December Daily® 2015 │ Days 16 to 20

Somehow in spite of it all I have managed to stay caught up and it feels like a bit of a Christmas miracle. This month has flown by and my Christmas spirit has been hiding from me this season so working on this project has been somewhat of a blur for me. I know once the day comes and I can enjoy and soak it all up I'll look back on these pages and know that even though I felt like the spirit wasn't in me it really was the whole time. Being an adult this time of year and working so hard to make sure that the season is magical and special for someone you love is a huge task and one that take on wholeheartedly. I think sometimes I forget to keep the magic inside for myself too and I plan to spend the next four days doing just that.

Day 16

I can't remember how far back I started this but I know it was probably around the time that she was three. But every year since then I have picked out a special wrapping paper that was just for her gifts. It makes wrapping so much easier because I don't have to label her gifts. They are just there in a pile and she knows they are just for her. The past few years she has wanted to pick out her paper herself so its always a special trip to Target to find just the right one. I love that she picked one so quickly and one that was so perfectly her right now.

To help separate the days I added in a star transparency with a big glitter star and the Story of Today banner from the main kit.

Day 17

Simone pretty much won the lottery with her teacher assignment this year, case in point this super cute little art project that she brought home from school. In real life its much bigger so I just scanned it and then shrank it down to size to fit on top of the cute winter scene embossed paper. I then cut it out on my Cameo using the print and cut feature right on to photo paper. It worked so well! She also brought home a super cute Elf Job Application and that is folded up inside the glassine bag. I used some of Kelly Purkey's Clearly Kelly Holiday stamps to decorate the front and I love how the Yeti pairs with the Elf. The Spreading Cheer stamp is also one of Kelly's stamps.

Day 18

Sadly her last day of school before winter break didn't go as planned and the flu bug hit our house. It's always hard being sick during Christmas time so this was a super simple photo and words type of day. The jouranling card is from In A Creative Bubble and the cozy blanket paper from the main kit worked perfectly here.

Day 19

When I made these stockings for our family right before Simone was born I intentionally left space on Simone's so that she could add things to it as she grew up. Things that meant something to her that told her story. This year she decided to add a heart eye emoji and I love it. I decided to try and use some of my metal craft dies to cut the felt and it worked perfectly. I could not have cut that perfect of a circle on my own for sure. The jouranling card on the right is also from In A Creative Bubble. I love everything she designed this year.

Day 20

In my attempt to find some Christmas Cheer we set out for some shopping in our matching sweatshirts. I paired the large photo with some jouranling cards from In A Creative Bubble and one from the main kit. I altered the card a bit to remove the date portion since I was using one of my large numbers instead.

I probably won't be back until after the holiday but I look forward to living the next few days to the fullest and fully embracing the season and all that there is to love and enjoy about it. I hope you all do the very same thing and Merry Christmas to each and every one of you.

xoxo,