xmas and new years and pictures galore!
This Holiday season we had many merry moments to celebrate :D
December 16th I received my PRAXIS scores and found that I passed with flying colors the first time (yay! The math section was prepared for by months of studying! thank goodness that is OVER!) and then it was on to FINALS (ha all passed) and grades - all A's and B's! Finally the break and all the good things that go with it!
Like....
Matt's company Holiday Party
A family style dinner caught us off guard - we had never had such a restaurant experience before! But it was yummy and generous haha - we were sure we were to choose one of each option for each course, but were surprised by having BOTH! Apple wood bacon wrapped fillet mignon AND cedar seared Salmon - oh my! Wildfire grill comes highly recommended from us :D We are so happy to be part of such a fabulous company and really look forward to the upcoming years with IST.
The following Monday was a jam packed day - one final FINAL - Climatology- for Ginger, and then off to pick up Dad for a road trip up to the Pennsylvania Amish /Dutch country for a trip through the National Christmas Center ^__^
Tony was in love with the 5 and 10 cent store recreation and enjoyed telling me about the toys he had as a child and demonstrating how they operated :D It was neat to know that we had some of the same toys, like a little magnetic fishing game!
After returning to Annapolis - which is soooo beautiful during the Christmas season - Matt and I met up with Matt's youngest sister, Beth, and her boyfriend, Chris, to stroll around and to get dinner at an Annapolitan Restaurant - Buddy's Crabs and Ribs :)
On to the Christmas parties!
Christmas Eve is spent with the family I spent ever so much time with as a young adult, my BFF Brooke's family :D Lee family Christmas eve dinner is a treasured tradition and every year the food gets better and better!
This year we collaborated on the yule log :D I made the hedgehogs (devils food cake bodies with marzipan faces and a honey chocolate ganache with almond quills!) and the meringue mushrooms ^__^ Gayla fried the mouth watering risotto and cheese recipe that she and Brooke perfected!
Christmas day is usually full of traveling for Matt and I - but I am still having a few medical limitations that have made me cut out some extras, I hope next Christmas will find me back to myself and back to the thousands of houses we used to visit, because we do miss them!
This Christmas was extra special for the Ridgely family because we have welcomed a new baby girl, Brooke Isabella, to the family! JT , Debbi and Casey have the sweetest gift possible, a beautiful , healthy baby! We adore her!!!
Our own "Christmas" celebration was delayed until Saturday, work and the hustle of the season tired us both out! But giant gummies and other treats perked us back up!
The cats enjoyed their special catnip treat
The Eastern Atlantic Tree Squid! or E.A.T.S. for short! lol
The cats also enjoyed the flashing ball that was a gift from Tony!
It was a very merry Christmas for all!
Our next fun excursion was to a midnight movie screening of "The Mother of Invention" in which our friend Andy Bowser was both a lead actor and director! It was hilarious and touching. I hope everyone has the chance to see it :) We arrived a biiiiiiit early, haha (2 hours) so before the show we headed over to an old teenage hangout...
haha! Were I had my first banana split! And Matt had a fancy coffee to help him stay awake!
New Years extravaganza!!!
We headed back up to PA to spend the Last of 2008 with the West Philadelphia Orchestra, and to rock in the new year with a generous friend from Suitland, Balkan breakfast foods and GOGOL BORDELLO!
Balloons, confetti, buckets of wine (LOL) it was an amazing show! (Taken with Matt's cell phone!)
The countdown!
We stayed the night on the loverly Sara's couch and shared the cheese platter we brought as a gift, for breakfast :D
Then it was time to head to downtown Philly for the Mummer's Parade!
We had a great time, even though it was FREEZING!
We drove back down to our Baltimore, Happy that the monumental winds had postponed the new years fireworks to new years day instead of eve, we have gone to them almost every year we have lived here!
I am a sucker for fireworks, what can I say?
Later that night we had a fantastically fun night with Daniel and Ashley!!! Sharing gifts - and oh such wonderfully fun gifts they were ! Thank you a thousand times over! and Indian food, Wii games and MUCH laughter! All in all such a sensational begining to a new year!
Exhale! phew!
1/4/2009 more merriment in our happy holiday hustling! My mom's ! to exchange some truly surprising and touching gifts!
and then to Matt's mom's for cropping and so that Matt could help his dad and then on to the last bits of our exciting holiday; Garden of Lights at Brookeside gardens
and after I went to work and got out at 12:30 am, Matt and I concluded all the fun at Paper Moon Diner - a favorite of mine and a first for Matt!
I think we did a fine job of finishing up the year, and of ringing in the new with joy and togetherness that we hope to carry on all this year!
December 16th I received my PRAXIS scores and found that I passed with flying colors the first time (yay! The math section was prepared for by months of studying! thank goodness that is OVER!) and then it was on to FINALS (ha all passed) and grades - all A's and B's! Finally the break and all the good things that go with it!
Like....
Matt's company Holiday Party
A family style dinner caught us off guard - we had never had such a restaurant experience before! But it was yummy and generous haha - we were sure we were to choose one of each option for each course, but were surprised by having BOTH! Apple wood bacon wrapped fillet mignon AND cedar seared Salmon - oh my! Wildfire grill comes highly recommended from us :D We are so happy to be part of such a fabulous company and really look forward to the upcoming years with IST.
The following Monday was a jam packed day - one final FINAL - Climatology- for Ginger, and then off to pick up Dad for a road trip up to the Pennsylvania Amish /Dutch country for a trip through the National Christmas Center ^__^
Tony was in love with the 5 and 10 cent store recreation and enjoyed telling me about the toys he had as a child and demonstrating how they operated :D It was neat to know that we had some of the same toys, like a little magnetic fishing game!
After returning to Annapolis - which is soooo beautiful during the Christmas season - Matt and I met up with Matt's youngest sister, Beth, and her boyfriend, Chris, to stroll around and to get dinner at an Annapolitan Restaurant - Buddy's Crabs and Ribs :)
On to the Christmas parties!
Christmas Eve is spent with the family I spent ever so much time with as a young adult, my BFF Brooke's family :D Lee family Christmas eve dinner is a treasured tradition and every year the food gets better and better!
This year we collaborated on the yule log :D I made the hedgehogs (devils food cake bodies with marzipan faces and a honey chocolate ganache with almond quills!) and the meringue mushrooms ^__^ Gayla fried the mouth watering risotto and cheese recipe that she and Brooke perfected!
Christmas day is usually full of traveling for Matt and I - but I am still having a few medical limitations that have made me cut out some extras, I hope next Christmas will find me back to myself and back to the thousands of houses we used to visit, because we do miss them!
This Christmas was extra special for the Ridgely family because we have welcomed a new baby girl, Brooke Isabella, to the family! JT , Debbi and Casey have the sweetest gift possible, a beautiful , healthy baby! We adore her!!!
Our own "Christmas" celebration was delayed until Saturday, work and the hustle of the season tired us both out! But giant gummies and other treats perked us back up!
The cats enjoyed their special catnip treat
The Eastern Atlantic Tree Squid! or E.A.T.S. for short! lol
The cats also enjoyed the flashing ball that was a gift from Tony!
It was a very merry Christmas for all!
Our next fun excursion was to a midnight movie screening of "The Mother of Invention" in which our friend Andy Bowser was both a lead actor and director! It was hilarious and touching. I hope everyone has the chance to see it :) We arrived a biiiiiiit early, haha (2 hours) so before the show we headed over to an old teenage hangout...
haha! Were I had my first banana split! And Matt had a fancy coffee to help him stay awake!
New Years extravaganza!!!
We headed back up to PA to spend the Last of 2008 with the West Philadelphia Orchestra, and to rock in the new year with a generous friend from Suitland, Balkan breakfast foods and GOGOL BORDELLO!
Balloons, confetti, buckets of wine (LOL) it was an amazing show! (Taken with Matt's cell phone!)
The countdown!
We stayed the night on the loverly Sara's couch and shared the cheese platter we brought as a gift, for breakfast :D
Then it was time to head to downtown Philly for the Mummer's Parade!
We had a great time, even though it was FREEZING!
We drove back down to our Baltimore, Happy that the monumental winds had postponed the new years fireworks to new years day instead of eve, we have gone to them almost every year we have lived here!
I am a sucker for fireworks, what can I say?
Later that night we had a fantastically fun night with Daniel and Ashley!!! Sharing gifts - and oh such wonderfully fun gifts they were ! Thank you a thousand times over! and Indian food, Wii games and MUCH laughter! All in all such a sensational begining to a new year!
Exhale! phew!
1/4/2009 more merriment in our happy holiday hustling! My mom's ! to exchange some truly surprising and touching gifts!
and then to Matt's mom's for cropping and so that Matt could help his dad and then on to the last bits of our exciting holiday; Garden of Lights at Brookeside gardens
and after I went to work and got out at 12:30 am, Matt and I concluded all the fun at Paper Moon Diner - a favorite of mine and a first for Matt!
I think we did a fine job of finishing up the year, and of ringing in the new with joy and togetherness that we hope to carry on all this year!