2013

Tomorrow we are headed to my hometown for a couple Christmas celebrations. We have missed all the family in South Texas for so long. Jack always says he's going to Mimee's house. It's really sad when I have to explain that she's really far away.

I've been working on my 2013 goals, and I'm getting really excited. Maybe I'll share some of them soon. Hopefully, 2013 will be filled with such great things for our little family.

I hope everyone has a safe and fun New Year! Happy 2013!

White Christmas.

We had a white Christmas! It was such a good day. It was his first time actually playing in the snow. He had so much fun. After we went home from Gam's house, he asked to go back outside. How could we say no? After getting dry clothes on, we braved the freezing again!

 

 Gam and Jack mid snowball fight.

 Running in the snow.

(hat by My Charming Colors)

 Our second time out.

 SNOWBALL FIGHT!

 He was not impressed by my snowman.

 Look at that joy on his face...

 Loves.

 The next morning.

A little Jack for your Thursday!

Just a little video of Jack and I being silly. I love his faces!

Weekend.

This weekend:
- We morned the lost of all those children taken from this world way too early by something so horrific.
- We prayed for the families of those children during this difficult time and forever after. I cannot imagine their loss.
- We baked sugar cookies.
- We went to look at lights.
- We watched Christmas movies and shows.
- We read Christmas stories.
- We hugged tighter.
- We said I love you more times that I can count.
- We were and are so thankful for this amazing kid and that we are allowed to be his parents.

This week will be for:
- Baking
- Cleaning
- Planning
- Wrapping

Toddler Gifts!

1. Just Veggies. Good stocking stuffer. We are trying to get Jack to "like/tolorate" veggies, so this is our next try. Maybe a little Christmas and Santa magic will help get some veggies down him!

2. Star Wars GAP Pjs.

3. Lettuce Turnip the Beet t by Coup on Etsy.

4. Sleepy Fox hat by My Charming Colors on Etsy.

5. The Little Prince.

6. Wreck it Ralph Vanellope Racer from disneystore.com.

Jack has quite of a bit of this under the tree. Plus a few extras and a ton of candy for his stocking. He doesn't usually get candy, but for Christmas, we are making an expection. He also has a big special present that someone special is bringing. I can't wait to see his face!

24 Days of Tea: Catch up

Because of my little weekend away, I missed 4 days of tea. I'm catching up today. So far I've had one....

Organic Creme Brulee, Sleigh Ride, Organic Detox, and Organic Hot Lips.

I do know that I LOVE Sleigh Ride. So yummy.

Weekend..

This weekend was fun! I got in pretty late on Friday and stayed up too late. We went to breakfast Saturday morning, did some Christmas shopping, then to the Nutcracker! The little one in the middle was amazing!! Even with a slight wardrobe malfunction (her pants almost fell off on stage!!!) she did amazing! I am such a proud aunt of this little lady. After the Nutcracker, we went to dinner where I got to see my very pregnant sister! I can't wait for that little lady to get here.

It was such a short trip, but it was so good to see what family I did get to see. We're having a little family Christmas at our house this year. It's the first time I've ever hosted a holiday. Expect a ton of pins on pinterest, and maybe some DIYs coming up soon. I've got a LOT to do.

Favorite Friday

1. Katie's pinecone ornament DIY is so cute! I really want to make some before Christmas for my extra large tree this year!

2. Ginnifer Goodwin. Once. Need I say more?

3. This sweater. I'm in love! (photo from pinterest) (sweater from Modcloth)

4. I admit it. I'm obessed. I don't really even like country music, but this. Man. I love this. I have most of the songs from the show on my iPhone... in a playlist... playing right now. My favorite one is Fade Into You performed by Sam Palladio & Clare Bowen. Anything they sing is just so amazing. They are hauntingly good.

5. Last, but definitely not least... Amanda's amazing fort. She does one every year, but this year has to be my faborite. And this picture!! Heart melted.



I've seen a lot of these "favorites" posts and I gotta say... I look forward to them on Fridays. SO, here is mine!

Cause I'm leavin' on a jet plane...

I'm going to miss this little dude. (Hat by my super talented friend, Jess at My Charming Colors)


Today I'm flying off to my hometown to see my sweet little niece in the Nutcracker. She's six and is playing three parts in the show. I'm so excited and so proud of her. She's always been the shy one and I've never seen her dance before. This will be pretty emotional for me, I'm guessing. She's my God-daughter and my namesake. I'm tearing up just thinking about it! I'm so proud!

 My ten year old niece is also a dancer and I can't wait to go to her next competition. She gets better and better every time I see her dance. I love when she says "break it down" then just literally breaks it down out of NO WHERE. She's the best.

 Being so far away makes me miss all my nieces and nephews growing up, so these little short trips let me catch glimpses. They are already so big. I've always hoped to be the "cool" aunt like my aunt was when I was growing up. She lived in Dallas and we all thought that was so cool as we all lived in south Texas. Hopefully, in January when the entire fam bam travels to my mom's for our Christmas celebrations, I'll get to see all of them and for a longer period of time. I miss those brats. (They aren't really brats).

My tea posts for this weekend will all come on Sunday since I forgot to bring day 7-9.

Wish me luck. I saw a meteor this morning.... and Jeremy told me they are happening all day. Then he laughed and said "Oh yah! You're flying tonight!" Thanks. Thanks a lot, sweetheart.

24 Days of Tea: Day 6

Glitter & Gold: One of my favorites. I have a tin at home that I use sparingly because I love it so much. It's such a pretty tea. After it steeps, it glitters.

( David's Tea ) ( Danny Brito - pouch in first picture <3 )

24 Days of Tea: Day 5

Organic Cream of Earl Grey: I've been really wanting to try this one and I'm so glad that it was included in the 24 Days. Black tea and cornflowers with vanilla and bergamot. Yum. I haven't had a whole lot of Earl Grey's in my time, but this one is really yummy. I will definitely order this one next time.

Butterly.

Jack was the butterfly hunter this weekend. He never got close to any all weekend but he would run and chase after them. They all flew away, of course. So, Sunday afternoon, we walked out the front door and there this beauty was. It was dead, which made Jack super sad. He didn't want to leave it there all alone, so we brought it in.

 It was gorgeous.

 And GIANT.

I didn't have the heart to throw it away in front of him, so he suggested putting it in a box. Luckily, I had one. She is now resting peacefully outside somewhere in the garden.

24 Days of Tea:Day Three & Four

Here are days three & four:

Coco Chai Rooibos: I'm usually not a big chai person, but I was very happily surprised by this one. It's a tad spicy but in such a good way. I noticed the peppercorns first...they are red and bright, afterall. I read up a little on what else was in it before I decided what to do with it. It has cinammon, ginger, cardomom, red peppercorns, and coconut. Sounds perfect for a chai latte.

I've never made a chai latte before, but I thought I'd give it a try. I heated up a little light vanilla Silk and steeped the chai right into the milk. It took a little bit longer, but it turned out REALLY GOOD. I'd definitely recommend this chai to anyone who likes a little caffeine-free chai before bed.

Salted Caramel: I gotta say... I was VERY excited when I saw this one this morning. I love caramel, especially salted. Caramel bits, toffee bits, sea salt, and black tea...doesn't that just sound so good? Yah, I thought so too.

 Yum. Definitely a new favorite.


PS: I didn't share with Jeremy.... not this one, my friend.

Christmas, so far.

My handsome fellow surprised us this morning with this beauty. We have a teeny tiny tree that we've always used in our apartments, since Jack was born. This year, since we're in a bigger place, we talked about getting a bigger tree. BUT those are expensive and not something I was really willing to spend on when all I could think about was gifts for everyone. Well, last night I was giving him such a hard time for not having a whole lot of Christmas spirit. We were at a Christmas celebration in our town that actually turned out pretty terrible. This dude had already had this hidden at his parent's house just down the street. Way to make me look bad, dude. He woke up at 4am Sunday morning and set it all up. I walked in and said "what the hell is that?" but in a good way... there's a good way to say it... there is! 

I waited for Jack to get up to help me move the ornaments from the teeny tree to the giant tree. He helped on a couple but lost interest. I'm not used to having so many branches to hang things!! T

There's the teeny one. We put a full ball ornaments on it just to fill it up. And yes, I lite a fire this morning forgetting that I live in Texas and it was 80 degrees today. Get with it, Texas. It's December. 

I love our mantel. We've only had a fireplace once before, but the mantel was super dinky. This one is amazing. I love decorating it each passing season, so far.E

My sweet grandma made this wonderful wreath. She used to make them ALL THE TIME, but now just at Christmas. She's really good.

Our chef friends with their rock and roll friend. Also, our advent calendar in the background. I got it last year for Christmas, but Jack was too tiny to actually know what was going on, but this year!! This year!!! We are excited. We check it together everyday.

Our night! I can't wait for the "Watch Santa Claues Movies" ones. My favorite!!!

24 Days of Tea: Day Two

 David's Tea: 24 Days of Tea: Day Two! (day one) I love this thing. I'm so excited every time I think about it. I've already peeked at tomorrow's day... Maybe I wanted to take it to work? (I'm not going to, but that's why I checked. If it has caffeine, then I'd have to take it to work to enjoy it on that day!)

Chocolate Rocket is well, chocolately with a hint of almond and raspberry. I'm a big fan of mate teas. I feel like I'm getting a pretty good dose of caffeine. They are good for mornings and my afternoon pick me up. I'm a fan of Chocolate Rocket. 

 So far, all of the tea I've had from David's is pretty. This is no exception. Pretty.

Perfect pair to my sprinkle donut.

24 Days of Tea- Day One

Let me start off by saying, I am a huge, giant, obsessed fan of David's Tea. There are so many fun flavors. I haven't had one that I don't like. Of course, I have my favorites (that's a whole other post, my friends), but this is possibly my favorite overall product. 

I was one of the lucky one's to snag a 24 Days of Tea before they sold out. It's (obviously) an advent calendar of sorts for tea. Every day for 24 days you try a new tea. See why it sold out?

Each day there is a circle. When you open the circle, it tells you what type of tea you are getting and the instructions, all mostly illustrated. Our first tea was...

Organic Buttered Rum. Not one that I would have picked on my own (which is the joy of this calender). It's a black tea with coconut, vanilla bean, and some pretty little blue cornflower petals. I am really over-the-moon excited about the packaging. I wasn't expecting loose tea in teeny tins. There is also enough for 2 servings, which is awesome. That's how I got Jeremy involved. He wasn't so excited about the calendar until I told him there was enough for two. Yay, couple activity! I also wasn't expecting them to have the flavors printed on each tin. Very cool, David. Very cool.

The aroma of this tea is the best part. It smells buttery and vanilla-y. It's pretty tasty, too. I didn't sweeten it at all, but I probably should have added a little sugar or honey, which I prefer. I didn't taste the coconut very much, but it wasn't a bad thing. I would probably order this tea the next time I place an order. I have a feeling I'll be placing a rather large order after these 24 days.

These 24 days are going to be fun. Stay tuned. (note: every tea post possibly won't have as many photos)