The Hall is Decked!

Yes, my friends, it is official! The Rocco household is officially open for Christmas! The finishing touch was various collages of cards on the stairwell walls. It really dresses things up and is an excellent excuse to save those Christmas cards that you just feel awful throwing away because they're so beautiful! Here's a picture of Pixie inspecting MeLissa's handiwork and a few pictures of the overall look as well as some closeups of the collages. There's also a picture of the pantry in the kitchen all decked out in the lower right-hand corner.

Speaking of Christmas cards, we received our first today from Lisa and Rob! It was a bit of a surprise since we thought we were very early in sending out our cards today, but Lisa told MeLissa that she'd actually received a card as well. My, my but people are prompt this year!

Well, we should say, perhaps, that some people are prompt. One of vendors providing supplies for our party is not. It is highly unlikely, from the looks of it, that they will deliver these goods until well after the party which is disturbing, but MeLissa figures it is just a good excuse to have another party next year...or maybe even a smaller party this year, but that might be a bit crazy so let's shoot for next year, okay?!?

We're really looking forward to the rest of this week. MeLissa's birthday is on Thursday, the party is on Saturday and as an added bonus, MeLissa's little brother is coming on Saturday to enjoy the festivities! We're thrilled about that and are hopeful that we can at least show him a couple nifty things in the Bay Area before he heads back to San Diego and then onto Colorado for his next adventure as a Naval Recruiter. If you're in the Pueblo, Colorado, area and you're thinking about joining the armed services, look Christopher Allen up! He'll get you in and will treat you right!

Turkey Weekend Triumphs!

We have been extraordinarily productive this four day weekend! Truthfully, this is not out of the ordinary. We have a rule in the Rocco household - the tree and the Christmas decorating has to be complete prior to MeLissa's birthday (that would be December 1 for those of you not *in the know*). To accomplish such a task, it pretty much requires the sacrifice of most of the Thanksgiving weekend - we don't mess around when it comes to Christmas, friends...and besides, we have a party in a week! The house has to be decked out for such a joyous occasion! We are happy to report, thought, that no elves were seriously harmed during the decorating process despite a flurry of pine boughs, ornaments and candles.

The first thing on any list when preparing for Santa is, of course, to hang those stockings with care. This year, we are using our knitted stockings which we received as a wedding present from MeLissa's friend Marlys last year. We really think they're special since she made them just for us! And, of course, we've hung a couple for Pixie and Banshee, too. We found a lovely garland with pinecones and faux apples to grace our mantle and added some white Christmas lights to add that extra touch of class as it twinkles through the silver and gold stocking holders and the various crystal pieces that we've used as accents. The mirror in the background really brings everything to life. Finally, we cleaned up the fireplace and put our candleabra (another cool wedding present) in there to make things bright and cheery without making it too hot!

Once the stockings were hung, our focus shifted to the Christmas tree. Decorating the tree is MeLissa's favorite activity every Christmas (though she could do without the shaping ritual that goes on before the decorating!). She has a lot of ornaments and so it becomes, at some point, a challenge to find an empty branch on our small tree, but we always manage somehow. Many of the ornaments are those which MeLissa's parents gave her as gifts while she grew up. It was MeLissa's mom's goal to have a boxful of ornaments to give each of her children when they grew up and moved away so that they could enjoy a fully decorated tree and enjoy some family memories at the same time! In addition to the many heirloom ornaments, MeLissa has quite a collection of Snoopy ornaments (which shouldn't surprise any of her friends and family members given her obsession over the world's greatest beagle!) and a nice sprinkling of S'mores ornaments. She's also interested in developing a collection of ice cube ornaments which she began last year with our "First Christmas" ornament - this lovely bride and groom!

Tomorrow, we'll be busy again - trying to finish up the last decorating touches in the entry way and we're also going to try to decorate a gingerbread house which we'd like to have available for our party guests to nibble on! Once we've finished decorating, we'll jump into making our Christmas gifts for the year. We can't give you any hints about those (well, maybe we could, but then we'd have to lock you in a windowless room until Christmas!), but we promise they'll be useful and utterly fabulous!

Turkey Day is Almost Here!

That means four days off, lots of turkey and, if you're brave (which we're not) after-Thanksgiving sales.

We're staying at home this year to avoid inconvieniencing anyone with MeLissa's food "issues." Since she is allergic to some major ingredients in stuffing, cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes and yep, horror of horrors, pie, it was bound to be a frustrating experience going to Thanksgiving at someone else's house (and, perhaps, even insulting for our host and hostess!), though, we really did appreciate the invitation we received from our friends Lisa and Rob.

Never fear, though, as is the case every Thanksgiving, we have a pretty nice meal planned including turkey, cauliflower "mashed potatoes," and even a pumpkin pie of sorts. We're looking forward to it!

We hope all of you will have a fabulous Thanksgiving! We're very thankful that you're part of our lives and for so many other things as well.

Before we go, we want to direct you to the post title above which, if clicked, takes you to an amusing performance by the one individual who isn't so thrilled that Thanksgiving is coming. If you need a Turkey Day chuckle (or would that be gobble?), this should do the trick!

Happy Thanksgiving!
Mark and MeLissa

Public Health Here He Comes!!!

We have exciting news folks!!! Mark's public health paper that we've been telling you so much about is in its final stages. Mark finished his first draft on Thursday night and MeLissa began reworking the draft on Friday during her lunch hour. MeLissa, for those of you who are unaware, is quite the wiz when it comes to writing and grammar -- so much so that she was asked by professors at her high school to come help grade English compositions after she graduated for several years (it was an *awesome* way to make a little spending money for Christmas break!).

MeLissa spent a good portion of Saturday and Sunday "grading" Mark's paper and providing suggestions for its improvement including a pretty substantial effort on the introductin and conclusion sections. We're sure that between the two of us, Mark will pass Public Health with flying colors, but keep him in your thoughts as he wades through all the comments and suggestions over the next few days. The paper is due on November 18!

In other news, MeLissa has made great strides toward completing the EVIL Dutchman's puzzle block. She is fully convinced still that triangles are E-V-I-L, but she also thinks they can be beat into submission after her recent successes. She'll post a picture of the finished block when she manages to finish it. Her final quilting class is coming up this Thursday. She plans to register for next quarter's class as well so that she can eventually claim her "Quilting Goddess" status.

And, one final note - a public service announcement, if you'll indulge us - please be sure to receive regular eye exams to prevent potential blindess from glaucoma. Check with your vision specialist to see how often you should be screened based upon your family and personal health histories. We want you to be able to see and enjoy all the world has to offer for many years to come!

Clean Air and a Breath of Fresh Air to Boot!

We're very excited about the air we're breathing today here at the Rocco house! We just had our ducts cleaned and a new electrostatic filter put in and we're pretty excited about that! This has been one of the "to do's" on our house list for quite some time! Next up - finish putting up the blinds in the living room.

In MeLissa news, she just registered yesterday for a combination Event/Wedding Planner certification course...so her dream of breaking into the business is on its way! The program she chose offers a thorough curriculum and as well as an externship where she is assigned an event in her area which she is responsible for planning from start to finish. During this process, she will have a team of support individuals backing her up with guidance and years of experience. She plans to finish the study course in early 2006 and will coordinate her assigned event at that time. Once her first "official" event is successfully planned and put to bed, MeLissa will receive her dual certificate and will have the opportunity to either join the company she received training from as an independent contractor or to go out on her own.

Either way, once she finishes, she will begin preparing and planning to obtain her credential as a Certified Special Events Professional. This is the premier designation for event planning professionals which provides assurance that a special events professional possesses the level of skill necessary to provide quality services to his/her client. It is very similar in function to the Certified Public Accountant (CPA) designation MeLissa already possesses which assures her clients and employers that she possesses the necessary skills to successfully perform accounting tasks. This certification is similar to the CPA certification in that continuing education and experience requirements must me met to retain the certification over the long term. MeLissa believes that attaining this designation will set her apart from other event planners and increase her chances for success much as her CPA has helped her be successful in the realm of accounting, which as was mentioned in the past post, MeLissa will continue to pursue until such time that her event planning venture has grown to such a level that she can afford to "retire" and pursue event and wedding planning full-time. She's very excited about her new venture and so there will be frequent updates on her progress!

As for Mark, he's still working away on his Public Health paper. He's been very productive over the past couple of weeks and plans on having his first draft ready for MeLissa to proof read for gramar and syntax by the end of the weekend!

More Quilting, Chiropractic and Planning...

MeLissa actually finished this block quite a while ago, but didn't post the picture. We figure some of you might enjoy seeing her first "real" block (i.e., it's going to go into a quilt!). It is, of course, Christmas-themed...MeLissa's favorite season. It is called a nine-patch block...can't possibly imagine why. ;) MeLissa's currently working on a Dutchman's Puzzle block which is giving her a lot of grief. She will win in the end, but she may have to be tricky!

In other MeLissa news, she's making plans for Christmas gifts, Christmas cards, our Christmas party and she's also spent a little time working on her future event planning business. She foresees venturing out into the world in early to mid-2006 as a supplemental income opportunity. When Mark's finished with school, she may pursue her "dream job" full-time! She plans to provide services for intimate events including birthdays, anniversaries, weddings, holiday parties, dinner parties, etc. She will possibly do do a few large events, if the opportunity arises, but she prefers the flexibility and extra opportunities for service that comes with planning smaller events. If you'd like to help her with her newest "venture," please ask any individuals you know who might be or already use an event planner for parties at their homes or elsewhere to contact her so that she can survey them about their needs. And, of course, if anyone wants any help on a social event they're planning let MeLissa know - she's looking for opportunities to boost her portfolio!

As for Mark, he's busily writing a paper for his Public Health class. His subject is glaucoma and he'll be discussing the public health threat it poses and what should be done to mediate these risks. His current quarter ends on December 16. He and MeLissa will travel to Colorado at some time during the holidays to visit with MeLissa's family and and to see all their friends in Colorado Springs and Denver!

Our kitties are also doing well -they're happy and healthy and are enjoying their new sleeping arrangements. Banshee is now an outdoor kitty with supervised indoor visits. She seems much happier and we don't have to worry about what little liquid "present" we're going to find next. She pretty much stays on our deck, but from time to time, she enjoys hopping up on the roof so that she can feel like she's on top of the world.

Pixie enjoys Banshee being outside because she gets to be the Princess again. She's become much more loving and "clingy" which we don't mind. She typically sleeps at the foot of our bed now because on the first night when Banshee wasn't inside and Pixie was lonely, we left our door open so that she wouldn't feel abandoned and she hopped up on the bed and didn't bother Mark nearly as much as he thought she would...especially since, for the most part, she stays in MeLissa's foot space!