Christmas Shoot!

I was so excited to see Michelle and Alyssa again this past Saturday after way too long! I got to take their family Christmas pictures, meet the family, the pets, the works! And after editing for two days, here they are! Hope you like!

That's what happens when I say "test shot" and it turns out good.

Better (: 

There's a time to be silly. Now is that time. 

Love birds

Had to grab a quick pic with Max!

Lys

Jenna

Wyatt

The girls!

The boys!

Tuesday Ten: Christmas Edition

It's finally December! 

And I don't know about you, but one of my favorite things about December is ABC Family's 25 Days of Christmas!!!! (:

And in honor of the 25 Days of Christmas.. instead of TEN things I'm going to do my top TWENTY-FIVE favorite Christmas movies! Because honestly, who can just pick ten? These are going to be in no particular order.

Ready? Let's go!
1. The Santa Clause! Now, if you haven't seen this movie, I'm just assuming you didn't have a childhood, because I think everyone and their mother has seen this movie! It's hilarious and heartwarming and makes you believe in Santa all over again!

2. Single Santa Seeks Mrs. Claus! This is a Hallmark or Lifetime Christmas movie, can't remember which, but it's fantastic! And the title says it all. Santa's son (Nick) has to find a wife before he can take over the family business and he ends up falling for a woman (Beth) and her little boy who don't believe. It's so cute! Love it! 

3. Meet the Santas! This is the sequel to Single Santa Seeks Mrs. Claus and obviously this means that Nick got the girl. But here's the kicker... Nick and Beth have to introduce their parents to each other. And Beth's mom definitely doesn't do Christmas.... how will it all end?

4. Jack Frost! And I'm not talking about the one where the kid's dad turns into a snowman, although I like that one too. I'm talking about the Rankin Bass animated movie. It's my favorite Rankin Bass movie ever!

5. Year Without a Santa Claus! Let me tell you, this used to be my favorite Christmas movie as a kid, just ask my mom. I watched it all the time! Even when it wasn't December! And let's not forget Heat Miser and Snow Miser! 

6. Santa Claus is Coming to Town! LOVED this movie and I still do. The story of Santa Claus, how he got his name(s) and how he started delivering toys and such! Great movie. 

7. All I Want for Christmas! Another 90's movie! Ohhhhh the 90's. A movie about a little girl who just wants her parents to get back together for Christmas and her brother who just wants to get the girl. Such a cute movie!

8. Love Actually! AHHHHH! British humor and the magical connection of eight or nine different couples throughout the movie. This is the flame that sparked the making of Valentine's Day and New Year's Eve. This is the original. And the BEST out of all three! I can't tell you how wonderful this movie is.

9. How the Grinch Stole Christmas! I'm sure a lot of people have seen this one, so let's just admit that it's great! I don't think they could have picked a better person than Jim Carey to play the Grinch, and little Taylor Momsen as Cindy Lou Who? We won't talk about how weird she grew up to be... oops. 

10. The Family Stone. Okay, this is a movie that I watch all year round, but it's set during Christmas time! About a man who comes from a set-in-their-ways family who brings his uptight girlfriend home to meet the family for Christmas. It's hilarious and cute and makes me cry every time.

11. Holiday in Handcuffs. It's an ABC Family movie about a girl who holds a man hostage and makes him pretend to be her boyfriend in order to impress her uptight parents. It's hilarious and cute and not to mention, Mario Lopez is in it. I'm sold! Oh look! You can even watch the whole movie on YouTube. SCORE!

12. The Ultimate Christmas Present. It's a Disney Channel Original movie that came out a few years ago. And I loved it as a kid. I still love it now! Aha. A young girl finds Santa Claus's weather machine and makes it show so school can be cancelled the next day. But soon, the machine can't turn off, creating a snow storm in Los Angeles, California! This causes her dad's plane to be delayed and can't make it home for Christmas. Throw in a nosy weatherman trying to find the cause of this freak storm, plus a perturbed Santa and his two elves trying to find the thief and you've got a recipe for chaos! And look, you can also watch this full movie on YouTube! I love this!!

13. Borrowed Hearts. I've loved this movie since I was little and it's definitely a cute story. A rich bachelor has to impress a client coming to stay over the holidays. The client is big on families and so this rich man needs to impress him... with a family. He hires a single mother and her daughter to play his wife and child.. but what he finds isn't what he expected.

14. Christmas Every Day. This movie stars Erik Von Detten as Billy who keeps reliving Christmas every day until he can realize the true meaning of the holiday. It's hilarious and quirky and fun, not to mention I had a huge crush on Erik Von Detten growing up. 

15. To Grandmother's House We Go. Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen play sisters who are just trying to get to Grandma's house. But they're kidnapped by people who pretend to be elves, sending their mother and her friend on a hilarious hunt! I mean, who DOESN'T love this movie? You can even watch the whole movie on YouTube!  

16. Christmas with the Kranks. I know a lot of people don't really like this movie, but I LOVE IT! It's hilarious and just downright, fun! Not to mention, when I think of Christmas, I always think of Tim Allen, no matter what. The Kranks decide to skip Christmas this year. This means no presents, no decorating, no buying a tree, not even putting up frosty as all of their neighbors do each year. But when their daughter decides she's coming home for Christmas, they have to put Christmas together.. and fast. 

17. The Good Witch's Gift. This is the third movie in a set of Hallmark movies about The Good Witch. Cassie Nightingale moves to a small town and falls in love with the local sherriff, and his two kids, Lori and Brandon. In this movie they've overcome many obstacles and are now engaged to be married on Christmas Eve. But in the planning of the event, things to awry. Cassie's grandmother's ring gets lost, and Lori's blaming Brandon's new girlfriend, Jodi. Not to mention, Jodi's father returns after being in jail for most of her life. It's all set around Christmas and is completely adorable. While I'm at it, I might as well mention that I love ALL of The Good Witch movies. Watch them. 

18. The Holiday. Who doesn't love this movie? If you don't love it, it means you haven't seen it. Go watch it! Two women, fed up with men decide to trade houses for the holidays. One from England, the other from L.A. They both end up finding more than they bargained for... themselves. 

19. Muppet Christmas Carol. Okay, okay, you're probably thinking... the muppets? Yes. The muppets. This is the best Christmas Carol I've ever seen, okay! Seriously, it's funny, cute, and my favorite muppet Rizzo the Rat helps to narrate it. What's better?

20. The 12 Dates of Christmas. This is kind of like Christmas Everyday, that I listed earlier. Except, instead of waking up on Christmas everyday, Kate is waking up on Christmas Eve every day. And throughout her 12 days of Christmas Eve she has to get over the fact that her father's moved on after her mom's death, get over her ex-boyfriend who's moved on with his new fiance, and meet the man of her dreams all the while helping other people who need it. And every day something goes wrong until she finally gets it all right. It's just a cute ABC Family movie! Watch the full movie on YouTube! 

21. The Christmas List. Another ABC Family movie about a woman who never takes risks, never strives to improve her life and works at the perfume counter of a department store. When her friend urges her to make a Christmas list, she lists all the things she really wants, but knows she would never get for Christmas. A new car, makeover, puppy, old fashioned Christmas like when she was a kid, bedroom slippers, etc. Well, after her friend submits the list to Santa's box against her wishes, she starts getting what she wished for! In mysterious ways! It's so cute and I love this movie. Give it a shot! 

22. Elf. What kind of person would I be if I didn't put Elf down? Now, I am not a Will Ferrell fan at all, but I love this movie! I mean with lines like, "Santa! I know him!" and "Smiling's my favorite." and "I'm singing. I'm in a store and I'm singing!" who can't love this movie? 

23. Santa and the Three Bears. Ask my mother, this movie was ALWAYS on in our house when I was a kid. ALWAYS. I loved this movie so much I watched it all the time in winter, spring, summer, or fall. I didn't care if it was June, I watched this movie. Basically, a park ranger tells two bear cubs about Christmas and Santa Claus. The two bear cubs get so excited they decide to skip hibernation and wait up for Santa! So cute! 

24. Eloise at Christmastime! How could I forget this one? Eloise is six. She lives at the Plaza Hotel in New York City. She loves pink. Eloise spends all of her time making her shopping list for her friends and neighbors and also a list of things she wants. She tries to help Nanny and Sir Wilkes get together, make Max talk, irritate Prunella, and annoy Mr. Salamone. And when Mr. Peabody's daughter, Rachel, comes back to the Plaza to get married on Christmas Eve, Eloise wants nothing more than to help plan the wedding! That is until Eloise finds out that Rachel and Eloise's best friend Bill, the actor/waiter, used to be in love. Now Eloise's priority is getting them together again, and finding out why Rachel's fiance Brooks isn't so nice.

25. For my last movie, I'm going to have to say Just Friends! AHHHH! My bestfriend and I love this movie! We literally used to watch it all the time, quote it all the time, ahaha! Chris used to be fat. But he moved away from home, dropped the pounds and became a successful record producer who could get any girl he wanted. But when he makes an unexpected trip home for Christmas and sees the girl who friend-zoned him for so many years, his new priority is getting her to fall for him - but there are a few obstacles along the way.. for instance his crazy ex-girlfriend who tagged along with him home, and Dusty Dinkleman who's "not to hot" transformation was just as drastic as Chris's own. The movie is filled with hilarious lines! If you haven't seen it, please do! You'll love it! 

Here's to wishing you a Merry Christmas!