Friday Faves

The Most Wonderful Time of the Year

Need I say more? The days between Thanksgiving and Christmas are magical. Happiness fills the air, people are kinder, smiles are brighter...I love it all. The weekend before Thanksgiving, I set up my Christmas tree (yes, I am one of "those" people). Unfortunately, when I set up my 8 year old tree, it looked a little more like Charlie Brown's tree than ever before.

I went to Home Depot in search of a new tree and found the perfect one. I bought the tree, walked to my car, and tried with all my might to get that thing to fit in the back. It wasn't all that heavy, just really awkward and wasn't fitting around the other stuff. I wanted to put it in the back seat but was pretty sure I wouldn't be able to get it in there either.

I guess I looked kind of pathetic staring at the box hanging out the back hatch, but the nicest man came over and helped me load the tree into my car and rearrange the back so it would fit. To him, it was probably no big deal. But to me, it meant a lot for him to take the time to help me out. It's the little things like this that make the holiday season bright and cheery.

Helpful people are my favorite.

The Sweetest Little Lady

A few weeks ago,  I was driving to work and running a little later than normal. As I was about to get onto the highway, I noticed a precious little Yorkie running across the road. I stopped, got him in my car, and called the number on his tag. His owner answered and sounded frantic. She explained that she was currently in the hospital and could not come get him right now, but she was so happy he was ok. I offered to keep him at my place for the day and she happily agreed. I brought him home, got him some water, called my school to tell them I would definitely be late and made my way to work. 

That afternoon, I called the lady and told her I would be home soon and that we could meet on the street in between our condos. When I got there, she was standing out front with these sweet flowers and yummy smelling candle. 

Of course, I tried to give them back to her and told her not to worry about it because I didn't really DO anything. She insisted that I keep them and then told me to read the cards later. 

This card that made me shed a sweet little tear is from her...

This card is from Harley, my new "furever" friend...

This whole exchange just made my day. Sweet doggies and the people who love them are my favorite.

Online Shopping

So, who else out there got sucked into the big sales online over the Thanksgiving break? Gap, May Designs, Nordstrom, Teachers Pay Teachers, and Diff Eyewear are just a few places I dropped some cash. I didn't spend too much and I feel great about everything I purchased. I'm especially excited about these pajamas I got from Francesca's

One of our theme days for College Week is "College Makes Dreams Come True" and we will dress up in pajamas. These arrived on my doorstep on Saturday and it was hard to resist putting the whole ensemble on and hanging on the couch all day.

Holiday Festivities

We had our staff holiday party at Pinstack yesterday and the Ugly Sweaters were in full effect. I love anything with a theme and being silly with my coworkers, so this is always a win for me. Check out some of these stylin' looks! 

These three were the winners of the contest and you can certainly see why. Although if anyone could make ugly sweaters look cute, it's these three! 

Waze

I don't know how I have ever lived without this app. It navigates around traffic and saves me from getting stuck in traffic on 75 almost daily. If you don't have this app, I highly recommend it. You can connect with friends on the app and "beep" at each other if you are both connected. Alice Michael drives even farther than I do for work, and as I am driving I often hear a "beep beep" coming through my car stereo. Don't worry, she's not "beeping" and driving, her kids Joshua and Grace like to give some of us a shout out on their way to work. It makes me smile every time.