Catching up on Christmas

Wow, I totally disappeared over the holidays, didn't I?
I assure you I had a lot of fun. I need to do a big long picture post. As it stands, I don't feel like it right now.

Christmas Eve I got some yarn in the mail. I'm going to make this sweater!!
So excited. I've never made a real sweater yet.
So guess what I did Christmas day? I crocheted. All. Day. Long.
Christmas night I finished the back of the sweater. It looked kind of small.
I measured it. It came way short of the size it was supposed to be.

Pretty much ruined my night. Totally ruined the next day. I couldn't stop thinking about how I had spent all of Christmas day working on something that's going to have to be undone. I haven't unraveled it yet, but I've let go of the pain. ;-) I can't decide if I should just be more conscientious about my tension, or up my hook size - cuz my gauge swatch was spot on.

The Looneys came over on Christmas Eve and we shared finger foods and exchanged gifts. That was awesomely fun. I say, this year was the best gift-giving year for me. Practically everything came from Etsy, and everyone was thrilled with their stuff. Then Katey, Laura, Alicia and I took silly pictures of ourselves. For as long as we've been friends, Katey and I have very few pictures of us together, so... yay! we have one now. Even though I'm smiling weird. lol


Christmas Day we leisurely opened gifts in the morning, then headed over to Mema's house in the afternoon for Christmas Dinner. So yummy. I got my cooking genes from Mema and Mama. They're the best.

So, it was an uneventful, relaxing, and fun holiday. Just how it ought to be. Wally (that's Laura, for the uninformed) and I took a picture in front of Mema's tree. (which is always lovely - She and Alicia have been the official Mema's Tree Decorators for the past couple of years)


As for today I've made 2.5 hats, put away some of the Christmas decorations, and made peanut butter rice krispie treats for the New Year's Eve party at the Looneys' house tonight. We're going to go over this evening and eat more junk food and play games and be crazy again. Yay!

So, Happy New Year to all my friends out there, and perhaps I'll actually get around to doing a New Year's post too... Or maybe that should wait til I post Christmas pictures? Or not. I don't know. We'll see. :)

Enjoy the rest of your holiday!!

Caitlin

More Christmas Fun

Hello people!
It's a week til Christmas!! I'm so excited. I may have said that already. :D

Last week was the Sunday school class Christmas party. Anna Leigh and I teamed up to decorate a table. We got there and the other two teams already had their tables done, and quite splendidly at that. It scared me. lol But Anna brought some stuff from her family's Christmas village, and I brought some lights to illuminate it, and it turned out really pretty. So, yay!


We did a white elephant gift exchange, for which I brought a radio-football-pillow. Emily opened it, but I got it back from her when my turn came. Which means she was forced to open my package... and we won't even go there. Broken tiles, squished cans, duct tape, multiple knives... I'm not even kidding. Thank you Matt. lol But it was tons of fun. For the rest of us. ;-) My Sunday school class is a bunch of awesome people. Oh! I almost forgot to mention that Emily ended up getting the football back from me at the end of the game.


For the record, catchphrase is underrated. Best game ever. Actually, I guess it depends a lot on the people you're with.

"If you're not short, you're ....?"
"undecided!"
...**puzzled**
"You know - if you're not sure, you're undecided!"

The last few gifts I ordered are coming in the mail this week!! AH! The anticipation of giving all these people all this stuff is getting to me. :D

I hope you liked the pictures... I haven't had a picture post in a while. Now, I think I'm going to go to bed. I wish you all a happy weekend, and a merry Christmas. Again.

Caitlin

P.S. Check out how long my hair is getting!!

Time for some Christmas Fun!

Today's gonna be a good day.

In a couple hours I'm leaving to see a movie with my friends. The Blind Side, in case you were interested. And then the Michael's in Conyers had better have that yellow yarn I need, or I'm going to be in trouble. (on the bright side, YAY for Christmas sales!)

This evening is my Sunday school class Christmas Party. YAY! The only problem is that I don't have a white elephant gift... yet... heh...

Anyways, it's going to be a long and super fun day, I think.

Don't forget - it's the last day of my giveaway! Participation has been WAY lower than it was earlier this year, but that's ok, because it gives each of you a better chance. ;-) SO! Pick your fave and leave a comment!

I'll just go ahead and apologize for not having my new stuff added to the shop yet. I'm currently working on some brown gloves, and I've already finished a couple of unique stripey beanies and pretty wool scarves. I just haven't been able to photograph them yet. meh! And now I really don't have time to get them up for Christmas.

Oh well! Enter the giveaway here, and I'll declare a winner tonight, if I can stay awake. =)
Merry Saturday!

Caitlin

Giveaways are Fun - Christmas Edition!

In the spirit of Christmas (and self-promotion) I am henceforth issuing the decree for a second CaitiJo Giveaway!!

**crowd yells huzzah!**

I thought about picking one item (such as the elfin slippers -wouldn't those be a great Christmasy thing to pick?) to give away, but then I remembered that I had already made this poster that says "pick your own prize" ... I didn't want to make a new poster, and I guess people like having a choice... So.... there we have it!

Lots of other people usually give you about 5 ways you can get an entry, but I like to be simplistic. Here's how it's gonna go down:

1) Just leave a comment saying what you would pick should you win.
2) Saturday evening, December 12, I will pick a winner by using a random number generator.
3) Winner will be notified, and congratulated publicly on my blog.

Should you win and find yourself thinking "darn! I should've said elfin slippers instead of black gloves," or, "no fair! that crazy awesome beanie wasn't listed when I posted my entry!" no worries. Changing your mind is allowed. ;-)

So. Take a gander, pick your fave, and enter to win a Christmas gift for yourself!
(Or for a friend, if you're feeling generous.)
Spread the word if you feel so inclined.

Happy Entering!!
-CaitiJo

Christmas is coming!

With a cabinet full of secrets and a whole stack of Christmas CDs that have been waiting all year to be recommissioned, Christmas time is definitely here again. Not to mention the gray rainy weather.

I need to go to the post office today. Maybe I'll go ahead and go to Michael's to pick up some yarn and get some gift wrap while I'm at it! Now that I'm thinking about it, I think I will. I have like 5 Michael's coupons, and some of them are going to go to waste because I only have 3 days to use them.

I just printed out these amazingly cute gift tags from ConnieK - whom I don't actually know, but I "follow" her blog. Sadly, they all turned out pink. :| I would say that means the printer is out of order. So, I'll need to borrow somebody's printer, because I plan on using them. ;-)

Lately I've been thinking of doing another giveaway. What do you think? If I do, should I pick an item to give away, or should I do it like last time and let the winner pick?

My paragraphs mostly begin with I, and it annoys me. However, I have a really hard time finding different ways to begin them. :P

Now, if you'll excuse me, I have some things to do. Which reminds me, somehow, that I also have new items to list in my Etsy shop. It doesn't look like the nasty weather is going to let me get any good photos, though. Perhaps later this week.

Have a super great Wednesday! I will. Church tonight! Yeah!
So. Bye!

the holidays are here!

Sooooo. I'm sittin here in a green sweater, drinking hot cocoa with a splash of coffee out of a mug that says "given enough coffee, I could rule the world."

That's pleasant. :)

It's almost time for a hair update.

I'm doing lots of trades on Etsy for christmas presents. It's awesome fun. Except for I have like 5 trades going at once now and it's getting a litle confusing. I'm so excited about all the cool stuff I'm getting for people!

Yesterday I realized it had been almost a week since my last post. Today it has been a week! AH! Sorry. :(

So, there are some pretty cool things coming up in just the next 3 weeks. Ah, the busy rush of the holiday season! Here I shall list some of the events I'm looking forward to:

• wednesday my Katie will be home from college, and Caiti, Katie, and Katey shall all go out for coffee in the morning. <3


• thursday is Thanksgiving. HELLO! THANKSGIVING. It rocks. **hums Josh Groban's Thankful**


• I just found out my awesome S.S. class is going ice skating soon. I've been waiting for this!


• December 2, 3, and 4th will be a first for me. The drama teacher of a local high school contacted me and asked it I wanted to participate in the Christmas Marketplace at the Henry County Performing Arts Center! Everyone who participates donates something for a silent auction and sets up a table to sell their goods before and after the Christmas performance her class is doing. How cool is that?! Come see me. ;-)
• December 12th is the College and Career Christmas party. I'm in charge of decorating a table for that. It's going to be SO FUN!!

So, there's more but we'll stick with that. I just wanted to do a quick update.

By the way, nobody'd better call me out on saying "holidays." I hate it when people make a fuss about the word "holidays", fussing about Christ being taken out of Christmas. I'm opposed to avoiding the word Christmas, too, but "holidays" is totally legit. Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years togevva! So... I just wanted to rant about that for a second. :) And while I'm at it, I'll throw in that I think "season's greetings" is lame. Maybe that's just me.

Anyways, spread some holiday cheer this week. I'm off to make some stuff!

bye!

It's Christmas!

I had just typed this whole lovely post, and went to add a picture, and it vanished. The whole thing. All brilliantly typed at the last minute before I was to go to bed. Gone. The page froze, and I waited and waited, hoping against hope it would come back to life. It was a good post.
Alas.

Tis gone.

But I had just been saying that Christmas eve was productive and relaxing. The annual viewing of It's A Wonderful Life was quite satisfactory. So was dinner.

Now, I post this beautiful song to serve as a reminder.

Start at the manger on a cold winter night
Look for the star in the sky
and follow its light
It leads to a Savior for a world that is lost
Start
at the manger, then go to to the cross

Start at the manger at the
child in the hay
The gift of our Father in heaven,
the price He would
pay
To save all His children no matter the cost
Start at the manger, then
go to the cross

Imagine that you own the wealth of the world
All
of its silver and gold
What good will it do when tomorrow arrives
And
your heart is empty and cold

Start at the manger where redemption
began
When Jesus stepped down from His throne to die as a man
All of our
riches we will count them as loss
If we start at the manger, then go to
the cross.

Youth choir's singing that this Sunday. It's going to be so pretty. How amazing that Jesus chose to come down here and live like us, and with us to show us how we can live like Him, and with Him. He came, he lived, he died, he rose, and he lives again! We have such cause to rejoice!

Speaking of rejoicing, one of my (lesser, but great) reasons is .... *drumroll* Six Flags season passes!! My favorite!! That's what this family's getting for Christmas. I can't wait til they open! I'm so excited!! **squee!!**

I'm also getting a set of super great period dramas - think Jane Eyre, and Pride and Prejudice. (I picked it out myself, but it's wrapped and under the tree, so I think I'll pretend to be surprised just for the fun of it. I'm a terrible actor, though.)

Anyways, I've rewritten most of my former post now. **yawn** It's Christmas day!! The tree is twinkling in the dark, and the metallic gift bows are sparkling underneath it. There's a balmy breeze blowing in through the open windows, and the sound of the gentle rainfall is making me drowsy. (nothing like a Georgia Christmas) I've already got a pot of coffee ready to be turned on in the morning, so I think it's time to snuggle down in my bed, and drift off to sleep with my Josh Groban christmas music playing... Visions of sugarplums and rollercoasters, Mr. Darcy, and all that sort of thing, you know. ;-)

Wherever you are, whoever you're with, and whatever you're doing, I wish you a very happy Christmas. We are so blessed!

Love, Caitlin

Christmas cheer, anyone?

Yay for Christmas! I'm so excited. It's almost here!!!
I've felt rather Christmasy for most of December. That's been lots of fun, especially with all the fun things I've been doing. Like our non-skating skating trip. That was a blast.
A couple of us broke off from the group and tooks some pictures with the gigantic tree in Atlanta.

I almost had a whole paragraph here about different stuff from that night, but it wasn't turning out like I wanted it to, so I cut it. I'll move on.

My business cards came, but not until after the Christmas rush of packages had been sent off. But it was so exciting to finally get them that it didn't much matter they were later than I hoped for.
I got a nifty little key ring holder so's I'll always have some with me. There are 43 different pics. Which means this photo only shows some of the awesomeness. ;-)

Back to more Christmasy things though: shopping! I've done way more shopping lately than I have in... likely ever. I think I spent around 65 dollars in Claire's alone in the past month or so. Blast all those sales and discounts! :D But most of it was Christmas presents. And, I say, I believe I'm quite done spending for some time now. Lack of funds aside, I think I've actually had enough shopping this month. Time to be saving. ... heh. Anyways, here's a pic from one of our shopping excursions.Do we look alike to you? I'm not seeing any resemblance. I think Alicia and I look more like sisters than my own sister and me.


Also fun was the church's roller skating fellowship. Not very eventful, but fun. I fell twice.
It was because I couldn't figure out how to stop, or how to get around the wall of people that was suddenly in front of me. I don't have any pictures from that, which is probably good. :D

Then there's choir practice, which I enjoy, as usual. The Christmas stuff is fun, but all of a sudden I feel like I don't know how to sing any of this stuff we've been working so hard on for weeks. I was oddly clueless during Thursday's practice for lots of stuff that I thought I had memorized. Bleh. BUT! There is hope! We have practice again tomorrow, and we're bound to start off on a good note - how can you not when coffee and donuts are provided? Exactly. (I don't want to hear anything from you coffee haters. **cough**Becca**cough**)

We had our little Christmas party at preschool Thursday morning. We made little christmas ornaments and picture frames for the mommies and daddies, and then had a super-extravagant snack with lots of apple slices and cheese puffs. I forgot to take the camera, of course. I was gonna show you pics, but they'll have to wait til another day - I ran out of time!

AND! My wonderful aunt and uncle and cousins are coming up for Christmas! How sweet is that!

To top everything off, the excitement won't end at Christmas. My dearest friends in the Whole Wide World are planning a New Year's Eve bash that I've been looking forward to since last year.

What are you doing this Christmas season? Wherever you are, whatever you're doing, I hope you're enjoying it as much as I am. :) Even if your Christmas season isn't full of optimistic sparkles, warm fuzzies, and christmas cheer in general, may God give you the eyes to see all the blessings around you. We have so much to be thankful for!!
Love,
Me

Life Lesson Monday

This one is in a little different format from the others, mostly because I can't think of anything story length. :)

Lessons Learned in Recent Days

From my S.S. class Christmas ice skating outing:

• Pointy heeled shoes leave funny little holes behind you when you walk in the grass. (aerating?)
• If you eat at the Olive Garden with a bunch of your friends, everyone had better be prepared to share. (hey, um... can I taste that?)
• Don't wear high heeled boots to choir practice if the leader is going to make you stand the whole time. (not that I knew ahead)
• Counting and talking simultaneously results in errors. (if you're crocheting, you'll probably end up having to pull out a couple rounds.)
• Provided with the right sort of company, you can still have fun if your ice skating party doesn't include ice skating. (and especially if it includes starbucks)

And one from preschool:

• Even cute dinosaurs can become scary in the hands of small children. (mostly 2 year old boys)

So. That was the best I could come up with for now. **sigh**

It's better than nothing, right? :D At least you know I've been having fun!