Christmas Pics

Yay! I'm so excited that our Christmas pics are up! Well, actually just the sneaks so far! Zach normally takes all of our pics of Albrey, but I have been wanting to have some decent family pics done for awhile. Family pics taken by Zach w/Zach in them are pretty much impossible since a tripod and a timer are about the only option. Enter Apryl Murphy. Apryl actually went to high school with Zach and I {@ dear ol' MCHS}. Well, if we want to get technical, she and I have something in common besides our love of dance....we BOTH dated Zach in hs! :) I won't get into all the details bc that was a LONG time ago. But anywho, she is a very talented photographer as I discovered on her fb page. So, I told her that I was impressed with her photog skills and she suggested that maybe we do some Christmas pics. We had to sign up super early for a slot, since she is so booked and our time finally came around last weekend. I was so excited about getting all of our outfits coordinated. I even specially designed Albrey's dress myself {pat on the back} and had it made by an AMAZING seamstress at church...thanks Mrs. Brenda! So, needless to say I have been absolutely dying to see these pics. I check at least 3 times a day to see if I have an email or if it's up on Apryl's blog....I know I'm a little pathetic! So, imagine my excitement when I checked my email for the 3rd time today and I have one saying "sneaks are up on the blog...more to come later"!!!!!! I think Mrs. Apryl Murphy did a FABULOUS job and I can't wait to see the rest, but we are going to have some tough decisions and no money left once we see them all. I just can't resist, but of course the ones w/out me in them are my fave! So, without further adieu....click below to see the sneaks : http://www.aprylmurphyphotography.blogspot.com/

Turkey Day Re-cap and RTR!!!

Okay, so yesterday was Turkey Day and let me tell ya...it was quite interesting! It started off with some "issues" I will just say which sent us all into a tizzy, especially Zach. In the midst of which, I was cooking what I was assigned to bring to Mom's house (sweet potato casserole, mac & cheese, and sugar-free banana pudding - since Zach's diabetic). Easy enough, right? WRONG!!! The first thing I made was the banana pudding since it's the easiest. I got it all finished in about 8 minutes flat and put it into the fridge and got ready to start on the casserole. After about 30 mintues or so, I was cleaning up a little in the kitchen and I caught a glimpse of a bunch of bananas just sitting there on the counter. Just as I reached for them to put them in a bowl, it hit me....those bananas are not supposed to be on the counter. They are supposed to be IN the banana pudding!!!!!!!!!! Aggghhh! The worst part was that I had already finished it all, meaning the Cool Whip (that I had thawed out for hours) was on top and everything! Of course I did fix it by sending Zach out to Kroger (they stay open on Thanksgiving btw) to get more sugar free Cool Whip. So, I ended up putting the bananas on top and adding ANOTHER layer of Cool Whip....disaster averted, and just extra goodness to spare! Mac & cheese not so great....let me just say, please don't ever skimp out on the Velvetta! The knock-off is SO NOT the same!

Now, before I begin telling you about our actual Thanksgiving lunch/dinner {at 3 p.m.} I need to preface my story by telling you a little about my grandmother. My mom's mom, Grandma Glover, is a very precious lady. However, she suffers from Alzheimer's disease and has for a few years now. She has always been Miss Independent, but the disease unfortunately doesn't allow her to be that way anymore. She had been doing alright for awhile, but this summer she had quite a rough time and had to be hospitalized for falling at her Assisted Living home. When they rushed her to the E.R., her heart flat-lined and she had to be shocked back to life. They actually ended up shocking her a total of 5 times I think during her week-and-a-half long stay. We honestly didn't think she would pull through because she stayed in critical condition in the CICU at HH. A few doctors even told us to be thinking about how much we wanted them to do to keep her living, which absolutely horrified us, especially my Mom. However, with much praying and the toughness that my Grandma has always had, she just pulled right through and kept going strong. When she got out of the hospital, we knew that she would have to have more intensive care and she moved into a rehabilitation nursing home. Her health is pretty good right now, but ever since that stay, her mind has completely gone downhill. She says words that make absolutely no sense. Lots of times it's a combination of words that she puts together. I know to outsiders it probably sounds cruel, but some of the things she says are just so out there that all we can do is just laugh because it sounds so funny. I keep thinking though, if we weren't laughing, we'd be crying. So, I guess laughing is the better option!

So, our actual dinner was wonderful thanks to the lovely chefs {aka Mom and me}. Even my little princess ate a good dinner, she looked so stinkin' cute in her Bumpo seat in a big chair, I had to snap a pic or 5 :)


Okay, so now I want to share some of the most interesting moments of our Turkey Day this year. We have been wanting to do 4 generation pictures for awhile w/ Grandma, Mom, myself, and Albrey. So, we thought this would be the perfect opportunity....yeah right! Let's just say that Albrey was one of the best about looking at the camera! A few examples.....

and another....

after a few of these even I couldn't take it anymore...

So, here it is....my family in all our glory.....




I promise, they really are precious! :) WOW, what a night!
Now, this post on this Iron Bowl Friday wouldn't be complete without a big ROLL TIDE ROLL!!!! Really enjoyed whopping some Eagle booty and now I'm off to relax and maybe watch a movie w/ the hubs!

Here I Am

I have been reading...aka stalking {as I have picked up along the way}...some blogs lately and have decided, if they can do it, so can I! No offense to anyone, by the way! :) So, here I am!!! I am not the most interesting person in the world and will never claim to be, I just thought it would be interesting to try and share a little of my life with whoever is interested. I will go ahead and warn you that I am not the most talented writer, so I apologize in advance if my adjectives and word choice don't impress you. I am an elementary school teacher, so at least you can count that my spelling and grammar should be correct! :)
I won't make it long on this post since I'm just starting out. Well really, I have to go pick up my little one {miss Albrey::14 months} from her Nonna and Pop's {my parents} house. She spent the night with them so that her parents could go watch New Moon {LOVED IT} last night! Now, I have been informed that we need to bring her some new clothes since she peed all over herself....just a common occurrence in my everyday world...as you shall see!
Anyways, Happy Thanksgiving to everyone! Please remember that you have so much to be thankful for and take time today to count your many blessings! And, in the words of my bestie Lindsey, we should really have an attitude of thanksgiving all through the year...I'm really going to try on that one Linds, so you can hold me accountable now that I've written those actual words!