A Merry Little Christmas :)

Last night went down in true French kid fashion. Lorae, Cam and I all attempted to sleep in my full-sized bed. Key word: attempted. We were obnoxiously loud until around 2am, and GET THIS – we didn’t even get yelled at!! (A little part of me thinks my parents actually enjoy hearing us laugh hysterically into the wee hours of the morning.) Needless to say, we eventually got sick of each other and went our separate ways to our separate rooms.

So without further ado, here are some highlights of my morning:

(1) Just about EVERY Christmas, after all the unwrapping madness ceases, my parents all of a sudden remember out loud, “Oh yeah! We forgot about another one of Cam’s presents in the closet!” Lorae and I have learned to never get excited when we hear this “Oh yeah!” Because it’s ALWAYS for Cam. Why is this a highlight, you ask? Well, the highlight is the fact that this didn’t happen this year! :)

(2) This Christmas, I got my dad 12oz. of cherry pipe tobacco, and a legit pipe. And the thing is, he won’t actually smoke it. He just loves the smell of burning it. (Funny story – when I was about 8, I was snooping around in my dad’s office and found a stash of cherry flavored cigars. I FLIPPED out on him, feeling betrayed that he never told anyone he smoked. Turns out, he’s always just loved the scent. When he was a young kid, his father used to smoke the same flavor. So it’s really a nostalgia thing.) So my dad unwraps his gift this morning, and is so excited about it! But he can’t smell it at all, because he has a cold. :( Mind you, I’ve had it double-bagged, boxed and put in a drawer upstairs because it is so, soo smelly. Good timing Dad, good timing…

(3) Showit Web and BlogStomp baby!! I make no qualms about getting new bloggy goodies for Christmas. Showit Web is something I’ve been coveting for a while, but just haven’t gotten around to. But now, it’s ALL mine. Mwahahaha. (Seriously Alyse, get real..) Anyway, it’s downloadable software that allows you to create beyond-awesome slideshows. One of the best parts is that it automatically resizes images and generates Flash .swf files in minutes! You can also customize music, text, colors, zoom, focal points, and include your own logo. Lurve it!! And BlogStomp is equally AMAZING. It’s a one-click Photoshop action to make your photos blog-ready in a matter of seconds. Definitely speeds up the workflow, which is always a good thing! Just a click, and it resizes, borders, sharpens, and saves as a new file. All while being completely customizable with your logo. Pretty stinking sweet, I tell you. In fact, get ready for another watermark change ya’ll. I promise I’ll stick with this one for a while. :)

(4) Best highlight, hands down. “Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne and over His kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever.” Isaiah 9:7. Hallelujah.

And I will leave you with some Christmas photo highlights! Here is just one of the cute little snowmen on our tree.