Santa, this Bud's for You!

Christmas Eve is my favorite day of the year!  Christmas Eve traditions have always been a bit "unique" at the Dawson household.

For starters, I never believed in Santa, but that was not due to a lack of trying on my mom's part.  I remember being a little girl and learning about safety in school.  I asked my dad how Santa got into our house without a chimney.  He told me he left the front door unlocked and Santa snuck in in the middle of the night.  And cue the spastic child meltdown.  I mean how irresponsible can my parents be?  They just left the door unlocked and then if they heard a man downstairs, they would just assume it was Santa.  What if it was a murderer?  What if it was someone that was going to break in and steal my Strawberry Shortcake stuff???  So my dad told me the truth about Santa, but also threw in the tidbit that if I ratted my dad out and told my mom that I no longer believed, then I would stop getting presents.  Deal!

With this juicy little secret in my little girl brain, my family developed all kinds of new traditions.  For example, Santa didn't get cookies and milk at our house.  Santa was way too tired of the sweets by the time he showed up, and he really wanted Dorritos and a cold Budweiser.  Sure Santa, whatever floats your boat.

After dinner, Mikey and I each got to open two presents: a pair of pajamas and a new ornament.  The ornaments were little teddy bears dressed up in outfits that represented our past year.  My mom would spend hours on these little guys and we loved getting them.  Now that we are grown, we no longer get pj's and teddy bears, but last year my mom gave me all of mine, and they now cover our tree.  This is a tradition I hope to continue with our own children someday.

We will have dinner tonight at my parents' home. Blair's parents always do a big giant dinner on the 25th and 26th, so fortunately, both of us are able to maintain our family traditions.  I suspect Santa may have been a bit more traditional at the Hoyt household :)

We wish you and yours a wonderful, wacky, Merry Christmas!

Bear representing my high school graduation. 

Sweet Omie at her holiday party yesterday. We wish she could join us again this year.

Paris!

Ever write a piece, then go back and read it the next day and think “Yikes!  Was I drunk when I wrote that?”   Well, that’s how I felt today when I looked back at my Paris recap post; and no, I was not drunk. I got drunk after I wrote it….kidding.  

And now, (drum roll please) I give you the new and improved Paris update:

We arrived in Paris a little worse for the wear thanks to the two lovely children next to us and their parents, who fed them a smorgasbord of Starbucks jumbo cookies and brownies promptly after boarding the plane.  Based on their behavior for the duration of the flight, I assume they finished their vente, double shot fraps with extra whip prior to arriving at their seats.  Who knew the giant Airbus plane could feel so small?

Fortunately, we arrived at our hotel safe and sound. The staff at the Hotel Scribe was wonderful!  The front desk clerked paged the head of housekeeping and had our room ready for a much-needed nap by 10 am.  A little recharging of the batteries, and we were back in action!

Given his hectic schedule lately, I assumed Blair would want a relaxing vacation full of café lingering and people watching.  Dead wrong.  He wanted to see and do everything, so that is exactly what we did.

We went to the Louvre museum to see the Mona Lisa.  I still think it’s a painting of an ugly woman with a smirk, but what do I know? We hiked to the top of the Arc de Triomphe. We toured Saint-Chapelle, the Notre Dame cathedral, the Eiffel Tower, and the Champs Elysees. We gawked at Versailles, and climbed to the top of the bell tower of Scare Core. We ate at fantastic restaurants and drank copious amounts of wine.  

We had tons of adventures, but by far the best part of the trip was our D-day Tour (LinkParis.com).

I did not expect that the beaches would remain seemingly untouched. There are still bunkers built into the hills; some still have guns inside.  There are huge craters in the earth where the bombs struck, and it is eerily quiet.  Our tour guide was fantastic and I felt like I was hanging on her every word.  Not only was she very knowledgeable, but she spoke with deep appreciation for the American soldiers.   We were both deeply moved by the tour and have already said we hope to take it again someday.

It was a trip that far exceeded my expectations.  I know that our time as “just us” is limited. We will not always be young or childless (hopefully), so I am glad we took the opportunity to go when we had it.  We took hundreds of photos, but here are a few highlights. 

Thanks to everyone who wished us a good trip and for all that asked for updates upon our return! 

Prom Night

My holiday party was held on Friday at our office, which they transformed into a high school gym to match the "Prom" theme: complete with a pep squad from a local high school, photo booth, and a prom king and queen :)

Blair's holiday party was slightly more sophisticated, and was held at a beautiful hotel in D.C. After the party, Blair and I sprinted all over town to find the VT football game (me cussing and dodging grates in 5" stilettos).  After it was quite clear the loss would be horrible, and B's night would be ruined if we continued to watch, we joined up with the rest of his coworkers at a local cigar bar.  It was a great place to end the night- even if I do feel like I have TB from all of the smoke.  

This morning we joined up with a bunch of our friends for brunch in Arlington.  Ah, sweet Arlington.  We are so homesick for you.  I made Blair stop to pick up a brochure for a home that was for sale- a great deal at $1.4MM...

And so now we are back on our couch in our realistically priced home in the 'burbs.  You can find us here until we drag our lifeless bodies to bed.  Wait, scratch that.  Blair just found an online sale on golf stuff.  I gotta go hide the credit cards.  

Thanksgiving 2011

Thanksgiving has come and gone?!?!  Say what?!?  It was an amazing four-day weekend that went by way too fast! It was deep fried turkeys with my brother and parents, and then Thanksgiving Part Du on Friday with Blair's parents, Cristina, and Chris.

Saturday brought a tremendous Hokie victory and a party with the wild Empty Nesters (Blair's parents' friends) and their kids.  The KEN's (Kids of Empty Nesters) party resulted in me, Cristina, Ashley T, and Blair's MOM doing the splits and a variety of other yoga moves in the middle of the kitchen.  I shutter to think what would have happened if I had more than one glass of wine.

Today, Blair and I managed to harness our inner Clark Griswald and purchase a family Christmas tree and decorate the house.  The holidays are here and I am stoked!

Can't wait to see what Christmas brings!!!

Turkeys at our house require hardware

My favorite old doggie hanging around for some turkey

The Master Chef

The rare moment of the day I wasn't in sweatpants aka "My Thanksgiving Pants"

Mom and Mikey

Happy Anniversary Ma and Pops!! 

The Happy Couple

Mother and Daughter.  Cristina's internal dialogue "OMG! Take the D@$!n picture!!!"

For the record, Blair insisted that I show off my skillz...Ten bucks says my mom sees this picture and points out that my  toes aren't pointed

Pops will not be outdone

Blair is Home!!!

Blair is home from Japan!  Finally!  It seemed like he was gone for ages.  Honestly, I don't know how military wives do it!

I spent most of the week with my parents so I could spend some q.t. with them (and also because I am a big giant chicken when it comes to staying at our house alone).  It was great having some time to really catch up with them.  The funny thing about having my folks so close is that while I see them quite often, it seems like we are always doing something when we are together- we rarely just catch up.

Blair came home on Saturday (did I mention that I missed him?), and we had a lovely low key rest of the weekend.

Sadly, we had to admit Omie to the nursing home a few weeks ago, but we were all able to make it to spend her birthday with her on Sunday.  She was having a good day, and had a blast at her little party.  She is so stinkin' cute!

Birthday cake!  

Presents!  You should have seen her "bust a move" when she turned on her new discman

We were lucky enough to have Julie's mama in town for dinner on Sunday night :)

After such a great weekend, it is kinda hard to complain about Monday.  The short work week doesn't hurt either.

Fort Knox

As long as I can remember I have had a crippling fear of someone breaking into my home.  This fear lead to the "truth about Santa" conversation at age 3 because I straight up lost my mind when my dad explained that Santa "had to come through the front door because we don't have a chimney."  Surprise!  I was a neurotic child.

At approximately 4:00 this morning, the sound of the security alarm startled us both from our sleep.  Blair jumped out of bed, to shut and lock the bedroom doors.  I immediately got dressed because I wasn't about to let some bad guy steal my stuff and get a peep show- apparently I become a diva when in terrifying situations.

Fortunately, to my surprise, I didn't panic, and I didn't die of terror. ADT called to check on us and identify the  door that had been opened.  Blair was on the phone with 911, and the police were dispatched.  Blair said he would go check it out, but I threatened him with death if he went down there...the risk of facing a potential burglar combined with the certain death from his crazed wife proved to be a risk not worth taking.

The police officer knocked on the door.  Blair answered and I did a happy dance as he was quite possibly the largest man I have ever met.  Clear LoCo sent the right man for the job.  He checked our house and yard and made sure were safe before leaving.  There were no signs of forced entry.

This morning, B and I went to Home Depot, and our house is now sealed tighter than Fort Knox.

Handy Blair installing new locks on all of the doors. 

We both want to extend our deep gratitude to the 911 dispatcher, the ADT monitoring center and the police officers who bravely checked out the situation.

Hopefully it was a false alarm, but regardless we are eternally thankful for those who offer much needed help in scary and dangerous situations.

Ashley vs. the Sewing Machine

When Blair and I got engaged, I had all sorts of crazy visions on how crafty I would become once we were married.  Like a wedding band gives you magical crafty powers or something?

I registered for a sewing machine, and I was beyond thrilled when Mr. and Mrs. Illia bought for me as a shower gift.

Mr. and Mrs. Illia cutting a rug at our wedding

A few months ago Blair purchased some pants that needed to be hemmed.  I told him I could take care of it for him...and then the flashbacks of sewing myself to a pillow in 7th grade kicked in and I avoided the chore.

Today, the time came.  It was go time. Time to take on this wild beast.

An hour later, the bobbin was loaded.  Things were going great.

10 more minutes later, Blair's pants were done.  I called him upstairs and had him try on the pants.  My pulse was racing and my palms sweating.  My stomach churned.  He stepped in one slow leg at a time, zipped them and stood up straight.  Bam!  They fit!  I hemmed the s%&!t out of those pants.

Now, I'm off to go knit him a scarf and bake him a pie...and by that I mean, go to the mall, meet baby Jack and then go watch the game at a bar in Arlington with some friend.

Cheers!

Peg-leg

Now that our plans for Paris are firmly settled, I realized the only thing that really disappointed me was that I would have to continue these long runs for another month...ugh.  I had my heart set on getting all kinds of in shape before Paris, and then pulling the ole' bait and switch on Blair after that. What?  We've been married for a year, he's stuck now :)

So today I took my "not going to Paris for another month" tail to the gym with my sights set on a 9 mile run: my longest ever.  I finished and felt great, but now I am limping around town like a descendant of Peg-leg.

Source: dipity.com

And by "around town," I mean "around our house. " It is 9:57pm, and B has already been in bed for 30 minutes. We are so cool.

Here's wishing everyone a great weekend!

Plan B

"Life is what happens when you are busy making other plans."- John Lennon

This quote seems to ring true so often in our lives.  This week was no exception.  As I have been gushing about for months, Blair and I were supposed to leave for Paris on Friday to celebrate our 1-year anniversay.  We were set to come back on the 11th, and then Blair was to depart on the 13th for a work trip to Japan.

As we started the work week, and job duties came in full force, the whole idea of back-to-back trips combined with our already crazy schedule started to make our romantic getaway seem daunting.  On Tuesday morning, Blair looked at me and said "what would it take to move the trip?" 

And cue mission mode....

Costco is my favorite store/website on earth!  I mean where else can you buy 800 rolls of toilet paper and a trip to Paris?  The nice people at the travel desk hooked it up, and were are all rescheduled for Dec. 9-16!! 

When we booked the first trip, I was super excited about being in Paris in autumn, but now we are going to go close to Christmas, and I can't imagine a better time of year to go.  What is meant to be, will be!

And of course, last but not one bit least, WELCOME TO THE WORLD BABY JACK GALLAGHER!  You are love more than you will ever know!

Photo: members.virtualtourist.com

Photo: Viatour.com

Photo: rawsilkandsaffron.wordpress.com

Snow, Tea, Halloween Party, Oh, and Anniversary!!

What a weekend it has been!  Blair has been gone all weekend for his company golf retreat, so I have spent braving the freak snow storm to run 1000 errands for our PARIS trip on FRIDAY!!!!  (just a bit excited).

Ice and snow on our roses out front.  Better to have snow on the roses in my yard  than on the ones in my wedding bouquet! 

Mixed in with all that hard work was a fun tea date with my Mom and Julie, followed by a Halloween party at the Bartiums House of Horrors...those two sure can decorate!  Since Blair wasn't able to join me at the party I went as "flying Solo."  Waka Waka Waka.  I am horribly self-entertaining.

"She's So Lo she can't get up!" Steve Bartimus  and then repeated 80 times by the neighborhood kids :)

Today is our official 1 year anniversary!  I am so excited for Blair to get home I just can't stand myself!  I spent hours perusing cookbooks to come up with the perfect romantic dinner, when it hit me that he will probably come in like a zombie and not be up for my flambe show...or for the potential house fire that could result.

I'll leave the flambe up to her :)  Just add a touch more wine...
Source: Grouprecipes.com

So, instead I have a pot roast simmering, and mashed potatoes on the agenda.  The best part?  Eating that darn wedding cake that has been taking up an entire shelf  in our freezer.  I'm sure it will taste like a frosting covered brick, but it is tradition, so we will give it a go.

I'm really excited for our little anniversary dinner tonight.  Even though we aren't really celebrating until Paris, it has still been a really fun few days leading up to today.  We have received lots of emails, phone calls, and sweet cards from family and friends.  We even received a typed copy of the speech my father-in-law made at the rehearsal dinner, which I have been waiting to read until Blair gets home.

 It's funny, when I walked down the aisle and saw Blair standing there waiting for me, I couldn't have imagined that I could have ever loved him more, but one year later, I do, and I hope I say the same every year.  It has been an amazing first year of marriage and I am very much looking forward to many more together.

Stuck with me now!

Love you to all!

One Year Ago...

One year ago today, at 1:45 pm, Blair and I walked through the door of the closing office to seal the deal on the purchase of our new home.  I had spent the days ahead planning our move as if it were a special ops mission.  We would be married in 2.5 days, and time was of the essence to get this thing done!  We were greeted by the closing agent who told us that she wasn't going to give us the keys because they hadn't received the funds from our lender.  What?!?!  I frantically called the lender who assured me the funds were wired and had the confirmation number to  prove it.  I had furniture deliveries coming from all ends of the earth and two moving vans full of our stuff (and I thought we didn't have anything!).  This HAD to happen on schedule.  We started signing papers, but the closing agent insisted that she would not give us the keys until the funds actually cleared their account...grr.....  As Blair and I signed the last signature on the last page, the receptionist ran in and said the funds just cleared.  Phew!

Hours later, all of the deliveries had been made, and we were for the first time, alone in our brand new home.  We slept in the loft on the mattress from Blair's condo, which was laying on the floor.  Boxes were everywhere, and with no blinds to hide our stash, we were both a little nervous.
At one point, Blair jumped out of bed and ran downstairs in his underwear with a golf club to fend off the invisible intruder.  Underwear and a golf club are the clear uniform of choice for any man fending off an late-night perp.  I am pretty sure I had a curling iron and was wearing the clothes Blair had left behind.

It's funny to think back on that first night.  We were so overwhelmed by the amount of unpacking and chores to complete, but we were home and we were happy.

Reality of home ownership quickly set in when I got the phone call the next day:
Blair: "Hey, you know where you left the washing machine..."
Me: "Yes...."
Blair:  "Well it's not there anymore and there is water everywhere!"
Outstanding

Looking back on the year, we survived that first leak, 4 months without cable, the foundation crack, the leaking master bedroom shower, the family of devil kittens, and a partridge in a pear tree.  It hasn't been the easiest year of home ownership, but this house is ours.

It is where we spent our first year of marriage.  The once empty rooms are now filled with happy pictures and treasured family antiques; and the chairs we loved, hated, and then loved again.  Our kitchen has fed family and friends, and our bedrooms have provided both a place for friends and family to stay.  It is where we will (hopefully) raise our children.  It is a crazy place sometimes, but it is our home.

Taking a picture of ourselves...Ground was broken!!

Me noticing the crack in the foundation...I look even less thrilled when the same crack leaked 7 months later

This is what "overwhelmed" looks like.

Sure, he looks adorable...the devil in disguise. 

Alone on the island...

Arachnophobia

Yesterday afternoon I started tackling the giant laundry mountain.  I piled up all of the laundry in the laundry room and sorted it by wash type.  I had just started a load of towels, when I looked back and found a giant, lady-eating spider on the floor.  

This spider is from google images, but trust me, it was this nasty

I am an independent woman.  I lived on my own for several years before marriage.  I wore a hard hat to work and dealt with some of the nastiest, burliest dudes in town.  I can handle my own business.  So when I saw this big spider, I did exactly what any self-respecting woman would do...I ran upstairs and got Blair and made him kill it while I supervised.  Marriage has many perks, not the least of which is having a husband that is now officially required to do this kind of thing.  I'm sure that was written in our vows somewhere. 

Last Home Game!

What a great weekend for football in Blacksburg!  The weather was perfect, and the atmosphere was fun!  Given that Blair will be in Japan for the North Carolina game, this was our last home game for the season.  Hard to believe!  We had a wonderful time hanging out with Blair's dad, Dave and Tracey, and Mike and Julie and all of Juile's wonderful family and friends.  

While the big win was a nice treat, the real highlight of the game for me was the random act of kindness from one nearby fan.  Blair was trying to waive down the soda guy who was a few rows down from us.  Soda man acknowledged Blair, and then the person in the row right near Soda man bought the last soda, which drew a collective "ahhh" from the fun people around us.  Soda man promised he would return soon.  No big deal, BUT one nice fan went to the concession stand and bought Blair a soda and passed it up to him!  We don't know this nice guy, but how sweet to do this!  So, if you happen to be reading this kind fan, thank you for being the highlight of our trip.  Hokies sure are nice people!  

Hope you all had a great weekend!