Turning 60 is Totally Awesome

My mom just turned 60 and for her birthday she wanted to really do something.  Sky diving wasn't an option so we picked the next best thing - zip lining through the tree tops in the middle of winter!!

Hunter Mountain is only a little hour away from my house in Beacon so my sister and Ezra drove up from Philadelphia, my parents drove over from Massachusetts, and we all met up in the Catskills for our zip lining adventure.  

My sister and I zip lined in Costa Rica a few years ago, but doing it in 20 degree weather on a ski mountain covered in snow is a totally different experience.  We all had a blast, got our thrills, and after a few hours we ended up back in Beacon for dinner and karaoke.  Happy Birthday, Mom!!!

Free Holiday Gift Tags - Print Your Own!

I'm kicking off the holiday spirit with a free download for print-your-own gift tags! There are 8 designs to choose from and will the a lovely touch to your beautifully packaged gifts this season.  Here is a link to the .pdf file that you may download and print at home.  If you'd like to browse my other gift tag designs please visit my Etsy shop.

1. Print sheet on cardstock and use the gray dashed lines as a cutting guide to cut out the tags
2. Use a paper puncher to punch out the holes
3. Thread twine or ribbon through the hole and attach to your gift!

 This free download is for personal use only.  Feel free to share, but please don't sell this artwork or any products made from this artwork.  Thanks!  Happy Holidays!

Thanksgiving in Olympia, Washington

The husband and I just returned from our trip to Olympia, Washington to visit his family and friends over Thanksgiving.  I feel lucky to have married someone from the Pacific Northwest so I have an excuse to go there as many times as I want for the rest of my life.  This time we did a lot of hanging out with family and friends, watching football, and drinking micro brew beer and awesome espresso.  We took a red-eye home, which was kind of painful (no sleep, lots of turbulence) but worth it because we didn't lose a day to travel.

hiking; Pyrrharctia isabella; delcious West Coast tacos from Ramirez Mexican Store; Occupy Olympia; prepping Thanksgiving dinner with a Guiness; machiatto from Batdorf and Bronson; Abe trying out a Baby Bjorn; shuffleboard at The Brotherhood; Aunt Linda's favorite kind of cranberry sauce; ooogity boogity!

Behind the Scenes of Our 2011 Holiday Card

One thing I always suspected, but now is confirmed?  Mr. Paws does not mind wearing a costume for a photo shoot.  In fact, he get a real kick out of it as long as the dog stays downstairs and there are plenty of treats on hand.

Parents Weekend

This past weekend my mom and dad came to Beacon for a little visit.  It seems every time they've been here we've had something to do - wedding planning, or helping me fix plumbing problems - but this time we just got to hang out and relax. 

We took all the dogs to Walkway Over the Hudson for some leaf peeping and exercise.  Then we ended up back home for a big late lunch, magazine reading, football watching, naps, and a trip to Alps Sweet Shop for chocolate.  It was Second Saturday in Beacon, which means all the galleries stay open late and have openings.  We did some browsing, stopped off at a bar where Colleen and Kenny met us for a drink, and rounded off the night at Max's for dinner and live music.  All in all, a pretty solid weekend!