This afternoon the snow began falling again... this time ALL OVER LAS VEGAS. Rick said it was snowing where he worked and that *never* happens! Here is a quick little video taken from my cell phone to show you the snow that has fallen within the last half hour! (okay that is seriously the crappiest video EVER. I need to go back to Violet's little Flip video camera)
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Monday, December 15, 2008
I'm Dreaming...
Of a White Christmas.......
Looks like it came a little early this year! A rare, freak snowstorm has blown in and it's actually still coming down. Here is a sneak peek at our (mostly) finished yard, after being blanketed with a bit of snow. More came after this pic was taken and more is forecast for the rest of the week.
For now, we have enough for a couple of snowball fights this afternoon :)
Looks like it came a little early this year! A rare, freak snowstorm has blown in and it's actually still coming down. Here is a sneak peek at our (mostly) finished yard, after being blanketed with a bit of snow. More came after this pic was taken and more is forecast for the rest of the week.
For now, we have enough for a couple of snowball fights this afternoon :)
Hope you are staying warm today! We've got the fire roaring in the fireplace and I am sipping hot cocoa. Perfect wintry day... perfect for Christmas! :)
Sunday, December 14, 2008
Christmas in the City
Welcome to my village. It's from Department 56 and it's called "Christmas in the City" and it is by far, my most favorite decoration in our home. It all started on the first Christmas Rick and I spent together when Auntie Jan got me the Town Tree. Each year since I have gotten another piece to add to my collection, and it is just beautiful and magical. I hadn't gotten pieces the last couple of years (because I just couldn't decide) so I was bound and determined that *this* year I would get at least one, maybe two, to add to the collection. Rick and I stopped at the Department 56 store in Downtown Disney when we went last week, and I nearly had a HEART ATTACK. They were closing the store - so all retired pieces were being sold at an unheard of 50% OFF!! I told Rick that I might not stop at one or two pieces, but I will keep control of myself, because after all, part of the magic of the village is only adding a little bit to it each year. If you want to see any of the images in greater detail, click on them :)
SO. Without further ado, welcome to my village, where residents walk their dogs in front of their row houses (this is one of my new pieces!):
Where artists work in their studio next to the subway entrance (the studio is new, too!):
Where the firemen host their annual holiday ball and the nurse wheels out new mom and baby to greet dad, waiting with a bouquet of flowers:
Where the firemen are called to help the workers in the Town Square hang Christmas lights on the tree...
And here is the tree that started it all, with my favorite accessories - the tree workers:
Where the newly married couple buys their first tree from the local lot downtown:
and where carolers sing outside the candy shop:
And on a lovely night like tonight, couples get dressed to the nines to head out from their apartment to the Holiday Ball...
And the Opera Conductor and the Prima Donna are photographed before entering the dance hall (my third piece I bought this year... and it is the piece de resistance!)...
Why is this one so amazing? Because, on the rooftop dance floor, couples in sparkling eveningwear actually DANCE and twirl around! It's completely magical.
So here is my Christmas village, and the tree that started it all. This is looking down the street, toward the fire station.
And this is looking up the street, toward Mrs. Stover's Bungalow Candy Shoppe.
The village rests on the sideboard in our front room, so it's what you first see when you walk into our house. I love it. The lights are not turned off for the entire Christmas season, so even at night when the whole house is dark, the village is lit. I imagine that, while I am sleeping, the people come to life and go about their days in the little town. And sometimes I imagine that I am part of that town, too. :)
SO. Without further ado, welcome to my village, where residents walk their dogs in front of their row houses (this is one of my new pieces!):
Where artists work in their studio next to the subway entrance (the studio is new, too!):
Where the firemen host their annual holiday ball and the nurse wheels out new mom and baby to greet dad, waiting with a bouquet of flowers:
Where the firemen are called to help the workers in the Town Square hang Christmas lights on the tree...
And here is the tree that started it all, with my favorite accessories - the tree workers:
Where the newly married couple buys their first tree from the local lot downtown:
and where carolers sing outside the candy shop:
And on a lovely night like tonight, couples get dressed to the nines to head out from their apartment to the Holiday Ball...
And the Opera Conductor and the Prima Donna are photographed before entering the dance hall (my third piece I bought this year... and it is the piece de resistance!)...
Why is this one so amazing? Because, on the rooftop dance floor, couples in sparkling eveningwear actually DANCE and twirl around! It's completely magical.
So here is my Christmas village, and the tree that started it all. This is looking down the street, toward the fire station.
And this is looking up the street, toward Mrs. Stover's Bungalow Candy Shoppe.
The village rests on the sideboard in our front room, so it's what you first see when you walk into our house. I love it. The lights are not turned off for the entire Christmas season, so even at night when the whole house is dark, the village is lit. I imagine that, while I am sleeping, the people come to life and go about their days in the little town. And sometimes I imagine that I am part of that town, too. :)Saturday, December 13, 2008
It's beginning
... to look a lot like Christmas! This was our tree before I found the tree skirt. But isn't it amazing??? It's TWELVE FEET HIGH! I always always, since finding this house, wanted to put a tree here. And now I have the perfect one (Sam's Club prelit slimline, in case you want to know) and I am so so so so so so happy! :)We have also set up the Christmas village (photos on that will be posted on Monday!) and I wanted to share with you some of the other decor around the house this week. I just love Christmas. The spirit, the feeling, and especially the decorating ;)
Saturday, December 06, 2008
La Ndscape
More progress is being made! Here is our new sidewalk on the left side of the house all the way to the back gate. You can see the steps down from our new front patio, too!
And the yard... no more dumpster, and as you can see we have a tree again! This one, however, is a tree that I actually LIKE. A mimosa, like the one from our old house and the one in my parents' yard. They have beautiful pink flowers in the spring and summer and they make beautiful shade canopies. I can't wait for this one to grow into the amazing tree I am sure it will become! You can also see here the decorative strip down the side of the driveway. When it is fully cured (30 days from now) we will be staining it a light tan color.
Mo also installed flagstone steps going to the front door for some added character. I love the way they break up the yard into sections, and how they give the yard a cool, organic look.
And, of course, the result of the side yard concrete pour... our new sidewalk and basketball court! The kids had been DYING to move their basketball hoop over there to play. As you can also see, we don't have a gate yet (Mo, our amazing landscaper, is also an amazing welder and he is actually MAKING us new gates!), so Titus just peeks over the plywood with a forlorn look on his face, wondering if he will ever get to play basketball like the kids.
The view from the back wall, looking out toward the front.
One more huge improvement for us was the installation of lights on either side of our garage door. I have always complained about our street being so inherently dark, and I love the added ambiance (not to mention added security!) that the lights bring. And OH YEAH... Rick did this part himself. The wiring, the drilling, and the hanging. He is AMAZING!
Finally, our Rock Pile with our Rock Star right on top. Hopefully in the next day or two these rocks will be moved into their proper places. For right now, though, I will watch Riley play air guitar on the hill.
YAY! The yard is starting to come together! I can't wait to share more!
And the yard... no more dumpster, and as you can see we have a tree again! This one, however, is a tree that I actually LIKE. A mimosa, like the one from our old house and the one in my parents' yard. They have beautiful pink flowers in the spring and summer and they make beautiful shade canopies. I can't wait for this one to grow into the amazing tree I am sure it will become! You can also see here the decorative strip down the side of the driveway. When it is fully cured (30 days from now) we will be staining it a light tan color.
Mo also installed flagstone steps going to the front door for some added character. I love the way they break up the yard into sections, and how they give the yard a cool, organic look.
And, of course, the result of the side yard concrete pour... our new sidewalk and basketball court! The kids had been DYING to move their basketball hoop over there to play. As you can also see, we don't have a gate yet (Mo, our amazing landscaper, is also an amazing welder and he is actually MAKING us new gates!), so Titus just peeks over the plywood with a forlorn look on his face, wondering if he will ever get to play basketball like the kids.
The view from the back wall, looking out toward the front.
One more huge improvement for us was the installation of lights on either side of our garage door. I have always complained about our street being so inherently dark, and I love the added ambiance (not to mention added security!) that the lights bring. And OH YEAH... Rick did this part himself. The wiring, the drilling, and the hanging. He is AMAZING!
Finally, our Rock Pile with our Rock Star right on top. Hopefully in the next day or two these rocks will be moved into their proper places. For right now, though, I will watch Riley play air guitar on the hill.
YAY! The yard is starting to come together! I can't wait to share more! Friday, December 05, 2008
Lands Cape
Here, Riley is narrating the next step in our landscape process... the pouring of cement. He was very excited to have a cement truck in our front yard... especially because it means he is getting his basketball court on the side of the house! We are also putting in sidewalks on both sides of the house, a front patio, and decorative stamped strips on either side of the driveway.
Okay, so Riley needs to work on his cinematography skills a bit. HA.
Thursday, December 04, 2008
The Walls Came Tumbling Down
Still dealing with some technical difficulties in uploading Riley's video, so I thought I would share with you some photos of Men doing Manly Things. Nothing says Manly Man like a sledgehammer. And Rick was all about the sledgehammer when it came time to rip out our back wall.
First Mo had to use this crazy big circular saw thing to cut through the wall...
It was super exciting, especially the free fireworks show that we got to witness!
And, then, once the wall was scored with the blade, the boys got to work. HEAVE!
HEAVE!!!
HOOOOOOOO!!!
And the walls came tumbling down. WOOHOO!
First Mo had to use this crazy big circular saw thing to cut through the wall...
It was super exciting, especially the free fireworks show that we got to witness!
And, then, once the wall was scored with the blade, the boys got to work. HEAVE!
HEAVE!!!
HOOOOOOOO!!!
And the walls came tumbling down. WOOHOO! Wednesday, December 03, 2008
Land Scape
So as you know we are in the process of transforming our yard from this...
into, well, not this. First we painted the front door and then we laid out the plans for the yard. Our friend Mo (with Aspen Rain Landscaping) is our contractor and I can't say enough about how great he has been... from the design stage all the way through to implementation, he is great. If you want his number, give me a call! He even does regular yard maintenance.
Part of what our yard plans include is this upgrade to our side yard. Before, the side yard was just a blah patch of rock. Step one is an extension of the side wall... we will tear down the backyard wall to open this part into the back yard, and we will put a gate right where this wall ends. Step two is a concrete slab that will be Riley & Violet's basketball court/bike area. Here you can see the footers for the new side wall going in...
And out front, there is a huge dumpster to haul away our brick as well as the TWO TREES Mo removed. In their place, we will be planting my favorite tree, a mimosa.
My yard is a virtual Tabula Rasa!
The wheelbarrow here is sitting right where we will be extending the driveway with a pretty, stamped strip of concrete (that will eventually be stained).
into, well, not this. First we painted the front door and then we laid out the plans for the yard. Our friend Mo (with Aspen Rain Landscaping) is our contractor and I can't say enough about how great he has been... from the design stage all the way through to implementation, he is great. If you want his number, give me a call! He even does regular yard maintenance.Part of what our yard plans include is this upgrade to our side yard. Before, the side yard was just a blah patch of rock. Step one is an extension of the side wall... we will tear down the backyard wall to open this part into the back yard, and we will put a gate right where this wall ends. Step two is a concrete slab that will be Riley & Violet's basketball court/bike area. Here you can see the footers for the new side wall going in...
And out front, there is a huge dumpster to haul away our brick as well as the TWO TREES Mo removed. In their place, we will be planting my favorite tree, a mimosa.
My yard is a virtual Tabula Rasa!
The wheelbarrow here is sitting right where we will be extending the driveway with a pretty, stamped strip of concrete (that will eventually be stained).
More on the landscaping coming up! I can't wait to show you Riley's Cement Videos! Those are up (hopefully) tomorrow! Right now blogger is giving me uploading troubles (well you give HIM some trouble!).
Monday, December 01, 2008
Mel Mel Mel Mel Mel
I think the only thing that could possibly be better than Melissa is Melissa if she worked at Starbucks. OH WAIT!! SHE DOES!!! How cute is she?? :)
This is the Starbucks where she works as a barista. It makes me very happy. So does she. What also makes me happy is seeing red Starbucks cups. Cause that means it's Christmas. And that makes me very very very happy.
What doesn't make me happy is when I ask Rick to take a picture of my friend Melissa and I and he decides to take one from BELOW. HONESTLY DOES HE NOT KNOW WHAT HAPPENS TO OUR CHINS WHEN WE ARE PHOTOGRAPHED FROM BELOW??
Ah. That is better. I love Melissa. We are like peas and carrots. Or chocolate and peanut butter. Or Michael Jackson and Paul McCartney. Or toast and jam. Or stars and stripes. Or Simon and Garfunkel. Or berries and cream. Mmm. Berries and Cream.
We are also very very dangerous. Look at how scary we can be! Are you afraid?
This is the Starbucks where she works as a barista. It makes me very happy. So does she. What also makes me happy is seeing red Starbucks cups. Cause that means it's Christmas. And that makes me very very very happy.What doesn't make me happy is when I ask Rick to take a picture of my friend Melissa and I and he decides to take one from BELOW. HONESTLY DOES HE NOT KNOW WHAT HAPPENS TO OUR CHINS WHEN WE ARE PHOTOGRAPHED FROM BELOW??
Ah. That is better. I love Melissa. We are like peas and carrots. Or chocolate and peanut butter. Or Michael Jackson and Paul McCartney. Or toast and jam. Or stars and stripes. Or Simon and Garfunkel. Or berries and cream. Mmm. Berries and Cream. We are also very very dangerous. Look at how scary we can be! Are you afraid?You should be.
Oh yes.
You should be.
Saturday, November 29, 2008
Manly Men
How would I describe these guys? Three words:
Hard working
Alpha male
Jackhammer
Merciless
Insatiable
Also...
Kindhearted
Friendly
Loving
Um. And...
Completely ridiculous.
Hard working
Alpha male
Jackhammer
Merciless
Insatiable
Also...Kindhearted
Friendly
Loving
Um. And...
Completely ridiculous.
Thursday, November 27, 2008
Thankful for Friends
This Thanksgiving, we are so very thankful for the relationships we have with the people we love. We are thankful for our family and we are thankful for our friends both near and far. And speaking of friends that are far, we are thankful for these two people:
Kristopher... I love this photo of him because when I see it I can totally hear him laughing. I loved hanging out with him and hearing his laughter. I love hearing his heart (you can too! check out his amazing devotional blog and hear how God is ministering through him!) and I love that he is more than just a friend to us. He is part of our family.
Melissa. I am always thankful for her. I am thankful that I got to spend a long weekend hanging out with her, acting silly, eating various flavors of hershey's kisses, playing games, watching tivo, and simply BEING with her. It had been too long and yet when we saw each other the months disappeared and it was like we had just seen each other the day before. Everything fell right back into our comfortable place and I love that. It reassurred me that, no matter what, our friendship can endure anything. Miles, schmiles. There is no such place as far away.
I am thankful for so many things. But today I am especially thankful for these two.
Kristopher... I love this photo of him because when I see it I can totally hear him laughing. I loved hanging out with him and hearing his laughter. I love hearing his heart (you can too! check out his amazing devotional blog and hear how God is ministering through him!) and I love that he is more than just a friend to us. He is part of our family.
Melissa. I am always thankful for her. I am thankful that I got to spend a long weekend hanging out with her, acting silly, eating various flavors of hershey's kisses, playing games, watching tivo, and simply BEING with her. It had been too long and yet when we saw each other the months disappeared and it was like we had just seen each other the day before. Everything fell right back into our comfortable place and I love that. It reassurred me that, no matter what, our friendship can endure anything. Miles, schmiles. There is no such place as far away.
I am thankful for so many things. But today I am especially thankful for these two.
SQUISH YOUR HEAD! I AM GONNA SQUISH YOUR HEAD!
As an aside, I am also thankful for Facebook, where I have been able, in the last 2 weeks, to reconnect with people I haven't seen in over 15 years. I love technology. :)
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Puppies in Virginia
So Rick and I got to take a fantastic trip two weeks ago, and we got to visit our friends, the Dahirs. It's been 10 months since we saw them in person, and that was just too long. So we took advantage of a free plane ticket I had and we flew across the country to see them. Can I just say it was SO GREAT to be there, with our friends again? Well, it was. And look at them!
They are doing so great, as you can see. LOOK at their neighborhood. It is seriously out of a book. OH and look at that puppy. I LOVE HIM.
And he loves to eat leaves. And people. And furniture. And everything. And he is so stinking cute. LOOK at those leaves! Imagine the leaf piles you could make! IMAGINE THE JUMPING!
They are imagining the leaf pile. And the jumping. I am sure of it!
We were trying to take a series of photos with the kids throwing leaves in the air, but every single time, the leaves would all just blow right on Kristopher. No matter where he stood, he ended up with a pile of leaves on his head.
Aaaah. Brotherly love. The boys were pretty brave, playing in the leaves like this. This is exactly where the puppy stays most of the day... and there were definite surprises hidden under the leaves!
This is my favorite picture. Why? Because what 13 year old boy doesn't know how to climb a tree? I will tell you. Adam. He was seriously the most pitiful tree climber ever. Hopefully living in this neighborhood with trees galore, the boy will learn a thing or two about climbing. Cause this is just plain SAD. hahaha
You know what's NOT sad? This puppy. I love him. And he loves me. And my camera. And he wants to eat my camera.
But he's SUCH A GOOD BOY!! LOOK AT HOW CUTE HE IS!!
He also loves to eat his leash. And show me how he loves to eat his leash. :)
Awwww. I love him.
They are doing so great, as you can see. LOOK at their neighborhood. It is seriously out of a book. OH and look at that puppy. I LOVE HIM.
And he loves to eat leaves. And people. And furniture. And everything. And he is so stinking cute. LOOK at those leaves! Imagine the leaf piles you could make! IMAGINE THE JUMPING!They are imagining the leaf pile. And the jumping. I am sure of it! We were trying to take a series of photos with the kids throwing leaves in the air, but every single time, the leaves would all just blow right on Kristopher. No matter where he stood, he ended up with a pile of leaves on his head. Aaaah. Brotherly love. The boys were pretty brave, playing in the leaves like this. This is exactly where the puppy stays most of the day... and there were definite surprises hidden under the leaves! This is my favorite picture. Why? Because what 13 year old boy doesn't know how to climb a tree? I will tell you. Adam. He was seriously the most pitiful tree climber ever. Hopefully living in this neighborhood with trees galore, the boy will learn a thing or two about climbing. Cause this is just plain SAD. hahaha You know what's NOT sad? This puppy. I love him. And he loves me. And my camera. And he wants to eat my camera. But he's SUCH A GOOD BOY!! LOOK AT HOW CUTE HE IS!! He also loves to eat his leash. And show me how he loves to eat his leash. :) Awwww. I love him.
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