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Christmas 2009

Wow! Christmas is gone already! Can't believe it, New Years is right around the corner! So many new things have happened this year w/the wedding and new babies coming along. Our family just keeps on growing. I hope everyone had a wonderful and safe holiday season and I pray that it continues thru the next year! Love you all!

What in the world?

Have you ever just asked the question "What in the world?" You know, the one where you just stand/sit there with this completely confused look on your face? I have been asking myself this question very regularly the last few days. And I'm sure the face has accompanied it many times. I completely understand that things happen in your life that you have NO control over. So that is not the purpose of the question, but why just because I do not agree to something does that automatically put me at fault? Times like these are when I truly have to remember that no matter how wonderful people are, we (YES! I say "we" because I myself am guily as well, I do not believe myself above reproach), and I mean humans in general, are selfish. We can be very sympathetic to others needs and wants, but very often we want our own needs and wants met first. I also understand (better than a lot of people) that not all families get along all the time. My own blood family is a very good example. Those who I do have frequent contact with, as well as those I never see. I mean I have 2 half-brothers that I did not meet until my dad's funeral, obviously we are not close, one of which decided to say some less than attractive things about my mom, which of course "upset" me greatly. True I was only 13 but hey, I can blame grabbing a baseball bat and starting to go after him largely on grief, right? I know that I am rambling, but that is what this thing is for anyway, right? I am the type of person who take pretty much what ever kind of abuse you want to put to me. I've dealt with it most of my life, so this is nothing new. BUT...when you start upsetting my husband and my sister, who also happens to be one of my best friends, we have a problem. Both of these people are fiercely loyal to those who they love. And much like me, will take whatever you want to put on them. But both are also very tender-hearted at certain times and ESPECIALLY when it comes from certain people. I just feel very bad that just because I make a decision that is good for me that I should be blamed for it!!! But OH WELL, I don't have "actual" children, I only have dogs so I should just be able to do what anyone wants me to do. Ok, sorry I'm getting snippy and I'm sorry if this hurts anyone's feelings, but you know what, I've had mine hurt a lot and I'm still alive. But again, I'm sorry if it hurts feelings, I would never do this purposely, but do feel that I am inclined to my own opinion and should be able to express it in my personal blog.

A Wedding!

Yes, we had a wedding. Not mine of course that was almost 4 yrs ago, but our cousin Paul married his sweetheart of a fiance Allyson. It was a very sweet simple wedding held at the Gazebo in Danielsville. True to Newbury fashion, the wedding didn't start at 5, but somewhere around 5:30 or 5:45. The cd player we had to play the music wouldn't play the burnt cd, so we had to use Mom & Dad's Volvo to play the music. Which is really quite amusing, but like we all said, at least it was a Volvo and not a big 4x4 truck! It really was a fun night and I hope everyone else had as good a time as I did.

Neal and I have seriously been trying to get ourselves back into church and it is something that we are committing ourselves to doing. And NO we're not doing this so that everyone will look at us and say "Oh, look at them going to church, they're being so good." This is something that we are doing for ourselves and our family. Neal is struggling w/some things and he is praying daily that God will give him the strength he needs to overcome. Both of us know that we do not want to stay on the path that we are on now and have decided that now is a time for change. We have both been saved for a very long time, I was 8 and I believe he was around the same age. Unfortunately, we have just not been living the way we should. One thing that both of us are praying daily for help with is our language. If you do not and have never cussed, then I admire you. But this is something that both of us struggle with and we have decided that it is time to stop. Ok, thats just a bit of what has been happening, so I'll leave w/a few pics from the wedding and reception.

It is Tuesday!

I'm not really sure what that means, but it is really Tuesday and I am so excited about the new Sherrilyn Kenyon book that comes out today. "Bad Moon Rising". So anxious to read about more of the yummy Dark Hunters and especially since this one is a Were-Hunter. I know, I know, I'm weak. Oh well. If any of you haven't read any of her stuff, I definitely recommend them. They are wonderful and I truly believe men would like them just as much as women. I actually think Neal may read some of them. Just a few more days until my first chance at wedding photography. Mel and Chad are coming down today, so we'll have our sweet little babies to play with as well. I don't think that Mel and Chad know how much I cherish the fact that they allow me to be a part of the girls' lives too. You see, I have at least 2 nieces in FL from my 2 half-brothers and I have never met them and probably never will. And that is hard on me because I really would like to at least get to know them or at the very least know their names. I'm pretty sure that they don't know that they have an aunt in Ga since I'm kinda like a curse to most of the people on my dad's side of the family. I didn't even meet either of my half-brothers until my dad's funeral. The oldest of the 2 Junior (who is about 25 yrs older than I am) and I pretty much had a hatred for each other from the beginning. And I do mean that literally. He came to the hospital the night I was born and took 1 look at me and turned to his wife and told her he never wanted to have children b/c he didn't want to risk having a red-headed girl. Guess what, his daughter is red-headed. The other brother, Terry, tried to actually get to know me a bit, but it was so weird that I couldn't put any effort into it. You see, I grew up w/2 guys that I thought of and still do think of as my brothers. Robert and Bubba David will always hold a special place in my heart. I mean Bubba David is the one who scared my boyfriend in 7th grade b/c he had broken up w/me. That is a true brother. So anyway, just wanted to give ya'll a little background on my wonderful life. And I just wanted to thank my brother and sister for letting me call those sweet babies my nieces.

Pictures of our Summer

These are just a few of the pictures I took while we were on our little mini-vacations.

The completely Awesome Haunted Prison tour in Charleston, SC. The prison was finished in 1802, and a large part of the original building still stands.

The Beautiful Gazebo in Lexington, SC.

Kyleigh, Alison & Neal swinging.

Sweet baby Adeline and her Uncle Neal.

Neal & I in Greenville, SC.

The babies playing in our room in Greenville and yes, JuJu is brushing Korbin's teeth for him.

Wow!

Time is just flying by! It is already August and I can't believe it. My niece and nephews start school this Thursday. One very exciting piece of news is that our cousin Paul and his fiance Allyson are getting married this Friday. I'm going to be the official wedding photographer so I won't really get to enjoy the wedding, but I hope they like the pictures I get. Melody and Chad just announced to everyone that they are expecting baby no. 3 in Feb. I really hope that he/she comes on Neal and David's b-day, he would be so excited. Still no talk of babies for us yet, just the 3 monsters that I call my own right now. But any-who. Let us see...well nothing else is going on right now, just working and praying that they don't decide to downsize Neal's dept at work. So ya'll have a great one and say a prayer for us!