What a whirlwind the last couple weeks have been. Between the Christmas Chaos and the New Year madness I’m ashamed to see my blogging got left behind. Needless to say I’m over flowing with post ideas so you’ll have to bear with me. Let’s start with Christmas

My Christmas was perfect. This year I was put in charge of decorating our tree…our tree that happened to be the biggest we’ve ever had at a staggering 7.5 feet! Obviously I needed a ladder, but it felt so good to do and really feel in the spirit. I had SO much more holiday spirit this year then I did last year. I ate too much and did lots of laying around but most importantly I was able to spend some great quality time with my family. My sister came home with her boyfriend for the long weekend, which is more time than she usually gets, and we had such a great time together. It just felt right having her around the house.
And the gifts!! I got some really great and thoughtful gifts this year. One of the most significant was a record player that my parents got me. My family knew that I had been wanting one since the summer time and for some reason hadn’t gotten one yet. On Christmas Eve morning when I opened the large box that held it, I couldn’t believe me eyes. I was so moved at the thoughtfulness of it that I even began to tear up a little. More important that having the player I was just grateful to have such a wonderful family who loves me that much.

Cassie had been wanting this for years!

The hats I made!

Family pajama pants!!

Blitzen and his Holiday Harem

Cousins!

too much festivity for these two

we aren’t related or anything

What a great holiday weekend! Even though I worked for 2 days of it, I still felt like I was on vacation…a well needed vacation.

Lou and I

It began with a whole day off on Wednesday that I used to the utmost! I was able to work on some Christmas gifts, hit the gym, have dinner with my old men, and then hit the town with my friends. It’s always a good time go out on Thanksgiving Eve because everyone is home and this tiny little town comes to life. It’s kinda the only night worth going out all year. My friends and I were looking and feeling fly and we had a really fun night. Dancing and Drinks and Friends…what more could a girl ask for?! Needless to say it was a great way to kick off the long weekend.

a bunch of turkeys

Thanksgiving Day was wonderful. We did the annual travel to Rochester to spend the day at my uncles house and this year my aunt and uncle from Texas even joined us! It was great getting to see them all and smack talk over the Dolphins/Cowboys game (it was a tough loss). And of course Cassie was there so it was nice to spend some quality time with her. We barely left the couch we were perched on and I was totally fine with that.

Poppop and a sleepy Bri

Although Black Friday started with a 5 hour shift at work beginning at 5:45am, I didn’t mind too much. It went my surprisingly fast with how busy we were. Afterwards my mom and I went on a movie date! She’s a twilight fan, and while I’m not really, I figured it would be nice to take her to see the newest one. Plus it spared my step dad from having to sit through it (brooding vampire tween dramas aren’t really his thing…weird). With the way my schedule has been lately it seems like I only really see my mom for the few moments that we’re upstairs before I leave for work. So it was really nice to just have a movie day and split a package of twizzlers. It was a much needed date.

The happy couple!

Saturday started the say way Friday did…more work. Luckily it went by just as quickly so I wasn’t terrible upset about it. Gotta make that money. The res of my day was spent celebrating with friends and family at a wedding. My 5th cousin Sam married a high school friend of mine, Sandy, so her brother Tim (whom I graduated with) invited me to be his date. And by invited I mean I may have made it fairly obvious that he should take me…cuz I’m tons of fun obviously. Anywho, the whole event was like a big family/high school reunion. My friends Nic and Alex were seated at the same table as me and it was soo much fun having them there! I feel like all too often life and work gets in the way of socializing so it was the perfect opportunity to catch up, reminisce, and have a silly ol’ time. And since Tim lives in North Carolina, I rarely get to see him, so of course it was great getting to hangout and dance our faces off together. 
Sandy is one of the sweetest people in the world and Sam is equally wonderful so I felt so blessed to share their day with them. I wish them the happiest marriage ever!

That brings us to Sunday….and a lazy, lazy Sunday it was. To sum it up…football, naps, pizza, and wings. Pretty perfect if you ask me. Oh and I did clean my room…so that can’t be a bad thing.

All in all, I couldn’t have asked for a better Thanksgiving weekend. It was exactly what the doctor ordered! Now it’s back to reality, work, the grind. I can only hope that my next super awesome weekend won’t take as long to arrive as this one did. I have a sneaky suspicion that it won’t. 🙂

Sometimes we need to stop analyzing the past, stop planning the future, stop figuring out precisely how we feel, stop deciding exactly what we want, and just see what happens.

I went to the gym yesterday and had a really good workout. Well, any workout could be considered really good lately since I haven’t been entirely dedicated to fitness {shameful}. Anyway, I was feeling fit and on my game. I didn’t eat a huge dinner since I had to go to work so I was still feeling pretty good…till I got home from work. I felt like I hadn’t eaten in days. The next thing I knew I had consumed 4 wings, ham and cheese rolled together, and some veggie chips. It was a 10 o’clock massacre. I was so ashamed of myself. I’m usually very good about not eating after 8 or 9 and definitely NOT eating that much. It was like my brain told my appetite that I had a free pass since I had exercised that day. I was and still am mildly frustrated about it. What is it about eating right that I can’t seem to get a grasp on? I just LOVE food!!! I can’t win.

My sister, the nut that she is, coined a new term for me last week. Nesting.

Now, according to Cassie, nesting is something that happens to you when Fall arrives. You have the urge to settle indoors, be cozy and cuddled, maybe bake or cook hearty foods. I think it’s likened to a domestic hibernation.

Anyway, this term came about because the other day I was talking with her about how I’ve been a little emotional lately and feeling a bit lonely. It seems like most of the people around me are married, in a relationship, having babies, and the like. While I’m not really in a rush to do or have any of those things, I guess it’s just something that’s been on my mind lately. So Cassie’s diagnosis is that I’m nesting.

And strangely enough I think I have to agree with her. {Hear that Cass…don’t let it go to your head now}I’ve been very internal and contemplative lately. Always thinking about things and life and…things. Wanting to hunker down indoors with my knitting or a good book and some hot tea. I only need a fireplace to really make it official.

Since nesting is new to me I’m not sure how long it will last exactly. I do know that I can’t be the only one going through it and it’s really not so bad. So thank you to Cassie for the expert diagnosis. And to anyone else out there who’s nesting too, denial is the first stage so just accept it and go with the flow. {Karli}

And yes fellas, you can get it too. You just may not admit it or get emotional about it. It’s ok….no one will think less of you. 

sorry for my absence as of late. What started as a cold a few weeks ago turned into my first migraine last week, so needless to say I was a waste of a human being. And for the record, I would be entirely alright with never experiencing a migraine again. How awful.
Besides my ailing health, these last couple weeks have been somewhat refreshing. My summer job has ended so I’ve had some resemblance of a life again. It’s been nice. I’ve had the time to sew and knit and spend time with my friends again. And more importantly, just relax. Breathe.
So now you know, I’m alive and resting. And will hopefully be posting more frequently here and at my craft blog.

TGIF!! I have weekends again!