posted a day late

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY FAVORITE POODLE!

You're amazing!

I'm so proud to have you for a daughter.

Thanks for running St. George with me, even though you beat me

by more than an hour! You rock!

Love you!

Congratulations!

Congratulations to Ashley and Landon.
We're so excited for you.
You make a great couple!

Thanksgiving 2011

I can't believe another Thanksgiving has come and gone. It seems like just yesterday we were in Mexico inviting the missionaries over for Thanksgiving dinner in the evening, because it was just a regular day for everyone else in Mexico, pretending that nopales (cactus) were green beans, and missing our family.

This year was very low-key. We made several attempts to lure some company over for dinner, and were not successful. (Apparently they hadn't heard about our one pie per person rule) Lucky for us, the Harpers stayed in town and we had a great day with them.

Apparently, I haven't adjusted to cooking for less than a crowd, because we ended up with a 20 lb turkey, tons of stuffing (best ever recipe from Emeril) dad's potatoes, rolls, and five pies (actually exceeded our one pie per person rule.) The Harpers are going to be eating a lot of leftovers this week.
We're so grateful for family, church, employment, friends, and good health. Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

Renaissance Festival 2011

After living in Houston for 19 years (altogether, not in sequence) we (I) decided to try a new adventure and go to the annual Renaissance Festival, an event that is hosted every fall for approximately one month in North Houston. It is quite the festive occasion, with people dressing up in authentic costumes, recreating the atmosphere from the Renaissance.

It draws HUGE crowds, as we discovered. I talked the Harpers into going with me (I had free tickets, which was a draw.) What we saved in admission cost, however, we more than made up for in gas. It took me almost three hours to get there, almost two hours of it on one stretch of road to get to the parking for the event. They were very good sports about the long drive.

We had a fun afternoon admiring the interesting characters we encountered.




We ate authentic Renaissance food (at least that's what they called it.)

And we watched a reenactment of a joust.
One of the fun events offered was an elephant ride, which Violet especially enjoyed.Until the elephant tried to grab her off the fence.
We had a great day, in spite of the long drive and the aggressive elephant. Thanks, Harpers for coming along so dad could stay home and write his talk.

11.11.11

So grateful to live in the beautiful United States of America

Land of the Free. Home of the Brave

Many thanks to our dedicated troops who keep it that way.

Veterans Day 2011

I Phone (my phone)

Do I have the best husband in the world?
Why, yes! Yes I do. Thanks for asking.
Perhaps that begs the question - Why is he the best?
Well among other things that I won't mention, he bought me a new iPhone 4S
Or as I call it - TECHNOLOGY FOR DUMMIES
Amazing!

Thanks, sweetie! You're the best!