Baby It's Cold Outside!

Baby it's cold outside!

Brr! Winter has arrived with a vengeance! But at least Violet is ready for the change in the weather. I picked up this hat/gloves combo for three bucks as a Black Friday deal, but I had my doubts about Violet actually wearing them. Sure enough, she balked when I presented them to her. Until I turned the gloves into "tickle hands". If it meant she could run around tickling us into a fit of giggles, she'd wear those gloves all day. Ah, the power of misdirection. We'll see if she puts them on to brave the outdoors like they're meant to be worn.

Back to Reality

Well, it's after 9 p.m. on Sunday, the last day of the Thanksgiving break, and I'm feeling down. I assume that's a normal feeling. Anyone else with me? I mean, no sane person is actually excited to go back to work after a nine-day break from reality, right?

I have yet to crack open the school bag I optimistically dragged home with me. I guess I should just throw the towel in on that one.

I'm trying to remember how awesome this week was, how relaxing it felt, how much I got done, to make myself feel better about the fact that it's over.

I read two books - Kitchen Confidential (finally finished it after Matt stole my Kindle and read the whole thing in three days flat) and The Tale of Despereaux (spelled it right on the first try!). We cleaned out and organized the bonus room. Oh, and spent two uninterrupted hours lounging in Starbucks while someone else cleaned our house before Thanksgiving - now that is living in luxury!

We hosted the feast and got to spend some lovely family time with some of our favorites. Matt and I got to be adults (not just parents) for three days sans Violet, highlights of which included date night, movie watching, and cleaning out the bonus room (we're hot like that).

I decorated for Christmas, and just tonight the exterior decorations started going up despite the threat of rain. I ordered some presents and got the cards addressed and stamped. Dinner for tomorrow night (chili) is done and in the refrigerator. Violet had a good day playing with our neighbors (despite the fact that 87 percent of what comes out of her mouth right now involves the word "no").

Busted.

It has truly been a wonderful break and I am so thankful and blessed. Now to survive the next three and a half weeks!

25 Ways to Wear a Scarf

This is genius. And so handy!

Turns out, I usually wear my scarves in the "European Loop" style (who knew it even had a name?) But I'm tempted to try the "Braid" or the "Magic Trick".

What about you? Which way will you wear your scarf next?

Thankful

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! We've just wrapped up a wonderful day of family, food and fellowship. We hosted this year, but with everyone contributing so many delicious dishes, it hardly seemed like much work. I'm especially thankful we got to share the day with Lukas and Danielle, who were back Stateside for the holiday for the first time in several years. It's so nice when the family gathers around the table, don't you think?

This year I'm also so grateful for my loving and supportive husband and family, good health, a job (I know, I complain and stress about it, but I know how fortunate I am), and this sweet girl. I have so many blessings in my life.

Striking a pose in some holiday finery.

We had to buy new plates because we didn't have enough matching ones to host everyone! Loving our new look - thanks Ikea!

The Thanksgiving family.

Our tree of thanks - everyone took a leaf and wrote what they were grateful for this year.

Post-meal with the ladies - a neighborhood walk on a beautiful afternoon.

Post-meal man-style - laptop/tv/Kindle Fire/smartphone zone-out.

This Thanksgiving also happened to be Lukas' 29th birthday, so his pumpkin pie came decked with a candle.

Violet really wanted to try on Danielle's cowboy boots...

Looking good, sweet girl!

Quiet House

I have so been looking forward to this Thanksgiving break. It has been a long few months since Labor Day, my last day off from work. And with the stress of report cards right around the corner, this break has been a welcome breath of fresh air.

To make it even more relaxing, we decided to ship Violet off to the grandmas' for a few days while we got some things done around the house. It has been a win-win all around.

I'm ready!

We weren't due to head down until after lunch, but once my mom let it slip on the phone that Violet was coming to Mimi's house, Violet ran straight for her jacket and demanded to get in the car and go! She loves her gandmas. We arrived and planned to stick around for a few hours, just to make sure she'd be okay, but Violet didn't seem too concerned about us leaving. In fact, when the time finally came for good-bye kisses, we each got a quick peck on the cheek and then Violet literally closed the door in our faces with a cheery "bye-bye!" I've never felt quite so dismissed in my life!

It's funny being at home without Violet. That first morning, we both kept waiting to hear the telltale noises from upstairs that mean our day has officially begun. It was strange to know we had the entire day to spend as we pleased, with no interruptions or needing to plan around naptime.

Of course, what we pleased to do was tackle our bonus room. For months we've been opening the door and tossing junk in. But if we ever wanted to get our Christmas stuff out of storage, we'd need to clear a path through the Hoarding-style mess. Many hours, trash bags, and boxes of donations later, we have a lovely, functional space (including a Man Cave for Matt). Here's hoping it remains this nice and neat for the foreseeable future.

Before (shudder)

On the right, a collection of boxes that were originally packed for our move home from Texas in 2006, added to in our move to this house in early 2010. On the floor, some various electronics and subsequently ensnaring cords. By the window, a pile of outgrown baby gear. In the foreground, the empty box from our tv and a crate of Christmas stuff.

After (ahh)

Man Cave (note that none of these electronic items are actually plugged in).

Now we can actually keep the door open, instead of locking it in shame!

Of course, we've missed the little Noodle, although the same can't be said in the reverse. Violet would rather be with her grandmas than anywhere else in the world. Here's hoping she can bear to come home. At least she'll be coming home to a nice clean bonus room.

I Did That!

One of Violet's favorite phrases these days is "I did that!" Well, now it's my turn to show you what I did. And excuse me for being overly proud of myself (my feeling of accomplishment is probably not in equal ratio to what I actually made, but coming from a self-admitted non-crafty person, I'm insanely proud of myself).

I saw this wreath made from torn pages of a book (a popular DIY material, apparently) on Pintrest, fell in love, decided to try it for myself, actually tried it (and this is important because normally I just say I'm going to attempt something but am too chicken to do it), and it worked.

May I present to you... my wreath.

I haven't quite decided where to hang it yet, so I just found an existing nail and stuck it up so I could get the full effect. Love it! The tutorial on how to make one yourself is here.

It was actually pretty simple, once I got myself going. Like the tutorial suggested, I bought a book from the Dollar Store. A foam wreath was purchased at Michael's. A glue gun was procured from Wal-mart (since I forgot mine at school) and then another glue gun was purchased in a late night run to Target (since I bought the wrong sized glue sticks for the first one)... honestly, gathering the supplies was the biggest ordeal in the whole project.

Then I settled in front of the tv and got to gluing. The initial layers burned the crap out of my fingers. And the whole thing looked so raggedy that I was seriously contemplating throwing in the towel (hence no in-progress pictures). But one of my goals over the Thanksgiving break was finishing the darned thing, and I'm glad I did. Filling in the gaps proved much more rewarding than laying the foundation, and this last stage flew by (aided by A Muppet Christmas Carol). Now I just have to find the perfect place for my new masterpiece!

Fields of Gold

Remember when I was so worried about how our family photos would turn out? Guess I shouldn't have been! Here's a sneak peek at what Alex managed to capture for us. Beautiful!

And Just Like That...

And just like that, "Dada" has become Daddy, "Mama" has become Mommy. The times, they are a'changin'!

Don't you just love sweater weather?

To Do List

So Matt and I are closet nerds. There, I admitted it (and outed Matt... sorry hubs). But the fact remains that we happen to enjoy watching a documentary every now and then. We've been known to DVR shows that detail the history of our national parks. We're plowing through ESPN's 30 for 30 sports documentary series. And we love watching GPB's Georgia Traveler. The show is exactly what it sounds like - each week the hosts travel to a different Georgia location and showcase the wonders it has to offer. There are the touristy spots, and then the random off-the-beaten-track places no one has ever heard of. But it's always interesting.

This week highlighted two things I just had to share. The first is the Savannah Slow Ride. The next time I am in this fair city, I am so totally doing this. It's almost enough to plan an entire trip around! How fun does this tour look?

Particularly loving the guy who brought his bike helmet! (via Savannah Slow Ride)

That's right, it's a bicycle built for... 12! Everyone pedals to power this unique tour bus...er, bike... around the city. You can even bring your lunch along! Genius! Who's with me? There's a group discount!

And for something a little closer to home (well, my home), allow me to present The Four Coursemen. This group of friends gets together twice a month and throws a dinner party that you are invited to. They use local, sustainable ingredients and unique wine pairings for a creative, ever-changing menu. Sign up and you'll get an email letting you know when reservations are open (and with only 28 seats, they fill up fast). Again I say to you... who's with me?!

Leaves are Falling

Saturday was just about perfect. Matt raked a huge pile of leaves in the front yard and invited Violet to take a leap. She love every minute she spent in her beloved "outside!" running and plowing through the piles. I love this girl! I love how her pure joy in the little things helps me see the world in a whole new way.

Violet even got in on the action, helping Daddy pick up the leaves. She is such a good girl.

We ended our perfect day by all cooking in the kitchen together, enjoying a homemade meal as a family of three, listening to tunes and spontaneously breaking into dance. (Well, Violet danced.) Not a bad way to enjoy a fall day.

Chatter

My Noodlehead here is becoming quite the talker. As if you needed any reminders. But lately, the words have been strung together in the beginning stages of sentence formation. One of her favorite sayings is "I did that!" which she utters every time Daddy lets her push the button to close the garage door. Another frequently heard sentence is "I bumped my ___ " (head, elbow, eye, hair, knee, you name it). These boo-boos are easily fixed with a kiss from one of us doting parents. It's amazing the power a kiss can have.

Violet is also becoming quite possessive. Everything is "Violet's milk" or "Violet's night-night" or "Violet's da-da". I'm told it's a stage... that will last for years.

Another favorite topic of conversation is stating the obvious. "Mama all done," she tells me, pointing at my empty plate. Yep, I'm all done. "Da-da ah ah-house" (Daddy's at our house) is repeated to me in the car every day on the way home. (In the morning, it's "Da-da wup" - Daddy's at work). I guess it's just her way of processing what is going on in the world around her. She's figuring it all out and letting us know that she's onto something.

PS Thanksgiving is coming up, and with it the lists we inevitably make where we keep track of all the little blessings we've collected throughout the year. Some of my friends are posting one thing they're thankful for each day, and while I'm not nearly organized enough to do that, I did want to mention one thing... I am so thankful for health this year. Last year kicked our butts, the entire collective family. Violet was down with multiple ear infections, I missed work with my own illnesses, poor Matt got attack by all our germs and suffered the consequences. But this year, our immunity has been built up and God is protecting us because no one has missed a day of school yet. And I am so thankful for that.

With the Boys

We spent the weekend down in Peachtree City and Violet got to hang with some of her favorite boys. As has been her style lately, little girl boo-hooed big tears when we had to leave Grandma and Grandpa's house. But at the playground beforehand, she was all smiles.

Kisses for Grandpa

Chopped

Ever need to feel better about yourself? Go get a drastic haircut and go to work the next day.

I got so many compliments yesterday on my new 'do, I felt like a celebrity! People stopped me in the halls, the cafeteria ladies swarmed me, coworkers were throwing around words like "sassy" - it was the best!

All the better, because this is not what was meant to happen when I went for my annual hair appointment. Yep, I manage to get about one haircut a year, partly because I'm lazy and cheap, and partly because my favorite hair stylist in all the way down in Peachtree City and I'm too scared to experiment with someone new, albeit closer. I have a weird rule about only letting curly-haired girls cut my hair. We share a bond. They know what I go through, something straight-haired people just will never understand.

Anyway, I sat down in the chair and I swear the conversation went like this.

Stylist: So how much length do you want to take off?
Me: Oh, let's cut it about shoulder length.
Stylist: Okay, great! I'll cut it a little longer than that so when it dries and the curls pull up, it will hit your shoulders.
Me: Perfect!

And then I got this short, sassy cut instead. So NOT what was just discussed! Although, full disclosure, I love my hair stylist and usually tell her to do whatever will look best and always end up thanking her for not listening to a word I say if I ever try and give my own opinion. And this case is no exception. Thanks, Lora! I love it! As does the rest of my school, apparently!

Say Cheese

Well, it is family picture time again. Last year we had a great experience. Violet was so agreeable. She wasn't crawling yet, so all she could do was sit wherever we put her and smile her sweet little smile, drool and all. The pictures turned out so well, thanks to our photographer Alex Aleman. I used them on our Christmas cards, framed them for the house, gave them as Christmas presents for the grandmas. Take a look!

Doesn't Violet look so little in these pictures? It's amazing how much she has changed in a year. So obviously, we needed some updated photos. This year has flown by, and it was Halloween before I even thought about the looming deadlines of the holidays. After all, in order to get Christmas cards sent in time, they first have to be designed and ordered and delivered and addressed and sent. And before any of that can happen, photos have to be taken. So when we saw Alex trick-or-treating, I took a gamble and asked if he had any openings. He did, for Saturday morning at 9:45. Have you noticed how cold it is at 9:45 a.m. these days? Nevertheless, we signed ourselves up.

This experience was not quite as easy as the last time. Violet and her independent streak made things much trickier. That little noodle seemed to delight in doing the opposite of anything we asked! Ask her to smile? She'd stick her fingers in her mouth. Ask her to look at the camera? She intentionally turned away. And I know she was doing it just to annoy me! When you're on a time schedule and paying good money and freezing your butt off, emotions run a bit higher. Hopefully we've captured at least something frame-worthy. And hopefully the pictures will be ready in time to put some Christmas cards together! The Season is rapidly upon us!