Christmas

My parents arrived on December 18th for their three week long visit.  We kicked off the holidays by making some delicious sushi on the first day of their visit.

 

The next day we were joined by one of my college friends and her girlfriend who are currently driving their bus around the country and having all sorts of exciting adventures.  If you would like to follow them, check out their Tumblr account here (warning, some harsh language!). 

 

It was great to visit with Dani and V but we didn't have too many adventures here due to the 3-4" of rain that came during the four days of their stay.  Hopefully the rest of their trip isn't as soggy!

 

My rainy day projects included finally making matching stockings for Matthew and I.  They may not have names yet, but at least they were usable before Christmas!

 

After our additional guests left, Mom, Dad, Matthew, and I decorated some gluten free Christmas cookies.  We used different flours this year and they turned out just as good as the regular cookies.

 

Christmas day was very low key here at the Lazy G Ranch.  We didn't even start the day's festivities until about 10 am.  Here is what the tree looked like with all of the gifts and stockings (and cats, of course).

 

Matthew the elf delivering gifts.

 

Apparently both mom and I forgot to take photos during unwrapping, but here is another one of Matthew with all of his gifts.  Thank you everyone for your thoughtfulness!

 

At least we didn't forget the holiday family photo.  Maybe some day we'll get my brother Nathan in one again!

 

 

While the guys were playing with their new toys, Mom and I went on our traditional Christmas horseback ride.  We really enjoyed the sunshine after so many days of rain!

Reenactment

This year marks the 150th anniversary of Sherman's March to the Sea during the civil war.  We went back to Fort McAlister last weekend to watch an elaborate reenactment of the "reduction" of the fort by the Yankees.  The entire performance only lasted about 20 minutes but apparently the actors stay in character all weekend.  Here is a short video of the Union soldiers advancing on the fort.

 

A blurry shot of musket fire.

 

The storming of the earthworks!

 

Union soldiers taking over the confederate camp and guarding prisoners (inside the fort).

Our Weekend

This weekend Matthew and I ran our first 5k at the Savannah Bridge Run.  We haven't been running in a while, but we managed to keep running for all 3.1 miles!  And we weren't too sore afterwards.

 

 

After our run, we walked over to an antique store and picked out a new set of dining room chairs. 

 

We wanted eight chairs but buying two sets of four was less expensive than buying a matched set of eight.  Luckily, we were able to find two sets of four that are almost identical.  Next up, recovering the seats!

 

I've also been working on painting the rest of the doors around our house.  We ordered a new front door and it will be arriving next week.

Snowy Thanksgiving

Matthew and I spent the Thanksgiving holiday visiting his family in Virginia.  We left on Wednesday but ended up staying the night in Charlotte, NC at Emily & Miran's due to a snowstorm that dropped 6" on our final destination.  We enjoyed the layover and played games for most of the evening.  By the next morning, Thanksgiving, the roads were dry and we were able to arrive at the Hicks' house just in time to eat.  I did not take any photos of the feast but did snap this shot of the snow as we were leaving early in the morning on Sunday.

 

On Friday we visited Grand Caverns, a large cave nearby.  Here are Matthew and I in front of one of the formations.

 

Some draperies.

 

My favorite feature: a pool of water that reflects the stalactites above and resembles a cityscape.

Walking down into one of the rooms.

 

A Rainbow display in one of the formations and another reflective pool (sorry for the blurry photo, I was trying no-flash).

 

Matthew standing by some flowstone.

 

This cave apparently has the most "shield" features of any cave in the world.  This one is called the Bridal Veil for obvious reasons.

 

One of several verified Civil War soldier signatures found on the walls of the cave.

 

Other than the trip to the caverns, we mostly spent the weekend inside playing games and visiting.  It was too cold out for many outdoor adventures!