Cole and Audra

Visit with Grandma

2012-01-23T21:23:00.000-06:00

"GRANDMA has ears that truly listen

Arms that ALWAYS hold

LOVE that's never ending

And a HEART that's made of gold"

Just a Few...

2012-01-01T21:36:00.000-06:00

Here are just a few pics from our Christmas Day.....

We woke up and had our Christmas. It was our first Christmas with Beau so we of course had to wrap up a couple of presents for him ;)

Hubby made this adorable sign for me.....

Bah Ha!! Cole was naughty this year!!!!

Hope ya'll had a Merry Christmas!!!!

Christmas Eve to Remember

2012-01-01T21:22:00.002-06:00

We started the morning off with the Griffiths. As you can see, we still have a hard time getting Samuel to smile for pictures. This seems to be our best option :)

Logan was decked out with her new stompies (they are house shoes) and her new Dora umbrella.

My parents and Cole and I went to our Christmas Eve service at church. It was great to spend an hour in worship focusing on what matters most.

This Christmas was a sentimental one knowing it was Papaw's first Christmas in Heaven......

My mom and dad always instilled in my sister and I the true meaning of Christmas. We would always start the morning off with a devotional reading scripture and talking about the past year. Then we would take our time opening presents being so thankful for each one of them. I think this Christmas all of that really hit home. The hustle and bustle of decorating, cooking, shopping, etc. is always fun, but in the grand scheme of things its such a small part of why we celebrate Christmas. I think that every year, but this year MORE than ever.

Our life group was blessed this Christmas in that we were able to deliver meals the week before Christmas to a few families who hardly had anything. We went to about 6 houses and it really made us realize how truly blessed we are. We also went Christmas caroling to some shut-ins from church. It was SO much fun. They were all so sweet.

We had Christmas Eve supper at our house.

Menu: Broccoli Cheddar Soup (recipe here).

Salad with dried cherries, almonds, and apple cider vinaigrette dressing

Nat made a yummy Layered Taco Dip

White Chocolate Cheesecake that did not get eaten bc we were all so full

Here is Tori showing us her sit-ups.

We can't forget Beau. He actually behaved that night and laid down for a little while!

My kids.....I mean my niece and nephew :)

Beau LOVES to give Mae Mae some sugar!

CHICAGO

2012-01-01T20:53:00.000-06:00

We had a fun time in Chicago!!! This is mine and Cole's 3rd year in a row to go during Christmas time. We won't be able to do it every year, BUT so far I've been loving the tradition.

Took these with my phone and they are tiny for some reason!!! Sorry about that.

Love you sis!!

Love me some Garretts Popcorn!

Feel so blessed we were able to go again and especially with my sister and Bryan

Alice in Wonderland

2011-12-19T16:18:00.000-06:00

Tori turned 5!!!!!!! She wanted an Alice in Wonderland themed party so that's what her awesome mama gave her! Alice and Madhatter even showed up!

First Christmas in Heaven

2011-12-11T14:22:00.002-06:00

My First Christmas in Heaven

I see the countless Christmas trees around the world below
With tiny lights, like Heaven's stars, reflecting on the snow
The sight is so spectacular, please wipe away those tears,
For I am spending Christmas with Jesus Christ this year.

I hear the many Christmas songs that people hold so dear
But the sounds of music can't compare with the Christmas choir up here.
I have no words to tell you, the joy their voices bring,
For it is beyond description, to hear the angels sing.

I know how much you miss me, I see the pain inside your heart.
But I am not so far away, We really aren't apart.
So be happy for me, loved one, You know I hold you dear.
And be glad I'm spending Christmas with Jesus Christ this year.

I sent you each a special gift, from my heavenly home above.
I sent you each a memory of my undying love.
After all, LOVE is a gift more precious than pure gold.
It was always most important in the stories Jesus told.

Please love and keep each other, as my Father said to do.
for I can't count the blessings or the love he has for you.
So have a Merry Christmas and wipe away that tear!
Remember, I am spending Christmas with Jesus Christ this year.

Author Unknown

Audra

Papaw

2011-12-05T21:11:00.001-06:00

~Papaw~

We miss you so much. You were an amazing Christian man and were respected by so many. You were so gentle and kind, and you always knew how to love. The tears are rolling down my cheeks thinking of all of the wonderful memories that we have with you.

I will forever cherish them, and will carry you in my heart, ALWAYS.

Tori still prays for you, but I'm sure you already know that. She says that she can't wait to go to heaven so she can see you. We all look forward to that day where we can see you again, Papaw.

We love you so much!

65 Roses

2011-11-07T21:39:00.001-06:00

A sweet little boy back in the 60's tried to say Cystic Fibrosis and 65 roses is what came out instead. Some children now say 65 Roses instead of CF because it is much easier to pronounce.

The 65 Roses event that we went to on Friday night was of course a success. Everyone at the foundation does such an amazing job raising money to help find a cure. They are very inspiring....

My sis and Tori told their story on stage and they did AMAZING.

Tori (a.k.a Sista), you are such an inspiration to so many people.....

The famous songwriters/singers for the evening. My favorite was "Waitin' On a Woman". The singer on the right is Kelli Pickler's husband.

The thank you note that Tori wrote: Dear Phil, THANK You for HELPING ME! Love, Tori

These wonderful people work at the foundation and help fight for a cure EVERY SINGLE DAY.

Lately!

2011-10-11T07:54:00.001-05:00

We had a UT party with some friends! Cole had me put on my UT shirt since I happen to be the only one not wearing one:) There was A LOT of orange going on that night.

Kelci and I had about all we could handle, SO we decided to go craft......

and make our new bracelets!!!

THE FAIR

Once upon a time we went to the Williamson County Fair. I know it was A LONG time ago, but I still think it deserves a few pics.....

We recently went to the Stairclimb Event for Cystic Fibrosis at Greer Stadium. It raised well over 7k!

It was a chilly mornin', so we all snuggled up....

New Etsy Items

2011-08-07T21:39:00.001-05:00

I have been loving some Pinterest here lately, so I was inspired this weekend to come up with a couple of new items for the Shop! Here we go....

"You Are My Sunshine" Quote printed onto burlap that comes with the frame. This is a restored cupboard in cream with a rich chocolate glaze. You can change out the burlap with your own 8 x 10 picture!

This one we created with the intentions of combining a picture frame and jewelry hanger. Cole put a cute little shelf on it too, so it can hold bracelets and such. The 2 clothespins are for 4 x 6 pictures. One of our friends calls this one "The Hybrid".... :)

http://www.etsy.com/listing/79219548/custom-listing-for-tapeariso-chic-wood

                  Can you tell I'm into burlap right now?! Love me some burlap on distressed wood!

                              http://www.etsy.com/listing/78723255/shabby-chic-picture-frame-dark-walnut

This frame holds (3) 5 x 7 photos with burlap underneath. A little ruffle rosette to add some shabby chic!

The Best Sleepover Ever

2011-07-29T15:15:00.001-05:00

Tori and I had just a good OLE' time this past weekend at our sleepover!

We rented a Barbie movie and if I'm not mistaken, T stood up the entire time. Beau also WATCHED her every move. She loved it so much we watched it AGAIN before church the next morning :)

Next time we are going to have "2 sleepovers" as she says ;)

How Much Longer?!

2011-07-24T21:30:00.001-05:00

Our baby Beau had 2 surgeries within the last two weeks, so he is pretty much wishing he had new parents for the time being. Mainly because he is having to wear this thing.......

He was neutered 2 weeks ago and then had eye surgery last week. OH, did I mention when we picked him up from being neutered, the doctor told us he has hip displasia?! I couldn't really believe my ears. We have now been to an opthamologist and an orthopedic doctor for this kid. He IS totally worth it all of course, but I'm wishing I would have chosen one of these career paths, because they make a killin'! Heehee;)

I know we are not the only ones tending to our dog's needs, but it has just all hit a little fast since he is only 7 months old!

I'm sure a lot of dogs have to endure this once in their lifetime, but Beau is wishing he wasn't one of them. He is running into walls, doorways, and even me at times! He is also a lot more needy, so I have OFFICIALLY become his scratcher. Cole is gone to Haiti for the time being, so it is only I who can come to the rescue! I don't mind though:)

Here are just a couple of pictures of Beau before his surgery.

I totally busted these two on the couch one morning. Beau WILL NOT be a couch dog, but we are still working on that, although you wouldn't notice from the picture. They ARE best friends, so I let it slide this time. Are you wondering how Beau can actually see with all of that hair?!

He LOVES my crafts! Ughh! He is always trying to sneek into my craft room and grab some fabric. This time it was just paper he was wanting to eat.

Next post: A Sleepover to Remember

"It Feels Like Home to Me"

2011-07-14T17:55:00.004-05:00

Cole and I took advantage of a long July 4th weekend and traveled to see Grandma and Papa! I am always just thrilled to pieces to go to their house and spend some good quality time with them. We of course had the most wonderul meals cooked by Grandma. She cooked the most delicious batch of fried okra! Wish I would have taken a picture; it was that pretty. Papaw and I sliced open a watermelon and boy did we enjoy that :)

I believe he was a little dissappointed I had to interrupt his snack :)

Cole had fun playing with some of Papaw's toys while we were there......

Aren't they cute?!

You do not leave Grandma's house without fresh vegetables!

My man even participated in the picking!

Cole wanted to put on a fireworks show for us and it was FABULOUS. Yes, we had it in the daylight, but it was still wonderful :)

We had about a 20 minute show, so we were all very impressed! We had a great 4th with them and we are talking about making it a tradition now!

Thank you GRANDMA for being such a wonderful example to Natalie and I. It's hard to put into words how much we love you and Papaw. We just only wish we lived closer! You are one of the most LOVING, most KIND, most PATIENT, and most JOYFUL woman that I know.

It always feels like home when we go there. We have made so many precious memories with them and plan to make many more!!

Gulf Shores

2011-06-30T11:58:00.005-05:00

We went to Gulf Shores this past weekend with our friends Anthony and Kelci, and let me tell you we all came back with alot of Beach Bum swagger! Below are just a few highlights...

The boys got the trip started off with a fishing trip. Cole puked his guts out the entire trip, while Anthony battled the raging sea of the Gulf and was successful in bringing home dinner for all of us!

The Loot

"Yes, I caught all the fish." "The Chummer"

The wives made fun of our fishing shirts the entire trip, but all I got to say is look at their hats (below)!

Kelci and Audra

Kelci and Anthony

"Our hats are so shabby chic! They don't have magnets on them, and they aren't made out of parachute material!"

The ever so popular group photo!

You don't have Beach Bum Swagger unless you are willing to show off your Beach Bum body!

Cole burying a jellyfish with someone's son. Cole got stung by a jellyfish, so he made it a priority the next day to put the jelly fish on the endangered species list!

One of the best features Gulf Shores had to offer is people watching. We were so blessed to observe two families from the Bayou. Here are just a couple of highlights:

- A mom wearing a highly innappropriate bikini sporting LSU gear everyday.

- The mom's son, no older than 10, takes a beer from the cooler. His punishment = His mom drags him to the water and throws salt water in his face.

- The son of this family falls on the sand and starts crying. His dad proceeds to tell ask him "Son, why are you crying? That didn't hurt! If you don't stop crying, I'm gonna give you something to cry about." Son didn't stop crying, dad took him up to the condo for not stopping, son wasn't seen the rest of the the trip!

Now that is parenting skills!

Just a couple more.....

2011-06-04T11:46:00.000-05:00

Willie Beau AND Beau got to play together on Memorial Day. If you are confused by that, we named Beau after Willie Beau. :) Beau really loves Willie and Willie does so good with him considering he is a lot older.

We took a trip in the golf cart (a.k.a Bump Bump) to check out Papaw's garden! Cole found something he wanted ;)

This was Beau's first adventure ride on Bump Bump, so he was a bit skeptical and kept jumping on and off. One time when he jumped, Papaw took off really fast and this was Beau trying to catch up. We got the biggest kick out of this!

Can you see his legs at all?! He definitely does not take after his mama with those short legs ;)

Willie Beau's best friend Papaw

This was SO cute. Cole captured this one for us. I will have to find the picture of my Grandma and Papaw doing the exact same thing in their garden. Do you think Cole & I will have a garden ONE day?! I hope so ;)

Celebrate and Party

2011-05-31T21:54:00.002-05:00

We had LOTS to celebrate this weekend! Cole took one of his CPA tests on Friday afternoon, so that was a huge celebration in itself! We will have another celebration when he gets his results back :)

It was also Cole's birthday! My parents took us to lunch for his birthday on Sunday......

It was YUMMO!

Then we had a fun afternoon swim at the Griffiths.....

Little Logan devouring some birthday dessert :)

The boys have such a grand ole' time in the new pool!

Then we had a hot date at PF Changs for his birthday dinner!!!

Next post will be Memorial Day pics!

Audra :)

Hank and Beau

2011-05-31T21:38:00.000-05:00

Beau did so-so on his first playdate with Mr. Hank. Beau is half poodle, so I'm learning that he is VERY protective of things....

By this I mean he did get snippy when Hank tried drinking out of his own water dish. Hank was such a trooper though and just endured it all.

]

Beau was very shy when they first met and after about 10 minutes they were chasing each other around Kelci's coffee table. They got in at least a mile!

Handy Dandy Hangers and Favorites

2011-05-14T21:55:00.001-05:00

Here are a few pictures of my jewelry hangers that I have been creating for my Etsy shop. Just thought you may want to take a peeeek :)

http://www.etsy.com/listing/72373657/necklace-hanger-display-creamy-chic

http://www.etsy.com/listing/73484558/necklace-holder-or-hanger-key-lime

http://www.etsy.com/listing/74106935/necklace-holder-hanger-display-charming?ref=v1_other_1

The great thing about these babies is you can put them basically anywhere in your home: entryway, bedroom, closet, etc. Put them in your nursery and hang a strand of bows from it! These would also be cute and convenient for hanging small baby coats or jackets. If we had a nursery, we would have one in there for sure ;)

This hanger below was created and inspired by the Royal Wedding that just took place.....who was that again?! ;)

http://www.etsy.com/listing/73716238/necklace-hanger-display-royally-chic

http://www.etsy.com/listing/73273346/necklace-hanger-display-antique-cottage

I love me some cottage chic decor!

http://www.etsy.com/listing/73925533/necklace-hanger-display-vintage-charm

I also wanted to share a few of my favorite items from ETSY........

http://www.etsy.com/listing/62315052/urban-farmhouse-table-runner-48-inches

AMAZING jewelry by CarolEJewelry

http://www.etsy.com/listing/71908606/red-velvet-and-silver-hoop-earrings

http://www.etsy.com/listing/73698183/golden-pearl-chocolate-brown-ribbon

My Favorite....

This cute bracelet was created to raise awareness for Cystic Fibrosis.

The 3 beads represent Faith and Hope for a Cure Found for CF.......!!!

http://www.etsy.com/listing/72572000/awareness-bracelet-cystic-fibrosis

Planning a birthday party for your little one?! Get these adorable little cupcake toppers made by

krkegley!!!

http://www.etsy.com/listing/73523424/elephant-cupcake-toppers

Oh man what I would do if my honey would build me one of these babies one day! I heart this.

http://www.etsy.com/listing/62603814/44-inch-handcrafted-shelf-ledge-shabby

I ordered these cuties for our fridge. You can choose your own colors. They look even cuter in person!

http://www.etsy.com/listing/72330997/summer-violet-flower-magnets

And last, but not least, these ADORABLE baby bloomers made by kjsdiddledaddle!!

http://www.etsy.com/listing/72206678/bold-and-beautiful-ruffled-baby-bloomer?ref=v1_other_1

Ya'll, I just can't resist....

2011-05-05T20:39:00.001-05:00

Our baby is a gettin' bigger!! Here are some recent pictures.

Just a quick interjection......So far since Beau has joined our family, he has brought a LIVE dove into our house, killed 2 moles, and he has carried 5 dead baby possum to his mom hoping to get a treat everytime. When he brought me the first two possum I actually thought they were moles. I was proud of him (and VERY freaked out at the same time), because I knew Cole would be so excited for him getting moles! I sent Cole a picture after Beau brought the 4th one to me and he said they were possum! Yikes!

I'm really big on cleanliness with our Beau, so he got a bath immediately and I brushed his teeth, twice ;)

Ok, you can continue looking at this pretty boy now....

He is fairly laid back :)

We LOVE to dig dig dig!

13 and then Some

2011-04-30T15:13:00.002-05:00

We had a pretty productive morning. Nat & I finished the half marathon! I have to brag a little bit and say that I am SO PROUD of my sister! She has said all throughout training that she "was not a runner". I always disagreed. I believe she proved herself wrong this morning! I think if someone can run 13.1 miles then they CAN indeed, call themselves runner!

We had the best fan club for sure!

Congrats to all who ran the marathon!! Praise the Lord it was a beautiful day!!

Audra :)

Our Pretty Boy

2011-04-11T11:16:00.000-05:00

Our pretty boy Beau is now 15 weeks old! I know boys aren't supposed to be PRETTY, but don't you think he is?!

Tori wanted him to ride in the backseat with her. After a couple of minutes he eventually moved into her lap:)

Beau took another car ride with my dear friend Ash! For those of you who know her realize why I captured this moment;) Thank you for coming to visit us Ash! You are such a special friend to me.

Ashley, Cali, and I went shopping in downtown Franklin one morning. I only brought Beau, because we were headed straight to my parents house afterwards. I PROMISE I am not one of those who will tote my dog around everywhere!

Beau wanted to ride in the stroller with Blakers while we shopped! Don't let this picture deceive you to thinking Beau actually stayed in there long! It may have lasted about 45 seconds!

We are always thinking he looks so chunky!! That is until we give him a bath and then Beau is no longer our little fur ball!

His hair IS getting SO long and thick, so I thought it was time for a trim this weekend. WELL, let me just tell you that it was a complete disaster! He would not sit still for anything and went absolutely bolistic! Guess I need to go to a professional now.

Beau, it's time to get your 1st haircut buddy!!

Audra

Feather Fascinator

2011-04-04T11:22:00.001-05:00

I've been working on my first ever bridal hairpiece!

I have to admit, I was a bit nervous with this creation! THANKFULLY, this sweet bride has been so easy to please! She also has a little bit of my style, so that seemed to simplify this process a bit:)

It's a feather fascinator for her to wear during the reception.

Next up, feather fascinators for the bridesmaids!

Samuel's Birthday Party

2011-03-29T19:27:00.000-05:00

We celebrated Samuel's 9th birthday on Saturday! We all went roller skating and then back to his house for pizza and cake. He had several friends there and they were all so sweet. He had a blast!

I didn't get any pictures of him skating, because he was so fast AND because that would have been so uncool for us to do that to him at his birthday party:)

Happy Girl

2011-03-23T16:53:00.000-05:00

We spent some good times with great friends the other night! Blake is such a sweet happy baby!

One of my best friends Cali, sweet Blake, and me.

She is quite the animal lover already!

Out of Hibernation!

2011-03-20T17:40:00.000-05:00

It's amazing how exciting this spring weather already is! Nothing beats getting outside on the weekends and having a little fun!

Tori & Brady decided to help Uncle Cole pick up some sticks....fun for them and very helpful to us! They did get a little money to add into their piggy banks for helping:)

Beau just ate some sticks for us, so we did not have to pick those up.....

What fun is work without a little playtime?!

What great helpers they were!

Samuel decided to join in on the fun too:)

Tori couldn't leave home with out one of Audi's headbands:)

Beau Knows

2011-03-16T20:11:00.000-05:00

Beau knows how to.....

sit,

shake,

and sleep through the night!

Beau knows what getting a bath means:)

Blake came to visit Beau one day! I was so nervous that Beau was going to hurt her when he was puppy biting! Little did I know, bc she would just giggle when he nibbled on her! Cali has so many animals at her house, so Blake adapted well:)

Kelci and Beau's first uniting!

Christine & Brody came to visit him too, but I dropped the ball and didn't snap a picture!

I weigh 10lbs already and I am getting very chunky!

We are a little addicted right now, so I'm sure the next few posts are gonna have to be of Beau!

Look Who Joined the Family!

2011-02-24T21:21:00.002-06:00

Well, it's not just the 2 of us anymore! I would like to introduce Beau Griffith to you, the newest member of our family! He is a Miniature Goldendoodle and will be 9 weeks old on Saturday, so he is a little fella. He should be around 25lbs when mature.

In the meantime, he is just our little fur ball!

Poor little guy had to get a bath immediately from his mom!

Tori and Brady love him! Tori likes everything about him....well, almost everything. She wishes he was a girl puppy instead named Sally!

Nat Nat even likes him :)

                                             Willie Beau and Beau's first reunion!
                                         We named our Beau after my first dog, Willie Beau:)

They will learn to be best friends.

Mae Mae and Beau's introduction was like they've known each other forever:)

We are already in luv:)

We had such a fun day going to get him and we were able to introduce him to the whole family last night (minus little Logan...we did try though)! We even skyped Grandma, so she could meet her great grand-dog!

Just a Needle and Some Yarn

2011-02-05T22:08:00.000-06:00

Here are some of my crochet projects that I've done. Just thought you may want to see :)

And the awards for the Best Model goes too.............

Brady & Tori

"Oh Etsy How I Love Thee!"

2011-01-19T21:39:00.000-06:00

Do you HEART Etsy as much as I do?!!! I have been pretty obsessed with it for awhile now. It is a great place to get just about ANY gift you could ever want! I buy LOTS of presents from here every Christmas and birthdays too.

My mom has an AMAZING jewelry shop on etsy with all of her fabulous designs. Check her site out HERE.

Well just recently, I decided to start my OWN shop! What I'm going to put in this shop I have NO earthly idey! Ok, I have put in 3 items so far, but that is nothing compared to some of the shop with 100's of items. Nothing too exciting, but you are welcome to check it out HERE :) With some help of my mom, I have titled it "A Chic Shop". For all the men out there (~~Cole~~) it is not called "A CHICK Shop". Haha.

For those of you who know me well, I could craft just about ALL day long, so that's why I decided to start up a little shop. Also, I got these really cute little business tags for Christmas from a bestie and that has really inspired me to get going.

Can you see it??! I just LOVE them. Thanks Pickle! :)

Have a great night!

Audra

Rosette Tutorial

2011-01-10T20:44:00.002-06:00

"How to Make Rosettes"

These are SO easy!

*Materials*

- You need to have double-sided fabric (same print on each side) OR you can fold fabric over and use spray adhesive to make your own double-sided fabric.

- Sheets(s) of felt (any craft store for about 30 cents) You can get a color that is similar to your fabric color. This will be the base of your flower.

- Hot glue gun and scissors

Directions: Cut a strip of your fabric about an 1" wide and about 24" long (longer or shorter depending on how big you want your flower)

Cut out a square piece of felt. This needs to be a square inch larger than the actual flower size. I just cut out a big square everytime, because you are going to trim it down. This does not have to be perfect AT ALL.

Fold the strip of fabric over so it is doubled (this just makes it a bit thicker). You are folding the 3/4" part to make it about 3/8" wide. Again, this does not have to be the perfect size. You should base it according to your fabric thickness. You will learn as you go.

Put a drop of glue in the middle of the felt and place the end of the strip of fabric in the middle. Then start twirling! You can place drops of hot glue along the way to make it stay down. Also, if you twist your fabric strip as your twirling this gives a fun random look.

When you have your rosette to the size that you prefer, leave a couple of inches at the end and then cut the rest off. Then glue the end to the very back of the flower. You do this instead of tucking it somewhere in the flower.

Then trim off any excess felt.

All of mine turn out different EVERY single time, but that is what makes them fun! You just experiment and learn your own taste as you go. Hope this is somewhat helpful (Lana Banana:)!

* I saw where someone had made these into Christmas ornaments this year....they were too cute!*

Audra

"Oh Crafty Day!!"

2011-01-09T21:54:00.000-06:00

Oh what a FABULOUS crafty day my sis and I had on Saturday! Might I mention, we started out the day by running 3 miles, bc we are starting to train for the 1/2 marathon!

Not sure what to call this cutie, but maybe just a chic picture frame?! Credit goes to the ladies over at Shanty2chic. As always, you can just add your own personal touches however you would like.

This one is a gift....it turned out to be my favorite out of the 2 that I did. It is a blue sky color with a little bit of brown distressed coming through.

I unfortunately did not get a picture of Nat's frames, bc she had to leave to tend to the children before the frames were completely put together. Hers were lookin' cute though!

OUR WORDS OF ADVICE: Do not do this project in 25 degree weather! You will be numb from your fingers down to the tips of your toes! Besides, it's really hard for the paint to go on just right too when it's that cold!

Here is the one we are keeping. I have it sitting on our bar area connecting our Dining Rm and LR. I decided to make it double-sided, so it will be fun to look at in all directions. That was a last minute plan ;)

This one is cream distressed to go with most of our decor.

Living Rm side....2 rosettes are made out of burlap and the other one is made from my living rm curtain material (chocolate and cream).

Dining room side.....I made a burnt orange rosette that matches closely to my dining room curtains. Im just in LOVE with this little guy! Cole has caught me staring when we were watching TV. He said, "Are you staring at your craft??" Haha, I can't help it. I get REALLY excited about new crafts! I wish we could do a sister craft day EVERY Saturday!!

These are actually 11" tall and 8" wide, so they make a pretty bold statement with your decor.

You LIKE??!

JUST A THOUGHT, I may start selling these and most of the proceeds could go to Cystic Fibrosis to help find a cure for my 4 year old neice. I am co-chair for the May 2011 Great Strides walk this year, so my "wheels are a turnin" for some great ideas on how to raise some money. Think they would sell?! I was thinking around $25??

Enjoy the snow, if we ever get any ;)

Audra

Our Christmas

2011-01-06T21:14:00.022-06:00

Our Tree! Looks WAY prettier at night time, but whose doesn't?!!

This picture is for my London buddies (mainly for Lana since I know she is a serious blogger:) We went to London for a few weeks in college on a business trip! I would LOVE to go back ONE day with Cole.

We celebrated Christmas with the Griffith's on Christmas Eve at Matthew and Brittney's house. Poor little Logan was sick with an ear infection. She got a lot of gifts for her doll, but she clearly expressed to us that SHE wanted to be the doll that day:)

Dianne got us some Dickies (sp?) for Christmas! Oh yes, I know you are so jealous! It was a joke, don't worry. We were making fun of her one day, because she used to wear them, so she wanted ALL of us to have our own.

We decided to change it up a bit this year and have Christmas Eve dinner at our house this year. Nat and I both made soups and they were DEElicious! Nat made tomato soup and I made Chicken Queso Soup from the kitchen of Ashley Jamison. For all of my fellow Kojie sisters, it is in our lovely cookbook;)

Mae Mae and Bradyman helping in the kitchen

Paw Paw and Nat

This pic is one of my favs.....I made it in b and w today and it is SOOO sweet!

Christmas morning, Cole and I had our Christmas. We were only supposed to do stockings, but both of us ended up cheating a bit. I made him a BIG burlap stocking to fit all of his goodies in and he bought me 4 MORE stockings to fit my goodies in! One of the gifts that he gave me (which did not fit in the stocking) was a Keurig coffee maker!!! I can not express how much I love this thing already!! I do not have a picture, so for those of you who do not know what this is it is a single cup coffee maker. The cool feature about this one is I can still use my own beans in a mini coffee filter when I want to. I love my other coffee pot and will definitly still use it, but I just got so tired of cleaning out that bad boy daily JUST for me. Cole's only flaw is that he is not a coffee drinker....I'm working on fixing that ;)

We then went over to his parents house for a delicious breakfast! This is Samuel's 2nd Christmas being here in the U.S., and it is still so fun to watch him open his gifts. He got a go-cart for Christmas, so he is in love with that. I wish I would have taken a picture of him driving it!

Then we headed over to my parents house to have Christmas with them.

Have you ever seen chicken that looked THIS good?! My dad's specialty...butterfly chicken on the grille!

                                Cole Slaw and Twice Baked Potatoes

Yummy Punch!

We had a theme of "hats" for Christmas this year.......

Cole with his new Braves hat!

Tori and Brady got new hats too! Brady looks like he should be a conductor in Polar Express!

How do you resist these 2?!

I have a few more pictures, but I will stop here for today!

Audra

Opryland

2011-01-06T20:35:00.001-06:00

I am SOOO behind on updating our blog with pictures, so bare with me! I'm sure you aren't too interested in Christmas pictures anymore, but I don't really believe in skipping posts! So, here goes:

We went to the Opryland Hotel with our good friends Kelci and Anthony. I only have a couple of pictures and they are just of us:), but I will say that Opryland looked pretty nice after the renovations from the May flood. We remembered on the news how high the water had rose in the hotel, so it was so crazy seeing it in person.

Ok, this was histarical! Cole and I had run into some friends, so Kelci and Anthony had walked a few feet ahead since we were in a high traffic area. We got finished talking and found these two doing this!

They had been sitting at the information desk handing out maps pretending to be employees! We all could not quit laughing! We had the best time with them that night!

"Baby It's Cold Outside!"...in Chicago!

2010-12-09T07:59:00.001-06:00

Ice Skating Outside at Millenium Park!

All Bundled!

About to see "The Christmas Carol" Musical. It was SOOOOO good by the way!!

It snowed almost 5" one day!!! It didn't stop us from shoppin' till we dropped!

Great Times with the Fam!

2010-12-09T07:58:00.002-06:00

Jewelry Sale!!

2010-11-29T07:06:00.002-06:00

My mom is having a CYBER MONDAY SALE on ALL of her jewelry!!! All of her products make great Christmas gifts! Click here to view her etsy page. Enjoy!!

Audra :)

Start Decorating Off Right.....

2010-11-27T15:33:00.001-06:00

Do you feel like you have to add something new and fresh to your Christmas decor every year? I do....even though this is only my 2nd year as a homeowner :)
What better way to start decorating then to do something like this beauty?! I was inspired by Dittle Dattle. I just added my own touches. Here she is!

To see a detailed tutorial, go see Dittle Dattle's Blog and she has great step by step instructions. If you want a quick tutorial, here is what I did:

- Found a "G" font on the internet that I liked. Traced it directly from my computer onto a piece of paper.
- My handsome helping hubby drew the letter onto a piece of plywood he had lying around. You can make it any size you would like.
- He cut it out with a jig-saw
- He painted it black using spray paint (may not be necessary). We were unsure if the wood would show through, but it did not.
- I found a tree in our backyard with some good greenery and started snipping away some pieces. Snip quite a few.
- I started one-by-one placing the stems of greenery onto the plywood. It looks better to do them all in one direction. Then use green wire (I got mine at Dollar Tree) or any type of wire and start wrapping the greenery onto the plywood.
- Trim it and shape to your preference
- Add your own decor with hot glue

- Hang her up!

*Hopefully it will last through the end of the season! If you want to keep it for years to come, buy some real greenery that you like.

Gotta get back to decorating!

Audra

Need a Stocking Stuffer for your Kids?!

2010-11-23T16:23:00.013-06:00

The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation has teamed up with CVS for the second year in a row to raise critical funds for CF through sales of classic holiday movies! Are you looking for a good, classic, holiday movie this season to watch with your family? Well, go hit up CVS and buy one or ALL of these movies....we just did:) You won't feel guilty about buying them, because $5 of each movie goes directly to the CF foundation. They are all around $10 a piece, so basically 1/2 of your purchase goes to a great cause!!

Here are the movies/cartoons available:

"How the Grinch Stole Christmas" (cartoon)

This is actually the cartoon, so it is about 30 minutes long. My neice watched it twice tonight and LOVED it.

"The Polar Express"

"The Year Without Santa Claus".

The other classic is "Charlie Brown's Christmas Tales"

This special promotion to benefit the CF Foundation ends December 28th, so go out and get a couple to watch with your family over the holidays!

Christmas Cards...Yea!

2010-11-21T21:44:00.005-06:00

Can you believe it is that time already?! I hate to admit this, but this will be the 1st year
ever for me to officially send out Christmas cards. I mean Cole & I have only been married for
1 1/2 years, but STILL, I should have done it our first year! I enjoy getting everyone else's
cards each year, so it's time for us to do our part! We will definitly be getting our cards from
shutterfly this year. I looked on their site and they have SO many cute Christmas cards this
year!

Here are a few of my favorites:

With Shutterfly's reasonable prices, you can send as many cards out as you would like! You will not have to worry about spending a fortune. They have such a great selection, so you don't have to worry about someone else getting the same card! You can add your own personal touches on the cards as well. If you have too much going before Christmas and you feel like time is growing short, send out some New Year/holiday cards instead. Click here to see Shutterfly's selection of those. They are all SO cute!

Not only is shutterfly great for cards, but they have SO many other great items as well. Are you struggling trying to find that perfect gift for your spouse/loved one for Christmas? Get them a gallery wrapped canvas! Click here to see those. They have size options to suit any room in your home. Who wouldn't enjoy a nice piece of art for Christmas?! Get organized and load all of your photos onto shuttefly for all your digital picture needs.

I'm gonna go order my cards right now, gotta run!

Audra

Bloggers get 50 free holiday cards: http://bit.ly/sfly2010

More than I could ask for....

2010-11-14T20:53:00.022-06:00

Calling all husbands who are wanting to sweep your wife right off of her feet!!!

Please see below for some great advice:)

My 27th birthday was on Saturday, and I have to say, my husband impressed me beyond
measures!!

The day started out with Lauren and Baby Hudson's baby shower at our house which was absolutely wonderful! She got some great stuff for him and of course had a wonderful turn out. Hudson is already loved by so many!

Then that afternoon, Cole gave me my birthday card. It had instructions to head over to Signature Spa and Nails and that "I would be directed on where to go." I was really excited, because obviously I was going to get a little pampering! I got there and didn't really know what to do. Next thing I knew, there was some tapping on my leg. I looked down and there was Tori! She took me around the corner and then there was Natalie and Brittney! Cole had gotten all of us pedicures!

Tori go a manicure instead. She was so good!! Look at these sweet chairs they have for kids that go....

Me, Tori, & Brittney!

These pictures are from Natalie's camera and I failed to get a picture of with Nat. I was so excited about all of this I just wasn't thinking clearly!

Keep reading, the day just keeps on getting better! Natalie gave me a card from Cole that said go back to the house and look on the back door. I went back and there was ANOTHER card. In a nutshell, it said "be ready by 5 oclock and don't worry, because I already have your outfit picked out for you.".......I was thinking what in the world?! He must have picked out his favorite outfit of mine from my closet.

I go back to our bedroom and Cole had purchased an ENTIRE outfit for me to get into! He had bought (BY HIMSELF) a new black dress, shoes, accessories, a clutch, and a new coat!!!! Holy moly, I was in awe the entire time getting ready. Let me mention I don't think I ever stopped smiling for the next hour.....

EVERYTHING that he picked out was absolutely perfect! I did not get any pictures of how he had everything, because I was too excited to think about taking a picture at that moment! I snapped a couple the next day, so you could see everything.

The coat is so cute! It's a teal color.

He picked me up at 5 on the dot and we headed out!

We went to the Boundary and it was delicious! Started off with some crab cakes....baby crab cakes might I add! They brought this plate out and as soon as the waiter left, Cole and I looked at each other and busted out with laughter! We were wondering if the kitchen had run out of crab cakes, because they brought us 2 of them that were literally one bite a piece. They actually look a lot bigger in this picture than they really were. Do not be deceived!

Dinner was MmmmMmmm Good!!!

I wasn't going to post this, but what the heck....it was part of the birthday surprise! Of course after dinner I asked what we were doing and with no surprise he would not budge with a hint. A few minutes later we pulled up to the hotel that we stayed at on our wedding night!! He also had booked the exact same suite that we stayed in too. My, what a romantic hubby I have!!

All dolled up! He even bought himself a new suit and tie! I was so proud:)

He had brought all of our pj's and such over that day to the hotel, so we had everything we needed. He opened one of the drawers and pulled out these......

New Razorback PJs!!! Let me tell you, these are the softest pair of sweatpants I have ever owned! Who would know that they are actually from Victoria's Secret if anyone wants to get some!

Thank you, Coley, for absolutely spoiling me rotten this weekend! I did not deserve it at all, but of course LOVED every second ;) I love you so much!!

Fall Festivities!

2010-11-08T18:52:00.006-06:00

Trunk or Treat! We had trunk or treat at our church and this was the first time we have been able to participate. Our lifegroup had a trunk this year and it was so much fun!!

Oh yes, this yummy hot dog is my husband!

Trunk or Treat was not complete without "Princess and the Frog"

or without Spiderman and Wonderwoman!

Paw-Paw with the Frog

Kelci & me as cheerleaders....she was a little more of a natural than me!

Our theme is obviously "sports" for the group. Cole made up the concession stand!

Slumber Party!

2010-10-27T09:22:00.010-05:00

We had a sleepover with Tori & Brady the other night and boy did we have FUN! I could just eat both of them up and I'm pretty sure "Dole" (Brady saying Cole) would say the same :)

Playing outside in our wings :)

Tori modeling my halloween costume.....a.k.a Cali's cheerleading uniform! She loved it:)

Tori and I were playing in the other room and I came in and found these 2 just like this........

I grabbed my camera quietly (so I thought) and then Brady looked straight at me and said, "cheeeez". It was so cute.

Tori wanted to join in as well..........

I cut myself out of this picture, because I thought it was so stinkin' cute of him......

We want another sleepover soon!!

The Best Visit!

2010-10-17T20:33:00.007-05:00

Erin and Emerson came for a visit last week to Nashville! We all had the best time. Work got in the way of course:), but we did get to do lunches and play at night. Emerson has gotten so big and is such a sweet girl. Emerson will be a big sister in March...Erin and Cam are having another...yea!!
Lunch at Tin Roof

This is Cali's baby girl, Blake. She of course wasn't going to miss out on any of the fun! Isn't she a doll?!

Come Back soon Erin and Emerson....we love you!

Baby Booties!

2010-09-23T17:53:00.004-05:00

Here are the booties! I ended up making a 3-6 month size for a newborn. I figured she could wear them this winter. After holding them up to her feet one day, her mom and I then realized that we might need a 0-3 months! So, I'm working on a sweet brown and pink pair. I can already tell these will be much more girlie and more appropriate for this winter. I can't wait to give them to her!

I will probably spruce up the brown/pink pair and throw on some pink buttons.

I bought this pattern off of etsy at Mamacheeshop. Click on this link below to view her shop.

http://www.etsy.com/listing/56699322/button-booties-pdf-pattern-sizes-newborn

Thank you, Grandma, for teaching me (again:) how to crochet!!!

"To Grandmother's House We Go"

2010-09-19T20:50:00.005-05:00

Cole & I drove down to spend a weekend with Grandma & Papaw! We didn't want to leave....of course. You never want to leave their house when you go. Grandma always knows how to make everything better! You get lots of love, have lots of laughs, and get very full bellies that make you crash!

All of us outside on a beautiful day!

I really wanted to take a picture of the fried okra (my fav), but what I really wanted you to see is this big ole' tub of butter that sat with us for dinner. As you can see, we count every calorie when we go to Grandma's house:)

I was lucky enough to get a teaching/refresher course in crocheting. She taught us grandkids a LONG time ago how to crochet. Back then I was trying to make a placemat and it turned into a hot air balloon in shape, so I gave it up! I thought I would put the past behind us and give it one more shot. So, I started out making some booties for Brady-man. Too bad they ended up looking like they would fit one of us, because I bought the wrong thread!

Grandma wasn't quite ready for this one......she was a trooper when teaching me, because she almost missed her afternoon nap!

I've been practicing just about everyday since we've been back, because I did not want to forget what I learned!

My little cousin Afton came in for a visit.....

We had such a great time Grandma & Papaw......we hope you will let us come back again soon:)

Next post: 1st completed crochet project!

Every girl needs some pampering....

2010-09-12T19:44:00.005-05:00

Us girls decided to go and get pampered the other day with pedicures and manicures. When the man started cutting Nat's toes, Tori said "Mommy, is that man hurting you?" It was too cute. She has a big heart and wanted to make sure her mom was okay :)

The sweet lady painted T's nails purple with flowers.

Wish we could do this every week :)

Take Your Shoes Off and Stay Awhile!

2010-08-06T13:38:00.004-05:00

Guest Room: Well I've finally finished (well sort of) our guest room! I would still like to get some new bedding and make some pillows, but this will have to suffice for the time being. My lovely sis made the curtains for me with a fabric that I had picked out. I painted and distressed this night stand last weekend, so that lightens up the room a little more. It was a dark brown and I gave it some coats of cream paint and then distressed it a bit. Although the bed is my sisters, I may have to paint it pretty soon too. It just depends on when Brady (my nephew) is going to a big boy bed. When she needs it back I will just have to make a headboard for the frame. So, our guest room is ready for you! Please come and stay with us!

Sand Between Our Toes!

2010-08-01T17:36:00.007-05:00

Last Saturday, we packed up and headed out to Destin! For those of you who are about to go to Destin or around that area, there was no oil as of last week. The only situation in the ocean was algae. We just had to clean out our bathing suits pretty well after swimming in the ocean!

Matthew & Brittney

Cole & Samuel about to surf. If you are wondering what Samuel is wearing, it is an inflatable protector for his arm cast. He broke his arm a couple of weeks ago while he was at church camp, so he can't get it wet. He does not by any means let it stop him from having a good time though!

Mr. Ward, Cole, and Samuel fighting the waves

Cole, Samuel, & Me

Since there are children in the bunch now, we had to of course ride go carts and go to an arcade one night. We also went to Big Kahoona one day. There were tons of water slides there. All I can say is when they tell you to keep your legs crossed on the slides, they mean it! Mine came uncrossed on one of the slides and it was NOT a good thing! I'll spare you the details.

Having our nightly fun in the condo...

Coley & Me

Cole, Logan (our niece), and Matthew

We were able to go on a date one night with Matthew and Brittney! Mr. Ward and Mrs. Dianne stayed in with the kiddos. I think a lot of people have changed their plans this summer and avoided Florida because of the oil. We were glad because there was hardly a wait at the restaurants!

I think Samuel spent at least 8 hours a day on the Wii this trip. He loves his video games! By the look on his face, you can see that Cole gets into his video games as well:)

Mrs. Dianne and Mr. Ward

"Wine and Swine"

2010-08-01T17:13:00.002-05:00

We went to another CF fundraiser last week (Wine and Swine) and once again it was very successful! They had a silent auction running the entire time with some great items such as massages, sports memorbilia, gift certificates, trips, and last but not least "Carol E Jewelry" designs. A couple of her pieces went for $200!! Way to go mom:) Check out her jewelry at www.carolejewelry.etsy.com and/or www.cejewelrydesigns.blogspot.com

Bryan & Natalie...and Tori:)

If anyone wants to support Cystic Fibrosis at anytime, you can mail check directly to:

Tennessee Chapter
4825 Trousdale Drive
Suite 238
Nashville, TN, 37220

Lights, Camera, Action!

2010-07-10T22:56:00.010-05:00

Being the Shrek junkie that I am (Cole), when Shrek 4 came out, it wasn't a matter of if we saw it, but when we saw it...Opening night of course! We decided to make it a family adventure by bringing Samuel and Tori along with us. Samuel is a movie buff, and Tori had never been to the movie theatre before, so we had quite the good time!

Me, Samuel (with his personal 3-D glasses), Tori and her popcorn bucket!

Tori was captivated by the whole movie theater experience! She sat on the edge of her chair the entire time and had to hold the bucket of popcorn. As you can tell, the bucket is almost as big as she is.

All of us with our 3-d glasses...and Tori still has the popcorn!

After the movie, we went to McDonalds so the kiddos could get a Shrek toy.

We all had a great time! Between Tori's 1st movie theatre experience & Samuel's belly laugh, we couldn't have had more fun than we did. Already planning our next movie trip!

CF "Happenings"

2010-06-13T21:10:00.011-05:00

There was a Cystic Fibrosis Walk here in Nashville last month that we participated in. This walk raised a TON of money (I believe almost $250,000)! My neice Tori was diagnosed with CF this past year, so it is very close to our hearts. We want to help out in every way that we know how. Please pray for a cure to be found soon and that Tori's lungs stay healthy!

Nat Nat & Tori

Mae Mae, Brady, and Paw-Paw getting ready to start the walk!

My friends who came out to support Tori! We are missing Molly and Blake in the picture, but they were there as well. Thank you wonderful friends for coming to support Tori on the day. We love you ALL!

We had another event the other night for CF and it was downtown in Nashville hosted by Darrly Worley, Craig Morgan, and Danny Gokey. The CF Foundation did such an AMAZING job putting this event on and there was over $50,000 raised this night!

Natalie and I with Darryl Worley

One of the best parts of the night was walking up to this picture below. The wonderful staff at the CF Foundation featured Tori on all of these plaques. The sponsors of the event received one of these and Darryl, Craig, and Danny received one as well (there's was a little different and did not have their own autographs on them:) )

Natalie with one of the sponsors (Bridgestone)

My dad and mom

A great friend of my dads, Scott Coney, donated this guitar and got some of his friends who are country music singers to autograph them. This one raised around $2,500!! It was awesome.

Bryan and Nat.....they have been through so much this past year, but are continually seeking God through this journey.

Raindrops keep fallin' on my head!

2010-05-02T21:52:00.014-05:00

Well...what a weekend it has been! We started the weekend in the ATL to celebrate our anniversary!

Nice little view from the hotel

We enjoyed a nice little walk in the Olympic Park!

Visited the Georgia Aquarium

Visited the World of Coca-Cola

We just thought we were having fun...being the nice loving children that we were, we checked in with our parents ONLY to find out that our house was in the process of being flooded!!! As if it didn't rain enough on May 2nd last year for our wedding! Since Friday night, Nashville has gotten over 12 inches of rain!! We decided to leave Atlanta and journey home to help rescue our home. Thankfully we have awesome family and friends who battled mother nature while we were gone, and continued to help us when we made it home. We can successfully say that water has not gotten inside our house!

TCB'n it

That's a good foot of water under our house!

The makeshift dam

P.S. Major props to Ward who stayed up all night to battle the rain and check on the sump pump while we were in Atlanta.

I've got my birthday suit on!

2010-04-26T20:51:00.012-05:00

We have been celebrating a lot of firsts around here lately...

Brady's 1st Birthday!

Brady had a petting zoo at his party with wild animals!

Brady was one happy little boy at his party!

Next up was Logan's 1st birthday!

Logan was a little unsure of what was going on, but she sure did enjoy her presents!

After Logan, Samuel had his 1st birthday...at least his 1st as part of our family!

Coming up next....our 1st anniversary!!

Shrub-a-dub-dub

2010-04-12T23:07:00.004-05:00

Landscaping Before,

Landscaping After,

BOOM!

Jamaica Mon!

2010-02-17T16:11:00.018-06:00

Thanks to Audra kicking butt in the world of windows, we got to enjoy a nice little get-away in Jamaica last week! We had a great time, and it was quite enjoyable to get away from the winter wonderland of Nashville!

All Nicole, Audra, and Megan did while laying out was talk about double-hung windows, energy-efficient window panes, and permanent grilles......just kidding!

We decided to be a little adventurous by going parasailing. It was an absolute blast, but kinda scary knowing that the only thing preventing you from either falling 270 feet into the ocean or floating away into the mountain side is a rope!

Can we say Kanye West wanna-be?

The only problem with going to a place like Jamaica is the effect it has on your skin...for some reason I think I may be staring in an upcoming Nike commercial with Adrian Petterson! (Audra could star in the commercial as well!)

What happens in Jamaica, stays in Jamaica...except for this video! Enjoy!

The Windy City

2009-12-29T19:35:00.004-06:00

Cole surprised me with a trip to Chicago for my birthday this year! As you can see there are not too many pictures. I'm learning that when you go on a trip with only one other person taking pictures is a bit difficult. Cole doesn't like to bother people with asking to take our picture, so I always have to be the one to do it! We had lots of fun....shopped till we dropped, went to see Jersey Boys, ate pizza, and shopped some more! We basically did all of our Christmas shopping there for everyone, so we had to buy a large suitcase to bring everything back!

On top of the John Hancock Tower...aka "Big John"

Double Birthday Celebration!

2009-11-16T21:06:00.010-06:00

Best Birthday yet! I'm 26 which is hard grasp. We all celebrated my dad & my birthday last week. Started the night off at Peter's Sushi (my absolute fav) and then back to our house for some amazing cake especially made by the big sister. Thanks Nat!

My dad & I with miss priss... a.k.a Tori

Mom & Nat

The proud Mae Mae & Paw Paw with Tori & Brady

Us Girls AND Brady:)

Present time! Mom painted this adorable snowman for me! Not only does she handmake amazing jewelry, but now we have a painter on our hands!

She is such a good helper opening up presents.

It was a wedding shadow box! Natalie made this for me and put some of our wedding memorbillia in it! One of our wedding pics will go where the empty space is. I absolutely LOVE it! Thanks Nat Nat

Me with a couple of my gifts.

This was pretty funny if you can tell what's going on here. My dad was throwing a pillow at Tori & she would fly backwards on the bed. Poor Bradster got hit a few times too, but he would just giggle & laugh about it. This game lasted at least 20 minutes. Natalie said both Tori & Brady slept late the next morning, so it wore them out.

I just had to take a picture with my new pumpkins & sugared fruit. Thanks mom!

Cole gave me a HUGE surprise on my birthday! I opened up a ticket to Chicago! GOING TO CHICAGO BABY!!! Oh my goodness I was so surprised! We are going December 11th. I can't wait to see it at Christmas time & just see it period, because I've never been! If anybody has any recommendations on restaurants I'd LOVE to hear them:)

Thanks for a great birthday everybody!

The Lovely UT Game

2009-11-16T20:41:00.005-06:00

Cole & I went to Knoxville for a UT game with some friends 2 weekends ago. We thought the rain was going to clear out by game time, but you know how those weather forecasts can go. It rained 2 hours before the game and did not quit until the last 10 minutes of the game! I have to say I did not have the best spirits the first quarter about sitting in the rain watching a UT game. Then I realized it wasn't going to quit, so we might as well make the most of it.
Oh boy were we wet puppies when we left! We ALMOST stopped at Wal-Mart on the drive back to Nashville to get some dry clothes, but opted not to.

Here is Cole, Justin (Cole's good friend from ACU), Anthony, & Luke

Here our the girls....Leah, Kelci, me, & Amanda. Leah & Kelci live in Knoxville for the time being. Kelci & Anthony are moving back to Nashville after Anthony finishes up school. We are still working on Leah & Luke to come back! Amanda & Justin are engaged and getting married in April! It was so much fun hanging out even through all the rain!

Get well soon!

2009-11-05T10:03:00.005-06:00

If you will remember my Grandma & Papaw in your prayers this week! They have both been in the hospital this week. His kidneys were not functioning properly and she just had her 3rd knee surgery (2nd surgery in 8 wks). They were actually on the same floor only a few doors down from each other. The therapy is not fun at all for grandma so please pray that she will not be in so much pain. We just want them both to be healed and have them back on their feet again!

Grandma & Papaw ~ We love you SO much and we are coming to see you soon!!

My Handyman!

2009-11-01T20:41:00.005-06:00

Remember the blue speckled floor?! No more blue! Cole finished up the tile floor and we repainted the walls this week. I am so proud of him.

He is working on putting the toilet in tonight....as we speak! Then this week we are hoping for our new vanity to come in.

Oh and one more.....Cole surprised me with some beautiful flowers last week. I've got a handyman and a romantic:)

Get Your Jewelry Ladies!

2009-10-20T21:10:00.006-05:00

My mom makes amazing jewelry.....check out her new website on ETSY!
http://www.carolejewelry.etsy.com/

Our Lives Lately....

2009-10-19T20:28:00.010-05:00

This was a few weeks ago, but Nat, Tori, & Brady hung out with us one night!

Don't you want to grab these cheeks through your computer screen?

Cole & I watched the 2 kiddos one night while Nat & Bryan had a night out on the town.....Brady and Cole watched t.v. and Tori & I made some brownies together. We only had 2 spills in 5 hours: White cheese dip in the carpet (it was my fault for giving a 2 year old a jar of cheese dip) and one bag of chocolate chips all over the kitchen floor. We sure had a good time though! Tori is making faces at Cole in this mimicking Cole in this picture you just can't see him.

Supper time for one of us!

Brady already knows Uncle Cole is a mess!

House projects.....

This is phase 1 of renovating our bathroom...he took out the soap dishes that were in the wall and replaced the blue tiles with the white ones. I know everybody is so jealous of the blue.

We found some tile glazing that will cover the blue tiles on the wall. This is Cole after trying to conquer the blue on the walls! I think the paint conquered him instead. We later found white paint all over his front tooth.

He still has to put about 2 more coats of paint on the walls to get rid of the blue tile, so I'll post those after he gets done. This weekend he took out the toilet and the vanity to redo the floor.

Tonight he poured a thin layer of concrete to level the subflooring.

These are 2 older pics, but wanted to post them. My dad and Matthew hard at work knocking down a wall for us. The wall connected the living room and dining, so we wanted to open it up a bit. Notice the sweat. Thanks so much guys!

Nice huh?! We will eventually put trim up around it and this will become a small bar (eating area). Eventually is the key word here!

More house pics to come!

We're ready for you to come back!

2009-10-09T21:10:00.004-05:00

Erin & Cam and Emerson came to visit a couple of months ago!! I can't believe I'm just now posting these, but better late then never right?!
Erin & Cam had sweet Emmy this summer and we finally got to meet her when she was a couple of months old! She is a doll if I must say. We are already ready for her to come back to see us!!

We went to Mellow Mushroom one night!

Oops! She is about to start crying. It was supper time! This is Emerson with one of her 98 headbands/bows that she has....too cute:)
You know one thing that is SO great about college is getting to be with your close girl friends all the time. We knew we wouldn't always be able to have that, but we treasured it while it lasted. We all have those friends who live far away or have those you don't talk to as much as you'd like, but it's such a breath of fresh air once you get together again, because it's like nothing has changed.
We love you Erin!

Random....

2009-10-04T20:54:00.004-05:00

So, this will probably be the most RANDOM post that I ever put up...(well maybe me, but I can't say that for Cole:)

I tried not to be the typical newlywed who gets her hair cut off, but I just had to do it! It looks kinda weird not attached to my head doesn't it? I got over 10 inches cut off one day and decided to surprise Cole when he got home from work. I sent it off to Locks for Love, so it's neat to know that a child with cancer will be using some of my hair. As fast as my hair grows I will hopefully be doing it more than twice in my life.

WARNING! Now these 2 pictures below are a little graphic! There are a select couple of you (and I mean probably only 2 or 3) that actually wanted to see the thumb, SO here you go! Most of you know what happened, but for those of you who don't here is the short story.

I was cooking for Cole one night during the week and decided to make sweet potato fries as a side. I got out our brand new peeler and started peeling off the skin. I was holding one of the potatoes over the trash can and apparently was going a little too fast with the peeler, because before I knew it I had dropped the potato on the floor and part of my nail was completely gone. It WAS the most painful thing I have ever experienced. I laid on the kitchen floor for over an hour while Cole sat there with me. I don't mind telling you I cried for 3 nights in a row, because it throbbed and burned so bad.

This 1st picture is when it had just happened. Sadly these pictures just don't do it justice for what it really looked like in person. The peeler took the nail off and a small layer of the skin underneath the nail. I really didn't make this post for you to feel sorry for me. I just thought it was a very rare thing and I really do want to warn people who are new to using peelers! It was so easy to get careless with that thing and I obviously did:)

This is about 1 week after it happened. The white fluffy stuff is actually gauze that was stuck in the nail for about 2 weeks. We had to change the gauze once to twice a day. Then Cole would bandage it up with tape.
Believe it or not my nail has just now completely grown back (it's been about 3 months) and it looks like new! You can see the spot on the nail where it happened still, but I'm just thankful I have feeling. So, if you do have a peeler from bed bath and beyond be careful because it is very very sharp!

D.C. Trip!

2009-09-21T20:52:00.012-05:00

Four Scores and Seven Years Ago, our Forefathers brought forth this great nation so that people could take Labor Day trips! The traditional Griffith-Huston Labor Day family trip continued once again in 2009...destination Washington D.C. Below are just a few pics to highlight the trip:

Let the sightseeing begin: Us @ the Capital

The Jefferson Memorial

At the White House...We didn't get to see Obama, but neither one of us were disappointed!!!

The Washington Monument = a really big #2 pencil!
Audra doing her best impression of Lady Liberty!!
The World War 2 Memorial...we walked around it for a long time because we thought our Grandfathers' names were on it, but we were wrong. All 4 of our grandfathers fought in wars so it pretty neat to see the memorials honoring them!
According to Audra, the only historical moment that happened here is Forrest and Jenny jumping into the Reflecting Pool to meet each other...Guess who didn't pay attention in history class!
Abraham!

It's not an official Labor Day celebration until a Bomb Pop is eaten...God Bless America!
Of course we went to a baseball game! We were excited to get to see Josh play, as well as the rest of the Willinghams! He treated us to great seats and on-field passes for batting practice.
The Hammer!

Hollee brought 2/3rds (Lilly and Marlee) of the triplets with her on the trip, while Party Pooper Sam stayed in Dallas with Beau. One of our goals is to get both of our entire families on the trip at one time. Not sure this will ever happen because our families seem to always be growing (18 people and I'm sure more to go) and/or moving (Thanks Chad!).

Us with the other newlyweds (Heath and Julianne)

Family photo (minus Logan) at the Jefferson Memorial
The rain didn't dampen our American Pride!! Us with Matthew and Brittney at the Jefferson Memorial (even though all you can see is the Washington Monument).

On the steps of the Capital Building

the girls at the White House

Samuel was really excited to see Barack's house...just don't tell him George Bush use to live there!

ARKANSAS TRIP!

2009-08-10T21:49:00.007-05:00

Natalie & I took a road trip to Arkansas 2 weekends ago to visit Grandma & Papaw! We left on Friday morning thinking we would get there in the afternoon and have lots of time. Well, our plan didn't exactly fall into place. We were about 45 minutes to an hour outside of Nashville and I can tell that we have a flat tire on my side of the car. Oh boy. It was a nice 2 lane highway, so every time a car drove by our car would shake back and forth. Thank goodness for AAA only we had to wait about 50 minutes, because no wrecker was in the area. Tori & Brady were such little troopers in the back. Brady slept and Tori watched her movie. The wreckers finally arrived and unfortunately Nat's tahoe does not have the special bar that let's down her spare. Who knew one of those even existed! So, I rode back with one of the wreckers the opposite direction we came (about 10 miles) and we stopped at the sketchiest tire place on the planet. We got the tire and rode back. I could not even talk to the wrecker guy because he had all the windows in the truck rolled down and it was SO loud. I could not even see his face either, because my hair was blowing all over the truck. Poor Tori, Brady, & Nat had to sit on the side of the interstate with the other wrecker until we got back. FYI- the wrecker did not sit in the car with them:) I got in trouble by Natalie for saying that when I was telling the story. She said "he DID NOT sit in the car with us. I did give him a diet coke though." Ha!
We were finally on the road about 2 1/2 hours later and arrived to Grandma & Papaw's!! Woohoo! The kids were great the whole time.

FYI- for some reason the resolution on these pics is poor, so please excuse that.

We had been at their house MAYBE 10 minutes & Tori already had out every toy possible!

Tori LOVES to play with Audi's camera when she isn't looking. Here are some of the pictures she snapped:)

The Bradster rolling over on his belly

Striking a pose for the camera!

Tori played with play-do while us girls cooked supper. Grandma cooked an amazing meal of course! I got to have my first batch of fried okra for the summer!
Grandma & me

This is Grandma & Papaw's sweet bench in their garden that their neighbors gave them.

Papaw wanted to take Tori on the 4-wheeler & she loved it.

She spit this tomato bite right back out into my hand....that's how much she loved it:) Overall, we had a WONDERFUL visit of course at grandma & papaw's house. It is NEVER long enough!

It's the final countdown!!

2009-07-29T16:43:00.025-05:00

Goodbye renting, Hello owning!! That's right...in exactly one day, we will be adding the title of "home owners" to our resumes. After countless days on realtracs, driving around neighborhoods, and looking at houses, we have found our dream home!! To help "break-in" the house, we are going to be hosting an 80's dance party on Friday so bust out your jelly shoes, ankle socks, and Members Only jackets and help us break it down on the dance floor! We'll be partying it up until the sun goes down so feel free to drop by anytime you can. All we ask of you is to bring either a gallon of paint, a few hundred square feet of hardwood flooring, or a new kitchen appliance because walls and floors are certain to get dirty, and kitchen appliances will be smashed as frequent as guitars at an 80's rock concert.

Behold the lush vegetation overtaking the outside!

These closets will not be able to contain Audra's clothes!

The King's throne

Eat your heart out Martha Stewart!

We'll make sure and post more pictures as we turn this house into our home, but the more items that are brought to the dance party, the quicker we will be able to update on our progress.

Apart from all the home decisions and dreaming about the start of football season, our lives continue to go at the pace of a NASCAR race! If Pella had an All-American team, Audra would definately be on it! She has had to work almost every Saturday since we got married. To help pass time as a lonely newlywed on Saturday mornings, Samuel and I have been going to McDonald's for breakfast and then back to our "Cave" for a little FIFA competition on the Xbox 360. So of course, when the 1st Saturday came that which Audra didn't have to work, Samuel expected to do something better than McDonald's and Xbox! Samuel had just passed his English test for school so we took him to the bowling alley to bowl and to play arcade games.

We put the bumpers up for him, but he never uses them!

The A-Train was trying to change her score, but Samuel saved the day!

Samuel has adjusted to his new life so well! His loves to ride his bicycle, watch t.v., eat fried chicken, and to make money!! I made the mistake of letting him con me into paying him a dollar for every goal he scored in his soccer game...he scored 3 goals by halftime!! Luckily, his coach made him play defense in the 2nd half.

Logan came over to play the other day, as well, while Ward and 'Tilla were babysitting for the weekend! We had so much fun! We watched the Braves game, talked, played with toys, and sang songs under the gazebo, which she really liked!

We'll see you at the dance party! Don't forget your home improvements!

Cincinnati and Brady

2009-07-12T20:28:00.022-05:00

Brady Time!

Cole & I were so excited to have some Brady bonding time last Thursday night! We got to babysit for a couple of hours. For those of you who don't know Brady is our nephew. He is only 4 1/2 months old and weighs almost 19 lbs!

Weekend in Cincinnati!

Last weekend we were able to take a mini trip to Cincinnati, Ohio with our great friends Christine and Phillip! We were SO excited, because it was our first trip to take with friends as a married couple. We all had an awesome time and took away some great FUNNY memories from the 2 day getaway.

We left EARLY Friday morning and speedy Phillip got us there in 3 hrs and 45 minutes! I have lived in Nashville for over 10 years and I had no clue that Ohio was that close to Nashville. For those of you who have not been before I highly recommend it for a weekend trip. Here are some pictures from our trip.

First stop, Skyline Chili! Hot Dogs with a load of chili on them for $1.60. These are pretty big in Cincinnati.

We walked and shopped around for a few hours in downtown then we headed to the Cardinals vs Reds Game! I will say that Christine and I were such troopers, because we got to the Park about 2 hours before the game started. I guess we were even though, because we made the boys take us to the mall for a little while that afternoon. When we anxiously took our seats at the game we were so excited for the game to begin and then I asked why are both teams wearing the same color uniforms?? Phillip informed us that later on they would do a uniform change. What?! Oh boy, Christine and I then knew that it would be another long while until the game finally started:) I better get used to this since I married into the Griffith family and I'm sure I will be going to many more batting practices in the future:)

When you are out of town somewhere you always feel like you have to buy a t-shirt for some reason. Well, we all bought Reds shirts and of course I had to bring in my Cardinals hat too. My parents would take Nat and I to Cardinals games a lot growing up, so I became a Cards fan. I didn't wear the hat the entire time though since Cole was a little embarrassed!

Cole's favorite part of the game! He caught one of Albert Pujols BP homerun balls!!! It bounced right off a chair a few rows ahead and then he caught it! It was pretty awesome.

We were at the ballpark till about 11 that night! It was a pretty awesome game because Cole's man Pujols hit a grand slam for a win! We spent the night at a hotel and got up the next morning for the next adventure! King's Island!

I've never been a HUGE roller coaster fan, but I really wanted to try most of them out on this trip. I told myself I was going to be tough and not be a weinie. Well that didn't exactly happen. I got to pick the first roller coaster ride that we went on and I thought this paricular ride would be a good warm-up for me. It wasn't huge like some of them, but did go upside down a couple of times. Needless to say it was more than just a warm-up! I threw up about 20 minutes later while Phillip and Cole were on this ride in the picture. I couldn't believe that I had gotten sick on the VERY 1ST ride.......unbelievable. So, I didn't feel so hot the rest of the day. I think they got me on 1 more ride after that!

Cole & Phillip about to drop!!

Waiting in Line! I sat out on a lot of the rides, but I enjoyed taking pictures of them!

Cole said that when you go to Disney World, it tells a nice story and you can enjoy a couple of rides here and there. Well, when you go to King's Island it is ALL rollercoasters and no story! So for those of you who love them you need to go to here!

Overall we had an AWESOME trip together! We were finished at King's Island a little earlier then expected, because it did rained on us all day and was only in the upper 60s there. Christine and I were of course in tank tops, so it was a bit chilly! We loaded up and then headed off back to Nashville at about 4 or so. We thought we were about to have nice relaxing ride back to Nashville....... so we thought!

Here are some of the things that happened on our way home:

- Cole & Phillip both had messages saying that Steve McNair had died.....we were sad about that.

- We had driven for about an hour and wanted to stop to find a place to eat. We stopped at 3 different places and all of them were closed, because it was the 4th of July. As we headed to the next stop, Cole looked at me and said "I'm feeling a little queezy." I said oh no, so I told Phillip he needed to pull over fast! Needless to say Cole joined the throw up club with me. He had apparently taken all that he could with the rides and then all the turning around in the car topped it off....(don't worry Phillip it wasn't your driving!) Poor Cole. I think he just wanted to be like me OR maybe he was just trying to make me feel better for getting sick on the first ride of the day.

- It was POURING down rain, so we knew it was going to be a long drive. We could hardly hear each other in the car, because of the rain. At one point I looked up and Phillip was taking out his contacts while driving and handing them to Christine! I was pretty impressed:)

- Phillip saved us from the deer that was wondering in the middle of the interstate! He saw it ahead and had to swerve. Cole was asleep, but woke up after that:)

- About 20 minutes later there was a man on the side of the road changing his tire. The only problem was he was more in the road than he was on the side. Again, Phillip swerved blew his horn and prevented us from actually hitting this man. Thanks Phillip. Cole slept through that one.

- Next, Christine got a phone call from a friend and the girl's dog went missing. Somebody was actually dogsitting for them and the dog mysteriously dissappeared. Could you imagine being the one that was dogsitting and then having to tell the owners that you lost there dog?

I feel like there were about a dozen more crazy things that happened, but that's all I could remember at the moment! Thanks Christine & Phillip for a FUN and eventful trip! Love you guys!

Summer so Far

2009-06-27T17:28:00.010-05:00

Happy Father's Day!!

We got to have lunch with my family and then went over to Matthew and Brittney's for supper with Cole's family. We love you both!

Me and Nat Nat

These are past due, but we had both of our families over for Cole's Birthday in May.
This is Cole blowing out his candles that did not exist on his homemade cheesecake. Natalie and Brittney with their little ones Brady and Logan. Brady and Logan are 1 day apart!

Tori & Brady being silly

Us 4 went to a friend's wedding from church. It was at Loveless Cafe in a barn. It was the 1st ever wedding there!

Cole & Samuel playing in the pool. We love to swim on Saturday's when we can! We are actually in the middle of house shopping now, so that is consuming some of our time.