Christmas time!

Later today, my sister and I are heading over to our parents' house in IL for Christmas. We're having dinner tonight with our parents, nana, and aunt. Mom's making yummy roast with potatoes and carrots. We'll have our delicious Christmas cookies for dessert. Tomorrow we'll go to Mass in the morning, and then have our traditional Christmas breakfast - homemade caramel rolls (my favorite!). We open presents at my parents' house first and then go to nana's. My family isn't big on ham, so we have filet mignon for Christmas dinner. Yum-o!!

FI is in California right now. We're exchanging presents when we return to St. Louis. I'm heading out to CA on the 26th, and we both come back on the 30th. No plans yet as to what we'll be doing in CA. Last year, we went to Napa, an aquarium, Ghiradelli square, San Francisco, the Mystery Spot, and a few other places.

Speaking of CA - I hate packing. I wrote up a packing list this morning. It seems SO long! I don't travel lightly, though. You never know what you might need; it's best to be prepared!

I hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!

Yum-o!

I made Onion and Cheese Soup the other night. It's a recipe from my mom, and it's delicious!!

3 Tablespoons butter or margarine
1 cup chopped mild onions
3 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
4 cups milk (I used skim and it was still good)
1 block of Cracker Barrel Sharp Cheddar Cheese, shredded (The wrapper is red.)
Dash of pepper, if wanted

1. Melt butter. Cook onion until tender, but not brown.
2. Blend in flour and pepper.
3. Add milk all at once.
4. Cook, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens and bubbles.
5. Add cheese; stir to melt.
6. Top with croutons if desired.

If you try it, I hope you like it! It's filling for dinner, with a nice salad or half a sandwich.

So tired!

Today I got the first of my B-complex injections. Let me tell you - they hurt!! I also started taking my vitamin D tablets.

I've been feeling extra tired for quite some time. I went to a new doctor about a month or so, and they ran a few tests on my blood. Apparently I am extremely low in both vitamin B (and B12, I think) and vitamin D. Deficiencies in each vitamin alone can cause fatigue. No wonder I was so tired!

It will take a few weeks, but hopefully I will start feeling more like my normal self in a month or so!

Photos of my french items... (and my cat)

I took some photos of some of my french items around my house, so I thought I would post them. There's also a few pictures of my crazy cat (Melodie). Hope you enjoy!

(Sorry for the few that aren't turned the right way. I'm still getting used to my digital camera - even though I've had it for a year now!)

I Heart Europe

Europe (Paris, more specifically) is my favorite place in the world! I was lucky enough to study in France (Paris and St. Malo) for a month during high school. I turned 16 in France. The summer after high school (1998), I went on a trip to several different countries in Europe, one of them being France again. Then in college (Summer 2001) I studied in Paris for 6 weeks. I turned 21 in Paris. My family (mom, dad, and sis) met me in Paris and we traveled around Europe for 2 weeks.

I love the history of Europe. The food is amazing! It has been almost 6.5 years since I have been to France!

We have not decided on a honeymoon destination yet. Right now, we're thinking either Europe or Australia. While I definitely want to go to Australia, part of me is hoping for Europe. My fiance has never been to Europe at all. We will not being going on a honeymoon right after the wedding because I won't have enough time off then. We're thinking of going either in March 2009 or June/July 2009. That seems so far away!

Jumping on the bandwagon...

I couldn't go back to sleep this morning. So, what do I do? I decide that I will attempt to start a blog. I still wonder if my life is that interesting to people. I'll probably give this a try for a little while and see how it goes.

I am officially on my Christmas break from school. Teachers go back January 2nd and the kiddos return on January 3rd. The time is going to FLY by!

My To Do List:

1. Finish buying fiance's presents (man - he is hard to shop for!)
2. Finish wrapping presents (only a few more, besides the ones still to buy)
3. Clean my room
4. Clean up my downstairs laundry room
5. Laundry and grocery store (such fun tasks!)
6. Try to get a hold of a hair stylist for the wedding (I'm trying to reach a lady who did a colleague's hair.)
7. Probably many more things; I just can't think of them right now.