Our House At Christmastime (The Outside)

I'm finally blogging about Christmastime. I'm gonna get this done before February - I'm determined. I have so much Christmas stuff to post about, and I honestly am having a hard time figuring out where to start.

 

So, I am starting with the outside of our house.

 

Doug is in charge of the outside and I'm in charge of the inside.

 

He did such a lovely job with it once again!

 

 

I do really love when the neighborhood is all lit up with festive lights. It makes me sad when January comes and all the lights are taken down. :(

Stranger Things: The Experience

 

I saw online that this cool "experience" was coming into town and I thought it would be interesting to check out. Doug, Bri and I are huge "Stranger Things" fans and we had really enjoyed the Vincent van Gogh Immersive Experience (which was also an event put together by "Fever"), so we we thought this would be fun. And it was!

It was at the same location as the Van Gogh event, but the ST event started out in the unheated building on the property and moved into the heated building (the Van Gogh event was only in the heated building). So we were a bit surprised! It was unusually cold that day, so the first part of the experience was a bit chilly but it was still fun!

We arrived for a fun experience...

We entered the building and turned in our tickets. We were told the experience was split into two parts. We could not take any pictures or record anything during the first part. But, we were allowed to have our picture taken when we first entered...

The experience goers were split into groups. We were told we were going to be part of a sleep study at Hawkins Lab. Of course, it ends up being a sleep study gone wrong and we eventually end up in the Upside Down trying to save Eleven and Max.

I found a blog post that explained the experience quite well...

"Along the way, you’ll meet up with Dustin, Mike, Lucas, Will, Max, Erica and Eleven who guide you through an original “Stranger Things” storyline developed by the show’s creators."

https://thetvtraveler.com/stranger-things-the-experience-review-is-it-worth-it

 I snagged some pictures from the internet since I wasn't allowed to take pictures during the "show"...

It was kind of cheesy but if you just go with it, it was a lot of fun and it wasn't scary at all (I didn't think so at least).

When we got done with the first part of the experience, we were then led to the heated building (it felt so nice in there!) where we enjoyed the "After-Party at the Mix-Tape"...

It felt like I was transported back to an 1980's mall. Being a young kid in the 80's, it gave me an amazing sense of nostalgia. There was 80's music playing...

 

We first did some fun photos ops...

Then we walked around and visited all the Stranger Things favorite locations...

 

The Byer's house...

Briana was excited to come across the "Dig Dug" game (which she re-created for the Haunted Hallways at her school)...

We spent quite a while at "the mall" and then it was time to leave. We did purchase some fun merchandise.

Bri ended up with this new shirt...

We went to lunch at Hattie B's Hot Chicken restaurant for lunch like we did after the Van Gogh experience.

I did not get a sandwich this time (my sandwich was very tough the last time we went) - I just ordered regular fried chicken with hot sauce (so did Doug). Bri got chicken tenders and asked for mild sauce. I think they accidentally gave her medium hotness like they did for me and Doug. She felt it was a bit too spicy for her. But overall, it was really good!

So that was the experience! Doug and I like looking for different and interesting things to do around Atlanta when we get a chance. 

My next few blog posts will be all about Christmas. :)

All About Fall And Thanksgiving

Well, I got a recap post up sooner than I thought I would! I said next week in my last post, but here I am the next day!

 

I'm finally getting around to blogging about the autumn season in January. Ugh. It is so difficult to keep up here sometimes!

We did really have a nice fall season and enjoyed all the color, weather and food.

I decorated my house once again for the season on the inside...

Briana set up all our scarecrows outside...

The autumn leaves in Georgia were really beautiful and so colorful in the fall of 2022...

The fall season also brought some beautiful morning and evening drives...

Someone who really loves the fall is Mei Mei. She loves the porch on the days where the temps are perfectly cool. But, it was actually quite cold throughout the month of November, so we cranked the fireplace quite a bit and she loves to cuddle...

Doug, Bri and I finally visited a nearby Asian bakery that we had been wanting to try and went there a couple of times in the fall. We not only ate at the restaurant, but we took home a bunch of delicious baked goods to enjoy for quite a while!

Spring rolls, chicken wings, bulgogi cheesesteak, firecracker shrimp, unagi crispy bao, boba tea - it was all so good!

Bri and I had some errands to run one day in November and we stopped by a Starbucks. She got a Frappuccino and tried the holiday flavor "Peppermint Mocha Creme" and loved it...

 

November means voting time and that is what I (and Doug) did. I am still extremely passionate about my political views (they have not changed one bit) and I know living where I do has forced me to be more vocal about it. I might be an underdog in my neck of the woods, but that isn't going to stop me from standing up for what I believe in...

 

 Bri got to spend a day with her pal Kira - who we hadn't seen in a little while...

Briana celebrated her friend Mary's 16th birthday in November along with friend Imerie...

Briana spent the entire fall studying for her SAT exam (virtual class every Saturday morning) and she finally took the test at the beginning of December. She did really well but wants to take it again in the spring to try to improve her score. After the test, Doug, Bri and I celebrated at Panera Bread...

 

 

Doug, Bri and I went to the "Stranger Things Experience" in Atlanta in November and we had a really fun time! I will blog all about that in a separate post...

Of course in the fall comes Thanksgiving, and we once again celebrated with my side of the family - my parents, sister and BIL and my nephews. Lots of delicious food and a good time!

And finally - the night before Thanksgiving, Doug, Bri and I watched the movie "Planes, Trains and Automobiles." It's a Thanksgiving tradition for us and we laugh at the same silly stuff every single year. I actually put up and decorated the artificial tree that I display in my master bedroom before Thanksgiving. A first for me! I'm moving slower these days and need to start putting up Christmas a bit sooner to get it all up in time to enjoy it...

So, that was the gist of our fall! D, B and I stayed virus/cold/flu free the entire season of autumn and that is what we hoped for (until some of us got sick in December - but it wasn't too bad). 

Next up, our Stranger Things Experience!

Happy Birthday Doug!

Happy, Happy, Happy Birthday to my amazing, wonderful, handsome, loving husband! He is celebrating a milestone birthday! He's joining the 50 club today! xoxo

 

(New recap posts coming next week!!!)

Happy New Year 2023!

Happy New Year from our family to yours!

 Our family had a lot of good times in 2022...

 We had some sad and tough times too, but I want to focus on the good stuff in this post.

Wishing you all happiness, good health and prosperity in the year 2023!

 I'll be back to recap November and December soon!