Holiday Season

Our first Christmas celebration was the WIKA Christmas party weekend which was so fun!  I always love seeing all of my coworkers and spouses outside of work!   We have a sales team Christmas party which is always fun since we never really get to see the spouses and the food is always fantastic.  The day after we have a corporate party which had just under 1000 attendants at Gwenette Arena which is always a blast!

To continue the holiday season for us, Joe and I hosted a tacky Christmas sweater party at our house.  This was the first time that we were having a large amount of people at our house so we were very excited for the evening!  We made several deserts, a vegetable platter, a cheese and meat platter, and three different dips (corn, spinach artichoke, and buffalo chicken).  We also made a Christmas Mojito which was amazing!  We loved seeing so many of our closest friends while enjoying great food, drink, and some beer pong on the rooftop in our festive home!

Sunday I headed home to spend some time with my family.  Sebastijan came home Monday morning, so he helped my mom clean the house.  Monday evening, Ana flew in early and surprised our parents so that we would all be home together for a little bit.  Tuesday evening Joe and Domen came up from Atlanta, so Tuesday night we had a big dinner and just enjoyed each other’s company.  Wednesday morning we woke up and put the Christmas tree together.  Then it was time for everyone to unwrap their gifts!  After gifts, we ate a bit of breakfast before starting our Christmas meal.  Joe and I had to head back to Atlanta around 1, so after some family pictures, we sat down for a wonderful meal fairly early.  We enjoyed country fried steak, mushrooms, potatoes, and salad.  After eating, Joe and I headed home to pack for Europe, then head to his parents’ house to enjoy a wonderful meal!   

We enjoyed some meats and cheeses first, then our second course was 7 fishes, where Joe and I made a dish and Matt made a dish!  There was a break after that, and then the 3^rd course was prime rib with vegetables!  There was so much food and it was all amazing!  After we finished eating,  we relaxed for a bit then headed to midnight mass.  After mass it was bed time.  We woke up the next morning and opened presents before having an amazing brunch.  There was breakfast casserole, bagels and lox, fruit, and so much food!  After that we enjoyed family time before hitting the road to the airport.  Before we knew it, we were boarding a flight to Slovenia!

Holiday Sweets

Every year, the holidays bring a great opportunity for me to bake all day and then give the goodies away.  I love baking, but often times they sit in the house and we either eat them all (which just isn't healthy) or they go to waste.  Every year for the holidays, I try to take the time to bake some goodies to bring into the inside team at work, to show my appreciation for all that they do for me throughout the year.  This year was no different, and this past Sunday was filled with a grocery run in the morning, and baking the remainder of the day!  Below are all the recipes that I put together to put on a platter to deliver to my company, and Joe's company.  There were a couple old recipes that I made that I will provide links to below.  Enjoy!

Soft and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies
White Chocolate Cream Cheese Cookies
Smores Fudge Bar

One more thing I made was chocolate covered pretzels.  They are so simple to make and make for a quick desert!  All you need are Pretzel Rods or Sourdough Pretzels , melted chocolate (white, dark, or milk) and some sprinkles for any occasion!

Finished Platter

Hot Cocoa Fudge

Ingredients

• 3 cups milk chocolate chips
• 1 14 oz can of sweetened condensed milk
• 1 tbsp cocoa powder
• 2 tsps vanilla extract
• 1 cup marshmallow bits or marshmallow minis

Instructions

1. Line a 9 by 9 inch pan with aluminum foil.
2. Over medium low heat, add the sweetened condensed milk to a small saucepan. Whisk in the cocoa powder.
3. Stir in the chocolate chips and stir consistently until well combined. Stir in the vanilla extract.
4. Pour into the pan, and add the marshmallow bits, gently pressing them into the fudge.
5. Refrigerate for at least four hours, covered, before removing the fudge from the pan by lifting the aluminum foil, peeling it off the fudge, and cutting the fudge to serve.
6. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to two weeks.

Original Recipe from here

Cookies and Cream Fudge

Ingredients:

3 cups white chocolate chips, melted and cooled
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
1 stick unsalted butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups powdered sugar
26 Oreo cookies, crushed

Directions:

Line a 9-by-13-inch pan with parchment paper. Lightly spray the parchment with baking spray or grease with butter. In the bowl of your stand mixer attached with the paddle attachment, beat cream cheese and butter until smooth. Add vanilla and mix until combined. Slowly add the powdered sugar until thoroughly combined. Mix in the melted chocolate until the mixture is light and fluffy, about 1 minute.
Stir in the crushed Oreo pieces.  Spread the mixture evenly into your prepared pan. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours. Cut into 1-inch cubes. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator until ready to serve.

Original recipe from here 

Double Decker Chocolate Peanut Butter Fudge

Ingredients:
1 (10-12 oz) bag peanut butter chocolate chips
1 (10-12 oz) bag semisweet chocolate chips
4 1/2 cups white granulated sugar
14 oz jar marshmallow creme
1 1/2 cups evaporated milk
1/2 cup butter
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Directions:
Line a 13X9″ baking pan with aluminum foil.  Using two large bowls, pour peanut butter chips in one and chocolate chips in the other.  Combine the sugar, marshmallow creme, evaporated milk, and butter in a large saucepan and cook over medium heat. When the mixture comes to a boil, stir continuously for 5 minutes (let it boil the entire time you are stirring). Remove the saucepan from heat and add vanilla. Quickly stir to incorporate.

Carefully pour half of the mixture into the peanut butter chips bowl and the other half into the chocolate chips bowl. Stir the peanut butter chips until they are melted and the mixture is smooth (it will take a minute or two). Pour the peanut butter mixture into the bottom of the pan lined with foil.

Now stir the chocolate chip mixture until the chips are completely melted and the mixture is smooth. Carefully pour and spread on top of the peanut butter layer in the pan (I slowly and carefully poured mine on top, then used a spatula to spread it to the edges- if you pour too quickly, it will make holes and dents in your fudge).

Let the fudge cool for a couple of minutes before placing in the fridge. Allow fudge to set up for 2-4 hours, then cut and serve.

 Original recipe from here

Candy Bar Fudge

Ingredients:

• 1 cup milk chocolate chips
• 1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup evaporated milk
• 1 1/2 cups marshmallow crème
• 1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup salted peanuts
• 14-oz. bag caramels, unwrapped
• 1/4 cup evaporated milk
• 1 cup milk chocolate chips
• 1/4 cup creamy peanut butter

Instructions:

1. Coat a 9x13 pan with cooking spray and set aside.
2. FIRST LAYER: In a small bowl, combine chocolate chips and peanut butter. Heat in the microwave in two 30-second intervals, stirring after each interval. Stir until creamy and pour in an even layer into the bottom of the prepared pan. Place pan in freezer.
3. SECOND LAYER: In a medium saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Stir in the sugar and evaporated milk and bring to a boil. Cook, stirring constantly, for 3 minutes. Remove from heat and immediately stir in marshmallow crème, peanut butter and vanilla. Add peanuts and stir until incorporated. Pour mixture over the chocolate layer from the freezer and spread evenly. Place back in freezer.
4. THIRD LAYER: Add the caramels and evaporated milk to a small saucepan. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until caramel is melted and smooth. Remove pan from freezer and pour caramel over the second layer. Place back in freezer.
5. FOURTH LAYER: In a small bowl, combine chocolate chips and peanut. Heat in the microwave in two 30-second intervals, stirring after each interval. Stir until creamy and pour in an even layer onto the top.
6. Refrigerate for a minimum of 1 hour and cut into squares when ready to serve. Keep refrigerated.

Original Recipe from here

The Best Time of the Year...

So it has been quite some time since the last post but it has been quite busy!  The past couple weeks were spent enjoying my vacation with family and friends.

The Friday before Christmas Joe and I packed up my car, dropped off Roxie at Joe's parent's house, and hit the road to Greenville to spend some time with my family.  We got in fairly late, so we slept in Saturday before starting some Christmas fun.  My mom had quite a lot to bake so the day was filled with mixing dough for cookies and cakes and spending some family time.  We also had a lot of wedding stuff to do so I started addressing invitations, picked out wedding party gifts, and balanced our budgets.  Courtney came over to enjoy dinner with the family and as always, it was great to see her.  The day was over before we knew it and we called it an early night to catch up on much needed sleep.

Sunday morning we got up early and went to church.  After church I went on a walk with my parents before taking a quick nap myself.  After nap time we enjoyed an amazing meal, and of course Courtney joined.  We had our standard country fried steak Sunday dinner.  After dinner we did some more baking and preparing for the wedding and just hanging out with my family.  Sunday night, Joe and I headed to downtown Greenville for dinner with Amanda and Will.  We went to Grill Marks in downtown and the food was amazing! I always love burgers that you can get lettuce wrapped so that was a plus.  The Parmesan truffle fries are also amazing and I am pretty sure I ate the majority of them and didn't share with Joe!  It was so good having dinner with Amanda and getting to catch up, but it was also great meeting Will.  After dinner we headed home and went to bed fairly early again.

Monday, Joe was working so I addressed a lot of wedding invitations, helped with the Christmas preparation, took a long walk with my little brother, and relaxed on the day off.  I headed to hot yoga with Bethany and Whitney in the early afternoon at a local yoga place.  Although the workout wasn't what I normally do (I do more power yoga/flow), it was a nice change of pace, and it was HOT!  We walked out covered in sweat so I know we got a great workout in.  After getting home I enjoyed dinner with my family before heading the the YSSC Alumni Christmas Party.  It was so good catching up with everyone, young and old, and hearing stories of where everyone is now.  It seems like not that long ago that I was still swimming for YSSC.  I didn't stay too long and headed home to enjoy the end of Christmas Vacation since Joe and my family were watching it.  Joe loved watching it with my family because they show more emotion when watching a movie than I do!

Tuesday morning, my little brother and I went on a walk again before my sister, brother in law, and niece arrived for Christmas.  We spent the day enjoying their company, playing with Rose, decorating the Christmas tree, and getting the final things ready for Christmas.  After waffles for lunch (everyone wanted waffles but I didn't wake up early enough in the morning to make them!) Joe and I and my parents took Rose on a walk so that Ana could get some work done.  Once we got home it was time to get ready for Christmas Eve Dinner.  We were having a mixture of a lot of different foods so it was quite a process.  After my older brother got home, it was dinner time!  We enjoyed so much food and way too many deserts!  After dinner we opened gifts and then took our Christmas picture with everyone!  Before we knew it, it was time for Joe and I to hit the road and head to Atlanta.  It was so good seeing all of my family although we were all together for only 3 hours.  I cannot wait to see everyone again in April for the wedding!

Rose's first Christmas!

Play Time with Rose :)

Presents :)

Joe and I hit the road right at 9 and headed to Atlanta to attend midnight mass at St. Ann's.  We made it early enough to go to Joe's parent's house and then went to mass. It was a beautiful service and I always love the way the church is decorated on Christmas!  We slept in Christmas day because it was a late night.  We enjoyed some waffles for breakfast and then it was present time at Joe's parent's house.  It was fun to see how they open presents vs. how we do at our house.  At my house we always open presents one at a time, youngest to oldest, while at Joe's they all get one present that Joe distributes, and open them all together.  After presents, Joe and I walked to Joe's friend Dillon's house to see him before appetizer time.  Once we got home appetizers were ready to go and after some more relaxing, it was time for dinner.  Christmas dinner is Joe's favorite dinner because they always have prime rib! Roxie also loves it because she gets a prime rib bone to enjoy for the next couple of weeks.  After dinner and desert Joe and I headed home to open our own presents.  Joe is an amazing gift giver and got me so many amazing things, including a travel yoga mat that folds for easy packing, and a water proof/shock proof camera that we will get to use on our honeymoon and not worry about it getting ruined!  After presents we headed to bed after a long day of celebrating.

Presents again :)

She LOVES Christmas :)

The rest of the week flew by, I did more wedding planning and relaxed and Joe was at work.  The weekend was here before we knew it, and we didn't have to many plans.  We met up with Sam and Dem for drinks and dinner Friday night and enjoyed our first time at Monday Night Brewery.  It is so fun talking wedding with them because they are getting married a month before us and are on a very similar path!  Saturday was a day filled with grocery shopping and wedding stuff.  We took a trip to Men's Wearhouse to pick out what suits/tuxs the guys would wear.  We also picked out our wedding favors and got a general price for them.  Last, we went to the SCUBA place in Roswell to sign up for our intro to SCUBA class!  I cannot wait until our first class to see if we want to become certified or not.  Saturday evening Sam and Dem came over as well as Will and Katie and we had so much fun hanging out, catching up, and having a good time at 5 Paces with the most amazing bartender ever!

Sunday, Joe and I slept in really late and before we knew it, it was time to hit the road for our food tasting for the wedding!   We asked Joe's parents to come along so that we would have a more diverse pallet at the tasting, and we all enjoyed tasting appetizers, sides, and entrees!  Our food should be amazing and I sure do hope I get to eat some on our wedding day :)  After the food, I hit the gym before finishing up the day.

Monday and Tuesday were relaxing days since I was still on vacation. Monday evening we started the meetings with the deacon that will be marrying us.  It was a great meeting where we planned out what still needs to be done, what chapters Joe and I need to do before our next meetings, and making sure that both of us were really ready to get married.  It was a great meeting and I am looking forward to the next one.  Somehow the days flew by and before we knew it, it was New Years Eve.  Joe came home early on New Years Eve, and I went to the gym for a swim.  For those that swam club with me, New Years Eve was always the BIGGEST practice of the year for us, and we spent 4 hours straight in the pool.  I was feeling inspired and I hit the pool myself, and managed a hole 3300 yards!  I was quite proud of myself for swimming so far, and it may not have taken me 4 hours, and I may not have swam super far, but hey it's an accomplishment!  After the swim I started getting ready for the evening.  Joe and I went to dinner with Kellie Ann, Reza, and Tareq and enjoyed tapas at Basil's which is one of Joe and my favorite restaurants.  They have such good food, their bread they bring out that is more like a pizza is amazing, and it isn't that expensive.  After dinner we headed to our apartments where Matt Tang and Mike V met us to head to the bars.  We headed to 5 Paces since they did not have a cover and of course our favorite bar tender, Jessie :), was working.  We had so much fun bring in the New Year with a champagne toast and a New Year's Kiss!

Happy New Year

GTSD taking over 5 Paces :)

We had quite a crew sleeping over that night, so the next morning was spent cleaning up before heading to Joe's parent's house for dinner.  They always have Christmas pasta for dinner even though it is New Years, and it has about 10 different meats in the pasta sauce.  It was amazing and after dinner we started talking logistics about the wedding.  We always think we have so much planned, but the second you start talking details, I start realizing how much more is left.  I am so excited to see all of the details come together on the big day, but for now I will not worry too much because I know we will be stressing before we know it!

And with that, I am caught up, and all out of vacation days :)  Today I went back to work, catching up on emails that were unanswered, and planning out the year to come.  I cannot wait to see what 2014 has in store, because 2013 sure was a great one!  Happy New Year everyone and I hope everyone enjoyed their holidays.