Snowpocalypse

On Sunday night and into Monday (January 9th & 10th), we here in the south had a dumping of snow thrust upon us and some have called it the snowpocalypse or the weather or northern aggression. 


For those of you from the south, you may have heard this before.  For me, I've always referred to the war between the north and the south as...the civil war...shocking, I know. Here, many southerns refer to it as 'the war of northern aggression.'  No I'm not kidding.  Thus the weather of northern aggression.  Wow.  Anyway, I'm digressing.

Sunday night, the school announced its closure on Monday.  So on Monday, Mallory and I trekked out to Larry & Christy's for lunch.  It really was a bit of a trek, lots of snow, and a layer of ice upon the snow.  In the afternoon, we went sledding.  Tuesday, another snow day.  So I did some stuff around my house and in the afternoon, went out for another sledding day.  Wednesday, another snow day.  So I did some stuff around my house and... you get the point. :)

The school opened late on Thursday and late on Friday.  It was quite the week and although the snow days were wonderful, I was looking forward to getting back into a routine.

Here are some pictures.  We got approximately 6-8.2 inches of snow.  Clearly, Georgia is unprepared for that amount of snow.

 Monday after the trek to Larry & Christy's

The people (and kids) in H-105 made this huge, and lovely, snowman! :)

 The hill by the intramural field, awesome for sledding. Ps. a trash bag covered pillow is an amazing sled!

 My dead plants. However, I thought it was symbolic, the snow did make me happy!

Christmas 2010 (part III)

After leaving California, I was headed to Oregon to spend time with my mom and sister.  Now that I'm a student again, I had 3 weeks off and spent almost 2 of them in Oregon.  Here's the list, pictures, and recap of my time in Oregon.

Fringe.

My sister got me hooked on fringe this season.  So I caught up on seasons 1 & 2.  Yes friends, that's about 26 hours of TV watching.  Yikes, but soooo good. :)

Christmas Eve.

My sister's church held a Christmas Eve service at the Portland theatre downtown.  It was a wonderful celebration of the birth of Jesus, very authentic, very real worship.  I also enjoyed the hot drinks and cookies provided in the lobby.  :)

Christmas.

Christmas is no longer a wake up early, run downstairs event.  In part, we don't have stairs.  After a slow moving morning, we opened presents, had two lovely breakfasts, and hung out around the house.  One of my favorite gifts, that I accidentally left in Oregon but should be on it's way back to me is a necklace my sister got me.  There's a long back story which I will save you all from (this post is already going to be long).  But the necklace is this cute little heart and on the front it says, 'I love that we're sisters'.  Ahhhh.  Sweet.  Right.  On the back it says, "And I love that there is nothing you can do about it'.  Now that's more like my sister.  Ha. 

Reading.

I got a couple great books for Christmas.  I enjoy reading, but frankly with school I haven't done much fictional reading.  Well, I made up for that this break.  A friend in Athens recommended the 'hunger games'.  The book, which turns out to be a trilogy, is young adult fiction about...well, the premise makes the books sound awful, but that couldn't be further from the truth.  I read the first on Christmas day and had to run out and get the second and third...which of course I read in two subsequent days.  Best piece of fiction since Harry Potter.  Amazing. 

New Years Eve.

I  think New Years Eve is kind of a bust of a holiday.  Don't get me wrong, I stay up til midnight and 'celebrate', but I've never really understood why such celebration occurs over the flipping of a calendar page.  If you actually still use a paper calendar, it happens every midnight.  It is however an excuse to get people together.  My mom, sister, and her roommate spent the night playing games.  It was a relaxed and enjoyable time!  Oh...and I made a new settlers convert.  ;)

McMenamins.

The McMenamins are a family who take local historic or old buildings and convert them into hotels, movie theaters, breweries, and restaurants.  Not having ever experienced one, we went to see the movie Red.  The theater has all couches and tables, and you can order food, beer, or snacks while the movie plays.  It was a fun experience.  Next time, I'll make sure it's a movie I really want to see.  

Home videos.

One night my sister, being her sneaky self, brought out some old home videos.  Of course, she primarily brought out the old videos of me singing.  Oh yes, all my grade school performances were taped.  Watching these videos brought back wonderful memories and tons of laughter.  Here is one of my favorites of my sister in a Christmas musical from church.  

Snowshoeing.

I love hiking.  I love snow.  So why not love snowshoeing?!  Well, since I had never been, I couldn't have an informed opinion.  But now, I know I love it.  My sister and I went up to the foot of Mt. Hood on some 'trail'.  It was a beautiful trek with the view of Mt. Hood ahead of us.  The trail was about 3 miles long and many miles wide.  The snow covered trees were a sight!  I enjoyed the time with my sister AND the time in the snow!

 

 

We're excited about being in the snow!

 

 My 'trek' picture was actually taken on the way down, but the view this way was much better!

 

Yay for snow!

There were many more highlights from the trip including my sister discovering the brand of her favorite bed at Macy's (after practically climbing under the bed to find the name plate) and dessert at Papa Haydn's; the time was precious and I returned to Athens rested, rejuventated, and ready for the next semester!

End of Book.

Christmas 2010 (part II)

After celebrating Christmas with my dad and the extended family, I spent the next few days with my mom's side.  Since my grandpa has yet to make a miraculous recovery, I treasure the times I get to spend with them.  Additionally, for Christmas, my mom's siblings chipped in to buy her a flight down for Christmas for which she was able to take family and medical leave.  So Sunday, I did family Christmas with my grandparents, aunt, uncle, mom, sister, and cousins.  It was such a special time.  

 I don't remember what was so funny, but I love this picture.

 Aunt Sherry and Wayne

My aunt and cousin make wrap with beautiful bows, however, sometimes they're hard to undo.  My sister to the rescue with the scissors!

 Cousins

My grandma got a blanket and a Bible with large size print for Christmas.  Both of which my grandpa tried (successfully) to borrow.  He read some out of her Bible that night, it was a precious moment with his insertions of 'yes Jesus and you know it Lord' after passages about strength or such.  It was funny enough to keep us all from sobbing as he read.

A little later, I reminded my grandpa that if he was going to borrow grandma's gifts, he should let her borrow his.  (Only he got gloves, which wouldn't fit her, and a shirt, same problem.)  He responds with, "I'll let her borrow my shirt...when she washes it...cause I'm a good husband."  He's obviously being a ham, and now has us cracking up with his sarcasm.  I later point out to him that I've obviously been looking for the wrong qualities in a guy...clearly I need to find one who will let me do his laundry.  ;)

Sunday night, my cousin Jonathan stayed around and we played Settlers...and my mom won?!  Not quiet sure how that happened. ;)

My mom and sister went back to Oregon on Monday and I stayed around until Tuesday afternoon.  Monday night, my grandma and I went on a date to see Tangled.  Cute movie, and it was fun to spend some quality time with just her!  After we had a snack before bed.  Hot chocolate and cinnamon and sugar toast will ALWAYS remind me of my grandma and grandpa Rhymes.

Tuesday morning, I made breakfast for my grandparents and for my uncle (he's staying with them to help out around the house, etc).  Swedish pancakes have been a family favorite for years, and I thought I'd find the recipe and whip some up that morning.  I feel a little tricked as the recipe was under Norwegian, which referenced French pancakes...but, my grandma had added her own writing into the cookbook making them 'Swedish'. :)  I also thought the cookbook was too funny not to include a picture.

Tuesday afternoon, my friend Kristel, former roommate, picked me up so we could hang out until my flight on Wednesday morning.  And where did we stop for lunch?!   In-N-Out!  Yumm! 

We had a wonderful visit, even though it was short.  I miss my southern California friends, Kristel being one of them!  I was bummed I couldn't get down there this year, however, grateful I was able to spend some quality time with Kristel (as her family lives in northern California).

In other news...I began to panic on Tuesday when I hadn't received email check in information for my Wednesday flight.  Long story short, apparently I didn't book the flight.  Which is odd, because I remember exactly where I was when I bought it.  In case you wanted to know, I was sitting at Common Ground parking lot on Wednesday (before Thanksgiving) in the Tiff-terra, as CG was actually closed, but their free wi-fi still worked.  I remember purchasing it before going to dinner with my friend Kelley.  I remember.  I remember.  Only, they don't.  And there was no record.  And it wasn't on my credit card.  So Tuesday night, I frantically called Alaska Airlines to double check, and to repurchase, or purchase for the first time, my flight from California to Oregon.

It was a close call, the flight was overbooked by one, me.  But thankfully, and with much prayer, I was able to get on the flight!

Oregon, here I come.

End of part two.

Christmas 2010 (part I)

Christmas is usually crazy.  Ever since I left California, Christmas has been a bit of a fiasco.  I have many friends who live in southern California; my dad lives outside of Sacramento and my grandparents on my mom's side live near my dad (a random coincidence).  Additionally, my dad's extended family does a Christmas celebration the Saturday before Christmas.  It's a lot of Christmas, a lot of people to see, and a lot of time traveling.  This is before I usually head to Oregon to visit my mom and sister.

Are you tired yet?

I have grown to appreciate Thanksgiving more and more these last few years.  Partly because it's a time to pause and reflect on my many blessings, and partly because it's too short of a holiday to do too much.

However, this post is about Christmas :)

This year, my sister and I decided to try and make it to my dad's extended family Christmas.  We hadn't been there in three or four years, and since I had a longer break (an advantage of being a student again), we decided this would be a good year to do it.

On Friday morning, I woke up at 5:30am and Mallory and I headed to the airport.  Her flight left at noon and mine at 3pm.  Upon arriving in Houston, Texas, I awaited my next flight to California.  A few delays, 5 hours worth of a layover, and a 4.5 hour flight, I was finally landing in California.  My Aunt and Uncle were kind enough to pick me up from the airport ... late.  We arrived at their home at 1:30am (PST) ie. 3:30am EST...almost 24 hours worth of travel.  Phew.

Saturday morning came, and my body woke up as if it were on the east coast.  Boo.  However, we went to work peeling potatoes and preparing for the party.  I had a wonderful time visiting with the two of them before everyone else joined!

Dad's family Christmas is a tradition that's gone on for roughly 30 years, nearly all my life.  Every year we play Christmas bingo, sing the 12 days of Christmas, and have some sort of gift exchange.

Here are some pictures from the day!

I won!  Don't worry, we play enough rounds so that everyone can win!  My half brother Joey is next to me.

Below is a picture of Joey, me, my sister, and my dad.  We're only missing Kevin, my other half brother.  That, however, is a long story...and one I'm not even sure I know all the details to.

Aren't we cute?!  Do you see the resemblance?

We have two cousins closest in age to us, Lauren and Scott.  They are wonderful people and truly make these family get togethers a blast.  Anyway, Scott is now engaged to Lauren (who is featured on the left) and that's his sister Lauren in the middle.  Guess what his mom (my aunts) name is?  No, it's not Lauren, but it is Laura. 

Here's my sister, AJ (cousin Lauren's husband), and Scott.  Like I said, they were cracking me up...and apparently themselves as well.

Since there were 29 of us this Christmas, we had to partner up for the 12 days of Christmas.  My sister and I were ... yes, eleven pipers piping.

After the singing, we did a closet item gift exchange.  I'm not even sure I want to explain how it was played this year, but I'll say it involved my uncle and cousin playing the bongos.  Here is what we won! :)

I think, no, I know there was some tampering with the outcome...in our favor.  All this to say, the day was extremely enjoyable.  I had a good time catching up with family I hadn't seen in a long time.

That night, my sister and I celebrated Christmas with our dad.  As part of our family tradition, we exchange Hallmark ornaments.  I have a collection of puppy dogs, my sister has gingerbread houses, and my dad collects football players.  This tradition started when I was born.  I've gone through one other collection, rocking horses.  My sister, however, has gone through multiple collections.  Anyway, it's a fun tradition that has continued even into our adult lives, and I love that!  It was a nice ending to a nice day.

End of part one.

T is for Thankfulness

And T is for Texas.  I spent a wonderful week in Texas for Thanksgiving this year.  I could  have never imagined five years ago, that I would be happy, even excited to return to Texas...but that's another blog post.  

I arrived in Texas early Saturday morning (almost a week before Thanksgiving).  A few of my former students were up in Dallas celebrating a birthday, and offered to pick me up.  It was such a blast to hang out with them all day! 

Gretchen, Allison, and Kalie...the three musketeers.  Their friendship began last year on staff and I was not only excited to see them, but to experience their craziness again! LOVE them!

We had a wonderful time in Dallas, until a few of us got sick from lunch.  It was less than pleasant.  That night I met up with more Baylor friends at the football game.  Unfortunatetly, I am beginning to think I'm the bad luck charm.  Baylor football began winning when I left, and UGA football began loosing when I came.  :/

Anyway, it was a great time to catch up with some of my Baylor peeps. 

Lisa, Ryn, and me

Sunday was church with Lisa, and then Cafe Cappuccino with Sarah and Tiffanie.  I LOVE the two of them, and LOVE Cafe Cap!  My favorite, banana pecan pancake, yumm.

Sunday, was fairly low key and spent time hanging out with friends, watching movies, and just being in the presence of people who really, really know me.  What a wonderful thing for my spirit!

On Monday and Tuesday (day) I spent time at my favorite coffee shop, visiting with friends over Common Grounds coffee. :)

Monday & Tuesday (night) I went to the Baylor Basketball games (men & women).

 Sarah and me at the women's game.

Shelton and me at the men's game.

I spent Thanksgiving day with my favorite Ecklund family!  I have missed this family and their friendship, tremendously!

Selah (above) enjoyed her frosting covered cookie!  And as an early Christmas gift, Gianna and Selah got pink, glitter, Toms from their grandparents.

They are growing up so fast, but it was such a delight to spend Thanksgiving with this wonderful family!

Friday morning, Ryn and I decided to tackle black Friday (again).  We arrived five minutes before Target opened (similiar to last year), however, this time the line wrapped around the building and snaked back and forth.  It was almost twice as long, and Target opened an hour earlier this year.  We hit a few other stores after Target, then breakfast, then nap time.  It was fun to share this memory with Ryn again!

Ryn and I braving the cold.  When I arrived in Waco it was almost 80 degrees.  Then Thursday, a cold front came in...just in time for Thanksgiving.  It actually made it feel a bit more like a true November.

Friday night I was on the plane headed back to Georgia.  Although there was part of me that was ready to leave (simply ready to be sleeping in my own bed), all of me was thankful for the amazing time I got to spend with such dear friends!