Time flies!

Time flies, which I guess is a good thing! That means we've really been enjoying life! The main reason we've been so "busy" the last couple months is because our good friend has been living with us. It's been so nice having another female close by; we're not "girlie girls," but we get each other. Our time together, while her husband is in school in St. Louis, has brought us even closer! She has since moved out at the start of winter break, and oh, how I will miss our workouts, girl chats, girls' nights (with bottomless martinis and wine)... I don't know what I'll do without her...at least till spring! She's giving us some space for a couple months, but she'll be back!!! These first couple work days without her have been so weird and surreal; I'm honestly not sure I'm going to make it! I keep trying to convince her and the Mr. to buy the house for sale next to us, but given that they will be in St. Louis for a few years, I suppose I understand how that's not entirely fiscally responsible. At any rate, she has been the best distraction from blogging yet! (Not that I don't enjoy blog writing!!) So here's a quick recap of our lives over the last two months...

On Halloween weekend, we went to Crown Hill Cemetery to listen to The Music of the Night, a professional performance in the old Gothic Chapel, with classic Halloween tunes, highlighted by musical numbers from Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde and Phantom of the Opera. Great time! Steven took full charge of passing out candy this year, dressed as a tool man...what else??? He was so cute...

Halloween through Thanksgiving was loaded with physical therapy twice a week, which is logically accompanied by exhaustion and stress as the sessions cut into my work schedule. It was a challenging time because it was the first time since summer that we were in the car more than a half hour...hence the extra physical therapy. My body just wasn't ready for it.

These travel challenges made me nervous for our flight to Louisiana for Thanksgiving! What a great time we had! It was the first time we had been there since Pepa's funeral, and it was so good to see the family. I love all of my family so much that being so far away for so long is hard. Needless to say, we ate a lot, napped a lot, and were very, VERY merry! (I didn't really take any pictures, but Emily has them on her facebook.)

I will forever refer to December, 2010, as the month of Baby Showers. Three to be exact. The first one I attended was a couple's baby "celebration". (Cue Steven's excited face.) It was really a great time of hanging out, eating, and socializing. The second one was definitely a shower, but it was a celebration in its own right: This was for a good friend of mine who has struggled for years (10?) with miscarriages, etc. It was such an emotional, joyous occasion!! Plus, since it was for a former coworker, I got to catch up with all the ladies I used to work with. Double exciting! The third shower was for cousin Jenny, which was really fun, too! (Who knew showers could actually be FUN??? jk...) The setting was so warm and cozy in my Great Aunt's house, the day after Christmas. Again, good food, good company, and the best baby activity I've ever played: We had what seemed like an endless supply of newborn diapers, which we wrote encouraging words or funny phrases on to brighten mom's and dad's spirits as they are up in the middle of the night changing diapers! How fun, right?? I might have gotten carried away with writing messages, but I'm sure it will be appreciated... At least by me... :-)

Our staff Christmas party was a lot of fun, even with doing a white elephant exchange for forty-some people! Since our roommate, Stephanie, works at my school, she was there, which made it all the more enjoyable! Our eyes were set on a bottle of vodka to contribute to the girls' night cause; alas, Team Grey Goose was defeated. No worries, though; that did NOT stop the martinis from flowing on girls' night!

As a present from Dad, we went to see Wicked for the second time once I was on Christmas break. It was entertaining again, but honestly didn't hold a candle to our first viewing: We had understudies for both of the leads. All around, a great night!

We drove to Steven's parents a couple times for Christmas(es) and to David and Jackie's for the Hamilton Christmas in Kentucky. The Hamilton extravaganza was fabulous!!!!!!!!! Thanks to all family involved for a GREAT and memorable Christmas!

Steven and I had a first this year: Instead of cooking our own Christmas dinner, we went out to a great new restaurant in downtown Indy. The food and atmosphere were wonderful, and it was made even better by my husband who surprised me with a pair of diamond earrings! Yay! (He totally broke the rules, though...no gifts this year because we got new smartphones!)

After Christmas, we hosted Dad and Keith here for our intimate family Christmas. Again, great time with AMAZING food prepared by Chef Curtis (Steven, duh...) and games throughout the evening. Keith and I are still waiting on our Cranium rematch. Just saying...

New Year's Eve started with lunch with old friends, who I don't get to see very often. The evening was also hosted at our house. We had good friends come over for a fun night of eating and being merry....again! :-)

We've just had a really great couple months and thank God every night for all the blessings he gives to us. We have great family, friends, jobs, a roof over our heads, and each other! Who could ask for more?? God bless!