Merry Christmas!!!

Hope everyone had a wonderful holiday...we definitely did! We spent Christmas Eve and Christmas morning with my side of the family, which was lots of fun. Then Christmas day we went to the McCoy house to see everyone in from out of town which was great!
We are sooo spoiled and everyone was so generous with us. We got lots and lots of great presents. We even think we may have enough moola to take a trip to Ireland in the spring.Nothing is definite yet, but I am absolutely keeping my fingers crossed!!
New Years will be spent at the Lake with my parents and we are definitely looking forward to getting away for a few days. I'v been very lucky this year and only have to work two days this week and three next week:) Dave didn't get as lucky;)
I hope everyone has a safe and happy New Year! Till next time...

Relief Please!!!!!

Wow!!! What a whirlwind the past couple weeks have been...here's a quick run down for those of you not here!
At the beginning of October, our family went out to North Carolina to surprise Aunt Deb for her birthday. It was an absolute blast and she was completely caught off guard. The rest of the weekend after the party was very low key and a great time spent catching up and enjoying time with the side of the family we don't get to see nearly enough. Overall, an amazing weekend!
Then, two weeks ago, it was time for the second annual McCoy Halloween party!! Everyone got dressed up and came over to celebrate one of my favorite holidays:) I dressed up as Marilyn Monroe and Dave was Hugh Hefner (yes, I know...). The party went great and everyone had fun.
And of course, with all the fun comes work, work, work!!! I feel like I do nothing but work lately. So much so, that my mind seems to completely shut off when I come home and I forget everything that happens after 5pm!!! Dave went so far as to quote his new favorite movie, "The Devil Wears Prada", and told me that when you personal life is hanging by a thread, that means it's time for a promotion:) I agree!!!! Anyway, with the holidays coming up, I will get some little breaks which are much-anticipated!
Anyone have any good tips for decompressing after an overwhelming day at work??? Suggestions are welcome:)

Yea Wineries!!

So once again, I am shamefully behind on my blog! I just had to put these pictures up...About two weeks ago, Dave and I took a spontaneous trip to Ste. Genevieve, Missouri to check out the wineries. We got down there are were going to go to Crown Valley, which is the big winery down there, but it was HUGE and crammed with people. So instead we drove about a mile down the road and went to a beautiful little place called Chaumette Vineyards. Not only was the scenery incredible, but the wine wasn't bad either:)
The owner of winery is an ordained minister and they have a small chapel on the grounds for weddings and then a reception in the vineyard. How Fun! We also ventured over to another vineyard that also brews a few of their own beers. Again, beautiful scenery and great people.
After our adventures in the wineries, we headed back into historic Ste. Genevieve and had a delicious dinner at a small pub called the Anvil. Again, so much fun!
I would highly reccommend St. Genevieve if you're looking for a quick little getaway for a day or two. And the great thing is, it doesn't even feel like Missouri!!
Here are the pics...Enjoy!!

Lake Fun!!

We got back yesterday from a wonderful, relaxing weekend at the Lake of the Ozarks with Alan and Angie and the whole small group crew ( except for Jamie and Morgan:( Next year guys!!). We could not have asked for better weather, or company.
Lots of time was spent on the new dock and the new boat, which was soo much fun. The girls did manage to get away for a few hours and hit up the outlet malls!!
Best of all, Heather and Jeff announced they are pregnant!!! It was so special to be a part of their big announcement. We're so happy for you guys!
In the pics I'm putting up you may notice a small furry friend... Nate found a stray cat living under the porch at the lodge, so we decided to adopt it for the weekend. Well, none of us could stand to leave it or give it to a shelter, so Dave and I brought the cat home, and with much persuading, my parents have generously decided to take in the kitty. He is very sweet and very good, and as you can see from the pictures, absolutely adorable.
Thanks for the great weekend guys!! Can't wait till next year:)

50 Things

So I saw this on Becky's blog and thought it looked like fun...so here goes:
1) I absolutely cannot get enough of books
2) I talk to Lola like she's a person and expect her to answer sometimes
3) My handwriting is one thing I constantly change/try to improve
4) I wish I could travel for a living
5) My favorite movie is "Breakfast at Tiffany's"
6) My biggest pet peeve is when people leave their blinker on and never turn
7) I love to write
8) The first CD I bought was REM "Monster"
9) I read James and the Giant Peach 9 times in secnd grade
10) Trashy magazines ( Us Weekly) are my guilty pleasure
11) I am incapable of sticking to a budget, just ask Dave
12) I do have a list of things I want to do/accomplish before I die
13) I am terrified of heights
14) My first memory is of falling into a fountain at Chesterfield mall when I was 3
15) In my family, we left Santa a beer instead of milk and I never thought it was strange until other people told me so:)
16) In almost every dream I have at night, I can fly
17) Sending people cards is one of my favorite things
18) I can't wrap a box to save my life
19) I've had braces twice
20) I'm obsessed with cleaning underneath my fingernails
21) I hate talking on the phone
22) Shopping is my favorite passtime
23) I love scary movies, but I always have nightmares later
24) Autumn is my favorite season
25) Halloween is my favorite holiday
26) I love to sing but you'll rarely hear me do it because I think I"m terrible
27) I have a very impressive collection of purses
28) One of my biggest fears is not being able to have kids
29) I need to go to Starbucks rehab
30) I have very few close girl friends
31) I would love to live abroad someday
32) I talk/laugh in my sleep a lot
33) Target is one of my favorite stores
34) I cannot stand having dry skin, so if you ever need lotion, I'm your girl
35) I hate to exercise
36) I'm a total homebody
37) I'm always cold
38) I tend to ask random questions at random times
39) Sleeping is one of my favorite things to do
40) Making the decision to get married is the best thing I've ever done
41) I have freakishly long arms
42) People used to call me "Pretzel" in grade school
43) I hate ketchup
44) I am a wino in every sense of the word and proud of it
45) As a kid, I read the entire "Fear Street" series by RL Stein
46) I'd love to be in kindergarten again if even for a day
47) I can name every teacher I've ever had
48) I know the capital of every state in the USA
49) I collect quotes
50) It took me forever to think of stuff for this list:)

Family Time!!

So this past Saturday Dave convinced me to step out of my prissy box (which I'm quite content in)
and we went hiking at Babler Park. It was great to get out and get some exercise. We took Lola along
and she carried her backpack...yes, the dog has a backpack. As a "working" breed, they like to be able
to haul things during long walks, so we filled it up with her water bowl, water, our keys, phones, etc.
The hike was great, as was the scenery. However, I quickly discovered on Sunday that I had been seriously
attacked by chiggers!!! Gross!!!!! Dave and I counted the bites tonight and I'm hanging in there around 65
or 70. Needless to say, the itching is unbearable and I will not be venturing into the woods anytime soon
wearing anything short of a full suit of armor.
I'm also posting some pictures of my new niece, Stella. Corey came home this weekend and brought the
lastest edition to the family. She is part Lab and part Charpe(don't know if I spelled that right). Anyway, she
is absolutely adorable and has a very sweet disposition. Can't wait to get her and Lola together!
Also, just want to say congrats to Stevie and Jessie on their new baby girl, Ayden! Can't wait to meet her.

Pictures

Here are some of the pics I promised in my last blog...
There are a few of Dave and I from our anniversary
and of course, one of my girl...

And I'm Back...

Yes, I know it's been awhile since my last posting. Thanks to those of you ( you know who you are) who have harrassed me all the way bugging me to post. We finally got a new camera for our anniversary, so I can finally put pictures up.
Quite a bit has happened in the last 6 months. I got a new job working at the National System in advertising and I'm loving every minute of it! I'm working on the Suzuki account doing co-op and compliance. In a nutshell, our department is responsible for making sure all the crazy dealers are making legal advertising according to the manufacturer's guidelines. Sounds boring, but is actually really interesting.
Let's see what else...Dave is doing really well. He's busy at work and is keeping himself busy around here doing some improvements. Lola, my adorable daughter, is insane and keeps getting bigger all the time. I have some picutres up of her, with a video to come...
Dave and I just celebrated our first anniversary, which was very exciting. He surprised me with dinner at a really great restaurant called Harvest. If you're in STL and you haven't tried it yet, it's phenomenal. We invested in a new camera and have been taking pictures non-stop. I put up a pic of the fresh cake-topper we got courtesy of the bakery that messed it up at our wedding:) Needless to say, it was delicious. And it even had the right initials this time.
Congrats to Nate and Becky who just found out today that they're having a little girl!!! Serves Nate right after all the females he's harrassed in his day.
More updates to come!

Whew!

That word pretty much sums up life right now. The holidays are over, New Years has come and gone and now I'm staring at my Christmas tree trying to work up the motivation to take it down. Our holidays were great and I hope everyone else's were too. We took it easy on New Years and stayed home and just had a few friends over. It was nice to be away from the craziness and the crowds. We spent New Years day with our small group at Nate and Becky's. The boys were, of course, glued to the television. The girls, however, ventured out of the house and saw "The Holiday". Definitely a chick flick...would not reccomment taking boys to see it. So now, it's back to work and real life. Boo!!!!