New Ride--Ode to Lexi

Lexi (the 4-Runner) hit 97,000 miles last week. We had originally planned on trading her in after/around Jeff's graduation in May, but b/c we'd hit 100,000 by January, we decided to go ahead and trade her in.

This blog's for her (and yes, I'm aware how odd it is!)! This is my last pic with Lexi:

Lexi was my absolute, most favorite car (SUV). She ran like a champ, took everything we gave her and didn't explode, and loved having Chip's hair all over her (even though we tried in vain to keep it clean!). She was the one who led both my sisters to become Toyota owners as well (one with a 4-Runner and one with a Sequoia). She made us believe in cars that had good mechanical reliability. She was a goddess in her own right!

Lexi got her mileage once I found the man of my dreams. She knew I-10 from Katy to Port Arthur like the back of her hand. She was almost like Kip on the Knight Rider--if she had autopilot she'd be happy!

Lexi is now going to make someone else happy because she is now no longer owned by us. Last week we traded her in for her bigger sister--the Sequoia. So far the Sequoia is un-named, but I'm thinking "Sassy" might work. I wasn't sure if I'd like a Sequoia, but after test-driving it, decided it handled better than Jeff's truck that I'd been driving to school 2-3 days a week (b/c Jeff drove Lexi to/from Sam Houston--better gas mileage). I love it now and am getting used to a bigger car.

Yes--we know a Sequoia is big for just the 3 of us (Chip now has to ride in the cargo area--we're trying to prep him for when kids come and he's back there anyway). We really wanted a 3rd row seat, which didn't come in 4-runners and have lots of leg room. I also knew about a month after I got Lexi in 2005 that the Sequoia is what I wanted for when I had kids (mom's suburban is just too long!).

So...here's to a long life filled with fun and travels in the Sequoia! Cheers! She is the first major Dickens family purchase and we're thrilled to have her! (Please ignore my very "teacher-y" outfit in the pic. Long day of standing deserved sensible shoes!)

Summer Vacation--Day 2

Note from Steph: I'm so tired of trying to get these pics in the right places after I type, so I'm sorry for the order they're in....I'm not messing with them once they're in!

Someone told us not to go above 7,000 feet the first 24 hours of being in Colorado. Well, we of course blew that out of the water just by staying in Green Mountain Falls (see Summer Vacation post below). So...what were our plans on Day 2---Pike's Peak of course! Nothing like double the altitude to really get you going on your vacation---14,115 feet to be exact (that's what my shirt says, but the sign says 14,110)!

We didn't book tickets in advance for the Cog Railway trip (now, who does that surprise???), so we got on the "excess list" for the 8am trip and actually got on! It was an absolutely beautiful, chilly August morning and the trip up/down was great! I'd been with my family when I was

younger, but didn't remember much of it, so it was great to share it with Jeff!

Views from the cog and from the top of Pike's Peak: Cog leaving the station;repaving the road up to the top--one way at parts and VERY windy; tundra line--where the trees stop growing; "are we falling off the edge???"; our "ride"; Jeff "falling" off the mountain

We got back down to the bottom close to lunch time, so we went back to our cabin and made lunch, booked a rafting trip, and then decided to drive up to the top of Pike's Peak. There were a couple of "Oh, Sh*&!!" moments for me b/c Jeff truly enjoys looking at the scenery while driving. (Side note: he is a very safe driver....I'm just a little antsy).

Here are some pics from the way up: afternoon thunderstorms/slight snow (although we didn't know if 'til we got to the top); our new friend the marmot (we just so happened to stop at a random spot to check out the view (seen in the next pic--just ignore the camera strap!) and found a chipmunk and marmot!); my "I'm not happy stopping on the edge of a mountain--AGAIN--face; Jeff setting out on a hike after another pit stop on the way down the mountain.

Yes, we spent an entire day going up and down Pike's Peak, but we had an amazing time! We are so lucky that we both enjoy seeing things in nature, hiking, and just exploring where we are. Jeff is definitely the more adventurous out of the 2 of us, but we have so much fun together doing what we love!

Summer Vacation

Now of course, I'm dreaming of summer vacation since we've been in school for close to 3 months, and I realized I'd never posted pics of our vacation trip to Colorado. We hadn't taken a honeymoon yet due to school and work schedules not matching up, so we made our trip to Colorado for Megan & Andy's wedding a mini-moon for ourselves! Because I love our pictures, I'm going to do multiple posts for this trip--but not all tonight (sorry--we can't get into bed tonight unless I fold what's on it!).

We stayed at a cabin in Green Mountain Falls, CO, which is about 20 minutes outside of Colorado Springs. The hot tub was directly outside our cabin (as was a bear we didn't even hear one night!), a park was across the street, and the owners were great!

Our first night we toured the little town of Manitou Springs, which has great shopping and tons of water fountains where you can get spring water (which was like carbonated water and tasted pretty bad to us!).

After finding a little joint to eat, we did a little "tour" of Green Mountain Falls. This consisted of driving up steep unpaved roads in our rental SUV--totally the norm on a trip with us! It's amazing that people live literally on a hill/off a mountain and it's the norm to them! Here Jeff is at a little waterfall/creek that he found that night. He was just so happy climbing rocks and "exploring" that I couldn't resist putting this in!

Stay tuned for more...

Husband 'O Mine

It continues to amaze me how much I love living with Jeff. Not only do I have someone to talk to (besides myself and the dog), but I also have someone to tell me if I look decent before I walk out the door (and then end up remembering to check myself out in the teacher bathroom at 3pm when school's over!).

Seriously, though...it's great! I was sick part of this weekend with just a sinus infection, but it was a doozie, and he took great care of me, which was really nice. My only complaint was the time he told me to "keep holding the thermometer" while I was basically passed out asleep! Beggars can't be choosers, so I tried to do as I was told!

Short but sweet blog--very unlike me! Anyway...my husband rocks!

He! He! He!

We went out for Mexican food tonight at our favorite place and needed to go get dog food since Chip had none left. Normal night. Nothing unusual. EXCEPT...the tornado warnings, pouring rain, massive amounts of lightning, flooded streets---you get the picture.

Yeah--that was 15 minutes out of our lives tonight. Jeff INSISTED that we go home and he'd go out later to get the dog food. I, however, insisted more that since we were already out, we should just go ahead and get it. He proceeded to tell me how ridiculous my idea was pretty much the entire trip there--which was about 4 blocks down Mason in the POURING rain.

Finally, when we got to the stop light to turn into Petco, I burst out laughing and couldn't stop. I finally realized that it was simply my stubbornness that was causing me to want to get dog food and nothing else. We watched a sedan fly through the flooded strip center entry and then pause in front of us b/c they stalled out and I just laughed at myself even harder. I mean...SERIOUSLY??? What was I thinking?

Anyway...Jeff backed up to the door, I ran in to get food, used the 40 lb. bag to "cover me" as I lifted the back of the 4-runner, thought about climbing in through the back so I wouldn't get wetter (didn't b/c I couldn't shut the liftgate), and then ran laughing and soaking wet back into the front seat! What a night!

Good news: Chip can now eat and we burned a few chips/salsa calories by laughing at the situation!

O & N Come to Cuero

Ashley and Matt left for Italy on a 10-year anniversary trip/visit to Court & Evan last week. They flew to Houston, dropped off the kids, and jetted out of town for some fun! Jeff and I went home this weekend to visit the kids (and the parents) and have fun at Turkeyfest. It was SO much fun to be with Olivia and Nicholas for an entire weekend sans parents (theirs...not mine!!). It definitely makes me appreciate my "free" time--or lack thereof sometime....especially since I took a nap when the kiddos did all weekend!Here are some fun moments from the trip:

Doesn't everyone dress up like a princess on Friday morning?

Engineer at work!

Drivin' the car in the garage: altar ego Maggie (I was Lisa--and had 14 kids!! in this scenario!!)

Before the Cuero/Yoakum football game--ignore the flash spot....it was the best of the 2 pics! And...mums I made for O & N for next week's homecoming game! Olivia LOVES Jeff-ery beca

use he plays silly with her--and then ships her back to her parents!

Watching the turkey race between Ruby Begonia (Cuero's bird) and Paycheck (Worthington's bird) with Pops. Go Ruby Go!!!

Olivia loved dancing to the bands and Nicholas was just utterly fascinated with the entire parade--so much so that he passed out on the 5 minute car ride home!

Seriously??? Snuggies???

You've seen the commercials. The ones where a lady doesn't want to make her heating bill high and so instead decides to comfort herself in a gigantic blanket with arms. Yes--the SNUGGIE!

I have to admit--at first I thought it wasn't a horrible idea and even thought of buying one for Courtney, who's always cold. Then...my brain started working and I decided it wasn't such a fantastic invention. In fact, I'd call it almost ridiculous.

Today, a commercial advertising the fabulous Snuggie confirmed it for me. This was a new commercial to me and it advertised men, women, grandparents, and even children sporting their Snuggie in all sorts of action spots--watching a movie, reading a book, at sporting events outdoors when it's cold (yes, really), and many more that I actually laughed and turned away from. Ridiculous I say!

Even Guiliana Rancic on E News said that the leopard Snuggie was a fashion faux pas. I'm pretty sure she meant all Snuggies regardless of the pattern and just for the benefit of E News watchers just mentioned the leopard one.

If you haven't seen the commercials, consider yourself safe! However, they do happen to appear out of nowhere at your local Walgreen's and CVS stores--so beware! Hey! Random good thought....a Snuggie might make a great Halloween costume!

Amazing!

Cuidado! Cuidado!! This blog may be slightly on the cheesy side, but so be it!

We've been married now for 6 months (YEAH!!!) and living together for 4 months (more YEAH!!!). Jeff has class Tues (until 8:50pm), Weds (until 8:50pm--and he stays in Magnolia w/friends), and Thurs (until 3:30pm). So...that basically means that I see him on Tuesday night for about an hour, and none on Wednesdays. It simply amazes me that with only that time away from each other how much I absolutely cannot wait to see him (and vice versa if you're wondering if it's just me!) when he gets home.

I know we're still in the "honeymoon" phase, but I love the feeling of knowing I get to see him in just a few hours, minutes, etc.

Sorry--told you it might be cheesy! I'm allowed one every now and then!

Mom's Words of Love

Jeff bought me a webcam for our desktop computer for my birthday since only his laptop has one. Now I can use it to Skype with Court, mom, and Ashley, so I'm really excited!!!

I've been trying to Skype with Court all this week and haven't had any luck, so while I was talking to mom this afternoon on the phone, I told her I'd test it out with her this evening. I'd been to work out, run some errands, get Sonic for dinner (Jeff has class = no cooking for me!!), and don't forget--taught a full day. Needless to say, I was not looking my best!

Mom's words of love when the video finally went through and we did our "Can you hear me? Can you see me?" discussion and we could see each other: "Oh goodness!" followed by a laugh! Boy--does she really know how to show the love! After I fixed my hair a bit, I got "Well, that's better!"

Let's just say living life with a webcam may open up a few possibilities I'd never thought of before:

1. You absolutely MUST be dressed when having a webcam on/using it/etc. No "what ifs" here.
2. Everyone now gets to see you in ALL your glory--day or night!
3. You have to watch what you do when you're speaking to someone on webcam. (Words of wisdom to you nose pickers out there--don't worry...I'm not one!)
4. etc.--haven't thought of any more than this!

Now...don't get me wrong. I know there are poeple out there who use a webcam and don't care about the list above--more power to them! Me...I kinda care!

Anyhow--I love my birthday present and my wonderful husband who picked it out! Let the fun begin!

We're Off!

We're off to the start of a brand new school year for both me and Jeff. Personally, I hope my school year is better than 2008-2009, and I've tried to be really positive this past week when getting to know people, helping people out, etc.

I am losing 2 more of my great WMJH teaching friends to another campus and that will truly be the most difficult thing to deal with. I used to be able to walk next door and tell Amy something really personal or just ask something about school. The lady who replaced her seems to be nice so far, but she's just not Amy. Jon, her husband, was also part of the comic relief for the day. You know those couples who know every movie line, song line, etc. that has nothing to do with anything and would pop out with them at any given time? That's them! Don't get me wrong: I'm not going to sit and have a pity party, but I'm going to have to find another outlet!

Jeff starts his last year (YEAH!!!) at SHSU. Right now he has classes all day Tues/Thurs. and one class Wednesday night. He's going to be staying with Brent & Amber on Wednesdays, so I'll be back to livin' it up on that night (AKA--catching up on all my DVR'd reality TV when he's not here!). He's so glad to be in the home stretch and I'm so proud of all he's accomplished. I know when I went back and took one class, it nearly killed me!

This morning he asked me what he needs to do to be Magna Cum Laude/Summa Cum Laude. Right now he has a 3.8 or something and let me just tell you......I graduated PUSHING a 3.0!!! (Let's just say I had really fun freshman/sophomore years!!). Before he finished his question, I stopped him by saying that I was so far beyond getting to that point that I'll have to call up some friends and ask! (FYI: I did really good in all my education classes and got a 4.0 in those--or 3.9ish---I just didn't like anything other than those classes and it showed!). Anyway, I'm just so proud of him and know he's busted his hiney to get to where he is!

Here's to a wonderful 2009-2010 school year--for the Dickens family, as well as all my teacher friends/those who have kiddos in school!

Mmmmmm......Pork Chops!

Okay--my goal for this blog is for Beth to cook these one night, so here it goes! There are only 5 ingredients Beth (not including spices), and I don't measure anything.

Pork Chops--however many you want--marinate with spices (salt, pepper, garlic, whatever)

1. Leave covered in fridge until you're ready to cook them

Topping: For #1-3, the amount you cut up depends on your taste for fruity salsa and these fruits themselves.

1. open a can of pineapple and can of mandarin oranges and cut
2. cut up some red onion
3. cut up one stem of green onion
4. sprinkle garlic, pepper, cayenne pepper, cilantro, or whatever to "spice it up"
5. Let this sit in the fridge to marinate together--at least an hour

Oven: 350 degrees

Prepare: Cover pork chops with salsa and cook for 35-40 minutes, or until done

Voila! This is now one of our FAVORITE recipes to make and it was harder to cook the veggie sides to a tender point than it was to do all this! Have fun cooking!

Whatcha Doin'???

People have asked me how I have filled my summer, and I know most of you are just dying each day that you don't know, so here it is:

Until July 2nd--taught summer school

After July 2nd--

1. wake up with Jeff and don't go back to sleep (5:30-6am)
2. eat breakfast/workout--(6:30-9:30ish am) I have now found that I love the sauna at 24Hour!!
3. play too much on Facebook, watch TV, do random house stuff--(10-noonish)
4. scrapbook, do a few productive things--(noonish--3pmish)
5. Mon/Tues/Weds/Fri--go to pool and read a book for school (THAT's VERY Productive, don't you think???)---3:30-5pmish)
6. Thursdays--after I workout, I go to Archiver's (Scrapbook store) all day since my pool is closed--and I should be somewhat productive!
7. Cook, help Jeff with summer school HW, lawn work, etc--(5:30ish--bedtime)

Boring--Not yet! I was actually off this pathetic little routine Monday and Tuesday of this week and I was feeling really unproductive and bored. So it's a definite that I love my little routine. It gives me time to do nothing and at the same time, get stuff done. I'm scrapbooking for my mom and sister, as well as getting my stuff done, so I love being busy! Now...let's see what I can get done in 2 more weeks before I go on vacation and then have to go back to school!!!

Shopping

It's time to do a little back to school shopping, but when you're on a tight budget and just want to be on "What Not to Wear" in order to get $5000, it's a little different! I'm such a t-shirt shopper that I have to stop myself and make myself get something other than a t-shirt to wear to school (although by April I could care less, the kids could care less, and that's pretty much what I end up wearing every day).

Shopping while you're working on your weight is no fun either. I started back on WW (that's Weight Watchers for you people who can lose weight on your own) last Monday and even though I really do like the rules, tracking, etc., it doesn't help with the shopping. I think that when you sign up they should just give you a personal shopper about a month or two into the program. THAT would motivate me! Don't get me wrong...I'm motivated now....but the excitement of a personal shopper who could fit my body style would be great!

So...I do love JCPenny's and drove on over today since I had nothing better to do--yeah right! Anyway...my new favorite brand to try on and make myself feel good is their Worthington brand. My size was too big in their "Curvy" fit. (I'm not built like a rectangle--this woman's got lots 'o curves here!!) I also tried on a cute jacket that was slightly too big, but I ended up buying it anyway b/c they didn't have any smaller ones and hey--it wasn't a t-shirt. Mom will tell me if it looks okay. Yes, I still ask mom if things look good. Having 3 girls, she's got a pretty good eye!

If I could buy a few pairs of pants before school starts, that will be good too. I cleaned out the closet REALLY well when Jeff moved in and now I'm afraid to see what I need to replace! Until next time...I will be dreaming of fitting once again into my skinny jeans (they saw the light 2 years ago after losing 20 pounds in 2 months of WW---and then went back into the darkness b/c I hit my goal and stopped WW---what a dummie I was!)

Chip's Playdate

Hello--my name is Stephanie ("Hi Stephanie")--and I take my dog on playdates!

Yes--that was supposed to sound like an AA meeting! Chip IS our child and my wonderful friends keep me informed of their playdates and if I can, I go and take Chipper. Today he was VERY well behaved--probably due to the swimming this weekend and the 2 laps I made us do around Peckham Park before the playdate.

Here is Chip with Avery Limmer (2 1/2), her mom Nancy, and Carly Lawson (almost 1). He had no problems being sat on, petted, or anything --like I said...he was pooped! He would've chased every kid around if I'd have let him--and he had the energy!

This random child named Hunter thought Chip was his new best friend and hit on him, loved on him, etc. I'm so surprised, but Chipper didn't even bat an eyelash!

I wanted to pose with Chip too, but don't judge my looks. I swam laps this morning and then jogged around the park--I'm doing good to be mobile! The chlorine/sweat hairdo is just an added bonus to those of you who read this blog! Chip, obviously, could care less that I wanted a picture with him. Hgggghhhh.....kids these days! :)

July 4th--C & E's Dinner

Most of you know, but for those of you that don't, Courtney and Evan are moving to Italy at the end of this month. They are moving with the Air Force and will be there for 3 years. I'm pretty positive most of our family is visiting as much as time/money will allow! (I'm planning our 1 year anniversary there in Spring '10 since Jeff and I actually have matching spring breaks the next school year!)

We had a dinner for them on the 4th of July and had a great time! Here are the honorees with the cutest luggage cake ever:

Jeff broke out our new ice cream maker and made vanilla and peppermint ice cream and it was delicious!

I think we had the most fun in the pool out of everything we did all weekend. At one point we had 6 people (Me, Jeff, Court, Evan, Tory, and David) and 6 dogs (Chip, Cash, Bree, Kylie, Buck, and Tink) in and out of the pool! Cash was a pro at jumping off the diving board already, and Chip learned this weekend! Cash also had a lot of fun grabbing whatever he could (even his mom's bathing suit!!---hence the nickname "Marley")

July 4th--Baby Shower

The Porter cousins had a baby shower for Jae, who is due in November with Madeline Alisa. We had such a good time getting it all together (since we live in 4 different states) and it was great! Maddie has a lot of loot--and her organized momma already has most of it organized and ready!

We had guests write parenting advice for Jae and Brant (and later on with the leftover cards, we had our dads/husbands/boy cousins give their advice too---which was even funnier!) We filled our hostess baskets with all sorts of goodies to get Jae and Brant ready.

Porter Cousins--Minus Ashley and Alison

One of many monogrammed blankets--soooo soft and fuzzy!

Jae with the grandmothers--My aunt Alice and Jae's mom Michelle

Opening presents

The Gym

My favorite thing is not working out, but when I do finally haul my butt to the gym, I'm okay with it. I've even started going some mornings since my summer school classes don't start until 7:30, so I've got 20 more minutes to wake up! I just wanted to share a few of my favorite things at the gym since I know you're all missing my sarcasm!

1. The girl who works out with her hair down. Obviously we are not there for the same reasons. I go to sweat my ass (and a little chocolate) off, look like a tomato, and can squeeze water from my short hair after only 20 minutes of cardio. I am jealous of her longer, toned, tanner legs, but that's about it. After a day of work, are you really trying to look THAT good at the gym??
2. The guy who screams longer and louder than Monica Seles when he's on the squat machine or doing arms. He did it so many times today that I actually turned around and laughed. I needed a laugh though, so if I see him next time, I will have to go thank him!
3. The lady who looked like Jack McFarland's acting coach from Will and Grace--Zandra. Seriously--she looked JUST like her with a bad dye job (Think Frenchy's bad dye job from Grease 2).

Maybe I shouldn't people watch as much, but hey--it gets me through my workout. If you're really interested, I'd be more than happy to share my "Creepy Lap-Swimming-Stalker-Story"!

Next time you're at the gym--take a look around. I may help you get through your workout on a happier note!

I've Still Got It.....Well, Maybe

Picture this: Cuero; Saturday afternoon in June; hotter than hot; Location: Car Wash

I took my car to wash/vacuum it since it was filthy and a little "doggy". As I vacuum, I notice a teenager looking at me and I just figured that I looked weird while I was doing it. (I didn't clean anything out of the car, so I was vacuuming around it, moving it around, etc.) Then I go to wash my car and this kid comes over and I begin to ignore the fact that he's walking over trying to talk to me. (Living in Houston, you start forming responses automatically in your head as to why you can't share your pile of quarters by the coin slot, etc., so this is what I was doing). But alas, he simply walks up with a smile and asks, "Are you married?" When I respond yes, he says, "Oh, I just had to ask", which I answer with a squirt of the wax (I wasn't going to let this piddly conversation make me lose washing time!).

I tell you, I must've looked good! I usually don't get that kind of action when I'm working out--I was wearing my gym clothes--t-shirt and shorts. Maybe I need to come home to Cuero more often to get a little "pick-me-up"!!! Just kidding--I'm okay without it, but it sure was funny!

Sad to say, this just shows you how monotonous my life has been lately with school. I think everyone needs a good laugh like this at least once or twice a week, so I hope that happens for you soon! Happy summer to all!

Well???

So, I've finally decided to try and update the blog format and I lost a few things in the process.  The darn tutorial said to save my widgets (what the hey are those???  Don't answer 'cause now I've figured it out!!).  However, my so called widgets wouldn't transfer, so I've lost a few of my blogs that I follow and can't get the addresses back.  If you're one that I lost, please email me or leave it one here so I can transfer it!

Anyway....life is good.  Jeff's moved in and most things have a place.  Took a family vacation over Memorial Day weekend to Hilton Head--last one before Court and Evan leave for Italy for 3 years, and we had a great time!  I have lots of pics to upload, so I'll get right on that!!!  (If you didn't catch the hint of sarcasm there, read again, but with my voice in your head!).

Happy Wednesday--and I'll update later.  Sorry for the colors that aren't working--still working those out!

Have I Told You???

We found out 2 weeks ago that Jeff will be moving to Katy--PERMANENTLY (well as of December anyway)!!! We're so excited that we get to start living together, but it's also the final "reality check" since it's really coming. We've been waiting and waiting for this day to come--and it will be here as of Sunday, May 17th!

Please say a prayer for us as we learn the actual ins and outs of living together permanently. We know it will be an adjustment, but we're just not sure how much! :)

Jeff got an internship in Katy for the summer, and he'll be working 10 minutes from our house--how cool is that? All this time of living apart, driving forever....and this is what works out! His school schedule for the fall is classes Tuesday-Thursday, which is what helped make this move more permanent, but will be a commute for him on those days.

I can't wait to make him go work out with me--since I paid 3 years ago to add him to my gym membership, take Chip for park runs on weekdays, and cook more! I love cooking--I just don't do it for myself since I have leftovers for the week with one meal!

Chip will love having mom and dad together permanently too--even if it does mean giving up his bed spot with mom! Another plus??? We get to live in the house for one more year, in hopes that the market starts to improve and we can move on from there! Another plus, plus??? ONE set of bills!!! Whoo hooo!!!

Houston Tea Party

Jeff really wanted to go to San Antonio's tea party to see Glenn Beck, but that just wasn't in the cards, so we hit Houston's instead. I'm not the most political person in the world, so this was actually a neat experience for me. There were no problems (except that the location was too small for everyone to get in), and Jeff and I had secretly hoped someone would get arresting for protesting against the tea party!! (Is that bad???)

Anyway...the signs were by far the most interesting things there, so that's what most of the pictures are of. We can't get the government to change unless we band together-that's what the basic message of the speakers I listened to were saying (mind you, I stopped listening after about the 3rd speaker...but still).

The Dickens' at the Tea Party

Us with our tea bags--that hopefully got sent somewhere!

Tons of signs:

Easter Party!!!

What better way to break out your new wedding presents than to throw a party?!?! After we decided we were going to stay in Katy during Easter weekend and work on the house, we then decided we needed to have a party! Not being planners, the fact that we called people and got it together 2 WEEKS BEFORE was huge!!!

We decided to do an Easter dinner b/c that's what Jeff wanted. Now...I've gone to Cuero Country Club for most of the Easter lunches in my life, so being the good wife (and knowing how Jeff is...), I asked what he expected at dinner. Response: ham, turkey, bread, sweet potatoes, casseroles, desserts, etc. WHOA!!! Needless to say, this soon became a potluck with us doing the meats! It worked out perfectly, and we had 13 people and 3 babies!!! It was so much fun, and we ended up playing Cranium at the end of the night!

Thanks to everyone who came and made this night all the fun that it was!

Carly and Adam got to know each other by playing with Easter eggs

Amy and Carly--too cute!

The next to get married: Megan and Andy

Carter: "Seriously??? I've been walking for months--get me outta here!!!"

The Hightowers--Erica, Carter, and Steve

Cranium Time!!! The action was just beginning!!

Kelly and John prepare to act something out (can't remember what that's called in "Cranium-land")

The boys must've won that card!

The Dunagans get in the action with "Bike Messenger"

Again...love the action shots! Jeff had just used the chair as a "railing" from Titanic as he hung over it!

And this I put in b/c it was how the boys felt after they beat the girls. However...we did play a Speed Round after this and the girls won fair and square!