Holiday Post

As I woke up the morning of Christmas I realized this would be the last Christmas before I was a married woman. We have EXACTLY 5 months and 1 day until we tie the knot. I am getting so anxious. I am not sure if it has all hit me yet or not. I have been so busy with school, graduating, holidays, job searching, there has not been time to get into full blown wedding mind set. By the end of this week we will have to get into that mode though. There is still TONS to do for the big day. We are getting excited..none the less.

We had a great CHRISTmas!! It was wonderful to spend time with family and friends. They mean the world to Nathaniel and I. Although Nathaniel had to work both on Christmas Eve and the day after Christmas :( we still got to spend SOME time together, it never seems like enough though. We are so blessed to have each other and we are looking forward to many more Christmas' together!!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!! :)

Funny Little Post

This ADORABLE little man here to the left is Charlie. A close family friend adopted him from the Ukraine about 4 or so years ago. He is just the funniest child I have literally ever met. My sister, Adrienne, is always coming home from work telling us funny things that his mom has told her.

Never mind the fact that he was going over spelling words and he was to use the word "did" in a sentence and his answer was, and I quote, "I got run over by a truck and I was did." If this does not make you LAUGH out loud I do not know what will.

But this next one takes the cake of all stories. A couple of weeks ago Lori and Charlie were at the mall and were about to walk by Santa. Lori asked Charlie if he wanted to go and see Santa and tell him what he wanted for Christmas. In all SERIOUSNESS, Charlie stops and looks up at his mom and says, "psshhh..ARE YOU KIDDING ME, THE WAY I HAVE BEEN BEHAVIN'??" I laugh out loud every time I hear or repeat the story, I almost have tears in my eyes right now.

It is truly amazing what kids come up with for answers to things. I have so many stories from Charlie, but never enough time to write them all down. He is definitely the life of the party when he is around, and sometimes when he is not. It is always a great remedy to laugh and with Charlie, you are sure to get a show!!

CHRISTmas :)

First of all I want to say Happy Birthday to Mallory. She and (Nathaniel's brother Montana) live in FL. She has so much ahead of her and she is doing PHENOMENAL in her career. Montana as well. He is in Law School at Barry University in Orlando. They are such sweet, happy, outgoing, all around great people. We just adore them. So there is a SHOUT OUT to Mal on her Birthday! :) We Miss You Guys so much!!

Second of all. As I am sitting here at my parents house, I see how little present giving means. What really means most is that my family is alive, happy and healthy. We have a VERY challenging year, but we are moving on and we are so happy to have eachother. We know what it is like to need your family more than anything else. That is what we are here for. We have our morals, values and love to keep us strong TOGETHER!! :) My parents have made so many sacrifices for us kids, I just LOVE them so much. They are such great, generous, loving people. Giving back to others give them so much joy and this time of year you can really see that. They have always given us more than we need or could ever ask for. I am so grateful for what they do for me still to this day.

So this second part of my little post is to my parents. I cannot wait for them to see me grow and see me get married and then have children of my own. :) I cannot wait to see what GOD has in store for our family...it can only get better from here on out.

Peace. Love. Happiness. (lots of each!)

First of all.."Sweet Baby Ray" is growing so much!!! He/She is really putting on the pounds ;) Bridgit (my sister in law) goes back for her 5 month check up next month and we are looking forward to finding out what she is having. We all think it is a girl, but secretly my dad, Nathaniel and I are really hoping it a boy! We need a boy in this family, too many women :) We can not wait to meet this little one, Bridgit is due exactly a month after Nathaniel and I get married, itis one big event after another with this family. So much love to go around, we are so looking forward to it all!!


On another note, we had our First Annual Gingerbread House Competition at my parents house on Sunday. It was so much fun, We bought the pre made kits, where you just put the houses together. Each "couple" decorated a house with the supplies provided. We had a blast! Nathaniel and I started ours at around 12:30 and finished up about 4. I know, I know..way to much time to spend on a gingerbread house, but what can we say, we wanted to make it the best. Believe me, it was ;) It was great to just sit around and not do anything but work together. It definitley tested my paitence. I put tiny dotted sprinkles, Nathaniel's idea around all the windows. I had to do this because of my "tiny" fingers. lol. I felt a sense of accomplishment when I was done. :)
Here are pictures below of our masterpiece of a gingerbread house!

It is always so much fun to get together with the people that you love most and spend time together, even if it is competing! haha..

Merry Christmas to everyone..Hope you all made it to Santa's Nice List!

The Boss..

The Finished Product..


My beautiful sister and I always help decorate the my parents house for Christmas...this year is nothing short of perfection. Adrienne definitely takes after my Dad with her eye for decorating and putting things together, that an ordinary person would not see (like myself). I basically stand around and take orders from her and MY MOTHER! Terri, my mom, thinks she is still at work (she manages an Endocrine and Diabetes office) when she gets home and continues to boss Adrienne and I around. HA! As if a does not get enough when she is at work with my mom. For some reason we take it every time! :) Perfect example is this picture below...





She was getting snappy at this point...but I just LOVE this woman so much. She is the rock of our family and no matter how many orders she barks at me..I can't get enough of her sometimes. On top of being bossy, she has this obsession for SHOPPING! She has more STUFF than anyone else I know. She buys new holiday themed things every year and wonders where it comes from, she just flat out wears us out! :) hahahah..But I would not trade her for anything in the world. Decorating around the holidays is just tons of fun and we enjoy spending time with our parents and immediate family. We have been through so much the past year, this Christmas will be tough, but none the less, we will all make the best of it. Those who are missing from the celebration..we hope will find their way back home and see how important family is after all.

I count my blessing everyday that God has placed such wonderful people in my life. I am so undeserving of all that he has given to me and I can only hope that I live my life everyday in the way that makes him joyful! After all..is that not what this time of year is about, HIM? So many people take for granted or get lost in what CHRISTmas is all about..if only they could slow down and see what is truly important this time of year.

Here are a few more photos of decorating, CHRISTIAN style..makes me kinda sad that this will be my last Christmas in my parents house..oh, but don't get me wrong I will still be out decorating every year..fo sho ;)

Christmas Decorations..that half were not used. :)

The Mantle..My Favorite

Another Chapter

The Fam at Dinner after Graduation

Finally I am OUTTA HERE!! :)

I always thought I would be so happy to be done with college. What a huge accomplishment. Little to my surprise, it is all very bittersweet. Over the past 4 years I have become so close to my professors (b/c my school is so small) but more than that, it becomes who you are. Now that I am out of school, I am not sure what to do with my free time. What is FREE TIME anyways?? HECK IF I KNOW! :) It was all great and very prestigious, graduation was. The Archbishop was there, the president with his BIG GOLD CHAIN on. LOL. My dad got a kick outta that! You know, instead of the hood, our president has this gold chain he wears, it was pimpin' to say the least. HA!! Now that I done, I have TONS to do with the wedding and finding and J.O.B, on top of this I am studying for the GRE. Isn't life grand? :) So what was I thinking, me, having free time..what a joke. Life never slows down- but it is definitley a thrill and I LOVE IT!

Bittersweet..

As I walked onto Bellarmine's campus one more time today I realized how bittersweet it all was to be done with college. DO NOT get me wrong, I am relishing int he fact that I am done. It is all just a little overwhelming. Seems like just yesterday I was playing soccer for good ole SCHS and doing student council stuff. lol..nerdy I know. But we were the cool kids, literally :) hahaha..only joking.

On a more serious note. I just do not know what I want to do with my life. Things I want to accomplish are (just to name a few)

-get married (check, done will do that in May)

-have kids. will get on that soon.

-atleast see Italy, Hawaii, Australia, Guatemala (atleast 15 more times), and anywhere else my travel hungry hubster to be wants to take me.

-write a book. don't what on, but write one.

-send my parents on a once in a life time vacation.

Those are just a few. But right now, I am so caught up in the fact that I am broke and do not have anything awaiting me as I step out into the world. I have quickly learned, none of this changes..or atleast not anytime soon. So I think what I need to do us just rely on God's guidance and take it one day at a time.

On another note, I got to thinking back on Nathaniel and I's first Christmas together and came across this picture of him..is he not the cutest!!! A definite "kid in the candy shop" smile right there!!!!