The Dog is back!

Just a quick blurb for The Dog: Dog the Bounty Hunter is back! His new season premiere is Wednesday night, July 16, 2008, at 8:00 PM! I'm not sure what channel,but I think it is back on A&E.

Father's Day, Trip to Ohio, and Xan Man

Well, I am a month behind in blogging, so here are the updates. June 15 was Father's Day, as you know, but we were coming home from Memphis so we celebrated it on Monday, June 16. Pam, Joseph, and Jared cooke while I took a nap! Joseph grilled steaks and veggie kabobs, Pam made potatoes, bread, & peach cobbler, and Jared grilled shrimp kabobs! I ate til I was full! We all chipped in and got dad the new Garmin. He loves it, especially with his job because he no longer has to take the time to do Mapquest, he can just go straight to his patient's homes. Happy Father's Day, Daddy!
We also got to be with my father-in-law on Father's Day! After evening worship services Mama, Daddy, Mr. Harry, Mrs. Becky, Granny Flowers, Aunt Beulah Mae, Jared, and I all went to eat at Cracker Barrel. It was nice to get to be together!
Our trip to Ohio was SO much fun! We got up at 3 AM to be at mom and dad's by 4 AM so John Brown could take us to the airport by 4:30 AM. We go to the airport to find out we had an hour delay which would make us miss our connecting flight in Memphis. They then tell us we could all split up and get on different planes arriving at different times in Columbus, Ohio, or we could all wait for the 2:30 PM flight. At this point, I began to whine, a little more than a 28 year old should, admittedly! I had to walk away, lack of sleep affects me! Mama began trying to see if there were any other options and Jared worked on charming the lady. Before we knew it, we were all being put on a different airline that would arrive in Ohio at the same time as the original flight! Yay! But it departs earlier than our original flight which means we are not crunched for time! We rush to check our luggage in. Then, because we had a last minute flight change, we get the patted down, wanded over, wand through the luggage security treatment which takes a lot longer than walking through a security booth. We made it! Barely! Now we when we landed in Chicago at O'Hare, we barely had enough time to make our connecting flight! Luckily there was a 20 minute delay. So, I had time to go to the restroom and get a Starbucks! We realized we were missing lunch and breakfast was abnormally early, so Joseph and I split a personal pan pizza for $7.00! Well, we made it to Columbus where my Uncle David picked us up and drove us an hour and 45 minutes to his home in Athens, Ohio. 39 of us stayed at Aunt Deb and Uncle David's! It was a blast! Friday we celebrated Joseph's 25th birthday with 2 cakes, 2 pies, and some specially made just for Joseph monkey bread, made with love by cousin Derek. He is such a sweetie, my Derek! He was a ring bearer in my wedding and now he is 16 years old! Saturday we celebrated Aunt Nay's 50th birthday with an orange (Harley Davidson orange) and pumpkin theme. She is my biker chick aunt so I made her a tote bag with Harley emblems on it. She only wears Harley and orange stuff! Sunday we all went to church and then a big group of family left. Monday most everyone else left. Everyone who left had driven except for Aunt Joyce so Aunt Deb, Grandma, Mama, Pam, and I all took her to the airport and then spent the day shopping and having lunch. It was very nostalgic. We spent many days shopping from morning to night with Aunt Debbie. She's a shop-a-holic! Tuesday we got up, played cards one last time and then were off for the airport. (We played cards the whole week!) No problems this trip. We arrived safely in B'Ham where Mr. David was waiting to take us home! Many memories were made and I can't wait til 2010 when we have our next family reunion at Grandma and Grandad's house in Connellsville, PA! For more photos check out my sister's blog!

Joseph blowing out the candles!


Aunt Renay opening her gifts!


Playing cards


Playing cards


Grandma acting silly!


Me and Dillion


Jared and Erica


Alyson, Aunt Jo, Pam, Donna, & Uncle David





I will post more pictures later.

Sunday, Xander came to our house after church. We had a fun time with the little guy! He wanted to play Wii with Jared. Xander is a true "super hero" lover. He knows his Marvel comic book characters, just like Jojo! They played Marvel Ultimate Alliance. Xander wanted to be Spiderman. He knew who most of the characters were. Here is a picture of Xander playing Wii with Jared.

Wedding

June 14, 2008

Today was a long day, but a good one! Everything went off without a hitch and Andy and Jenny are now married! The reception was held at the Memphis Zoo in the Northwest Passage at the polar bear exhibit! It was all so wonderful! My favorite part was the coffee/frappucino stands! I immediately snagged me a peppermint mocha frap! Below is the only picture I took. It's a picture of me and Jared on the tram at the zoo at the end of the night!

Rehearsal Dinner

June 13, 2008

This morning Jared's mom, granny, and I attended the bridesmaids luncheon. It was so thoughtful for Jenny to invite us. The hostesses were all so nice and the whole luncheon was so beautiful! While we were at the luncheon, Jared and some of his family went back down to the Peabody to see the Duck Walk. Jared forgot to take pictures. We're kind of alike in that way! Next they went to Rendezvous, a popular rib place in Memphis. Jared loved it and they ship it to you, so I feel come fall, Jared and Casey may be having Rendezvous while watching Alabama Football!
Later this evening, we went to the Midtown Church of Christ to practice for the wedding. It was good to see everyone! Then, we headed to The Spaghetti Warehouse for the dinner. Everything turned out beautifully!

Jared and I



Jared



Jared, Mr. Harry, Caleb, Brian, & Robbie



Jenny and Andy



Jared, Robbie, & Caleb

Leaving for Memphis for Andy & Jenny's Wedding

June 12, 2008


The city of Memphis! The view from the top of the Peabody Hotel. You can see the FedEx Forum (a domed sports arena for those who are like me and have no idea what it is) and the Mississippi River.


Jared and I got up, ran a couple of errands, and then set off for Memphis. We arrived around 3/3:30 pm and checked in to our hotel suite! It was a nice hotel and room (FYI: just me and Jared in a room for those who know what I'm talking about:). Jenny was so thoughtful and had gift bags for all the guests when they checked in. The bags were from the Memphis Zoo (site for the wedding reception) and contained 2 bottles of OJ, 2 bottles of water, 2 bags of microwave popcorn(we had microwaves and refrigerators in our rooms), Animal Crackers, Almonds, Cashews, Trail Mix, A Taste of Memphis candy bar, & some Elvis playing cards. oh, and directions to all the places we needed to go to for the wedding celebration, and some homemade chocolate chip oatmeal cookies (made by Jenny's mom), oh, and a nice note from Andy and Jenny, and I think that is all. I thought it was very thoughtful! We tried to get downtown to the Peabody Hotel to see the Duck Walk; however, we got there late and didn't get to see it at all. We did go to the 12th floor and walked out onto the roof to see the Duck Palace and the city. In doing this, we crashed a medical conference party, couldn't get a good look at the Duck Palace because there was a band set up and playing. Everyone was dressed in nice clothes and wearing name tags that said where they were from while us rednecks had on travel clothes! We had a good time making jokes about ourselves at any rate!


Me on the roof of the Peabody!

Then we went to the Edward's (Jenny's parents) for dinner. They served Corky's BBQ and it was delicious! Memphis's Corky's is the original; however there a few others. We have eatten at the one in Gatlinburg/Pigeon Forge last summer at Andy's request. They also served us the regulars that go with BBQ, potato salad and baked beans. Besides the BBQ my other favorite was the cookies made by Jenny and Mrs. Edwards and a friend. Scrumptious! After that, Jared, his parents, Beulah Mae (Jared's 89 year old great aunt), and Granny went and picked up the flowers for the rehearsal dinner and I rode with Uncle Lewis (very funny man, Aunt Elaine (pronounced E-Layne), and Jessie. We went back to the hotel to visit with Tony, Ryann, Cade , Aunt Ann, Uncle Robert, and Aunt Kay. We had many good laughs, and then went to bed!

Happy Birthday Joseph!

June 9, 2008


We celebrated Joseph's birthday early since we will be in Ohio for his actual birthday. He wanted to go to the California Pizza Kitchen and boy was it good! Happy birthday, Hobo, I love you!

Six Sensational Years!

June 1, 2008



This is a picture of us on our wedding day, June 1, 2002.

Jared and I have been married for six years today! We didn't get a chance to celebrate because VBS starts today (we ended up celebrating the following Saturday with dinner at Macaroni Grill. It was delicious!) I must say that I am happily married to the most wonderful man who just so happens to be my very best friend! I love my husband and can't imagine my life without him! I love you, Jared!

Today we also celebrated 30 years of service for David and Susan C. and their work at the Maytown/Sylvan Springs Church of Christ! It was a very nice service! It is a rare thing for a preacher to stay at a church for that long. I hope everyone takes the time to be appreciative for the C.'s dedication to work at S.S. C. of C.! I know I am very thankful for them! They are like family to me and I love them very much! Thanks C.'s for all your work!

VBS started today as well. I am teaching the 2's & 3's, Pam is teaching the Cradle Roll, and Jared and Joseph are teaching the 3rd-5th graders. It was a great week, but very exhausting! Rachel G. and I had 8 children who were wild, but precious! I love them all, but they can wear you out! Over the course of the week we had several misshaps, for instance, Hannah C. ate plaster the first night!!!, Ryan G. tried to escape twice, Hannah C. tried to escape once, Levi K. tried to explore the church on the way to the bathroom (but I out-smarted him and sent Rachel after him, she found him in the foyer and set him back in the direction of the bathroom- see, Levi is newly potty trained and hadn't been to the restroom much on his own until now or at least not during church/class), our sun decoration fell down from the wall while I was teaching, we studied Moses and the burning bush and when I used my "God" voice and told Moses to take off his shoes, the class thought it was funny and took their shoes off, too!, one who will remain nameless was not a happy camper and when Rachel asked him if he wanted a snack and handed it to him, he responded by throwing it (we took that as a no :)), another who will remain nameless sneakily would pull chairs out from under the other kids when they would get out of their seats and then try to sit back down, and last, but certainly not least, most every night started out with AT LEAST half the class crying at the TOp of their lungs!!! Needles to say, without these instances, VBS would have been a lot more boring, easier, but boring1 :) I toted my camera every night, but typical me, did not take any pictures. Oh well, I have the memories!

Bayley's 1st Birthday!

May 31, 2008

Our sweet Bayley turned 1! I call Bayley "ours" because she is one of several of our church babies. We love her and continue to pray that God will continue to bless her and her family! We love you, Bay!

Happy Birthday, Pam

May 27, 2008

We celebrated Pam's birthday with dinner at Red Robin, Pam's choice! The food was delicious, but the company was better! They brought her a sundae with a balloon tied to it! We love you, Pam!

Memorial Day

Today we met the Glenns at Oak Mountain State Park. We had a nice covered pavillion next to the beach area. We ate, rode on paddle boats, swam (the kids), and hiked a nature trail to the bird exhibit and museum. We had a ton of fun and it was great to see everyone as always!



This is what stepped out of the car when we arrived at Oak Mountain- Batman!




The cousins



The cousins and Xander

Proud!

I couldn't let the day pass without bragging on my daddy! Today he began his duty as an elder in the Church! How proud we all were! He already does all he can for the Lord's church, but now will have more responsibility. Afterwards Xander went up to dad and said, "Congratulations on becoming an alligator!" He meant to say elder, but we knew what he meant! He's a mess!
Yesterday, Jared made a "low country" dish, one we tried when we were in Charleston, SC a couple of years ago. It was shrimp and grits! Personally, I eat them separate, but your supposed to eat them together. Jared has become quite the chef lately! My favorite dishes he makes are breakfast foods. Delicious! I am so lucky to have a husband who will cook and likes it, especially since I hate to!
This afternoon our friend, Randy, called to tell us something funny. He was at Six Flags in LA. This morning he attended worship services at Hollywood Church of Christ and guess who served him the Lord's Supper? Weird Al Yancovich!!! I guess he is a christian!
Tomorrow we are going to Oak Mountain with the Glenns! I can't wait!
Happy Memorial Day to everyone!

Regions Charity Classic

Saturday Jared and I went to the Regions Charity Classic Golf Tournament. Jared's boss had given him two tickets that included entrance into one of the skyboxes. He had been before, but I had not. Now golf is boring to watch, but I made the best of it and people watched instead! We took advantage of the free eats; however, I did very good considering I am on a diet. We were over the 18th hole and watched several players come through. After a while Jared wanted to walk around and follow the lead player. We walked the last three or four holes,which sounds like not much at all, but indeed is and it wore me out! I was sore the next morning, but a good sore, like I did something! Golf courses are very pretty to me and so I also enjoyed the view (maybe I should have been watching the tournament??? :)) The picture above is of Jared and I on the 17th hole. The lead player was the last so they let us walk across the greens to get to the next hole. We weren't sure we were allowed to take pictures since no one else was, so we waited until everyone else went by and did this self portrait. I was hoping to get the scenery in it, but it wasn't happening.
Tomorrow is the last day for students to come to school. I have to work until Friday and then next Tuesday I start my summer job at JCA's Summer Camp program.

Andy and Jenny

My brother-in-law, Andy, will be getting married on June 14, 2008. We are very excited for this time for Andy and Jenny! Check out their wedding website at
http://www.mywedding.com/andyandjennyswedding

Graduation Banquet, Mother's Day, and a Walk in the Park

Sylvan Springs Church of Christ Graduation Banquet 2008

The Graduation Banquet is A LOT of work, but very nice in the end. This year was particularly special because our family got to honor Joseph. We are very proud that he has finished and pray that he will now find a good job! :) Here are some pictures of the special night!

The great looking and tasting cakes made by our very own Rachel Garrison!!!



Joseph's cake in Faulkner colors!



I was almost brought to tears when Chandler noticed me before I even knew he was there. He came at me full speed and almost knocked me down! I looked down and it was my cousin Chandler yelling (he's loud:) ) my name over and over! He let me give him lots of kisses hugged me forever! Then came Marley and big hugs with her, too! I have missed them SO much! At one point during the banquet Chandler says, "Emily!" and I reply, "What Chandler?" And with the most adorable smile he said, "I love you!" Sweet!





Proud Mama and her graduate!



I will post more pictures later. Dial-up is SLOW and FRUSTRATING when uploading pioctures!

Mother's Day

I have a very special mother! She is a hard worker in everything she does including her work in the church. She has always been a good example to us! Well, this special mama wanted to eat at Red Lobster, so that is where we went. We had to wait awhile, but it was worth it when we got to sit down and eat! Happy Mother's Day Mama! I love you!


A Walk in the Park

Jared and I have been trying to be healthier. We walk at the walking track several times a week. Today we saw the cutest thing! There was a little girl around 10 years old on a bike wearing her helmet. A little further behind was her mother, wearing a helmet. The mother had stopped and was turned around waiting on someone. It was her mom or "grandma" as she called her. She was on a giant trike, wearing her helmet! The mom said to the little girl, "Slow down and let grandma catch up with us." She was an "older" lady! It was too sweet! I thought to myself that maybe they got bikes for Mother's Day? Who knows? I hope I can bike ride at that age!

I'm A Dr. Pepper!

You Are Dr. Pepper

You're very unique and funky, yet you still have a bit of traditionalism to you. People who like you think they have great taste... and they usually do. Your best soda match: Root Beer Stay away from: 7 Up

What Kind of Soda Are You?

Major Catch-Up

OK, I'm gonna go and do the bullets blog because I am way past due with info and updates!

* L/L was a blast, as usual. My mom says I use to always say that going to L/L felt like Christmas, only better. At 28 years old, I still feel that way! Here is a picture of Addi and her twin puppet that was at the convention and one of that sweetie Hannah! Oh and this so sweet picture of Levi!









* We did the helping schools at Bottenfield Middle. It was nice to get and do that with our Good Samaritans and teach them to give back to their community in a positive way. We pulled weeds and laid mulch at the back of the school around the bushes/flower beds. Pam pulled a "weed" which turned out to be a snake! Pam yelled (as did the rest of us) and the other girl science teacher there (Pam teaches science there, too) said not kill it and she saved it and carried it off somewhere to keep it safe.I also found that I CAN do some yard work (hehe)and have since begun working on my "flower beds."

*My class at school went on field trip, but had to come back early because of tornadoes. We went to Noccalula Falls and was on our way to the Anniston Museum of Natural History when the school called and had us come back.

*Punky Power!



I got the final season of my favorite tv show as a girl, Punky Brewster! I was just browsing in Sam's Club, something Jared and I like to do on Saturdays and there it was, just waiting on me to buy it. I was so excited! Now I have the complete tv series and the cartoon series! When I was little I loved this show. I thought I was Punky. I dressed like her, had (and still do) the doll, and I had the tennis shoes. I am still a huge fan!

* I took Xander to see FHU's Pied Pipers at Adamsville Church of Christ. One of our young men, Joey, is in it, as well as our camp friend, Ashley. They were cute and the kids really liked them. Xander, Addi, and Hannah got their picture made with Joey.




* Last weekend was the ICYC Walk fest. It turned into a Rainfest, as Billy put it! We took Xander and had a good time, for the time that we were there before it shut down. Joseph ran 2 and a half miles, but was supposed to run 10. He hadn't realized that you only had to do 5 miles now. David told him that if he ran 10 miles, he would donate 5 to $10 to the camp and $10 to him. Needless to say, Joseph did not get his $10. lol Billy and Joseph painted faces. Jojo painted a Ninja Turtle, Michaelangelo or as Xander says it "Mikeyangelo." He got to ride the big slide A LOT before it closed, so he was happy!

Bible Bowl

The Sunday before last, we competed in an Bible Bowl. It included kids and adults. My team (Team 4, We know more!) consisted of Paul and Kin Kelsey and Jared and myself. Unfortunately, Addi came down with the flu, so Kim could not come to the Bible Bowl. The Bible Bowl was held at Springville Road Church of Christ. We made the highest score on the test!!! Proudly, our church dominated! I mean that humbly, but proudly! Well, Team 4 won the whole Bible Bowl! I am so proud of our team!

Blast From the Past

I've been working on making a video for Jared's dad. While scanning pictures, I came across this "hunky" picture of Jared. For anyone who attended Faulkner in 1999, you may remember Kappa/Phi Lambda's Jamboree show. Jared was Elvis, who married couples who wanted to get married before the new millenium. It brings to mind the fitting song they played through one part of this mind boggling show, "Party Like It's 1999!" If you saw the show, you were probably confused and slightly amused, I know I was. Ahhh, the memories, good memories!

Valentine Week

Apart from being sick, I had a really great week! While I was sick, my mama sent me food, snacks, and cough drops twice, my brother delivered food once and called to check on me and see if I needed him to make me some mashed potatoes, and my husband was just wonderful! I couldn't help but feel blessed and very lucky!
For Valentine's Day, Jared and I ordered each other some shoes we wanted. On Valentine's Day, Jared sent me some beautiful flowers. He has never sent me anything but roses, so something different was nice. He said he wasn't sure if I'd like it, but he took a gamble anyway. I think they are gorgeous! He ordered them so they would bloom after I got them so they wouldn't be half dead by the time I got them. So, I had to wait to take a picture of them. They are blue irises and pink lilies. Jared picked up steaks from Logan's and brought it home. DELICIOUS! My daddy got me a pair of jade earrings. I love them! It was totally unexpected. I love my family!
My grandparents came Friday for a visit. We always have a good time with them! Saturday we played cards all day! Mostly we played Sausage and a little SkipBo. Monday we played SkipBo all day and double SkipBo. When we get together with my mom's family, we always play cards. We play so much, that when they leave, I have withdrawals! They left today. Hopefully we will get to see them one more time before they head back to Pennsylvania.

Tagged!

Directions:
1) Answer each question.
2) Take each answer and type it into Photobucket (www.photobucket.com)
3) Take any picture from the first page of results and post. (click on the picture and copy the HTML code) Don't explain, it's funnier that way!


1. The age you will be on your next birthday?


2. A place you would like to travel?


3. Your favorite place:


4. Your favorite thing to do:


5. Your favorite food/candy:



6. Your favorite animal:


7. Your favorite color:


8. The town in which you were born:


9. The town in which you live:


10. The name of a past pet:


11. The name of your current or past boyfriend/girlfriend:


12. Your nickname/screen name:


13. Your middle name:


14. A bad habit of yours:


15. Your first job:


16. Your grandmother's name:




17. Your favorite song: