December 11, 2015

What's been going on in my life this month and a VSS check-in


Yesterday marked exactly five months since my last birthday. It's staggering how quickly time flies, one month tumbling into the next, life a series of moments and emotions, smiles, highs, lows and memories. I'd hoped to get a new outfit post up this week, but there was no way that was going to happen as the days progressed.

This month has been - and will continue to be - staggeringly busy. The most jam packed, hectic one of 2015, topping even October, and while there will be outfit posts as the weeks progress, again, there was just no way for one to be squeezed in at present. Soon though, including a couple of stellar holiday season dresses that I can't wait to show you guys!

Since getting back from Vancouver last week, I've been crazy busy both vintage Vintage Secret Santa happenings, as well as packing up and shipping out a ton of wonderful Etsy shop orders that have been pouring in recently. I had some requests from blog readers for such to cover payday today, so I've extended the 25% off VSS coupon code there until tomorrow.

If you'd like to purchase anything for your VSS match, yourself, or someone else, you can take 25% off all orders when you use the coupon code VSS25 at checkout until December 12th.
 
Keeping pace with those happenings has been the holiday season itself, which as we all know, usually only gets busier and busier as the 25th draws nearer!

Also, before the end of the month, as a small business owner I need to file my Canadian PST and GST tax reports, which essentially means doing all of my 2015 taxes (in order to generate the precise numbers for each) this month, too. Not exactly what one wants to be dealing with for several days during Christmastime, but it must be done, so no sense in bemoaning it too much.
 
Further on top of those things - and very exciting - Tony and I recently decided that the time had come to get a new (be actually brand new or just slightly use) car. Our current one - which was actually our first car ever - was bought secondhand for a stellar deal back in early 2012 and has served us well for nearly four years now.

However, for a myriad of reasons, it's no longer the best fit for our current lifestyle (a big one being that we need a great deal more room than it provides, including for Annie, our energetic 65+ lbs dog, as well as for when we travel and for when I sell in person at vintage shows) and so this month we've been pouring our a lot of time, thought and energy into researching, test driving, and hunting for our next vehicle.



{The models – and prices! – might change, but the act of buying a car remains much the same as it did back when this photo was taken around the start of the 1950s. Vintage auto dealership image source.}
 
We haven't found "the one" yet, but we're getting closer and are both incredibly excited about this prospect. We've needed a bigger vehicle for ages and knowing that one will soon be ours is giving me some much needed pep to get through these crazy busy weeks!
 
Back, for a moment, to the VSS. For those taking part in this year's Vintage Secret Santa, 100% of the match emails were sent out to all participants by the (PST) morning hours of December 2nd. If you have not yet seen your email in your inbox (it should have been there about 1.5 weeks ago now), please check your spam (a lot of users who signed up with a Hotmail email are having their VSS messages land in their spam filters for some unknown reason - maybe Hotmail isn't in a festive mood this year Winking smile), deleted message, and archived message folders going back to November 30th.
 
If you don't see your VSS match email in any of those spots, please contact me by email right away and I get your match info out to you again. There's less than two weeks to go now until Christmas and if you signed up for the VSS, it's very important that you honour your commitment and mail out a gift to your match, who, just like yourself, is no doubt excited for, and expecting to receive, a festive gift as part of this fun online gift swap.
 
Definitely lots going on this month on our for sure, which is great! I've also been giving a lot of thought to the direction of my blog, my wardrobe, my social media accounts, and many other important aspects of my life and work as we head into 2016, so I've got oodles on my (vintage china) plate right now and am seriously excited to see how it will all play out in the coming year.
 
I hope that you're each having a terrific December and that, hopefully, yours is at least a bit less harried than mine!
 
Have an awesome weekend and countdown to Christmas, my dears!!!















39 comments:

  1. My my, very busy indeed! Well hopefully you find the car that best suits you both. These last few weeks have really put a damper on getting into the Christmas spirit... First my laptop needed servicing, my check engine light popped on in the car, I've been consistently sick with they think is Bronchitis. Come on! It's hard to find the holiday spirit in that. Mannnnn. Just gotta keep on truckin'
    <3 Jackie @ Let's Go Thrifting

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    1. Oh goodness, you poor thing. I'm really sorry that you've been going through a lot lately, including bronchitis. It is such an insidious illness (my mom and sister both have asthma and chronic bronchitis, so I'm very familiar with its effects, plus I've had it a few times in my life, too, though I don't have asthma). I wholeheartedly hope that that you'll soon be feeling worlds better and filled with the holiday spirit.

      Gentle hugs & healing wishes,
      ♥ Jessica

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  2. happy early holidays stay busy and happy

    retro rover

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    1. Hi sweet Kate, thank you for the holiday season wishes. No worries there. :) It's as good as written in stone that I'll be uber busy all month long. I know I'll pay on the health front (I already am somewhat), but that's life and sometimes you just how to plow through and try to enjoy your days all the same, even if you scarcely have a moment to stop and catch your breath.

      Joyful Christmas countdown wishes to you and your family!
      ♥ Jessica

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  3. I got a new car recently too (well, new to me) and I love it! It is an SUV so I totally get why you would want a bigger car - this car suits me down to the ground!

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    1. That's awesome! A crossover/SUV is almost certainly going to be our next vehicle, too. I get giddy just thinking about it. Finally having ample space in a car will be a dream come true - not to mention beyond practical for our life.

      Have a fantastic weekend!
      ♥ Jessica

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  4. Congrats on the new car (hunt)! That's exciting, if a little stressful, I bet! I think it's interesting that Canada has you file those taxes at the literal end of the calendar year -- it must add some stress but it's more predictable than the middle of April like in the US!

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    1. Thank you!!! Even though we don't have our new set of wheels yet, I'm over-the-moon happy about the prospect of such. Technically filing one's business taxes (for a small business like mine) isn't due until late spring for the following year, but since you have to file your GST and PST numbers (the tax charged to all Canadian customers and those in my own province, respectively) by the end of the year, it means you pretty much have to do all of the rest of the paperwork and number crunching to get that data anyway. Really strange timing, I agree - and doing it earlier, isn't possible (in full at least), as I could have sales that would need to be accounted for right until the very last day of the year. Oh well! At least I'll have the fun of the holidays to help counterbalance the stress of taxes.

      Big hugs & joyful Christmas countdown wishes!
      ♥ Jessica

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  5. Good Luck with the Car Purchase! That is a big deal indeed and I'm sure you will find just the right fit...for your dog hehehehe.

    I hope your taking time to enjoy the festive season as well during this busy time.

    Happy Friday!

    Liz :)

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    1. Thank you very much, sweet Liz. I really hope so, too. This weekend has been almost exclusively devoted to that search and we're getting closer for sure. I'm almost giddy with the thought of finally having a roomy vehicle! :)

      Tons of hugs & happy holiday wishes!
      ♥ Jessica

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  6. No matter how much planning I do December is always such a busy hectic month. Fortunately, I have one week left before I get some time off to catch up on everything. I hope you will find time to take it easy yourself, Miss Jessica. Sounds like you could use some R&R this holiday ;)

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    1. So true! I've often said that October is our busiest month of the year, and sometimes it has been, but in recent times, December has been beating it out and this one is definitely no exception.

      Thank you, my sweet friend. I know that virtually none will be possible this month, but I'll be sure to try and catch up on my R&R in January.

      I hope you guys have a fun filled, fabulous - and at least somewhat relaxing - holiday season!

      Many hugs,
      ♥ Jessica

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  7. The holidays add extra obligations onto our lives so we feel busier and sometimes even overwhelmed, but I welcome the cheery spirit of this time of year. Just walking around feels different with all the decorations and music. I hope you enjoy this month, my dear!

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    1. It most certainly does, I agree. There merriment and collective cheer in the air - and on the airwaves themselves in the form of holiday music - are such an important and revitalizing element of the very last weeks of the year. No matter how much is on my plate, these sorts of things help to bolster my spirits and see me through this jam packed season.

      Merry Christmas wishes, Ally. I hope it's a marvelous one for you!

      ♥ Jessica

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  8. Dear Jess,
    I will not let one thing go just like that.. the fragment of this sentence "...and for when I sell in person at vintage shows". Having someone who himself is not absolutely mad about vintage, but respects and supports YOUR efforts and cares enough to drive you (and props!) to the vintage show, spend time there.. that is one heck of a man!
    So, cheers to Tony.
    (we don't praise him enough here, dear!) :)

    M.

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    1. Truly is he, Marija, you couldn't be more right. I am grateful for the many, many ways that Tony helps, supports and encourages my vintage endeavours, almost none of which would be possible to the same extent without his awesomeness. Thank you very much for recognizing his efforts as well. That sincerely means a lot to me.

      Tons of hugs,
      ♥ Jessica

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  9. Wishing you some down time soon! Xo Jazzy Jack

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    1. Thank you very much, sweet lady. Chances are that will happen once we're well into January - or maybe February. Usually the second month of the year isn't too crazy busy (but one never knows).

      Hope you're having a terrific weekend!

      Many hugs,
      ♥ Jessica

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  10. Good morning Jessica,

    I'll take THAT one! I love that photo of the woman looking at the beautiful car through the window.

    Oh, a new (new or new/used)car will be nice! During the course of our marriage, my husband and I bought two previous daily rentals, which were only a year old at the time we purchased them. We bought our first (one and only) brand-NEW vehicle a few Christmases ago. We spent the entire Christmas season visit dealership after dealership looking for just the right vehicle and finally settled upon our beautiful van just a day or two before New Years. I hope you the best in your own search.

    I am looking forward to your holiday dress post - what fun!

    Have a glorious Saturday, me dear!

    Hugs,
    ♥Hope

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    1. Hi lovely Hope, she rally jumped out at me as well. Thank you! I'm so, so excited at the prospect of a new vehicle, especially one with scores more room. It's really cool that we'll both soon (in my case) have memories of a new (or new to us) car during the winter holiday season.

      We're getting closer! This whole weekend is being devoted to our search and we've really, really narrowed the list down (from over 50 vehicles across BC and Alberta to less than five at present). There's a very good chance we'll have a new set of wheels before the week is out.

      Joyful weekend wishes and tons of hugs,
      ♥ Jessica

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  11. We've never had a new car and I can't imagine we ever would! I hope you find the perfect car for your needs :)

    xxx

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    1. Thank you very much, sweet Melanie. I suspect that ours will be used, but not terribly old (1 - 5 years), as going that route can be so much more budget friendly. The search is going well and we've got a shortlist of less than five very, very possible final choices at this point.

      Big hugs & happy weekend wishes,
      ♥ Jessica

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  12. Congratulations for the new prospect car, dear Jessica! I normally am very "zen" and like to have peace, but then it leads me to lethargy - and then I don't like it. So being busy, and I was this year, drives me a bit mad, but I guess I now see that it has positive sides. I hope everything goes well in every field of your life, having a busy December, but lovely Christmas! And that all is well with taxes - the not so good part of owning a company. But needed :) A lovely weekend for you and your family!
    DenisesPlanet.com

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  13. don´t remind me on taxes.... oh my.
    :-)
    i´m so glad that your web shop keeps you busy! no wonder with all that fab stuff!
    it´s busy at our end too - the final countdown to finish the construction work of our new water cleaning plant. not very glamorous of cause - but we will be sooooo happy when it´s complete :-)))

    tons of hugs for you!!! xxxxxx

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    1. Hi sweet Beate, that definitely sounds hectic as well. Fingers crossed that everything goes smoothly on the reno front. That's how we feel about the new car hunt, too. Lots of work and decision making, but worth it million times over when all is said and done.

      Here's to a great second half of December on both our ends!

      Huge hugs coming right back at you!
      ♥ Jessica

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  14. How exciting about a new car! No wonder you're so busy..! I feel similarly at the moment and am looking forward to the end of this week when the Christmas break will start for me :) lots to do first though! Good luck with staying on top of things! xx

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    1. Thank you very much, my sweet friend. Hopefully!!! Goodness knows this past couple of weeks have been crazy busy and the rest of the month will be, too, especially once I start (ugh!) taxes closer to Christmas. Hopefully it means I can coast into 2016 more easily though and maybe even get some R&R in the new year (a gal can hope! :)).

      Tons of hugs & relaxing wishes,
      ♥ Jessica

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  15. Exciting news! I hope you find a great new car that works well for your new life.

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    1. Thank you! It really is! We just returned home from another long, but certainly very enjoyable day of test driving cars. I sense we could have our new set of wheels before Christmas at this fast paced rate. *Happiness squeal!* :)

      I hope that you're having a great December, too, my lovely friend.

      Big hugs,
      ♥ Jessica

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  16. Fun, fun & more fun! Happy car shopping! I learned a valuable lesson one year when I bought a car during the holidays. December to be specific. That $300 registration fee at Christmas was a bummer. Take your time looking for the perfect ride for your family. Enjoy the holiday madness, for soon there will be holiday sadness. The tree we love decorated with care will soon be gone, the living room bare. How about a Valentine's Day tree? You'd love one too and especially me! 🎄

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    1. Hi sweet Christy, thank you for your lovely comment. During a post-Christmas Day 50% off sale back in 2012, I bought a cute (very 1950s/60s appropriate) little miniature pink Christmas tree and have kept it out all year ever since. It's the perfect thing to decorate not only for December 25th itself, but Valentine's Day, Easter, birthdays, anniversaries, or just simply because. So clearly are minds were on the same festive page with the idea of a Valentine's Day tree. :)

      Many hugs & joyful holiday season wishes,
      ♥ Jessica

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  17. I'm damn busy too, and have to admit that my VSS gift will be sent today. I really would have loved to send it earlier, but life (and December) came in the way. Well, it is wrapped and one of my homemade cards are written for her. I've just written the last Christmas cards today and will send DH to mail box with it all. I hope she likes it, I visited her different accounts and think she will. :) My back ache is finally much better, which I love. I was really getting sick and tired of the pain. We got a Christmas tree this Saturday, it took me all day to decorate it, but I love it! Christmas trees are the best part of all December. DH has baked about 850 cookies, and I only need to wrap a few gifts. My work is really extremely busy, so my Wednesdays are packed with all the chores I don't have neither brain nor energy to do in the other evenings. lots of hugs from rainy Denmark (no white Christmas for us, I'm sure :() XOXO

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    1. Hi lovely Sanne, please don't feel bad for a moment. I appreciate you letting me know that you'll be posting out your present this wee. I mailed my VSS gift out today (the 14th) as well. It's to someone in my own country, so it will arrive in time.

      It is truly fantastic that you're back is presently doing somewhat better. I have been very worried about you, my dear friend. With all my heart, I hope that you're spared any more back pain agony this holiday season (and of course in the new year that lies ahead, too).

      Gentle hugs, joyful holiday season wishes, and countless thanks for each and every one of your beautiful blog comments this year.

      ♥ Jessica

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  18. Merry Christmas to you!

    I now have the fear that my gift won't be plush enough, and I just hope the recipient sees the time that went into it (I made part of it). I think it's lovely, but I have no idea how extravagant people get with this.

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    1. Thank you very much, sweet Mim. Ooohh, don't beat yourself up, I bet that your VSS gift is fantastic and that your match is going to adore, and appreciate, it. Huge thanks again for taking part in this year's delightful VSS.

      Joyful holiday season wishes,
      ♥ Jessica

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  19. Dear Jessica,
    Thank you so much for organizing the VSS! But I was wondering, if we received our absolutely wonderful, fabulous terrific VSS present and want to babble delightedly about it (and don't belong to Facebook) is there somewhere for us to share our happy Christmas feelings with you and our fellow gift swappers? I really hope there is!

    Merry Christmas and a Happy Yule to all,
    Juliette

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  20. Hi Juliette, thank you very much for taking part in the VSS and for your terrific question. The main spot where folks are sharing about their VSS gifts is on Instagram, so if you're on that site, I welcome you to do the same. If you're not, I would suggest leaving a comment on the announcement post (back in November) about this year's VSS, as I know a fair number of folks (who take part) go back and read the comments there throughout December and January.

    Your comment has made me think that in future years, I should make a point of inviting people to do just that - using it as a bit of a VSS public forum. Thank you for the great idea!

    Joyful holiday season wishes!
    ♥ Jessica

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  21. Thank you, I'll head back to the original post! Because I had one very SPECIAL Santa!!!

    And since I have every intention of participating next year I'll look forward to a dedicated page where we can share our fabulous presents!

    This is a wonderful idea from start to finish, ... thank you again for organizing it!

    Merry Christmas!

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    1. Hi Juliette, you're very welcome. It's fantastic that you had such a special Santa this year. That just warms my heart through and through to hear.

      It is truly my pleasure and something I plan to keep doing for as long as possible. We may only have two under our belts so far, but it has already become a really integral part of the holiday season for myself, and based on the feedback that I've received, for a lot of those who participate as well, so definitely look for a VSS again in 2016. :)

      Many hugs & joyful holiday season wishes,
      ♥ Jessica

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