Monica and Matt are getting married!

My little sister, Monica, and her fiance Matt are getting married in October.  I've mentioned this very briefly in a past post, but the time has come to write just about them!  This engagement has been a long time coming, and our family was overjoyed when Monica and Matt finally got engaged.  They met in Lubbock about 4 and a half years ago when they were both working at Cricket's.  Matt had just moved to Lubbock from Nashville, and Monica was at Tech.  Their relationship has been so fun to see grow and change over the last 4 years, but even more so over the last year and a half since they've been back in Dallas.  They got engaged at the end of August, and the planning has begun!  I absolutely can't wait for October to get here so we can celebrate them in such a big way!

Monica has 6 bridesmaids, including Adelina and me.  We are her Matrons of Honor, and it is so fun to be a MOH!  This past October, Monica had this wonderful plan for asking Adelina and me to stand by her on her wedding day.  However, things didn't go according to plan.  We were on our way to San Antonio, and Monica's plan was to ask us in the car as we drove along a stretch of 35 that is almost to the exit we always took to get to my grandparents' house.  We would always start chanting, "We're almost there!" as we saw a chain link fence that let us know that we wouldn't be in the car much longer.  Monica was going to start this chant as we got closer to San Antonio, and naturally, Adelina and I would join in.  Then, she was going to ask us to be her Matrons of Honor.  It was such a good plan!  About half way to San Antonio, Monica found out that we were going to be exiting before we got to San Antonio so we could stop by my cousin's house.  So, Monica thought that she would start her chant when we exited.  Adelina and I did a great job of ruining her plan by being crabby and telling her that we weren't almost there.  So,  Monica let us know her plan and asked us to be her MOHs in the car on a random street.  We are so sorry we ruined your plan, but we can't wait to stand by you!

Yesterday, Monica's 4 other bridesmaids gave a wonderful engagement party for Monica and Matt.  We had a great time, starting all the fun celebrations to come in the next few months!  Matt has 2 nephews, Rustin and Travis, that he is very close with.  They live in Lubbock, and they came to Dallas this weekend to celebrate!  I'm so glad they were able to be here!  We had delicious food and desserts, and the wine was great too!  It was such a blessing to be with so many people that love Monica and Matt and can't wait to celebrate them!  I've included some pictures from the night.  Thank you Mary, Sarah, Megan, and Heather for hosting such an awesome party!  Thank you, Bobers, for opening your home to us!

Monica and Matt

Sarah, Heather, Monica, Mary, and Megan

Matt, Rustin, and Travis

Rustin and his girlfriend, Dani

Happy New Year!

I hope you had a wonderful New Year's Eve and that 2012 has started off well for you!  Aaron and I went to Sharon's cousin's house just south of Sherman, and it was so relaxing!  We've gone up there for the last few years, and it is so fun for us.  The year has started off well, and we've done nothing all day!  Aaron and I are going back to work tomorrow, so we wanted to just lay around today.  I made sure that all my grades were done before I left for the break.  I finished all my cleaning and laundry by the time we left our house yesterday.  Today, I've been anything but productive.  I'd say it's a good start!

I must say, 2011 was a good year for us, and I'm hopeful that 2012 is just as great, if not better.  I haven't mentioned before that my sister is engaged, but she is, and her wedding is just 9 months away!  I pray for many blessings for Monica and Matt as they prepare to be married.  I know that their wedding is going to be wonderful, and I pray that the planning continues to be fun and relatively stress-free!  I pray that Claire continues to grow as a healthy, happy baby girl.  She is so much fun, and I love watching her personality blossom a little more each time I see her.  I pray that Aaron and I are blessed with health and happiness.  I look forward to the things that God has in store for us.  I pray that your 2012 is blessed.  May you have a wonderful year!

Happy Birthday, Sharon!

After our Christmas festivities, we celebrated Sharon's birthday! Sharon's birthday is December 25, and her birthday is always celebrated in the evening.

I'm very thankful for Sharon and the wonderful mother and mother-in-law that she is. She is a wonderful example of a wife, loving Sammy so well. She is a caring, giving person. She always puts others first and is very selfless. Sharon shows her love by giving to others and doing for others. She is one of the most generous people that I know. I am so thankful for her and all that she does for Aaron and me. Happy birthday, Sharon! I hope this day was filled with joy for you!

Merry Christmas!

As I said before, I love Christmas and all the things that come with Christmas. I love spending time with family for Christmas, especially since our family has grown so much. My family's tradition has always been to go to San Antonio for Christmas. We spend Christmas Eve eating tamales, menudo (which I don't eat), and KFC. The KFC tradition started with my grandpa when my cousins, sisters, and I were little. We wouldn't eat the tamales, so my grandpa would get us KFC. My uncle continues that tradition still. Aaron and I went to San Antonio yesterday. We rode down with Monica and Matt. The whole family, which has grown this year with Claire and Scarlett, got together at my aunt's house for Christmas Eve. It was so much fun, and I loved meeting Scarlett! This morning, Aaron and I flew back to Dallas to spend Christmas with his family. It was a wonderful day! I hope your Christmas was as wonderful as mine! I hope you celebrated the birth of Jesus with people that you love! Merry Christmas!

Two Projects in One Day... This is a Record!

The last day of school was Friday, so I took it upon myself to really take it easy yesterday.  I took a shower at some point yesterday morning, but I never dried my hair or put on makeup.  I love days like that.  I finally ventured out right before the massive downpour to finish up the last of my Christmas shopping.  One of my stops was Hobby Lobby, so I picked up a styrofoam floral wreath and some yarn.  Last year I had a hard time finding a wreath that I really liked for the winter months after Christmas.  I finally found a wreath that I liked, but it's more of a springtime wreath.  I decided that I would just make my own wreath this year.

This morning, after my shower, I decided to finally be productive.  But I wasn't in the mood to start cleaning my house or getting anything on my list done, so I made my wreath instead.  The yarn is light blue and white.  I bought the 'A' at Hobby Lobby and painted it white.  Total time for the wreath was probably 2 or 2 1/2 hours.  I finally have a wreath I love for January!  This wreath also cost me maybe $20 total, but probably a little less.  All I needed was the styrofoam wreath, hot glue gun, yarn, wooden letter, and some paint!

A work in progress...

The finished product!

Since this wreath was so easy, I decided to go ahead and make one for February too!  I got this styrofoam wreath, wooden hearts, and yarn from Michael's since I needed to go to Target and it was next door.  I made this wreath the same way, and painted these hearts.  This also cost me probably less than $20 to make.

Valentine's Day Wreath

I made both of these wreaths and managed to cross everything off my list for today!  Maybe one of these days I'll actually take a break when I'm on break from school, just not yet!

Christmas Cheer

Christmas is hands down my favorite time of the year.  We have gotten to celebrate with friends and family, and Christmas hasn't even arrived yet!

On Wednesday, Aaron and I had plans to look at lights from the comfort of a limo with our sweet friends Courtney and Marc, Andrea and Chris, and Stacey and Jay.  However, Baby Dane couldn't wait to make his appearance in the world.  Courtney came to work on Tuesday morning, but left not long after to head to the hospital.  Instead of a limo and lights, we headed to the hospital on Wednesday to meet sweet Dane and take dinner to Courtney and Marc.  Dane is a sweet, precious baby, and I loved every minute of getting to meet him and hold him.  He's a little thing, and I love him!  It was definitely better than looking at lights!

On Thursday, the Everitt/BitsyBug/LPR Christmas Party was at the Bowlin's house.  Stephanie's brother, Sean, cooked for us.  Dinner was delicious!  Sean is a chef at Fearing's at the Ritz-Carlton.  He can cook!  One of the best parts of the Everitt Christmas Party is always the Secret Santa exchange.  Everyone is required to wrap the gift they are giving so that the recipient is very obvious.  It's always pretty funny, and I like to see how the person who gave to Aaron wraps his gift.  This year, Aaron's gift was wrapped in red paper with Buddy Holly glasses on it.  The glasses had tape around them.  It was too funny for two reasons.  Aaron is a little bit of a nerd, and before he got new glasses, he held his together with tape.

Yesterday Aaron and I celebrated Christmas with my mom, dad, Monica, Matt, Adelina, Reed, and Claire.  We always go to San Antonio to spend Christmas with my mom's family.  A few years ago we realized that it was better to open gifts together here instead of taking them all to San Antonio with us.  We ate tamales and opened our gifts.  I love spending this time with my family.

Merry Christmas, Sweet Claire!

 

Monica, Adelina, and I are in charge of desserts for Christmas Eve, so we'll be baking on Thursday.  This is our second year to make the desserts.  We'll be baking several different desserts, but no sugar cookies.  We burned them last year, and by the time they were ready to be decorated, we were ready to be done!  Aaron and I will be going to San Antonio on Christmas Eve, and we'll fly back to Dallas Christmas Day to spend the day with Aaron's family and celebrate Sharon's birthday!

Thankful

Thanksgiving came and went without a hitch!  I am thankful for so many things this year, I know I can't list all of them.

Aaron and I hosted Thanksgiving at our house for the first time.  I am thankful that we have a home that allowed us space for 16 people to gather and spend time together.  I am thankful that we only had to do Thanksgiving once this year since both of our families are in Dallas.  Normally, we spend part of the day with my family wherever they are, then the other part of the day with the Arnolds.  Our first Thanksgiving was spent at the hospital with the Arnolds because Brian was having surgery.  This year, I am thankful that everyone is healthy and doing well.

I am thankful for our families.  I love my sisters, and I was so sad not to spend Thanksgiving with them this year.  Adelina, Reed, and Claire spent Thanksgiving with Reed's family.  Monica and Matt headed to Lubbock to spend Thanksgiving with Matt's family.  I am thankful that my sisters have these wonderful families that they enjoy spending time with.  I am thankful for Brian and how much fun we have with him.  Since he no longer lives with Sammy and Sharon, we don't see him as much, but we always have a good time with him!  I am thankful for Claire, and for the joy that she brings to our family.  Adelina sent me a video of Claire laughing so hard at Reed making noises.  It was the most precious sound, and I loved hearing her laugh.  I am thankful for my parents and Sammy and Sharon.  Both my parents and Aaron's parents have been married for 33 years.  We are so blessed to have parents that show us how marriage works, and that it is not always easy, but it is so worth it to work through the tough times.

I am thankful that Aaron and I have jobs that allows us to have a home, our cars, and enjoy the things we love!  I am especially thankful that my job allows me to have a week of rest at Thanksgiving.  It has been a wonderful week, and I am a little sad to see it end.

Last, but absolutely not least, I am thankful for my little family.  Aaron is the best husband, and I could not have asked for more.  He is kind and caring, and a wonderful chef!  Brody and Lily are sweet animals, and they bring us so much laughter on nights when we are just sitting around.  I am beyond thankful for the many blessings God has given me.

I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving, and ate well!