HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

Let it Snow!

We've had back-to-back storms the last few days, which managed to dump about 6 inches of the white powdery stuff ... I must admit - it does look pretty, even as much as I despise winter! Carly had a little fun in the snow yesterday afternoon -- not too long though, cuz it is

C O L D out there!

The Holidays ...

Is it just me, or does the holiday season seem like it is moving in 'fast forward'? I swear the days and weeks race by more and more quickly with each passing year. (Sigh....) I do love this time of the year -- I just wish the festive season could last a tad bit longer! Then again, I must admit that I am perhaps the world's BIGGEST freak when it comes to "taking Christmas down" ... once Christmas Day is behind us, I struggle mightily with the urge to take all holiday decorations down and pack them away for yet another year ..... I guess it is just my way of dealing with the fact that "it's over". :o) So yes, you guessed it -- that's what I spent the majority of today doing -- taking down all signs of Christmas so we can start the New Year off fresh and clean (well, "fresh", anyway ... this house is FAR from being "clean"! ha). It feels pretty good to have that NOT small task behind me already ..... I literally start dreading it the day after I put everything up! LOL!

Wanted to share a couple of pictures from Christmas Eve ... and also report in that we had a WONDERFUL Christmas -- we celebrated with both sides of the family on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day and enjoyed each and every moment. Santa was good to all of us, which was an added bonus. :o) Here's a rundown of the biggest hits:

Sony Reader - from Santa to Michelle

iPod Touch X 2 - from Oma/Pappy to Alex & Nick

DJ Hero - from Santa to Alex & Nick

Zhu Zhu Pets + accessories - from Santa to Carly

iPod Touch - from Santa to Mike

Hope you all had a festive and merry Christmas!!! Here's to a Happy New Year!

Holiday Greetings!

Oh my! I didn't realize it had been SO LONG since we last 'talked'! LOL. Not even sure where to begin as, I'm sure like most of you, life has been just a little bit chaotic/hectic the last several weeks. I think I set a new PR (personal record) this year with my Christmas shopping -- I was completely finished, with all presents wrapped & under the tree a whole week before Christmas. Never before have I managed to accomplish that! So, this is proof that there definitely IS a first time for everything! Many thanks to several of my friends (you know who you are ...) who positively inspired me this season. :o)

Here are a few highlights from the last month:

Nick's basketball season is in full swing (and he now sits on the sidelines - more on that a little later ...) so we've dutifully attended I don't know how many 7th grade basketball games. (He's #20)

Carly and a friend had fun at a "Holiday Dance Party" hosted by the Children's Discovery Museum.

We baked and decorated (and are currently in the process of consuming - LOL) 12 dozen sugar cookies and a variety of other holiday goodies!
Carly has had an absolute ball with our "Elf on a Shelf" this season -- George Jr III (affectionately so named by Nick and Carly) has found some very interesting hiding spots this year. The first thing she does when she gets up each morning is search the house for "The Elf". :o)


In the midst of all the holiday hustle and bustle, we managed to squeeze in an evening of fun with some dear friends.

We celebrated Oma's 68th birthday!

We endured (oops - I mean "enjoyed") yet another of the infamous Holy Trinity School Christmas programs -- 90 minutes of anticipation just to see your child up front on the risers for approximately 4 minutes of fame. :o) Carly is wearing a black and red dress - it's hard to get good pictures in a jam-packed, heated up, poorly lit gymnasium!




And, last but not least, we rounded out the last week of school before Christmas break with a true "break" ... haha ... Nick fell in gym class on December 17 while playing volleyball (yes, volleyball of all things -- LOL). He decided to tell us about his 'sore arm' later that evening after he got home from basketball practice. Long story short -- we went to the doctor the next day, were referred to an ortho, and left later that afternoon with a nice blue cast on his left wrist. Turns out he fractured his hand/wrist - actually a bone that runs on the top of his hand down to his wrist. Fortunately, the cast comes off on January 15 - so he only has to endure 4 weeks of this 'torture'. So, this is why he is now "sidelined" in basketball.

The next few days are sure to be filled with lots of holiday cheer -- we'll celebrate Christmas Eve with Oma/Pappy and Christmas Day with Mike's side of the family. The kids are anxious to tear into that sea of presents under our tree ... and they're looking forward to Christmas morning to see what other goodies Santa might decide to leave for them ..... :o)

From our home to yours -- Merry Christmas!!!

Happy Turkey Day!

Wishing family and friends a very Happy Thanksgiving! I hope you all had a festive day surrounded by those you love!

Home Again, Home Again!

All good things must come to an end, right? Well, that's kinda how it felt when reality slapped me in the face this morning. Back to the rat race that is otherwise known as life in the Miller family! LOL. Our trip home on Friday went without a hitch -- albeit with just a little bit of stress getting to the airport on time. You see, we had to make that 'one last stop' at Stein Mart in Naples on the way to the airport to get price adjustments on the things we had purchased earlier in the week that were on sale during their annual 14 hour sale on Friday. It was well worth the effort - I think between the 3 of us, we recouped about $150. :o) But then, with all that newfound money burning a hole in our pockets, we just HAD to do a quick 'once over' the store to see if there were any buys too good to pass up. So, our departure from Naples was just a tad later than we had anticipated. :o) Jen piloted our Jeep Laredo on the way to the airport and she successfully delivered us with not one minute to spare. And yes . . . if you were wondering, we did manage to give back at least part of that $150 we 'saved' at Stein Mart (no surprise there, I'm sure). Once again, the Naples economy benefited from our visit. ha.

We were very happy that we were able to catch a few rays of that glorious Marco sunshine before we left the condo on Friday - although it was a bit chilly (I think the temp was about 68 when we ventured out to the beach at 9:30am), it quickly warmed up and we were able to soak up a couple of hours' worth before coming in to finish packing, 'close' the condo, etc.

All in all, a WONDERFUL trip. Good friends, good times, good memories, good food, good shopping, good relaxing ..... all good. :o)

Lazy Dayz in Marco

"The flip flop girls" enjoyed a leisurely, lazy, lounging day today. I took my morning walk (which is more like an 'almost run' - LOL) down to the last building and back, along with the fierce wind and chilly temperatures. Darn it, Hurricane Ida! I thought for sure the sun was gonna pop out for us, but it went in and out of clouds ALL DAY LONG. And instead of getting warmer, it got cooler as the day went on. So, we made the most of the situation and just hung around the condo watching movies (Mama Mia! and Twilight), various TV shows, and playing on our laptops (which is a luxury in itself since we don't typically have time to do these things in our 'real lives' - LOL). We ventured out for a walk late this afternoon and are now settling down to watch Flash Forward, Grey's Anatomy, and Private Practice. We head home tomorrow . . . and as usual, our departure brings mixed feelings. This week is just such a treasured time away for all of us -- let me tell you, a break from the usual stress, chaos, and hustle & bustle does a busy mom sooooooo much good. So, THANK YOU honey, for letting me escape on this trip year after year after year, and THANK YOU mom and dad, for opening the condo (my favorite little slice of paradise) to me and my friends. :o)

Already looking forward to next year's Flip Flop Girls Great Escape -- 365 days and counting.