Merry and Bright

Christmas 2009 was wonderful! My first Christmas with my family since 2006 was so much fun.  It was spent enjoying the little ones, playing with new goodies (more on that to come), eating delicious food and relaxing.  I decided to just put a slide show of pictures up since there are so many!

But perhaps my favorite image of the celebration:

The kit's "m" was missing, and we sure did get a laugh!

Happy Birthday, Brother!

I gotta be honest.  I'm a lucky girl.  I have the best brother in the world.

And, today, he turns 20.

Yes, he's a Halloween baby.  The year he was born I was five.  I was so mad that he was born on Halloween because I thought that meant that I couldn't go trick or treating.  I told everyone that night that my new baby brother was "a trick and not a treat."

But, truly, he rocks.

Khanna

Khanna = Food

The other night I cooked Indian food for my parents. My mama experienced it's tastiness when she visited me last November, but my daddy had ever tried it. Until now...

Masala Dabba (Spice Box): Cumin powder, Jeera (cumin seed), Mustard seed, Cardamom, Turmeric powder, Red chili powder

The trick is the pressure cooker.

I made dal, rice, roti, lady finger and spiced up some chicken, too.

Daddy really liked it! Yay!

It was fun to cook Indian food again, and I was starting to miss eating it!

Homecoming Parties

Last Saturday night, I was welcomed home with a fun party at my neighbor's home. John and Wanda are excellent hosts! Many friends and family were able to come, and it was so good to be able to see everyone and visit again. Here are some photos from the night.

The hosts, John and Wanda, and the delicious cake

The Snyders

Sydney and me...do you think we are related?

Nanny and Pappy

Mama and baby Braxton

Grannie Ella, Papa Milton and Blake

Jamie Leah

The next day at my home church, I was welcomed back again with "Supper on the Grounds." I requested potluck Southern cuisine and homemade ice cream! It was delicious and wonderful to be back with my church family since my childhood. These people have loved me, prayed for me and supported me. I can't begin to thank them enough. Here are some pics!

Kimber, Jamie, Lindsey and Grace

Renee, Jewel, Gloria and Denise

Me and Bro. Walter (Forgive the dazed look. I think it was the jet lag!)

It was a fun-filled two days of reuniting with friends and family that I won't soon forget. It is such a blessing to come home and feel so welcomed and loved. Thank you, everyone! I love you!

Happy Mother's Day!

Today is the day we honor our mothers. And, oh how I love mine! My mama is my best friend, and I can't wait until I get to see her face again and do all the stuff we love to do together. Only 81 days!

I love you, Mama! Happy Mother's Day!

In an auto when she came to visit in November

I was a brunette.

Best Friends!

Grannie & Mema, Happy Mother's Day! You are the best grandmothers a girl could ask for. I love you so much.

Mema

Three Generations: Grannie, me, Mama (my graduation from UGA)

Grannie

I hope you all have a great day loving on and honoring your mothers.

"She's too young to be your mother."

For the whole 9 days that Mama was here, our national friends could not get over how young she is and how much we "act like sisters or friends instead of mother and daughter." How proud I was to introduce my sweet mama to all my friends here! We had a quick but amazing 9 days, and I am so proud of her for tackling the 30 hour journey.

We missed Daddy and Blake and all the family, but we were glad to have a little bit of "girl time" at the same time. We had a great Thanksgiving and just an all-around good time. Here are some pics from the visit. Click to make the image larger, if you wish. (Some of the pics got cropped oddly in the mosaic, but just know Mama is there in all of them.)

Just FYI...

MY MAMA IS HERE!

My crazy brother...

is 19 today! HAPPY BIRTHDAY! I heart you.

24

Monday I celebrated my 24th birthday. It was a fantastic day! I truly felt special and loved, even though it was hard to be so far away from home and family. Special people helped to make it a special day for me. Thanks, yall! I heart you!

First, I received a few birthday packages...
1. From Mama, Daddy, Blake, Grannie, Papa and Mema...sewing goods (yeah, I just learned) and scrapbook paper, among other things

2. From sweet Eliz...birthday cake mix, UGA cups, birthday decorations and cards, letters and pictures from Athens friends!

3. From Macedonia...cards, a cool birthday hat, a pretty candle, etc.

Then, on the day...I visited my friends and neighbors and gave them sweets (as is the tradition here. The birthday person gives the gifts, but my friends also gave me some goodies, too!). Here's a picture of me delivering sweets to one of my neighbors, a lady who enjoys arts and crafts more than I do.



Later, Rebecca blindfolded me and surprised me by taking me to one of our favorite restaurants (that we rarely get to visit). It's Vietnamese food in a beautiful setting. What a great roomie, teammate, sister and friend I have!


That evening, we had some ladies over for a crafting party. Some sewed, some did paper crafts, some knitted and crocheted. There was a lot of good fellowship and food, as I splurged on an expensive favorite here...deli sliced turkey with real cheddar cheese!

Reba made the cake and decorated it beautifully...


Then, I fed her the first bite. Again, this is a tradition here.


It was a great day, and I am so thankful to everyone for their emails, Facebook wishes, thought and prayers. Yall rock!!

It's my daddy's birthday!

Happy Birthday, Daddy!



I love you so much!

Our Family's NEW DAWG

Today, my little brother starts college classes at my alma mater, The University of Georgia. Not to be all sentimental on you, but yesterday he was a cute little, curly-haired blond pre-schooler. Seriously, how come we grow up so fast?

So, today's post is a tribute to my little brother (a pretty great one, if I do say so myself)...the new Georgia Bulldog.





Thanks, Blake, for being such a good brother and friend. Don't forget to study a little in between football games, workouts at Ramsey and late-night dorm mischief. K? Oh, and please don't walk under the arches...just in case. ;-)

And, of course....GO DAWGS! Sic 'em!

Happy 30th, Mama & Daddy!

Today is my parents' 30th wedding anniversary! I am so thankful for my family and for my parents' commitment to each other. It's a great example to follow and a goal I'd like to reach if He blesses me with marriage.

Happy Anniversary, y'all! I love you two very much.

Happy Birthday, Mama!

Today (July 12) is my sweet mama's birthday! I love her and miss her so much! Ain't she pretty?



I heart you, Mama!

Georgia!

Georgia on my mind

Yes! I went home for a quick vacation. I had the privilege of seeing my little brother graduate from high school and got to see friends and family. It was a quick trip...only 7 days. But, boy was it worth it! Sorry to those folks that I didn't get to see (Athens). You know I still love you.

The best part about it was that my mama was completely surprised! Since January we've been scheming. Daddy, Jamie Middleton, Elizabeth and I started making plans. Elizabeth, my college buddy and roommate who lives in Atlanta, got in touch with Mama to tell her she wanted to come down for Blake's graduation. She said she'd fly so that she wouldn't waste time driving. On Daddy and Jamie's end, they were keeping track of my itinerary and making sure that Mama (and Blake--who accidentally found out the day I was supposed to arrive) would be kept in the dark. I, of course, was stringing her along on my end, saying things like "I'm so glad Eliz is coming to Colquitt. She can help you with the graduation party." It was so fun to surprise her, Grannie & Papa, Mema and tons of other folks. I don't think I'll ever be able to top it!

Here's the reaction video. I used my digital camera. I'm holding the camera, and it's a little nauseating because I'm walking and bouncing around. Oops... Still, I hope you enjoy!





More pictures to come, I promise!