Not Dreams of A White Christmas-- NIGHTMARES!

For those of you who don't live in Wichita Falls... we finally had a white Christmas here! Not just a friendly sprinkling of snow though... there were places with over a foot, and we were offically in a blizzard warning! No, really people, a blizzard. It started snowing Christmas Eve and snowed most of Christmas Day. While the snow was beautiful and sooo fun to play in, it really wrecked a lot of plans. Frank's brother and sister-in-law were stranded on US 287 literally overnight, along with hundreds of other travelers. Ryan would have been, too, if it hadn't been for his awesome truck. Ryan actually played guardian angel to dozens of tranded motorists, pulling them out of the snow with his Tacoma. Here are a few pictures of the snow... taken from the safety of my house :)

We spent Christmas Eve with Ryan's family-- good company and great munchies! I don't know if you've ever had or even heard of a "Kay Kay Cheese Ball," but I think I may have eaten enough this weekend to get California's economy back on track! We also hung out with Ryan's family on Christmas Day and night, and again on the night after Christmas. Here are a few of the pictures I got...

Jeanie's pretty tree

Us being silly

Kara, Joey, Ryan, me

In front of Kara's super-fun tree!!

Aren't they good-looking siblings?

On the day after Christmas, Ryan drove me to my parents' house in Archer City for the afternoon. It was really nice to finally see them! I still have not gotten to see any of my aunts, uncles, cousins, or grandmas, but hopefully we will squeeze that in soon. We had a lot to cram in to our time at Archer, so I didn't take many pictures, but here are a couple....

The snow out at Mom and Lew's gorgeous home

:)

It was a great Christmas! Hoping for more snow tomorrow-- that way I can miss a day of work instead of a day of fun! Then again, I'm still waiting on a few presents from UPS, and I'd like to give them out, so maybe I don't want more snow. Happy New Year everyone!

No News is Good News!

At least in my case it is! After the colossal Saturday I had a few weeks ago, my life has finally slowed down. I have reclaimed my free time, workouts, and lunch breaks. Woo! But that leaves the good ole' blogosphere rather lacking, so here's a quick update...

I've signed up for a second half marathon! I'm actually training for this one, and I have the help of two great friends, Leslie and Angie, who will be running in their first race ever! Go girls! The race is the inagural Rock and Roll half marathon in Dallas, Texas. These races are the greatest because at every mile marker, instead of having a dinky little sign saying "Mile 1," "Mile 2," etc., they have a ROCK BAND jamming out! YAY! (On a side note, I don't really mean to belittle those signs... I can't even tell you how happy you feel when you see Miles 12 and 13!!) If you want to see some info on the race, you can go here.

Also, roomie and I are going to a tacky Christmas sweater party this week! If you're unfamiliar with this concept, just think back to your first grade teacher, the one who smelled kind of funny, and always ate weird things at lunch, and talked about her cats a little too much.... Now, think of what she'd wear at Christmas time, and you've got the picture! We're going to decorate our own-- oddly enough Wichita seems to have a shortage of ugly sweaters-- but I won't give away our theme until I have some pics up.
Oh, and speaking of roomie, she blogs too! Check her out when you have time!  http://rheaganleigh.blogspot.com/

Happy Wednesday everyone! I'll write more when I have something interesting to say :)

Looks can be deceiving!!

Doesn't this look like a super-sweet, loving Mom & Daughter pair??

Look closer!! Watch out Tink!! She's got a knife! :)

Are you looking at my BUM??

Well, it's no secret that Ra-ra is not Ivey's favorite person right now! I know, I know, "It's a phase...", "He's just playing!!", "He'll love you SOMEday!!". Ivey's favorite thing to do is tell me, "NO, Ra-Ra!!" And give me his mean stare. Which, I have to admit, is pretty funny.

Anyhow, here's what happens when the not-favorite-aunt tries to take pictures of this otherwise camera happy child...

Ivey: "Boo B'ooon! Boo B'ooon!" ("Blue Balloon")

Autn Ra-Ra: "Do you want this blue balloon?" Handing him a blue balloon

Ivey: "NO, RA-RA!!!!" Climbing under chair to avoid camera

Scene: Ivey, standing and smiling towards Ra-Ra

Ra-Ra: "Ivey! Let me take your picture!"

Ivey: See picture.

Again, Ivey sitting, smiling by cousin Thomas...

Ra-Ra: "Ivey! Smile with Thomas!"

Ivey: See picture.

Aunt Ra-Ra: Hmmm... maybe if someone is HOLDING him, he can't face his bum towards me! "Hey guys! Lemme take a family picture!"

Ivey: See picture.