Costa Rica!!!

So... we booked Costa Rica for April!  I am super excited and couldn't wait to post about it.  I will be sharing more details later as the trip is finalized but the first leg of the trip is booked.  I am pretty proud of myself, usually pushing the "go" button on trips takes me a few days to decide, but I got a call that a spot opened up at the place we wanted to stay and I took it immediately on the phone...EEK!

Thank goodness John was free for those dates--who am I kidding, he would have made himself free!

Thus, with any tropical destination, the pressure to really get back in shape is on.  I am almost disappointed with myself that my immediate excitement after booking was pushed aside by the guilt I give myself for not keeping up with my fitness routine.

Either way, today is officially Day 1--GAME ON!  The photo below is my reminder each night:

Anyone have any recommendations for must do adventures while we are there??

Snow & One Happy Pup!

Yesterday we had our first official snowfall of the year!  It was so relaxing to come home, get cozy inside and watch the snow fall.  We ended up getting less than an inch but it did stick around overnight.  I couldn't pass up the opportunity to take some snow pictures...

I actually got a new lens for Christmas and we have been dying to try it out.  I didn't use it for the above picture as I didn't want to take it out in the weather, but I was HIGHLY tempted!

I came home and Jackson was the most excited I have seen him, this was his FIRST SNOW experience and boy was he excited!  John got some great shots of him enjoying the snow....

I was so inspired by the snow that I even whipped up a batch of Chocolate Chip cookies.  As they were cooking, I reminded myself about how counter productive the cookies would be to my diet, so I promptly encouraged John to take them all to work today (he took some but not all--darn it!).

I hope that we get a little more snow this winter, although it seems as though winter has been very mild thus far.  Besides, who doesn't love a snow day???

Hello 2012!

New Years Eve turned out to be pretty low key, which was really nice this year.  Since we actually got some sleep that night, Jan 1 turned out to be a pretty productive day.   Who would have thought that on Jan 1st, it would be almost 60 degrees outside.  John and I took full advantage of the nice weather and took Jackson on a hike in the morning.

This next photo of Jackson makes me laugh so I thought I would share this....

We also took down all the holiday decorations, which makes me very sad.  It's amazing how much preparation we do for the holidays and in a few hours it all comes down and we move on.

John and I are both excited for 2012 and all that it may bring:

• Jackson is finally sleeping out of his crate at night--we are hoping not to have to crate him during the day in the near future.
• Discussions of a "new home" are occurring more frequently, I will be interested to see where this goes in 2012. 
• My camera officially goes everywhere with me now that I have a camera bag that accommodates all the camera stuff and my regular purse related items.  I hope to learn more about all the manual settings, etc. 
• I need to start making gym time a priority again.  Since we got the dog that has been put on the back burner and I really do miss the "me" time that the gym provides after a long day at work.  
• WEDDINGS!  One of my best friends gets married this year and I cannot wait for the celebrations to begin.  We also have another wedding early in the year of some close friends as well.
• Alaska!  We have committed to making a trip to Alaska this year which means I really need to get planning!  

What exciting events do you have planned or wishes for 2012??