Wednesday, November 26, 2008

a daughter

Happy Birthday, Mom!



What an amazing example of generosity and compassion you are to me.



What a loving and devoted heart you have for your family.



What a supportive and and encouraging listener you are for me.





And what a fun-loving mother and grandmother you are!
(Jumping off a cliff for her grandkids!!)



I hope you're day is filled with joy. I love you very much!
Love, Betsy

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

a HUNT

Happy Anniversary, Mom and Dad!





I am proud to be a Hunt :)



What great memories we have from your anniversary last year!



Celebrating at the top of the Tower of Americas in San Antonio!!



And this is our fabulous 1-take family photo in the lobby of the tower. What a great looking family you produced!!



In fact, it was so fabulous that this photo is now on display in the gift shop/photo book of the Tower of Americas!! If you happen to go there, check it out! (and take a picture of it for us!)

We love you Mom and Dad! Can't wait to see you in 2 days!

Thursday, November 20, 2008

cabinet making!

Can I call it "cabinet making" if it's from IKEA??
I think I will ;)

2 weeks ago I visited my parents for a few days. They were so happy to have me come for an impromptu visit. They didn't intend for me to do any intensive labor while I was there, but when I saw this, I just had to do something:





Their poor kitchen cabinet had been collapsing for the past few months and showed signs of degradation. The sides of the cabinet began bulging out, creating too much space for the shelves to rest on their little posts.



So shelves were held up by otherwise useless items like canned pumpkin, beets, and mustard :)

After having gone through a kitchen remodeling of our own last year (actually, it was mostly Adam- but I watched a lot!) I figured I could handle a simple cabinet replacement, right?!

Dad and I started the project on Wednesday with the fun stuff: demolition!





Then we took a trip to IKEA to pick out the cabinet, haul it home, and open it up to find a HUGE crack in one side and several parts missing! So the next morning, we went back, replaced the side, got more parts, and picked out a new set of doors (that matched a little better) and got started.

After borrowing a drill from an unknown neighbor, the project moved along relatively quickly and I finished it that evening!





Mom was very excited about the fully extending drawers!



Now they are all organized and ready to cook!



We never could find a level in all of Dad's tools, so the level checking was performed using a cup of water (very technical!) Somehow it turned out ok, i think!

And I made a measurement error in the beginning that could have beed distasterous, but somehow the cabinet (larger than the original) and the space it went in ending up matching perfectly so it didn't have to stick out from the wall! (it was a very tight fit!)





Mom and Dad- thanks for letting me do this! I know you were terrified that I wouldn't finish in time and that'd I'd leave the project half done and the house a mess (I thought all that too!), but thankfully God worked it all out!
=)

Tuesday, November 11, 2008

sleepless in seattle

2 weekends ago we took a quick 48 hour trip out to Washington. Adam's parents hosted a reception for his brother and new bride.





And by "hosted" I mean pretty much did EVERYTHING with the help of their church.





Dad grilled 2 kinds of fresh cedar-planked salmon, marinated maple pork, sun-dried tomato asiago pasta with chicken, gourmet macaroni and cheese, and garlic Parmesan bread enough for 150 people.



All that in addition to 2 appetizers, a salad, green beans, and about a dozen different choices of desserts rounded out a full course of delicious food!



Mom was in charge of decorating the hall and setting all the tables and it looked fabulous. Pastor Tito spoke, and we watched a couple slideshows and a video clip of the wedding.



It was Halloween night, so a few were decked out in costume.





Amy prepared some cute wedding-themed coloring pages for the kids to work on. I made little fall-themed treat bags for the kids to collect Halloween candy.







The next day, we took a couple ferries up to Seattle for the day, had yummy steak at Ruth's Chris, then flew out that night. Despite the little sleep we got, it was a great time of catching up with family and friends and celebrating Aaron and Anna's wedding again.

Sunday, November 9, 2008

missed

"missed" has two meanings in this post.
The first is that Adam missed me while he was in Germany last week.
{And I missed him!}



He has actually been traveling for work A LOT lately which stinks.



But he's so sweet- he'll usually do something special for me like send flowers or bring home some yummy way-better-than-American chocolate. :D



Thank you soooo much, hun! I appreciate it more than you know. :*)

The other meaning is that I *missed* blogging his birthday way back in August (for which he was in Germany as well)



GASP! How awful of me! How could I?!?!



So Adam, Happy Birthday!!
Please forgive me and know that I love you non-stop all year round!

Sunday, November 2, 2008

Carly's aunt

Happy Birthday Carly!!



You are such a sweet, thoughful girl, so much like your mom!



I remember what an adorable flower girl you were in our wedding!
And you've grown so much since then.



I love it when we can where the same outfits!! We'll have to try and do that again at Thanksgiviging :)



And here's a little video of you and your cousins last year in San Antonio.



I can't wait for us to be together again- 3 more weeks!!
We love you very much,

Love Aunt Betsy and Uncle Adam