Farewell 2010...

My farewell to the year post is taking longer than expected (editing photos..taking hours...) so anyhow, I got the disc with more images from our glam winter shoot yesterday so you can see :)

Check back later for some of my favorites images from the year and a recap of all the great things and sad things and amazing things that 2010 held.

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Peace Out Lansing...

Yesterday we found out the husband's job rotation in Lansing will be ending sooner than planned.

This is fine with us (I especially have some choice words for some of the jerks he was working with).

The 26th of January will be his last day and then we will be off!

But where to?

.....well, as usual I am sure we will not know until THE.LAST.SECOND.

They offered us some options, one in South Carolina near Myrtle Beach and one on Oregon. He is working hard on finishing his license transfer to Colorado and California so we may be in one of those states if they process his application quick enough.

So now it is time to start thinking about some things we can leave behind in storage because it would be nice if we didn't have to rent a u-haul to move our lives every three months. I just can't bear to part with my kitchen-aid mixer or my new sewing machine and husband will not leave his 52 inch flat screen.

Dilemma.

---OMIT SEGWAY---

Last night I made a delicious mid-rare ribeye with au jus over mashers.

We were so busy discussing our impending move and

completing all the paperwork involved that I did not

take any photos.

Sorry.

...That and I was tired from my fitness test at the gym.

Good news? I am not obese. jk

Actually I got an excellent score and I meet with a personal trainer today to customize some workouts. I am excited about that.

Sorry if I put you to sleep today, there just wasn't a lot to say because of all the changes we got laid on us yesterday. Cross your fingers that we land in a SWEET new place which amazing hole in the wall restaurants, possibly a beach (please, a beach!). Really I want to end up in northern california amongst a million wineries. I want to work at one. As a grape stomper.

And no, I do not care that they do not stomp the grapes with their feet anymore.

Walk In The Clouds ruined me.

and, bonus, Keanu Reeves didn't even suck that bad in that movie.

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Mixed Media Art

I made this for my brother as one of his Christmas gifts. I painted a canvas and then started sculpting the guitar with bits of wood to make it look just like one of the guitars he uses. I used modeling clay for the black pieces and thin metal for the buttons and frets. I stained the wood with oak stain and was going to put real strings on it but ran into a problem with keeping them taut. I had to scrap that idea and string up pieces of thread. It was a learning process and didn't turn out like I envisioned it, but I am still pretty proud of it.

I am so exhausted today--

I have a fitness assessment at the gym today.

Joy.

My regular recipes and posts should resume with the new year, but not every day. Hopefully at the end of the month with the new site, I can resume my normal schedule!

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Christmas SCORE!

The husband and I scored this Christmas! I am loving (and by loving I mean I am obsessed) with my NookColor. I can read anything I want AND it has crossword puzzles. I got my sewing machine, so now I have to find some sewing classes and then WATCH OUT for cool crafty sewing projects. Husband got his sweet 18-150 lens so now we can take up close and far away shots without having to switch lenses. Along with all the guys in his family he also got a high tech remote helicopter which he tried to land on my head last night as I drooled over recipes from the Bride & Groom Williams Sonoma cookbook my brother got us..

I GOT A MOOSE & A BEAR HAT.

I think I am just going to keep the bear...because the moose is a it much.

(I can't justify walking around with antlers.)

NOW, I am off to the gym to use my new Garmin FR60 in my new workout gear. Later on tonight we will set up our tv with the new all in one remote with a docking station (awesome). I am glad we can consolidate our 4 remotes to ONE! And then it will be time to take down the tree and get prepared for my husband's birthday this Saturday!

Hope you all had a fabulous Christmas!!

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Friday's Letters- Christmas Eve Edition

Dear Husband, I am not sure which I like more: the Charlie Brown Christmas Tree, the fire arms on the wall or my 'fro (which has hauntingly followed me into adulthood).Dear Christmas Presents, I hope you make the family and the husband freak out and lose it like this kid. Dear Classic Christmas Songs and Fattening Food, prepare to be sung and devoured (not necessarily in that order) by my face. Dear Jonathan Paul (who always gets 2 letters), I am over the moon excited to share out first Christmas morning together. Can't wait to start our first tradition of having a ridiculously huge breakfast in the morning!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!

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Oh Fuuuudge!

Oh Fuuuuuuudge, a post about how to make old fashioned home made fudge? Yes, it's true. I am about to divulge essential secrets that have been passed down for generations and generations, and---( well I may be exaggerating just a little bit). Regardless! Here are a few reasons why this should make you excited:

1. You will not have to turn on your oven

2. You do not need a candy thermometer

3. Do you know how long cooked sugar keeps? Stored properly, this fudge will last through January. (Of course, if you have made it correctly you will be lucky if it lasts the evening!)

4. In a pretty tin with some printed parchment paper, this fudge makes a lovely gift.

5. I have a recipe for chocolate AND for peanut butter.

6. PEANUT BUTTER, did you hear me?

Let's get to it, for the peanut butter fudge you will need:

1 jar peanut butter (creamy)

1 jar marshmallow fluff

4 cups sugar

1 1/2 cups evaporated milk

2 tsp vanilla

Step 1: Pour the sugar and milk into a large pot and bring to a boil. While stirring every once in a while, let the mixture boil*around 5 minutes. At this point, grab a small cup of very cold water. You are going to start testing your mixture to see if it has reached the soft boil point. Take a tiny bit of mixture from your pan and drop it in the cold water--- if it balls up, or stays solid and DOES NOT DISSOLVE in the water, then you are ready! *you will want a pretty deep pan, because the milk and sugar boil up pretty high. See the below picture of my lovely grandma stirring our boiling mixture up...

Once you have decided the mixture is at the ready by doing the water test, you can mix in all your other ingredients. Mix in peanut butter, vanilla and marshmallow fluff. Here is the second important part of this process: you have to start stirring. This is not a job for the kitchen aid mixer. This is the old fashioned, stir 'til your muscles burn technique. The fudge is going to start to slowly harden and set up, and you want to make sure you are stirring to keep it malleable. So, for nearly 10 minutes you want to stir and take a break, and STIR, and take a break, and STIR and take a break, etc. until your fudge is getting pretty thick and you think your arm is going to fall off. NOW quickly pour your fudge into a buttered 9X13 pan.

Now you can take a spatula and spread out the mixture, you maybe have 60 good seconds to do this before it starts getting so hard you crack and crumble the top. The point is, pour it, smooth it out, and then don't mess with it. LET IT SIT. Leave it out, for a few hours. Give it a chance to harden up.
Finally, once it is hard(ish)...don't think it is going to get rock hard. In fact, sometimes it is soft but it is till delicious. Anyhow, once it has set you can cut it, serve it or package it up as gifts for your lucky friends.

Peanut buttery goodness doesn't even begin to describe it!

Here is the recipe for the chocolate-- no soft boil water test needed for this one!
4 1/2 c. sugar
1 can evap. milk
1 tsp butter
**Boil above ingredients for 5 minutes exactly. Remove from heat and quickly stir in:
1 small package of chocolate chips
1 jar marshmallow fluff
3 tsp vanilla
8 ounces german chocolate
1 1/2 cups chopped nuts
1/2 tsp salt

STIR, STIR, STIR-- same as the peanut butter, pour and let set for a few hours.

Cut and ENJOY!

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{Glam Shoot}

Yep, that's me.

I told you she was an amazing photographer.

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Ashley's Riesling Pork Chops

I have been feeling pretty sick these past few days. The Sunday photo shoot in the 20 degree weather probably didn't help that but I think the pictures are going to turn out fabulous because all the girls looked fierce and the photographer is probably the most amazing up and comer in the midwest.

ANYHOW, after only ingesting questionable amounts of NyQuil the past 48 hours I was hungry for something that would fill up my belly with warm goodness. I had some mushrooms that were threatening to start withering away if I didn't use them, and some boneless chops in the freezer. Oh, and of course I had some Riesling in the fridge. So, combine these ingredients together and=magic. Have you ever immersed pork into riesling? The pairing is tangy magic. Your taste buds will actually tingle. Mine did. My husband's did. (Yes, he nodded his head and says that they are STILL tingling). A little sweet, a little tart, a lotta requests for seconds. This is seriously delicious. (Would I share a recipe that was NOT delicious?! NO.)

Here is what you will need to serve two hungry people:

2-4 boneless chops

salt & pepper

1 lemon, halved

a delicious riesling-- may I suggest my very favorite wine from my very favorite winery.

generous amount of garlic clove (about 2 tbsp worth, minced)

10 ounces mushrooms (mixed work great, I used mini bella, sliced)

1/2 cup heavy cream

1 tsp sugar

olive oil

First, coat a pan with olive oil over medium-high heat. Salt & pepper the chops and throw them in the pan. Brown each side and the remove from skillet.

Next, slice and mince your mushrooms and garlic. Throw your garlic in the pan for 2 minutes, next add your mushrooms and let simmer for about 3 to 4 minutes.

Finally, stir in sugar, riesling (1 1/2ish cups) and the juice of your lemon. (Just squeeze your lemon over the pan, you just need around 1/4 cup of juice, not a lot). Throw your chops back in the pan. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover and let simmer for about half an hour.

After you have let the pork chops cook, take them out and set aside. Add your heavy cream to the pan and let thicken about 3 to 5 minutes. If it isn't cooperating, you can sprinkle in some cornstarch (but that is only in dire circumstances!) Your pan should be looking something like this: (I apologize for the pictures. Did I mention our lens is broken and you have to manually focus it, which I am not good at!?)
Pour your creamy, mushroomy sauce over your chops, bask in all your domestic glory, and serve :)

ENJOY.

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Adventures! Part 2

The picture you see is the final product of a very fun game we played at the Slater household Saturday night.We were there to celebrate our nephew's 8th birthday who wanted to play games as part of his party.The first was mild enough, (we had to guess Christmas song titles from pictures).

The second however--and as you can see by my husband's balloon stuffed shirt-- took a turn for the worse. After all the kids saw him to this, we had a 2 year old, 4 year old and 8 year old strutting around with balloon boobs.

[And as a side note, it looks like his brother is thoroughly enjoying the view.]

Ah, good times.

If you want to play this game with your family, here is how:

Before playing, prepare two pairs of panty hose by cutting a hole below the top, just on the front side. The "reindeer" will pull the hosiery onto their heads and poke their heads out through the hole you just cut. Second, clip off the ends where your toes would go. (You will need this to stuff their "antlers" with balloons.

Okay, NOW:

Divide everyone into 2 teams. Next, make sure each team has 14 small balloons, string, scissors and a red bow for their rudolph nose. Each team has an allotted amount of time (I think we had 5 minutes) to stuff the antlers with balloons to inflate them. Once finished tie off the ends with your string.

It proves to be a very hilarious game, one that is great for everyone to participate in. As adults we had fun, and the kids were eating it up. Here is a picture of everyone! I think almost everyone was looking! That is a miracle!

P.S. You can keep voting for us by clicking HERE!
If you don't have a blogger account you can copy/paste your Facebook URL!

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Some Exciting News...

I couldn't wait to tell you, so I am double posting today to share the big news. Ready for it?

We will be launching adventuresofnewlyweds.com sometime in the next 30 days if everything goes to plan! Be on the lookout for a whole new design and all kinds of fun things to come in 2011. We are excited for this next step and can't wait to share it with you!

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Adventures! Part 1

What a busy weekend. Friday, husband and I explored the capitol. [I am still trying to figure out the proper use of capitol and capital just so I can write about our trip. ugh.] We went downtown Lansing and poked around the capitol building and saw the giant Christmas tree, and then... then the best thing happened. While on a search for coffee, we discovered an old timey train station from 1903 that has been converted to a restaurant. There is a real live train car you can sit in (it was closed, but the inside of the station was awesome too). We had our coffee and some sinfully fattening dessert called Lovin' Spoonful, which was just 8 different kinds of chocolate smashed together and topped with some ice cream and MORE chocolate. so. good.

Now I will quit yapping and let you see the fun pictures!

click the photos to enlarge!

My husband took these amazing photos.

I am more interested in posing FOR the camera.

A second shot of the building...it was really beautiful at night with all the city Christmas lights.

Another shot, I am on the steps. Can you see me?

Really beautiful wooden doors at the top of the steps...

***

And then we found Clara's @ Lansing Station...

husband enjoying his coffee...

My coffee...yum!

our D to the LISH dessert.

We snuck into the closed train car. Because we are rebellious like that.

and...

yeah, he is 27.... and still thinks jokes like this are hilarious.

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The Final Round! (As far as my blog is concerned!)

Wow, we made it to the TOP 5. I don't even know HOW (thanks facebook friends!) . In this last round, you have to head over to BLOGGUIDEBOOK.COM and leave a comment sayin' you want to vote for Adventure of Newlyweds. If you vote, I will sincerely appreciate it, seeing as we are up against some super tough competition! I already know that TodaysLetters is going to win top blog, but how cool would it be if I made it to top 2? A dream....

Thanks to everyone who has voted so far, I will not ask for your votes again!

GO HERE TO VOTE FOR US, STARTING 6AM Saturday morning!!!!!!!!!

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Friday's Letters: Blast From The Past

Dear Brother, Oh! those were the days. We would watch TGIF at night, feast on Lucky Charms and I could boss you into wearing high heels with me. Awesome. Dear Husband, Sometimes at night you reach your leg across the bed and touch me with your foot. You say this is "just to make sure" I am still there. Are you expecting me to go somewhere at 2am? Dear Animal Hoarders, your show is like a train wreck. I don't want to watch but I CAN'T GET ENOUGH! Dear Jonathan Paul, sometimes you remind me of a 75 year old when you get home from work, put on basketball shorts and pull your dress socks up AS.HIGH.AS.THEY.WILL.GO. You say this us because your calf muscles are so big, when you walk they fall down. But I think it is because you have stretched all the elastic out of those suckers. Just sayin'

Happy weekend!

[This weekend I get to dress up and get my hair and make-up did

and pose for a friend downtown in the snow! How FUN!]

p.s. head over to todaysletters to see husband and I first pumpin' & leg shimmying!

&&&IT IS THE LAST DAY OF VOTING FOR ROUND 4!

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Christmas Cards & Cods

Getting real live snail mail is probably one of my very favorite things. I am not talking about bills, I am talking about lovely packages full of mystery and wonder, notes from friends and --lately-- Holiday greetings. Today I received 4 new Christmas cards in the mail and almost did a backflip. I LOVE MAIL THAT.MUCH.

I have taken to hanging them around one of the door frames, and out in the open around the apartment so I can enjoy them as much as possible. Thank you so much to everyone who has taken the time and energy to think of us this year.

YOU MAKE ME HAPPY!

In other news, we have another recipe to discuss. If your family (or husband, in my case) turns his nose up to odd shaped vegetables, like the parsnip-- this recipe is for you.

You will need everything pictured here, (minus the fresh sage).

That is:

2 tbsp oil, plus 2 tsp oil divided

1 medium onion, diced

1 carrot, peeled and diced

1 white turnip, peeled and diced

1 parsnip, peeled and dice

2 cloves garlic, minced and divided

1/4 tsp smoked paprika (pimenton) *(I used regular paprika, it was great)

1 bay leaf

1 16 ounce can white kindey beans, drained and rinsed *(I used white Northern beans....delicious)

1 bunch kale, stems and center rib removed. Torn into bite sized pieces

4 ounces cod

salt and pepper

1 lemon, halved

Begin by heating 1 tsp olive oil in a medium pan over medium-high heat. Add the veggies that you spent thirty minutes peeling, chopping and dicing. (At least I got to work on my produce chopping techniques....leaving the tip of the knife on the board is hard work, okay?)

Add half of the garlic and cook for about 5 minutes.

Keep stirring!

Add your paprika and bay leaf, cook for about 2 more minutes.

Next, add your rinsed and drained beans, cook until heated through (about 3 minutes.)

You are still stirring right? Good.

Add the garlic and kale and let cook down, about 4 more minutes.

You will have a pretty pan that looks something like this:

Meanwhile... salt and pepper your cod. Heat remaining oil in a separate pan.

Lay cod in pan (don't touch it!), let it sit for 2-3 minutes.

You want to see a brown crust forming on the bottom.

NOW you can touch it--> flip it over and cook for another 2-3 minutes.

Divide veggie-bean mix into bowls, top with cod and add a squeeze of lemon over top.

*Glass of wine optional, but recommended. :)

I should also say that we REALLY liked this recipe. The parsnip taste reminded me of carrot when it was raw, but once it cooked it almost had a sweet taste to it. Don't be afraid of the vegetables, even if you are a picky eater. Trust me, I was a little concerned about the turnip but you honestly can't even taste it. Rather, you just get to enjoy the benefits of filling your belly with all that wholesome non-processed goodness :)

Enjoy,

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What's Yoki? Yoga? No key?

This morning my husband got a call that he didn't have a patient

until later in the day and could come in late.

We took the opportunity to...

A) Lay in bed and guess each other's Christmas presents.

I may have discovered I am getting a vacuum....

(you remember ours bit it on the move to Lansing, MI)

BUT-- if that is true then my husband is in big trouble.

A Vacuum?

For Christmas???

Heck to the no.

B) Eat delicious pancakes (my first batch--!!

--my husband is the pancake makin' King)

C) Teach each other words. I learned that "infrared" is

pronounced in-fruh-red. (Not in-fraired. oops.)

D) Catch up on an episode of Top Chef All-Stars,

which brings me to the word I taught my husband.

"Gnocchi"...not pronounced "yoki", silly.

You can grab our button for your blog on the right hand bar... it may be getting a re-vamp soon but it is what I had around for now!

ALSO, KEEP VOTING FOR US!

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Cantonese Chicken & Mushrooms

If you can appreciate Asian flavors, you are going to love this chicken & mushrooms dish. When I found this recipe I was so excited to try it; not just because I love chinese food so much, but because of the low calorie count. Healthy chinese? Unheard of! But this? This dish, it is only 335 calories per serving. I will take it.

Here is what you are going to need:

1/2 c. oyster sauce* (I liquefied a small can of oysters when I couldn't find the sauce. Not sure I would recommend this)

1 head bok choy

8 slices fresh ginger

6 scallions, sliced in 1 in. pieces

3 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped

2 cups torn chicken

2 tbsp. cornstarch

8 ounces mixed mushrooms (organic in produce section always has a package of mixed and you can't beat the flavor!)

1 can chicken broth

2 tbsp peanut oil

2 tbsp sesame oil

Start by soaking the chicken in the oyster sauce.

*Like I said above, I couldn't find this so I bought a small can of oysters and threw it in the food processor. The result was possibly the most vile paste I have ever seen or tasted. It was a creamy yellow gray and kind of tasted like gritty, salty dirt. However, I DID cover my chicken in the sludge and let it sit for a while. After, I rinsed most of it off and it achieved the same flavor. Again, I do not recommend liquefying your oysters!

While your chicken is soaking, chop up your scallions, garlic, ginger and bok choy. (You'll want to tear the bok choy leaves into bite sized pieces).

Next, mix cornstarch with three tbsp cold water in a separate bowl and set all ingredients near the stove. Fire up your wok (what, you don't have wok? Yeah, me either...) or deep skillet pan and throw in 2 tbsp peanut oil over high heat.

Throw in scallions, garlic and ginger and stir fry for 20 seconds. Add chicken until the pink is gone from the outside, next add your bok choy and let the leaves wilt down. Add your mushrooms and cook for 2-3 minutes.

(The pan at this point, looks GORGEOUS.)

Finally, add can of chicken broth and cornstarch mix. Bring to a boil and then simmer for 2-3 minutes until sauce in nice, thick and turning creamy. I served this over a bed of white rice, (which will up the calories), but you could do a whole wheat noodle or just eat alone. It really tastes great and beats being MSG'D within an inch of your life at your local Chinese restaurant. And let's not even TALK about mall food court chinese food. (If you eat that, you are just asking for a heart attack).

EN-YOY! (That's enjoy in Chinese...)

I am so offensive

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'Tis The Season to Slide Into A Ditch

Christmas came to Michigan late Saturday night with the

first winter "storm" of the year.

This photo was taken on the way to my in-laws home.

It was clear we weren't going anywhere Sunday morning without snow tires on my husband's mustang, so early Sunday morning he got busy putting on the tires. Shortly after going into the garage I could hear someone's voice over the air compressor. I went to the door to find my husband pretending he was on a Nascar pit crew and yelling "all clear!" and other nascar-ey phrases. It was hilarious. He is just too cute.

He did get the tires changed in about 20 minutes though. Impressive? I'd say so...

the rest of the weekend included a 2 hour drive home

in the "storm"-- which, really wasn't ALL that bad...

(people just do not know how to drive)

[&& they end up in the ditch]

so, we passed about 15 cars in the ditch.

suckers.

**Continue to vote for this blog, 4 more days of voting until round 5!

&Check back tomorrow for a delicious recipe for Cantonese Chicken & Mushrooms!

(It won the husband seal of approval.)

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We Throw Fist Pumps For Soup

Last week husband and I received our WINNINGS-->The SOUPLOVE recipe book complete with a handwritten note from Twinner. Thanks TodaysLetters for fulfilling a life long dream to be the WINNER of a fantastic prize.

In other news, we had such a busy weekend, and I am editing photos so I can share all the activities with you. Also, look for some great dinner recipes this week including Christmas Cod and Cantonese Chicken & Mushrooms. These recipes will have you saying YES to seconds and NO to an expanding waistline since they are all under 350 calories a serving.

ALSO! Continue to vote for us in round 4! Only 2 more rounds to go!

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Lima Bean Wreath How To

Click Photo To Enlarge

Finally I finished my lima bean wreath. I was a little too ambitious and bought the largest straw wreath form (18 inches) and thought I could do it all in two hours. WRONG.

So, if you want to make this yourself you will need:

• wreath form
• glue gun
• lots of glue (40 to 60 sticks)
• Large lima beans (2 bags)
• Spray paint (color of your choice)

Once you have set up your work space, you simply start gluing the beans on...

the key is to try and line them up as close to each other

as possible so you don't see through to the wreath form.

This isn't always possible so you have to be flexible,

it is kind of like piecing a puzzle together.

( Also, I started out slathering the thing with glue

and quickly realized it was much more

a.efficient and,

b. visually pleasing

to place small dots of glue where you

are placing your bean. )

I might have spent a total of 8 hours making mine over the course of a week, but if you get into a rhythm (and buy a smaller form!) it won't take that long. Once finished I spray painted mine a soft white to cover up and glue that was showing as well as the straw wreath form that was peaking through.

You can choose any color,

I was limited because we have an UGLY faded blue door.

(Why couldn't it be a pretty shade of blue? sigh.)

Tie a ribbon around and hang it! I am going to use mine year round....

I am thinking pink spray paint for valentines day, green for saint patrick's day...

possibilities=endless.

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Friday's Letters- Christmas Frock Edition

Double Letters Week! BLAM!

Usually I do the letters (inspired by todaysletters) to my husband on Friday, but since I have neglected them for at least a month I have some catching up to do.

Dear Husband, Thanks so much for sitting through the Christmas musical with me last night. On a positive: we bet on if the live donkeys would kick anyone, made fun of the sheep trying to get loose from its rope on stage and not so discreetly poked each other and pointed at the unfortunate cast who did not yet know the words to the group songs. Dear Sassy Cat, I love you so much, I have had you since I was SEVEN. However, I have to take you back home to your grandparents as you seem to have no control over your bladder. Dear Olive Garden, yesterday the husband and I stuffed our faces with your unlimited soup, salad and breadsticks. 10 points for never failing to disappoint with your D to the LISH alfredo sauce. Dear Husband, Can't wait to dress up tomorrow night with you. With you in your vest and skinny tie and me in my tulle-rific dress I think we can legitimately rock around the clock, Christmas style.

Happy Weekend!

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Wife Lessons: Forgiveness & Being Grateful

Without fail, in the months following a wedding, the bride and groom get asked by anyone they speak with: "So, how is married life" to which the couple most likely go starry eyed and look at one another and reply "just absolutely the best thing ever!" -- and, yes, this is generally true.

Our wedding day

But here is a NEWSFLASH:

being married is hard, hard work.

It is one of the things I never really expected. I mean, you get to be around the person you love the most; your best friend ALL.THE.TIME and what could be better than that right? I figured things would only get easier. Well, while that was true in some ways, in others it is HARD--a complete choice every day to make our marriage better than it was the day before.

Lessons in patience? Check.

Lessons in humility? Double check.

Forgiveness and grace DAILY? Check & Check.

Here is where I have to praise my husband a little more than usual. I am thankful every day for his unique personality and his patience with my stubborn, slightly combative attitude. See, I have a problem where I don't watch the words that come out of my mouth in frustration or anger. Words to me don't mean a whole lot...I can say something without meaning it, or someone can say something awful to me and I can move on and forgive them 5 minutes later. Words to me just don't mean much, I believe that actions truly speak the truth.

However, my husband is not this way. Not even a little bit! My words can hurt him, but being the level-headed patient man he is, he usually never escalates any argument we have. Every day I learn something else about myself; being with this wonderful man forces me, encourages me, urges me to be better. I learn patience, and forgiveness how to put someone else's feelings before my own.

So,

so far I've learned...

Being married means giving you the very last bagel in the pantry

Being married means choosing battles...& letting you play COD "just 5 more minutes"

Being married means trusting you

Being married means trusting God

Being married means guarding your heart before my own

Being married means learning what the forgiveness of Jesus looks like

Being married means supporting your leadership

Being married means giving you the extra 5 inches of space in the bed

Being married means embracing your 'flaws'

Being married means picking up your socks....from all over the place

Being married means choosing to love you every day

Being married means building you up so you can see how amazing

you are even when you don't feel like you are very amazing

Being married means protecting our marriage at all cost

&

being married means adapting, evolving, growing and consciously choosing to do that EVERY.SINGLE.DAY.

The most amazing man I have ever met.

So, yes, marriage is THE BEST adventure I have been on; one that presents challenges and obstacles and more joy and contentment that I have ever known. I can only say that I am blessed and beyond lucky to be on this journey with such a patient, wise, Godly man who always gives me 150% of himself and daily chooses to love me.

Thank you Jonathan, you have and always will be my sunshine and my very FAVORITE.

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