Christmas Quiz

My dear friend Jamie posted her answers to this Christmas quiz and I thought it was a great idea... so here it goes!!

1. Egg nog or hot chocolate? Hot Chocolate with a splash of egg nog! :)
2. Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree? He wraps them, of course!!
3. Colored lights on tree/house or white? Both colored and white on/around the house and only colored on the tree (and not the LED colors either - the classic colors!)
4. Do you hang mistletoe? Nope.
5. When do you put your decorations up? Usually the when we get back from the cabin after Thanksgiving.
6.What is your favorite holiday dish? I love Geoff's families Christmas Eve tradition of getting Fat's (the BEST Chinese food!!) take out and I love my mom's Broccoli Casserole.
7. Favorite holiday memory as a child? My dad waking us up early in the morning to Christmas music... the rule was you couldn't go down until you heard the music - good thing he's an early riser!!
8. When and how did you learn the truth about Santa? Hmm... I think I was 7 or 8? My older cousin told me he saw his dad building him a train track that "Santa" gave him... So I asked my mom and she had to tell me the truth. Luckily, we all kept the secret alive for my brother!!
9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? We switch off Christmas Eve and Christmas Day with our families (one year we're at my parent's house on Christmas Day and Geoff's parent's house on Christmas Eve and the next year it's the opposite) so we always open presents on Christmas Eve. However, Geoff and I always exchange gifts on Christmas Day.
10. How do you decorate your Christmas tree? With a vintage colorful flare! We use both small and big colored lights (not the LED kind) and I include my Grandmother's bubble lights. Our ornaments are colored balls and our "special" ornaments that we've collected on various vacations. I also include glittery things sprouting from the tree. I love our tree!!
11. Snow! Love it or dread it? I'm pretty sure I would dread it if I had to deal with it everyday.
12. Can you ice skate? Hmmm... probably not well.
13. Do you remember your favorite gift? I have a favorite from each year. But my favorite of all time was probably the hotel beautiful hotel room my parents got for me when I was in Paris for Christmas. It was so nice to be in a beautiful room instead of a hostel for Christmas!
14. What’s the most important thing about the holidays for you? The magical feeling.
15. What is your favorite holiday dessert? My sister's Red Velvet Cake - YUMMY!!!!!!
16. What is your favorite holiday tradition? Looking at Christmas Lights and driving through my parent's neighborhood every Christmas Eve to look at the luminaries....it's magical!
17. What tops your tree? My Grandmother's antique star... though it's not shaped like a star ...it's more a pointing bulb that lights up in the center.
18. Which do you prefer: giving or receiving? Definitely giving.
19. Candy canes: Yuck or Yummy? Yuck
20. Favorite Christmas show? Oh there's too many!! The Grinch, Christmas Vacation, Charlie Brown Christmas, Prep and Landing...
21. Saddest Christmas song? There's a county song about Christmas Shoes and it's about a little boy wanting to buy a pair of nice shoes for his mom to go to heaven in....it's so sad and every time I hear it I have to change the station.
22. What is your favorite Christmas song? Paul McCartney's Wonderful Christmas Time.

Introducing Sadie

With the loss of my two childhood pups, my parents were lonely... extremely lonely. Our family has always been a dog family and my dad is retired so the pups were his companions while my mom was at work. After several days of loneliness ...my parents decided that they needed a dog and they got a puppy. Another little golden just like Quin and Riley.

I am pleased to introduce Sadie...

That face has done a remarkable job of easing all of our broken hearts...

Playing Catch Up: July and August

July


July is filled with several birthdays...

6th: My brother Micah
9th: Geoff
11th: Jayde
16th: My mom
20th: Me
25th: My sister Shannon

It's a crazy birthday month and so this past July we celebrated... a lot. Sadly, I don't have pictures to document the occasions but they were filled with joy. We headed up to the cabin for Geoff's birthday and we headed to my favorite bar downtown for mine.... great times!


August

This month marked the culmination of a big event... my baby brother's wedding. He and his wife (Jayde's mom) were married in Sonoma on August 27th.

my handsome hubby at lunch the day before the big event.

Amy and I parting after the rehearsal dinner.

The boys with their last shot of the night (after the rehearsal dinner the night before)

My brother and I

the wedding party

Spoil Day

Yesterday we treated our favorite four year old to a "spoil day." This day consisted of lunch, the movies (Arthur Christmas), and trip to Toys R Us. I think after this day we may have secured the titles of favorite aunt and uncle :)

While waiting for our yummy food Hannah watched a preview of Arthur Christmas on Uncle Geoff's phone and got even more excited.

Waiting for the movie.

Loss of Loved Ones

Today is a sad day.

I feel as though I am still swimming in that cloudy shocked state of mind. I just received a call from my mom telling my that our childhood pup, Riley a.k.a Big Boy, had to be put down. This comes only a month (almost to the day) that I received a similar call from my mom telling me that my dad had to put our other childhood pup, Quincy, down. With Quin, I was prepared... I knew she wasn't feeling well - she just wasn't herself. With Riley I just didn't expect it, at least not so soon.

When I heard the news about Quin I was at home - today I am at work though I wish I wasn't because all I want to do is gather my pups close and hold on tight - just as I did that other sad day. To some it may seem silly to love an animal as much as a human - but not me. Our dogs are members of our family and I morn their loss as any other family member.

That night Geoff and I spoiled our boys rotten with love and treats. And tonight we will do the same.

My parents house will not be the same without these two loves...

Quincy

Riley "Big Boy"

Playing Catch Up: June

Though I have been on a blogging slump, many wonderful things have happened since April... babies, birthdays, trips, a wedding, an anniversary, and Halloween... so I thought I do a quick recap of each month.

Please excuse the icky pics, the slump carried over into my photos too. It seems that I never had my camera on hand so all of the pics are taken from my cell (or in some cases other people's phones). Hope you enjoy!

June (Part One)

First, and maybe the most exciting thing to happen....these littles were born...

Meet Jackson and Emily, my adorable twin nephew and niece.

Jack is the little blondy and Em has her mama's dark crop. With their arrival my favorite 3 (now 4) year old became a big sister and she took to the roll swimmingly!

Doesn't she look good as a big sis??

Oh yeah, she was born for this role!

Uncle Geoff and little Jack

And below are a little more recent pics of the littles.

love his squishy cheeks

Em in her outfit that auntie (me) made her

Sisters!!

June (Part Two)

The other "blog worthy" mention was the bridal shower I through for my brother's wife. I didn't take many pictures as I was running around like a mad women but below you'll see the food area. It was a ton... and I mean a TON... of work but I think the shower turned out great!!

Blogging - F

So I've earned a big, fat, F on my blogging this past year. Flunked, Faltered, Failed...

If I'm being honest I think that I started to doubt why I should have a blog. All my most treasured blogs focus around four core issues: little ones, fixer uppers, crafty goodness, and fashion...

So where does that leave my little ol' blog... I mean, we don't have minis (unless pups count),
are home is comfy cozy and not in dire need of fixin', full time work does not leave me with much free time to craft, and though I do love fashion, I'm not sure how "fashionable" I really am...

so why?

Then it occurred to me... I created this blog for me... well, for Geoff and me... so we could look back on our life and remember all the fun, crazy, small, big, quirky, and special memories we have shared.

And you know what else occurred to me...

those memories are worth it.

And so, I hope to delve back into the photography and blogging world with some of the high points that have happened this last year.

Artist Pete Dungey plants gardens in the potholes on British roads.

Artist Juliana Sanchez Herrera walks around Paris and patches potholes with beautiful yarn.

Love Creativity.

I wonder what Sacramento/Roseville would prefer??

In 30 minutes I will be heading to SF to hang with one of my favorite friends, Lovely Lisa, and see my favorite author, Cassandra Clare, who writes my most favorite series.... The Mortal Instruments!

I am so excited! It's so nice to have a friend who live close to the city and who is up for anything! I'm so lucky that she opens her adorable home and welcomes me with open arms... which is at least once a month!! We're gonna grab a bite to eat, hit up a local vintage shop, and then head to the signing. Tonight shall be grand!

Thanks also must go out to my wonderful husband who is staying home with our boys minus a means of transportation. Boy, it will be nice to get the celica fixed (we're so luck to have parents who are helping with that situation)!!

Wish the clock would move faster!

Yep, I'm a Potterhead and proud of it!

The only other movie poster I have ever wanted was Gone With the Wind... now there's this and it's a must! LOVE!! I am so excited for this final movie yet so sad at the same time. As the poster states it all ends on July 15th .... it will be an amazing pre-birthday event that is truly bittersweet.

A man said to the universe:

"Sir I exist!"

"However," replied the universe,

"The fact has not created in me

A sense of obligation."

I remember reading and discussing this poem, by Stephen Crane, in my creative writing course at CSUMB with a lump in my throat and tears in my eyes as I realized the truth behind his words. And since then, with every disaster that has blistered our planet, Katrina, the Indonesian tsunami, the earthquake in Haiti, and now the horrific event in Japan, I remember his words clearly and vividly.

Nature is more powerful than we can ever comprehend. That towering wall of water that rolled across fields, city streets, and neighborhoods, carrying with it cars, animals, buildings, and people as if they were as light as feathers. The earth shook so hard that it altered its own axis. The physical form of the island was forever changed within an hours time. The power of nature seems boundless, yet effortless.

It's terrifying and spectacular. But right now all I am trying to do is wrap my head around all the millions of lives that have been forever changed. It breaks my heart and I can't imagine the heartache and despair the people of Japan feel.

Yet nature turns a blind eye - pure indifference. The towering wave and crumbling ground did not care who it too in its wake - people, animals, the homeless and the prominent...all the same. Luckily, nature's indifferent nod to our kind as little effect on our own strengths - our compassion. We can do many things that nature can not. We care. We pray. And so we do. We work together. We rebuild. We overcome. And so we will.

I hope the people of Japan can feel the outpouring love coming from every continent and that they can take strength from it. They will rise up and rebuild their home that stood flourishing only six days ago. And until we can do more, we watch and send thoughts of love, strength and encouragement.

Equality

This is Zack and he has two moms.

My heart is bursting with pride for this kid.

Stand up and Speak out!

yummmmm

Shaved ice...perfect for a hot day at the beach!

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the view from 26

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i like pina coladas...

...and gettin caught in the rain. Here in waikiki blogging from geoffs phone while he sips on a beer in a local bar down the street from our condo. I love being on vacation!

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It's almost time...

I realize I still have so much to blog about.... Polar Express Train with my favorite three year old, Christmas festivities, and a Feuresa New Years but that will come. Now I sit at the home one of my most dear friends in my PJs watching the BCS Championship game that my hubs left on the TV while the others travel to the store for disinfectant wipes, airborne, and ice cream. I am full of excitement and anticipation for our trip to paradise... in just 12 short hours we will be taking off over to ocean -- Hawaii bound.

And

I

Can't

Wait