Ready To Go

Last Tuesday, we loaded up the car and headed to the airport to make our much anticipated trip to Florida for Christmas! It has been 3 years since I have spent Christmas with my mom and brother so I was very excited to get on the plane. So excited in fact, that while I was standing in line to get Arabella a muffin from Starbucks, I lost track of time and almost missed the plane. I wasn't paying attention and I heard them making boarding announcements so when I heard them page me (that was a first) and then saw Jay calling my cell phone to tell me that he and Arabella were on the plane, I knew I had better run! It was like a commercial where you see the person running and dodging people in the terminal! Good thing I have been running on the treadmill because if I was a minute later, the gate would have been closed and they would have been gone without me! But I did get Arabella her muffin!

We the had to wait for deicing in Montreal, which Arabella loved to watch and then we were off! Arabella was great on the plane, she is such an awesome traveler and before we knew it, we were in sunny and warm Jacksonville! Yippee!!

Christmas - Round 1

Since we spent Christmas in Florida this year, last Sunday, we got to open presents from Grampy & Heather, Auntie Lori and Aunt Margo and Uncle Bill. Arabella had a fun time and was so cute. When she opened a present, she had to play with it and try it out before moving onto the next one. When she came down in the morning, she was so excited to see all the presents and was very excited to see the wagon that Auntie Lori sent to her. She also got a pillow pet from Grampy & Heather and right away, she named it Buzzy! Grampy & Heather sent her her first Barbie and a Barbie lap top that she loves! Aunt Margo and Uncle Bill spoiled her as well with lots of Play Dough, art supplies and a Curious George stuffed animal! We had a great day and Arabella loved all of her gifts and has enjoyed playing with them. So even before Christmas and Santa arrived, she was officially spoiled! Arabella was also a great help when Jay and I unwrapped our gifts. Thank you to my wonderful family for all the wonderful gifts you sent to Arabella. She is one lucky little girl!

Santa's Visit To Playgroup

So I know I should be packing, but I have to do this post!

This morning while I was out running a few last minute errands before we pack up and hit the airport tomorrow, my wonderful friend Laura, dropped off the photo that we had taken with Santa when he visited our Friday morning playgroup. I was a little nervous about how it was going to turn out based on what happened with the mall picture, but I LOVE IT!! I know Arabella is not looking at the camera, but it is still a great picture. I think that it really shows her wonder of Santa and of course her great profile!



Many thanks to Sheila for coming to her party and working her photograhic magic and to Laura, thanks for swinging by the West Island to drop it off! I love you both! Merry Christmas!

How High Can It Go???

On Saturday morning, I had to run to the mall to take care of a few quick errands. One the way out, I snapped this picture of the snow that has been piled high in the parking lot. The snow is almost all the way up to the sign that tells you the section that you parked in. So, anyone want to take bets on just how high the snow will pile up this winter??

Hot Hudson Housewives

Last night, Jay and I attended a Christmas party and our friends, Carrie and Kris', house. We had a lot of fun and enjoyed great catered food and drink. We had Scottish Salmon Cakes, Shrimp Risotto, Mini Salami Sandwiches, and other yummy food! It was nice to get dressed up and go out for a night of adult only fun. Over the course of the night and after maybe a little too much wine and champagne, we named the group of ladies that Arabella and I spend a lot of time with. Even though not all of us live in Hudson, we spend enough time there, so we are now called the "Hot Hudson Housewives"! Thanks for a great evening Carrie and Kris, we are already looking forward to the next get together!

There are a few of us missing, but here are the Hot Hudson Housewives!

The yummy food, or what is left of it!

2 1/2 Years In The Making

Right after we had Arabella, Grandma Ricki (Jay's step mom) asked us to pick out a sampler for her to make for Arabella. Ricki has the gift and patience for cross stitching and when a grandchild is born, the sampler is a gift to them. I remember when we picked out the pattern and how we were unsure of how it would look when it was completed. It was hard to find a pattern that we really liked and we did not want something too juvenile, if you know what I mean, but rather something that we would be able to keep in her room for a very long time. Well, this week Fed-ex delivered Arabella's sampler to her and it is beautiful! You can see all of time and love that was put into the piece and it looks great hanging on her bedroom wall. She even stitched in her name, birthday and weight and seeing Arabella's weight was a reminder of just how little she was and how far she has come. Thank you Grandma Ricki for making Arabella a piece of art that she will cherish for years to come.

Adventures at Fairview

On Wednesday, Arabella and I joined Christa & Sophia, Stephanie & Noah and Laura & Allyson for some fun at the mall. Even though I didn't dress Arabella for photos with Santa, we decided to give it another try and see how she did with him. From afar she is OK, she gets excited and will wave at him but as soon as you get up close, forget it! She wouldn't even go near him with her friend Allyson. So in order to try and get a picture with him, they pulled over a stool for me to sit on and then I held her. That wasn't even successful...this is the outcome...

She was screaming and couldn't get away fast enough. We are going to try again when we get to Florida for Christmas and maybe we might get a better picture. I couldn't resist purchasing this shot anyway, it is a classic.

After Santa, we did a little bit of shopping and then we had some gelato. It was so yummy and everyone enjoyed it. Even Noah, who had his first taste.




After gelato, it was time to check out some boots! It still amazes me how many boot options you can find and boots took up at least 1/2 of this store, if not more. Then it was onto Sephora for some makeup fun!