wrapping up 2013.

2014, you have a lot to live up to... 

i can honestly say that 2013 has been one of the best {if not the best} years of my life.

it's going to be hard to beat the birth of a child...but somehow, i think 2014 might just be even better.

and because you are all dying to know, no i didn't finish my bucket list, but i came pretty darn close.

and that makes me very happy! 

here are some highlights:
a quick side note:
 i have many, many more pictures,
which are way better than these,
 but they are on the husband's camera.
maybe i'll get a chance to share them someday soon!
until then, you'll have to live with my crumby iphone pictures! 

{chloe's first snow day}

{mom's mint meringue's...kinda}

{sugar cookie fest, 2013}

{our little elf. hat courtesy of chlo's aunt lindsey}

{chloe's first christmas. bib courtesy of grandpa and grandma at the beach}

{i couldn't be happier}

i hope you all had a fabulous holiday season, and that as you pack up your decorations, your home is still full of love and happiness.

here's to 2014!

are you with me?

if you didn't know already...i love the holidays.

i love everything about them.

i love the music.

i love the lights.

the food...

the movies.

the family gatherings.

i love it all. 

now, i'm also one of those who likes to celebrate each holiday as its own.

i can't stand how people rush though one holiday to get to the next one.

christmas commercials in october? 

no thank you.

christmas music before thanksgiving?

no thank you.

ok. ok... i lied.

typically i have the "no christmas music until the day after thanksgiving" rule.

then you can hear christmas songs blasting from every speaker i can get my hands on.

this year i am breaking that rule.

thanksgiving isn't until the 28th this year! 

that just didn't give us enough holiday cheer time. 

SO...

christmas music will officially start playing in our home at the end of this week.

{i am so excited!}

all that being said...

i saw a cute idea that i wanted to share with you.

{in hopes that you might share in the fun with me and do it too!}

and although its still 'thanksgiving time' in my mind,

 it takes a little preparation so i wanted to share it with you now.

this year i've made...

a christmas bucket list.

you make a list of 25 things that you want to do during the holiday season,

then, the goal is to do at least one thing on your list per day up until christmas.

a couple things from my list:

"buy a real christmas tree"

"take chloe to go see santa"

"make paper snowflakes"

i cannot wait to share the rest of my list with you, 

and then subsequently, post {with pictures} as i check things off.

i love this idea because i feel like every year i forget something.

after the holidays i'm always saying, "i wish we remembered to do x,y, or z".

not gonna happen this year!

i'm on a mission.

are you with me?!

{i've broken another rule by putting chloe in a christmas onsie already.
i had to though...it was too cute and will be too small in december. sigh.}

4 months.

time is so weird.

tomorrow chloe will be 4 months old.

to all of you, that probably doesn't seem that long.

to me, 4 months seems like an eternity...

it seems like another lifetime ago that we were in the hospital with her for the first time.

at the same time--it seems like time has escaped me.

i cannot believe it has already been 4 months! 

how is that even possible?!

stay tuned for a halloweeny post on monday.

baby c makes the cutest...

well, you'll just have to wait and see.