Snow day

Monday morning we woke up to snow! While this was not what I wanted it was absolutely beautiful. Scott and I took the dogs out to go to the bathroom and we were shocked by their reaction to the snow. Typically they hate snow, cold, and rain. However this time they ran around chasing each other and Coby liked putting his face down in the snow.

Scott had to chase down Trixy. She was having a little too much fun.

Our Kids

As you know we have 2 very furry children. With our hair types who could be surprised that our kids would have anything but a lot of hair:)

Coby will be 8 years old in March. I adopted this cute little guy right out of college. My mom and Scott used to kid with me saying he was an impulse purchase, while I still know they are wrong he is the best purchase I ever made! He is a chocolate cocker spaniel with the most loving personality. Scott and I joke around that if he could talk he would be a suffer dude. He loves attention, getting scratched, running after his tennis ball, eating bones, giving kisses, and sitting in your lap. He is sweet with kids and loves everyone.

Trixy will be 4 years old in April. While this little 5 pound maltese was my idea, her favorite person is her father. Trixy is high and mighty. She thinks she runs the household and is in LOVE with her brother. We aren't sure what she will do when something happens to Coby. She has anxiety separation from her big brother. Trixy also loves me but we have recently discovered her love for males. When our friends come over she gravitates to the guys. Trixy loves her big brother, giving kisses on noses, being picked up, running around in circles, playing with Coby, and chewing on her stuffed animals. She is a spunky little dog, but so sweet.

I've been on a Roll

I have gotten back into cooking again. For the past year I had stopped with my "gourmet meals," but now I am back at it in the kitchen. I blame our extremely small kitchen for my lack of enthusiasm in the kitchen lately. However, I decided that I better suck it up and get back in the kitchen. I love cooking! Growing up my mom would always let her help cook or bake. I credit mine and my sisters love for cooking to my mom.

When I am in the kitchen cooking, I literally do not think about anything other than cooking. It is sort of therapeutic for me. Thanks to my wonderful husband who cleans while/after I cook. I must say that my messes while cooking have become quite minimal to what I used to create. I know Scott thanks me for this, however, usually he doesn't complain as long as I am cooking the meals. Below are some of our previous meals over the past couple of weeks. Yes these are all homemade.

Edamame...A favorite snack food for us while dinner is cooking.

Filet mignon topped with blue cheese dip and a side of vegetables.

Traditional New Years Day meal.

Black eyed peas= good luck

(Spinach) Greens= wealth

(Pork chops with cooked pears) Pork= health

cornbread= carbs:)

Asian style crab cakes with remoulade sauce.

A side of spicy baked cayenne sweet potato fries:)

Skiing in the New Year!

Since 2005 we have spent NYE with our dear friends Geoff and Whit. This year we headed up to Sugar Mtn. With all of the early snow Boone has received we couldn't miss the opportunity for some great skiing. For the first part of the day Scott and Geoff headed off on the big boy slopes while Whit and I started on the green slopes. We hadn't skied in a while, and we weren't as confident as the boys. Half way thru the day we met up with the boys and relaxed in the lodge with a beverage before hitting the slopes together. Luckily, skiing is like riding a bike, you never forget how to do it.

After skiing we went back to the cabin and got ready for dinner at a new tapas restaurant in Boone, Crave. This restaurant is a must try if you are looking for a new place to eat in Boone. We were seated in our own booth in our own little part of the restaurant. We split a bottle of wine and enjoyed sharing our tapas' with one another. We were able to order the food as we wanted it, and didn't have to order it all up front. This kept us from over eating. Our dinner lasted about 2.5 hours, but we had a great time with wonderful friends and excellent food. We made it just in time to change clothes, ring in the new year, and then hit bed. We were exhausted after a day of skiing.

Happy New Years!

View from the bottom of the mountain.

Scott and I at the top of the mtn. getting ready for our last run of the day.

Geoff, Whit, myself, and Scott at Crave.

Whit's delicious smoked salmon.

The girls opted for the chocolat del fuego as our dessert.

It had a hint of cayenne pepper for heat!

This did NOT disappoint.

Shift Adoption

We have some friends that are in the process of adopting their first child from South Korea. Kate and Andy are raising money for the adoption. Check out their blog. We got our nieces and nephew each a piggy bank for Christmas. The kids where thrilled with their banks. Below are the piggy banks we got for the girls. Side note....Kate and Andy are painting all of these piggy banks. Kate has been blessed with a talent that she is able to use to help bring home their first child.

Favorite top 10 finds in 2010

These are in no particular order. Some of these are shared between Scott and I and some are just mine.

1. Fat Tire New Belgium Ale

2. Loreal Everpure....Rosemary Mint much cheaper version of Aveda.

3. www.skinnytaste.com.... delicious recipes that are made skinny.

4. Running....So I realized if I put my mind to something I can achieve it. Still working on Scott to run with me longer.

5. Chardonnay....I have been a red wine girl for years, but recently have been really into chardonnay.

6. The Snack Factory buffalo pretzel crisps....These can be found in the produce section in grocery stores.

7. www.etsy.com...Great website for eclectic finds....I also have a talented former student that has her own store on etsy. http://www.etsy.com/shop/Kristieanne8792

8. Cycling....some gyms refer to as spinning...I tried it this summer and have been hooked ever since. I feel like I could conquer anything after a great class.

9. Organic milk...Since Scott doesn't drink milk a plus to this is that it keeps so much longer!...also I haven't been having stomach issues as much after switching.

10. Trader Joe's....Love this inexpensive organic food store. We now make a weekly trip to do our grocery shopping there.

Snow in Albemarle

When we woke up the morning after Christmas we had snow at in NC. We spent Christmas night at Ash and Trent's. Below are pictures I got while walking around their house. Enjoy the pictures and the pureness of the snow.