Christmas, It's In the Cards

How is it already December?  It seems like only yesterday there were 35 people at our house feasting on turkey and dressing and celebrating Thanksgiving.

Of course since we are in day 336 of summer here, there is absolutely nothing climatic to indicate that Christmas will be here in just a little over three weeks.  Good thing there is the un-decorated tree in the corner, the ever-growing list of presents to purchase and ship, the 20 dozen cookies that must be baked before Tuesday to remind me that December 25 will be here before I know it.  But this year, unlike last year, I'm already feeling Christmas-y.  It could be because our calendar is filling up with all kinds of Christmas activities, or maybe because even though our house isn't decorated yet, everyone else's is.  But probably, the reason I am more into Christmas this year is because of the little guy.  Any time he sees anything Christmas related he says, "Merry Christmas."  In the candy aisle, it's "Merry Christmas candy,"  it's not just a Christmas tree, but a "Merry Christmas tree."  He walks around singing Jingle Bell Rock.  And to prove that he really does listen to me, he also talks about Jesus.  In his mind and vocabulary (as I hope it always stays) Jesus is synonymous with Christmas, the latter is rarely mentioned without the former.

I really hope that I am able to capture P's excitement of the season.  He doesn't need the weather to be colder to be excited.  He can tell that it is a magical season.  I want to share this first year of understanding Christmas with our family and friends.  One of the ways I know I can do this is by sending out Christmas cards (ok, who am I kidding, we all know that IF they even get sent they will probably be more like New Years or Mardi Gras cards).  But thanks to Shutterfly, no matter when I get a picture or get ready to send out my cards, I will have so many great options to choose from.  They're actually being awesome and giving me 50 free cards for this post, but I'd give them props without the freebies!

Last year, I made calendars for several family members.  I know it was my mom's favorite gift and she has hinted no less than 1 million times that she wants one this year.  What I love about Shutterfly is how easy it is to use!  I made at least 5 calendars last year and each one was tailored to the person receiving it.  I was able to finish all 5 in one night and they were all delivered in time for Christmas.  I also sent some things to Don when he was deployed and one of the items didn't arrive, I contacted Shutterfly and they sent a replacement immediately, at no cost.  They also usually have great specials.  Right now, you can get free shipping on certain orders.

The only thing I don't like- there are too many great cards to select from!!!

I can't decide if I want to do a card that features the three of us.


Or if I prefer to just put Price by himself, after all we all know he's what everyone wants to see.



Do we rub it in acknowledge that we live on a tropical island and will probably hit the beach several times this month?



But no matter which one we go with, it may actually get sent before Mardi Gras.  Because Shutterfly will even stamp and mail the cards for me.  With that kind of service, I may not even ask for a Christmas present.

Full Disclosure Time:  I am being compensated by Shutterfly for writing this post.  I get 50 free cards for sharing my opinion about Shutterfly.  I have not been asked to write anything positive, but to share my opinion of Shutterfly and any past experiences that I've had.  If you're a blogger and want to get 50 free cards from Shutterfly, follow this link http://blog.shutterfly.com/5358/holiday2010-blog-submission-form/.

Life Is a Beach...

One of the best things about my brother being here (and Don having a week off from work) was we really took some time to explore the island and do some touristy things, but the very best was we FINALLY hit the beach!  I can't believe it took us so long to go to the beach. (I think Don and I have been spoiled by Dauphin Island and also a little intimidated about getting everything needed to take a toddler to the beach and actually enjoying the beach with a toddler, lucky for us P Man takes after his parents and is a total beach bum- he LOVES it).


Trey got here a little later than expected thanks to the major snowstorm that hit the east coast the day he flew out of Houston.  He gave jet lag the middle finger and was up and eager to go his first day here.  We drove him down to see the beach on base and then we went and had lunch at our favorite restaurant, The Mermaid Tavern .   After that, Trey wanted to do something fun with Price, so we went to Underwater World, Guam's aquarium attraction.  It was actually really nice, got a military discount, no crowds and the fish and sharks swimming all around were pretty incredible.  We all had a nice time. (I apologize for the crappy pictures- the good camera had a mishap during Rota Walk, so I had to use my little point and shoot for all of these pictures).

On Wednesday, we acknowledged my birthday.  I turned 35.  Other than the fact that I now have to check a different age bracket box when filling out questionnaires, I feel the same as I did when I was 34...  Anyway, for my birthday adventure, I got to sleep in!  It was awesome sleeping past 9:00, I slept so much I almost felt hungover.  Once I finally crawled out of bed and had a piece of my super chocolaty birthday cake for breakfast, we headed south.  We decided to drive around the island and have lunch at a place called Jan Z's. It's in the village of Agat and has a view of the marina and ocean.  I head read good things about it, so off we went.  The Mermaid is still my favorite place to eat...  After lunch we continued on our trek around the island. The drive highlighted the breathtaking beauty of our little island.  Unfortunately, the twists and turns and being in the back seat highlighted Don's ability to get car sick and after going for 3 days like a champ Trey's jet lag caught up with him.  Thus, my birthday festivities came to a halt with a husband puking on the road and a brother crashed out asleep for the rest of the day/night.  The highlight of my birthday- we FINALLY got Isabelle back.  She made it to us after spending 4 months in Texas (thanks to both sets of my parents for all of your help with her), 2 days traveling here and 2 days in quarantine- we were reunited at last.  We sure missed her!

Santa brought more than presents to Guam, he also brought some serious rain.  It rained all day Christmas Eve and most of Christmas Day.  But, we still had a great holiday.  It was so nice having Trey here.  We had fun playing with Price's toys from Santa (I will always remember the Great Tunnel "Race" of 2009).  We played Wii Sport Resort and wished it had been around when we were kids- a lot of arguments may have been settled a little more amicably.  We had a delicious Christmas Feast, made even more great by Don cleaning up the kitchen after it was over!  We also got to Skype with two sets of grandparents while Price opened presents, even though it wasn't the same as being together in person, it was still nice to share the experience with them (once again, thankful for technology).  We are so blessed to have such generous family members.  Price received so many nice gifts (Don, Trey and I did too), we are having to make room for everything.

Hmm... What are all of these?  I wonder if they are for meeeeeee!!! (Takes after his Daddy and Uncle Trey)

BUSTED!!  We walked in on him opening a present (the Mr. Potato Head by the couch) on Christmas Eve, of course on Christmas day, couldn't get him to open a present.

The day after Christmas, the weather cleared out and while all of our friends and family back home were celebrating Christmas in rather chilly weather, we headed for the beach....