Rest in Peace

Visit From a Friend!

The other night Dave was asleep on the couch (when it isn't Wine Sundays, bedtime is on the couch around 9:30p.lheehee), and I went to let out two of our dogs. I flung open the garage door and there was a friend standing(?) there on the driveway next to Dave's Car!! What?!?!?!

OKay, so maybe I *fibbed* a tad, he's not really a friend. It was an alligator!! Isn't that crazy. It had been pouring and raining and lightning so bad that night and the only think I could think of was that he was confused. There was another gator the next morning in front of my mom's place that had been hit by a car but I don't think it's the same one. SO, to keep track, we have had the following in our house or on the porch, garage or driveway: Snake (four to be exact), mice (shouldn't be surprised but that's why we have cats), Spiders so big that they look like tarantulas (seriously, these things are so big that when Dave goes to kill them *yes him - not me*, he can see them turn to him and position themselves as to fight him off), opossum, raccoon, a squirrel that lives in our soffett, and now a gator....Crazy Critters! Doesn't Mother Nature know that we have enough IN our house...we don't need any more around it?

Next, Here's a cool little film that I shot when Dave and I went for a LONG ride last weekend. We went to a gun show and then kept driving up the turnpike and then up 27 almost to Ocala!! We saw lots of cool stuff along the way and it was a great ride! I

Also, I have to upload a quick film I shot of Dave shooting at the gun range. He gets all goofy when I get out the video camera -- but it'll appear in the next blog! Fun times!!

The Ball is in Motion.....

So, here I am sitting at our dirt pit and monitoring the truckers to make sure they put tickets in for each load they haul. It's a pretty brainless job, and regquires me to sit in my truck all day. I have gotten tons of work done for my mom's Ebay Store: http://www.quiltanon.com/. Also, I have had tons and tons of time to get homework done. Speaking of which., I have to get a new computer...money I DO NOT want to spend right now. But, that's the way things happen and if I want to keep going with my internet classes, I have to do it. Also, I am trying to get a student loan because my classes are getting more expensive, so that should help me get a computer.

Now - let's talk about something amazing: OUR WEDDING. It's all starting to happen! After what has felt like months and months of not really having to do much wedding related, the ball is now in motion! Here's what's coming up (not that anyone cares, I just would like to have a record for myself for the future.):

July 27th - We head over to Clearwater for our tasting. We get to sample the dinner that we'll be serving at our reception. This is also the day we will head over to eat some cake! There goes the diet that day! We plan on spending the night over at Clearwater Hilton and relax!!

August 2: Minnesota Shower. We are either leaving Thursday night or Friday morning and coming home Saturday night or Sunday morning. Mall of America - here we come!

August 16- Florida Shower! Kelly and my mom putting this one -- Kind of wishing OKlahoma folks would be at this one - but money and time is tight - but then again. who knows?

August 30 - My Oklahoma Shower. My cousin Cristy, Cousin Tami and aunt Cel are putting this one on for me! I can't wait to get back to Oklahoma! IT's been too long since I've been there and I miss everyone there so badly.

I am so blessed to have family that cares so much about Dave and I to throw these 3 amazing showers for us. We are truly honored.

We finally set the wedding time at 5:30p. The sun sets at 7:04p and this will allow for time for the ceremony, time for everyone to get to the reception and then pictures right at sunset. Tonight, we will pick the dinner that we would like served at the reception. This is all way too cool!

I just have to say too that it is so nice and refreshing to be marrying someone that my family adores. My family all loves Dave and it is just really cool. It feels good to go into this with such a good feeling of encouragement from my family. Things between us are going so well and each weekend we seem to have more and more fun - going different places, eating at different restaurants. Our life is really beginning to be an adventure.

I guess that's all. We have a couple more weeks before our fun begins.

Here are some photos just for fun:

This is my new purse:

My new purse has a *secret*:

This is my purse's secret...shhhhhh:

Readers..meet gun...gun...readers:

...And for fun, I was messing with a setting on my camera..the color switcher ...and here's a cool shot of our sky the other night...Enjoy!

"Honey, What Do You Think?"

"Hey Honey, What do you think?"

When I receive a text message like this - I already know what's up! When I receive a text message like that, something like this comes home to me:

Welcome to the family to our newest addition:

Yep, it's a motorcycle. We traded in the 600 from my older post and this is what we got for a near even trade. I went yesterday and had lunch with Dave and visited him at work and saw the bike. IT is such a beautiful bike and in true to form Dave tone, we will make money on it in the long run. It's nice to be with someone who careful thinks out each and every purchase and makes a reason for it.

It was a great day yesterday and I got a lot accomplished. Last night we went to eat at this great Pizza Place that's about 45 minutes from here. We took our new bike and it was such a beautiful night with a cool breeze! Here's my view:

When we left the pizzaria, we were thinking about going to a movie...Wrong! Lightning close by in the sky forced us to head home, quickly!

This morning, took the bike to our Sunday morning breakfast, got Dave a haircut and decided to check out the previously blogged about Lake Louisa State Park. The park is so beautiful!! We parked and sat on a bench facing the lake for about an hour or so and then headed home. Dave's napping and I am STILL working on the upstairs bedroom. I so hope to be done with it soon!

Well, I am off to do homework and find something for dinner. I leave you with some fun pictures!

My cactus bloomed! I was playing around with the color selector on my camera.

My beloved Plumeria (FrangiPani).

Miss you all!!

And The Winner Is......

Gemini!! Here's the buddy after we finished our 5k yesterday!! It was so cool...everyone along the route was cheering him on and talking to him and he ate it up! He watered every inch of the 5k route and was so tired when we got him back to the truck. He plopped down and slept for the ride home!The race was at a State Park that none of us had ever been to! The sad part about that is ---- it's only 15 minutes from our house! This park is so amazing and HUGE! We didn't realize how big it was and that there are cabins out there that you can rent. There's fishing, a beach, swimming and sooo many hiking and equestrian trails. We are definately going to have to bring our bicycles out there and check it out! Here's a picture of one of the cabins overlooking the lake:
This picture is one I took for Dave. It reminds me of California with the super curvy roads and figured he would enjoy that on the motorcycle! It took us about 20 minutes by car to get from the entrance to the park down to the start of the race in the middle of the park! The roads were all like this: CURVY!!
Finally, a very proud Gemini when we got home! I made him pose one more time and then let him get on our bed (his bed during the day).
After the race, we went and picked up my wedding dress (YAY!) and then we picked out and ordered Kelly's bridesmaids dress. We also went across to the mall the find a dress for my mom - but no luck yet. Oh, I guess we'll have to go to the mall some more (Darn!). I hadn't been to the mall in about 6 months -- I know why now! I mentally spent all of the money from my future lottery winnings!! That's all for now! We are cooking out at my mom's today so I have to go finish my Sweet Potatoe Casserole. It's the same one you can get at Boston Market! Super Sweet and oh so good. Take Care everyone!!

Look What I Can Do!!

Apparantly, the new rage in home decorating is the vinyl decorations on your paint. I ordered one of the catalogues from one of the leading companies just to see what it was all about. Well, my catalog arrived, and, Lo and Behold....this is the same vinyl that I use everday to make my signs!! I CAN MAKE THESE!! So, if any of you want any for your walls, classroom walls, anything - let me know! I can make them for ya for free of course!! I am just excited that it is the same thing becuase I can make them for myself! I created a saying that says, "Always Kiss Me Goodnight" that will stick on our bedroom walls, and then I created one that will go in our right side guest bedroom that is about dreams. Too Cool!! Here is an example of what one of these things looks like:

You know, for the last week I have felt completely overwhelmed, by work, by school, by it all. I had a mini-breakdown on the way to the grocery store because sometimes I feel like I am juggling. Each task that I have to do is a ball and I feel like I have too many to keep in the air at one time. I do it to myself, and I know that. Dave is great at offering to help and to do whatever he can - but the things that I need to do right now that are overwhelming are things he can't do. He is certainly not going to do my school work, that's a funny thought:) I just feel like from the time I get home to when he is home, there is no time for me. I am upstairs getting the guest bedrooms ready, I do clean the house everyday, but with tile floors - it is unavoidable, I get dinner ready, try to do homework and then....what for me. It will get better, I just have to learn a better balance I guess. Sorry for the vent.

This weekend -- a three day weekend!! Dave and I actually have two days off together! Who knows what we will do? Tomorrow morning, I am in a 5k with my mom. Kelly & casey are driving down tonight and we are going to get Kelly's bridesmaids dress tomorrow. Sunday, I think we are going to grill out and then Monday I would love to go to the range to shoot. Dave finally received his Conceal Carry Permit, so he's packing heat in his backpack! I can't wait for mine! I already know which gun I am going to carry...it's small but will serve it's purpose if God forbid I ever have to use it!

Still planning the wedding! I have my rough draft done for the invitations and the card stock and envelopes are here already, I just need to print them and put them together. We should go for our cake and meal tasting in June sometime. We are going to be ordering the guys clothes as soon as I have all of the sizes. Many more things to do, but it is a fun job to take on!! I think that is all that's going on! Hope everyone is happy and healthy! We are!!

Fair?? I Think NOT!!!

So, I get this:

And Dave gets this:

Is this Fair??

I'm kidding. Last week, our washer died and we decided to just go ahead and buy a new washer. So, that's the story on the new washer! I like the one that I bought - mid range price level, no fancy anything -- it washes...I am happy with that!

The story on the bike? Well we have two bikes that are both paid off (actually we have four, but that is a different story). One of the bikes is our '05 600. It's a great bike, but as soon as we bought it, Dave ran it on the track and ran it on the track hard. So, it's going to go quicker than the usual bike would with just normal street driving. The second bike is his '01 929. This bike we call Old Faithful, it has I think 40,000 miles on it?! Parts and pieces are starting to go bad on it. It's time for a new bike....this is Dave's main mode of transportation 1) because he enjoys it and 2) because gas prices are so expensive. So, it's time. We are going tomorrow to the dealership he worked for before this one to talk to the GM and see what kind of deal we can get with trading both in. Hopefully, the GM will make it an even trade save for a couple of thousand dollars. We hope. If they don't give him a good trade-in value for the 929, then we will sell that one on Ebay and we will go from there!!

Other stuff:

School is going fine. Homework might kick my butt thought. I finally had to say on Friday night, "No more homework" and sit down with Dave and relax.

The kittens STILL need a home. Tami. So. Not. Kidding. Now.

It is starting to get warmer here. I guess that's all that needs to be said about that. We do need the rain though. Bad.

I am scheduling an appointment for us to have our engagement photos taken in the next few weeks. This should be interesting: This is the type of smile I get from Dave. Christmas. All of it:) He is such a goof!!

Other than that, we are happy and healthy and couldn't ask for more!

Happy Mother's Day everyone!

Perception, School and Horses - Yep, It's a HodgePodge

Hello all! Just an update and some thoughts. Things have been busy here (what else is new?).





School starts *gulp* TODAY for me. Yes, today! I am taking 3 classes this go round - all online. Meteorology (yippee- I think I used to be a meteorologist in my past life), another government class (Not that I love government, but it is being taught by my previous gov't teacher - and he was great!), and Mythology. I am not looking forward to that third class, but it is one I have to have. On Friday, I was checking out my classes and performing a degree audit, which is just a fancy term for "what do I need to graduate", and I realized that I only need to classes to graduate with a Psych degree. I think I am going to go ahead and graduate next semester. I'm not going to walk, because the commencement is in May and we will be in Greece sometime around then, so I will just transfeer my happy self to the University of Central Florida to finish a psych degree. What happened to my beloved sign language degree? Well, after some research, I discovered that I could either take the classes I need at the College for a mere 375 PER CLASS or I could take the classes I need at the Sign Language Institute here and pay only 100 per class....hmmm...I might need to think about this one.





Did anyone watch the Kentucky Derby on Saturday. I didn't...and I am so glad. What is the point of this, really? Is there a point in making these beautiful creatures run themselves until they BREAK THEIR LEGS..and then - they continue to run. The filly, Eight Belles, that had to be put down on the track apparantly didn't stop running when she had two compound fractures (where the bone comes out of the skin)....becuase that is what she is trained to do. I just find it pointless. It is just sad. Sorry for the vent, but I felt it needed to be said.





Tonight is our "off night" for shooting -- we've been going every other Monday - So, we are going to go eat - there's a new Italian restaurant here in Clermont that I have heard is so delicious.





What else have we been up to?


Saturday my two brothers and I took my mom to Epcot for the Flower and Garden Festival. It was amazing and so beautiful! YEsterday, we went for our Sunday breakfast ritual and then My mom and I ran back up to this little bridal show. IT was super small, but I found the person who is going to shoot our engagement pictures. She seems really cool.





Dave roto-tilled (sp?) the yard yesterday around the porch and I began the process of steamcleaning upstairs and taping off one of the upper bedrooms to paint!





Finally, last Wednesday I bought my wedding dress:) and I also picked out the styles for the bridesmaids dresses - There are five styles and everyone gets to pick their own! I am sending emails out later tonight to everone with those details. I think that's all that is happening here.





Oh, still need to find homes for kittens - Tami: Let me know if you can pick yours up Friday at the airport - you'll know which one is yours, it'll be the one that is hanging from the TOP of the cage and meowing the meow where you know something really bad is about to happen if it doesn't get out of the cage - You know, the one that goes to the BAD part of your brain:)





Love you all!

Picture of the day: Me and my cousins:) My loves!!

New Toy!!

This, my friends is Dave's new toy. This is the TMobile Wing. So far, after a night of trying to get everything crossed over, he loves it! I finally ordered him a new phone after watching him duct tape his other one over and over. Duct tape, the magical fix for everything (except phones!). This cool phone even has touch screen!! Very cool!

What's new with us so far this week?

Monday we went to the dermatologist for Dave's psoriasis. They gave him a script for a new ointment that has great results. The other ointment that he had worked amazing except on him knuckles and knees...so this one is stronger and they say it should make it almost disappear!! He can eventually go in for shots - he isn't opposed to the shots, the doctor just says it does something to the immune systems - like, if he gets a cold, it would make him have the cold a little worse. He doesn't really want to mess with that, so this will work! While we were there, we saw a little girl, maybe 5 or so and she had psoriasis and I thought to myself - The advances that have been made in science and treatments are so awesome that kids can have a cure for this!!

I went to the neurologist on Wednesday. He is so great! He is keeping me on the "miracle" drug (that's what I call it) for now..it has reduced my migraines from two horrific bed bound ones per week to only one bad one this entire six weeks. I am going to go see him in 10 weeks and give him the results and see where we go from there. Right now though, I am just happy to have this working for me and look forward to a Migraine Free Wedding Day!! Yippeeee!!

I think that is the most that has happened this week -- Palms are doing well! We are going to shoot on Monday night at the range. Saturday, my mom and I are going to get my wedding dress and get the account set up so all the bridesmaids can get their dresses. It sure has been busy around here! School ends this week but starts right back up on May 5th! Next semester, I am taking Meteorology ( I swear I was born to be a weather girl...:)) , Developmental Psychology, and Mythology in Humanities. A full load, but necessary!! I really need to have several more electives, so that's why the meterology class and then I need to satisfy my Humanities classes requirements! Well, that's all for now! The weather here is great, 80's during the day and then 60's at night..just beautiful! We do need rain though - so pray for rain for us so we don't get into a bad forest fire situation!!

Love everyone!!

Taken at Clearwater Beach

Palms "R" Us

Lots to update! This weekend was another busy one with no time to relax. Yesterday, we went to Lowes near Dave's shop and we found the best fruit trees and palm trees. Of course, Dave picked out the tallest palm they had and we loaded it into the truck. It only stuck out about 8 foot and only weighed probably 200 pounds! I also bought a Ruby Red grapefruit tree and an orange tree so my dad will have fruit to pick & eat when he comes down. So, we got home and my brother, Alex came down with the tractor to help unload the palm and put it into the world's largest hole ever dug by hand. Here it is!

I figured while I am posting pictures, I would put up one of our bedroom and the quilt that my mom made me. She's also making me table toppers for the wedding out of this same fabric! I LOVE this fabric.

It's funny - in all of our pictures, it's like a Where's Waldo? puzzle-- except in our pictures you have to find the dog. The above picture features Worm. Speaking of pets....Anyone want a kitten? Someone dumped off a pregnant cat a few weeks ago and my mom and I have been feeding her. She's a great barn cat, and I realized she had kittens somewhere. We looked and looked and my mom finally found them this weekend in the upper part of the barn. They are so adorable, as kittens always are - and I think every person that reads this should take one -- Dad, Rhonda?? I'll personally fly it to its new home!! There are five of them:

There's two balck ones that look like twins, a tan puffy one, a calico puffy one and a grey and white one. The last one is the runt and they are all cute.

Tonight we decided to do something we haven't done in a long time, NOTHING!! We are going to go to Blockbuster and rent a movie and just relax! We need it so much. Next weekend, we are going to pressure wash the house and start to repair the cracks in the concrete blocks. Then, the weekend after that, we are going to start painting the house. Inside, I have the bedroom finished and am now starting on the bathroom. Upstairs, I am not really into the colors that I painted the spare bedroom that used to be Mike's room. It is a yellow color with black stripes. I am thinking about painting it something different, I just don't know what. Maybe the same colors as the bedroom??

Lastly, finals for me are this week. I am already registered for the next semester -- 3 classes! Wish me luck and say a prayer that it goes well as I'll be studying more along with finishing up our wedding!!

The Green Tree Edition

Last night while I was watering the plants and Dave was taking pictures of the Ranger that we want to sell, I decided to grab the camera from him and take some photos of last weekends' handy work! Here is our Palm Garden". If you are looking out the front door, this is on the right near the fence. We want to do the same design as soon as we get someone to haul the Ventura away (hopefully this weekend) on the the other side of the driveway in what is probably the back yard.

Gemini wouldn't get out of the way - so I took the photo as he was looking for somewhere to "water".

Next is a photo of My baby - Mr. Moo. He's the calf that my mom and I have raised from the dead. When we found him, he was really on death's doorstep and we brought him back to health and now he is so healthy and happy. He is such a beautiful bull and I have to decide if I want to steer him. I think I will leave him a bull though!

I am going to try to post every day or at least as much as I can because I eventually want to be able to print this up as a journal of sorts for our life. I have posts from my other blog from the time I met Dave until about a year ago, so I can combine those.

I think that's all for now! More updates as things happen - which is all of the time around here!!

And then...Some Rest

So...we have been busier the past couple of weeks than I think we've been for a while. Two weeks ago this coming Saturday, my little sister, Kelly was married. It was such a cool wedding at a beautiful plantation in Albany, Georgia - The Wynfield Plantation. It rained, but was such a great day. At the end of the reception, the bridesmaids and Kelly all jumped into a natural spring in the rain and in our dresses...Those pictures should be pretty cool. Here's a pic of me and my brothers trying to hoist Kelly up in her dress for a cool shot - Thank you Joe for the picture!!We survived the wedding and the drive and the day after that, Sunday, we drove down to a turnpike Rest Area about an hour and a half from our house and we delivered the RC51. This is Dave's oldest bike that we sold on Ebay. I was glad he was able to sell it!
Last weekend we spent all day Sunday (after our breakfast ritual), going to nurseries and looking for our newest love -- Palm Trees! We ended up at Home Depot , after finding out that most nurseries are closed on Sundays, and we bought 6 palms. Two each of three different kinds. I also ended up buying a bottle brush tree. We came home and proceeded to dig holes deeper than us and we got all of the trees planted and then Dave mulched around all the trees with a red cedar mulch. We are going to start painting the outside of the house in a week and a half - Dark Blue with a nice red door - so the mulch will fit right in. Our next outdoor project will be making a flower bed in the front and then pulling out the bushes in to the right of our door and making a true flower bed there. Now it is just a Gemini Digging Hole.
We have pretty much decided that Florida is where we really want to be. We have discussed moving to Tennessee but we love this state. We love the weather, the beach, the palm trees -- all of it. So, now that we know this, we are going to start doing some pretty cool improvements to the house. I will post pictures along the way as we get them done.
Monday night we went to the gun range as we usually do. 300 rounds! That's how many rounds I fired!! That is a lot of ammo!! Dave makes fun of me because I go through so much more ammo than him - but that's okay...I tell him at least I hit the targets:) (Just kidding, he hits the targets very well, actually!!).
Other random happenings?? We are working more outside Sunday and on our fence around the property so we can bring MR. Moo over to the house. I already have one guy from around here that wants to "rent" him to breed his females. He has turned out to be a HUGE beautiful bull and it will be cool if I can make some extra money off of him. He does have an amazing lineage too, so that will help.
Whew! I think that's all for now!

It happens in 3's right??

So, I inadvertently left out something that happened last weekend with Dave's checking account. We went to breakfast with my mom, like we do every Sunday. Dave was going to pay and gave the cashier his card. The cashier said that his card was declined. He thought maybe the stripe had been slowly rubbed off and was just not working now. The cashier said that, No, the stripe worked, the card was just declined. We were planning on going to Lowe's to get a new kitchen faucet, but instead he wanted to head home since he knew that he had more money than the 30 dollars breakfast was going to cost. when we got home and he logged on to his internet banking account, he realized that someone had charged over 1200 dollars to his card. Each charge was $429. All of the charges were from a company called Identity Protect. He was so upset because he obviously didn't approve these charges. After doing a little Google investigative work, I found that there are literally hundreds of people in the United States that have had these same charges against their credit cards and bank accounts. Monday, he went to the bank with his printed Google info and his bank statements and talked to the Bank Manager. He had to get a new bank account and new card. Finally on Thursday of last week, the money was redeposited back into his new account.

So, In continuing with our recent stream of, I don't want to say Bad Luck, because it isn't that - but our unfortunate circumstances - Dave was rear-ended yesterday while going to the tag agency to try to tag our VTX. The car behind him was hit and then he was hit. It isn't bad at all, he thinks the bumper is going to need to be replaced, but I am not sure. He knows more about this than I do.
So, Hopefully things really don't happen in 3's. I told Dave not to get too down about everything and to not get into a Glass is Half empty mode because up until this point, we have been very blessed and we live such a good life. He was fine after a little bit of thinking about it.

On a more positive note, we (I) painted the bedroom over the course of the weekend. IT's actually still a work in progress. But, the new color is Teal walls with a white color ceiling and a brown stripe around the middle of the room. It's so beautiful. My mom made me a quilt out of this fabric, that actually was the originator of our wedding colors. The fabric is called Metro Blue if you want to google it. IT's beautiful.

Finally, here is a picture of Dave's newest baby - a 1969 Chevy Truck. It's really cool!!

The Goings On

Hi everyone, all 2 people who read our blog:) Just wanted to write an update and let you all now what is new in our lives. Here's what is new:

Three weeks today and no migraines for me! I am hopeful that this new medicine that the new neurologist has put me on is working...I hope. I say a prayer every night that it continue to work! I figured it out before I went to this new doctor and I have experimented with over 19 different medicines. The toll that it has taken on my body? Who knows.

Kelly's wedding is in two weeks, so we are busy finishing the last details of her wedding and getting the dogs their Bordatella shots so they can be boarded. Fun times.

Dave's been busy at work and at home. We are doing a lot to the house including painting the bedroom, installing new faucets and painting the outside of the house. There's alot to get done before our various families start to arrive, so wish us luck!! Yesterday we spent almost 3 hours at Lowes redecorating the house, imaginary style. It was great. We have so many ideas, now we just need to win the lottery.

School. School is school. Homework and papers...IT's going well but not much more to say about that.

The weather here has been so beautiful lately. We've been driving everywhere with the top down or the sunroof open. I love this weather!!

Well, that's it for now, nothing exciting, I know. Maybe tonight Dave will pose (haha) for a couple of pictures from us shooting at the gun range?? We'll see if I can sneak a few and post them tomorrow...for now though, I will leave you with this:

Yes, it's our two cats waiting at the door to be let in from outside. IF the door is shut, they will meow until we let them inside!! Only our cats.

Long Time, No Blog....

First. the above picture is what happens when I leave my little brother Alex and a friend in charge of the dogs. They did everything they could to get all of the animals of the house to pose with them for a picture. Not pictured - Shitten. He scratched Alex's friend Dakota and so they decided to leave him alone.

Needless to say, we've been very busy lately. There have been so many things going on that it seems as though time for ourselves is not going to happen right now. Here's a taste of what has been happening!

* Please say a prayer for my Uncle Larry, Aunt Cel and my soulsister/cousin Cristy. Larry has lung cancer which has spread to his lymph nodes and is in the hospital in ICU right now. He needs some serious prayer as does my Aunt and cousin who are burning both ends of the candle right now.

*School - School is well, school. It's going well. I still have my 3 classes that keep me on my toes. Last night I was awake until 11pm doing homework and writing my 3 papers due at midnight. I just have to remember that each class gets me closer to my goal of Sign Language!!

* Work - Work for Dave has been going well. He's going through a transition right now with a new boss, but other than that he's been getting some good hours and some good work. Work for me has been going well. My mom and I have been so busy with her quilt store and then sprinkle in some sign work...it's busy!!

* Dave's been busy working on his newly acquired purchase - a 1969 Chevrolet Pickup. It's a project truck! It runs and it's interior is in good shape. It has a good engine but it just needs some minor things. Last weekend, he put in new shocks and a muffler system on it. It's a cool truck!!

* I've been busy helping my sister get ready for her wedding, April 5th! My mom, Grandma Carolyn and I drove to Macon, Georgia for her Georgia bridal shower. That took alot out of us, but it was worth it to see her new house and to have some fun up there!

*Our wedding!! Right now, there isn't much to work on. I have been talking to photographers but ohter than that, we are set for a month or two. I ordered the card stock for our actual invitations. I am making those as well so I wanted to get the colors ordered and here so I wouldn't have to worry about them. In late June or July we will have our food tasting and a cake tasting over in Clearwater Beach. It is all coming together and neither of us can wait!

Well, I think that is all for now! As if all of this isn't enough!! I'lll write more soon!!

I Know What I'm Getting for Valentine's Day....

I do. And I am so excited. Don't think that I am strange..but, here is a picture of it:

This is my new best friend. It's a Springfield XD 9MM. Dave and I have been going to Shoot Straight Shooting Range in Apopka for about a month now on Monday nights. On Mondays, they have free shooting for women. This has been such an empowering experience. I feel so strong and able to take care of myself whatever may come my way. I am getting to be a better shot and Monday the 25th, we are taking a concealed weapons class. My mom was a tad shocked to find out that I was going to start carrying a gun in my purse all the time. You know, Dave and I were discussing Sunday while we were driving around in Orlando that we live in a very safe area. It makes us realize that when we are driving around in areas that are, well, not so safe. Even still, I want to be able to have a fighting chance were something to happen to me. I want to be able to defend myself. And now I can.

Our Year...A Future in Review......

The other night, Dave and I wrote down the different events and trips that we have during the course of our year...WOW! Here's what we have so far - email me if we have forgotten an important event and rememeber - this doesn't include holidays. So, here it is:

• April 4-6 Kelly's Wedding in Albany, Georgia


• June - dates TBD - Dave's mom comes to Fla.


• Aug 25- going somewhere fun for Dave's birthday


• October 12- Wedding!! This doesn't include the week prior of craziness including final appointments, etc.


• Sept - dates TBD - Bridal Shower in OKC thrown by my "soul sister" and cousin - Cristy


• December 5-8 - New York City! Dave and I are taking my mom for a surprise ...anyone who wants to join along is welcome! The more people the better!

Not included as well becuase we have no dates whatsoever -- Dave's sister is coming to visit us (hopefully!) and we have a three day Rich Dad seminar that Dave's signed us up for, and my bridal shower here in Clermont!

Like I said above, this also doesn't include all of our holidays...we are strapped!!

Okay, picture of the day comes from the Clearwater Hilton - where we are gathering details, contract, etc. for our ceremony and reception. We visited there on Sunday and it is amazing and perfect! They have completely renovated the hotel and it is just so nice!

We're Off and Running!

So, We survived our trip to the arctic tundra - Minnesota. It was way too cold the entire time and I was sick the entire time. NOT a great way to start the new year. It was so nice to get back home and really dig my feet in the sand to get started on wedding planning.
I have been calling some places for our reception and ceremony sites and it is looking more and more like the Clearwater Beach Hilton is going to be a winner. They can offer us a ceremony on the beach complete with chairs, etc, and alternative indoor location in case the weather isn't so, uh, "favorable", and then also a beautiful location for the reception. One caveat - the reception is almost 20 percent cheaper if we hold it on a Sunday or a Friday. I honestly am leaning towards the Sunday. 20 percent off of $10k is a good amount of money that can be used somewhere else. My only fear was that our out of town guests (almost 80 percent of our guests) would have to take too many days off of work - Then, my mom reminded me that we are only asking them to do this once - to come to Florida for our wedding once. And that it is one of the most important days in a couples life. So, I guess that sold me - if someone doesn't want to come to our wedding becuase of their days off of work, then I guess they shouldn't come. I figured planning a wedding was clouds and puppy dogs the entire time - but I am surprised at how much drama goes into it. Las Vegas looks better every day...Just kidding!!
So, I think Sunday it is -- especially after looking at the menu and our choices.
On a NON-wedding note, I registered for my next semester of school. I am going to take 3 online classes - Personal Health (easy A and a much needed elective), Developmental Psych (still don't know what direction I want to take with my sign language- maybe counseling?) and then Web Publishing (another elective). I've also been researching the different options that I have for taking the Sign Language classes and getting certified. There is a school here called ASL and basically they are an interpretor service. So, doctors offices, law2yers, etc. call the service to get an interpretor. This company also offers the various classes needed to obtain certification. The company offers the classes at $100 each...Valencia offers what I am assuming as the same classes for 200 a class. I am honestly leaning towards going through the interpretation company becuase of the many different services that they offer -one being they will help find a job for those that are certified through their company. I want to go over and look at the school and see if it looks - okay, I guess before I make my final decision.
This has been such a long post, but I haven't written in a while...So, that's where we stand right now with life.
And just for kicks, here is Dave and his cat: