giving back

The day we got back from Thanksgiving break I put out all of our, albeit few, holiday decorations! This includes a mini Christmas tree, complete with baubles, in the center of our kitchen island; two wreaths with golden apples decorating our living space; and a "Merry Christmas Y'all" towel over our oven's handle. I just love the Christmas season!! Our cards have been sent and I can't wait to start receiving cards from other people. I have even made significant progress in gift wrapping already!

Inspired by Pinterest... This year is kraft paper with stamping and handmade tags!

And tonight, for the third year in a row, I will be going to the Community Family Life Services Holiday Party! I volunteer with CFLS through the Junior League and absolutely love spending time with these women. Tonight we have a group of volunteers that organized a holiday party and I offered to bring some baked ziti for dinner. Since there's no oven to warm the pasta in, I had to come up with an alternative cooking method. Behold baked ziti in a crockpot!! Last night I cooked some sausage with onion and garlic. This morning I assembled the dish and carried it into work. I just plugged in the crockpot so it can simmer and cook away in my cubicle until heading to the party after work. Here's a link to the recipe, in case you're interested!

So with the holiday party and families in mind, I decided to put a little holiday cheer into my outfit today! Complete with silver baubles, red tank top, and reindeer socks! Everybody at the office is getting quite a kick out of these socks, I must say :)

Have you started getting ready for the holidays?