Our Christmas Tree

We managed to get our tree decorated Sunday evening, and we've enjoyed sitting in our den with just the tree lights on each evening.

The Holidays Have Arrived!

Patrick and Susan's Wedding- December 6th, 2009

Brrr... It's cold! Donna and Keith get warm before the wedding...

Work Holiday Party - December 3rd, 2009

We've started off the holiday season with a bang! My work party was this past Thursday night, and we braved the cold and light rain to get our tree Friday night after work. Saturday, we ventured to Greensboro for dinner and "A Christmas Carol" at the High Point Theater with our friends, Noel and Britta. (The production was amazing- it's put on by the North Carolina Shakespeare Theater yearly.) Sunday, we braved the cold once again for a beautiful outdoor wedding in Smithfield at the Rosefield Plantation. (Luckily, the reception was indoors!) We decorated our tree last night, and spent time before bed relaxing on the couch by the light of the tree.

Yard Conquered!

This machine is amazing....

We can't believe that December is just around the corner.... We spent the majority of today bagging up all of the leaves in our yard. We have lots of old trees, and the project is usually completed over the course of several days. Thankfully, our wonderful neighbors (Heather and Tom) allowed us to borrow their "leaf destroyer," and we were able to crush the job in four hours, record time!



We have the opportunity for two pre-Thanksgiving dinners this weekend. I had one this evening with several girlfriends, and tomorrow night, we'll have our annual friends' dinner, which is always fun.

November News

Avon Walk Charlotte- Cheering on walkers at mile 26

Captain Cleavage in the flesh- Don't you love his new costume?

Mom and I displaying our new flashy team sign

Keith's Halloween scary look

My ghoulish side

Yes, I have not been very diligent with my postings over the past few months. An early New Year's resolution of mine is to get back in the swing of posting at least once a week....

October was filled with lots of fun for us. My parents were here for a visit during the middle of the month, and we visited the State Fair, went to see West Side Story, and ate lots of delicious delights both at the fair at at our place. (No fried Ho Ho's or chocolate-covered bacon though... We just couldn't do it!)

We also volunteered for the annual Avon Walk for Breast Cancer in Charlotte. We have served lunch to the walkers and crew for the past five years, and it's an amazing experience that we always look forward to.

Painting the upstairs bedroom- We didn't expect this much of a purple hue, but it's more greyish/blue with the second coat.

Keith has borrowed a guitar from our neighbor Tom and is working on teaching himself to play!

Stacey and Keith toasting this year's Oktoberfest


This fall has been an especially busy one for us. Over the past month, we've had a lot going on! Here are a few of the highlights...

1) Keith went diving with Dan and Stacey at a quarry in Rolesville. This was his first time diving in five years, and he's officially hooked again.

2) We went to the annual Oktoberfest at a local church. Not as much dancing this year, but our crew expanded to fill four tables full.

3) Keith and I joined friends for the U2 show at Carter-Finley stadium. This was my third time seeing them, and they did not disappoint!

4) Keith's still hard at work finishing the upstairs. Tentative move-in date is Thanksgiving...

Back to School...

Keith had his first week of teacher workdays in preparation for the start of school next Tuesday. He'll be teaching two sections of English IV this semester, along with managing the online learning lab for one period a day. He has a male student teacher from NCSU who will be joining him as well this semester. (Another MALE English teacher! )

He'll be spending all day tomorrow putting the first coat of real, colored paint on the walls upstairs. We'll post photos as soon as we can.

I'll be spending the weekend relaxing for the most part. (Before you give me a hard time, remember that Keith has such high standards of work performance that I am not allowed to work on the house. I just provide food, snacks, and refreshments as needed.)

We're going to try and catch up with our neighbors at some point, and our friend Stacey is coming for dinner Saturday night. My friend Kerry has free tickets to the OAR concert Sunday night, so a few of us will be heading out for that too.

Summer Beach Time and House Updates

11th Annual Girls' Beach Trip

As per tradition, seven of my girlfriends and I made the trek to Atlantic Beach for weekend of sun and fun. Most of us are friends from NCSU days, but we have one lovely lady who has joined our tradition within the past five years. A good time was had by all, and we're already looking forward to year twelve, can't you tell?

With the start of school fast-approaching, Keith has been hard at work trying to finish up the projects here at the house. He's had to postpone the final outdoor painting pieces because of all of the rain we've had here. He has been spending most of that time upstairs working to get things finished. (We now have running water in both sinks, a functioning toilet, and shower!)

He did head to Charlotte this past weekend for a weekend away with friends Dan and Stacy. They have been talking about a diving trip for a while and finally made it a reality. There are already more dives planned for September I'm told....

House Painting Update

The first time our shutters have been on in two years- YEAH!

The man at work- note his sun protection- Panama Jack style!

This gives you an idea of the color difference....

Keith has been working tirelessly to finish the house painting. At this point, all he has left are the upper peaks and the dormers. Everything looks fabulous, as you can see! Once this is done, it's on to the upstairs....

Home Improvements Start Back...

Close up view

And now you can see how high up he really is...

So summer is officially here, which means that the project master is at work once again. This week, he finished caulking the house, power-washed the whole place, and is now painting BY HAND. Yes folks, my husband is crazy, but I love him for it.

Thankfully, our neighbors across the street work from home, and their office windows face the house. They have promised to "keep watch" during this project and anything else that ensues...

This project will be finished next week. Up next- finishing the upstairs!

Summer Punch Party

Stacey, Me, Alicia, Elaine, and Erica catching up

Impressive set up by our buddy Dan

Keith and I have a busy few weeks. He's been closing out the school year, and I've had lots of work projects going on. We hosted our annual Summer Punch Party yesterday, which is always lots of fun. We had sixty guests in attendance this year, and everyone enjoyed our homemade BBQ, the delicious contributions from our guests, our buddy Dan's homebrew, and the usual SoCo punch. Dan outdid himself this year, providing SIX varieties of brew for everyone.

Doughman Challenge

A few weeks ago, Keith and I read about "The Doughman Challenge" in the Raleigh paper and decided to volunteer for the event which took place Saturday in downtown Durham. The deal is that a four-person relay team eats various delicious foods, then has to run, swim, and/or bike a leg of the relay without "losing" anything. Crazy, huh? (especially considering that the first person had to down mac and cheese with blue crab and a fried egg before a 2 mile run and short swim...)

Go to http://www.newsobserver.com and look for the story. Proceeds from the event benefit Seeds, which is a program that teaches Durham youth how to grow their own sustainable gardens, which they then sell at the Farmers' Market.

Keith with Bruce???

We check out "Bruce in the USA" every time they are nearby. What a fantastic show.... It's the next best thing to the Boss. They played a local club in Raleigh tonight, and we had to take in the spectacle. Now, off to bed!

Good Times

Enjoying drinks at "The Federal" in Durham

Kerri and Keith on their way to the prom!

Friday night, I cooked a delicious dinner for Kerri and Keith before they headed out to the Millbrook Prom. Our friend Stacey and two neighbors came over, and we enjoyed conversation on the deck until the prom-goers returned and joined us.

Saturday, a group of girlfriends and I went to see "The Color Purple" at the DPAC. Wow- incredible show, amazing performances, go see it! We then went to Vin Rouge, a French restaurant near Duke University, and indulged in their early-bird dinner specials (three-course meal for $20.) Incredible and delicious! We finished the night at "The Federal" hanging out and catching up before heading home.

Today, we were supposed to go with a group of eleven friends to the Durham Bulls baseball game. Looks like the weather is going to wash this one out. Oh well... More time for Keith to finish grading his final twenty research papers. Only four more days with his seniors!

Keith's Birthday Week

Keith sporting one of his birthday gifts

Keith's birthday was last week, and per our usual tradition, we celebrated for an entire week. I gave him small gifts each day, but there were two larger gifts that were the highlights of the celebration. We went to The Pit for dinner Wednesday night, and the food was fabulous! http://www.thepit-raleigh.com/ I encourage you to head here on your next trip to Raleigh. It's been featured in several magazines and on several TV shows as of late.

Keith's favorite musician of all time, Bruce Springsteen, was in Greensboro Saturday night, so a group of us ventured out for the show. Noel and Britta hosted us for an afternoon cookout before the show, and, as always, Bruce kicked butt for a solid three-plus hours. Hard to believe that man's sixty years old....

Lovely Wedding Under a Carolina Sky!

Hanging out with our friends Chuck and Donna

Isn't she lovely????

My co-worker Teresa got married in a gorgeous outdoor ceremony Friday night, and Keith and I were fortunate to be able to attend the festivities. Nearly everyone from our office was there, and we all had a marvelous time toasting the bride and groom. The site of the festivities was an old home in downtown Clayton, NC called "The Wagner House." The home was built in 1912 and is incredible both inside and out. http://www.historicwagnerhouse.com/ to take a look for yourself!

Catching Up With Friends- Easter 2009

Easter Dinner at Pam's House

Stacey and I show off our winnings! (Can you believe this got us a football and a pen?)

Girls (Britta and Stacey) vs. Boys (Keith and Noel) Air Hockey

The boys proved victorious at Air Hockey, but the girls kicked butt in the batting cages!

Keith and I were able to relax a bit this weekend thanks to an extra few days off for Spring Break. Friday, we had a date night out- tried a new NY-style pizza place in town and then went to see "Gran Torino." (FANTASTIC!!) Saturday, we hung out at Frankie's Fun Park with some of our friends from Greensboro and fired up a little competition over the batting cages, Skee-Ball, and Air Hockey tables. Our friend Pam hosted a magnificent Easter feast for friends today- needless to say, we are stuffed and are prepping to head back to reality tomorrow.

Getting Vitamin D...

We have taken every opportunity to soak in some Vitamin D this weekend! Friday, we both got home from work and were exhausted, but we decided it was too gorgeous not to be outside. We walked the short route (3.5 miles) around our neighborhood before coming home to crash for the night.

I spent yesterday attending a seminar about the 1950's at UNC. (http://www.adventuresinideas.unc.edu for more information.) This is the second session that I've been to, and they just keep getting better. We spent last night out on the Rudino's deck with friends watching basketball. Unfortunately, my team to win, Villanova, couldn't pull it out, and I'm out of our pool. It's down to Keith and our neighbor Heather in the final game for the $110 prize!)

Pierogies!

Finished Product! (Reverse order...)

Front Yard- Sunny Spring Flowers

Our friend Natalie Meador shared a family tradition with us on Sunday. We LOVE Pierogies, and she welcomed us into her kitchen to show us how to make them. It takes hours to make them but only minutes to cook them. They were DELICIOUS!!! Maybe one day, I will get brave and try to make them...... Until then, it's Mrs. P's from the freezer!

1st Annual Cookie Run

Pre-race with the Millbrook Wildcat

The rain held out long enough for the 1st annual "Cookies on the Run" to take place at Millbrook High School this morning. The idea behind this is similar to the Krispy Kreme Challenge in that you run halfway, eat 13 cookies, and then finish the 5K. (3.1 miles total) Needless to say, we only ate three each, but hey, that's still points for participation! Our friends Lynne and John Petersen, Jessica Martz, Alicia Gruenebaum, and Rick Suter also came out to support the Millbrook High "Class of 2009."

Spring Flowers

First Tulip!

It's cold, rainy, and dreary in Raleigh once again, but we have lovely Spring flowers in bloom! We'll take more photos once the sunshine comes back...

Playing Catch-up...

Keith and I are both sitting on opposite sides of our dining room table playing catch-up with work. We're hoping we can finish up soon so we can enjoy a bit of the gorgeous sunshine today! (Did I mention that sunshine time will be spent pulling the mass amount of weeds in our front yard???)

We've both been feeling under the weather the past two weeks and have sort of hibernated as a result. We did have the pleasure of hosting my parents here this past weekend. We all spent quite a bit of time watching basketball - I organize a yearly pool, and we were all eagerly checking our standings after each game - but we did manage to get out and enjoy a bit of culture around town. ("Miss Saigon" in Raleigh on Friday night and "Fiddler on the Roof" in Durham on Saturday.)

St. Baldrick's 2009 - Team Hardy ROCKS!

Keith bald for the third year in a row!

Hamming it up for the camera

Festive gals cheer on the shaving from the front row

Grayson and Kerry Heckle came out to show their support

Team Hardy pre-shave

This year, our neighbor, Tom Dowd, organized Team Hardy in memory of his cousin, Brad Appleby, who lost his fight against cancer as a child. The seven members of the team raised over 10,000. As you can see, bald on these boys is truly beautiful!

Upstairs' Update Plus...

Check out the new light and recessed cabinet work in the upstairs bathroom!

I spent last weekend visiting my friend Nikki and her family in Birmingham, Alabama. I also squeezed in a quick lunch date with my friend, Tatum, whom I"ve known since kindergarten at Concordia.

Friday night, Keith and I went to see Willie and the Wheel (Willie Nelson and Asleep at the Wheel) at the new Durham Performing Arts Center. Saturday, we stopped by a fundraiser for "Team Hardy" for St. Baldricks' at Jerry's Artarama, managed by team leader Tom. (Check out http://www.teamhardy.org for more info. The boys get shaved Saturday!) Keith also did some handywork upstairs as you can see above.

Slack in Posting...

Taking advantage of the 70 degree weather on the deck at Sawmill Tap Room. NCSU friends Pam, Tracy (in from Michigan,) and Stephanie (in from Spartanburg.)

Lovebirds Tracy and Brian Dixon enjoying beers at the Big Boss Brewery.

SuperBowl party hosts Rick and Alicia

Yes, we have been slack in our postings as of late, but we will try and get back on schedule. Work for both of us has been busy as usual, and I have been nursing a frustrating knee injury. We've still managed to squeeze in many good times with friends both near and far.

Super Bowl Sunday was spent first at a party with friends at Rick and Alicia's house. We stayed through the 1st half and arrived at our neighbors' party just in time to see BRUCE!! You can only imagine how excited Keith was about that... (We did get tickets for the Greensboro show, and yes, the plan is to push to the front of the stage...)

Last weekend, we had a NCSU reunion of sorts. Our friends Tracy and Brian Dixon came in from Michigan, and the crowds followed, all the way from Edenton, Wisconsin, and Spartanburg. The highlight of the weekend was our ten-person feast at Tasca Brava. (Our table finished five bottles of wine and managed to run others out of our room, only because we were having such a fabulous time!)

Snow Day - January 20th, 2009

Keith and I decided to head out for a stroll in the snow before settling in to watch the Inaugural Festivities. We have around five inches so far, and it's still coming down without signs of stopping! We may have yet another day off tomorrow...... ?