Tales from Miss Speech

Stationery card

2011-12-13T06:18:00.001-08:00

Happy Joy Christmas Card

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Happy Girl!

2009-09-21T13:39:00.000-07:00

Happy Mother's Day, Mommy!!!

2009-05-10T18:33:00.000-07:00

I love you!

babysitting rates

2009-03-16T09:50:00.000-07:00

I'm working on Molly's baby book and am needing help! What is the going babysitting rate right now? It's been quite awhile since I last babysat and I wasn't sure.

Thanks for your help!!

One Month!

2009-02-21T15:24:00.000-08:00

I can't believe Molly Ann is already a month old! This sweet girl is such a blessing to us. We love you precious one!!

2 weeks!!!

2009-01-29T16:26:00.000-08:00

Molly Ann is 2 weeks old today! Time is flying.

We took her in for her 2 week checkup today. She weighs 8 pounds 8.5 ounces and is now 20.5 inches long (both in the 50th percentile.) Since she is back to her birthweight, well actually .5 ounces over her birthweight, we no longer have to wake her up every 3 hours during the night for a feeding!

Here's a picture of Miss Molly after her appointment.

Baby has arrived!!!

2009-01-19T16:56:00.000-08:00

Molly Ann was born on January 15, 2009 at 3:37 a.m.

She weighed 8 lb 8 oz and was 20 inches long
She is SUCH a blessing!!!

Here are a couple of pictures

Still waiting

2009-01-12T10:09:00.003-08:00

We're still waiting on Baby S to make his/her big debut. Kaiser wants to know when he's going to meet his baby brother/sister?!

Update

2009-01-05T16:20:00.000-08:00

I went back to the doctor today. Things haven't progressed very much since my last visit. I am still dilated 1+ and have minimal effacement. Our official due date is this Saturday, January 10th. If I don't have the baby by then I will go back into the doctor next Monday and we will set a time for her to induce next week.
I'm a tad frustrated, but know that it's all in God's perfect timing. We can't wait to meet our sweet baby!!

Full Term?!

2008-12-20T06:37:00.000-08:00

Could it really be that Baby S is already considered full term? This brings so many mixed emotions! Excited, nervous, scared, anxious.....

I went to the doctor this past week and she said that it still looks like Baby S will make the big debut in January. But of course you just never know! We are definitely praying that it will be January.

I still have so many things to do around here to prepare for Baby's arrival. (Oh yeah, and Christmas too!) The good thing is that the last day of school was yesterday, so I have a little more time to get things done:)

Happy Weekend!!

I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream!!

2008-10-20T18:35:00.000-07:00

Last Thursday evening I had a craving for a dipped cone from Dairy Queen. Sweet Andrew offered to go get one for me. He pulls up to Dairy Queen around 8:00 and all of the outside lights are turned off. However, there are a few people inside. He proceeds to pull around to the drive thru and an employee comes on the speaker and tells him they're closed because there's been an accident. So Andrew calls me with the bad news and asks me what I'd like him to do. So, he goes down the street to McDonalds to get me a hot fudge sundae. He pulls up to their drive thru and places his order only to be told that their ice cream machine is broken! He then calls me again and I just ask him to go to our neighborhood grocery store and get some ice cream bars. Without hesitation he goes to the store and goes to the frozen food aisle, only to be stopped by Caution Tape and a sign that says "Frozen Aisle Closed"! He calls me back again and I ask him to go next door to the dollar store because they have a little ice cream freezer at the front. Andrew walks over to the dollar store and they lock the doors as he's walking up, 10 minutes before their closing time!! By now Andrew is laughing hysterically because he can't believe what is happening. Well, he gives it one last shot and goes to Sonic where my ice cream craving was finally fulfilled.

Needless to say, I have an absolutely AWESOME husband! Thanks Andrew for taking care of me and baby:)

Happy Birthday Andrew!

2008-09-06T19:58:00.000-07:00

Today is my amazing husband's birthday. I am so blessed to have such a wonderful man in my life. Happy Birthday Andrew...Love you!!

Happy Birthday!

2008-08-30T13:29:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday Kaiser! I can't believe that you are already 3 years old! You are such a sweet boy and have brought so much joy to our lives. We Love You!!!

16 weeks

2008-07-31T07:38:00.001-07:00

We just had our 16 week appointment with the doctor on Tuesday. Things are looking good!

Andrew & I finally got to hear the hearbeat! The doctor did find the heartbeat at our last appointment, but as soon as she found it the baby had moved. She said we have quite an active baby! Baby's heart was beating right where it should at 144 bpm.

I think I'm finally starting to get over the nausea! I still have to make myself eat about every 2 hours to prevent feeling sick, but it's getting better:) However, I definitely still have some major food aversions (and a lot of the aversions are to foods that I normally love!)

That's about all for now. We are headed to a family reunion this weekend, so I need to pack!

Hope everyone has a great day:)

Hunting Dog

2008-06-26T19:56:00.001-07:00

I am so grateful to have a husband who isn't afraid to get his hands dirty.

Yesterday evening we got home and went outside to see Kaiser. He ran up to us and then promptly went and hid in the bushes. When he came out a couple of blackbirds tried to divebomb him. We knew something wasn't right. He went back in the bushes and then we saw it, he had a bird. We've been through this before with a couple other birds, 2 bunnies, and numerous frogs and snakes. However, today I was feeling pretty nauseated (like most days lately)...so I was even less of a help to poor Andrew.

I grabbed the water hose and we chased Kaiser around the backyard for about 15 minutes. Andrew finally caught him and took care of the bird (while I went inside and tried not to throw-up).

Tonight we got home and Kaiser came in and played with us for awhile. Then he wanted to go out. I went to call my mom and Andrew came in to get the flashlight to let me know Kaiser had ANOTHER bird!!! Fortunately my sister was here so we were able to "corner" Kaiser quickly instead of chasing him all over the backyard.

I love my dog, but I sure wish he weren't so darn quick and such a "hunter".

Sibling for Kaiser

2008-06-14T07:13:00.000-07:00

We've been discussing whether or not to get Kaiser "a friend" for quite awhile. Sometimes we think he could really use a buddy.

Well, he's going to get "a friend" alright...just not a 4 legged one!

That's right, we're having a baby!!! I still feel like I'm dreaming. It all seems so surreal.

The baby is due January 10, 2009. We can't wait!!!

Seven Years!!!

2008-06-10T20:24:00.000-07:00

Andrew and I celebrated our 7 year wedding annivesary on June 2nd. I can't believe we've already been married 7 years! It seems like just yesterday we were walking down the aisle. I am so blessed to have married such a wonderful guy. Thanks Andrew for 7 wonderful years!!!

I thought I'd share a couple pictures from Our Day. (I apologize for the picture quality. Digital photography wasn't being used too much when we got married!)

Weed?

2008-05-03T18:41:00.000-07:00

Today I was out working in my yard when something strange caught my eye. Every year a dove builds a nest in this spot. I guess this year the dove decided to be creative by bringing over a weed from next door!

New York Pictures!

2008-04-13T20:45:00.000-07:00

The pictures are ready for viewing from our trip to New York! To view, click on the link below. Hope you enjoy!!!

New York trip pictures

Poor Guys

2008-03-30T20:29:00.000-07:00

This weekend has not been a fun one for our household. Both Andrew and Kaiser have been sick. (We actually had to take Kaiser to the emergency vet last night). I'm ready for my boys to feel better again!

We're back!

2008-03-23T18:20:00.000-07:00

We just got back last night from our trip to New York. We were sad to leave New York, but are very glad to be home and see Kaiser!!!

Today we have been resting, unpacking, going through mail, and doing tons of laundry.

We took lots of great pictures. Here are a couple until I have time to post all of the rest.

Hope everyone has a great week!!!

The Big Apple!

2008-02-26T20:32:00.000-08:00

I am so excited, in a few weeks we will be traveling to New York! I am so ready for us to get away for awhile. I'm sure many of you have been before, so any suggestions of places to go (or not to go) while we're there would be much appreciated:) We do already have plans for one evening. For my birthday, Andrew bought us tickets to see Legally Blonde on Broadway. I can't wait!!!

Hopefully I'll be well by the time we leave for our trip. I ended up feeling even worse this weekend. Not only did I still have a Viral Upper Respiratory Infection, but I also ended up with a middle ear infection and my eardrum ruptured! Needless to say I am SO ready to feel better!!!

I hope that everyone's having a good week and staying healthy!

Sick!

2008-02-20T20:14:00.000-08:00

I hate being sick....especially when it lasts several days.
I started feeling bad on Sunday night (sore throat, feverish and achiness), but went ahead to work and then to see my client's that evening. That night I started to feel worse.
Tuesday I went to work again but decided an hour into the day I better get to the doctor to make sure I didn't have strep or the flu (because several that work around me have recently had one or the other).
Good news is that I don't have either one. Bad news is that I have an Upper Respiratory Infection. Even worse news is that it's viral! So, Antiobiotics won't help me at all. Needless to say I'm a tad frustrated!
I'm keeping hydrated, taking pain killers, and trying to get some rest. I know it sounds crazy, but I kind of wish it was bacterial so I could take some medicine to make me feel better!
Here's to hoping (and praying) I wake up feeling like a new person tomorrow morning!

Oh Christmas Tree! (part 2)

2008-01-06T12:59:00.001-08:00

I know Christmas is over, but I thought I'd go ahead and do my 2nd annual Christmas ornament post. Better late than never, right??

As most of you know, the ornaments on our Christmas tree all hold special meaning to us. I love unpacking all of them and remembering special moments in our lives. Here are a few more ornaments from our tree.

This Precious Moments ornament was given to me by parents when I was in high school. I twirled flags in the marching band and played the flute in the concert band.

This ornament was given to me and Andrew by my mom and dad. They gave it to us in 1999 when we got engaged!

This ornament was given to me and Andrew by one of my cousins as a wedding gift. She made these crosses while she was fighting breast cancer. Each time I see it I think of her and the wonderful time she must be having in heaven!

Andrew and I bought this ornament in London. We took a trip there March of 2005. We would love to go back!

Andrew and I bought this ornament at the Pike Place Market in Seattle, Washington June 2006. We stayed in Seattle for a couple days before getting on our cruise ship to Alaska.

I hope that each of you had a wonderful Christmas and are having a great New Year!

Surprise! Happy Birthday, MissSpeech!

2007-12-12T13:41:00.001-08:00

Kaiser and I wanted everyone to know that today was, in fact, MissSpeech's Birthday! We also wanted to take the opportunity to thank her for all she does for us, and for the love she shows us everyday. She's a wonderful wife and mommy. Happy birthday, Sheh!

A and K

PS: Gifts and donations in all denominations are being accepted throughout the month of December. Give early, give often!

Christmas Questions

2007-12-01T20:46:00.000-08:00

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? Wrapping paper for the majority of gifts

2. Real tree or artificial? Artificial (I'm allergic to real)

3. When do you put up the tree? After December 12th (Andrew has carried on my parents tradition of waiting until after my birthday)

4. When do you take the tree down? Usually around New Years

5. Do you like eggnog? No

6. Favorite gift received as a child? I loved receiving a Barbie or doll each year

7. Do you have a nativity scene? Yes, several!

8. Hardest person to buy for? Probably my dad

9. Easiest person to buy for? Kaiser

10. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? Don't know that I really have one

11. Mail or email Christmas cards? Mail

12. Favorite Christmas Movie? National Lampoons Christmas Vacation

13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? I shop for Christmas year round-LOVE finding good deals!

14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? Probably

15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? Christmas cookies

16. Clear lights or colored on the tree? Colored

17. Favorite Christmas song? I like several, one of my favorites is Carol of the Bells

18. Travel at Christmas or stay home? Stay home or go over to my parents or grandparents house (they live close by:)

19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer? I always forget 1 or 2

20. Angel on the tree top or a star? Airplane

21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning? Andrew & I exchange presents on Christmas Eve then we open presents with my parents and sister Christmas morning

22. Most annoying thing about this time of year? Greed

23. What I love most about Christmas? Getting to see family

I look forward to seeing others answers!

Clean!

2007-11-30T20:26:00.001-08:00

One of my absolute favorite cleaning tools is the Mr. Clean Magic Eraser. I use them all the time and love them!

Today at Wal-Mart I noticed that they have their own brand of "magic erasers" and I also saw that Target has their own brand as well (although I most likely won't be shopping there after Corrie's experience.) Both of these were significantly less expensive than the Mr. Clean erasers.

So, was wondering if anybody had used the Wal-Mart or Target "magic erasers" and if you have what you think of them?

Thanks for your input!

Fun Times!

2007-10-08T20:22:00.000-07:00

Last weekend we headed up the interstate to Dallas for some good fun. It was great to get away and play (even if it was only for a day).

First we went to see the Broadway Musical The Lion King. It was absolutely amazing. If you like the movie then you will LOVE the musical. I would definitely recommend it!!!

While we were at Dallas Fair Park we went to the largest state fair in the United States- the State Fair of Texas.

(I have to apologize for the quality of the pictures. We forgot our camera, so these were taken with our camera phone.)

This guy to the left is Big Tex. He wears size 70 boots and a 75-gallon hat and towers 52' above wide-eyed visitors. He made his debut at the State Fair in 1952. Big Tex welcomes visitors to the State Fair with his deep southern accent.

To the right is the famous Texas Star. It is the largest Ferris Wheel in North America. The Ferris Wheel has 44 gondolas that hold 264 riders.

The State Fair is known for introducing very unique foods. While at the fair we thought we'd try one of them. To the left is a Fried Coke. Andrew and I split it, but still weren't able to finish it. It was too sweet!!

Speech

2007-09-24T19:58:00.000-07:00

Your Linguistic Profile:

70% General American English

20% Dixie

5% Yankee

0% Midwestern

0% Upper Midwestern

What Kind of American English Do You Speak?

Interesting little quiz. I'm still not sure how I have 5% Yankee Speech....

The Big 30!!!

2007-09-06T10:17:00.000-07:00

Today is Andrew's 30th birthday! In honor of him, I thought I'd share 30 things I love about him (in no particular order).

Great cook
Laid Back
Handyman
Great daddy to Kaiser
Loves God
Handsome
Happy
Computer Genius
Makes me Laugh
Would follow me home when we were dating to make sure I made it safely
Takes care of me when I’m sick
He’s a walking encyclopedia
Makes sure that our lawn always looks great
Loves to read
Loves to laugh
Calls or e-mails to check on me during the day
He’s great at finding things I’ve misplaced
Loves me unconditionally
Wakes me up every morning
He encourages me to spend time with my friends
Gives very thoughtful gifts
Brings lunch to me
His commitment to our family being totally debt-free
Loves to travel
Helps around the house
Encourages my hobbies
Never forgets a special occasion
Good listener
Gives good advice
He is my best friend

Happy Birthday! I Love You!!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

2007-08-30T18:20:00.000-07:00

Today is Kaiser's 2nd Birthday! He is such a sweet and loving dog. Kaiser is also a great hunter. He has caught a dove, 2 rabbits, a frog, and about a thousand snakes in our backyard. The 1st picture is of Kaiser is when he was about 6 weeks old and the 2nd picture of Kaiser was taken today. Happy Birthday Kaiser!!

Creepy

2007-06-20T20:23:00.000-07:00

Last week I had the "honor" of being called in for jury duty. I arrived at the courthouse Monday morning at 8:15 a.m. and was sent to one of the courtrooms (along with about 50 other jurors) to wait for a courtroom assignment. While waiting over an hour and a half for our assignment, a very creepy looking guy walked into the courtroom (think Edward Scissorhands). He walked to the bailiff's area in the back corner. He looked around the bailiff's area as if he was in search of something. A lady behind me commented that he must work there. I thought to myself there was no way, but didn't say anything. Fast forward to Monday evening. I was at home listening to the evening news while doing paperwork. The top story on the news was about a defendant in a trial who had run away from the courthouse Monday morning during a smoke break. I look up at the TV and it's a picture of the creepy looking guy! A warrant had been put out for his arrest for running away from his trial. I still wonder what he was looking for in the bailiff's area. Was he looking to see if there was some sort of weapon? Pretty scary!

Frustrated!

2007-06-04T15:49:00.000-07:00

I'm in need of advice from you fellow bloggers.

I am looking for suggestions on how to remove a rust stain (left from the bottom of a can of shave gel) on the side of our bathtub. I have tried scrubbing bubbles, magic eraser, elbow grease, etc. and I can't get the darn stain off!

Any suggestions??

Thanks!!!

School's Out For The Summer!!

2007-05-30T18:53:00.000-07:00

It has been far too long since I last posted, so I thought I'd do a "catch up" post with some pictures.

Let's see, where do I begin?

I guess with the snow we had here the day before Easter. Here's a picture that was taken when it began snowing.

This picture was taken after it had been snowing for about 4 hours!

Easter Sunday we went to our neighbor's church as they dedicated their daughter Anna. She is such a precious baby! (that's her big brother Ethan in the adorable suit!)

Easter night we had our annual Easter egg hunt. Andrew & Kaiser decided that an Easter basket was "too girlie", so they decided to use a shotgun shell bag instead. Very creative!

We had "graduation" at the beginning of May for the Dave Ramsey class we taught. It was so neat to hear testimonies from different class members. What a blessing!!

We headed up to Flowermound on Memorial Day to attend my cousin's high school graduation. 671 graduates in 1 hour and 45 minutes. Pretty impressive!

Congratulations Brett!!

And...School's Out For The Summer! I'm so excited to have a little break. No exciting trips planned. I'm going to work full time doing speech therapy with the company I do contract with during the school year. Andrew & I are also going to teach another round of Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University. Hope everyones summer is off to a great start!

Prayer Request

2007-05-01T09:13:00.000-07:00

I'd like to ask for prayer for my dad. He is currently a manager for a pharmaceutical company. He recently found out that he (his 13 reps, and several hundered other employees) will be losing their jobs sometime this month (due to 2 companies merging). He has worked in the pharmaceutical industry for almost 30 years and is only a few years away from retiring.

Please pray for peace for my mom and dad during this stressful time and that the Lord will provide my dad with a job.

Thanks!

Not good!

2007-03-19T09:33:00.000-07:00

I'm sure most of you have already heard about this, but wanted to share in case you haven't....

Menu Foods is recalling 60 million cans and pouches of certain "cuts and gravy" style dog and cat food products. At least 10 pet deaths have been linked to the recall, and the affected food may have contributed to kidney failure in many other cats and dogs. For a full list of recalled items you can visit their website http://www.menufoods.com/recall/.

Girl Time!

2007-03-18T19:58:00.000-07:00

This past weekend I had the honor of attending the Women Of Faith National Conference in San Antonio with my sweet friend Mary. She was able to get us free tickets (which were supposed to be $150 each) to the conference. It was incredible! The conference was held at the AlamoDome (which is HUGE!) 15,000 women attended the conference. We were able to hear some incredible speakers and musicians at the conference. A few of the speakers were Robin McGraw (Dr. Phil's wife), Sherri Shepherd (actress), and Luci Swindoll (Chuck Swindoll's sister). Sandi Patty, Nicole C. Mullen, & Kathy Troccoli all provided fabulous music. There was also a Christian stand up comedian named Chonda Pierce.

The fun didn't stop there. We also received passes to go "backstage" to a meet & greet. We got to meet and visit with Sandi Patty. She has been one of my favorite artists since I was in elementary school, so it was quite an honor to meet her. She gave us a signed copy of her new CD which is coming out in April.

If you haven't attended a Women of Faith Conference before, I would highly recommend it.

Thanks again Mary!!

What's the deal?

2007-03-04T18:44:00.000-08:00

I'm a bit confused recently with the USPostal Service. You see, every Saturday morning since June I have mailed off paperwork to my company in Dallas. I have always sent my paperwork First Class and have never had a problem. The company I work for has to receive my paperwork by Tuesday so they can bill for the therapy I did. My papework has always been received by Tuesday, sometimes even by Monday. Well, my paperwork hasn't arrived by Tuesday the last three weeks. It hasn't even arrived Wednesday or Thursday. It's arrived on Friday! Why oh why? Needless to say I was a bit confused and frustrated. So, yesterday morning I went up to our local post office to see if they could help me out. Unfortunately the ladies behind the counter had no answers for me. The interesting thing was that they both said they are receiving their paychecks 5-10 days later than usual and this has just started occurring over the last few weeks (and the paychecks are still mailed the same date they always are). So, I now have to pay $4.05 to mail off my paperwork (which used to cost me $.87). That's $165.36 more each year I have to pay!

Anyone else having issues like this?

Mmmmm, soup!

2007-01-30T09:08:00.000-08:00

I have had several requests to post my recipe for chicken enchilada soup. So, here it is!

CHICKEN ENCHILADA SOUP

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 lb. of chicken breast fillets (approx. 3 fillets)
1/2 cup diced onion
1 clove garlic, pressed
4 cups chicken broth
1 cup masa harina (flour found in baking section of stores)
3 cups water
1 cup enchilada sauce
16 ounces Velveeta
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon cumin

Add 1 tablespoon of oil to a large pot over medium heat. Add chicken breasts to pot and brown for 4-5 minutes per side. Set chicken aside.
Add onions and garlic to pot and sauté over medium heat for about 2 minutes, or until onions begin to become translucent. Add chicken broth.
Combine masa harina with 2 cups of water in a medium bowl and whisk until blended. Add masa mixture to pot with onions, garlic and broth.
Add remaining water, enchilada sauce, cheese and spices to pot and bring mixture to a boil.
Shred the chicken into small, bite-size pieces and add it to the pot. Reduce heat and simmer soup for 30-40 minutes or until thick.
Serve soup in cups or bowls, and garnish with shredded cheddar cheese, crumbled corn tortilla chips, and pico de gallo.

ENJOY:)

Baby Anna

2007-01-29T20:06:00.000-08:00

Congratulations to our precious friends Mark & Nikki on the birth of their daughter and to Ethan on becoming a big brother!!

Anna Fay
Born January 20, 2007
At 5:52 a.m.
6 Pounds 11 Ounces
20 Inches

Sweet Baby Anna

Proud Big Brother!

Yeah Sunshine!

2007-01-18T20:20:00.000-08:00

It was so nice to see the sunshine today:) As you can tell I wasn't the only one excited about the sunshine.

Baby It's Cold Outside!

2007-01-17T09:00:00.000-08:00

No school today. Yahoo! Well, maybe not. I'm already dreading having to make up the missed day the Monday after Easter. Boo!

Slippery sidewalk

Don't think Andrew's going anywhere quickly today

Kaiser keeping warm under his blankie

Christmas

2007-01-14T19:02:00.000-08:00

Things have been super busy since Christmas, so I haven't had a chance to share. Sorry about that!
We had a wonderful Christmas. Thought I'd share a few pictures...

Christmas Eve morning my sister sang at a local church. She is so incredibly talented!

We made a mistake with Kaiser. Christmas Eve we taught him how to unwrap on of his presents. Well, apparently he had a great time because he decided to start unwrapping other gifts under the tree. He never bothered the gifts (except to hide behind them) until then. Oh well, that's what we get for teaching him to unwrap a present. Hopefully he'll forget how before next Christmas! (somehow I doubt it).

Here's Kaiser with one of his gifts. An embroidered LLBean bag from his grandparents. Fancy huh?

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

Oh Christmas Tree

2006-12-16T20:22:00.000-08:00

Our Christmas tree is now up! My parents always had a tradition of waiting until after December 12th (my birthday) to put up our Christmas tree. They wanted to make sure that Christmas didn't overshadow my birthday. My sweet husband has carried on this tradition. Thanks mom, dad, & Andrew!

The ornaments on our tree are very sentimental to me. I thought I'd share a few of them.

I made this bell in 1983 when I was in Speech Therapy at Baylor. Who would have known that I would end up becoming a Speech Pathologist! The graduate student who was my Speech Therapist is now my boss. Small world!

My parents bought this ornament for me this year I got my first dog (1993). She was a miniature dachshund named Lady. Lady was the most loving dog. Sure do miss her!

My great grandmother (Muh) gave me this ornament her last Christmas with us (1999). She was the most caring woman. Miss you Muh!

My parents gave Andrew & I this ornament for our first "Married Christmas" (2001). What a special year for us!

This ornament was given to us by my parents. They gave it to us for the first Christmas in our new home (2004).

Kaiser's grandparents gave him this ornament for his first birthday back in August. They bought it for him on our cruise to Alaska this past summer.

We have a couple new additions to our tree this year.

Did anyone notice our tree topper? Yes, it's an airplane. My husband (the avid airplane collector/builder) decided that this would be the absolute perfect tree topper.

We have a new tree skirt! Andrew's mom made this beautiful tree skirt for us. It has moose walking through the forest. Most of you know, but my husband is the "Great Moose", so moose is a big deal to us.

That's just a few of the special touches on our Christmas tree. Would love to hear about each of yours!

Turkey Day

2006-11-23T08:08:00.000-08:00

Happy Thanksgiving! May you enjoy a day of great food, relaxation, family, and friends.

Shoeboxes

2006-11-11T20:20:00.000-08:00

It's that time of year again. Ah yes, the time of year when my dining room is filled with shoeboxes. No, I'm not building my shoe collection. I'm packing shoeboxes for Operation Christmas Child. This is something I look forward to all year long. I start buying fun stuff to fill the shoeboxes with right after Christmas and then throughout the year when I find great deals. The pictures that are sent back showing the faces of children when they receive their shoeboxes are absolutely priceless. It really makes me grateful for all that the Lord has blessed me with!

Happy Birthday!!

2006-09-06T19:30:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday to my wonderful husband!!!

Love you honey!!!

I have a 1 year old!

2006-08-30T18:53:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday To You

Happy Birthday Dear Kaiser

Happy Birthday To You!!

Not again!!!

2006-07-26T15:03:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I was on my way home from work for a quick lunch break when my car starting making a horrible sound. Low and behold I had another flat tire!!!! This is my4th (or is it 5th?) within the past 10 months and my 2nd within a week and a half. I pulled over into the Genie and got out to inspect the tire. It had a hole in it and the air was coming out really fast. The tire was almost completely flat. I called Andrew to try and figure out what to do. He told me he'd come put on my spare, but I really hated for him to have to leave work and come help me out (especially when I was only 5 minutes away from home.) So I'm sitting in my car asking God for help (I was nowhere near a gas station). I look over to the left and see that Genie had a FREE air machine! So I aired up my tire (which immediately begin losing air) and drove home. I pulled into my driveway and the tire was once again almost completely flat. I called the tire company I had ordered my new tires from last week and they told me they had just come in! I told them what had happened, so they sent one of their service trucks out and they fixed my tire so I could make it downtown to their shop. They were so great to me. They immediately began working on my car when I got there and had it finished within an hour. When I went to pay they wouldn't charge me for the service truck coming to my house. Thank you God for protecting me today and for blessing me with the help of such wonderful people!

The Joys of owning a home!

2006-07-23T21:10:00.000-07:00

Things have been busy around here lately. I've been doing contract work with a therapy company, Andrew's been working hard at Baylor, and we've been doing some home projects.
One of the home projects we've been working on is redoing the walls in our master bathroom. While taking the lovely floral wallpaper off the walls (I hate taking wallpaper off walls!), we found water damage on our wall from our shower. We knew that our shower had leaked and caused damage to the floor in the master bathroom and living room, but we had no idea it had caused damage to the wall. So, we have to put our project on hold until someone from the insurance company comes out. I'm so glad we have another bathroom! (ours is SO ugly right now!)

Pictures

2006-07-08T08:15:00.000-07:00

The pictures from our Alaskan cruise are ready!

Let me know what you think:)

Alaskan cruise pictures

We're Home!

2006-06-26T19:42:00.000-07:00

Our great Alaskan adventure has come to an end. We had a GREAT time and the weather was absolutely perfect!! We got home this afternoon around 3:30, dropped off our bags and went to pick up Kaiser at his grandparents house. We were so excited to see him!

Today has been a really long day. We left our hotel at 5:00 a.m. to head to the airport. Needless to say, we're pretty darn tired.

We have no food, our grass is really tall and we have two suitcases full of dirty clothes. So, I guess I better go start working. I'll post details about the trip and pictures soon!

Hello from Seattle!

2006-06-17T21:12:00.000-07:00

Well, we made it safely to Seattle. We've had a great day here seeing lots of sights. We went to the Pike Fish Market, the Boardwalk, original Starbucks, and the Space Needle. The weather up here is absolutely beautiful! It's about 9:00 p.m., but the sun is still up (and has been since 5:00 a.m.)! We board our ship tomorrow at 1:00 p.m. and then set sail at 4:00 p.m. Will try to write again if I can get onto a computer whose fee won't break the bank!

Vacation Time!

2006-06-15T22:16:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow is the day! We leave for our cruise to Alaska tomorrow afternoon. Our suitcases are all packed and ready to go. We just need to mow the lawn tomorrow so it's not eight feet tall when we get back and take Kaiser to his grandparents house. Nice cool weather, here we come!!

Fun Weekend

2006-06-11T19:11:00.000-07:00

This was a fun and busy weekend. My sister Jodie flew into Waco from Nashville, TN Friday night. So we met up with her and my parents for a late dinner. Saturday we went to a friend's wedding and reception. Jodie sang at the reception. (She sang At Last). She has a beautiful voice! Sunday we went to church then we had all of my family over for lunch to celebrate Father's Day (since Jodie will be back in Nashville and we'll be in Alaska on the actual Father's Day). After lunch we had a good visit with my family (parents, sister, and grandparents). Before we knew it, it was time to take Jodie back to the airport and say goodbye. It was a quick trip for her. It's always sad to tell her goodbye!

Five Years!!

2006-06-03T09:59:00.000-07:00

Yesterday Andrew & I celebrated our 5 year wedding anniversary! We were married on Saturday, June 2, 2001 at 4:00 in the afternoon. It seems like just yesterday I was walking down the aisle...

For our anniversary, Andrew surprised me with a beautiful blue topaz ring with diamonds.

I am so blessed to have such a wonderful husband:) Love you babes!

Tubes!

2006-05-29T15:54:00.000-07:00

Because of the allergies I have suffered from the last several months, I now have the privilege of having surgery tomorrow. I have to have tubes put in my ears! This is the first time in my life I have ever needed tubes. I never imagined I would be going through this in my late 20s! My ENT (ear, nose, and throat doctor) said I should feel instant relief. I hope that instant relief is what I feel and not the poking of a hole through my eardrum!

My surgery is scheduled for 10 a.m. tomorrow. I appreciate your prayers:)

Happy Mothers Day!

2006-05-14T08:38:00.001-07:00

To my mom...
who almost died just to have me
who gave up her career to stay at home with me
who stayed up countless nights helping me with schoolwork
who came to every one of my basketball games
who came to every one of my band shows
who came to every one of my piano recitals
who came to every one of my softball games
who prayed over me every night as she tucked me into bed
who was always there for me when I needed her

Thank You for being the best mother a girl could ever have. I LOVE YOU!!

Congratulations!

2006-05-07T16:56:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to our sweet friends Adam & Sarah Guess on the birth of their baby boy, Thomas Andrew Guess
Born May 4, 2006

He's precious!!

Stuff

2006-05-04T19:48:00.000-07:00

No, you're not looking at an explosion. This is just some of the stuff that we (and a few others) will be trying to sell tomorrow and Saturday at our annual garage sale. Last year it was a great success. We are hoping it will be this year too. Now, if the rain will just hold off during the day we'll have it made.

Come by and see us. We'll be starting at 7 a.m. Friday and Saturday!!

Flat Tire!!

2006-04-24T09:23:00.000-07:00

Yesterday evening we got a phone call from our neighbor. He called to inform me that I had a flat tire. Oh boy, just what I needed! So last night when we got home Andrew & I went out to "inspect" the tire. Sure enough, it was flat as a pancake because of a huge nail in it. So my sweet husband aired the tire up for me and I went to get it fixed on the way to work this morning. I sure do hope that my week improves!

First Words

2006-04-23T14:50:00.000-07:00

I'm sitting here watching my sweet husband play with our cutie dog Kaiser. Andrew's trying to get Kaiser to "speak" (bark). When Kaiser does speak we clap, cheer, and tell him "good boy". Kaiser has always been a very quiet dog, so we get a thrill any time that he barks. Andrew & I often ask each other if we are crazy because we want our dog to bark. We may be, but a big smile always comes across our faces each time that he speaks.

Kaiser

2006-04-14T14:17:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to introduce my precious boy. This is Kaiser. The first picture is the day we brought him home in October. He was only 2 pounds!!!!

This picture is a "current" one of Kaiser. He is now a little over 7 months, weighs 11 pounds and has more energy than any creature I have ever seen!

Welcome!

2006-04-14T08:08:00.000-07:00

Well, I'm finally giving in to the blogging world (thanks to my husband's encouragement). Do I really have important things to share? I'm not sure, but I will try my best to come up with something interesting. So, welcome to Tales from Miss Speech. Hope you enjoy!