What are 3 things that bring you joy in life?

1. My puppy, Oscar. He is a 5 year old, 9 lb yorkie & is definitely spoiled rotten! Zeb bought him for me when I fell in love with our friends' yorkie & decided I was *almost* certain I wanted a dog. He surprised me for Valentine's Day in 2011 & I was so scared when we got him. I had no idea how to care for a dog as the only ones I had been around were my brothers' dogs we had in my childhood. But over the past 5 years, he has become one of the greatest joys of my life. He has listened to me, cuddled with me, consoled me, and loved me unconditionally as dogs do and my life is SO enriched because of him.



2. Baking. Before the fall of 2014, I would have just considered my amateur baker tackling the occasional brownies, cookies, box mix concoctions. That fall I enrolled in a cake decorating class at the local community college which just so happened to be taught by the baker who made our wedding cake. It was a fantastic course that really gave me confidence not only in baking/decorating cakes but also in baking in general. Since the course ended I have made the birthday cakes for my mom & dad as well as Z & myself. I've also developed what I'm calling a 'signature cookie' that I bake for all family occasions & as the occasional gift. While I still don't consider myself a professional (as evidenced by the pictures), I can't explain the joy I feel when I complete a cake or know that my friends and family are enjoyed something I created. Baking is a way for me to channel my creativity & also enjoy sweets : )

3. Road trips with Z. We don't make a lot of these any more-not like we did when we lived in Texas-but when we do, we always have fun. Road trips for us are therapeutic & we spend time talking, planning, dreaming while we travel. There's always good music, we pack snacks & stop at our favorite restaurants, and try not to laugh at Oscar too much when he is frustrated at being cooped up in the car. While the preparations & in turn, unpacking are not the most enjoyable tasks, I always look forward to the extra, uninterrupted time with Z.

You can't really tell but this is a picture of the 3 of us holding hands/paws on one of our latest trips. : )

Describe your bedtime ritual.

My bedtime ritual varies...daily. But each of these activities takes place at some point every night.

*Brush teeth.
*Take out contacts.
*Wash face.
*Use *ahem* facilities.
*Apply hand lotion.
*Apply strawberry Chap-stick.
*Write in 1-line journal.
*Say evening prayer.
*Set alarm.
*Plug in phone & turn ringer down.

Those things happen without fail. These things happen with some regularity...

*Read until I fall asleep & the book hits me in the face.
*Scroll Facebook until I fall asleep & my phone hits me in the face.
*Apply foot cream & put on socks.
*End of day planning in my bullet journal.

I'm not too complicated-but sometimes I do hate that there are so many steps before I can go to sleep. On nights when I'm wiped & I've stayed up too late watching Netflix or I got sucked into the interwebs, the bare minimum involves brushing teeth, taking out contacts, & washing face.

I just realized it is ridiculous that I have spent this long to describe my bedtime ritual so sweet dreams!

What is your family's Christmas story? (Your traditions, your rituals, etc.)

*Mom & I have at least 1 annual holiday baking day where we plan lots of treats & goodies we want to give away and spend the entire day listening to Christmas music while we work in the kitchen. It is seriously one of my favorite traditions & I am so thankful to live close enough to her that we can do this.

*Speaking of baking, these treats are holiday staples in our house from my childhood: peanut butter kiss cookies, Christmas Tree cookie press cookies, elf biscuits, party mix (similar to Chex mix), tiger butter, and new additions in the past couple of years-cheese straws & shortbread.

*We ALWAYS eat pizza for Christmas Eve dinner. (Just like we ALWAYS eat Mexican food for Thanksgiving Eve dinner.) Store bought, carry out, homemade-doesn't matter. Just pizza.

*Enough of the food. On years that we're all together my dad always reads the Christmas story from Luke. When I was much younger, he would play Christmas hymns on the piano & we would sing along. This was when we did our advent wreath each Sunday as a family long before spouses & grandchildren entered the picture.

*Also from my childhood, my mom had a set of self-playing Christmas bells that were attached to garland that she hung from the mantle or in the kitchen. She would turn those on every Christmas morning & we would listen to them play the Christmas songs (both sacred & secular) they were programmed with.

*Since I've been married and really in the past couple of years, Z & I have gone on a Christmas date at some point during the season. While we've never said it had to be anything fancy, it has turned out that way. Last year we had dinner at The Edison at The Grove Park Inn and sat out on the porch afterward (on an unseasonable warm December evening) & talked & dreamed & laughed. This year's date was our overnight stay at the Biltmore as mentioned in my post from January 1.

There are many more traditions I would like to start & am working on some of them-buying an ornament that represents the year or big moments in the year, writing a letter to Z each year, giving to a needy family each year, etc. Perhaps 1 day I'll get it together enough to accomplish everything my overzealous heart desires. But until then I'll relish the memories I make with the traditions I have now.

So what are some of your Christmas rituals & traditions? Maybe you have one I need to add to my list...

What's 1 thing that you hope to achieve or accomplish this year?

I hope to achieve healthiness. My weight may not get to what I want it to be but I want to be healthier for my husband and children to be able to enjoy me and for me to be able to live a FULL life so I don't miss out on anything. The time is right and I need to do this for myself especially with potential big changes this year (baby??? house???).

What's on your goal list for the year ahead? What plans have you made to help you reach that goal?

Describe 3 moments from the holidays that you wish to remember.

1. Z & I stayed at the Village Hotel at the Biltmore during Christmas week. It was an incredible experience & I am so glad we did. We wandered Antler Village & the winery before dinner at Cedric's Tavern & a romantic night in our rustic modern room. We had a delicious breakfast at The Inn (Belgian waffles) and then wandered the area around the house. It was a great time with special memories!

2. Christmas dinner was special since all of my family was together. Even with my 4.5 month old nephew's fussiness, it was nice for all of us to be there and spend the night at Mom & Dad's. We shared lots of laughs after dinner & Henry kept us all busy with toys, painting, & Transformers.

3. New Year's Eve was fun since we have kind of started the tradition (2 years now) of Mom & Dad coming to Asheville. We had dinner at Tupelo Honey and played dominoes while enjoying a bellini bar. We watched the ball drop but didn't see it (thanks to the networks) and I shared a kiss with my love.

What are some of your most cherished holiday memories?