Hey Friends,

I've not been blogging for too very long and I am by far not a "professional blogger" like my friend Frank that send me this little thing called a Christmas meme.

You will see at the end of this that I had to "tag" 7 other bloggers .... I don't think I know 7 other bloggers, but I'll do my best!! So here goes .. here is Stacy's Christmas meme .. enjoy :)

Here's the Christmas Meme I got from Frank Murphy from Star 102.1. Rules for the game include:

1. Link to the person that tagged you, and post the rules on your blog.

2. Share Christmas facts about yourself.

3. Tag seven random people at the end of your post, and include links to their blogs.

4. Let each person know that they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

Welcome to the Christmas edition of "Getting to Know Your Friends."

1. Wrapping or gift bags?
I love some cute wrapping supplies so really just whatever I like. I like to have someone "un-wrap" a gift, so I tend to wrap, even though I'm not great at it and I don't really enjoy it. The package "accessories" are what get me .. they are so darn cute! I always get my stuff the days after Christmas. Can't beat that 50% off!! Especially when the next year you go to the wrapping paper isle and they have the same stuff as the year before :)

2. Real or artificial tree?
It's artificial .. but really pretty!! We got a new one this year. The first one we bought when we were dating and put in my house that I rented in KY. It was this little 15 dollar 6 foot tree that did just fine, until last year. The day after Christmas we both running around to go to work and all of a sudden ... bam!! The tree just cracked and fell over?!?! Actually the stand broke. All of our ornaments survived so we weren't too upset! It was too late to buy a new one on sale last year .. people grab those babies up fast, so we bought a new one this year and it's so pretty! It has the LED lights so it uses less energy and they are big and bright! Real trees smell so good and are so fun to go pick out, but I kill anything that requires water .. except my cats I do a pretty good job at keeping them alive :)

3. When do you put up the tree?
As soon as we can. I always loved putting it up the weekend after Thanksgiving, but since my husband and I tend to work holidays we have started having Thanksgiving the Saturday after Thanksgiving day. So now we (okay not we y husband technically puts it up .. but I'm there and I decorate) usually get to it as soon as we can the week after Thanksgiving.

4. When do you take the tree down?
The first chance we get after the new year. Earlier if we wont' be able to do it for a while after wards.

5. Do you like egg nog?
Yuck ... Gag ... Yuck !!! Umm, that would be a no.

6. Favorite gift received as a child?
Santa was always very good to me when I was little and I am very grateful for that, so I am having a difficult time remembering something specific I loved more than anything else. Seems like one year back when Dooney and Bourke purses were really in style (they were in style in the late 80's then are obviously back now), I can remember my childhood friend Carrie and I begging for them. I got a navy and brown leather one .. many I wish i would have kept that thing!!! I would have vintage Dooney and Bourke :)

7. Do you have a nativity scene?
No. But I will always remember the one that hung in the corner at my granny Taylor's house. I also remember the one that sat on a table at my neighbor Buddy and Dianne's house. They always waited to put Jesus in the manger the morning of Christmas!

8. Worst Christmas gift you ever received?
I don't want to hurt any-ones feelings so I'm not going to say. See, the person that gets me (and my husband) the gifts we would just NEVER use is someone we care about very much. Regardless, it's the thought that counts so my lips are sealed ;)

9. Mail or email Christmas cards?
It becomes such a hassle .. but rewarding when you drop them in the mail. We mail out about 80 Christmas Cards each year! I even did this nice newsletter with pictures of "The Stanley's Year In Review" last year. Not enough time this year so I did a "family picture"! I'll include it below for you to enjoy as well !!

10. Favorite Christmas Movie?
CHARLIE BROWN!!!!!

11. When do you start shopping for Christmas?
Just whenever I can afford to start shopping. Since we don't have children yet, we don't really save a little from each check. So starting in November if I see something I like I just buy here and there.

12. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas?
There isn't one single item I don't think. Even if there was I probably can't have it now, or have had to alter the recipe, since my diagnosis with Celiac Disease. In general I just like the home cooked meal (the corn, beans, dressing, rolls, broccoli casserole) that seems to just taste different those two times (Thanksgiving and Christmas) every year

13. Clear lights or colored on the tree?
I am a big fan of the simple classy clear lights. I love them on some garland. That is what we have outside around our door. However my husband and I go with a traditional tree with a lot of different kinds of ornaments from childhood and different types of new ornaments we have bought over the years. Having a tree like that reminds both of us of "growing up". So we use colored lights. Plus our upstairs where we have the tree is bright vibrant colors ... so it matches :)

14. Favorite Christmas song?
Hmmmm. Gotta go with the great Dan Fogelberg "Same Ole Lang Syne". My next favorite is a new CD I just bought by Mindy Smith called "My Holiday."

15. Travel at Christmas or stay home?
Stay home. Always have and hopefully always will. I was away from home ONE year when I lived in KY ... I cried, really!! But that was mainly because I was all alone, it was so cold and snowing and I had to work, haha!!

16. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer?
Well of course ... want me to sing them too?!?!

17. Angel on the tree top or a star?
We have a star right now ... but that may change because we are thinking of getting something different when everything goes on sale next week... we'll see.

18. Open the presents Christmas Eve or Christmas Morning?
This makes me so sad to say ... but for us it's just never the same from year to year. My husband and I both have jobs in which there is a good chance we will work on holidays. So it sort of changes from year to year. Growing up I would set the alarm for no later than 6am (just in case I was somehow still asleep) and I would run downstairs and wake my mom and dad up so we could open presents!! We would open in our PJ's, have a little breakfast and then get ready and head to my granny's house and have the most wonderful tradition of eating a HUGE meal, exchanging presents and spending time with a packed house of family from all over. That all changed when my granny passed away in 2001. Don't get me wrong, Christmas is still a special time of year for me, but it really hasn't been the same since she passed away. That is why it's so important that when my husband and I have children we have similar memories as we did when we were children. Until then we will be flexible! We've actually already exchanged gifts with each other this year!

19. Most annoying thing about this time of year?
Getting everything out to decorate and then putting it all up again .. what a headache!! We don't even go all out either!

20. Do you decorate your tree in any specific theme or color?
Nope, as I said before we really like to be able to just buy what we like and hang it on the tree. Both of us growing up had trees that had "this and that" on them. We really like that :)

21. What do you leave for Santa?
Usually chocolate chip cookies or decorated sugar cookies and milk. This year Santa will get some gluten free cookies .. promise he will think they are just as good .. if not better!

22. Least favorite holiday song?
I tend to listen to my own mixes that have songs I like on them, so I don't think I have a least favorite. Let me listen to satellite radio for a few days and I'll let you know!

23. Favorite ornament?
Let me set this answer up with a story. Growing up one of my favorite things to eat was pickles. Haha, really I would eat a jar at a time if my mom and dad didn't catch me!! Even more strange I didn't eat the "outside" skin! I still don't .. just don't like the texture/taste! Anyway, my friend Carrie bought me a pickle ornament for Christmas one year. There wasn't a year that went by after I grew up and we went lost touch, that I didn't think of her when I saw that on my moms tree. We are back in touch now so I'll have to make sure she reads this blog. But I do have sad news ... my mom said the pickle fell off the tree and broke last year. So if anyone fines a pickle ornament, let me know :) Other than that , there are two we have now that I will always think are special. They are these wooden, hand painted stockings. One has my name, the other has Brian's name. We got them in Hazard several years ago when we lived there. Each year we hang the one with our name on it on the tree. We also got one for our cats Gizmo and Hildi .. they hang theirs on the tree too :)

** The questionnaire I received ends here. No self-respecting Christmas survey should end at question number 23. I will add two questions to make it 25. ** (this is per frank I'm guessing)

24. Family tradition?
As I mentioned most of mine faded when my grandmother passed away. I hope over the years we discover some new traditions. I guess for now our tradition is opening presents early! That and Christmas PJ's .. we always buy new Christmas PJ's :)

25. Ever been to Midnight Mass?
I don't go to a Midnight Mass, but I do go to a Christmas Eve service. I think it's one of the most spiritual moments you can ever experience. I remember as a young girl going to one at my church at First Baptist in La Follette. It was so silent and I remember just really feeling Gods presence all around me. My husband and I are members of a Methodist church here in Knoxville and I will attend our special Christmas Even service with communion .. I'm excited!

** Well Frank added 2 extra questions because he couldn't end on 23 ... so to make it another random number I think I'll add on another question and make it 26 **

26. Most memorable good deed you witnessed or participated in during the holidays?
I've seen allot of good this time of year. We show it to you on the news about every single night this time of year. So I'll share with you one of the times I'll always remember most. It was last year with my husband. Late in the evening we decided to go to KARM and take socks, gloves, blankets, pillows, etc. Usually you drop off donations and they distribute, so it's rare guests just get a visitor pop up bearing items they desperately need. It was so cold that night ..single digits. So we bundled up, went to the store, bought as much as we could and then went to Kroger and bought dozens and dozens of cookies. The manager asked what I was doing and when we told him he let us write a letter so we could get them for free! Another person saw overheard the conversation and handed me cash to buy some extra blankets .. it was just this amazing chain reaction. We went in and chatted with everyone for a good hour. They were so grateful. We were so humbled.

Okay now I get to tag SEVEN bloggers ... problem ... I don't know SEVEN bloggers so I'll do a one I know, a few I don't know and maybe I'll make some new friends! Here we go. (Bob I'll be nice and leave you Allison) :) I'm guessing after they find out they have been "tagged" they will do the same and then post a comment on my blog saying they have their answers up?? I hope I've got this :)

Oh and P.S. I'm really hoping for no errors in spelling, etc. Give me some slack if so .. it's after midnight and my body is all off from working nights the past couple of days! But I'm snoozing in tomorrow!! C-ya back on ETTM Christmas Eve!!

Here are the people I "tagged" :

Bob Yarbrough 

Byron Chesney 

Brian Hornback 

Walker Johnson 

Dave Tabler 

Knoxville Gospel Blog (byron this may be you too .. if so you can have someone else do it, haha) 

Dave Foulk      

Stacy :)