...at Granny's house (my dad's mom in Lucama)! She is an excellent hostess. Her chewies (dessert) were exactly was I was hoping for.
The talk of the party! My cousin Lucas and his wife Victoria will have a new baby girl (Hannah) some time around December 17th. Congratulations!
Jena and her sister Megan (my cousins). Jena is in her first year at State.
Not even a road block would have kept us from Granny's. Aaron got out and moved it so we could get by. He is a responsible guy, I promise.
I was glad to see Aunt Vickie there.

Boston Market! I had been craving it, so Emily agreed to meet me there. I could have spent several days just eating at the restaurants I've been missing...Olive Garden, Carrabas, that Italian one just up from NC State, Bojangles on Western Blvd.

It was great to catch up with Emily. It's good to have friends that know you so well that you can just start back where you left off last time. She is very encouraging. She and her husband Travis just had their 1st wedding anniversary in November. They live in Fuquay-Varina, NC.

Grandma Carolyn re-used our wedding favors (pine needle wreaths) to make these fall napkin rings. She is so creative!
Her table decorations are always beautiful.
Dinner and dessert were delicious! Joey and Sierra were excited to show us pictures of their new house (closing next week!)...and we are happy for them.
This is when Elvis paid tribute to mom and dad.

Would you ever have imagined this?
Entertainment by Elvis, aka Granddaddy

On Friday night after our rendevous in Pinehurst, we stopped by Cary, NC to say hello to our Korean friends Acella and Wansoo. Acella and I have been good friends for about 3 years (she is still a [doctorate] student at State) and we both got married within 6 months of each other. She is expecting a baby girl in April! It was a great 45 minutes to catch up and encourage one another.
She is showing a little bit!

On Saturday night after an extravagant dinner by Grandma (of course), we went out on the town for a double date with my parents. We were stunned by the glamour of North Hills mall on Six Forks...things change so fast! Now there is a very nice outdoor shopping area...complete with a Nestle TollHouse cookie shop. We caught a movie- Walk the Line- and enjoyed relaxing before making the 9 hour trip back to GA on Sunday. The Christmas decorations were fun to see.

We took some serious pictures...











































...and then got a little wild!



Whose idea was this? Of course... Nancy Jeffries.
Auntie Nancy.















































































We were sure that Acella thought we were nuts! Those crazy Americans.

Last year's Thanksgiving was a blur since we were wrapped up in the wedding plans. Here are some reminders of what we were doing this time last year...

This picture was taken outside of Uncle Rick's house right before I was going to leave Aaron to go to Wilson

Grandma works hard to feed her youngin's and grandyoungin's. Aaron is very appreciative!

Looks like both of these men just woke up. Last year we had breakfast at Grandma's (I think to accommodate the Fernandez lunch).

Since Lee County lost last weekend, this past Friday night we could enjoy other activities. Aaron went hunting in the afternoon and came home late evening. We went to a Chinese restaurant and then the famous Albany, Ga date- to Wal-Mart. We looked for Christmas decorations but weren't sold on anything. We came home and watched The Family Man...a clean, good-humored flick. Saturday we slept in for the first time in a long time. After cleaning the house, we moved a new desk into our "office" room of the house. The one we had before was make-shift. Aaron got this one from work because no one had been using it and they planned to throw it away. It's a great desk! It'll hopefully help us to be more organized. We still have some work to do- window dressings, bookshelf, etc, but this picture will give you a better idea of what it's like.
Then...oh, and then...we went on a very nice date. Aaron asked me to wear my black dress and he wore a shirt and tie. We went to a new restaurant- RiverHouse. It was classy and romantic. After dinner we went downtown to get Tiramasu for dessert. It was quite a surprise for me and we enjoyed each other's company.
On Sunday we praised the Lord with other believers and then had lunch with new friends, Eric and Jennifer. They are laid-back and also transports to the area, so we get along well. They have two sweet kids. Sunday afternoon was consumed with Aaron's 21- miler. Even though he was exhausted, he still agreed to go back to church with me. First Baptist had a Thanksgiving service with other churches in the community. We went to Subway afterwards with Michael and Rebecca McNeal, where we swapped engagement stories. It was a wonderful weekend!

We've had an amazing weekend but you can see that it is way past my bedtime for a school night, so I promise to make some posts tomorrow night. Sorry!
Good night.

The question was asked... If you put a pumpkin in water, does it sink or float? (see Oct. 31 post)

It floats!

Bloggers Seek to Mix Faith and the Internet
Thursday, October 13, 2005
By Greg Simmons

WASHINGTON — When Johann Gutenberg's printing press began churning out Bibles in the 15th century, the new technology helped usher in a new era of religion in Europe.
Nearly 600 years later, some think that increasingly popular Web logs — the Internet's version of personal journals, pamphleteering and issue forums all wrapped in one — combined with traditional religious beliefs could once again take people on a new, uncharted course.

In what appears to be a first of its kind, a small evangelical Christian college in Southern California on Thursday will open the God Blog Convention, a conference on Christian blogging.

Some who have been following the trend of blogging say the fact that Christians — already a powerful political force — are wading into the world of blogging could mean a major change in the political landscape if their efforts take hold.
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,172054,00.html (click here to read entire article)

We had a baby shower today for Mussrat Ayaz. She is the mother of two of my students- they are from Pakistan. We had a great party...played some games, ate good food, met new people, and showered a really sweet woman with cute baby gifts. She is having a boy in the beginning of January. Some of the boys' teachers were there, along with some of my friends from Sunday School class. And of course, Marcela! She was the star of the party because she helped me out so much.

Everyone was very generous. The gifts were precious and Mussrat was overwhelmed with the amount of them! I don't think she was expecting so much.

















She's thrilled about the diapers! They got a great response from the crowd.








This big one is a Jumpster from Marcela. I know I loved that thing when I was young. Or maybe I just enjoyed watching Michael jump in his...

We had lots of great food! I had some help- Starla made spinach dip and Marcela made dip and meatballs. MmMmMm...

We had lots of baby blue balloons to celebrate. On the mantle are various baby products-nail kit, baby's first tooth/gum cleanser, no spill cups, washcloths, etc that we used to play Baby Price in Right. As I presented each item, everyone had to write down how much they thought it cost. Whoever was closest to the real price without going over won a point, and whoever has the most points at the end wins. Melanie and Marcela tied, so we had a tiebreaker: guess the price of one of the gifts (bathtub). Marcela guessed the exact price! It was a fun game.

It was a pretty cake, but when we cut into it, it fell apart and was hard to serve. It tasted great!

November 7, 2005 Bobby Labonte to drive away from Joe Gibbs Racing (click to read entire article)

Former NASCAR champion Bobby Labonte and Joe Gibbs Racing said Monday they will part ways at the end of the season after 11 years together.

Activist Judges say they, not parents, have final say in teaching sex education to our children
Activist Federal Judges Strip Rights From Parents
Dear Lisa,
As shocking as it may seem, the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that courts--not parents--have the final authority on when and what to teach children about sex education. In their ruling, the Court determined that parents DO NOT have a fundamental right to control when, where and how their children are taught about sex. Rather, the Court ruled, that right belongs to activist judges. I know you probably aren't believing this, so I have provided a link to an article on the recent ruling written by Kathleen Parker, a columnist for the Orlando Sentinel. Click here to read the column. This is simply another encroachment by activist federal judges to take away the rights of parents and turn those rights over to the judges. These liberal activist judges feel they know better how to raise your children and grandchildren than you do! It is time for parents and grandparents to tell activist judges to back off! Sign the petition. Forward the petition to your friends and family. We will forward the petitions to the U.S. Supreme Court where this case will eventually be decided. Hopefully, by then, Supreme Court nominee Justice Samuel Alito will have been confirmed and this crazy ruling by the Ninth Circuit can be overturned.
Click Here To Sign the Petition to the Supreme Court Now!
Sincerely,
Don
Donald E. Wildmon, Founder and ChairmanAmerican Family Association

Sundays are this marathon trainer's longest running days. Last Sunday he ran 20 miles and today it's down to 14. That's still a lot! I sometimes ride my bike alongside him to keep him company. Don't forget to consider sponsoring him for the January 8th marathon! See previous post-"going to disney again".
I am a proud wife of a very disciplined man.

We are seeing a change in colors around here...subtle and slow, but there is one. The daily temperatures have been fluctuating so much that it's hard to tell it's fall. It was pretty cool for about two weeks and then this week has been very warm. Today it was around 85.
Aaron started getting sick on Wednesday night, and by Friday I had it. Sinus infection- both of us. Makes it a sleepy, stay-at-home weekend.
P.S. Lee Co. won on Friday night! N.C. State did the same yesterday against Florida State...a fun game to watch with neighbors.

Aaron and I are going to the Lee County football game tonight. I think we must be their favorite fans because they all say that before we moved here, Lee Co had never had a winning season (now they are the Region Champs)! Tonight is the first game in the playoffs. We will tailgate with the LCES teachers and their husbands and find Michael and Rebecca when we get to the stadium. Should be fun!
This weekend will be laid back. We are babysitting tomorrow night for the Moody's because they are going to the annual Marine Ball. And of course there are the lesson plans :)

Hunting season has arrived, and so has Aaron. This is great quality hunting gear-the camouflage is so perfect, you can hardly see him! This is what I saw when he came home last Thursday night from hunting with a guy he works with.