It's a Christmas Wrap!

Three last stockings for the day and we are done....almost.  There are a few more days left before the big holiday, but... for the most part,  Allenbrite Studio is done with most of the Christmas rush.








It was a better year that last year, but not as good as 2011.  Ah well,  can't have new Personal Bests every year, right?  And there are a few days left in the season where folks may not care if things arrive after Christmas.   We shall see how things pan out, but experience tells us that the stocking season is pretty much over by this point.


With a slight break in the cold, and the stockings,   Cheryl and I went out for a leisurely 7 mile run/bike in the snow.   Only two other people were brave enough to enjoy the weather outside with us... but we never saw them.  Instead, they left only the tell tale tracks in the snow. And they only ran about half way down the path.  Cheryl and I had the entire path to ourselves.  One of the perks for handling the cold weather.


With our new found free time,  Cheryl convinced me to help put up a few of the new IKEA items in the kitchen.   They replace the red shelves, but serve the same purpose.  We may add a few additional shelves over the table when we visit IKEA this coming Friday.

Other than that, I visited the "review" section for the Etsy Shop.  A few people were more than happy to share their pictures with us.  Cheryl does not like it when I read them out loud because she hates any "bad" review.  It's funny how 6 pages of "I totally LOVE your stuff" is no match for one  "I really didn't like it" review.  There is just no pleasing some people...but I know what it is like having your stuff criticized.

So...to remind ourselves about all the holiday cheer we DID manage to send....I wanted to post these photos of our stockings people posted... in action!  Enjoy!

A Very Disappointing Belated Post

I'm not sure what happened!   But Cheryl informed me that my "Chicago Expo" post is missing from my Blog!   I'm very disappointed!   I looked everywhere for the listing, but was unable to find it or discover what the heck happened!  

Luckily... I still have the pictures ( because I usually delete them after I post the pics to the blog.) and since I went through all that trouble to take, cut, crop, and polish them all up...I thought I would post another post AGAIN.... AFTER the marathon.

Not sure if this will cause confusion...   It is for me!   But I do remember publishing the pictures with brief descriptions rather than publishing a whole bunch of words.   So here we go.... again!

Our Early Departure.

Cheryl helped drive into the sun.

Chicago in the distance!   Note the building that stands out.

We parked the car in the basement and prepared to EXPO!

The crowd begins to thicken!  And the Banners wave.

Cheryl licks her lips and prepares for the Melee

We first picked up the bib number and packet.

And then headed towards the T-Shirt pickup.

Luckily, they still had Women's Small available.

Cheryl tries it on to check the fit.  She seems happy.

Next,  we toured around to see the other booths.   This one was from Osaka Japan!

They had Really Cool anime finishers medals.   SHIN CHAN! 

We were getting thirsty....time to check out the Beer....Bus? 

Goose Island is brewed in Chicago.   Very tasty Beer. 

Having not eaten anything all day.  Time for some Lunch!

Cheryl did not want any Meat...so I ate some BBQ Pulled Pork all alone. 

While Cheryl watched and waited.

We found one of the booths was for the World Marathon Majors

And Chicago was on the list!

Our hotel room.  Smaller than expected. 

But next to the fire escape. 

Cheryl called the Room Service Menu a "Comic Book" 

If you check out the prices.  You will see the humor. Don't order the pancakes!

The lobby was a page out of the Sistine Chapel Magazine. 

Or the Titanic!

The fancy sconces must be  part of the reason for the high hotel bill. 

After settling in,  Cheryl and I took a tour of the area to map out the race route.

And check out the buildings.   I wonder who owns this one?  

Judging from the size....  I could wager a guess. 

The Tall buildings rival the MOON!  See it...about half way down? 

This wishing well played a big part in Cheryl's success. 

Very Greek.   or Italian....  depending on how you think about the Mafia.

Well,  Hopefully those were the pictures and the captions I posted before.   Or at least close to them.   I can't really remember what I wrote before...other than I was tired and did not know the results of the race before.

I had a different post planned for today,   But I guess that will have to wait for later.     Hopefully,  blogger will not lose this posting again.   I hate leaving pictures on my computer for very long.   Hope everyone is having a great Sunday so far.   I'm taking a break from scoring today. ( after clocking in 44 hours last week....my mind is frazzled)   Thanks for stopping in.