New Home

Finally after several negotiations we have a contract on the house. We are very excited about owning a home and are looking forward to living close to family! (less than 5 minutes) This is the first weekend we have had in a LONG time where we didn't have anything to do. So... we took advantage and lounged around the house all day. It was wonderful! In the evening we ventured out to take get the no tax deal on appliances since we need a fridge. After lots and lots of stores, we found one we liked at Best Buy in town. We had already been to the one in Katy. It is a Samsung model with French Doors. The part I like best is that it has LED lights. :-)

Little House on the Prairie

No, we aren't talking about the house we found. James and I enjoyed an evening at the Hobby Center seeing Little House on the Prairie. This year we had a season tickets to all TUTS productions. My favorite was Meet Me in St. Louis. James enjoyed South Pacific best. Yesterday was the last one. We had a great time and enjoyed the company, even if the musical wasn't the best. We will miss our tickets next year!

We're Going on a Home Hunt.... See What We Find!

The front of the home we like.



The kitchen. I will be able to cook without running into James.
We love all the windows.

The windows with a great view of the backyard.

Master bedroom with a window seat.

Master bathroom with a HUGE TUB!

The UGLY front room... We will be taking this down. I keep telling James that we should keep it then we can have both sets of parents here. They can bunk together!
There is quite a bit of wallpaper that must come down. Anyone interested in helping??? All the carpet needs to be removed and everything needs a fresh coat of paint.

We are planning on making an offer (it is a foreclosure) as soon as we can get a pre-approval letter. The house is in a great neighborhood and only 5 minutes from Wes and Shelly. They might be sick of us soon!

Home Again, Home Again, Jiggity Jig

Wow! A lot has happened since I last blogged. James got a job!!! He will be working at Mother Francis Hospital.... but in Tyler. We are excited to begin this new phase of our life, but our sad to leave our friends and family. We truly believe we are following God's plan for our life and hope He will use us to glorify Him and His kingdom. So now the house hunt begins...

No more homework... No more books... No more teachers dirty looks! I am finished with my Masters! This is a very uplifting feeling since this semester has been truly overwhelming. I am glad I made it through, and James was so helpful being my editor for all the papers.

Lastly, this past weekend, Hannah turned 1! Gosh... she is growing up too quickly! She had an adorable party, and we had so much fun hanging out with all our family. Hannah is definitely a girly girl. From James's parents, she received Wes's rocking horse. It was a very special gift. Below are some pictures from the party. After the party we went to get in my car... and the air conditioning was no longer working. Thankfully, James's dad is very handy and it was simply a fuse. We were able to drive back to Houston without our windows down. What a wonderful weekend!

To Tyler, To Tyler To Find James a Job

Well, we made it back from our whirlwind trip to Tyler and Longview. We got to visit with Wes, Shelly, and Hannah. Hannah is growing up so fast; it is hard to believe she will be 1 on Saturday. She is precious and loves to laugh!

James's interviews went well. He really liked the people at the Tyler Hospital, so we are waiting on an offer. We are hoping we will know where we will live by this weekend. In the meantime, James is pretending to look for houses that HAVE TREES. In his words, whats the point in living in East Texas without a tree? I just roll my eyes... I want an updated house with a big tub! Anyways, we will keep you posted once James hears something.

Decisions, Decisions

As many of you know, James is job hunting. He has an official offer from a hospital in Bryan. We are heading up tonight to Tyler because he has two more interviews tomorrow. One in Tyler and one in Longview. We are staying with Wes, Shelly, and Hannah, so we are super excited about that. I am just hoping James will know where he wants to work by the end of the week.

Also, all my projects for internship are due on Thursday! It is crazy!!! I will be graduating soon! What a big relief. Although I am not walking, my mom is throwing a party at her place! I am so ready to have weekends back to do whatever I want and not have to sit in front of the computer typing a reflection paper. Speaking of papers... I must get back to work. I will let you all know where we will be next year! :-)

First Anniversary

Wow! We have been married for a year!!! It is amazing how God changes our love for each other over the year. To celebrate we headed to Austin for a day.



This is how James entertained me on the drive down. Hopefully, it is as entertaining to you. :-)




We stayed in the beautiful Driskill Hotel. It seems like every time we stay in a nice hotel the a phone in the bathroom. What is with that?!?




After checking in, we went out to dinner at the Pecan Street Cafe. It was delicious! Then we headed to Ester's Follies. We had a great evening!






On Saturday, we went canoeing. James was highly concerned that he would end up in the river since I had never been. Thankfully, we paddled our way through the river and saw several turtles. We met Eric (James's BFF from college) for lunch. It was very nice seeing him.... I enjoyed it so much I forgot to take a pic! After our lunch we headed home to watch the wedding video and eat groom's cake. What a fabulous first anniversary! It was very relaxing and extremely needed.