My best friend... I call him my husband.

I honestly didn't know it was possible to continue falling more and more in love with someone as the years go by. He may kill me for writing an entire blog about him, but I could not be more happy with the man he has become, and the relationship we have built over the years. Neither of us are perfect, but that's what makes our marriage so great. No matter the hills and mountains we have to climb, we always make it to the top hand in hand.

Maybe it is the new series at church that our pastor is doing on marriage that has made me realize there is no one more perfect for me than him. (I of course knew this already, but pastor Kerry really made it more clear) Our relationship started much different than most. We created an amazing miracle only 8 months after we had first met. A very long 9 months of emotional craziness and this man still stuck by my side. Throw in a newborn baby in the mix, when you are still trying to get to know each other, and your life can be pretty chaotic. We were forced to pretty much grow up overnight and become responsible parents, which also meant we were now a family. We moved away from our friends, battled family that did not see eye to eye with our life choices, switched to one income, and basically had to start a whole new life. We did it... because we made the decision to do it together. I think it is pretty amazing that the two of us have not only made it work, but wanted it to work because we truly love each other. We could of gone our seperate ways as soon as the test read positive... but we were in this together and I wouldn't trade it for the world. We have the most amazing almost 4 year old kiddo who is the light of our lives.

I am so lucky to have a man that contiually wants to better himself and his family. He has made so many sacrifices in the past 5 and a half years. He has changed jobs, switched careers, had side businesses, and has now made it to where he has always wanted to be.... a company owner. I am so proud of the man he is today, an incredible father, and an amazing husband!

We are coming up on a year of marriage in October and I can honestly say it has been the best year of my life. Living in the country for half of that year may have been one of the hardest things I have had to do, but I secretly believe country life brought us even closer. (There isn't much to do out there! :) ) Wallisville will always be a place close to my heart because that is where we took our vows to be in this life together forever. I love you babe, thank you for everything you do!

Family Day!

Well this morning Joshua and I woke up dog ass tired. Ryder and Nina had gotten up several times during the night and were both up at sunrise this morning ready to play. Cranky as hell, Joshua got up to load the truck up with this weeks trash to take to the dump, and I finally drug myself out of bed to put on the coffee and make some breakfast. He came back with a truck full of trash... apparently the dump doesn't open til 9. Atleast the trash guy got to sleep in this morning. It didn't take long for the morning to turn itself around. Joshua got back just in time to have breakfast with us, and we sat at the table with our coffee and watched the birds in the lake. Nina was outside playing, and Ryder was busy with his cartoons...it was rather peaceful. I enjoy weekend mornings sippin' on coffee with my husband. I am actually not a regular coffee drinker, but I have found since I moved down here that I enjoy it much more. 9 am rolled around and we decided to go to the dump as a family. :) FUN :) We stoped to tell Bevo hello on the way! (The neighbors longhorn)

Oh and here is my awesome kid. :)

Joshua's family owns a bunch of land down the street from the country house down by the pumping plant on the bay. This is where Joshua duck hunts in the fall, and where you can get your Wallisville gator fix. Ryder wanted to go see the alligators this morning, so against my will we went on down the road to see what we could discover. Fortunately for me we didn't see any gators today... it was way too cold for their liking. We did however see several wild hogs! It was pretty cool. There were probably about ten or so of them all together, baby piggies too! Joshua wanted to shoot one, but there was no way I was going to sit there and watch him kill one of the baby piggies mommy or daddy :( I won that battle. When we came up to the bay I was like a kid in the candy store! We saw about 3 dozen pelicans!!! They were so cool. I have never really seen one up close, and to see so many at once was awesome. We sat there for a good while and watched them feed, and fly, and play! Joshua jumped out and scared them off for a minute so I could see them fly off! One of the coolest parts of my day.

Since Ryder and I had been stuck in the house pretty much all week, I wanted to get him outside to play. The town of Barbers hill, which is about 10 mins from us, just built a brand new sports complex with some pretty awesome playgrounds. We spent a good hour or so freezing our buns off while Ryder had a blast. Well who am I kidding? Joshua and I had fun too. :) I am so glad we discovered this place, because I am pretty sure I will become the foursquare mayor pretty soon! ;)

Haha Joshua may kill me for posting that pic, but I love it :)

This playground was a little big for Ryders age, but he rocked it! Scared me half to death several times, but he did so good! My son is fearless. After the park we went into Baytown to the inlaws house, to pick up a twin bed for Ryder. I can't tell you how excited I am that he finally has a big bed! I cannot wait to start decorating his new room :) When we left, I wanted to venture off back into Barbers hill to see what all was around us. Ryder fell asleep in the car and we ended up driving all around the country for about 3 hours while Ryder slept the whole time. He was worn out! We drove into Anahuac, out towards Liberty, out to Double Bayou, and into Oak Island. Apparently Oak Island is known for their shrimp... which would explain all the shrimp boats and cajuan food restraunts. :)

It was pretty cool to see where Joshua grew up. He showed me where the local hangouts were, where they went muddin', and where they had house parties. Typical country living. :) I had a fantastic day with my little family. Ryder is now all snug in his new bed and we are just having a relaxing evening on the couch. A great way to end the perfect day. Looking forward to many more adventures!

Country Living

Well a lot has happened over the past month. We finally got all moved into Wallisville and surprisingly have pretty much everything unpacked. I am not sure which I hate more, packing or unpacking? I am just glad the move is over. I think I spent most of January kicking and screaming over moving to the country! And even though we moved away from all our friends, I am making the most of the move, and I actually somewhat enjoy getting away from the city for a little while. There is something about this place that is so peaceful.

I have definitely had some down time out here which allows my mind to drift and think. I have caught myself in tears a few times thinking about my dad. It is next to impossible to not think about him while I am living down here. It could also have something to do with the fact the February 14th marks one year since we lost him.:( However, Joshua says you can solve the worlds problems out here. It is a wonderful place to come and clear your mind. :)

Before the move, we spent pretty much every weekend in January down here getting the house ready to be lived in again. The house has sat for about 2 years with no one living in it, so it definitely needed a little TLC. Joshua mowed the pasture on the tractor, I mowed the "top of the hill" by push mower ;) which was probably about 2 acres. hehe sorry, it was a proud moment... and about 3 or 4 hours straight of mowing! We also power washed the house and porch... which of course Ryder helped with. :) Due to the drought the house shifted and had to be re-leveled. (This was my nightmare) All the work that had to be done to the house prior to us moving in really had me stressed out! Luckily everything was done in time and we were able to move in the last SUNDAY of the month :)




Living down here is definitely going to take some getting used to. My girlfriends think it is funny that we dont have trash pickup. We now get to take weekly trips to the local dump! It is annoying to have to pile up the trash in the barn and not have someone come pick it up for us twice a week. Another thing, is if you want to go to a decent grocery store, you have to drive into Baytown which is about 20 mins. Otherwise you have Anahuac, but this is what you get....



Not exactly HEB! Ryder and I had to run to this little store the other day to get eggs. It was quite interesting. There is another store in a town called Barbers Hill, which is about 10 to 15 mins away, but we spent $100 yesterday on just a few things we needed for dinner and some batteries! Needless to say, we have to drive a ways to get our groceries :)

The wildlife out here is pretty cool. When I lived in Colorado for six years I took for granted the beauty of the Rockies, and all the wildlife that came with it. We had herds of elk that practically lived in our front yard. I was in a stage in my life where I was more concerned with my weekend plans than what nature was around me. Nowadays, I am trying to appreciate what is around me more. I posted on facebook today about how much I love watching the birds and ducks in our lake. Before the rain, we didn't see many ducks, but all of a sudden they are here pretty much all day. They are feeding off of something.. which surprises us because we were pretty sure all the fish died off from the drought.

Joshua has seen an Owl several times in one of the trees out front, and he has also spotted a deer or two. ( I am still waiting to see these guys) My favorite thing we have seen so far are the bunnies that eat dinner outside our bedroom window. Did you know bunnies can run up to 35 mph??? I was worried Nina would find them and eat them... but Joshua said she couldn't outrun them. I did my research and sure enough those suckers are fast. :)

I know a bunch of my friends are worried about the gators :) lol but don't worry I have yet to see one anywhere near our property. However if you come visit, I can almost guarantee Joshua will take you to the pumping plant across the street and you will for sure get your gator fix! ( i may stay at the house though) haha. I did however shoot my first pistol and shot gun last night... so if something threatens me, I am ready :)

I am excited to see the Martin birds fly in. The martin's are one of Joshua's grandfathers favorite parts about living out here. I guess they should be coming sometime in February. They send scouts out to check everything out, and then I guess they all fly in and nest in the bird houses out front. Apparently they are super loud! haha I will post pictures when they arrive :)

Ryder is loving it out here, he hasn't been able to really play outside much due to the rain, but he is still having a blast in the new house. He has a picture framed of him and all his buddies and when he looks at it he says "Mommy I miss my friends!" It makes me sad :( but I know we will not lose touch with them. This is the pic... I think I posted it in my last blog, but its one of my favorites!


Well it is now lunch time, I have to go feed the little munchkin that is pretending to "ride the robot" ... which is really all my couch cushions piled up. Oh the imagination of a 3 year old.

A Toast to the New Year!

I have found that come New Years eve almost every year, people are complaining about how crummy of a year they have had. It never fails! It seems no one is thankful for the blessings they have anymore! I can tell you that 2011 started off terrible for me. After losing my dad, it took me several months to get back up on my feet again. But given the circumstances, I actually think my year rocked! Here is a short recap of the year! ENJOY :)


This is one of my favorite pictures of Ryder this past year. It shows how much of a little boy he is! :) Handsome and filthy dirty all at the same time. And I don't care what anyone says, I LOVE his shaggy hair!





In April we went to Toy Story on Ice with The Hackett family, and the boys had a blast! It is pretty cool to see Ryder's face light up the way it did when he saw buzz and woody in real life. :)

Playing at the splash pad was one of our favorite things to do over the summer! There is nothing better then hearing the kids laugh and play on a hot summer day!


Joshua and I finally picked a spot for our wedding venue and we are really looking forward to November 9th 2012!



Our trip to Colorado this summer was a trip that I will remember for the rest of my life. We had an absolute blast, and it was so much fun to take Ryder on his first vacation to the same place that I took my first vacation as a kid. Here are some more of my favorites from the trip.


My sister and I in Green Mountain Falls, Co.


The kids on Santa's lap at Santa's village.



My mom at the haunted house! This picture is priceless!


Our little family in front of Santa's Toy Shop.



This picture is one of my favorites because my sister and I have a picture under this same rock when we were kids. Also, because I carried ryder up that huge boulder while he slept the whole time... and he was still asleep when we got back to the bottom! :)


Even after the handoff to dad :)



This is truly one of the most peaceful places I have ever been. You wake up early to ducks swimming in the lake, the sun rising, birds chirping, and mountains litterally surrounding you every where you look. I would LOVE to own a house in this small town some day.



And this is the last of the Colorado pictures. This picture is a favorite for the simple fact that this is where we laid my dads ashes to rest. He LOVED the Rocky Mountains, to him this was his Heaven. May he rest in peace.

Having good friends was one of the best things that helped me get through this year with a smile on my face. Growing up, my parents were always the entertainers. We had parties at our house all the time. I guess that is where I got it from, because I love being surrounded by good people! Our Labor day party to end the summer was a total blast! We rented a giant water slide, and I think the adults had more fun than the kids did!!













Ryder turned 3 in September! It is so hard to believe how fast he is growing up!! He is like a little person now, no longer a baby!






In early October, Joshua and I had our engagement pictures done. I couldn't believe how awesome they turned out. I wanted it to be a camping theme, because Joshua first told me he loved me while we were camping :) and camping has always been a huge part of his life.





October is really my favorite month! It is the start of my favorite time of year; a time for family, festivities, food, and fun. Here are some fun highlights of the month.






And now there is one more reason that October is my favorite month! I married my best friend October 30, 2011!! We had such an intimate ceremony with just the two of us. Things may not of gone the way we planned them to, and I may have been attacked by mosquitos, but it was the perfect day and I will remember it forever!










We found the most gorgeous Husky puppy on our wedding night, and now have a fourth member to our family. Her name is Nina :)




To top off the end of our year, Joshua is now the co-owner an oil and gas company, and I couldn't be more proud to be his wife. He has always been one to set high goals and work hard to achieve them.

We ended the year celebrating Christmas with friends and family. Ryder got his BIG RACE CAR and monster truck that he had been asking for since October and was one happy camper! We got to celebrate with both sides of the family this year, and it really was a blessing.







2012 will be our year of adventure! We are moving to the country in Wallisville, TX and that will be an adventure itself. We have spent the last day of 2011 and the first day of 2012 working hard to fix up the country house to make it liveable again :) We have a busy month ahead of us! I look forward to what this year brings!!