Our expectations were completely blown out of the water. Not only did we make the best of a less than ideal situation, but we ended up having the most magical and special time of our lives. Seriously!

First on the agenda was Thanksgiving. Y’all know by now that I’m a food gal, and Thanksgiving dinner is my bread and butter. We replaced the traditional turkey with chicken and waffles, put no limits on the rolls and mashed potatoes, and we even blasted Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas is You” instead of the usual dinner jams in the background. While our table looked much different, the level of gratitude was at an all-time high. Friends, I even got to wear my Lulu’s and go for seconds with nobody to judge. It was beautiful and indulgent and so very delicious!

As soon as we recovered from the food coma and cleaned the kitchen, up went the tree and so started our mission to watch every Christmas movie we could find (for free, of course!). I stocked up on popcorn and snacks and turned our living room into a comfy blanket theater. We made our way through The Christmas Chronicles and took a trip down memory lane with Kevin McAllister. I went from never seeing a single Hallmark movie to watching a new one every night. There is something so comforting in the predictability and cheesiness that brought me so much peace.

Halfway through December and our Christmas spirit was hitting record highs! I even got matching pajamas for the whole family, which was a first. We indulged and just went for it. We made and decorated cookies (so many cookies!) and gingerbread houses and homemade hot chocolate. We stayed up all night when Taylor Swift surprised the world with her second album and then another documentary. What more can you really ask for? It played on repeat for weeks around this house, and we were so inspired that we made our own T-Swift themed ornaments. If you can’t tell, we are super fans!