Act 3; Scene 28: I'll Be Home for Christmas

...almost.

This was definitely a land-mark Christmas for our little Center family.

Tommy's first Christmas

And we bought ourselves a house.

And a washer and dryer (!!!)

We basically barely made it to the house by Christmas. We moved everything in, and three days later we packed up our things and headed back to the McFarland's for the Christmas holiday.

And since pictures are worth 1000 words, here are a few million words in pictures portraying this epic Christmas:

The views from my kitchen windows on our first morning in the new house; Friday, December 21

From my point of view, relaxing at my parent's Christmas eve day

All of the Roberts--Robert Duane, Robert J, Robert Thomas, Robert WC, and Robert Lucas (in the back)

The traditional Christmas Eve gift--lego transformer dudes

Family Christmas picture here, since we had no tree

Chillin' with Grandpa Bob

Excited on Christmas morning!

 

 

 

 

 First present!

Opening his stocking

An ornament snowman that says Thomas!

Having tons of fun in his new saucer at the new house

 Views out the kitchen windows the day after Christmas!

And that sums it up for now. More pictures of the house and its occupants to come!

Act 3; Scene 27: Merry Christmas Eve

We're finally getting settled in our new house...

and we get to go to Grandma and Grandpa's for Christmas.

Merry Christmas, everyone! Can't wait to post more about the holiday soon.

Watch out for Santa!

Act 3; Scene 26: Christmas Party, Circa 1945

This year the 1940s census was released to the world.

Hurrah, Hooray, Yippee!

This was great big news for Ancestry.com. To celebrate this historic event, A.com decided to theme their annual employee Christmas party around the 1940s--complete with big band, crap tables, toys for tots (started in the 1940s), It's A Wonderful Life, and 1940s apparel.

I was beyond excited. I was already excited to be able to go to a big company Christmas party (I've heard legendary stories about such events)--but discovering that it was themed 1940s and we were "encouraged to come in 1940s formal dress" with prizes for the best costumes made it exactly my kind of party. 

I went to work researching 1940s apparel, hair, and makeup. I fortunately pulled out a black dress from my costume rack that I thought would do the trick. But I knew that the real selling point would be the hair. And that was my big project yesterday.

It started at 7:30am like this:

Painstakingly putting in alternating rows of pin curls

And this is the look I sported for the majority of the day:

 

On my to-do list was a trip to Target. I had to let my hair set, so yes indeed--I took a scarf and wrapped it about my head to go to the store. I looked like an old lady with rollers and Robert had numerous fits of laughter. But you do what you have to do!

Then right around 5pm I took out the pins and went to work on creating the 1940s masterpiece

 

Right after all of the pins and clips were out--yikes, Shirley Temple! Notice the 1940s eyebrows

 After a surprisingly short amount of time brushing, molding, and pinning, here is the final product:

candid camera!

waves in the back

And this one turned out a bit fuzzy, but I think that makes it look even more like a period photo!

My excitement must have leaked, because all of a sudden Robert was asking for suspenders and looking up "men's 1940s hair" on google images. I'm glad I happened to have a "cigar" that puffs and everything for his gangster look!

don't mind the boxes and baby toys in the background...

 We made quite the couple! We didn't win any costume prizes, but boy we had fun dressing up and hitting the town.

And now, in the words of Judy Garland, have yourself a merry little Christmas!

Act 3: Scene 25: It would be great to win this, wouldn't it?

I came across a blog the other day that is hosting a giveaway, and found this lovely little print:

 

 I fell in love. Isn't it cute? You should check out some of her other things here.

Happy Christmas decorating!