Taylor

I am so glad that Nick, Robyn and Taylor came down to St. Pete for Thanksgiving. It's been great seeing them, especially since we haven't seen them since last Thanksgiving. Taylor is a cutie! I feel like she and I have bonded and we have a good time playing together. Enjoy some pictures!

First Frost

Last week we had the first frost in Jacksonville. I had Matt take some pictures before he left for work. He said it was hard to see the frost on his windshield, so he scraped "Hello" to help see it better.

Happy Birthday!

November is a very busy birthday month for my family. If you've never thought about it, February is 9 months before November, and we all know February is the love month! :) Of course, November is extra special because it is my birthday month, doubly special because mom had twins and triply special because my dad's birthday is the day before ours!!! Happy birthday Lisa!!

I try to make my birthday last a week, which I can't get Matt to completely go for, but I do get away with a lot more than normal. The teachers surprised me with a balloon and chocolate pie (yum!) during lunch Friday. Friday night I played Bunco with a group of friends from church. It's a dice game that is really fun and requires no skill whatsoever, which I like. The theme was Christmas so I got to wear my one Christmas vest that some people recognized from last year.

Saturday morning Matt made me pancakes. We used a mix that I had been given by one of my students. It was good, but they tasted like pancakes, nothing super spectacular like he made it sound. Matt made about 12 pancakes just to use up the batter. I don't think I could have eaten all of them if I tried all day. I think they are at the bottom of the garbage, though we could have fed them to the birds. Or saved the batter for later. Too late! Matt also gave me Dance, Dance, Revolution. It's a video game and you have to follow the steps on the tv and step on the arrows on the game pads. I was surprised because I mentioned over the summer that I would like to have it and forgot about it.

My women's Bible study group surprised me with balloons and treats, too! I wondered why the front door was locked but I could hear people inside. I just figured it was a habit to lock the door after opening it. I really felt bad because I still had wet hair and no make up for the pictures. But after Bible study I went to the Clinique counter to get my make up done because I wanted to buy some new stuff. The girl did a great job. I was worried because she chose a very dark eyeliner, but smudged it so I didn't have the dark raccoon eyes like she did.

Matt and I went to the mall to go Christmas shopping for the nieces and nephew and bought for each of them! I think Matt was leaning toward staying home since it was about to rain, but we weren't eating lunch in preparation for a HUGE dinner and I didn't want to be sitting doing nothing and thinking about eating.

We went to dinner with 3 couples from our couple's Bible study at a Brazilian steakhouse. They have waiters that bring meat out on huge skewers. They had the best food and I ate until I got my money's worth! Toward the end we asked for a few that we really liked and they brought that over. It's nice because it's not huge chunks of meat that they put on your plate and I didn't feel like I had to eat every bite of everything that was brought. They also brought out a brownie cupcake for me and Kevin (it was his birthday too). That was awesome! I surprisingly don't feel sick this morning, which makes me think maybe there is something to low-carb diets.

Thanks for all of the calls, cards and emails. It was a great way to begin the last year in my 20s!

Happy Birthday!

Happy birthday dad!

Quick Visit

My dad and abuelo drove up to Jacksonville Friday to stay overnight on their way up to North Carolina. Dad said they drove around Palatka and saw the houses he lived in while he was there. They pulled in the driveway shortly after I got home Friday afternoon and both took a quick nap. We went to The Loop for pizza and burgers and met up with my cousin and her husband. They have been living in Jacksonville for a while, but this is the first time we got together with them. I love that Mark is another non-Spanish speaking family member! Dad and abuelo left around 6:15 Saturday morning and made it to Wake Forest around 3 (I think that's what mom said). I find it funny that the last time they were at our house was last Thanksgiving and our house looks pretty much the same because we have the same Thanksgiving decorations out. I'm glad they were able to stop and visit, if only for a short time.

New President

I knew when I woke up this morning the country would have elected a new president. I did not know who it would be when I went to bed last night. Politics is not a topic that excites me and I am not one of those people that would lose sleep over the election. I learn about the candidates, do my civic duty and vote, and then rest assured that God is in control. I will pray for Obama and the country, just like I prayed for President Bush and like I would have done if McCain was elected. I hope that Obama continues to inspire the country and is able to do what he said he would do. I think it's going to be an interesting 4 years.

We voted

Matt and I did early voting this afternoon. The wait was about an hour and twenty minutes. Not too bad, considering how long the line was. We had a few drops of rain, but we didn't even open the umbrella. I spent time this afternoon researching the candidates and marking up the sample ballot we got in the mail. I did my best to be an informed voter. I felt good on the way to the library because I saw signs for all of the candidates I had marked and took that as a good "sign". I also saw some students and parents from school holding signs for their presidential candidate. Luckily we were at a red light and they saw us too. I know we did our part in the democratic process, now all we have left to do if wait and see if the rest of the state and country agreed with our decisions.