here comes Santa Claus...

I'm finger deep in Mod Podge right now but I thought I should write a quick post before it gets to0 late.

Here are a few highlights from the week before Christmas...

1. the house is a mess, I turned the dining room table into craft central...paper, ink, Mod Podge, photos, and glue all over the place

2. my laundry is also all over the house...bedroom floor, living room floor, in the dryer (none of it is folded)

3. I haven't wrapped a single present.

4. the days are going by so slowly, I'm dying to see my nieces and nephews.

5. I'm running out of time.

6. I really want to see Trans-Siberian Orchestra again....

7. I've been letting my Google reader pile up all week on purpose...on Christmas Eve morning I will curl up on the couch w/ the iPad/coffee and catch up :)

8. I have the 24th-28th off....it's been 5 years since I've had that much time off for Christmas.

9. I love my job.

10. I'm SOOOOOOOOOO excited for Christmas! seriously, I'm bursting with joy at the thought of being surrounding by my family all weekend. I am so blessed.

11. I wish Colin had more time off, but I'm grateful that he will be with us for part of it.

Merry Christmas!!

hump day!

My to-do list is haunting me. I keep adding things to it but haven't been able to cross anything off (except the paperclip holder)...so much to do and I wish I could say "so little time" but I think it's more a lack of focus. I mean there's nothing dire on the list, it's just this gloomy cloud hanging over my head. I keep finding other things to do like watch Glee...which I'm doing as I write this. (at least I'm multi-tasking!) I love Glee soooo much! Speaking of Glee, the other show that has been keeping me from my to-do list is The Sing-Off! I'm such a sucker for musical shows! I think we may actually get the holiday pictures done tonight, Colin has the camera on the tri-pod. I guess I should change out of my Run For Jon shirt for that.

Apparently there is no snow in Peru...well, luckily that's not the case here!! Plenty of snow already and it's still coming down :-)

exercise

I'm not sure why...but I exercised today. I was about to jump in the shower and somehow I ended up in the basement on the treadmill. It's been over 6 months since I've done anything physical so I have to document this occasion.

1.5 miles/21 minutes

40 crunch thingys

10 push ups (I thought I was going to die)

30 minutes of Wii Fit! (I'm nots sure this counts as exercise, but it was fun)

soundtrack: New Found Glory-From the Screen to Your Stereo

I'm not sure if I'll be able to walk tomorrow, but right now I feel good, even though Wii Fit told me I'm 31......

TGIF!

It's Friday and it was a busy day at work. I know most people don't turn their Christmas lights on until they get home from work, but I really love coming home after a long day at work and seeing those lights. It makes my day, therefore I rarely unplug our outside lights. I'm sure the electric company will thank us at the end of the month...I on the other hand, thank myself every night when I come home. :-)

Candice is coming over tomorrow for a day full of Christmas crafting and baking. I'm still not sure what's on the agenda but I'm super excited! No matter what we end up doing I know will be a blast because it always is. I'm off to do some odds and ends around the house and make dinner for Colin.

December!

Merry Christmas! It's finally December and I couldn't be more thrilled. We started our advent calendar today. Colin humored me and did the 1st day. In case there happens to be someone other than Candice and Jenni reading this....my advent calendar is probably my most prized possession. It was made by my super talented dad out of drift wood from Ausable Point.

Each little door has a few ornaments behind it to decorate the cute little tree seen above.

Colin apparently didn't get that and went straight for our big tree... I kindly redirected him to the small tree, crisis averted. (notice how the small tree is right next to the advent calendar and the big tree was across the room behind him...)

Here's a shot of our nativity scene, also made by my dad.

So there's a little Christmas cheer for the 1st day of December. I'm so excited for the weeks to come. Lots to do and lots to look forward to!

giving thanks day

It's Thanksgiving! I love Thanksgiving for a few reasons...

1. spending time with family

2. the food

3. it's the official start to the Christmas season

This year Colin and I are spending the holiday in NY at my parent's house. It's just the 4 of us so it's quiet, but nice. Colin and I will go back to VT tonight because we are both working tomorrow.

This is what I love about coming home...

Happy Thanksgiving! It's time to set the table.

Road trip through VT

The first weekend of October, Candice and I took a road trip together through Vermont! Sadly I do not have pictures of the beginning of the trip which involved us being stuck in a ditch in Waitsfield, VT. Just in case you've never been to Waitsfied...there's no cell coverage. On the bright side, the people of Waistfield are very friendly! At least 5 people stopped to help. Eventually we were pulled out of the ditch by a passerby. I was so glad I didn't have to pay a tow truck!!

After the ditch dilemma, we made our way to the Waitsfield Famer's Market! It was the best farmer's market I've ever been to. They had everything you could ever want...local peanut butter, live music, homemade jellies, handmade quilts, bread, and Fall foliage! I got a simosa for lunch and Candice got a yummy looking chicken wrap. We were both in heaven.

Across from the farmer's market was a store called The Store. Again, we were in heaven. It was the perfect mix of old and new. The first floor was home to a variety of speciality foods and housewares and the upstairs was full of antiques! I bought some maple pumpkin butter and maple popcorn, both were delicious. Of course, it wouldn't be Vermont without a random cow hanging out with the antiques!

When we got in the car to leave, I turned and pointed to a sign on the billboard saying, "Candice, that's where I want to get married!". She told me to look it up on the GPS and see how far away it was. The GPS said 5 minutes, so off we went! I had been to the website awhile ago and thought it was the perfect place to get married. I was right....

We chose the right day to stop by, they were having a free art show and we got to walk around aimlessly and plan my wedding. :-) On our way back we stopped at the Cabot Annex in Waterbury. We must've tried 25 different cheeses, it was fantastic. Then we made our way through Stowe and up through Smuggler's Notch. Nobody ever warned me about Smuggler's Notch....it's a death trap. It's very pretty, but it's insane!! There was one point in the road where I came to a dead stop with a huge boulder to the right of us (I think Candice could've reached out and touched it), it was one lane at this point and I looked at Candice and said "What am I supposed to do now?"

We made it out alive!!! It was one of the best days of the year by far. I love Fall and it was so fun to spend the day with someone that loves it as much as I do. I can't wait until next year!