My Christmas Gift

Nov 24, 2014 /

On Thursday evening I was out working late and Mike had the house to himself. I assumed he had spent the evening relaxing since it is technically his Friday night, but he had a wonderful surprise for me when I got home.

Our very own, full size Christmas tree!

I screamed in excitement. He had set it all up with Christmas music and little evergreen scent sticks to make it smell real.

Apparently his evening was much more eventful than I could have ever anticipated.

He found the tree on Craigslist for a GREAT deal. It supposedly came from a smoke free home but I guess it smelled horrible when he got it home. So my wonderful husband gave our brand new (to us) Christmas tree a baking soda bath. Luckily it breaks down into small pieces so he didn’t have to put the entire Christmas tree into the shower at once.

I was so shocked. We talked over and over again about how our small tree was perfect for us right now – no need to spend excessive money on a big tree when we are content with our cute little baby tree. But this tree is big, beautiful, and in wonderful condition so we will have it for a long while.

The next day we woke up, made a trip to home depot for lights, and lit that baby up!

I am so happy. I realize it is still before Thanksgiving, but I’m still in a phase of life where 28-30 days just isn’t enough Christmas. Now I need to find some inspiration for ornaments. I don’t want to spend a fortune especially since we’re so happy with it just having lights.

Are you setting up your Christmas tree before Thanksgiving this year? With the cold weather last week, I couldn’t help myself but to open up our small box of Christmas and celebrate a little early.

Happy Day!

Fitness: Christmas Countdown

Nov 20, 2014 /

Well the countdown is officially on according to my post last week all about Christmas cheer.

A few days later Mike and I decided (after a lot of overindulging in KC) that we needed to start a new fitness plan.

I’ve learned over the last year or so that I am very goal oriented? Maybe not even goal oriented? But whatever I’m working towards needs to have some sort of meaning. So this summer we had something called “Pounds before Pines” where we attempted to change our lifestyle before Northern Pines. It was awesome. We wrote out goals and got to the gym and ate really well at home. When we’d get unmotivated we’d say to each other “Pounds before Pines” and it would help!

Then after Pines we said things like “Pounds after Pines” but that didn’t hold enough meaning because we weren’t working towards something.

For a brief period of time we were working through insanity. The prize at the end of that was going to be wood floors… But then I got bronchitis and Mike hurt his knee and it got pushed off… I still dream of the wood floors though.

Enter: Christmas Countdown.

Our challenges with ourselves aren’t typically weight-loss challenges because neither one of us need to lose weight. They are more lifestyle challenges: eating healthy, working out, gaining muscle – and for me, reaching my step goal. Bronchitis knocked me out for about 6 weeks. I couldn’t do any physical activity and I only ate what sounded good. Mike hurt his knee around the same time that I got bronchitis. So we kinda turned into a bunch of bums.

Not anymore! Christmas countdown is on! If we are going to indulge ourselves in holiday food, we need to at least feel good about all the other food we’re putting into our bodies, yes? Because (nom nom) we love holiday food!

Mike and I both really enjoy fitness. We love learning new things in that genre and trying new things at the gym. We aren’t scary gym buffs or anything but it’s something fun we do in our marriage. It gives us something to work towards together – even though we have different goals – we are both focused on similar things. We push each other to be healthier.

Do you have fitness goals in your marriage? It’s definitely not a silly thing to want the best for your spouse, and that includes a healthy lifestyle.

Join us for Christmas Countdown! All you do is make a list of goals and GO!

Happy Day!

Over the Weekend

Nov 18, 2014 /

This weekend was a wild one. Wild enough that we were excited for an evening at home, but not wild enough to feel exhausted going into the week. It was perfect.

We loaded up on Thursday and headed to Kansas City to watch the Sterling College Basketball team. Yes, that’s right. Basketball season is upon us. My father in law is the head men’s basketball coach at Sterling College so basketball is a big deal.

My little sister joined us for the first game. It was so so good spending some quality time with her. My friend Christina was also there! To say we have fun together would be an understatement.

The team was playing in a two day tournament and ended up with second place! Basketball season is so exciting, and this year my brother in law is on the team which makes it even more exciting (and nerve wracking).

On Friday we woke up in KC with a delicious breakfast at Perkins, picked up my mother in law and headed to Lawrence!

We did some shopping on Mass Street and indulged in our favorite sushi place. I love getting back to Lawrence to see how the shops have changed and checking out all the new little places. We went into a few “handmade” stores and I found these little owls.

Aren’t they the sweetest? I didn’t buy either of them, but was oh so tempted. Now I’m drawing up templates because my mom needs one for Christmas. Right, mom?? The pumpkins are precious too.

After the game on Friday night we headed back home to see our pup. He wasn’t too thrilled about us leaving him this time around and we woke up in the morning to this..

Shame on us for keeping the dog food in an accessible place, but good for him for only wanting to rip up the paper and not actually eat the food. Thanks, Alfred… We’ve learned our lesson.

Saturday was another wonderful day. I cozied up on the couch and stared at our Christmas tree and then joined friends to get manicures (my first one in 14 years) and go house hunting for hobby. We had dinner at our fave mexican restaurant in town and then soaked up time with friends from out of state.

Sunday! We woke up to the first snow of the season! Much more snow than we anticipated and I’m happy to report that most of it is still on the ground. It’s a winter wonderland out there! Alfred is unsure of the snow but he is very sure about his fleece vest.

On Sunday evening I got to go over to church and participate in a worship night that my husband helped put together. It was a powerful night and the perfect way to end the weekend.

Did you have a good weekend? With the Holiday season upon us I feel like our relaxed weekends are disappearing, but I am trying to enjoy every moment of this season – even the hectic holiday bustle that seems to be in the air a few weeks early this year.

Happy Day!

About Kelsey Jaderston

Posts by Kelsey Jaderston:

My Christmas Gift

Fitness: Christmas Countdown

Over the Weekend