The holly jolly holidays of 2012

 We had a lovely Christmas in Memphis this year. My holiday vacation plan at work rocks. We get the whole week of Christmas thru new years day off. It's wonderful. Our week in Memphis was super relaxing.. doing what we wanted when we wanted. A much needed break from the last couple of very busy months. Mom and I did a lot of shopping. That's definately my idea of a fabulous vacation. Jason stuck around the house mostly. He enjoyed reading some new books he had gotten about fatherhood and watched some movies and his favorite TV series that he got for Christmas~ "Firefly" The man needed a break~ he works so so hard.

Chrismas day was cozy. It was raining outside pretty much all day. The rain even turned into snow~ so rare in Memphis. We stuck with our normal traditions...Dad read from  Luke 2 and my little brother Jonathan lead us in a sing-along. He does a fun mix of traditional and secular Christmas songs. "Grandma got Run over by a Reindeer" is always a part of the mix~ just for dad.

 See the mashed potatoes piled high in their dish? I made those.. and yep, I was quite proud. I am still catching up on mastering my cooking skills.... It's a definate goal for this year. I want to be consistent and to make wonderful meals for my family lickety split. I"m getting there...

 Jason got me a great flash for my camera, but I had not hooked it up just yet.. I will have so much fun with my new toy and next year's tree picture will be much lighter. ;)

 Me and my love~ Next year this photo will have three!! Notice the mini bump ;)

 Each year there is a gift that I am secretly most excited about giving.. The flag case that Jason made for Grandpa Schaade's burial flag would definately be that gift this year. Dad was very proud to show it off.

Jason and I had a scavenger hunt for this special gift~ definately my favorite. ;)

Christmas night brought on a game of balderdash. It was so much fun~ lots of laughter. I'm thinking it will have to become a tradition.

 Mom and I got a little stir crazy

 Another perk of staying for a whole week was having the time to see some of my dear friends. I finally got to meet this cutie.

 We loved spending time with Ashley and her little family. We definately have to make this happen more often.

And this girl... she's my friend lobster. (pardon the "Friends" reference). We ate pizza and played cards.. it was a lurvely evening.

The next day we headed back to Springfield. On our way out of town we had lunch with my Jennay-

This is typical us. Her laugh makes everything brighter~ Love her.

We wanted to have a few days to continue unpacking and organizing in our new place. I got distracted taking pictures of a few of baby's first gifts. The glass bear came from my mom~ she purchased it an an antique store the day she found out she was going to be a granma~ it's official~ baby's very first gift. =)

We got a lot done around the house and it's feeling more and more like home now that we have pictures on the walls. (more to come on that subject). All I know is that I can hardly wait to get started on the baby's room. I've been bitten by the bug for sure.

New year's eve~ it was quite simple really. We chose to stay home (it was an icky night) and enjoy some quatlity time together. Having evenings where it's just the two of us will soon be a rarity. I made meatloaf and mashed potatoes, we snuggled up to some movies and baked cookies. It was quite delightful.

I do love this man.

Happy new year freinds! We have quite the adventure ahead. I intend to live each day with purpose. How about you?