Still In The Christmas Spirit!

I just took this picture of a few ornaments on our family Christmas tree... Christmas may be over...maybe it was even last year! But I'm still in the Spirit of the Season! How about you all? My family usually puts our tree up a few days before Christmas & leaves it up into the New Year! I'm so glad we don't take everything down the day after Christmas...there's still plenty of time to enjoy the festivities & the joy of the holidays!

I'm scheduled to fly back to the land of snow & ice {a..k.a Germany} on Wednesday & I am not ready!  Brrr!  I don't want to leave my family & I certainly don't want to freeze my keester off anymore in Deutschland!  Eek!  But I do miss my ponies :)

Psst -- Ignore the date on the picture!  Must fix that in the camera settings!

Goodbye, Germany!

Tschuss, Deutschland! Hello, America! I'm back in Colorado with my wonderful family & the beautiful Rocky Mountains! Well...I've actually been back for about a week, but I've been too caught up in the festivities to blog :)  We had a wonderful Christmas here, & I'll definitely write about it more later!  For now, my sister & I are about to go through my late Grami's knitting needles & patterns together -- a task that might get teary, but is really going to make my heart warm!

I hope you all are having a cozy & heartwarming day yourselves!  Make these last few days of 2010 full of beautiful memories!

In A Winter Fairytale

Except there's too much snow! Back at home in Colorado, the sun comes out after a snowstorm & melts it all away, leaving beautiful sunny days with clear roads! Aaah, the thought! But here in Deutschland, we never see Mr. Sun. He goes into hiding for the season & our snow, which falls down on us almost daily, piles up & leaves us with mountains of ice in our yards & on our streets. Lucius, my little social bug, has realized he can climb up & over the snow pile {my yard is apparently the community snow bin} to go visit any friends that happen to be out at the time. Needless to say, Lucius now gets taken out on a leash. I'm ready for Spring!

Thankfully, my doggies are pretty lazy & like to nap all day!  Aren't the cute?!  :)  I loved watching them play in the snow in the yard before the pile was too big.  They love it!  I'm dreaming of an American home with a yard in the back of the house & a tall fence for privacy!

My Mom flew back to beautiful Colorado yesterday, & I'll be following her here before long to go home for Christmas!  Can you believe it's so soon?!  We had such a wonderful time together, staying in where it's warm when the snow was madly falling & then going out to explore when the weather allowed for it!

Here's a picture of me at the Rothenburg Christkindlmarkt, & I'll post more soon!  Happy Holidays from my very snowy winter wonderland in Germany!  ♥  Pray that this snow somehow melts for me, would ya?!  :)

Living In A Gingerbread House

Wouldn't this little home be just right for the Christmas Season?! I think that it looks like a real life Gingerbread House! Oh, dreams of holly & tinsel & gingerbread men. After a second trip to a Christkindlmarkt with my Mom {I'll post pics soon!}, I'm certainly feeling jolly & festive! Are you?! Have you decorated your home yet & done all your Christmas shopping? I've been so good this year... I only have one person left to buy presents for ♥

These cheery photos from J'adore

Easy Peasy Paper Star Ornaments!

Is it as cold at your house as it is here at mine? Need a little project to keep you busy indoors?  Check this one out!  I made these beautiful paper stars today & they really add Christmas spirit to my living room windows for all the neighborhood to see!  Try them for yourself -- they're so easy!

Happy Thanksgiving! // Apart, But Still So Thankful

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! I hope that your houses are filled with loved ones & your kitchens full of your favorite holiday foods!

As for me, I may be apart from my sweetie today & my wonderful family as well, but that doesn't mean my heart isn't full of thanks for all God has blessed me with this year! Even when the most treasured things in life aren't right beside you, there is still oh so much to be thankful for!

Don's safety while he's been deployed,

My family's health & happiness,

Our cozy home & our cute little Mini Cooper,

Layla & Lucius, our two lovable Danes who keep me company,

& all the little things that make me smile, from new shoes to scented candles to delicious food!

Even the little things are blessings...the fact that we have the money to buy them & not just what we need.

Photos From Domino Magazine, Martha Stewart Magazine, & Southern Living Magazine

More than anything, I wish Don was here with me & that we were with our families today to eat a huge Thanksgiving dinner, but God's blessings are everywhere I look!  And next year, I'll be with the ones I love for this delicious holiday!  :)

I'm going to miss my Mom's apple dumplings today!  Mmm!  What are your favorite Thanksgiving foods & traditions?!  Does your family watch the Thanksgiving Day Parade?  Football games?  Oh, have a blessed day!  ♥

Boo! Scare Me Straight To May! A German Halloween...

Boo! Happy Halloween! Hmm, if I could have one wish for this holiday, it would be for someone to scare me straight to the day when Don will be home from this deployment for good! That's totally possible, right? Totally possible :)  I hope that you all are out gathering delicious candy while wearing cutesy costumes right now! What did you dress up as this year?  I was myself.  Here in Germany, the festivities {as far as I'm concerned} have ended, the lights are out, the doors locked & my rouladens closed up.  Wait, they've been that way pretty much all night!  Why?

Church for me is at 3:30 each Sunday {we have to share the Post Chapel!}, & tonight we had dinner afterward.  I didn't get home until later, so I didn't bother handing out candy this year.  Plus, since I live in a German neighborhood with only a handful of other Americans, almost all of our Trick-Or-Treaters aren't American.  Let's just say that they take the whole "trick or treat" saying seriously.  Vandalism has been known to happen.  When I didn't open the door once tonight, I heard a bit of commotion from the crowd of German teenagers outside.  Let's hope my front porch looks the same in the morning.

So inside I stayed, watching Mad Men, knitting, snuggling with my dogs, & all the while thinking of my sweetheart who is still en route to his final destination & tired from the lack of a quiet place to sleep.  Oh, I want him home again.

I'm ready for that scare now!  Is this deployment over?  BOO!

Don't forget to enter your blog in my new Saturday Around The World listing for a chance to be featured here on {Amanda & Don}!  You can enter until Tuesday @ midnight EST.   I love reading your comments & seeing your numbers grow!

Images from Sogni e Sorrisi, We Heart It, & Front Porch Ideas & More

Because Of The Brave!

After Church this afternoon {yes, my Church meets at 3pm! We have to share the Post Chapel, you see!}, I will be celebrating this wonderful day on Post while watching fireworks & The Lieutenant Dan Band! You know, Gary Sinise, Lt. Dan from Forrest Gump! Now there is a proud supporter of our incredible Military! Thank you! ♥

O'er the land of the free, & the home of the brave!  Happy Fourth of July, everyone!  What a wonderful holiday this is--without a doubt one of my favorites.  When I was little, I enjoyed the ice cream & the fireworks, the day with my family, the songs.  As I grew older, especially knowing more about my Dad's service in the Air Force during Vietnam, then after September 11th, I developed an emotional connection with this holiday.  Goosebumps all over my arms during the singing of the National Anthem, little tears in my eyes as I watched the people of our incredible country show their patriotism.  Now....well, now this holiday is even more personal.  Its very meaning embodies the most important part of my life: my husband, my soldier, his men.  Now, I cannot help but be overcome during each song, during each wave of our American Flag, during the fireworks shows.  How could I not?  My heart is far away fighting for our freedom & for the freedom of others.  And I couldn't be more proud!  Yes, it's tough, but it's what I want.  I want him.  And I'll always stand proudly by his side.

A photo of my husband's men shooting in Afghanistan.  There is nothing to compare to our brave soldiers!  ♥

Please, today as you laugh with friends & family, as you eat your ice cream & watch your fireworks, please stop for a moment & remember all those who have dedicated their lives to serving our beautiful America.  Please say a prayer for the families of those who have given it all to protect our freedom.  Please, if you see a soldier this year, give him or her your brightest smile.  Let them know that their selfless service does not go unappreciated.

God Bless America,
Land that I love.
Stand beside her, and guide her
Through the night with a light from above.
From the mountains, to the prairies,
To the oceans, white with foam
God bless America, My home sweet home!

Happy Mother's Day

A very gray morning & a somehow chilly 50 degrees at 9:30am.  The dogs are fed & now fast asleep in the living room.  I'm catching the bus to Post once I finish this, excited about picking up my new VAIO laptop & getting in a good workout at the gym.  Hopefully, our second car will be out of the shop soon so that I won't need the bus anymore!

Happy Mother's Day to all the wonderful Mommies out there!  And the Mommies-To-Be, as well!  Being a Mom is one of the most incredible jobs that there is, in my opinion {right up there with our amazing soldiers!}, & I cannot wait until it's my turn!  When the time is right, of course.

My mother is an incredible woman who also happens to be one of my very best friends.  As I grow up, I see more & more in her that I admire.  She is wise, loving, gentle, funny, loyal, caring, inspiring, motivating, trustworthy, generous, & oh so many other things that make her the best Mother in the world!  Thank you, Mom, for making me the woman that I am today!  Because of you, I've always wanted to be a Mom :)  I love you & look up to you in many ways!

And for my Mother-In-Law, thank you for raising such an incredible son!  You sure did a very very good job, & I'm so lucky to have him now as my husband & best friend!  Thank you, too, for all of the support that you continually give to us; it never goes unnoticed!  You are wonderful!  We love you!

To show how much we love our Mothers, Don & I did a little something for them that I would like to share...

Now, how do you top that?!  {Hooray for online photo editing sites!}

“All that I am, or hope to be, I owe to my angel mother.”  {Abraham Lincoln}

“A mother is the truest friend we have, when trials heavy and sudden, fall upon us; when adversity takes the place of prosperity; when friends who rejoice with us in our sunshine desert us; when trouble thickens around us, still will she cling to us, and endeavor by her kind precepts and counsels to dissipate the clouds of darkness, and cause peace to return to our hearts.”  {Washington Irving}