New Year's Eve

Since we were in Phoenix we did what some of the Phoenicians do. We went to the Tempe Tostito's Fiesta Bowl Block Party. Well, we didn't actually go, we stayed home out of the cooler temperatures and then went to a parking garage just a block away at about 11pm and hung out until midnight when we wished everyone a Happy New Year and watched the fireworks over the lake. Then it was a quick drive home and off to bed as 7am comes mighty early when you don't get to bed until after 1am. Why on earth did we have to get up so early? Well, Jonathan had to be back in Houston for work on the 2nd and the cheapest flight was the earliest one. So we booked it. It was nice though because we were able to ring in the new year with just the two of us like we did our first year together. AWW the memories! So HAPPY NEW YEAR to everyone and I hope that it is going well for all of you. May God bless you in this new year.

Christmas 2008

Ok, so January is almost over and I am just now getting to put pictures and a posting on what went on. What can I say, I am still reveling in the after Christmas slow down. YEAH RIGHT!! So, again this year we went to Wendy's dad's house in Phoenix for Christmas and decided to stay on for New Years. We flew in on Christmas Eve and went from the airport, home to change and then off to church for the Christmas Eve service. Christmas day however was a lot slower. We were able to have a leisurely breakfast, went and saw the movie Marley and Me (take the tissues) and then went over to my brothers house that evening for a family Christmas present opening with our one year old niece. It was so much fun. My niece loved to help everyone open their presents. She is such a joy. I wish we could see more of her and I miss watching her grow up and doing things with her that I was able to do with my girlfriends son that I call my nephew. Maybe they will move to Houston some day - again - YEAH RIGHT!! We got to see a lot of friends and even though we took the camera to most of the things we did, unfortunately we forgot to take pictures. I guess we were just busy enjoying the company of friends instead of worrying about capturing the moment on camera. Here are a few from the family Christmas present opening with my niece. Enjoy!!

Kitchen before and after

The almost final kitchen shots. We are done with the kitchen except for three small things, caulking, trim work, and the baseboards under the cabinets. We are so excited to be done with the major renovation that we thought we would share the before and after pictures with you. This was a project that came from my insight and Jonathans tenacity. Together it took us four months to complete, but we stand in awe of how the project turned out. We had a Christmas party here yesterday and everyone was impressed that we did the work ourselves. It was mentioned that we could hire ourselves out as contractors. Thank you, but just the thought of doing a project this size again, is not something I want to even think about. We had a budget and went a little over, but it was only because we decided to go with granite counters instead of formica. Hey, you have to do what you have to do to get the job done right. Overall, we figure that we saved about $15,000 by doing it ourselves. How amazing is that. I am so blessed that God gave me a husband who knows how to do handywork and is willing to try projects he has never done before. WOW!!

Snow in Houston

Yes, we got snow in Houston. Our house received about an inch of the white stuff on Wednesday, December 10th. Thankfully it didn't stay long enough to freeze on the roads and cause chaos, but boy was it fun to see coming down. It was fun to call all my family back in AZ and tell them that it was snowing in Houston. They couldn't believe it. I was like a kid in a candy store. I kept looking out the windows seeing if it was still snowing. Then at 10pm that night, I took Brownie out for her last duty of the day and low and behold there was snow on her dog house and on the fence. So snapped these pictures to share with everyone back home. Hope you enjoy!!!

Trip to Mars Hill

This month we went to visit Jonathan's parents in a small town called Mars Hill, NC. It is about a half hour outside of Asheville. We had a good time and it was fun to drive the blue ridge parkway. It is amazing the colors and views that you can see. As Jonathan's mom stated most of the colors had already changed, but at the lower elevations they were still very visible as you can see. The higher we got up the mountain the less colors there were. It was a good time even though it was short. We hope that his parents will be able to come visit us soon.

Cy-Fair Fire Dep.

The end of October brought the annual Cy-Fair volunteer Fire Department bonanza and of course we had to go. They had demonstrations of how they extract people from car accidents with all the equipment. They set cars on fire. They had a dog that was able to sniff out victims that may be in a collapsed building. Then they had the whole history of the Cy-Fair fire department and all of the trucks too. The kids were enthralled with the Memorial Hermann Hospital medivac that showed up at the end. It was an all day show and I have to admit was pretty impressive. I am always enthralled with helicopters landing, always have been. So of course when it landed, I ran out and watched it, while Jonathan stayed in the firehouse looking at all the equipment. It was really interesting to see the things that my husband can do if he is on the correct apparatus when the time comes. Firefighters are truly amazing men and women and I am blessed to be married to one of those men.

Yogurt Cup

Ok, so it has been awhile. There has been stuff going on and we have had a lot of fun with Brownie our dog. She has developed a fond taste for my yogurt cups in the morning. She will follow me around or sit quietly while I finish the cup. She has also developed a fondness for the pudding cups and the fruit cups for our lunches. Unfortunately due to the fact that we are at work eating lunch, she doesn't get these cups much. Anyway, besides all of this we have finished the kitchen except for some small details that outside visitors would not notice. We are so excited and will be posting those pictures soon. In the meantime enjoy the pictures of Brownie and her Yogurt cup.