Weekend at St. Simon's Island

The weekend of March 20th, Josh and I headed for St. Simon's Island in the hopes of having a relaxing and romantic weekend. We were given a free weekend at the King and Prince beach resort and we were just excited to get away just the two of us. Our hopes of a romantic weekend were quickly dashed! When word got out that we were in the area our romantic weekend quickly turned into a family weekend. I really can't complain - we really do have a such a loving and supportive family. I just wanted to share some pictures of our family...

(l-r: me, Joshua, Aunt Joanne, Kansas, Josh, Caleb, and Uncle Phil)

These wonderful people redefine the meaning of family! We are not technically related, but they are more "family" to us than some of our blood relatives. WE LOVE YOU GUYS!

On Saturday March 21st, Josh and I headed to Saint Augustine, FL to spend time with Josh's sister and her family. We had such a wonderful time!
(l-r: Me, Ethan, Josh, Jonny, Jonathan, Raychl, Mom-Nancy)
We are truly blessed with such a wonderful family.

SNOW DAY!

I think we all remember the excited that surrounded a snow day when we were children. Well, today Josh and I had an official snow day from work today (and we were really excited). It was a great excuse to stay home, watch the inauguration of President Obama (YES WE CAN!) and snuggle in our warm, comfortable bed. We must be getting old because we decided that it was too cold to play in the snow, but we did take the dogs for a walk. I thought I would share some picture of our winter wonderland...

What we saw when we woke up this morning...

I figured that since it was a snow day I would make breakfast. It was a great start to a great day...

Charlie was a little unsure at first...

Montey checking out the snow...

Angus had a blast...

I only wish these days would happen a little more often!

Time with family...

While in Pennsylvania we spent some time with Josh's uncle. Josh and his Uncle share a passion for guns - I really do not get it! Anyway, I went along with them to the range. I had never in my entire life shot a gun, but it was actually a lot of fun. We had so much fun with Uncle John.

On our way to the range (notice the snow)...

Josh sweeping the snow from the tables...it was FREEZING!

Josh was so excited to spend time with Uncle John...

Two peas in a pod...

I am quite proud of my first attempt. I was not nearly as good as Josh, but I do not defend the country.
(Please excuse the clothing, but it was so so so cold!)

New year and a whole new family!

(Sorry for the delay in posting this, but I have been waiting on a copy of the picture below)

We did not expect 2009 to begin as it did! We had planned a quiet night at home, but instead we trekked to Pennsylvania to spend time with our ever-expanding family.

Josh's father passed away December 22nd. It was a stressful time for us, but something positive did come out of such a difficult situation - Josh was able to reconnect with two half-brothers and a half-sister with whom he had not had contact in many years. Needless to say, we were a little nervous about our visit to Pennsylvania since we had never really met these people before! All in all, our visit could not have gone any better and we are so happy that they are now a part of our life.

Back row (l-r): Bryan (Josh's brother), Josh, Chris holding Abigail (Jeanna's Husband) Michael (Josh's brother)

Front row (l-r): Me, Bea, Jeanna (Josh's sister), Kim (Michael's wife).

WHAT A GREAT WAY TO START 2009!

Christmas Day - 2008

It was a very special Christmas for us this year. First, Josh and I actually got to spent Christmas Day together and it was not via web cam, nor were we packing and getting ready for his imminent departure to Afghanistan. Also, it was our first family Christmas in our very own home. Since it was truly our first Christmas together, my family came to our house this year. We had a great time together and I wanted to share some of the pictures with you...

My Mum bought us each a 'Marshmallow Gun' - we had a blast!

Charlie did not have much fun! As with everything else, he was scared of the flying marshmallows, but he found comfort on Grandma's lap:)

We agreed to have a "small" Christmas!



It was so great to have my family with us on Christmas morning

I cooked my very first Christmas Dinner - it was delicious!

Even Charlie and Angus got into the Christmas spirit:)

It was truly a magical Christmas!

Christmas Eve...and yet another tradition.

I absolutely love Christmas Eve! In fact,I think I may even prefer it over Christmas day. Christmas Eve has all the excitement of Christmas day without much of the stress. On Christmas Eve, we always get to open just one gift, which always conveniently turns out to be new pyjamas.

Josh loved his new pyjamas!

This year my Mum thought it would be funny to buy my sister and I Victorian-style nightgowns - not sexy, but incredibly comfortable!

On Christmas Eve we make it a point to take it easy; therefore, we cook as little as possible. Fondue is an easy and delicious alternative to cooking a whole meal for five people. So, while eating yummy white chocolate fondue we watched "The Santa Clause" - it was so great to have my family altogether!