Jeff Brown is a friend of ours who we have a ton of respect and love for. He is one of the most humble and gracious people I have met in long long time. I wanted to make a point of telling you all about his book so that you can run out to the store RIGHT NOW and get yourself a copy. We feel blessed to know Jeff and to call him our friend. Please take a few minutes to head on over to his website to learn a little bit more about Jeff and his book.

http://www.drjeffbrown.com/

Sports Blog

I forgot to mention on here that Chris and I have started a sports blog. As most of you know we are both sports nuts. So we thought having a place to talk about just that would be a good idea. That way those of you who couldn't give a crap about anything sports related don't have to be tortured with it here. That being said I still think you should all check it out.

http://cemcsports.blogspot.com/

Sweet Dreams

Chris and I have had a crappy. old and very ugly futon for the longest time. We live in a very small apartment so a futon best suits us as we get to use it for both bed and couch. We have been needing a new one for the longest time and just never got around to it. Finally we got a new one last night. HOOORAY! Chris's mom and dad actually paid for most of it as a gift which we are so very grateful to them, we feel very very blessed that they did this for us.

The futon we got is a queen, which is bigger than our old one. We love the wood finish it on. We just got a forest green cover for it last night for the time being. This weekend we will prob head over to a futon store near our place and get a different one that comes with pillows and stuff.

A few weeks ago we were taking care of a friends dog for a week. Belle and Madison for the most part get along but tend to get a little testy with each other if they get in each others "space." One morning after Chris had already left for work I got out of the shower and noticed Madison laying in Belle's bed. I assumed Belle was laying on the couch and when she wasn't I started looking for her trying to figure where she could be hiding. Well she wasn't hiding and this is where I found her and just had to take a picture. How CUTE is this?!?!

Seattle Seattle and more Seattle

When Chris and I were in Seattle we were uploading our pics from our camera to Chris's mom's computer so that at the end of our trip we could just burn them on to CD's and take them home. For some reason they never ended up actually burning onto the CD's so when we got home and unpacked we learned the CD's were blank. Chris's mom once again put them on disc and then mailed them to us. So NOW I am finally finding some time to sit down and post some of those pics and tell you about the rest of our trip:)

The next 12 posts are about our trip to Seattle over the Christmas holidays from Dec 18th-January 4th. We had a wonderful time with friends and family and were very sad to head back here to Boston. Not all of these posts are exactly in order as things happened but your just going to have to deal with it ;)

Christmas Eve/Christmas Day

After spending the last 3 Christmases here in Boston on our own Chris and I were both happy to be with family this year. Christmas Eve is when Chris's family opens gifts etc. There was Chris and I, his brother Bryan and his wife Andrea and their boys Gavin and Trevor, Chris's sister Alicia and her husband Paul and of course Chris's mom and dad.

The night started off with Gavin and Trevor building a Gingerbread House. Every year Linda makes Chicken Divan which is basically a casserole type dish with chicken, rice, broccoli, cheese etc. And it is GOOD! We all look forward to it every time she makes it. By the time we ate supper I am not sure who was more excited and eager to open presents....me or Gavin and Trevor. ha! Mom and DadChris, Paul and Bryan

Chris with his new Avalanche jacket

Me with my new Oilers gear and Ryan Smyth t-shirtIf you know Andrea you know how fitting this shirt and mug are

Gav and Trevor eager to see what's inside

We found this Pirates replica Black Pearl at Costco and just had to get it for them

Paul and Alicia wondering if it's bedtime yet

Chris with his wind up flash flight.

It was a wonderful evening and I am pretty sure a great time was had by all. We got some great gifts from everyone. I got a crock pot cookbook, Oilers gear, books, puzzles, a new duffel bag etc. Chris got Avalanche and Seahawks stuff, a new duffel bag, new razor just to name a few.

Chris and I waited until Christmas morning to open our gifts for each other. I am a big kid when it comes to Christmas and I wanted to have presents to open on Christmas morning. We got up around 8 am and opened our stockings and presents. Chris got me a huge scrap booking kit with all sorts of different stuff in it, new pajamas, a watch, Planet Earth series on DVD, Isotoner gloves ( I LOVE them), fuzzy socks, and a new Oilers jersey. I got Chris a Seahawks pullover (the ones the coaches wear), a PSP. Tiger Woods 07 for his PSP, Adidas toiletries case with cologne etc and a Mythbusters t shirt. It was so much fun opening our gifts. We got snow IN SEATTLE on Christmas day, how about that. It didn't last long, but while it was falling it was so pretty. We spent the day just lounging around the house with Chris's parents. That evening we went with them over to Paul (Chris's sisters husband) parents house and enjoyed a YUMMY turkey dinner. All in all it was a wonderful day and we were so thankful to have family to spend it with this year.

A Royal Affair: A Duke Gets Married

Chris's younger cousin Alex Duke got married in Chehalis Washington on December 29th. The wedding was originally planned for this summer, but Alex--who recently joined the Marine Corps--will most likely be getting deployed to Iraq in the near future. SO they decided to get married now before that happens. Good for them, they are young and such a cute couple and Chris and I are very happy for both of them. The ceremony was beautiful and Alex was dressed in his full Marine uniform. The wedding also gave us a chance to see relatives on Chris's dad's side of the family that we wouldn't have seen otherwise, so that was nice.

Alex and Chris

Me and Chris
Mr. and Mrs. Alex Duke
Chris and I, Mom and Dad, Paul and Alicia

Grandpa and Char McCleesHow cute are the rubber duckies!?!
Me, Chris, Paul and Alicia after our blue cake

Bubble time

Shawn, Celeste and Rockband

Dinner with friends: Jen, Ryan, Shawn, Celeste, Me and Chris

A few months ago our friend Shawn got the RockBand bundle for Xbox 360. I didn't think I would enjoy it..boy was I wrong. Chris and I spent quite a few evenings at Shawn and Celeste's "rocking out" till the wee hours of the morning. It was so much fun. If you do not know what Rock Band is go here.....Rockband.com Basically it comes with a guitar, drum kit and microphone. You can also get a bass guitar for it. You form a band, customize your person, band name etc. You then get to play all different gigs. If you suck you get booed off stage and lose points, money and fans. The better you do as a group the more venues become available, the more rewards you gain such as a private jet so you can go on a world tour. You can chose you own song sets or do mystery song sets etc. Your color coded notes scroll down the screen and you have to hit them at the correct time and place. The vocalist not only has to sing on pitch but also at certain times in songs has to tap on the microphone for tambourine etc. It was so much fun. We named our band Shuttytown. Chris was our drummer and his name was Bubka. We got our band name and the name Bubka from episodes of the King of Queens. I was the bass player and my name was Roxanne. Shawn was lead guitar and his name was Hansel and Celeste was our lead singer and her name was Kat.

"Bubka" rocking outMy new buddy I met on Shawn and Celeste's lawn Shawn's father in law made him this walking stick for Christmas, how awesome is that?Ana and Alyssa thought it would be fun to pile all the pillows and blankets on ChrisWe spent new years eve this year at with Shawn and Celeste and about 8 other people. We all met a Red Robin for dinner then back to to Shawn and Celeste's for a night of games and stuff. We had a really good time, and of course we all played Rockband. Alyssa and AnaShawn and ChrisChris and I are blessed to have such good friends in Shawn and Celeste. We miss them a ton and enjoy the time we do get so spend with them. We love you guys, and yes Shawn I mean that even when you call at supper time EVERY night ;) Go Hawks!!

Chris and I with Shawn and Celeste's twin girls Alyssa and Ana