Where We Are Planted: January 2015

1.14.2015

Holidays at Home

Christmas is something we look forward to all year. Every year, we begin referencing Christmas traditions in January, already looking forward to the next December! Our Spotify Christmas playlists are on nonstop beginning the day after Thanksgiving, and we watch a steady stream of Hallmark movies, complete with their sappy storylines and cheesy music. We love everything about Christmas!

For our first married Christmas, we were not able to go back to the States, as we had just been back for the wedding. Instead, we spent our Christmas break in Germany, where we spent half of our time with our good German friends, and the other half traveling around the other side of the country. ( You can read about that here and here.) This time was really special, and we loved everything about our time in Germany, the land of Christmas markets and holiday spirit. However, we knew that this year we were desperate to be home for Christmas! So thanks to Turkish Air's inexpensive flights, we were booked on the first available flight out of Barcelona as soon as Rachel finished teaching.

Our time in Iowa was full. But we would have it no other way! When our time there is short (which is always), we try to pack in as many people and experiences as possible. Devin's wonderful parents were in Iowa to greet us when we arrived, and we loved spending a few days with them, taking in a showing of The Nutcracker in Dubuque, an ISU basketball game in Des Moines, and taking them to a Grove family favorite - Hickory Park in Ames.

Christmas, although disappointedly not white, was everything we dreamed of it being from afar. Our house was full of bodies and love, the table held a steady flow of delicious food, The Carpenters CD could always be heard, and pajamas were worn all day. Our family tradition is normally to go sledding on Christmas afternoon, but since we could not do that this year, we went caroling at a nearby rehabilitation center. It was another memorable way to spend the afternoon!

The rest of break was a blur, as we hopped from coffee date to dinner date, played many rounds of board games, watched the Bowl games, spent a lot of time at Core Fitness, hit up Iowa City's finest thrift shops, and got our fair share of beverages at the Java House.

We loved every moment of being there, and are so thankful we were able to see both of our families, and many of our closest friends!

Intimided?

Since we couldn't sled, we took a walk instead!

At the Nutcracker.

1.11.2015

Christmas time in Provence

The last month has been a whirlwind! Devin returned from a trip to the US, and the next day we left for a long weekend away with friends. Upon returning, we had Rachel's big winter concert at school, holiday parties and events, and before we knew it, we were on a plane to see our families for Christmas! We are now back in our apartment in Barcelona and attempting to catch up and settle in. We have seen some beautiful places and people, so will start by sharing about our time in Provence with you.

The first weekend of December, we rented a car with our good friends and set off for the countryside of Southern France. We had no real agenda for the weekend other than to experience the slow pace of this dreamy region. After about 4.5 hours of driving, we arrived at our house for the weekend, surrounded by orchards and vineyards, and complete with a fireplace. We knew that if we did nothing but sit by the fireplace for the next three days, we would still be happy.

As we explored the region, we found a lot of small villages, vineyards in their off season, mountains in the distance, and empty fields normally occupied with endless Lavender. We loved the slow pace, the sweet people, and the variety of landscape. We approached each village with no expectations, but simply glimpsed at what they had to offer, and then we were on to the next stop!