Birthday Boy

Last Tuesday-my lovely husband turned 24!  We had a great time.  We ate some food I picked up after my half day at work, baked some birthday cupcakes, showered and then got ready to head the Lanes, Trains, and Automobiles-the local bowing/lasertag alley.  Some of Derrick's work friends came and we had SO much fun!!  After bowling we went to Old Chicago (for the first time for Der and me) and played trivia with everyone while we ate and drank.  It was a great time and pretty laid back.  I know I really enjoyed meeting some of Derrick's co-workers and hanging out on a Tuesday night (something I'm not going to be able to do much of this semester!)
Check it out!  I didn't get too many pictures because I was bowling and laser tagging too but here's a few of what I got.

Derrick, Mark and Brian being goofy while they put on their awesome bowling shoes in the cosmin bowling lanes.  We had to use those lanes first but it was good for just us 4 while the others were on their way.

The only good pic of me and the birthday boy! <3

The guy's got a technique!

Some of the group post laser tag (I came in 6 out of 7 and Der came in 2 out of 7). From L to R: Kadi, Derek, Mark, Der, Brian, and Philip (Russo).

The same group as above plus Trent-they're all so silly and fun!!

All in all I think it was a great birthday.  I know I had fun and Derrick really seemed to enjoy himself!

HAPPY 24TH (again) MY LOVE!

XOXOXO

Family Christmas!

Christmas in my family is a big deal.  NOT because of the gifts but because of the family time we all enjoy and the memories we're making with more and more family members throughout the years.  It's really a special time and even with different beliefs, we all put that aside and get together for the day and just enjoy one another's company.  That is why I look forward to Christmas each year and this is also why it will be one of the hardest things I'll have to cope with when me move away (because at least for a few years, we won't be able to come home on every holiday like we have been these past 4 years).  I love Christmas with my family!  Let me recap you with the Christmas/family activities.

Christmas Eve, though Der and I have both been sick off and on for close to a week, we woke up at our own accord and opened our gifts and stockings from each other.  It was a lot of fun because the past few years we haven't been able to do a lot for one another for Christmas.  This year we were and even though we were sick it was still fun opening gifts, laughing and spending time together.  I forgot to take pictures (probably for the best since we were both sick)! After checking out our loot, we loaded the car up and headed to Chattanooga to spend Christmas Eve with my mom and the next day with my family!

To start Christmas day, we (the kids) got together at my mom's house in the morning and opened our gifts, drank coffee, and woke up more before getting ready to start our hectic day.

Mom's tree-it was STUFFED with gifts!

Me and my boo Christmas morning, lol.

My brother and brother in law opening gifts.  Mom played Santa and was the last in opening her gifts but she loved them! We're a pretty simple family when it comes to gifts (though the tree tells a different story!).  We mostly give/get books and some DVDs and we're all perfectly okay with that.  Christmas to my family is about family and togetherness.

So after Christmas at mom's we got ready and headed to my dad's house for Christmas with my grandparents!  It was weird because we kept saying "Clyde's house" even though Uncle Clyde is no longer with us.  My dad lives in his house now so it was kind of like Uncle Clyde was there in spirit and it really helped make that even more special.

Daddy's little tree and the gifts.

A bunch of the family just hanging out. We were waiting for the food! My grandmother's (Dot Dot) sister was coming over with all of the food-she brought stuffing, and HUGE ham, dumplings, green beans, mashed potatoes, mom brought deviled eggs, and there was so much more! We had another party to go to that evening so we didn't fill up but it was hard because it was all so delicious.

Me and my sister! I'm wearing the new top my mom bought me and actually look decent now, ha ha!

My sister, my Dot Dot, Dave, and my brother-in-law Steve.

Der, my daddy and me.

The kids with Dad! From L: Der, me, Brad, Daddy, Jen, and Steve

After Dad's we headed down the road to my Aunt's house for the annual Christmas party!  This is where my mom's side of the family all get together to eat a ton, do a dirty Santa gift exchange and take pictures.  It's a pretty laid back atmosphere and good for all of us to get together.

Just the start of the YUMMMMMMMY food everyone brought!  I made the Oreo truffles again for the party-and as expected, they were a success!

My sister and awesome cousin Lauren.

My aunt's tree and the beginnings of the dirty Santa gifts!  I forgot to take pictures during the actual game but we had a great time changing out gifts.  I got a candle set and Der got a car cleaning kit! Both great and practical gifts.

The girl cousins! From L: me, Jen, Lauren, Sara, and Haley. Jen is the oldest cousin and Haley is the youngest.  My cousin Kevin couldn't come to the party but he and his wife are expecting a baby at the end of January so once he's born he'll be the youngest.  We are all so excited to meet him!

My family. From L: Steve, Jen, Brad, Mom, me, and Der.

We took this picture really quick-Jen and Steve had to leave to go to Steve's side of the family's Christmas.  The Der, Brad and I left to go see my other grandparents before trekking back up the mountain to collapse in our merriment.

What a JOYOUS and wonderful Christmas we both had.  I feel extremely humble, blessed and happy that I have such a fantastic family to celebrate holidays with.

Friendship Christmas!

On Wednesday Der and I hoped in the car after work with a car full of presents to head to the Blackwoods for our annual Christmas get together! I was so excited-it had been 4 months since I'd seen Kelly and Tonya (which is WAY too long for us) and even longer since I had seen Wes and the boys! 

It was so nice being able to catch up with everyone and play with my growing nephews.  I can't believe Andrew is turning 4 and Dylan 2 in the next 2 months! Time flys so fast with those two!  We ate, laughed (a lot!) and exchanged gifts.  I got a wonderful bracelet and pair of earrings from the Blackwoods and a cute coffee mug, some homemade cookies and a set of Santa salt and pepper shakers from Tonya!  AHH! It was perfect =]  Der got some Reese's (tradition) from Tonya and a GameStop gift card from the Blackwoods.

We had such a great time that we almost forgot to take pictures!  These are from the end of the night when Dylan was in bed and we were getting ready to head out.

Me and Der

Me and my PRECIOUS nephew Andrew!

Momma Kelly and her 1st born Andrew

The three girls! Me, Kelly, Tonya-we didn't mean to match but we did! Too funny.

Close up of these 3 friends

My lovely 1st nephew Andrew cuddling up with his Dad Wes.

Tonya and her beau Ben

Our FABULOUS hosts-Wes and Kelly!

I can't to see everyone again in 2 weeks for Andrew's 4th birthday party!

GHC Christmas Party

On Wednesday the 14th (also my Mom's birthday!) I headed to work after a day of errands to celebrate our Christmas party!  We had such a great time and had such yummy food!

Check out our fun pics!

The yummy desserts everyone brought-they were SO GOOD!

All of us chowing down on our catered lunch!

Kristy enjoying her BBQ in her Santa hat.

We were all digging in-we had waited all day for this lunch!  From L to R: Me, Summer, Melissa, John (in back), Racheal, Todd and Kristy.  Amanda was hardly in any pictures since she had the camera but she was there too!!  After we all ate the main course we started playing our dirty Santa game-it was SO funny and I think everyone got some really cool gifts!

Me opening my gift: aloe socks, candy and a cool thermos/cup!

Melissa picking another gift after hers got stolen!

Melissa had one the crock pot cookbook!  Amanda tried stealing it from her but Melissa wanted it so bad she ran around the table and over people to keep it, hahaah!  Amanda told her that she could have it only because she was so nice because Amanda really wanted it! It was such a great laugh!

Summer got a nice bottle of wine!  John ended up stealing it from her so she got some coffee and a cute mug instead.  The other gifts were: a Bath&Body Works gift card, a picture frame, some homemade cookies (3 dozen!)

Next we played a couple of games where we could win gift cards!  The first game was where we had to guess who's memory was whose and it was a riot!  Todd won that one and got a $25 gift card to Red Robin!

Next was this really cool game where you had a partner and had to wrap a "present" with only 1 hand-each partner could contribute only 1 hand each to wrap it! Talk about hilarious!!  Below are a few of the finished products from a few teams.

 

Team RN: Summer and Todd hard at work

Team SCC: Me and Kristy-and our horribly wrapped gift, haha!

Team Therapy: John and Melissa so quiet and diligent!

Team Nurse: Amanda and Racheal with their candy gift.  Amanda kept hoping to win for cleverness but team therapy won 2 gift cards!

It was such a good time-I'm so very thankful and grateful that I work with such an awesome team who feels like my other family.  It was a yummy, hilarious and relaxing time to spend with my friends.

THANKS GHC and until next year-Christmas 2012!

December Goals

Wow-I can't believe the year is almost over!!  I have a lot planned in December but I am SO looking forward to partaking in all of it! Sure they are goals but most importantly they are (mostly) fun and exciting! Lots of celebrating in store for us!

*Around the House
-Finish hanging photos.
-Sew clothes needing mending.
-Mail out Christmas cards.
-Put up Christmas decor.

*Celebrations (YAY!)
-Celebrate Christmas with Derrick, Kelly, Wes, Andrew, Dylan, Tonya, and Ben.
-Celebrate the holidays at work with co-workers.
-Celebrate the holidays with family.

(like last year)

-Celebrate my mom's birthday.
-Jen and mom come up for shopping and fun.

(Our annual tradition is to go shopping through the Boro and have a great and warm lunch at Steak N Shake)

-Celebrate goodbyes with Elisa and John since they're moving to Hawaii =(
-Celebrate time off from work and school

*School
-COMPLETE my second semester of Graduate School (1 year down baby!)
-Be content with my grades, whatever they may be.

Last of 2010 goals

Okay okay...I didn't do as well as I should have this month BUT that's what new years are for, right? New beginnings.  See below for the tally of my December goals.


~Home
*Decorate for the holidays (DONE! It was fun to decorate our first home together-see pictures for details!)

(This is part of our display-our little candles and snow globe, sitting snow man, and poinsettia)

(My little village! This is Der's favorite part-he got me the big tree last year to complete it! It's so sweet)

(This is the tree after it was decorated)

(Our stockings! The Snowman is Der, the Santa is mine, and the pup is [naturally] Tucker's. They were all stuffed to the brim this year! See this blog for details)

(Our tree with all of the gifts [and this is only 1 side of it]! We were fortunate enough to have almost everyone's stuff done by the season this year! Our budget was still small but time escaped me before I could get: Shelley, Andrew, Dylan, and finish Tressa's SO they will be getting theirs after the New Year.)

(Our tree Christmas evening after all [but my in-laws] gifts had been dispersed & opened.)

(A surprise to say the least! I got this amazing ornament from my awesome Aunt Susan-it says "The Raleys" and "Our First Christmas" on it with 2 little snowmen-1 being Der and 1 being me.  She even added a little pup with the name Tucker on it for us! My eyes swelled with tears when we got this in the mail-it was so sweet, unexpected, and personal. Thank you Aunt Susan!)

*Put up laundry when it's done (I hate putting up laundry) (FAIL-I've got a basket from 2 weeks ago still sitting in the hall with clean clothes....oops, lol!)
*Sand and prime table in bedroom (FAIL-I honestly just didn't feel like it any this week [I've been off] BUT in my defense I've been sick with sinus and cold crap for over a week so that's contributed...maybe on Sunday?)

~Health
*Clock at least 8 consecutive miles on the elliptical or treadmill (FAIL-I hardly went to the gym at all this month! And I feel like crap (both physically and due to guilt) BUT when I did go I was doing well on the treadmill with my new knee wrap! YAY!)
*Drink more water (Meh-I'll count this as a FAIL because I've been drinking more tea than water)
*Get knee brace and wear it when running (this should help me increase my endurance on the treadmill/concrete vs using the elliptical) (DONE! Yahoo!)
*Even during the break from work (and due to Christmas) work out in SOME way at least 3 days a week (this will be a tough one!) (FAIL-see health #1 for details. I was doing fine with the first few weeks of December actually-when I didn't go to the gym I did a workout video from home but then...I slacked and then got sick so no gym for me.)
*Walk Tucker every Sunday unless it's raining all day....(Okay: I was doing so good with this except this past Sunday because I forgot it was Sunday! Once I remembered it was like 10 at night so I did walk him first thing Monday morning...so I'm counting this still as a DONE.)
*Drink less coffee-less meaning no more than 4 times per week (this is less considering I drink it almost every day!) (DONE! I've felt better but it's been hard since it was so cold this month.  I substituted hot tea, water, and every once in a while hot cocoa and it worked fine! I may pull this one to January just because I can!)

~Fun
*Go Christmas shopping with Mom and Jen (Yeeee!! This has become a tradition and it's SO much fun!) (DONE! We always have such a great time! They come up here early on a Saturday or Sunday morning, we go to the mall, shop, then go to Steak N' Shake for lunch/early dinner, shop some more, then they head back home-a tradition I l.o.v.e. and want to continue! Here's a pic of me and my sister at Steak N' Shake):

*Finish shopping and wrap presents (well duh!) (DONE! It was a ton of fun this year!)
*Mail out holiday cards by December 17th (DONE! I hope some of you who read this received yours! See this blog if you didn't get to see it or didn't receive one)
*Celebrate early Christmas with Kelly, Wes, Tonya, and the boys (DONE! So much fun-I got 2 adorable headbands and some earrings from Kelly & Wes,and Tonya got me some comfy Christmas socks and an Elvis jukebox Salt and pepper shaker set! I collect salt and pepper shakers so it was very nice and so sweet to get these-now adding to my collection! We all had a nice time hanging out and just relaxing-something we all seemed to have needed)
*Buy a New Years dress (hopefully in a smaller size!) (FAIL-I honestly kind of forgot but after reading The Glamourist blog about them I wish I remembered sooner! Booooo...maybe next year? Or maybe in a few weeks I'll go get a new dress and Der can take me on a lovely date so I can wear it...yes-sounds good!)
*Celebrate Christmas with family (DONE! I'm waiting on my sister to upload the pictures so I can share.)
*Celebrate the New Year with friends (DONE! We're celebrating tonight and after this blog I need to get to cleaning!)
*Celebrate Elisa's Bday (DONE! It was fun and laid back-just like Elisa!)
*Celebrate Mom's Bday (DONE sorta...Mom was in Chatt when her birthday rolled around but when we came in for Christmas we gave her her gift (blueberry coffee) and hung out with her as late celebration + we both called her on her actual day to sing and tell her we love her)

~Books
*Finish "Picture of Dorian Gray" (DONE! Outside of a few monotonous chapters, it was a good book and I'm glad I read it.)
***POTENTIALLY start some reading on Graduate school books IF I get in...*** (This is neither a FAIL or DONE because: 1) I did get accepted into Graduate School for an MA in Sociology 2) I was accepted into the GA program [SUPER EXCITING NEWS]!! 3)I have yet to buy the books needed for my 2 classes (very expensive) but I plan on getting them once the semester starts and pouring over them my first weekend off from class.)
*Start "Hitchhikers Guide" Series (DONE! I am on Chapter 9 of "Hitchhikers" and am liking it thus far.)



And the tally is:               DONE=   14           FAIL=      6                 NEITHER=1


Wow! I thought I did much worse! But to be fair: the things I did fail are pretty important (health wise) so I need to step up my game on them come 2011. Yahoo-great job ME for December!


I'll have a few new things to add once 2011 rolls around-check back tomorrow to see!


Kisses.