Holiday Traditions

Each year my mom and I wake up early on Thanksgiving and sneak off to the kitchen to make our family's famous apple pie. (really have no clue where the recipe came from, just go with it.) Still in our PJ's and before breakfast, my mom pulls out this old age stained piece of paper that crinkles when you touch it. Its like a bit of magic, then come out the ingredients and we get to work. Spreading out the dough and cutting the apples. This year however there was a little twist, as in the midst of preparations my mother turns to me and asks "where are the pie pans?". Yup our pie pans were m.i.a., so i hopped in my car and headed up the street to the super market to get us new ones. Well they were out, everywhere I looked, no pie pans. So i hunt down a clerk and he starts looking for pie pans, any pie pan and low and behold he finds the last one for me on the bottom, in the back of a dusty old shelf. I could have kissed him i was so elated (i didnt) Back at the house my mom is working away and with our pie pan we finish the famous apple pie.

As she starts preparations for the rest of our Thanksgiving feast, I get changed into some work-out clothes to head off to that other tradition of mine Turkey cup.

My friends and I get together and play a pick up game every year before we have dinner with our families. Its something I hope we still do when we're old and have our own children, something we pass down.

Back at the house as family friends show up, the wine is cracked open. Mom bustles away in the kitchen. Pictures are taken, laughter is had, memories are made. Hope your holiday was as wonderful as mine was.

Happy Monday!!!

xoxo

P.S. I am boycotting decorating my house for Christmas until December 1st, I feel that companies are always pushing out thanksgiving and this year im making a stand. That and i still am in a bit of a turkey coma.

Dripping in sparkles...

Found these little beauties and HAD to have them. I have been wanting sparkly shoes now for a year.  I dont know if you have ever been on the hunt for something, but it seems like its just not going to come around. Like its saying how bad do you want me? Well I found them and im in love. So who out lasted who sparkly shoe making elfs? Because we all know shoes aren't made by shoe makers, but secret little elfs who come out at night. Yea I got their number, thanks to the movie Elf I know how it really goes down.

This also happens to be the place where J and I had our senior prom. We couldnt resist having a picture taken in the same spot we had our prom one taken. We call it prom 2.0

Well my sparklies and I met just in time for the wedding I was attending Friday. It was a few hours before and I still had no clue what shoes i was wearing with my dress. So I hopped in the car went to the shoe store and the rest is history. Made my self pretty and got to the wedding just in time. You might say I'm one that lives life as it come at me, not always thinking ahead. But never the less we had a blast. Joe and Monika (bride and groom) looked fantastic and their wedding ceremony was one of the most beautiful ones I have seen. It was so personal to them and all of us felt its warmth, and someone may have become a little teary eyed. One problem with the new shoes, NO traction! Yea practiced in the store and every thing was fine even did some of my dance moves, but that didnt prepare me for cobble stones. I looked a little like a toddler playing dress up in her mothers heals, but i was determined to make it through. So I lasted til dinner, hey I couldnt be biffing it on the dance floor while I shook my grove thing.

I give Props to Carrie Bradshaw (Sarah Jessica Parker) I dont know how that lady does it. Four hours and my calfs are still hurting. Oh and dont even get me started on Barbie, that girls been rocking heals for years and her posture is impeccable. Over all had an amazing night even when the zipper malfunctioned on my dress, didnt stop me, just made me dance harder and faster so no one would notice it. Hard to see a silly little zipper when the person its attached to is a dancing machine. All anyone can think is "how is she having a seizure and dancing at the same time?". Hope you guys had as good of a weekend as I did.

xoxo

This Crazy Family....

Well this weekend was family pictures and here are some of the out takes. Yea I know riduculous. With my family they never know what they're gonna get out of me. 

Yes I did put cotton up my nose.

Look at my poor sweet momma stuck in the middle of two goofs.

Can you say Christmas card... Well if I got my way it would be.

We end on a good note. But you know what they say a family who acts like goofs together stays together. Or maybe thats just me.

xoxo

Book club....

At work i have a customer that comes in once a week, and over the years we have talked books books and more books. We have similar interests and if he reads one that is really good, as soon as he comes threw the door he tells me all about it. I do the same for him. We're like our own little book club. Well that's what I'm calling it anyway. This week we were talking our most recent obsession, The Hunger Games. We are both really looking forward to the movie, and i found the trailer just for you. If you guys have not read this series yet, you need to. It will rock your world. The characters are so powerful and the lead is my kind of lady, none of that damsel in distress crap. If you have read it, what did you think?

Happy Friday!!!

xoxo

What's black, tan, and red all over?

Me Silly,...... or at least what I wore to dinner Saturday.

As some of my good friends blew back into town for the weekend from various colleges, a plan was devised for us all to go out for dinner. We landed on this great restaurant, Bucca di Beppo where everything is served family style. So basically you order three entries and it is enough to feed ten people and have room for leftovers for the next day (sweet!!!).

one year woooohooo!

It also happened to be my best friend J and his gal Cassie's one year anniversary, but will get to that later. Our waitress was so much fun! There was a little girl at one of the tables near ours who was writing love letters to Colbys 11 year old brother, it was so sweet. We were all really getting into it, poor kid was all kinds of embarrassed. It took me back to when I was ten and I wrote a little boy in my class a love letter, the basis of my letter was "do you like me check yes or no" corny I know right but come on guys I was ten.

 Well Brancen was writing things that were not so nice because he was really embarrassed to have all his older brothers friends being witness to this, but being the girl I am, I would not let him send the letters back till they were Laurel approved. I told him you dont have to ask her out, you dont have to say things you dont mean. You just need to be kind and loving, like a gentleman. 

As the night progressed we grew louder and laughed more, yup were those people the ones that are having way too much fun. Thats what happens when you only see your favorite people once in awhile.  I struck a deal with our waitress to bring out a slice of cake for our anniversary couple. They were so surprised and I got up and sung a song by yours truly and did a little jig. (I kind of wish someone got it on film cause it was pretty ridiculous.) Needless to say I had everybody laughing, including the tables around us. I told you I have no shame, life is way to short.

The final note arrives and Brancen reads it to me, Its said "nice talking to you have a great night with your family." Now that just made me take a step back, I looked at all the people around me and yes we are a family, as dysfunctional as they come, but a family none the less. And for a moment I was so proud of the loved ones that I was surrounded by. People say you cant choose your family and I think that they just didnt want to try, because the people in my life I have chosen and I love them just like family. We all come from different places in life, but when we get together it just works. 

So from my family to yours, have a great week!

xoxo