Christine and Seth's housewarming

At Joe's wedding in November, Tyler pushed our friends Christine and Seth to host a housewarming party at the home they bought in Sammamish last April, and they came through. Any excuse for us all to get together again! It worked out great since Clint was sick for the wedding, and who doesn't love a good holiday party?

Christine's done an awesome job furnishing the place, and they're in a great neighborhood which happens to be walking distance to Jeff and Allie. How fun?!

We all got a chance to catch up…Jeff and Allie expecting their first baby girl, Heidi, in a few months, Joe and Ashley told us about their honeymoon in Fiji, Travis and Kate's experience with taking little Campbell to see Santa, and Tyler's plans to buy a hovercraft. Yes, a hovercraft.

everyone minus Tyler who took the pic, and Trav and
Kate had to get home to send the babysitter home

Clint and I ended up driving Tyler and Jon home to Kirkland. Clint's never been to Ty's place on Carillon Point, so we came in for a nightcap. Tyler had been brewing his own homemade egg nog out on the back porch (typical), so he poured the guys each a glass while we went outside to look at all the Christmas lights along the lake before heading home.

"you're gonna love this"

I sure do love this crew, and don't see nearly enough of them. Maybe I should have my own housewarming just for another excuse for a party!

Mom's holiday dinner

One of the things I look forward to each year is my mom's work holiday dinner. They always pick a great restaurant (Capitol Grill, Waterfront Seafood Grill, Ruth's Chris, Salty's), and this year was no different at Palisade.

I left work early to meet Mom and her coworker Jennifer and husband in the bar for happy hour. It's always nice to visit with them before anyone else gets there.

Once more people began to show, we were taken into a private dining room where the view was incredible (although too dark out to get a good picture). We had hors d'oeuvres and wine while everyone arrived.

Mom and I both ordered the surf and turf. So. Much. Food. But oh so delicious.

lobster and a baseball sized tenderloin

I got caught up on everything happening at Liberty Mutual, and met a couple new faces this year. One who happens to work at Boeing, in Renton, in my same building…and even on the same floor. What are the chances?!

Thanks, Mom, for taking me as your date once again! Can't wait for next year (please let it be Canlis!).

XO Cookie Exchange

Oh, the Chi O cookie exchange. This year was such a hit, thanks to Sarah and Heather for being such great hosts! They really know how to throw a fun party with great food, decor, and even some fun games.

With so much prep and cookie baking practice, I was nervous when it came down to picking just one. I went with the overall favorite, Paula Deen's Chocolate Gooey Butter Cookies. I baked the night before, and decided to triple the recipe. I'm not so good with simple math, so I ended up with 150 cookies when we only needed to bring 4 dozen…triple the amount, whoops. 

racks and racks of cookies

all the delicious food

festive Christmas sangria

Sarah had us put out our cookies, label them with our name, and set aside a dish of broken up pieces so that we could sample them all. We then wrote down our vote for best cookie to be tallied up at the end. Stakes were high this year with a trophy on the line!

Weiner brought sweet baby Max -
he is just the cutest!

ho ho ho

playing a game for the ornament exchange

Rachelle the big winner of the coveted
cookie trophy

watching the Hawks lose to the stupid Niners

Jingle, me and Colleen

shirt twins!

I had such a great time seeing everyone and getting into the holiday spirit. Plus, I went home with a ton of cookies where Clint was ready to help me sample them all. Now it's time to start preparing for next year…I want that trophy!

adorable cookie boxes Sarah ordered

bluLink Holiday Party

Clint's business has grown a bit more this year, so the bluLink holiday party went from a small party at someone's house, to a dinner for 8 last year, to renting out our own party venue for 20! Clint's employee Kelly found the place, K. R. Trigger building, and it worked out great. It's a cool spot in SODO, wood panelling, neon signs, and a boat for a bar.

Kelly was also in charge of food and drink. She went with a Mexican theme, and everything was delicious…carnitas tacos, cheesy polenta, chips and guac, quinoa salad, and tequila hot toddys. I also brought a big batch of my tortilla soup which seemed to be a hit, and Clint and I picked up churros and gelato from Costco for dessert. Yum!

Everyone mingled, ate and drank when we first got there, then it was time for the gift exchange. This was our third year doing a white elephant, and it just keeps getting better. Some of the gifts this time around included a bottle of Jack Daniels, ninja stars, a toothpick holder, a switchblade bottle opener, and an urn filled with fake ashes and mini bottles of booze (to sneak it past the TSA). We had a great time stealing and trading…to the point where it got out of hand in the end since none of us quite knew the rules on ending the game. Oh well.

I had a great time catching up with some of the wives, we hardly see each other so it's nice to have a dedicated time of the year to see everyone. Thanks bluLink for a fun party, and here's to more growing in 2014!