Dreaming......

Of a vacation. I have never in my LIFE been so cold as I have been the last few weekends (that I can remember ...my dad swears it was 8 degrees in AL one year when I was little) Anyways, I have the travel bug something bad and have been surfing the interweb all morning looking at dreamy places that I would love to visit, or in some cases, re-visit.

1. First up, Costa Smeralda, Northern Sardinia (near Porto Cervo) - the first stop on our honeymoon 5 and a half years ago. Costa Smeralda is Italian for "emerald coast" and is a tiny port town built by Prince Karim Aga Khan in the 1960s as an exclusive holiday village for the rich and famous with high end fashion boutiques, expensive restaurants, and luxury hotels. This place is seriously paradise. The food is incomparable, the locals are super friendly, we had the most amazing massages EVER at our hotel, the Costa Smeralda Cervo Resort and (the best part) a private beach overlooking the Mediterranean. Our favorite place to eat was this little local restaurant, Il Peperoni. Sardinian cuisine is simple and straightforward, made with only the freshest ingredients. The exception being this famous Sardinian specialty (warning - not for those with a weak stomach.)

2. L.A.: (or anywhere in CA basically!) I've only been once and am dying to go back. I think we spent 5 days there and there was never a moment where I thought "oh, I'm bored..." There is so much to do - the parks, the beaches, the dining, the shopping .... oh L.A. I puffy heart love you :-) A close second is San Francisco, where Chris and I got engaged. So romantic, so beautiful, so much wine to drink ;-)



3. Vegas, Baby! Fingers crossed I will make my pretty little way to WPPI this year. Prrrrrrrrobably not, but....a girl can dream, right?



4. I'll be going here in a couple of weeks for another one of these. woot! so excited :-)

5. Last but not least, I'll settle for this, which is where hubby and I will be this weekend celebrating Valentine's Day :-)

Our Christmas

was cozy and fun! We have a tradition of hosting Christmas Eve dinner at our house every year. This year I made a simple but hearty menu for fifteen that included roasted leg of lamb, parmesan risotto, minted carrots, baked brie en croute, roasted pototoes and the BEST home-made bread pudding you've ever had in your life. Chris and I then rounded out the night with my favorite tradition: sipping champagne and playing Santa. Our kids are such night-owls though, we had to stay up until 2:00 am to safely bring out the goods. Christmas this year wasn't huge, and I am totally OK with that. I put a lot of thought into what we bought for each boy, made a list, checked it twice and ordered 90% of it online :-) The older I get (and the more kids I have) the more "actual" shopping gives me major anxiety! They seemed pleased with their gifts, and it was really fun that Owen was actually excited for Santa to come this year and understood what was going on. All he wanted was a garbage truck for Christmas (the kid has always had a weird penchant for garbage cans, gargage trucks) and he got it. And that was all he played with :-) I don't think he even noticed that he HAD other gifts to open until about an hour later. Jack's big gift was a scooter that makes sparks when you hit the brakes. But his favorite gift was the practical joke set he got. What was I thinking?! We then hopped from my parents' house (where we had smoked salmon, cheese grits and mimosas, my fave!) to my in-laws where we ate AGAIN, home for naps, then back over to my rents for the best steaks I've ever had in my life. We went home sleepy and full, the perfect ending to the perfect day. And the perfect way to round out a wonderful year!

(taken with the Shake It Photo iPhone app)