Saturday December 26th

T and his brother posing in front of Charlie Brown. T worked today but was home in time for leftovers!

Friday December 25th

Our Christmas feast. I love this picture because the mashed potato recipe is from my parents, the casserole dishes were a gift from my mother's late godmother, and the wine goblets are from my mother in law. We opened the last bottle of wine that we bought on our honeymoon in Carmel. We had a very nice, quiet Christmas day and the meal came together perfectly, a trick I learned from my mother and my aunt.

Thursday December 24th

My mother in law and I on Christmas Eve trying to show off the ornament wine charms I bought. My husband and his brother wanted to open presents that night so we did, although growing up, we always opened presents on Christmas Day.
We followed presents with the H family tradition of takeout chinese food and plenty of wine. As evidenced above.

Wednesday December 23rd

We have a Charlie Brown tree! I didn't want to get a gigantic tree two days before Christmas so I was going to leave without one. Until I saw this little friend. I actually told T that it needed me. It was a perfect tree for us this year.

Tuesday December 22nd

I made my first advance dish for Christmas day; The H family mashed potato casserole. Delicious..if I do say so myself.

Monday December 21st

My Christmas Command Center. I even wrapped a gift. Even though we have no tree to put it under yet. We still have 4 days to go!

Sunday December 20th

I was hung over today. I'm not afraid to admit it. :-)

I had a huge To-Do list that was pretty much completely ignored in favor of hiding under a blanket on the couch. I did do my part for Martha however, with my little red ball arrangement.

Saturday December 19th

NYC got over a foot of snow tonight! We had a great day, starting off at a matinee of Finian's Rainbow, which was amazing. It is one of my top Broadway favorites. We went out to a fabulous little wine bar that we stumbled on downtown and finished off the night at Jekyl and Hyde in the Village. Super fun times!

Friday December 18th

My friends S and I out on the town. It's our annual NYC holiday weekend!

Thursday December 17th

I drew on our board at work. The phones have been really quiet!

Wednesday December 16th

After unpacking from our trip tonight, I couldn't sleep. I decided to unpack my shoes and purses that had been trapped in their moving boxes ever since we bought this house. I organized my fabulous closet and actually have the shoe closet of my dreams!

Tuesday December 15th

Coming in for a bumpy landing in NY. It's a beautiful view from up here.

Monday December 14th

Twins!

Sunday December 13th

It's Christmas Morning! We had a lot of fun opening presents and eating a Blueberry Stuffed French Toast recipe that we baked for the occasion. T is showing off our new Christmas ornament. The highlight of the morning was watching my Mom open the Tiffany necklace that we all splurged on for her. She was overwhelmed and it was a wonderful moment.

Saturday December 12th

My newly 5 year old nephew! He had a little help from my Mom on this one; there were lots of candles.

Friday December 11th

I love this picture. Friday was tree trimming day in the H house and I'm so excited that we were there to help out. T, S, and my Dad are hard at work making sure the tree is straight.

Thursday December 10th

We're home! And I get to see my two favorite boys building a fabulous castle. As if they weren't cute enough, S was wearing his Patriots sweatshirt, just like his Uncle T.

Wednesday December 9th

We're heading to CA tomorrow! Tonight I baked a couple of dozen biscotti for my Mom and Dad. It's one of their favorite treats.

Tuesday December 8th

I picked up and addresses our Christmas cards tonight. This is one of our Italy favorites.

Monday December 7th

I waited until the plow came through before I left for work this morning. It was a slippery ride but the back yard looked beautiful. I found tiny cat prints in the snow when I came home.

Sunday December 6th

We woke up to 5 inches this morning! I love the snow when I don't have to leave the house. T and I had a lazy Sunday, drinking coffee and working in the house.

Saturday December 5th

I picked up my friend S today and we went to Ikea. I found a comforter for the guest room, curtains for the dining room, and a roasting pan for my Christmas ham.

Friday December 4th

T went to NYC to meet up with a guy he went to high school with so I matted and framed two of our Italy pictures. Now to decide where they go!

Thursday December 3rd

I sent 15 cards to troops this year. I've never done it before, but I wanted to do my part, no matter how small. I finally know what it's like to be away from your family at Christmas and it is hard.

Wednesday December 2nd

I finished painting our window frames. This is one in the master bedroom.

Tuesday December 1st

Let the Christmas begin! I shopped at Pier 1 with my MIL and can't wait to start decorating.

Sunday November 22nd-November 30th

We had a nasty bug go through our house starting on the 22nd. T was on the couch for three days with a fever, and after taking care of him, I ended up with a fever of 101 on Thanksgiving Day. I didn't take any pictures during this icky time, so I'm skipping ahead to December 1st!

Saturday November 21st

The four of us headed to NYC for a fabulous dinner at Ruth Chris and this fun photo op!

Friday November 20th

Our friends were coming to visit this weekend! This meant finally moving into the actual master bedroom and vacating the guest room. This is what the guest room looks like now..and just in the nick of time, before B & S arrived!

Thursday November 19th

T and I made homemade pizzas for dinner. I used soy pepperoni and olive and T was a traditionalist with regular pepperoni. Delicious.

Wednesday November 18th

I did some Christmas shopping tonight and picked up these little goodies for us. I can't wait to celebrate our first Christmas in our new house!

Tuesday November 17th

I wanted to try out my new pastry tool. It looks like a caulking gun and has 5 different tips that I can attach. The cupcake icing was delicious. Once again, epicurious.com.

Monday November 16th

Another new recipe: Butternut Squash Risotto. The recipe is from epicurious.com and although we enjoyed it, I think I would leave out the spinach next time.

Sunday November 15th

This is a before picture. We finally had our new windows installed and I need to paint the frame.

Saturday November 14th

T and I are going to a birthday party today for our favorite two year old. I had fun at Toys R Us picking out her present. I loved Pound Puppies the first time around and I hope she enjoys this one.

Friday November 13th

I finally shredded our giant brick of Asiago from Florence. This is only half of it and it is amazing. I wish we had bought two!

Thursday November 12th

My beloved leopard print dish gloves finally bit the dust, so I found these beauties at Bed Bath and Beyond.

Wednesday November 11th

I actually left work early today!

Tuesday November 10th

The views from our family room are incredible.

Monday November 9th

I bought this lamp at Target a while back and we love it in our family room.

Sunday November 8th

I bought these in NYC yesterday from my favorite bakery in the city. The cupcakes are to die for. We have the old standbys: Grasshopper and Red Velvet, as well as two new faves, Fluffernutter and Coffee Toffee. In.cred.ible.

Saturday November 7th

I drove to NYC today to have my monthly manicure and lunch date with K. Check out this fabulous parking spot. No ticket!!

Friday November 6th

Mushroom Stroganoff...one of our new favorite recipes!

Thursday November 5th

I love the fall colors and our little red tree.