Grandma's 70th Surprise Birthday Party

Nick and I made it safely to Iowa Saturday. We got up at 4 am and left Houston by 4:45. We arrived at my parents house at 9:30 pm. We were so anxious to get out of the car and walk. It felt so good to be home again.

This is a picture of Nick and I before we left for the party.

My Grandma's surprise birthday party was Sunday. We had her brother call to ask her if she wanted to meet them at Pizza Ranch in Fairfield to eat lunch. She didn't think anything of it because they do that every now and then. The rest of us got there before her and hid in the party room.

Daley, me, and Bailey just waiting on Grandma to arrive at the party.

She came in and was surprised to see everyone and realized what was going on. Then someone (I can't remember who it was exactly) said "And here is the other surprise!" That's when I came out from behind everyone else and she got all teary eyed. :) It turned out to be a great surprise. She had no idea that Nick and I were going to be there and neither did my Great Grandma Dyson.

Grandma Betty on the left, and G. Grandma Dyson on the right when they first came in.

Grandma and I hugging

So the party turned out to be a great success! We had a great time eating some delicious food, and having great conversation. It felt so good to be with family again. I always miss the small things and even the big things, so I felt blessed to be a part of this get together. I'm looking forward to some Thanksgiving fun later this week! :)

Fried Chicken

Tonight for dinner, Nick and I cooked fried chicken. I made it a few weeks ago and I did not put enough seasonings in it so it was very blah tasting. Tonight, Nick added in a whole bunch of different types of seasoning. I fried it up in a pan with just a little bit of oil. Oh my goodness, it looked beautiful cooking in the pan! It turned a nice golden brown. The true test was in eating it. I took the first bite and it was so delicious!! I LOVED it! I think it tastes just about like KFC's chicken. So good....we didn't write any recipe down, just added some stuff in so hopefully the next time we make it, it'll be just as good. I wish I had taken a picture o put on here. I realized today that I haven't added pictures in a long time, but I haven't taken any photos since the hurricane. I guess I've just been so busy that I haven't thought about using the camera for anything. I'm sure I'll be taking lots of photos over Thanksgiving break! Only 4 more days!!

Brrrrrrrr

I was informed today that I was turning into a Texas weeny by none other than Nick. haha Today was one of the coolest days down here this fall. It was in the lower 60's with a very strong, chilly breeze! I enjoyed it because I hate the hot and humid weather we get down here all summer. However, as we were shopping from store to store today, I realized I was shivering! I guess I will need to pull out my sweatshirts because it's supposed to be like this tomorrow and most of the week. It makes me excited because I love wearing sweatshirts but I never get to wear them down here. So yeah, I guess my blood is finally thinning out!

I am also thrilled that in only 1 week, we will be in Iowa!!! Nick and I are over joyed at going on a week long vacation to see my family. The next two months are going to be wonderful because we will be seeing so much family! This fall I have started to realize just how much I miss being there for all of the little things. The other day, my niece called me when I was working after school late, and I had tears in my eyes because it was so good to hear her sweet, angelic voice. I also got to talk to Natalie and I heard Lindsey crying in the background. I hate missing them grow up! That is only three of some of the precious little ones I am missing. I have so many cousins and of course, I miss all of our families!! It wont be long until we see all of them again at Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Wow! What an exhausting week. I feel like I'm never going to catch up at school. There is so much to do, I will never be done! I hate that feeling, but it's a reality and I just have to let some of that stuff go. I stayed late everynight this past week. Thursday I hade open house at school and stayed there until 7:15. Nick has also been really busy. He took on an extra position at work. He works with students who are struggling or at risk of failing the TAKS test. He stays after school 3 days a week and tutors several 6th graders. It's a nice extra income.

We are looking forward to Thanksgiving break more and more everyday! It's only 2 weeks away and what a thrill it will be to see everyone! I'm not looking forward to the drive, but of course, it'll be well worth it.

We have a new pastor at church and last week was his first week there. It was a good service. We also found out last week that our church found a building to meet in. We've been meeting in an elementary school. Every Sunday we have to set everything up and then tear it down. It's a lot of work. We are all looking forward to having our own building to meet in. God has really blessed our church body!

Well, it's Saturday, and I'm ready to relax and get stuff done at the same time.