Tonight I got to see one of my best friends from high school, Kate, and her family. Kate is a sweetie and her mom always makes the best food. I LOVE when Kate comes to visit! She tells me all sorts of exciting stories about her life- most of which revolve around her winemaking adventures. She will be moving to New Zealand in January to work the vineyard of her Kiwi boyfriend, Luc. Christian and I are talking about spending some time there learning the winemaking trade (2 summers away?). I think it would be a great experience for Maia and we would get to (finally) spend some time traveling. Either way, in the next year or so, some big decisions will have to be made- Art Therapy program or winemaking? Deciding which dream to pursue is difficult but I'm excited about the prospects.

Tired

So tonight we finally put up our tree...better late than never. It's beautiful (and prickly).

I've been so tired lately- I'm not sure if it's because of my lack of exercise, stress, oncoming sickness or my less-than-perfect eating habits but I've been dragging for the last couple of days. Maia's been a little more than a handful lately...she's been waking up in the middle of the night regularly and Christian and I are having to alternate getting up with her in the wee hours of the morning. Her mannerisms of late (thanks to being a two-year-old, I'm sure) have been super-demanding, whiny, and bossy which wears me down more than I realize on a daily basis...my patience wears thin more easily these days. I know this is just a temporary slump, but sometimes the lows seem to last so much longer than the highs.

This was one of the first weekends I've had off in a REALLY long time. It started off with the Paper Pals Christmas party which was SO much fun...I've been so caught up in everything else-finals, Christmas, Maia, wedding planning- that I haven't had much time to scrapbook lately. I miss hanging out with the Pal Gals, even if I didn't get anything done. :)

Saturday my parents came into town to cut the Christmas tree(s), (one for our house, one for theirs) from our backyard. Christian, Maia and I got to go on a walk together which we haven't done in a really long time, and Harmony came for a visit (she always spoils us when she comes!) Then Maia and I went up the mountain to spend a "girls night" with my mom and sister. We made a cheese fondue and a chocolate fondue (super delicious) and watched Ocean's Thirteen and Surf's Up.

This morning we made beignets, went sledding and I got to take a nice long nap...what a perfect weekend. Oh, and to top it off, Harmony made dinner (chicken parmesan) for us tonight and bought tiramisu for dessert. I'm so full of delicious holiday food! And I love my friends and family! I'll have to look forward to starting a serious workout plan after the holidays, but eating well during the holidays is totally worth it.

Friendship

What the heck is with this weather? It feels like spring! Cruel, cruel world.

I love being home though sometimes (especially around Christmas) it brings back memories I'd rather forget. There's something to be said for moving on both physically and emotionally.

I've been thinking a lot about friends lately. I'm recently back in contact with a few friends from college whom I've missed...I hope we'll be able to keep up communication. Something about the Christmas season makes me think about everyone I've known and loved. I've made so many good friends at every stage in my life- high school, college, post-college- that it's hard to keep up sometimes. However it does NOT mean I've forgotten about how truly special and important all of my friends are/have been to me. Though our lives move forward, it's always necessary to take a moment and appreciate the people who have helped us along the way. Love to you all.