On Our Third Date of Christmas: We Decorated Our Tree!

We finally got our tree up this weekend and decorated our little apartment. And I was so glad because I was getting uber jealous of all my friends on facebook with their fab trees.  Saturday night my mother and stepfather came over, even bringing their lab, Carlee, and we ordered pizza, watched the always classic Christmas vacation, and trimmed the tree.

Some people do their trees all fancy with color coordinated ornaments and  tons of tinsel and garland. But I love the beauty and simplicity of a mismatched tree with different ornaments collected over the years. Leave the perfectly matched stuff for the department stores! And finally it is beginning to feel a lot like Christmas around here.

A Little Less Traditional Christmas Playlist (and New Years too)!

(via)

 

I'm all about some Christmas music, and the day after Thanksgiving, I made myself a playlist of some of my Christmas favorites, and it has been on nonstop repeat in my car. This year I'm finally doing the grown up thing, and Adam and I are sending out Christmas cards! I'm also going to burn these songs onto a CD to include in the Christmas cards. Cause who doesn't need a little Christmas music to bring a little extra Christmas cheer?

 

1. Sleigh Ride by The Oceanauts
2. Jesus Christ Was Born by Waving Flags
3. Do You Hear What I Hear? by Ben White
4. Unwed Mother by Hoyle
5. All Alone on Christmas by Darlene Love
6. The Friendly Beasts by Eutopian Accident
7. Christmas Wrapping by The Waitresses
8. December 25 by Francesca Battistelli
9. All My Bells Are Ringing by Lenka
10. Merry Christmas Baby (ft. Brad Paisley) by Colbie Caillat
11. River by Joni Mitchell
12. Christmas Vacation by Katie Campbell & Domink Hauser
13. We Need a Little Christmas by The Glee Cast
14. This Time of Year by Melissa Ferrick
15. White Christmas (Ft. Shania Twain) by Michael Buble
16. All Year Long by Kyle Cox & Rachel Smith
17. Little Drummer Boy by Rags 'n Goff
18. Christmas (Baby Please Come Home) by Michael Buble
19. Bring a Torch, Jeanette Isabella by Cole NeSmith
20. Christmas in the Sand by Colbie Caillat
21. My Dear Acquaintance (A Happy New Year) by Regina Spektor

On Our Second Date of Christmas: Jack Daniel's Distillery & Miss. Mary Bobo's Boarding House

We decided to use the long holiday weekend to get out of town for the day, and we took a day trip to the little town, with an unfortunate name, Lynchburg, Tennessee.  Lynchburg is where the one and only Jack Daniel's Distillery is located.  I had toured the distillery years and years ago, when I was under 21, and couldn't take part in the sampling. So I decided it was about time I took Adam up there. The tour is always a lot of fun and you really learn how much time and effort goes into making the perfect whiskey.

Oh, and did you know the distillery is located in a dry county? And that it will never be a wet county because the town needs a passing vote of 2500 to allow the sale of liqueur, and the town only has a population of about 600? And you can't even purchase liqueur there, except for a loophole in the law, that allows for the purchase of one "commemorative bottle." I just find that amusing and charmingly backwards, as so much in the South is.

After the tour, we walked down to Miss. Mary Bobo's Boarding House for lunch. Miss. Mary Bobo's used to be an actual boarding house in the 1800's. But now it is a restaurant, and all the bedrooms have been turned into dining areas. You eat family style around a kitchen table. I love it that way, you really get to know the people at your table, and it is just some homey and inviting. The food is always very Southern and one dish always features the famous local product (Jack Daniel's Drunkin' Apples in this case).  We had fried chicken, meat loaf, broccoli & cheese casserole, pinto beans ,corn bread, cranberries, and fried okra.

Our last stop in Lynchburg was the Lynchburg Cake and Candy Company. I had read about it online and it is famous for its Whiskey Cakes (featured on food network). This cake shop is a really small operation, run by the most fabulous man. He took us around the business, even showing us the kitchen, and telling us all about how he makes the cakes, and how his business got started. We bought a few cakes and some pralines for our families, and I bought some whiskey balls for myself. Those whiskey balls were one of the most amazing candies I have ever had. In fact, I'm pretty sure they are the best candy in the history of ever. I'm sooo sad I only bought one package.  I could have eaten a million. 

Thanksgiving Simplicity

Adam and I had a very simple holiday this year, celebrating with only each other. After sleeping in a little bit, I got up, laced up my sneakers, and went for a morning jog. I always forget how good it can feel just to get out there and get moving. Afterwards, we put on our Sunday best and broke tradition by going to a restaurant for thanksgiving. Something I have never done before because it always seemed blasphemous. But Adam only likes a handful of Thanksgiving dishes, so it seemed silly and wasteful to put out a whole feast just for myself. And then have to do dishes, and since I'm such a messy cook, I'm sure I would end up with sweet potato casserole on the ceiling. So no thank you.

But dinner was delicious, and we both got more than our fair share of our favorites topped off with a piece of pumpkin pie.  We went home and took long turkey induced naps. When we woke up, somehow Adam talked me into going out for some Black Friday shopping. I have never done this and for good reason! Crowds make me a little nervous, and I hate going into Wal-Mart on a normal day.  And this was almost too much for me to handle, and at one point Adam accidentally snuck up on me without me noticing, and I about jumped out of my skin! I snuck out of there as soon as I could. It was something I was happy to experience ONCE.

We ended the day watching The Five Year Engagement. All in all it was a good holiday, maybe not one for the record books, but one good enough for us.

On our First Date of Christmas: The Galaxy of Lights

Ok, so it's not quite the Christmas season. And usually I'm so against celebrating or doing anything Christmasey until the day after Thanksgiving.  But here in Huntsville, every holiday season you can drive through the galaxy of lights at the botanical gardens, and I've done that a couple of times over the years, and it is always fun. But this year I found out that during the week before Thanksgiving you can walk through it! And I really wanted to experience walking it this time around.

So Saturday night, we drove to the gardens and did just that. It was so pretty and Adam and I had such a good time strolling through. Mostly cracking jokes, as we tend to do. However, this year's trip to the Galaxy of Lights just left me with the same unanswered question I've been wondering about for years now. Why a dinosaur display and what in the world does that have to do with Christmas? Can anyone explain that to me? Because once I have that answer, I can finally put this Christmas mystery to rest.

The trip to the Galaxy of Lights officially kicks off our holiday challenge, which is to have 12 little dates before Christmas! I just thought it would be a sweet way to celebrate Christmas together this year in our new hometown (an idea I stole from Marci).  Anyone else is free to join in on this challenge, I would love to read about your holiday dates!

What I Love About Sundays

On Sunday mornings, I wake up a few hours before Adam.  I get up and lazily stroll the internet for a bit, start my laundry, and go for a walk in the woods by the apartment complex.  Sometimes I wander a little farther down the road to the Starbucks for a peppermint frappichino. I really value this alone time because before we moved to Alabama, and I didn't work, I had hours upon hours of alone time. Not so much anymore. I am an introvert, who just happens to love and care a lot about people.  So I took a job in a people helping profession, and I adore helping people, I really do. But it can drain my batteries, and that alone time gets me recharged for the work week ahead.

But after about two and a half hours, I get a little ancy and decide it is time for Adam to get up. So I go and wake him up, which I always find a lot more amusing than he does (gee, I wonder why).  If it's a game day, we put on our Green Bay Packer's jerseys and our cheese heads and head down to Knucklehead's sports bar and grill to catch the game.  We love Knucklehead's because the people are friendly, even if they are on opposites side of the playing field. Plus, everyone always gets a kick out of the cheese heads. They are constantly walking by and asking to try them on.

After the game, I go home and put away my laundry, which makes me disproportionately happy. I just like to know all my clothes are put away and ready for the week.  I read and sometimes take a nap before watching some of my back log of DVR shows, Three different episodes of Real Housewives for three different cities sprinkled with a little bit of Sister Wives? Don't mind if I do.

And that my friends, makes for my perfect Sunday.

My Favorite Things

Just a few things I'm enjoying right now:

1. PJ Pants
I got these pink fleece pj pants with the little Scottish dogs a few days ago, and they are soooooooooooo comfy. There are few things I love more in life than pjs. When I'm at home, whether it's daytime or nighttime I'm going to to in my pjs. So I'm constantly buying new ones but I think these are going to be a favorite. They are so warm!

2. My Life in Wax
Recently, I finished the book Madame Tussaud: A Novel of the French Revolution by Michelle Moran. It is a historical fiction book about the life of Madame Tussaud (yes, that is the name of those famous wax museums) and her involvement in the French revolution. Although I've never been overly interested in the French Revolution, Madame Tussaud's life was fascinating! I mean she was a wax tutor to the King's Sister, was forced to make death masks for famous revolution victims, a prisoner of war, and one of the first women ever to force her husband to sign a pre-nup. So I had to pick up a Life of Wax to read an historically accurate account of this interesting woman.

3. Scentsy!
I've been hearing about scentsy for years now, but I didn't know quite what it was. Recently, my mom ordered me some supplies from a scentsy party and I got addicted! I'm so obsessed with these wickless/flameless candles. The scents are so strong and smell so good (my faves are coconut lemongrass & my dear watson). I love turning on my warmer after I get home from work, it helps me relax. And I love how easy it is to change the scents. I have about 10 scents right now and I am getting more (just don't tell the consultants that I get mine off amazon).

4. My Custom Iphone Case
I finally was able to upgrade my phone to the iphone 4, and thank goodness because my other one was really just on its last legs. I knew I wanted a really great case for my new phone because I left my last iphone out of the case, and I dropped it and the glass shattered. And I had to deal with the broken screen for over a year. So I decided I wanted an otter box this time,  and I found a site where you can design a custom one! And this is the one I designed. How cute, right?