Drumroll please...

...Pics of our new house!

So we'll start with the study. Here's our desk that I hate and is all set up for business. The only business we really do is pay bills! (and blog)

View out our study onto the street.
Bulletin board hung in our study, looking out the the entry way. I made that board! (Impressed?) It's just a corkboard bulletin board from Office Depot covered in duck canvas and secured with some upholstery tacks. Carla see the pic from New Years? Red dress = red drink!


Formal living room. Like all the furniture?!?

In the hallway looking at the front door - the pumpkin is a ceramic that my Grandma made. My mom gave it to me to keep. :)

Hallway looking towards the back of the house with the formal living room on the right.

One more hallway shot so I could take a pic of the mirror. Katie, Kellie - remember this mirror from our trip to WalMart after we got the house on 6th St? We had to stay in the store for a tornado and watched everybody steal stuff once they said we could leave. Code Black!

Kitchen shot. I've got Katie's spoon holder from Italy there on the right. Gas stove = LOVE IT. I plan on putting some drawer pulls and hardware on all the cabinetry later on. Like the Tech towel? Still undefeated! Anyone catch the game today? We KILLED Kansas. Poor things it was their homecoming and we whooped on them big time 63-21. RAIDER POWER!

Kitchen sink - like our curtain? I MADE that. Yes yes... I can sew... only if my mom threads the sewing machine. (It's complicated!!)

Shot of the kitchen with the island. Look at all that granite.... LOVE IT!

One of our new buys - our refrigerator. And the wine tower that my mom and I put together the day I witnessed bank robbers running down the street at our old apartment.

Dining area - with the custom seat covers we did. I'm going to scream the day someone spills something on them. WHITE and blue - what was I thinking?

Looking at the backyard - don't worry the desert is going to disappear - we're getting sod on Monday.

Blake watching the Texas OSU game. We wanted OSU to win - what a disappointment. Dang Texas is still #1 - we play them next weekend in Lubbock. I still need to get curtains for that window in the background... it's the weirdest size!

Blake's pride and joy - his flat screen. Our fireplace is gas with those fake logs and you can light it with a remote. FANCY! BABE MAGNET!

Back porch - complete with hookup in the upper corner for cable. Someday... Like the rug? It's made from recycled flip flops! :) I love it but Blake thinking its hideous.

Backyard from the back porch.

We moved that maple on the left from the front yard ALL BY OURSELVES. I know you're impressed. I can't take credit for digging the hole tho - that was all B Roder's work. The spray paint on the ground is where Blake has mapped out his ginormous garden he's planning on. Homegrown tomatoes = YUM.

Love love love all our trees! Hopefully they stay away from the house next hurricane!

Our bathroom - nothing special. I have been taking lots of baths!

Bedroom - if this were cribs - "This is where all the magic happens."

The curtains are brown velvet and block ALL the sun out - awesome for sleeping in.

This shot is for Chris - remember this dresser Chris? (It used to be Blake's brother's and it has to be at least 30 yrs old.)

One of the extra bedrooms - I haven't decided what I'm going to do with the curtains. I might sew them like the one's in the kitchen.

The 'childrens retreat' aka the room where I'm storing everything that needs to be hung on a wall or needs to be put someplace.

Other bedroom = storage room.

Bathroom

Laundry room

Shot of the key holders Carol gave us.
Front yard - flowers I need to plant and the ceramic tiles I painted!

Blake in 'HIS' garage. About to fire up his backpack blower.

Front porch. A must for Blake.

Our home!! Still lots of work to do, furniture to buy, etc but this is where we're at now!

Texas Tech v the aggies

Last weekend Christy's parents were nice enough to lend us their 43' long trailer so we could tailgate in HIGH STYLE at the ATM v Tech game in College Station. In case ya'll missed it Tech KILLED the ags 43-25. Awesome game!

Their trailer is sick - we slept 7 comfortably, had dish network, hot water, stove, oven, microwave, hot tub, etc. (JK no hot tub.) Mike, Beth - Thanks again for letting us borrow it!

Before the game Lauren, Stacy, Laura, Kellie, Haley and Whitney all came to our tailgate. Too bad it was an 11 am game - no time for serious tailgating!
More tailgate before the game!
Jeffifer and Andy all spent the night Friday night.
Kyle field - it's BIG!
After the game - look at all those disappointed aggies. RAIDER! POWER!
CrasonOne of our tailgating neighbors Mike who played some good tunes. The guy behind him throwing the football is about to have his ball stolen from Christy. She REGULATED on them after they hit the trailer one too many times. So now we have a football with some sorority's letters on it. HaChris and Stephen Janacek stopped by after the game. Stephen is a senior at Stafford this year and is ranked #1 in his class. He wants to major in mechanical engineering so he's looking into going to ATM (both his parents are ags). Christy's bro Christopher and his gf Ashley
Blake riding Christy's nephew's little 50 cc dirt bike. Perfect for quick trips to the port a potty!

Using a Tech flag as a cape - how cute. Looks like he should be on an episode of Jackass doesn't he?

Our tailgate, complete with washer boards. Some boys tried to challenge Blake and Andy and walked away with their tail between their legs after they lost... three times in a row.

Tailgater in the making.
GO TECH!
Christy's sister Tiffany and her hubby Brian - they had a looooooot of fun at the Dixie Chicken. :)

Good times friends! Tech is still undefeated. GOOOOOOO TECH!

We are connected!

Can you hear me now? How about now?

We have internet, cable and a phone line! Adios to the dark ages!

You can reach us at 281.458.4904 - call us just so our phone rings! Or leave us a message! I'm way pumped about having a phone line, can you tell? :)

And our address for anyone that needs it:

7027 Sanders Hill Lane

Humble, Texas 77396

Pictures coming soon to a blog near you... LISA!

October Birthdays

Happy Birthday to some of our friends and fam that celebrate(d) their birthday's in October!









My Uncle Richard turned 35 October 8. Doesn't he look great for his age? We all went out to eat at San Lorenzo, a Mexican restaurant down in the Kemah area the Saturday before his birthday. It was a surprise dinner and Lisa brought him to the restaurant and he had no idea - when he walked out on the patio SURPRISE! He said in all 35 years of his life he's never had a surprise birthday party. :)



We got the waiters at the restaurant to sing to him - so here's a pic of them smearing his face with whip cream! I guess it's tradition when you go there for your birthday. I know where I'm never going for my birthday!


Hannah Helfert turned 8 this month! What a smarty pants! Shannon sent us pictures from her birthday party and it looked like Hannah and her friends had a great time at a pumpkin patch near their home.

Shannon (Blake's sister), her hubby Joe, and their three kiddos Hannah, Britton and Charlie all live far far away in Baltimore. Here are the three of them playing in the waves on a recent fam trip to Bethany Beach.

We don't see them nearly enough and Blake and I keep saying we need to make a trip out there. We'll get around to it one of these days!

Chris (Blake's bro) turns 41 this month. Here's a pic from his 40th Birthday/Halloween Bash from last year. FUN. L to R Carol as the Queen of Mean, Linda as Border Patrol, Chris as GI Joe (?) Blake and I as Dog and Beth the Bounty Hunters (yes those are real) and Gia as a princess. You're going to have a hard time topping that this year!

Cheryl Brashear (Blake's aunt) celebrated her bday on Oct 11. Here she is leading us in prayer at our wedding. She always has the right words to say - never a dry eye. Cheryl sent us the cutest fall-themed 'Welcome' sign and pumpkin scented candle for our new home. Always so thoughtful!

Erin Hurrle, now Balmert, celebrates Oct 19! Erin and I became BFFs during nursing school and now she lives 'far far away' in Seattle! (Jealous.) She works as a labor and delivery nurse and delivers little babes into this world. Here's a pic of how gorgeous she was at her wedding - and this pic showcases her true personality. :) Miss you Erin!

Travis Stickle (Katie Tacl's boyfriend) is another year older this month also. 'Trav' - his nickname given to him by Mary Foley - Katie, and Maddie all just moved into a new home they built in San Antonio and they're having a great time painting and wall mounting flat screens. The pic above is Katie and Trav aka Summer and Billy Bob at a white trash party we had one night in Lubbock.

Jill Westmoreland, one of Blake's close friends from high school, is a new mom to her baby girl Elizabeth Jean and they call her Ellie (isn't that sweet?) and her birthday is coming up on October 25. Jill and her husband Bradley live in the cutest house near Chris and Linda outside of Austin. I'm sure little Ellie is keeping her busy these days!

Is that a hula hoop?!? Here's Katherine Tomasi celebrating her birthday this past Saturday - she flew in from New York City (she's real big shot now) to party down with all her Houstonian friends. They're was a cute one of Tomasi by herself but I had to use this one so Lauren wouldn't feel left out. haha Love you girls!!

OMG I almost forgot! The mom of one of sweetest little ladies I know. HA! Christy's Mom BETH turned 35 also this past Saturday! She and Richard are the same age! Seriously BETH is a hoot to hang out with and her FWD: FWD: Fwd: fwd: emails always crack me up. :) Love you BETH!

Beth: I promise that I will only call you Liz maybe 2 more times. I looked back on this post and called you Beth and Liz in the same paragraph! Ahhh...

And me! HAHAHA! You didn't think I'd leave myself out did you!?! Happy birthday to me!! What a classy bride with my beer!!!!!

no comcasts aka the dark ages

So I'm at work right now writing this...

...bad I know but all my patients are fine. :)

So we've moved into the house and are busy settling in and making it our own. We're ready for neighbors tho - we're only 1 of maybe 3 families living on our street!

We'll have to think of having a house warming party soon!

And once Comcast comes to set up our internet I'll put up pics and get back to posting more often.

We're off to College Station this weekend to watch the Red Raiders WRECK those aggies!

Raider! Power!

Here's to you Mr Hurricane Ike Survivor!

(You have to sing the title like all the Budweiser commercials.)

My mom's friend Suzanne sent me this and I thought it was great.

PS- Blake and I have power since Sunday night and we are back in our apartment. Woo hoo! Set to close on our home still on Monday so I might be a little MIA for a while!

MANDATORY EVACUATION 1 1/2 oz. Absolute Ruby Red vodka 1/2 oz.vermouth Clamato Prune juice Combine vodka and vermouth in cocktail glass. Fill remainder of glass with equal parts clamato and prune juice. Stir. Drink. Ask next-door neighbor whose ficus tree blew over and crashed onto your roof - even though you'd warned him for months to uproot it - if you can use his bathroom. Repeat.

CATEGORY 5 1/2 oz. vodka 1/2 oz. tequila 1/2 oz. rum 1/2 oz. bourbon 1/2 oz. gin Sweet-and-sour mix Splash of fruit juice Combine vodka, tequila, rum, bourbon and gin in a tall glass. Fill remainder of glass with sweet-and-sour mix and splash of juice. Stir, then garnish with an inverted drink umbrella. Drink during peak storm hours, and vow not to believe anyone who tries to tell you the hurricane that flooded your garage and destroyed your shed was just a Category 1.

CONE OF PROBABILITY 1 oz. cinnamon schnapps 1 sugar cone Pour the schnapps into the sugar cone. Every time you hear a TV weatherman say, "cone of probability," bite off the end of the cone and down the shot. If you hear Jim Cantore say it, drink two shots consecutively. (they should change this to the "Cantore Zone"... damn him. Have you ever noticed that, despite all the cone of probability talk, if Cantore is parked in front of your house your ass is toast?)

FEEDER BAND 2 oz. Midori 2 oz. rum 1 scoop vanilla ice cream After your home loses power, combine Midori and rum in a cocktail glass. Add a scoop of the vanilla ice cream that is melting in you r freezer. Stir, and drink through a straw.

BEACH EROSION 1 1/2 oz. Goldschloger 1 1/2 oz. apple brandy 1 pack Sugar in the Raw Combine Goldschloger, apple brandy and sugar in cocktail glass. As you drink, seriously contemplate moving your Yankee ass back to Wisconsin where it belongs.

DOWNED POWER LINE 1 1/2 oz. rum 5 oz. Jolt Cola Combine ingredients in a cocktail glass. Drink while trying to figure out how the heck you're supposed to go two freakin' weeks without television and AC.

FLOOD ZONE 2 oz. Kahlua 2 oz. Baileys Irish cream 4 oz. rum Serve in a 6-ounce g lass and laugh-cry deliriously as the mess spills all over the countertop.

COLD SHOWER 2 oz. Blue Aftershock 4 oz. Sprite Combine in a cocktail glass with crushed ice you received after waiting in line for three hours at a mall parking lot. Take a deep breath, sip and scream like a little girl when the cold beverage hits your tongue. Repeat.

LOOTERS WILL BE SHOT 1 oz. Jack Daniel's Splash of sarsaparilla Rock salt Load both barrels of a shotgun with rock salt. Climb to the roof of your house with gun, bottle of Jack Daniel's and can of sarsaparilla. Fill shot glass with Jack and splash of sarsaparilla. Watch for looters. When you spot one, blast his ass with rock salt. Drink shot. Repeat.

THE CHAIN SAW 1 oz. Goldschlager 1 oz. Rumplemintz 3 oz. Jim Beam Splash of vermouth Combine Goldschloger, Rumplemintz and Jim Beam in an empty soup can. Add splash of vermouth. Drink. Remove chain saw from garage and attempt to cut up fallen tree limbs in yard. Ask neighbor to drive you to hospital when it all goes horribly wrong.

FOUR-WAY STOP 1 1/2 oz. vodka 1 1/2 oz. vodka and Midori 1 1/2 oz. vodka and Galliano 1 1/2 oz. vodka and grenadine Pour each ingredient into a separate shot glass. Serve one to yourself and three other people. The person with the clear shot of vodka drinks first. The person to his right drinks the Midori shot, and so on. If somebody drinks out of order, develop a quick case of road rage and beat the living crap out of him.

BLUE TARP 1 1/2 oz. Curacao 2 oz. pineapple juice Splash of lime Combine ingredients in a leaky paper cup and serve. Wait six to eight months for someone to repair the cup. If you're impatient, hire an unlicensed , out-of-state contractor to do the job for an exorbitant sum and pray he doesn't hurt himself in the process.

FEMA FIZZLE 1oz. Southern Comfort 2 oz. sloe gin Tonic water One week after the storm has passed and your neighborhood is still in ruins with no sign of help on the way, combine Southern Comfort and gin in a cocktail glass. Fill remainder with tonic and add a dash of Angostura bitters. Serve with a nut brownie. Before drinking, raise the glass and say the toast, "Doing a helluva job".

I'll never take electricity for granted again

Well we are still without power! CenterPoint Energy's website has a link that tells people their projected date of electricity restoration and we're pretty low on the totum pole. :) Our leasing office has told us it might MIGHT be on on Friday. As in next Friday.

So thank god Carol and Charlie do have power bc that's where we're shacked up! Along with Pops and Lou also.

So quick update: our apartment had some water damage, not rising water, but for some reason our carpet and walls in our dining room were soaked. Hard to tell what happened bc neither of us were there when the storm hit but oh well! We've told our office about it and don't have to worry about those repairs.

Our house in Fall Creek? Not so lucky. A pine tree in the vacant lot next to us decided to rest itself on our roof. So it went thru the roof and caused some structural damage to the roof and water damage to the walls inside. But on Monday when we went out to go look at it - we weren't there 5 mins and someone with David Weekley came out to look at the damage also. They said they'll have it fixed for us to close on Sep 29!

So we had damage and still don't have power but we're not hurting by any means. In fact - as I type Blake is getting ready to leave with his dad to go hunting, and I"m about to get packed up to escape to the Jacobson's river house!

Have a wonderful weekend everyone. Our love to all that are still without power - hopefully you'll get it back this weekend!

Ike update -

So it's Sunday and I'm praying PRAYING that everyone that's SUPPOSED to come in tomorrow shows their happy faces at work!

MD Anderson has officially activated the 'recovery' team so I only have to sleep up here one more night and come to work at 7 and wait for the other team to relieve me. I'll be one unhappy camper if no one comes in.

Mom and Dad are home with electricity and have their home all cleaned up. Jason and Christy are with them until Jason's APT has power.

Charol and Charlie's house, Pops house, and our APT still have no power but they're ok except for fence damage and downed trees.

We don't know about the new house. :/

Blake, Carol, Charlie and Pops will continue to stay at the Marriot until their homes have power.

That's all folks!!!