6 Years of Bliss!

Six years have passed since I said "I do" to my best friend.  In that time, we have been through some major stuff--lost jobs, found jobs, Brad worked nights, we bought a house, we had a baby--the list goes on.  During this time, there were a few constants in our lives: our church, our family, and our love for each other (I know. Gag me with a silver spoon). 

As cheesy or cliche as it may sound, I really do love this guy and that is the only thing that has kept us together through some of our rough times. 

Bradley,
The past 6 years have been filled with some of the greatest moments of my life.  I love you to Jupiter and back (because the moon is too close and I want to leave growth to Pluto for another post).  Thanks for the great times, I know our journey will only continue to get better and better.
Love,
Ashley

For our anniversary, we took an overnight trip to Galveston.  My family was out of town, so we chose Galveston specifically with the idea of taking Emmy along with us in mind.  There are a lot of fun things to do there, and we knew it would be an enjoyable weekend.

I had to make a quick appearance at a baby shower before going out of town.  Bradley had flowers waiting for me when I got back.  Sweet boy.



We ate dinner and let Emmy play in the indoor pool when we got to Galveston since it was already dark.  The next morning, we went down to the beach super early to walk along the shore and hunt for shells.



The boy and I sure do love the beach.







This little girl loves the beach as well.



We found the only place open that early in the morning, and we got a little silly.



After going back to the hotel for breakfast, we checked out and headed down to The Strand.



We ate lunch at Fisherman's Wharf.  We've eaten here before and it was super yummy that time as well.



We walked around and explored the shops for a while before making our way to La Kings.  They have the best ice cream and home made floats.  If you can tell, Emmy really enjoyed it.



It was a great weekend spent with my favorite people, and it was exactly what we needed to unwind.

Valentine's Day Festivities

Valentine's Day is crazy at our house.  Bradley's birthday is the week before, so I am usually scrambling to find him not one but TWO cool presents in a relatively short time frame.

This year, I found a couple of things that I wanted to get him for Valentine's day ahead of time...but I am getting ahead of myself.

Emmy's class has a big Valentine's Day party, and we needed to get a valentine for everyone in her class.  This year, there are 26 kids that make up the two-year-old class.  On a daily basis, they are divided into three sections, but they get together for parties.

I turned to my friend Pinterest for some Valentine's Day inspiration and found a few cute ideas.  I HATE when Emmy gets candy, so I knew that I needed to give a candy alternative.







I also made these for my friends at work.





I gave these valentines that I designed to all of my students with a Valentine's Day pencil.



Finally, Bradley and I exchanged gifts.

I left this on his steering wheel, so he could start his day with a fun treat.



Bradley picked out a very random set of gifts.  They are all cool on their own.









I got him a few things too.



As a bonus, I received flowers at school. :)



We did not go out to dinner on Friday night (Valentine's Day) because I didn't feel well, and we didn't have a baby-sitter.  We went back to Shoguns the following night.  I was happy.  If I could eat sushi every night, I would be a happy girl.









I sure do love these two!

Our 5th Anniversary

We celebrated our 5th anniversary on the day that we left for Disney.  It was a stressful day filled with many scares, but I always know that everything will be okay because I've got the right guy by my side.



Bradley, I love you to Pluto (even if they say it isn't a planet anymore) and back because the moon is just too close!  Thanks for being such an amazing husband.  I test your patience, try your nerves, and do things that would drive a lesser man to homocide daily, but you put up with it all with a certain style and panache.  You're the greatest, and thanks for sticking with me the past five years!

Christmas 09

Christmas was CrAzY for us this year! As usual we tried to make it every event, and I think we have both decided that next year, we will just stay at home! We had a lot of fun, but we were in the car for about 14 hours...just too much time riding. We started our trip in Austin for Christmas Eve. We had a great time there. There was a TON of good food, we had a White Elephant gift exchange, and we went to downtown Austin to look at all the lights. Brad's little brother, Beau, and his girlfriend even came down from Florida to see everyone. The next morning, we left early to go to Channelview. We spent the whole day there. It was awesome getting to see everyone and spend the day with them. Unfortunately along the way Brad and I caught some kind of bug so by the time Christmas Night rolled around we were SICK!!! I don't know that I have ever been that sick in my whole life. We also ended up passing it on to my uncle...which he will never let me forget I am sure. :) The next week, we went to Beaumont for Christmas with my dad's family. It was fun as well! We always do a white elephant among the adults and then a gag gift exchange for everyone. Some of the results were interesting to say the least! It was a nice Christmas, and I hope you enjoy the pictures!

The Great Turkey Day Migration!

For Thanksgiving Brad I decided to split our time between our two families. We both knew that this was going to be a momentous task since they live so far away, but we thought that we would try it this year. First, we went to Milam, TX. This is approximately 5 hours from our house if anyone was wondering. We arrived close to midnight on Wednesday evening. We spent Thanksgiving Day with my family, and we had a great time. A lot of my cousins were there this year, and we took pictures, played football, ate a lot of really GREAT food. Then Friday morning, I went with April and Michael to my favorite event of the year: BLACK FRIDAY SALES!!!! We divided and conquered, and I ended up buying a lot more stuff than I had previously planned. That's okay though because I am going to give a lot of it away for Christmas. Then after I got back to my grandma's house (we had to drive an hour and a half round trip to get to the nearest stores), we had lunch and got on the road. Next stop, Cedar Park, TX. We planned on staying Friday evening with Brad's grandparents at their house. It took us around 6 hours to get there, and man were we happy to see them! We had only been there an hour or so when it is decided that we need to head down to Burnet, TX to see his brother. That is another hour in the car! We finally made it there, and I was so happy to be out of the car! We hung out with them for a while, and we got to see Brad's mom. Then we took baby Christopher and went back to Cedar Park for the night. Then the next day, we went back to Burnet/Marble Falls to see everyone again. Sunday morning, we hung out at the Foster home and played with Christopher. We were sad when it was time to leave, but we knew that we had another three hours in the car! We finally made it back to EL Campo. I don't think I have ever been so happy to see our house. We had a lot of fun over the holidays, but I think next year we will just pick one place to visit!

Weddings

2008 was a year of weddings for Brad and I....from March 28, 2008 to the present there has been a constant stream of friends and family getting married. Here are a few of the ones that we loved the most...and a sneak preview of the ones coming up!

April and Micheal Collins

Married on March 28, 2008

Place: The Butler's Courtyard
Wedding Colors: Brown and Cream
Flowers: Orange, Yellow, and Red Roses

Lauren and Charles Fontainer

Married on June 21, 2008

Place: Presbyterian Church El Campo, TX
Wedding Colors: Brown and Peach/Pink
First Dance: Feet Don't Touch the Ground (Stoney LaRue)

Ashley and Bradley Barnes
(of course)

Married on November 1, 2008
Place: Bible Truth Church El Campo, TX
Wedding Colors: Black, White, and Turquoise

Shalaine and Kevin Bargmann

Married on January 10, 2009

Place: Schertz Civic Center Schertz, TX
Wedding Colors: Brown and Sage Green
Cake Height: 6 tiers!

Bee and John Mills

Married on: March 21, 2009
Place: Beaumont Ranch
Wedding Colors: Blue and White
Groom's Cake: A miniature Bonfire that they lit on fire!!

There are still more to come! This summer, my friend, Lacey Luco, is marrying her college sweetheart in July, and two of our good friends from A&M are tying the knot in August...I love weddings so I am really excited about these two events. Also, my cousin Wendy Lee Zalman is getting married sometime in 2010 so stay posted for more details about her big day! Congratulations to all of the newlyweds, and happy planning for the engaged couples!