'Tis the Season (well, almost)

Okay, here's what you're supposed to do, and try not to be a SCROOGE!!! Just copy to your blog and change all the answers so that they apply to you. Then tag whomever you choose......'Tis the Season!

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? When doing the wrapping I like gift bags, obviously because I'm lazy; but when unwrapping I find the excitement builds a little more when wrapping paper has been utilized.

2. Real tree or Artificial? Artificial all the way - like I'm going to clean up all those pesky needles.

3. When do you put up the tree? Thanksgiving weekend - as soon as Toby feels we have adequately "respected The Bird"

4. When do you take the tree down? The week after Christmas

5. Do you like eggnog? Um, EWWW!

6. Favorite gift received as a child? I remember getting a bike when I was a kid that I never really learned to ride - and then getting a scooter the next year. And getting a bunch of gymnastics videos one year, I think I was 13 or so, when I thought I knew all my gifts and my mom surprised me with those.

7. Hardest person to buy for? Our parents.

8. Easiest person to buy for? Tysen is easy because he always gets REALLY into certain things. Like one year it was Thomas the Train and now it's Bionicles and Legos, so you always know how to score with him - and Audrey because she's too little to know what's going on and she likes the shiny wrapping paper the best of anything anyway.

9. Do you have a nativity scene? More than one, yes.

10. Mail or email Christmas cards? No self-respecting person e-mails Christmas cards! Come on! Dish out the $0.42 in postage for the people you love.

11. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? My mom always gave us socks, underpants and toothbrushes in our stockings - not too exciting but at least she was showing an interest in our personal hygiene practices.

12. Favorite Christmas Movie? Love Actually - it's such a good movie (but heads up to try for the Clean Flix version if you're watching with your kids)

13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? Is this question implying I should stop at some point?

14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? Duh! Regifting is the American way.

15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? Ginger cookies and my mom's fudge - and anything with chocolate!

16. Lights on the tree? Who doesn't put lights on a tree?!

17. Favorite Christmas song? If I have to have one, I guess it would be Carol of the Bells.

18. Travel at Christmas or stay home? As though I'm going to leave the perfect weather here in December? I think I'll stay home.

19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer's? Of course.

20. Angel on the tree top or a star? Depends on the year - we rotate Christmas tree themes/color schemes.

21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning? One on Christmas Eve and the rest on Christmas morning.

22. Most annoying thing about this time of the year? Christmas music EVERYWHERE!!! It must be stopped. And the fact that retailers put out their Christmas garb before Halloween. Come on people, have some respect for The Bird!

23. Favorite ornament theme or color? Toby has a group of ornaments his mother made that are Christmas mice, which are his favorite. I really like a silver/blue tree but Kenlynne would disown me so I'm not allowed. I love big ball-shaped ornaments in pretty much any color as long as there are a ton of them. And I love kids' homemade ornaments with pipe cleaners and glitter and rickrack. It's just a reminder of what Christmas was like when I was a kid.

24. Favorite for Christmas dinner? Turkey, ham, potatoes, mom's homemade rolls, pretty much everything.

25. Favorite family Christmas tradition? I have a few: The first is my mom and dad always did sub-for-santa for a family and it was always so much fun to pick out gifts for the kids in the family even though there was a lot of guessing because we only ever knew the childrens' age and gender. Another would be staying up late with my sister doing various unproductive things like watching old VHS tape episodes of "The Guys Next Door" and "Christy" as well as always watching our NKOTB videos. And one that we do now is always go see the lights at the Temple, which is so much easier to do here where you only have to put on a sweatshirt if it's a really chilly evening - not like getting all decked out in ski gear to go to the lights in SLC.

Now I tag Joanna, Amanda, Kenlynne and/or Tessa, Darcy, Jaime, all of the current and former Greenwood girls, and anyone else who's ready to get in the Christmas spirit!