Wednesday, December 29
Tuesday, December 28
India - Day 3
Today was our trek from Delhi to Agra and back in one day so we could visit the infamous Taj Mahal. The vehicle we had that day was more roomy – it was called a Force, which is similar to a small shuttle bus with 10 seats in the states.
We had a quick cold breakfast at the hotel and left around 7am to head to Agra. We wanted to try and get out early to avoid some of the crowds that would be at the Taj. It was foggy that morning (like it usually is in Delhi during the winter) so that made driving more difficult for the driver.
We experienced a few interesting things on the way there. We witnessed our first accident in India and it happened right in front of us! The car in front of us rear-ended the car in front of them. And they just kind of went on their way without it being a big deal. We also had to stop at the state line so the driver could talk with the authorities. While we were waiting, there were some people trying to sell items and there were also monkeys that were dressed up and on leashes. One of them decided to hop up on the teeny tiny window ledge (on the outside) right behind Rachelle, which of course startled her – we called that monkey “Jumper Monkey” :)
After making one stop at the “tourist stop” (which has ‘normal’ bathrooms) along the way, we finally met up with our tour guide for the Taj about 5 hours later! It was a long ride with us running into traffic and also passing through a bunch of smaller villages, which was cool to see. We were so glad to be at the Taj Mahal!
After getting inside, it was absolutely amazing! The Taj and the grounds around it are so beautiful and the crowds that day were also crazy. We eventually made our way from the gate up to the Taj, which is where we joined the end of the line. There was a huge line to go up the stairs to the elevated part and then there was also a line to walk through it. We had to wait a little while but it was well worth - we said it would have been silly to travel all that way and then say that we didn't feel like standing in line! So we got to walk around the Taj and also go inside to look at the beautiful marble and stone work inside. Some interesting facts about the Taj that we found out:
- there are 22 domes on top of the entrance gate - one for each year that it took to build the Taj!
- each of the 4 towers next to the Taj are pitched 2.5 degrees to the outside - 1 to each side and 2 to the back
- construction started in 1631 and was finished in 1653 (if I remember right) making the building about 360 years old!
- architectural design comes from Muslim and Hindu influences
- fountains are fed from the river behind the Taj
- on a night with a full moon, the Taj glows like a diamond
- the white marble is non-porous
After leaving the Taj Mahal, we noticed that the line to get through the gate was so long...much longer than when we entered. There were just tons of people everywhere! We finally caught back up with our driver and stopped at a place to do some shopping. This shop specialized in making pieces of the same marble used on the Taj Mahal. We even had the chance to see how they make the pieces, which was really neat. So everyone found something they wanted and Chris and I also went upstairs to look at their shawls/scarves, which were really pretty. We were eventually on our way (those Indian salesman are ruthless, trying to sell you everything in the store), which was good because we probably had another 5 hours ahead of us and it was already after 5pm.
It was a fairly quiet ride home because everyone's heads were bobbing (everyone was sleeping). We stopped at the tourist stop again. We got some drinks and a snack - a bunch of us got 'hot milk chocolate' which we were a little suspicious about (but thankfully ended up not making us sick). There was still a lot of traffic and it didn't help that the driver got us lost when we got back to Delhi. We were probably driving around for an extra hour! So we arrived back to the hotel after midnight. It made for an extremely long day, but it was well worth it. We got to see the Taj Mahal, which is one of the seven wonders of the world!
We had a quick cold breakfast at the hotel and left around 7am to head to Agra. We wanted to try and get out early to avoid some of the crowds that would be at the Taj. It was foggy that morning (like it usually is in Delhi during the winter) so that made driving more difficult for the driver.
We experienced a few interesting things on the way there. We witnessed our first accident in India and it happened right in front of us! The car in front of us rear-ended the car in front of them. And they just kind of went on their way without it being a big deal. We also had to stop at the state line so the driver could talk with the authorities. While we were waiting, there were some people trying to sell items and there were also monkeys that were dressed up and on leashes. One of them decided to hop up on the teeny tiny window ledge (on the outside) right behind Rachelle, which of course startled her – we called that monkey “Jumper Monkey” :)
After making one stop at the “tourist stop” (which has ‘normal’ bathrooms) along the way, we finally met up with our tour guide for the Taj about 5 hours later! It was a long ride with us running into traffic and also passing through a bunch of smaller villages, which was cool to see. We were so glad to be at the Taj Mahal!
After getting inside, it was absolutely amazing! The Taj and the grounds around it are so beautiful and the crowds that day were also crazy. We eventually made our way from the gate up to the Taj, which is where we joined the end of the line. There was a huge line to go up the stairs to the elevated part and then there was also a line to walk through it. We had to wait a little while but it was well worth - we said it would have been silly to travel all that way and then say that we didn't feel like standing in line! So we got to walk around the Taj and also go inside to look at the beautiful marble and stone work inside. Some interesting facts about the Taj that we found out:
- there are 22 domes on top of the entrance gate - one for each year that it took to build the Taj!
- each of the 4 towers next to the Taj are pitched 2.5 degrees to the outside - 1 to each side and 2 to the back
- construction started in 1631 and was finished in 1653 (if I remember right) making the building about 360 years old!
- architectural design comes from Muslim and Hindu influences
- fountains are fed from the river behind the Taj
- on a night with a full moon, the Taj glows like a diamond
- the white marble is non-porous
After leaving the Taj Mahal, we noticed that the line to get through the gate was so long...much longer than when we entered. There were just tons of people everywhere! We finally caught back up with our driver and stopped at a place to do some shopping. This shop specialized in making pieces of the same marble used on the Taj Mahal. We even had the chance to see how they make the pieces, which was really neat. So everyone found something they wanted and Chris and I also went upstairs to look at their shawls/scarves, which were really pretty. We were eventually on our way (those Indian salesman are ruthless, trying to sell you everything in the store), which was good because we probably had another 5 hours ahead of us and it was already after 5pm.
It was a fairly quiet ride home because everyone's heads were bobbing (everyone was sleeping). We stopped at the tourist stop again. We got some drinks and a snack - a bunch of us got 'hot milk chocolate' which we were a little suspicious about (but thankfully ended up not making us sick). There was still a lot of traffic and it didn't help that the driver got us lost when we got back to Delhi. We were probably driving around for an extra hour! So we arrived back to the hotel after midnight. It made for an extremely long day, but it was well worth it. We got to see the Taj Mahal, which is one of the seven wonders of the world!
Monday, December 27
India - Day 2
(Sorry for the delay in the blogging from India...the last 2 days have been jam-packed of activities! We made it to the safari part of our trip today - so awesome - and we're just waiting to have dinner in a little whlie. So I'm typing from literally the middle of no-where in India!)
On Christmas morning, we left Mumbai and took a flight to Delhi - this was the next stop on our journey. The flight went well but when we got out of the airport in Delhi, we couldn't find our driver at first. Then a guy walked up to us with a sign saying "Craig Barnes". So we went with him (although he looked like he had just rolled out of bed!). When we got to the vehicle he was driving, we were a little concerned...this was a vehicle about the size of an Escape, but with a bench seat in the back instead of luggage space, and it wasn't in the best of condition. So the driver loaded the luggage on top to tie it down with Chris and Craig on-looking to make sure his methods would in-fact hold the luggage on the car :)
So we all squeezed in the car with our backpacks on our laps. Off we went for the ride to our hotel, with some of our seats shifting and all! This was definitely an "experience" for us, but was frustrating because a larger vehicle had already been paid for.
We were happy to reach the hotel and had fun seeing the Christmas brunch that was happening there. And it was especially funny because there were 2 Santas and they both had masks to make their faces look white...which looked so cheesy! But it was still fun to see all of the festivities they were having and the Christmas music they were playing. (We were surprised to hear them singing Christian Christmas songs!)
After we got different cars for the afternoon, we were on our way to tour Delhi in two cars and a tour guide. We made a few stops:
- Humayan's tomb
- Quitab Minar
- President's residence and Parliament buildings
- India Gate
These were all fun to see and gave us a taste of what we would see the next day (the Taj Mahal) because some of the architecture is similar. The last 2 places we just drove by. Chris, grandpa, and myself were with the tour guide, so it was interesting to hear different things about Delhi from him and the fact that it has about 16 million people!
After getting back to the hotel, we had our Christmas dinner at the chinese restaurant in the hotel, called Jade. And the food was delicious! I think I ate the best spring roll ever...the roll was very light (the way it should be) and not heavy like they typically are in the US. We enjoyed dinner together and also got the chance to call all of our family, which was wonderful. At the time, it was Christmas morning in the states. It was so nice to talk to everyone and wish them a Merry Christmas!
It was a unique way to spend our Christmas this year. (It was nice to at least see some Christmas decorations and a tree in the hotel we stayed at in Delhi.) This trip has been such a great opportunity and time for all of us. But we can still remember why we celebrate this holiday even though we are halfway around the world and that everyone over here celebrates the giving of gifts for Christmas (instead of also Christ's birth). We remember the eternal gifts that we have through Jesus.
Also...pictures will be coming later after everyone compiles all of the pictures we've been taking! Oh, and it would take me forever to upload to this 4G internet connection I have in the middle of the jungle :)
On Christmas morning, we left Mumbai and took a flight to Delhi - this was the next stop on our journey. The flight went well but when we got out of the airport in Delhi, we couldn't find our driver at first. Then a guy walked up to us with a sign saying "Craig Barnes". So we went with him (although he looked like he had just rolled out of bed!). When we got to the vehicle he was driving, we were a little concerned...this was a vehicle about the size of an Escape, but with a bench seat in the back instead of luggage space, and it wasn't in the best of condition. So the driver loaded the luggage on top to tie it down with Chris and Craig on-looking to make sure his methods would in-fact hold the luggage on the car :)
So we all squeezed in the car with our backpacks on our laps. Off we went for the ride to our hotel, with some of our seats shifting and all! This was definitely an "experience" for us, but was frustrating because a larger vehicle had already been paid for.
We were happy to reach the hotel and had fun seeing the Christmas brunch that was happening there. And it was especially funny because there were 2 Santas and they both had masks to make their faces look white...which looked so cheesy! But it was still fun to see all of the festivities they were having and the Christmas music they were playing. (We were surprised to hear them singing Christian Christmas songs!)
After we got different cars for the afternoon, we were on our way to tour Delhi in two cars and a tour guide. We made a few stops:
- Humayan's tomb
- Quitab Minar
- President's residence and Parliament buildings
- India Gate
These were all fun to see and gave us a taste of what we would see the next day (the Taj Mahal) because some of the architecture is similar. The last 2 places we just drove by. Chris, grandpa, and myself were with the tour guide, so it was interesting to hear different things about Delhi from him and the fact that it has about 16 million people!
After getting back to the hotel, we had our Christmas dinner at the chinese restaurant in the hotel, called Jade. And the food was delicious! I think I ate the best spring roll ever...the roll was very light (the way it should be) and not heavy like they typically are in the US. We enjoyed dinner together and also got the chance to call all of our family, which was wonderful. At the time, it was Christmas morning in the states. It was so nice to talk to everyone and wish them a Merry Christmas!
It was a unique way to spend our Christmas this year. (It was nice to at least see some Christmas decorations and a tree in the hotel we stayed at in Delhi.) This trip has been such a great opportunity and time for all of us. But we can still remember why we celebrate this holiday even though we are halfway around the world and that everyone over here celebrates the giving of gifts for Christmas (instead of also Christ's birth). We remember the eternal gifts that we have through Jesus.
Also...pictures will be coming later after everyone compiles all of the pictures we've been taking! Oh, and it would take me forever to upload to this 4G internet connection I have in the middle of the jungle :)
Friday, December 24
*december 25th*
Wishing everyone a very merry Christmas!
We hope that you slow down from the busyness and commercialism to remember that God sent his only Son to earth only to become a sacrifice for our sins. Today let's rejoice in the fact that God loves us that much!
India - Day 1
We just finished with Day 1 here in India and we're having fun! I thought I would give everyone an update...
It was a long trip over - it felt more like 2 days, which I guess it kind of was.
Getting ready to take off from Atlanta (and try to get some sleep)...
We were happy to be in India when our plan landed just before midnight last night. Our passports actually got stamped on December 24th by the time we got to customs :) And it was about 2 am by the time we got our luggage, got to the hotel (so nice by the way!), met up with Chris' dad, and got settled. It felt so good to not be in a plane!
After about 4 to 5 hours of sleep for everyone, we started off at 8:30 to see some of the sights in Mumbai (after a yummy breakfast in the hotel).
We stopped at the world's largest laundry location first...they wash about 8,000 pieces of clothing each day. It looked like quite the process. Sorry no pics right now.
Elephanta Island was up next...This was a gift from Craig's boss. The caves on this island were hand-carved with chisels and similar tools. It was so beautiful and we heard many stories about the meaning behind all of the "panels" which involved the Hindu religion. It was quite interesting to compare what our tour guide was explaining compared to our Christian beliefs. Here's one shot of how amazing these caves are:
After we came back from the island and headed to lunch to meet back up with Craig. (He had an important meeting come up to attend this morning.) He took us to Kebab Korner in the Intercontinental Hotel and it was absolutely delicious! It was our first Indian food since being here. There was so much food...appetizers, starters, the main course, and dessert. I'm glad it was about 2:30 to 3:00 when we ate because there was so much food! We all left with our bellies stuffed with yummy Indian food (with the spices toned-down a bit) :) Here's a picture of our starters...
This afternoon we also went to the former Price of Wales Museum (also known as City Museum), the Gandi House, and also looked at some sights around town. It took us about 1.5 to 2 hours to get back to the hotel because the traffic was absolutely CRAZY! Let's just say there were way too many cars to be on the size of roads we were driving on.
And now for some comical times of the day...
the monkies were liking Kaitlyn at Elephanta Island!
the women had a fun experience with the toilets at Elephanta Island...we used the "western toilet"
and chose not to use their version of a hand-washing system...
This was some of the traffic that we saw as the sun was starting to set. I think this may have been one of the intersections that they showed on the Amazing Race a few seasons ago when the contestants were here in India.
more traffic...and you can see some tents setup on the right for a wedding - it looked like it would be a huge wedding (which our tour guide said is very common)
Tomorrow we'll be leaving Mumbai and heading to Delhi! Hopefully I'll be posting again soon (except I think I need to condense my stories a little since this took a little too long!).
And Merry Christmas Eve! As I type this it's about an hour away from being Christmas :) Blessings to everyone as you spend time with family.
And Merry Christmas Eve! As I type this it's about an hour away from being Christmas :) Blessings to everyone as you spend time with family.
Monday, December 20
*december 20th*
Well, today was my last day of work for this year - yay!!! I'm so excited to be done. That only means one thing...we're leaving for India soon. I'm excited for the amazing experiences, time with family, and warmer temperatures!
I've been packing since yesterday and I feel like I've packed multiple times (because I was switching around suitcases). I think we have it figured out now and have some room to bring back things we buy over there :)
There was one last Christmas item I had to finish up and Chris delivered it for me today. I decided to make a jar of cookie mix to give to our realtor that we liked so much. (I actually made one of these to put in the white elephant gift exchange too.) You can go here for the recipe. It's really simple and I think it turned out very well...my first try at one of these. I used Christmas M&M's instead of the pink ones.
I bought my jars at Hobby Lobby - they have jars with either the "Ball" logo on or just plain...they didn't have enough in the plain the day I went. And you may also notice that my jar is topped with sugar instead of pecans. That's because I ran out of room for the pecans! I'm not quite sure how the lady on the website was able to fit it all in!
You should give this a try. I have a feeling I'll be making more of the cookie mix in a jar in the future.
Enjoy the anticipation of Christmas getting so close!
*december 18th*
We had the best time on Saturday night! We had a progressive dinner with our small group. And it wasn't just any progressive dinner - it was a fancy-dress dinner :)
I was excited for it. I took Chris with me to try to find a dress. I was a little skeptical at first, but we ended up finding one for $15 (before the extra 15% coupon we had) on clearance! And I really like it - I hope to wear it again. (Thanks honey for helping me find it.)
We had appetizers at the Osbourne's, dinner at our place, and then dessert at the Gerlemann's. All of the food was absolutely delicious! Chris did an amazing job with the brisket (and tried some new recipes which turned out wonderful), which went well with the creamed corn and awesome potatoes (thanks Kim!). I think my favorite part of dessert was the hot dark chocolate and thumbprint cookies.
After eating, we also had a white elephant gift exchange. Chris and I ended up with 3 gifts even though we only brought 2! Chris was able to keep his beloved stegasaurus - it is blue with pink spikes and even has a pocket on one side...he fought hard for that thing :) And I came home with a dip chiller, which I'm sure will come in handy. We even got to take home a microwave that is better than the one we are using (because no one else wanted such a gift)!
It was such a great time and we hope to do it again soon! Here are some pics at the dessert portion of the night.
Chris and I in front of the beautiful fire place (hopefully the better pics will be coming our way soon)
Chris was so cute using his new ipod to take pics of the dessert table. It's fun to see him taking pictures (since he hasn't much up to this point)!
And Chris with his stegasaurus...he said that he was trying to "win" it for Maggie :)
Thursday, December 16
*december 16th*
Tonight I finally did a project I'd been wanting to do recently. I wanted a place to display the Christmas cards and pictures that we receive. We received several yesterday so I decided it was time to put them all up.
This idea was not originally mine - it's possible you've heard of others doing this. It's such a simple and fun way to display all of the cards you receive at this time of year instead of just letting them sit in a pile (which is what has happened for several years at our house). I just used some ribbon that we had bought on an after-Christmas sale a couple years ago and stuck them all to the wall with the "poster putty".
Thanks to all of you who have sent a Christmas card. I always enjoy them and now I'll be enjoying them even more now that I can look at them everytime I walk through the front hallway in our house :) And I have to add that Christmas cards and pictures are just getting cuter and cuter with each year that passes!
Tuesday, December 14
*december 14th*
Tonight I made some cookies for my work's Christmas lunch tomorrow. There's a Pioneer Woman recipe I had found that I really wanted to try so this was a good opportunity.
Chewy Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies...doesn't that just sound delicious? A link to the recipe is below if you'd like to try them yourself.
what my cookie dough looked like (I was worried that it came out too stiff, but it seemed to work out ok in the end)
the finished product...you can really see the sugar sparkling on the outside :)
Find the recipe here. Enjoy!
*Update* These ended up turning out really well! They were pretty yummy - something different with the gingerbread/chocolate combination. I consider them a success since a co-worker liked them so much that she asked for the recipe :)
I do think that I cooked them a little too long and I probably didn't need the full-flavor molasses. (I could've used the lightly-flavored molasses.)
*december 13th*
After looking at some blogs a couple weeks ago, I decided I wanted to make a Christmas calendar. I got my inspiration from some advent calendars that I recently found.
Somewhere I had found a project using a clipboard to countdown the days in December (I can't find it now). So I blended that project with these free downloads I found here:
So this is what I decided to make. I think it's kind of fun to count down the days in December to Christmas.
Nothing fancy. Maybe I'll add some more embellishments to it next year :)
Sunday, December 12
*december 12th*
Here are a few new ornaments that we've added to our tree this year...
Chris found some really pretty angel ornaments when he was in Germany and Prague (which is in Czech Republic next to Germany). This is the one angel that survived the flight back home.
While Chris was in Germany, I decided to stop by this local store that I heard good things about. They ended up having the most ornaments for sale that I've ever seen! I could not believe how many they had. So this was one of the ornaments I found.
Yes, it's a yellow dozer...only in the town that's Caterpillar's headquarters :) So I just had to get it for Chris.
What's your new favorite Christmas ornament?
Saturday, December 11
*december 11th*
Pleasantly surprised to see this on the egg carton when I was making myself breakfast this morning...
Yet another reason to shop at Aldi - they put Bible verses on their egg cartons :)
*december 10th*
I had so much fun last night. I hosted the first party at our new house :) It was a baby shower for our good friend, Kim. It was a great night with food, a few games, fellowship, too much sugar, and of course celebrating Kim and Derek's little boy that's on the way! Here are some pics from the party:
Awesome cake by Melodie. So good!
Kim opening her presents! (Adorable banner by Candace, diaper cake by Mandi, and mix CD party favor by multiple people :)
Thanks Becky for all of the amazing food, Amanda for the entertaining games, and Cara for the decor.
It was so fun to be able to host. I look forward to more fun times and parties at our home in the future :)
Wednesday, December 8
*december 8th*
Tonight I decided to make my jar candles a little more pretty.
(Special thanks to my good friend Kenlyn who originally gave me the idea to put ribbons around candle holders :)
(Special thanks to my good friend Kenlyn who originally gave me the idea to put ribbons around candle holders :)
*december 7th*
Well, we didn't do much of anything to do with Christmas yesterday.
One noteable thing I did was start my P90X workouts!
For several months, Chris and I have been brainstorming ideas of how I could change up my workouts, especially since I was out of commission for 2 months and couldn't run...buy a gym membership so I could start lifting weights again? take aerobic-type classes (which would also require membership)? try to still do something at home? Well, we decided the cheapest and best option was P90X. It would be cheaper in the long run instead of paying extra money for a gym membership every month. (We had to buy the program packet and some equipment in order to start.) And we wanted to continue working out from home so we can be home with Maggie more during the week. From what we've heard this program really works (if you stick to it). And the most important thing about it is VARIETY. Variety is the key in this program in order to confuse your muscles, which in turn makes for better and more effective workouts. And I need variety. I'm tired of doing the same workouts. I think I just need something brand new. And that's exactly what this is.
(Ever since we started doing workouts from home (when we moved to Lafayette) I never liked doing the same set of ab exercises almost everyday. I really took up running for a couple years so I never had a huge reason to change. But then what happens if you can't run? Plus I'm not a huge fan of running in the rain and extreme cold when I'm not training for a race. Although I'm gonna try to keep up with running.)
So the past 2 days I've gotten out of bed at 5am to get these workouts in before work. And I'm loving it. I get my workout done for the day right off the bat and I can relax and do what needs to be done when I get home from work. (I used to workout after work when we lived in Peoria before.) I've been doing pull-ups and pushups of every kind, a workout called "ab ripper" which lives up to it's name, plyometrics (which is like athletic training with all kinds of jumping), and that's only the first 2 days.
So we'll see how strong and slimmed-down I get as this program progresses. (I've lost a lot of strength I used to have since I've stopped lifting and I want to lose several pounds too.) It's a 90-day program (which you can also continue afterwards). Chris will also be doing this with me once he's able. (It's kind of difficult to do since he's traveling.)
Let me tell ya, December is definitely a weird time to start a new workout, but I'm glad I didn't wait to start!
One noteable thing I did was start my P90X workouts!
For several months, Chris and I have been brainstorming ideas of how I could change up my workouts, especially since I was out of commission for 2 months and couldn't run...buy a gym membership so I could start lifting weights again? take aerobic-type classes (which would also require membership)? try to still do something at home? Well, we decided the cheapest and best option was P90X. It would be cheaper in the long run instead of paying extra money for a gym membership every month. (We had to buy the program packet and some equipment in order to start.) And we wanted to continue working out from home so we can be home with Maggie more during the week. From what we've heard this program really works (if you stick to it). And the most important thing about it is VARIETY. Variety is the key in this program in order to confuse your muscles, which in turn makes for better and more effective workouts. And I need variety. I'm tired of doing the same workouts. I think I just need something brand new. And that's exactly what this is.
(Ever since we started doing workouts from home (when we moved to Lafayette) I never liked doing the same set of ab exercises almost everyday. I really took up running for a couple years so I never had a huge reason to change. But then what happens if you can't run? Plus I'm not a huge fan of running in the rain and extreme cold when I'm not training for a race. Although I'm gonna try to keep up with running.)
So the past 2 days I've gotten out of bed at 5am to get these workouts in before work. And I'm loving it. I get my workout done for the day right off the bat and I can relax and do what needs to be done when I get home from work. (I used to workout after work when we lived in Peoria before.) I've been doing pull-ups and pushups of every kind, a workout called "ab ripper" which lives up to it's name, plyometrics (which is like athletic training with all kinds of jumping), and that's only the first 2 days.
So we'll see how strong and slimmed-down I get as this program progresses. (I've lost a lot of strength I used to have since I've stopped lifting and I want to lose several pounds too.) It's a 90-day program (which you can also continue afterwards). Chris will also be doing this with me once he's able. (It's kind of difficult to do since he's traveling.)
Let me tell ya, December is definitely a weird time to start a new workout, but I'm glad I didn't wait to start!
Monday, December 6
*december 6th*
(Credit to my hubby for today's picture.)
Evidence that it is officially winter and 14 degrees outside (with 4 degree wind chill) tonight - a frozen sol patch from running...
Sunday, December 5
*december 5th*
So happy to have a new wreath hanger as of today. I finally hung this on the front door...
So much better than a naked front door :)
(the wreath hanger we had previously somehow got lost in the move)
Saturday, December 4
*december 4th*
We had a great Saturday...
put out a few more Christmas decorations
watched the beautiful snow continue to come down for the better part of the day
ran a few errands to get equipment to start P90X soon (more on that later)
went to a Christmas party one of my co-workers had at his house
now it's time to curl up in a warm bed :)
slept in (even though Maggie woke Chris up at 6am)
had pancakes for a late breakfast
cleaned up the house a bit (while Maggie enjoyed sleeping on the couch)
put out a few more Christmas decorations
watched the beautiful snow continue to come down for the better part of the day
ran a few errands to get equipment to start P90X soon (more on that later)
went to a Christmas party one of my co-workers had at his house
now it's time to curl up in a warm bed :)
Friday, December 3
*december 3rd*
We had a treat tonight...we had our first "real snow"! (We're supposed to have a few inches by the time it stops.) It started snowing this afternoon so Maggie and I got to have some fun tonight when I got home. We went for a walk in the snow and also played frisbee in it :)
I think snow is so beautiful. I don't know what I would do if I didn't get a little bit of it every year!
Enjoy a couple pictures I took tonight - the lights on our front bushes and me donning my favorite winter hat!
Time for dinner soon (after my hubby gets back from running in the snow) and a night curled up in a warm house on a cozy couch watching a movie :)
Thursday, December 2
*december 2nd*
I finished up most of our Christmas cards tonight. I've been working on them since last weekend (but got our pictures printed before Thanksgiving) so it feels great to have most of them sealed and ready to mail tomorrow. Somehow everything had trees on it this year. I'm especially loving the new forever stamps that the post office has!
This year I chose to send a photo card with our annual Christmas letter. I really like getting cards printed to send to our family and friends probably because I love receiving photo cards from everyone else :) And I like the idea of sending a letter to everyone so they know what we've been up to for the last year. Sometimes it just gets time-consuming. I guess at least I'm not making a bunch of cards because that would take even longer!
I do enjoy writing the letter for my own benefit - it allows me to remember the big things from the year and reflect on how God has been working in our life. And this year was a great and memorable one. I feel like God really enabled me even though I wasn't in the best work situation while we were in Lafayette.
Well, now that I think about it, I should just do a post on my reflections of this year. So this will have to be continued. Plus it's bedtime for me!
Wednesday, December 1
*december 1st*
For the days leading up to Christmas, I decided I want to try to post something about Christmas (or winter) every day. We'll see how this goes but I think it will be fun! You'll be able to see what we're up to. And it means I will have to take more pictures of the stuff that I normally don't bother taking pictures of. It's always fun to capture every day stuff, special events like parties, and the way that we spend our December!
I'm sure there will be days of me cheating by back-posting the day after, but here we go...
view out the deck this morning...we had some flurries yesterday! great way to bring in december.
We needed to use up some leftover turkey so we made a turkey pot pie tonight. I normally make this recipe for Pillsbury's classic chicken pot pie, but we just switched out the meat and it was delicious! (And with only 2 of us, we eat leftovers of this for a couple days after.)
complete with a feeble attempt at a Christmas tree cut into the top :)
Tuesday, November 23
a month of projects
After one month in our new house we've...
...put up shelves, a workbench, and peg board and put down an epoxy floor in the garage
(before)
(after)
...painted a family room
...installed a new ceiling fan in the family room
(before)
(after)
(before)
(after)
...painted a master bedroom
...installed a new ceiling fan in the master bedroom
(before...still need an after picture)
(before...still need an after picture)
...changed the thermostat to a programmable one
(before)
(after)
I myself only had part in a few of these, but my wonderful husband had a part in every single one. We also had some help from Chris' parents - thanks guys! It's been a productive month for us since we've had the house and we're really enjoying it with these projects done. Maggie's loving her backyard (but she never wants to come back in after we let her out - because she's sniffing so much)! I think we'll be done with house projects at least for a little while now.
Nothing like making a house your own!
(We actually haven't done anything for several weeks now, but I just didn't get around to getting this posted until now! And we're going on having the house for 2 months now.)
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