"a long december and there's reason to believe maybe this year will be better than the last..."

december is always a rough month for me and my family bc it marks the anniversary of my brother, spencer's passing. this december has been the best one for me since december 16, 2003. here's a few reasons why...

shopping for jaycees christmas party.

dinner & movie with robin.

making cookies with the kiddos at school.

chaperoning the high school christmas dance.

christmas program at school.

ginny ann.

visiting spencer.

karen, allizea, pacey, and gabriel.

santa and his helper.

jaycees christmas party.

jaycees christmas party.

12.1.09 dogfish head beer dinner - the distillery - savannah, ga

one of the exciting things i experienced during my involuntary, extended stay in the lowcountry was the dogfish head beer dinner. matt's restaraunt, the distillery, was hosting it and of course, he was the chef. there was an ingredient from every continent throughout all the meal. here are some pics of the dogfish head beer dinner...

the distillery - 416 w. liberty st. -savannah, ga

dogfish head beer dinner menu

taste of the world - something from EVERY continent

ben volen - describing the dogfish head beers and how they will compliment the courses.

matt kubiak (head chef) - describing courses.

scallop with shitake orange vinnegrette with dogish red & white.

indian cashew chicken curry with dogfish head 60 minute ipa.

cherry port glazed duck with dogfish head raison d'etre.

beef tenderloin & grits with dogfish head indian brown ale.

chicory stout taramisu with dogfish head cherry stout.

me and mrs. volen (owner)

me and matt.

late november - early december 2009 savannah, ga

well, since i was stuck in savannah and matt had to work, i had A LOT of time on my hands! i wasn't still 100% from where i had been sick so i just relaxed the first couple of days i was there. by wednesday i was stir crazy and wanted to get out so i decided to go exploring. although i've been to savannah more times that i can count, it's rich with history you can never see it all so i decided to go exploring for the rest of the week during the day. at night matt would usually cook (he's a chef) and we would just hang out. we went out on friday night and braden came through town on his way to the keys on saturday night so i really enjoyed myself even though i was "stuck." here are some pics from my extended stay in savannah.

wicked trees.

i fell in love with this lil' place.

SCAD - art school

trees on river st.

boats.

sweetgrass baskets being made.

cobblestone on river st.

one of many historic sights downtown savannah.

river street.

slave trade statue.

character.

ga hussars.

cobblestone stairs that lead from river street up to the rest of downtown.

me, jigga, and santa.

colorful paintings at city market.

downtown home.

more trees.

chatham artillery.

a brick of the rememberance walk

red doors and palms.

more palms.

christmas time in the lowcountry.

dar cemetery.

jigga dragging a palm through the park.

braden, me, and matt.

me, matt, and jigga in the back.

we(mostly ben, his roommate)decorated matt's house in christmas lights.