Unexpected Visitor

Okay, so it's 8:15 AM and Stephen and Amber are over to the house.  They were supposed to be here at 9 AM because we were all going over to her parents house to do yard work in preparation for the wedding on Friday.  They tell me to sit down.  Well, here it comes from me being concerned over possible rain and no tents ordered.  You'd think I'd learn to mind my own business.

Amber hands me this gift wrapped "jewelry sized" box.  I open it and see this.



I said, "I don't get it."  I'm still thinking what's this got to do with a tent.  She says, look at the paper.
This is what I see.



Am I an airhead or what?  No, I had to flip it over.



Yes, not only did we have an unexpected visit from Amber and Stephen because those that know them know they are rarely on time, nor are they early birds!  But the big unexpected visitor is Baby Rando due July 1, 2015!!!

Amber says, "after all the stink at the Bridal shower about breaking ribbons, which I didn't break one, I thought you'd instantly know what the broken ribbon stood for."  Boy did I feel like a ditz.  I should have, but my mind was elsewhere...wedding preparations!!  I am excited though and it will show once they are married. :)

Thanksgiving 2014 (edit)

Yesterday, we had the privilege of going to my niece Elizabeth's house in Lakeland for our Thanksgiving celebration.  With Michael and Valerie in Wisconsin, and Stephen and Amber having to work, we were grateful to have an invite so it just wouldn't be the two of us.  I love being around loved ones whether it's a holiday or not.  Having the opportunity to connect with extended family was a nice change of pace.

What a fun time we had!  There was quite a crowd of all families, both from Liz's side and Vince's family.  We traveled from around the state, and Vince's parents and sister traveled in from NC.

Liz and Vince have a beautiful home.  It's large enough to host LARGE family events.  I am looking forward to many more!  They have a perfect location.  It's easy to get to whether traveling from Orlando, Clearwater, Winter Haven, or wherever!


While waiting for all guests to arrive and dinner to be served, we occupied our time taking advantage of the Florida sunshine.  We had 2 days of rain and were glad it left leaving a beautiful Thanksgiving Day.  In Orlando, we had received 7 1/2 inches of rain in 24 hours!

Morgan, Vince's sister, is helping Braydon, my grand nephew, golf.



Krista pitched to Jake.  He is a natural!  I wasn't paying attention and got smacked by one of his line drives!



When Liz sends me the group photo taken in the backyard, I'll post an updated "edit".

Here we go.  That didn't take Liz long to get the photo to me! Thanks!



From left to right, going up and down..Annabelle, Margaret, Gregg, Krista, Grandpa Harty, Morgan, Jake, Barbara, Pete, Elizabeth, Vincent with Braydon, Trish, Jill, Vicky, Clif, Sharon, and Bill.

Jill with her kids Annabelle and Jake.



Liz, Vince, and Morgan



Everyone brought something to the table.  There was tons of good food.



We were satisfied after stuffing our tummies. From left to right: Grandpa Harty, Sharon, Clif, Pete, Vicky, and Krista.



 Then we got a great idea to watch the Villafrancas on Family Feud. Liz, Vince, Bill, Sharon, and Morgan had the privilege of being on the show last year.  They won!  When they tried to defend their championship, unfortunately, they lost.  Vince freeze framed the second episode as "bad" answers were given so we could see up close and personal the expressions each family member had.  Oh My Gosh, what laughter abounded!  I haven't laughed that hard in a LONG time.  Bill was a good sport because most of the laughter was at his expense.  Thanks Bill. :)  After burning a few calories from laughter, we had dessert.  Lots to choose from here as well.



What a wonderful day.  We have lots to be thankful for: family, extended family, families brought together through marriage, abundance of food and provisions, transportation to get us to our loved ones, God our Creator who provides us with all these blessings! I  am grateful for all the blessings we have been given.  Hope you all had a blessed Thanksgiving as well. :)

Cookie Bake 2014

We had our annual Cookie Bake weekend a little earlier than usual this year.  We were excited to have our cousin Susan join us from Minneapolis!  She came in early and had already started baking some of her cookies before the rest of us arrived.  But Saturday was still busy just the same.



Not only did we bake this year, but it was decided because it wasn't even Thanksgiving, we needed to have peppy rock and roll music to motivate us along.  Well, I wasn't exactly prepared for that, but I did happen to have my MP3 player along with the cord to attach it to the CD player.  I'm not exactly a Rock n Roll or Hip Hop kind of girl.  Instead, we listened to traditional party music along with the Beach Boys.  This lead to dancing while cooking!

Sandra and Michele are doing the Electric Slide.



Michele and Susan are just jamming to the music, and having a whooping good time! :)



We were singing along with songs like Celebration, We Are Family, It's Raining Men, just to name a few.



Diane and Nereida are sampling the cookies.



Michele set the table early for our Saturday evening dinner.



The cookies are done.  We sampled them all.  Yep, they all are delicious!



Susan and Diane.



Susan, Diane, and Michele.



Susan and I.



Sandra, Michele, and Nereida making last minute dinner preparations.



The appetizer.



The dessert.



And yes, I forgot to take a picture of the entrée! We had salad, garlic bread, beef tenderloin, green beans, and roasted potatoes.  It tasted better then in a restaurant.  You are all such good cooks.  Good thing I didn't cook anything or it would have been burnt!  Instead I got a picture of us gathered around the table.



Usually we get a group shot in front of the Christmas tree.  This year, we decided to mix it up, and do it in front of the fireplace. 



Next up, the gift exchange.



We each got an electric candle like the ones on the dining table.  Go back and look.  They are so realistic, and we have always commented on these the past couple years.  We were excited to each get one ourselves.  We also got a caroler to add to our collections.



Aunt LaDon also received quite a few nice gifts.



Sunday morning we went to the Chapel Service and praised the Lord along with Aunt LaDon.  Afterwards, she treated us to brunch at the clubhouse.



We had a fabulous weekend.  Thanks for your hospitality Aunt LaDon.  It was much fun spending treasured time with family!

Amber's Bridal Shower (edited)

Saturday, November 8th was Amber's Bridal Shower put on by her sister Ashley.  A fun time was had by all.

We started slow getting acquainted and taking pictures before the festivities began.






There were going to be many games to play and prizes to win!









The Miller Clan had arrived.  Myself along with Vicky, Sandra, Amber, Elizabeth, and Diane.



Maid of Honor: Ashley.  Bridesmaid: Meka.



Amber and her mom, Lisa.



Amber with her many moms.



First game was to "Think Like the Bride".  I was shocked that Diane and Vicky tied with Amber's mom, Lisa.  They each had scored 13 correct out of 15.  Wow, I'm impressed!




Next up was to dress your partner in a bridal dress using toilet paper.  Lots of laughs during this activity. :)

Lisa is dressing Meka.



I'm dressing Sandra.





Vicky's dressing Elizabeth.







Mary is dressing Ashley.



Markie is dressing Diane.







There is some stiff competition going on.   Sandra even has a bouquet!
...And the winner is.....SANDRA!



Such a lovely bridal show presented by their lovely bridal designers!















What's a shower without opening the gifts?



We reminded Amber that any ribbon that is broken is how many kids she'll have.  I was disappointed.  She didn't break any ribbon!









She got a variety of gifts.  She'll definitely have a fully stocked kitchen. :)

Markie was in charge of making her bouquet for the rehearsal.  I think he had more fun dressing himself up!  I tried to get a picture with their eyes open, but they were just laughing too hard!!!





One last photo op before our departure.




I have to admit that even though AMBER was the GUEST OF HONOR, Markie was the life of the party!  I can't wait until the wedding.  Thanks Ashley for doing such a great job.  We had a blast at the shower.  I can only imagine how much fun we'll have celebrating the union between Stephen and Amber.  Congratulations!