Getting crafty update: Nothing says the holidays are upon us than receiving your Saturday morning tall skinny vanilla latte from Starbucks in a red cup.

And on top of that, look what I found during my excursion to Wal-Mart this weekend.

And if both of those things weren’t enough, a certain you-know-who was busy Sunday morning checking out the big toy book that came in the paper. The holidays are definitely here.

Who else welcomed daylight savings time with open arms this weekend? The extra hour we got was nice, and Karl managed to take full advantage of it.

After a good ‘ol fashioned breakfast (thanks dad!) my mom brought out a new (yet old) toy for Sidney to check out. This rocking horse was made by my Grandpa Dreiling (my mom’s dad) and I remember playing on it when I was a kid. My grandpa was such a skilled woodworker and I have many fond memories of hanging out in his shop with him.

And since we are officially 49 days away from Christmas, I thought I would give you a SNEAK PEEK at the winning Branstad Family Holiday card photo:

Tomorrow is an important day. It is our privilege as Americans to head to the polls and speak our mind (left or right!) as to who we believe should be at the helm of this ship. Please respect this significant personal freedom and right, and head to your local polling location and VOTE!