March Winds...April Showers & May Flowers Not Far Behind

WOW!!! Is it really already the first week of MARCH??? Simply crazy! April showers and May flowers really are almost in sight, now! We're less than two weeks away from St. Patrick's Day, too!

Where do I begin??? Soon after my last blog post, Greg and I took Aly to Incredible Pizza Co. for supper one night, as a surprise for being extra special good that day and as usual, she had the time of her life! I'VE ADDED A PICTURE ABOVE... A COMPUTER-GENERATED PIECE OF ART THAT ALY 'DREW' HERSELF, THAT EVENING.
The weekend following Valentine's Day, we packed up and hit the road for a very short-lived 3-day, 2-night family get-away. We drove to Greg's parents home and enjoyed time with them and with Whitley, as well! While there, Mom Penn and I began a decorating project, which gave me the opportunity to do a little shopping on the Square and find a few really good 'deals'! This little project is going to take some time, with the miles that lie between us, but it is such fun! Speaking of which, I've since taken Aly on a couple of visits to Hobby Lobby, Old Time Pottery, etc. I must say she's taking to this early 'training' very well and already loves matching colors and things. Think I might just have a fellow-decorator, a kindred spirit so to speak, in her!

My L.N.O. group held their 2nd Annual Spa Night, on February 26th, at the home of friend, Paula Romans, and let me tell you what... This is the kind of event I could get used to! Lots of pampering, delicious food, many laughs and all with great friends!!! On the same note, while I was being attended to and relaxing with my friends, Greg and Aly headed out for supper at Chuck E. Cheese. They had quite a time themselves, with Aaron Bragg (our Spa Tech for the evening, America's, husband), and needless to say Aly thought she had the world by the tail, with those two tagging along behind her! I'VE ADDED A PICTURE OF ALY AND GREG AT CHUCK E.'S ABOVE. As you can tell, it was Daddy's hair night... He in a hat and she with quite an interesting 'doo', to boot! Good thing I didn't see them BEFORE they left the house!!!
Greg and I joined a Faith Builders group at Church and we had our first 'meet' on February 27th. It was a strategy meeting to set goals and decide what we wanted to see happen in the future, as a group and for starters, we chose Denny's as our late-supper choice, that night. LOL A fun evening with a 'new set' of friends and we look forward to our next event!

I'VE ADDED A PICTURE ABOVE OF GREG, ALY AND I, AS A ST. PATTY'S DAY 'GREETING' TO YOU ALL. Greg's mother, Sandy, just came through surgery with flying colors, on Monday and we are so proud of her! She seems to be doing fine, only a little pain, weak and sore, but that is to be expected. We are excited to see what her "new" future has in store for her... Way to go, Mom P.! We've been praying for you and will continue to do so! We've been sending many prayers up for other family members lately, as well. Those who are under entirely too much right now and need God to undertake! Our family also lost a close dear friend, Carol Jeanette, this week and though we'll miss her and her way of making us laugh, we know Heaven gained a very "SPECIAL" angel, when she arrived at the Pearly Gates! Look out, Papaw Smith, she's something else!!!
Trust everyone in Blogging-Land will have an exceptional week... Get out there and enjoy this beautiful sunshine and rest assured that Spring is about to show it's face FOR GOOD!!!

Celebrate Spring with Us!!!

http://picasaweb.google.com/thepennfamily2007/BouncerTownUSAMoreApril2009?feat=directlink

As it is quite obvious from the above Photo Album... we are enjoying our Spring and wanted to share a bit of it with you! On just about any given day, especially the sunny ones, we have ventured out to have some fun, even a rainy day or two hasn't stopped us! City life is perfect for finding things to do and one of our newest and 'bestest' finds so far, has been "BouncerTown, USA", in Greenwood!!! Of course, you can't go wrong with any one of the many City Parks, either! Aly is all-girl, but that doesn't stop her from having a ball outdoors and we're all three looking forward to a great rest-of-the-Spring and the up-and-coming-Summer together!
We had our Family pictures taken last week for the Church Directory and are anxious to see the final outcome in a few weeks... even though Aly was 'down' with a cold and a bit of an eye infection that day, she went through the photo shoot like a real trooper and we were so very proud of her! We'll be sure to post the pictures for you to see soon.

I want to take time to add a special thank you at this time. This past Saturday, after a very stressful week, Greg gave me an offer I couldn't resist... a SHELLY-NIGHT-OUT! Before Greg and I married, this was something of a 'norm' for me and even after we married, (before we had Aly) I would 'take' one of these every month or two. However, since having Aly I hadn't done so. I have 'splurged' several times over the past year and spent little bits of time with a friend/friends, my mom, Greg, etc., but not anything I'd call real 'personal-time'! So, needless to say, I took full advantage on Saturday evening and headed out on the town. LOL I made my way to Family Christian Bookstore, Dealz, Kohl's, WalMart and stopped off at Panera Bread for a late supper. A few hours to re-vamp, re-new and re-lax were just what I needed!!! To top that little story off, Greg also grilled Pork Chops, Baked Potatoes, California-Style Veggies and Sweet Tea for Aly and I last night! WOW!!! A mere thank you isn't much, but I'll say it anyway... THANK YOU BABY, YOU'RE THE BEST AND I LOVE YOU! You are the best hubby and Daddy...

Chestnuts Roasting... Jack Frost Nippin' At Your Nose

He's really 'Nippin' at noses tonight and with a major Ice Storm too, huh? Christmas is the ONLY time I can handle such cold weather, I'd be happy if it would wait to show up til the week of Christmas and leave again the day after! LOL Now, that would be a bit of Paradise on Earth!!!
Well, I was able to begin last week off with my first Christmas purchases on Tuesday and didn't do so well at it! So, I made plans to 'try again' on Thursday and wouldn't you know, I came down with something that morning and couldn't make it out! However, I hit the roads again, yesterday and actually bought MOST of the gifts on my list! I've ONLY 3 to go!!!
Our Church Cantata/Musical went extremely well, God was all over the place and anyone there should have felt His Spirit moving! Leading up to that evening, was a very hectic time of preparation for us all (especially my parents), but it was well worth the effort and hard work!

http://picasaweb.google.com/thepennfamily2007/PreHolidayEventsMore#
We were invited and attended Cuz Nate's 21st Birthday Party this weekend and had such a great time! Aly loves being with her cousins and it's even better when there's Cake and Ice Cream involved, too!
Happy Birthday, Nate ~ We're so very proud of you and the man you have become! You are the PERFECT example for the younger members in our family to strive to be. God has blessed you with such talent and the most wonderful of personalities! Remember, we love you with all our hearts and Aly thinks you 'hung the moon', you know!
The bad news of the week, is that while on my Monday shopping spree, Aly (staying with her Papaw) decided to get sick! Poor little munchkin must have 'caught' a flu bug over the weekend, she's been 'running' her first ever fever with it and is still under the weather tonight! Please help us pray that she'll get well before Christmas... it sure wouldn't be any fun for her (or the family) to be sick during the Holidays!
Stay safe out on these ICY slick roads, ya'll and a very Merry Week to you all!

My Birthday & the Children's Christmas Program Are Over...

...WE'RE NOW ANXIOUSLY AWAITING THE ADULT CHRISTMAS PROGRAM AND CHRISTMAS DAY TO COME!

http://picasaweb.google.com/thepennfamily2007/AGlimpseOfChristmas#
I've decided to post just a few pix of our Holiday decor at home... there's much that I haven't captured, both inside and outside, but I hope to do so during our Open House or soon after! Keep an eye out... they're sure to show up!
I had an incredible birthday (Dec. 5th) this year, Greg took me to see the Gaither Holiday Homecoming show downtown and we had a ball with many of our friends and family! The music was awesome and the 'breakfast' following (at midnight) was quite tasty, too! It was snowy outside which made it just perfect for a Christmas show!
Our Children's program, "Christmas Eve at Hope Haven", went well yesterday though it was a bit stressful getting to that point, the kids did a fine job and Greg and I were very proud of them! Being as we were both IN the Musical this year, we weren't able to take pictures ourselves, but we're waiting now to collect several from the children's parents and will post them for you, as soon as possible!
Well, we're now into the last week before the Adult Christmas program and there's much left to do for that, as well! YIKES! Christmas is such a hectic time of year, how can it be that it still remains my favorite of all???
Plus all of the above, I absolutely MUST begin my Holiday shopping tomorrow, or ELSE!!!!! I'm in a bit of shock and unbelief that I'm only now beginning, but I'm praying for warmer weather over the next week or two and God's grace to help me get it all done!

"Here I am,
it's Christmas time,
the panic's setting in.
No presents bought and
not a thought,
of how I'll ever begin."
(A portion of a poem I read recently and felt it was fitting for one such as me...)

The Final Week Has Begun...

To begin, I'd like to say we had an exceptionally nice Thanksgiving week with Greg's family in Missouri... Uncle Tom and Aunt Janie hosted a yummy Thanksgiving Dinner, which we all ate too much of and we were able to see many family members we hadn't seen in a very long time!
We arrived at Greg's parents on Tuesday in the late afternoon... We truly enjoyed our time together although, it flew by way too fast, as always!
'Mom P.' chose to babysit Aly, while we all hit the Mall on "Black Friday" afternoon, I believe they had a good time playing together and we certainly all had a grand time shopping! In the midst of all the hustle and bustle, with our Starbucks 'in-hand', no amount of traffic was going to stop us! LOL
Personally, I'll be glad when I get over my "new mommy-ness" and decide once and for all, not to stress out over large family get-together's, major events, etc. and learn to take things as they come... maybe if and when that takes place, I'll begin relaxing a bit more! LOL (On a side note, I did de-stress long enough to take 3 or 4 pictures during this trip and I'll share them with you at the bottom of this post!)
Well, I'm about 75% unpacked and hope to finish out tomorrow, BEFORE the Christmas decorating gets done, which is only about 50% complete at this moment!!! As busy as we are these days, it looks as if we'll have to keep our decorations up through the first or second week of January, otherwise we'll not have time to even enjoy them!
Aly is loving all the lights, trees, snowmen, stockings, reindeer, etc. She especially loves her OWN tree with all it's sparkles and she can't get over the freshly fallen snow outside!!!
THE FINAL WEEK HAS BEGUN... We have exactly TWO practices left before our Children's Program at Church! Only TWO? Where has the time gone? Heaven help us all! We certainly have MUCH to do between now and Sunday, that's for sure!

http://picasaweb.google.com/thepennfamily2007/ThanksgivingInMissiouri2008#
~ Happy Holidays

Happy Thanksgiving, Ya'll!

(Aly loves to help Mommy and Daddy do dishes...)
We are 'multi-tasking' these days, for sure! This past week, we were involved in 2 Adult Christmas practices, 2 Children's Christmas practices, Greg worked his regular hours plus a few, I worked at home, the Office, picked up additional costumes for the kid's Musical and we had another 'Date Night' with our friends, at "Christian Couple's Connection". I could go on but, I do not want to bore you further... LOL
Today, Monday (the 24th), we are planning to get all of our Christmas decorating done here at home, clean the house and begin our packing for the Thanksgiving trip to MO. After all, we are supposed to leave TOMORROW!!! (Do any of you have a suggestion as to when I can begin Christmas shopping??? Maybe I'll begin by buying a little TIME???)
Trust you'll all have a FABULOUS Thanksgiving with your loved ones and try not to eat too much, while you're at it! Ha Ha, look who's talking...

A Breath of 'Southern Sunshine' on A Cool Fall Weekend

Here are a handful of pictures of Aly's Play-Day today...
http://picasaweb.google.com/thepennfamily2007/AlySPlayDayNov102008# Last week was pretty uneventful, except that we were busy getting ready for the upcoming weekend.
It was an AWESOME weekend, too... Some of our Louisiana family were able to come up for a visit and as ALWAYS we had a BALL!!!
We began on Friday evening with an all-Italian homemade meal at Mamaw S's. Spicy Chicken Spaghetti, an assortment of yummy Herb Breads and Breadsticks, Salads and the whole nine yards! YUUMMM... Following the meal, everyone came over to "Penn Place" for a Fall-Themed 'Dessert Bar'. Pecan Pie, Sugar Cream Pie & Apple Fritter Bread. With a choice of French Vanilla, Caramel Praline or Butter Pecan, (and Bunny-Tracks for the kids) Ice Cream. We had an assortment of iced drinks (including Vernors, of course!) and Coffee, too. My personal favorite items of the evening were the Coffee Creamers: Vanilla Chai Spice and Cinnamon Vanilla Cre'me!
On Saturday, we had lunch together at Steak-N-Shake... an Indiana favorite for our Southern family, before the ladies and gents split up for an afternoon of fun! The ladies found ourselves at 'Old Time Pottery' and for 3 entire HOURS, too! The men made their way to Gander Mountain and Dick's Sporting Goods for a couple of hours. Later that evening, we all headed back to Mamaw S's. for a COLD Cook-Out of Pork Steaks and all the trimmings! Thanks, to the guys who cooked out in that weather! It was well worth it, that's for sure!!!
We had a great Sunday, not only at Church, but a relaxing day with family, as well! Another delicious meal only made the day better! Roast, Mashed Potatoes and Gravy, Sugared Green Beans with Bacon, Cornbread, etc., etc. (I'll not even go into all the desserts we had available!!!) Why is it when humans have a 'get-together', we think food is one of the necessary items, in order to have more fun? In reality, though fun, food really only adds more and more pounds to one's body and what is fun about THAT? LOL
Today~ Aly and I were having a 'Play-Day', a kind of a normal day for us, of "School" and playing together, so we decided to take 4 or 5 pictures while we were at it! (I posted a link above.) This due much to the fact, that we didn't get ONE picture taken during the busy weekend... funny thing is no one had a camera all weekend! (Not even Ronda or Aunt Diane!!!)
Oh well! As you can tell, we had an excellent weekend, with our without a camera and only wished they could've stayed for a month or two!!! The time flew by, but they may make another trip North during the Holidays?!?!? (We certainly hope so!) Hey, ya'll... it really was a "Breath of Southern Sunshine" to have you with us! We are sorry it was so cold while you were here, though! That's all just a part of being in the 'Northland', I guess! We look forward to your next visit and PRAY that we'll be able to make a trip South again, SOON!!!

Home, Home on The Range...

CLICK THE LINK BELOW

FOR OUR LARGEST-TO-DATE

ONLINE PHOTO ALBUM...

OUR ANNIVERSARY TRIP 2008!

(Can you believe that we're still experiencing trouble with our computer, uploading photos, etc.??? So, this is about the best way we can share photos with you for now.)

http://picasaweb.google.com/thepennfamily2007/OurBelatedAnniversaryTrip2008

We had an incredible weekend... if it just hadn't have gone by so quickly! We began the weekend, on Friday evening, by taking Alyson to attend her first wedding... she did a fine job, too. (Thanks to Uncle Danny and Aunt Ronda for helping out!!!) On Saturday, we stopped by Paradise Cafe' and Bakery for Brunch. After arriving at our destination and before we could 'pick up our keys', we did a little shopping. We then went to see our Room for the weekend... it was BEAUTIFUL! (Thanks to Mama and Daddy for such a sweet Anniversary gift!!!) Some day we would love to have an old fixed-up house with antiques similar to the ones at the Inn! For an early Supper, we had yummy BBQ with all the fixins at "Trolly's" (AKA: "The Trolly"). This, followed by wonderful Hor Dourves at the Inn (provided every day in the late afternoon/early evening). Later that evening, we attended a light family comedy Play downtown and were able to get some good laughs in (following the Dessert Bar at the Inn... which is also provided on a daily basis)! Sunday morning, we had a lovely HOT Breakfast which included delicious homemade Pastries and fresh Fruit (also provided daily) at the Inn. We spent most of the day driving through the hills of Brown County, Bean Blossum, IN. (the Bluegrass Capitol of the World), and a variety of State Parks, wound up in Bloomington, IN. where we grabbed a late lunch/early supper, before heading back for a little strolling. (We'd like to add, that Nahsville is a bit of a Ghost Town on Sundays, but very nice and quiet!) Again, we were able to enjoy the Hor Dourves that evening and on top of that, a little later that night, we grabbed some of the Inn's 'to-die-for' homemade Desserts... TOOOOO much food for one weekend! On Monday, we were again at the Dining area for another wonderful hot Breakfast, before hitting the road for a little more shopping. After 'turning in the keys' at the Desk... (we sure are going to miss this place with it's lovely atmosphere, Staff and of course the incredible FOOD!)... we were once again, out for a bit more shopping and strolling. When we felt it was about the time to head home, we directed our car for the Highway... even though a wee sad, we were anxious to see our little Aly-girl!!!!! We grabbed a bite of late lunch/early supper at "On the Border", did a little 'Mall-walking' and then you'll never guess where we went!!!!! (Ugh!) Well, long story short, Greg's back had been 'out' all weekend, so our last stop found us at 'the Doc's'! However, all in all we had one of the best weekends we've had in a very long time and are grateful to once again be "Home, Home on The Range"!

June... What A Full Month Already!

June is a very busy and full month for our family! There are many birthday's, anniversary's and such during the month of June. We'd like to wish all of our 'June-Bugs' a very Happy Birthday and a very Happy Anniversary to our 'June-Lovebird's', too! Ya'll know who you are and we celebrate each of you at this time. (Greg and I have an Anniversary coming up in less than 5 weeks, ourselves!)
Alyson Dawn is really growing and changing every day... her personality is just adorable! She about gives herself a whiplash simply people-watching at the Mall or Walmart. She'll be 8 months old on the 30th! That is so hard for us to believe!!! She loves to be outside, she loves to go 'out'... whether it's to church or shopping... she's NOT a homebody, that's for sure. She loves spending time with her Daddy and her Memaw and Papaw, too... she is truly the 'Princess' and is she ever more getting used to that fact!!!
Greg ~ (During this Father's Day season...) I want you to know that little Aly and I are as happy as two peas in a pod to have you in our lives... you're the greatest husband anywhere and the bestest Daddy in the world, too. We love you dearly and look forward to many more happy days spent with you!
The three of us missed spending Mother's Day this year with my parents, due to a trip to Mexico but, were able to spend Father's Day with my them and had such a wonderful time... what an awesome heritage we have and are privileged to pass down to Alyson! Happy (belated Mother's Day) and Father's Day (a day late) to you both. My own life has been near perfect because of ya'll. We all three love the two of you more than you'll ever know!
We're sorry to have missed being with Greg's parents this time around for Father's Day! (HOWEVER, Mother's Day was spent with them and was quite nice)... We will also be with them here at our place, over July 4th and are looking forward to an exciting time together!!! I'd like to thank them for helping to raise Greg to be the best husband I could've ever asked for and an incredible Daddy to Aly, too. Love ya'll!
We would also like to mention what a fun time we had in Dayton, yesterday! It was so nice to be able to spend time with Mamaw and Papaw Jewett!!! Aly did a fine job on our little road trip (of course, being as it was a time to get out and about, see people, show off a bit, etc. LOL)! Thanks, Ohio-bunch, for the good times...
Mama and Daddy ~ Greg, Alyson and I would love to say a SPECIAL Happy Anniversary (June 16th) to ya'll... you have always been there to show me what 'true love' is and that true love is the 'joy of life', itself! I'm so grateful for the many lessons you've each taught me through the love you have for one another! I only pray that I'll be the type of wife and mommy that you've taught me to be and teach Aly the same.

Here is a brief Photo Album - - - some old and some new and that'll be it for now - - - until our next BLOG!

Early June Greetings and Such