Christmas Recap

This Christmas was my favorite one so far, I think. It was more about spending time with people and visiting than gifts this year. But that is what counts! I am so thankful for all the people in my life! ;-D
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Santa gave Sport a Canadian Goose-toy that honks. He loves it! He takes it everywhere with him, even in the car when we go for a drive. LOL.
Matt got a nice winter coat from me, and we bought ourselves a new printer/fax/scanner, this one is an HP and it really works (unlike that crappy one we had before). It also prints color so we can do fliers and photos. ;-D
Matt got me a beautiful fancy candle called Low Country New Orleans, and it smells DIVINE! Also the Hangover Movie, and Elf Movie.
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We got to visit with all of our friends and local family over the week and weekend.
Chris and Mina came over for dinner one night to try some of the Mollydooker Wine we fell in love with (from NYC) - we had greek steaks and yogurt sauce.
and then the next night Ben & Erika came over for dinner (Scallops in basil pesto linguini). and we did our gift exchanges.
Christmas Eve we went to a Bulgarian party at Chris & Mina's with their family and did gifts there. The meal was all vegan, they don't do any animal related food until Christmas Day, some tradition? healthy! Anyway it was super tasty stuff.
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Christmas Day, we went to Matt's Mom's house and did the ham/meal there, gift exchange, etc. Then we drove to Vanya's house (Mina's aunt) to celebrate Hristo's & Chris's "name day" which is always the same day as Christmas - tradition, and we had gumbo, and lots of other food and wine.
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I got to play with Ian (Chris & Mina's son who is 2 now), a lot. He is talking up a storm and says my name now! He likes to play cars, and dance. He's bilingual, so sometimes I have to figure out if he's talking to me in English or Bulgarian. Too funny.
Matt and I came home and watched ELF together. I love that movie, I was getting all sentimental so I cried. lol.
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Saturday we had leftovers (ham, mashed potatoes, stuffing, veggies, salad, etc) and Matt decided he wanted Wii Resort and Mario Kart, so we used our Target gift card,and bought those, and I watched the movie I had been asking for "Kiss Me Kate" - and then we found out our friend James (the White Russian) was in town visiting from Vegas, so we went to pick him up and he slept over, and it was an impromptu party at our house. Mostly we played Wii with everyone and snacked on the ham. Everybody had a blast!
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Sunday we had a nice big breakfast (turkey bacon, eggs over easy on pumpernickel toast, and garnished with green chiles) and then out of the blue…
Sport had 2 seizure-like episodes yesterday afternoon (he was sleeping in the sun, then woke up suddenly, freaked out, and was trembling, stiff, and eyes dilated). At first we thought he had a bad dream, but I noticed he was drooling. He does not drool. So I stayed next to him and petted him and talked softly, and he seemed to be calming down, and then it happened again, so we rushed him to the vet, but he seemed okay by the time we got to a doctor. My arm was wet from Sport drooling while I held him, but I didn't care, I was so worried about him. They did a full neurology exam on him, and he seems fine. They said to watch him closely so that is why I am working from home. It may just have been a food reaction, not sure, lots of holiday food around the house, he may have gotten into something. But just in case, I want to keep a watch on him and make sure he is okay.
I had already made Chile in the crock pot before Sport's emergency, so we snacked on that, and the ham again, during the day, and friends came over, and we watched The Hangover - Unrated Edition. Just before the movie, Ian came over with Mina & Chris (they were visiting James), and I had my nephew's toys here for him to play with. He had ball and didn't want to leave. too funny!
Sport has been super tired since his emergency yesterday, he sleeps and sleeps. He is very sweet though. He even licked Ian's face. LOL. Ian mostly ignores him, which is good because then Sport will like him more. My nephew used to pull on Sport's tail and fur, and Sport got frustrated with him. However Ian is better with animals, probably since he has 2 cats at his house.
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Today I'm just working at home and watching Sport to see that he doesn't have any more issues. We have been super careful with making sure no food falls on the floor. He is only stuck eating his dogfood (no fun for him, he is begging us for some ham, but I am not giving in).
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My co-worker told me that a long time ago his dog had a seizure from eating some chocolate. So maybe somehow Sport got some chocolate? I am not sure. there is no evidence that he did, but I do not know.
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That ham is still here, I'm getting sick of ham. Matt loves it though. I just cut up the rest of it and we are having butternut-squash ham soup and then THAT's the end of the ham. LOL. no more (thank God!).

Christmas Traditions

I'm feeling particularly "Christmasy" today, so I wanted to document my Christmas Traditions. Everyone had different traditions, here are some of mine:

1) Hanging the mistletoe around the house. We have 3 sprigs of it now, so I like to surprise my hubby with kisses in various doorways and hallways.

2) Jingle Dog - we have a red velvet collar with white fur and jingle bells on it, for Sport. At first he hates it, but since we leave it on him all month, he gets used to it. I call him my Jingle Dog!

3) Decorating the tree on Black Friday. Maybe it's weird, but I like to be respectful of Thanksgiving and not decorate until after. But the moment it's over, I start putting up my tree and decorations. Christmas is my fave holiday! I've got it down to a science, and usually all the decorations are done within 2 hours or so.

4) The Christmas Music Collection - I have been gradually collecting Christmas music for years now. I keep them in a case, that I pull out once a year. Then we rotate through all the CDs. New to the collection this year (compliments of Aunt Julie) are "Christmas with the Rat Pack" and "Diana Krall Christmas Songs." So far the Rat Pack is my fave, but I love them both.

5)Starbucks Christmas Blend Coffee - I treat myself a few mornings before Christmas, and sometimes even buy a bag of the coffee beans to grind & brew at home, although somehow the store's brew always seems to taste better. If you haven't tried it, you MUST drink some at least once. Delicious!

6) The Ham. Matt insists that either Thanksgiving or Christmas (one of the 2) HAS to have a Honeybaked Ham. He goes CRAZY for it (almost as crazy as the dog). I like Turkey on Thanksgiving, so usually Christmas is the HAM. No exception this year either. I picked it up yesterday.

7) Wearin' O the Red & Green - Over the years people give me funky socks (Santa Socks, Grinch Socks, etc). So I try to use them in the month of December. I even have a pair of Red Shoes I don, with my Christmasy outfits. No, I do NOT do the ugly sweater thing, unless it's for an Ugly Sweater party. I'm more about solid colors, some patterns, and I have a Nutcracker pin I like to put on my jacket. Winter Scarves are definitely in - so long a they are real scarves, not the fru-fru old-lady-kind. Still gotta be the Sexy Mrs. Lane ya know!

8) Santa Hats - once in a while we'll put on the Santa Hats. Not for long though. Most of the time the are hanging around my house on various lamps, curtain rods, or on my stuffed Grinch (he who guards my Poang Chair in the den...). good party accessory!

9) The Annual Christmas Card - I start planning mine in October. no seriously. Being married to a photographer has its perks, but we like to choreograph the perfect card. We start brainstorming early. Also, considering the time it takes to order the cards, have them printed, delivered to us, address them all, stamp them, mail them, etc, it takes a few weeks. I usually have them in the mail the day after Thanksgiving, if I can. Not that it's a competition, but I like being the FIRST card people see (I know that is super silly) but it's my "planning-ahead-ness" and I can't help it. Then I spend the rest of November/December, enjoying getting cards in the mail all month long. We hang them on a snowflake/shaped iron thingie that I hang in the dining room so I can see them all the time.

10) Eggnog - Matt loves Eggnog. I like it too, but I like it to have a kick. I used to get Silk Soynog (which is still tasty), but it is not so good for mixing with other things. Now-a-days I like the "Evan Williams Eggnog" - it comes pre-spiked with whiskey/bourbon, vanilla, caramel, flavors. oooh yes! No mixing required, and since it's alcoholic, we tend to drink it in smaller portions, and I only end up buying the one bottle. Previously, we'd have 2 bottles of eggnog (non-alcoholic) in the fridge, and that's like twice the calories, ug. Let's just do it Evan Williams way!

11) Year-round Christmas Shopping - now this may sound silly to you, but I love it. Throughout the year, I buy or collect gifts that I may use for Christmas Presents. I like this for several reasons: my gifts tend to be more unique or special to the recipient, the cost is spread across 12 months, not just all in 1 month, I beat the holiday rush of INSANE-SHOPPERS, and I can have my gifts wrapped as soon as I want to instead of all at the end of the year. Also, once the tree is up, I can just put these gifts under the tree right away!

12) Calendars, Day Planners, and Schedules - oh my! Being a plan-ahead-kind-of-gal, I really love Christmas time, because I get to give myself a NEW calendar/day planner/etc. It helps keep me organized for the coming year. It's also a great time to have everyone send you their latest current address/phone so you can update your contact list. This year I am getting more digital and less dependant on paper planners/calendars. My contacts and calendar are both on my gmail account, which is backed up and synched with my iPhone. I also have backup copies of the contacts in my Outlook at work, and my Yahoo account. So check it out, never will I worry about losing the info! It's also a great time to look ahead at the next year and figure out when I tentatively may want to book vacations or parties. Gmail even has a feature in the calendar, where you can add an appointment or event, AND invite more people! Kind of like a mini-Evite. It's great for "Save the date" type actions. and the best part is, it's FREE!

13) Reuse & Recycle - Call me Thrifty, but if you gift me a gift bag and tissue paper... I typically will save it and reuse it next year. Yes indeed. Why not use that Gift Bag more than once? Straighten and refold that pretty tissue paper, let's reuse it! Heck it's GREEN friendly too! Of course I don't reuse the ripped or torn things, but that is rare these days. And yes, I'll admit it. I also re-gift sometimes. Not a lot, but once in a while. Sometimes a well-meaning person will give me a fabulous gift, but it just isn't my thing. So, I will find it a better home. Of course usually the giver will have no idea at all that this ever happened. I don't want to hurt their feelings. I used to feel a teeny bit guilty about re-gifting until I caught my Mom doing it. It must be genetic. Anyway, it's totally another way to recycle things!

14) Gift Cards - Every year, I ask for Gift Cards for Christmas. I don't necessarily need a gift, I just want the gift cards. Why? Because I like to shop. AND as you know, EVERYTHING goes on sale After Christmas and through the beginning of the New Year! So, Gift cards let me SHOP and SAVE, what's not to like? It's the gift that keeps on giving!

Drugged up and reving my engines

RECAP of HOLIDAYS:
Matt's mom, stepdad, sister, and her hubby came over) on Christmas Day we had Honey Baked Ham, Mashed potatoes, spinach souffle, sweet potatoes, toffee ( I made it), pasta salad, apple pie, and appetizers (little things I had for wine club). we slept very well that night. LOL.
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Brad (Matt's stepdad) put in our new front door and sidelights on Christmas Eve. Then he came back on Christmas day for dinner, and then on the 26th he came over to paint the door. Matt's mom came over the 26th also, and we watched "PS I love you" since I hadn't seen it yet. She's Irish so she was really lovin' the Irish guy who played the lead Gerard Butler from 300. ooh yummy. HE IS HOT! Love that accent.
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I went to St. Pete, Florida for a few days to see my Sister Jamie and her family. Hint - NEVER travel on the Sunday after Christmas. Talk about TRAFFIC all the way down to Florida it was insane! Every Gas station, every restaurant, just busy and packed. IT took me 9 hrs to drive a 7.5 hr trip. Blah! but I made it. I finally got there about 8:30pm. The weather was VERY humid and hot. IT was high of 75-80 degrees the day after I arrived. I was wishing I had packed sandals, but it was okay. lovely sunshine. It had been raining in ATL so it was a nice change.
Jamie - She seems happy but she is frustrated with her hubby (I don't blame her), and money has been tight. I stocked her grocery cupboards, and got baby Michael a Dora/Diego training potty and pull-up pants (he is 2 now so he will be training for potty soon). He still isn't really talking that much, but he makes babbly noises like he's trying to talk to us. He is in his terrible twos so he did throw a few screaming tantrums. One day we got screamed out of the restaurant I took her to. Oh well. But the one very very good thing, is that I set her up with a new phone . It's an AT&T Go Phone (prepay so she doesn't have to use credit), and it's in Her name. Also this way the family and I can replenish her minutes online if necessary, so she won't be stuck without any human adult contact. Thank goodness!
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Other good news - Jamie just got hired as the Apartment Manager of her complex, so her rent will be 50% off. YAY! Praise the Lord! I was praying for her, and it seems things are working out better now. Now they just need medical benefits someday. I have been encouraging her to see if she can work at one of the 3 Starbucks places within walking distance of her apartment (since her hubby has the car all the time for his landscaping business - no luck with driving). Starbucks will do full benefits even if you only work 20 hrs/week. She could maybe do a couple evenings and weekend mornings to make her hours, and then there would be no need for her to worry about daycare expenses. I hope this plan works out. But we'll see how it goes.
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Then I drove home the night before NY Eve.
Matt & I rang in the new year at Solstice Café. It was delicious! I had the Sweet Potato Soup, the Wilted Spinach salad & Fennel salad, egg plant entre, and the beets appetizer (I know I am weird I love beets, but Matt can't stand them). anyway it was really yummy. It was warm here for a little bit (65-70 Christmas day and beyond), but then it was 20 degrees on NY Eve night.
New Year's Eve Photos - Tom's and Matt's
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BACK TO REALITY:
I think I am coming back down with the sinus infection I had over Christmas week (and previously around Dec 4th), but I am resting and taking it easy. damn sinus infection. I can't smell anything. Got Antibiotics finally on Monday at the Doctor, but the decongestants make me feel like a zombie!
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TODAY our Tile Guy is starting on the Master Bathroom. I forget if I told you or not, but the shower is leaking into the foyer, and we have not been able to fix it. The fear is that the subfloor is damaged and rotting. Long story short we are basically redoing the entire bathroom. We needed a low-flow toilet anyway and the floor isn't level, etc etc. . . so here we go. I am not happy about how much it costs to do, but we will pay it off with tax refunds and just delay some of our other things for now. Oh well. I am excited for getting a new bathroom though! Yesterday I cleaned it out, so our tile guy can have at it when he gets here. I'm so ready for this to be DONE!
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Oh yes we had a visit from my cousin Tara and her new hubby and her 9 yr old son on the 26th. It was short notice but since they were welcome to stay at our house they didn't have to worry about getting a hotel. They were driving back from Virginia for the holiday and when she said she could potentially come by Atlanta, I told her to come on. We went out for Mexican and played a lot of the Wii games. It was nice visiting with her. She got married in October this year. Her new man is VERY sweet and good looking. They make a lovely couple. She is 1 of 3 cousins who are just a little older than me. Everyone else is younger. It is nice to have relatives close to my age. I usually feel old when the younger folks come over. LOL.
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My parents are flying down to Tennessee to visit Grandpa in February around Valentine's Day. So Matt & I will meet them up there for a little vacation that month. Grandpa went to Memphis to the Peabody hotel for brunch on Christmas Day. He feasted like a king, let me tell you. He was going on and on about the caviar and the shrimp, etc. I love him so! He is hilarious.
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Matt's mom's birthday is next weekend, so we are going up to their house to celebrate next Saturday. She wants to go to Red Lobster. I need to go on a diet. LOL.
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Matt gave me the Sex & The City Movie for Christmas and he even watched it with me again. He is so sweet! I am a very lucky lady to have such a wonderful husband.
We have been experimenting with different chili dishes the last 2 days. I'm trying to gradually use up the Green Chilies Matt's Auntie sent us last Christmas (she had overnighted them from New Mexico, and the last container had been in my freezer for 1 yr - yes potent). So we are very slowly using it up. So far it is DELISH!!! I took lotsa Beano don't worry. LOL. I kicked his butt at Scrabble earlier last week. Friday last week, we got to Mina and Chris's to say farewell to her family who visted of the holidays. Ian is already 1 yr old can you believe it ?
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Ok that is all the ramblings I have for now.
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May your new year be even more fabulous than last year!

Have yourself a Merry Little . . .

Photo Credit goes to Matthew Lane of Zazen Photo.

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Ah, as the month draws on and Christmas draws nearer, suddenly the weather seems to be getting WARMER! WTF? Where's the snow? and mistletoe?

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Anyhoo, everything is peachy keen at the moment. Let's hope it stays that way.

I have my HoneyBaked Ham ordered, and the house is ready for Christmas. Ahh the holidays are here!

Finally on the 3rd outfit change . . .

Photo Credit goes to Matthew Lane of Zazen Photo.
We spent 3 photo shoots trying to get this photo right. Welcome to a preview of our Christmas Photo for 2008. The first problem was finding an outfit where I don't look fat. The second issue was getting Matt to smile (hee hee), and then Sport needed to have his ears UP not down.
So after 3 outfit chgs and shoots, we finally got it. Don't they always say "Third time is the charm" ?

Sobering up to Reality

Photo Credit goes to Matthew Lane of www.zazenphoto.com

Dreaming is one thing. However, the holidays are upon us. Now is NOT the time to be buying new furniture, when there are gifts to purchase. Yes I already have a couch. Yes it is still in good condition. However, it doesn't support my back very well, and I tend to get out of alignment when I sit in it for long periods of time. So what? My friends and dog love the couch. I will compromise by doing the lotus pose on the floor while watching TV. That's better for my back anyway right?

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Besides, I not only dream of a new couch, but I want a King-sized platform bed with a relax-the-back tempura-pedic mattress. Oh sure, if you have about $4000. oh well. I am so over the sleep number bed idea, been there, done that, didnt' love it. I can survive for now with my J-pillow & cervical pillow, and china gel applications. right?

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Well, this weekend we are visiting the family and meeting Matt's Aunt & Uncle up in Tennessee for a artisan/craft show thing. It's for wholesale buyers I hear, so we probably won't shop too much, but it will be nice to see everyone again.

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I'm just cringing because this is the fattest I have EVER been in my life, and I can't blame it on anything like pregnancy to get away with it. Nope. I just love food and wine, and my day job is me sitting on my rear-end for 8 hrs doing reports and scheduling. So I'm getting fat. Working out is not helping me at this point, but I cannot tell you why. It's like my body is saying "oh yeah? screw you, you can work out all you want, but you're STUCK!" ha! well we'll see about that. I haven't been dragging my butt out of bed at 5am every other day to hit the YMCA for nothing.

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Holiday stress is hopefully not going to be bad this year. I have a couple of nifty gifties already and have planned out the rest. The only dilemma (which we solved last night) was WHICH family to visit WHEN and the logistics, etc. Looks like we are planning to stay HERE for Thanksgiving, but still deciding what we are doing for Christmas and afterwards.

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Whew, it would be nice if we could suddenly find a couple of thousand dollars laying around someplace that we forgot about. Yeah right. Toodle-loo for now.