christmas crepes.

every year, mama makes crepes on christmas morning. while the preparations are underway, we circle like vultures. when the breakfast bell is rung (metaphorically, of course), we all jump in and stuff ourselves with berries and cream and deliciousness. it's tradition and it's the best.


after crepes, we all head to the movies in our pajamas. that's right, the davis family rolls into whichever G-rated delight they please...in their pajamas. it's the only way to do movies on christmas day. believe it, baby.

'twas the night before christmas

it's been a WIIILLLLDDDD weekend...erm, week. christmas is cool like that, eh? so, here's a quick update on what i've been up to.

pops and i rang in christmas eve with a little off roadin' on the quads. the snow proved too much for us but we had fun while it lasted. the pups did too. they love nothin' more than racin' alongside the quads as we tear through the hills...good times, good times.


later that night, we headed down to the howe's for an authentic mexican dinner. enchiladas? DEE-lish! it was quite a spread. and what's better than good food and good friends? not a dang thing, i tell you.


after we'd stuffed ourselves with enchiladas and guacamole, we bundled up and headed out for a little christmas eve caroling. that's right, caroling. the visit list varies and this year there were only two on the list: rada lund and the goodey household. rada lund is 104 years old this year. yes sirree, 104! i swear, that lady gets more fiesty every year. at this point, she can barely see or hear but she was happy to see us gather around her bed for a quick visit.


after rada, we were off to the goodeys. i started babysitting for shannon goodey turner when i was about 13 or 14. many years later, the turners are still great friends. this weekend, eric and i had a little talk. we've got a long history of love and adoration. and i may or may not have "promised" to wait for him. the way things are lookin' for me on the dating scene, he may just be stuck with me. time will tell. in the meantime, i'll start working on ideas for care packages.

all in all, christmas eve was a delight. stay tuned to get the haps on the big day. it may or may not include delicious french recipes and pajama clad movie goers. you're gonna love it!

grammy.

my mom is the cutest grandmother around. she loves her grandbabies so much. from levi, hope, kyra and harmony to little lilli, aidan and alex in georgia or mr. jayden, grammy is the best! i love watching my mom moon over her grandkids.


sometimes these little ones get crazy, but they always behave when grammy's on duty. it's funny to watch. they learned quickly that tantrums get them nowhere at grammy's.


jayden is usually very serious. but when grammy picks him up and starts playing with him, he's all smiles! it's the cutest thing to see. he just chatters and giggles like she understands every word he's saying. adorable!

and so, to you mama, i raise my glass (martinelli's, of course). may you have many more grandbabies. and may some of them be mine!

the best part of my christmas trip so far.

holiday on the hobby

have you heard? only 6 days 'til christmas! i'm so excited! mostly 'cause this year i'm taking a good chunk of time off of work to visit the fam up in the great state of washington. oh, i can'[t even wait to see my (sort of) newest nephew! i'm gonna kiss his cheeks off! but enough about that.


miss allie hobbins played hostess this week aboard the hobby family yacht. we were supposed to be a part of the 100th annual newport boat parade but it was cancelled because of the weather. the rain was comin' down but we were all warm and snuggly in the cabin. we cruised the harbor for a bit and rung in the holidays with pizza, hot cocoa and plenty of games. thanks to the hobbins family for their generous hospitality. can't wait to go out again!

holiday festivatin'

until i make the trek to the evergreen state, i'm livin' it up in california. with all the light shows and whatnot, a body's guaranteed some serious festivatin' around christmas time. true story.


the first stop on our holiday festivatin' trip was 5 tunis in laguna niguel. it's the most incredible house i've ever seen. first off, there are TONS of christmas lights! the best part is that when you get there, you tune your radio to a specific station (90.5FM for the locals that might actually pop by for a visit) and the lights flash to the music playing on the station it's incredible. for video of the magic, click here.

after the tunis delight, we headed over to the ritz carlton. this year, there is a GIANT gingerbread village made in the shape of a sand castle. it's incredible and oh so festive.


i'm pretty sure these things are going to have to become holiday traditions! and, to hear miss tristen talk, what we've seen so far is just the tip of the iceberg! there are lit houses aplenty to view and many other socal christmas festivities to attend. i'm skippin' town on saturday, so i think i've seen all i can see at this point.

there's always next year, right? i sure hope so!

proud parents (and auntie).

i might get in trouble for posting this one of shari, but it was just too tender to pass up. isn't my sister-in-law beautiful? and how cute is my bro?! oh man, here come the tears again. excuse me for a minute.


okay, i'm back. i still can't believe how amazingly gorgeous shari looks for being in the thick of giving birth. man, oh man. if i could be half the wife and mother she is, i'll thank my lucky stars! my future husband will too!

and here's one of the proud papa.


oh, man. i can't WAIT to get out to georgia and kiss those little peaches! in the meantime, i'll have to satisfy myself with webcam games with miss lilli. oh how i love being an auntie.

bring on the eggnog.

the past week has been a whirlwind of holiday activity. here's a quick recap:

summer and i headed over to the orange county performing arts center for dicken's a christmas carol. it was jolly good times and got me right into the christmas spirit. after the play, we had some fun with the statues outside the theater. yeah, i know. we're ridiculous. i never professed to be anything other than than. besides, you know you love it.


and then came the boat dance. the huntington beach young adults hosted a newport harbor cruise. it was fun-filled night of dinner and dancing. after some bbq, m'girls and i got down on the dance floor. don't worry, mama, i was every ounce the lady you taught me to be. wink, wink.


then on saturday, i fulfilled my lifelong dream of getting up at the crack of dawn to freeze my bum off on a fishing vessel. true story. deep sea fishing, m'friends. i even caught a fish! if ever you decided to try your hand at deep sea fishing, be sure to make friends with the deckhands. they make life a lot easier.


the rest of the weekend was filled with cookie parties and mixers. good times, good times! i even fired up the christmas playlist finally! i'm super excited for the holidays. life is good, my friends. yep, real good.

by the way, i hate eggnog with every fiber of my being. just thought you should know.

vilkommen, bienvenue, welcome.

it was another wild weekend and the blog post is forthcoming, but i just couldn't WAIT to get this one up!

we've got twins in the family now! that's right - TWINS! last night, shari davis (married to my bro, ben) delivered two - count 'em TWO - healthy baby boys! yay yay yay!


alexander keith was born at 7:26pm and weighed in at 5lbs 11oz.


aidan scott was right behind at 7:27pm and weighed in at 5lbs 7 oz.

congrats ben, shari and lilli! we're so excited for the new additions to the family! our thoughts and prayers are with ben and shari as shari is recovering and those little boys gather strength to head home with their big sis!

book club virgin no more.

i've always been a voracious reader. i love nothing more than snuggling into my blanket with a good book. that said, i've never been part of a book club. weird, eh? maybe not.
at any rate, tonight i had my very first book club experience. it was most cozy and quite wonderful. we discussed "the proper care and feeding of husbands" by dr. laura. i know, i know. no, i don't have a husband and it's true that i'm not generally a fan of the doc. in fact, when i heard what we'd be discussing this month i thought, "hmm, maybe i'll wait 'til next month to join." i'm glad i didn't wait! this book is fantastic. i think the principles are applicable to marrieds and singles alike. the most important thing you can do is read it with an open mind. soon, you'll be seein' things her way! this book motivates women on so many levels. you won't be sorry you read it!
thanks to all the ladies that helped make the experience so positive! i loved your insights! can't wait for next month!

sabbath day schennaningans

i'm not sure why we had cameras in our bags. prolly 'cause we're photo fanatics like that. either way, that tristen. so stylish. so klassy. that's right, klassy with a k. and don't you forget it.


aren't you so jealous of tristen's cruella deville coat?! yeah, you know you are. i know you are. we all know you are.

weekend wackiness.

you see, it all started with a gumball...


...and some crazy girls.


then came a woman whose one true love happens to be a cream cheese filled pretzel.


throw in a handsome young man,


a lover's spat,


and a pic in front of cinderella's castle...


... you've got the makings of a fab-o night at disneyland.

oooh! and right now, it snows on main street. that's right, snow. in southern california. it really IS the happiest place on earth. really.

kinda fun.

this has been going 'round for a few weeks and i've ignored it. but i'm throwin' in the towel. here's how it's goin' down:

rules:
* grab the book closest to you. now.
* go to page 56.
* find the 5th sentence.
* write that sentence in the comment section.
* don't go looking for your favorite book, or the coolest one you have -- just grab the closest one.

here's mine: "grandson," he said, "there are two wolves living in my heart and they are at war with each other."

give it a go. you know you want to.

hark the bells

tonight was the annual ocmco concert. it was fantastic! auditioning for the choir was the best thing i've ever done. singing in the organization has been a blessing and an honor. i can't believe i've only been with ocmco for a year! either way, it's been a most fantastic year!


this concert was titled "all the bells on earth shall ring" and the program lived up to it's title. we had a bell choir this year. it was gorgeous. and, of course, there were a few brett stewart originals. we even had a glockenschpiel! yeah, that's okay, i didn't know what it was either. it's like...a xylophone. 'cept cooler.


speakin' of cool, don't i look so hot with my stage makeup?! lookout boys, i'm breakin' hearts tonight! me and my eight pounds of lipstick. smooches, anyone?


oh, and a shoutout to our concert photographer, heather morris! i stole the pics from her. for more info on her hilarity and daily escapades, go here.

to dance or not to dance? not even a question.

we rustled up the girls for 80s dancing last week. it just so happens that the very same night, south county experienced torrential downpours. after workin' up a sweat on the dancefloor, the cool rain was too much to resist. we took our dancin' to the streets and were soaked in seconds! good times, good times.


mom, if you're reading this, i just want you to know there were no boys around. none at all. they weren't sitting outside watching us re-enact flashdance or taking photos of said re-enactment. they weren't oogling our hot bodies or cat calling. not at all. nope, not one bit. promise.

vince vaughn is a dreamboat.

after the food coma wore off, i spent all of saturday doing my spring...erm, winter cleaning. it was a most productive day and i was totally in the zone. around five o'clock, i pulled myself out of the fog and had a chat with miss angel. we made plans to see a movie. we bypassed internment camps (boy in the striped pajamas) and hot aussie hugh jackman (australia) in favor of doofy men and leggy blondes. that's right, we saw four christmases with vince vaughn and reese witherspoon.


it was pretty cute. now that may or may not be because i'm a fan of vince vaughn and tend to place him firmly in the hot men category. yes, i recognize he's a total doof, but there's just something about him. yum! miss reese was great in the slapstick-esque scenes. it's not exactly a classic but it's a fun holiday film. maybe you'll like it, maybe you won't. but either way, that vince vaughn is so hot right now. true story.

the what?