I am going to have to reach way back into my memory to try to catch you up with all of the things that have happened here at the puddle since I last updated you. So, be prepared, this will probably be a long post!!
Zack and I spent Thanksgiving nestled up in the mountains. We were scheduled to spend Thanksgiving with Zack's side of the family this year, but my parents and brother were able to come down and join us. I was so excited that I was going to have some time off work to spend time with family. This time off was going to be my first real time off since starting my new job back in September and I was sooo looking forward to it. Things ended up being a little crazy at work the week of Thanksgiving and I ended up having to go in for a half day on Wednesday (which is usually my day off.) It really wasn't too big of a deal since Zack and I were still able to leave home early enough to get to our mountain hideaway before it was too late ...and before we missed to much of the family fun.
We always enjoy going to the mountains with Zack's family because it is always a time of games, laughs, outdoor fun and fun family memories.
My parents and brother came down Thursday morning...they ended up making it later than expected due to some rock slides which caused road closures. We had a great time hanging out with family and playing games, and eating WAY too much. We gathered together with several other families which have been family friends for generations now. It is always good to see them and catch up on what has been going on in there lives over the last year or so.
Friday I was supposed to be on call, but I had been reassured that it would not be too bad. Well, starting at 7:30 - 8:00 the calls started coming and I would literally finish a call and hang up the phone only to have it ring again. I think that I got about 15-16 mommy calls in a 2 hour span. I was miserable! It was so discouraging to be there with family and not to be able to BE THERE with family. The rest of the family went for a hike, but because I was on call and my cell phone did not have service in the mountains, I was tied to the cabin phone. My mother and I stayed and watched some movies while the rest of the family went hiking. The calls slowed a little in the afternoon and I was at least able to breath a little.
Dr. D saved me by taking call for me from about 7 o'clock till 7 o'clock the next morning so that I didn't have to worry about the calls waking the family all night long as the cabin phone rang. My parents had planned to leave on Friday, but thankfully they were talked into spending one more night at the cabin so that I actually got to spend a little bit of time with them before they headed home.
Mom, Dad, and Peter headed home Saturday afternoon after brunch. I was sad that they had to leave, but they had a long drive to get home, and Peter had some things to do at home before heading back to Memphis on Sunday.
After they had left, we headed out for the traditional trail blazers hike. Last Thanksgiving, while Zack and I and Rach and Ben spent Thanksgiving with our respective families, Zack's brother Matt and Daddy G went and scouted out routes for this years bushwhacking adventure. About 2 years ago we had taken a hike and decided to just blaze our own trail down the mountain to the valley where our cabin laid in wait. We had a BLAST...well, most of us did...Rach wasn't quite so sure that she LOVED the experience...So, this year, we hiked up the other side of the valley and then blazed a trail back down on the opposite hillside from 2 years ago. This year, we all had an equally fun experience.
Saturday night was of course filled with playing more games and more delicious food.
Sunday came and we hated to leave to head back to reality. It was so nice to spend time with family. Zack, his father, and brothers invented a new game (they tend to do this a lot). They all rode around the front yard on their mountain bikes throwing a Frisbee back and forth to each other. It took them a while to make it from one end of the yard to the other, but they eventually made it.
Sadly, before we knew it, it was time to head back to reality.
The first weekend in December, Zack and his Ultimate Frisbee team went to a Frisbee Tournament. I didn't think that I was going to be able to go because Dr. D and I had to work clinic on that Saturday. The friday that Zack's team was leaving, Dr. D and I talked about it and she told me to go ahead and go watch Zack play. I was THRILLED!!! (I really have a great boss) I called Zack and told him to wait for me. I rushed home threw some clothes in a bag and Zack and I rushed to meet with the rest of the people that were car pooling. We stayed in a Foster Home that one of our friends is a social worker for...it was A-mazing. It was huge and beautifully decorated. They are not at capacity right now, so there was lots of room for all of us to crash. It was SOOOO nice of that family to open their home to us and to feed us all!
The Tournament was a Saturday/Sunday affair. The team had had to finagle their way into the tournament, because no one had ever heard of them before, since they just started the team a few months ago...and the tournament director was concerned that they would not be competitive enough to play in the tournament. The guys played really well despite the FREEZING cold temperatures and they ended up plcing second overall. Way to go team! :)
I was really proud of Zack. He played really well, and it was so much fun to watch him enjoying himself out there on the field....although, I was a little surprised at the contact level out there on the field while playing a "non contact" sport.
About 2 weekends after Thanksgiving, Zack and I went to a family wedding. Our Cousin Carson got married down in Savannah. So, Friday, we headed down to Savannah with Zack's parents. We made it there with about a half an hour to spare before we needed to be at the rehearsal dinner. The rehearsal dinner was held in an old inn with a restaurant in the basement. The walls were brick and there were big exposed beams on the ceiling...it was beautiful. Carson's mother did a GREAT job decorating the site for the rehearsal dinner. She had chosen a silver and blue theme. It was beautiful and the food was A-mazing.
That Saturday, Mama Sandy and I went shopping. I desperately needed to get some Christmas shopping done, and we needed to get a gift for the wedding...nothing like waiting till the last minute huh! :) While we went shopping, the guys went and played frisbee golf.
The wedding was an evening wedding and the church was decorated with greenery and poinsettias. It looked beautiful, and Carson and Jennifer looked so happy. The reception was a lot of fun. The food was good...but didn't quite taste as good as that the night before...Matt thinking that it was white chocolate like the night before, ate an entire pad of snowflake shaped butter! :) haha! We all got a big kick out of that and poor Matt...not sure when he'll live that one down!
Sunday morning we had breakfast with the family and then headed home.We had our small group Christmas party the following Monday and I knew that I was not going to have much time to prepare food for it. We were having soups and salads...so, I made a cranberry apple pie and got stuff to make salads...something that would require very little time to prepare, which turned out to be a godsend since I ended up having to run a late clinic that Monday. We ended up getting to the Christmas party a little bit later than planned, but we had such a good time getting to spend time with our friends and celebrate Christmas together.
Things were really busy at work between Thanksgiving and Christmas and I felt completely unprepared when Christmas snuck up on me.
Zack and I went to my parent's house for Christmas this year. We left Tuesday night after work and ended up getting to my parent's house close to midnight.
The Wednesday before Christmas, my mother and I went out shopping...Zack and I still had not finished our Christmas shopping....I know...there is a pattern of last minute desperation starting here.
Thursday, we spent the day hanging out at home and then headed to Church for a Christmas Eve service. After the church service, we got to open our Christmas gifts. Zack and I brought the majority of our Christmas gifts to each other with us to my mom and dad's, but Zack wanted us to save out at least one present to give each other at his parent's over Christmas at New Year's. We were very blessed and got lots of great gifts. My favorite definitely had to be the new sewing machine that Zack got me! ...now I just have to learn how to use it! I cannot wait!
Zack's big gift was a new mummy sleeping bag. The jury is still out on whether he likes it or not. He is going to have to get used to it...he says it makes him feel claustrophobic....excuses, excuses! :)
Christmas day, w spent most of the day cooking because my Aunt, Uncle and cousin's/families were all coming over for Christmas dinner. Mom was cooking all day! Peter made some mashed butternut squash and I made a dutch apple pie and Oreo truffles. The meal was really good, and it was so nice to spend time catching up with family. We don't get to see my aunt, uncle, and cousins very often because they live spread out in different parts of the country...We played some games and had a good time just talking and catching up.
The day after Christmas, we decided to go to a movie. We wanted to go see The Blind Side...only to discover that all of the matinee shows were already sold out. We were pretty bummed out, but decided that we would watch a movie later at home. Zack and my dad went and played frisbee golf while my mom and I went to see what kind of after Christmas sales we could hit. We ended up watching Ice Age 3 and Night at the museum 2 later that night.
The Sunday after Christmas, we went to church and then spent some time hanging out with my parents before heading back home. We had such a good time spending time with my parents and brother that it was sad to go, but we both had work the next day and needed to get on the road home. We got stuck in a little Christmas traffic and ended up having to find a detour to take...I think that our detour at least saved us a little time...it at least allowed us to keep moving.
The week between Christmas and New Year's was a bit of a mad house at work...we had several Dr.s and mid-levels out for vacation and so we were functioning at a decreased level of staff....meaning things were crazy! Dr. D and I were also on call several days that week. I ended up working a half a day on Wednesday and Dr. D graciously took my call for me that night. That was a blessing because I needed that time to work on some Christmas presents for Zack's side of the family.
We were supposed to make our Christmas presents for Zack's side of the family this year....that did not really happen for us. The only present that I actually was able to make was an apron for Zack's mother. And the rest were store bought.
We headed down to Zack's parent's house on New Year's Eve night after work. Zack's parents have a big New Year's get together every year with family friends. It was SO much fun to spend time with all of these special people....people that are more like family than friends. We love them all and really enjoy getting to spend time with them whenever we can.
New Year's day, we opened gifts with Zack's side of the family...it is always so fun to see what goodies are hiding in our stockings and what fun gifts are underneath the tree. Rach and Ben made every one fleece blankets. They picked out fabrics that they thought that each person would like. They are SOOO soft and I have gotten a LOT of use out of mine already with all of this cold weather. I absolutely love it!
New Year's Night Mama Sandy's side of the family came over for dinner and white elephant gift exchange.
The weekend after New Year's, Dr. D and I were on call. So, Saturday was a lazy day. Zack and his father and brother went and played frisbee golf while Mama Sandy, Rach and I watched Dr. Quinn Medicine woman...having to take a couple breaks due to calls that I had to answer. After dinner, the guys played a game of Settlers of Catan while Rach and I played Wii fit plus...We had a really good time and I was actually able to spend some quality time with family despite being on call.
Sunday we went to Zack's parent's church...which I always love because it give me the opportunity to catch up with some of my dear friends that I made on my mission trip to Belize back in 2008.
After Church, we headed to Zack's grandparent's house for Christmas Lunch and white elephant. We played a left right game using the Christmas story...and some random gifts (a plunger, a pregnancy test, a calendar, a magic kit, etc.) ....which was pretty humorous. Dr. D graciously took calls for me for about three hours so that we could have uninterrupted family time.
So, despite the business of the holiday season, we were blessed with many new memories with family and friends...
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