First Snow.
"When I no longer thrill to the first snow of the season, I'll know I'm growing old."
—Lady Bird Johnson
Our First Christmas Tree + Dark Chocolate Pistachio Bark
Ahhhh, the smell of pine is in the air, which means that our first Christmas tree has made it's arrival! It's a bit quirky with too few lights and a lopsided lean, but it definitely makes our first Christmas as a married couple extra cozy and festive.
And, just because I know you might be looking for a new holiday recipe, here's a super easy yet fantastic one: dark chocolate pistachio bark. Nathan and I brought it to a Christmas party last night and ate all the leftovers today. So good! (P.S. Thanks to Nathan for taking these pictures of me "cooking." He's already ready for his second shooting role next year. :))
The In-Between House.
Our wedding countdown was at T-7 days as we drove away from Cincinnati up 71 N towards Cleveland. It was a beautiful, blue-sky day, and driving to an unfamiliar place made it hard to believe that in a week we'd be married. It felt more like we were on vacation. It's really kind of crazy how everything fell into place. It still seems like one of those pinch-yourself situations. Nathan got the job and we found a place to live just days before tying the knot and jetting off to Hawaii for our honeymoon.
On that day we headed north on 71, we had planned a whirlwind afternoon of looking at temporary living arrangements with a friend of my boss' (shout out to Greg Erlanger and the EZ Sales Team at Keller Williams!). Our goal was purely to find a place to live for a couple months while we looked at houses, and after picking a cute duplex mainly by a game of eenie, meenie, miney, mo, we felt at ease that we had a roof over our heads for the next six months.
I didn't think about the fact, however, that this would be our very first place together. That even if it was just another bump on the road to owning our first house (because isn't that what comes after marriage ... a house?), it was a BIG bump and one that I shouldn't take for granted. I tend to get caught up in the milestones and sometimes forget to stop and appreciate life in the in between.
So, here is our in-between house. I know this won't mean much to a lot of you, but like Katelyn James says, this blog is a scrapbook of my life as much as it is part of my business. So, please bear with me and our very bare duplex. I know it doesn't look like much, but it means a lot to us.
Now that we're on our way to owning our very first house (yes, I got my milestone), I know this duplex will always hold a special place in our hearts. I hope that when we drive past it in five, 10, even 50 years, we become awash with all the good emotions that come with a first place.
Haha, we got this canvas made of one of our favorite wedding pictures, and even though we're starting to pack again, I insisted Nathan hang it even though it looks ridiculous on that wall all by itself.
Please notice what we eat for dinner when Nathan is in charge.
The master bedroom.
The guest bedroom that serves as Nathan's makeshift man cave ... doesn't it look like it? Haha! (P.S. What do you do with your childhood stuffed animals when you get married?)