Nature Walks

There is a park about 6 minutes from our house that we like to take walks at. It is quiet, somewhat secluded from the busy suburbs, and really peaceful. California Steve even admits that it is a beautiful little corner of Texas! :-) Here is Seth and Caleb getting a head start on us...

There is a small lake with a walking/biking trail all the way around it...

Once you circle the lake, you can access wooded nature trails that are really beautiful!

Caleb, full speed ahead!

Seth, going at a more leisurely pace!

Hiking on the trail must bring out the brotherly love in them!

Hope everyone had a...

very Merry Christmas!!

Cousins Picture - Christmas Day 2010

Caleb's Nativity

I have a roughly carved wooden nativity set. I think I bought it on the day-after-Christmas sale way back during our first year of marriage. I love it. I like things that are simple, yet beautiful.

This is how I set the nativity up this year.

All the usual suspects are there...you have the shepherd with his lambs and donkey, the angel, the three wise men, Mary, Joseph, and of course - baby Jesus.

After it had been up for a few hours, I walked back into our front room and found the figures rearranged. The first time it happened, I didn't think much of it. I just put them back in their original positions and went about my business. (With two little boys, lot's of things get "rearranged" in this house every day!)

A little while later, I walked in to find Caleb rearranging the nativity. As I watched him, I noticed that he seemed to have a plan. He wasn't haphazardly sliding the figures around. He worked quickly and with purpose, jumped down off the chair he had to climb on to reach them, and ran off to play.

And as I looked at his handiwork, something struck me...

All eyes are on Jesus...

A great reminder for me during this busy season that THIS is what Christmas is all about...

Just for fun...

My sister-in-law Heather made these at Jib Jab and sent them to Steve for his birthday last week. The first one is Seth and the second is of Caleb.

After watching this, Seth asked me (somewhat uncertainly), "It wasn't mine and Caleb's fault that those guitars got broken, was it?" The next time he watched it, he said (a little more confidently), "I kicked that speaker over, didn't I?" Hope he isn't getting any ideas...

Happy Anniversary to us...

Our 9th wedding anniversary was on the 15th, and we celebrated this past weekend with a fondue dinner and a stay in a historic downtown Dallas hotel.

We headed to The Melting Pot in Addison for dinner. The ambience and experience was great for an anniversary celebration, and we even had a $25 restaurant.com gift certificate to make the night even sweeter! (All of you frugal, bargain hunters out there will be able to identify with that statement! :-)

The plate above is full of raw meats...marinated chicken, NY strip, filet mignon, shrimp, lobster tail and goat cheese ravioli. We cooked the meat in a cooking oil that was flavored with oranges and cilantro. (yum!) Then all the little ramekins were full of different sauces for dipping.

Then we made a stop by Crooked Tree Coffeehouse in Uptown.

We were not disappointed. It was in a historic old house, and the girls who were working that evening were playing cards at a table. They sell only Fair Trade coffee. Definitely not your hustle & bustle, typical S'Bucks experience! They had old vintage furniture and a girl was getting set up to play acoustic guitar as we were leaving. We plan to return!

We stayed at the Magnolia Hotel in the historic district of downtown Dallas. We had airline miles that were about to expire, so we got to stay for almost free (minus valet and a few fees).

Cheers to another year of adventure with Mr. Horvath!

Snuggling

Coonskin Cap

Seth had Pioneer Day at school not too long ago. He was supposed to wear a costume, and they were set to do all sorts of neat projects like making soap, candles and butter.

I discovered that making a Pioneer Day costume for a girl would have been pretty simple (long skirt, apron, bonnet) but it was a little trickier for a boy. They wore knickers and knee socks and ruffly white shirts with those tri-cornered hats.

Steve came up with the idea of a coonskin cap to represent the more "adventurous and rugged" pioneer. I went in search of one (because of course at this point, there was not enough time to order one off the internet. We Horvath's always do things in a timely manner...)

I found one at a costume shop for $25.

Next!

I found one at Party City that was definitely made of some type of funky synthetic material but still resembled the dead animal that it is named for. Price tag - $8.95.

Much better!

Of course, when mom wants to take more than 2 pictures, we start doing things like this...

Ornament Exchange

My Mom's side of the family did an ornament exchange this year. We drew names, and my cousin Pete and his wife Brittany sent us these amazing guitar ornaments! We love them, they were a thoughtful choice, and they look so great on the tree. Thanks guys!!!

Photos courtesy of Steve Horvath :-)

Colors of Fall

It is December, the nights are getting frigid, and Christmas is just around the corner. But I really can't stop thinking about the fall colors this year!

Fall is my favorite season, and we were blessed with so much more color in our trees this year in Texas.

Every time I would drive by a tree on fire with reds, yellows, and pinks, it would make me smile.

And Steve heard lot's of exclaiming on family car rides, "Did you see that tree? It was UNREAL!" He had good responses, so he was either A.) almost as impressed as I was or B.) was good at faking it so he didn't rain on my parade!

(Pictures taken at Tyler State Park 11-24-10)

Sabbatical

If you would like to see some of the things we were up to this past summer during all of our travels, please check out our sabbatical blog here.

Enjoy your Wednesday! And if you are up for a little challenge, think of one person that you haven't spoken to in a while and send them an unexpected email, text or phone call just to let them know you are thinking about them.

Who is this grown up child...

and what has he done with my baby?

Two Christmas Helpers

One a little more helpful than the other...

Proof that we are alive...

(You can click on the picture to see a larger version)

The behind-the-scenes making of this picture was quite humorous. We were on a 2 mile hike around the lake where we were camping at Tyler State Park. We perched the camera on a bridge and set the timer. It took approximately 12 attempts to get the person who was pushing the button in the picture before the timer went off.

What you can't see is that there are about 15 steps in front of us, so the distance to the camera was a decent jaunt.

I tried once, but I only made it to the bottom right hand corner of the picture...barely.

Steve tried the other 11 times, but he kept barely making it and wasn't seated fully and/or smiling by the time it went off. Oh, and there was also the small factor that Caleb got up and walked away EVERY time the flash went off. So we had to corral him back each time, which is why I am completely amazed that not only is he looking at the camera, he is actually *smiling* too!

On other notes, I have been a bad, bad blogger. If people gave awards away for neglecting your blog, I am sure I would win. With family and friends scattered from coast to coast, this is the best way I know to keep you all updated.

Here's to turning over a new leaf with more blog posts coming soon!