revitalize.renew.refresh

That is my New Year's resolution for 2010.  This year I decided against making a specific behavioral change, but instead I want to achieve a more spiritual and internal change in my attitude and my approach to all that I do, both in my work and personal lives.  I feel that I have let go of my sense of passion for what I do and as a result have not had the same energy.... my hope is to regain that energy, my confidence, and as a result achieve more success.

positive thoughts

With everything that I have on my calendar (work, social, family), this will be my moto throughout the next month.  Thanks Adventures in Renovating a Brooklyn Limestone for the inspiration!

sunday: renew your spirit

So in following with FlyLady's plan, today DH and I decided to go on a short hike.  DH has been trying to get me to go hiking for weeks now and up until today I have found every excuse in the book to not go.  But the weather was perfect today (crisp, cool air and sunny skies).  It turned out to be an absolutely lovely time for us to breathe the fresh air and spend some quality time together. 

thanksgiving recap

So Thanksgiving dinner in our home was a success!  We hosted those who could not go home for the holiday weekend and it was the perfect way to celebrate our first Thanksgiving as newlyweds and away from our families.  We cooked up a feast with turkey, stuffing (one veggies and one sausage), mashed potatoes, creamed corn, appetizers, and of course spiced cider!  We borrowed our neighbor/friend's kitchen table to create one long family style table.  I loved it - made me think of how much I look forward to having my family sit around a big dining room table together.  Here's a peek at how everything turned out:

Our kitty, Socrates, was helping to set the table!

 

We also had our friend bring her plates, silverware and wine glasses.  Altogether it looked very festive!

We set up drinks and appetizers on the breakfast bar.

The turkey's done! 

It actually was done way too early, but thankfully it didn't dry out or anything and tasted perfect.

After dinner, we served some yummy alcohol infused chocolates with dessert.  They were from Sam's Club and were a hit!  Everyone loved it!

 One of our friends made gingerbread cookies for us all to decorate.  It was such a great after dessert activity!

At the end of the night, we just collapsed on the couch and felt so grateful for friends to help make being away for the holidays a bit more like home.  It was a wonderful, satisfying feeling to have successfully hosted such a wonderful event in our new home.

so many things to be grateful for....

my husband
my family
friends near and far
my g'ville turkey day family away from home
a great meal
a blessed and fulfilled life
love and laughter

Today I celebrated Thanksgiving away from home for the first time ever.  It was difficult being away from my family, but thankfully I was able to share it with my husband and my g'ville-turkeyday-family-away-from-home.  The table was filled with tons of yummy food and surrounded by great company, cheer, and laughter.  In about four weeks I will be back home sweet home and sharing hugs and laughter with my family -- for that, I am truly thankful. 

In the spirit of the season, I thought I would get back into the blogging world.  The wedding blog never really took off.... I got way too into reading wedding blogs than keeping my own!  I've recently gotten back into blogs and message boards since I began preparing for my first Thanksgiving dinner and joined up on thenest.com.  I'm hoping to share my adventures of being a housewife, balancing a busy career, and enjoying every moment of it!

Wedding Dress

Don't worry, I won't show any pictures of the dress or possible dresses, but the process of dress shopping was so much fun, I had to include some pics! The first couple pictures are from a gorgeous bridal shop in Westbrook, CT (next to Water's Edge).

And of course a few trips to NYC were in order! First, to Kleinfeld's (the crazy store from "Say Yes to the Dress" show on TLC) with Beth. We found some great contenders there... as well as some crazy dresses at other shops! Gotta love New York!

And then another trip to to New York with my mom, my grandmother, and my aunt Sue. The dress shopping can be so distressing that a few glasses of wine are often needed!

This is the "I think I found THE DRESS" celebration picture: :)

Welcome to our blog!

So I thought I'd start up a blog about wedding-related things, to blog the process of getting married! So far, I'm wishing that wedding planning was my full-time job, but unfortunately there is a Ph.D. to be had. Stay tuned for photos and updates throughout the next 9 months!