« November 2015 | Main | January 2016 »
Sunday, December 27, 2015
Xmas Update
Merry belated Christmas everyone. :) Hope everyone had a nice holiday.
We had a nice quiet few days which was much needed after all the craziness at work. Christmas Eve we had to work till 2 so not too bad. Had dinner at Outback before heading to the movies to see "Spotlight". Very good movie and great cast.
Then Christmas Day we opened our gifts with Mike's sister, niece and nephew. Got a lovely Scottish tartan scarf and green ear rings from Mike along with a Bath & Body gift certificate, wine, chocolates, a candle, cute figurines and other stuff from family and friends here and around the world.
Mid morning we went back to the movies to see "Joy". Another great movie, very similiar in style to his other movies "Silver Linings Playbook" and "American Hustle".
Spent the rest of the day catching up on some TiVo recordings and eating yummy food (shrimp cocktail, veggies & dip, chips & dip, cheese & crackers etc) and drinking wine.
Saturday we had to work again till 2. But had a relaxed afternoon and were able to sleep in late today. I am fighting an annoying cold so it was nice to get some needed rest.
Will have a few more crazy days at work Monday through Wednesday before heading up to Ottawa, Canada on Thursday. Will be nice to be away for a few days.
Mail Update: Received letters/still owe replies to: Carmen/Malta, Charles/TN, Lotte/Denmark, Celia/MA, Kimber/Canada and Tiffany/OK.
Posted by Hanna at 03:06 PM in Family, Food and Drink, Holidays, Television, Travel | Permalink | Comments (0)
Sunday, December 20, 2015
Almost Christmas
Four days until Christmas Eve. This weekend is already the 4th Advent. Where has the time gone? Can't believe it's already Christmas this week. I am mostly done with my shopping but just realized I should do something about wrapping some of the things I bought. Still need to pick up a few things and a few more things are coming in the mail as well, tomorrow and Tuesday. I guess maybe I will just wait and leave the wrapping for another night when I have everything together. Not a ton of stuff and I am feeling kind of lazy and content at the moment.
Spent the later part of the day drinking lots of tea, writing a letter and reading more of the christmassy book I am currently reading ("The 12 Days of Christmas" by Trisha Ashley) Very enjoyable seasonal read. My usual go to book for this time of year is "Winter Solstice" by Rosamunde Pilcher but I thought I would find something different this year and so far I am quite enjoying this book.
Had to work Saturday but we got out a bit after 2 and were able to check out a winery not too far from our new office in Washingtonville, NY called Brotherhood Winery. Neat place. Really enjoyed the wines we tasted and were able to pick up a bottle of sparkling rose wine for New Year's Eve.
Speaking of New Year's, not sure if I mentioned this on here yet or not. We are heading to Ottawa, Canada for 3 nights over New Year's. Really looking forward to being away from work for a few days. It will be nice to relax, check out some museums and have some good food. Will still need to take care of some things for work for year-end but it will still be nicer to be away rather than at work.
Mail Update: A letter is going out tomorrow to: Laura/Spain. Received letters/still owe replies to: Lotte/Denmark, Celia/MA, Kimber/Canada and Tiffany/OK.
Posted by Hanna at 08:17 PM in Food and Drink, Holidays, Travel, Wine | Permalink | Comments (0)
Sunday, December 13, 2015
Christmas Season
And the holiday season is in full swing
despite the weather being weirdly mild. Today we had 65F (18C) which is just very strange for December 13. We made the best of it and went for a walk to enjoy the mild temperatures.
Yesterday I had to work but met up with my friend Jana a bit before 3. She had started earlier prepping and when I got there we continued with our baking spree, making three different Christmas cookies, all Austrian and from my mom's recipes. They came out very delicious. Yumm.
Around 6 Mike and John (Jana's husband) and their friend Nathan joined us. Had a scotch tasting and a bunch of yummy antipasti followed by playing a boardgame (who knew that Wikipedia makes a board game?) Had a fun night with friends. Never a bad thing. :)
Last Monday we went down to the city for a show (Ingrid Michaelson's Holiday Hop) which was a lot of fun as well. Went to Rockefeller Center and Bryant Park checking out the trees and Christmas deco. The weather was weirdly mild that day as well so it was kind of surreal seeing the fountain at Bryant Park turned on at the same time as the ice rink and Christmas tree.
Now it's already Sunday again and tomorrow another work week is starting. I will need to get going on the final Christmas prep at work to try and get everything somewhat under control. Same thing as every year, just a little nuttier this year with the move, staffing changes and whatnot.
Mail Update: Letters went out last Tueaday to: Celia/MA, Charles/TN and Jessica/DE. Received letters/still owe replies to: Tiffany/OK and Laura/Spain.
Posted by Hanna at 02:57 PM in Food and Drink, Holidays, NYC | Permalink | Comments (0)
Sunday, December 06, 2015
Holiday Season ... so it begins
So here we are .. December and Christmas season. Time flies. Still busy at work and nothing will change with that until the holidays are over. It's our busiest season no matter what even when we aren't in the middle of a move/getting settled in.
Sort of had this Saturday off. Still had to deal with work stuff but at least it wasn't a true full day. I put up some of my xmas decorations. Got the tree put up but still need to get lights and actually decorate it. I think that will be Tuesday night's project. We will see.
Mailed all my Christmas cards and packages on Saturday too. $188 just for the packages (domestic and international) not including the stamps. It truly gets more expensive every year.
Today we slept in and then went for lunch at a local sports bar. Going to catch up on some of our TiVo stuff later on I think. We will see.
And tomorrow we have tickets to see Ingrid Michaelson's Holiday Hop xmas show. Hopefully we can leave work early so we can get down to NYC in the afternoon to see the tree at Rockefeller Center, decorations on 5th Avenue etc. before catching the show.
Mail Update: Received letters/still owe replies to: Celia/MA, Charles/TN, Tiffany/OK and Laura/Spain.
Posted by Hanna at 02:47 PM in Food and Drink, Holidays, NYC, Performances | Permalink | Comments (0)