Haul out the Holly...Fill up the Stocking...For we need a little Christmas...

xoxo, natty ♥

Leading up to Christmas 2011-2012.

Tomorrow marks the beginning, the advent, if you will {although that word is being used purely in a denotational manner and not to connote the actual Season of Advent}, of 2011-2012's official Christmas Time. The popular holiday song "The 12 Days of Christmas" refers to the time frame that begins on the 25th and ends on January 6th, also known commonly as Little Christmas, Twelfth Night or the Epiphany. It is on that day in January when the decorations can come down and some celebrate with gifts, eating a festive meal and cutting the traditional Kings Cake {although this cake makes an appearance on mardi gras as well...that you'll have to figure out on your own since I sure as heck have never straightened it out!}, amongst other things. 
I'd like to think of a little something each and every day of the 12. I'll continue, maybe, with my regularly scheduled weekly shenanigans, but I think I'll begin each post with a bit of holiday cheer. I always feel so sorry for the time after December 25th and in my effort to be less Grinch-like and embrace the non-material/commercial of life {especially since it's so omnipresent from October to Now}; in other words, I'd like to prolong the warmth and presence of the season.
Anyway, for now, as a kick off, I'll give you/myself a photographic view of my past week working in chronological order. These are the things that have brought me to Christmas this year. Enjoy!

Cookie Baking!  

I'm saving this for a "12 Days" post but a sneak peek is in order...this was the trappings of the most-delectable Hershey's Kisses Peanut Butter Blossoms...YUM!

Tired Driving. 

Mr. Mike drove us the whole way to Phoenix from San Jose...woah! My man did a great job and let me take weirdo pictures of him and the scenery that was zipping past us at speeds no greater than the 65-75 mph limit. I shot things like these:
The side of the road on the grapevine.

The side of the road in the Arizona desert.
I lost this one; sorry.
The highway through the Arizona desert.

The Arizona welcome sign made blurry by our rush to get the heck outta Dodge California enter the state.

A Driving Dog.

A Walking Husband in Santa Monica.

Surreptitiously taking a picture of my jerk chicken lunch.

The Nutcracker Which is My All-Time-Favorite-Ballet/Music.

Gift Wrapping.

I tried to "go green" this year; I used BEAUTIFUL fabric gift bags we concocted at school to raise money for our immersion program and

...wait for it...

Yes, Guinness does indeed give gifts; he is a generous dog.

NEWSPAPER TIED WITH FABRIC/GROSGRAIN RIBBON! 

I'm giving an exercise ball tomorrow {it's late and I doubt the recipient is reading but if so...I am SO sorry!} and I had a great time deciding to blow it up for maximum Christmas morning impact. 

Then I tied a ribbon around it.

Salsa Making.

I made my The Pioneer Woman's salsa for our Christmas Eve celebration tonight. This is actually my first Christmas away from home. Ever. I'm dealing with it and really enjoying making new traditions and getting to know my new family even more though I certainly miss those folks back at home. Part of the newness for me is a Christmas Eve that is actually planned and not just frantic wrapping and a hurried dinner of whatever; Mike's uncle makes cheeseburgers! I loved it {we just got back} as I'm loving incorporating new customs into my/our life.

If you're still here reading, you're a champ. I hope that your weekend and most-wintery of months is actually quite warm and that there is thanks in your heart as there is in mine tonight.

xoxo, natty ♥

Yessssssssss...

Where we at...yo.

In map images, where we've been today...and we still have a couple of hours to go!

Wordless Wednesday™.

xoxo, natty ♥

Cookies!!!

I made it half way through what I want to bake today...and then we got a note saying the water's going to be off in our building from nine to five tomorrow; wish me luck with finishing!
We have a busy next two days until we arrive in Phoenix and then things slow down a bit...even though I've had time off I'm still doing tons of things though it IS nice to not set my alarm and wake up when it's light outside and not when it's still dark.
Also, I got us an Amaryllis. It was only green over the weekend but this is what yesterday looked like {beware, amateur plant pictures ahead...a low I've gone to before but I'm just warning you, Reader}

and this morning

and just now tonight. 

So pretty! I'm thinking of taking it with us to Arizona {we're driving, don't worry, I won't be hauling that thing through our friendly skies!} so that we can see the full bloom; I just love their blossoms!
Good Tuesday to you!
xoxo, natty ♥

Marvelous Monday.

I'm sitting by the fire with a dog on the couch. I don't think that things can get much better than this but without further ado...

1. Vacation. Until January 3rd. Next year.
2. #1 means that there will be time in the very near future, today even, to spend non-hurried time with family and friends and to not wake up before seven if I don't want to {secret: I almost never actually want to}.
3. We're driving to Phoenix on Thursday with a planned detour in Santa Monica to eat at Cha Cha Chicken of which I've heard a lot but never partaken!
4. I might use some of the time I have to just me, myself and Guinness in the next two days {Mike's working still} to actually bake. I think that I really do love this time of year and am trying ever-so hard to not be a Grinch this December but with having moved and run a marathon in another state-a-plane-ride-away in the past two weeks I've been feeling very apart from the season. I just rolled out the new blog look and even doing that makes me feel a bit better about it all. Anyway, yesterday we cleaned and organized and our kitchen is actually set up with our wonderful wedding gifts and I'm hoping I can get my hands into {literally, hahaha} some cookie dough before we head south{west...though it's actually east of where we are} because it's one tradition I love. The Hershey's Kiss peanut butter things are THE BEST and Mr. Mikey loves his snickerdoodles and he also gave me a great cookie press a few years ago so hopefully some carbs will be baked!
5. I'm on the couch next to a warm fireplace with a dog on my feet keeping them extra warm...and I can walk normally again after last weekend's fandango {so what do I do? Lay on the couch!}!


What's fabulous about this week for you? Has the time of year been pulling you in many different directions? Have you ever moved between Thanksgiving and Christmas?
xoxo, natty ♥

To-Read List...

When we were in Tucson last weekend we stayed at a hotel that has a gift shop. While perusing for nothing in specific {which is what I can do in just about any store...hardware ones are the best}, I saw some amazing things. Things that are unique to Arizona. Apart from browsing stores, something else I love is local color. 
This is just a taste for you:

We spent all day putting things away in our little abode and tamale pie is baking away so this is a short post but I'm on a blessed two week vacation so, as alluded to earlier, expect a bit better {but not too much better} posting.
xoxo, natty ♥

Saturday Night.

We just got home safely {always a good thing!} from a college-friend white elephant get-together in the Big City; it was so much fun! It was great to get out and do something other than lay around which is our general Modus Operandi; lame, I know, but it's just what we're like...ON that note, SNL is still on...this is Big TIME folks!!!


More on the marathon, for real, in the next few days.
xoxo, natty ♥

THIS is what's happening.

Two weeks ago, or so, when we moved, we rented a U-Haul truck. We brought it back at the end of the evening {10 ish or so} and dropped our key into the overnight key-return box. It was cold and kind of dewy already. I walked with Mike to put in the key and noticed this:

...I really can't come up with any explanations or quips. Maybe later? I'll possibly keep you posted.

And these are panini that we made with our new griddler {it's a pimped up Foreman grill type thing}. I was and remain proud of them.
Yum!
I'm officially on vacation now...oh my goodness this will be the longest free-time I've had since July. August was chock full of wedding & school preparation and then we all know what September means in the life of a teacher.
Good weekend to you!
xoxo, natty ♥

What's going on here?

xoxo, natty ♥

Wordless Wednesday™; "Winter Semi-Formal."

xoxo, natty ♥

The Best Show on television.

Tonight on Jeopardy, A. Trebek alluded to having sent in multiple inspiration pictures to Harlequin romance cover artists; that can't be beat.
xoxo, natty ♥

Marvelous Monday.

This will be brief. We're counting down to vacation here folks; four days and counting so let's just hold out until then for Better Blogging...or at least my version of Better Blogging.

1. I ran a marathon yesterday!
2. My husband {be still my beating ♥} ran a marathon yesterday!
3. My husband's parents cheered us on yesterday...it helped SO much!
4. My dad-in-law actually ran the last couple of minutes with me...just up until the finish...it made my marathon☺.
5. This is actually not-so-marvelous but I'm the author so I'm allowed...read # 1 again and refer to the following: we live on the third floor of our building and there's no elevator - yikes!!!
xoxo, natty ♥

26.2.

This morning Mike and I each ran our own version of 26.2 miles. It was my second and Mike completed his first marathon; way to go sweetie!!! I'm super proud of him and he deserves some major kudos for not just having run this race but for having trained for this, gotten married and taken a class all while working full time during the past four months. I can say that today we both had a great time, learned just how painful downhill can be {surprise!} and that we still love running {though there was a several hour period where I we probably would have not said so}.
We are both icing something right now {my achilles, his calf} after delicious Mexican and time with family. We're also dreading out 6:15 AM plane ride back home but this is the last week before two weeks of vacay for me so ¡Sí Se Puede!
I'll have much more about the race and Tucson later this week but for now, I'm jealous of all you who can sit down with ease though I wouldn't have done today any different.
xoxo, natty ♥

12 hours.

12 hours from now we'll both be behind the starting line...wish us luck!!!!!

Just keep running...

The eagle has landed in Arizona. Tonight we flew, alongside a plethora of Santa Clara students returning to the Valley of the Sun, and are staying at Mike's folks' house. Tomorrow we'll drive the two hours to Tucson to prepare for our 26.2 miles early the next morning...5 AM early! Every runner MUST take the shuttle out to the start line which is in the chilly morning desert...eek! I'm starting to get really excited though which is what I need because I had a crushing week.
I'll have more to come mañana after a trip to target to pick up everything I forgot in San Jose in my frenzied rush to pack in between a horrible work day and getting to the airport {where I promptly devoured a slice of Big Sur at Pizza My Heart [perfect pre-race eating, I know...]}.
I'm so glad to be at my in-laws' house with a fun two days ahead (I'm not thinking about Monday morning yet).
Happy Friday to you all!

The Youth; on Pokemon.

Today I'm launching a new series on San Jose Señora. It's called "The Youth" and will feature various aspects of said demographic that speak to me {things they say, things they do, things they eat [Flaming Hot Cheetos dipped in cream cheese WHAT?!]}. I'm guessing it will be mostly things that are high-larry-us to me as a former youngin. I'm also guessing that the majority of my material will be from the adolescent sector as opposed to the elementary/tween/preteen groups. This is because I teach ages 14 to 18 and not only get up in front of them and speak all day long but they ARE my workplace.
These will hopefully be posts that include photographic evidence because I'm not funny and cannot re-create goofy conversations, etc., but I sure can take a picture with my phone and then post it online.
Today we begin with Pokemon. My brother is in this age-group {14-18} and grew up watching Pokemon. I, unfortunately, was born on the cusp of Those Who Appreciate{d} Pokemon At An Appropriate Age {as in at ages five to 12, maybe, and not when they were 30 [no offense here, I'm just going with what I perceive to be social norms (I digress)]}.
Where I work we have an annual Spirit Week which involves daily dress-up themes. Students submit ideas and vote on them to narrow down the choices. Honestly, I think that they would be ok with dress-up days every day since they seem to have enough ideas. A similar poster was put up for each class on campus to come up with suggestions and then agree or disagree using check marks. I perused my floor's {the sophomores, fyi} on Saturday night while I was patrolling the gym for inappropriate necking or petting at the dance and "needed something in my office" {a momentary escape; I actually did need something from my office}. I was amused and maybe a little perplexed by what I saw.

 

Who knew that Ash Ketchum and Charmander could garner such emotion from teenage girls?
I obviously didn't.
Please also take note of how I made it so that you would also be able to see the two suggestions of "Grandma Day" {what about all the Pop-Pops of the world?!} and my personal favorite "Inanimate Object Day". Spongebob is also listed up at the top with a paltry one "agree"; he just doesn't hold a candle to "Gotta Catch 'em All!".
Peace y'all and what are you laughing joyously about on this 8th day of Advent?
xoxo, natty ♥

Wordless Wednesday™; "Pearl Harbor Day."

Via

xoxo, natty ♥

Advent Day 6; St. Nicholas.

Today is the feast day of St. Nicholas. To all you Nicholi out there; today's your day! Woot! Off of the top of my head I can tell you that the tradition is to put out your shoes and St. Nick will give you candy. In your shoes. After some Wikipedia-ing I found out more about this day. I actually was really curious last month about where in the heck Santa Claus came from; how would I be able to explain to my own children what the deal is with this bearded man? I won't go into the specifics of how a Greek saint is connected to this visage:

but you can do plenty of online sleuthing yourself if you're so inclined; it's actually quite interesting and involves a Sinterklaas that puts all naughty children in a sack and takes them to Spain.
As always, I don't condone Wikipedia as a legitimate source but I love "finding out things" easily. Anyway, St. Nicholas has an interesting story, as many saints do {St. Lucy [who is celebrating her day next Tuesday, btw], for example, had her eyes gouged out with forks and is often depicted holding a set of eyes on a gilded plate; appropriately she is the patron saint of the blind.} but i enjoy the following:
* There was a famine going around the land and a local butcher lured in three little kids to his domicile. He then chopped up the little guys and placed their remains into some barrels to cure for later eating and famine relief. St. Nicholas was visiting the area and figured out the situation. He resurrected the children and this is why kids love St. Nicholas. It's also why he gives them candy in their shoes on this day...because he cares for them.
*Another legend has it that there was a father who was so poor he was going to have to sell out his three daughters {you can guess what that means} because he couldn't afford their dowries. St. Nick felt very sad about this and wanted to help. He decided to give the family financial help but in an effort to spare the father's pride threw three sacks full of gold coins through the windows of their home during the night {does that sound familiar?}.
Can you imagine learning this stuff as a seven or eight {heck, twenty eight!} year old at school? I love saint stories, though. Call it odd but they're so familiar to me, almost to the point of being comforting, though I doubt that the idea of a bloody head presented on a plate {St. John the Baptist} could ever be a...cozy? thought. I also found out a bit about a certain Saint Natalia [sic...it should be Nathalia], though she hails from Russian Orthodox roots which is nowhere near my peoples...aka, I wasn't named after her but she does have a neat history.
Do you have a favorite saint story? Is there a patron saint you look to at certain times {now these I love; who couldn't use a bit of help?! This could be another post soon in the future...}} or one you were named after {and thus get a 2nd birthday since you get to celebrate their saint day as such!}? Anyhow, thinking of Saint Nicholas I hope that you've been nice this year and that you will find candy in your shoes tonight!!!
xoxo, natty ♥