I forgot...

Sorry, I forgot to respond to my post about our nightstands.  For those of you who I'm sure are just dying to know (please note the dripping sarcasm here), the clean nightstand is Kevin's and the messy one is mine.  By the way, I was very impressed with the deductive reasoning that went into your answers.  

For the record, Kevin was upset that his picture did not include a gun.  So here is a picture of our newest toy (it's actually mine) just for him. 

Back to Work...

So Thanksgiving is over and the guests are all gone.  Tomorrow morning my alarm will go off at 5:17 and after at least 30 minutes of hard core snoozing, I will get up and go to work.  I did want to throw up a quick blog before we get busy again though.  

Having both of our families over at the same time can be a bit overwhelming on our poor h

ome.  Kevin's parents were the only ones who actually stayed here, but it was definitely 

a whirlwind of a weekend.  Only having family over a few times a year puts a 

lot of pressure on to present myself (and my home) well.  This visit in particular, I spent at least 3 days cleaning and decorating to get everything just right.  And I must admit, I was pretty

 proud of the whole picture...clean house all decorated up for the sea

son.  Just the way I like it.  I just wanted to say what a blessing it is to have company who leaves the house just as nice, if not nicer than, they found it.  Whenever Kevin's parents come in town,  they cannot help but clean up behind themselves.  They always leave behind washed sheets and dishes, no clutter on the floor, and a stocked pantry.  I know that family can be such a burden for some people, and I am so happy to say that our families are nothing but a blessing.  Happy Thanksgiving to us!  Here are the rest of the pictures that I had to get from Kevin's mom. 

Unwrapping the "Stocking Stuffers" from Kevin's parents

Showing off my Loot

The girls playing with their new toy

Yes, a smile was too much to ask.

Me and Mom #2

Cuddling with Chalupa, Lee's new dog

Kevin's dad bowling (yes, we enforced the "wrist strap" rule)

My dad bowling.  Can you tell which side of the family is more competetive?

Chillin by the campfire.  I love that she caught Meah in mid-jump.  She loves sitting w/my dad.

Enjoying a perfectly toasted marshmallow.

New Camera...YAY!

I was greatly blessed with a brand new camera today!  I am so super pumped, and it was definitely worth fighting the "Black Friday" madness.  Granted, we didn't leave the house till 10:30 so most of the crazy people were already doen.  Anyhow, Hopefully now I will take (and post) more pictures now.  So first I am posting pictures of my Christmas decorations.  I am not the best photographer, but I will work on my skills.  

Above the kitchen cabinets (this is the worst picture, but my favorite decoration)

Garland on the stairwell, and the homemade bow.

Mantle with our stockings (they have a K and a B on them.  Sorry about the flash)

The main event!  (Please ignore the tennis ball)

The tree topper...another homemade bow.  

Happy Turkey Day!

We're officially bucking all traditions this year.  Typically, we would drive down to Columbus and spend Thanksgiving with my family.  Then for Christmas, we would drive to Louisiana and spend four or five days with Kevin's family.  These are some of my favorite times of the year.  Well this year, our parents are blessing us with a Disney cruise for Christmas vacation.  Let me tell you, I am so pumped about it!  but that has caused us to do some plan changing.  So since we are unable to spend Christmas with Kevin's family they decided to join us here in Monroe for Thanksgiving.  My parents, brothers, and one of their five dogs drove up to spend the day with us as well.  We had a great time!  The five of us haven't been together in the same room since our wedding three years ago, so it was a great opportunity for us.  On a side note, I am so thankful for great parents and in-laws who actually enjoy spending time together!

Today after all the final food preparations were made, we had a wonderfully yummy lunch.  After some good time catching up and telling stories of children (us) and grandbabies, Kevin busted out the Wii and we got our bowl on.  No comment on who won.  But good times were had by all.  Then Kevin made a fire in the backyard.  We roasted some marshmallows and stayed warm and toasty.  It was a great day full of family fun and yummy food.  Here are a few pictures. 

Mom, Kota and I in front of the tree.

The boys bowling

More bowling.  Yes, I cut Evan's face off.  Oops. 

Randomness

So this week is Thanksgiving.  For the first time, everyone is coming here, and I'm excited and nervous all at the same time.   Tonight while I was going around cleaning everything I could find, I noticed something.  It seems pretty silly and insignificant, but as I was standing in my master bedroom I happened to notice my nightstand...and then Kevin's. And then I laughed.   I think that these two pictures speak volumes about who we are as individuals, and why we work as a couple.  Can you tell which picture belongs to which one of us?

My Dogs Are Cooler Than Your Dogs

This weekend I got Meah and Dakota the cutest Houndstooth coats!  They aren't exactly fond of them right now, but I imagine in a few weeks they will be strutting their stuff around the yard.   So cute!  

This is the life!

Does this coat make my butt look big?

Yeah, I know I look good! 

On another note, I got a new gun today!  For those of you who don't know, my husband is a big fan of the 2nd amendment, and we both have our concealed weapons permits.  Well I got my carry gun about six months ago, but after doing some research, Kevin decided it wasn't quite as reliable as he would like.  So today we upgraded to a newer version that is more reliable, and, as far as guns go, it's really cute!  You'll have to check out his blog for pictures and real details. 

Christmas Kickoff Party

Although Halloween was just last Friday, we cannot help but be excited about Christmas soon approaching.  Hey, the stores are celebrating already, right?  So We decided to have a Christmas kick-off party.   We watched some classic favorites....

Antd then we decorated some delicious Christmas cookies.   Mmm, they were almost as good as the ones we had at Kevin's parent's house last Christmas.  They would have only tasted better had they been decorated by my wonderful nieces!  Here are some pictures of our baking adventures.  

This is Keith's masterpiece, Stanley.  He is our favorite cook at Kyoto, our favorite Japanese restaurant.

Our other colorful Gingerbread men. 

Christmas Trees

Snowflakes.  Yes, I know they look like flowers.  They swelled up in the oven.

I saved the best for last.  Kevin decorated only one cookie....our new President-Elect, Barack Obama.  He was the first to get eaten.

MERRY EARLY CHRISTMAS!

Just for you Kelly

It's funny that you posted a blog about the Fall today.  I came home with intentions to do the same thing.  Because I just got to thinking about how beautiful it is here with the leaves changing and nice, cool, crisp air.  And I couldn't help but daydreaming about how fun it would be if we were all here for Thanksgiving.  Sure, it would be a tight squeeze, but I am sure it would be great fun!  Yummy food, great bonfires, and good family fun.   I just thought with all of the prodding about us going to Miami for Thanksgiving that I should offer my rebuttal.  Come on, think about it.  How can you resist these beautiful leaves...and it's only the beginning of the season!

Stinky Laundry

I know people, women in particular, are always looking for the newest trend or quick tip for things around the house.  Well, at least I am.  And here is one that I stumbled upon that I found particularly interesting.  

Vinegar in the laundry.  Yes, you heard me right.  I thought I was being punk'd when our hygenist Christie suggested it, but it turns out she was correct.  Adding 1 cup of distilled white vinegar to laundry apparently acts as its own fabric softener, helps colored clothes retain their color, and get the sour smell out of towels.  Who knew that such a boring household item could do so much?

So I tried it.  On towels first of course, because who really cares if some towels get spotted or they need to be washed again?  But it turns out that was the best smelling load of towels I have ever washed!  So I will admit I have become a believer.  I have washed every load of laundry for the past two weeks with vinegar and I am loving it!  It even got some blanket which have smelled funny for months smelling amazing!  Has anyone else heard of this before?

So I thought I would pose the question:  Are there any other household tricks that you know of that make life easier?  Or might be a little unusual?

Halloween Costumes

So the culmination of October at work ended with everyone (well, almost everyone) dressing up.  We also all go out to eat.  This year, it was O'Charley's.  And I must commend the O'Charley's in Snellville for the quick, speedy, and overall great service and food.  We were in and out of there in no time.  Here are some pics of our silliness. 

The Front Desk Princesses - Cinderella, Pocahontas and Snow White

Me and Lorena

Lorena and Ayonna

The Hygiene Skeletons - Candice, Kristen and Trudy

Christy, our favorite m&m

Tamara and her daughter

LawandaTasha, aka Wonder Woman

Lorena will be mad at me for this one.  

This was Christy's costume, but she wouldn't put it back on, so I stepped up.