Things I have learned about myself while putting this together:

1. I am a total sucker for a bride dancing with her father.

2. I may have just made it so that there will be a continual string of “Best of” posts until Spring because I have way too many favorites!

3. We really are lucky to be able to do what we do and witness the immense joy, love, and laughter of your lives.

4. I am (and in this case I mean we are) so grateful to you for making that possible. Thank you. :0)

I realize that most people would have their Christmas recap up already, but we were bound and determined to have family time until New Year’s, then we were prepping to speak in Mystic, Connecticut, and then there was the pile-up of emails to get through, and…well, we’re just going to extend the Christmas spirit a bit for everyone this year with our late recap.

Christmas 2010 was without a doubt, hands down, absolutely the best Christmas ever! We spent the day at home with Sean’s grandparents and my grandmother and it was perfect! Good food, good company, laziness, and a spoiled baby with present overload were the key elements of our day – it doesn’t get any better than that. :0)

Looking through our gift to them – an album of 2010′s adventures…

Our big gift for Seven was a little piano. He now gives us daily concerts Stevie-Wonder-style, standing at the piano singing away with his head swaying back and forth. It’s pretty stinkin’ cute.

I love this photo of Sean and Seven and their Mema and Doda.

Now I mentioned good food at the beginning of this post.  If you know me at all, you know that I’m serious about dessert.  More specifically, I’m really super serious about chocolate!  This was my December creation.

My friend Anna sent me the recipe for the most amazing Chocolate Chip Pie you’ve ever tasted.  Leave it to me to make it even worse for you, but it tastes Oh. So. Good!  You know you want to try this at home. (Unless of course you’ve resolved to eat better for 2011 and in that case, I’m sorry for this.) In the name of Chocolate Lovers everywhere, I release this wonderfulness into the universe:

Extreme! Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie

1 ½ sticks salted butter, softened

Pre-made refrigerated pie crust (prepare according to box instructions)

2 eggs

½ cup all-purpose flour

½ cup sugar

½ cup packed brown sugar

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 cup pecans

1 tsp vanilla

Nutella

Strawberries, sliced

Double Dark Chocolate Gelato

Directions:

Beat eggs on high until foamy. Beat in flour and sugars. Beat in butter and vanilla. Stir in morsels and nuts. Spoon into pie shell. Bake at 325 degrees for 55-60 minutes.  Let cool slightly.  While still warm, spread Nutella on top, then add fresh strawberries,  and crown with gelato.  Enjoy!

Hope your holidays were wonderful and you’re enjoying getting back into the swing of things with New Year’s resolutions of greater productivity and better health! If not, go have some pie – it’s practically guaranteed to make the world brighter and you can always get back on the healthy train tomorrow. ;0)

This week it seems that much of the eastern United States is covered in snow (and I’m sure Canada too because isn’t this always the case? ;P).  We hope you’re all staying warm and cozy, and enjoying the snowy blanket more than our little man did on his brief encounter! ;0)

Happy Snow!

First, can I just say how much fun we had getting your cards?  Every day of the holiday season was like Christmas as we made a mad dash for the mailbox to see what was inside! :0)  We received so many wonderful cards and each and every one was special because they made us think of you.  Thanks for including us on your mailing list and for participating in our 1st Annual Holiday Card Contest!  We plastered our kitchen cabinets with your cards and that in and of itself became quite the art installation. :0)

Now, you may be wondering who won the contest…man it was hard to choose!  You guys are so creative/beautiful/funny/just plain awesome!  We did finally choose a winner, but there were a few that really stood out that just have to be mentioned too.  Our honorable mentions are:

Phil and Mindy – Phindy Studios. We heart them – and if for no other reason than the ridiculously over-the-top excitement for hot chocolate that Phil exhibits here. ;0)

Craig and Jennifer – Mr. and Mrs. Weddings and Events. This gorgeous vintage style design had us drooling…

Evan and Amanda – Evan Baines Photography. There’s no faster way to my heart than through a beautiful pop-up and Robert Sabuda is my FAVORITE!  Bonus points to you guys for choosing his wonderful cards.

Amber and Tyler. From the moment they first met with us to discuss photographing their wedding, we have completely adored these guys!  And a card from Saudi Arabia??  Come on!  That’s sweet.

The Baxters – Ohana Photographers. Sean and I have just about decided that no contest on our blog would be complete without the Baxters because after all, they bring it every time! :0)  April, the eldest daughter of the Baxter clan did the amazing drawing of their family for the front of the card.  She is crazy talented!  As if that wouldn’t be enough, they then went on to quote Elf and cemented their place as the most awesome family – ever.

And now – the winner is…..(drumroll please!)….

Bobbi and Mike – Bobbi+Mike. These guys took dedication to funny to a whole new level!  Each little photo is hilarious and the whole thing is just so well executed!  They were so committed that my grandmother came in for Christmas and felt really bad for them because she thought they really look like this. ;0)  Gah – it makes me laugh all over again every time I see it!  You really must click on the link to see the close ups of these images!  Great job you guys!  We loved it and your iTunes gift card is in the mail!

So you’ve seen the photos involved in the making of our card, but we didn’t want to show the actual card before Christmas in case it would ruin the surprise if you hadn’t received it yet in the mail.  (side note: if you didn’t get one and would like to, please send us your updated address for next year.  We had old addresses for a handful that were returned and we’d love to keep up with you!)  Here is our card from 2010.  We went with an old Saturday Evening Post theme and we’re super excited about it because as far as we’re concerned, we’ll never have to come up with a creative card idea ever again.  This is the first edition of the Happy Holidays Post –  get ready to collect the series! ;0)

Thanks again to everyone who took the time to mail us your beautiful cards and participated in the 2010 Holiday Card Contest!  Can’t wait for next year!