... Pre Christmas Snow Storm ...

We weren't expecting to see any snow for Christmas this year,

but we were sure surprised when it came down in nice, big flakes

the Thursday before Christmas!

Of course, with all the rain, it was melted by Christmas Day,

but we were pretty excited to see it nonetheless - 

and of course we I took way too many pictures!!

Here are some pics from when we went to lunch and ran errands!

Nate tried so hard to hide from the camera!!

And these pics are in our front 'yard' ...

Watching out the window inside the warm house - silly cat is never far away!!

I get the feeling that snow days here 

(and yes, some schools were cancelled and the Interstate was closed down

 - seems so silly for a little snow storm ; ) will be few and far between, 

but I'll sure be happy when we get them!!

a love letter ...

 Dear Grandma,

There were so many things that I wanted to say to you when I last saw you. We came to visit you before we moved to Oregon, and you looked so fragile, and while my heart ached, I am so grateful for the hug we shared and for your soft 'love you, too.'

If the situation had been different, and your mind had been more clear, I would have told you how grateful I am for you. You were such a strong, beautiful woman, and the love that you shared with Grandpa was so obvious and so beautiful, and I loved to watch the two of you together.

I would have told you that I am truly sorry that I didn't spend more time with the two of you, especially when I lived closer than a lot of your other family. I let school and work and life get in the way, and that is something that I will always regret.

 I would have told you that I have so many special memories of you and I want you to know that I can still hear your voice in my head (yours too, Grandpa)! I can hear you telling me about the rest of my family, I can hear you telling us that we don't have to 'run off so soon,' and I can hear you offering me cookies or treats as I walk into your home.

I know that you are in a better place now - and I hope that Grandpa isn't teasing you too badly - I know you have some lost time to catch up on!

I miss you both and I love you both so deeply, and I will forever be grateful for the time that I got to spend with you and the treasured memories that I have of you. 

I love you,
Clarissa

P.S. I was cleaning out my blanket bin yesterday and I found the afghan that you made us for our wedding - I held it close for a few moments in gratitude that I have something tangible that can remind me only of you.

        

A Midweek Date

This is a quick catch up post before I post about our Christmas!

At the beginning of November, on one of Nate's

random midweek days off,

we decided to check out a local restauraunt

for breakfast and walk around our favorite park!

Breakfast at Ma Mosa's!

Our plates are completely cleaned off, it was pretty tasty!

A walk around Reinhart!!















As you can see, it was a rainy day, but the leaves
were still absolutely beautiful!

We love our midweek dates!!

Random November Fun

I absolutely love having a phone that takes good photos!

In all reality, I take AT LEAST one photo every day -

my phone automatically backs up our laptop (which is SO convenient)

and all my photos are ready for me to peruse and blog!

A lot of times, I'll post about specific events, 

but I don't really post about every day life ... until now!

Introducing ... Random Monthly Fun posts!!

Here is a glimpse into our November Fun!

We had some beautiful sunsets ...

We had a midnight trip to the vet with Rascal ...

We watch the Presidential races and President Obama's acceptance speech ...

It got a little chilly, so I warmed up with homemade mac n' cheese,

a sweater, leggings & fuzzy socks ...

Nate made (from scratch) the best donuts I've ever tasted ...

It rained ... a lot ...

We put up our Christmas Decorations (I'll post more about those later)

and kicked off the Christmas Season with Elf ...

I found (and fell in love with) Peppermint Chap Stick

and we learned the Brussel Sprouts grow on stalks ...

We finally saw Breaking Dawn: Part 2! 

We thought that it was enjoyable, but agree that we're glad the series is over!

It rained some more ... this was after being outside for 5 minutes ...

I had to re blow dry my hair ...

Nate rocked the kitchen again with these Bacon Guacamole Grilled Cheese Sandwiches ...

I took a picture of what almost 3 months of working from home looks like ...

And Shutterfly made my day when I saved $70 on an order ...

I'd say we had a pretty excellent November!!

Downtown/Game Night

Last week, Nate & I decided to head down town

to see the Christmas Displays and the very large Christmas Tree!

It was a chilly evening, but we enjoyed walking around the charming

city center and spending time together!

 

After we walked around, we came home to warm up

and have a game night! We spent several hours

battling it out over Rummikub and Sequence! It was

a nice way to relax and to have some fun together!!

Oh, and we also attempted a good photo in front of the tree! 

These were our best shots (taken not so seriously with a phone ;)

I'm so grateful for my husband and for

the silly and relaxing evenings that we have together!!