Let's celebrate this week and season by reminiscing on all of the happy things that came with this 2021 Christmas season!
As you read this post, keep in mind some things that made you happy this season and if you want... share them in the comments! I would LOVE to hear about your holiday season this year, even if it wasn't the brightest time for you (my prayers go out to anyone that has had a hard holiday season) I sure hope there was at least one thing that brightened up this month for you! 🎄
So, let's hop onto this blog's Polar Express train and take a trip down memory lane! 💙
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So, speaking of the Polar Express...
Last year, I created a fun new advent calendar by hanging numbered bags on the wall that were filled with candy and cute gingerbread-themed ornaments! Ever since I was little, my family has always done a chocolate advent calendar, but last year started a whole new family tradition that I got to be in charge of... which, I'm not going to say I disliked! 😉💙
My plan for this new advent tradition I started last year is to make it different every year, which included this year! I wanted to make this year's advent super fun and for it to have themed nights!
Each night's bag included puzzle pieces that were apart of a Christmas-themed puzzle that was completed on the last night of advent (Christmas Eve) when the last pieces were found in the last bag! That idea was from my brilliant sister (Back to Disney) and was such a fun activity to do each night!
Here is the puzzle I chose and the one we completed as a family on Christmas Eve night...
So, you're probably wondering what all of this has to do with the Polar Express...
Well, one of the themed nights for the advent calendar was Polar Express night! I found so many fun things for that theme night and I LOVED watching my family open them! I am very grateful I had saved up money in order to buy things for all of the theme nights and I am very happy with what I found, especially for Polar Express night!
But even without all of those fun things, we still would have had a fun night without them. It's not about the things you buy, but the people you have around you that makes this season and every season special! 💙
In the picture, you can see a train set that I bought with fond memories in mind of younger days when my sisters and I had a train set around our tree! 🎄 It felt so nostalgic getting to set it up and watch it go around the tracks for the first time! 💙
I printed each person of my family a train ticket to the Polar Express, but trying to punch-hole their names on them didn't go so well... 😂 Also, I found these cute little bells on Amazon that are engrained with the word "Believe" on them, which you can hang as ornaments... but I bought gold instead of silver thinking that he got a gold bell in the movie... but no... it was silver! Lol. They were still super cute though! 💙
As a kid, I LOVED the live-action Grinch movie! However, I hadn't watched it for many years... until this year! And oh boy, did it make me feel soooo many emotions! 💚
Anyone else find yourself relating to the Grinch more and more as you get older?!? Yeah, me too! 💚 This movie made me feel sad in way... like a bittersweet feeling that I couldn't shake throughout the whole movie. Because even though the Grinch is savage and hilarious... he's also lonely and has trauma when it comes to Christmastime. He's misunderstood and processes his emotions through anger. Max is the only one whose stuck by him the whole time! 🐕💗 I think there's a little of the Grinch in every adult. As we get older, Christmas starts to lose some of it's "feeling"... does that make sense? But, I think there's also a lot of Cindy-Lou Who in all of us too! She knows Christmas is more than what you can buy! 💗 It's about who is around you and the love you have for one another!
When she started to sing "Christmas, Why Can't I Find You?" in the movie, I got teary-eyed! 😢 The song holds so much emotion! 💗
I know that was A LOT, but that movie made a BIG impact on my Christmas season! I became obsessed with all things Grinch and even decorated my small tree in my room with Grinch lights! 💚
I even found this awesome Grinch light display spinning thing (I don't know the exact term for it) at Walmart and let's just say it's one of the most amazing things I've ever bought! Lol. 💚
Oh, and the light display isn't all I found that grew my heart with joy...
This Grinch card game from Funko games is so much fun to play and is basically a Christmas-themed Yahtzee game! I bought it on Amazon and have no regrets... it sort of sounds like I'm being sponsored to say this, which is funny because I'm not... I just really have LOVED playing this game with my family this season! 🎄💚
So, yeah. The Grinch movie was sort of my thing this year! I even made a very messy cookie (sort of by accident... I lost patience with the icing... which is a very Grinchy thing to do) dedicated to the Grinch himself... 💚↓
Speaking of cookies...
If you've seen my last few posts, then you'd know I've been watching A LOT of Disney Channel stars Christmas Parade performances and one group that stuck out to me were the JO BROS!! 👦👦👦
Their song got so stuck in my head that I made cookies inspired by the Jonas Brothers parade performance from 2007... scarf on Kevin and all...
I'm not even going to tell you how long it took me to spell out their Christmas song title in sprinkles! Let's just say it took longer to spell the title than it took them to sing the song at the parade in 2007...
I also made a cute bone-shaped cookie for my sweet puppy Abby (R.I.P.) who I miss soooo much! 💕
Making and decorating sugar cookies from scratch is a Christmas Eve tradition my sisters and I have kept ever since we were really little and I look forward to it each year!! 🍪💛
While we're talking about food...
Christmas dinner looks the same as Thanksgiving lunch in our house, but we look forward to it just the same! We only make the identical meals two times a year and each time I only eat two different delicious dishes... Dressing and Green Bean Casserole... mmmm DELIGHTFUL!!!! 🍴
As you can see, I stuff my plate half and half with the best of the best! 💚
Let's rewind once more to Christmas Eve night...
One thing I did was wrap the last present I had bought for my sister... but there was a tiny problem... we were out of wrapping paper! 😱 So, I scrambled to find what was left and ended up wrapping her gift in a unique... but super cool way!! 💙
Here's a very chaotic video of me trying to show my wrapping skills... if you can call them that... Lol 😂
Another thing I did on Christmas Eve was stay up really late watching Home Alone 2: Lost in New York... and when I say late... I mean LATE... 5:30 in the morning late... 😱💙... but I LOVED every second of it! Seriously, I'm still thinking about how peacful it was to have my Christmas lights turned on in my room while snuggling up in my bed watching one of my FAVORITE Christmas movies of all time!! It was the BEST! 💙
My family and I watched the first Home Alone on Christmas Eve Eve and I couldn't wait to watch the second one to see which one I liked better this year...
Do you want to know which one I chose?
Do you really want to know?
I don't think you're ready...
Are you ready?
Are you sure you're ready?
I don't even know if I'm ready...
Okay, here it goes...
I chose...
Drum roll please... 🥁🥁🥁
I chose...
BOTH!!!!!!!!!
I know... I know... I tried really hard to choose one... I promise! I just couldn't. They are both so flippin' good!! 💗 I do know one of my favorite scenes from the second one though! I can show you that if you want...
You do want to see it? YAY! It's such a heart-warming scene and the perfect ending to one of the BEST Christmas movies to ever exist!! 💛
Is anybody else crying?!? Because I might be crying after watching that sweet scene! 💛
Speaking of sweet...
My sister was so sweet and got me an AMAZING gift that she put so much thought into and one that I absolutely LOVE!!! 💛 My sister has been so supportive of my blog and has read every.single.one. of my posts! 💕 I love when I come up with a new blog post idea because I get so excited to share it with my sisters! Well, guess what my oldest sister got me? It's super special... you want me to show you? Who am I kidding? I'm going to show you either way LOL! 💙
I didn't get the best photo... but my sister bought me my very own sweatshirt with a design she created of my blog's name!!! 💛 It's PERFECT!! Now, not only can I say to "Celebrate Good Times", but I can wear it too!! 💛 I LOVE the confetti sprinkled everywhere and the music notes and the camera in the middle... it's the PERFECT design and I'm so grateful that she put her own valuable time into creating this for me! 💕 It's even green... which is my favorite color right now! 💚
I LOVE it soooo much!!! And with that being said...
I have had so much fun this year creating all of these posts! It's crazy to think I started this blog only three months ago!!! It's filled me with so much joy to be able to come up with ideas centered around some of my favorite things and to share them here... on a blog that I hope reminds you to celebrate good times because it's taught me just that! 💛
I started this blog not knowing how much it would come to mean to me...
Every time I end a post with the quote I first came up with during my third post...
Don't forget to celebrate each day because each day is a memory in the making
I type it not only as a reminder for you, but as a reminder for me as well. I have had some of the best months I've had in a long time and I have learned to celebrate each day because of how much I've reminded myself to do so every time I write that sentence ↑💗
I can't wait to see all the posts the New Year will bring and I can't wait to celebrate each and every day!
Celebrate good times I'll do and I hope you do too...
Thank you all so much for reading this post and I'll see you in the New Year! 💛 Here's to 2022!! 🎉
To end things off one more time in 2021...
Don't forget to celebrate each day because each day is a memory in the making! 💛
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