Back in Chicago

We made it back to Chicago early Sunday evening from my hometown in Ohio. We had a great time visiting family and friends that we had not seen since July.


Andy and I went down to Southeastern Ohio earlier than planned due to a tragedy that struck my best friend, Erin's grandmother, Esta. She was just like a grandmother to me, who actually lived right next to my grandparents. I remember when Erin and I were younger, we would go over to her house and she would fix us the best food! Some of my favorites were her Apple turnovers, fried bologna sandwiches and hot dogs split down the middle with beans on top! Esta was a wonderful cook and a lovely woman. She and my grandmother were good friends, which started the beginning of my friendship with Erin. We were best friends even before we were born. She will be missed by many people whose lives she touched. Our thoughts and prayers are with the entire family.

Christmas Cards are coming.....

WHEW, boy am I glad to be done with those....... I really find it stressful to address cards and think of something to say inside, but I know how it makes me feel when I get the mail and see the Christmas cards inside. It is better than any present. Especially since email and Internet are so prevalent it is nice to see that people still put forth a lot of effort and that is why I cherish it so much. Now, I am not guaranteeing that I will do this next year, right now I am not working, so I have some extra time, but don't hold me to it next year! I may resort to the mass email! I think I sent out about 70 cards, so you all should be getting them soon! If you don't get one, I don't have your address, so send it on if you want one. I have 10 extra cards. I will give you a teaser, some cute little boy is on the cover yelling at his favorite friend to mush on! I will leave you with some photos of Reid helping me do the laundry!

Reid in action!

Compromise.....the secret of a happy marriage!

Every year Andy and I have a on going battle about the Christmas Tree. I grew up going to a tree farm all bundled up with the whole family walking around deciding which tree would be the best. Usually it was a white pine with long soft needles and flimsy limbs that couldn't hold heavy ornaments. My mom would maticulously find the perfect side of the tree to face outwards and even go so far as to tie limbs with fishing line up if there was a hole in the tree. I remember getting very impatient with her, "why it had to be so perfect"! Now I am the same way!!! I just love the smell and look of a real tree and I get so excited about having the "perfect tree". Andy on the other hand could care less if we even had a tree. He perfers a branch, which as he tells me, he and his father would drive around to find a dead branch lying along the road then bring it home to stick in a bucket and decorate. Which I must admit, we did this a few years and ago and it was quite fun driving around the city of Atlanta going through peoples yard trash to get the branch. We ended up with about a 10 ft (dead tree) branch that stuck out the back of our Element and brought it home for its second life. To make a long story shorter..... We made an agreement a couple of years ago that we would do both, but alternate every year. So this year I wanted Reid's first Christmas to be a real tree, so Andy and I compromised. He agreed to get a real tree as long as it was no taller than him. (Which is not that tall). I have a nack for picking out the tallest tree not realizing that its over 10 ft!! So we drove about an hour last weekend to a tree farm, Andy stayed in the car with Reid while I walked around the farm in the cold snow picking out the tree. Then I came back told him where it was and he cut and drug it in.
So, as you will see it is not the prettiest tree and definetly not the tallest, but it is a real tree and I am so thankful for it!!!! It smells so good! I guess next year we will have to do the branch.



I hope you all are enjoying your Holiday traditions as well!

Nana is here and Daddy's Home!!!

Nana (my mom) came to visit on Tuesday and we have been busy shopping and playing with Reid. Reid has been accomplishing a lot lately and everyday we mark something else off the list. He can now sit up by himself, sometimes he takes a bobble, but overall he is pretty good. He also has two teeth and is starting to mimic a lot. He waves bye bye, sticks out his tongue to mimic you, and tilts his head side to side as you do yours. If laying on his back he can raise himself up with grabbing your pinkie fingers. Says dada and makes a barking sound like Obie, yes our child is acting like a dog! He now sits in a high chair when we go to restaurants and makes himself known. We are having a wonderful time with Nana, which give me a chance to catch up on some much needed cleaning. He also plays pick a boo with Nana, Nana taught him to pull his clothes over his face and then when he moves them back we all say peek-a-boo, and he just smiles and repeats! So cute....

Here are some pictures with his Nana. See my two teeth?

This is the newest face (we call it his old man face), that we love.

I love this little snow cat outfit. I got it this summer at a church rummage sale for $10, the hat, sweater, pants and shoes were all part of the package! LOVE IT!!!

Andy got back from Germany this afternoon and he is pretty amazed at how much Reid has changed in just four short days! We are glad he made it back safely and he is looking forward to catching some much needed zzzzzzz.

Thanksgiving in Asheville, NC

We hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Andy, Reid and I flew down to North Carolina on Saturday and stayed through Thanksgiving to see Grandma and Grandpa Wings. Reid loves his grandma and grandpa time!!! Spoiling was not an option, but a must..... NO RULES at Grandma and Grandpas! I ended up getting a cold and my phone DIED, but other than that we had a wonderful time! Ate lots of great food, saw many wonderful things and shopped at my favorite shoe store in the WORLD, TOPS and enjoyed some great conversation with the family and their neighbors! We even managed to get a snuggle with Loki, their infamous cat, that only comes out at night. Although the black bear sightings were up, we didn't get to see any. Andy went out everyday on his parents mountain to scope them out, but all he saw were their droppings. On Friday we ventured down to the Grove Park Inn, a must if you are ever in the Asheville area! It is a beautiful hotel and spa that is soooo relaxing. You can sit outside in the rocking chairs to watch the sunset and people clap at its beauty! Thanks again for having us all, we really enjoyed our stay!

Grandpa and Reid getting their morning buzz!

This crib is over 100 years old and has remained in the family for that whole time. Reid is the fifth generation to sleep in this crib. His great great grandfather was the first and we hoped to have many more wing generations to a part of this tradition. Although Reid was a little big to sleep in it, we did lay him down for a nap while grandma and grandpa watched him snooze.

Grandma and Reid getting ready for the turkey and all the yummy fixings!

This picture was taken at the Grove Park Inn in front of this enormous fireplace.

Andy flew out yesterday, Sunday, to Munich, Germany for a business trip. When he gets back with the camera, I will post more pictures from this past week. He left just in time to miss all the snow we got last night. About 3-4 inches.