merry. merry.

wishing everyone a very merry, merry christmas. hope santa was good to everyone :)

every year since we were little, my parents would get nicole and i an ornament for christmas. so we could start a collection and once we got married, we would then take our box of ornaments for our own christmas trees. my mom would write our name and the year on the back. in 1983, i was given this nutcracker ornament. it was one of my favorites, you pull a little string and his arms and legs move like he is jumping! even though it had my name written on it, every year nicole used to say it was hers! so through the years as we would decorate the tree, we would argue about who this ornament really belonged to. it became a running joke (not really to nicole) and one of our traditions. even up until last year, when she was in the hospital for the holidays...she still brought it up.

this year when it came time to decorate our tree, i was scared to get to that ornament in the box...and then realized i had brought it to my parents last year so that when she came home from the hospital it would be there.

we love you nicole. miss you everyday. hope you had a very merry christmas.

meet jebediah.

merry christmas eve!! as everyone's elf on the shelves are heading back up to the north pole until next year...i thought i would share the many hiding spots of our elf, jebediah. (yes, pat named him). see you next year buddy! save travels :)

handwork holiday.

last week i attended a holiday party thrown by long-time freelance client and friend, laura. she owns the handwork studio in narberth, pa. it is a needle arts studio that offers a huge variety of knitting, machine sewing, embroidery, fashion, fiber arts classes, parties, workshops and camps for kids and teens. it is quite an amazing place, with an even more fabulous staff. after 8 years of working with laura on the design end, i finally got the chance to meet this great group of women!

laura's house was gorgeous, with the most beautiful holiday decor. there was a cookie exchange for all those interested and lots of festive cocktails (thanks to alisha!) first course for dinner was a pumpkin soup and the main entree was lobster mac and cheese with a goat cheese salad. yum! did i mention, laura made everything herself....even the five loaves of challah bread!! lastly for dessert, my mom, dot (aka martha), made laura a custom cake. complete with a sewing machine, thread, yarn balls, knitting needles, a measuring tape and her company name! it was a huge hit and tasted delicious!

it was a beautiful party. i had a blast getting to know all the wonderful ladies that make the handwork studio such an amazing place! thank you laura.

two.

happy anniversary to my husband, pat. can't believe it has been two years already. still remember our snowy day like it was yesterday. love you. so. so. much.

{our amazing wedding video, by well spun weddings}