My eyes are really heavy...

And I don't know if I will be awake at midnight to wish you all...



I am hoping that 2009 brings my family and yours - peace, health, love and happiness!

Family and Friends!

Please visit my shop blog and tell me what you think on my newest design. Thank you!

Paul's appointment went well today in Boston. No weight gain - but no loss either. I will have to keep trying to feed him whatever I can. :)

Everyone is doing good here in NH. We are expecting another snow storm this week. Most of the snow from the last one is gone.

Talk soon!

Back to my craft room...

So my self imposed vacation from Alayna's Closet is over. I took a small much needed break from thinking about my shop and what to make next. I will be reopening with some new Valentine's shirts and outfits. Who doesn't love hearts?

Yesterday my sister and I took the girls to the mall so they could run around a bit and we could check out any after Christmas bargains. Of course we had to visit the train again. The girls love it. And lately they love walking around holding hands. It is super cute.

We were told by the "conductor" that they will soon be offering frequent traveler tickets. I think we will have to invest in one of those.

If you noticed our new countdown banner at the top of the column - you will see how long it is until our vacation next December to Disney. We are starting off with a 4 day Disney cruise and then go to the park for a few days after that. We are really looking forward to it. The last time Paul and I went on vacation was in February of 2000! So we are really overdue. And I have never been to Walt Disney World so I think it is about time. And I have been thinking about really important things... Like what I am going to dress Alayna in! :P Jenn should appreciate my efforts, being a Disney fanatic herself.

Have a terrific week everyone!

Not a kid anymore...

Christmas is always a magical time. But not as much as when you are a kid yourself. Alayna was finally able to open as many presents as she wanted. Everything she opened was her favorite -until she opened the next one.

We ended opening gifts on Christmas Eve so we could spread it all out. My sister had more presents down at her house and those were opened on Christmas Day. The biggest hits for Alayna were her Mickey Mouse digital camera and her piano. Now she can jam out with her dad on his keyboard that he received.

Paul loved his Lego set from Santa. There are tons of pieces in it so it will help to fill all of his free time. If put together correctly it should actually move!

As for myself, I love the birdhouse that I got from Paul (you can see it on my mantle in the first picture). And I can't wait to use the Cricut Expressions I received from my sister and Eden!

We hope that you all enjoyed a joyous Christmas Day as well!

Only one more sleep...

And then it's Christmas! But for us, the fun begins tonight when we open our stockings. We always open them on Christmas Eve. I am making a really yummy Mexican stew for dinner tonight, Posole. Traditionally it is served on New Years - but it also is traditional to use pigs feet and other yucky parts! :P It is basically pork loin shredded in a red chile broth with hominy. It is very good and something my sister and I grew up eating. My mom always made mine without the red chile, just as I will do for Eden and Alayna now. Tomorrow will be our turkey dinner we didn't get to enjoy on Thanksgiving.

Also, Paul's visit went really well yesterday. He gained 2 pounds and so far all the results from the bone marrow biopsy have returned negative! That in itself is a wonderful Christmas gift.

Paul, Alayna, and I want to wish all of our family and friends the best holiday possible. Merry Christmas!

Buried...

I don't know the official measurements of the snowfall but it is alot! After the first storm Friday and Saturday we had another large one on Sunday. I would say atleast a foot and a half total if not more. All I know is it was knee deep and higher than the door sills on our cars. If you can tell anything by this picture - there are 2 steps up to the front door which are completely covered.

The weather was pretty windy and not good to be playing out in - but I bundled up Alayna so we could walk down to my sister's house. Hannah is loving all the snow! Buttercup - not so much. It is definitely more than wiener dog high.

We hope you all had a nice warm weekend. Christmas is only 2 more nights away!!

The snow has started to fall...

By the time this storm is over we are supposed to have 12+ inches of snow on the ground. It looks really pretty until you have to shovel it! :P

Since we were housebound this afternoon my sister and Eden came over so the girls could paint some ornaments. They both had alot of fun painting several masterpieces each.

And then they enjoyed Alayna's new favorite snack - crinkle cut carrots.

I can't believe that Christmas is just about 5 days away! I didn't get all of my decorations out, and I haven't yet baked the cookies we exchange with our neighbors every year. But I have mailed out all gifts, everything is now wrapped and under the tree, and our house is nice and toasty warm thanks to my darling husband and his vigilance with the fire. :) Alayna can't wait to get going with all of the gifts. Everyday a new one catches her eye and she unsuccessfully tries to open it. Soon baby girl, soon.

Have a fabulous weekend everyone!

A few tidbits...

Today I was finally able to make it out to Bedford to pick up our ornaments that we painted almost 2 weeks ago. I was really excited to see the finished product.

Alayna actually painted 2 stockings - 1 red and 1 green - but I already sent out the red one to my parents before I could take a picture. So without further adieu...

And the little penguin that I painted...

I think they turned out very cute and I can't wait to take Alayna again.

In winter weather news, it started snowing last night and finally stopped about noon today. We received several inches of fluffy powder and then some sleet on top of that for good icy measure. And this weekend we are supposed to be having a much larger storm. Alayna is all set with her snow pants, boots, jacket, mittens, and hat! I will take some pictures of our little abominable snowman in all her glory. :)

Oh!

Last night I was driving into the back of our property to park Paul's truck behind the house. Guess what was scurrying past my headlights and making a dash for the woods. A coyote! We have heard them in the distance late at night but haven't seen an actual coyote since 4 years ago. Hopefully there aren't any more sightings...

Today is Tuesday - so that means hospital day. Paul was dreading it even more than usual because he was scheduled to have another bone marrow biopsy today. Everything went well though and we should know the results in a couple of days. Paul said they took 22 vials of blood. More than usual thanks to a study he signed up to be a part of awhile back.

I took this picture this morning - can you tell how much thinner Paul is? I know it is hard with his jacket on, but his face is the most noticeable. His energy level is getting a teensy bit better. And I have high hopes he will be enjoying Christmas dinner with us. :)

We can see the light!!

Our power was restored about 3 o'clock this afternoon! Something so basic that you just take for granted - electricity is a wonderful thing!

Have a fantastic week everyone!

In the dark...

Not long after my last post - we lost power again. This time is it has lasted much longer. It has been more than 3 days and we are still in the dark. We do have a generator so we can plug in up to 3 things. It alternates between the fridge, a lamp, a small tv, and now (luckily) the modem. We have the fireplace going like usual so we stay relatively warm.

Here are some pictures of the morning after the ice storm.

The lowest branches of this tree are usually about 10-12 feet off the ground.

My poor duck family encased in ice.

Eden's daycare was closed - so she got to spend half the day with her mom at work and then the rest of the day playing with her little cousin, Alayna.

We were actually lucky in that all of our trees still stood after the storm. There were so many trees around town that snapped from the weight of the ice. I don't know when we will have power again - but I sure hope it's soon.

Stay warm everyone!

Unforeseen Forces...

Today was an icy, gray day. The temperature was hovering at freezing and as it rained - it froze.

Alayna and I had to go to the pediatricians to get her booster for the flu vaccine. She was happy going in...

And she was just as happy going out. What a good girl. Barely a tear and then she got a Santa sticker!

Christmas card time is here!!

I am usually so good with sending cards out. This year I have failed to send out thank you cards for Alayna's birthday (they are sitting on the dresser in my bedroom) and I have failed to send out Halloween cards (never bought them). So I am extra determined to get the Christmas cards done before it's too late. I did buy 2 sets at the Picture People over the weekend and hope that I have enough. Tonight I decided to tackle them and get it over with. While I am writing cards out the power goes out about 3 times - thanks ice tree branches! Then while I am in the middle of filling out envelopes - I don't have as many as I need for all the cards. They only gave me half the amount of envelopes. Ugh. I think there are unforeseen forces working against me. :P

Tomorrow - A through the middle of O will have their cards sent out.

One of my favorites... Baby It's Cold Outside

I love hearing this song... Although I prefer the version by Dean Martin.

One of my sister's favorite movies...

Was it good for you?

This past weekend that is.

On Saturday my sister and I hired our neighbor Arianne, an extra sweet 16 year old, to watch Alayna and Eden while we went with Anita to tour 6 historic homes in Amherst. Every year 6 homes are decorated for the holidays and you are able to tour each of them. It is really fun to see inside homes you wouldn't otherwise see. Afterwards we enjoyed a nice lunch. Then we went home for a brief time to regroup and met up again to go to a local craft fair. Anita and I were actually scoping out the scene to see if we would like to participate in it next year. There were many different artisans, including a couple from our Mont Vernon Artisans. I even found a couple of Christmas gifts.

Then on Sunday my sister and I took the girls to Pheasant Lane Mall to have their pictures taken at the Picture People. What a nightmare! Eden was first up and she cried the whole time. So then we try putting Alayna up there to show her what to do - and Alayna cries! Ugh! We wanted to have individual pictures done and then some together. When the photographer left to let us calm the girls down - they decided it was a good time to play.

They have this big jumpy thing inside the mall where you are harnessed and you jump up like 3 levels. It looks like alot of fun. Alayna was totally into watching that and taking train rides.

So - Paul is doing really well. He is making much more of an effort to eat and his energy level seems to have risen a bit. Today we had his doctors appointment and the good news is that in January they think he will go to every other week appointments! The bad new is, despite his appetite increasing and eating more solid food, he still lost weight.

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In anticipation of seeing Jenn's tree - I will show you mine. I decided to get another tree this year. It is in a really pretty pot and more slender - which is a better fit in our cramped home.

I think I am just about done shopping, now I just need to wrap everything. :P

A special day!

Today is my friend Heather's birthday! Happy Birthday Heather! Heather moved up to New Hampshire from New Jersey 2.5 years ago. Luckily for me she moved into the house next door.


Today is also my friend Barbie's birthday! Happy Birthday Barbie! Barbie is my good friend from New Jersey. We were in the the same hiring class at Comcast. I love and miss her dearly. :)



Today is also Paul's and mine 8 year wedding anniversary! Happy Anniversary Babycakes! Paul and I were were married at the MGM Grand Forever Grand Wedding Chapel. It was a beautiful night and I wish I could find some pictures to share with you. I loved my dress!


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Today during Alayna's nap I was outside trying to get all the greenery up. I only got half of it done. I typically like to have wreath's on all the front windows, 1st floor, 2nd floor, and attic. Paul of course usually does it for me. But I thought I could handle it. So I bring the ladder around and put it up against the house. I think I only made it 4 steps up and decided I wasn't going any further. :P I didn't think I was afraid of heights? Oh well. Unless they magically float up to the upper windows I will just wait until next year.


Here is the front door.






And the breezeway door.

Can you see the bows I made? I am very picky about my reds and I couldn't find a nice one so I went with green. It looks really pretty in person - but they kind of get lost in the photos. I will try to get a better shot of the whole front of the house, but the sun is behind it right now so the picture wasn't coming out good.

Fun with paint!

Yesterday Alayna and I got together with our Thursday pals, Anita and her daughter Annelina to visit a local paint your own pottery place. We wanted to go and have the girls paint ornaments. I thought this would be a nice gift from Alayna to her Daddy and to her grandparents.

She really enjoyed washing off the ornaments she picked out, stockings. That girl loves water! She is always messing in the dogs water bowl.

She did like painting them , but decided painting the paper covering the table was more fun.

Lina painted a big beautiful heart ornament. Doesn't she look so cute in her smock?

After Alayna was done I gave her a wipe to clean up. She was good and only got a little on her sleeve.

Oh! And she decided to paint the chair too. She cleaned that up also. :P

We have to wait a week to pick up our pieces - I can't wait to see them!

Busy, busy, busy

Yesterday we made the trek down to Boston. Alayna took a nap in the car so since she was rested I decided to venture into the hospital and find Paul. He was in the waiting area, which was incredibly busy. so Alayna and I went to visit the gift shop. They had a bunch of things going on in that area, they even had a lady singing Christmas carols. She really had a nice voice. We picked up a couple of ornaments and a stuffed penguin for Alayna.

When we made it back to the waiting area Paul was already in a room. We actually got to see Dr. Koreth today, the head transplant doctor. I was getting kind of frustrated prior to that because we hadn't seen him for the past 3 visits. But he checked Paul over and read the lab results and everything looks great.

We have a really busy week coming up with lots of events and appointments. I am trying to finish up my Christmas shopping too. And I am also trying to locate a special ornament for Alayna for this year. I think I have decided to get a Mickey Mouse one. She Loves Mickey now, or Mick as she calls him. Anywhere we go and she sees him she yells out "MICK"! So I guess a trip to Hallmark is in order. Our Christmas tree is up but I still have several trips up and down from the attic to gather the rest of the decorations for around the house.

Enjoy your day!

Last month of the Year!

December is here! I can hardly believe it. I can now break out my most favorite Christmas cd! Soon it will be 2009. A new year for growth, hopes, and dreams.

So yesterday was our little wreath making party. And of course it decided to start snowing for us. So if we weren't in the mood to begin with - we sure were then.

We worked fast and furious for about 2 hours until all of our hands were freezing. It was a brisk 31 degrees outside. We were in Heather's screened in porch. As you can tell from this next picture we take our wreath's very seriously.

I still have about 5 more wreath's to make to finish up the ones for my house. I will take a picture of them when they are all done. But I have to show you Heather's most adorable wreath with a little owl nestled in. Love it! It was a perfect New Hampshire afternoon.

After that I watched Eden for my sister all day long until about 11 that night. My sister went to the New England Patriots/Pittsburgh Steelers game. She has been a Steelers fan forever and was so happy to finally go and watch her team and they won!

Paul kept an eye on Alayna for me most of the day. He is finally trying to eat small bits of the dinners I serve. I would just like for him to stop losing weight! But he is doing well overall.

Today Alayna and I joined our friends, Anita, Annelina, Heather, and Owen at the library for music class. They kids all had so much fun singing and dancing.

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And then afterwards we ate lunch and made a special trip to Target. Alayna picked out her own little tree for her room. I also got her a stocking so I can tuck little treats in it for her to find.

It has been a busy last few days. But tomorrow it is back down to the hospital in Boston again. I will keep in touch!