Christmas

Wow, Christmas is already over!


I had a 5 day weekend while Ryan had a semi-4 day weekend. (It is always hard to tell with Ryan since his BlackBerry is omnipresent). On Christmas Eve, I read a book which is the ultimate relaxation for me...I read David Sedaris' book "Holidays on Ice" which made me laugh out loud...I love his stuff. Ryan and I stayed in, watched some Christmas specials and ate a nice spaghetti dinner. On Christmas Day, we went to my sister and brother-in-law's house (Jodi and Jon). Jodi made a fantastic turkey dinner with squash, potatoes, broccoli, rolls, etc. etc. We couldn't even eat dessert, we were so full! My mom and dad came down from Maine as well. My mom, Jodi and I all worked on a few puzzles in the afternoon...I haven't done a puzzle in forever and it was actually really fun! Ryan had a great time playing a Lego Indiana Jones video game with Aaron, it was one of his Christmas gifts. So, they spent most of the afternoon figuring out how to "get to the next level" or something.


We exchanged gifts, too (we got a sweet gift card to Pottery Barn AND to an Inn in New England....we are so going to Vermont!). It's always fun to see the kids rip open their gifts and then try to help them put them all together. Well, I have to say putting them together can be a bit frustrating... my gosh - do they need to secure every small piece with industrial strength ties??? Reminiscent of "A Christmas Story", Ethan got a pellet gun. We asked if it was "Red Rider"? No, even better, a "Remington" that shoots pellets not just BB's. Super cool.

Here are a few photos:


This is one of the puzzles my mom, Jodi and I completed:

Ryan, Ethan and Aaron watching the tube. They always love to cuddle up to Uncle Ry:

And, let's not forget Coodie! Of course the spoiled cat received the ultimate gift, a "Fling-Ama-String" motorized toy. He hates most of his toys after a day and catnip just makes him sleepy, but this hit the jackpot. Ryan came home with this after going out for food and litter...he couldn't resist. And, Cood has been SO happy since he brought it home. The string is on a pulley (as you see below) and he just can't quite figure out why it keeps coming and going away....hilarious.


Happy New Year everyone! Hope you all have a restful and happy holiday!

Ice Storm '08

When I was in college in Orono, Maine over 10 years ago, we had this CRAZY ice storm at the beginning of the second semester of my senior year. My roommates and I had come back to our house after Christmas break to only lose power after a day of being back. We survived the first night with beer, Scrabble and LL Bean sleeping bags only to run for cover the next day at any house with a wood stove (no one had any power for DAYS in the state). It was kind of fun because our classes were cancelled for a week and we went from home to home visiting whoever had a woodstove. (At least in retrospect it was fun...I may have been totally miserable at the time - but the story is better told as a *fun* story).


Fast forward to 2008. Ryan and I went to dinner last Thursday with our best buds, Scoop (real name: Scott) and Kate. We hadn't seen them in a few months which is rare for us, so it was nice to catch up. It was starting to get a bit icy outside so Ryan and I headed home. At 4am, some trees fell right outside our bedroom window onto the power lines causing a transformer to explode and scaring the heck out of us. Consequently, our power and the traffic outside came to a dead stop. Then the chainsaws started because they had to cut those trees up and get traffic through for the morning commute. We thought we would only be out of power for a few hours because we live in the state's biggest city and we NEVER lose power. (Not like when I was growing up and we would lose power if the wind went the wrong way... and off the topic but ....we had a well...which meant we couldn't use the water either..) So, anyhoo, although we never lose power...this time we were very wrong.


Luckily, I had a casual day and the company Christmas party on Friday and I wore a baseball cap to work. We didn't have enough hot water for a hair wash so I went for the body wash only. So, I get to work and come to find out - EVERYONE has lost their power and there are a heck of a lot of baseball caps around. Don't you just LOVE hearty New Englanders? Where else could you have an ice storm with over 800,000 people out of power and still everyone shows up for work?


While coming home from work, I called Ryan who advised we were still out of power and it wasn't looking good. We thought maybe we could make it through the night with some wine, games and lots of blankets when Kate and Scoop called and said they had power!!! They graciously invited us over and also welcomed Coodie with open arms... We packed up our stuff, headed over and had SO much fun with our best buds! Kate usually takes care of Coodie when we are gone anyway, so he already loves her. This made his transition a lot easier. (I know, he is spoiled rotten!)

Here are some photos of the weekend...

One of the causes of our power loss...this tree remained perched precariously over the road for several days:

A view of Route 93 South on Saturday...keep in mind that all of the white you see is ice as we had not yet had any snow:

Here is Cood with one of his (and our) favorite people, Kate:

Coodie is totally freaked out by the lobsters:

He loved hanging out on their fridge while we played games:

And, here is Coodie..so excited to see Dad!

He also loved relaxing under their Christmas tree:

We had some great meals (Thank you, Kate!), played some super fun games and overall had such a great weekend even tough we were bummed about our power being off. We will always remember that weekend!

We did get our power back after several nights and had brother and sister-in-law Mark and Allison and kids Chelsea and Hunter over for a few nights as they still didn't have power. Allison and I were able to relax and catch up while Mark and Ryan played some PS2 and Chelsea and Hunter played with the Wii.

Overall, although I realized how dependent we are for power, I also realized how much fun it can be to hang out with family and friends when we least expect it. Also, it is nice to remember how many people we have there for us when we need it.

Happy Holidays!

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Turkey Day in Tennessee

Ryan and I traveled to Franklin, Tennessee this year for a long Turkey Day weekend. Ryan's parents moved there earlier this year, so it was a good chance for us to travel again (we love it!). We were also fortunate enough to overlap stays with brother and sister-in-law, Todd and Cathy and our nephews, Owen and Grant. This was also very exciting because this was the first time we met Grant. Grant was born on Ryan's and my first wedding anniversary earlier this year, how cool is that? We only overlapped by a day and a half but we made the most of that time. I got to walk Grant in his Baby Bjorn and put him down for a nap, played wiffleball and football with Owen and have some wine and good conversation with my brother and sister in law. You can pack in a lot in a short time if you try! Still, Ryan and I would like to get to Oregon again next year to spend some more time with them. We are lucky to have two nephews here in NH, but it is also fun to travel and see the other two!

Here we are upon our arrival: Uncle Ryan, Aunt Kendra, Owen and Grant. I love how we become "Uncle Ryan" and "Aunt Kendra". Since we are not "mom" and "dad" yet, we relish those roles more than anything!

Owen is already tiring Uncle Ryan out by lying on his back while he does push ups!

Proud Aunt and Uncle spending some Q-time with Grant on the porch swing:

Little bro Ryan, big bro Todd, Mom/Nana Donna and Dad/Grandpop Sandy:Here are the Martha Stewart-style place settings that Cathy designed:

Here are some photos that Todd sent along. He always has the best pics, so I thought I would share:
The photo above is all of us right before Todd, Cathy and family went off to the airport. We had a great weekend full of walks, wine, shopping and fun!

Of course Ryan and I could not wait to get back to this little guy:

As tired as we were after a full day of traveling (I never get direct flights)...we perked up as soon as we saw Coodie. He fell into our arms and purred for about 10 minutes straight. We fed him some tuna as an extra special treat! Thanks to our best buds, Kate, Scoop and Chris for taking care of him while we were gone. We always know he is in good hands!

Moccasins are great.

I have had my moccasins for almost 10 years now. Seriously, they don't smell and it's not gross. I love them. They fit my feet perfectly like they are molded on there and they are the only thing I wear when I am at home.

.

So, Ryan was jealous of my super cool mocs and has gone through several imitations that failed to hold the test of time (we are talking months if he was lucky). So, he did his research ...and I am not kidding...and we ended up at....

What? You didn't know that the "World's Largest Moccasin Shop" existed? Well, yes it does and it just happens to be in Milford, NH which is about 20 minutes away from where we live.

He bought himself a squishy new pair of Minnetonkas that he rarely takes off. I insisted I did not need a new pair, my oldies are definitely goodies....and I want to see just how long they can stay together!

Aren't we exciting?

Hope

What a night....

When I was 16 years old, I worked on Bill Clinton's campaign. Since then, I have voted several times for many different reasons....primaries, presidential elections, gubernatorial and local leaders, etc. Never have I been so inspired in a leader and in this country. Although I was in and out of sleep until 2am last night, I had tears in my eyes the whole time.

New Hampshire voted for Obama and also voted the first female senator from NH into office, Jeanne Shaheen.

This economy and all that comes with it has been extremely disheartening ... it is nice to have some hope and inspiration right now!

Doesn't it feel good.....

...to vote?

Seriously, I made arrangements to work from home today so I could vote in the middle of the day as opposed to when the lines are out the door. Ryan and I were smiling from ear to ear....it just really feels good!

We were on the news too! Local station, WMUR channel 9. Here is a shot of us at the polls getting our ballots:

Now, Ryan and I don't really like to talk politics as it can get to be a sticky subject sometimes. Coodie, on the other hand has been rather outspoken:

So, now I need to get back to the minute by minute coverage. I am glued even though there are only 2 states reporting...the rest are soon to come and I can't miss it!

Happy Anniversary!

My mom and dad celebrated their 39th wedding anniversary this past Sunday. Holy cow...39 years! I'm not even that old! (haha, I can see your face now, mom!) Seriously, in this day and age, 39 years is pretty impressive.


My mom and dad at our wedding. How cute!

Mom, dad and I at the rehearsal dinner.


I also cannot fail to mention that my mother and father-in-law celebrated their 40th wedding anniversary back in May of this year (when I wasn't writing so much). Here is Ryan with his parents at our wedding:

That's a pretty solid foundation that we have started our marriage on! I can't wait to say that Ryan and I have celebrated that many years together.


Happy Anniversary!

Hilarious!

No matter what side of the political spectrum you are on, this video is just hilarious. I haven't enjoyed Saturday Night Live since the early 90's, but the latest videos have been cracking me up!

Visit with Ethan and Aaron

Yesterday afternoon, Ryan and I went to visit my sister and her husband and the "little monkeys" (as I call them): Jodi, Jon and our nephews, Ethan and Aaron. Aaron recently had a pretty tough surgery at Boston Children's Hospital and is now recovering and getting used to the frame he will be wearing on his left leg for a bit. He is such a strong little guy, it never ceases to amaze us!



Ryan and I visited with both kiddos and then took Ethan to Griffin Park in Windham while Jodi and Aaron relaxed for a bit at home. Ryan and Jon played football and Ethan met up with some buddies and had fun playing with them and his new heelies. I just enjoyed watching everyone on an amazingly beautiful and warm October day! We then stopped at Klemm's Bakery and brought back donuts and coffee for Jodi and Aaron.


Griffin Park....can you see the beautiful fall leaves in the background?



I borrowed this photo from my sister's blog. We were lucky enough to see Aaron walk around the living room while we were there. He did such a great job! The fixator is pretty big for a little guy but he keeps going. He really is quite an inspiration and big brother Ethan is a great support for his little bro.


We had such a great afternoon and can't wait to visit again very soon! See their link below on the last post for the latest on Aaron's progress.

Cloud 9

Since we have no kids yet, we tend to spoil Coodie rotten. Hence the very soft pewter colored bed on the top of our cabinets that he sleeps on every day. He climbs up around 8:30am and does not get down until after noontime. Ryan bought this for him on eBay and it has been the biggest hit! As soon as Coodie gets on the bed, he starts to knead it with his front paws and purr like crazy (also known as his "bubble purr"). It is hilarious! It's things like this that have led my father in law to state that he would like to be reincarnated as Cood because he has such a comfortable life. I think I agree!

Here is our view of Cood. Most of the time, all we can see is a set of ears or sometimes his tail poking out.
We are headed off to see our nephews, Ethan and Aaron, tomorrow morning so hopefully I will post an update after that. Please see my sister's blog for the latest updates on Aaron's surgery:

http://teamcoppeta.blogspot.com/

The Cattery

We love our cat, as you all know. So, recently Ryan and I have talked about getting a friend for Coodie...which led us on our little adventure this weekend.



We did some research and had decided that Coodie may be part Maine Coon Cat, with the "M" on his head, tiger stripes, mane and fuzzy tail. So, we researched some area breeders and found one in Francestown, NH. We had some breakfast, hopped in the car and headed out for the adventure. We ended up on this beautiful farm with breathtaking views and met a fantastic woman who had a barn full of cats. Not just any barn...one that was converted into mini cat condos, where they had an outside space and inside complete with climbing trees and beds (not too shabby). She took us around and introduced us to all of her cats - many of which were champions of cat shows and very sophisticated (too funny!) - and they were also made up of a few different breeds. We held some kittens and heard the stories of some of the cats, how she ships them overseas and how she breeds and socializes them. Needless to say, all of these cats were super friendly, cuddly and extremely well behaved.



The coon cats ended up being a little too large for us (they may eat Cood after all), but we fell in love with the British Shorthair:

They look and feel like little teddy bears! They have the friendliest disposition, too. We are now debating whether to get another cat or not. After all, we don't want to mess up a good thing we have going on with the three of us....



Regardless of whether we end up with an addition to the family, after a tough week at work for both of us, spending a few hours with this wonderful woman and her adorable fuzzy friends was just what we needed! Animals can truly be food for the soul.

Fabulously Relaxing Mini-Vacation

Well, my birthday weekend (notice how I say "weekend" and not just birthDAY) is over....but, we had an amazing time! Ogunquit was beautiful and we couldn't have asked for better weather. We slept in every day and took many walks on the beach and along Marginal Way. Then we started dreaming about living up there all the time because we love it so much..... we are planning on winning the lottery so we can make that happen.

Here is a little preview:

On the first night there, all Ryan said was "Bring a nice outfit and be ready and dressed by 6." So, here we are trying to capture the moment of us being all dressed up. Classy photo in the hotel mirror! Notice the new necklace...one of my gifts that match my earrings from Valentine's Day.


Ryan actually planned all of this because I keep asking to get dressed up and go out. Well, he really took that and ran with it...



Here is a photo of the entrance to my surprise....Arrows Restaurant in Ogunquit. This place was named the 14th best restaurant in the country by Gourmet Magazine and I concur. Not that I actually eat gourmet all the time, but for those of you who know how picky I am...I ate duck and it was delicious. So, that should tell you something!
Here are a few photos of the grounds after dinner. It was so romantic because when we got there for our seating at 6, the garden was our view and it was full of flowers and these crazy plants I didn't know could be grown in Maine. As it got darker, this is what we were looking at from our table.

And another view...





A very happy birthday girl and her thoughtful and wonderful husband!



So, check out the website, if you are interested. At Arrows, 90% of their produce is organic and from their very own garden on the grounds. Pretty neat stuff.

http://www.arrowsrestaurant.com/index.cfm




Moving on to the rest of our trip...




Here is Ryan glued to the window of his favorite shop. They sell amazing pottery and copper pots, which Ryan has recently started collecting. They are everywhere in our house!
This is my favorite shop...some neat and well priced finds (think Abacus but with prices that are reasonable). We have bought several photos and paintings here in the last several years.

The view looking out to the beach from Marginal Way.


And to the other side...

The beautiful flowers along Marginal Way...we were able to capture some great photos...

We had to give a shout out to our favorite local pub where we always watch the Red Sox games and meet some great people. Unfortunately, they were closed while we were there and reopening the day we left, which was a bummer. We'll be back, Maxwell's!And the Cat 'N Nine Tails Country Store. Ryan loves to tell the story about how he used to get a breakfast sandwich called the "McCat" there and pick up subs for the beach when he was a kid. We do always stop there for something. Sadly, they no longer sell the "McCat".

Here we are, headed across the bridge back to NH. Until next year, Ogunquit!

Thank you for the best birthday ever, babe!!!