I've lived many different places in the eight years since I left Michigan, and though I've finally come to think of where we now live in Tennessee as 'home', the seasonal rhythms of Michigan still run deep in my veins. For instance, though I love Tennessee, the summers there are way too hot for me, and the winters are too mild with not enough snow.

So of course, I'm thrilled to be in my hometown in Michigan for a couple weeks in the coldest part of winter. I proclaim how much I love the snow, and even the dreary gray clouds, and my family's response is always: "You wouldn't love it so much if you had to spend ALL winter in it." I know the truth of that. I can still remember desperately wishing for spring to arrive after a long, cold, dark winter. But I don't live here anymore. I feel like some sort of in-betweenling, no longer belonging to Michigan the way I once did, but not entirely accustomed to Tennessee's climate either. So, I plan to soak up the cold and the snow while I'm here, to thoroughly enjoy the things from home that I miss when I'm in Tennessee.

Yesterday, it snowed almost all day (so much that when I drove home from my brother's house in the evening, the roads were a snowy, slushy mess and traffic was moving at a snail's pace to compensate), and this morning when I woke up, the sun was out for a brief time, sending sparkles across the pristine layer of new snow. Mia was particularly impressed by the sparkles and commented that "the snow sparkles because it has tiny jewelries in it!"

I pulled on my mom's heavy-duty snow boots, grabbed my camera and headed out. Here are a couple of my favorite shots:

We have an old red barn out back that my dad keeps miscellaneous equipment in (lawn mower, camping gear, etc.), and it's not much to look at, but in the winter when it has snow piled on top of it and ice caught between the ridges of the corrugated steel walls, it somehow looks almost charming, in a rusty-vintage-grunge sort of way. Here's a shot I took of some kind of lattice leaned up against one side of the barn. I just like the textures of the wild vines climbing over the lattice and everything covered in snow.

Since we've been married, I can't really say that B and I have any set traditions as far as where we spend Christmas or with whose family we spend it. We've moved around so much (seven moves in four states in less than eight years of marriage), that sometimes what we do for Christmas depends on how much money we have left after moving and which family lives closest.

This year was a little different. Early on in the year, someone in B's family said, "Hey, why don't we rent a cabin in the Smokies for Christmas this year and all meet up there?" It's an ideal location, with some of B's family coming from Michigan, some coming from Texas and B's dad coming all the way from Mexico (where his job transferred him last year). So, that's exactly what we did. The cabin we rented was huge (5 bedrooms, 5 baths), and perfect for the number of people we had. B and I did most of the food shopping since we were coming the shortest distance, and we stocked up on lunch meats and cheese, and crock pot-type meals that we could make ahead of time and reheat later (chili, mastaccioli, beef stew, etc.) There was a pool table in the basement, which ended up being a big hit and we had our own week-long tournament. Smokey Mountains National park was just a short drive, so there we did a couple hikes. Otherwise, we all just relaxed around the cabin and enjoyed hanging out.

On a personal level, it was a very satisfying vacation. There was no wi-fi in the cabin, so I could let go of my tendency to compulsively check my email every five minutes. B gave me a Kindle for Christmas and I gave it a good breaking in and read two and a half books while we were there (I love days where there is nothing I need to be doing, and I can just sit and read the entire day). Very relaxing.

The weather was unseasonably warm (mid-50s to low 70s!), and absolutely beautiful most days so we got out of the cabin to hike or (if we were feeling particularly brave) hit the Tanger Outlets. Here are a couple shots of our hike to Laurel Falls in Smokey Mountains National Park. It was about 2.5mi round-trip. We took M on this one and she hiked the entire thing without needing to be carried! What a little trooper!

Merry Christmas! 

All week the forecasters were saying we would see snow, possibly even accumulation, today. But I must not have really believed them because I was actually surprised when I woke up and looked out the window to see everything covered in white. It was a beautiful sight! Of course, it had all melted away by noon, but I ran out and got a couple shots before that happened. Last year, the first snowfall didn't happen until January, so hopefully the fact that it snowed so early will mean we'll get to see more of it before the winter is out! 

Every once in a while I get asked by a friend or family member to do event photography. On even rarer occasions I volunteer for the office, and such was the case for my cousin Cathy's wedding (because I love her to bits and pieces). She called up three weeks ago and announced she was getting married the Saturday after Thanksgiving (three weeks, Cathy? Sheesh! Give a girl more time to plan! ). With everything going on in our lives lately, I didn't think we'd be able to make it to Michigan for Thanksgiving and the wedding, but my very sweet hubby was extremely patient and good-natured when I rearranged all our plans to head to Michigan last week so I could shoot the wedding. It was a beautiful ceremony, and my cousin was a stunning bride! I cannot even express how excited and happy I am for her—she married a wonderful man and I wish them every good thing! Here are a couple of my favorite shots from the wedding.

I love shooting weddings (and other events), but what made this even more fun was that I got to team up with our best friend, Scott, my photography sensei. He made plans to visit us over Thanksgiving before the 3-week warning my cousin gave us for her wedding, so we dragged him along to Michigan. It's pretty much his fault I got into photography in the first place, and he taught me everything I know, so I twisted his arm and made him shoot the wedding with me. So, here we are, shooting the wedding (my hair actually looks good in this shot--proof of Scott's mad skillz)!

And here are some of my favorite shots from Scott:

So, now I'm home again (after a 13 hour drive yesterday!), and getting back to my regularly scheduled designing/coding. Hope everyone had a fab Thanksgiving!