But This...

...I am so drawn to. It's the sparkles, I can't help it.

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Perhaps I'm just thinking of Christmas and my started-but-unfinished decorations and dreaming of baking delicious things but I think I find this super-cute? With dark tights, boots, and a long cardigan? Or have the candy canes gone to my head?

Lovely things via Modcloth

To Do

Today I am sick, I am lying on the couch and pounding tea and snuggling with the dogs. I crawled out of bed in order to make vegan pumpkin bread (not really committed to vegan, just no eggs at home and lazy). I hate being out of work sick and having lots of things hanging over my head. Making a list seems to help.

1. Finish making the fabric advent calender (Dave had one as a tot but his sister's got it now, I'm trying to be a nice crafty wife and replicate his joyful youth)

2. Christmas Cards - lovely notes written, names signed, addressed and stamped (didn't I JUST DO THIS? THREE TIMES? Save the dates, invitations, thank you notes? ACK!)

3. Find silvery grey bridesmaid dress that doesn't make me look like fatty wee piglet.

4. Make Tilly (my gorgeous cousin who is having a gorgeous wedding in the gorgeous scottish highlands) her cake topper, figure out how to make a kilt for a peg man.

5. Knit someone a Christmas present (no, not you, sisters, I heard you when you shouted at me about not knitting you Christmas presents)

6. Either find passport or expedite replacement passport so I can go to Scottish wedding (ick ack damn, where did it go? Why can't I use my British passport again? Oh that's right because they won't let me back into the US without a visa. EFF)

7. Gift baskets for Dave's family, presents for my family, wrap and mail.

Somehow that didn't make me feel much better. I think I will watch more Design Inc and sniffle more. Wish was back at the summer house with my mutter and wee sis.

Day after Thanksgiving we all when on a lovely adventure to Shepherdstown, WV to shop and take a cart ride with sleighbells. Photo of the haflingers pulling the wee cart.

Wish List, Yum Yum Yum

1) Lovely sweater from J. Crew, $171.00

2) Chalet Turtleneck Sweater, $51.00

3) Martha Stewart Living - I've got an addiction, ack

4) Vogue Magazine - I read the articles, whatever. Don't judge me.

5) Ballet flats,

6) Gorge sauce ring

7) Vintage clock from etsy, $35

8) To put a cupcake on this would make me soooo happy

9) Lovely snowy, glassy, sparkly bracelet, $125

10) Sparkletown necklace, $75 and another one, $79.50

11) Around My French Table, by Dorie Greenspan

12) One Big Table, by Molly O'Neill

13) I really want my sister to paint me a picture of Susie, I wanted her to do it last year and she didn't. Meaner.

14) Anything Lavender. I have an addiction.

Home Again, Home Again

Back from Thanksgiving, done with work, eating Sunbelt Granola (the ghettoist of ghetto granola) by the handful from it's alluring box and thinking about all those Christmas cards on the desk waiting to be written (being married seems to indicate to me that I should actually send Christmas cards like an adult) and the flat that needs to be cleaned. Snugged on the couch with Susie and the Cat sick as hell. It's very nice to have a husband to get ginger ale and crackers. Very nice.

Thanks. Given.

Cliche:

I am thankful that Susie is still alive.

I am thankful my mother doesn't have a job so she can answer my texts about Susie's health and how to fix watery split pea soup.

I am thankful for sweatpants, not just on Thanksgiving but every day (sidenote: in college my roommate and I would enter our room and immediately shed our trousers for less constricting clothing, sweatpants featured prominently. F*ck pants was our moto. Sometimes still is).

I am thankful for fried potatoes I will be enjoying in sweat pants with Best-Friend-from-High-School on Wednesday night, and for grand old time with Oldest-and-Best on Friday.

I am thankful for our cute new apartment and our very new family.

I am thankful for free cable which hasn't shut off in the four months since we moved in despite the lack of bill.

I am thankful that I will get to be with my whole gorgeous family on Thursday (except Dos who is enjoying her semester in Rome and will be dancing on a bar somewhere in Italy being luminous and living the dream).

I am thankful for Daveroo. Who basically a year ago was still just this guy and is now my husband. Which still seems like a big scary weighted word but I'm working on it.

Picture of last Thanksgiving, my brother with Susie.

Turkey

Thanksgiving. We had some difficulties with David's family immediately before the wedding. One of David's family members tried to get him to nix the idea of marrying me and when that didn't work as well as she might have hoped, shit went down. A lot of it. There were tears and feelings were hurt. I tried to be cool about it and rise above it all but when you arrive at your bridal shower with a puffy, red, streaky face then you have a problem. We got married on a Saturday and that Thursday we packed up and moved to North Carolina, I've seen David's entire family (sisters, brothers, in-laws, nieces and nephews and parents) once since we got married which was nice (seeing them, not the only once aspect). Now we're trying to negotiate our first major holiday together. Which set of parents do we spend the day with? When do you see the second set of parents? How does one you tell your mother that you aren't spending Christmas with her? (luckily that someone is not me) How do you not hurt more feelings? This is difficult even with perfect relationships (as if those exist). My oldest and best friend (who basically could not like her in laws more and who's husband lurves her parents) think it's a suckfest. Trying to do it when your sister in law would probably like to devour your face and serve you up instead of a turkey? Reaaaaaally a suckfest.

At least any holidays not spent with my sweet and lovin' family will be spent with David's (now my) nephew, Ian, who has yummy cheeks for biting and cute tiny toes even if his mom is a mega b-word. The face he is making is the face my brain makes when I contemplate Thanksgiving.

Picture of Ian at our wedding, taken by Shaun Yasaki.