Christmas Round III

The day after Christmas we headed down to Vancouver to celebrate with my family the holiday! It was so wonderful to be with everyone...especially the little boys, who make
everything about Christmas that much more special!

My little buddy Alek!

The last few years we have had some sort of "theme" to the night...one year we dressed up in ugly sweaters, one year we did a talent show...this year we had to dress up as a Christmas Carol. I think Papa wins for the cutest...can you guess the carol? His name is Lowell.
Answer: The First Noel!

Mom loves little Max...and Max loves mom!

I love watching Nicholas with little ones....he is so good with them!

The PJ tradition continues!

Each year Nicks' mom gets everyone matching PJ bottoms for Christmas Eve night and Christmas morning...this year she made all them! Such a clever lady...loved the polka dot cuties this year!

Game time...

The boys engaged in a serious game of Risk...I personally thought it looked like a miserably boring game...

Eat, Drink and Be Merry!

We did all three of these things...

My handsome hubby and cute puppy!

Note: I have ALWAYS dreamed of having a puppy on Christmas with a big red bow tied around his neck. Check that one off the dream list!

Happy Christmas!

Christmas in Oak Harbor with Nick's family was very special this year! His sweet grandma passed away days before Christmas, so it felt even more important to have everyone together. Family gathered together around the holidays is just about the best thing ever to me...so comforting, warm, familiar and welcoming.

My in-laws are just awesome...I am so blessed! They welcomed also brother and his girl-friend Laura for the celebrating this year which was just fantastic having them there as well!

Rick and his girls...cozy on the couch! Brother and Laura...just cuties!

And finally the Snow Angels...

Why wouldn't you make snow angels in your cocktail dress?!

And then came the sled...

Have I mentioned that I love this girl?!

Krissy and I had the best time at the party! Here we are Waltzing and dipping together, naturally.

_DSC0570
Originally uploaded by Steve and Erin

(Picture from Steve and Coffey that for some annoying reason I couldn't save to my computer...reason for the small pic)

A little back blogging...

Whew! With all the activity and flurry of the last week or so, it seems I have neglected my little blog a bit.

Our annual Holiday Cocktail party was again a success! With the Winter Storm 2008 in full force the night of our party, the attendance was a little bit down from years past...but the tried and true party-goers braved the storm and made it out for some holiday cheer. Jamie found the best new place ever to have it: Kristos in Eastlake! Such great people...the owner even gave us a ride home through the blizzard at the end of the night...talk about service!

The girls at our "pre-party" party held at Hotel Gwinn and Lande (that's what I was calling their apartment since so many of us ended up spending the night and not driving home through the snow).We wanted little DeForest the tree to get in the picture as well!

When you don't have kids yet...

And you want to play with with a camera....the puppy gets a photo shoot :)

My helper

Snow, Snow, Snow

"Snow, Snow, Snow....

It won't be long before we'll all be there with Snow

Snow....I want to wash my hands, my face, my hair with Snow!"

Okay not really...but I do so love that song from "White Christmas".

What a perfectly lovely snow day it is today (since I am snuggled inside and not driving in it!) Although I am working from home and not entirely playing...it has been wonderful to finish Christmas cards, work on wrapping presents, learn some about my camera, and play with my guys (Nick and Max) in between the working.

Santa came early this year

One of the insurance companies that we work with had a 4th quarter contest. If The Annuity Source gals and I won this contest (read: bonus money), Nicholas and I made a deal that I could get the fancy new camera that I have been dreaming of. I am happy to report that we WON!

So I am now the proud owner of this little beauty!!!

It is so gorgeous I can hardly stand it! I am a complete amateur and have no clue what many of the gadgets and buttons do....but I'll learn right?! I have a lot of reading and practicing to do. Happy shooting!

Obsessed with...

This piano music (okay...you got me, I'm also obsessed with Edward and the books too...) but this lullaby is just so soothing. I've been listening to it all night, which is saying a lot since typically the only music played for me during the month of December is Christmas music...

Max's Latest...

Favorite napping spot...

Annuity Source Christmas Party!

This year's Christmas party was held at the fabulous, amazing, beautiful and peaceful Suncadia...and let me just say, I am in love with it! It was the most perfect Winter Wonderland I could have dreamed up...the lodge where we stayed was so cozy and Margo's house was...well, incredible!! It was such a fun night filled with yummy food, delicious cocktails and wine, the traditional ornament exchange, and of course some late night love confessing (that's cool to do that with your boss right?!) But it's only because she is so fantastic! I love me some winter and especially some snow! The gals who I spend my days with!

Did you know...

That a snowflake falls at a speed of 3.1 miles per hour.

True story.

Seems like appropriate knowledge with the weather we've been having!

So that thing I wrote....

About the potty training...

Not so much.

A bit disappointed...

I decided to use Kodakgallery for our Christmas cards this year, and I am a bit sad to say they didn't turn out nearly as cute as I had expected them to. We used a picture from the wedding that when printed through Kodak turned out really dark. Wah. Nick says they still look good, I beg to differ.
But....they will still be sent regardless, so you be the judge!

Our little genius....

What a weekend!!

So I'm officially in LOVE with our puppy!! He is just the sweetest, cuddliest, smartest little thing...he is amazing. Seriously, kind of almost potty trained! On our way back from picking him up in Bellingham, we stopped in Samish Island at Auntie and Peter's for a delicious dinner of curry squash soup and fresh crab salad....yum!

Now I really need the fancy camera I dream of...hard to get shots of moving objects with my little digital...but here is little Mr. Ruffers in all his glory!

All set!

Mom came this weekend and brought us the stocking she made for us for Christmas!! I absolutley LOVE them...Max gets the cutie smaller one in the middle!

Dear Mom,

Your Porch Wine has gotten even better! We enjoyed our last bottle tonight....delicious!! Such a talented mama...

Thanks for sharing!
Love,

C&N

Happiness Overload

I feel like my happiness meter is going to explode!


Just got back from choir rehearsal for our concert this Sunday when we perform Handel's Messiah. I know I've said it before, but I will say it again...it is, hands down, the most amazing music I have ever heard, and probably will ever hear. To perform this piece each year, to know the music so well, to watch George our conductor so full of passion and love for the music, to sing about the story of Christ...I can never make it through a concert, let alone a rehearsal, without crying. It touches my heart like nothing else.

So with the Christmas decorating, the Messiah, mom coming for the weekend, and a soon-to-be arrival of a puppy in our household I am feeling like I might burst with happiness! My cup runneth over...

(One of) my favorite days of the year...

CHRISTMAS DECORATING!

Today Nick and I got up and went out to the cutest tree farm to cut down our little tree! It was a dream! We have officially decided it will be our ongoing Christmas tradition to get our tree from them (AND...it is WAY cheaper to cut the tree down yourself vs. getting it pre-cut here in town.

I Fa La La La La'd the day away and our little house is offically "Christmasy"...with delicious pine smells filling each room. My heart is happy!

This is from last year but my camera died so I couldn't capture any pics during the day...just wishing my hair was still this long....sigh*

THANKFUL Thanksgiving!

This Thanksgiving in Texas was honestly just...perfect! I am so happy that we were able to spend the holiday with my relatives from my dad's side of the family, and especially happy that my grandparents were finally able to meet Nicholas (they aren't able to travel any longer so couldn't come up for the wedding.)

We ate BBQ brisket, played some soccer, chatted with Grandpa, devoured deep dish pecan pie, sang many a Rock Band song, said some prayers, cried some tears, ate craw-fish etouffee, lots of hugs, played some Hearts, ate some oatmeal, went on some runs, learned about life as a freshman at LSU, cheered on the Franklin Lions in triple overtime playoff football game, ate some shrimp creole, missed dad, listened to old stories, and just completely enjoyed ourselves (while eating a LOT as you can tell...)

I just came back from this little get-a-way so completely thankful for my amazing family. They are a breath of fresh air...these incredible people who seem to do so much for other people...it is always such a reminder for me being around them how much more I could do to help others. My cousins are honestly the sweetest of sweet people I've ever met... pure sugar is what I call them. I love them all so much....

Okay...is it just me?....

Or sometimes when you are trying to leave a comment on someone's page and you enter in the Word Verfication...does it ever make you keep trying new words when YOU KNOW YOU HAVE TYPED IT CORRECTLY?! I just tried to leave a message on Michelle's blog and, not kidding, it took me about 8 tries at different words until it accepted it?! And it wasn't even a cool comment!! Grrrr.

Amazing Uncle...

My incredible uncle finished his first IronMan race tonight!! And did awesome...well under the time he was expecting. It is amazing...they swim 2.4 miles, bike 112 miles, and then, to cool down, run a marathon! It is crazy talk if you ask me...I don't know how a body can do it.

It was fun checking in throughout the day on the IronMan tracker page where you can follow where your athlete is by their GPS unit attached to their ankles.

So way to go Uncle Kyle...YOU are an IronMan!! (that's what they say to everyone as they cross the finish line)

Bad blogger...

So I don't know what it is lately, but I just haven't been a very good blogger....I have to assume it is just for lack of time, because it certainly hasn't been for lack of fun activities:

-Thursday I went here with some of the girls...
-Friday went on a fun double date to see this...
-Saturday enjoyed having friends over to watch a victory win for the Cougs!

Unfortunately, I have no pictures to document from these fun events. I have also been horrible about that. Perhaps it's because I am just dreaming of the day until I own this beauty....
Some day, hopefully soon...

Two Reasons Why I'm SUPER Happy....

1. Our wedding book that I made on blurb.com has finally arrived and I am so delighted with the outcome!! The quality is fantastic...all 2oo pages of it. Oops, I just couldn't decide which pictures to cut...

2. I just got tickets for Nick, Rothie, Mike and I for this Friday to go see Twilight!!!! AAAAH! I can hardly wait...I plan to finish book 3 tonight, and book 4 by Friday....

Oh hey Edward and Bella....

Productive Weekend!

Whew...I love weekends where I feel like we really checked some things off the ever evolving "list" of to-do's.
-Got tons of yard work done: cleaned roof, cleaned out the gutters, raked leaves, cleaned out the flower/plant beds, mowed
-Got more stuff ready for little Max
-Friend time
-Family time
-Probably most exciting: traded in Nick's car and jumped on the Mercury Mariner bandwagon!! We feel very happy and fortunate with the deal we got on it. Now we'll have room for Max, and be able to take trips over the pass in months other than May, June, July, August.

All in all, very successfull weekend. Even though I didn't get to read nearly as much as I wanted about my beloved vampires.

Melt my Heart!

Oh my word....Max is even cuter than I ever imagined! He is the most laid-back, sweet little puppy ever! Some favorite pics from today....AND we found out we get to bring him home a week earlier than we thought. Merry Christmas!