Feeling the Christmas Spirit

The other night Jacob took me the Garden Lights at the Botanical Gardens. The lights were so pretty and it was nice to do something relaxing but fun.

This one reminded us of Seattle. We miss it!

This was an "under the sea" display, it was the coolest one by far!

Santa taking off from an aircraft carrier.

Watering the roses =)

After we got home from the lights there was a package waiting for us from Las Vegas! My family sent over lots of presents for us, some to open now, and others to put under the tree for Christmas morning.

Zoey and me with our presents under the tree!

Jacob showing off some of his presents.

Our "2010" ornament. Such a sweet idea from Miss Jackie =) We totally love it and put it on the tree right away! I'm excited to start that tradition. It is crazy how much has happened in 2010. It was such a good night and really put Jacob and me in the Christmas spirit.

Zoey relaxing on the top of the couch...one of her new favorite places.

Reasons Virginia is Lame

I'm all about having adventures and experiencing different places...but I have just about had it with Virginia. Here's why...

1. It is virtually impossible to find a good donut in this town. Some of the grocery stores don't even HAVE donuts, let alone a free standing donut shop. I have not seen one maple bar since I arrived. Not okay.

2. The drivers here are TERRIBLE. No, terrible doesn't even begin to cover it. Horrendous is more like it. They are particularly bad at merging, lane changes, and just basically common road courtesy.

3. Besides a handful of people, most of them are so rude. At work all I hear is "gimme this" or "i need that". Would a "please" kill these people??

4. It's far away.

Okay so as of this moment I can't remember the other reasons I had but I know there were more. I don't really mean to complain, some days are just more frustrating than others.

Thanksgiving

So...I'm a little late on this one, but Thanksgiving was good this year. It was really strange to be all by ourselves so far away from home, but we tried to make it special.

My first Thanksgiving dinner that I cooked all by myself! And yes, we had ham instead of turkey.

Zoey helped me with the dishes. What a good little helper.

Between school, my work, and Jacob's work we haven't had much time for anything else. All of our spare time is dedicated to studying or just relaxing at home. I promise one day we'll do something exciting that I can blog about....

Clean up, Clean up

I don't know what is is, but I have the HARDEST time keeping our apartment clean. I'm absolutely terrible at it. Everything seems messy yet I always feel like I'm washing dishes or straightening up the living room. I just want my house to be clean!!!! Help =(

Starbucks

One of the things I've been working on since I got to Virginia was finding a job. I admit, I wasn't trying very hard at first, but once my parents left I buckled down a little and now I am an official Starbucks Barista! I love my job so much. It's fast paced and fun and I love learning how to make all the different drinks (and tasting them!) It's weird adjusting to not being home all the time and having to prioritize what's important. (For example, I should be writing an economics paper right now...)

Best Friends

I am SO grateful for my best friend. Even just looking through these pictures it reminds me how many fun things we have done together. Even across the country we still manage to connect in weird ways, like calling each other at the exact same time. Every time we talk it's like we haven't spent any time apart. I miss Samantha Ann more than anything, but I am so thankful to have her in my life and for all the amazing memories we have made together.

Mama Carole

I am very thankful for Mama Carole. Mama Carole passed away awhile ago, but I loved her more than anything. I will always remember when my sisters and I were younger we would be so excited to sleep over at Mama Carole's. She used to let stay with her in her bed and watch game shows and eat Lifesavers mints all day. (We were looking for the one that would win us a VW bug and $50,000) We would go miniature golfing, rollerblading, and swimming at the pools in Sun City. I miss her so much but I am very grateful we had her around while we were growing up.

Papa Charlie and Suzanne

Like I said in the previous post, I am very lucky when it comes to grandparents. And Papa Charlie is NO exception! First, I am so thankful for his sense of humor. I know it carries him through the good times and the bad times. I can always count on him for a joke. He is so cute, and I know I got my appreciation for watching sports from him. Also, I know if I ever want to drop a Seinfeld line on someone, he is my man!

I am also thankful for Suzanne for helping my grandpa out and being very sweet and kind to me and my family. =)