The Ottely Crew!

Annual Family Photoshoot

2011-11-28T14:00:00.000-08:00

Another Amazing Thanksmas was spent at Drew's grandparents' home... including good food, a fun gift exchange, and a quick little photoshoot. Lala is getting really good at this photography thing!!! Can't see the baby bump just yet, but we have to show off our pretty kiddos :) My sweet little nephew, Chase, jumped into a few pics too!

Baby Boy on the way!

2011-11-28T13:51:00.000-08:00

Drew and I are expecting Baby #3 early this coming April. We have found out that he will be a bouncing baby boy! We cannot WAIT to meet Christian Andrew :)

Caleb's 12th Birthday

2011-11-28T13:02:00.000-08:00

We celebrated at Ripley's Believe it or Not for a fun-filled day with family. Seeing shrunken heads and wax figures, then going through the mirror maze, was right up Caleb's alley! It was a perfect day, topped off with a Birthday Dinner at TGIF :)

Our Talented Children :)

2011-08-26T17:12:00.000-07:00

Back to School

Caleb plays Wonderwall by Oasis!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q8cKvBgJuFE

Caraline sings Karmin's version of Look At Me Now :)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IvNNXIoEliM

Lovin Summer!!!

2011-07-12T20:00:00.000-07:00

Once again... our summer has been filled with lazy pool days, spending time with friends, visiting family, going out with friends, and sleeping in :) We hope to squeeze in as much fun as possible in the next month before school starts back up again!

Baseball Season has begun!!!

2011-04-06T15:28:00.000-07:00

Caleb is now playing for the Major Little League "Reds"... he is doing soooo good and he is LoViNg it! We love cheering him on!!! The weather has been perfect too :)

The Highlighter Drill Team's SPRING SHOW!

2011-04-06T15:22:00.000-07:00

This year's Spring Show was AmAzInG! The theme was 'There's An App For That"... so many cute numbers were performed, having to do with iPhone Apps. Caraline's age group danced to "Happy Day's" for the Calendar App... Our family and friends supported 'Lil Miss Thang' during her big performance. She did soooo very good! She is prime material for a future Highlighter!!! =D

Caraline's "Wizards" Putt Putt Birthday

2011-04-05T21:53:00.000-07:00

Caraline had a "Wizards of Waverly Place-Putt Putt" birthday party with lots of family and friends! The star of the show was the amazing 3-tier topsy-turvy cake by Aunt Jalee!

Sweet Caraline Faith is turning 7 years old!!!

2011-02-24T15:42:00.000-08:00

Snow Days in TEXAS??!!!!

2011-02-04T17:24:00.000-08:00

Snow days are great... but even BETTER when we get to miss school! :) We've enjoyed a few snowfalls this year... aside from the pureness and the beauty, we loved to get out and play in it! Our January snow-day was spent sledding with our friends, the Robbs... and our February snow-day was spent with our frisky doggies. We are ready to see some warmer days, but cuddling up is definitely fun, in the meantime :)

Dallas Cowboy's Stadium

2011-01-21T23:35:00.000-08:00

What a fun night, although bittersweet... we were so VERY excited to cheer for our CHHS Bulldogs in the State Championship game at Cowboy's Stadium. Even though they lost by ONE touchdown, it was a pretty incredible experience. We couldn't believe the turnout which included thousands of East Texans. Drew and I took turns taking my yearbook photos on the field, and the kids were in awe of the new stadium. It was so very great to see all of our Chapel Hill friends there, in support of our boys. We had a wonderful time, with Lala, watching the game and having dinner at Joe's CrabShack!

Four Christmases

2011-01-03T19:38:00.000-08:00

Another whirlwind Holiday Season has come and gone... we spent Christmas at Mom's in Beaumont, Memaw's in Lumberton, Lala's in Emory, and Dad's in Lindale. So much food and so many presents and so much fun :) We ADORE spending time with our loved ones at Christmas... We look forward to what the New Year holds and hope to extend our little family!

We Give Thanks for our WoNdErFuL families!!!

2010-11-29T18:03:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving was busy busy busy with days and days of Turkey and Celebrations... We were able to spend time with "Memaw, Papaw, Nanna, Big Daddy, Lala, Aunt Sheila, Aunt Jamikay, Little Ethan, Baby Urijah, Poppa, Gigi, Uncle Deven, Aunt Jalee, and Uncle Chris"!!! The kids spent two nights at Whispering Pines Campsite with Nanna and Big Daddy... they had TONS of fun and didn't want to leave! We really loved spending time out there, and we ended the Long Fun-Filled Weekend with Rozean Family FEAST :)

Family PhotoShoot!

2010-11-21T16:25:00.000-08:00

Photography: Some Sweet Babies, Pretty Girls, and Family Christmas Card shoots

2010-11-08T15:54:00.000-08:00

Here are some of my favorite shots from my last 6 photoshoots :)

HaLLoWeeeeeeeeN!

2010-11-02T15:16:00.000-07:00

Our 4th Annual Costume Party was a success... We had some "Cops", a "Ghostbuster", "Gum Under the Table", "True Blood" characters, a "Strawberry Shortcake", a "Geisha", and an "EL JEFE"! Yummy snacks and adult beverages were flowing. Trick-Or-Treating was spent with lots of family... we all met up at Jalee's to get the kids fed and dressed. Caleb and Caraline were ThE cUtEsT little Frankenstein Monsters... Mr. Ethan was an adorable little wizard and Mr. Chase was a cute cute Lil Devil! The poor little thing was so upset when he saw Caleb's monster makeup :( He was so very scared and kept looking for him while Caleb tried to isolate himself. After, they rang a few doorbells, he soon forgot about it (thanks to the distraction of candy)! All of the kids came home with bags and bags for of goodies =D

Caleb is 11 Years Old!!!

2010-10-13T19:00:00.000-07:00

Sweet Caleb Aaron is officially ELEVEN! We decided to let him have a Sleepover with pizza, video games, and cupcakes (rather than have another 'little kid' Saturday birthday party). Will, Andrew, and Taylor all rode the bus over to the high school with Caleb, Caraline, and Connor. All SIX of them filled up the Suburban. They had tons of fun together and made sweet little memories :)

School Days Return

2010-10-13T18:40:00.000-07:00

Here is Caleb and Caraline on their 1st Day back at school... She is now a 1st grader and He is in the 5th grade. I can't believe he will be in Middle School next year! Caraline is still in the Dual Language Program, but she was also just promoted to the Gifted Program :) She was so cute when we explained it to her because she ran up to Caleb and said, "Guess what?... Now I'm as smart as you are!" Big news for Caleb... He just won a $1,000 Savings Bond in an Essay Contest! He also just made the UIL Math Number Sense Team, after tryouts, this week :) School has already kept us ExTrA busy, but we are love it and we're so very proud of our smart kiddos!

A Sad Day

2010-09-15T06:08:00.000-07:00

I know that we usually post very happy and fun blog entries, but this one will not be one of those. Drew and I found out, this past weekend, that we lost the baby. I was supposed to be ending my 1st Tri-mester when we found out. Although we are completely devestated, we are getting through this with the many many prayers from family and friends. I just wanted to thank you all for your love and support! We hope to try again this next summer, so we will see what God has in store for us then.

Summer Days!!!

2010-08-28T21:46:00.001-07:00

Oh, Summer... Why do you always come and go so quickly? We spent days and days sleeping in, going to the pool, and visitng LOTS of friends & family. The kids loved our visit to Temple for Grandma Bonnie's wedding and our trip to Turner Falls with the Griffins. We are sad to see the summer go, but excited for the new school year. Most importantly... we can't wait for the new baby to get here!!!!!!!!!!!!

Our Jenny Bunny

2010-07-20T16:15:00.000-07:00

We love our little Hippitty-Hopp ;) Jenny is the newest member of our family... we accidentally met her at the pet store, this spring, and we fell in LOVE! We brought her up to Caraline's classroom for Show and Tell at the end of the school year... I'm pretty sure her teacher fell in love with a bunny that day too! :) Who can resist that sweet little face???

Caraline's New ZEBRA room :)

2010-07-06T08:58:00.000-07:00

before... after...

We spent about 6 or 7 days priming, prepping, scraping ceiling popcorn, painting, hanging wallpaper, and putting up a chair rail in Caraline's room. She's been wanting a pink and zebra room for about two years now. We decided to get it done during the summertime... and we're really excited about how it turned out! No more "sea green and baby pink". We've moved up to "fussy pink" :) We finally just hung her shelves and bought her new Zebra bedding. As you can see... we forgot to take a before picture, but this will have to do. Hope everyone loves the results as much as we do!!!

some Ballet and some Baseball...

2010-06-07T18:48:00.001-07:00

We have been in FULL SWING with Ballet and Baseball mode for the past 2 months! Caraline has been enrolled in Ballet at Candy Crocker's School of Dance since August, but it has been pandimonium getting ready for the annual recital. Her class performed a little fairy routine to the music of the new Tinkerbell movie. Poppa, Gigi, and Katie came to see her dance. She was brilliant and beautiful on the night of her recital! Caleb started playing in the Minors, late Spring. The Dodgers started kind of slow (0 and 4), but they ended strong (10 and 5). They made it to the first round of playoffs, and Caleb was awarded the "Most Improved Player of the Year" (for his team) by the league. Now that it's all over and school's out, we almost don't know what to do with ourselves... I guess we are ready for another Summer in the Sun!!!

Bathroom ReNoVaTiOn!!!

2010-04-15T12:07:00.000-07:00

Sooooo... four weeks ago we began a "little" project of knocking out an old shower, stealing space from the other bathroom, and creating a new large master bath shower. With LOTS AND LOTS of help from Laura and Joe we were FINALLY able to tile in a new and modern shower. We have all new colors, new lights, new vanity, new cabinets, flooring, fixtures, etc. No more are the days of bumping an elbow on the sides of the 'camper-feeling' sea-green shower! We are so excited to have it done... well, we're still working on the second coat of wall paint and on the grout sealant. But, it's AwEsOmE!!! Thank you SOOOOOOOO much, Poppa Joe and Lala :)

CaRaLiNe fAiTh is SIX today!!!

2010-03-08T12:27:00.000-08:00

I am a little sad that my sweet angel, Caraline Faith, is not a baby anymore, but we were so excited to celebrate her 6th birthday with friends and family yesterday! She has wanted a swim party for years now, but the weather doesn't cooperate very well in early March... so, luckily we were able to accomodate her at Tyler's Indoor Waterpark in the "Villages". The Birthday was Hello Kitty-themed, and Aunt Jalee made an AmAzInG Hello Kitty birthday cake that RoCkEd!!! Caraline was excited to spend time with family and friends for cake, ice cream, & lots of swimming. Addie, Jordan, Ellie, and Ethan had a blast with Caleb & Caraline. Lots of family joined in as well: Lala, Poppa, Gigi, Aunt Jalee, Uncle Chris, Grandpa Dana, Deborah, Christopher, Jamikay, and Ethan (who turned 3 years old, just one day before)! The party was a huge success, but we were all exhausted by the end of the day!

pUpPiEs... round 3!

2010-02-28T18:48:00.000-08:00

Here we go again... this is the 3rd litter of Lab puppies for our household :) After only 4 last time, we were shocked to see 9 this time! We have 5 cHoCoLaTeS and 4 YeLLoWs.. or vanilla, as we like to call them =D They are 4 weeks old now but in only two weeks, they'll be ready for new homes. Let us know if you need one of these bundles of joy to join your family!!! ;)

SnOw DaY... in TEXAS!!!!

2010-02-13T11:15:00.000-08:00

Well, we have wIsHeD and hOpEd and had our fingers crossed, so it FINALLY happened... a SNOW DAY. No school for us yesterday!!! We were all anxious to get out of bed, bundle up, and play in the snow! We have never seen 6-8 inches of snow in East Texas, ever... the kids had so much fun helping daddy build a snowman :) These memories will last us a lifetime!

Celebrating 2010

2010-01-04T10:40:00.000-08:00

Although we had plans to go BIG (with Cristie and Michael) in Dallas for New Year's, Drew could not get off work for New Year's Day. So, in order to ensure that he made it to work the next morning... we celebrated with friends, here in Tyler. We hit our faithful karaoke hot spot for quesadillas, drinks, and music (as well as Marla's birthday)! After Jason and Drew were able to sing some of their favorites, we all headed out to the next spot for some dancing. We had a BLAST ringing in the new decade with some of our closest friends. Katie and Sean had us over to visit around the fire until we finally had to call it a night at 3 am. We were able to see the Brawners one last time, on Saturday, for a little bit more Christmas before they headed back to Florida :( Guess we'll just have to go see them this summer for some SUN! For now... it's back to reality and back to school :( YUCK!!!

ChRiStMaS FINALLY came!!! :)

2010-01-01T22:59:00.000-08:00

Christmas has been busier than any other year and we stayed home! We asked for it though :) We really wanted to host ChRiStMaS for our families this year: Christmas Eve Day with Drew's family was spent with Turkey, Ham, Dressing, Spinach Madeline, Cheesecake, Pumpkin Log, lots of presents, and SNOWFLAKES... Christmas Eve was so precious and so SPECIAL as we read about Mary and Joseph in our new festive jammies, around the fire, with hot chocolate and marshmallows... Christmas Morning was sooooo fun watching the kids tear into the fun surprises from SaNtA and some blueberry muffins from daddy... Christmas Day with my family (the Rozeans) was spent with Prime Rib, more Turkey, Green-Bean Casserole, more Spinach Madeline, Pumpkin Pie, and even MORE presents... the day After Christmas with the rest of my family (the Babins) was spent with Shrimp E'Touffee' and a SLEW of more presents!!! We LOVED, LOVED, LOVED spending the holidays with our families! I'm so sad to see it go... or, could it be that I'm just NOT ready for another semester of this school year?!!

More Photography!

2009-12-06T20:04:00.000-08:00

Here are some of my recent photoshoots :) I feel so lucky to have such trusting fRiEnDs and FaMiLy who are allowing me to create special memories for them! I've been very busy with Family Christmas Card shoots and a Wedding Engagement photoshoot... hope I've had some happy customers. Photography is so fun, especially when the subjects are absolutely BeAuTiFuL! Oh, I thought I'd throw in a couple of our Christmas Card photos as well :) Thank you, Sarah Faye, for taking such great pictures!!!

Caleb accepted Jesus!!!

2009-11-29T09:08:00.000-08:00

On "Thanksgiving Eve" Caleb decided that he was ready to accept Jesus into his heart as his personal SAVIOR!!! We are so excited that he has taken the first step to live his life for
the Lord... we truly did have so much to give Thanks for this week! Please keep him in your prayers so that he may grow in the Lord and do His will :)

Our 3rd Annual HaLLoWeEn Bash!!!

2009-11-15T19:33:00.000-08:00

We had an AMAZING Halloween weekend, taking the kiddos trick-or-treating with Connor and entertaining our friends with our 3rd Annual Costume Party! Mom and Chuck came into town to help us prepare for our party as well as Laura. The Hoggs, the Johnsons, Gores, Griffins, Larsens, Dudleys, and some of their buddies stopped by. Drew wowed everyone with his Sangria and his hilarious SNL costume. It was a huge success and everyone had a blast until all hours of the night! :)

Caleb's GT Literature Pumpkin Project

2009-10-28T08:38:00.000-07:00

We spent about 4 hours on this pumpkin last night! Caleb's assignment was to pick one of his favorite storybook characters to decorate (NOT carve) a pumpkin with. He chose Aslan, the LION, from "The Chronicles of Narnia". After looking at online images for over an hour, Caleb finally found the perfect lion. It took nearly two hours to cut out every interior detail of the stencil. Drew finally took it outside to spray-paint over the stencil... we are very happy with the final product! Drew also helped carry it in the school this morning to Caleb's classroom. He said there were a lot of 'ooohs and aaaahs' through the hallways! :)

Caleb is 10 years old!!!

2009-10-10T08:51:00.001-07:00

I cannot believe our CaLeB AaRoN is 10 years old now!!! It seems like just yesterday that he was a chunky, rolly, 10 pound baby with huge dark smiling eyes looking up at me for the first time. He has grown into such a wonderfully smart and compassionate child. Caleb surprises us each day with his growing intelligence. He is such a sensitive young boy who cares about others more than himself. We're hoping he rubs off on Caraline a little!!! :) He shows her lots of love and adoration, so we know that she sees and learns from him more and more everyday. He has a heart for Jesus and we are so proud of him! We continue to pray, daily, that he follows through on his commitments and follows God's path that is laid out before him. We celebrated Caleb at mom's with his aunts and uncles and cousins and grandparents. We enjoyed family with shrimp etoufee, chocolate cake, and burgers over the weekend!

Britney Spears!

2009-09-20T14:55:00.000-07:00

I FINALLY got to see Britney Spears live in concert!!! Her "Circus" Tour is near it's end, and she was in Dallas this weekend. I rode with friends Suzanne, Deborah, and Amy... we stopped at Taco Cabana on the way for some Tex-Mex and frozen margaritas. Once we arrived at the American Airlines Center, we continued with margaritas and purchased "Britney" merchandise. It was soooo exciting waiting for the Show... She RoCkEd the HoUsE! We were pleasantly surprised to hear several older songs (like "Everytime" and "Hit Me Baby, One More Time") as well as an awesome rendintion of Alanis Morissette's "You Oughta Know". It was everything I hoped it would be... soooo glad I got to go!

First Day of School

2009-09-13T09:57:00.000-07:00

Caraline is officially a kindergartner now! Caleb is now in the 4th grade... they are both soooo smart and are learning so much just in the first couple of weeks of school. I cannot believe how fast they are growing up! I wish I could slow down time and keep them young and innocent for as long as possible, but I love seeing who they are becoming with each new day! We are so blessed to have such sweet, caring, and obedient children from Heaven above :) They bring joy to all who are blessed to know and love them. We try very hard to teach them humility and to love Jesus, their creator!

Family Vacay

2009-08-23T10:35:00.000-07:00

We spent a long weekend at Lake Livingston's Northshore RV Resort with Mom, Chuck, Memaw, Papaw, Jalee, Chris, Aunt Sheila, Jarrod, Jamikay, and baby nephews! :) The Resort was awesome with a man-made beach front, a splash park, a swimming pool, sno-cone shack, and a club house. We had a blast with family swimming and eating and more swimming and eating. We had a wide variety of burgers, BBQ, sandwhiches, snacks, and adult beverages to last the whole weekend. Memaw and Papaw took Caleb and Caraline home with them. We headed back for Tyler with Chris and Jalee, stopping at Olive Garden for a feast, a bottle of wine, and some adult conversation. The kiddos stayed a couple of nights hanging out at Memaw and Papaw's, a night at Aunt Deanna and Uncle John's to play with Tripp, then a couple of nights having a blast with Mom and Chuck. Mom took them out to eat, shopping, and even took them to the movies. Drew and I had lots of dates that week. We went out for drinks with friends a couple of times too. Caleb and Caraline headed back home with Nanna and Big Daddy after 6 days away from home. We were sooooo excited to see them... they looked so grown up! We spent quite a while getting hugs and kisses before they just HAD to see the puppies. This summer was awesome but flew by WAAAAYY too fast! Now back to school... I really am hoping for a great school-year though. I'll finally be teaching Pre-AP English II along with my two Yearbook classes. Caleb is going into the fourth grade and Caraline will be a big Kindergartner. They are soooo excited to start school! :) So, I must say 'goodbye' to SuMmEr now... sigh

Back in TyLeR...

Kids come HOME!!!!!!!!!!

Our Summer....

2009-07-28T22:00:00.000-07:00

So... we have run from "here to there" all summer long! It has been very different from last summer: where the kids and I slept in every day, picked up lunch, hung at the pool, and came back home to be lazy. This summer has been jam-packed all but 3 or 4 days... no joke! We have been swimming, movie-going, and visiting family & friends... daily! I guess that's why I haven't posted a blog lately, so here I am playing catch-up. We are absolutely DREADING school starting up at the end of August, BUT!... we have one last hoorah! We are headed for a big family "vacay" to Lake Livingston this weekend. I promise to put pictures up of that when we get back! :)

School's out and we're busier than ever!

2009-06-13T20:44:00.000-07:00

The last day of school was this past Friday... PRAISE JESUS!!! :) After playing photographer at Graduation, I was able to have some drinks with fellow teachers. More photography on Saturday of some pretty girls. Drew and I spent the next evening barbequing with the Larsens while the kids ran wild with water guns. Sunday was Laura's birthday, so we headed to Arlington for the horse races. Happy Birthday, Laura! :) Finally... a family day at the pool on Monday! I had to work Tuesday and Wednesday to help write ELA curriculum, but I am finally FREEEEEEEEEEE for the whole summer! Woo-Hoo!!! We have swam a lot and hung out with lots of friends all this week... we plan to keep this up all summer! :)

Family Post-Ike Crawfish Boil

2009-06-03T16:22:00.000-07:00

We decided, last minute, to drive down to my cousin Missy's get-together at their newly remodeled home (since the last hurricane season). They decided to throw a family reunion/crawfish boil. She even had t-shirts made for everyone. The kiddos stayed in their swimsuits all day while everyone visited and enjoyed more than 300 lbs. of spicy crawfish... yummy! I sooooo loved seeing all of our family including our absolutely precious baby nephews!!! We LOVE them... isn't that what aunts and uncles are for though? :) Before we left, the next day, we took lots of pretty pictures of the kids with their Nanna... so cute! :)

Going out with friends

2009-05-24T20:26:00.000-07:00

So, we have become quite the 'social butterflies' these days :) Well, actually we've just made some really good friends and we have tons of fun with them! Our new hot spots involve karaoke, dancing, and live music. This blog entry is for you... Pruitts, Griffins, Dudleys, Hoggs, Gores, Larsens, and Touchstones! :)

A Mother's Day Photoshoot

2009-05-10T15:12:00.000-07:00

Our Double Birthday Get-Away to Fort Worth

2009-04-27T12:31:00.000-07:00

Oh my gosh! We had soooo much fun with friends and family this weekend!!! Drew just turned 30 years old on Tuesday and Saturday was my 31st. Here's how we celebrated...

After dropping the kiddos off in Lindale, with Poppa and Gigi, we headed to Fort Worth with our friends Melissa and Jerrod. Jalee and Chris followed behind us and we all stopped for a yummy lunch at Taco Cabana as we drove through Dallas. Before checking into our hotel rooms, we shopped a little in downtown and stopped by Starbucks. At the hotel, we spent some time relaxing and getting ready for dinner. The view of the Water Gardens was beautiful. We met up with Laura, Lynn, and Matt for an absolutely DELICIOUS gathering at PF Changs... we had egg drop soup, calamari, crab wontons, honey seared chicken, mongolian chicken, sweet and sour pork, and lots of other scrumptious entrees with perfect little desserts. Our waitress kicked butt; she even put little candles in mine and Drew's desserts after taking group pictures for us.

We headed back to the hotel rooms for cocktails with lots of friends. After some laughs, 16 of us squeezed into the elevator and into a couple of cars for a fun night at Pete's Dueling Piano Bar. That place ROCKS!!!!!!! We all jammed to songs from the last 3 or 4 decades while the piano players joked around and encouraged more drink purchases. What a fun night we had!

After sleeping in a little, we all packed up for breakfast at The Corner Bakery... mmmmm :) We then went to the Water Gardens for a few fun photos.

We stopped in Arlington for lunch, hosted by Lynn and Matt. They were all ready for us with balloons, flowers, cards, and burgers on the grill. Thanks, guys! It was great :) Jerrod and Melissa rode back with us to pick up Caleb and Caraline at the Bed & Breakfast.

Drew and I also want to thank everyone for helping make our birthdays soooo special! Thanks, Mom for the spending money... Thanks, Laura for the shopping trip beforehand... Thanks, Eric for your help with the hotel rooms... Thanks, Dad and Antoniette for keeping our little rugrats so we could get a break... Thanks to ALL of our friends and family for our 40 or 50 birthday wishes that we received over the weekend!!! We love you all and we truly feel blessed for having such an amazing circle of love around us! :)

Easter Sunday

2009-04-12T20:12:00.000-07:00

Although it was a stormy morning, the kids hopped up to see what the Easter Bunny left in their baskets... he also hid lots of eggs throughout the house (where it was nice and dry). The kids had a blast finding them and they were being fair by keeping it equal with the amount that they each found :) Drew got out his new smoker and prepared the chickens for our Easter lunch. We spent the day with Poppa, Gigi, Jalee, Chris, Deven, and Eric. After a yummy dinner together and taking fun pictures, we spent several hours just visiting and playing with the kids :)

Memaw's SURPRISE 80th Birthday Party!!!

2009-04-07T13:05:00.000-07:00

Oh my gosh... our Memaw is the cutest thing ever!!! She was so surprised to see all of us down in Beaumont. I love her so much and it was worth it to miss the Prom to go to her birthday party... these are "my kids" too! The ones I've had since they were freshmen. These are the kids who have grown up with me; I had them for two years in a row. So they were a little disappointed in me, but they know I love them! :) Ms. Parker Austin bailed me out of doing pictures... good job, by the way, Catherieeee!

Memaw thought she was going out to eat with Uncle Kenny and Aunt Beverly... little did she know we had all travelled miles and miles to surprise her at a very colorfully decorated party on Kenny and Beverly's beautiful back porch. We came from all over: Jalee and Chris as well as my bunch from Tyler, Sheila from Dallas, Sharon flew in from Georgia, Jeff and Karen from Austin, Sarah (now on her way back to Hawaii), Jarrod's group with Nanna and Big Daddy from closer to Sour Lake, Dustin from Huntsville, and... Sean & Susann via webcam from Germany!

We spent the day having briskett with lots of yummy sides and yummy drinks. Aunt Sheila showed her the picture slideshow of her life set to the song, "Hey, Good Lookin'... Watcha' Got Cookin" as well as the awesome photo book she made from her childhood to know. Memaw and Papaw just LOVED those! :) After presents and cake we all spent hours visiting and listening to old stories and jokes... we have the funniest, most loving, most adorable grandparents to ever walk this planet!!! It was a special weekend and I know Memaw felt very blessed to have all of her loved ones all around her!!!

A Hannah Montana Birthday Extravaganza

2009-03-17T20:20:00.000-07:00

Wow! What a day... we celebrated Caraline's 5th birthday last weekend with lots of family and friends. We started off with all the kiddos taking turns at the Pinata. The kids had so much fun with that although Caraline wasn't too sure of the blindfold. After a ridiculous amount of presents to open, we all headed back outside for a "Silly String" war. It was hilarious and very intense even though it last all of two minutes! Our nephew, Ethan, was also celebrating his 2nd birthday... so, we all enjoyed TWO cakes. :) We loved having family in town... we miss you already: Mom, Chuck, Lala, Jarrod, Jamikay, Ethan, and Chase!

Caraline in the Highlighter's Spring Show!

2009-02-21T10:32:00.000-08:00

Caraline attended the Annual Highlighter's Mini Clinc (last Friday) along with her friend, Addie, as well as some of her classmates. She practiced and practiced, but it was just really fun for her to get her first experience at dance. We have big plans to enroll her into dance this summer with Addie. Last night, the Highlighter's celebrated their 40th year by performing "Standing Ovations" from previous years. Caraline and her little friends danced to Mary Poppin's "Spoonful of Sugar". They were too cute to notice any mistakes, and Caraline was absolutely beautiful!

My Photography

2009-02-15T15:18:00.000-08:00

Well, I'm JUST now dabbling in the Photography business. Here are a couple of my latest jobs... tell me what you think! :)

Superbowl Party

2009-02-03T20:42:00.000-08:00

We had family and friends over for the SuperBowl Sunday. Yummy snacks like shrimp cocktail, WingStop wings, and chips with dips covered the bar along with some good drinks. Most of all, we enjoyed laughing together and laughing at Bruce Springsteen. Of course we showed off the puppies and our new floors to the Griffins and the Dahlgrens. We loved loved loved having Jarrod and Jamikay stay through the weekend with those sweet babies!

Update on Puppies

2009-02-03T20:29:00.000-08:00

They are now 3 weeks old... they've finally opened their eyes and are really feisty these days! Those teeth are coming in and they mostly enjoy chewing on each other a little bit :) Caraline is in love with each and every one of them... we will be sad to see them go as they find new homes in another 3 or 4 weeks. Aren't they just the cutest??!!!

Floor Remodeling

2009-01-26T21:14:00.000-08:00

Here are the new floors... Ta Da! Thank you Thank you Thank you, Laura, for all you did to help us out! The old yucky carpet is finally gone... after 2 1/2 years of waiting :) We found a big mess underneath, all kinds of old glue from linoleum. Drew had to acid-wash the floors first which led to the 'mask', a short evacuation, and a cute little basket full of puppies outside while we waited for the acid to air out. The two-day project turned into 6 because we added 3 layers of color and texture. Plus, the hallway could only be painted just before bedtime. After the kiddos were snuggled in bed, we shut all of the hallway doors to paint the next layer and ended at our bedroom so we could put away the bucket, rollers, and brushes in the shower overnight. The kitty-kat did not like being locked up with us every night, but it's all over now :) We finally finished repainting the baseboards last night. It's soooo nice to finally have it all completed!

Puppies!!!

2009-01-14T07:35:00.000-08:00

Yay... Six little brand new Chocolate puppies came last night! Caleb and Caraline watched the last two being born, but they were kind of grossed out about that. Josie is such an attentive little mommy :) They're so cute, but very whiney. I don't think Jagger-kitty likes them being inside very much, but he'll get over it. It's so interesting how the kids have seen the 'circle of life' this week (with our two-year old Beta, "Oscar" fish dying this weekend). Caraline is in love with these puppies already, but we told her she cannot touch them yet. God's miracle of life is so awesome!

Tooth Fairy... Yay!

2009-01-14T07:06:00.000-08:00

Well, Caraline has lost her first tooth this week! She's nearly five, so I guess she's right on track... I can hardly remember that far back with Caleb. I think he was 5, but that was four years ago! I cannot believe how time flies. She did not cry, and she was so excited for the Tooth Fairy to come leave her money because she's friends with Santa! She received two dollars the next morning and now she thinks she is hot stuff. She loves her new trick... sticking her tongue through the little gap! :)

Christmas Card photoshoot

2009-01-05T19:39:00.000-08:00

Besides the great pictures from Thanksmas, here are the Christmas card pictures Jalee took for us at a Tyler park. We took their pictures too... they're so cute, aren't they? Poor Chris had to man-handle the labs for us, and he was such a good sport about it. Jackson is just so strong and hard to control sometimes. Josie, on the other hand, is still a pup so she was easily distracted! We just love these pictures... hope you do too. :)

A "Cupcake Adventure!"... Thanks, Santa!

2009-01-05T15:19:00.000-08:00

So, Caraline really really really wanted one of the newest 'hot items' of the season... "Girl Gourmet's" Cupcake Maker. Silly Santa delivered, and we've been making messes ever since! I just had to share these cute little pictures for my blog readers! :) She begged and begged all Christmas Day to make some cupcakes, so we finally got it out after her nap. First batch was way runny and got all over the microwave. Second batch had icing pouring all over the table and floor... what a mess! We finally got it right on the third try but it was a littel drippy, as you can see. After Christmas, our second attempt ran much smoother. Believe it or not, she loved those things. They tasted a little bit like styrofoam to me... Yuk!

Christmas at Lala's

2009-01-02T19:35:00.000-08:00

We celebrated our 6th and final Christmas with Lala, Joe, Lynn, Matt, and the Hunters on New Year's Eve. Although it was a little late, the day was still filled with lots of Christmas Spirit! Stockings were in the morning and a 'slew' of gifts went on and on and on for the early afternoon. We loved watching everyone open their gifts. Laura and Lynn loved the photobooks we made. I'm finally able to say 'photobooks' because I didn't want them to know that we made 8 of those for our families! It was very exciting to see all of our familie's faces when they opened their special books. :) We all had one more turkey with dressing and casseroles and yummy deserts... now back to the gym!

Christmas Day with Mom and Babin family!!!

2008-12-29T22:36:00.000-08:00

Santa was soooo good to these kids! I'm not so sure Caraline deserved it though... she's quite the little "princess" sometimes. Caleb sent a letter to Santa for the both of them. He asked for a remote control car and an MP3 player while Caraline wanted a Cupcake Maker and new doll to be "Haylee" doll's sister (since there is NO WAY she's getting a real sister!). As you can see, they got everything they wanted and more. Her new doll, "Kaylee", is so darn cute and says the sweetest little phrases. Caleb is just 'too cool' with some of the music he's already downloaded like Oasis, Aerosmith, Hoobastank, Bush, and T.I. Spending time with family was very special and the best comfort food ever was soooo yummy! This marked the 3rd and 4th Christmases... two more to go.

A Rozean Christmas

2008-12-29T21:50:00.000-08:00

Last weekend was spent at our house with Poppa, Gigi, Jalee, Chris, and Dev. It was very pleasant... the rotisserie chicken was really juicy! Classic holiday side dishes finished off our spread, not to mention, we went through a couple of bottles of good wine! The kids loved their gifts, but we had the most fun singing lots and lots of Singstar on the PS2. We even spent some time driving around to look at lights. The dancing light show with music was the way awesome. So, it was a really nice get-together!

Christmas Party

2008-12-14T18:29:00.001-08:00

We had so much fun at the 7th annual Hogg's Hullaballoo Christmas Party... Great company, great drinks, and great snacks. Although we didn't win one of the prizes that were given away every 30 minutes, we had a blast watching everyone enjoying themselves. Who knew teachers were so much fun! :) I do have to admit that the "Gingerbread Man" was not my friend (just a little stronger than I can handle). Now that I'm definately in the "Christmas Spirit", I am soooo ready for school to be out this week, so we can enjoy time with our families!

Thanksgiving

2008-12-01T08:56:00.001-08:00

Thanksgiving was THE BEST! We had so much fun at Memaw and Papaw's house. We got to kiss all over baby Chase and eat lots of good food. We got up Friday morning to go check out all of the big sales. I already have almost all of my shopping DONE! After a yummy cookout at Mom and Chuck's, Drew and I snuck away Friday night, with Dustin, to go see "Four Christmases"... it was such a funny movie! We spent Saturday morning helping Memaw set up her tree of 'dolls', taking pictures, and having lunch with my Momma. The rest of the weekend, at home, was spent watching holiday movies under a blanket and putting up the rest of the Christmas decorations. We cannot WAIT for Christmas... our school break starts December 19th! Woo-hoo!!!

Thanksmas Annual Photoshoot

2008-11-23T19:02:00.000-08:00

Thanksmas was so yummy and so cozy. We brought our cameras, favorite dishes, and gifts to exchange. We rocked out a little on Guitar Hero and watched the Grinch (a Thanksmas tradition). Dinner consisted of "Roast Beast", Spinach Madeline, Yorkshire Pudding, Corn Casserole, and of course the best desserts ever. :) Laura and Lynn helped get some awesome pictures, so we hope you like them!

Beautiful Baby Chase Alexander is finally here!

2008-11-16T21:05:00.000-08:00

He is oh so gorgeous!!! Chase was born on Friday afternoon. He weighed in at 8 lbs. and 6 oz. He is 19 inches long. His skin is so pretty and he looks like Jarrod and Jamikay both! I can't believe how much I love him already. His sneeze is precious, his quivering cry is precious, his little whimper is precious... he's just perfect! I can't wait to hug on him and kiss on him during Thanksgiving and Christmas. Yay!!!

Costume Party

2008-11-02T09:15:00.000-08:00

The party was a huge success... lots of friends, food, and drinks. All of the costumes were great! We had pirates, gods, Elvira, Jem, witches, and a baseball player. Some brave souls stepped up to the Karaoke plate. We sang a little Grease and Johnny B Goode as well as some new stuff like Bubbly, Umbrella, Fergalicious, and Hey There Delilah. After some hours around the fire pit, we finally called it a night around midnight or so.

Halloween!

2008-11-01T08:54:00.000-07:00

Caleb and Caraline were absolutely adorable! She was the prettiest little witchling ever. We met Addie and Clayton in Whitehouse to trick or treat in a cute little neighborhood. All of the participation there was great! There was even a haunted house... very scary! Caraline was brave though-she wanted to go through it twice. After hours of getting way too much candy, we headed home to pass more candy out at home. We had some cute ones... especially Lydia's little Cinderella, Julie. :) Now for the costume party tonight... Yay!

Pumpkin Patch

2008-10-27T08:41:00.000-07:00

Caleb and Caraline had so much fun at the Pumpkin Patch on Sunday! We had fun feeding animals, going on the hay ride, and picking out pretty pumpkins. The best part was the Corn Maze... it was long with lots of twists and turns! Luckily, we had clues to get us on the right track. :)

Grandma's Birthday Bash

2008-10-12T12:54:00.000-07:00

We spent the day in Coppell at Grandpa Dana's house to celebrate Grandma Bonnie's 75th birthday party. Caleb and Caraline had a lot of fun running around and swimming with the other kids. Thank goodness for heated pools in October! :) It was good to see the cousins from Kansas too. Bonnie LOVED receiving a scrapbook made by all the grandkids, which Lynn and Matt orchestrated. We plan to go stay with Grandma Bonnie in Temple real soon!

Caleb's 9th Birthday

2008-10-07T06:11:00.000-07:00

I cannot believe he is 9 years old already! He actually turned 9 earlier in the week. We went for pizza on his birthday, and we let him open his new Aerosmith Guitar Hero game (I think he has all of the games now!). Sunday's party was so fun with an Iron Man theme, we just hung out while the kids played outside. Everyone came in for cookie cake and Caleb's presents. He had nine friends over with Jalee & Chris, Poppa & Gigi, and Lala. Now to start planning Halloween costumes!

Our Anniversary GetAway Weekend

2008-09-27T21:36:00.000-07:00

We had a blast in Fort Worth. We spent the weekend at the Worthington Hotel in downtown. We ate at PF Changs, Le Madeline, Corner Bakery, Daddy Jacks, and some little Mexican Cantina. We shopped on the square and had a lot of romantic time.

Best of all, Jalee and Chris joined us Saturday for an awesome, crazy night at Pete's Dueling Piano Bar. Lala spent the weekend with the kiddos so we could get away. It was sooo nice to have no worries for a couple of days and just let loose!

Summer Fun

2008-09-15T22:12:00.000-07:00

Summers rock because I get to stay home with my babies. We spent COUNTLESS hours at the pool, hung out on the lake, visited the waterparks and amusement parks, hung out with Cristie (my bestie) and we all got really good tans! :)
The girls got to sneak away for a weekend in Galveston. We ate and swam and shopped and ate and shopped some more! I'm so glad we got to spend a weekend on the Seawall before the hurricane. Who knows when it will ever be the same again! :(
Drew started a new job and we are now back in the full swing of things at school, but summer was AWESOME while it lasted!