Making Memories

This year for Christmas, we wanted to do something a little different.

 We're sick of the materialistic side of Christmas and really want to embrace the real meaning this year. Spending extra time with family and friends, sending care packages to our sweet sponsor child in Africa, making gifts instead of spending lots of money... these are things we're doing to change it up this year.

For our families, we decided a photo shoot was the perfect way to make memories and freeze them at the same time. Check out some of the moments our friend Kristen Lunceford got for us:

Our dads - this picture gets me every time!

My in-laws, Rita and Randy.

My parents, Kelley and Colleen.

My older brother- and sister-in-law, Ryan and Kelly, and their puppy, Bridger.

Jordan and I

My younger brother-in-law, Colin.

The table we set in the backyard.

My immediate family.

My in-law family.

My beautiful mother-in-law.

My sweet, pretty mom. (And their puppy)

Jordan and I entertaining my mom and dad.

Looks like Randy made an inappropriate joke.

Love the angle she got with these.

Always laughing. I love it.

Everyone all together. My family.

I was never sentimental when I was younger, but now I can't get enough of catching these moments and memories with the people I love. I get teary just looking through these photos. So excited to get prints and put them up all over our house!

Kristen's Favorite Things 2010

If Oprah can do it, why can't I? :-)

A list of my favorite things from 2010 (in no particular order).

Microfiber cloths. Now this might sound strange, but they are my absolute favorite thing for dusting and drying dishes. You'll obviously want separate cloths for those duties, but you can't go wrong with them.

Mrs. Meyers all-purpose cleaner in lemon verbena. One bottle lasts FOREVER and can be used to clean just about anything. We mix ours with water and keep a spray bottle in the kitchen and in an upstairs bathroom. I'm not a fan of bleach or other nasty chemicals (for health reasons and for smell reasons!), so this is the perfect option. It smells heavenly and leaves our house sparkling clean.

Pier1 has always held a special spot in my heart. I was thrilled when Jordan agreed to this fabulous chair - it's a little girlie which was why I was so excited. It's comfortable and adds a great pop to our bedroom sitting area. It makes me smile every morning.

Our Dyson vacuum cleaner is definitely near the top of my favorites this year. When we moved into our new place, we were in desperate need of a vacuum. Thankfully, we had a gift card and a few extra bucks to afford this beauty. If sucks up anything we put down - and it makes vacuuming so fun (somehow).

MAC Powerpoint Eye Pencil. It's black, goes on smooth, and defies water. Not that I'm a crier or anything.... I searched high and low for a good waterproof eyeliner and this one does the trick. I have dark eyes and hair, so I go with black ("engraved") but they have a whole host of different colors. It's pricier than your average drugstore eyeliner, but it's so worth it.

OPI nail polish - specifically the shade named Can You Tapas This?. People who know me well know that I love nothing more than perfectly manicured nails. This color is somewhere between brown and deep red and I love it. I also recently purchased Barefoot in Barcelona and I'm loving it! I'll have to give Give Me Moori a try since it looks so nice in this picture. Oh, and if you haven't been to the OPI website recently, you should visit. There are so many brilliant links and fun things to do!

Aveda Foot Relief. I just discovered this last weekend when my mom gave me an early Christmas gift... a combo of Hand Relief and Foot Relief - in travel size AND regular size. I've used Hand Relief for a long time, but just found the smoothing effects of Foot Relief. This comes in handy for anyone, but especially those of us who endure cold, dry Minnesota winters! Smells great and keeps those nasty callouses at bay!

Our pizza stone. Jordan has been on a kick of making pizza dough from scratch and you can't cook it well without one of these! It was a steal at Target for only $10 and we use it more than I thought we would. In addition to baking pizzas, it's great for homemade bread and regulates the temperature of the oven. Who would have guessed?! The website says they're sold out, but we got ours in a store and I'm guessing they still have them.

My fun new Silpada jewelry. Shamless plug... but only because I truly love the quality and style of the jewelry. Below is a shot of my favorite piece. I love rings and this one fits perfectly and goes with so many things! The color is beautiful and the detailing on the band is awesome.

Chocolove - the Almonds and Sea Salt in Dark Chocolate variety. To. Die. For. My mother-in-law introduced me to this and I've been head over heels in love ever since. I used to hate almonds and now they're one of my favorite snacks... especially when dunked in chocolate and sprinkled with sea salt. The salt is such a great addition. Not a fan of salt and almonds? There are 17 other tantalizing flavors to choose from. Oh good, now my mouth is watering.