january

this is what i am doing right now. it's my last day off and the last day having our little christmas tree up. there's much to be done today, but i have become an expert in doing nothing over the last week. so..i have on my cleaning/organizing motivational movie, you've got mail, but i have managed to sit here the entire movie and not clean OR organize. oh well, i suppose that's what last days off are for.

it's a new year, and since i'm not in school anymore and am no longer on that academic schedule, january really feels like a new beginning instead of the end of christmas break.

starting a new year is a bit daunting, no? but man, so full of hope.

the holidays were sometimes restful, and sometimes..not. but, i'm thankful for the time spent relaxing and not being a nanny. (but i do miss those babes).

anyway, there's a lot i could catch you up on, none of it very titillating (that word makes me uncomfortable), but for now, maybe i'll nap through the rest of you've got mail. so much for this movie motivating me to clean.

hey, i'll see you all back in real life.

merry christmas to me

hello everyone.

i just bought myself a terrific christmas gift. i've had my eye on a few first editions of julia child's "mastering the art of french cooking" (volume 1) for months and months. today i decided i'd buy both volumes 1&2 new from amazon, wear them out, use them, age them, and hand them down to my daughters and granddaughters one day (if that is how life plays out). and the thought of this has made my afternoon.

life is good these days. right now i have about 16 projects going, none completed. a half painted bathroom, a 3/4 completed wreath, and an apartment smack in the middle of being home-ified. lots of plans are incomplete as well, but that's just taking up space in my head, and not on my dining room table (like all the piles of glitter, pine cones, and felt..eek).

last night i finally received some prints from jared and maria's wedding. having this picture up in my house is joyous.

also, i would like to recommend nellie mckay's new album. the entire album is a tribute to doris day, and it is SASSY and festive.

nellie's album here.

happy sleet day, guys.

quickie

oh hey everyone. you little dearhearts, you.

well, today we got to know our hogan baby a little more, and found out she's a sweet baby girl. it's weird, it made it real in a whole new way, and i am reeling from the love i already feel for that little peanut.

i only have about 10 minutes before nanny parents are supposed to get home. so this will be a quick one. it's been a big few days in my life. right now, i'm just tired and ready to rest this weekend. guys, i don't work for even one tiny second this weekend. that is the first time since april that i can say that. that is not a joke.

one of my closest friends, laura troutman, is home on furlough from slovakia. i saw her briefly yesterday but tomorrow she's coming up and we plan to do nothing and make people deliver food to us and veg in front of the tv.

also, one more cute little item:

how sweet are these? i got the blue one, and the green owl one is for KCamp. alright gotta run!

just a taste of vacation

christmas questionnaire

1. Fresh Tree/Fake Tree? i really love fresh trees.  i have great memories of going to mall parking lots, or little stands by the side of the road and picking out a tree as a family.  i remember one year we stopped at sonic on the way home, with the tree coming right up through the center of the minivan. nothing like a foot long cheese coney.

2. Favorite Ornament- that's a hard one when i haven't seen our family ornaments in a while.  any of the really old ones, or the crappy handmade ones.

3. Favorite Christmas Song- merry christmas baby by otis redding.  is it wrong to think a christmas song is a little sexy?  probably.

4. Favorite Tradition- for a long time the three of us kids would try to sleep in the same room on christmas eve.  the older we got, the less fun this became.  i remember one year in particular where i woke up to jared snoring/grinding his teeth, yelled at him, and made him leave the room.  merry christmas.

5. Favorite Gift Ever Received- good question.  i have gotten some good gifts over the years, but i also have to say, i have gotten some humorously bad ones.  but i'll stick with the good, oh, got it, i found our family dog, jake, the day after christmas my junior year of high school.  best gift ever.

6. Favorite Christmas Meal- sometimes we try to spice things up and do christmas hamburgers or christmas lasagna.  maybe i'll try to convince my family to do christmas curry this year?

7. Favorite Christmas Cookie- gingersnaps.  or any cookie from specialty's (please see post below).

8. Favorite Place to be- beside a fire with family.

9. Favorite Memory- i have fun memories of our grandparents coming into town a few days before christmas every year when we were young.  that yearly trip to the airport was so exciting, and it always meant that christmas was really here. 

10. Favorite Christmas Movie- oh wow, too many to name.  i just packed my suitcase full of all my favorites to take home with me.  but, what could outrank watching the booby trap scenes of home alone with my Dad?  you will never hear anyone laugh louder at anything.  

strategic piles

jess and i headed up to seattle today.  and in spite of the rain, soaked shoes, and potential bomb threat evacuations, we had a great time.  

starting out here, for some northwest stocking stuffers

then on over to beecher's for some cheese.

up the hill to h&m

around the block to specialty's for a hot chocolate chip cookie (best you'll ever eat)

now, after a quick workout and finishing up my trip preparations with a target trip, i'm watching the biggest loser and slowly beginning to pack.  i have several large piles decorating my floor, clothes to take, clothes to leave, darks, lights, colors, towels, gifts, shoes, anything you could imagine, put into piles and waiting for the right time to be thrown in a suitcase, weighed (cross your fingers for less than fifty pounds), and tossed in an airplane, and off to the east coast.  

this morning

we watched this at church.  really interesting and motivating.

"small as a wish in a well"

it's a quiet saturday around our house.  the air outside has turned a little colder.  nick and jess have gone to a conference in bellevue.  elias is quietly reading in his crib, and glory is napping.  beulah is down the street running in a field with her best friend, tucker.  more and more, the smell of burning wood is filling up our little world.  every time i walk down our street and around the corner, i take a deep breath and think about the appalachians, and how i can't wait to drive up that last hill to our little cabin.  

last night, i popped some popcorn, and threw a bunch of pillows on the floor, and for every kernel i ate, i threw one over to beulah.  and watched this movie.  

gloomy and cool

on a day like today, where i still have on last night's pajamas [now with the addition of rainboots and a sweater coat], all i want to do is read.  in mere moments, i will head out, in said pajamas, to pick up some coffee, and return to read quietly until a girl's appointment rolls around, then i will return from whence i came and snuggle up, in my weirdo outfit, and do some more reading.

after seeing a few other friends make lists today, i will follow suit and make a list of the best movies to hibernate to (this time of year):

1.  true life confession:  i made a goal to watch 'it's a wonderful life' (at least in part) every day of december last year.  i don't think i quite accomplished it.  though, i will say the time it airs on nbc a few nights before christmas can't be beat.  something more exciting about it coming on tv.

2.  family stone.  i want to have five kids because of that movie. 

3.  finding a good season of tv, whether it's lost or top chef, and getting really into with the fam in between turkey and playing with new gadgets.

4.  a muppet's christmas carol.

5.  ____________________

i'll leave that last one open.  what is your favorite comfy holiday movie?  charlie brown?  white christmas? (oh, yes please).

i. love. christmas.

just a little something to get you in the spirit.

rosie thomas--

christmas time is here

regina spektor--

my dear acquaintance

otis redding--

merry christmas baby

number one thing i'm looking forward to for christmas this year:

making coffee for josh and myself, and sitting in comfy sweaters all day staring at my fam.  and doing lots of cooking and baking.  lots.

day of days

agh.  i do not get a chance to write on here (and on other certain writing blogs) like i would like to.  

i have a stockpile of thoughts to blurt out to you, but can't seem to make the leap from thought to word.  our house is fuuuulll, and i am hiding in nick and jess' upstairs while i am 'monitorsitting'.  4 pregnant girls rummaging through a kitchen is oddly disconcerting, and sends me running for the hills.  

our two newest girls are really interesting, and seem to not hate us.  but let's give it time.

moving on to more pleasant things.  like the confirmation of baby #3 for the connollys--i am hoping it's okay to talk about, i am actually going to wait to get the okay from jess to publish this.  i can't believe it.  it's so great.  it reminds me that finding out you're pregnant doesn't always have to be a crisis.  

also--i just bought my plane ticket home for christmas.  that is exciting too.  december 13-31 i'll be in the southeast.  

upcoming posts--

• 3-5 wishes (inspired by a viewing of aladdin)
  
• insecurity seen for what it is
  
• being uncomfortably comfortable
• and once i get a realistic perspective on my own bundle of faults, how do you live alongside other's bundles?