Handmade Christmas Cards!

**DISCLAIMER: If you are a member of LaughingPlace.com and are participating in the swap, be prepared to have the surprise spoiled if you continue reading. Please, only positive comments on my cards, as well.**

This year, I am participating in the LaughingPlace.com Christmas Card Swap. The premise is you make cards for everyone who signed up and send them to the Hostess. Then she distributes each of the cards to the other participants, then you end up with a different card. This year, it should be 22. :)

So I ran to Michael's and could NOT find what I was looking for. Of course, I have to have them mailed out this week, so I am kind of pressed for time. I bought some pre-folded cards in a "Winter" color scheme (blues and silver) and blue and white stamp ink pads. I also bought a snowflake stamp and a "Season's Greetings" stamp. Also purchased was some jeweled snowflake stickers and some jeweled Mickey silhouette stickers. I also bought some Christmas Quotes Vellum, but ended up deciding not to use it.

Here are the pictures of my generic-looking but cute hand-made cards:

Dark blue paper with white ink.

This was the reject. Not enough "snow" themed quotes. Had I not made this, I could have returned the vellum and the sticky dots.

Grey/Silver paper and blue ink. Each card had a Mickey on it, because LaughingPlace.com is a Disney Fan Site. The BEST one, in my opinion! :)

MomDot Stocking Exchange

Back in November, Trisha at MomDot assigned us all Secret Stocking Exchange Pals.

My pal was Alyson from Three P's in a Pod.

Today, I got a package from Amazon, and it was an adorable Disney day-by-day calendar! The pic below is of January 1.

So, because I have a little tidbit of info about Disney everyday, I'll be posting it on My Disneyland Vacation.

Thanks again, Alyson!!!!!!!! I hope you got your gift already! USPS has been SLOW!

Getting into the Holiday Spirit

So, I finally put up my Christmas stuff! With the move and everything, it's been difficult finding a place for everything. I cleaned off one dresser in my room, and that's where my "display" is.


This is an adorable snowman I bought when I worked at JCPenney. He lights up with different colors. I can't believe that after 2 years, he still works, and better yet, he hasn't been broken!!












This is my whole tree. You can see a reindeer that Big Sis made me in Kindergarten. It's at the bottom. And the Strawberry Shortcake ornament? Smells like Strawberries!

















This is one of the gifts from a friend of mine, Becky. She and I belong to a group of Sassy Mommies, who met when we were pregnant with our now-7-year-olds. Every year, we do an ornament exchange, and this is one of them she sent me. I have a great pic from Disneyland of the girls in front of the Christmas Tree, which I may put in that frame.














This is the other ornament Becky sent me. It's glass, and the picture just doesn't do it justice. It's "scaly," like a lizard, but it's multicolored with red, green and blue. Very pretty. And very heavy! I have it wrapped around the whole top of my tree, since it tried to take it down!















And of course, one of the girls. I managed to get them dressed somewhat matching for my birthday. Big Sis has her winter concert at school tonight, too.

Friday Foto Finish Fiesta 9-26-08

This week's version of my Fx4 Friday Flashback is one of me at Christmas! We were again at my Grandma's, and I am going to guess I was about 7. I can't even remember what the name of that toy is!!

I'm going to take a break from the Friday Flashbacks, but keep coming back to see if I surprise you with a pic once in a while!!

Disneyland...

So, I was supposed to be going to Disneyland on October 10 to celebrate the girls' birthdays.

Well, having just started a new job, funds are really tight right now.

However, I have planned FIVE glorious days for Disneyland in December! I have told the girls they can celebrate their birthdays then, too, along with mine on the 13th.

I love Disneyland at the holidays! The weather is gorgeous. The castle is lit up and is so beautiful. The giant Christmas tree on Main Street is a sight to see! Plus, there are all kinds of fun things to do: Woody's Reindeer Roundup, Haunted Mansion Holiday, and the Christmas Parade!



So, my countdown has been changed...90 days to go. *sigh*

100th POST...and the CONTEST!

After my mini-blog-a-thon on Friday and Saturday, I've finally reached my *~*~*~100th post*~*~*~!!!

So, to honor the momentous occasion, I am going to use this post to start my FIRST EVER CONTEST!!!!

Now, this is not sponsored. I found this really cute and adorable Christmas Planner while I was unpacking (yes, I'm still unpacking).

Here's a little bit about the prize:

It's a small, 6-ring binder with dividers to keep all your Holiday Planning organized!

Dividers include:

• Holiday Calendar -- "My calendar of special holiday events. Pencil in parties, plays, and special shopping days." 10 blank months for you to plan. You can use it for 5 years filling in only November and December!
• Holiday Notes -- "A place for 'notes to self.' Jot down a note or two, write out a guest list, or plan a party." 10 double-sided pages!
• Holiday Card List -- "My list of family, friends, and special acquaintances. A card list for year-to-year card sending." The pages have a space for names and addresses, as well as a place to mark whether you've sent and/or received a card! The only drawback: These are dated from 2005-2009, but a little self-editing should take care of that!
• Shopping List -- "My plan for a great season of shopping. Remember family members, special friends, and gifts of appreciation." 25 double-sided pages to keep track of all the important people in your life!
• Gifts Received -- "My reminder of special gifts received...and appreciation." 3 double-sided pages to keep track of the gifts you've received and thank you notes sent!

This binder is cute inside and out! It's very appropriate for the holidays!!

So now, I bet you're wondering how you enter, right?

Well, here are the rules:

• First, leave a comment about why you NEED this, and tell me your favorite holiday memory.
• Second, blog about this contest, then come back and leave me a second comment.
• After you've blogged about it, you may come back and leave a comment on this post ONCE per DAY! That's a LOT of chances to win! (So, 2 entries the first day, then one per day until the 25th!)

This contest will end on Thursday, September 25 (3 months until Christmas!!!) at 8:00am. A winner will be pulled sometime Thursday afternoon. I will use Random.Org to pull the winner. Make sure that there is a way to contact you on your profile or blog, otherwise, I won't be able to contact you!!! You'll have until September 30 to get me your information, and it will be shipped out as soon as I get your information!!!

Happy (Early) Christmas!!!