merry christmas to me!

When the husband and I hit the road last Monday, we left knowing that upon our return, we’d be greeted by refinished hardwood floors.

Our old floors looked like this…boring, bland, blonde, blah.

(just disregard the cabinet doors)

But now our floors look like this…

And this…

And suddenly, I feel as though I’m in a brand new home. Too bad every little bit of renovation is done for the sole purpose of selling our home.
Until that time, I will be more than happy to enjoy every second of of these floors.

So, merry Christmas to me.

the night sky

Today ended our Christmas visit up to Charlottesville, Virginia. I’m sad. Visiting family, (in this case for me, my in-laws), and then leaving, is always sad. Maybe it’s the fact that this week was such a relaxing and wonderful week. Or maybe it’s the sheer fact that I was on vacation….not working.

Either way, I’m blue that it’s over.

To my astonishment, Georgia, the state that is, apparently missed us because she welcomed us back with the most amazing gift….the most beautiful sunset I have ever seen.

Alright Georgia, maybe, just maybe, I missed you a little too…
(just don’t tell anyone.)

the greenbrier…pt 2

I know I know…Christmas is officially over, but guess what? The memories remain.
Just like that indigestion you got from eating.
And eating.
And eating some more.

And even though the festivities have ended, I still have more pictures to share.
Sit back and pretend you care.
For me.

The other day I posted the sweet treats the Greenbrier in West Virginia had to offer. Not to worry though, I did more than stare at the dessert tray. I actually toured the place. And fell in love in the process.
And took photos. Lots and lots of photos.

Meet my mother in law (left) and her adorable sister (right).

Now meet the carpet.
Yes, I do realize this is only carpet, but I’m seriously fascinated by it. Have you ever seen carpet this bold? Now just picture this carpet in a grand ballroom. Yeap, intense.

Meet my sister-in-law. She LOVED the chandeliers. And so did everyone else. By the way, that’s one hanging in the background. {Too bad I didn’t take more pictures of them. I could have bored you with a whole montage of those photos too.}

As for the silliness, my sister-in-law and I were just having too much fun with the giant gingerbread house considering neither of us has ever SEEN a gingerbread house this big. It vaguely reminded me of the infamous Chick-Fil-A Dwarf House. (And no, I promise I’m not being offensive. This is a real thing.)

Guess that’s better than trying to eat it..

I think it’s safe to say we all had a great time.
Now if I could just get my hands on those desserts….

Merry Christmas to all….

Over the past few days I’ve gone nuts taking photos of anything and everything having to do with Christmas. And seeing as today is in fact Christmas Day (Oh my god!!), I have limited time to post the remaining pictures.

So, if you will bear with me a little longer, I’ll have this out of my system in no time.

Just after I post another 50 Christmas photos.
By the way…
MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to run downstairs and see what Santa brought!

Oh boy! It’s Christmas Eve!

The countdown has begun.
Christmas is less than 3 hours away.
One word – awesome.

So in honor of the festivities, please enjoy these Griswold holiday decorations courtesy of the fine folks of Charlottesville, Virginia.

Christmas wouldn’t be complete without Winnie the Pooh…

I hope all of you are enjoying this night with loved ones.
Merry Christmas Eve!

the greenbrier

In my week of travels, not only have I traversed the entire Southeast, I’ve hit the infamous Greenbrier in West Virginia. If you have never heard of it, seen it, or visited it, then just know these few things:
1. it’s in the Allegheny Mountains
2. it’s a National Historic Landmark
3. it has lots and lots and lots of food.

That last little bit is what I wanted to talk about because you know I like food. In fact, I love the stuff. Salty, sweet, doesn’t matter. I don’t discriminate. And at the Greenbrier there’s no reason to. Everything is incredible.

So please let me take you on a sugar infused tour….
We’ll start with the key lime pie…

Ahem, yeah, there are no words.

Next we have an assortment of goodies…

How about this chocolate cake…

Boston Cream Pie…

Another chocolate cake…

And I’m not even done yet…
just in case you wanted something smaller, the Greenbrier offers the following cavity causing goodies…
Amaretto Truffles

Orange Cream…

and Hazelnut Gianduja.

I guess I could also mention that the Greenbrier is actually an absolutely breathtaking resort that every US President from Dwight D. Eisenhower to George W. Bush has visited. There’s also a great bit of history about it that you can check out here.

I hope you’ve enjoyed this culinary tour.
Tomorrow I’ll take you through a Christmas wonderland offered up at the Greenbrier.

Oh, yeah, I did actually do more than just eat while I was there.
Shocking, I know.

2 days til Christmas!!!

As my friend Shutterboo’s blog says,
“Santa! Oh My God! Santa’s coming! I know him! I know him!”

Believe it or not, that’s how I feel now! Something about seeing snow has really changed my whole attitude towards Christmas this year. Last week, I wasn’t even remotely in the mood. This week I’m all about it!

Thanks snow!
Love ya, mean it!

I’ve lost track of the days

Since I spent the better part of yesterday travelling from Georgia to Virginia, I haven’t had a chance to upload some of my scenic shots. Let’s just say that the scenery changed quite a bit from when we escaped left Atlanta to when we hit Virginia. And boy was it glorious!

As I mentioned (somewhere) the other day, the husband and I refrained from decorating this year. Not because we went all Bah-humbug on everyone, we just had no place to put anything as we’re redoing our floors. And speaking of, I wrenched my back Saturday night lifting the couch. Yes I’m 34 going on 82. But I digress. That’s a story for another time.

Anyway, I made it a point when I was visiting my parents to take pictures of the Griswold type decorations back home. I love me some Griswold type decorations.

(Just in case you were wondering what those candy canes were dangling from…that would be a satellite dish.)

But even after all of this, I’m not sure if today is the 20th, 21st, or 22nd. Yeap, I’ve totally lost track of the days…
Maybe by the time I wake up (meaning, after I’ve taken down coffee) I’ll have a better idea.
Or…maybe not.

christmas, christmas time is here…and there

This year will be my first year ever not spending Christmas with my parents and sister in Alabama.  Instead, the husband, two border collies, and I will be making the trek to Virginia.  That is, if the roads are passable.  Apparently, the jury is still out on that thus far.

I decided that I couldn’t skip some part of Christmas with my parents, so I headed down I-20 for a jam-packed holiday fun-filled weekend. I know it’s not the same as spending the actual day with them, but I think they still were glad to see me nonetheless.

So in an effort to complete 42 different tasks, mom and I ran around like wild banshees.

We bought everything on the gift list.
She made her incredibly to die for peanut brittle (recipe and directions to follow).
I managed to spend a little time with my granddad.
We watched Julie and Julia (ahh…..so precious).
And we managed to drive around to check out the Griswold decorations in the ‘hood.
Oh…and we ate.
And ate.
And ate some more.

And I took pictures. Entirely too many pictures.

And because this year we, the husband and I, opted not to put up decorations {sad}, I was lucky enough to enjoy my parents’ Christmas decorations.

(and I even managed to snap a self-portrait.)

And this photo just makes me happy. Oh and look! Another self portrait!

So we’re now into the home stretch of Christmas. I hope everyone is happy, mellow, and completely done with their shopping.
Now if you’ll excuse me, I think I hear the egg nog calling my name.