Hozak Farms

We got our Christmas tree yesterday!  We decided to get it a bit early since we're never in town the week of Christmas and I wanted time to enjoy it longer :)  We went to Hozak Farms again this year.  It was a beautiful day, but we kind of wished it was snowing like last year.  It makes it all the more fun when it's snowing!  My aunt Paula decided to come over again and participate in the festivities.

The big farm!  The clearing is where the tractor drops off and picks up people.  Last year we drove right out into the lot, but this year there was a tractor.  

Peter spotted our tree right away!  We marked it with a stick from the ground and looked around to make sure there wasn't one we liked better.  There wasn't!  We came back and got the first tree :)

Here's our tree, Peter and Paula waiting for the tractor.  Last year they hauled the tree down to the car.  Remember this postcard picture?

Me and the hubs with our tree:

We got it home and all decorated with the rest of the house!  Pictures soon to come :)

Poconos!

This past weekend Peter and I went to the Poconos for a long weekend to celebrate our 3 year anniversary!  I can't believe it's been 3 years already!  I'm so blessed :)

We stayed at Ehrhardts which turned out to be a fantastic little gem!  We stayed in their lovely couple's suite.  

Here are some pictures of our wonderful suite...

Mini kitchen area, complete with microwave, fridge, and dishes:

This is what you see when you first walk in.  The giant window that overlooks the lake was just beautiful.

King sized bed :)

Reading area with fireplace and a tv incase you don't like reading haha.

Another picture of the gigantic window overlooking the lake:

Peter surprised me with having flowers delivered to our room before our arrival!  3 gerber daisies(my favorite!)-one for each year of marriage :)

Beautiful dresser that we actually unloaded our stuff into to make it not be living out of suitcase:  

Biggest bathtub I've ever seen!

Accompanied by the biggest shower I've ever seen!

Happy to be there after the 5 hour drive :)

This is the outside of the Ehrhardts.  Our room is on the right with the big window.  The main building is in the middle and the "motel" are is on the left.  They also have cottages and a banquet hall/restaurant.  

We spent lots of hours outside enjoying our beautiful surroundings.  

Another view of the lake:

It was a little chilly so we bundled up and brought a thermos of hot chocolate with us.  We also brought the book we've been reading and had some quiet time reading and praying together.

Obviously we were enjoying our time away :)

And we made use of the self-timer on our camera too!

We took lots of pictures to remember the fun we were having.

There weren't very many people around since it was the off season.  We actually quite enjoyed having the place mostly to ourselves.  Our first day there was a group checking out and they came over and congratulated us on our marriage.  They thought we were just married!  I take that as a compliment since it's the second time someone thought we were on our honeymoon when at a hotel, etc.  Then one of the ladies wanted to take our picture for us since we were doing so many self shots haha.

We had breakfast and then explored the area around our suite for a while.  Then we had some lunch and headed out for a hike in the woods :)

Peter found this tree and wanted it to be our Christmas tree this year.

But I wanted this one!

There was a nice pathway out along the water with benches.  It was much too windy to enjoy it for long though!

Our yummy snack!  I brought wine for Peter and sparkling juice for me since I'm not a fan of wine-sad, but true.  I'm working on it though!  Peter wanted the juice too though haha.

We also went into the small town of Hawley to explore for a little bit too.  It was a quaint little town.

An old train car from the 1800's:

Us in the train car:

We found this cool shop with all kinds of vintage and antique items in it.  Including this old porn machine???

Loved this with all the American flags:

Same building looking down the other street:

This old theater is being used for local plays an such which is cool.  It would be a shame to not see such an interesting building being put to good use.

A late snapshot of the sunset over the lake.  It was just beautiful!

Us in front of the sunset as the clouds rolled in and darkness fell:

Messing around at dinner haha.  First I mess it up.

Then Peter does.

Finally!

The morning we checked out I took this picture of the lake from our window.  So pretty!

Even though Peter doesn't look happy, he was :)

Bye-bye, little suite!

We definitely enjoyed our weekend and will probably visit Ehrhardts again :)

Light Up Night

Tonight was Pittsburgh's Light Up Night for Christmas.  Peter and I have been going into the city for this for years.  We've missed it a few times for our honeymoon and such, but if we're at home, we go.  It's a fun thing to do to get in the Christmas spirit!  This year wasn't nearly as cold as last year which was kind of nice.  The mild weather caused people to come out of the woodwork though.  It was mobbed!  I'm not a fan of that as much, but it was still fun :)

We also always eat at Palomino when we go.  The first year we went we saw the restaurant and wondered what it was.  The following year I surprised Peter with reservations and we've been going ever since!  It's right in the middle of all of the action and has windows along the sides to do some nice people watching haha.  

We had our waiter take this one.  He didn't use the flash so it's pretty dark, but I still like it.  

The rink all decked out for Christmas:

A bit blurry, but still cute :)