i can't believe another year has come to a end. time really does fly when your an 'adult'! so much has happened in 2010 that i don't know where to begin.. from moving (again) to weddings, engagements, babies, promotions, traveling, new cars, and all sorts of large and small achievements, i don't know where to start!

i can't wait to see what 2011 has in store for me! I've set some new years resolutions-- and already got a pretty good jump start on some! i figured if i started early they wouldn't seem like resolutions, but something to continue and so far, so good. anyone have any good resolutions for 2011??

we are bringing in the new year with some great friends at a great party in the best city, ever.. (can't tell you where we are headed yet!) and i am so excited! we already booked a cab so we can all safely enjoy ourselves! you should do the same!

i wish you and yours a safe, happy, wonderful new years eve, and the best 2011 imaginable!!

Christmas Photos!

Michelle & Eddies Engagement Party Photos!

merry christmas!

hope you and yours had a fabulous holiday!
i know i did!

we started off the holidays with my best friend michelle's engagement party! it was a great kick off to my holiday season (they has a christmas party the week before that we didn't make it to!) and it was great to finally celebrate michelle & eddie's (mich-eddie.. pronounced like machete) engagement. the big day is quickly approaching (in april) and i can't wait!

because i was in town for a week (yes, i left cl in austin alone for almost a week!) i had time to catch up with friends and family! michelle, robin and i went bridesmaid dress shopping.. and we had a blast. some dresses were great, some, not so much! i also got to catch up with my cousin michele who i haven't really seen since her wedding last may! she's still glowing from the wedding, and her business 360 degrees of art is booming! i am so proud of her!

on christmas eve eve, dad, nic and I had our annual christmas dinner/ last minute shopping! we ate at mockingbird bistro in houston and it was delish! we then headed over to the galleria where we scooped up some last minute goodies!

christmas eve was pretty standard.. cook, mass, food, food, dessert, prosecco, then midnight service with cl's parents. before we left for the midnight service (which is actually at 11) CLand i opened presents from our best friends.. joe had sent CL some books, and carmen had sent me her junior league cookbook (um yum!!) and a necklace. i guess the holidays got the best of me this year, because when i opened the necklace, i lost it. full on crying and everything. and yes there are photos.

christmas was lovely and laid back. we had our annual christmas breakfast (its cinnamon bread with custard and blueberries-- SO good!) and lasagna for dinner. it was delish! i got a couple of awesome presents.. mainly jonathan adler goods! i was so excited! and a new pair of ray bans (finally!) and cl got me a beautiful pair of pearl and diamond earrings! we finished off christmas with dessert with CLs parents and their good friends.. it was a great way to end the a great day. and did i mention it was freezing cold out? cause it was cold!

cl are back home and everything is a mess.. i hate unpacking! he got a promotion/ new position that he started yesterday and i am so excited and proud of him! way to go babe!

we got rid of the christmas tree last night, and i couldn't be happier. usually i am sad to see the decorations go, but this year, the tree got the better of us.. allergies, drying out within days, and between the dogs and the drying out part, tree needles everywhere! ahh.

hope you all had a great holiday!

and plans for the new year? we have ours.. what are you up to?

(ps i have photos.. but they are on my laptop and im too lazy to upload them. so enjoy this photoless post and maybe later you'll get a wordless post!)

Guest Blogger! Welcome Kara!!

Hey guys! My name is Kara and you can find me over at my blog, Chatter. As you may or may not know, today is blog swap day over at 20SB and I was randomly selected to post here on Angelica’s blog. I hope you enjoy my guest post! The theme for this blog swap is: "Action. What will you do next year that you've been putting off for too long?"

There are a lot of things I put off for way too long; Laundry, cleaning the bathrooms and vacuuming are just a few of them, but I suppose that there’s several bigger things that I’ve been pushing aside simply because life is just too gosh-darn hectic. In 2011 I’m going to (or at least hope to):

Get married: This is actually a given. I’m getting married to the love of my life of eight (8!!!) years in late spring. I wouldn’t say we’ve been putting off getting married, but we’re only 24 and we’ve accomplished a lot before marriage, like buying a house, finishing our post-secondary schooling and developing a savings account. I can’t wait to finally become a Mrs.!

Travel: I didn’t do a single bit of travelling this year other than a weekend trip to Vancouver, (B.C.), to watch a hockey game with my love. I’ve been so busy with working two jobs that it just never happened. Hopefully in 2011 I’ll be able to throw in more trips to Vancouver and hopefully beyond. We picked up passport applications on Saturday so here’s to getting them filled out and used!

Be more domestic: I can’t bake or cook fancy meals to save my life. I really need to learn, because you can only have the same three casseroles so many times before you start to dread dinner. I’m a huge fan of my slow cooker, so maybe I’ll master that. Just don’t expect me to cook a turkey dinner for 10 people. Not happening.

Get back in the gym: I cancelled my gym membership back in June because I had no time to use it. Next year I want to get back in action and get back into shape.

I think that’s about it! Thanks for reading, and be sure to go check out Angelica’s post on my blog as well!

What have YOU been putting off for too long?

so i wrote this post.

a while back, i wrote THIS entry on Frank Gehry. 

as i track my visitors, it has become overwhelmingly apparent that people from all over the world are stopping by and reading it. i can't for the life of me figure out how they get here (i've googled every imaginable combination of frank, gehry, blog, architecture, etc.). but i am excited and happy and think its wonderful that something i wrote is being read in some of the coolest places in the world.. 

some visitors that have stopped by have been from:

araraquara, sao paulo

all 50 states

milan, lombardia

ercolano, campania

rio de janiero

Petaling Jaya, Wilayah Persekutuan

and that was just from yesterday.

holiday update.

i know i am "late" posting fun, decorative christmas photos, so here ya go!

the sunday after thanksgiving, CL and I stopped in elgin for our 2nd annual cut-your-own-christmas tree adventure! we had the dogs this year, so it was a little more complicated, but fun none the less. our tree this year is HUGE! i love it. except for the fact that i think we are all allergic to either the tree, something they put on the tree, or a combination of both.

molly was exhausted after all that tree business!

we also went a little overboard with the lights this year, but hell, they are so pretty!

our new wreath, that i made myself!

and (im not really sure what to call this) i made this too!

the cutest dogs in all the land! in their christmas bows. im not allowed to put christmas sweaters on them after last years debacle.

my ornament i made for the ASID christmas party! i won 3rd place!

 

and of course yummy holiday treats!

 

 and last but certainly not least.. the best holiday sparkly shoes, ever! they make me SO happy. (wait til you see the heels i got too!!)