Wednesday, December 31, 2008

Reflecting on 2008

2008 has been such a wonderful and blessed year for us. Here are some of the things that made it so special:

1- Celebrating our 2 year wedding anniversary in June.
2- Beginning my 3rd year of teaching.
3- Deciding to start trying for a baby in April.
4- Struggling with getting pregnant (yes this is a blessing).
5- Finding a dr. that is very willing to help us start a family.
6- Starting a blog and meeting a ton of amazing women.
7- Hosting Christmas night at our house this year.
8- Hubs getting a promotion.
9- Family vacations and weekend trips with Hubs.
10- Much needed summer vacation.
11- Much needed Christmas vacation.
12- Landscaping our yard.
13- Hubs joined the YMCA.
14- Coaching.
15- Hubs coaching a t-ball team.
16- Finding a home church to join and meeting lots of great people.

Hopes for 2009:

1- Getting a positive pregnancy test.
2- Having a baby.
3- Losing some weight and getting healthier.
4- Standing beside my future sister-in-law and little brother as they say I do.
5-Celebrating our 3rd wedding anniversary.
6- Starting Weight Watchers and joining the YMCA.
7- working on our house
8- creating a nursery
9- Continuing to grow in the Lord.

Happy New Years Eve! Please be safe celebrating the new year. We are planning on celebrating Christmas with our in-laws and Hub's brothers tonight.

Monday, December 29, 2008

Thankful Tuesday

Trying to get back in the rhythm. Here is this weeks edition of Thankful Tuesdays.

1- Movies that make you feel good (and get home and hug your pooches). If you haven't seen Marley and Me, I highly recommend that you do. It was wonderful and I cried like a baby. So did the man beside me (not Hubs).

2- Spending the holidays with family. We are so lucky to live close to our families and have them around to celebrate the season with us. My family lives 15 minutes from us and Hub's family lives 2 hours away. I couldn't imagine being separated from them any time of the year but especially this time of the year.

3- Down time. I haven't done anything this week. I have enjoyed this relaxing time so much and will dread going back to work next week. Hmmm... not thinking about that yet.

Homebody


Enjoying our vacation!

Just wanted to stop in with an update. I feel like it has been forever since I have posted anything worthwhile and I don't think that this one will be any better. We are still at the beach and are planning on heading to the in-laws tomorrow afternoon. We are doing Christmas there either Wed or Thursday and then we are finally heading home. We have had loads of fun here but it seems like we haven't been home in a while and we still have another leg to this trip. Hopefully we will be able to do Christmas on Wed. and be home by Thursday morning. I am currently reading the second book in the Twilight series and loving it too. I was really torn about reading these books since they aren't Christian fiction which is usually all that I read. But after hearing so many great things about them I had to see what it is all about. And boy am I glad that I have. I love them and am already dreading finishing the series. I am hoping to see the movie soon. (Lianna, read them!).

And finally I will leave you with a pic... I promise to post about Christmas when we are finally finished with the celebrations.


Us on Christmas night

Sunday, December 28, 2008

Bitten at the Beach

Not posting because I am enjoying my Christmas vacation by relaxing at the beach. And I have been too busy with my nose stuck in this...


Yes... I have been bitten.

I have already read the first book and have began the second one. I am hoping to go see the movie tomorrow. Still trying to talk Hubs into taking me. Not that I am agaisn't seeing a movie by my lonseome but since I am not sure where the theater is that is still playing it. I may have to depend on my GPS though.

Thursday, December 25, 2008

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas!

We hope that everyone has a wonderful Christmas and a Happy New Year!

May God bless your family in this holiday season.


Sunday, December 21, 2008

The 8 Tag

I was tagged by Kendra to complete this survey.

8 Shows I Watch

1- The Bachelor
2- Greek
3- The Office
4- Reba
5- House Hunters
6- Gilmore Girls
7- The Bachelorette
8- Oprah

8 Favorite Restaurants

1- Dos Amigos (Mexican is my favorite)
2- Villa Roma (the best Italian place in SC)
3- Murphy's (college town bar)
4- Carabbas
5- Cook Out
6- Riverview (fried fish, southern staple)
7- House of Pizza (best cheese steak sub)
8- Gondola (best wings)

8 Things that Happened to Me Today

1- slept till 9am. I never do this.
2- wrapped a few Christmas gifts
3- washed a ton of clothes
4- watched a Lifetime movie with Hubs
5- took a nap (never do this either)
6- ate dinner with my parents
7- read
8- getting ready to watch the Panthers game

8 Things I look Forward to

1-finding out I am pregnant
2- being a mommy
3- growing old with hubs
4- Christmas in 4 days
5- vacation at the beach in 5 days
6- my little brothers wedding in June
7- a new semester at school
8- softball season starting in Feb.

8 Things I wish for

1- to be pregnant
2- a baby (hand in hand with #1)
3- be able to fit into my old jeans (unless of course its because I am preggers)
4- lots of books for Christmas
5- to please God in all that I do
6- to go to Disney World again soon
7- for my students to be successful in life
8- for hubs and I to grow closer to each other and God everyday.

This one has been passed around a lot lately so if you haven't done it yet consider yourself tagged.

Family and Friends Friday (on Sunday)

This weeks Family and Friends honoree is:
my wonderful friend Lindsey!

Lindsey and I met 3 years ago when we both started our first year of teaching at Small Town High School. Lindsey is a PE teacher. That year we also coached volleyball, basketball, and softball together. We went to rival high schools and rival colleges but have ended up being great friends. Lindsey is one of the sweetest and funniest people I have ever met.


Christmas Vacation has officially began for me! I am now enjoying a 2 week break. Now I just need to start getting ready for Christmas. I have no food for Christmas dinner, the gifts aren't wrapped, and my house is a mess. And I have something to do every night before Christmas. UGH!

Friday, December 19, 2008

Sick and Super Busy

I have a sinus infection and way to much stuff to do. Tonight we have Hub's work Christmas party and while I am looking forward to going; I would also be looking forward to getting in bed and sleeping for 24 hours. Sorry there isn't a Friends and Family Friday today... I will post it tomorrow. Hopefully. We are helping my brother move into his house and then going out for Hub's birthday dinner. So until I can actually slow down for a while I will continue to pop Alieve Sinus every few hours.

I am excited that there is only 6 days to Christmas!

Krysta... I ordered a turkey from Honey Baked Ham. We didn't think we were capable of cooking one ourselves. Thanks for the tips though.

Wednesday, December 17, 2008

Happy Birthday Hubs!

Hubs turns 28 today!
So I thought that I would dedicate this post to him.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY SWEETIE!!!!!



I didn't think that I could ever love you more than I did on our wedding day. Boy was I wrong. My love for you has grown tenfold since then. It is now a more mature love.



I love that you love sports as much as I do. I love that I am able to talk game strategies with you and we can give each other advice about coaching. I love that you spent last spring coaching a 4 year-old T-ball team and you were SOOOOO much taller than them. I have never seen anything cuter that you standing beside them and trying to help them catch a ball when they would rather play in the dirt.


I love that you are so great with children. I cannot wait until we have our own little ones.
You will be the best daddy in the world.


I love that you are always up for anything. Even if you aren't that excited about it at first. Your always so much fun to be around and you keep me laughing all the time. I can't imagine anyone else that I would want to share in the joys (and struggles) of life with.


I love how sweet you are.



I love when you kiss me on the forehead (you know that's my favorite).


I love that I get to grow old with you.
I love that you love God as much as I do.
I am so proud to be your wife.
You mean the world to me.

Happy 28th Birthday!



Christmas Card Carousel

It's time for Christmas cards! I actually just got mine sent out this week. I am usually on the ball with this stuff but this year has been so busy. If your like me, I love to get cards all year but especially at Christmas when everyone has pictures. I always save every card. That's why I am so happy to be participating in Faith's Christmas Card Carousel this year.
Swing by and check out all the beautiful cards.
Sorry mine is so small. I had to copy if off the website and this is as good as I could get it.
You can still get the idea.




Tuesday, December 16, 2008

Thankful Tuesdays

Can you believe that it is only 9 days until Christmas?!?! I am so excited as this will be the first year that we are hosting it at our house. I am not excited about cooking our first turkey though. We have no idea. If anyone has any recipes or suggestions please send them my way. Okay, on to the what I am thankful for this week.

1- I am thankful for this little guy. If you have never tried the Chocolate Chip Coconut cookies made by Keebler then you are missing out. They are so good. And yes, by the way I am still on my diet. In fact I have even lost 7 lbs. (Yeah!) I only ate 2 of the cookies yesterday during the luncheon that my school provides everyday this week. Hmmm, maybe there will be some more today. I better go check.
2- Vacation. This is where I will be on December 26th. I plan on living a mess at my house, packing all the great books and movies I plan on getting for Christmas, grabbing Hubs and head to the beach. We always spend the week after Christmas at the beach with the in-laws and it is so nice to relax before coming back and doing our 2nd Christmas with Hub's family in his hometown. Of course with it being December I won't be on the beach reading :( but I will manage.

3- On a more serious note, I am so THANKFUL for a God that is with us during our storms. We are all going to meet hard times. Only those of use that trust in Jesus will have Him with us in our time of trouble. While He never promised smooth sailing He does promise a safe journey. He will see us through our hardships. Sometimes we think that we can do it on our own and God will let us reach our point of desperation and have us cry out to Him. But He is always there with us. Guiding us and keeping watch. I am so thankful that I am a child of God and that He is the ultimate father when it comes to taking care of His children.

Sunday, December 14, 2008

Christmas Tour of Homes

This is my first year participating in BooMama's Christmas Tour of Homes.
Welcome to our home!

Our tree. We do a real tree each year. I love the smell of it and the excitement of going out together and picking the perfect one. This tree was a deal too, we only paid $20 since we went the night before the guy was getting a new shipment.


My stand up snowman. He greets everyone as they come in the front door.


I love this little snowman holding the lantern. My mother-in-law got me that several years ago and it is always the first decoration to be put up.

Our front porch. These trees light up and I have matching wreaths on all the windows.


I just got these little guys a few weeks back for practically nothing. They are so cute and very heavy which is great since we have so much wind at our house.


My friend Lindsey bought me this great metal sign 2 years ago for my birthday.


Sorry about the far away pic but I couldn't get all of my village in if I zoomed in. Plus you get to see our stockings. (And the delicious looking burger from Chili's on TV)



Our cowboy snowman and this beautiful snow globe that my mother-in-law bought me the first Christmas that Hubs and I dated. Its hard to tell in this picture but the snow globe is actually pretty large and plays Christmas music.


Our breakfast nook tree. It is decorated in gingerbread, food, and kitchen utensils as ornaments.


My bakers rack. The 3 trees up top were given to me for my birthday by my wonderful friend Lindsey. The same friend that gave me the sign. I think she knows how much I love to decorate for the holidays.


I bought this Christmas card tree last year after Christmas. I can't wait to see what it looks like when it is full of cards.


Now for some of our favorite ornaments.


REJOICE... I love Christmas! The decorations, food, parties, presents but the main reason that I love Christmas is because as a Christian I rejoice in knowing that my Lord was born during this season. What better gift is there than that.


Hub's favorite ornament. Read it and you can tell why.


A new ornament that I just bought on Saturday. It is a D with icing on it.


Well, that's my house. Thanks for stopping by. Now before you go I want to share
a goodie with you.



Ranch Cheeseball
2 -8oz. cream cheese
1 pack of Hidden Valley Ranch mix
chopped pecans
black pepper
Soften cream cheese
mix in ranch mix
chill in fridge
round into ball
cover in black pepper
roll in chopped pecans
cover in wax paper and aluminum foil
refrigerate until serving

2nd Annual Christmas Swap

Last weekend we held our 2nd Annual Christmas Swap. I hate that I am just now getting to post the picutres but last week was so busy and I figured better late than never.


Lindsey, Kirsten, me, and Erin

My handsome nephew Eli playing with Frosty


The gift table


Some of the men surronding the food table


Enjoying the party


Erin and Lindsey, gossiping I'm sure



I also wanted to share a picture of my new hairstyle. All I really had done was highlights but its also straight in this picture. I have naturally curly hair although it is really easy to straighten I usually end up wearing it curly. Don't mind Hubs in this pic... we were driving down the road. We had a date night (it had been a while since our last one). We went and ate Bar-B-Que, went and saw 4 Christmas', and then went and viewed the Christmas lights in Christmas Town USA.


























Friday, December 12, 2008

Family and Friends Friday

Sorry this is a day late but Friday was really busy. So here is this week's edition of Family and Friends Friday.
The honoree is: My best friend Erin!


Erin and I have been best friends since we were born. Well actually since she was born since I am 6 months older than her. We went to school together and then went to college together. We were in the same sorority in college and have had a standing date of Mexican food at least once a month since then. We both live in the same town again and she is a kindergarten teacher at the elementary school beside the high school that I teach at. She was my maid of honor and six months later I played the same role for her (well, matron). Erin is the sweetest person and has the best personality. She is nosey and keeps me updated on all the local gossip. I know that we will always be best friends and I look forward to the rest of our lives as BFF's.

Wednesday, December 10, 2008

Recipe Wednesday

Today I am going to share with you a delicious veggie casserole recipe. This is Hub's favorite and I always make it on Thanksgiving and Christmas. My mother-in-law gave me this recipe and it is so yummy.

Veggie Casserole

Original Veg-All
Sharp Cheddar Cheese
Mayo
Herbal Dressing
Salt
Pepper
Stick Butter

* I don't use measurements for this. It all depends on how many people you are serving.

Mix Veg-All, Mayo, cheese, and salt & pepper in a bowl. (The mixture should have a little too much mayo in it).

Layer in greased dish.

Cover with Herbal dressing.

Melt stick of butter and pour over casserole.

Cook at 350 for 45-50 minutes or until top is brown.

Tuesday, December 9, 2008

Thankful Tuesday

You will be glad to know that I have calmed down about the Save the Date issue. Still not happy about it but getting over it. So I am moving on the my list of things that I am thankful for this week (and all the time).


1- Sticking to my diet so far this week. Go ahead and laugh. I know that it is only Tuesday but I did really well yesterday. Not only did I not eat anything that I wasn't supposed to have but I also got in some walking after school with my friend Lindsey. Since it was so cold yesterday we power walked in the hallways after school. My goal is to lose 10 lbs by Christmas. Actually I would like to fit into a pair of jeans I have that are a size smaller then what I am wearing now. Then once the new year comes I want to try and get back into my "skinny jeans" that are 3 sizes smaller than what I am wearing now.


2- Made for TV movies! I don't watch a lot of TV but during this time of the year you can always find me glued to The Hallmark Channel or ABC Family watching a sappy Christmas movie. Hubs secretly loves to watch them too.


3- Teacher assistants. I honestly do not know what I would do without my 2 teacher assistants. With the holiday break coming up and the end of the semester right around the corner my life has revolved around meetings and paperwork. Thank goodness I have my TA's to help me with all my mess.


What are you thankful for this week?


Also, I am working on a post about our Christmas Swap party this weekend. It was so much fun and I can't wait to share pictures with ya'll.

Monday, December 8, 2008

Wedding Etiquette

Venting a little here:

Saturday we got a Save the Date card from one of our friends from college. He happens to be one of Hub's fraternity brothers. Well anyways the Save the Date comes and, listen to this, is addressed to Hubs and Guest. WHAT!!! We have been married for 2.5 years and this guy was at our wedding. Hubs and I dated for 3 years of college and hung out with this guy every weekend. He knows my name! He knows that we are married! In fact his future wife even has the same name as me. Now, to be fair I am guessing that he probably didn't do the Save the Dates but you should still know who they are going to and have them addressed correctly. The southern girl in me is all about etiquette and for some reason this tore me up. Hubs thought it was funny and asked did that mean he didn't have to take me as his guest. Hilarious.

Friday, December 5, 2008

Family and Friends Friday


I know that I didn't get last weeks version of Family and Friend's Friday posted but with early morning shopping and traveling to the in-laws it was just too much. But I have brought it back for this week. So for this time I have decided to honor two people. The first person of honor is: (enter drum roll please)

MY MOMMA


She is such an amazing woman. I pray that I can be the wife and mother that she is one day. And you can definitely see that I look like her. It's funny but until now I had never even noticed that our heads are cocked the same way in this picture. We are the best of friends and spend so much time together.

And the 2nd inductee into the Family and Friends Hall of Fame is:

MY DADDY


I am a Daddy's Girl! Always have been. And even though my mom is my best friend my daddy is my hero. My dad and I actually teach at the same high school and coach softball together. My dad is a construction teacher and in addition to coaching girls varsity softball he also coaches boys varsity basketball. He has a lawn care business that he runs in the summer. My dad is the hardest working man that I know and loves his family more than anything. When he's not working he loves pulling for his South Carolina Gamecocks.


Thought I would share these with ya'll. My parents met in the 2nd grade and have been together since the 7th. They were married when they were 18 and still live in the same house that my grandpa built them when they were married. I grew up with such amazing parents and a wonderful example of what love is and pray that Hubs and I can have the relationship that my parents share. So for your viewing pleasure I have provided some lovely pictures of them when they were young. My mom will kill me if she sees these.


My mom's hair looks like a helmet... wonder if that was the look she was going for.


My mom as a beautiful bride.


My dad the basketball star. Loving the shorts and socks.

I need to show this to all his players

One of their proms... not sure what year.

Their wedding day

The 4 of us.

Also, I wanted to add that I got a wonderful sign from God yesterday. I had already decided that I was going to clean out my closet and get rid of everything that I hadn't worn in a year or that I didn't need. The only thing was that I didn't know what to do with them. I didn't just want to give them to Goodwill but I don't really know anyone that needs them. So last night I got on my email and there was a new one from a guy at church. He is a teacher at the elementary school and one of his students house burnt down this week. Everyone survived but his family lost everything. The email was asking for any donations and gave the mom and little boys sizes. Here is where God was really at work... the woman is my exact size. Pants, shirts, coats, and even shoe size. Everything was what I wear. I was so amazed that I started crying while I was reading the email. Hubs of course was looking at me like I was losing it. It is amazing how God provides the opportunity for us to help. I plan on spending Sunday cleaning out my closet and providing this family with tons of stuff.