This Christmas!

As you know, we created a 2015 Christmas Bucket List. Well, there's only a few days left before Christmas, so I figured that I would post an update before this get super hectic. Here's a link to our Christmas Bucket List.

Kiss Under the Mistletoe. I'm so happy and blessed to have Nathan to spend my Christmases with. 

Look at the Lights at the Opryland Hotel. I have been to the Opryland Hotel before, and have even been there around Christmas (The first time I'd been there at all was with Nathan, if you can believe that), but I'd never walked around and looked at the outside lights. This year, we wanted to do this together.

Make Christmas Candy. Last year, I made Christmas cookies and candy for our Christmas Party, but this year, when we realized we were not going to be able to host a Christmas Party, I just decided to randomly make the goodies. 

Go See the Dancing Lights. Last year, we discovered the Dancing Lights of Christmas at Jellystone Park in Nashville. The ad recommends bringing your pets, so last year, we brought Koba, and he actually seemed to like it. This year, we were brave and brought both Koba and Yuki. Well, they really enjoyed the light show put to music by staring at the car floor the entire time....

Sleep Under the Tree.... Well, we never slept under the Christmas Tree. Honestly, we wouldn't have fit under this year's 2-footer, but I just wanted to show a picture of our tree ;)

Have a Christmas Movie Marathon. I collect Christmas movies and so every year, I try to watch as many as I can until I get annoyed with the cheesiness. This year, I didn't get far into my marathon. We did watch a few, and we also went to see "How the Grinch Stole Christmas! The Musical." It was enjoyable.

Undocumented Items...

• Go Black Friday Shopping
• Drink Hot Chocolate

Our Christmas Bucket List Failures....

• Watch a Christmas Parade
• Host a Christmas Party
• Sleep Under the Tree

More Mistletoe Photos

Merry Christmas!

Mini-Cation to Chicago

During the beginning of last week (Monday and Tuesday), I had a work conference in Chicago, and we got the idea 1.) for Nathan to accompany me, and 2.) To start heading there on Friday night to enjoy the weekend in Windy City. 

First things first, how are we going to get there? Flying would be too expensive; Driving would be too dangerous (for people no used to driving in the big city) AND parking is ridiculous! So a train it is! 

First, we drove to Carbondale to catch the train on Saturday morning at 3:30 am. I thought the train ride would be a bit more eventful, because, I mean, it's a train.... But since it was in the middle of the night, everyone slept. #adventure

Finally, we arrived and after several minutes of frustratingly dragging our bags around, we decided to get an Uber. I've ridden in a taxi before, but never an Uber. Because the Uber drivers are based around customer's reviews via smartphones, they are extremely motivated to complete a more than satisfactory job! Uber gets 2 thumbs up.

Then, almost immediately after dropping off our bags at the hotel, we walked to our first activity: a city walking tour. We chose Chicago Walking Tours: Free Tours by Foot. On our tour we got to learn and explore Chicago's downtown area, somewhat confined to the Loop. We learned the history of Chicago, traveled inside several significant buildings, saw the start of Route 66, and ended at Millennium Park (known for the bean). This is our 3rd destination where we have completed a walking tour, and this is one of our favorite traditions! 

After our middle-of-the-night train ride and our (over) 2-hour walking tour, we were exhausted, so a nap decision was made. 

Our next activity was going to the Cadillac Palace Theatre to see the Broadway musical, Pippin. This show... hmm, where to start. First of all, this was one of my all-time favorite musical experiences (which is saying a lot)! It was definitely NOT what I expected, but in a fantastic, give-you-chills, make-you-cry kind of way. It was basically a musical with comedy, magic tricks, and circus acts mixed in. At the end of the trip, Nathan and I both agreed that Pippin was the best activity we did!

On Sunday, we had tickets to a Cubs Game at Wrigley Field. Wrigley Field was over 6 miles from our hotel, so there was no way we were walking... SO, we got tickets for an 'L Train day pass. I personally love subway-type public transit, because it comes like clockwork. Plus, its way less hassle than driving yourself places, and then searching for parking. 

Anyway back to the Cubs. I had gone to a Cubs game last year during the same conference, but it was a fun experience it with Nathan this time! It rained a little bit, but luckily many of the seats at Wrigley Field are covered. We had a good time.

Later that day, we took the 'L Train again to get to the Willis Tower Skydeck. I was pretty excited about going to the top, because I have never had the chance to go up. One trip to Chicago, I had planned to go, but it was so foggy, it wouldn't have been worth it. Anyway.... I had completely underestimated the popularity of this attraction! I was not expecting standing in line, or being crowded, but we soon found out. At the skydeck, the room was window lined so that people could see for miles in ever direction. It was pretty awesome. Then there was this ledge thingy you could go out on and look down as well. Nathan DID go out on this, even though his heartbeat sped up 15 bpm (this is no joke; we tested it on his Apple Watch). Anyway, he wasn't on the ledge long enough to take an awesome down angle photo with me. 

On Monday, my conference started (it was a great conference by the way), so our Chicago activities were put on hold until 6 pm that night. That night, we walked to the Navy Pier to eat and relax. We ate at Harry Caray's Tavern and walked the length of the pier. My personal opinion of the pier is that it is fairly overrated...there's just not that much to it. Anyway, we rode the ferris wheel, which was a neat ride.

On Tuesday, the conference continued until 3:00, when we got another Uber to catch our train at 4:00 at Union Station. This ride was more enjoyable because we were able to talk, read, and fully experience the train ride. There was a person talking about how many times he had been in jail, which was, of course, annoying. Here's my question, if you've been to jail, why is it necessary to tell a bunch of strangers on a train? This is one of life's mysteries.

We had a great mini-vacation (I guess you would call it). The trip was just long enough to figure out how to navigate successfully around the city, and then it was over.

Oh, I almost forgot. Long Live Giordano's Pizza!

CLICK HERE to watch our Chicago video!!

This is a picture of the Wrigley Building that I really liked. The Wrigley Building is an icon of the Magnificent Mile. 

BPP #14

Hey hey party people! Its been really relaxing the past few weeks, which has been great since May and June were so crazy!!

For our anniversary we got some photos taken (reminiscent of engagement photos). We got them back last week and WE LOVE THEM! You may have seen our post from Monday, but if not, click here to see more of our anniversary pictures! Photo cred: Josh Salley

My cuz, Kaitlynn, was in the musical "Fiddler on the Roof." On one hand, it was pretty funny. On the other hand, it was very entertaining. On the other hand, the music was great. Thumbs up if you get the reference. She played the role of Tzeitel, and it was weird seeing her get married, but she did great (and the other people did great also)!

Brown Paper Packages #9

"I simply remember my favorite things, and then I don't feel so bad..." Ok, I don't feel bad, but its still fun to remember my favorite things.

Two weeks ago, one my friends, Melissa, was in a play at Playhouse In the Park in Murray Kentucky. Additionally, the play was one of my all-time favorite musical soundtracks and movie, Rent. Obviously, this combination required me to attend!!! I was a little skeptical because of my love and knowledge of the show and I tried to prepare myself by lowering my expectations. After all, its just community theatre. 

After the first number, titled "Rent," I knew that this show was going to rise high above my expectations! It was phenomenal!! Every single one of the main characters was perfectly cast. The acting was great, and the singing was ON POINT! Top it off with messages of love and friendship, and you've got yourself a perfect recipe to make you cry...

Anyway, I'm so glad I made the trek to Murray to see my friend play Mimi. She was SO great and it was fun to watch her! Great job Melissa and the rest of the cast and crew!

The weekend following the Rent performance contained other Brown Paper Package moments. I am going to be a bridesmaid for my friend Kaitlin. All of her Bridesmaids are scattered across eastern USA. 1 in Murray, KY; 1 in Paducah, KY, 1 in Southern Illinois, 1 in South Central Kentucky, 1 in Memphis, 1 in Georgia, and 1 in Northern Illinois. Anyway, you get the point....some are pretty far away! 

SO....it was decided that we should try and pack all of Kaitlin's pre-wedding festivities into one weekend so that everyone could come, and so that the BMs wouldn't have to make numerous trips for various parties and showers (click here to read all about Kaitlin's Survivor themed Lingerie Shower). It was so fun reconnecting with friends and meeting and making new ones as well. Additionally, we got to celebrate Kaitlin and Dustin's upcoming marriage in a fun and unique way.

And then there's this....

Tale as Old as Time

This past weekend, Beauty and the Beast came to SKyPAC (Southern Kentucky Performing Arts Center). We decided to go because.... well I mean..... do you really need an excuse to go see a tale-as-old-as-time musical?.... The answer is no.

I was excited to go see it for several reasons. Firstly, because I just love musicals. Another reason is because we have never been to SKyPAC and I was interested to see the quality of the Bowling Green Theatre. 

Here are some things we learned:

1. SKyPAC is a nice theatre and you should visit if you get the chance
2. Beauty and the Beast is awesome! I had seen it at Murray State for their annual Campus Lights, but had not seen it by a professional company. Nathan had seen it in St. Louis at the Fox Theatre. Hilarious, touching, and of course great musical numbers.
3. Lots of small children attended. This was a surprise for me. Although, of course, Beauty and the Beast was obviously first designed for children in the Disney Animation, it did not even cross my mind that there would be a ton of kids there. And not just kids, but girls in princess dresses and tiaras. It wasn't annoying, it was just a surprise. We actually had a small girl who sat right behind us. Her quotes throughout the play have turned out to be a good source of one-liners.

My only complaint of the whole night was that there was not a large poster for me to take a picture with. It is customary for me to do that. I guess SKyPAC didn't get my memo.

It was a great night! I would recommend seeing Beauty and the Beast. I would recommend seeing something at SKyPAC. I would recommend all theatres to provide a poster.

Brown Paper Packages #2

Since my last Brown Paper Packages post, a couple of events have occurred, but other than that, not much has happened for me to report. Therefore, this post is pretty much going to be pictures from those two events.

The first is that Nathan and I spent our first married Valentine's Day together. First, I made a late breakfast filled with heart-shaped food. What can I say, I go all out.

Later, we went to the Streets of Indian Lake in Hendersonville, TN to see Paddington the movie. We were the only people in the theatre that didn't bring small children, but hey, it was a great movie! I would recommend it. When we got home, Nathan fixed his annual Valentine's meal. Chicken from Walmart deli, kraft mac-n-cheese, and doritos.

We agreed to give each other a cheesy Valentine's Day gift. Here is a picture of me forcing Koba to cuddle with my gift. Koba + Gnash = Love

The next event was the snow week we had this week! We got 7-8 inches on Sunday night and another 2 inches on Tuesday night. 

Here are just a few pictures of some entertaining things that happened....

Day 1: Koba deciding the snow wasn't for him...

Day 2: Binge playing Roller Coaster Tycoon like I did in high school... It was nostalgic and great...

Day 3: Snow Shakes!... (click here for recipe)

Day 4: Running out of things to do.... so.... I made a ridiculous video.... (click here to watch video)

Day 5: Shoveling snow with these dudes. Thanks, Kevin, for helping us clear our driveway before it gets covered again.

Needless to say, its been a pretty relaxing week. Hope you enjoyed this edition's Brown Paper Packages.

A Wicked Performance

Last night, we went to see Wicked the musical to celebrate. "Celebrate what?" you ask. Two things. Something old and something new. This Thursday will mark the 1 year anniversary of Nathan and I being together.... 4-17-13. Monday was the 2 month mark in the countdown to our wedding.... 6-14-14. Celebration it is! Thankfully, there were no Predators games this week... ;) So, we decided to go see the broadway musical, "Wicked," which was touring in Nashville at TPAC.

Wicked was the very first professional/semi-professional Broadway musical that I ever saw, which was in Chicago 6 years ago. Even after attending many other musicals, both professional/semi-professional, as well as community theatre productions, Wicked is still my favorite. I, by no means, am a musical theatre "expert," but I could, in some circles be considered a musical theatre "buff." So, let's just pretend that assumption is correct. These are the reasons that Wicked is the best musical that I have yet to see...

1. It's easy to follow. This is important, because sometimes you may want to go see a theatre production with someone who doesn't really like theatre that much (to those people, I'll say, you are definitely missing out...). If you do decide to see a play with someone who isn't into the arts, or who isn't quite nerdy enough, or who gets bored easily, Wicked might be a good place to start. Since it's based off of the storyline of the Wizard of Oz, there are a lot of aspects that are easy to catch on to.
2. Wicked is surprisingly funny to audiences who think theatre is boring. I am extremely familiar with the Wicked soundtrack, and though I had seen it before, I had forgotten how many hilarious one-liners are included in the script!
3. The music is AMAZING. That's all I really have to say about that. If you want to make me cry, sing me some good harmony.
4. Although there are no children characters, Wicked is very family friendly. I could have missed it, but I noticed there was absolutely no language, no nudity, and no sexual content. So, as far as taking your kids to see it? I say, go for it. If you can get past the fact that the whole plot line is about witches, then I would say it would be a great choice for a family date. Now... if you can't get over the whole magic thing.... don't even get me started... thats a completely different blog post.

Basically, I think everyone should see Wicked at least once, if not 40 times. But I would suggest anyone see any Broadway musical, because I've loved every one I've seen thus far.