Back in Black

So Micah has been begging me to dye my hair back to black. It has been years since my hair was dark and well...I was pretty nervous to do it. It will take awhile for it to grow on me but Micah loves it! My stylist said that once I go black I can never go back...so looks like I am stuck with this color for awhile.

The reactions of my best friends didn't help...

Thanksgiving = Christmas

This year was a little different for Thanksgiving because we were able to host it. Normally we spend it with my family in a cabin with my Aunt, Uncle and cousins, but this year it didn't work out with every ones schedule. It was OK though because Shannon and I were able to prepare our first Thanksgiving feast together. Everything turned out delicious even though our 25lb turkey was finished two hours before schedule. We had to pull all our resources. Both ovens, and two toaster ovens to prepare all the side dishes in time. Rather humorous really.

Who says I can't multitask...I mean I am rocking curlers and fighting my dog off the turkey, while I am basting it.

25 lbs Baby!! The boys and their cranberry sauce. Man of the House carving his 1st Thanksgiving turkey Cali style Outdoor Thanksgiving. The Feast! Damage after the feast...
I was really looking forward to Thanksgiving this year not only so I could say I made my first Thanksgiving feast but because of the shopping that comes after it. Shannon had never experienced Black Friday before so this just made it more exciting for me. We woke up at 3:00 and were at the mall by 3:45 in the morning! Seriously we were crazy but it was so worth it and so much fun. We didn't buy much but being out in the hustle and bustle got us in the Christmas Spirit.
Our first doorbuster! YAY! JcPenny opened at 4:00 a.m and that was our first stop.
Here we are waiting in the Old Navy line @4:30 in the morning. We received free MP3 players for being two of the first 100 customers! Ok so Shan was a little more excited, it being her 1st Black friday and all...
Then came Saturday. Micah got all of our Christmas boxes down and we set out to decorate the house. He put up the lights on the outside of the house and I decorated the inside with the help of Bea. She helped put all the ornaments on the tree. I love Christmas and it seems that one holiday leads to the other. I mean in between cooking the Thanksgiving meal we were looking at ads of all the stores we would Christmas shop at while Santa was displayed on the TV going by on his sleigh in the Macy's Parade. All Thanksgiving does is officially kick off the Christmas Holiday and I love it!!! Sugar cookies and gingerbread houses here I come!

Micah's B-day Part II

So Saturday morning came around and we had our traditional Birthday breakfast with the Quiggle's. This time it was a little more special because our good friend Bill was in town from New York and so he was able to join us for the morning festivities.By festivities I mean consuming mass amounts of coffee while enjoying witty banter from each other.
Normally birthday breakfast can go on for hours but I had to cut it short because Micah and I had another obligation. His second birthday gift from me (the first was the watch) was a wine tasting tour in the Temecula Wineries. We considered this one of the top ten things we have done together. I mean you know how many adventures Micah and I go on and this was by far one of our faves.
Micah got corked for his birthday!Friends we made along the way...

Busy, Busy, Busy

OK so this was a busy week for Micah and I. I know what you are thinking...that is nothing new for you two. In this case I was actually busy with my job and because of this I was unable to blog about the events that took place this week. So Monday night was the Feist Concert. If some of you weren't aware that I was going to the Feist concert then you should read my blog from last week. Micah bought me tickets and we had the greatest time! He took me to dinner at this place called Tu Tu Tango. He has never eaten there but it used to be one of my fave restaurants some years back and haven't been since. He loved it and it was as awesome as I remember it being. After that we had time to kill so we walked around the Universal City Walk and he bought me Ben & Jerry's ice cream for dessert. Then we headed to one of the best concerts ever!

Then came Wednesday, which was Micah's 27th birthday! I had to work later than usual and Micah was planning on being home before me so Shannon came over and decorated the place before he arrived home. She said it turned out looking like an incompetent toilet papered our house but I thought it looked awesome. You can be the judge from the pictures. She wanted me to note that she was pressed for time and only had a few minutes before Micah came home. Micah wanted a special dinner called Chinese Fondue. I have no idea were the Chinese aspect comes into play considering I learned this meal from friends in Quebec and it is a French Province. Anyway you have an onion/beef broth that boils in the fondue pot and we had fresh Venison that Shannon's dad actually hunted and then had shipped frozen to us, so awesome. Anyway you cook the raw meat in the broth and we had veggies, bread , cheese and good wine to compliment the meal. It was amazing and Micah had the best time. I can't explain this meal but it is truly one of mine and Micah's favorite. Then we finished the evening with homemade Pumpkin Creme Brule. Delicious!

The Spread!The Decor!

The Company! Micah admiring his new watch

The Birthday Boy torching the dessert
Then came Friday which was Bea's 5th Birthday! We were so excited to be able to celebrate her birthday. I mean it seems as though just yesterday she moved in next door wearing diapers and was such a baby girl to us. We went out to a little 50's diner called Ruby's. They have the best burgers, fries and Milkshakes around and was the perfect spot to celebrate her Birthday! After that we went back home for cake and ice cream and watched Bea open her gifts!

Bea couldn't wait to try on a few of the gifts she received!

You can never have too much birthday cake...

Head, shoulders, knees and toes...

Yes all of the above are sore. So I decided to join the gym this week. Micah has been diligent in working out in the mornings before he goes to work and I figured I should do the same considering I have no physical activity going on in my life right now. I mean shopping of course is a sport in itself and has kept me lean in the past few months while taking a break from my dance class, but I needed something a little more strenuous. So the gym it is. It is funny because you don't realize how out of shape you are until the morning after your first workout. It was really perfect timing in me joining the gym this week because work was so stressful and so sweating out all my frustrations helps...a lot! I am determined to get in shape this holiday season instead of gaining weight. I am a sucker for baked goods especially since I am the one baking 80% of what I consume, so that changes this year. Micah and I are on track so far so we will see how we hold up, I mean Thanksgiving is only two weeks away...man this is going to be harder than I thought.

Does distance make the heart grow fonder?

I know, I know I am totally slacking on the weekly blogs. I was in Quebec last week and was too busy to even check my email so a blog was not on the agenda. I haven't even had time to write about the awesome surprise I returned home to.

As I entered the baggage claim area of LAX I found Micah standing there with a bundle of roses and open arms. After we finished making a very lovey dovey PDA and gathered my belongings we were on our way home, or so I thought. Micah asked me what I wanted to do since we were in the LA area and I said I didn't care. He said he had something in mind that I might enjoy. Next thing I know we are driving through Pasadena, (only one of my favorite cities in all of California) and we are in a very familiar area. Then next thing I know we are making a right hand turn into the Ritz-Carlton! I was freaking out! He is so awesome. He took me out to dinner and we had the best time and great wine. The following morning we ordered room service for breakfast and ordered a movie to watch and we just got ready to go shopping in Old Town Pasadena. Can you believe it, after this great surprise he still took me shopping. It gets even better, he had one more surprise for me. At the end of Sunday evening he handed me two tickets to the upcoming Feist concert next Monday. Seriously nothing beats coming home to your husband after a business trip, just being able to see them and hug them again, but I must say this was definitely a lot of icing on the cake!

To answer my question about distance making the heart grow fonder...yes it does. But as Tricia (My dear friend) put it, when your hearts are already fond, it explodes! How very true...