Hardy Family Christmas

Sunday morning, Justin and I left to spend a few days with his family in Mobile. No one was really wanting to do the whole big food preparation, so we decided to gather at Justin sister's home for a beautiful Christmas feast of PIZZA! Rick and Debbie were gracious hosts and we had a great time opening presents and singing Christmas carols with Sue (Justin's mom), Scott and Hilary (Justin's bro and sis-in-law), Meghan and Caitlin (their kids), Rick and Debbie (Justin's sis and bro-in-law), Jared (their son), Jessica (their daughter), and Aidan (Jessica's son). Melissa, V and Cullen were not able to make it because Melissa isn't feeling well. She is pregnant, due in May. We missed seeing them! Here are a few pictures from the Hardy Family Christmas.

Meghan with her gift from us - a Webkinz leopard she named Liz after her teacher.

Caitlin with her Princess Dress Up clothes. For the past few years, Caitlin has been all about Dora the Explorer. She informed us this year that she's over Dora and it's all Princess now!

This is Jared, our nephew. We went in with Scott and Hilary to buy him a steering wheel for his XBox 360. What we didn't realize was that he was actually getting the XBox from Santa... our Christmas was 2 days before. Oops!

Aidan is our great-nephew... our neice Jessica's son. He was trying to exchange this ornament for my camera. Sorry Aidan. :-)

Justin's brother Scott. Husband of Hilary, dad of Meghan and Caitlin.

Meghan wanted to take a "gangsta" picture. SO, this is it. Just before this photo, Caitlin asked me how to do take a gangster photo. This is her attempt after a brief tutorial. Look closely, hilarious!

Justin got a leaf blower from his mom, and she gave me Auburn folding chairs. Ms. Hardy, if you're reading this, we really appreciate the chairs and will definitely be using them, but we may buy a few Alabama chairs to even out the loot. Although I cheer for Auburn when they aren't playing Bama, I bleed Crimson and White in my core! :-) We got a Books-A-Million gift card and a stress-reducer thing that goes around your neck, and I got a furry headband from Scott and Hilary. We had a great night. My very favorite part was singing Christmas carols... of course.

Stay tuned for the Leach family Christmas post!

Crazy-Busy December Continues

And the month continues...

December 17: Silent Night Christmas Worship at Homewood Church of Christ. This is our annual candlelight Christmas worship and celebration of Christ's birth. There were about 50 members of the chorus this year, and many others who were part of the drama portion and kids songs. I think this year was the best yet... with the exception of the Hallelujah Chorus which ended up being more like the William Tell Overture it was so fast. In years past, I have been a part of a womens' group that sings Silent Night. There are 6 girls all about my age and we sing a beautiful version of the song arranged by our worship minister, Kevin Kilpatrick. This year, they chose to have children from the church's Pre-School sing Silent Night, but I was asked to sing What Child is This. I think it turned out okay, but the DVD will tell. I may try to figure out how to post the clip once the DVD comes out. Here are a few pictures of the night. The pictures of the church with all the candles illuminated are great. Photos compliments of my very talented husband.

That's me singing What Child is This

Here is the church after the candles were lit. There were about 800 people there. Next year we're shooting for 1000!

December 18: Welcome to the world Brennan William Parsons! Congratulations to my good friend Sarah and her husband William on the birth of their first baby! The picture below is one Sarah sent to my cell phone. She says he looks a lot like his daddy.

Brennan William Parsons

December 18, 2007

8 lbs, 9 oz

19 inches long

December 20: I babysat the sweetest baby twins in Ross Bridge! My friends Kate and John went to a friends house for dinner, so I watched their precious 2 month old twins for a few hours. Ella was a little fussy and just was so much happier when held, and Thomas was just as happy as he could be in his boppy. When it came time to eat, I let fussy Ella eat first while Thomas chilled in the swing. Ella was content long enough for Thomas to eat, and then it was back in the arms. I just love those kids!

December 22: The Leach/Henry Family Christmas. Justin and I hosted 23 family members for a sit-down brunch at our home. Present were Mimi and Daddy Bill (my grandparents). Mom and Dad. Matthew and Amanda (my bro and his wife). Aunt Linda and Uncle Jim (my dad's sister and her husband). Josh and Becky (my cousin and his wife). Jordan and Krista (my cousin and his girlfriend). Scott and Mary Ann (my grandmother's brother and his wife). Michael and Glenda (Scott's son -my second cousin- and his wife) and Price, Aaron and Abby (their kids). My Aunt Fran (Mimi's sister) and her friend from Atlanta... and Justin and me, of course. I hope I didn't leave anyone out. It was fun to have everyone to our home. We usually go to my Aunt Linda's in Chattanooga, but my grandmother wanted everyone to see my new home, so I was volunteered to be the hostess. There was so much food, and I so much appreciate everyone's help!

Aunt Linda, Dad, Mom and Becky helping get everything ready.What a smorgasbord!

We headed to Mobile early Sunday morning. Christmas Posts to follow!

Crazy-Busy December

It's amazing how time flies, and this month has been no different. We've been buzzing from one event or party to the next with little down time in between. Here is a recap of the month so far, and a few pictures to document...

December 1: SEC Championship game. Party at the Hardy's.

December 2: Our Small Group Christmas Party at Mike and Jessa's. So much fun. I made hashbrown casserole and 4-layer chocolate pie. The dinner spread was impressive and we had a mean game of Dirty Santa. Justin and I came away with a scarf/glove set and an electronic dartboard... both of which were brought by Maghan and Hal. Ironicallyl, Maghan and Hal ended up with OUR gifts! I brought a candle and Christmas tissues, and Justin brought a tiny but powerful flashlight... a gadget guy's dream.

December 4: My good friend, Roni Holland Haskell and her husband Adam had a baby girl, Elizabeth Morgan Haskell. She lives in Charleston, SC now, so I haven't gotten to see the baby in person, but here is a picture.

Elizabeth Morgan Haskell

December 4, 2007

December 7: Lighting of the Green at Ross Bridge! This is one of the biggest events held in our community. Each year (3 so far), the community has gathered for this Christmas kickoff. Santa and his elves put on a great show on a big stage with lights, kids from the elementary school sing, and Santa puts on a great pirotechnic show to illuminate the big christmas tree and the Welcome Center! As soon as the tree is lit, fake snow fills the air... for most of us there, it's the closest thing we'll see to snow this year. Santa is escorted inside where kids have an opportunity to sit in his lap and tell him all their Christmas wishes while filling up with sweets and cider. There is a grand carriage drawn by clydesdale horses that takes it's passengers on a brief ride around the park and back. It's fun for everyone there... but especially exciting for the children. Didn't get very many pictures, but here are a few.

A terrible picture of the stage area where kids are singing the sweet song from Polar Express.

Failed attempt at a Christmas card picture... but good enough for the blog! :-)

P.S. This night, we also babysat triplets from church... well, they're practically triplets. They are 3 brothers born a month apart... twins (Baylor and Basden) and another boy (Parker)... all adopted by our minister. They all just turned 1 and are a handfull, but we had fun watching them with our friends Maghan, Hal and Rachel!

December 8: Signature Homes' Christmas Party... always a fun party. I am blessed to work with such great people, and we always have the BEST time! Here are a few shots from that night.

The best work partners ever. Leah, then me, Kate and Kelli

Me and Justin

Me, Brandi and Jonathan (Brandi is in interior design with our company and is Jonathan's wife, Jonathan is part owner of our company) and Kate (my partner... the one with the baby twins)

December 13: The Best Sales Meeting Ever!!! I know that sounds weird, but this one was amazing. We arrived at a model home in Beaumont, another community where we build to a breakfast feast of ham and egg casserole and mimosas. We played dirty Santa and I came out with a great Christmas-thing (sorry for the sorry description) that hangs up. It's totally precious. After Dirty Santa, we went outside and saw a stretch Hummer limosine driving our way. Somewhere around 20 of us piled inside equipped with envelopes loaded with $200 cash. Rule #1: Spend the entire amount over the next two hours, or give it back. Rule #2: Spend it on yourself, not on anyone else. They dropped us off at the Galleria, and away we went. After scurrying around the mall looking for just the right thing, I settled on a Coach wallet that somewhat matches the purse Mom and Dad gave me for my birthday. The sad part is that I had to add to what was given to me by my generous bosses. Yes, ADD TO... just for a wallet! I would have never bought it on my own, so I appreciate the little incentive. Thank you so much Dwight and Jonathan for the fun shopping spree!

December 14: Daniel Corporation Christmas Party. This is the other company I work for... much more "corporate" than the first. Usually, this is a rather stuffy party with a sit-down dinner and some sort of entertainment (last year, it was a comedian who had no idea who her audience was). This year, the party was held at the Barber Vintage Motorsports Museum. The venue was quite impressive with what seemed like thousands of cars and motorcycles dating back to the early 1900's. The food was good, and they gave out great door prizes... but I didn't win anything.

Me and Holly, another agent in Ross Bridge, but not my partner

December 16: FUN Night at the Hardy's. Church was cancelled this night because our annual Christmas worship service was to be held the following night. So, instead of meeting with our small group for Bible study, we thought it might be fun to have a completely optional "FUN" night. I'm not big on mandatory fun, so it was a come-as-you-are, low key thing. The guys ended up playing the Wii most of the evening and the girls made homemade sugar cookies and decorated them with homemade icing!!! It was so much fun. I broke out my gigantic Kitchen-Aid mixer for the first time and was totally impressed by the way it turned butter into cream in NO TIME! I usually use my hand mixer for this type of project, but I really enjoyed the big mixer. Now, our Christmas cookies looked more like baby shower cookies by the end because the icing didn't quite take the red and green food coloring well, but they still turned out cute.

Rachel, me and Martina with our platter of yummy Christmas cookies

Just a few more events to post, and then I'll be caught up, but I'm running out of time, so I'll leave you with a teaser. This past Monday night, I sang a solo during our Christmas Worship at church. I'll post pictures and a full update another time. Hope you all are having a VERY merry Christmas season!!!

Another Sighting...

As Justin and I walked toward the doors of our local K-Mart, I saw him again... still ringing the Salvation Army bells. I tried not to stare, and politely said hi as we walked in the door. Just inside the door, Justin turned to me, "Did you see the name tag?" I hadn't noticed it, and after trying to guess his name, I finally gave in. Sheila. The Santa's name is SHEILA!!! She's a GIRL!

In an effort to be more politically correct this time, allow me to revise my description. What I saw was actually a vertically challenged female of African descent dressed as Santa Claus, the non-religious holiday icon.

Rare Christmas Sighting...

Let it be known that last night I saw a BLACK MIDGET SANTA CLAUS ringing the Salvation Army bells outside of Wal-Mart. I wanted to take a picture, but I couldn't figure out a way to do it without being rude.

Holy Matrimony

We've been busy the last few weeks getting the house ready and going to wedding receptions! Not the actual weddings... just the receptions. It has come to my attention that as we get older there are fewer and fewer actual church weddings with the big white gown, 500 guests, and heavy hors d'oeuvres. Most people we know these days are getting married quietly in the mountains or in the tropics, and later having a reception at home. So, for the past two week ends, we have been to wedding parties honoring the brides and grooms of such wedding ceremonies.

Bonnie and John Pearson were married in Mexico, and had their wedding party at a farm in Montevallo, AL two week ends ago. They invited a lot of family and friends and had a taco bar and Tex-Mex appetizers to munch on! The first floor of the barn was your typical, well, barn. Stables, hay, maneur, etc. The main room on the top floor was decked out with rusty antiques (shoe shining chair, farming tools, etc), tables, chairs, and do-dads from time gone by. Adjoining the tribute to the "Good Ole Days" was a great room with a bar, fireplace, comfy chairs and a buffet area (host to the taco bar). The entire barn was designed for parties. Bonnie and John had their "first dance" on the main level with all the guests overlooking from the balcony above.

This past week end, a lot of Justin's family came to Birmingham for the wedding party of my sister-in-law's brother Shawn and her best friend, Shawn's new wife Marla. Shawn and Marla recently moved to Birmingham, whiched seemed like a central location for both Shawn and Marla's families. We hosted their party at the Ross Bridge Welcome Center, and just over 50 people were there to share the day with Shawn and Marla. Hilary, my sis-in-law, and her daughters Meghan and Caitlin stayed with us on Thursday night, and Friday I went to the spa for a manicure and pedicure with Marla (the bride), Hilary, and their friend Che. Shawn and Marla married a few months ago at a mountain chapel somewhere in North Carolina.

We enjoyed spending time with family and friends, and wish both of these couples a very happy life together!

30 Great Years

Dear Justin,

When I look at my life, no one has quite had the impact that you have. Through highs and through disappointments, we have overcome victoriously. When I look back, I see a life full of God's blessings, but at no point in my life have I ever felt so complete. The Lord is truly shining on us right now, and I can't wait to see what other little blessings God has in store for us. Over the past 30 years, you have become the man I am proud to call my husband. Although you are human, and you make mistakes, you are committed, strong, caring, considerate, determined, successful, passionate, loving, supportive, brilliant, and exciting. I could go on and on. You are truly celebrating 30 great years. I look forward to the next 30, and the next 30. I love you!

Love,

Whitney

So, Justin's 30th birthday was Sunday, November 4th. I couldn't wait to give him his present, so I let him open it late Saturday night... hey, it was almost midnight! I had searched high and low to find a Nintendo Wii, but after unsuccessful attemps at 7 different stores, I got in touch with a few friends, and our friend Tim happened upon one at GameStop, so he bought it for me. Thank you SO much, Tim!

Here are the presents, all wrapped up.
Surprise! I think I was more excited about the Wii than Justin is, but I'm sure he'll learn to love it! I wanted to get him something that he wouldn't buy for himself. Something that we can just let loose and have a little fun with. Justin set the Wii up Monday night, and we've had fun with it so far!

Sunday morning, Justin woke up to birthday cards from me and from the dogs, and to what he was thinking was just another typical birthday. And it was, for the most part, until the end of the day. We went to church, went to lunch with our friends Brian and Kristen, and then wasted time at the mall for an hour or two before going home to play with the dogs. We always have Small Group on Sunday nights at 6:00, so Justin thought nothing was out of the ordinary when we left for one of our favorite restaurants, Jim 'N Nick's at about 5:45. See, we usually meet at people's homes, but about once a month, we usually do something different like go to a park, or something like that. We walked into the restaurant, and went straight to the back room, which is a semi-private room they open when they are busy, or for parties. Rounding the corner, Justin saw a lot of familiar faces, but it wasn't until my dad yelled "SURPRISE!" that it really clicked. Somewhere around 50 people showed up to wish Justin a happy 30th birthday. It was fun to surround Justin with so many people who love him! I knew that surprising him would be a huge feat, but we were able to pull off the huge party without any sort of suspition from the guest of honor! Here are the pictures from the party.

Justin and Me at the Party! He was so surprised!
Red Velvet Cake, Justin's favorite!

Justin blew out all 30 candles with one breath. Hope his wish comes true!

The Castleman Family

Amy, Elyse, Steve, Justin (a Hardy, not a Castleman), and Emily

Missing in the picure is Erin.

Our Small Group at Church (clockwise from bottom left)

Maghan, Martina and Camron, Shaun and Ashley, Jared and Rachel, and Hal

More of our awesome Small Group!

Jessa and Mike, Bret and Lanie, Cortney

The Koski Family

Todd Howell, David Sr., PK, Momma Koski, and Melissa

The DeRosa Family

Cherry, Joe, Meredith, her boyfriend, and John

Britney and Scott

Ken, Kameron and Kelli Gunnells (Kelli is one of my work partners)

The Leach Family! (clockwise from bottom left)

Mom, Mimi, Krista and Jordan, Daddy Bill, Josh and Becky, and Dad

Jordan and Josh are my cousins. Their mom is my dad's sister.

Not pictured here are my brother Matthew, and his wife Amanda.

Ashley, Me, Justin and Daniel (Daniel's wife, Dana, couldn't make it because they had a sick little boy. Get well soon, Chase!)

Glida and Richard Magnani

Justin and one of his best friends, Daniel Pittman

My good friend Ashley and Me

Kim and Keith. Keith is Justin's long-time good friend. We recently went to a party celebrating their marriage!

And last, but certainly not least, two of our very best friends, Andrea and Tim

A big thanks to everyone who came to the party, and to all of you who wanted to make it, but couldn't. And a big Happy Birthday to my fantastic husband. I hope your 30th year is the best yet!

Halloween-cool

So, apparently, Halloween is back. Or maybe it’s always been here, but it’s just now become cool again. Or then again, maybe it’s always been cool, but I’m just now living in a neighborhood that makes Halloween fun again!

For a month now, our neighborhood has been decked out in Halloween décor… and I mean DECKED OUT. I wrinkled my nose at the first house that had spider webs draped across the windows, but by two weeks before Halloween, I was ready to put tombstones in my yard and hang friendly ghosts from the trees just to fit in! My street has a lot of young couples who either have no kids, or toddlers, so it was cute to see Hill dressed as a spider, and Wilson who was the cutest little Octopus ever. But the REAL fun was one street over. That street has a lot of families about 5-10 years older than we are. A lot of them have early elementary school kids who are in Halloween PRIME! These are the kids who have been waiting for two months to go around as Hannah Montana, or a High School Musical Cheerleader, or a Ninja and collect more candy than the entire Hershey plant! There were literally hundreds of people out and about last night!

My friend Andrea came over with her little boy Caleb, and she and I trick-or-treated with him for an hour or so before I camped out with Justin on our front porch to pass out candy. Justin didn’t want us to be known as the house that gives out crappy candy, so he bought all name-brand candy. Nothing but the best! ;-) I dressed up as a cowgirl so I could have an excuse to wear my cowboy boots and cowgirl hat again! By the way, if you would like some candy, you're welcome to stop by and pick some up. Our bowl of candy was like the five loaves and two fish, so we have plenty of leftovers! What is it with parents not letting their kids take more than one piece?!

Backtracking just a bit... Sunday afternoon, our neighborhood had a Halloween parade. Kids from all over the community met on our street and paraded in costume into Ross Park! In the park, there were refreshments for the little skeletons, bugs, animals, and princesses. A few spectators looked on, while most of the parents rushed around taking pictures!

Sunday night was our church’s annual Trunk-or-Treat. Although none of us have children yet, our small group of young married couples decorated a truck in hot pursuit of the grand prize. We never really knew what we were trying to win, but we wanted it really bad! We built a wooden frame and hung blue painted butcher paper to resemble water. The “water” was decorated with fish of all shapes and sizes. Each kid cast the fishing pole over the top, and we clipped candy onto the line and threw it back over. We didn’t win the award, but we are all convinced that if the kids were allowed to vote, we would have won in a landslide. Next year we're lobbying for a People's Choice Award.

Justin and I really enjoyed the Halloween season, and are embracing Fall with open arms. Bring on the changing of the leaves!!!

A Heart Divided

Saturday, I took off work and Justin and I drove to Auburn to watch the Tigers take on Ole Miss. We followed our friends Camron and Martina to where Martina’s parents tailgate, and stayed there a for a few hours before the game. The food was great, and a huge thanks to the Juarez family for making us feel so welcome!

As an Alabama fan, there is just something a little uncomfortable about cheering for Auburn. Now, I’m not an Auburn-hater as most other Bama fans are. In fact, Auburn is my second favorite team of all time (sorry Harding, you are a close third J). Justin graduated from Auburn and most of our close friends are Auburn grads, so I made a decision long ago that I would cheer for Auburn because they represent the great state of Alabama. I also have come to the conclusion that I would like them to win every single game of their season UNTIL the Iron Bowl. If both teams were undefeated, then it would be the biggest game of the year! ESPN Game Day at the Alabama/Auburn game with both teams coming in undefeated would just be a dream come true… especially if Alabama comes out on top! So, when they aren’t playing each other, I have NO problem enthusiasticly and sincerely cheering for Auburn. This theory is almost completely contradictory to most other hard-core Alabama fans, who wish the Auburn campus would be completely destroyed by a tornado. In my opinion, my philosophy makes me no less of an Alabama fan.

Nevertheless, pulling for AU at Jordan Hare is different than pulling for them on TV. I felt more like a traitor to my roots. So, when the announcer cried, “TOUCHDOWN, AUBURN!” I actually heard in my head, “TOUCHDOWN, ALABAMA!” At times, I pretended that my shakers were crimson and white, rather than orange and blue. And twice, I accidentaly cheered for Ole Miss just because their colors are so similar to the Bama colors! But, I was genuinely intrigued by Nova, the eagle who flies from the flag pole to the 50-yard-line. I got a tear in my eye during the National Anthem (as I always do). I actively participated and cheered and shook the shaker in perfect beat to the Auburn fight song. I even left the game with a little “Bodda Getta” stuck in my head.

Call me a traitor, say I’m not a TRUE Alabama fan, but my conclusion is this. I will go back to Auburn if the opportunity seeks me out. I will pull for Auburn again (although never against Alabama… just to make myself clear). But I now know to expect to be a bit uneasy… just a bit out of my comfort zone. But I won't let that uneasiness keep me from having a good time!

Broadcasting LIVE over the "Pee"-A

The names of the places and people in this story have NOT been changed to protect the innocent.

It's Sunday morning at Homewood church of Christ. Kevin Kilpatrick, our worship minister, has just led us through a wonderful worship service of songs conditioning our hearts and minds for a lesson on leaning on God. Our preaching minister, Craig greets the church and begins his lesson. At that point, a few of us heard what sounded a bit like static or perhaps running water through the speakers. This might have gone un-noticed by the majority, but Craig pointed it out to the people running the sound and video.

"Somebody's got their microphone turned on!" Craig exclaims in a sing-song, nany-nany-boo-boo way.

At that very moment, the entire church hears that sound of hmmm, what shall I call it? There's just no way around it! So, the entire church hears that sound of "tee-tee" falling into a toilet - a steady stream splashing into the bowl of water below.

"Okay, cut everybody off but me!" Craig says, not knowing if it's Kevin, or any of the 8 others who sing on the praise team (including me). It was obvious what had just occured and the church began to giggle. Craig eggs us on by saying when the person comes in, that we should all clap. He was only halfway kidding, so when Kevin (our worship minister) walked in the back door, the church erupted in applause. Kevin was still clueless until he sat down with his wife, Lyn, who put her arm around him and told him the news. He lowered his head, shrugged his shoulders, then stood and waved like a beauty queen to the church. Of course, more laughter. Kevin announced afterwards that he is starting an "Embarrassment Support Ministry" to begin meeting next week.

Isn't it great to be a part of a body of believers that can laugh with their brothers and sisters! The best part was that it didn't stop the young engaged couple who came forward together to commit their life to Christ in baptism. What a great Sunday! The angels were certainly laughing while they were rejoicing!

Welcome Home Thomas and Ella!

My good friend and work partner, Kate, brought two precious babies into the world on Wednesday, October 17th.

James Thomas Giffin

born at 4:59 pm

5 pounds, 13 ounces

18 inches long

and

Ella Simone Giffin

born at 5:07 pm

5 pounds, 9 ounces

18 3/4 inches long

The babies and Kate came home yesterday, and I got to hold them last night. They are both gorgeous, as you can see from the pictures, and Kate is doing great. She and her husband John are gearing up for a few months of very little sleep! Can't wait to watch these little ones grow!

A walk through Ross Bridge

Justin and I are finally getting settled into our new home in Ross Bridge. The inside of the house isn't yet picture-worthy, but I thought I'd give you a taste of the community through photos that I took this week. We LOVE our new neighborhood. It's the kind of place where people sit on front porches, drink sweet tea, and say hello to each other... my kind of place.
This is the main entrance to the community from Ross Bridge Parkway. We are 11 miles from downtown Birmingham, 7 minutes from our church, and within 10-20 minutes of most of our friends and family!
The first thing you see when you pull in is the Welcome Center on the right. Here, you can tour the history of Ross Bridge, and get directions to the model homes, if you are interested in living in Ross Bridge. Residents can also use this building for free to host events! We are hosting our first party there in November for Shawn and Marla, my sister-in-law's brother who married her best friend. Hilary is planning most everything from Mobile, but everyone is staying at the resort and having the party here at the Welcome Center!
Just past the Welcome Center is Ross Park. It is home to the community pool and playground. Justin and I live on the street that runs alongside the park.
This is the poolhouse and part of the play area. This place is packed on the week ends!
Looking at the pool from the entryway. You can reserve the pavillion for parties any time!

This is a shot of the pool area. On the side not shown here is the pavillion, kiddie pool and a splash pad where water shoots up from about 8 fountains in all different directions. That's our street that you can see behind the pool. You can just barely see our home at the end (it's yellow).
From the Ross Park, you can look down Grand Avenue and see the Ross Bridge Renaissance Golf Resort and Spa. This resort has 259 plush rooms with breathtaking views, 2 restaurants, a salt-water pool with a waterfall and slide, and so much more. The spa has been ranked as one of the best spas in the country! As a Ross Bridge resident, we get 20% off spa visits and 10% off food at the restaurants! Unfortunately (for some), no discounts on golf.
The course here is the 3rd longest in the entire world, and is the crown jewel of the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail. Each year, we host the Senior PGA tour, Regions Charity Classic, which always brings famous golfers to our neighborhood. If you (or your hubby) likes to play golf, come stay with us! In addition to the Ross Bridge course, the Oxmoor Valley RTJ course is just outside Ross Bridge. There are two 18-hole courses there!
And last, but certainly not least, is our home. We never realized how much we would love our front porch and our neighbors. We are here to stay for a while, so you can write this address down in ink...

Marriage Celebration in Athens

Weekend before last, Justin and I drove to Athens, Alabama for a party in honor of one of Justin's best friends, Keith. Justin and Keith have been best friends since 2nd grade when Justin moved to Gulf Shores. They lived in the same neighborhood and grew up practically as brothers. They even lived together in Auburn and in Birmingham before Justin bought a house about a year before we got married. Kim came into the picture shortly after I did, and she and Keith have dated ever since. Over the summer, they tied the knot in Jamaica, and had a party for friends and family in Athens, AL on September 29th. The weather was absolutely perfect for an outdoor reception, and the band's music selection was fabulous. We enjoyed seeing Keith's family and visiting with old friends... and new!

Now this is where it gets crazy. I have been playing Bunko for about a year and a half with a very random group of girls from all around Birmingham. My friend, Lexy invited her friend Meredith to join us. Meredith and Lexy went to school together at Mississippi State. So, Meredith and I had known each other for about a year when I saw her picture on Keith's MySpace page! What I didn't know, is that Kim is Meredith's step-sister!!!

The wedding party in Athens was actually held at the home where Meredith grew up, so it was neat to see her socially in a setting totally UN-related to Bunko. Lori (Keith's sister), Meredith, and I posing for a picture as things were winding down. Keith finally made it to the stage to play the guitar with the band, and Kim's friend's husband serenaded the couple as they danced... or at least tried to. Justin and I finally made it back to Birmingham around 3:00am (it's a 2 hour drive), but we had such a nice time.

Wide awake and talking about my "Man"

I must have a severely abnormal reaction to medication. First of all, I despise going to the doctor. Nothing against doctors, but I feel like it's a total waste of time to sit in a waiting room for hours only to see a doctor for a few minutes. I usually treat myself to over-the-counter meds and vitamins when I'm sick... because I never EVER get sick. I can't recall a time I ever missed work because I was sick! Anyway, I've been fighting a sore throat AND a urinary track infection now for over a week. I've been taking vitamins and OTC's, but I don't seem to be getting better. In fact, I bought a thermometer for the first time in my LIFE yesterday to try to self-diagnose. In a big move for me, I went to see a doctor this afternoon. I even left work an hour early! Gasp! The doctor prescribed me about 4 drugs... only 2 of which I actually filled, because I also hate drugs. I chose to fill the decongestant and the antibiotic. I chose not to fill the pain meds for the UTI (I'm tough) and the prescription cough pills. Well, it seems to come into mind that I took some sort of drugs last winter and I was up all night. I didn't really think about it this evening when I popped the 2 drugs after having them filled. So here I am, 2:45 in the morning, bright eyed and bushy tailed. I tried to go to bed, but finally gave up after about an hour and a half of staring into the blackness trying to get comfortable. Maybe it's because my body isn't used to prescription strength drugs, or maybe it's the drugs. I'm taking Zyrtec-D and Sulfamethoxazole (whatever that is!). Anyone share the same experience?

So, while I'm up, I figured I'd respond to Lindsey's tag about "my man." So, here goes!
1. Who is your man? Justin William Hardy (AKA Justin the Great).
2. How long have you been together? We've been together for 5 years, but married for 2.5.
3. How long did you date? We dated for 2 years, and were engaged for 8 loooooong months.
4. How old is your man? 29 (but he'll be 30 next month... I bring this up as often as possible)
5. Who eats more? We both eat a lot, but Justin will always finish my plate if there's anything left!
6. Who said "I love you" first? Justin. He pulled the car over on the interstate and said that he couldn't wait any longer to tell me he loved me. Of course, I told him I loved him, too.
7. Who is taller? Justin
8. Who sings better? I do. Justin is a good singer at church, but he totally sings the melody and follows along. He can't really CARRY the tune, or harmonize.
9. Who is smarter? We are both smart in different areas. Justin has an engineering mind, so he is totally math and numbers and business (these skills, PLUS a personality is rare). I think I'm smarter than he is in people relations and in sports!!!
10. Whose temper is worse? Justin's, but I have my moments.
11. Who does the laundry? Whoever needs clean clothes the most... sad, I know.
12. Who takes out the garbage? Mostly Justin, but I will if it needs it and he's not around.
13. Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? Justin likes to claim the we don't have "sides," so we switch up for now. Tonight, I'm supposed to be sound asleep on the left side. Last week, it was the right.
14. Who pays the bills? Justin... every single one. I HATE bills (even more than I hate going to the doctor).
15. Who is better with the computer? Justin is great at keeping viruses out, but he can't blog! ;-)
16. Who mows the lawn? The lawn guys... although we're considering purchasing a mower all our own.
17. Who cooks dinner? Cook? Oh, that's something we always say we'll get around to doing one day, but we never do. In fact, we had a conversation about that just tonight.
18. Who drives when you are together? Justin.... 100% of the time.
19. Who pays when you go out? Justin.
20. Who is most stubborn? Justin... again, I have my moments of passion as well.
21. Who is the first to admit when they are wrong? I am... every time.
22. Whose parents do you see the most? We see my parents more often because they live here and we go to church together. But when we do see Justin's parents, we actually stay at their home, so we spend a lot of TIME with them.
23. Who kissed who first? Justin kissed me first... there was some serious magic going on that night!
24. Who asked who out? He asked me.
25. Who proposed? Justin (a very good story by the way... for another time)
26. Who is more sensitive? I am, hands down.
27. Who has more friends? Justin has a few close friends that he sees quite often. I get together with big groups of friends a lot... maybe it's a girl thing. I also talk to my friends on the phone(old and new) MUCH more often than he does, but he still has a group of guys from high school that he thinks of like brothers.
28. Who has more siblings? Justin. He is the baby of 5. I have one younger brother.
29. Who wears the pants in the family? That would have to be Justin.

So, at this point, I'm supposed to tag others. So, Amber, Kristy, Stacy, and Katherine I'd like to see your posts about your man! Hannah, I would have tagged you, but Lindsey already did!

P.S. We had a really fun week end, but I'm waiting on pics from my friend before posting. Hopefully I'll get them soon!