Apologies to my readers...

First of all, I want to apologize for it being over a month since I posted! Yikes! Life just got really hectic preparing for Christmas, then I was out of town over Christmas, then I had to play catch up at work when I got back! And, of course, really the only time I have to update this thing is on my lunch or 10 minute breaks at work. And if time wasn't tight enough, it's about to get tighter! But I'll get into that a little later...

My vacation over Christmas was a much needed one. It felt really good to get away from the stresses of everyday life at work. And it's been bad lately. Kyle and I drove out to California - took us 25 hours total: 21 hours of drive time, and 4 hours of sleeping at rest stops. Not exactly the smartest thing to do, but we had all three dogs with us, so that made it really hard to stop anywhere else. There are hotels that allow pets on the way, but our precious pups tend to bark at any little sound - therefore, no sleep for us or for other vacationers! Not really the way we wanted to spend the night. So, we basically drove straight through. It was great to see mom and dad again, of course, and it was made even better by us having some time just the four of us before Jess and Shannon came out. Don't get me wrong - I love my sister and her husband - but, we didn't get to spend a lot of time with my parents while they were out for Thanksgiving, so it was really nice for it just to be us and my parents.

Christmas day was marvelous. We were totally spoiled by both my family and Kyle's. I really enjoyed spending time with his family. We spent a lot of time over at his mom's and it was really hard for us to leave. His mom is really sick and we're kind of worried about how much longer she's going to be around. One of the bad things about living so far away. On a high note, Jackie (Kyle's step mom) really loved the wrap that I made her. She had it on her lap from the moment she opened it until Bob (Kyle's dad)took it away from her and curled up under it. Here's a picture...
I had no idea it would be so popular! Kyle's grandma was in Arizona for Christmas this year, but we did get a call from her telling us how much she really loved her wrap and how it was the perfect colors. Cindy (Kyle's mom) didn't say too much about the shawl I made her. I was kind of wondering if she even liked it. But, she wasn't feeling well at the time either, so my guess is it was probably just that. Here's the shawl I gave Cindy...
I think it turned out really well, and it was the perfect size for her. I hope she gets good use out of it!

The day after Christmas was a spa day for the girls. Mom, Jess and I hit the spa at the Mission Inn for some relaxation (I got a massage, and Jess and Mom facials for Christmas). Then it was off to Nordstrom's for a make-over at the Smashbox counter, and back to Mission Inn for dinner. After dinner we went on a carriage ride to see the lights around the area, and walked around a bit will smoking cigars. It was a nice night.




So, after that fun filled day and night, the girls went out shopping for our ultimate purse, while dad worked, Shannon played on the computer, and Kyle went Geocaching with his dad. Dinner that night was at Ancho's. I really wish we could move that restaurant out here! Great ending to a wonderful vacation. Headed home the day after that. Was so hard to leave! But, my dad was right when he said "No matter how long you stay, you'll be leaving a day too soon". I must also say that it was a little nice to go back to just 3 dogs instead of 5...
It was hard to get them all to pose pretty for the pictures though... Grrrr - I can't get my pictures to line up all nice and pretty! How do you do it Kimberly?

Ok, I think that's all I'll post on this one, since it's getting pretty long. I'll post about the happenings since we got home a little later. I have to get SOME work done today afterall!