december...

...is finally here!

thanksgiving was wonderful. there's really no words to explain a bianchi family holiday...to tell you about it would sound just like a stereotypical thanksgiving...it's more of the way you feel while you are there. after the overwhelming relief of FINALLY turning onto the street after the longest drive ever (until the drive home which we don't split into 2 days)...you are welcomed into the house by a smiling set of grandparents, a hug from mama b., and the open arms of aunts & uncles. once you get settled, laughter and love fill the house...along with the delicious smells of casseroles & turkey. mama b. always puts out crackers and "spread" so we nibble until lunch and then we're so full we talk about not eating supper, but somehow we always find room for grilled pimento cheese sandwiches (homemade by mama b.) and they are delicious. in fact, they have become as much a part of the tradition as the turkey.

to sum up...there is nothing like being there & it hurts when we leave.

sunday we had the distinct honor of being "aunt gidge" (gigi for now) and "uncle baba" at emma kaet's blessing. and then spent the afternoon just hanging out with the fam & babies. we got to pick jasper up at 4:30 (she had a very cute snoopy & autumn leaves bandana) and then stayed for supper with mom & daddy.

we made it home sunday night and have been enjoying our regular routine ever since. want a window of our comfortable little life? i thought so... ;)
--blake usually gets home around 4 and spends the afternoon doing "man stuff" with jasper (who is a girl but loves her daddy time)
--i come home in the dark (darn you daylight savings time!) and pull up the driveway to an open front door with jasper sitting impatiently behind the glass door waiting for me to be home. i see blake smiling and walking toward the door to hold jasper while i come in. (=HOME)
--i dart to the bedroom to change into my comfy clothes and then come out for a good ole fashioned "welcome home, mama!" from jasper and soak up the love
--while i cook supper, we listen to the news and catch up on our day. blake stands in the kitchen while i cook (partially just to be there, partially to keep jasper away from the food that i'm not guarding) and we just talk...so nice!
--(disclaimer: although the following thing is our habit, i hope to get rid of this when we have babies...bianchi family dinner rule? NO t.v.!!) we watch wheel of fortune while we eat supper & then blake does the dishes while i love on jasper a little.
--once the dishes are done, we either watch our show of the night or a movie...sometimes we're really exciting and play super mario brothers on the wii.
--by 9:00 we are in bed. IF there is something on (i.e. christmas movies...) we have the t.v. on (another thing that will change eventually) and fall asleep talking about our day or whatever is on the news.

our little life isn't one filled with glamour or "excitement" but we are content and i genuinely look forward to being home with my family.

this week we hope to have a date night and then saturday we are headed to nashville to see steph & allen! (she is having a baby...another little niece for us!...in march & i can't wait to see her belly!!) SUNDAY? well, we'll start off with church (the first sunday with the advent wreath...one of my favorite traditions) and then come home to clean and decorate!

have i mentioned i LOVE christmas?? in fact, today is the second day of my christmas extravaganza at work. i brought in a radio & have been taking full advantage of the all-day-christmas radio station! i (as the receptionist) am in charge of decorating the office & lobby...a job that i really enjoy...i get to be paid for being crafty??? wow.

so now i'm off to finish what i've started & enjoy my background music. outside my windows today? a cold, misty, blustery day...perfect for staying home in pjs with hot tea! ah well, i'm here & i intend to make the most of it.