gifts unwrapped

well, well well....
woke up to a lovely christmas, yet again.
(man, santa claus is good)

pearl earings. a husband's requirement for every wife. and i got mine! yay.
camera bag. "so sick", as lovebird would say. thanks core.
clothes. can't go wrong there.
a new painting for our house. we love it.
candles. i'm obsessed, in case you didn't know.
a new purse. never can have too many.
nail polish. excitement.
books. i'm a reader. thrilled.
orange peeler. trust me, you'll want this one.
a phone call from a missionary. pure joy.
falling whistle. (personally my favorite gift.)
a nixon watch. yes, that makes several for lovebird. but, he loves them.
boots. obsessed. i've had my eye on them for quite sometime now.

the list goes on. and obviously, i listed more of mine than i did of lovebird's. but that is simply because i'm overly excited about my gifts. i wasn't expecting a thing, and of course i was blessed. now, i know christmas isn't about the gifts... but, i still wanted to share.

also, sorry for not blogging so often. i have come down with a nasty flu. i couldn't even get myself out of bed yesterday. so, stay healthy! wash your hands every five seconds. trust me, you don't want this.

family spells christmas

i had a moment today.

in fact, a very uplifting one.

today, as i sat the table for my family of eight for Christmas eve dinner

i realized at that very moment that those were the most 

important people in my life.

family.

i am so lucky to be able to spend the holidays with my dearest family.

i am much anticipating their company.

my heart aches to those that aren't as fortunate to look across the dinner table

and know that they have a family who loves them with all of their heart. 

i certainly consider this one of my richest blessings.

my heart also aches for the homeless, the needy, the orphans and those

lonely souls out there at this time.

i wish with my whole heart, that there was something great enough that i could do 

to replicate what a home and family feels like.

i know this may be deep.

but i had to "record" my uplifting moment of the day.

it was too important to go unnoticed. 

please cherish your family as you have a lovely Christmas. 

dear santa...

i want one little thing.

a puppy.

i know, i know.... we aren't "ready" for a puppy quite yet.

and as you know, lovebird isn't the biggest fan of dogs. period.

but that doesn't stop me from dreaming.

it also doesn't stop me from hoping that a puppy stays a puppy forever.

my dreams and hopes are high this year.

however, i wont be mad if you leave me a note promising 

me a puppy in about 3 years from now.

thanks kindly.

love always, me

dozens and dozens

beautiful, right?

{wish you could see them in real life.}

i certainly am loved.

a total of five dozen roses. 60 roses. 

i have thoughtful and loving husband. 

and a special thanks to my ballet company 

for presenting me a couple dozen as well.

what a crazy, nerve racking, exciting, successful and busy weekend.

nutcracker shows, lovebird's father in town, christmas parties,

 and a little thing called work. (which doesn't seem so little anymore)

needless to say, it is over. and i am still exhausted. 

however, a new week has already begun and it is about to repeat itself.

another theater week, and another weekend of performances.

oh, how tired i am. but excited that it is almost christmas.

performing nutcracker is a real treat. i feel honored and lucky.

do you know what else i feel lucky about?

that he is mine.

sorry for the creepiness of my face. 

{you can thank stage makeup and slick back hair for that one}

say cheese

this week is crazy. absolutely crazy i tell you.

its so happens that final week and theater week are the same week. 

lucky us. more like busy us. 

however, on the lighter note, lovebird will be done with school tomorrow night at 5:01 sharp. {but who's counting? me. obviously} And theater week always gets me anxious to perform and throws me right into the christmas spirit. this week may be a bit of a stress, but that's the joy in life. what's life without a little challenge? to all of you out there studying for your finals or preparing for you nutcracker performances, i wish you the best of luck. hang in there, because christmas is just around the corner. 

oh! and when life seems stressed take funny pictures. it does the trick. there's never a dole moment when making ugly faces. and it manages to give you a split second of relief and a worry free brain. 

cheers and luck to the rest of the week!

count down

{our little christmas tree}

christmas is coming....

and our little home is decorated!

we are ready.

bring on the holidays!

lovebird and i are anxiously awaiting to celebrate

our first christmas together as lovebirds.

plus, it's a little more special than usual, because lovebird

grew up in jewish household. so....

so many christmas traditions and ideas are new to him.

and isn't he lucky to be married to someone so in love

with christmas? well, holidays in general.

he's in for a treat.

the advents have started.

{i purchased this one this year}

our house glows from the candles.

the christmas tree is delightful.  

our fireplace holds two stockings

and a garland i made.

check it out....

and best of all we are ready to start our own traditions.

they are so important to me.

what are your holiday traditions?

picture overload

hello friends!

i thought i would share some pics from 

our little trip home over thanksgiving.

they seem to tie up our weekend better

than i can in words, so here you go!

we were so happy to finally make it home!

meet henry our bulldog. he is our pet. 

and yes, he is a stuffed animal. 

if you know lovebird, you will understand this picture.

this is corey. my handsome brother.

a delicious, rather scrumptious homemade apple pie

my brother bret made. he's an excellent chef.

us lovebirds plus joel. my crazy brother.

you've got to meet him.

last but not least, crew. my bestest friend.

isn't he a stud?

yep, we are in love. 

stopped off at vinto for lunch. yummy pizza and gelato.

isn't he handsome? boy, i'm lucky. 

victory! we won!

they utah game was a blast. 

i simply have the world's greatest family.

and certainly brothers. all four of them. 

sorry for the picture overload. but i promised them to you!

close your eyes

don't you agree?

falling in love is a risk everyone should take.

with their eyes closed. 

it's the only way to do it.

let your heart lead the way.