5 on Friday, Home + Holiday Edition

I almost never say this, but this week flew by. And I don't think I've ever said it after having a three day weekend, so I guess this has been a pretty crazy few days. I've managed to plan some things for the Christmas party, pull out the Christmas decorations, do a bit of gift shopping, and get plenty done at work. This week's 5 are all things home+holiday related!

One.

I've come to the conclusion we need another piece of furniture in the dining area. Do I need to display my cake stands and dishes instead of storing them in the cabinets? I'm not sure, but I'm leaning toward a big fat yes. We have all windows and no wall space around the table, so anything too tall is really not an option.

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Two.

While we're at it, I've been keeping my eyes open for another chair for the family room. Right now there's a Christmas tree in what was our empty corner. After the holiday's, I'd like to fill that space with another place to sit.

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Three.

Have you heard of Grandin Road? Frontgate? I knew about the catalogues, but when Katie told me there was an outlet nearby, I had to check it out. I stopped by on my lunch break and Grandin Road had EVERYTHING (except holiday decor) 50% off the lowest price. It was music to my ears when the lady told me, and I managed to snag this baby (in a different color) for a mere $75 dollars.

There was a ton of other things I liked, but since I was on lunch (and this took up all the room in my car), I'll be taking Will back this weekend. We never go shopping in this part of town, so it will be a nice change of Saturday afternoon.

Four.

I have actually never been to an ugly sweater themed party. I also do NOT feel like trolling the thrift stores for something to wear to the one we're hosting. Or coordinating any type of fashionable outfit for that matter. Insert Etsy. I was surprised at the amount of campy yet still cute Christmas sweaters and shirts to pick from. I think I have it narrowed down to these few.

here

here

here

Five.

The Brighton Center. I've been meaning to volunteer somewhere for months, and the Thanksgiving + Christmas spirit has inspired me to make it happen. I promised myself once we moved and everything was settled after the wedding, I would do something to give back to the world. I truly believe that to consider yourself a "good" human being, you have to put something positive back into society. Take a pretty picture. Raise a polite child. Pick up a piece of trash off of the street once a year. Do something besides serve yourself. I heard something about this organization on the radio this morning, and I knew it was perfect.

Taken from their site:

Our mission - To create opportunities for individuals and families to reach self-sufficiency through support services, education and leadership. To us, self-sufficiency is taking responsibility to provide for yourself and your family using available resources. 

I think it's extremely important to give people knowledge about the resources available to them. To give them the encouragement and skills to get back on their feet, not just a hot meal because it's Christmas time. I am absolutely not qualified to decide what is good for others, but this theory sounds pretty good to me.

And that's 5. Linking up with Natasha. Happy Friday!