It's almost a new year...

Hola friends. :) Well, let's see...Tianna's bridal shower, that was hosted at our place, went well. It was good fellowship and the guests who arrived were wonderful. We all laughed, talked, laughed some more...fun times! :) I made that famous sherbet punch with Sierra Mist soda and lemon lime sherbet. Yum! Jay made his awesome homemade pizza as well as a delicious chocolate cake. Thankfully, Kayla arrived early to help us frost the cake followed by blue icing writing. Chocolate is always nice! Our awesome neighbor, Sarah Russo, came as well. Jake and Jay did the normal guy thing of playing Xbox and Guitar Hero in the game room. :) Tia received amazing gifts. My sister arrived a bit later with Jonathon, my niece, and youngest nephew. A full house of good times! :)

Jay and I opened our Christmas gifts together Christmas morning/afternoon after breakfast as we watched the Walt Disney Christmas Parade on television. We took pictures and I loved watching his reaction to each gift he was opening up. I received Mamma Mia and its soundtrack which I have gloriously watched 4 times now. lol We're both kids at heart! :) I recently went to go see "Yes Man" with Mandy and her beau, Adam. Hilarious movie with Jim Carey! lol I also saw "The Women" as a Blockbuster rental yesterday. Good movie....and they really mean it that it's for "just females" because there's not one male in the entire movie to prove the bond between women and their good friends. Chic flic! So, I've been catching up on movies during Winter break as well.

Jay and I have 1 more week of Winter break freedom and then its back to school. I start back at work as well as spring graduate classes the same week. Talk about reality! :) Friends, we hope y'all have had a great Christmas and have an awesome New Year's! God bless. :)

Christmas is almost here!

Shanna's wedding this past weekend was amazing! :) I was so excited for one of my great friends to get married and to such a down-to-earth person. Shanna and Matt are truly made for one another. I was honored to be Shanna's matron of honor and enjoyed every minute with her and her family. Ah...such a sweet wedding! I love good memories. :)

Pretty soon another good event will take place....Tianna's bridal shower this Saturday! :) I have most of the materials to prepare for it ready and still deciding on the "menu." I do know what we will have punch....good punch is always a must. :) Then, she gets married in January. How time flies! But always good things to look forward to each month thankfully. :)

Christmas is 3 days away...WOW! It seems like Christmas arrived ever so quickly this year. I just hope my Christmas break lasts a bit longer. lol I believe all teachers deserve a much needed break this Christmas. My spring classes for my Master's degree start back January 9th and I'm definitely not spending much on books this semester.

That's it for now, friends. Have a very, merry Christmas and God bless always. :)

One more week...

Yes! One more week until the doors of freedom are open to me after 2:45 on Friday, December 19th. In case you're wondering what I'm talking about.....school break! :) As a teacher, we do rightly deserve Christmas break. It's a time of relaxation and quietness.....no pencil shavings to have to pick up, no "she hit me/he hit me" tattles, sleeping in instead of waking up with the birds....ah! I can't wait! :)

Shanna's wedding is next week!!!! How exciting! I have her rehearsal to attend next Friday and then in her wedding on the 20th of this month. My how time flies. I'm so happy for her and fiance. It's always joyful when a close friend gets married and lets you share in their memorable experience. Christmas weddings are pretty as well. I feel like I'm in a snow globe and no one's "shaking" the fun out of it. It's quite beautiful this thing they call Winter. :)

Jason and I are in the midst of possibly planning a family trip, but we'll shall see. Christmas is so near and then on top of that, we have Tianna's bridal shower this month, too. Yay! :) Lots of fun, exciting events this month and they all center around Christmas break. Love it!

End of the semester...

So, we come to the end of the school semester...that is "college" semester for Jay and I. Jason finished his last exam yesterday and this weekend is my last fall semester weekend for graduate classes. I've turned in unit projects, papers, portfolios, online logs,...you name it. lol :) I'm relieved that the school work aspect has come to an end (for a few weeks at least), yet somewhat sad Christmas seems only a few days away. In other words, the holidays seem to be rushing by to me and that's sad to think about. Just think...Christmas is only 19 days away. That seems like such a small number, yet so near.

Now, don't get me wrong. I absolutely love holiday breaks! :) I guess what I'm trying to express is how much I don't like how "fast" those holiday breaks seem to fly by. I wish they crawled...so that I could experience the day more and take in all the relaxation I can. Oh, the trials and tribulations of being adults, right? lol :)

Shanna's wedding is two weeks away which is exciting! :) So, we have Christmas break and her wedding to look forward to. Plus, my sister-in-law is getting married in January. Another exciting event! :) I'm throwing a bridal shower for her and hoping it will be good fellowship for all. :) I do still have some Christmas shopping left to do. It seems that with working, school, and household duties...Christmas shopping has been put on the back burner for a few moments.

I hope everyone out there is enjoying the month of December and spending time with their friends and loved ones. :)

Yay for Black Friday sales! :)

Hello all! :) Jason and I had our first Thanksgiving together here at home. We cooked our first turkey together and of course, have tons of it left over. lol :) Then, we both woke up early on Friday morning around 3am to catch the Black Friday sales. I'm glad to have gotten the sales and discounts that I did 'cause gifts aren't cheap! lol I also called on the help of friends and family to help me out in my quest to find good gifts. :) Jay was the very first person in line at Target simply because we thought Target opened up at 5 instead of 6am. So, thankfully, he chilled out in the line with a book and Sarah Russo came up to chat it up, too. :) Walmart had its many "line cutters" and the color on my face rose when someone claimed that the last "gift" was theirs when I had been waiting in line for almost 2 hours. Thankfully, a new shipment arrived shortly after the first shipment ran out. Whew! :)

I've wrapped a good number of gifts and hopefully going shopping with my momma today to help her out in her Christmas shopping. I have tons of work due for my last fall graduate class (whoo hoo!) and lesson plans to complete for next week. I'm starting to count down for Christmas break already! lol Yesterday, I was also able to hang out with a good, ol' friend during her birthday and talk to other friends on the phone that I haven't been able to chat with in a long time due to classes and work.

All in all, Thanksgiving break served to be exciting, restful, and great. :) Jason's Christmas break is coming up soon which is awesome. 20 more days til mine! lol A longer break is much deserved this year! :) Hope y'all are doing well and take care! :)

November is here!

Hey all! :) It's Election day and I have a day off from work. Hooray! :) Jason and I voted earlier in the afternoon and received our free coffee from Starbucks after displaying our glorious "I voted" sticker. lol I'm now looking forward to Thanksgiving break this month. I have never wanted a holiday to come faster this school year. I care about my students, but a break is much deserved.

This past weekend I spent the entire Saturday with Shanna, her mom, and sisters looking for bridesmaid dresses for her upcoming wedding in December!! :) Jason and I are excited to attend her and Matt's wedding. Plus, we're hosting a bridal shower for her which will prove to be great fun and fellowship. :) The day before, Halloween, Jay and I attended the Halloween Gala at Greenville Tech with our costumes. We looked at different art pieces and even won some door prizes! (I never win those things!) :) The food there was great as well and tons of it was left over.

Graduate school is going well and I still love being around my classmates. I have tons of homework due very soon, so please pray about my procrastination. lol :) Jay is months closer to his music composition degree. We're excited about the holidays and finally being able to rest for more than just a day! :)

An October weekend...

Yay! It's a long weekend for me (arlene) since I have Monday off of work. :) It's always nice to have a restful, long weekend so that I can spend more time with family and friends....and catch up on schoolwork! lol Last night, we spent the evening at dinner with Jay's dad and it was a good night. The old dad was back! It was cool to laugh and remember old times without any weirdness. Not sure when we'll all hang out in the future, but at least yesterday went well and we all enjoyed the night. :)

I think I may have poison oak which stinks! I've never had it before and scratching my arms hurts so badly. But, hopefully I'll run to the pharmacy and grab every product that will relieve it soon without spending hundreds of buckaroos at the doctor for him or her to tell me "here's the prescription and call me in a week." It's crazy how you have to wait in a doctor's office for what seems like hours and then you're out in less than 10 minutes after a rather short consultation with the doctor. How bogus!

Jay and I are looking for any possible "fall festivals" happening in the community for people our age. We were talking earlier....is it so wrong to say "Halloween" in the south? lol It amazes me how if you say that in front of "some" fellow church goers, they think you got a one-way ticket to the lake of fire. We believe that Satan is evil and Christ is our only Savior. However, we don't think mentioning the word "Halloween" in an activity for kids is going to condemn. Some people act so paranoid or silly when it comes to that. We're not big on celebrating Halloween since we're adults, of course. But, for kids....it's candy time! They don't see it as "Oooo, I'm worshipping something bad." I wish some would grow up and lets kids be kids. Mentioning one word doesn't reflect your entire belief system. Crazy!

Friends, we love ya! Hope you're having a great weekend and God bless. :)

October is here....

Geez, I felt like I was stuck in September for the longest time. We're glad it's October. This weekend is Fall for Greenville....Yay! It's our favorite tradition to attend every year and it brings back good memories every time we go. We might attend an interesting Star Wars show happening this Saturday at Roper Mountain Science Center. Jay loves it and I've gotten somewhat into it (as long as Jay explains what's happening in each of its movies haha!).

I'm excited about Shanna's bridal shower coming up in November. I can't wait to start planning it out and getting things ready for it. Pretty soon December will be here and it will be her wedding day! Jay and I are excited about going. Shanna and Matt are two of our many awesome friends. :) Keep us updated on your good news! :)

Tia and Jake stopped by our humble abode and liked its layout. :) Hopefully, the four of us with Tina & the kids can hang out for the holidays since only a select portion of our family is uh, well....let's just leave it at that. haha! Well, nah...let's just spill. lol Think about it this way: Have you ever wished that you could hang out with older family, but not their "other half" because she's (did I say she? lol) a person who speaks her mind too much and nuts? lol My mama will probably help us out in the turkey department come Thanksgiving and we have ideas for our Christmas plans.

Let us know how you're doing. :) We're anxiously awaiting the holidays and mornings when we can sleep in for hours. lol Until next time and God bless, friends. :)

Long time!

It's been a long time since I last blogged. Do forgive me, friends. :) With starting graduate school and a stressful school year, blogging has been put on the back burner for a while. However, that does not mean I have lost my interest in it. Oh, never never. Nothing could keep me from expression. lol :) Jay and I have been married for almost four months now and married life continues to be wonderful for us. As cheesy as it sounds, communication truly serves to be the greatest aspect about our marriage and everyday it seems like we discover something new about one another. We keep growing and can't wait for new adventures to arise. Sweet! :)

As for the holidays....I can't believe they are just around the corner! I think it will be exciting to learn how to prepare my first Thanksgiving turkey dinner after years of observing older women in my life make it happen (thanks to mom and grandma!). Jay and I are eagerly waiting for the annual Fall for Greenville festival. We love being able to go every year to relax and try out new foods that they have. Plus, the variety of music is not too bad either. Christmas will definitely be interesting this year....and I'll leave it at that. haha! :)

I'll try to get better at posting because there are some out there who truly are similar to me...blog readers like no other. lol Just remember that I will continue to blog no matter what and if you need us....just call us. We only screen phone calls for those crazy telemarketers...and interrogative beings. hahaha!!! Love y'all and God bless.

Skeptical about Olympics...

So, my husband and I watched a good bit of the Olympics yesterday. Like some, we're definitely skeptical on the ages of those Chinese gymnasts. I swear at least three of those girls looked about 12 or 13. There is no way they were 16 or older. Absolutely no way! China sets the bar extremely high for young people....it's almost scary.

Well, at least we have a good number of gold medals in men's swimming. Setting that world record wasn't too shabby at all.

It's about dignity and respect...

It makes me sad to know that some people can go the limits to get what they want. Some would rather brown-nose or put up a front in front of someone to get information and still be on the safe side without doing any of the "dirty work." Have you ever ran into that type of person? It's the type of person that makes you believe that they are your friend and trust is not an issue. But, in reality, the person is hiding much more. It's a horrible feeling when you discover that some are just talking to you to figure out information that they are too scared to locate themselves.

That is why I absolutely love my husband. Jason is honest and respects himself. He would rather have dignity than to sink to low levels to be first in the race. I know that everything is secure with Jason whether it be a secret, information, or even what friends tell him. He will not sell out to get what he wants. He defends others and lets them know what's going on straight out. Jay doesn't try to play mind games to manipulate or use others. It's good to know that somewhere in this world there are people like this who want be respected and not feel guilt over their heads. I truly respect the people I'm friends with because they don't "put up a front." They say it like it is....AND in front of the person they are referring to.

As I said before, putting up a front is the worst thing you could do in front of other people. If you feel a certain way towards someone, talk to that person about it. Don't go around telling others how you feel and then act incredibly fake and sweet to the person you are having an issue with just because you're afraid something might happen to you or that you'll get nothing in the end. People are going to have a hard time trusting you if they know that you are a rat and crack at the first sign of knowing that nothing is in it for you.

That's just sad and nothing to be dignified about.

The start of August

Hello friends! We've just returned from a wedding in Gastonia, NC. The trip there and back home was smooth (thanks to God) and I think we actually got here in great time. Unpacking can be a burden sometimes, but when your spouse helps you....it's done so fast and efficiently! :) I'm still somewhat sleepy, so lounging around my humble abode all day today sounds good. This week, Shanna and I will hang out some time before school begins....Yay!! :) Our other good friend, Kayla, is at the beach enjoying good company and fun-in-the-sun.

As for my classroom, I still have some setting up to do in it, but I have definitely made a dent in "starting the school year." :) I'm just a little nervous about being the third grade representative for this school year, but I know I can do it with God's help. Jay and I are still hoping to find a home church to settle in. We thought we found one, but there's always kinks to work out. The pastor who helped us with our premarital counseling and marriage ceremony is absolutely an amazing person. He's down to earth and related so much to Jay & I.

Another week of freedom before our schooling and teaching starts up once again.... :)

July ending soon...

Well, here we are again. :) Our camping trip that we went on with a great group of friends was terrific! We had so much fun swimming, laughing, and much more. Memories about that camping trip will truly last forever. We have a weekend trip coming up to Gastonia, NC where Jay is playing the piano at a wedding. July flew by so fast and now we're trying to squeeze in all the relaxation and fun we can before August hits. It seems like that 3rd week in August will be chaotic with teaching starting back, graduate school starting, and Jay getting into full swing at NGU again. We saw the Dark Knight and Mamma Mia! recently which were both fantastic movies. On top of that, we got a free movie ticket with swiping our Regal Crown card (free advertisement there haha!) a bunch of times. It's always cool getting to see a movie for free. :)

Jay and I are an uncle and aunt to one niece and 2 nephews which is also pretty cool. It makes birthdays and holidays interesting when two young adults have a blast going to toy stores and toy aisles to find toddler gifts and end up buying Legos for themselves. lol :) What can we say? We're kids at heart and we like it that way. We wanted to go to the beach this summer, but hopefully we can go next summer. Our one day trip to north Myrtle Beach was for a few hours and didn't really count as a beach trip for us since fun-in-the-sun was the last thing on our minds on that scorching day. That is one day we wanted truly to be over before it even started. lol North Myrtle Beach can honestly stink with all the crowded, over-priced hotels. Now, Garden City Beach or places like it are pretty awesome to stay at if possible.

Let us know what you're up to and how your summer is going. :) Family and friends are one of the biggest blessings God could ever give us. Until next time... :)

The beginning of July...

Jay and I had a good time on July 4th. We went to Kayla's house for a cookout. It was a blast getting to talk to everybody and thankfully, there weren't any wild fireworks going off around the area. I'm all for watching pretty fireworks, but when you spend huge globs of money on them it's just not worth it. Previously, we went to Jay's dad's wedding at north Myrtle Beach the weekend before. The car trip was good for us! We packed a cooler with mini sodas and sandwiches and the time flew by. When we got to the beach, the weather was crazy hot and that sticky feeling came upon everyone standing there in the center of the sun. lol Surprisingly, no pictures were taken of Jay with his dad which weirded me out more than it did Jay. You think a dad would want a picture with his only son on his wedding day. You know, like a father-son sorta memory. But, different folks different strokes I guess.

Jay's still working hard and I finally had a teacher workshop to go to yesterday. It was pretty boring and not at all like it was described in the summer brochure. One down, two more to go. Our next adventure is a camping trip with a group of our fellow friends and it sounds super cool. We definitely can't wait for the memories and laughs. :) Jay also started drawing/painting again last week. I'll post some pictures of his work-in-progress soon. I'm so ready to start graduate school, I can taste it! lol I'm eager to get back into learning mode. Am I eager to go back to work in August? Hmm...I'll let ya know. I'm still in the "I like waking up late" phase of summer. lol

We wonder if anyone reads our blogs...so if you do, leave a comment if you can. It's greatly appreciated. :) If you can't leave a comment, it's probably because you need to start an account with blogspot.com. No worries. Take care and if you need us...you know how to contact us. :)

It matters...

With our changing society, lately there's a lot of people interested in learning a new language. And of course, since we're in South Carolina, that second language is typically Spanish. Now, I have no problem with those interested in learning a new language. I think it's great! :) It's a great way to communicate with new people and help others. However, it burns my cookies (or in other words, gets me so ticked) when people who major or minor in Spanish.....are the same kind of people who make fun of those who are Hispanic or of some Latino descent. Just because you learn Spanish or any other language, that does NOT make you an automatic expert on the culture or traditions originated with that specific language.

In addition, how can you translate for someone, yet in your mind have this "holier than thou" attitude towards them? I never understood how those people who learn a second language, turn right back around and treat those different than they are....as if they were not worthy or even human beings. And then on top of that, these "translators" act like they know the language better than a person who actually speaks it at home or to their own family. This isn't aimed towards those who learned a second language in college. No way! It's aimed to those people who bascially just want to "show off" a new language, but don't really know anything about it personally. A second language is a gift; it's not a way to make yourself seem better than others or to make more money.

Summer Update

Hey friends. :) We are fixing to head to Myrtle Beach soon for Jason's dad's wedding (a second Enos wedding!). I (Arlene) am starting to write music lyrics during my free time so that Jason can create songs with what I write. A "musical collaboration" is what Jason calls it and it has a nice ring to it, huh? :) Thankfully, our new home is actually starting to look like one now that we've found places to put our wedding gifts (thanks to all!) and Jay seems to enjoy his new game station quite a bit. :) The hardest thing for us is getting pictures mailed out to various family members....it's a long task! lol You would think that one would be enough, but family can be quite persistent in getting more than one wedding pose from their kids. :) We'd like to go visit family in New York some time, but we're not sure if this summer will be the season. Shanna and Matt came over last weekend which was fun! They're great company and we're excited about their wedding this December. Overall, summer keeps going well. We tried out the pool here and it's quite refreshing on these hot days that we're having. Give us a holla if you need us! God bless, friends. :)

Hopes for summer

Hey friends. :) I'm guessing that this summer, we hope to find a local church home. We keep church-hopping trying to figure out where God wants us to go. To be quite honest, it's hard to find a good church these days. If you are a college graduate, you still may end up in a college & career sunday school class with tons of high school seniors or early college freshmen who absolutely have no clue about the real world quite yet. lol Then, if you're married, you might end up in a class where you feel like you're in a walking funeral parlor because the people are celebrating their 80th wedding anniversary! lol Then, of course you have those mondo-huge churches that have about a million members and finding yourself in the church directory is like locating the smallest needle possible in a haystack. What are you to do?! :) And finally, you have those churches where you "used to go to regularly" but either the church created some sort of chaotic drama or it just simply wasn't making you feel like God was there. Our hope for summer is to find a church that has people around our age that we can relate to and that we can make tons of jokes with about those "other churches" that condemn you to Satan's abode due to not bringing a covered, casserole dish! haha lol :)

Our Wedding Party

I'm giving credit where it is truly due because our wedding party was AMAZING!

Matron of Honor: Lisa McClain
Maid of Honor: Christina Ramos (my sister)
Bridesmaids: Shanna Chambers, Mandy Ferguson, Kayla Frazier (these girls looked beautiful and have been the best friends any Bride could ask for!)

Best Man: Brian Russo
Groomsmen: Mike Barrieau, Seth Anderson, Raymond Alton Burgess, Jr., Zac Buser, Gregory Suits, Daniel Verdin

Flower Girl: Destiny Lopez (my niece)
Ring Bearer: Luis Solis (my cousin)

Musicians: Rebecca Bonas, Kolby Matson
Singers: Ashley Thibodeau, Anna Steele

THANK YOU so much to our wedding party!! You were all amazing and made our wedding day so awesome, fun, terrific....just simply OUTSTANDING! We love you all and when we get our home settled, we'll have another great time hanging out and eating! lol :)

Reedy River Family & Friends

I (Arlene) would personally like to thank those people from my old church home that attended our wedding and remained true to our wedding date. As some of you may not know, another wedding was planned AFTER our wedding was set, on the same day at another location in SC. Jay & I were engaged earlier than that couple; however, a similar wedding date came into play which saddened my heart.

Thank you: Mandy Ferguson, Steve & Debbie Ferguson, Marion Owens, Kayla Frazier for attending our wedding. You mean so much to us and your presence at our wedding was deeply appreciated and loved.

It's hard for a Bride to share a wedding date with whom someone she knows and shares mutual friends with. Friends and family are torn between which wedding to attend. I didn't want that. However, I thank everyone who was present at our wedding because my heart was full of joy and happiness to break down the wall of sadness on our wedding day. (Plus, looking into Jay's eyes as we were saying our vows to one another and his very own song being sung to us by Ashley and Anna definitely raised my spirits and made me thankful to God for everyone second that day). :)

Married! :)

Hey friends, we're finally married! :) After being engaged in September of 2007, Jay and I were married on May 24th, 2008. It was a great wedding and reception. The wedding was at LifeSpring Church in Simpsonville and the reception was held at the Greenville Shrine Club Ballroom. What made it great was our friends and family. We couldn't have done it without every single person that was there. Thank you so much! I was sad to know that some close friends and family couldn't make it, but I know they probably had other things to do that required more attention. I must admit: I was quite upset when I discovered another wedding during the same day as ours. I don't know if it was intentional or not by that couple. However, I hope this couple's wedding went smoothly and good. I didn't like the fact that some that were aware of our wedding first, dropped it like a hot potato to go to theirs. But, life must go on and so does ours.

I was so proud of Jay for making my real-flower bouquet on the morning of the wedding simply by looking at a picture that I liked. I can't wait to show y'all the photographer's pictures. Right now, I'm just using pics that people have tagged me in. I'll develop the table cameras soon, too. Thank you once again to everyone that was able to make it and for all the wonderful gifts! We appreciate them all! We're overwhelmed on where to put everything. lol We love y'all. God bless!

6 more days....

Hello friends. :) Soon, I will share this blog with my future husband, Jason (aka Jay). I'm excited that my wedding is just 6 days away. Hooray! :) I was saddened, though, to find out that some could not attend due to work or health problems. The best thing I predict that will happen to me during my wedding ceremony and reception (besides becoming Jay's wife!) is seeing family and friends that I haven't seen in a long time. I miss their humor and laughter. I'm already getting nervous jitters in my stomach due to all the excitement. I haven't been able to sleep due to it, but that's okay. lol :)

Fridays

Oh, the joyous feeling of welcoming Friday at the end of every long, work week. For some, it is a time to shop, hang out, and explore the wilds of South Carolina since waking up early is not required the following day. However, for me....it is a much desired time to sleep and rest. I chose a profession where my day begins at the crack of dawn and ends when the sky has turned dark. Oh, the sadness of not being able to see daylight sometimes when I scatter from my workplace. As some enjoy Friday, I adore my Saturdays. THIS is my time to hang out and cherish moments with my future husband, Jay and to explore the small variety of activities SC has to offer on the weekends that do not involve loud music, drunken souls, and irresponsible choices. Oh, to hear the ring of Saturday come as I wake (LATE) and take my sweet time getting things done. lol