Date Night!

Today our date started out by going to the driving range. I'm really enjoying it and Jeremy has been a great teacher. Next Saturday Jeremy might take me golfing. It will be my first time and I'm super excited! I even got a glove today and it's pink! Next, pink golf shoes! And then when I get really good - pink clubs, pink tees, pink balls, pink everything! Just like Paula Creamer:

a.k.a. the Pink Panther

My goal is to look just like Paula, so that even if I'm not good at the game, I'll look good doing it! After golfing, Jeremy and I went to dinner at Red Robin (Yes, again. I LOVE their Chicken Tortilla Soup. I can't get enough.) and then for dessert, Pinkberry. It's a trendy frozen yogurt place that's all the craze in So Cal right now. I'd been dying to try it since they opened one closer to us but I was disappointed. There is a fro yo place closer to us called Frosted Cup and it's so much better. Anyway, after dessert we saw Indiana Jones. I wasn't really looking forward to it but I was pleasantly surprised. I was just loving these two together:

Especially Shia LaBeouf. He is so cute and so funny! Jeremy and I are going to get a hold of the original Indiana Jones trilogy and have an Indie Marathon! It's going to be very thrilling.

Jeremy's Editorial Debut

Recently, Jeremy was mentioned in the Dallas Business Journal, in an article called Calif. firm buys up 12 properties. You can click on the title to see the whole article, but here's the excerpt where he was mentioned:

"...Young worked with Steven Morrison, SVN's senior director of acquisitions, and financial analyst Jeremy Newman to manage the deal for SVN Equities...."

I'm concerned the fame will go to his head so I'm working hard at keeping him humble. :)

I'm so grateful to Jeremy for all his hard work and all the blessings our family receives because of it. He's such a good provider for our family and I'm so proud of him. Keep up the good work honey! I love you!

Twilight

I know it's crazy, but I haven't read any of the Twilight books. I've been so busy with school lately that I haven't even thought about reading for leisure. However, with the end of the spring semester, I finally have some free time and decided the time has come to read Twilight. However, I refuse to buy it since I generally consider buying books a waste of money when you can borrow them from the library for free. So I put it on hold at the library and my position in the holds queue is 22! Crazy, right? Who knows when that will be! Hopefully I'll get to read it before this comes out:

The movie looks so good! My goal is to finish the book before 12.12.08 so I can really enjoy it!

silly rabbit (trix are for kids!)

Lately, Lily Puff has become increasingly hormonal. She has been chasing Mr. Wilson everywhere and he is not a big fan of the attention. In a desperate attempt to get away from her, he figured out how to get behind their cages and it has become his favorite hiding spot. For the time being, we are keeping L.P. in her cage until we can get her fixed, but Mr. Wilson still feels the need to get back there. Jeremy doesn't think it's the best place for him to be so this morning I tried to make a barricade to prevent him from getting back there. Later, when I went out to check on them, he had found a weak spot and gotten through. After getting him out, I reinforced it and left for school. When I got home from school he was back there again! Where there's a will, there's a way, I guess... Anyway, I got him out for what felt like the tenth time (since it takes forever) and reinforced it again. He tried and tried to get back there but to no avail. He is one determined rabbit.

Jeremy and I have been tossing around the idea of giving our bunnies away. The excitement is pretty much over and they are a lot of work. It's sad to say, but I regret getting L.P. I wish I could just give her away and keep the mister, but Jeremy doesn't want to break them up. I don't think either of them would even care. They haven't been together the past week and they've been just fine. Also, Jeremy mentioned that we'd give them away anyway once I got pregnant. Excuse me? Who gives their pets away when they have a baby? I say 'no way, jose.'

Oh, how I miss...

my family. Especially sweet baby Emery...I long for the time when I'll be close to my family again. I'm missing out on so much and it's killing me. I hate knowing that next time I visit my family, my own niece won't even know who I am. I'm grateful for the time that I was able to spend with my family last week, and for every opportunity I get to see my family, but it's just not the same as being there.

How sweet!

My super talented niece made me this card using Paint.

Amazing, right? It's a good thing she signed it, too. Now no one can steal her work. :)

I feel so loved when I get special things like this. Thanks Paige, I love you!

I'm back...

And I'm home, alone. Sad, right? I think so. I'm about to throw myself a pity party. Here's why: Jeremy picked me up from the airport and it was great - "reunited and it feels so good," distance makes the heart grow fonder, blah blah... But then he drops me off at my car (which was parked at his work since I got a ride to the airport -- thanks Becky!) and leaves to go golfing. So now I'm sitting home all by myself, sulking in my loneliness. Maybe some chocolate would help...It was nice to see the bunnies when I got home though, at least they were here to see me. (They were well taken care of last week while Jeremy and I were gone, by our friends the Deckers. Thank you to Sara and Wade for all your help!)

And for the record, I was right about my grade. The percentage I needed for an A was 89.5%. I got an 89.02%. I was ONE measly point away from an A. You could say I was a little bit (ok, A LOT) upset when I found out. Oh well, I guess. Not much I can do about it now.

Day #5

I had a fun morning hanging out with my mom, Paige and Rachel. My mom was decorating a cheesecake for a church meeting she had later on and it looked great! When she was all done putting the fruit on, she asked Rachel to go out in the backyard and get her some 'edible flowers.' Edible flowers? You might ask. My mom started a mini-garden with herbs, etc. in her backyard and supposedly planted some edible flowers!

So Paige and I gave them a try.

They weren't great, but they weren't bad. Just weird! Then, Megan and Kenny came to pick up the girls and we got to spend some time together before I leave tomorrow. I'm so sad that I won't be seeing them again for a while...

Later, I went to lunch with my dad and grandma. It was nice to spend time with them and catch up. After lunch I went with them to decorate family graves for Memorial Day. It was sad to think about those that had passed away, but I did get to learn some new things about my family that I didn't know before. My grandma and I at my grandpa's grave. He was such a sweet grandpa, I sure miss him!
While we were taking pictures my dad pointed out something you would never want to see at a graveside - a full moon. And that's almost what we got to see! I don't know if you can see it, but this guy was giving us quite the show! It was too funny not to take a picture!

In the car I found some of my grandpa's old sunglasses and had my dad put them on. I think they look good. I can definitely see where my grandpa was coming from when he bought those beauties.

After we were done I went back to my mom's for dinner with some of my family. We had a really good time with lots of laughs, good food and good company! Plus, I got to help my sister-in-law Amy start a blog for their family! Now almost all of my sisters and brothers have blogs! (Now it's your turn Nathan.) Here are a few pictures from the fun evening...
Almost the whole gang. From left to right: Simone, Lance, Adri, Amy, Mom, Jake - my nephew, and Blake - my oldest brother. (Regan wouldn't come sit at the table!)

Emery was fast asleep in the other room!

Danielle and Hailie, my nieces. So pretty!

My mom being silly! She's always the life of the party!

Adri and Emery. I accidently put the two together and called Emery Amery!

Emery's first ponytail!

She was smiling but I was a little too late with the camera!

She's such a good cuddler! I'm sure going to miss her. Next time I see her she'll most likely be crawling, maybe even walking! I'm so sad that today was my last day and it's so depressing to know how much I'm missing out on while I'm away. However, I'm excited to see my hubby tomorrow and I've missed my little buddies!

I hope it's not too long before I can visit again. In the mean time, if any of you would like to come visit us in Cali, you are MORE than welcome!

Thanks to everyone for making my visit so fun! And a BIG thank you to my mom for being so generous and loving. You are so wonderful and I really appreciate all the effort you made in making my visit home so great.

I love you all and I'll miss you!

Day #4

The morning after the sleepover was lots of fun. The kids were playing and enjoying the time they had before their parents came to get them. Here is a cute little video of my nephew Carson trying to jump rope! He is so cute!

After the kids left, I finally got ready for the day and went to lunch with my nephew Regan. He took me to a yummy Chinese restaurant that I had never been to before. Panda Express will never taste the same again! After lunch we went to the driving range. I hit off real grass for the first time with some very different golf clubs and let's just say the combination wasn't a good one. I didn't do so great and got really frustrated. I don't think I'll be ready for a golf game anytime soon.

When I got back home I played a fun card game with my mom and two of my nieces - Hailie and Paige. It was a fun game, but really long! I think we were all going crazy by the thirteenth round! Once the game was over, my sisters came over and I helped them start blogs for their families! (The links are on the side if you want to check them out - Pratt Family & Simone and kids.) Also, my niece Rachel (who had missed the sleepover due to strep) had been on antibiotics for 24 hours and is going to get to sleep over tonight! We are excited to make up for lost time!

Later, I got a visit from my brother Blake, sister-in-law Amy and niece Danielle. I hadn't seen Blake or Danielle yet so it was fun to hang out with them. After they left, we headed over to the grocery store to get some food for dinner tomorrow and ended up going to three different stores to get what we needed! It was crazy!

When we got home we played another game of cards, but only half a game this time! And now it is off to bed... Tomorrow is my last day so I'm sad that my visit is almost coming to an end. I better make the most of it!

Day #3

Friday morning was pretty chill... Nothing too eventful. But that changed real quick. When I was getting ready for the day and doing my hair I decided I really wasn't happy with it and thought it would be cute to get an A-line. So I went back to the same girl that cut my hair the day before so she could fix it. And she did just the opposite. When I asked for a slight A-line, she gave me this: I didn't realize what had happened until she gave me the mirror to see the back of my hair. I was shocked. I certainly did not ask for that! This was the second day in a row that she had done this to me! My biggest mistake was going back to her. Why didn't I learn the first time? And on top of it all I paid for a FULL haircut! What a waste.

Anyway, in between all this drama I met up with my best friend from high school, Rachael, for lunch at Cafe Rio (yum!) and I had lots of fun catching up with her! Then she was nice enough to accompany me to the hair salon. Unfortunately, she didn't get to see the end product since she had to go to work. But boy she did get a phone call as I was leaving!

After the dreadful event at the hair salon, I went with my mom to pick up some things for our big sleepover with my little nieces and nephews! We had a great time playing games, eating lots of yummy food, and watching Bee Movie. Unfortunately, my niece Rachel found out she had strep and couldn't come. :( We missed her so much! She was the one who was most looking forward to the big event, which makes it even more sad. Anyway, here are some pictures of all the fun... My nephew Regan dropped in to say Hi. I can't believe how much he's changed since the last time I saw him. Isn't he so handsome?

My sweet niece Rachel who had strep dropped in with a mask on to say Hi. Poor thing couldn't stay. My sister Megan is in the background.

My sister Simone with Emery.

Meg, Bailey and Landon.

Brett, Hailie, Paige and Derek.

We had a little piano recital with the girls since I've missed all their recitals. This is Bailey playing. She's really good for only playing less than a year! I taught her the only song I know and she learned it in no time!

Hailie has been playing for 3 years! She played two songs and they were both really good!

Paige grudgingly playing her song. She's not a big fan of piano. She's been taking lessons for a little less than a year. Her mom is forcing her to take lessons until she can play out of the Children's Songbook. :) Again, we missed Rachel, as she was supposed to play too!

The whole gang! Starting in the front from left to right, Landon, Bailey, Brett with Emery, Derek, Hailie, Paige, Meg, me and my mom.

The kids watching Bee Movie and all comfy in their beds!

When the kids woke up the next morning they were getting in their sleeping bags and sliding down the stairs so I decided to join in on the fun!

While they were playing Derek lost his tooth!

This little tooth is worth big money!

Brett and Derek playing some Wii.

Cute Carson learning how to play Guitar Hero!

Thanks to all the kids for coming! It was lots of fun! And thanks to Grandma Kay who made it all possible. She's the best grandma ever!

Day #2

Today was another fun and busy day! This morning when my mom and I woke up we decided to go get our haircut on a whim! I went in wanting just a trim for my curly hair, and came out with this... Didn't expect that! It's definitely going to take some getting used to...

Next we headed over to Rumbi's for lunch with the girls! It was so much fun getting together with my sisters and sister-in-laws! Thanks to everyone who was able to come. (We missed you Kristy.) After lunch, those of us that could stay went to see a movie. We saw What Happens in Vegas, which was pretty funny, but definitely a chic flick! Here are some pictures from lunch...

Emery was fast asleep the whole time! Good for her mama who wanted to enjoy her lunch, not good for those of us who wanted to hold her!

The whole gang! From left to right: Simone, Tracie, Me, Megan, Mom, Adri, and Amy.

After the movie, my sister Megan, my mom and I went shopping! I had so much fun and I found some good stuff, thanks to Megan's good finds! (Thanks Meeg!) After shopping I went to Megan's to visit and then headed over to Tyson and Tracie's to visit with them. It's fun to see all the improvements and things that I've missed since I've been gone. Megan and Kenny have been busy renovating their basement, which is looking great so far. And Tyson and Tracie expanded their vegetable/fruit garden and made some changes to their basement, which also looks great. It's also crazy to see how fast the kids are growing up. It seems like every time I visit something is different. It makes me sad to see how much I'm missing out on.

Later on we went to dinner at one of my favorite restaurants - Italian Village. It was so yummy! Thanks to everyone who came, it was so much fun! Here are some pictures...

Me and my sisters!

A few of my nieces - Hailie, Paige and Rachel. All so beautiful!

Emery and her daddy, Lance.

I stole her right away!

My brother Tyson, sister-in-law Tracie and nephew Landon (Bailey was at the other end of the table).

A couple of Emery's cute looks!

After dinner, my brother Lance took a few of us to a new frozen yogurt place downtown. And it had the best, most creative name - Spoon Me! I got such a kick out of it! And the yogurt was super yummy! (For those of you in Cali - it's very similar to Pinkberry, Frosted Cup, etc.) Thanks for taking us Lance, and thanks for coming Megan, Paige and Rachel! Here are some more pictures! After Spoon Me, (Hee Hee!) my mom and I went over to Lance and Adri's to visit. It was fun to hang out with them and get to spend some more time with Emery. I also got to watch the premier of So You Think You Can Dance with Adri and it was so awesome! I'm so happy it's finally back on! Thanks Lance, Adri and Emery, for having us over! It was so much fun! And finally, the last picture!

This looks super uncomfortable but Emery was sure enjoying it! She was OUT! She's such a sweetheart. I love her!