Retro Post: 2009 Christmas Vist to Winters

Hello! Welcome to the first of MANY Retro Posts! I am VERY BEHIND on editing photos... and our little reward to each edited shoot is that I get to post them to the blog!

I will be posting MANY photos from 2009 (and hopefully keep up with 2010) for the next few months as I work backwards to get updated.

Wish me luck!

Here are some great shots from Winters, CA. Justin and I wanted to be out and about on our Christmas vacation, so we took a little jaunt to this nearby town.

We quickly discovered they had a lot of orchards there.

Luckily we didn't get caught trespassing, so we took their nature walk. The walk started with this footbridge.

While on our walk we experienced lost wildlife. We think this guy was somehow separated from his group. He spent most of his time calling to his family and hiding from us.

All in all, a good little day trip. 

One of the highlights of the trip was finding this FANTASTIC diner. Sadly, I didn't take any pictures as I was too busy eating! Next time we go there, I promise to document that delicious French Dip Sandwich.

Just Playing Around

Justin and I decided to spend our Sunday afternoon out and about. After church we took a quick jaunt to Old Town Sacramento.

One of my FAVORITE subjects is Justin - while he is taking a picture. I don't know why... maybe someday I will put together a book... of him taking a shot, and then right next to it, his picture.

This little bit of fall foliage really caught my eye.

Packing crate at the train depot. I LOVE the anchor logo.

Goodbye 2009...

We had some GREAT times this year... we're looking forward to next year's adventures.

For now, here is a quick selection of some of our favorite photographs from the year.

Let's see if I can get this right...
Happy 60th Anniversary Grandma & Grandpa!

This is a good mix of family, adventures, and photographing trips.

We HAVE to give a shout out to Justin's award winning shot!

Happy New Year!

(Click on the group of shots if you would like to see a larger size)

Christmas Day

Merry Christmas!

We had a blessed day spending time with the Balarie side of the family.

We had a great time enjoying time together and of course, some fantastic home cooking! Thanks mom!

When Some Borrows Your Camera...

... you just might get some fantastic shots!

You might see something from a different point of view...

... and even something that might not usually catch your eye...

... and then, well, things just might backfire.

Christmas Eve

Justin and I hosted Kelley Christmas Eve this year. As per family tradition we made Chicken Sausage & Potatoes. Yum!

And yes ladies and gentlemen, that is elephant garlic in there!

Each family also brought their presents to us and to each other. We have never had so many presents under the tree!

Here is a shot from the other side.

We had a great evening with family and newly made friends. Dinner was a hit and we were lucky enough to have the Wongs join us in time to open presents.

Christmas 2009

Merry Christmas! Here is our 2009 Christmas Tree!

We got a new tree topper, as the old one was broken. I packed our storage box too tightly and the base broke. We are going to try to repair it, as we found a new, more special home for it.

Below, you can see our new tree topper, another angel.

This year, Cristina was inspired by a Christmas tree decoration at work. It was a 3 foot tree decorated with only bird ornaments.

We have expaneded our decorations this year and added a pre lit 4 foot tree for the master bedroom. (YES! The downstairs tree is a live tree!) You can see our original tree angel that was passed down from Justin's parents and our growing collection of birds.

It turns out we already had a few birds, and this year we enjoyed adding to the collection. We have had a fun time finding unique or handmade birds.