Happy Friday and most importantly, happy December! I hope you were able to have a good Thanksgiving and make it special in your own way. Jake and I stayed home and cooked a feast for the two of us. The one bummer is that I woke up sick with a terrible headache that made me nauseous all day, so we stayed on the couch in pajamas watching the parade most of the morning. Thank goodness for iPhones because I was able to talk, text, and Facetime my family all day. It was definitely different but after the National Dog Competition, I got up and pushed through to start making dinner. Jake and I cook a lot, and both really enjoy it, so it was fun to make a feast. We purchased a small turkey and made all of the sides since they are our favorite thing. I called my mom and thanked her for getting me the Ikea table that extends to make it longer because we needed every inch of it for all of the food. I had like 5 bites and then had to go back to the couch because I was just so sick. We’ve been living off of leftovers all week and loving it!

Last weekend all I wanted to do was nap because of my bad headache, but I am so happy I pushed through, and decorated our house for Christmas. This year we have three trees up and every room in our house has some Christmas spirit. Seriously, it looks like Christmas exploded in our house and I am loving it!

This weekend I have a family Zoom planned and we are going to bake cookies together. Last week we had a family Zoom to bake pies together for Thanksgiving and I had a complete meltdown because I couldn’t find our pie pan that I have never used but my mom got me as an apartment gift when I moved out. I tried to go into this holiday happy and excited for new traditions but this year is hard and I wanted to be open that I’ve been struggling too.

I’ve been keeping our living room TV on Freeform all day to have Christmas movies playing in the background. At night we will watch a Hallmark movie and check them off in our Hallmark app – if you don’t have it, you need to get it!

This week I finished The Crown and I did not want this season to end. I have been watching just one episode a night and then watching documentaries on Netflix about Diana and the Royal Family because there is just so much that The Crown doesn’t include. Now I’m finishing The Queen’s Gambit since that got pushed to the side when The Crown came out.

I finally finished reading The American Heiress by Daisy Goodwin. Took a bit longer than normal to read because there was a lot of fluff in the book but I enjoyed getting lost in the story. On my nightstand now I have Girl Stop Apologizing by Rachel Hollis. I tried reading this book like a year ago and just couldn’t get into it. I’m trying it again to see if it’s worth the hype. After watching The Crown and a ton of documentaries on Netflix about the Royal Family, I also have a thick book about Queen Elizabeth on my nightstand that I got at a used book store years ago because it was pretty but now I’m actually motivated to read it.

I love this time of year because it’s the best time to purchase cosmetics, fragrances, and skincare. Not only are they discounted but the kits come with a bunch of great extras too. Lancome reached out to me with a sample of their Lancome Idole perfume and a discount code towards the purchase of a full-size bottle. I immediately fell in love with the perfume after wearing it for a week and decided to treat myself to the full size. While checking out I added a Lancome beauty box to my cart. The kit comes with a bunch of full-size products and it’s something I get every other year since they last forever.

Recently I got a PR package from Kevyn Aucoin in the mail and I’ve been using the contour book and mascara every day. I’m working on a full blog post with a full review and details because I’ve been loving it a lot.

I’ve been noticing that my skin has looked amazing when I’m not wearing makeup and it’s because of my commitment to my skincare routine. I’ve been using Loreal Revitalift moisturizer at night and the Revitalift Derm Intensives Serum in the morning and at night. Loreal sent me them in a PR box in the Spring and I got the serum again because they are so easy to use. My face has been glowing lately and it’s honestly because of the hyaluronic acid products.

The Black Friday deals turned out to be week long deals so I did some Christmas present shopping and got a few things for myself.

J Crew Factory

– Pearl Cluster Earrings
– Velvet Headband
– Satin Knot Headband
– Sweater for Jake
– Pearl Bracelet
– Graphic Tee

Old Navy

– Star Wars Baby Yoda Christmas Tee
– Sweater for Jake
– Graphic tee for Jake
– Pajamas

Going through my camera roll and going to share a few things I have been loving right now. It’s been a crazy week that has felt like a month and I’m so excited for a relaxing weekend. Jake is working so hard and I’ve been working on this little space on the internet as a passion project because it brings me joy. Every night while we turn off the lights and get ready for bed, Jake will say out loud how much he loves our house. In the last few weeks, I have cleaned, decorated, and added personal touches to our home to make it cozy for this long cold, dark winter. This will be our second Christmas in this house and it finally feels like home. One positive right now is that we get to be home all day to enjoy our scented candles, lit up Christmas trees, and cozy blankets.

• Our new $30 flocked tree that I had low expectations about when I ordered it is my new favorite tree. We put this one up in our hallway upstairs and it brings me so much joy. I got an unlit one and it looks like that one is sold out so I am linking a lit tree.
• I ordered this inexpensive garland with lights for our banister just to see if it was good quality. Turns out it’s much better than I thought it would be so I ordered a bunch more to go up the stairs and around the banister on the second floor as well as around our headboard.
• We are still obsessed with our new sherpa comforter and it’s impossible to get out of bed in the morning.
• I created a new Instagram account ( @BlondeRosieinPhilly) where I can post photos of Philadelphia that I take on my walks. It’s not about the followers or the likes, I just love taking photos of Philadelphia, and now they are all in one place.
• If you haven’t already, please take a look at my gift guide. I know budgets are tight this year so I am updating it whenever I find a great gift that they will LOVE!
• If you love scented candles but don’t have the budget for them, the Glade scented candles are affordable and smell amazing!
• I organized my pajamas the other day because it was really getting out of hand. I bought a ton of holiday pajamas because I have no self-control and can’t say no to cute pajamas.
• Target is selling fun marshmallows and I was so sad when I walked all the way there and my Target didn’t have them. I don’t like hot chocolate but Jake loves it so I plan on making a little hot chocolate bar for him.

This time of year is always my busiest because I love sharing content with you all. With that comes campaigns and affiliate links that help keep this blog running. I really appreciate every single click and view that allows me to keep doing what I love.