West Palm Beach Visit

After a long week of studying and taking my boards, Josh and I headed south to visit his Aunt Gail, Uncle Jasper, Uncle Richard, Uncle Richard's work buddy, Cousin Lindsey, Lindsey's husband, and "Mama" (Uncle Jasper's mother). It was a full house! Four dogs, nine people, 18 hours of driving, lots of food, and two rounds of golf!

9 hours of driving each way- lots of conversations, good music, and fun adventures. We laughed until we cried when we discovered that the highway we were on had a windshield cleaner at the rest area. You drive in front of the spigot thing and it sprays water all over your windshield. Really, it's the little things in life! We also discovered some old mix cd's from when Josh and I first began dating and had a blast singing along.

Uncle Richard relaxing after a long week of work with "Jackson" (on the right) and "Bella" (on the left)

(Josh and "Bella")

"Mama" (Uncle Jasper's mom) arrived from CT on Saturday with lots of Italian goodies (here Josh and Uncle Richard are exploring homemade salami (I forget the correct name for it).

"Mama" holding deep fried eggplant (so good), Blanton (Uncle Richard's work buddy who lives with Aunt Gail and Uncle Jasper right now), Aunt Gail....confused yet??

"Mama" and Uncle Jasper

"Bianca"- too precious

The dogs and I...they are so beautiful!

Good old "Duke" and Aunt Gail

"Bianca" sure does like to sleep

Sisters- "Bella" and "Bianca"

looking at our wedding album

"Blanton" with a golf book, a club, and a beach themed bed after a long day of caddying for Payton Manning and his buddies

Aunt Gail and Uncle Richard (Brother and Sister)

Aunt Gail on the golf course

Josh and I cheesin on the golf course. I made an "almost hole in one" that turned out to be a par...I was excited (haha...don't ask how that works)

A Ping Pong Thanksgiving

Well, we're back from a "ping pong" Thanksgiving as we'd like to call it. As the pictures demonstrate, fun was had by all! We had fun spending time with both the Albright Family and the Gropp Family.


Dad Albright and Josh (Josh making breakfast and Dad testing his turkey thermometer)

Mom Albright making Apple Crumb Pies

Dad Albright getting the peanut oil ready to fry the turkey

Matt and his friend Scotty (they were only able to visit for a few hours from Maine, but it was still great to see them)


Dad Gropp with Professor Higgins and Eliza Doolittle in on a walk in the woods

Ben, Josh, and Heidi on a walk in the woods

Heids and I on the woods walk

Thanksgiving dinner at the Gropps (with the Caies, Owen-Smiths, Grandma and Grandad Gropp, and Marsha Jerritts from church as well)

Ben and Josh enjoying the fire while we decorate the tree

Steve and Eliza Doo'

Dad Gropp and Josh hanging the lights on the tree (it's funny to see a ladder next to the tree, as we never needed one with the artificial tree at Little Brook Road N.)

Grandma and Grandad Gropp taking it all in :)

Heidi in the balcony taking it all in!

Mom organizing the ornaments

Hanging some more ornaments

Mom Gropp hanging our stockings. Josh and I get to share this year ;) hehe

Higgins has some other plans for these ornaments :)...don't those belong outside???

Whew! That decorating is tough work...is it time for some cheese and crackers yet?

Nope...not yet :) hehe


After an 8 and a half hour ride from CT to Baltimore on Sunday, we are now in full gear for

MISSION EVERYTHING BUT IMPOSSIBLE

It was strange to return to our apartment last night and not have Edgar with us (no, he didn't die)- Mom Gropp graciously offered to care for him while we find a place in FL. Before we brought him to CT, we wanted him to feel like he was a part of this important life event, so we took some "Pre-moving" pics :)

What do you think he thinks of yet another move?

In his almost three year old lifetime, he has lived in 3 (soon to be 4) locations, has ridden on many screeching subways, trains, buses, cars, trucks, and has vacationed in many a location.

why Dad, why??????

"Our 1st Move"



Don't pack me up!!!

Thanks for visiting!

*Remember to click on the blue link at the bottom of the page if you are getting this message in an E-mail so that you can see the pics :)

Vacationland

Josh and I just got back from a quick, but wonderful weekend in Vacationland-Maine!.

We arrived in Portland on Thursday night (where his brother Matt lives) and hung around Portland until Matt was done with work Friday. Ironically we even fit in a lunch date with Mom G (as she was picking up her new Kayak in Freeport, ME that day).

Josh and I got a chance to see the base that Matt works at in Brunswick, ME Friday afternoon and met a few of his friends from his squadron as well.

After spending a few hours in Brunswick we made our way to Belfast, ME where Josh's Aunt Melinda and Uncle Daniel live. It was a mini reunion there, as Mom A and Gramma were also in Maine visiting!

The food was DELICIOUS as always and the company even better!


Here is a picture of a P-3 (the plane that Matt flies). Matt just got back from El Salvador where he and several members of his squadron made great progress in keeping drugs out of our country and others.

Spending time relaxing, reading, and looking up cars on the computer


It didn't take long for one of their friendly cats (Megan) to make herself comfy on our suitcase :)

Brotherly love...looking up dream cars together


Mom A and I (reading and studying)

After dinner shenanigans (pseudo swing dancing)




Who knows?

Uncle Daniel in the Kitchen


Uncle Daniel initiated dancing with Aunt Melinda after dinner and then we all took turns- he is quite the dancer if I do say so!

Gramma just couldn't keep her feet from dancing and taught Josh a few moves :)


Here is a video of Josh and Matt doing a "swing dancing" move....they should be gymnasts!

Thanks for visiting!

Fall in CT

Josh and I had the pleasure of spending Columbus Day weekend (apparently A.K.A. "Discoverer's Day" now) with my parents in CT. We celebrated my belated birthday, my brother Ben's birthday, and had a chance to see Steve, my cousin Jessie and her husband Fraser, Grandma and Grandad Gropp, Aunt Bonnie, and Uncle Bob.

It was a beautiful weekend! We managed to play tennis twice (yes, we feel like we've been run over by a truck, as it had been a long time since we last played) and golf once. We also fit in a few games of Quiddler, made some homemade pizza, and relaxed.

Edgar did not have the good fortune of coming along for the weekend getaway and left us many presents at home :)

Here are a few pictures of our weekend in CT. We are looking forward to a weekend in Maine visiting with Josh's family soon as well! Before we know it we will be in the Sunshine state.

Josh and I with the top of our wedding cake! We've been married for 4 months now (hard to believe how time flies) but we may not be in CT on our one year anniversary, so we celebrated eating the top of our wedding cake a bit early....it was DELICIOUS!

Ben with his birthday cake!

Josh peeling squash for Mom- he was so helpful in the kitchen this weekend with making pizzas and other food prep.

The dogs watching on hoping something would drop


Fall on the golf course

Two handsome men!

Josh and I on the golf course....yes, my golf push cart looks like stroller...half the time Josh dutifully pushes it and we had a man on the course approach us that day to say that he was getting himself in to a bad habit ;) he nicely replied that he enjoyed it (pushing my clubs for me)....as do I ;)