engagement gift for ele

 If you're a regular around here and you don't know Ele, then you're missing out because she is my kindred. Ironically, we've never met in person, but we've connected over the fact that we are in similar life situations. Like me and my husband, she lives apart from her significant other while they both pursue their dreams at different medical schools. I feel that I know better than anyone how hard it can be to make a relationship work over so many miles. There's a whole new set of rules. But you commit yourself anyway and you support your SO in their dreams while pursing your own. It's kind of a lot. So the fact that they have managed to keep their relationship alive and thriving with all the distance is a testament of their love. So Ele's recent engagement truly deserves to be celebrated. And I love to support love, so I couldn't resist mailing off a care package to the bride-to-be to say congratulations.

Thanksgiving in Tulum

I'm pretty sure that Thanksgiving 2016 is one for the record books! Our Christmas gift to each other this year is a road trip through Mexico. But with December already being so booked up, the timing just worked out better to go over Thanksgiving.

In case you're wondering where Tulum is, it's along the Yucatan Peninsula, an hour and a half South of Cancun. It has the same gorgeous beaches and year round perfect weather that you'll find in places like Cancun or Playa del Carmen. But there are a whole lot less tourists and big resorts. It's definitely got more of a local feel, which is why we fell in love.

valentine's day 2016

After having to spend last Valentine's Day apart, we were grateful for the chance to celebrate together this year. Even so, we wanted to keep things low-key. We decided not to exchange gifts. Instead we agreed to simply focus on spending time together. Here's how we celebrated Valentine's Day 2016.

Halloween 2015

It's about time I share our Halloween celebrations! Yes, I am aware that Halloween was like two weeks ago, but things have gotten a bit crazy around here. And while Halloween has come and gone, I couldn't go without documenting Halloween 2015 because it's obviously the funnest holiday. And the oddest one too. When you're little, you get to play dress up in public and people give you candy for it. 
BEST. THING. EVER. 
Then as a teen, you age out of trick or treating and Halloween loses a bit of its grandeur. But as an adult, Halloween is suddenly magical again because you're over being too cool to play dress up. 

Because Halloween was on a Saturday this year, it started off with sleeping in

Once we finally woke up, Husband and I tried our hand at making pumpkin banana chocolate french toast. And yes, it was as good as it sounds.

After our very late breakfast, we spent the day lazying around. And because I wasn't feeling well, much of that time was spent sleeping. But I finally got up and got PJ out for a walk, which got my energy up. 

I started feeling better as the day progressed and we decided at the 11th hour to head out for the evening. So what do you do at 8PM on Halloween night when you don't have a costume? You improvise! We needed something with minimal work since we were short on time, but we wanted something clever too. We came up with Young and Old Michael Jackson. 

Young MJ's style involved lots of black, metallics, and leather. Well that's easy! All I really had to do was get dressed just like any other day. I tossed on a black fedora, my leather pants, a peplum top, and a pair of metallic shoes. Husband thought is was funny that so many people asked me throughout the night if I had bought these shoes just for the costume. Um, no I totally already owned them. Ha!  

As Old MJ, Husband was trying to imitate this. We picked up a doll (which is now PJs  favorite chew toy) and a fun wig on our way to the party. And Ta Da! 

a DIY MJ costume: Young and Old

I like to think that we will plan ahead a bit more for next years costume, but between last year and this one, this whole last minute costume thing seems to work out for us pretty well. 

By the way, Happy Friday 13th! 

Linking up with the Hill Collection 

4th of July

Happy Fourth of July Y'all! 

We're celebrating today in Charleston South Carolina. We've been out and about since around 7AM this morning, but finally had to head back to cool off. The heat is tolerable, but the humidity is pushing us over the edge. Thankfully, the place that we're renting has the cutest yard to relax in, complete with a rope swing. 

SeaFood Boil!

Every Summer needs to involve a SeaFood Boil!

When I was a little girl, my family would gather at my Great Aunt Connie’s house. All of us cousins would run around the yard catching fireflies in the twilight. And when it was time for dinner, the adults would dress us in their old t-shirts and lay newspapers down on the front porch. Then we would eat our way through pounds and pounds of crab and shrimp…laughing and playing and making a big mess the whole time. Meanwhile, we could hear the laughter of the adults coming from inside as they ate dinner and played cards. Those were the days where things were simple, the food was good, and the company was even better. These are some of my fondest memories as a child.

26th Birthday!

There's nothing like a birthday to make you feel special. I'm kind of in love with the concept of birthdays and I normally celebrate mine all month long, but with everything going on right now, I had every intention of making 26 a low key birthday. I failed miserably, but I couldn't be happier about it! This year's birthday celebrations involved lots of sweets and a whole lot of pink. It was kind of perfect and I really don't want it to end. Maybe I can convince Husband to celebrate half birthdays...

Snapshots of Easter 2015

I hope that everyone had an amazing Easter Holiday! I don't have Bright Monday off so unfortunately a good bit of my Easter was spent flying and driving back home, but it was worth it to have the opportunity to visit Tom in Boston this past weekend. I'm just popping in to share a few snippets from my Easter. 

3.14-15 Happy Pi Day!

Happy Pi Day Everyone! This one is particularly special indeed because today's date makes up the first 5 digits of Pi...that won't happen again for another 100 years! Husband double majored in math and finance so we always celebrate Pi Day. With everything I've been trying to cram into this past week, I kind of forgot to plan ahead for it. But we couldn't let today go by unacknowledged so at the last minute, I used ingredients that I already had in my kitchen to whip up this triple berry pie to help us celebrate 3.14-15 right!

♥♥ Husband's Birthday Weekend

No matter how busy dental school keeps me, husband is always my top priority so this past weekend I visited Tom to help him celebrate his 26th birthday. I left the warm embrace of the South and headed to the snow-covered ice-capped city of Boston. 

Boston Birthday Brunch

Hello From Boston! 

Today is Husband's 26th Birthday. Birthdays are a big deal around here and this one was no exception. I really miss Tom when we are apart, which gives me even more reason to make today extra special. And what better way to celebrate a Sunday Birthday than with Brunch? 

This morning, we headed to Boston's Financial District-home of Cafe Fleuri at the Langham Hotel. The Langham is right in the center of the action as it used to be Boston's Federal Reserve-a little fact that I thought my Finance PhD candidate husband might appreciate. It's all in the details right? 

I need to paint my car this color! 

The End!

This month I decided to extend my love of 

Christmas to the blog and participate in Blogmas, daily posts on all of our holiday celebrations...recipes, ootds, gift guides. 

A Very Schneider Christmas: December in Review

Blogmas Day 31

There is a deep sadness in my heart as I write this post because my favorite time of the year is now over. And while I'm already looking forward to next year, I think it's going to be pretty hard to beat Christmas 2014...so here's a look back at a crazy event packed December with us Schneiders! 

National Gingerbread Competition

Blogmas Day 29

When I requested that this year's Christmas present trip be filled with over the top Christmas magic, I had no idea that I would get everything I asked for and more. While in Asheville North Carolina, we discovered that it was the home of the National Gingerbread Competition so we of course had to go. Candy and artistry rolled into one, um count me in! And this guy below was one of my absolute favorites....I love all of the scrambling elves. 

Double the Merriment: A Second Christmas

Blogmas Day 27 & 28

Hey folks, I'm combining yesterday and today into one post. I'm sick as a dog right now and spent a good bit of yesterday in bed, but I definitely wanted to share more of our Christmas celebrations. Having each set of parents live in different states has disadvantages, including having to alternate for the holidays, but on the plus side we do get two Christmases. And I do love Christmas. After spending Christmas Eve and Christmas Day with my parents, we headed to hubby's parents house on the 26th. Here's a little bit of the fun... 

Love my cute little family! 

Snapshots from Christmas Day 2014!

Blogmas Day 26

'Twas the night before Christmas when 

all through the house, not a creature was 

stirring except this little mouse....

Because no matter how old I get I am always beyond 

excited about Christmas Day. As I've grown up, it hasn't lost 

its magic

 for me and I hope that it never does. 

Why we don't exchange Christmas Gifts

Blogmas Day 18

This time last year, my husband and I were packing for our honeymoon to La Repulica Dominicana. We knew that we would be there on Christmas Day, so we started to discuss the logistics of exchanging gifts with each other. Should we do it before we left or when we returned? Or maybe we should just pack them with us. Well that last idea was just ridiculous because that would mean less room for bikinis.  

So I just suggested nixing the whole concept all together. 

Instead of buying each other gifts, we focused on giving each other experiences during our trip. 

Experiences like...

parasailing over the clear waters of Punta Cana 

(my absolute fave!) 

Zip-lining through the canopies of the forests in Higuey

Snorkeling among the corals 

Horse back riding through the countryside

Kayaking on the ocean 

Well Tom kayaked, I mostly took in the sights

And we indulged in lots of fancy dinners 

Including a secluded dinner for two on the beach 

Experiencing these things together was beyond memorable. Our long distance relationship makes time together the most valuable gift that we could give each other. 

Thus, we have decided to do the same this year and for many years to follow. We are creating our first tradition as a married couple and a new family. In the near future, hubby and I will not be exchanging traditional Christmas presents with each other, but rather experiences.    

Stay tuned to learn about this years gift experience! 

Cookie Exchange: Double Chocolate Chip

Blogmas Day 17 

Tonight I took a little study break and attended a cookie exchange where I shamelessly stuffed my face with lots of yummy treats. My absolute favorite club at school, "Scrubs and Stilettos" hosted our annual holiday cookie exchange.This club is my dental school's chapter of the American Association of Women Dentists, so it was just us girls. Love it! 

While I have gone overboard making elaborate cookies in the past, I've learned that basic crowd pleasers are best at events like this one. So I decided to put an extra chocolatey spin on a classic. And as usual, I baked these from scratch. Thought I'd share this easy recipe. 

Enjoy!  

DIY $25 Holiday Bar Cart

Blogmas Day 9

I have been wanting a bar cart for forever. They are just so pretty and shiny and perfect, but they are also very very expensive. The best option I found was the Target version and even then, it's not cheap. So it was time to get creative and make one for myself. Here's the finished project.... 

Merry Christmas ya Filthy Animals!

Blogmas Day 8

This weekend hubby and I hosted our first Christmas party. It was a huge hit and I love Christmas so much that I'm thinking that we should make this an annual thing.