Christmas is here again!

Right after Thanksgiving was over, I was ready to bring on the Christmas spirit. I'm usually not so gung-ho about Christmas right from the get-go, but once the turkey was gone I was excited to decorate and shop.

I think part of the reason for my November 27 cheer is that I've been focusing on a lot of holiday-themed communications for the past month or so at work, and that has kept Christmas on my radar. Needless to say, all the decorations are up in our apartment and have been for a week.

I'm also in good shape with my Christmas shopping. I even have some wrapped gifts under the tree and I don't think that has ever happened that early.

Here are a few of my go-to gift suggestions for this year:

* Personalized photo gifts: The 2009 Snapfish calendar that I made for my aunt was such a hit that I'm making another one this year. This gift is personal, fun, functional and affordable. Snapfish has great deals going on now until Christmas. I've found that it's so easy to find great family photos to use because of the photos shared on Facebook or blogs. And if you don't have enough photos to create a calendar, Snapfish offers a number of great items that can be personalized like mugs, ornaments or posters.

* Gifts that give back: A number of charities like the Make-A-Wish Foundation, The Jimmy Fund and St. Jude's offer great gifts and cards that include a donation to the organization in the purchase price. So you're not just buying a gift, you are also contributing to a cause. I think it makes a gift thoughtful, especially for big-hearted friends.

* Books: I think books are always a thoughtful gift, especially when someone has taken the time to pick out a book that matches the reader's interests or was something he or she enjoyed and wanted to share. The key with making a great choice when choosing a book for someone is finding that book about a topic you think the recipient would enjoy -- there is a book out there for every interest! I also love to write a little inscription on the inside cover whenever I give a book as a gift.


(Note: although I proclaimed last year that I am a real-tree advocate, our little $5 fake Walmart tree is just fine and looks lovely in our reading corner. I still love real trees and intend on having them in the future, but not when we live on the top floor of a dry-air, carpeted apartment!)

My Favorite Holiday

It's the Friday before July 4th and I couldn't be more excited for the long weekend.

I've been looking forward to July 4th for weeks and a new blog post from my friends at Sand Pail List have inspired me to share some of my thoughts on my family's traditions for the Fourth.

The main reason why July 4th is so special in my fam is because it's my grandmother's birthday. This year, my hilarious and lovable Nana will be turning 89. We always celebrate with a big cookout at my aunt's house featuring plenty of food like hamburgers, hot dogs, lobsters and my mom's trademark dish: Renee's chicken. (The recipe for which actually came from loyal blog reader Auntie Lisa!) Growing up, I looked forward to the big cookout to see my cousins, eat lots of food and hope that someone brought along some illegal sparklers.

The Fourth also marked the official start of the summer for me-- I knew the weather would now be consistently nice and the beach would be crowded with tourists and visitors. I could also look forward to seeing summer friends again and plan on family members coming to visit.

Now that I'm older, the Fourth still holds special meaning for me. I get excited to go to our big family cookout and see friends on the Cape during July 4th weekend. And to get a little corny, the Fourth is a time to count my blessings-- I get to be on the Cape, my favorite place, and see so many of my favorite people.

I hope celebrating our Nation's (and my Nana's) birthday holds special meaning to you too!

(P.S.-The Fourth is also the birthday of my cousin Mike and a few friends, including Korri. :) It may also be the b'day of Korri's soon-to-arrive son, Teddy! Yay! )

Some of the family at the 2008 Cookout

A Belated Marathon Monday Recap

Patriots' Day is a time for tradition and celebration in Boston and I'm not talking about the holiday commemorating a Revolutionary War battle. Patriots' Day is time for the Boston Marathon and Marathon Monday is one of my favorite days in Boston.

I love how the entire city focuses on the race and the race route becomes a cheerleadering section and day-long party. I also think it's great to see people of all ages clapping, yelling and encouraging runners on for hours at a time. I had a blast cheering during my first Marathon Monday last year, but this year was even better because I was waiting for Team Bodio to run by mile 23!

Rick and Kelly did very well in their first Boston Marathon experience and they raised thousands for the Melanoma Foundation of New England. A few friends came up for the day and we went crazy yelling and cheering when Rick and Kelly passed us.

Seeing thousands of runners taking part in such an awesome tradition and life list event almost make me want to run Boston someday...Almost...

Post-Holiday Thoughts

So, it seems that I took a little holiday break from the blog. Forgive me for the lack of holiday-themed posts before Christmas actually occurred, but the blog took a backseat to yuletide preparations.

Now that Christmas has come and gone, I've had a little time to gather up a few random holiday-related thoughts. In no particular order, here are some musings on Noel...

- I'm a 100% real-tree advocate. I know fake trees are so much neater and more convenient, but I'm willing to sacrifice this for the smell of a real tree. There's nothing like it! It's kind of ridiculous to like a tree for this reason, especially since the smell fades rather quickly and our tree dried up in about a week this year, but I still love a real tree. I know I probably won't always feel this way, but I'll getting a real tree every Christmas for the foreseeable future.

- Online shopping for Christmas gifts is convenient, but a crap shoot. I've had mixed results with Christmas shopping online the past few years. It kills me to spend so much on shipping to ensure that gifts will arrive on time, but not forking over the dough almost always means that the gifts will be lost or late. I also don't like ordering something without always having a clear idea of what it will look like in person. I ordered a frame for my dad this year from Amazon and I sent it back because it just looked much cheaper in person than it did online. Online shopping is really hit or miss...

- Ornaments make great gifts. I'm a big fan of giving, receiving (and collecting) Christmas ornaments. Every year, I enjoy decorating my tree and remembering where each ornament came from and the story behind it. I started a tradition of giving my Godson an ornament for a gift each Christmas and I hope it helps build a special little collection for him one day. This little ceramic Santa teddy was made by my Memere and I love putting up the ornaments she made years and years ago.

- Everything feels more festive with a white Christmas. Snow can be messy, dangerous and a hassle, but I love it at Christmastime! There's just something special about snow for December 25th. It makes everything look prettier and helps get folks in the spirit. And I hear that it makes Santa happy too.

- Overeating can absolutely not be avoided at this time of year. Maybe some of you would argue this point with me, but I love food and have weak willpower. End of story.

Costume Retrospective

Halloween kicks off the best part of holiday season. I know some people may not consider Halloween to be a real holiday, but I love this time of year. Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas in three consecutive months -- perfect!

My love for Halloween began at a young age, as my mom always elaborately decorates our house. Back in college, I wrote an essay for The Cowl on Halloween at our house. (Click here for that article from 2003.)

But this post isn't about all aspects of Halloween-- I want to focus on one thing: costumes.

I'm proud to say that I have pretty much always gone all out for Halloween. That's been my favorite part of Halloween since I was young. I love the challenge of coming up with something original and then bringing that costume to "life." But not everyone feels this way, especially women.

I get disappointed when I'm out on Halloween and see dozens of cheerleaders, cowgirls and devils. And you know what adjective I would use to describe all of these girls. I know that people don't get into Halloween like I do, but when people use the holiday as an excuse to wear as few clothes as possible in public, I get annoyed.

When it comes to a good costume, I don't mind looking ridiculous in public. I've even worn fake facial hair on the streets of DC. My friends and I were off to an SNL-themed Halloween party and we went as the Will Ferrell/Blue Oyster Cult/More Cowbell sketch. You can see by the photo that our costume was awesome and we earned our "Best Group Costume" award (a six-pack).
I've been lucky enough to have great friends that will go along with an awesome costume idea-- even if it does require artificial facial hair and chest hair. Another great group costume was when my roommate, her now-husband and I went as Marilyn Monroe, JFK and Jackie Kennedy. We didn't win anything that year at the bar we went to, but we were robbed.
I'm still waiting for inspiration for this year's costume. Last year's Sarah Palin will be tough to top, but I'm sure I can come up with something. (And no, I'm not too old to still dress up!)

And if you're wondering whether or not the fascination with Halloween runs in the family, just check out the photo below of my brother and his college roommate as Mario and Luigi in 2005. I think that gives you your answer.
If you're dressing up this year, remember: keep it creative and don't worry about looking ridiculous!