Blogmas Day 25: Merry Christmas

Happy Blogmas Day 25!

That's a wrap on Blogmas 2020! It was a fun 25 days of Christmasy blog posts! Merry Christmas to you and yours, from me and mine ❤️

Blogmas Day 24: The Thursday Five Vol. 7

Merry Christmas Eve!

An Inspiration

Dave Portnoy and the Barstool Fund. Love him or hate him, read about his establishing a relief fund for small businesses here. 

A Recommendation

These last minute holiday book and drink pairings. Or for more, these 15 Cozy Holiday Books and the Drinks and Snacks to go With Them.

A Laugh

A Song

Holidays by Josie Dunne. A groovy Christmas bop. 

A Moment of Happiness

A Christmas Eve Eve Zoom call with family. It's not Christmas time without razzing and talking a bunch of shit to your family right?!

Blogmas Day 23: Festivus - The Airing of Grievances

Today is December 23rd and as such, we gather here today to celebrate Festivus - a festival for the rest of us. 

If you are unaware of the origins of Festivus it comes from a 1997 episode of Seinfeld that has in turn, become a beloved holiday wherein people of the internet rain down to publicly air their grievances and advise everyone else of all the ways in which they have disappointed you over the last year.

And so that is what we are here to do today. Let the airing of grievances commence. 

Firstly, I would like to speak directly to internet providers. Internet providers - wut is u doin? We have almost the entirety of the workforce at home, we need you to work. We need your speed. Your bands of width. All of your gigs and your megas and your hertz. We need more power. Work harder, internet providers because we are paying way too much only for our Webex to freeze when too many people have their video cameras on. Do better. 

Speaking of speed, home builders - hurry it up. HURRY. IT. UP. You are taking way too long to build my house and I am not happy about it. 

To the hoarders, the panic-buyers, the non-sensical dolts running around taking all the toilet paper - you need to stop. You never should have started in the first place. We are all very angry with you for leaving us with the bottom of the barrel toilet paper, the worst of the worst, the thinnest, most inefficient, ineffective toilet paper that has been shredding in our cracks and crevices since the spring. You are the worst.

Tik Tok dances. Make them stop. Make them go the way of the dodo, never to return again. 

I also would like to address Drive Thru's. Drive Thru's - we are in a worldwide pandemic wherein, dining rooms are closed and people are doing everything they can to avoid other people. In turn, this increases the volume of vehicles in your drive thru. You are busy. Did you not prepare for this? Where is your staff? Why is your second lane closed? Did you not call Chick-Fil-A, the world's most methodical, efficient, high performing drive thru establishment this world has ever seen, to consult with their drive thru people? It would've been their pleasure to assist in improving your drive thru business model. 

To the news - shut. the. f**k. up. All of you. I mean it.

To the social media companies - I have a lot of bones to pick with you. Firstly, stop trying to all look the same? First we had Instagram stories, then Facebook jumped on that train, and now Twitter has "Fleets." Nobody wants a Fleet, Twitter. Make social media apps different again. Secondly, can we please have our feeds back in sequential order again? Nobody wants your algorithms. You can't sit with us and your algorithms. Thirdly, I mean this in all sincerity and I know it might hurt to hear it but, you are not the all knowing, all deciphering, omnipresent arbiters of truth. Quit with the "misinformation" labels. They're dumb and inconsistent. Your misinformation is misinformation, so how you do you like them apples huh?

I would be remiss if I did not mention dogs. Dogs - I love you but it is 2020, the year of work-from-home. I understand that barking is one of your beloved past times but why do you wait until mom is on a conference call, specifically when mom takes herself off mute, to begin your vocal activities? Can we find a better, more mutually agreeable time for you to bark like the wild animal that you are?

What grievances are you airing on this fine Festivus day?!

Blogmas Day 22: An Ode to Christmas at Rosewood

Roses are red, Rosewood Court is is no longer mine,

I'm going to miss it this Christmas, after all this time.

Eleven Christmases we spent at Rosewood.

If you told me last year it'd be the last, I wouldn't have understood.

This June we packed up, sold in September

Moved out with eleven Christmases to remember. 

I'll miss the twinkling garland around my door,

and my Christmas tree in the corner, pine needles all over my floor. 

This Christmas will be spent somewhere else, before we move into our new house next year

with a brand new address.

New memories will be made in 2021, the first of many Christmases in our brand new home.

Until then we'll wait, remembering fondly,

All of our time at Rosewood Court, memories shining brightly.

Blogmas Day 21: Christmas Movie Round Up

I would just like to start out this post by posing a question - is "Round Up" two words? One word? Two words to be hyphenated? I wasn't sure but I went with two words, unhyphenated. Let me know if I wasted four years of my life in college k thx.

Besides that, I am here today to talk about the Christmas movies I've watched so far this December and whether or not you should too. Conveniently, these are all on Netflix. So, in no particular order...

A California Christmas

If a hate-to-love romance that takes place in wine country sounds like your jam please watch A California Christmas. It is a SWOON FEST with lots of laughs. Also: word on the street is these two lead actors are married in real life (*swoons*).

White Christmas

After my mother discovered I had never seen White Christmas she insisted that I do so. So I did so. And I do not regret one moment of the singing, dancing, wholesome Christmas goodness. If you are in the mood for an old classic, watch White Christmas.

Dash and Lily

We discussed Dash and Lily at length yesterday. In short yes, you should watch it for a cute, Christmasy good time. 

Get Santa

Santa accidentally goes to jail and it's up to a young boy and his dad to save Christmas. It was meh. I was told this was a funny movie and I might argue otherwise. Should you watch it? Meh?

Let it Snow

Firstly, until I googled this photo right now, I did not realize this was based on a John Greene novel. Whoops. I thoroughly enjoyed this movie. Reminded me of a teenaged Valentine's Day or He's Just Not That Into You where we follow a handful of characters that eventually all end up intertwined and at the same place. Bonus points for the Harry Potter references (we love a good HP reference). You should watch this.

Operation Christmas Drop

Watch this movie if for no other reason that it is based on a true story and we get photos of real Christmas Drops in the credits. Heartwarming AF. 

The Christmas Chronicles 2

Is this the creme de la creme of Netflix Christmas movies? It might be. The VISUALS. The COSTUMES. The AESTHETIC. An elf named BELSNICKLE. Watch it.

Midnight at Magnolia

There was nothing believable about the dialogue in this movie or the way in which it was delivered. I almost turned it off because it was so irritating (but then I just skipped around to find out how it ended because I still needed to know it ended, nonetheless). Do not waste your precious Christmas movie watching time on this one. 

The Holiday Movies that Made Us: Elf

There are two of these that I know of - one for The Nightmare Before Christmas and one for Elf. I watched the one for Elf and you 100% should too. It's a behind the scenes look at the making of Elf by the people who made it. It was so fun and so interesting. 

Jingle Jangle

If you want song and dance and magic and FUN, watch Jingle Jangle. This move was a freakin GOOD TIME. Stunning visuals, incredible dancing, and the soundtrack is A BOP. Special shout out to Ms. Johnston - we stan. 

A Cinderella Story Christmas Wish

A modern retelling of Cinderella. It was a cute, enjoyable watch but if you are low on time please skip this one and watch The Christmas Chronicles instead. 

What Christmas movies have you been watching this season?!

Blogmas Day 20: Let's Talk Dash and Lily

When I learned that Dash and Lily's Book of Dares was being turned into a Netflix series this year I realized I needed to add it to my December TBR stat so that I could read the book in order to watch the Netflix series (because in this house you always read the book first). So that is what I did and now I am here to talk about it. 

Dash and Lily's Book of Dares is about a teenage girl named Lily who randomly places a notebook in the shelves of The Strand bookstore in New York City that contains clues, eventually setting its finder on a mission to decode a dare. As you can guess by the title, a teenage boy named Dash finds this notebook one day and plays along. We then follow Dash and Lily throughout the course of the story as they get to know each other via the notebook and the dares they send each other on, across all of New York City. This book had been super hyped up across the book-ternet so I was expecting it to be more exciting than it actually was. So, in that sense it was a little bit of a let down however, it was an enjoyable read and I had a good time reading it. I rated it 3/5 stars.

I am here to say...the Netflix series is wildly different than the book. BUT...I am actually not mad at it. Normally, I hate this. I hate this to the very core of my being, when movie people change things around and make stuff up for no good reason other than to like, I dunno shake it up? But why are we shaking it up when you have a very fine piece of writing in front of you that literally tells you exactly what should be in your movie? But I think it didn't bother me with Dash and Lily for two reasons:

1.) The Netflix series is an eight-episode series. The book is only 260 pages. I could see why content-wise they'd need to tweak or add some stuff in order to fill up eight episodes worth. And,

2.)  I didn't really feel super emotionally invested in these characters or the story so I suppose it didn't bother me that stuff got changed around?

In fact - I daresay, did I like the Netflix series better??

Character-wise I actually found Lily to be kind annoying in the book. In the book she's sixteen but her behavior makes her seem a lot younger/more immature than that. I get that that's part of her story line - the coming of age of a socially awkward wallflower but it was a little eye-roll inducing at times. The movie did a good job of highlighting her breaking out of her shell in a less cringey way. I definitely liked Dash's character a lot more and similarly, the Netflix series did a good job of amplifying what was good about his character. 

Plot-wise, Netflix took a lot of creative liberty in their adaptation. A LOT. I'm talking entire plot lines added, entire plot lines taken away. The way in which Dash and Lily eventually meet - which is essentially the crux of the story, is done completely different on the small screen than in the book. But again - I kind of liked it better?? The series made it so that their paths unknowingly crossed in advance of their actual first meet which I think kind of makes it more dreamy you know? Like, you bump into your soulmate on the street and you didn't even know it was your soulmate how romantic right??!

There are small things Netflix got wrong that don't really matter in the scheme of things but again - like, it's written in the book guys why not just I don't know, do what it says? Lily is supposed to wear black-rimmed glasses, Dash's best friend Boomer is supposed to be ginormously tall, Dash is supposed to be staying at his mom's house over Christmas, that kind of stuff. But all is forgiven because we got a Harry Potter reference in the Netflix series. 

So, after talking that through I think it's safe to say I liked the Netflix series better than the book. Mark this down; let it be known on this day in history, the 20th of December 2020, Carissa liked a mini-series adaptation better than its book. A real Christmas miracle. That said, if you haven't already - go watch Dash and Lily on Netflix. It's a fun, cute, Christmasy good time and you can take comfort in the fact that you are not missing anything if you don't read the book. 

There are two more books in the Dash and Lily series that I plan to continue on with, so I am excited to see where their story goes. And who knows, maybe next year we'll get the Netflix series to continue on too?!

Blogmas Day 19: Taylor Swift Christmas Songs Ranked

If you thought we'd get through 25 days of Blogmas without me rambling on about Taylor Swift in some capacity you'd be wrong. 

Because people forget that in 2008 Taylor Swift blessed us with a Christmas EP - The Taylor Swift Holiday Collection. 

Swifties know. Swifties never forget and every Christmas Swifties dust off this old EP and play some Taylor Swift country Christmas. And I am here to rank it, and every other Christmas song released by the Queen of December herself (lol it's just one other one but go with it mmk?)

Taylor Swift Christmas Songs: Ranked

7.) White Christmas 

We love the violin in this version.

6.) Santa Baby

The way a teenaged Taylor says "Tiffanyyyyyyyyy's" 

5.) Last Christmas

I love this Christmas song whether Taylor is singing it or not.

4.) Christmas Must Be Something More

A Taylor Swift original.

3.) Christmases When You Were Mine

Another Taylor original. The only one who can do sad break up song but make it Christmasy.

2.) Silent Night

I love the spin she puts on this while still sounding classic and traditional. Bonus points for the chorus of "Hallelujah" at the end. My heart 🥰

1.) Christmas Tree Farm

The crown jewel of Swiftmas, released last year in 2019 and I have been dying to be transported to this Christmas tree farm ever since. I want to dance under sparking lights with sweet dreams of holly and ribbon, where mistakes are forgiven and everything is icy and bluuuuuuuuue. 

Swifties - as Taylor rerecords her old music do we think we'll get updated versions of the Holiday Collection? Could we be so lucky?!

Blogmas Day 18: Flashback Friday III

For the third and final installment of Blogmas 2020's Flashback Friday, I thought I'd throw it back to 2019 wherein, I revisited our Christmas photos from each year. This was the first time I'd actually collected a photo from each year and lined them up chronologically. That kind of a thing is always fun for me. Christmas photos mean a lot to me and we have so much fun trying to think up new places to go each year. And for posterity's sake, I've added 2019's photo.

Christmas TBT - Christmas Photo Edition

Published on 12/5/2019

It's Throwback Thursday Christmas photo edition because guess what? That's what I'm in the mood for on this 5th day of Blogmas: a trip down memory lane.

We're throwing it back to 2011 to begin with because that was the year I made the very adult decision to start taking family photos and send out Christmas cards accompanied by a nice long Christmas letter because it's me and I love to write and ramble on paper. Some might say Christmas letters are an exercise in futility in the age of social media (as in, everyone already knows what you've been doing all year long) but to that I say pshaw! It's fun and nostalgic and PRO TIP: if you collect all your letters year after year and put them in a scrapbook with your Christmas photos it makes for excellent memory keeping!

I just told y'all that I still write out Christmas letters and scrapbook...does this make me old fashioned? Do people still scrapbook? Am I behind the times? Whatever, I will ponder this later.

So anyway, what I was saying is that 2011
was our inaugural Christmas family photo. Dogs required because dogs are people too.

Shout out to my dad who took these photos and my mom who stood next to him saying over and over again, "Where's the birds?!? Maycee where's the birds?!" so that Maycee would actually look at the camera. That's why her eyes look like she wants to murder you - because she thinks there's dead birds nearby to be retrieved. Also RIP to the best curled hair I've ever managed to do myself and in eight years have been unsuccessful in duplicating.

2012 

Maycee still on the lookout for those birds...

2013 

Gunther sitting up tall and proud like goodest most handsomest boy he knows that he is. 

On Dasher, on Dancer, on Prancer, and Vixen, Comet, and Cupid, and Maycee and Gunther.

2014

The first year my dear friend Jennica of Amaes Photography started taking our photos. We went up north for the day to cruise around and find some cool spots this year, and they are some of my most favorite photos. Dogs obviously still in tow because as discussed, dogs are people too. 

2015

I can't not have my dogs in my Christmas photos but I'm not gonna lie, trying to get them placed and posed nicely mostly just sounds like, "Maycee come here! No Gunther, I said Maycee. Gunther lay down. No, come over here and lay down. Maycee sit. STAY. Both of you STAY. No, Maycee stay THERE." We are a shit show most of the time but Jennica makes us look nice and normal in our photos and for that I am thankful. 

(actual birds in this photo and homegirl would not be deterred)

2016

Perhaps my favorite year because AS we were taking our photos it literally started to snow. SNOW!

2017

Tried to get Gunther off the log but he wasn't having it. Tried to get Maycee on the log but she was also not having it. You win some you lose some. 

2018

Serious Forbidden Forest vibes this year and I was/am still living for it.

Can't wait to add 2019 to the collection! 

**2020 Carissa here, adding in 2019's Christmas photo:

Dogs, cowboy hat, all the usual suspects are here.

Do you take Christmas photos each year?!