A Weekend at the Cabin

This past Friday evening, my brother and four couples all met up at our place.  We decided this would be the best meeting point for caravanning up to the cabin. 

9:15PM and it was finally time to hit the road and begin our weekend together!

This trip had been planned for quite some time and we were beyond excited that our weekend had finally arrived. 

Rolling in to Galena around midnight, we were all very grateful that the long driveway had been plowed.  Two of the guys grabbed some shovels and dug us a path up to the cabin door.  Bags unloaded, we all started catching up with one another and before we knew it, it was 3:00AM!!!

Sleeping in the next day, we all woke up with hot cups of coffee in hand.  We thought we would wake up further by taking a nice long hike down the frozen river for a few hours.

Upon our return, we thawed out in front of the wood stove.  Then began mixed cocktails, more coffee, lots and lots of food and afternoon games!

Getting ready for a very long walk on the river!!!

These guys were geared up for the woods =)

 You would think we were staying a week with all these games!!

We only made it through a quarter of them.

 Warming up post walk.

Priya made us all Passion Fruit Mojitos.  She even made me a virgin mojito and it was amazing!

 The other camera lady all weekend.

 This wood burning stove kept us all cozy the entire weekend!!!

 Love my hubby soooo much!!!

 And we ate, and ate and ate some more....

 Out to brunch after Church on Sunday.

 Getting our game on!!!  

We had so many people we had two games going at the same time.

 There were at least 8 cups of coffee mugs in rotation at all times during the weekend =)

I didn't quite realize how relaxing this weekend would be.  Our only wish was that the weekend could have been longer and we could have played more games together. It's wonderful knowing such dear friends who all enjoy a quality weekend spent in close quarters with one another!!!

We can't wait to do it again.

What were you up to this past weekend?  Anything new, fun, simply relaxing?

xoxoxo,

Maggie

Happy St. Valentine's Day!

Happy St. Valentine's Day everyone!!!

This morning I crawled out of bed extra early so that I could get to the patisserie before all the other locals did.  I had to get my hands on some sticky pecan rolls and chocolate croissants to surprise the hubby for Valentine's Day.  Bright and early, I was in luck, there were still some left when I got there!

I ran home, found our Morrison tray from our wedding and surprised the hubs who was still fast asleep in bed.  Score, I caught him before he was up!

We are spending the rest of our Valentine weekend up at the cabin with a bunch of other couples.

Between all of us, we probably have enough games to play for a week and enough food to last us just as long.  Paired with good tunes, yummy drinks and wood fires, it should be a cozy romantic couples weekend!!!

What are your weekend plans?

xoxoxo,

Maggie

A Bocce Kind of Evening

Sometimes it's nice to just relax and enjoy a fun evening with friends trying something new!

We have this bowling alley close to home that's cozy and upscale and only costs a dollar or two more than your typical bowling alley.  Every time we visit Pinstripes, I always tell myself that I'll make a trip back just to play some games of bocce.

This past weekend we made a last minute decision to spend our Sunday evening checking out the bocce courts with my brother and our friends. 

There we were at first, wondering how the heck did the official rules work???  I've always thrown bocce balls around for fun as a kid, but never really new how to play.  So it was great finally getting a hang of the game!!

Lovely expression, hubby!

Plus, the food was amazeballs!!!! The chicken, bacon, onion, avocado flatbread was to die for!  I'd go back just for that.  We can't wait to take a trip back and play some Bocce during brunch on the weekend =)  It's a blast and such a great way to spend time with good friends.
What are some of your favorite ways to spend evenings with friends?

xoxoxo,
Maggie

A French Dinner Date

This past weekend the hubby and I had an impromptu dinner date and sometimes those are the best!!!  D & J Bistro doesn't look like much from the outside, but the minute we stepped inside the doorway, away from the bitter cold, we were met with an adorable little bistro and even though the snow was falling thick Saturday night, it didn't keep the locals from filling every table in the restaurant.   It was simply nice to dress up for an evening and sit back and relax while someone else cooked a warm fancy meal.  It gave my hubby and I an or two of undivided attention!!!

The food was so delish!

Coffee cheesecake??? yes, thank you!

Even though this picture is blurry, I still love it!!!
I love this guy sooooo much!!!!!
He makes me smile every day =)

The Sunday Currently, vol. 16

Reading:  The Light Between Oceans still.  I'm about half way through and it's fantastic so far!  

Writing:  valentines notes to girl friends!  Some of you may find one "pop up" in your mail box this week =)  

Listening:  background music in Starbucks.  

Thinking:  that it will be nice to have a few weeks off from my morning job in February.  It will give me time to catch up on things around the house.  

Wishing:  that Sundays would last forever!!!  They always fly by wayyy too fast. 

Hoping:  that the snowdrops show their faces soon.  I think I'm ready for spring now!

Wearing:  a maternity black maxi skirt and a really warm sweater.

Loving:  my new face wash and moisturizing lotion from Shu Uemura.  The face wash is actually a cleansing oil that leaves your face feeling moisturized and fresh.  A lady that works in Pottery Barn told me about it and how she has used the product for years.  She told me her age and the skin on her face totally didn't match her age.  She swore it was the products she used, so I thought I would give it a try.  If you're in your late 50s and you have no wrinkles, something must be good about the product!

Wanting:  to get back into the gym this month.  The doctor told me to start doing stairs and lots of walking.

Needing:  more relaxing weekends like this one.  

Enjoying: impromptu date nights with the hubby!!!  Last night we went to Church in the evening and then braved the snow to enjoy a delicious French meal at a local restaurant that we've been wanting to try for a long time.  

Feeling:  grateful for girl friends and long chats on the phone.  I can't seem to stay in touch with everyone as much as I would like. 

Clicking:  through my some of my favorite blogs and catching up a bit.

Grab a cup of coffee and a cozy blanket and enjoy 

a very relaxing Sunday!!!

xoxoxo,

Maggie 

Linking up with Lauren's Sunday Currently

Life's Random Moments and Thoughts

So thankful to my wonderful mother-in-law for a lovely afternoon trip into Gap to buy my very first maternity outfits!  She is such a thoughtful, sweet and fun woman and I really enjoyed our shopping trip together, even if it had to be quick.  Such a funny feeling not fitting into my old jeans anymore!

My poor husband has been really sick since last weekend and I'm grateful he is now on the mend.  We had ourselves a little lunch date at Potbellies today, during which we enjoyed some background jams and discussed summer plans.  He doesn't remember me mentioning the idea of Hawaii while he was sick, so I'm glad I brought it back up.  =)  His family will be going this summer and they asked if we wanted to make the trip.  We both decided today that it's a YES!!!!!  I'm really happy and excited that we will have a nice long week together with his family creating memories with them before our little baby arrives!!!  Any chance to spend extended periods of time with his family is always a wonderful thing!  I foresee many relaxing days spent together on the beach with good books in our hands.

Fast forward a year or two and we would love to take our baby to London on a little family trip.  Call me crazy, but I really want to travel as a family, while our children are little.  I think it could mean real adventures!  I've always wanted to go back and take my hubby with me!

Next I can't wait to tranform our spare bedroom into a children's nursery.  I want it to be very, very simple, but also extremely appealing and a relaxing place to spend many hours with our little babe.  I don't want any clutter, but I do want the room to look complete, with only the necessities, books and toys that are "necessary" for child's play and story time.

Right now I'm basically a food tornado in the kitchen, well at least for anything that's considered a fruit. I'm constantly craving grapes, apples, clementines, strawberries, kiwis and mango smoothies.

I can't wait to visit my best friend next month.  I haven't seen her enough since my wedding in October.  I think I got used to our monthly visits with one another and have been suffering from withdrawal.  I need some sister time with this girl!!!!  Then maybe I can sneak on her laptop and check out all her awesome pictures from her trip to Europe! =)

Hip, hip hooray for Fridays and the weekend!!!

xoxoxo,

Maggie

Life Lately

Has involved cutting sweets out of my diet, as much as possible.  It's hard when friends give you homemade caramels and trays of delectable truffles! 

I'm quickly realizing that I NEED to go back to an indoor gym.  It's been way too cold outside to make any progress as far as exercise goes.  I'll probably be looking into a mini membership during the months of February, March and April. 

Being pregnant I have no energy or desire to cook.  My poor husband.  You know the groceries are low when he can't even come home and make himself a tray of chips and cheese.   It's time to go to market!!!

This weekend my hubby and I are heading out to the cabin to check on all the pipes.  I pray everything is okay out there with all this below zero business.  We have a couples weekend at the cabin in February and we'd hate to see us all get out there late at night only to find out that the pipes were frozen over.  On a happy note, all the couples can't wait for our long weekend together!  Our weekends together involve a wood burning stove, great food and lots of board games!!!

Last week was a long one.  It was a 50 hour work week between my two jobs with barely enough time for quick naps and good nights of sleep.  I'm definitely enjoying my day off from work today.  Oh what to do with "all" my free time.  

Life lately has also involved putting together a really important package that I had been meaning to pop in the mail for a long time.  I finally got my act together, packaged everything that needed to be in the box very carefully, taped that baby up reallll tight and then realized that I completely forgot all the important notes that were supposed to be in that darn box!!!!  Feeling accomplished enough that I actually put the package together, an email note sufficed just fine =)  Pregnant brain problems! Ha, ha it's been happening a lot lately. 

I really, really need to get a fresh hair cut and soon!  I haven't seen the hair stylist who did my hair for the wedding since the wedding.  She said to come see her and she would freshen it up and try something new and a little more drastic, I kinda like the sound of that!

It already feels like the weekend and that is a good thing.  I'm planning on grabbing some tunes for the road and The Light Between Oceans and spending some cozy snuggle time in front of the wood burning stove this weekend.  

What are your weekend plans?

Our Bundle of Happy News!!!

My hubby and I have some REALLY exciting news to share here on the blog!!!

If you didn't already know, or haven't already guessed, then yes, we are expecting our first bundle of joy this coming Fall!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Baby Morrison is already very well loved and many people are excited to meet our little one this year.

Charles and I couldn't be happier or more proud of our little baby growing inside of me.

We still can't believe this is a reality for us.   I can't wait to see Charles holding his little newborn baby for the first time, he is going to be such a good papa. =)

The way we found out we were expecting was the funniest thing ever!

It was January 3rd and all afternoon that day I felt nauseous and kept finding myself overheating.  That night I was out to dinner with my mom, sisters and aunt in MN.  Even though I felt as sick as a dog, I tried ordering my favorite chicken tikka masala dish.  Unfortunately, I didn't even make it past 3 bites before I had to stop.   Our plans after dinner were to go and meet my cousin's little newborn.  Problem was, if I was actually sick with the stomach flu, then I wasn't going to be able to meet my cousin's new  baby.  =(  

So there I was, sitting in the middle of a restaurant, having to tell my family my little dilemma. 

My aunt perked up and said "no problem, there is a grocery store right across the street, you stay here and I'll be right back!"  Five minutes later, she was back with a pregnancy test and of course, a big bag of chocolates!!!  

So there I was, in the middle of Everest (the restaurant) where I found out we were all clear to go and meet baby Gerard and that I was expecting a little one of my own =) =) =) True story!

My hubby already thinks it's a girl and so.... the BIG romantic that he is,  I came home to this wonderful surpirse!!!  He is seriously the BEST =)

My first day back from MN I was off to the health food store where we stocked up on lots of vitamins and protein for little baby Morrison!
So far I'm feeling great, just extremely tired every day.  Life lately has included many, many beautiful and long naps for me and this little one.  It's crazy how different your while body feels when there is a little one growing inside of you, it's a beautiful and very powerful feeling!
I love it!!!
Thanks for sharing in our happy news =)

Pottery Barn Tables and Being Organized

At first I didn't think much of these little tables, but then....

I saw these pictures of how different people styled them and I fell in love with how they were used!

They work out perfect, even in the bathroom!!!

Some people just have a natural eye for styling their home.  Me, I like learning from other
people and adding a twist of my own.   Tables like these keep space tidy, simple and clean.  I can't stand clutter or a lack of organization.  But it's a process and a constant struggle.  I have my weak spots around the house where I'm always leaving piles or a mess.  We are still getting certain spaces in our home tidy and under control.  But for the most part, we are doing great!  Just the guest bedroom left to tackle and that's next on our hit list.
Can't wait to see what we get done in the upcoming year! =)

Honeymoon Part II

Oops, I forgot to post this from awhile back.

Our gorgeous view, every. single. morning. on our Honeymoon!

 While we ate out for pretty much all of our meals during our honeymoon, yes, including many breakfasts and dinners ;) we did decided to eat in one night!
 Tacos are my hubby's favorite meal and one of mine, too =)  

 A trip to the butterfly house.  It was pretty amazing!

 Nice butterfly on your butt, honey.

 We took a few long hikes through the mountains.  A great workout with no sweat because the air is so dry in AZ.  

 My husband spoils me....coffee in bed as the sun peeps in!!! =)

Still can't believe this was almost three months ago already.  Time really flies by when you're
happy and in love!