More Pictures of the Great View

The Day Before the Wedding, December 21, 2007

Randy's wedding was at his brother's BEAUTIFUL home. These pictures show the view from the roof of his brother's house. Enjoy!

Prewedding Fun, Thursday, December 20, 2007

Thursday we woke up early and ran more wedding errands,but also had some fun. Us girls went on a Spencer's run for Randy's bachelor party that night. It was nice to get to visit with Tara-Nel and get to know her some. That night a bunch of guys came over to kidnap Randy and torture him a little, bowl, go out to eat, and he got thrown into a fountain at a shopping center (a Faulkner tradition). While the guys had their fun we went to a HUGE mall and helped Tara-Nel find her wedding jewelry. We even stopped at one of the hundreds of Starbucks in that town. We had a really good time! When we all got back, we stayed up until 4 in the morning reminiscing at laughing our heads off. It was mostly the big Faulkner crowd and I think Tara-Nel enjoyed hearing all the stories about Randy and his friends. Needless to say, we did not sleep much the entire trip!

Take Flight, 12-19-07

Well, Jared worked 26 hours in two days, got home from work around 8:30 pm, had a quick dinner and went to bed. We had to get up at 2:15 am to meet Pam and Joseph and be at the airport by 4 am. For those of you who doubted it, we arrived WAY early! Whoo Hoo! When I say WAY early, I mean WAY! We were the first ones through security that morning. I was in one of those "stayed up way too late and now I make no sense and everything is hilarious to me moods." Naturally, Jared became annoyed and so did Pam, but she is easily swayed and soon she began laughing at everything as well, which only mad Jared even more annoyed. The funniest thing to us all was the fact that EVERYONE stunk! It is really not a good idea to opt out of a morning shower when you plan to sit on a VERY small plane with lots of strangers! Now I know it was early, but please be considerate people! In case you are wondering, all 3 of us showered that morning! We arrived safely in Phoenix at 2:20 pm. Randy picked us up from the airport and then we ran a few wedding errands with Randy before heading to church where we got to meet Tara-Nel (Randy's new wife) for the first time. After church, their friends came over and we stayed up late having a good time.
The pictures above are of Jared on the plane (you might say our silly mood rubbed off on him eventually) :), and the view on the plane ride. Enjoy!

Jared's Birthday Celebration, Sunday, 12-16-07

We celebrated Jared's birthday because we were leaving for Phoenix on his actual birthday (December 19). Jared got to pick what we were having for lunch and who made what. Mama made steaks and bread pudding, Pam made homemade mashed potatoes and garlic cheese biscuits, and I made purple hull peas. He got lots of good gifts! He is so spoiled!

Christmas with the Glenns, 12/15/07

We spent Saturday having Christmas with my dad's side of the family. I always enjoy this because I love spending time with them all. After the festivities we Dawn, Stuart, Brianna, Nolan, Jeff, Marley, Chandler, Me, Jared, Pam, and Joseph all went to see Alvin and the Chipmunks at the theatre. It was cute!

Christmas Movie

Tonight Pam and Joseph are coming over to watch The Polar Express. I love this movie! Everytime I watch it, I get chill bumps. So, today my question is... What is your favorite Christmas movie?

Christmas Rush

A lot of Christmas fun has been going on around here! Last Friday, my class had a filed trip to Tannehill. We saw Santa, a basket weaver, a fish man, an old school room, rode a train, and visited 2 country stores/sweet shops. It was a blast, but I was wore out by the time I got home. When I got home, Jared had a Christmas present waiting on me to open. It was a Sony Walkman ipod! I was so excited! He's so sweet! Silly ole me forgot that it was Jared's work Christmas party. It was my fault, not his. It was his fault that he forgot to mention that it was a very dressy event!!!! I pulled something together!
Saturday was the little kid Christmas party. We had fun playing games, baking cookies, and listening to Christmas music. After the party I brought Addi home. We played Dora UNO and watched The Polar Express. When Jared got home, we were off for Addi's birthday treat-to see The Bee Movie. I was really having trouble psyching myself up for this movie, so as we passed Chuck E. Cheese, I suggested to Jared that we go there instead. He said it was all up to Addi. Well, she was excited for the movie, but WHOA, she was really excited for Chuck E. Cheese and so we went there instead. Maybe we'll go to the Bee Movie when it hits the Dollar Theatre! By the way, CEC has a new game, Deal or No Deal! It is really fun, too! I could be that old grandma that sits there all day and plays, but instead of bingo, it would be Deal or No Deal at CEC! I actually only stood in line for the game twice. Sure, I got a couple of stares, but I was there with an actual kid...I mean she was there somewhere! Don't worry, Jared followed her wherever she wanted to go! Now the question is, what to get Levi for his birthday? I like to give these kiddos a gift that is fun because they are so special. I've only came up with a ride on The Polar Express, but haven't really checked into it to see if the train station is even doing it this year. I better do that now, or I'm gonna have to come up with something else.
Saturday night, late (sorry Kim and Paul) we dropped Addi off and went home. Jared declares that we are opening all of our Christmas gifts as soon as we get home. He shopped while I was at the little kid party. I agreed, as long as we would save our stockings for later. I got 2 beautiful sweaters and short sleeved blouse, which I got to wear Monday because it was so hot! I love when he picks me out clothes! He has such good taste!
Sunday, mama gave us our Christmas money and ornaments. We were all really excited. I am always eager to see what my and Jared's ornaments will be! This year, again, of course, were 2 cute ones! Sunday night was the Christmas get together at church. As always, there was plenty of good eats and I went home stuffed!
Monday I came down with the stomach virus, but made it through the day at work, barely! My class was so good for me, they could tell I was not in the best shape! It lingered on to Tuesday, but as the day wore on, my energy came back, and again, my class was so good! I bragged and bragged to them. I really was thankful because I really shouldn't have been there. It's just that I went to work feeling just fine, but about an hour into school things started going down hill. Anyhow, all is well now!
Tuesday night, Jared came home and stated that we must head to Wal-Mart to get the new Harry Potter movie. So, after dinner, us dorks went to get our movie! When we got back, we decided we had waited long enough and it was time for us to open those tempting Christmas stockings! So, we only lasted 3 days! This year is not exactly a normal Christmas since we will be leaving for Arizona EARLY next Wed. morning! We're traditional, but not. After the stockings, Jared started watching Harry Potter, but I was still tired from being sick and went on to bed.
Today I am a very proud teacher! I got my reading (Dibels) scores back and my class did AWESOME!!! Every child jumped BIG time!!! The test times how many words you can read correctly in one min. My best score increased by 68 words and my lowest (which is still unbelievably sweet) increased by 22 words!!! I was near tears! Out of 18 students, 8 of them read below grade level when tested at the first of the school year! Now I have 1 or 2!!!! They all got a compliment sticker for doing their best! At the beginning of the school year I was a little leery about how tough it would be to help so many who struggled. Now, most of them do not struggle or need extra help anymore, of course, I will still teach them, they just don't struggle and need as intense of a push to succeed, they already have!

Christmas Music

I thought we could take the time to share some Christmas favorites. I really like just about all Christmas songs. The one I really don't care too much for is "Feliz Navidad." Now, I mean no offense to my readers of Spanish decent, the song just kind of annoys me, and goes on forever. You already know that I love the Chipmunks Christmas album, but there are two songs that caught my attention (thanks mom) near the end of the season last year. They are Dean Martin's "Baby It's Cold Outside" and Louie Armstrong's "Mrs. Santa Claus." I just couldn't wait to hear them this year, too, and they are still at the top of my list! Just behind them are "It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year," "Bells," and "Rocking Around the Christmas tree."
So, this leaves me with one question....
What is your favorite Christmas song?

Christmas Cheer

This weekend was full of Christmas cheer! Friday night wasn't exactly Christmas fun, but it was birthday fun! Addi turned five and had a way cool High School Musical party!!! Saturday Jared had to work for a few hours, so I met Ben, Rachel, Paul, and Addi at the PG Christmas parade. The highlights were the big Mayfield cow and the painting of Jesus wearing a santa hat! Just weird! I went home and cleaned and put up Christmas decorations. Then, Jared and I were off to met the Glenn's. I was so excited to see the cousins! They were so cute and fun! I didn't get any good pictures, but my aunt did, so I will see if I can get some and post later. There is an adorable picture of Nolan and me where is has his hand on my face! Stuart gave us a Christmas cd he made. It has quite an eclectic conglomeration, from Kermit singing "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" to The Chipmunks, Sponge-Bob, The Looney Tunes, The Twisted Sisters singing "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus," to some song that says "..please daddy don't get drunk this Christmas..."??? Sunday afternoon Jared put up the outside decorations while I decorated the tree in the livingroom (other tree goes up tonight). We played Christmas music and everything! My dorkiness has rubbed off on my husband; however, there is one thing he will not change his mind about, The Chipmunks Christmas! He doesn't like them, finds them annoying while I feel it is the best Christmas album ever! That night the girls went to Katie's to watch Hairspray. I really liked it and will have to watch it again soon because I snoozed some throughout the movie!
Last night, Xander was in a Christmas program, and I didn't go, but Joseph did. After hearing about it, I feel I made a mistake and should have went. Joseph said he laughed the whole time, plus he looked handsome in his black corduroy jacket and tie. He refused to wear the vest because he said it was a girls' shirt. Joseph said he stood when the group sat and sat when the group was standing. He exclaimed, during the singing, "Oh look, flowers!" and went over to the poinsettias, away from the group to look at them. Said, "huh?" and climbed down from the stage to better hear the teacher on the front row trying to tell him to get back with the group and sing, in which he replied, "Oh, OK!" He waved at his dad when he noticed him in the front filming and then noticed Jojo in the front taking pictures. He yelled, "Hey Jojo I'm gonna sit with you!" as he proceeded to climb back down from the stage. The teacher and Jojo were shooing him back to the stage. Joseph said that after it was over, they had Xander pose for all these pictures because he looked so handsome. When I get some pictures I will post them. Well, I better go work on the tree. Merry Christmas!

Thanksgiving Holidays

We started the holidays off spending Saturday Christmas shopping and then over to Mama and Daddy's for a game night. Monday was the day I ran some errands and got the brakes fixed on my car and also the Good Samaritans met over at Katie's to count the coin banks for Agape and make stuffed animals for either Children's Hospital or for Rainbow Omega, not sure which just yet. Tuesday I actually got to sleep in a little past normal, but then had to have the car aligned for our trip. Then we had church that night instead of Wed. night. I spent the rest of the day packing for the rest of the week. Wednesday Ben, Rachel, Kim, Addi, me, Pam, Joseph, and my mom all woke up bright and early(around 4 and 4:30 am) for Rick and Bubba's annual Turkey Toss! I know, we're not right, and you'll surely think that after looking at the pictures we got!
Then, I did a little Christmas shopping in Hoover, then headed to Montgomery to meet Jared. He was working there for the day, which made our trip seem shorter and miss the traffic since it was around 11 am when we headed to Montgomery. I took a nap in the Stevie B's parking lot until Jared could meet me for lunch, then went inside for lunch. Jared went back to work and so I did a little more shopping until he could get off. Finally, we head to Brundidge to Jared's parents. Thursday we had Thanksgiving dinner at Jared's aunt and uncle's house. That night we went to the Davis's to visit. Friday I woke up at 3:30 am and braved the chaotic crowd with Jared's mom. Then we drove to Montgomery and met Jared for lunch at Jim 'N Nicks before driving to Americus, Ga to see my Grandparents and aunt, uncle, and cousins. We got there in time for dinner. We stayed up late and woke up pretty early Saturday morning to no toilets or showers!!! Happens all the time at their house and its kind of funny, of course, I'm not the one whose got the bad, old pipes problem. My uncle has an outhouse. They own A LOT of land so he can hunt on his own property, so the summer before last he purchased an outhouse to use for our family reunion (it was at their house that year) and to have for when he is hunting. Comes in handy when the plumbing messes up! Lucky for Jared, Joseph, and I because we stayed in my grandparent's camper that stays at my aunt and uncles house for Grandma and Grandad to use when they are snowbirding from PA. Most of us got shower in the camper because it has water hook up. Bad part is you have to HURRY because the hot water only lasts for one person, and that's only if you turn the water off when you lather and in between shampoos. The good part is that it doesn't take long to heat back up because it's not much water! Now, the kitchen sink was connected to a different water source along with the washer, so, I washed my hair in the kitchen sink, then went out to the camper and to a very QUICK shower! It's always an adventure at their house. I had the best time, like always! We came home Sunday night, which was annoying because traffic was horrible. Jared said that we will stay at home for Thanksgiving from now on because traffic is so awful. I know I rambled on and on, but I tried to sum up my break!

Nice LONG Weekend

I had a wonderful weekend, full of fun! Friday kicked off the long weekend. We ate out with the usual crowd at Jason's Deli and then went next door to Starbucks. Yum! Thanks Kim and Paul! You're too kind! Then, Jared, me, Pam, Joseph, and Casey went over to Dick's until they closed. Saturday I woke up, but not in time for the Belk's charity sale. That's ok, I needed the rest more than the sale! I did attempt to get to the Galleria in time, but didn't make it, so I shopped other stores instead and hit Starbucks again! Then I headed over to Sam's Club. I am almost done Christmas shopping!!! That evening we went to Meleah's 16th birthday party. It was fun! Then we headed over to the Fiesta at Ben and Rachel's. The fiesta was festive! We had Xander for the evening which always makes things so much more fun! Sunday Pam made lunch, bacon cheeseburger meatloaf, homemade (Paula Dean's recipe) mac-and-cheese, and apple butter pie! She hit the target with this! It was delicious!That evening was Rachel C.'s 18th birthday party. We played board games after the party and had a good time! Today, Veteran's Day, I slept in until 10:15 am! It was nice, but not normal for me. Anyhow, I went shopping with Pam, Mama, and Joseph this afternoon. We had so much fun together! First stop, Starbucks! Then we went over to Sam's Club. That's where the adventure started. Joseph found a kayak and had to have it. He had been wanting one and we found one for a good price. Even better, when we went to check out, it was on sale for $40 less! Whoo-hoo! So, that's most of his Christmas for this year and he couldn't be happier! Well, we were in the Element, so we laid Joseph's seat all the way back and slid that sucker in, and only 2 feet of it stuck out the back of the car! We still wanted to go to Hobby Lobby and we didn't want to have the car opened to the public, so we crammed that sucker all way up into the front dash (it barely fit) and we shut and lockd the door. We went a little overboard with the Halloween/Thanksgiving/Fall/Christmas decoration sales. Well, we got back to the car, slid the kayak back out to where it was hanging out of the back of the car, squeezed Joseph into his backless seat (and he could still buckle his seatbelt!) smooshed Pam in next to Joseph in the backseat and stuffed our loot in around them both and shut the door! We even ran through Chick-fil-A's drive through! We made it home and Joseph has received full feeling back in his side! The only scary part was riding through Ensley with the back of the car opened; however it was still daylight and not really that bad, I only ran one red light! All is well! What a fun day! Now I have to return back to work tomorrow, complete with a full day of work, an afterschool book study (blah!), and Family Literacy Night which will end at 8:00 pm! Yuck!!! On the bright side, only four days of work and then a full week of vacation!

"I Apologize A Trillion Times"

"Sorry bloggers....OOOOOOO, I am for real! Never meant to make Rachel cry, I apologize a trillion times...sorry bloggers OOOOOOO."

I have been an awful blogger over the last two months. I hope to do better. I really don't have anything to say, so I will talk about my reaction to some troubling news in the media.





Dumbledore gay??? What???




Ok, you all know that I am a huge Harry Potter fan. I used to say that J.K. Rowling was one of the best writers of our time, but now, in all good conscience, I cannot. Too put it bluntly, she likes gays. She is trying to say that the honorable (laugh if you will) Albus Dumbledore, headmaster of the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, is gay! It does not say, nor elude to the fact in any of the seven books. I'm sorry, but you cannot write one thing and say something else. The book is published and that is that!!!







Ok, you all also know that I am a Dog the Bounty Hunter fan as well. All I'm gonna say to that is, enough already, give the man a break, and put his show back on the air!!!



These are my thoughts for today, lame, you may say, and I'll probably agree!!!

Happy Birthday To ME!!!

I know it has been a long while since I have last posted, but I really haven't had anything important or interesting to say. BUT... today is my birthday and I have a lot to post about...and be thankful for!!!
Sunday night my sister and parents threw together a last minute surprise party for me! They are the BEST! Good thing it was last minute or I might have caught on. I am way to noisy and in every one's (in my family) comings and goings and business!! That's why they LOVE me!!! lol Anyhow, I was totally surprised! I was in a state of shock the whole night! I even received gifts! YAY! I had two sweet moments from the evening. They, of course, involve children because I love kids (why do you think I'm a teacher?) :) Addi and Xander were so excited to say "surprise!" to me. Addi drew me an adorable picture of me and her and it said, " I love you Emily." The other (or is this the third?) highlight was of Xander serenading me with "Happy Birthday to you...Happy Birthday Mrs. Emily...!" I am very lucky to have such an awesome family and group of friends! I mean, Paul even came and he does not usually frequent with the Sunday night crowd. :) I will post pictures as soon as Pam gets them to me. Thanks Mary for capturing my special moment! You are so sweet and wonderful!
When I woke up this morning, Jared gave me another birthday present! It was a dvd, and don't laugh, but it was High School Musical. I know I am dork, but it really is a cute movie. I mean...I only like it so I will know what the kids in my class are talking about:)
Since my family got my party together Saturday evening, it meant Joseph was not there because he went to visit Chris for the weekend. When I got to my car this afternoon to come home for work, I had a BEAUTIFUL, yellow mum sitting on the roof of my car with a SWEET, Tear-jerking card from the best brother in the whole wide world! I am so lucky! He said he got me mums because I have always acted like his "mum."
Now I am waiting for Jared to get home. He promised to grill me steaks and baked potatoes?! Yum!

Happy Birthday Daddy!

Daddy in 1st grade!



Daddy in 2nd grade!



Daddy in 3rd grade!



Daddy in 4th grade!



Daddy in 5th grade!



Daddy in 6th grade!



Daddy in 7th grade!



Daddy in 8th grade!



Daddy in 9th grade!



Daddy in 10th grade!



Daddy in 11th grade!



Daddy in 12th grade!



Daddy's high school graduation!



Daddy at Alabama Christian College!



Today is my dad's birthday! Tomorrow we will grill steaks and eat lunch with him. Hope you enjoyed "Through the Years" with Marty Glenn! Love you Daddy!

My New Cousin!

Here is a picture of my new cousin, Sylas Richard Woodmancy. He was born on September 4, 2007. He is very cute and I can't wait to meet him!

Labor Day Weekend

Friday night we went with "The Crowd" to Lloyd's and then over to Ross for a little shopping. Saturday morning, Jared, Casey, and I went to Brundidge to see Jared's family. Mr. Harry had been to the grocery store before we arrived so this, as always, means "Good Treats!" He always gets everyone's favorite junk food! We had Crowe's chicken, Jared's Granny's cornbread (Jared ate most of it and only shared a little with Casey :) ) creamed corn, and purple holed peas. We each ate like 6 or 7 chicken fingers a piece! Then we started preparing for the big game -Alabama's! We snacked on chocolate chip walnut cookies and brownie bites! The Davis's came over for the game and we had Jared's mom's famous homemade spaghetti. It was so delicious! All we did was eat the entire time we were there and it was great! Sunday we came home. Sadly, we never got to taste the new ice cream flavor Mr. Harry got for us to try. Maybe next time! Monday the Glenn's got together at Pam's house. It was a very good time! I miss seeing the kids everyday. Now it's only on holidays. :( We had good food, like the rest of the weekend. Remember in an earlier post where I cracked on some biscuits Pam made? Well she was determined to redeem herself. She said mom and dad needed to taste good biscuits made by her (I had at the last Girl's Night). The biscuits were fantastic, so Pam has indeed redeemed herself with biscuit making!