We must be feeling comfortable here because we’re starting to venture out beyond a 3 block radius of our condo. Last night we were offered the opportunity to join a group of people heading up...
Holidays/Events
Nick and I hosted what I would consider our first Manila dinner party. Well technically it was lunch but we served enough food for an army. An Army of 12, that is! We invited over our long-time...
Ahh, some days my new life amuses me. Like today, when I was invited to “High Tea” at the Peninsula Hotel. Can’t say I’ve ever been to “Tea” before, let along...
It was a big weekend folks. My first dress-up, large-scale event in Manila. And it was not just any event, it was the Annual Hoedown put on by the American Women’s Club of the Philippines...
Last night was a big one for the Novak family – our first ever Marine Ball! Just to give you a little history, the Marine Corps Ball is an annual event that is celebrated each year on the...
On Sunday we attended a baby shower for our good friends Andrea and Brian. Nick and Andrea trained together in Washington, D.C. and have been inseparable ever since. Andrea and Brian are also...
As I lay in bed writing this post, I can honestly say that after 5 hours with 35 eleven and twelve year olds, Nick and I are officially exhausted. But it’s a good exhaustion, one of those...
Sadly, as seems to be the case with our family lately, sickness rained on Nick’s birthday parade. :(  Not exactly how you want to spend your 30th. It was just stomach issues, so we...
I know you remember the horrible “biscuit” faux pas I made at my last tea party – well not this time! I knew a scone when I saw one and dabbed it with clotted cream and jam. Now...
I swear, we tried our best. There was a solid plan, we stuck to it steadfastly and yet…nothing quite turned out right. Guess we’ll just chalk it up to that old adage “The best...
Just got back from 5 glorious days in Bohol, an island in the Southern Philippines. As you know, my friend Rachel is visiting and we wanted to take her somewhere that would give her a feel of the...
We had the pleasure of being invited to a Worst Gift Exchange Party on Thursday night. The objective was to bring the worst thing you had in your house and wrap it up for someone else’s...
I really like the Chinese concept of “Year of the …”. I think that fits well into everyone’s lives and allows us to concentrate on key priorities for that year. For Nick...
Have I mentioned how much I love you, my blog-reading public. Last week we reached a new high, with over 550 of you visiting in one day! Thank you for the L-O-V-E… I know you have many...
Life doesn’t get much better than spending an afternoon in the country with my new-found Carewell friends. And although the gathering was set up “just because,” there ended up...
Those of you who have known me a long time know that Sarah & Singing just plain go together. I think the best way to explain it to you would be that I have my own “Pandora” station...
Turned out to be a BIG party weekend for this girl. Felt like I was back in my early 20’s, not 1 month away from the big 3-0! Honestly, I can’t remember the last time I went out for...
You are all well aware of the fact that I don’t really believe in doing anything small, especially when it comes to milestone birthdays. Â All it took was 5 months of hinting on my part before...
As most of you know, I am less than 30 days away from my visit to Minne-SOH-ta. Â My energy has been ramping up for weeks and I’ve found myself talking non-stop about all the things I’m...
It’s that time of year again folks. Â The big social event of the year is just around the corner – The Annual Marine Corps Ball! Â Last year, as you may remember, I was forced to choose...
Ok, let’s start with the facts. I adore Christmas. Not just any old Christmas, but the snow-covered, sweater-wearing, eggnog-drinking, fireplace-roasting type. Perhaps some would call...
As is the tradition, we put on a big ole Halloween Party for the kiddos this week. Â Man was it fun! Â Their energy is especially infectious on ‘special days’ like these when we go all...
Until I have a kid of my own, I’ve officially adopted baby Leni as my surrogate daughter. Â In real life, she belongs to our good friends Andrea and Brian, who are also in the Foreign Service...
Today was our annual Holiday party with the kids from Friendship Home. Â Each year we take them out to do something ‘special’ during the holidays. Â In December of ’09, if you...
The night I had been waiting for months to arrive was finally upon us! Â After all the fundraising, all the wrapping and all the transporting, it was finally time to give out the gifts… and...
I know we’re new to this Foreign Service thing, but I have a hard time imagining that we’re going to find household staff in other countries that love and care for us as warmly as Norma...
Miller Sisters at the Groom’s Dinner. L to R: Beth (3rd), Emily (2nd), Jenna (4th), Sarah (1st) It was a big weekend in the Miller Household. Â Emily Miller (second oldest) married her...
Owning a cabin is pretty dang amazing. Â I mean, there was nothing like the ‘cabin lifestyle’ in Manila. Â Hence, I am appreciating all my glorious time here. Â As you might imagine, the...
As most of you know, Nick and I have been apart since early June. Â While we’ve both done pretty well with the separation, I was pretty bummed that he wouldn’t be here for my birthday on...
On Sunday afternoon my Mom and Sisters threw a Baby Shower so our friends and relatives could celebrate the upcoming arrival of Baby Nia. Â Given that my Mom was in charge, guests knew that they...
Since Nia and I are spending Christmas Day with Nick in DC, we celebrated early with the Miller family. Â Nia was the belle of the ball in her new Christmas dress (and by new I mean ‘new to...
It was a very DC Christmas for us this year. Â Nick wasn’t allowed to take any vacation days during his language training, so we spent the holiday in DC instead of traveling to see our families...
It was a wild weekend here on the home front. We are a mere one week from our international move now and for some reason (back in January) we thought it’d be a grand idea to schedule...
I woke up on my birthday in a foul mood.  I had decided in advance that it was going to be a crap b-day because: a.)  My bday fell on a Monday this year b.)  I have no friends here yet (please...
Peru’s Independence Day is coming up on July 28th. People have been showing their pride all month long, with many wearing pins, some adorning their car with a flag and EVERY house putting...
It’s hard to believe, but our little girl just crossed the one year mark. I’m not going to lie and say that the entire year flew by because there were days in those first 3 months that felt...
It’s been non-stop Halloween around here the last few days. Â Although not my favorite holiday, I have to admit that it’s a ton more fun with a kid. Â Cuteness just becomes magnified in...
Tis the season for holiday parties! Â Saturday was one of our first Embassy ones, a “Morning with Santa” for the kiddos. Â Â It was beautifully done – bouncie castles, face...
As I’ve mentioned before, Embassy Lima does a great job of putting on festive holiday celebrations. Â Holidays tend to bring up additional feelings of homesickness and events like this really...
As many of you know, the College of St. Benedict (St. Ben’s aka CSB) is near and dear to my heart. This one-of-a-kind institution shepherded me from girl to woman and left an indelible print on...
Good news! We learned this weekend that all it takes to keep our toddler still for 2 hours is a Parade! Now if only we could have a parade every day then we’d be in great shape… Ok, kidding...
It’s hard to believe, but we’ll have a 2 year old in our family as of the 22nd. In order to celebrate this momentous occasion, we decided to throw the most Elmolicious Party we could dream...
Wanna know something? I’ve never been too fond of Halloween. Sure, I enjoyed it as a kid, but by the time I got to my early teens I was pretty over it. It all seemed kinda silly. But then I...
Don’t get me wrong, Christmas to me will forever be synonymous with snow, fires, hot chocolate, sweaters and the like. There is, however, something delightful about ‘testing out’...
Hard to believe, but today marks the 5th anniversary of our civil wedding ceremony. I thought it’d be fun to look back at some of our early dating pictures to celebrate this milestone. March 2007...
One of the things I remember most vividly from my childhood was all the amazing parties my parents threw. Dinner parties, theme parties, card club – you name it, they did it. My favorite party...
Nia and I just got back from a 1 week trip to Minnesota to attend Beth & Jim’s wedding (the 3rd of the 4 Miller gals).  The festivities began on Friday night with the rehearsal and 50...
I sit here in bed writing this, not quite sure what to do with myself after coming off a jam-packed weekend with my parents in town. Â The “not sure what to do with myself” part comes...
It was a lovely, quiet holiday weekend for the Novaks. Â Nick made us a Thanksgiving feast complete with homemade pumpkin pie, turkey, mashed taters and gravy. Â I was totally spoiled! Â It was our...