The English's: Celebrate

Showing posts with label Celebrate. Show all posts

Christmas and Chairs

>> Tuesday, January 10, 2012 – Celebrate, Christmas, Family, Holidays

Christmas this year was with my family in Nashville. Two weeks before Christmas we finally finished our hardwood floors, put our doors back on, and were slowly taking loads over to the house to start the process of moving in.

First load... Christmas decorations :) This is just one of the many reasons I have the greatest husband in the world.

Here's our tree before any ornaments were on it. I could stare at this all day long.

Since we only had a few weeks before Christmas, I only put up a few things. Since my pinterest-inspired wreath was on the front door, I decided to put our Christmas wreath on the door to the porch.

My one food contribution to the Family Christmas was going to be cookies. JT and I love these and good thing Marcy (my MIL) showed me the easiest recipe!

- Buy peanut butter cookie mix (where you only add water, eggs, & oil)
- Mix the dough
- Roll 1 inch balls in pure sugar
- Place on a cookie sheet and bake according to package
- Once removed from the oven, let cool for 3 minutes and then pace a kiss on top!
- To harden the chocolate, stick the tray in the freezer for a few minutes
- Enjoy! YUM-O.

For the last 7 months we've been eating at a coffee table and sofa. We sold our old table and chairs before we moved from Dallas and have been looking for the perfect set to stay in our family for years to come. Something sturdy that will last up to the wear and tear of many parties, family dinners, work space, etc. We found our table at Crate and Barrel and wanted to find chairs that we could mix-match. Ikea had the perfect grey/brown slim chairs we were looking for.

Our family all pitched in and gave us our table for Christmas. What a blessing. Crate and Barrel delivered it in one piece and now all we were waiting for was chairs. In saving money with Ikea, you are required to assemble the furniture yourself. After Christmas, we took a day trip up to Cincinnati, bought our chairs, drove home and assembled them. After just a few hours, we were finished and we finally had our table and chairs!

And here's the final product! (The love seat did not stay in the dining room... it now is where the Christmas tree stood)

We had a wonderful Christmas with my side of the family and absolutely adored my little nephew every minute. I can't lie... he was the highlight of everyone's trip :)

One afternoon we went on a walk and took some family pictures... JT and I couldn't take a serious shot... we had too much fun!

One of the best family pictures we've taken in a while. Merry Christmas everyone!

3 years

>> Thursday, July 29, 2010 – Celebrate

On July 14, 2007 I married my best friend. It's now three years later and I think we are officially no longer "newly-weds". Which is a wonderful thing! Now when I tell people I've been married for 3 years there's this sense of being "established" in your marriage. I'm proud that I have such a wonderful man to stand beside me through life and can say with confidence this has been the best three years of my life.

(This is what happens when you forget to take a picture at dinner and only have the kitchen bar to prop up your camera for a romantic anniversary pic)

We went to Macaroni Grill for dinner. YUM.

And then for dessert we had our favorite... Yumilicious!

Can you tell which one is mine and which one is JT's? Give me some Chocolate!

And I almost forgot to tell you! We also celebrated an early anniversary in June by going and seeing...

It was FABULOUS! The best show I've ever seen. We enjoyed getting dressed up, eating at our favorite place, Maggianos, and then heading downtown to see Wicked. It was a great early anniversary present!

Today, I celebrate my fathers

>> Sunday, June 20, 2010 – Celebrate

Yes, that's right. I may have only one "daddy", but for the past three years I've been able to have three fathers. Here's to you three! Thank you for all that you do in my life and how blessed I am by all of you.

To Todd: You always know how to make me laugh!

To Jack: Who else would I want to watch March Madness with??

To Daddy: I'll always be your one and only "goldilocks".

I LOVE YOU!!

He is Risen!

>> Sunday, April 4, 2010 – Celebrate

He is risen indeed! Christ the Lord has risen today... Hallelujah!

We pray that today you are able to celebrate Christ's resurrection from the dead with your family. What a wonderful Savior we have. Here is our hope: "If we have been united with Him like this in His death, we will certainly also be united with Him in His resurrection." -Romans 6:5

Happy Easter from our home to yours!

Let it snow!

>> Thursday, February 11, 2010 – Celebrate

We woke up this morning to snow and couldn't believe our eyes! I thought it was going to stop within an hour and by the time I got home, it would all be melted and gone. NOPE! Here's what I came home to...

I love the snow. I love Christmas. Today I'm smiling from ear to ear because I don't have to go to work tomorrow, I got a new lens for my camera today, I took fun pictures of snow angels (pics to come soon), and I'm cozy with my husband.... and it's snowing outside!

A Quarter of a Century = 25 years

>> – Celebrate

Holy moly. I'm old.

On January 21st... I know, I'm behind on posting... I turned a Quarter of a Century! Well... it doesn't feel that old. Ha, it's actually quite humorous the reactions I was getting all day. Anyone that was older than the age of 30 either told me "Gosh, my 20's were the best years of my life" or they said "How old are you?? 21?? are you allowed to drink now?" I guess that's their way of coping with the fact that they're no longer this young :) Anyone that was younger than me responded with the title of this blog... "That's like a whole quarter of a century"! And yes, the younger crowd does include my husband, who is proud to say that he is 4 months younger than me.

Anyway... enough about that. The absolute BEST part of the entire day was hearing from all the people I love most in life. You seriously can put a smile on my face really easily by all calling me at once. Wahoo! No gifts needed, just a phone call. I guess that's the joy of getting older. No more pressure to buy people things because we realize the value of maintained meaningful relationships. They're PRICELESS.

So, thank you everyone who called, emailed, facebooked, text messaged, and even sent a card on my b-day. I. Love. You. All.

Because I love my job and where I work, here's the headlines from my quarter of a century mark on life:

The night of my birthday, JT took me to my favorite restaurant, Maggianos, and then surprised me with tickets to the Dallas Symphony Orchestra! We have not been since we moved to Dallas, so it was a great experience for the both of us. They even had italian creme cake you could purchase during intermission... I got my birthday cake! It was a fabulous evening with my hubby.

The Saturday after my birthday, my mom invited me to a mother-daughter brunch at First Baptist Dallas. When I arrived, I was surprised by seeing a group of my closest friends all at the table! My mom surprised me with a table, decorated specifically for us, and with dear dear friends. Somehow she surprises me every year with something! Thanks mom! Here are some photos from our brunch:

All in all, this was a great way to celebrate a great 25 years of life the Lord has given me. May He bless me with another 25!

Celebrations

>> Monday, May 11, 2009 – Celebrate, English Fun

This past weekend we had quite a few things to celebrate! Our good friends, Lindsay & Matt are getting married, so we had a couple's shower to attend on Saturday night for them! It's a wonderful story because we JT and I are actually the ones that set them up in Myrtle Beach, SC 4 years ago. Oh the memories we have. When we were at the store looking through their registry, I saw the item I HAD to get... a $2.99 microwave food cover. It's one of the greatest gifts a woman could ever receive. Lindsay had the pleasure of purchasing mine for our wedding and I wanted to return the favor. Linds! You're going to use ever cent of that $2.99 for years to come. Enjoy!
Sunday was a special day. Not only was it Mother's Day, but it was JT's 24th birthday as well! I'm proud to say my husband has now caught up to me in age. I'm only 4 months older... but still, it's fun to say he married an older woman. His celebration was kicked off by a fabulous cookie bouquet from his Mom... all the cookies were eaten and enjoyed within the first 24 hours! Thanks, Marcy!

We had a great time celebrating with Mom for Mother's Day at Benihana's. I know pictures say it all... Mom's gift was a gift certificate for a one hour hot stone massage. I think she's excited!
We also celebrated the end of the semester for JT. However, he was given just one weekend to come up for air because his first summer term started today. He's such a hard worker and I am so proud of him! He's going to school more than full time (if there is such a thing) and still makes time to intern at the church and spend lots of time with me :) I'm so blessed to have such a wonderful husband!

Valentines #2

>> Monday, February 16, 2009 – Celebrate, English Fun, Holidays

So this year we celebrated our 2nd Valentines as a married couple. We enjoyed a fabulous dinner for two at Macaroni Grill and then went to see Taken. We had a wondeful night spending quality "date-time" together and were so happy to celebrate another reason for being with our best friend and lifetime love.

24 years and counting...

>> Tuesday, January 27, 2009 – Celebrate, English Fun, Family

Last Wednesday, January 21st, I celebrate 24 years of being born. Some people asked me if I felt older, but really I've been feeling 24 for awhile. Now, next year... that will be a whole 'nother story. I'll be officially a quarter of a century.

As for my husband... I'm proud to say I'm the older woman in his life. Only by 5 months, but still, I've got him in the age category.

On Wednesday, I came home from work and JT was so excited to give me my birthday gift that he couldn't wait any longer. I actually had no idea what he was going to get me.... and suddenly from behind the couch came one of the greatest gifts, a Canon 40D. Isn't it wonderful?

Now, I know some of you are thinking 1 of 2 things: "Wow, I didn't know she was into photography so much?" or "Why haven't I seen her work"? Well, the truth is that I've always wanted to be a photographer, but it's never happened. I've always been too busy or I've let my amazing, photojournalist brother take the family photos and document some of the most memorable times of my life (our wedding:) ).

I've been talking with JT about my aspirations of becoming a photographer and I've never received more encouragement from anyone. He absolutely believes in me more than anyone and it's crazy to think that another person can inspire you so much. So, it's my goal over the next few years to become really good at photography so that it will go from being a hobby to being my "stay-at-home-mom-job". I really love being crafty and playing around with photos, so who knows, maybe this will become more than just taking pictures. Maybe I can turn photos into completed projects that everyone still has sitting in a box waiting to be created into the best showcase of their memories.

I must say thank you to everyone who pitched in and helped jump start me in the right direction. I'm so grateful! Here's a few photos that JT and I took over this past weekend celebrating with friends and family.

Sam's Club White Sheet Cake... delicious.

We have fun Friday night playing games with friends!

When I came home from work on Wednesday, I had a wonderful surprise of flowers, which JT's dad Jack had delivered. So thoughtful and beautiful!

Mom made my favorite childhood dessert, strawberry cake! It's been a few years since I've had this and it was fabulous!

What would an English birthday be without ESPN and Kansas basketball?

Mom & Dad gave me a beautiful platter to add to my love of entertaining at home :)

This was the sweet note my dad wrote me on my present from him.

So these photos are completely amateur, but hopefully with the help of some classes, books, and family members (yes, that means you Chris), I'll be able to sharpen my love for photography! More photos to come...

Tacky Christmas Party

>> Sunday, December 21, 2008 – Celebrate, Christmas, English Fun, Friends

It's that time of year! JT and I were excited to be hosting the annual Swiss Tower Tacky Christmas Party. There was food, fun, and a great time hanging out with some of our friends. Take a look at some of the hilarious pictures!