Christmas Lights and Cowboys

I really just love this time of year. I love the cheesy Christmas songs. I love seeing family and buying presents for them. I love the yummy sweets. And I LOVE all the Christmas lights. Last weekend we drove through some neighborhoods to see all the lights. And our neighborhood actually did pretty well this holiday (unlike Halloween)- lots of the houses have lights and characters and all that good stuff. For the first time since we've lived here, it just feels like a shared experience in our neighborhood that everyone has their yards all decorated. I finally took a picture of our house all decked out. Brandon did a good job I think.



We've had a pretty good weekend. All I want to do every day is drink my hot cocoa snuggled up by the fire. It's the only thing that makes this cold weather all ok. I just wish the Christmas season could last into January adn February, maybe my two least favorite months.

Last night we had our church Christmas Party. It was a murder mystery- such a great idea. And guess what...I ended up being the murderer. Typical. But we had a great night with all our friends. And the best part of it was the Cowboys game. I never knew I would be such a fan, but after all the screaming and yelling last night, I think I proved my loyalty. We won the game that some thought was impossible, and Brandon has been downright giddy. We just knew we had to be loyal and not lose faith. And they did it- came through and proved that they still want to be in the running. Go Cowboys!!!

Happy Birthday Jessi!

Today is Jessi's birthday- another day when I wish so bad I could be home to be with my family. My sisters are my best friends in the world, and I feel so blessed that God gave me sisters who I know will always be a big part in my life. I don't know what I'd do without them to go through life with. Jessi and I get closer every year, despite the fact that we've been living in different states for five years now. She's got such a great heart for people. She's finishing school to be a nurse practitioner, and I'm so proud of her passion and determination. She has such a fun-loving spirit, and she always makes me laugh. Sorry I couldn't be there for your birthday, Jess. Luckily Christmas is only a week away, so you'll only have to wait a few days to see me:)


HAPPY BIRTHDAY, LOVE YOU JESS!!!

Weekend Brunch

This past weekend we had a Christmas brunch at our house for the girls in our church class to come over and write cards to soldiers. Thanks to Melissa, I have some pictures of the day...


Yummy food

My favorite part, the yogurt parfaits




Lacey is QUITE the event planner:)


Writing cards





It's amazing to think of all the men overseas who are fighting who are serving our country even through Christmas, but hopefully our cards and goodies let them know that some Texas gals are thinking about them during the holidays. And we had a good time getting in the holiday spirit. Thanks girls for coming!

No place like home for the holidays

I've been counting down the days till we could put up the Christmas tree and play Christmas music constantly. This past weekend we finally got to do that...


Our first actual Christmas tree!!!


So glad we finally have the perfect spot for our tree!


Another view of our dining room


Bailey's favorite place to snuggle up


View of the front bay window, thanks to Brandon and Chad for creating a way to get the huge shrub/tree removed from in front of the window for this very reason:)


Merry Christmas from our home to yours
(and yes...I love everything cheesy Christmas- I can't help it)

Hope everyone is getting in the Christmas spirit!

Dining Room

Well we finally finished our dining room! It was a very long process of tearing off wallpaper and sanding walls before we could finally paint and finish our room...

Here's what it looked like BEFORE:

(So sad those curtains had to go)




And then we scraped and sanded...


Then we steamed...


Then peeled...


Then sprayed and peeled off the backing...


Then scored the SECOND layer of wallpaper...



And then we basically repeated the process again with the second layer yucky wallpaper.
Then we spackled and sanded the sections where the drywall was torn.
And THEN we were FINALLY ready to paint...


And put up crown molding...


And install a new chandelier...


And install wood blinds...

And FINALLY it's done!

Just in time to put up our Christmas tree!
(pictures coming soon)

Happy Birthday Gaggy!!!

Well today is my mother-in-law's birthday, so I thought I'd just take a second to wish her the best. The title "Gaggy" is because I always tease her that we're going to have our children call her that someday. And let's be honest...I love to see her squirm in the uncertainty of whether we would ever do that to her. Bwahahaha. But really truthfully, I love her dearly. I don't know how, but I really lucked-out in the mother-in-law department. She's actually someone who I hope to be very much like someday. She's sweet and very sarcastic, but also very giving and compassionate. She has so many great friends and she has a very approachable and fun personality. I love her hospitality and how she has such great friendships that she has carried through life. I could go on about the great mom she is, but I won't. I just want her to know how cherished she is and how appreciative I am that she came in to this world and brought up such a wonderful boy for me to marry. There are many ways in which Brandon and I hope to model our family in the same ways she did. Wish we could be there to celebrate your birthday with you!!!

Blessed

We're so blessed. We have spent a wonderful few days in Nashville with family. Dad, Brandon and I got up early to go run the Boulevard Bolt on Thursday morning. I got to see my best friend Beth, who caught us and ran on ahead around mile 3. So good to see her. When we got home, Jess was still feeling sick from the night before, so Dad and I took her to the hospital because she had a bad stomach bug. After some good IV fluids, we were home for a late Thanksgiving lunch with the fam. The ENTIRE fam on my mom's side. Lots of turkey, dressing, sweet potatoes, cream corn, green beans, homemade rolls, and too many desserts to name. It was good to see all my cousins and their wives and especially my grandparents. Then, between naps, we watched the Cowboys game of course and my family pretended to care as much as we did- another big win for Romo! After all the extended relatives left, we did lots of shopping and catching up. I got to see another of my best friends from highschool, Grant, for a few minutes. We went to see The Blind Side, which was AMAZING and I would highly recommend it. Jessi and her boyfriend Jonathan were in heaven because it's all about Ole Miss, their favorite team ever. It was so nice to get to just relax and talk with my family. That's Brandon's favorite thing about our family, that we are all totally ok with just relaxing and catching up on life. We also got to spend some good quality time with Matt and Ashley, our surrogate big brother and sister. Jonathan got to be there after Jess got over the pukes, and we finally got to meet Allie's boyfriend Blake. Saturday night we watched Home Alone (Brandon's favorite Christmas movie by far) and put up the Christmas tree as is the Black family tradition. So fun. We had such a good visit. And they loved Bailey- she actually behaved pretty well. Despite all of the table scraps Mom and Jess kept slipping her (against Brandon's will), Allie became Bailey's new favorite because she gave Bailey a brand new Christmas outfit. Here are a few pictures I took from the weekend...


Jessi and Allie, miss yall already!



My wonderful family + Jonathan


Allie and Bailey in their matching Christmas attire :)


My goober bear

Hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving! We have so much to be thankful for.

Cold!

Well, it got COLD last night. I walked out to leave for work this morning and was definitely not prepared for the bitter chill! BUT the good thing is that I can now start to get in the Christmas mood. Luckily for Brandon, we still have to get the room finished before I put up the Christmas tree. Otherwise I might have already broken down and decorated with everything Christmas. That's something I've been looking forward to since we bought this house in June. Putting up an actual (artificial) Christmas tree in our home is so so very exciting for me.

Tonight was a wonderful evening. I actually cooked dinner and Brandon got some work done. And I got to cozy up by the fire while watching Dancin with the Stars. Other than coming down with what I think is a yucky sinus infection, life is pretty perfect.

Flying By

Life has just been crazy. And we've been exhausted. It's been tough to just take time to slow down and enjoy life amidst all the stress of work and life and short days. But even though it's been getting dark wayyy to early, it's been GORGEOUS outside and we've loved every minute of the pretty fall weather. Weird that it's mid-November and we still haven't broken out our heavy coats. I don't know that I've ever been as ready for winter weather as I am this year- it just doesn't feel like the Holiday season yet. As always, I have been a little homesick this fall, thinking of the gorgeous Tennessee trees and wishing I could have carved pumpkins with my sisters. But every time I start to get down about it, it seems like God reminds me of His purpose. Dallas has really been a wonderful home for us that we never really expected. Brandon and I feel so blessed to be where we are surrounded by the friends we have. God is so faithful, and it's hard not to be satisfied by His presence when you look outside at the changing leaves, even in Texas:) Here's a picture of the little tree we planted a couple months ago in our back yard, now changing colors- I kinda think it's bringing me a little piece of TN every day.



Soon I'll update a little more on life. We started remodeling the dining room this weekend. It's a wreck right now, but I hope to have it ready soon to put the Christmas tree in the front window. Other than work, sleep, and tearing down wallpaper, we've been filling up our days getting together with friends, trying not to get too sick, fishing, football games, Brandon doing some freelancing, running with Bailey, watching Grey's and Brothers and Sisters (my newest addiction- I LOVE it), and doing a little early Christmas shopping:) We're looking forward to seeing family for Thanksgiving in a couple weeks. Maybe the Cowboys can get their act together before then. Brandon was more than just a little upset today at the game. Hope everyone had a good relaxing weekend!!!

Halloween Weekend

Brandon's family came in this past weekend, and we had such a fun few days with them. His parents live in Atlanta, so we always cherish the time we get to spend with them. Kim and Philip even got to come in town to hang out. We did some shopping and cooking and football watching, but mostly just relaxed and caught up with each other. It was fun being able to have all of Brandon's family in our new home. I really love nothing better than cooking and laughing and relaxing with family. I just wish we all lived closer together! It wasn't a very long visit, but we had fun. We got a few pictures of the dogs playing...

Bailey and her cousin Baxter, the best of friends. They never stopped playing.


Bailey dressed up as a turtle for Halloween- so funny.


Trying to control the ferocious snapping turtle


This is the pretty wreath I made on Sunday with instruction from Brandon's crafty mom :)
Happy Fall!!! Hope everyone had a good weekend, I know we did!