Christmas -- the most magical time of the year

Christmas felt like a 3 day special this year. On the eve of Christmas Eve, Robyn and Chris joined me for a visit to grandma & grandpa's. As usual, their set up at the house was lovely. When we were growing up, holidays at their house was the best because they went all out. Obviously, as the years went by, the decorations decreased. But, there's always a little bit of that magic there that I felt as a kid. (This is the same apartment my dad grew up in! He is the oldest of my grandparents' 4 children).

Later that night, I went back to Jonathan's as his Aunt Ro & Uncle Dom were coming in from Florida, as they do every Christmas.

Haha...goofy Grinch like face.

Christmas Eve was quickly upon us and I parted ways with Jonathan for the day/evening as I would be going to Long Island with my family. It's a Christmas Eve tradition for us and last year was the first time we didn't go so this year was extra special, with the return of the usual plans and Alexandra being pregnant and Amanda (my cousin) having a 5 month old. It was also the first time we'd be meeting Kaeleigh, the baby. Excitement all around!

Sleeping angel!

Haha...whose got the bigger belly?! ;-)

Kaeleigh is awake! She is gorgeous.

Kaeleigh with her Aunt Morgan.

I'm pretty sure my mom missed holding babies...after having 4 of them LOL

Kaeleigh was the star of the show.

Baby's first Christmas!

I wanted a good photo with her but this was the best we got because she was squiggling around LOL.

The evening wrapped around 9pm so I headed back to Queens via the LIRR with my mom and sister. The trains weren't running too well so by the time I got back to Jonathan's it was 11pm and everyone was pooped. But, it's common knowledge around these parts that I'm dating an elf (LOL) so we stayed up to 2am, wrapping presents for the next day. Needless to say, waking up the next morning, not even coffee could make me feel human. But presents? Oh yeah! Jonathan surprised me with a point and shoot camera (this one) that I've been wanting, among other things. He always knows exactly what to get me :D And I think it's safe to say he LOVED his Playstation 3, because he's been wanting that for...forever. Once we opened the gifts, we popped into the nearby church for awhile. I am very disappointed that I didn't go to the midnight Mass because the next morning, I knew we'd be pressed for time but I stupidly thought I'd wake up early enough LOL. But oh well, that's another story for another time. It was a lovely morning anyway. That afternoon we went to White Plains, to Jonathan's other aunt and uncle's house and had a delicious dinner with great company.

Johnny is the next Beethoven, don't ya think?

More gift opening when we got to Aunt Connie's. It's not pictured but she was generous enough to get me a small Coach bag -- I was floored!

The table was beautifully set.

Johnny sat long enough to watch an episode of his favorite character ever, Thomas the Tank Engine.

Jonathan's dad is clearly ready to eat! =P

It was easy to get him into his chair since he seemed to be in some sort of daze. Hehe.

The Ambrose Christmas tree was gorgeous! Photo credit goes to Jonathan.

I hung out with Jonathan's cousin Danielle in her room. She has the coolest set up -- any Disney fan would love it!

Look how neatly she lines up her cards!

A sweet shot of Jonathan and his cuz.

When we got back to Queens, Jonathan and I hit up my parents' house to see them before the night was over.

Haha...the things I make him pose for.

My reaction to Alex's gift LOL. It was a scrapbook + scrapbook accessories! Perfect for me -- especially because I wanted something to commemorate 2010. She knows me too well.

Much much later that night, after Robyn and I both got out of our respective theatres, we went back to Jonathan's house to open the remaining presents we had for each other. Plus Robyn and Jonathan had a little something for each other as well.

And the magical day was thus over.

I really have to thank everyone for their generous gifts this year. My parents, Jonathan's parents, his sister, his family, my family and friends (like Tiffany, John, Stephen, Wilfredo & Jenn) really made my day with their generosity (and company.)

movies & shows galore

This month, I have seen so many different movies and shows, I thought I'd post about them before I forget.

Love & Other Drugs pleasantly surprised me. Robyn and I have taken to watching movies with closed captioning in theaters so when she told me she and Tiffany had plans to see it, I jumped on board. It was more than just 'the-movie-where-Jake-Gyllenhaal-and-Anne-Hathaway-were-naked'. It was surprisingly moving. The first half played off like a comedy but the second half took a serious turn. Anne's Maggie the artist has early onset Parkinson's and Jake's Jamie the pharmaceutical rep falls for her, much to his (but not our) surprise. They both gave great performances, in which my sister bawled like a baby in the second half, LOL.

Tangled became my favorite movie of the year. One, I am a sucker for Disney movies and two, Mandy Moore and Zachary Levi (although in cartoon) have great chemistry. You all know the beloved tale of Rapunzel. Goldie-loooooong-locks stuck in a tower by the evil mother....I felt Disney put a fresh spin on a familiar tale. You have to see it for yourself to know what I mean but I will say, the end credits song is now my most played on my iTunes list!

I'm not sure why I agreed to see Burlesque when my sister suggested coming with her but I did. And boy...am I glad. It IS a cliched movie. I mean, small town girl makes it big, little girl with big voice...it's been done before. However, maybe it's because of a solid cast or because of Christina's pipes, whatever it was...I was sold. Great musical numbers (Express is a personal favorite) and great acting by everyone (cast also includes Cher, Stanley Tucci, Cam Gigandet, Kristen Bell). If campy movies involving music are your thing, by all means, see it! One website I read argues this movie isn't really campy enough to be a guilty pleasure but I disagree.

On the 5th, a group of us (thanks to John's coordinating) went to see Wintuk, a stunning display of "acrobatics amid flakes" as one website puts it, to tell the story of a boy's quest for snow. You really have to see it yourself to get how insanely talented these performers are!! Some of the stunts are truly mind boggling. I would have seriously injured myself doing any of them. Major props to John for suggesting we see this. Very sad Winktuk isn't coming back around for another run at Madison Square Garden.

Here comes St. Nick...

My favorite time of the year...

...when the houses are lit

...and the yard is ablaze

...and the wreath is hung with care.

The living room always seems to look better with this ol' thing in it, doesn't it?

It really is a time of reflection.

But of course, the gift giving isn't so bad either. I only have TWO more left to get on Wednesday and then I'm finished!! I might get a few extra little things to add but all in all, I'd say this is my most successful Christmas shopping experience yet.

One of my favorite parts of Christmas though, is seeing the Advent candles lit each week at Mass. It represents the period of waiting for Christ's birth. For other details, check out this great site here.

Jonathan was great about decorating the house for the season.

On the 10th, Stephen put together a Christmas dinner for a few friends and we had a nice turnout. The choice of locale was Portofino's. Jonathan and his family know the owner so he (as he does everyone) welcomed us with open arms. Very warm and accommodating man. Food was delicious, company was great...in short, great job done by Stephen!

Our host for the evening. I'm mad this photo came out so blurry but I didn't want to delete because Stephen still came out great LOL

That Saturday, Jonathan and I spent the majority of the day helping his sister and brother-in-law move stuff into their new home. It's a gorgeous house, the kind that makes you want one for yourself, haha. Neat fact about the place: former Brooklyn Dodger, Pee Wee Reese, used to live there!! We had fun putting up the tree and such. They were nice enough to treat us to dinner at the end of the day (I was so hungry, I think I ate like 3 helpings of Chinese food). And of course, seeing Johnny was one of the best parts of the day! The little guy is getting SO big and he looks so grown up with his hair cut. He's not even two and he knows all these words and such...whatever teacher gets him once he starts school is in for a real treat, hehe.

This month is like a whirlwind. Before we know it, 2011 will be here and this past year will be nothing but a memory.

SCARY.

And exciting.

extra thanks

In making a post about things I am thankful for (of course, it was only a partial list) I forgot to include my parents, who really should have been somewhere at the top because they are, and always will be, two of my favorite people in the world. From Day 1 (way back in the fall of 1985) they have made sacrifices for me and continue to do so. When I become a parent one day, I will have learned almost everything I know from them. And while I'm on the topic of parents, I have to give a big thank you to Jonathan's parents who are really one of a kind. They are very welcoming about the fact that I have made a nest for myself in their home. I lucked out on both spectrums of parental units LOL.

I'm also thankful for Cyber Monday for making my gift shopping bearable! I only bought Jonathan and Tiffany's gifts online but that was the two main ones I've been meaning to get. Feels good to knock those off the list. I may have to cut back on little things, like going to Starbucks every day for the next three weeks in order to afford all of this though haha. Starting to feel like Mrs. Claus....no complaints though.

How cute is this photo? Tiffany took it while I was taking care of Parker & Moka Thanksgiving night. I find it to be hilarious. Those two are fascinated by everything. So naturally blowing my nose was very interesting. Cuties.

thankful...

Thank you Jesus, for giving Your life for us so that we may know your love. Thank you God, for putting me here on this earth. Every high and low, happiness and suffering I experience is a part of this journey. I look forward to seeing You at the end of this life and starting the next one :D

For these three siblings and what they individually bring to my life with their unique personalities. Robyn is not afraid to voice her opinion and is one of the most generous people you will ever meet. Chris loves all things media and can kick your butt in video games. Michael is a clever kid, don't let that smile (or his disability) fool you. He is just big teddy bear you want to hug.

For new life coming into this world. That baby is already loved so so much.

For coffee, the one of few things guaranteed to perk me up.

For this dude, who goes above and beyond even after 3 years of knowing each other. Not only does he know himself well but he knows ME well...sometimes even better than I know myself, I think. He is my best bud (and love) for life.

For friends of all kind, who make life interesting.

For the surprise party given to me for my 25th birthday.

...And for having one of the best birthdays in recent memory.

For the places I've been this year: Boston, Yankee Stadium, Universal Studios and Disney World, to name a few.

This is just a part of what made 2010 so wonderful.

Beantown or bust

I'm sure it's very unusual for a Yankee fan to say they love Boston but when you're talking about the city and not the baseball team....I think it's allowed ;-)

Jonathan & I "shipped" ourselves up to Boston, as the song goes, this past weekend for something called Boston Megafest. It took place on Saturday and Sunday but we spent all of Friday getting up there. We opted to take the train instead of driving (which we should have done, we later admitted to ourselves). Our train departed from Penn Station at 11:33am and we BARELY made it. Just barely. I felt like I was a part of the airport scene in Home Alone. Once on the train, we had about 3 hours to breathe before getting off in Springfield, MA. When we got there, a three hour wait awaited us. I really wish we hadn't had a delay but it was the only option for a late morning ride. Anyway, we really did make the best of it. Walked aimlessly for five minutes and found a mall (if you even want to call it that) to eat.

At ten to six we boarded the second train to Framingham, MA. We stayed at the Sheraton (where Megafest was being held) and the outside was like a castle. The hotel was HUGE! Our room was pretty sweet too. We had dinner at Molly Malone's, one of two restaurants inside the hotel. Also at the restaurant was Tony Atlas (WWE Hall of Famer), Frank Stallone, Seka, and Norman Reedus.

The next morning, the festivities began. We got a late start thanks to being so tired from the previous days travels so the ballroom where the Megafest was being held was already busy busy busy. We immediately got on line to meet Christopher Lloyd. When I was there, I totally forgot the man is 72 years old but he looks good for his age. By the time we got a chance to meet him (two hours later thanks to a serious delay), he seemed tired but when Jonathan spoke about being a big fan, he had a very kind smile on his face. And he gave me a warm smile when I shook his hand. Pleasant meeting all around.

The only other people we paid to meet (well, Jonathan did) was James Tolkan (best known as the principal from Back to the Future). Jonathan got him to utter the line "You're a slacker, Jonathan" on camera which was amazing! The man sounded and looked just like he did in the movie! -geek moment- Then we made a beeline to meet Howard Finkel, who was a very nice guy and I know Jonathan was THRILLED to meet him, as a life long wrestling fan. Fortunately for me, Monday Night Raw had an "old school night" the Monday of that week so I got be familiar with him prior to the meeting.

Other people who were in attendance (very random selection) were Kristin Bauer from True Blood, Marina Sirtis of Star Trek fame, Cathy St. George, a former playmate (and whom we were on the Amtrak train with going to MA, though I didn't know it at the time), Caroll Spinney, the voice of Big Bird and Oscar the Grouch and Sean Patrick Flanery, to name a few. Besides the "celebrities", there were also memorabilia galore. Seriously. For all you Queens natives, it was like a massive Royal Collectibles. The only thing I bought (besides the autograph/pictures) that day was a $4 original copy of Freaky Friday. Once a bookworm, always a bookworm.

But we were feeling restless after all that (not to mention hungry) so we got the hotel shuttle to take us to the nearest mall which ended up being in a town called Natick. The Natick Collection was about a 10 minute drive and we quickly found a Friendly's inside there to eat. Shopped around a bit and ended up taking a cab back to the hotel since the shuttle service had ended by the time we left the mall. In budgeting this trip, we seriously forgot to think about how far things were from the hotel. (This is where thoughts of "damn, we should have driven to Boston" started). The next morning we had to check out of the hotel but we decided (after a nice big breakfast of course) to give the convention one more look-see.

That's where things went downhill. Our train from Framingham to Boston, where we were to check into another hotel, was leaving at 11:40. At 11:11, I texted Jonathan, who was still downstairs checking out stuff, to hurry back to the room so we could get our stuff and get the next shuttle to the Amtrak station. We rushed and got downstairs in time but to our horror, the shuttle wasn't able to get back on time. The next train didn't leave until 3pm and there was NO way we were waiting that long. The concierge called a cab for us but even that took long! The shuttle driver came back before the cab driver did! Needless to say, when the cab finally came, we told him the dilemma and he got us there right in time to see the train in the station. However, to even more horror, we saw we had to access the platform via an overpass from the side we were dropped on. We RAN. Ran with our backpacks and suitcases. Ran like a knife wielding murderer was at our backs!! As we're running over the overpass, the bells start to ring, signaling the train was about to leave. At this point our limbs were about to fall off but we still kept running. As we're leaping down the stairs....the train pulls out of the station. In a fit of rage, Jonathan threw his suitcase in front of him and flipped the departing train the finger. It was incredibly comical but really frustrating.

We tried to call various bus companies and even a passing police officer tried to help us. We found out that we could go to the closest airport via "nearby" bus stop. From the airport, we could take the Silver Line into Boston. But...how to get to the bus stop? After standing in the middle of nowhere for about 20 minutes, at loss for words, who comes pulling up but the shuttle driver from the Sheraton Hotel?! The very one who took us to the mall the night before. (The man upstairs is a clever one). By the time we checked into the Best Western Roundhouse Suites, it was close to 3pm. A whole afternoon wasted. We unpacked, rested for a bit and headed downtown to where we would be seeing Harry Potter 7, Part 1. We walked around to find a place to eat and found Vapiano's, which I absolutely loved. Very laid back place. You place your own order at the bar and watch as they cook your food in front of you. Next stop was the AMC Loews by Boston Commons. Gorgeous movie theater! Seriously, puts our AMC's in Manhattan to shame. The movie itself was perfection. I wasn't sure how they were going to split the movie but they did it so well. By the time we left, it was creeping towards midnight. It was too cold to walk around aimlessly (not to mention dark) so we waited forever and a day for a cab to take us back to the hotel. Seriously, the cab service we were provided with blew hardcore. Fortunately we found a cab driver in the parking lot of a Dunkin Donuts who was willing to take us back to our hotel.

Since we were leaving the next afternoon, we knew the chances of seeing the places we wanted to see were slim to none. The incident with missing our train on Sunday morning really screwed us over but luckily we were able to walk around Prudential Center for an hour before we headed back home.

All in all, the trip was worth it. Yes, our main goal was to attend Boston Megafest but we also really had wanted to explore the city a bit. We already spoke about going back early next year or at least when it's warmer out. I know my sister wants to go. Time to gather up a group!

For all photos, check out my Flickr. I didn't get to take any of the photos I hoped for but, there's always next time.

My 25th Birthday

I thought I was going to have a quiet little birthday celebration...

...boy was I wrong!

Last Monday, the 8th, I turned 25. Quarter of a century, if you may. One step closer to growing old. It was a good day. I woke up to birthday streamers and lots of love. I had lunch with my sister and Jonathan at a local bagel place (yeah, Robyn couldn't believe I had chosen that either LOL) and she gave me a very generous gift. My mom came shortly after to shop around a bit and she bought me a beautiful red jacket from Eddie Bauer. I was feeling the love that afternoon. That evening, Jonathan and I had dinner at Sea in Brooklyn, followed by cake at my parents' house. Alex, my glowing pregnant aunt who is almost 6 months now, joined in the festivities and that added to the fun. The cake (strawberry banana) was from Martha's Bakery and it was an instant pleaser. Anything from Martha's is, really.

Yay, baby!

Family shot <3

Jonathan's gift to me this year! I didn't know how he would top last year's Coach bag...but he did :D

That Wednesday, I had two tickets to see Elf the Musical, as mentioned in the last post. It was wonderful in every way -- set, acting, choreography, music, etc. It just had a feeling good vibe about it. A little bit of Christmas in my birthday week? Yes please!

Here is Jonathan and I with Sebastian Arcelus, who played Buddy the Elf.

That Friday started off ordinary enough. I don't remember a thing except that it involved coffee but I do remember the main event that day was Jonathan and I would be having dinner with Anthony and Gina. We did this last year because Gina's is two days before mine so it's the perfect joint birthday celebration. Small, cozy...just the way I like it.

We get to Danny Boy's, a local pub with a great restaurant in the back. It offers typical pub food but their burgers were SO good. This was my first time there so walking in, I didn't know just how good it was, of course. Anyway, the four of us walk through the pub to get to the back. Anthony shows me a few pictures on his camera of a beautiful butterfly or something like that. I'm completely into it but I look up as I enter the room, to see a sea of faces looking at me.

Faces: "SURPRISE!!!!"

Me: *looks from left to right* OH MY GOD!

Oh my dear God is right. Roughly 40 people were gathered there to celebrate with me. 40! I was so shocked that all night...literally all night...I was in a state of disbelief. I had missed all the signs over the past few months (even though, ahem, I swore Jonathan and my mother not to throw a surprise party for me). In the end though, after all was said and done, it was one of the best nights of my life.

One of the best gifts I received for my birthday though, besides the wonderful material gifts (Tiffany gave me the "Accidental Billionaires" book about the founding of Facebook that I had been wanting PLUS Marc Jacobs' Daisy perfume, only my second favorite perfume I would ever wear) and gift cards...was Jonathan taking off from work on my actual birthday to spend the day with me. He treated it like a real celebration and that is perhaps one of my favorite things about him, that all of life is a celebration. That attitude has certainly rubbed off on me. I should also mentioned my aunt Chrissy's gift to me, this book that I highly highly recommend, a journal with bible verses on each page and other odds and ends that I adored. Her card made me teary and touched me in a way that reminds me how blessed I am to have her in my life.

I didn't have my camera that night because well, I wasn't expecting that big of an event! I also wasn't even dressed up that much! I still rib Jonathan about that. He should have lied and said it was a fancy restaurant haha. Here is a phone photo a friend of mine took that night.

http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=596141171590&comments&ref=mf

That above link is the video of the surprise via Jonathan's posting on Facebook. I never tire of watching this!

A memorable day, week and now hopefully, year :D