friday randoms: snoqualmie falls and christmas obsessing

i realized after my last post, i actually had some other non-halloween related pictures from grandpa durant's visit that i forgot to share!

last sunday we drove to snoqualmie falls, a place that has been on our list since we moved here. it was only about a half hour away and it was amazing! i think what really made the experience, though, was the weather that day. it was absolutely pouring when we arrived (yet the place was packed, which i thought was interesting). we put our hoods and umbrellas up and walked to the overlook. the falls were absolutely roaring, it was so cool to see! 

the kids were freaking out about the rain a bit...hehe

if you know me at all, you know i have a serious love for christmas. back in the day, i used to wait until after thanksgiving to indulge, but my excitement has slowly crept up closer and closer to halloween each year. i think we can partly blame the retailers for that one, but i am just as guilty buying into the excitement so early. i still won't decorate until after thanksgiving, though, i doesn't feel right to me to celebrate one holiday with the next one so prominently displayed. 

that said...i still have my guilty pleasures. i have been listening to christmas music on pandora since monday. i've also starting watching more than my fair share of super cheesy, made-for-tv christmas movies on netflix streaming. nearly every day this week when the kids go down for their naps, i've set up shop on the couch with my laptop to get some work done, and watched a christmas movie. it's the best, no matter how awful the acting is :) i also couldn't get out of target this week without buying a few cute inexpensive holiday things. the holiday stuff in the dollar spot (well $3 spot) is so cute this year!

 i also got this mug because i don't have any holiday ones, so it's totally necessary ;) 

this will be my first year since elementary school having a fake tree instead of a real one. we will be in minnesota for a lot of december (but not for actual christmas) and we aren't really sure if real trees are allowed in our condo anyway. i will miss the experience of cutting one down, the scent of fresh pine needles, and the beauty of a real one - but i won't miss picking up needles every 5 seconds and remembering to water it. it's still up for discussion where the best place for it is in our livingroom. 

but let's not ahead of ourselves (uh...too late)