O' Christmas Tree

One of my favorite things that we were able to do during the two Decembers that we lived in the Upper Valley was to go and chop down our own Christmas tree.  It's amazing that we only have to drive for about 10-15 minutes to get to a tree farm (yes, we live in a forest in case you hadn't noticed)... It's such a fun outing, and it's so cheap! 

You know you live in a small town when it's seriously an "on your honor" system.  You show up, cut down your tree, and mail a check to an address that is posted on a tree.  No joke.  I love that people are just expected to be honest here, and I bet they usually are! 

the big guys...discussing... 

 the little guy...trying to catch up

 He found his favorite....

so did they....

 it was cold.  

heading out! 

Dartmouth Tree Lighting

Every year Dartmouth puts up a huge tree on the Dartmouth green and they have a 'tree lighting ceremony'. They have little choir performances, caroling and of course, free hot chocolate. We met a bunch of our friends up there and had a fun night doing what people do in these quaint little college towns.  

Craft Fairs! Year 2

This year a few of us started chatting about what to make for this years craft fair....We had a lot of fun doing it last year, and knew that we could pull off a fun day again.  

 I thought about making these tile coasters...but I tried to think about what I could do to make them unique to the community and to all of our Tuck people...I  thought "I wonder if I could put the Tuck and / or Dartmouth logo on them."  I sent some emails to some people at Tuck and got in touch with the woman in charge of the licensing at Dartmouth.  It was a simple meeting, and license agreement, and I was on my way. She sent me logo's to use, and let's just say that it was well worth all the work.  Although my kitchen looked like this for... well...a while...It was a lot of fun for me to have a crafty project to work on after the kids were tucked in for bed. I stayed up WAY later than I usually do for weeks on end, and was exhausted for most of the month of November...but like I said...it really was a lot of fun, and definitely worth it.

I also thought about doing some sewing....even though I hadn't sewn a thing (not even a button) since 9th grade (which was a VERY long time ago).   My sweet friend lent me her extra sewing machine, and gave me some tips, and reminded me how to thread a machine....and off I went...I made these banners or buntings...and really ended up liking them.  I wished that I had extra's to keep for myself! 

I also decided to make some treats.  It's not too hard to make your money back when you make certain treats, but they just always take longer to make than you think!  I didn't want to ever see another cakeball by the time I was done!

              Brittani, Catherine, me, Laura, Ashley, Maren, Latasha, Eileen, Melissa, and Kristen.

                     I love these friends so much. It was so fun to spend the day with these ladies.

Maren and I were also able to participate in the Tuck Craft Fair.  It was fun to be at Tuck with faculty, students, other partners...etc. for the day.  I sold out of the coasters in the first 15 minutes, but luckily was able to take orders.  Mini entrepreneur? ? ?  We shall see.  (yeah right)

Brixton Can Ski

This winter Brixton learned to ski.  Although Brixton's desire was definitely there, we were nervous if he'd catch on as easily as Damon did.  Even though he didn't excel as quickly as Damon did, he still exceeded our expectations.   I know his dad was incredibly proud...even on the cold, frustrating days.  

He was such a good sport, tried so hard, and even with some minor crashes, falls, bumps, and one bloody nose, he did really well for his first year. 

 serious ski bum brothers

He skied at Killington, the Dartmouth Skiway, and Jay Peak.  Jay Peak had the best size of hill with the best amount of slope...unfortunately, it was the furthest away. 

Thanksgiving 2013

Thanksgiving 2013 had it's up and downs...but overall, it ended up being a fantastic day with our New Hampshire family.  I have more pics somewhere but I haven't been able to locate them..so this is what I have for now.  

my annual apple pie.  yummers. 

my second attempt at homemade rolls.  They were edible.  

gotta love the community center.  :)

30-something people, TONS of food, lots of kids, and lots of chaos.  Sounds about right for this group of friends.  

Dartmouth Sports!

November was a month full of Dartmouth sports.  We went to a bunch of Dartmouth hockey and football games, and had a blast at both.   

 yes, the student section might be empty.  sad, I know.  

the last game of the year. 

A Hard Worker

A good friend of mine mentioned in a conversation that she would never be able to get all of their leaves in their backyard raked before they were going out of town for Thanksgiving.  Well, what do you know, I've got a 7 year old who loves raking leaves.  Damon was THRILLED at the idea of having a yard to rake, and I was thrilled at the idea of Damon doing something physical, something outside, and something nice for someone else.  He had a day off of school so we headed over.  

I was such a proud mom standing beside him, helping him rake and bag leaves.  On the first day we bagged 13 bags...that's right.  13.  We came back after school a few days later and probably did at least another 4 bags.  My friend was so cute and paid him $10.  He would have done it for free, but it was great for him to work really hard, and earn some money for it.   I love this kid. 

Halloween 2012

This year my Halloween picture taking was at an all time low...so this is all we've got.  

 part of Brixton's pre-school class....

 story time with his teacher 

 the neighborhood Halloween parade / party ended up being fantastic! 

and there's Damon.  :).  Brixton is also the spiderman holding the green bucket.  

Cape Cod

Like I said in the previous post....it was such a better idea for all of us to rent a house together and make a whole weekend out of it.....

Once all of the runners were feeling better, we made the two minute walk down to the beach. 

 Mike and Damon are out there looking for crabs

 a relaxing night of guys watching football, and girls just hanging out.  

 the girls.....Sunday morning

 the amazing house 

 the whole group.  

this was a perfect weekend