birthday promises

[see larger image on flickr]

my wonderful mom just let me know that she got my birthday present yesterday...

...tickets to see promises, promises on broadway!! [kristin chenoweth and sean hayes live. should be ammmazing.]

i'm soooo excited to see the show, the tree, the shoppers bustling about...and the city dressed in its christmas best :)

because there's really nothing quite like new york at christmas...

[listen]

festive fall trip

a few weeks ago i went on a nice, relaxing trip to upstate new york. it was full of fun fall activities...

playing keno and gossiping with locals at the three bear inn.
visiting the ithaca farmer's market.
admiring artisan jewelry & pottery...and the beautiful lake-front view.
tasting delicious wine and nibbling on cookies.
laughing at stories from "the limerick king."
picking apples and sipping cider.

it was a trip with my family and dear friend.
it was a weekend filled with some of the best ingredients of life:
...wine, cookies, laughter, & love :)

[see flickr here and here for photos from hollenbeck's cider mill]

signs of snow

i went for a walk downtown today just to be outside and get some fresh air [something i haven't had in a few days!]  and guess what?!? the snowflake lamp post lights are out downtown! I used to get so excited for them every year in undergrad.

and here at penn state, our snowflakes are blue & white...how perfect.

new path

things with school have been way too busy lately...so this morning i made sure that i blocked out time to go on a nice long walk.  i usually walk on campus, but with all of the football traffic today, i didn't want to deal with the chaos.

so i found a new path around the golf course where i live.  it was perfect...quiet, peaceful, and completely surrounded by nature.  now, combine that with the cool, foggy morning air and i was in heaven :)  it was just the kind of break i needed before i jump back into the piles of work waiting for me this weekend [2 weeks until fall break...it cannot come soon enough!].