Picture this...

If ever you walked into the NMTOB house, you would find yourself staring at a whole lot of pictures of our faces.  I've never really been so great at decorating and I'm even worse at finding wall art that doesn't A: resemble something you would find in a hotel or B: fail to measure up to the proportions of the wall.  The result of this is crippling design paralysis and a lot of blank walls.

However, the one investment I have been willing to make year after year is photography.  Whether it be scenery shots of my favorite places to visit or adorable snapshots that needed to live somewhere other than Instagram, every room of our house is filled with lovely photographs.  Call it boring, call it borderline narcissistic, but at least the walls aren't blank.

So, when the people from WoodSnap contacted me about a product review, I was stoked.  Their product combines my first love (beautiful pictures) and wall art in a way that makes people stop and say, "Hey, wait.  That is seriously cool."  (No, really they've done exactly that since our WoodSnap has been sitting on my mantle.)

Since we received ours, I can't stop thinking of cool things you could have printed to display.  Maps of your favorite cities.  Reprints of old family photos.  Cool collages you creative types can make in Photoshop.  Beautiful quotes in pretty fonts.  The options really are endless.

Me?  I opted for printing this lovely photo courtesy of our fourth (!!!) photo shoot with Rosser Photography.

The result was stunning:

Our WoodSnap taking up residence in our Christmas mantle display.

I am so impressed by the vibrancy of the colors and the fact that you actually have to walk up to it to see that it's made of wood.  This makes it an attractive conversation piece.

I know what you're thinking - "This would make THE PERFECT GIFT for my grandmother/mother/co-worker/sister, etc."  Right you are!  And the best news is that WoodSnap is offering 30% off orders today for Cyber Monday as well as Free Ground Shipping for US orders.  So, order the best gift today, get it here well before your first holiday gathering, and save a buck in the process.

How could it be any better?
So, hurry up.  Get those presents purchased, so you can sit back and drink some wine enjoy the holiday!

Though WoodSnap provided me with complimentary product for review on this blog,  the opinions expressed in this post are solely my own.  Obviously I barely have the time to wash my own hair daily, so I'm not going to take the time to write about a product I don't fully endorse

You may be right, I may be crazy...

It took me almost an entire week to write this post.
It took me that long to get over it.
I'm going to try my best to write this post without curse words, but I make no promises.

Ladies and gentlemen, I fell for it.  The retail industry duped me something awful.
Yes, I'm talking about that bullshit (oops, there goes that) tradition we refer to as Black Friday.

From the age of 16 to 22, I worked every single one of those stupid Fridays in an obnoxiously crowded shopping mall.  I vowed that I would never set foot in retail establishment for as long as I lived once I had finally graduated out of part-time seasonal work.

But, last Friday, I broke that promise.

I don't know what it was that made me change my mind.  Perhaps it is the 20-30 emails I get sent to me (PER DAY) from retail companies who were boasting their AMAZING sales.  Perhaps it is pressure from friends and mothers who promised me that it would be worth it to take advantage of some of the deals and doorbusters. 

When I told my husband I wanted to go out that day, he said I was crazy.
I told him he was crazy to think we couldn't stand to save a few bucks these days.

So, against my better judgment, I made my way to a large toy store on Friday morning.  I didn't wake up at dawn to do so, and I didn't go the night before (don't even get me STARTED on that new trend.)  When I got there, it felt like I was stepping into the aftermath of a war zone.

Cardboard boxes that once held free gift-with-purchase doorbusters littered the floor and made it almost impossible to wheel a cart down the too-narrow aisles.

I knew exactly what toys I was there to purchase.  I knew exactly the markdown prices marked on these toys.  I stayed true to my list.  Didn't pick up anything extra.  Okay, I picked up a couple of extra things. (Did you know that shopping in a toy store as an adult is exactly the same as shopping in a toy store as a kid?  Seriously.)  The important thing is that I felt like I was saving money.  The prices seemed to be lower than I saw when I previously checked out the sales in the store.

I was searching the store for something specific, and I went to approach a store employee.  He was in the midst of answering a question from another customer, complete with annoyed sighs and eye rolls.  I decided my question wasn't that important and steered clear of him.

The next moment, I passed a mother who was carting two very cranky children with her and barking into her phone at someone who clearly didn't get the items she had hoped they would at another Black Friday sale.
I steered clear of her too.

It was when I was making my third attempt at getting to the cash register through the maze of aisles, that I had the serious thought to abandon my cart and cut my losses.  Despite the paradoxically cheerful Christmas music that was blaring over the loud speakers - there wasn't an ounce of the Christmas spirit in that building.

Fortunately, once I had finally made my way to the check out lanes, the man who helped me there was quite pleasant.  He handed me my receipt and there it was, in big bold letters that practically kicked me in the throat.


You saved $3.00.

Great.  Thanks for nothing.  It cost me $3.00 in gas to get here.
I am never making the mistake of going out again.
Especially since the circular ad for the same big toy store came out this week.

The item I saved $3.00 on?  Was marked UP from the original price listed in the circular.
AND?  It is now $15.00 cheaper than that.

So my trip on Godforsaken Black Friday?  COST ME $12.00.

Good. Grief.

-----
UPDATE: 

As if there is no end to their awesomeness, RANTS FROM MOMMYLAND is doing an awesome Christmas charity drive for their readers.  I am pledging to give money to a deserving family, and I wonder if you wouldn't consider it as well.  Click on the fabulous logo below (designed by Amy from Pregnant Chicken who is also AMAZING if I haven't mentioned it) for details on how to get involved.

After the bad taste the Christmas season had left in my mouth following this shopping trip, I was happy to find an opportunity to remember what this season is really about.

http://www.rantsfrommommyland.com/2011/12/grand-hooker-experiment-thats-not-porny.html

I'm missing the moments as they pass...

Can I start by saying, where the HELL did this year go?

Today is our annual Christmas luncheon at work.  The food is actually pretty awesome usually.  And every December when it comes around, I am a little sad when the luncheon is over.  I don't know why.  I just am.  And yet, this year it seems like it was only yesterday that I was sitting around a table with my closest co-workers, sipping decaf since I had just come out of the mommy closet and announced to everyone that I was pregnant.

When did it all start going so fast?

When did I begin to so expertly change a diaper that I almost don't even know I'm doing it anymore?  Such a far cry from the first diaper change which involved 4 diapers, an entire package of wipes, and several wet wash cloths as well as a full sized bath towel.  (I'm not even kidding.)

When did my little man go from being that helpless little thing we strapped into that huge car seat to being a kid who rolls over like he's been doing it all his life?

When did preparing food and feeding it with a spoon become so foreign to me and when did breastfeeding became like second nature? (I, for one, NEVER thought that would happen.)

When did I start hoisting a basket of laundry in one arm and the baby in the other and managing both instead of the way I used to clutch him to me with both hands as if he would break?  (And when did I start being able to actually do laundry again?)

When did my entire neighborhood get together and decide that they were ALL going to have Christmas decorations on their houses before the first week in December?  (I haven't even put up a wreath.  Hell, I don't even know where our Christmas decorations are.  Last year at this time, I spent a large portion of my day dry heaving into the toilet.)

When did I stop making lists and lists of things I want for Christmas and instead begin to really relish the thought of just sitting by a fire with my family?

When did it get so damn cold?  Did fall even happen?

When did I stop planning my night around getting stupid drunk on New Years Eve?

And for that matter, when did I start falling asleep before midnight EVERY year?

When did I turn twenty-seven?  (Monday, for those that don't know.  But, yeah.  27.  It's so...grown up.)

When did I become a grown-up?



No wonder I always feel like there aren't enough hours in the day.  Look at how fast those hours fly.