inspiration

Christmas Visits

| Melia Alexander

Welcome to Travel Bug Tuesday!

One of the bestest parts of the holidays is visiting with friends and family. 20141223_091522Especially when you actually like them! So it was when I trekked over hill and dale and through mud and sleet in bare feet…Well, okay…So I really packed a bag and shoved it into the car trunk before heading up the freeway, but still…

Anyhoo, I got to spend some wonderful quality time with my lovely writer pal Fiola Faelan! We talked writerly stuff and life stuff, and I was reminded yet again how incredibly lucky I am to have amazing people in my life. And that includes you all!

Thanks so much for stopping by, and for leaving a message or two. As I continue on this publishing journey, your presence here means more to me than I could ever express!

Happy travels,
Melia

Underneath the Tree

| Melia Alexander

Welcome to Mash-Up Monday!

Because life is so hectic for me these days (and I’m too darned tired to think of anything clever), I’m gonna let you all decide what this pic is about. 🙂

20141221_193503Have a wonderful week!

~Melia

 

Snow Saucers

| Melia Alexander

Having spent the past three days with family has made me realize how quickly time passes. One minute my nieces and nephews are in diapers, and the next, they’re these independent creatures with critical thinking skills that scare me. Seriously.

Look at how innocent they were just a few years ago.

P1040250Cute, huh?

Well, not so, when you consider they wouldn’t let me try out their new snow saucers. Yeah, I’m totally okay with it, even after all these years….*insert huge pout*

Happy Almost-Friday,
Melia

 

 

The Big 8!

| Melia Alexander

Those of you with December birthdays can attest to how hard it can be to keep the whole holiday thing out of your special day. So when I was invited to my nephew’s 8th birthday party, I definitely kept this in mind. Apparently, so did he. His menu choice for the evening? Pizza! Natch.

What I loved best about the whole thing was how truly chill it was. Let’s face it: there’s enough holiday craziness that some down time is more than welcomed. There was no formal dinner setting, no place cards, no menus at the table.

Instead, there was pizza out of the cardboard boxes, and eaten off of paper plates and napkins. We all sat around the dinner table and toasted the Birthday Boy. Candles were blown. Presents were opened. And the casual atmosphere only added to the evening. I loved every second of it!

Do you have a December birthday? How do you celebrate?

Happy eating,
Melia

Le Bake Off

| Melia Alexander

One of the most fun traditions we have at The Male Observation Lab this time of year is the Christmas Bake Off. It’s a chance for the dudes to show off their culinary baking skills with something that doesn’t involve skinning or gutting an animal. Yep. We get a lot of entries from them….NOT.

Fortunately, we dudettes step in. 🙂 And so I present this year’s top three entries:

And, yeah, nothing Paleo eaters would want to nibble on, but they sure looked good!

Do you have fun holiday traditions were you work?

Happy eating,
Melia

Christmas at Grand Cayman

| Melia Alexander

Happy Travel Bug Tuesday!

I’m one of those peeps who loves collecting Christmas mementos when I travel. 20141209_194055There’s something about holding an ornament that, when gathered on a special trip, evokes some pretty powerful memories.

This one was picked up in Grand Cayman several years ago. Even now, I feel the warmth of the water as we played with sting rays on a sand bar….I taste the turtle burger we had for lunch….I feel the Caribbean breeze caressing us as we walked the dock. And it all makes me smile.

Travel mementos are beautiful reminders of happy times. For me, they’re also the promise of what can always be: a lifetime of collecting special memories.

Happy travels,
Melia

Christmas Catnip

| Melia Alexander

Welcome to Take Me Back Thursday!

Like most cat lovers, we give our fur babies Christmas prezzies. Their most fave is catnip – natch. I’m thoroughly convinced kitties can smell catnip even through extra-thick layers of plastic. And once a kitty gets his hands on it, watch out! It’s instant kitty love! 🙂 These pics from last year’s Christmas is the latest in a long list of examples.

Memories like these are what make life so much fun!

Are your fur babies on your Christmas list?

Happy almost-Friday,
Melia

The Battle of the Gingerbread House

| Melia Alexander

Welcome to Food and Wine Wednesday!

‘Tis the season of celebrating the beauty and wonder that is life, and those people and things we hold most dear. Not the least of which is the gingerbread house.

Tonight, Niece 2 decided that the two of us would face-off in a gingerbread decorating contest, one whose winner will hold bragging rights (of nearly unbearable proportions!). that clearly means more to one participant than the other (the other being me. Ha!).

We spent a fabulous evening together, talking. I learned that 1) Niece 2 has decided she’s no longer vegetarian, but will not consume a large amount of animal protein; 2) According to Niece 2, Nash Grier is still super-hot! (way more than I needed to know. Trust me on this…) 3) There’s not nearly enough candy that comes in the enclosed packets when a fifteen year-old is swiping at them while decorating (and when you’re not looking!). Just sayin’…

At the end of the evening, care to guess which side had been decorated by moi?

Gingerbread houses – yay or nay? Tell us what you think!

Happy gingerbread decorating,
Melia

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bear Country, USA

| Melia Alexander

Happy Travel Bug Tuesday!

One of the traditions I adore is picking up a Christmas ornament when we travel. This one always makes me smile. Well, okay, it makes me laugh out loud, too. 20141202_055954

When I see it, I’m transported back to one of the most amazing vacations I’ve ever had. Road trip 2011. With family. Five adults and two kids in a minivan with ten days worth of clothing and two coolers of food and drinks. Yep, we were pretty tightly packed….

So it shouldn’t have been a surprise when ten minutes out of the driveway, ten-year-old nephew yells from the back seat of the minivan, “Mom! Sister’s in my zone! Tell her to stop!”

And, yeah. This ornament brings it all back. The laughter. The tears. The bonding that took place. ‘Cause, really, how could it not?

Do you collect Christmas ornaments? What’s one of your faves?

Happy travels,
Melia