And of course-the Reason for the Season....
Sunday, November 28, 2010
Haul out the Holly....
We'll put the finishing touches on tomorrow-other than that-we are so ready for this holiday season to begin~I give you Casa de Martone 2010!
Let the Festivities Begin!
As is tradition-we went to the Martone's for Thanksgiving. You just can't beat Mike's mom's home cookin'! I've said it since my very first meal at their house and I still do-YUM, YUM, YUUUUUUUUUUM!
We had all the typical fixin's too: Turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes & gravy, green bean casserole, sweet potato casserole, grandma's rolls (a family favorite), pecan pie, pumpkin pie and all american apple pie! The best part is...it is ALL homemade! My mouth salivates just thinking about it! We gorged for the past 3 days and I regret NONE of it!
Mike asked to take Kathleen's Raspberry Chipotle dip as something to snack on before dinner, so we got to enjoy that new tradition too! Thanks for introducing us to that last Thanksgiving Kathleen! :) For those who haven't tried it-it's KILLER good and super simple.
Here's the "low-down":
Raspberry Chipotle glaze from Costco, pour over cream cheese and serve with Wheat Thins! VIOLA! SOOOOOOO yummy!
Mike's siblings were all there with their kids, and that always makes my 2 happy. Em is in LOVE with her cousin Maddy. They were like 2 peas in a pod.
Then there was the infamous family photo shoot below (yes-it was in the rain...we live in Washington...it's the end of November....the whole family was together....you do what you gotta do people! :) Here's a memory or 2 from THAT fiasco:
Let's just say, not my favorite photo shoot outcome (record speed, constantly wiping the lens from fogging up & just all around icky weather makes for an interesting time) but they are memories nonetheless-who knows if my relatives will even like them considering those circumstances. Perhaps we'll give it another go sometime in the summer.
After Turkey Day dinner, we took Em & B to see Disney's Tangled in 3D. Emma LOVED it! Bryce thought it was "so-so" (typical). Aunt Marcy made her a super cute Rapunzel headband and clippie & Grandma gave her a Rapunzel Barbie to take for the occasion, which she was pretty impressed about. Rapunzel sat next to her in the cup holder and "watched" the whole show with her hair being pet! How nice.
The next day-she begged us to go see it again with her Cousins this time-so, we bought yet ANOTHER ticket to the same show and she thoroughly enjoyed it once more...which left me a little time for some of this:
and Brycey Boy a little time for this:
Mike & I braved the Black Friday madness and hit up Walmart at Midnight. Boy did we score! Thanks Mom and thanks Black Friday! We got our first new T.V. in 10 years! I know-stop the presses right? Well-actually my Mom paid for it for us for xmas, and WE stood in line with all the other crazies in the middle of the night to get it. Merry Christmas to us! And no Mom, Mike did not wait to let me wrap it. He's already got it set up and is nice & has made himself comfy with the new remote in front of the fire :)
Fred Meyer did a sale for Lightning McQueen power wheels the day before Thanksgiving-and it was actually better than a black friday deal-but you had to look twice to understand it. So mom paid for these for the kids for xmas this year! Oh how I love Black Friday and now-so does my mom! ha ha ha. Em & B will be ecstatic to see these under the tree!
We had all the typical fixin's too: Turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes & gravy, green bean casserole, sweet potato casserole, grandma's rolls (a family favorite), pecan pie, pumpkin pie and all american apple pie! The best part is...it is ALL homemade! My mouth salivates just thinking about it! We gorged for the past 3 days and I regret NONE of it!
Mike asked to take Kathleen's Raspberry Chipotle dip as something to snack on before dinner, so we got to enjoy that new tradition too! Thanks for introducing us to that last Thanksgiving Kathleen! :) For those who haven't tried it-it's KILLER good and super simple.
Here's the "low-down":
Raspberry Chipotle glaze from Costco, pour over cream cheese and serve with Wheat Thins! VIOLA! SOOOOOOO yummy!
Mike's siblings were all there with their kids, and that always makes my 2 happy. Em is in LOVE with her cousin Maddy. They were like 2 peas in a pod.
Then there was the infamous family photo shoot below (yes-it was in the rain...we live in Washington...it's the end of November....the whole family was together....you do what you gotta do people! :) Here's a memory or 2 from THAT fiasco:
After Turkey Day dinner, we took Em & B to see Disney's Tangled in 3D. Emma LOVED it! Bryce thought it was "so-so" (typical). Aunt Marcy made her a super cute Rapunzel headband and clippie & Grandma gave her a Rapunzel Barbie to take for the occasion, which she was pretty impressed about. Rapunzel sat next to her in the cup holder and "watched" the whole show with her hair being pet! How nice.
All these things for only $400!!!! Now THAT only happens once a year-glad we waited the 40 mins in line. (yep-only 40 mins.) Walmart had the process so well organized this year, we thought we were dreaming! Things couldn't have gone better for us this black friday-we are very grateful. Thanks to Grandma & Papa for staying home with our hoolagins so we could venture out in the middle of the night "kid-free". Hugs!
As an added bonus- Mike's mom took me to the NEX and Eddie Bauer (at a decent hour this time) and she got us all some awesome new outfits, jammies & snow gear-not to mention, treated the puppies to a weekend at Auntie Lori's puppy spa cabin retreat! :) We are so grateful to our families that spoil us so much! We realize quite often that not everyone has families they can rely on, and who do things for them as much as ours does. It is something we NEVER take for granted. Thank you-thank you-thank you. What a great start to a wonderful season! Happy Holidays!
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