the one with christmas trees and google searches

On Monday, Jesse and I picked out our very first Christmas tree! And yes - it was exactly like that scene in Christmas Vacation where Clark Griswold sees "the one" - and the tree glows and a chorus sings melodiously in the background....well, sort of. But we did find a tree in the freezing cold and we did cut it down ourselves! And by "we" - I obviously mean Jesse. I was dressed far too adorably for such an endeavor. 

Turkey Hill Farm...and my very own lumberjack.

So anyways, we picked up our good friend Steve and drove up to Turkey Hill Farm in Haverhill, MA to search for the perfect tree. With the beautiful mountains behind us we paid an arm and a leg to cut down our very own tree, drink some free cider, and snap some photos commemorating the special moment. 

The first-ever A+J tree! Sorry I'm not giving you a full scale glimpse at The Tree. It's about 6 feet tall and smells divine. 

Oh and a woman from the Associated Press followed us around taking pictures for an article or something. So, who knows, maybe we'll even be in the paper! I even typed in "Alexandra Ghoman" on google today to see if she had posted a picture with my name in it and alas...only my Pinterest page popped up. This showed me two things: no, she didn't sell our pictures to the AP wire and yes, I'm the only Alexandra Ghoman on the internet...nay in the WORLD!!! 

So, clearly, it's been a big week for me - a first Christmas tree AND my very own google name. It's the little things in life:)

Sealed with a kiss. But we're married so it's allowed:) 

the one with the redemption

Although I'm sure you're dying to see all that I did over the holiday weekend (just kidding, I know your instagrams, facebooks, etc have already been thoroughly bombarded by your friends'/other bloggers' posts) -  I know that what you really want to know is how I fared over Black Friday. Did I break my vow? If you're wondering what the heck I'm talking about - then you can read my recent fashion vow post here.

First of all, I'm happy to report that I've worn my own (feminine) clothes every day this week. Since I've been freeeezing up here in Boston - it's been tough to stick to my own clothing options - but I've made lots of effort! And over the holiday weekend I even took some photos to prove it. Special thank you to all of you (J included) who have been forcing me to stick to my vow - I never knew how much you all detested my bad habits until I posted about it:)

Photo 1: shirt (thrifted), sweater (Gap last year), jeans (old navy), necklace, (consignment)

Photo 2: sweater (Gap), colored jeans (Gap outlet)

Photo 3: ruffled shirt (LOFT), sweater (LOFT), cords (JCrew Factory)

*In other news: the angle of these pictures is oh-so-unflattering. Vow #2 - stop taking photos like these*

And how did I survive the Black Friday shopping craze? Well, again, I just barely escaped the clenches of men's clothing sales and instead I bought two feminine shirts - one from Target and one from LOFT. They're adorable and flattering...finally! I'll post those later. J, on the other hand, bought some reallyyyy soft shirts during the sales and I haven't tried to steal them yet. It's nearly been the death of me.

Is it breaking my vow if I just wear them once... if I didn't buy them personally? Shhh, don't tell:)

And just in case you DO care about our Thanksgiving - here's a picture from our very first Thanksgiving as husband and wife. We like to keep it bright:) 

the one with the fauxgiving

In honor of Thanksgiving Eve, I'm posting about one of my favorite new traditions....celebrating Thanksgiving...rather "Fauxgiving" with some of our best friends. On Saturday, several of the young married couples at church got together for a huge turkey dinner - and it was an absolute FEAST. The feast allowed me to try out some new recipes. I decided to make some southern classics: macaroni and cheese and sweet potato souffle. And now - I have the privilege of sharing them with you:) 

Macaroni and Cheese: 

I got the recipe from the Food Network (it was the highest rated recipe) and it turned out deliciously!! Here it is before and after the oven:) Look it up here. 

Sweet Potato Souffle:

I don't have a picture of the souffle but this was one of the favorites of the evening. It was rich and sweet...and totally Southern:) It was diviiiine! And you can find the recipe here...Paula Deen, baby!

Although everyone made some delicious food - the best part of Fauxgiving was spending it with friends. I feel so blessed to live in a place with so many people in our stage of life. The first couple  months of marriage have been wonderful but also new, crazy, emotional, etc and we've needed peer friendships like never before. I'm so thankful that God has blessed us abundantly in this department. 

Isn't Alex such an adorable hostess?! She and Jay made the turkey and made this night come together:) 

Can you believe that actual Thanksgiving is tomorrow?! I know I can't. J and I are spending the holiday weekend with his family up in Syracuse, NY and it's going to be a great time. This is my second year with his family (although last year we stayed in town) and I'm really excited about it. Although I always miss my family this time of year - I'm so blessed to have the in-laws that I do. They make me feel so loved and included. Special note: Jesse's sister will not be joining us this year. And I'm so mad - thankfully she's sitting right next to me until her flight this afternoon. So I'm getting my Jenna-fix a little early this year:) 

It's hard to believe that this time last November, J and I were still dating long distance. The last year has brought so much to be grateful for - God is good. 

Thanksgiving 2011

the one with the confession...

It's official: I need help. 

I have worn something from the men's department EVERYDAY this week. 

Things are getting out of hand. 

It all began junior year of college. I began searching the men's sale section regularly (predominately in the Gap) and I soon acquired a collection of button downs, henleys, some thermals, several hoodies, a pair of sweatpants, etc. Now married to a boy with even more flannels, sweatshirts, thermals, and cool sweaters - my obsession has reached problematic proportions. I have constant access to shapeless, warm, and comfortable clothing! To be fair, I always try to feminize my menswear with pearl earrings, cute hair, statement necklaces, skinny jeans, etc. But let's be honest - you can only get away with the boy-gone-girly look so often. I'm turning something that would be mildly chic on a bi-weekly basis into a daily lumberjack routine. 

Oh dear. 

That being said - I, Alexandra Joy Ghoman, hereby vow to stop buying men's clothing for the foreseeable future....even if said future holds the softest, most affordable shirt/sweater combo I've seen in months (I'm literally cringing writing these words). And I also promise to limit my purchases to feminine items that will balance my shapeless, overly-comfortable style. However, these new items will also work with my typical style. After all, "Rome wasn't dressed in a day"....or something like that. 

Some of the things I'll be looking for as I embark on my new fashion journey....fun dresses, interesting tops, blending of styles, etc. 

  

  

The first is from girlsack.com, second is from Gap, the last is from Ruche.

First is from Kendi Everyday, second is from LOFT, and third is from the Daybook Blog. 

Wish me luck;)

the one where we all made decisions

Ever experience something that just inspires you? This weekend, I had one of those times.  The annual New York/New England campus retreat, "Decision 2012" was this weekend and it was incredible. 550 college students came together to worship God and learn about his purposes for them. At this point in my life, my role as a retreat-attendee has shifted drastically. I'm no longer the target-audience retreats like these - and yet, I still gain so much from going. I still hear the word of God preached powerfully, I still see men and women who inspire me with their faith, I still hear songs that move me to tears, I still reconnect with old friends, I still leave wanting to pursue God like never before. 

Sam and Cynthia Powell were the key-note speakers for the event and did an incredible job preaching the word. As I listened to Cynthia Saturday morning, I was blown away (as I always am) by her wisdom and insight. Cynthia is a woman of one-liners - she knows how to speak the truth in one sentence. Here are a few of my absolute favorites:

"You take care of God's business, and he'll take care of your business."

"God has a perfect will and he also has a permissible will." (too deep to explain haha)

"Your perspective on your problems is in direct correlation to your perception of how big God is."

"After you get what you wanted; are you gonna want what you got?"

She gave me (and the hundreds of other women) in attendance much to think about as she spoke about God's campaign for us as his daughters. It's easy for me to leave weekends of convicting sermons feeling overwhelmed by all I have to grow in and all I have to change - but as I consider one of the main Psalms that Cynthia read - I feel encouraged by my God. 

The Lord is compassionate and gracious,
    slow to anger, abounding in love.
He will not always accuse,
    nor will he harbor his anger forever;
he does not treat us as our sins deserve
    or repay us according to our iniquities.
 For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
    so great is his love for those who fear him; 
as far as the east is from the west,
    so far has he removed our transgressions from us.

Psalm 103:8-12

I'm very far from perfect. I have so much to grow in. I don't want to stay where I'm at or be content with the status quo. I also don't want to forget the heights of God's grace or the depths of his love. 

I've made my decision. What's yours?

the one with the first snow!

As I write this - my fingers are freeeeeeezing!!! {Ha, Jesse saw me type that and blew on them to make them warmer -didn't work...but cute.} I'm sitting in our little attic working on the rooming list for our upcoming campus ministry retreat and thinking about the lovely mini snowstorm developing outside:) It's the first snow of the season and although all we have is this teeny space heater keeping us (vaguely) warm, I can't help but feel grateful.  Unlike many of my friends in New York and New Jersey, I'm lucky enough to have power, plenty of food in my pantry, and  enough gas in my car. I have so much to be thankful for.

I'm praying that my fellow north-easterners can stay warm, dry, and well-fed during this November storm:) And here's to hoping that J and I can soon afford to fill our oil tank and regain central heating! 

Until then....brrrrrr (sips hot cocoa). 

the one with the slow-cookin'

Confession: I looooove my crock pot. It's this magical contraption where you throw stuff in a pot, let it simmer for a couple of hours, and then - voila! Taste-bud delight! I'm going to let you in on two extra secret slow-cooker recipes today. And by "extra-secret," I mean that I got them from somewhere else online and fully expect you to share them with your closest friends and family. Enjoy:) 

BBQ chicken sandwiches: 

4-6 chicken breasts

1 bottle of barbecue sauce

We're having this for the second time tonight (per Jesse's request) with rice, green beans, and maybe some biscuits. He's a little obsessed with this dinner.

Chicken tacos: 

4-6 chicken breasts

1 packet of taco seasoning 

1 jar of salsa (normal size is fine) 

I adore Mexican food so this recipe was one of my favorites! I got some small tortillas, chopped up some lettuce, put out some shredded cheese and sour cream and we settled in to watch some Georgia football:) 

I recommend letting both dinners simmer for a couple of hours (4 on high, 6 on low), and then one hour before the timer goes off, shred the meat. This allows the flavor to really soak into the meat and to get extra moist before serving. 

Seriously. These are the ONLY INGREDIENTS for these recipes. I'm telling you - magic. Prepare to look like the world's tastiest cook...by doing practically nothing at all. 

the one with the kid-borrowing

This past weekend, J and I were asked to babysit for some of our great friends. The Millers have three kids ranging from 3 to 9-years-old. The original plan was to stay from Friday morning to Sunday night. We had a great time with the kiddos - we ordered pizza and made brownies, we built forts and went to Caleb's soccer game, we watched movies and rode bikes - all in all it was a great time. We were loving every minute with some of our favorite munchkins:)  

Little Man's soccer game. He scored his first goal!

But on Sunday night, Superstorm Sandy brought our perfect weekend to a major halt. Kevin and Melissa called with some bad news - they were stranded in Colorado. Upon finding out, the kids were pretty heartbroken - their parents were missing out on one of the biggest weeks in a kid's year - Halloween week! So, Jesse and I mustered every ounce of creativity we had left and tried to create the happiest, safest, snuggly-est night we could imagine complete with hot apple cider, Tarzan, and pulling the big air-mattress to the living room. The next day, the kids were out of school and the power went out due to the storm (dun, dun, dun). We called in some reinforcements and boy am I glad they came - Jon and Rachel arrived midday on Monday and took on some of the kid-duties while Jesse and I recuperated from non-stop parent patrol. Even though it was a crazy situation, it was wonderful to have time with Jon and Rachel. Those who babysit together, stick together:) 

Apple cider therapy:)

Tuesday night - some incredible things happened - the power came on and Mommy and Daddy came home. The happiness on those kids faces was one of the best things you can imagine. J and I won't be ready to have children of our own for awhile but watching him take on the role of dad for a couple of days was pretty much the sweetest thing ever. As we resumed our normal lives on Wednesday he kept mentioning how much he missed those kids. He kept wishing he could talk with them and hear their little voices. And my heart went pitter-patter.

Baby Bear watching Tangled with J. See what I mean?!

One day, I hope I'm lucky enough to have pictures just like these of our own kids with Jess. But until then, I'm so glad we have friends that let us "borrow" their cuties for a couple of days. Here's to "someday" with the world's best future papa!