Happy Birthday, Sweet Lia!

Today is Lia's 17th birthday, and I can't believe it. It's so fun to watch her grow up, but it's also sad...we still want her to be a little baby. But I'm so proud of her. She is really an amazing 17 year old. It has been so fun to watch her grow into such a neat young woman who loves God and strives each day to live her life according to His word. I am amazed at her wisdom and excitement and passion for Christ and her ability to instill that same excitement into the people around her. It has been especially neat to watch her grow in her new environment in Houston and take each situation with which she's given and make it positive. She's soooo funny and beautiful and honest and encouraging and amazingly talented - she can do anything! And she has a great sense of fashion...which we all know she got from Alyssa. She really is my friend...not just my little sister. So although we were shocked 17 years ago to find out we had a new member to add to our family, we're so glad for her. She adds so much joy and fun to our family. So Happy Birthday, Lia. I hope today is wonderful!

Stay tuned for pictures from Lia's visit to Mississippi this weekend.

Going to the Chapel!!

Finally!! Alyssa and Sam are engaged!! We are so excited! He proposed this morning. Lia and I knew that he went to talk to Dad almost two weeks ago, and we have been sitting on the edge of our seats. She really surprised me, too. I was teaching my class today when she showed up in my classroom. It kinda caught me off guard that she was there, but I never thought a thing. She slowly stuck her hand out of her jacket and showed me her beautiful ring. I started screaming and so did my students. It was so fun. As soon as the bell rang for my students to leave, I went outside to sit in the car with Sam and LuLu (it was pouring down rain), and I immediately went into planning mode. There's so much to do. Did I mention that the tentative date for the wedding is sometime in January??? So much to do! I think I kinda scared Sam with my list of things! It just so happens that Lia is coming into town this weekend...she's flying in Thursday night for the weekend...so we're going to look at bridesmaid dresses Friday. And it will be fun for the three of us to hang out and iron out some details!! Yippee for Alyssa and Sam!!!

LuLu's beautiful ring. Doesn't she look excited?

The Newest Family Member...

Lee and I have been "dog sitting" Alyssa's dog, Manly, almost all weekend. He is so fun! He's only about 9 or 10 weeks old, I think, but he loves to play. He will run and climb and play until he just can't go anymore. He's a mix between a shitzuh and a poodle, which makes him a shihpoo. We took him and Jackson to the park this afternoon to get outside and really play in the pretty weather. While Jackson played in the water and caught tennis balls that Lee threw for him, Manly was trying to decide what to do with this thing. I mean, it's almost as big as him. He gave it his best shot...he would try to chew it, crawl on top of it, push it around. It was funny. People all over the park were coming over to see if they could hold the dog...he was attracting people from everywhere. He's just so cute. He has been just laying around and napping since we got back. I think he's pooped! Yay for LuLu. She got a great dog!

What a cute dog!

Lee and Jackson having a serious conversation at the park.

I love surprises!!

I absolutely love surprises...I mean, love them...of all kinds. So how excited was I when I got home and had a present in the mail?! Did I mention that I love presents, too? My mom sent me this necklace and cute earrings in the mail, and I got them after we got back from the beach. How cute! I had already ironed all my clothes for the week, and it went perfect with what I was wearing today. To be honest, I wasn't sure it was for me. See, Mom forgot to put a note or anything in the package, so I just opened it and out if fell. I've already checked to make sure it's for me, but I was hating it for the other person it could have been meant for. I was not giving this thing up! I got compliments on it from everyone today. And I'm sure I'll get lots of use out of it...I wear tons of black. Thanks, Mom! What a sweet surprise.

*Please excuse the very tired look. It's been a long day, and I'm not feeling great, but I didn't want to pass putting this on!! Take note of the tan lines!

What a Fun Time...

We had the greatest weekend! Our sweet friends, Craig and Katie Curtis, invited Lee & I and Mark & Elizabeth Rich to go to the beach with them to stay at a friend's condo. We went down on Thursday and stayed for 4 days. The weather was sooo perfect...just enough breeze. We tried to soak up every second of sun. Our routine went something like this: wake up, eat breakfast on the balcony while watching the dolphins/stingrays swim, get ready for the beach, sit on the beach and read/play a game/watch the guys act like little boys, walk down the beach, watch the sun set, go up to take showers, go eat, come back to play a board game, solve the world's problems, go to bed...only to start all over again! It was so wonderful. The guys even got to play golf one day. As an added bonus, we found out the day before we left that the condo was actually a penthouse! It was incredible. It was nice to spend time with such great friends. Katie and Craig leave in less than two weeks to go to Central Asia as missionaries for two years. That made the weekend a little sad, because we want them to stay here. But they are going to do such wonderful things there. They have both touched so many people here, and it's exciting to be able to share them with other parts of the world.

You can see pictures from the weekend in the box on the sidebar. Just click on the box, and it will take you to the site!!

All By Myself...

Well, almost. MoMo and PaPa came this weekend to hang out with all of us - me, Lee, Alyssa, and Sam. The girls shopped almost all day Saturday...we had a really good time... while the guys watched football and moved some heavy furniture at the antique store. We were on a mission - to find fabric to make curtains for our kitchen. We found it!! MoMo and I stayed up late that night cutting and pinning everything. I came home after church Sunday and got right to work...after eating MoMo's red beans and rice. Yum! And here's the finished product. I mean, I know I'm a beginner, and in a few months, I'll probably look at those curtains and wonder why I had the guts to hang them up. But, for now, I'm proud of them. They add a little bit to our kitchen and were a good start for me. My very first thing to sew all by myself! My next project is an apron. We'll see how that goes...

This is the long window in the kitchen. The other picture is the window above the sink. That one needs a little extra work, but it looks ok for now.

We're Bloggers!!

We are now officially bloggers! We finally decided that posting all of our information in one place is much easier for us and our family and friends. Our lives are so crazy right now that keeping people in the know one at a time gets really tricky! We either forget to tell something or someone. Here we'll post messages, pictures, and random thoughts. Should be fun! Stay tuned....