The Parkers

a lovely long weekend

Cheers! Carrie and Andrew came to visit!

We went to dinner at the Porter in Little 5 Points. The cozy atmosphere was quite perfect for a cold January night. A beer list of 430 beers was a little overwhelming though!

The boys played video games and watched kung fu movies while Carrie and I discussed baby shower ideas (for Michelle's upcoming shower!!) and snuggled in bed with Toby, chatting about anti-aging wrinkle cream, ha! We drank coffee and ate scones before Brian left for work this morning. Andrew left to spend some time with his family who also live here, while Carrie and I sat in our pajamas on the couch until noon, flipping through decorating books and continuing to catch up on life.. It was wonderful!

And then they left. And here I sit. Tissues, hot tea, and sweater boots. Yes, I have ANOTHER cold. This has been the year of sickness for me! There are so many sick people at work, and I sat in a 3 hour IEP meeting in my tiny office with a parent who was sneezing and blowing her nose. I guess it's that time of year? I'm thankful I don't have the stomach bug that is also going around!

today

This weekend was pretty low key, which was actually quite nice. The first week back to work after Christmas break is always crazy, and this year was no exception. I am supposed to be training for this half marathon in March.. I've been doing fairly well with training, but this week it was just too much to come home and run after work. I'm back on schedule though! I ran 4.5 miles yesterday and 6 miles today. Toby has been the best little training partner. He gets SO EXCITED to go for a run. Sometimes when I really don't want to go (but know I need to), I'll ask him because his enthusiasm helps get me going. We ran today through the rain. Poor Toby had to shake the water off of him every half mile. I've also been listening to The Hunger Games on audio, which has really helped take my mind off of everything else. Here's sweet Toby resting in his favorite spot by the door after our run today.

happy new year!

Last night we had a fun little New Year's Eve celebration at Julie and Josiah's apartment! It was so wonderful celebrating the new year with friends. We made lots of yummy food, played some Settlers, and watched the ball drop while drinking champagne!

I am already looking forward to what this year will bring.. a trip to visit my parents in LA, my first half marathon, my sister's college graduation, the birth of my dear friend Michelle's first baby, and who knows what else! Happy 2012!!

pinterest inspiration

So like everyone else in the world, I have been completely obsessed with pinterest for the past several months. (Where was it when I was planning my wedding??) I love pinning crafty things and decorating ideas. We have this big wall in our living room that I have been wanting to turn into a collage wall. I slowly started collecting empty frames and antique platters.. I didn't really have a plan, but I wanted it to feel unsymmetrical but balanced. I really like the way it turned out! I'm sure I'll be changing things, but for now, it works.

I'm planning on painting the TV stand.. My father-in-law made it years ago along with our coffee table (which I painted). He hates both pieces and threatens to chop them up for fire wood every time he visits.

I'm also obsessed with the chevron print. If I could have it in every room, I would. I ordered some fabric and sewed these pillows. They're usually the floor because Toby sleeps in these chairs, and the pillows make it too crowded for him. :)

See? Too crowded.. The pillow was on the floor seconds later.

I got these books for my birthday and Christmas. So lovely and full of decorating inspiration.

I took these pics with our new SLR camera that we got from Brian's parents for Christmas. LOVE it.

friends!!

One of the greatest things about living in Atlanta is that everyone has a connection to this city. I am thankful that my sweet friend Emily is from Marrietta, so every Christmas she visits her mom who still lives there! This means that I get to see her! We met at Cafe Intermezzo for dinner and dessert. Yes, dessert. Even after all of the holiday sweets, we had to indulge in a slice of cake. Don't go here unless you want dessert. It's amazing. I should have taken a picture of the dessert bar. Thanks for making time to hang out, Emily!

Last night, Brian and I drove up to Greenville to have dinner with the Days! They were in town visiting Andrew's parents. It was SO good to see them and just what we all needed! We ate at Chicora Alley.. Carrie and I branched out from our usual fish tacos and got the shrimp tacos... it was the goat cheese that did it. Add goat cheese to anything and it tastes better.

Carrie and Andrew! They're first married Christmas!

The city was still all lit up for Christmas. So festive.

They boys and their chucks...

After dinner, we grabbed some coffee and walked around the town... Brian and I had never been to Greenville. It's so cute! We'll have to come back again during the day.

Love!!

Christmas in Ormond

We left Leesburg on Friday night and headed over to Ormond for Christmas with my side of the family. We were welcomed with taco soup for dinner and then watched home videos with Dan for the first time. Lots of laughs... "My heart, my heart!"

Dan & Nat with Toby.

We took both dogs to the dog beach on Saturday. Toby hadn't been to beach since his first visit as a puppy. He hated it then, so we thought we'd give it another try now that he was older.

We were so excited that he liked the water! He wasn't actually swimming, but went a lot deeper than we expected him to go. Walter was so funny with all his jumps and splashes.

And then the waves from a boat came and ruined everything. So sad. Toby remains scared of the ocean.

Things kept getting worse. My dad took Walter for a walk, and he sliced his paw in an oyster bed. Lots of blood. While we were all focusing on tending to Walter's wound, Silas jumped in the ocean with all of his clothes on. My dad carried Walter and Tiffany carried Silas (naked and wrapped in a towel), and we all headed home. Dog beach disaster.

With nine people in our family who have very different schedules, I was so thankful that it worked out for all of us tobe together on Christmas Eve. Mom made Magu's manicotti we sat around playing games. Manna and Papa read Silas a Christmas Eve book before he went home that night.

Scott and Dad playing video games.

John, Tiffany, and Silas on Christmas morning!

Our little family of three on Christmas day. It was 80 degrees that day!

This was the last time I will see my parents until probably April. :( They are moving to Los Angeles in two weeks for fifteen months! I am so excited to visit them for spring break! I've never been to LA before!

Christmas in Leesburg

It's really weird to think that this was the third Christmas for me and Brian since we've been married! This year we headed down to Leesburg, FL to celebrate Christmas a few days early with Brian's whole family. We continued traditions that were started when Brian was a kid... Like driving through Christmas Tree Lane. This year we crammed nine people into a mini van so we could all be together. Memories were definitely made. :)

I went a little crazy with cookies this year.. Along with about four other kinds, I had to make sugar cookies. My favorite. I iced them for six hours straight and loved every minute of it.