Christmas with the Shaum's

For our annual Ugly Sweater party Alden scored this lovely sweater at D.I. which actually isn't ugly at all. It has since made appearances in my wardrobe and even graced the grocery store with its hip-ness.

My handsome bearded husband. Isn't he handsome?

East the beast. (Snuggie belongs to papa Shaum)

Brother in law Danny sporting a sweater and stach alongside their trusty pup Ruger.

Papa Shaum. So many things about this picture explain my dad. From the "SUP" on his shirt to the tag on his hat. Also, he may or may not be giving a speech here. Mamma Shaum sportin her new jammies.

Garett opening his shake weight. Dreams came true that morning. Dreams. Came. True.

Notice all the cutely wrapped gifts. Chelse wins that award with all of us taking notes for next year.

Christmas!

Alden and I and a couple of Santa hats.

Kiss, kiss.

Ryley and Chelse also win the creativity award. They MADE each others presents. Talk about awesome.

Chelse gave Ryley a sketch of him and of her to hang on their wall. Isn't she talented? Check out the awesome chandelier my brother made Chelse and the other sketch here.

Going home for Christmas was a much needed break for Alden and I. We jam-packed the week with as much as we could and before we knew it the week was over. We are already planning our next trip back since we can never seem to fit it all in. Thank you family for a great week full of laughter, adventure and fun.

No Place Like Home for the Holidays

photo by Justin Hackworth

We are heading home today. The list of things we are going to do is about a mile long. The agenda includes snowboarding, hockey, hunting, going to the tramp gym, ugly sweater party, gingerbread houses, skyping with my brother on Christmas and MORE. I am mostly excited to just be with my family and enjoy small town Idaho life.

I may blog from the road, I may not. Don't hold you breath.

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!

The Man Gift Guide

Guys say girls are expensive but finding manly things under $25 was rough. In the end I did it! And I even ended up with a few extra. So here you have it, a guide for the grill master and the ninja master, the hairy and the hairless.....your man guide! (I got a lot of ideas from this neat-o website called uncrate that I think you should send on to your husbands. They would love you big time. Click here for the link!)



1// Amazon 4 Mini Grilling Planks $11.16
For the grill master. Adds a delectable smoky flavor and aroma to meats & vegetables.

2// Sur La Table Set of 4 Steak Button Thermometers $20
Option #2 for the grill master. Well done!

3// Etsy Wild Man Beard Conditioner $12.99
The only way some of us women are going to tolerate no shave November and December.

4// Photojojo Macro Cell Lens Band $15
For the techie husband. An easy on/easy off macro lens for your cell phone.

5// Infmetry Carzor $17
Credit card shaped razor and mirror. For a husband on the go. Or a husband who is waiting in line at the testing center and realizes he forgot to shave!

6// Restoration Hardware AM/FM/MP3 Sound Station $19.99
For the retro man. I love this piece. Its a win win, functional and pretty manly.

7// Eephus League Official Scorebook $15
For the avid baseball fan who loves the sport so much he wants to keep score himself.

8// Aldo Luttman Lace-ups $20.99
For your clothing conscious man. Every girl loves a man in navy.

9// Amazon Set of 3 Ninja Knifes $7
For ninja wannabees (which includes all men I believe, except for those who actually are ninjas).

Those of you in Rexburg looking for some good stocking stuffers for the men in your life there is a new candy store next to Dominos Pizza. They have bacon flavored soda, dill pickle flavored suckers, candy with bugs inside it... you know, MAN candy. Go check it out!

AND FOR THE WINNER of the Clinque Chubby Stick.....

Congratulations Melinda! Being first paid off :) Email me at ashsha32(at)gmail(dot)com with your address and choice of color for your chubby stick. Click here to see all the color options.

Thank you everyone else for participating and most importantly following my blog. Good luck with your holiday shopping!

The Creatives Gift Guide

Today's gift guide is for the creative people in your life. The people that like to make and learn new things. And as always.... under $25! I even have a freebie today!



1// Crate and Barrel Baker's Twine $8.95
When putting this together my husband asked, "What is that stuff even for?"....This stuff is everywhere and can be used for all sorts of different crafts and projects (things that husbands don't even understand). It comes in lots of fun colors too! Go to etsy and type in baker's twine and you will find lots of options and prices.

2// Block Posters FREE + cost of printing!
This site is so fun and has a lot of potential. Do you live far away from family or close friends? Get your family to pose with a Christmas message and then upload the picture their site. It takes the picture and divides it into squares for you. You can make the picture smaller like the one I did or you can make it up to 9.9 ft x 7.6 ft! Then you just print the pages out, trim the edges and put it in a mailer. How fun would it be for grandparents to get a giant poster that they have to put together?

3// Minted Journals $16
Minted is a great site to get your Christmas cards and wedding invitations done but did you know they now offer journals? They have a great variety of fun designs that can be customized for the person you are giving them to. A fun option for someone who is always taking notes or making lists (that's me! I am a notebook addict, just ask my husband).

4// Washi Masking Tape/ Happy Tape $5-$20
It goes by many names but this pretty stuff takes masking tape to a whole new level. This metallic set is my favorite. Good for someone who appreciates details.

5// Lynda.com $25/one month
A gift subscription to the lynda.com Online Training Library® provides anytime access to over 69,000 easy-to-use video tutorials from experts on Photoshop, Illustrator, Dreamweaver, Flash, web design, digital video and audio, creative inspiration, and much more. Women, this would be a great hint to drop to your husbands. I know there are many of you out there who want to learn these programs. If you don't have the software and still want to learn? Go to adobe and download their free 30 day trial.

6// Amazon 12 pack of Sharpies $7.82
Classic + Colorful. What more does a girl need to fill her stocking?

Don't forget! Today is the last day to enter my first giveaway. Winner announced tomorrow!
Also, tomorrows gift guide is for the men in your life. Stay tuned!

In the Kitchen Gift Guide

Oh food glorious food. Some people eat to live and others....well they live to eat. Here are some great $25 and under options for those "live to eat" people on your list. Happy Shopping!



1// Walmart Cocomotion $15 (In store, not online)
The only thing better than rich creamy hot chocolate is rich creamy hot chocolate that makes itself. This is my families #1 favorite kitchen appliance, hands down. Pair it with your favorite hot chocolate and you got yourself a gift. (You may be able to find this online other places but no guarantee that it will be $15)

2// World Market Set of 4 Yuletide Plates $19.99 (sale!)
I love the graphic modern look of these plates. Give the set of 4 to one person or bake some goodies and divide it among friends.

3// Target Beaded Cake Plate $24.95
There are a lot of fun cake plate options out there. I like this one because it works well for holidays or it can dress up your everyday cake (if you are one of those people who make cakes everyday, I know I am).

4// Amazon My Life in France Julia Child $18.63 (new) $4.97 (used)
The way this woman describes food makes you melt into your overstuffed chair. It doesn't hurt that its all about France and love as well. Is there a better combination? No. There is not.

5// Crate & Barrel Fondue Sauce Warmer $9.95 (sale!)
Melted cheese, melted chocolate, melted cheese, melted chocolate. Cheese. Chocolate. CHEESE. CHOCOLATE. Oh the battle.

6// Martha Stewart Everyday Food Magazine 10 issues for $15.00 (Ipad version included!)
My good friend gave this to me last year and I LOVE it. I think I might just have to do a life subscription. If you have a hard time deciding what to cook or if you want to try new recipes then this is a good place to start.

Have you entered my first giveaway yet? Check it out here. Winner picked on Friday!

It was a perfect Christmas

It was a perfect Christmas. We laughed harder than normal, we loved more fully. How grateful I am that we decided to come home. Spending those last few days with you that you would have on earth means the world to us now. Remember how you told us how happy you were? How your life was content? We asked you to tell us ALL the stories you could think of... but you had already told them all. We knew what kind of person you were. Jon, you will forever be an example to me. A pure example of charity, of what it means to truly serve those around us. You loved all those you came in contact with and you weren't afraid to make new friends. You spoiled me and loved me as your own. Thank you for raising a son that is brave. A son that is positive and loving. A son that takes care of me because of the example you led. Alden is the man he is today because of you. Your untimely passing is only untimely for us. For our children and our future. But I know you are in heaven pulling strings to get us some good kids and teaching them of what is to come. We love you Jon and miss you always!

* Jon passed away on December 29, 2010 in his home. He went into the hospital for a kidney stone and when he came home to sleep off the medicine he somehow passed away in his sleep. We miss him but we are comforted by the knowledge that we will see him again.

DIY Christmas

I especially love cruising the web this time of year to see the many creative ideas people come up with for the holidays. Here are some of the fun Do It Yourself ideas I have seen around lately.

1. Love this non-traditional journal. Easy to make and easy to write in!
2. Homemade hummus! Yes please. Around my house, holiday time=dip time.
3. Already started this one, SO MANY LEAVES. I might finish it by NEXT Christmas.
4. Stamp coasters, need I say more.
5. Anthropologie knock off... you should see all the other sweaters she is embellishing. Fun!

Gifting

I wanted to do something fun and cheap for neighbor gifts this year so when I saw a case of big juicy red pomogranates at Costco for less than a dollar a piece I knew I had to snatch it up. Then I just made some tags out of craft paper and a free old book we got from the library (ok ok, it is Lord of the Rings Three BUT I just used the index pages, don't worry) and a little twine and voila! Easy peasy... and delicious!