Xmas Spirit 2012

 

We really outdid ourselves with lights this year. We haven't been the type to really go outside of the house with decorating for Xmas. The most I used to do was put a wreath on the door, hang shiny plastic ornaments from a tree, and frame the bay window with lights. We decided to slowly add to our festive lights by buying one thing on sale after Xmas every year. Last year we started this with the little mini deer. We'll try to find his mate this time around. This year K found the light up candy canes and snowflakes at the dollar store. Score! :)

 

This is also the first year together we got a real tree. K grew up with real trees and this is my first ever.

 

I love my little fiber optic tree my mom in law found for me many years ago. It goes up and gets plugged in every year. I will be sad the day it stops working.

 

The spirit stays strong within me. I started my salt dough ornaments for the holidays. O likes the idea of them but still has a hard time finding a lot of interest in them for too long. I figure I will paint all of them this year with a base color and let her either finger print decorations on them or use objects to imprint different shapes of colors onto them to make it a little different. I've already made two batches of ornaments. One I took to a friends so our daughters could paint together and the second batch just for us to work on and give away as keepsakes.

I'm trying to not stress about anything Xmas related this year. So far, so good.

Valentine's Day II

I feel like such a lazy friend on Cupid's day to spread love.

My friends are no slouches when it comes to this holiday.

Mary sent me home with delicious soft cookies smothered in a layer of delicious frosting!

Chrissy was my secret Valentine (well, sort of...she was able to sneak in but I knew she was coming) and delivered boxes of Brach's Hearts. I forgot all about those hard, crunchy hearts. I have had other brands in the past and have found them not to my liking. When I bit into one of the Brach's Hearts, though, it took me on a memory ride back to my childhood. What a great treat!

This morning, K went to check our mail, since we forgot to do so last night when we got home. There was a postcard of three awesome children showcased in their own frame asking us to: Be Our Valentine
1. Rees was dressed as a bee! HA! :)
2. Nick held up the letter 'R' as he posed and cheesed for the camera.
3. Ruby was in a Valentine's Day top.
How smart and creative and it made me smile big.

It's hard having friends who are so with it and have great holiday game. Luckily, I am a benefactor of such greatness.

Oh, don't let me forget about what my best friend did for me. K sneaked in a bouquet of tulips into my office while I was away for the lunch hour. He knows I am a big fan of tulips. :)

Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's Day!

K and I don't go full out in celebrating the Hallmark Day of Love. Sometimes we exchange presents but for sure we do exchange cards at least.

We've done the whole go out on the town and try to find a place to share a Valentine's meal with one another. I think over the years, though, we've come to the conclusion trying to find a restaurant to enjoy a lover's meal is to be done any other night except for Valentine's Day.

I think K and I both agree that V Day is a nice way to remind one another that hey I like you and even love you!! :)

Now that O is apart of our family it makes Valentine's more exciting to me. My parents always made Valentine's Day very special for me. My dad always got my mother and I chocolates. She got flowers, as well. As I got older my mom did away with the flowers. It killed her to watch them die. So, dad continued to get she and I our own heart shaped boxes filled with little pieces of love.

My parents also got me little gifts too like heart dangling jewelry. I hope to make Valentine's Day a little special for O, as well.

I woke up on Valentine's Day kind of like I did on Easter Day, where I would look for a fun gift or treat waiting for me labeled with my name and given with love.

It wasn't until I was maybe in my mid to late 20s when my mom asked if I minded if she and Daddy stopped sending me a Valentine's Day gift. She was being cute about it when she said, "Do you think your husband would mind taking over?"

Ha!

Farewell December, Hello New Year

December has been a pretty hectic month. It was full of new adventures, scary moments, and holiday fun. I don't know how January is going to follow up this month, since December is definitely a tough act to follow.

Moments from December:

- K and I went to Cozumel, Progreso/Yucatan, Mexico on an awesome Carnival cruise that was gifted to us from K's mom.

- Several days of being home from the cruise Toby got really sick, which ended up with him staying at the vet overnight so they could xray his insides to make sure he didn't have an intestinal blockage. Thankfully, he was okay and had a really bad bought of some kind of gut bug. It was a very expensive experience.

- I got horrible food poisoning two weeks after being back home from the cruise.

- Our dogs got into a bad dog fight that required Josie (the older dog) to get stitches. The wounds were very minor injuries according to the vet but getting her emergency care really helped K and I settle our nerves. Our pocket books are very light now after the two incidents with visiting the vet. *sigh* Seriously considering getting pet insurance.

- K's granny fell down while home alone and is now in a rehab facility to make sure she is strong enough to get around on her walker.

- K, me, and the pups went to Houston for the Xmas holiday. We had a great time with his parents and seeing the family on Xmas day and getting to visit with K's granny while she was out of rehab for the day.

So, now I'm interested in what January has in mind for us. Hopefully, it only deals with much happiness, good fortune, and good health all around.

Happy Holidays, Y'all.

*I feel like I left something out.

**Oh yeah. K got a new tattoo this month!

some ship shots

This was the name of our Fun Ship.

This is the rear of the boat or the aft and up there behind the tail was a basketball court, volleyball playing area, and adult only jacuzzi and swimming pool.

This shot was taken looking up from the main floor of the ship or on the main level/deck. On every floor were several shops and bars. There was even a club for teenagers called Club O2. K was disappointed it wasn't really an oxygen bar.

A clearer view of one of the glass elevators.

The casino continued to be a very popular place on board.

This is the Metro Bar which was one of K and my favorite places to hang out. There was a lot of activity around this part of the ship.

This is the basketball and volleyball area that I had mentioned earlier. The netted area of course makes sure the balls stay where they're supposed to be. :)

This is where the main pool with water slide is and there was a jacuzzi here. And you better believe there is a bar on this level too. There was a bar or two or three on every deck.
A night time view of several levels of the ship. It felt like a never ending shopping mall at times. Overall K and I had a great time but it is a place where they sell! sell! sell! to you at every moment. If you are curious if a cruise is for you talk to me! I'll give you the details of the pros and cons of cruise life. :)

cruise time!

This has been a long eventful holiday. First, K and I spent Thanksgiving with family in Houston. The next day we celebrated my birthday with my in-laws and their friends. By the third day of our vacation K and I are standing in our ocean view state room on a Carnival Cruise Fun Ship!

The room wasn't huge but it definitely met all of our needs and the bed was sooooo comfortable! There was a lot of closet and drawer space. We even had our own safe to keep our things uh safe.

It's hard to see but this was in the middle of the ship where there were glass elevators that would take you to 9 levels or decks on the ship. There were 10 decks but the 10th one you had to walk to yourself since it was the very top level, which was outside where you could either run on the outdoor track or play mini-golf.

That first evening when we came back to our room we were greeted by a towel walrus, a turned down bed, chocolates, and tomorrow's itinerary of menus and ship events.