Merry Christmas from Jessica & Jeremy

May I borrow your child?

 Christmas is one of my favorite times of the year. I love the bustle, the decorations, Santa Claus, Church Services, shopping, the food, the music (when played between the day after Thanksgiving and Christmas day... no earlier or later), parties, games, reindeer, and, of course, the Christmas movies. Nothing is better than snuggling under a blanket on a cold night with the fireplace going and hot chocolate in hand to watch It's A Wonderful Life. 

But for some reason this year I have been struggling to get in full mood of the Christmas season. At first, I thought it had something to do with me wanting to start my own family traditions. Then, I thought maybe it was Mr. Scrooge himself (a.k.a. Jeremy) who did not seem to think there was a point  in decorating this year(a.k.a. celebrating Christmas in our home) because we are traveling a lot this holiday season.

But then it hit me.

The most fun things about Christmas are not meant for someone my age.  Can you believe it???

Example: On Christmas Eve, I can call Onstar and find the exact location of Santa Claus throughout the day. When I heard this, I was super excited. What a great idea?! Well, my excitement lasted all of two seconds because Mr. Scrooge informed me that it doesn't matter because Santa Claus isn't real. And then he asked if I would actually be calling since I am 25 years old.... um... that would be a yes, Jeremy. I will be calling. Because it is freakin' awesome.

So this morning as I was thinking of all the other things I wanted to do during Christmas, I came to the realization that I need a child.

IMPORTANT NOTE TO FAMILY MEMBERS: I am in no way, shape, or form ready, willing, or able to have children at this time nor would I make a capable Mom. I am selfish, busy, and do not think I could handle someone depending on me 24/7. Sorry. 

Yes, I need a child to borrow. In my mind, this is the perfect set up. I can be a kid at heart, you can get a break, and your child will have the time of their life!

Here's the plan: for the next two weeks, I will take your child caroling, Christmas light looking, and to sit on Santa's lap. Your child can help me decorate and bake sweets to eat. I will read to them each night, and watch Rudolf over and over again. On Christmas Eve, we will use Onstar to track Santa, lay out Santa's cookies and hot chocolate, and feed the reindeer. Then, (this is the best part) I will buy all their Santa presents! On Christmas morning, they will wake up early to find Santa was good. We'll read the Christmas story have beignets and, then, I'll return them to you: happy and exhausted.

You will have the easiest Christmas and I'll have a Christmas without Mr. Scrooge making fun of all the things I want to do. If you need recommendations, I can get those to you. You can call anytime. We'll take lots of pictures. And honestly, if you even wanted to join us in some of the activities, you can! I'll handle all the details.

It will be the best Christmas ever!

So, what do you say? May I borrow your child?

Shout out to K. Marie Photography!

Ever since I learned the secret to modeling from Tyra Banks, I knew I had to get in front of a camera. Seriously, Tyra said I could get anything I wanted through smeyesing. Why not try it out??

Thankfully, I have really talented, artsy friends, especially Kerinsa Mullins. We met about 5 years ago. I swear, she's my twin. We think alike, talk alike, like the same things... The only difference is that I am completely envious of her curly red hair. Over the years, Jeremy and I have really come to love Kerinsa and her husband. They are wonderful friends.

Well, a couple of months ago (literally a couple of months ago) Kerinsa bought a new camera, photoshop, and found her new love. I am amazed at her natural talent behind the camera.

I quickly decided that I needed family pictures. Christmas time is coming and that means Christmas cards! You can check out Kerinsa's amazing work **HERE**.

We love you, Kerinsa! Thank you so much for spending the evening with us and getting us kicked out of the park ;-)! You rock!

How to be cool

I know that as an adult I should be okay with who I am as a person and should no longer be as concerned as to who likes me and doesn't.. but seriously, who doen't want to be cool? It has been a long dream of mine. A couple of months ago I was fortunate to buy a Brogen's T-shirt. Apparently all the cool kids have one and instantaneously my cool points jumped up.

How could I not look cool in this shirt??

But then I hit the holy grail of coolness thanks to the college girls in my Bible Study. I owe them a huge debt of gratitude for making my dreams come true. (Seriously, thank you!) And since I am such a nice person (yes, Ryan, Megan, and Rebekah... I am nice), I am going to pass on this secret to you. For I have a dream. A dream where all people are given an equal opportunity to be cool without regard to clumsiness, extra-curricular activities, or style. A dream that I hold dear and one I hope to see come true in my lifetime...

Here is how you can be cool:

First, grab your cutest scarf.

Fold it in half longways and then short ways. Wrap it around the back of your neck leaving the loop open.

Take one of the ends and put it through the loop.

No need to pull tight and choke yourself. You do want to be alive for the coolness, right??

Grab the second end now... It's about to get tricky.

Loop it through the hole the opposite way as the other. You have to go around the loop and enter through the back. Don't worry. You are doing great!

Tighten it, but not too tight.

And this is what your scarf will look like when you are done.

Now, quickly, find a mirror and check out just how cool you have become!! Who would've thought coolness was this easy??