the most wonderful feeling . . .

last night was, by far, the most wonderful valentine's day ever! after a long day at work, i ran home to get my dog and some stuff to spend the night at mac's. i had to wrap her present and run by the store to grab a few items for dinner. the new seasons in concordia was *packed*! the flower line consisted of 15 guys scrambling for the last dregs of the flowers - was just too damn funny! i got some stuff for dessert and a bottle of patron silver and headed to mac's. as she opened the door, of course, the dogs had a scuffle and mac got caught in the crossfire. such a bummer because a) mac got hurt, b) it started the evening with a bang, and c) the dogs were starting to get along . . . or so we thought. luckily we cleaned mac's hand up & finished up dinner. i made the brownies & put 'em in the oven while we ate. before we sat down, we gave each other our cards & gifts. she made me a mix cd and put it on to listen to while we ate. it was beautiful and so well thought-out (as to be expected from my dj). as we ate, she sang to me and it was so sweet. she cried when she read my card and just gave me the sweetest hug ever. we had a nice dinner and listened to great music. after dinner, we took the dogs for a walk to the park and then had dessert when we got back home. was definitely one of the most romantic valentine's days ever. am looking forward to part 2 of our date tonight and so many more valentine's days in our future.

so today i'm thankful for . . . the pure love i feel for her and from her

love is in the air . . .

what a beautiful day it has turned out to be. just had to post to celebrate the day ... i know it's an arbitrary holiday and that we should be giving love *every day* but still ... it's valentine's day. mac and i decided to postpone vday for a day and go out tomorrow. we've got tickets to see a play (federico garcía lorca's bodas de sangre) at the miracle theater and then go see some cuban music. melao de caña is playing at mississippi pizza pub. should be fun.

tonight we're in for a quiet night at home after a waterfront walk with the dogs ... the weather's too nice to be inside. hope y'all have a lovely *love* day ... here's a valentine for each of you ...

today i'm grateful for . . . the love of an amazing woman and the love of amazing friends

a new year has begun . . .

where did 2007 go? i can't believe that it's over already. it's been a helluva year. in some ways, i'm sad it's over as it's been very good (new house, meeting mac, all the fun i've had) and in some ways, i'm glad it's over because it's been one of the hardest years of my life.

christmas at new year's was great and fun. we started the weekend with massages at löyly spa and a nice dinner at home. on sunday am we lazily packed up and headed out to manzanita. it was a beautiful drive and there was snow falling as we crossed the coast range. was very cool and made it feel very *christmas-y*. we lit the wood stove and popped open a bottle of wine as we arrived and started cooking dinner. we opened our presents after christmas while the dogs snoozed on their beds by the wood stove. what a bounty of loot!

on monday, we headed to the beach for a walk on a crisp, clear day and the dogs had a ball checking it all out. there was some crazy sea vegetables that looked like long ropes. there were mounds of them all over the beach. was very cool stuff! andrée spent quite awhile investigating them and trying to dream up ways to use the stuff. it was super strong and rubbery. we dropped the dogs back at the house and walked into town to do a bit of shopping. after dinner, we decided what better way to ring in the new year so we headed back to the beach for a midnight walk. it was very cool as there were several groups with fires burning and fireworks going off in the distance. we made a list of all the things we wanted to manifest in 2008 and shared a toast before turning in for the night.

we had a great breakfast on new year's day and packed up and headed home. the drive home was much less eventful (read: no snow) but we did stop to take pictures of a wild sight. apparently weyerhauser had the bright idea to clearcut an entire hillside a couple of years ago and not bother to leave any big trees behind to shelter the saplings they planted to replace their destruction. well, a couple of weeks ago we got some crazy wind (the coast was having hurricane strength winds) and the saplings were snapped off the toothpicks. it was a whole hillside of them. the wind was so strong it uprooted several trees - including one with a root ball measuring at least 10 ft across. we continued on our drive home and had a nice dinner before soaking in the hot tub & turning in. today was back to the grind.

am really happy with how the holiday turned out. it's truly been the best i've ever had and am so glad to have shared it with such an amazing woman. if this is how our first is, i'm sure the rest will be great. am starting to gear up for the kitchen remodel and andrée will be doing the design for it. our goal is to do a *kitchen by craigslist*. we've already started and acquired a great brand-new stainless steel sink for a song. let's hope the dishwasher and new gas range show up on craigslist for as cheap as the sink did! should be a fun project and a nice test for the future we're planning together.

today i'm thankful for . . . the best christmas ever and looking forward to sharing the year ahead with mac and all the advertures it might bring

merry christmas . . .

what a great christmas i've had ... it's been one of the best i think i've ever had. anunce throws a *christmas bender* every year and this year i was finally able to partake. i do admit that i didn't *bend* incredibly far ... i ate well and drank well and enjoyed fantastic company. oh yeah ... and it snowed today! i had just said to mac yesterday that i had never had a white christmas and today i did! was so cool!

the bender kicked off last night sitting by the fire drinking prosecco. i headed home to take care of the dogs ... i have boo as well as suki since mac is visiting her mom for the holiday. (the pic in this post was taken today ... it's the first time boo has *voluntarily* shared a piece of furniture with suki!) i was in charge of breakfast for 10 this am and made 2 frittatas and a double batch of gluten-free pancakes yesterday. got there around 1030a and heated breakfast through in the oven while we had coffee with bailey's, bloody marys, and mimosas. we opened presents and we each had a stocking (including the 4 dogs). was so much fun! after breakfast, i headed home to watch some basketball with jg and make some greens for dinner. headed back over there for dinner around 430 and we had a feast! you couldn't even see the kitchen island because there were so many different dishes. i am *still* full and we ate 3 hours ago!

*the only thing missing this year is that mac and i couldn't wake up together on our first christmas* she called around 730a so it was kinda like we woke up together. she gets back tomorrow am at 7 and i can't wait to see her smiling face. we plan to have christmas at new years and are going away to manzanita to ring in the new year. it's gonna be a great year ... i can just feel it. the hardest part is waiting to give her all the presents i bought her. i hope she likes 'em all!

i am grateful that this year is almost over and have been reflecting on the major changes that have transpired this year. to think of where i was last year at this time to where i am now is a pretty major shift. i am very pleased that i've had the experiences and am thankful for the dear people in my life who have been there for me and helped me grow. i am so thoroughly amazed and grateful for mac. i can no longer imagine what my life looks like without her presence. we are planning the kitchen remodel and starting to talk of our future together. our priorities are very much in line and we're planning trips and a beautiful home together. i know that wherever we live will be a comfortable haven for our love to grow and i look forward to waking up with her every morning for many years to come.

life has definitely been crazy recently and i was asked by a friend if i'd just given up on the blog ... i haven't but have been a bit tentative to write too much as i'm enjoying the newness and vagueness of this beautiful union. i'm hesitant to label it ... to put a box around the surrealness of it. it all feels like a ethereal dream that i am living each day. it's so hard to explain how close we've gotten and how *right* it feels. i try to put words on it but it doesn't make sense to anyone but us. even the dogs are getting along. i am blessed to be sitting on the couch with one on either side of me. the only thing missing that would make this moment more perfect is having mac sitting next to me. soon ...

today i'm grateful for ... my wonderful friends and a fantastic white christmas