Graywood Farm

More photos & some explanation

2009-03-13T07:32:00.000-07:00

Well, we're consistent if nothing else. This semester, just moving into the trailer, re-doing the floor, painting all the rooms & building porches wasn't enough of a challenge for John & I. So we added two dogs, a new shop and college to the mix. John is keeping his full time job at the bank & pursuing an MBA degree in the evenings. We're very blessed because Texas pays for veterans' tuition & fees, and the bank is paying for all of his books. And I'm also back in school, non-degree seeking, taking a photography class with my sister & her mother-in-law. It's a wonderful class & the reason you're seeing more photos on the blog. I've been shooting in RAW the past couple of years and while I love the flexibility the format offers, I never seem to get around to editing & printing my photos. I've learned so much about photography & photoshop in this class, even though it's very time intensive. I'm also doing my second Beth Moore study, Esther, at our church with my mom.

I'm betting that a lot of you have already done a Beth Moore study but if you haven't I cannot urge you to do so enough. I put off doing one too - it just seemed like a lot of time. But the payoff is great - I've learned so much about God, the Bible and myself through these studies, as well as getting to know some wonderful ladies. Even though most of the ladies at our church have already done some of the earlier studies, I want to go back & work through them myself and borrow the videos from the church.

This little guy was sitting in my front yard the other day. I was running back into the house to get mom to call the vet for a sick cow but had to stop & take a picture.

We had to do a fashion photo for an assignment - they really wanted us to do some high fashion poses from magazines but I went with a more rugged look because my model is such a handsome cowboy.

Everything's blooming out right now in East Texas - dogwoods, azaleas, wisteria, fruit trees, violets - it's my favorite time of the year. Right now it's 45 degrees & raining but hopefully I'll get more flower photos over spring break.

Sunset from my front door.

The view from my scraproom. It's the church where we got married. Some people think it's weird to live beside a cemetary but I say that it makes for quiet neighbors & John says it's the live people that you have to worry about.

Not a view from my house but one on the drive home. I photoshopped out the high lines - am so excited that I can do that now.

Look for photos of my backyard in weeks to come. Why my back yard? Because we signed the papers on Wednesday and construction starts on the shop, or Man Cave as John calls it, on Monday. We are so excited about this! I'm sure some of you are wondering why we're taking out a loan to build a shop when we're repainting an older trailer. Well, we can't build our dreamhome right now & since we're only planning on doing this once since we want to use the land Dad left me, we didn't want to build a 'starter' home. John's Dad gave us the trailer to use as long as we want so we're not under a rent payment but since we've downsized each time we've moved, we're bulging at the seams. John does a lot of handyman work on the trucks, on electric & plumbing, fencing and builds my stuff from wood - so we've got tools, wire, pvc, etc all over the place. Plus his Twilight bowfishing stuff. So once the shop is complete, all of that will go in it plus he's building me a storage room inside for all of my stuff, like Christmas decorations, luggage, etc. It is wonderful to finally be on our place, building the things we've dreamed about - God has blessed us so richly.

2009-02-19T09:15:00.000-08:00

Just a few snapshots of what we've been doing:

Working on a virtue of gratitude

2009-01-14T07:25:00.000-08:00

"We can’t blankly, inattentively, stumble through the day – mindlessly moving from one mechanical task to the next – and maintain habitual gratefulness.

And that’s what we endeavor. Not simply the feeling of gratefulness -- fleeting, that -- but the virtue of gratefulness – a lifestyle of giving thanks in all things.

The emotion of gratitude flaps about according to the weather. Obliging, sunny hours, and it basks. Stormy days and it hangs, limp and beaten. The vulnerable feeling of gratefulness falls prone to circumstances.

The virtue of gratitude, however, determines its own weather. Regardless of forecasts, skies or daily events, virtuous gratitude gives wholesale thanks. “In everything, give thanks!” The robust virtue of gratefulness rises above circumstances.

And the virtue of gratitude necessitates vigilance. We’ll have to take captive every thought and make it obedient to Christ."

From A Holy Experience (I wish I could write this well)

We had a lovely Christmas and hope you did too. I'm very fortunate in my job in that I get a nice Christmas break and was able to spend a couple of days working on the trailer. We plan to be moved in this week. I was going to show you some photos of our New Years trip to Las Vegas but my brand new 8gig compactflash card failed, taking with it approx. 500 photos. I'm disappointed in the loss but grateful that we were able to take the trip, enjoying each other and John's cousin, Kim & Mitch, her husband. They were our gracious Vegas guides and a lot of fun. Fortunately we took some photos with John's Christmas present, a Coolpix, so I hope to share some soon. 2008 was a rough year in many ways but we're starting off 2009 on a better foot, with a lot of hope. A new dog, who is so sweet-natured and obedient, you can't help but love. A new home on our own land. A new start at school for John, who's returning for an MBA, and a photography class for me. I pray that your New Year is as hopeful as ours.

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-23T10:27:00.000-08:00

Well, the cards are going out pretty late this year. I had just about decided not to send any out but when I started receiving a few, they were so great that I just had to send out ours. If you haven't received one from us, I probably don't have a current address for you so send it to me, please. I realized that my address book is hopelessly out of date since everyone's moved so much the past year or two. Our cards that went out in the mail feature our last new address (hopefully for good). We're not actually living in the trailer just yet but we are receiving mail there, and hope to be moved in by the first of the new year.

One good thing about the timing of our cards was that we got to include the newest member of our family, Ace. He's a 6-month-old half-Lab, half-pointer cross and he's just awesome. John is just loving finally having a dog. We've only had him for about a week but he's already learning sit & fetch pretty well. John's excited to train Ace in bird hunting.

This is just a quick update, since I'm literally sitting in the car using the campus's wireless internet access. A more detailed update to follow shortly after the break.

A very Merry Christmas & Happy New Year to all of you! God Bless!

Because its never too early (and because I love free stuff)!

2008-11-07T11:36:00.000-08:00

The nice ladies over at Cool Mom Picks have assembled a Safer Toy Guide for 2008:

I've actually looked at their guides several times for ideas - they do the internet legwork for you and find all the cool kiddo stuff. Disclaimer: No, looking at this stuff does not mean that I are pregnant. But I do have a sweet little 14-month-old nephew, and several new baby cousins. The prices on this stuff is higher than Wally World but to me, these are more heirloom pieces that can be played with now and displayed later. Here were some of my faves:

Dreaming...

2008-11-07T06:31:00.000-08:00

This is a bit of a random post but I've been having some weird dreams lately and wanted to document it. We don't get out much - due to lack of budget or time, but apparently my subconcious has decided that I need to. And that I need to meet new people. In the past couple of months, I've dreamed that I've visited The Pioneer Woman, Miss Zoot and Mrs. Flinger. These some of the bloggers that I read regularly. While I don't share their views 100%, I value and enjoy their writing, their stories and their sense of humor. And I guess reading about their families so much lends itself to feeling like I know them - their husbands & children were in the dreams too. Of the three, I actually came close to meeting Mrs. Flinger when I went to Seattle for a conference but we couldn't get our schedules straight. Last night, I dreamed that I was leaving her house in Seattle & driving home to Texas and that I'd decided to stop in L.A. to see Betsy from AFC. I also went to Kuala Lumpur last night and was trying to take better photos of the twin towers with my D70 but the camera wouldn't work. Anyone else visited people in their dreams? Anyone? Bueller?

A Beautiful Life

2008-10-01T07:33:00.000-07:00

This past Thursday, John's mother, Pam went home to Jesus. She fought against cancer for 3 yrs and she was a wonderful lady.

How do you sum up a life in mere words?

I was privileged to know her as John's mom since the 6th grade, and as a mother-in-law for almost 5 years. The two things that people say the most about her is that she loved her 'boys' and she loved people. And she did. They sacrificed so that she could stay home with her two sons and raise them, and she never regretted it. She was so involved in every aspect of their lives - every school function, every ball game. After they both were in school, she worked some as a teacher's aide & substitute but she was still there all the time. She was the one who sat with family members when they were ill in the hospital. Pam worked hard to create a home that was beautiful and comfortable for the men in her life. Nothing meant more to her than her family, except God. Pam had so much that she planned to do here - Christmas, decorating her new home, traveling with Johnny - but she was confident and at peace that she would be with God in Heaven. She fought cancer with a positive attitude and kept her smile constantly. Most of my photos are of her laughing. Pam led a full life and she was a lady with a lot of class and a little sass.

Please pray for Johnny, his days are so empty without her; for her mother, Sue, who has already lost a husband & a son; for John & Chad, they miss their mama; for Uncle David, he's lost a sister; for the aunts & uncles, they've lost a life-long friend; for the nieces and nephews, Aunt Pam was always there for them; for myself & Jamie, she had so much more to share with us.

The days ahead will be difficult but I think all of us are clinging to the hope with have in Christ and the surety that we will all be together someday in heaven. I'm no scholar, but I can't help but think that we were not created to be able to handle death. When God made man & woman, we were not meant to be separated from Him or from each other by sin & death. So when we lose someone, the agony which we experience is because we know in our souls that this is wrong, that we shouldn't have to say goodbye, that our minds & hearts are not equipped to deal with this. That is why I don't know how people who don't believe can deal with saying goodbye because all that keeps me together is God - His strength & comfort. I know that someday, I will get to be with the people I love and that I won't ever have to say goodbye again.

I'm sorry for the things that Pam & I spoke of that we didn't get the chance to do together - hosting a tea party, shopping, planning for Christmas etc. But I think we can all be proud of the last few years - we have tried our best to not put things off, to be together with family whenever possible and "making memories" as Pam called it. And I hope we continue to take this mindset into the future.

Featured

2008-08-29T06:49:00.000-07:00

My scrapbooking desk that John made was featured on Unclutterer today!

Unclutterer is one of the home/organizational sites that I check out regularly so it was a great compliment to have them include my desk. It's a compliment to John's carpentry skills too - he did a wonderful job on my desk & I love it.

Still no photo updates because we're moving out of our rent house (have to be out by this weekend) but the trailer doesn't have electricity yet. So most of our furniture is going in the trailer, we're moving into John's folks' new house and some things are being stored at my mom's. Insane. And did I mention that the newlyweds' house isn't finished yet so they are also living with John's folks. Hopefully the electricity will be hooked up soon but if Gustav hits anywhere near Tx or Louisiana, it could be months. So we'll be in a limbo state for a while. But we won't have a rent payment next month and I'll be sending out my last permanent address in an email soon.

Joss Whedon & Dr. Horrible

2008-07-17T07:02:00.000-07:00

OK, so most of you weren't the big Buffy the Vampire Slayer fans that I was. But the creator of the show, Joss Whedon, has come out with something new that's a lot of fun. Dr. Horrible's Sing A Long blog has come out with the first two acts of a three act show and it's awesome! Each act is approx. 13 minutes long and is in musical format. It's about an evil genius, Dr. Horrible, (played by Doogie Howser) his attempts to take over the world & win the heart of a girl, both of which are thwarted by his nemisis, Captain Hammer. But it's not as straight forward as it sounds. Anyway, I love it & I appreciate what Joss was trying to do in showing Hollywood that there are quality stories to be told without spending mega-millions. The videos will only be available through this Sunday.

VBS and other happenings

2008-07-03T07:25:00.000-07:00

I've been catching some flack about the need for a posting (some from people who don't even have blogs). I don't have any photos for you because 1) my external hard drive ran out of room so no more editting until my new one arrives and 2) I've been spending my evenings helping with & preparing for VBS at North St. The theme this summer is Jesus loves you SNOW much! John & I (with Mom filling in for John on Monday & Tuesday) have had the 8, 9, & 10 yr olds. We only have to come up with a lesson to fill 15 minutes, then accompany the class to crafts, drama, games & dinner. It's our first year actually teaching and after a rough start, we've really enjoyed it. There are some great kids in our class and I'm crossing my fingers that some of the lessons have actually stuck. In lieu of photos, I'm posting my memory verse take-home items that I made using my Klic-N-Kut & software becuase. My mom, who team-taught 1st grade Sunday school for a number of years, said "You have to have something with the memory verse on it!". So here's what I came up with:

This was printed out 4 to an letter-size cardstock, then we punched holes at the bottom & hung them around the kids neck. Holes at the bottom means that when the kids look down, they can read their cards. On the back their 'homework' was to bring a friend.

This one is a little tough to see but was a paper doll cutout that we attempted to fasten around the kids' arms with tape. Not one of my more successful ideas but this has been a real trial & error learning process for me. I designed the paper doll with my KNK also but didn't have time to use the machine to cut it out so we cut them out by hand.

This was a simple design I made with Publisher. Printed on cardstock 8 per page, then put a magnet strip on the back.

I don't have a photo of last night's take home but I welded the word PRAY in large letters with my KNK & cut it out of Bazzil cardstock in red & green using the machine. Then I wrote the verse from Matthew 6:6 on the PRAY. Kind of a bookmark, bulliten board thing. The kids seemed to like it.

This is my last one, designed last night using the KNK software. No time for a print & cut using the machine so it will just be printed on cardstock, then cut using a paper trimmer.

Another thing that worked well for me was borrowing a white board from the Sunshine school so my class can play Bible Pictionary or Hangman. These kids are fast & it's nice to have something to do in those last few minutes before we switch stations.

Tonight's the last night for VBS, then I'm twisting John's arm to go to the movies with me - either Wanted or WallE.

Soon to come - a recap of the May Savannah trip, more photos of Jansen, and Pops & Mom Woods new house. Move in for them is tentatively scheduled for next week, then John & I begin the process of getting our place ready. Whoop!

Spring Update

2008-04-25T11:48:00.000-07:00

In keeping with the babies everywhere theme that's prevalent in the blog-world, I'm doing my part by showing photos of my sweet great-nephew, Jansen. Here he is at Christmas in a five generations photo with my grandmother, mother, sister & nephew. My grandmother turned 91 this past week so we're going to visit her this weekend to celebrate. Jansen was 3 1/2 months old in this photo.

Here are some more recent photos taken this past weekend. He is just the cutest thing with huge blue eyes and a really expressive face. The Aggie outfit was his Christmas gift from John & I - he's just now really fitting into it. I can't wait to teach him to Gig 'Em!

In other news, Johns parents are building a long awaited house. Here it is as of mid-February. It's looking really great now - bricks and everything. I'm so excited for them, espcially John's mom as she has dreamed of this for a long time. We're all looking forward to family gatherings over there, espcially for the annual 4th of July & New Years parties. John's extended family is large so it'll be great to have all that room. John & I are also excited becuase when they're moved in, we'll be moving their trailer house to our property and constructing a large shop. We're excited to finally be moving to the actual location of Graywood Farm and no longer be renters. We're meeting with the electric company next week and putting up stakes this weekend.

More photoshop fun

2008-02-19T08:57:00.000-08:00

A photo from last year's relay for life in a free photoshop template.

Photography

2008-01-17T09:38:00.000-08:00

I love photography, even though I'll never go beyond amateur status. I love the beautiful images and the idea of capturing a moment.

The Library of Congress just put a ton of images from their archives up on Flickr. It's amazing to see the photos from the 20th century - most are gorgeous, without the aid of tools such as photoshop. Here are a few of my favs from a search for "Texas":

I am excited about Photoshop personally though. I recently tried a couple of tutorials and here are the results:

Original photograph with slight edits from software that came with camera

Here it is with some tweaking

Another tweaked version with no color & more blur

I'm very excited to learn more about Photoshop and I'll get to attend two classes on this in Feburary.

Merry Fish-mas!

2007-12-11T09:22:00.000-08:00

Was the title I wanted for our 'fun' Christmas card. Last year we did 2 photo cards - one traditional posed shot at the Systems Building at A&M and one at an Aggie football game (the only one we've ever gone to as a couple). I'm still editing the photos from our official holiday photo shoot downtown but I thought I'd whip up a fun card from what I had. Since John thinks that 20 of this card is too many, here it is for our blog Christmas card:

It features John with a large catfish that he & Jared got while bowfishing. The smaller photo is of us picking out a Christmas tree last year.

Since we don't have kiddos to take fun photos with Santa yet, like my friend Jennifer, I thought a little holiday fun was in order. The South Florida Sun-Sentinel has a Scared of Santa gallery where people have sent in quite a few photos. You can look through this years, then hit the previous buttons to scroll back into prior years' galleries. I love the vintage photos - here are a few examples:

There are background stories with some of the photos too. I don't think its funny that the kids are scared but they are so sweet.

If a picture is worth 1,000 words...

2007-11-20T13:40:00.000-08:00

and I have none ready to post, then does that mean I have to make up for all those 'missed' words? For your sakes and the sake of my fingers, I'm going with no. As soon as I get a chance to play around with Photoshop, there will be photos of the girls trip to Nachitoches, a shopping trip to Austin and water gap fixin' in East Texas.

Recent events also included getting to spend some quality time with my great-nephew (after missing most of month 2 due to a pesky cold). I keep telling his Mimi, my sister, that she needs to babysit so I can get in another photo session. Also, John's little brother got engaged to his sweetheart, Jamie - the wedding is set for August; and John's cousin, Brandy, is expecting a baby in July. I realize it's mostly because we're 'that age' but the past few years have been chock full of weddings & babies. In our families alone:
2003 - John's cousin, Brandy married Jerry; John's cousin Tony married Tara; my sister, Val finally got her house built
2004 - John & I were married
2005 - Chad graduated high school; John's cousin, Kim married Mitch
2006 - John's cousin, Justin got married a different Brandi
2007 - John's cousin Kim had a baby girl; John's cousin, Matt married Kelli; John's cousin, Candi married David; my sister, Brina married Michael; my nephew, Kyle had Jansen; John's parents finally were able to start construction on their new house (oh, and John & I moved back to East Texas in the middle of all that)
So 2008's already shaping up with at least one baby & one wedding - who know's what else is in store?

In the meantime, I had my introduction to Guitar Hero a few nights ago. I should preface this by saying that outside my Gameboy, with Tetris, Mario Bros & Bugs Bunny, I've never had nor played any gaming system with any regularity. Especially the more recent gaming systems - those first person shooter games just get me all turned around & I end up shooting people on my team. And the arcade dancing games? Requiring me to move my feet to music? In more that one direction? Forget it. Much as I'd love to be all coordinated & limber like Madonna in her Hung Up video, it ain't never gonna happen. So I was suprised when I actually enjoyed Guitar Hero (in the easy mode playing a simple song). No, I'm not great at it either, but I have fun while I'm stinking it up. John has learned not to talk to me or try to instruct me on these matters, since that prevents my complete focus, which is necessary for me to maintain minimal hand-eye coordination. So I didn't do too awfully on the first song. Chad, however, came into the room during my second attempt & actually expected me to hold a conversation, then he didn't understand why I did even worse on the song. The problem is that John & Chad are both gifted in the athletic, coordinated dept. John doesn't understand my lack of ability either, but he's learned now to accept it - ah, the painfully earned wisdom of married men. Good luck, Jamie.

And I just realized that both couples will have the same initials J&C and C&J.

Welcome

2007-09-19T06:56:00.000-07:00

My sister Val and her first grandbaby

On Sept 10th, my great-nephew Jansen was welcomed into the world. This past Saturday, I got some photos. Never tried baby photography before - the subject matter is so precious but I don't know how Anne Geddes manages with multiple babies.

Just a few words...

2007-09-04T12:52:00.000-07:00

No pics this time (my home computer is getting steadily more sloth-like). But just wanted to let everyone out in blog-land what's been going on.

We returned to Neiderwald last weekend for the annual Redneck Skeet Shoot. An awesome time was had by all. John & I drove to Austin early Saturday morning, picking his boat up from Bryan Marine on the way. Thirsting for an adrenaline rush? Try driving in Austin traffic with an 18ft aluminium boat tagging along. We had to stop by Archiver's in North Austin so I could go on a scrapbook shopping spree. Then we got Chuy's to go and headed down to Neiderwald.

The skeet shoot was fabulous, as always. John & I went through about a case of shells each (I was black & blue the next day). Most of the afternoon & evening is just shooting for fun, then the money rounds started around 8pm. The competition was a lot stiffer this year so I was out of luck. But John did us proud, winning four rounds. He won enough that evening to fund a shopping spree of his own at Gander Mt the next day. I got to see my former-EY friends - Holly & Diana. I hadn't seen Diana in almost 3yrs - way too long! Holly graciously let us crash at her house that night.

On Sunday, we drove back to North Austin & had lunch at the Mongolian Grill with Luke & Melissa. Mel & I were bridesmaids in each other's weddings. Now that I think of it, she's the only one besides my sister who I can say that about. They're little girl is due soon so it was really exciting to get to see them.

John & I decided we're definitely going to have to return to Austin more often. There are too many great people to see, wonderful places to eat & fun things to do. Since I finally get a spring break this year (no more audit or tax seasons), I'm thinking road-trip!

In other news, John started his new job today at a local bank. He's very excited and looking forward to learning all about the industry. We're both excited about the transition from SINK to DINK (thanks, Holly for the acronyms). Now that the state's fiscal year-end is past, I can take a deep breath.

Family photos

2007-07-09T12:51:00.000-07:00

On a very hot & steamy morning a couple of weeks ago, we used the Nikon remote (my anniversary gift) to take a few family photos. This is the first time since I can remember that we've done this & I think they turned out pretty good.

Family photo

The girls

John & I

1095 Days

2007-06-12T07:17:00.000-07:00

Three years ago we stood before our family and friends to commit our lives to each other, to love and to cherish. Those three years have gone by so quickly and yet so much has happened. God brought us together then and love for Him has kept us together through life's challenges.

The one who my heart loves

For me I knew I'd found the right man when it felt like coming home. Love is being genuine and authentically me, in a way I am with no one else.

And on an unrelated note (except that it demonstrates my obedience to my husband's request), here is a photo of the enormous 6ft 3inch gar the boys caught during their bowfishing tournament. With it, they won the prize for biggest fish & likely would have won the prize for top five if anyone would have had a scale large enough to weigh it.

April photos

2007-05-23T13:12:00.001-07:00

In an effort to make up for the dearth in posting, here are some photos from April:

My little sister, Sabrina, and her new husband, Michael

John, me, Robin & Jared before Ring Dance

A bunch of Seattle photos:

The view from my hotel room - gorgeous!

Absolutely fabulous sushi!

Posting Behind the Pineywood Curtain

2007-05-15T10:23:00.000-07:00

Yes, John & I are still alive. But since we're not living in town anymore, our only option for tv or internet is via satellite, which we've decided to forgo until we build a house. So my only internet connection is during lunch at work, meaning that posting is a little more tricky.

I'm enjoying my work at SFA and was recently sent to Seattle for a conference. It was gorgeous up there and we were lucky to have great weather for 3 of the days. Hopefully I can post some of the photos soon. It was my first real trip to the West Coast, since LAX doesn't count.

We found a great little rent house not far from both our folks and are still in the process of unpacking. Yes, I've been in the house for a month already but my little sister's wedding plus the Seattle trip plus Ring Dance have slowed the process. Yes, John & I went to Ring Dance together. John was in the Army during our class's dance so we went with Robin & Jared. It was so much fun!

John has finished classes at A&M but still has one online class to complete, then he's planning to walk in August. Right now he's doing the job search thing.

It's back to work time for me. More posts to follow - hopefully with photos.

Update after day one

2007-02-14T08:04:00.000-08:00

Here's the update after day one of the new job. It went pretty well I think (I tend towards cautious optimism on these types of things rather than being overly effusive but I am getting pretty psyched). I'm very fortunate in that I'm being trained by the woman I'm replacing, Debbie, who has a weath of knowledge about this position. She took me on a tour of the Forestry school & introduced me to almost all the professors and staff. Everyone was really nice and the school is really cool. I think the job is definitely what I've had in mind to transition to and I'm really going to enjoy it, but there are just a lot of details to learn. Being back in Nac working was a bit surreal but nice. I was able to stop by and have lunch with my mom, which was great. And once I'm on full time, I hope to start working out during lunch at the school's facilities with my sisters.

Still looking on the housing front. I think we need a weekend where we're not already booked. I was busy this past weekend with my little sis's bridal shower and John was tied up with a fishing-bachelor party for his cousin. We also had to book it back to BCS Saturday night because John had a Sunday morning breakfast to help out with.

We had our first Crown financial class on Sunday evening and I think it's going to be really great. Realizing everything you think you own really belongs to God is difficult sometimes but is also very liberating. After the class was over I had to drive back to Nac to spend the night at my mom's for my first day of work. I thought about it on the drive back to Bryan Monday evening - for the next 3 months (til John graduates in May) I'll be doing that drive at least once per weekend. That's a lot of driving. But at least after May, I probably won't be driving like that for a while unless it's for something fun. :)

Current Events

2007-02-08T11:19:00.000-08:00

I was trying to wait til I got the Christmas & New Years photos edited but so much has happened that I’m going to skip right past that and on to current news. For those of you who don’t know, John is scheduled to graduate this May (prayers for his Math 142 & Accounting classes are appreciated). So this spring, we’re moving back to Nacogdoches, our hometown. We’re really excited to be moving back close to our families (we’ll both have been gone approx. 10 yrs). And it certainly seems like this is the direction the Lord is leading us towards.

I recently got a job at SFA in Nac and they’re being really great and letting me work Mondays there until (probably) April. This is a huge blessing as it lets me work 4 days a week in Bryan (so I don’t leave my current firm in a lurch during tax season), and it gives John & I more time to find a place to stay in Nac. Just finding out about the job was certainly divine intervention. The Sunday after Thanksgiving we always buy our Christmas tree from a farm run by my high school yearbook teacher and her husband (a prof at SFA). He’d heard there was an accounting job opening up and thought I might be interested. Otherwise, I’d never have looked into applying for jobs so early. Two of my sisters already work at SFA so that’s pretty cool too.

John & I have some leads on two rent houses that we’re hopefully checking out this coming weekend. We’re trying to find a little house like we’ve got now to be in til we can build. Our current plan is to build what we’re calling the ‘shop-house’ which would be a metal building with a second story apartment. We don’t have the means to build our ‘dream house’ right now so this would be great to live in for 5-10yrs until we’re a little more established plus will give us the storage for tools & equipment we need now & in the future. We’re going to see how that goes.

John’s starting to apply for poultry / agriculture jobs in Nac so we’re prayful about that right now. I don’t want to get too preachy on ya’ll but can I just say that after over a year of struggling with some pretty big issues, wondering how we were gonna make it, it has been a peaceful and freeing experience to just leave it up to God. And He’s provided in ways we couldn’t have imagined. I do still have to remind myself often to chill out & wait for His ways to be revealed but when I remember that, I just relax and it feels awesome!

So this has been a wordy post but there’s a lot of news and more to come. We’ve got a busy semester ahead of us as I’ll be traveling back & forth a lot and learning a new job. John’s cousin Matt is marrying a lovely girl named Kelli on March 3rd and my sister Sabrina is marrying her long-time sweetheart, Michael on April 14th, so we’ve got a whirl of showers & wedding preparations. John has his schoolwork, job search plus he’s starting a bowfishing guide service called, Twilight Bowfishing (I have to take credit for the name - hee). He’s really excited about this new venture.

I’ll try to keep things more current (whether I get my slow old computer to work with my pictures or not) and let ya’ll know when we’re moving, etc.

More Shopping

2006-11-11T08:19:00.000-08:00

The antique show at Warrenton is so big that after two Saturdays of heavy duty shopping, I still only saw most of Warrenton, and didn't even stop at Round Top or the surrounding communities. Mom Wood, Aunt Debbie, John, Chad and I returned to the antiques festival. John & Chad had to leave early to do some fishing but I think they enjoyed looking at the antique signs, fishing lures & other guy stuff. :) We girls stayed until we couldn't walk any more but it was a lot of fun. Before they left Sunday, we hit the mall in College Station too.

Western tree topper

Aunt Debbie & Mom Wood looking at antique cookbooks

Pulleys with character

Chad & John looking at pocket watches

Shopping is hard work

2006-11-07T21:03:00.000-08:00

John & I discovered that every six months there is a fabulous antiques festival in Round Top & Warrenton, TX and the surrounding communities. We love it and if we were sufficient flush with funds, would probably come back with a truckload of stuff. As it is, its a great place to look & selectively purchase all kinds of things. This time I went both weekends, first with my mom & sister, Val. Then with John's mom & Aunt Debbie. Mom & Val came down for the weekend and we totally wore ourselves out on Saturday in Warrenton. We had a late lunch at the Legal Tender Saloon, which has the Best Chocolate Pie ever! It was an awesome, if tiring day.

Val, Mom & I each went home with some of these great painted gourds - they're a wonderful fall decoration. Most people couldn't handle our kind of shopping - we were there 45minutes trying out different combinations before we finally made up our minds.

Loved these tags for Halloween decorations!

Val loved these water pumps (of course - they're red)

Some vendors had great displays.

Awesome place to eat - but get there fast because they run out of brisket & chicken salad fast!

We had a great time in Warrenton. Then, just to make sure Mom got her workout, we went to the Southern Living Idea House the next day after church. We three went to the HGTV Dream Home last year in Tyler so it was fun to compare the two.

This is a shot of part of the master bath - it was awesome.

Edited to add: I forgot to mention that while Mom & Val hit Dillard's Saturday night, I got to spend some time with my friend Melissa Mezger & her hubbie, Luke. They came into town to see the Aggie game and it was wonderful to talk to them.

A 'Bowl' Lotta Fun

2006-11-07T20:46:00.000-08:00

A disappointment turned into a great night (though John might debate it wasn't quite as much fun). We had planned on going fishing with our friends, Robin & Jared, one Saturday night but it was not to be. John was in complete denial of the approaching thunderstorm system until it hit Saturday night but even he had to admit he wouldn't have wanted to be out in that (in his aluminium boat). So we went bowling instead. Another sport I totally stink at but enjoy. John finally got to use his bowling ball and Jared got a six-pack (that's 6 strikes in a row)!

Robin & Jared

Jared bowling (in our defense he did take the kines. class when the MSC still had a bowling alley)

John taking a turn

Robin bowling

Special Delivery

2006-11-07T20:14:00.000-08:00

In the middle of September John received something he's been waiting quite a while for - his Aggie Ring! It was a great day and he was so excited to go home the next weekend and show his family. Little did he know, Mom Wood & I were cooking up a surprise for him. She arranged a celebration for him at the BBQ House in Nacogdoches and did all the work - all I had to do was keep it a surprise & get John there at 7pm. He was getting pretty frustrated with me by the time we got there. We thought he'd be onto us when he spotted the cars in the parking lot but he just thought everyone was in the mood for bbq. He was so surprised when we went to the back room and most of both our families were there. It was a really wonderful evening and he totally deserved it.

The next day we drove to Center, TX (which is even further beyond the Piney Wood curtain) to play some softball & celebrate John's cousin, Brandy's birthday. It was so much fun - I stink at softball but I love playing. It was another awesome time with family & friends - we truly are blessed.

John & Mom Wood at Ring Celebration

Bruce Steptoe, John's 'little' brother Chad, Pops (seated), Uncle Gerald, John

The Weekend Warriors

Our cheering section

John took his turn pitching

Where to start...

2006-11-07T19:46:00.000-08:00

Waayy back in September John's folks & brother came down for a visit. We had a great time showing them around and checking out some of A&M's traditional spots. After lunch at the Chicken Oil, John showed his dad & Chad the local mecca for men on a budget - Harbor Freight tools. John's mom & I found our own pantheon for women - the Southern Living Idea House. It was gorgeous! And of course we had to check out one of the places that supplied the furnishings - the Old Bryan Marketplace in downtown Bryan. I can't believe I went to school here for 5yrs & have been back for 2yrs before I found this place. So much cool stuff! To top it off, we had dessert at Cafe Eccel - strawberry tarts of course. For dinner that night, John had to introduce his dad to the place to get steak - Somerville Steakhouse. It was a great weekend and we just hope that they had as much fun as we did!

Exterior of the Idea House

One of my favorites - the kitchen

A fun place to shop

Cafe Eccel's specialty

Best of Intentions

2006-09-26T13:02:00.000-07:00

So I was set to show all the cool pictures from John's Ring celebration, softball, etc. But I took them in NEF format so it'll take me a while to convert them to JPEG. In the meantime, here are so butterfly pictures I took a couple of weeks ago at my mom's house. These were the biggest butterflies I've seen in a while.

For Modesty

2006-09-06T19:03:00.000-07:00

My firend, Jennifer steered me to an excellent post on Everyday Mommy about modesty. My mother emphasized modesty so much growing up but I never really understood why until I was in college. We had a class one morning that was split by gender and some older men from the church came and spoke honestly about how immodesty affected boys/men. What a wake up call. Last Sunday we were in church and there were several girls, some with their parents, who were wearing extremely short skirts. By extremely short, I mean, wouldn't come close to passing the "finger-tip" test. And while I certainly don't feel that someone should meet a dress code to come to church, I believe in dressing appropriately to the situation. I would not wear jogging pants to the office or a swimsuit to a funeral or revealing clothes to church.

So even though I don't have children, I fully support this stand. I myself would like to be able to buy stylish, misses clothes that are not cut down to my navel. And when I do have children, I'd like my sons to be able to go places without having girls flaunt themselves in front of them. I'd like my daughters to be able to dress and feel pretty without objectifying themselves.

Redneck Skeet Shoot

2006-08-30T09:44:00.000-07:00

We had the most awesome weekend!

First we visited the Cabella's in Buda, where John got to visit Miss Opal. Miss Opal is an 82lb catfish that his cousin caught and she currently lives in Cabella's aquarium. We had so much fun looking at all the stuffed animals, aquarium and gun displays.

Then we traveled to Neiderwald to see my friend Holly and her brother, Cody, and go to Cody's Redneck Skeet Shoot. In case you haven't heard of Neiderwald, it is a tiny little place that is the most perfectly situated little town. It has back-in-the-boonies vibe but is just off Hwy 35 between Austin & San Marcos. So its less than an hour to the outlet mall & Austin resturants. And only 10 minutes from the Cabella's in Buda. Holly is a good friend of my from back in my Ernst & Young days. She & her husband, Jeff, are raising a beautiful bunch of kiddos - Madylyn, Beckham & Bristol. And while she is a sophisticated grad of t.u., she also loves the redneck side of things - shooting, Nascar, Cowboys football, etc. Despite what John claims, she did not name her youngest after a Nascar race, it's a family name. It was fantastic to see her again and catch up. Cody's skeet shoot is the most fun - friends and family over for brisket, washers, skeet and an all around good time. This year they 'borrowed' Holly's satellite and brought it out so they could watch the race.

(Holly & I)

(John & Cody)

(Bristol has the cutest smile but wouldn't mug for the camera)

(Skeet setup)

It was super hot so there wasn't much shooting til later in the day but Cody has big stadium-type lights so we kept shooting after dark. John says that technically, we're shooting trap but I still call it skeet shooting. I got to show off my 1st anniversary present - a 20 gauge over&under shotgun. It sure gets the job done. John used his 12 gauge coach gun most of the day. We found out this week that his gun is so old you're not supposed to put modern ammo through it because it might blow up - good to know... There were only 3 competition rounds while we were there. Dollar elimination rounds, shooting from 3 positions, with 6 to 15 people participating. It was really exciting - John won the 2nd round and I won the third. I was only up against 6 other guys but it was so exciting! I love to shoot and while I'm not a stud, I do pretty well and most of the guys out there were really nice & encouraging. I went through a little over a case of 20 guage and John shot at least 1 & 1/2 cases so our shoulders were sore the next day. But that's one of the best measures of a good time - when you're battered & bruised the next day and you don't even care because it was that much fun.

Thanks Holly, Cody & family! Looking forward to the next Redneck Skeet Shoot!

(John had to do double-duty on the thrower because I'm not stout enough)

(John with his coach gun)

(Christy with over/under and pink John Deere hat)

Just when you think...

2006-08-25T07:15:00.000-07:00

"There is nothing new under the sun" (from Ecclesiastes). Hollywood and MTV have the best recycling programs around. The number of remakes and sequels the past few years is proof of that. Even Pirates of the Carribean was generated from a theme-park ride. But just when you think there isn't a new, innovative idea out there, especially not one that's unique and simple in execution, some creative person surprises you. Not being a creative person myself, it is a trait I really admire and honestly feel that the creative spark is something given by God. For the record, I am not saying that this video is a message from God. I am saying that creativity is a blessing and I do think He gets a kick out of what His children come up with (just like any parent). I'm sure most of you have seen it but this video is so neat that I had to post it.

As Promised

2006-08-21T16:24:00.000-07:00

As promised, a plethora of fishing photos:
John shot a needlenose gar when he went bowfishing with his buddy Chris. The photo's a little off since he went swimming with the elf in his pocket (both the elf & John survived - this is why he doesn't get to use the Nikons near water).

The next one is John & I on Lake Nacogdoches in May. We didn't catch much beyond a sunburn but it was fun. Oh wait, John did catch a little fish. And we saw a gator.

The last three are from the tournament. Although John did not take a photo of his friend's boat or the fish they caught, these give you an idea. The airboat is one of the big impressive models. I loved the name of the next boat Ridin Dirty (redneck-style). Ridin Dirty is an apt description of these guys after they come home too. The big bucket of gar is just part of one team's catch. John & Doug shot 55 gar and 9 carp and they placed 7th.

Unjustly Accused

2006-08-21T12:45:00.000-07:00

So, I try to get back on blogging track and Blogger says I'm a spam blog and won't let me post. Seriously, its like the universe conspires to prevent me from posting. Of course, some of you probably think that's a good thing...

Yes, I've been a procrastinator. You know, the whole I'll wait to post when I get pictures, which means I have to actually scan or download the pictures, then tweak them, then actually write something about them. I finally broke down & said forget it, I'll post now and add photos later, and Blogger starts hating on me. But really, I am glad they're trying to block the spam because I've seen the spam comments on other people's sites and that's not cool.

So what's been going on with the Wood's in the past month since we've posted. Well, for John, bowfishing, bowfishing, bowfishing. (pause while everyone gasps with shock) He's fished in Lake Summerville, Lake Nacogdoches, Toledo Bend, and in other assorted rivers & swamps on his boat, a swamp boat & a pontoon boat. It's a good thing he loves the art because the fish weren't there most of the time. He did get to go to a big bowfishing tournament in Anahuac. His buddy, Doug, has a swamp boat and they had a blast. They placed 7th of approx. 30 in number of fish (which was great considering they had a two-man team instead of 3). Their d'oh moment came when they passed up weighing in their top 10 - they would have placed 2nd & won $$$. Some of these teams had $50,000 boats with 502cu and 700+ horse-power engines (apparantly that's impressive - our truck is a 350cu). I didn't realize that swamp boats were powered with auto engines - when you see even a small one in person, it is impressive.

As for me, nothing too crazy - went on a spree in Barnes & Noble, then the local library. I toyed with the idea of keeping a list going on this site of them but that would take time away from my busy schedule of reading and watching Project Runway. I'm not normally a fan of reality tv (other than HGTV) - never got into Survivor, etc because to me, those shows usually show humanity at its worst (lots of greed, backstabbing,etc) and I find it a little depressing. Maybe that's why I enjoy HGTV, Project Runway and Extreme Makeover Home Edition, because the focus is more on creativity and making beautiful houses/clothes. Sure sometimes drama queens win out over actual talent (why Allison got kicked off instead of Vincent the wackadoo) but overall I think these shows demonstrate more of the positive aspects of the human condition and I can really get behind that. I could also get behind someone coming to my house and giving me pretty furniture and/or clothes. ;)

We did get to see the Ringling Brothers Barnum & Bailey Circus when it came to College Station. It was John's first circus ever! So much fun! Whether you've got kids or not, it's a great show - we really loved it.

We're planning on attending the (usually) annual Redneck Skeet Shoot at my friend Holly's this weekend. Hopefully we'll have some good pics to share from that & I'll get off my duff and post some fishing/circus pictures too.

Nerd Score

2006-07-21T06:53:00.000-07:00

My friends, Jennifer and Lisa have both taken the Nerd Quiz. My score was
Anyone who knows me will dispute that! The quiz is way slanted towards engineering/math nerds. It doesn't have anything on there about accounting, otherwise my score would be much higher. :)

His & Hers

2006-07-15T16:47:00.000-07:00

Yep, you can tell we've been married for a little while now. Last night, John went bowfishing til 1am and I happily stayed home scrapbooking. There was a time when I would have tried to brave the mosquitos but we've reached an understanding - I won't make him scrapbook and he won't make me fish for more than a 3-4 hour stretch. :) Pictures to come of the needle-nosed gar he shot. Evidenly, its more impressive than shooting an aligator gar. This is what I worked on last night - my first page in my Mt. Kinabulu spread from AFCO 2002. If you're interested in seeing any of my other pages, I have a gallery at www.apeekintoyesterday.com under briar-rose.

We went to see Pirates of the Carribean today - awesome! I had heard some semi-negative reviews but I loved it! You have to love the characters & the sets were out of this world! But that's just my opinion. :) John's about to go bowfishing again tonight - how do guys have such an unlimited capacity for that type of stuff?

Thoughts on Christ's church

2006-07-08T07:21:00.000-07:00

On a more serious note, last Sunday John went before the church with something he's been struggling with for a long time. It was a difficult thing to do and I'm so proud of him for having that courage. I was also awed and humbled by the outpouring of love from the congregation. When John went forward and after the service, he was surrounded by people offering encouragement and support. Not the judgement he feared. This was even more impressive due to the fact that since John & I are gone so much, we haven't done the best job of getting to know people and making a place for ourselves in the church. Not only did these people offer John support that day but since then, he's called on some of them and they have dropped whatever they were doing to help him. What a beautiful expression of Christ's love!

This is what the church was meant for - not just teaching or good works - but to spread the word and help our brothers & sisters in Christ when they're struggling. I think we all fall into the judgement trap sometimes, the world certainly pushes us to judge & judge quickly. We all have our failings, our fears. How many times have I sat in the pew when someone went forward, letting my doubts overcome me. "I don't know them - how would they feel if a stranger came to them?" "I don't know what to do or say to them" The church shouldn't be a place where we're scared to go forward with our problems and sins, and shouldn't be a place where we let doubt stop us from showing love.

"Finally, be ye of one mind, having compassion one of another, love as brethern, be pitiful, be courteous.." 1st Peter 3:8

John and I are so thankful for the Christian love that people have shown us, without judgement, without reservation. I hope & pray that we can use our struggle today to help others as well in the future.

Can I get a Whoop!

2006-07-08T07:03:00.000-07:00

John got to do something very exciting about a week ago - order his Aggie ring. Whoop! He'll be getting it on September 14th. Since both beer and ice cream are out, I'm not sure what he'll be dunking it in...powerade maybe? What he'd probably like best is to have them stick it in one of those giant steaks at Sommerville. That might be a first. :) We'll finally have two 'o1 rings in this house! Now I just need to get that Knox rings print...

Last weekend my mother & grandmother came to visit us. It was Mamaw's first time to see our house with furniture & everything. I'll have to take some pictures and post them the next time the house is clean for those of you who haven't visited.

We had a great visit. Then Monday, us girls headed to Houston where we met two of my sisters, Val & Sabrina, at the Galleria. I don't know anyone who would have the stamina for one of the Gray girls' shopping marathons. We procured wheelchairs for Mom & Mamaw and then spent the next 6 hours roaming around the Galleria. Val & I stayed after the others headed home and we shopped on Westheimer until 9pm. OK, we did take a small break at PF Changs - yum! It was an awesome day! Oh, and while us girls were living it up, John did get to play golf with Tristin & Jeff so he had fun too. ;)

For the Fourth, John & I had a nice, quiet day. We watched the fireworks over the George Bush library that night. It had been a long time since either of us had been to a fireworks display - it was gorgeous.

A Full Life

2006-06-11T17:40:00.000-07:00

John & I have been blessed with excellent, active weekends recently. Last weekend we did the photography at our friends, Robin & Jared Hanselman's, wedding in Tivoli. It was a gorgeous country wedding complete with a Grand March, brisket and a horse-drawn carriage. Neither John nor I had ever done photography for a wedding but with the help of my new Nikon D70 and my reliable N80 we were able to capture quite a bit. Since photography is more of my hobby, I was very impressed with John's gusto - he grabbed the N80 & Domke bag and took off with it. :)

This weekend, Jared & Robin came to College Station. We saw Kevin Fowler in concert Friday night, then Saturday Robin & I went shopping (Target & Scrapbook Country) while the boys went bowfishing (John's latest fishing addiction. We were able to get all Robin & Jared's wedding photos printed out before they left. After church today, John & I took the boat to Lake Bryan. As usual, we didn't catch anything but it was nice just being outside and hanging out together.

June Update

2006-06-06T07:20:00.000-07:00

Guess we're off to a slow start (posting photos is still a mystery to me). May was a busy month for John & I. But we're looking forward to a great summer. John's taking 6 hours at A&M during Summer I plus working. I keeping looking forward to the slower summer season at my firm but things haven't slowed down too much.

We went to our good friends, Robin & Jared's, wedding this past weekend. John & I did the photography for the wedding so it was quite the adventure! It was a beautiful, lively wedding - we'd never seen a 'Grand March' - it was awesome!

This weekend we're looking forward to being in College Station as we've been on the road four of the past five weekends.

Getting started

2006-03-31T11:47:00.000-08:00

Just getting started with the blogging universe - inspired by our friends, David & Lisa Noble and their blog 'Living Forgiven...In Alaska.' Hopefully, this will be a good way to share the latest photos and stories with friends and family.