Christmas Top 10 List!!

I have to say I love all things Christmas! I know I'm a product of my environment, given my mom does as well, but I just absolutely love this time of year. If we only had snow, we would be in business!! So anyhow, back to the love of Christmas.... I mean how cool that every year we get to celebrate a Savior being born with all kinds fun that lasts for an entire month. Now I say March is technically my birthday month, but let's be honest, no else cares and really only people care for one day (March 6 if you're wondering)! :) So with that said I decided to do a Christmas top 10 List (in no particular order, because who could decide):
1. love decorating...hence the decked out apartment
2. i love the music and it plays non stop in my car from the day it starts until the day it ends (except this year it's non stop on my iphone/ipad since I hardly drive anymore)
3. wrapping presents...i absolutely love paper and ribbon and bows and it's a bit therapuetic to me to sit down and focus on something so easy
4. the food...my mom's Christmas dinner has got to be without a doubt the best meal I eat all year and we do not take it easy on Thanksgiving....just sayin
5. church....you gotta remember the reason for the season. i must admit i have not been to one advent service this year, but that is something i always look forward to doing with my family....christmas eve and christmas day church service
6. presents....now that we know the reason I can honestly say I love presents...both giving and receiving!!
7. lights....christmas lights put a little happiness in my heart
8. cards...sending and receiving. i love to hear from people by snail mail even if it is 1x/year. and as i said...i love paper, so this to me is an absolute must!
9. holiday baking....i love to bake and eat, and I even hosted a baking party this year
10. Christmas movies....come on, who doesn't love a little Christmas Vacation/Home Alone cocktail?? i mean you really only watch them one month out of the year AND  to be honest, those would make my top 5 move list any day of the year!!
So there you have it folks. These are the things I enjoy most surrounding this fun but short season. I did not mention my family, but I enjoy them all year round and am thankful for them every day. They are a shoe in so why waste a number on them when they already know I look forward to seeing them and how much I love them!! :) Okay, now for the picture countdown....I will do my best to capture all 10 things!!

our makeshift christmas tree....which we loved!

christmas flowers+ornaments....seen before, but still lovely! 

pretty paper...pretty ribbons

Is he more excited about what's inside or the beautiful wrap job....hmmm, I wonder?? 

what was inside..... new bag and perfume for me

new jacket, hat and sweater for him!! we made out well.

zoo lights in chicago!! so fun and so cute!

snow globe!!

this years christmas cards....thanks to my good friend lindy adams!

the products of a 4 girl baking+wine party!!

All Gussied Up....

Anyone wonder where I've/we've been??? Well with good reason. Took a mini hiatus there for a week or so. But do let me explain....We have been a tad bit busy. In a matter of 3-4ish weeks Beer and myself have started three new jobs combined. When I got the official offer for my "big girl" job they were not sure as to when I would start. It went something like this: "it might be November" "it might be December" ORRR "it could be as late as January, will that be a problem?" said to the girl who had already been unemployed for 2 months. December seemed the latest I could start without completely draining my savings and my sanity. So in a matter of sheer panic and remembering how awful ramen noodles taste, I thought a little income is better than none so I just got myself a part time gig at...wait for it....JCREW!!!! That's right I can sell and fold with the best of 'em (aren't you proud mom??). And wouldn't you know it, the day I accepted JCREW the "big girl" job called and demanded my attendance the next week. So it's been hectic, but also kinda fun and let's not even TALK about the discount!!! :) I will be done after/around the holidays, but may stay on with very limited availability.
And then there is AK....he's the big man on campus at our house right now as he landed his dream job in downtown Chicago. He started at this company called Slalom on December 5th and has been loving it so far. Slalom is a local consulting firm and the big bonus of this is, they staff locally, so NO. MORE. TRAVEL!! yipppeee!! But really this is a big deal, because he has worked so hard and totally climbed the corporate ladder (to him that is cool) and really made himself marketable to one of the best companies to work for. I'm proud of him and just the slightest bit jealous as his company is awesome, he works with awesome people and they do awesome things!! For example, AK had seriously been working there for a matter of hours when he got invited to their annual Christmas/Holiday Mascaraed Ball for that coming Saturday  (hence the gussied up title) and we had no idea what we were in for. This party was (I hate to sound 19 again, but I'm going for it) off the hook. Live band, 5 different food stations, open bar (which is nice when your names are beer and champagne), a photo booth, tons of people and the attire was formal/cocktail so you better believe we went shopping. Not only were all those things included, but we got to celebrate at the House of Blues all night...poor us, huh? It was a great event and since my wagon is hitched to his (generally speaking, not formally or legally speaking), I get to enjoy all these great perks as well. Good job Ak....you worked hard and waited for the best and you got it!! Kudos!!
Take a peak at how we clean up and all the fun that took place....

we clean up well....good job us!!

who is that handsome devil behind the mask??

pretty girl...but in all seriousness masks scare me which is why we got ones on a stick!! :)

a picture of our photo booth experience....beer & champagne at their finest!! love it!

shopping on Michigan Ave the night before....had to look my finest!!

It. Will. Change. Your. Life.

When girls get together there is always a theme to the weekend. It always seems as though something funny is said or done in the early moments of the weekend and then it goes on from there. Nothing was different about this weekend. My Mom and our good friend Jackie (a.k.a Fancy) came to Chicago for a visit..... And just so you know, Jackie acquired her name on a Florida trip when we accidentally stayed at a five star hotel that she was clearly NOT too "fancy" for....hence the name! Now that that is explained I can continue to explain our theme for this weekend...."it will change your life!"It all started late Friday night/early Saturday morning....
Mom and Fancy were driving to Chicago for a visit to the "big city" as they call it! They were traveling late because a few obligations kept them in Iowa until 7ish Friday night. We thought this was perfect, because it gave us (AK & myself) time to go downtown for dinner/check out the Christmas lights!! Before we knew it, we ate too much food and were forced into a free bottle of wine (HA!), so by the time we got home our food/drink coma had set in and there was no sign of Mom/Fancy. We decided to put sweats on and hang out on the couch and watch old Friends episodes while waiting. Unfortunately our exhaustion got the best of us and we were asleep in no time....the kind of asleep where you don't hear your cell phone if it rings or beeps even if a person calls up to but not limited to EIGHT times!! Woops!! With one wrong exit mom and Fancy were lost and trying to find their way on unfamiliar roads with their best resources sleeping. One would think your best resource would be your built in GPS, but when it's programmed to NOT take highways or toll roads, you may have a problem in Chicago. But that's neither here nor there, because they were lost, and not only were they lost, they were lost in a very low income part of town....also known as "the hood!" You can about imagine the anxiety of two white women cruising through this part of town in a Lexus at 2am....NOT GOOD!! Luckily for me and Andy they ended up arriving safely and a little bit more well rounded!! And not only did they arrive safely they arrived with Mom's first round of Christmas cookies. When I introduced them to AK at roughly 0230, I said, "These are delicious and will probably change your life!" Fancy responded, "Who needs cookies to change your life, when you can just drive through the hood!" And that was it....the theme was set!
Saturday: Saturday was a fun day! Once we got up, we wished AK well on his trip to Indy to watch the Spartans compete in the Big 10 Championship game and then we just hung out and got caught up. Morning was quickly ending so we hustled to get ready so we could begin the complete Chicago shopping experience. We went out for brunch at Southport Grocery (un-be-lievable food) and hit up shops all along the way to downtown. I'm sure you can imagine how the day went: "you have to eat this, it will change your life!" .... "you have to buy this, it will change your life!".... "we have to go downtown, it will change your life!" This means, we ate too much, spent too much, and went to countless places!! :) Considering the day was so great, we were excited for what the evening had in store. We went out for dinner, took in the first Big 10 Championship game (outcome unfavorable), and then hit the town with some new friends of mine in Chicago, and it ended up to be a really good time. After a long day of good eats, good shopping, good people and a good city....consider our lives changed!! :)
Sunday: All good things come to an end, which is how I feel about most weekends. AK arrived home late morning and we rushed off to lunch so we could squeeze in a few more minutes of Mom and Fancy being in town. They needed to get going so they could be back in IA at a decent time so we just grabbed a quick sandwich. I was so sad to see them go!! After their departure, I was on a mission to clean up and complete my Christmas decorating. I left to run errands and gather my final supplies while AK rested up from his boy/football weekend!! When I finally got back home we put the finishing touches on our week long decorating extravaganza. I tell you, AK was such a trooper with helping me so much and being so excited about all my ideas....he really has changed my life!! :)
And in all seriousness I must say the same about my Mom and Fancy. Without them, I would hate to know where I would be. We are all so similar and think of each other as family which I am so thankful for. We really did share so many laughs, a few tears, lots of advice....all while spending too much money and eating too much great food. It was exactly what the doctor ordered for all of us I think and I am looking forward to the next time I can host such lovely guests. They know they are welcome any time!!! Without question, these two people have changed my life....for the better!!! xoxo.

saturday morning....ready. to. go!

the Fanciest girl I've seen....

Michigan Ave....all light up!

shopping on Michigan....look how happy we are!! :))

shopping on Michigan...take 2. we loved it!

all dolled up!!

my favorite thing we did!! thanks to beer!!! :)

remembering the "reason for the season!!"

Christmas pillows....to die for!

my own little elf and such a trooper!! thank you!

Christmas flowers & ornaments!!

Give. Thanks.

Give. Thanks. With so many things to be thankful for, this was a perfect theme for a fabulous week. Over the course of 4 or 5 days I heard so many different things people were thankful for..... Some things as simple as a pair of shoes, other things as complex as a computer/iPad, some things as weird as a pet rat (seen/heard from a girl on a public bus), some things as serious as a life (such as the one my friend Jen described saving), and some things as silly as root beer floats (like the one I'm about to take down)..... No matter what it was, "Give Thanks" seemed to be a unanimous theme over the past week, which was why it was no surprise to me my mom made a "Give Thanks" sign to hang over our Thanksgiving feast as a friendly reminder we all have a lot to be thankful for!
The weekend at home was wonderful for both AK and myself.....
Wednesday: I headed home and Andy's brother flew in from Denver, so the weekend had officially begun. I helped my mom finish up the day before cooking, and by helped, I mean I drank wine and kept her company and we got all caught up! AK entertained his brother in Chicago as they and his sister were gearing up for the Annual Thanksgiving Turkey Trot in Lincoln Park.
Thursday: The day of thanks!! What a fun day it was! AK and his siblings (younger bro and sis) ran in the annual Turkey Trot in Chicago before heading to his parents place. I had my very own turkey trot as the sun rose over the Iowa River in good ole' Eldora, IA. Both scenes were beautiful I'm sure...I know mine way!! By the time I returned home, the madness had begun...."I left too many things to do last minute".... "how long should I cook the turkey?"...... "are we going to have enough food?".....  so the pre meal scurry was underway. I quickly detoured to the shower (smart, I thought) and by that time company had started to arrive. And then there was no turning back! Luckily the weather was beautiful so we were all able to sit outside, visit with each other, the kids played on the four wheeler and of course we all ate plenty of turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, etc. Beings it was an all day event the day was hardly over. What is Thanksgiving without as many deserts as main courses? And really what is Thanksgiving without the annual Ping Pong tournament? The deserts were wonderful as was as all the food (thanks Mom!!) and the ping pong tourney....well the outcome was not as great as Gehrk (the all time victor, or so he thinks) had hoped but it was time for a new champion!!! :) Before the day ended we were sure to have a night cap and reminisce about how much fun the day was and all the funny things that had gone on. With roughly 30 people in house, there were definitely stories to tell and laughs to be had!! What a great day it was to "give thanks!"
Friday: As we went to bed on Thursday many people were Facebook posting about Black Friday shopping already, which I was thankful I was not!! Black Friday shopping is never something my mom and I have done, which is quite a surprise, considering shopping is easily one of our favorite past times!! ;) I guess we are more excited about decorating for Christmas and I was relieved to know AK's family was too.... proven by the picture text of their family Christmas tree strapped to the top of their family car (if you're having trouble envisioning this scene, think Griswald's!) :) So my mom and I decorated most of the day and we had such a great time! We also watched the Hawks lose to Nebraska....not so great!! But we didn't let that break our stride as we had things to light up and ornaments to hang. Friday night was rounded off by my cousisn's 9 year old birthday party. There is something so fun and refreshing about witnessing the innocence of a child (spoken like a true adult, huh??), which is why I chose to take care of kids. So you know the drill....we sang "happy birthday," made a wish, blew out candles and again ate way too much food!! Happy Birthday Nolan!!!
Saturday: Saturday was fast and furious as I was heading back to Chicago by noon in hopes to hang out with AK and miss the traffic madness on Sunday. One would think a full day of decorating would just about do it, but boy are you wrong. We still had plenty of halls to deck so we got busy and cranked out a few two woman tasks before I headed back. After a quick visit with my good friend Jacki (a.k.a. Fancy), I called it a wrap and headed back to the Windy City. A quick stop in Iowa City broke up the drive and for you avid blog followers, get this.....my hawkeye hat (you know, the one I lost while at the IA/MSU game) lives another day. I found the exact replacement, so we are back in business!!! Boy did I give thanks for that!! ;) After a long drive and decorating our little place, AK and I were ready for a beer and champagne. HA! So we met some friends out for a light night drink and called it a night!
Sunday: Sunday began late as our late night soiree turned real late before we knew it! But we didn't let that stop us. Before I knew it we were out and about getting things checked off the list! For the record, Uncle Sam can personally thank us later for single handily stimulating the economy....out and about turned expensive real fast, but our halls are decked and our house screams Christmas, which I love!! So Thanksgiving turned to Christmas time real fast but in the midst of a whirlwind weekend, we were sure to pause to "give thanks!" Sure I am thankful for the things we have and were able to purchase, but I'm more thankful the weekend moments I just described! Time together was a joy and I'm already looking forward to it again in 1 short month!!!
Cheers everyone and be sure to scroll down for a picture recap.....(a limited recap as I was too busy visiting and having a good time!!)

the theme (good idea momma!)

gobble gobble!!! and so stinkin cute!

one of my favs from the weekend....john deere is the only way to roll!!

my favorite people in the whole world....all i need is a little beer to round this one off!! :)

so thankful!

end of the night...cute! cute!

We. Are. Thankful....

for each other, for so many "luxury things" that we are capable of having (cars, appliances, computers, smartphones, etc), for so many people, for family, for love, for forgiveness, for shelter, for food, for jobs (even bad ones, like mine and for new jobs, like the one andy will start in a few weeks), for freedom, for clothes (especially warm stuff now that we are in Chicago), for health, etc. The list is endless and should be recognized more than one month, one week or one day out of the year. Time flies...which is a concept I'm realizing more and more as I get older and many times we/I (especially ME) forget to stop and be thankful. What a fun time of year to embark upon. I'm looking forward to the holidays as always and you could even say I'm thankful they are upon us!!! Happy Thanksgiving everyone....may you have as many blessings to be thankful for as we do!!
Cheers!

Birthdays are the B.E.S.T!!!

You guessed it...It's someone's special day today and that someone happens to be my Mom. Today should be all about her and what makes her so fabulous. She's truly a gift from God and someone I cherish every single day. Coincidentally enough her birthday falls in the month of "thanks" and I'm pretty sure most people in her life would say they are thankful for her....I know I am! All the memories, all the laughs, all the mother/daughter disagreements....I hold close to my heart. She has made me the woman I am today and challenges me to be better, but yet comforts me and consoles me when I'm sad; Her smile is contagious and her home is filled with LOVE! She is one good Momma. I can't imagine a day without her and today I want her to know how much I love her!!! Cheers momma...I can't wait to see you in Iowa City on Saturday decked out in Black!! :)

one of my favorites pics from 2011...at my graduate school graduation in Denver....there she is....my #1 fan!! xoxo

Time for a little Reflection....

Mentally and physically....hear me out!!
We have now lived in Chicago for a month and it has been one fast and furious month with lots of change, new surroundings, new schedules, new forms of transportation, etc. And so this weekend we had a long chat reflecting on life here and life there (Denver)! (this is the mental part!!). We talked about meeting new people and me feeling like I'm dating again in the friend world and AK feeling like he has to maximize time on the weekends as he is busting his booty working on the road. We talked about going on dates via a bus/the El but that we are grateful for so many great restaurants and so much entertainment. We reflected on being closer to family and how great that is. We reflected on the difficulties of leaving comfort, such as comfortable jobs, very great and comfortable friends, a comfortable/familiar drive to the mountains, etc. We reflected on many comparisons trying to point out what we find different and similar between Chicago and Denver and basically came to the conclusion that that is like comparing apples and oranges....IMPOSSIBLE!! Either way it was fun to try!! So in the end there may have been a few tears (happens to champagne occasionally), but we reflected on the fact that we are happy about that too, because that means we loved Denver and didn't waste a good chunk of our 20's. We met great people, had great experiences and made countless memories, and on the flip side, we are already doing all those things in Chicago....so lucky us!!
So the experiences and memories created this weekend are:

Friday: a date night at this pizza place/brewery in Bucktown called Piece..... Very yummy and where the reflection started! We had delicious food and even better entertainment as we sat next to a group of fourteen 60 somethings all in for a Chicago reunion....they were hilarious and had us laughing all night!

so good!!

Saturday: The reflection weekend continued while we went for a brisk morning walk along the lake and soaked in a little more "fall!" This was all before we celebrated a BIG....I MEAN HUGE Iowa win over Michigan and a Sparty win over Minnesota. Next week could be interesting....Iowa vs MSU at Kinnick. Stay tuned and I will keep you posted!! :) Saturday night we went to a local watering hole for some more entertainment/football (as if we hadn't had enough) and took in the LSU/Alabama game. We live on School Street and this place is no further than 10 blocks away on our street and it is called the Schoolyard....with name like that, how could it not be fun!?!?

"Fall" on School Street

a self shot along the path....notice the city in the distance!! 

 

 

 

 

 

Sunday: Began early and productive as we made it up for Church (a Lutheran one at that Momma)!! ;). After church we headed downtown as Andy had to pick up his rental car. This has been a regular occurrence on Sundays and a good reason for us to noodle around downtown. This time Andy took me to Millennium Park and I saw THE BEAN!!! Something I have always wanted to see!! And this is where the physical reflection comes in to play. This thing is a huge bean shaped mirror essentially (I'm sure the creator of this would be horrified with my explanation, but that's all I got at this point). It's right off Michigan Ave so the distorted funny reflections were not only of people but of the skyline as well....just wait, you'll see!! We had so much fun and were cracking up at how silly we looked. After all that, I had a fun skype date with 5 of my Denver girls, which I was so thankful for. ANNNDDD after that, AK made us a fabulous dinner and we watched Water for Elephants....to keep our Sunday night ritual of dinner & a movie going!! Cheers to a great weekend!

me (front and back)...being weird and a cool shot of the city reflection

a framer!!!

Beer & Champagne.....looking their finest!

my handsome little Ginger....wrapped up in argyle! Too cute!! :)

The front reflection...looking into the bean

cute, cute!!

"Hi mom, Hi Dad!!" :)

and this is what sunday nights look like on school street....

Toys are not Just for Boys....

Thanks to my cool and fab mom I scored a new toy and boy is it fabulous. Over the years I have become quite the baker and collected all kinds of necessary items that any baking extraordinaire would need, and there was only one thing missing....wait for it....wait for it...wait for it....THE KITCHEN AID MIXER!!!! How exciting, huh? I realize it's quite a toy, but I have quite a mom and when she gives gifts she doesn't mess around. It's such a nice addition to the kitchen and I am so excited. I'm sure many wonderful things will be created with the new mixer and we can't wait to explore all it's potential. So here is a sneak peak at what she looks like while undergoing banana bread (apparently I can't eat those things fast enough!). Thanks momma....this thing is great!!!

there she is....lookin so pretty and shiny!! :)

looking good even at work!!!

and the finished product....if only it hadn't stuck to the bottom of the pan!! hmmm....

Spur of the Moment....

I have yet to start work and truthfully, it's killing me. I have enjoyed the break and am grateful for the time off, but I'm kind of over it, which I'm sure I will regret saying in roughly two months when I'm completely overwhelmed with the all the joys of starting a new job. Anyhow, those close to me know I'm getting a little antsy..... I mean our place can only be so clean, I can only bake so much without going up a size in pants, there are only so many times I'm willing to get lost in new city by myself, and I think the people at Target are starting to recognize me.... so I was thrilled when my good friend Jacki (a.k.a. Fancy) called and said she was going to be an hour away at an outlet mall!! Without hesitation and on the spur of the moment I jumped in the car to meet her. It was a quick trip, but in a short amount of time we each found some good finds and had a few laughs. The trip was so quick, I forgot to to take a picture....ooops, next time for sure!! Thanks Fancy for making my day and providing worth while entertainment!!

home. SWEET. home!

As I mentioned a few times, I spent last week back home in Iowa, so I thought I would recap my week and share some fun moments from the weekend now that Andy and I are both back in Chicago.
It seems as though no matter how long I'm home for, there is never enough time and it always goes by way too fast. There are always so many people I want to see and things I want to do, and I swear I never get to them all. I feel very lucky to have so many special close by to share time with, so I won't complain!! This week was filled with lots of family and funny memories. Let's see.....I carved pumpkins, had a few cocktails (happy hour is fun) over great conversation, relaxed, ate great food, watched the world series (what a finish), went for crisp fall runs, and even found time to do a little shopping. Just what the doctor ordered really! Unfortunately though, my grandma had to have knee replacement surgery so my mom played nurse and I tried hard to watch and listen. Very interesting having a family member hospitalized and being on the other side of things. But with all that said she is recovering and doing quite well. I also had the opportunity to spend a shopping day with my sister-in-laws, my mom and my nephew Jack. We had so much fun and so many laughs. We had been together for about an hour when we decided this must be an annual event!! :) The other special event that took place while I was home was my brother Daniel and his wife Marcy's 5th wedding anniversary. That is such a fun milestone for them and they have so much to be proud of/celebrate....2 healthy boys, great job, and and lots of love to share!! Their love, commitment, and support for each other are a testament to their relationship and something everyone can watch and learn from! Cheers to them!! All those things made home very SWEET!! :)
After all that, I returned to my "big girl" home in Chicago on Saturday which is also very sweet. This past week I accepted a "big girl" job so AK made reservations at a fun French restaurant to celebrate. We then met up for drinks with some hometown folks (his from Traverse City, MI and mine from Eldora, IA) who all happened to be at the same bar. We had a great time, but I forgot to capture it all on camera....woops!! Today (Sunday) we just hung out, watched some football (Lions vs Broncos of course) and are going to have dinner and a movie tonight....kind of a Sunday night ritual!!

pumpkin carving....slimy hands & funny faces; Cade (11) & Emma (8)

the end result....not bad grandma!

silly picture!

my brother (Dan) and his boys....Tommy (1) & Jack (4). all so sweet!

heartbreaking....milly's grave. :( the cross is a memento made by Cade & Emma.

purchases and/or evidence...however you want to look at it! shopping day was a success!!