THANK YOU to all of you who read my blog. This has been so much fun for me. I love watching the blog grow and reading all of your blogs. I consider you my friends although we have never met. Reading about your lives helps me know I'm not alone. You give me great ideas whether they be recipes, things for the house, or things to do with Gus. Your comments always make me smile.

And with that, I'm going to get busy cleaning.... Happy 2012!!!