Groundhog's Day On Ice

Happy Groundhog's Day! Looks like it's going to be a long winter here in Columbus! We woke up this morning with a sheet of ice coating everything. Schools were closed all over central Ohio because of the icy conditions. (Another reason I love my job--snow days!) This is the second day this year we've been off due to the weather. Our first day was on January 21st; we had a few inches of snow then. Things are supposed to turn to rain tonight so I am  going to really enjoy today as I'll likely be back at the "work thing" again tomorrow.

Here are some shots of the ice from last night/early this morning.

Back deck and bushes with ice

Front door coated with ice

Here is Nestle, crunching her way through the ice-covered grass.

Happy Holidays!

This was a whirlwind of a holiday season! We visited both families this year and found ourselves spending a lot of time in the car with Nestle and Hershey. Luckily we all travel pretty well!

Our first stop was in Pickering, Ontario for a visit with our friends, a Christmas Eve celebration with the Mennie clan (Sue's side of the family), and a Christmas morning celebration with Rick and Sue. We next moved on to Peterborough, Ontario for a late afternoon/evening celebration with the Johnson side of the family. It was great to see the families and spend some time in Canada.

We next moved on to Akron where we spent a couple of days with the Youngs and the Klines. The gift-opening was an all day event, something we always enjoy. We ate too much during our stay (those Christmas cookies are just too tempting!) but it was a really lovely visit.

After visiting with each family, we returned home for our own Christmas celebration. Chris gave me two beautiful handbags that I had been stalking at Banana Republic as well as a gift that he'd been meaning to give me since last Christmas....the Wii Fit. Chris got two awesome sweaters and a travel map that is now hung in our bedroom. Nestle and Hershey got some stuffed toys that they love to carry around and sleep on. (It's only a matter of time before the stuffing is pulled out!)

We had a really fun and unique New Years Eve here in Columbus. We booked a delicious dinner and concert at a local jazz club. We had a great time welcoming in 2011 to jazz, dinner, and a champagne toast at midnight

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Thanks to our families and friends who all helped to make this a great holiday season!

Thankful for Family

Happy Thanksgiving! We made the trip to Akron again this year to celebrate with the Youngs and Klines. We had a nice time eating and relaxing with the family and were especially thankful to have Dad feeling better and enjoying himself, despite some pain. Apples to Apples and Cranium were the games on-hand and provided some laughs to burn off some of the Thanksgiving calories.

Here are the sisters trying to get the dishes done after the big feast.

Jake had a basketball tournament on Friday so we were able to see him shoot and score a three-pointer and score 14 points in one game! One of the fathers made the comment to the people sitting around him that Jake is "no joke" on the court.

Happy Halloween!

It's been some time since we have carved pumpkins so this year we decided to dig in (literally!). After some careful inspection, the perfect pumpkins were selected. Here is Chris showing off the goods.

The final products, after considerable work:

Nestle and Hershey were the cutest trick-or-treaters in the neighborhood!

The girls weren't the only ones who played dress up for the day!

The Battle of Ohio

Thanks to our friends Kate and Steve, we were able to watch the Buckeyes beat up on Ohio University from The Shoe. We "upgraded" our seats and ended up sitting in the north end-zone; it was a great view! The sun was shining, it was warm (bordering on hot!), and the Buckeyes completely dominated--could you ask for a better day of college football?

Hocking Hills Weekend

The dogs, Chris, and myself spent the weekend in Hocking Hills. We had a great time exploring the parks and doing some pretty major hiking. The dogs love hiking and did a great job with all the people and other dogs who were also out enjoying nature. We stayed in a cabin (not a rustic cabin--one with air conditioning, a jacuzzi tub, and a hot tub) outside of the parks. Okay, so we're not the "camping type" but we are really enjoying getting out and seeing nature. We won't be purchasing sleeping bags any time soon, but who knows...maybe another cabin rental is in our future!

The whole family at Old Man's Cave

Rock House

Conkle's Hollow, Rim Trail

My parents were camping at the state park that weekend so we spent some time with them after we checked out of the cabin

The Young Family Sisters in The Big Easy

My sisters and I decided to take a trip to The Big Easy for three days this past July. We met up in New Orleans, checked into our hotel, and then set out to explore the city and it's rich culture. We did so much in three days, including: multiple city tours, a mule-driven cart tour of the French Quarter, a glimpse of the devastation of Hurricane Katrina, a quick visit to Algiers, Mardi Gras World (awesome!), a streetcar ride with views of beautiful New Orleans style homes, lots of eating, and some shopping. Oh yes...I can't forget the thing we did the most: sweat!! It was very warm and humid but I love the heat so it was great! (I'm not sure Chris and Jen felt the same, though.) We all had a good time and would like to continue the tradition of a sister trip yearly or every other year.

Here we are outside of Mardi Gras World.

We were able to see past (and future!) floats from the
many Mardi Gras parades. (We even were able to climb

on the floats (illegally) after our tour guide left us.)

On our way to dinner, just down the street from our hotel.