Ice Skating, Playing Melting Pot, Let the Countdown BEGIN!

First of all, Tommy was walking in downtown Knoxville the other day, and look what he found in one of the shop windows! It was not for sale; I asked.

a kristina! just what a wanted this holiday season! i hear they're all the rage...

Later that evening, we all met out for happy hour. Clinton and Ki decided that after a few glasses of wine Kristina should have her maiden voyage on ice skates. She does pretty well! She and Clint were holding on to each other as they scootched around the ice rink. It was adorable.

yes, she's from ohio. first time on ice skates.

ki takes time out for a quick pic. she's totes going to give nancy kerigan a run for her money. with less tanya harding, natch...

ki and clint make it back into oodles, safe and sound! miss adina chumley, front and center; surrounded by amanda, ki, john, clint and moi.

ki and i enjoy the holiday decor in oodles

amanda and john get cozy in oodles.

That weekend, Mr. Smith and I decide to have a dinner party! We wanted the house to be nice and cozy so we built a fire in the fire place and put the Yule Log channel on TV. We figured it would make the living room extra cozy.

two fires in our living room hahahaha

My favorite restaurant is the Melting Pot. I would eat there every day if we could afford it. It's pretty expensive so we only go on special occasions. A few years ago, Jennifer Mowrer bought me my very own fancy fondue set! Seriously, it was the best gift EVER. I know what you're thinking - that I don't know how to make fondue. Well that's where you'd be wrong because I DO. I worked at a Melting Pot when we lived in Florida and can make a mean pot of cheese, lemmetellya. I get very excited about showcasing my fondue prowess and refer to it as "playing Melting Pot." This weekend, we had reservations at the Smith Casa for eight! (I'm the hostess and waitress as well as the manager. Hope you made your reservations because we have a full house tonight!)

jonny oh waits paitenly for the cheese course; marty waits impatiently

izzy and jonny oh. our dining room table isn't big enough for everyone so we had to eat on the floor. seriously - i had two fondue pots going and three courses for each - i had knee rug burn in the worst way by the end of the evening NO JOKES PLEASE.

marty, ki and tyler chow down

the ladies take a break from stuffing ourselves full of cheese and bread - shawn, ki, me and izzy

Only two minor mishaps:

marty spills, big surprise

Then, we realize we didn't have enough chocolate to go around! No mind - we fortunately that day had gotten a nice package in the mail from our friends the Mettlers. The gift was patienly waiting under the tree for Christmas Day, but when I realized we didn't have enough chocolate, I busted their gift up because I remembered in the knick of time that they usually mail us chocolates. They did not disappoint. I did feel a bit like a cannibal though...

walk the plank, me heartie... they be no savin' ye now...

upon leaving marty took note of tommy's funny t-shirt and got a kick out of it. it's funny 'cause it's TRUE!

shawn and marty, what a dapper looking couple. word around town is that shawn is lactose intolerant and puked up all her pretend melting pot, but swears it was worth it. you're welcome, i guess. next time i'm feeding you rice, broth and water.

this picture just makes me laugh so i'm including it. if you look in the dictionary under "stink eye" you'll find this picture of tommy.

me in my little house on the prairie shawl and cutie-pie kristina! good times, everyone! please come have faux melting pot again soon!

Lastly, let the countdown begin! I hope everyone is on the nice list!

"county" claus wishes everyone a merry christmas!