Planes, Trains, and Running Shoes

1. Noche Buena: My house smells like frijoles negros y cebollas right now (that's black beans and onions for you non-Spanish speaking folk!) and we're gearing up for Noche Buena! I'm spending Christmas with my mom's side of the family and being Dominican, we're having pasteles and shrimp, queso blanco, a roasted pork (which I will not be eating), yucca, frijoles, platanos,sangria...the works! Let me tell you, you haven't had Christmas dinner until you've had it at my house because we Dominicans know how to cook! I can't wait for the yummy feast! The house smells delicious right now! And since we're Americanized we open our Christmas presents on Noche Buena instead of on 3 Kings Day. Did you know that the 12 days of Christmas are actually the 12 days between Christmas and January 6? January 6 is supposedly when the 3 kings (of Orient are...) brought their gifts to the Baby Jesus, so traditionally presents are opened on that day! There, now I taught you something, go spread the word!

2. Christmas Cookies: I made Chocolate-Hazlenut Nutella Thumbprint Cookies this year! Mmm mmm mmm! I'm such a sucker for Nutella! I could eat it all day! (*Note to the Nutella folks out there if you want to send me some samples =D) Check em out! Aren't they cute?


3. Farrah Fawcett Hair: I went and got my hair cut yesterday and it accidentally came out looking like Farrah Fawcett's, but I love it! It's so flippy and it looks great and I'm sad for when I have to wash it and have to fight over the fact that it won't look nearly as good as it did these few days! I also got a mani/pedi! After all that Holiday shopping, I needed to treat myself! I am ready for the Holidays! And hey, I'm picking up The Pilot from the airport in 3 hours and I haven't seen him since the marathon, so you know...I gotta make myself look some kind of pretty =)