Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas everyone! The holidays are in full swing, so see you next year!

A Christmas cottage

My sweet husband got me the rest of those yummy Christmas ornaments today! We found the shop the lady at the bazaar told me about. It was a little cottage tucked away in the Padre Pio Church parking lot! Such a charming, cheery cottage. I was bubbling with Christmas cheer, like a kid in a candy store!

There was a tree filled with these vintage looking ornaments. I fell in love, and was about to put them in my basket, but found out they weren't for sale. Too bad! Just look at those circus Santas, and ladies eating chocolate! Oh my goodness! They were from a collection from past Christmases, and are now part of the shop owner's personal collection.

 

I got these adorable angels with peppermint candies and lollipops instead. Plus a few more cupcake Santas, a reindeer, a snowman, and Mr. Cupcake Elf! I almost missed the elf - he was the last one! Actually, most of what we bought were the last of their kind. So lucky!

There are a lot of other stuff worth considering, like this Nativity scene (Php 920), and festive words like the peace one below (Php 500).

Find these in the parking lot of St. Pio Church in Libis. The entrance is between Honda and Petron. There's a Php40 parking fee. You can probably park in Petron if you don't want to pay for parking. Haha.

I am so loving our tree! Thank you dear husband for the lovely trinkets! Looking at our tree makes me so happy!

Our adorable ornaments

 

It's the first Monday of December! Eeek! So exciting, but nerve-wracking at the same time. It's almost Christmas! We're not done shopping for gifts yet. And we're still adding to our tree! Lookie, lookie...

 

I'm so happy with our new tree things - they're simply the cutest, most adorable ornaments ever! These are just perfect for me: sweet and whimsical and vintage-y. These are the kind of things I see us hanging on the tree year after year, the kind your kid can grow up with. Little moon loves them! And they even come with a fun little story.

 

 

Here's the story: I've been thinking about these baubles all year! I first found a cupcake ornament in the angel store in Megamall last year (you know the one near Cooks Exchange?). I didn't buy it back then because I thought Php150 was too mahal (around $4). But the whole year I regretted it - I couldn't stop thinking about it because it was so unique. Sana I bought it nalang! Fast forward to a year later. We were in Megmall again yesterday, and I realized that the store where I originally found the ornaments was gone already. A puzzle store replaced it - no Christmas things in sight. I mentioned this to Marco, and told him the story. I said, sayang, I should've bought it last year - come to think of it, Php150 isn't mahal pala considering it was an unusual piece, and you can't find it in department stores. Boohoo.

Then off we went to Alabang, to check out the annual St. James Bazaar. You know who I found waiting for me in one of the stalls? Mr. Cupcake Elf and his gang of equally cute angels and cupcake Santas! Oh my gosh, I was so happy! That's what I call serendipity! Don't you just love it when that happens?

 

I bought three ornaments, Php150 each. The stall is the exact same seller in Megamall! The lady at the stall told me where I can find them after the bazaar, but I'm not telling you because you might buy everything and there won't be any left for me! Haha!

 

I am so happy with my loot. The two angels and a cupcake Santa are the only things I got for myself at the fair. Hubby says maybe we can get a few more of these baubles. I hope so! Because I still didn't buy the cupcake elf. I know, I'm crazy.

So how's everyone's Christmas season so far?

Let's talk about Christmas trees

We don't have any Christmas decor put up yet. I'm kind of in a panic already. Aren't you supposed to do that right after Halloween and Undas? Para sulit? Hehe. Well, we haven't even bought any ornaments yet.

This is our first time as a little family of three (plus two fur babies) to decorate the house in holiday cheer. We're putting up a tree for little moon - she loves balls and sparkly things. Good luck to us, let's see how long we can keep the ornaments out of her reach!

So since this is our first time, I want to make sure the pieces we'll buy are for keeps. They'll be part of our family tradition, after all. Isn't that exciting - starting new traditions of your own? Sigh. Life is sweet!

I'm looking for Christmas tree ideas online before we buy stuff. Here are my favorite pegs.

1. I like this simple non-tree. Very resourceful.

2. I love the colors in these paper trees. These are so me! Follow the link for a DIY tutorial. Lovely! But I don't have time to pull this off. Plus paper isn't really practical for what I have in mind. These are really gorgeous though!

3. I think I really want a pink tree like this one! How pretty. But we already have a green one. Maybe next year? (Asa pa ako.)

4. This whimsical tree is wacky. Ally would love something like this. Just needs to be toned down a bit.

Wow, looks like I'm drawn to a specific color palette. I wonder how I'll translate this from inspiration board to real life. Knowing how these projects of mine go, I'll probably end up with something totally different from my pegs.

Are you done with your Christmas decor yet? Would love to see what your tree looks like!

The Holidays are coming!

We were at Rockwell Powerplant Mall this weekend to support friends who joined the Global Pinoy Bazaar. I was excited to bring little moon there because I heard the mall had an amazing Christmas display. We weren't disappointed.

There were huge white reindeers and a sleigh by the fountain. My precious daughter was ecstatic. Even more so her mom and dad - seeing those oriental eyes sparkle and that tiny face crinkle up in a smile is the sweetest thing. Her daddy and I wished we had a better camera to capture these magical moments. I took these with my crappy camera phone. Missed a lot of big toothy smiles, but I'm glad I captured these shots, however grainy they may be.

There were pandas, tigers, polar bears, and penguins on the other side of the mall too. Ally was scared of the tigers and bears. I couldn't blame her - the polar bears were humongous. It looked like they were going to eat you, what with their moving heads and all. I was creeped out too. Teehee.

But she adored those reindeers and baby pandas. We're definitely going back there soon. I want to hear her babble and squeal excitedly again! I love being a mom!

Ally's First Christmas!

Our three-month-old's social life was buzzin' over the holidays! We were expected at all family gatherings, so planning our schedule was a bit stressful. But no complaints here, Christmas season is my favorite time of the year!

We spent Christmas eve with my mom's side of the family, Christmas day with Marco's side, the day after Christmas with my Dad's side, New Year's eve with Marco's family again, and New Year's day with my mom's sister's inlaws. Plus all those other parties in between: my dad's aunt's birthday, my grandparent's anniversary, and a Bon voyage party. Complicated? Very! Hihi. We're lucky Ally is an angel to travel with! She's a trooper!

Here is a wonderful video of Ally's first Christmas, from my creative cousin Kat!
A wonderful souvenir. Thanks Kat!

I'm excited for next Christmas! It's only 11 months away! :p