our first christmas

we had our own first christmas morning together as mr and mrs nielsen.

my favorite gift from my husband was a snow globe with our picture inside.

sweet bob looking festive as she watched us open presents with the nielsens.

we wore our matching pj's for christmas dinner.

everyone wore pj's!

chuck bbq'd our christmas hamburgers in the pouring rain.

the lovely christmas dinner table. 

and now i have to wait a WHOLE year more...

the eve of christmas

We spent christmas eve this year at the Moore's home (my sister michelle married logan moore, and we are all good friends with the family) The salisburys and some of the schroeders were also there. we ate a lot of good food, shared stories, and sang christmas songs. it was a good time!

Dyanna had us all share a fun christmas memory.

Alanna laughs so hard she cries since being pregnant.

Michelle laughs so hard at Alanna that she cries too.

steph jumps on the love sac.

chuck does too.

we think it's fun.

Dyanna played piano while we sang christmas carols.

the schroeders (minus a couple) sang to us.

and that's how the night before christmas went. 

christmas eve eve

christmas bells are ringing!! we're going to the temple tonight to hear the schroeders sing, then off to christmas card lane to see the wonderful lights. (anyone wanna come?? text me!) i work tomorrow morning and then tomorrow night santa finally comes (SANTA!! i KNOW him!!) and we get to spend the evening at the Moore's beautiful home...i love it, it feels so christmassy and happy at their place! Greg and I plan to come back home to sleep and have our own little christmas morning together for our first christmas as married people. Christmas day we get to talk to chris in russia, and then family dinner at the Nielsens. I miss my family!!!! It just doesn't feel complete being here for christmas, but I'll make the best of it. home sick much? indeed i am. well folks...i hope you all have a merry christmas and a happy new year!!

bye buddyyy....hope you find your dad.
haha oh elf.

obsessive decorating disorder

thats what i have. i'm never satisfied with any one room in my little home. okay, so maybe i like the livingroom, but other than that...it's just not working for me. solution: redecorate. although this takes time, money and creative skills that i seem to be lacking these days, i am going to take on this challange and satisfy my eyeballs once and for all. i actually already started with the guest bathroom. bye bye yellow...hello red black and white. i am indeed pleased with the outcome. next tasks...our bedroom and the kitchen.  As for the bedroom, we are getting a new bed that i ADORE from the family i work for. i just feel like this new piece of furniture deserves a beautiful duvet from anthropologie. i am in love with what that store has to offer and they always have decent sale items.  fingers crossed for a little christmas money right? my kitchen is VERY white...anyone have any suggestions on what i can do to spruce that sucker up? i am fully in need of help on this one. thanks friends.

and they just keep on comin...

so, if you read my blog, then you know my husband is not very good with his words. Well i will have to add to his list of "gregisms" because they happen quite frequent and they always make me laugh. Today while sitting in sacrament meeting at church, he looks up at all of the christmas decorations and whispers to me "isn't that a nice harth?" i'm all...."a WHAT?" he points at the decoration he's talking about and repeats "that harth is really nice!" my eyes start to water from holding in my laughter...i whisper back "yes greg...thats a really nice wreath!" oh i love him.

remember...

that one time... i had blonde hairs on my head? weird.

Happy Birthday!

My sweet little Vivien Claire is 3 today!!

Gag Nog

So, the husband and I busted out egg nog tonight to be festive. Holy disgusting. yet another creation that triggers the ol gag reflexes. Its been years since i've had the stuff, and even more years without rum included so I thought i'd take another stab at it. no thanks, i'll stick with milk and cookies.

i'm dreaming of a white christmas...

just like the ones I used to know. 

Can you guess what I want? snow. call me crazy, but I grew up with white on the ground this time of year and this holiday season just does not feel complete without it. A light dusting would satisfy my needs just fine. I never thought snow would be included in the things i miss from home, but looking back... it seems like perfection.

best xmas lights award goes to...

The Richenbachers. hands down. Well done Richenbacher family. They live in escondido, and if you reside nearby, i highly recommend taking a drive by some night this month. They live on Anaheim street, which is right off of Mary Lane. (take bear valley, the same street that north county mall is on). you will not be disappointed, and these pictures do not do it justice.

oh christmas tree, oh christmas tree...

I'm not gonna lie, we definitely had our tree up the day after Thanksgiving but due to my severe slacker status, picture are just now available for your viewing pleasure!  We bought our tree last year after christmas when we were newly engaged, so thank goodness we went through with the whole wedding thing or we'd be stuck with joint custody christmas items.   Those after-christmas sales were hard to pass up knowing we'd need all the goods for our own little christmas together this year. (thank you dear mother-in-law for insisting we load up on these items while they were super cheap!) and here is the finished product...

krispy kreme for the sugar lovers soul.

there's nothing like a quality circle of pure sugar to ease the soul when in need. I truly believe that these tasty treats can turn any bad day into pure bliss. Here's to krispy kreme!

december has finally arrived!

well folks. we bit the bullet and bought ourselves an early merry christmas greg and nikki present. it's a camera. a good one, and we love it. A wonderful investment i would say. once we have littles we will want quality pictures of the darling rugrats....not that there is a little nielsen on the way, don't get your hopes up quite yet.

On another Christmas note (shocking right!?) here is the difference between my husband and I. In stores around the holidays we are given a bazillion opportunities to support one cause or another, and i can never ever say no to someone asking me if I'd like to donate to a hungry family at christmas time or what have you. SO...we were in line at the grocery store and at the checkout as Greg was about to pay, the nice cashier man asked "would you like donate a dollar to the children's hospital this holiday season?" Greg looks up, shrugs and replies "uh, no thanks. i'm good." WHAT? my jaw dropped. what a grinch!! I was laughing at how "whatever" he was about it, but i just couldn't bring myself to say no to something like that.

tis the season

The seasons in my life go like this: spring, summer, fall and christmas. well folks, after tomorrow it is finally legal in this country to let the festivities begin. Although I have been going all out since november first, i am thrilled that the rest of america will now join me. tomorrow is america's day of thanks  and i say "america's" because canada celebrates thanksgiving in october...hence my tendency to celebrate christmas directly after halloween....in oh canada, christmas comes next. tomorrow we will start out with a little turkey bowl action, followed by a movie with the Nielsens (tradition), finishing off with a hearty turkey dinner complete with the jello salad that i am in charge of. ew.  nothing triggers my gag reflexes more than the thought of hospital food filled with chunks of fruit. i guess some people enjoy such creations. not me. We plan to tackle carlsbad outlet mall at midnight, and then some crack of dawn shopping in the wee hours of the morning to get our hands on those anticipated great sales. sales on items we would NEVER even consider purchasing under normal circumstances...what a waste. Our christmas tree is up, and we have started our shopping. i'm feeling  joyful and triumphant! happy thanksgiving everyone!

flashback.

i was looking at pictures of my sweet husband when he was a wee lad, and then had my dad send me some pictures of me when i was just a wee lass. It looks as though we will be sure to have fat, happy children....with afros.

november beach day.

november 15th 2008, a perfect day at the beach. Only in southern california. Gregory woke me up this morning asking if I'd like to go to IHOP, so after a hearty breakfast we hit the sand, and it was truly delightful. be jealous.

Tagged.

Favorite Person (outside of family)? I have a few. Ashleigh (so loyal and wonderful, one of my best friends always), Ashley Smith (my new favorite friend in this world) , Taryn, Ashley Pitts, and Em. (us girls go wayyyyyy back and they will always be at the top of my list)....so there you have it. the new and old.

Favorite Food? pasta (white sauce only), killer pizza from mars (space cowboy, or cluck rogers), carne asada fries from jilbertos. From the candy section of the food chart...i'd have to go with see's chocolate, swedish fish, gummi bears, sour patch watermelon slices and carmels.

Quirks about you?  ohhh one of the many, i cannot sleep with anything covering my feet. (socks, footed pajamas, sheets) this started when i was a wee lass...my mother would have to cut the feet out of my pajamas or i wouldn't wear them. 

Any regrets in life? Not so much.

Favorite Charity/Cause? i enjoy anything that raises money for cancer.

Favorite Blog recently? probably ashley smith's ode to jeremy. he WAS a pretty cute lad.

Something you can't get enough of? christmas christmas christmas. i think it, hear it and breathe it daily. music in my car, apple cider scent in our home, endless thoughts and plans in my brain. oh martha!! oh christmas!!

Worst Job you've ever had? I'm going to have to go with customer service at National Pen Company. takes the cake for sure.

What job would you pay not to have? dishwasher at a restaurant. ew.

Guilty Pleasure? ANTM, hills, BFF, 90210, and oddly enough....wheel of fortune.

Got any confessions? greg...i ate your last see's bordeaux chocolate. oops.

If you had $1000 dollars to spend on yourself how would you spend it? we would probably go on a cruise with ash and jeremy. sounds good to me.

Favorite thing about your house? It's bigger than the closet we were living in before, and we can paint the walls. 

Least favorite thing about your house? it's not ours. we don't own it and we don't have a backyard.

One thing you are bad at? directions. 

One thing you are good at? making scrambles eggs. i just am! they taste better than anyone else's.

If you could change one thing about your circumstances, what would it be? I would be able to go to oh canada and not get hassled at customs. oh what a joy it would be to go home for christmas.

Who would you like to meet someday? erin nelson.

What makes you feel sexy? haha probably when i have tights on. you know...JUST tights, hiked up over the belly button, before the dress or skirt is on. yeah. that. ....obviously kidding, i rarely feel like a sexy little mink when i sport sweatpants most days.

Who is your real life hero? My dad. he's the best!

What is the hardest part of your job? afternoons! taking all 3 kids places with all 3 now walking and exploring. they go in different directions and it drains my energy. i miss mornings, but i love playing with viv!

When are you most relaxed? when our home is tidy, i'm clean, and there is a good show or movie to watch!

What can you not live without? family and good friends.

Do you agree or disagree with the recent article that reported that blogs are authored by narcissists? haha i have yet to read this article, therefore have not yet developed an opinion.

Why do you blog? to keep family and friends up to date with whats going on in our lives, to keep in touch, to share thoughts and ideas.

Who are you tagging? michelle, ashleigh, ashley quist and kristi

apple cider, carmel apples and candy OH MY!

We did go to julian on saturday with jen and ryan and it was truly magnificent.  The drive was much longer than i remember, and we just could not wait in that massive lineup for mom's apple pie, but we did play in the leaves, eat more than we should have, and wonder around the crazy little shops. I am satisfied for another year.

leaves!

jen and i taking a break...obviously still stoked on the leaves.

carmel apples!

lovers in julian.

this is halloween!

Oh halloween, my third favorite holiday...we had a party last weekend. we played at our place for a bit, piled everyone into greg's nasty white "free candy" van, and hit the scaregrounds for a little haunted house action, then back to our place for a scary-ish movie, prom night... oh how it made me laugh. Not on my list of favorites, but it was fun! Greg and I dressed up as Juno and Bleaker. (as seen above) Tonight (real halloween) we are heading to escondido to greet some trick-or-treaters, carve some pumpkins and celebrate the festivities with a giant plate of carne asada fries. what fun! happy halloween family, friends and strangers who look at my blog!

Julian

These fall days aren't feeling so fall-ish in san diego, therefore we have planned a trip to the mountains. I not only long for the colorful leaves, crisp air and beautiful scenery, but also the sweet fudge, luscious carmel apples and world (okay, maybe just california) famous apple pie. 4 short days until i get to breathe the glorious Julian California air. expect pictures.

for the love of the blog

where is your cell phone? out on the table.

where is your significant other? right behind me

your hair color? dark brown

your mother? in heaven

your father? in canada

your favorite thing? christmas

your dream last night? i dont remember, but i'll tell you something...i woke up to gregory scratching the crap out of our mattress...i asked him what his problem was and showed him what he was doing...he got all flustered and said "digging.....obviously." hahaha OF COURSE he was. silly me.

your dream/goal? to have a house with a backyard for the littles to run around in.

the room you're in? the office.

your hobby? art

your fear? little creepy crawlies

where you want to be in six years? in a house with greg and maybe 2 littles.

where you were last night? home

what you're not? a boy

one of your wish-list items? adobe cs3

where you grew up? avonport nova scotia

the last thing you ate? i drank hot vanilla from coffee bean

what you are wearing? black uggs, jeans, purple shirt

your tv? will soon show the hills

your pet? not allowed

your computer? is new and wonderful!! oh 20 inch imac. you make me happy.

your mood? mellow yellow

missing someone? the oh canadians in my life.

your car? black mazda 3. 

something you're not wearing? goggles.

your favorite store? i have 4. nordstrom, american apparel, urban outfitters, lululemon

your summer? was lovely newlywedness.

love someone? gregory john

your favorite color? lately...purple and hot pink

last time you laughed? greg makes me laugh every 7.2 seconds most days.

last time you cried? when greg brought me ice cream last night, i was so excited my eyes watered.

I love everyones blog...so do this if you feel so inclined! (ok, i lied, i really dont love everyones blog...but anyone is welcome to do it.)

Gregisms

my sweet husband gregory sometimes gets his words mixed up. according to family and friends this has been a regular occurance throughout his entire life. I thought I would share with you a few examples. Some before i knew him, and some since. enjoy!

-greg attends his sunday school class one sunday as a wee lad. his parents ask him after class how it was. gregory responds saying "well the teacher always picks the girls to do everything and never the boys. she is SO puberty!" ...you mean prejudice? 

-at 14 greg was on a ferris wheel with some older girls and they asked him if he was a virgin gregory responds saying "no! i eat meat!"

these next are fairly recent....sad, but true.

-as gregory and some friends sit in a spa one friend speaks of her fingers getting super wrinkled beyond human tendencies. she explains that the same thing happens to her brother. greg then replies "hmm, it must be in your genitals" ....you mean GENES greg? haha

- we were on the computer and some picture popped up of a girl with seriously dimpled skin...greg looks with wide eyes and says "oh man! that girl has SO much glucose!" ...you mean cellulite???

- we were watching tv and a preview for a new keira knightly movie was playing...greg was all "she always does movies where she has to wear a boustrissis" haha oh gregory...those are called corsets!

i love my husband.

wedding day!

April 26th 2008