Little Alice

Jake and I did some spring cleaning last weekend. It feels so refreshing to deep clean during the first signs of Spring with all the windows open and the warm sun shining down. While I was crawling around the kitchen scrubbing the floors, I stopped to take some shots of our little kitty cat, Alice. She was laying on one of the bar stools.

She looks so fat in this picture!

 

Christmas 2011

This was our 2nd Christmas as Mr. & Mrs. Kissel! Jake and I celebrated our little Christmas a week early. We spent the whole day together on Saturday the 17th - We went shopping for clothes for Jake (along with all of the last minute Christmas shoppers), had a nice dinner together, ate some cookies, exchanged gifts, and watched a Christmas Carol. We got each other new watches and we love them!! Yay!

Our cute little tree in our town house:

A few days later, we packed the car and headed to Knoxville to visit friends and family. We spent 4 great days in Knoxville with Mom and Dad, Seth and Emily, Caleb, and Grandma & Grandpa Haney. Then we spent a few days in Southern Ohio with the family, Sarah Lou, and Grandma and Grandpa Mills. Since we are all spread out all over the country, I never feel like we have enough time together when we visit!!

I love the family photos we took in Knoxville:

Above photo: Jake and I with my parents, brothers, and sister-in-law

Below photo: My immediate family + Grandma and Grandpa Haney

Grandma and Grandpa Haney:

Mama and her boys:

Seth and Emily:

Siblings!

Jake and I brought Alice (the cat) with us. She seems to really like traveling in the car and exploring new places. I wasn't sure how she would do with my parent's pets and all the new smells - but she was great and I'm glad she wasn't home alone for a week (how boring!).

  

I love my cat (as you can tell). She's so photogenic!

Zach, Catherine and Baby Mallory were also in town visiting Catherine's family. It was so good to see them on Christmas Eve day! They came over for breakfast with the Haney's.

Dad holding sweet Mallory:

Stuffing Balls are a family favorite and the recipe has been passed down from my Grandma's Grandma. They TRIPLED the Stuffing Balls recipe and didn't have a bowl big enough to contain the ingredients. This is what they used to mix the stuffing...

That's a lot of stuffing!

Grandma and Mom made a delicious Christmas dinner!

We all love playing cards and games together. You could find us almost every evening gathered around the table with a deck of cards.

We opened gifts and went to church on Christmas Eve. On Christmas Day Grandma and Grandpa Haney flew back the their home in Fort Myers, FL and we all packed our cars and drove to Southern Ohio to visit the Mills'.

Love this picture of the whole family!

Mom, Sarah Lou, Grandma and Grandpa

Dad and Jake hanging out after we opened gifts

We are so blessed! So glad we got to be with family for Christmas.

Life Updates: November (so far)

Lots has been going on and I haven't been good about uploading my pictures and updating the blog! Here's what we have been up to in November...

I'm over half-way done with my first semester of classes (this has been keeping me busy)! I have decided that since I work at a University and get tuition benefits, I might as well take advantage of it! I'm working towards a degree in Nutrition since it is something that I am very passionate about! I want to inspire people to healthy living by sharing the gift of nutrition with others.

Jake is also staying very busy during the week with his job. It seems like he travels to New York and New Jersey pretty frequently, and he is really enjoying this position. He's also helping lead a mens gym night at church on Tuesdays with a friend, Tyler.

Jake and I are both working with the middle school youth group on Wednesday nights. Jake helps lead the 6th grade boys and I'm with the 8th grade girls! We have had a lot of fun getting to know the kids and are looking forward to the Winter Retreat!

Our weekends have been packed this month!

The first Weekend of November - Jake was in Virginia and I was in Kentucky

Jake and Corey met up in Virginia because it was a good half-way location in between TN and PA. They spent all day Saturday and Sunday morning riding. Sounds like they had a blast!!

Thanks for the pictures, Corey!

I was in Louisville, KY celebrating Brandon and Lauren's marriage!! They had a gorgeous wedding and I was so happy to be there to celebrate with them! I was also very honored to be a bridesmaid! It was so good to see Lauren and Katie and their families since the three of us did everything together growing up! Love them!! My mom was also there, so I got to spend time with her (Dad was in South Africa on business).

I was pretty bummed I forgot my camera, but I did take 2 pictures on my phone!!

Second Weekend of November - Jake in Tennessee and I was Home

Jake went to Nashville to attend Luke and Jill's wedding. I wish I could have gone with him because it sounds like he had a great time visiting with college friends and fraternity brothers! I stayed home and got a lot done - cleaning, Christmas shopping, laundry, organizing, etc. I even made a trip down to Trader Joes near Philly! 

I think Jake has pictures on his phone...I'll post those later!

Third Weekend of November - John and Alma Visit Pennsylvania!

Jake's Dad and his wife, Alma came to visit from Florida! We had a really great time with them and got to show them where we live! Friday night we enjoyed a warm bowl of homemade chili with grilled cheese. After dinner, we went to see the movie Courageous - which I highly recommend seeing. It was so powerful. 

Saturday morning I made breakfast for everyone and then we headed out to explore the Lehigh Valley. It was a gorgeous Fall day, so it was perfect for walking. We ended up at the Lock Ridge Park, Allentown Farmers Market, downtown Bethlehem, and Christkindlmarkt. We finished the evening off with a delicious meal at the Limeport Inn - one of our favorite restaurants. 

 At Lock Ridge Furnace

Allentown Farmers Market

After lunch, we took a stroll around Lehigh...

Exploring Bethlehem...

I found this awesome hat with built in gloves at Christkindlmarkt...I didn't buy it because I don't think anyone would take me seriously with a pink bunny hat, but it's so smart...you would never have to worry about loosing your gloves!!

John and Alma left on Sunday morning before Jake and I went to church! We are looking forward to seeing them again soon!


Sunday evening we celebrated Thanksgiving with Fuse (more on that in the next post) and then Jake and I put up our Christmas tree!! Love this time of year!

Isn't Alice so cute? :-)