I have hope...

There is no doubt, history was made today. Barack Hussain Obama has taken the oath that 43 men took before him, a promise to faithfully execute the office of President of the United States. As the first African American president, he has an astounding level of support by American citizens, and with that comes an even more astounding level of expectations. Concerning the prominence of the United States, Obama stated in his inauguration speech that, “Greatness is never a given. It must be earned.” We, as a supporting nation, should hope that he takes his own advice, as he faces the challenges of leading our great nation.

But the success of any presidency also depends on the support of American citizens. I have hope… hope that the American people can unite behind our leader. There will be debates on his policies, as there is very little chance that anyone would ever agree with every single choice that any leader ever makes. But in the end, he is our leader, and I have hope that Democrats and Republicans, of all religions, skin tones, and gender, will stand behind our new leader and provide the support of a successful nation.

I have hope that those who booed Former President George W. Bush as he made his exit will come to appreciate how he kept our nation safe following the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

I have hope for those who claimed that upon Obama’s election they were planning to move to Canada… I have hope that they will unite with their fellow citizens and stand behind their nation’s leader.

I have hope that President Obama’s leadership will encourage a unity within our nation that has not been seen in years.

I have hope that, as individuals, we will take President Obama’s advice and “will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist.”

What a breathtaking, inspiring, sobering, and historical day.

New Year's 2009!

We had a very low-key (but very fun!) New Year's Eve with our good friends... The Carpenters! (No, don't start singing any songs... I'm talking about Larry and Morgan Carpenter!) Since I had to be a party pooper and get up for work the next morning, we planned on dinner at our very favorite pizza place in Macon (Ingleside Pizza- it's a necessary stop if you are ever coming through or visiting the area), a little cosmic bowling in Warner Robins, and then back to the Carpenter home for snacks and champagne (or beer for the guys) while watching the ball drop!

Larry's hand, Morgan and me at the bowling alley.

The Carpenters!

My husband's bowling moves.


Post-bowl reaction... gutter ball.

Morgan's post-bowl reaction- not good! :)

The Rays

Morgan and her bowling shoes that were so small they were velcro instead of lace-up! :)

Toasting the New Year with our peach bellinis!

We had a great time with great friends and can't wait to see what 2009 brings us!

Happy New Year everyone!

A little late... Newlywed Ray Christmas

Ok, so I am definitely behind on posting. I finally found the cord for our camera, so now I can upload our pictures! We forgot to bring the camera to Cartersville for the holidays :( , but I do have some shots from our mini-Christmas we had with just the two (well, three including Kitty Bug) of us before heading home!


This is a shot of our Holiday meal on a Saturday in December. We had both had a very grumpy week, so to break the funk we spent all day Saturday in the kitchen cooking some roast beef, potatoes and veggies. We even broke out the china for the first time!

In between meat checks, we put up some Christmas decorations and blasted the Christmas music. Kitty Bug was going wild wondering what the green stuff going up on the stairs was... I've never seen her do so many crazy zig-zags!



On Monday the 22nd, we decided to go ahead and have our own little Christmas. Andrew was off all week, so I thought he'd have fun playing with his new gift before we got on the road Wednesday. We didn't have a lot of extra money this year, so we decided to split up our wedding gift cards and get each other stuff off of our registry. I knew I would be very excited to get anything off of our registry, but Andrew would be a little less than enthused to open up plates or candles or bakeware! So, I cheated a little and combined all of our Wal-Mart gift cards to get him a new iPod Touch. I wrapped it up in a tiny box, and then put the tiny box on a big box and weighed it down with anything I could find (seriously, I used a glass blender, deviled egg trays, marbles... anything!). It was hilarious watching him pick up that box about 200 times a day trying to figure out what the heck I had gotten him... he probably thought it was a crockpot or something! Anyway, here's a shot of our tree and part of our fireplace... and Kitty Bug playing with a Christmas ornament! (Bad Kitty!)

And here is a shot of our Christmas treat table as we opened presents... hot chocolate with marshmallows (and maybe a lil' Bailey's), snowman cookies, and candy cane hershey kisses! YUM!
And we absolutely loved having our first Christmas tree in the house! It was not a happy occasion taking that puppy down this past weekend. But I am so excited to pick out another tree for next year! :) One last shot of our first tree:
We hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and a great ending to 2008!

Waaay behind in 2009!

New Year, same procrastination. I have some holiday photos that I could be posting, but I have to find the cord for the camera. I have basically been a slacker at this blogging thing! Trisha recruited me and I am letting her down! :)

I still can't believe it is already a new year! I was kind of sad at first, since 2008 was such a great year for us. But Andrew reminded me that the good things that happened in 2008 will still be here for 2009, only getting better and better as time goes on. It only takes a little for me to be reminded how much I love that guy... :)

So new house, new marriage, new traditions... prepare to get better as 2009 progresses! We have lots of big plans to make 2009 the best year of our lives! Let's get our paint brushes and tools together, vacation money saved, and work hard! I can't wait to see where it takes us.

We wish everyone a happy, healthy, and prosperous 2009!

Wii Fit is Fabulous!

On Tuesday, I got my Christmas present early from Andrew. I have been wanting Wii Fit since I saw the very first preview advertisement over a year ago... and it is finally hooked up in my living room!

Of course I tested it out as soon as I opened it. It took me through a few set-up questions and then it tested my balance, weighed me, and told me my BMI. After the balance test, it asked me, "Do you find yourself tripping a lot?" At that moment, I knew I would have NO problem staying motivated with my Wii Bully! :) Then I had to set my goals and select my trainer, and finally I could test out the exercises.

It separates the exercises into 4 categories: yoga, strength training, aerobics, and balance. I'm pretty much terrible at yoga (tripping a lot probably has something to do with it), strength training is painful (but that means it is working!), aerobics are fun and really make you work up a sweat (step aerobics are tricky for me, but I LOVE the hula-hooping!!!), and the balance games are hard but fun (my favorites are tight-rope walking and ski slalom). I'm trying to find the perfect way to balance the fun and pain. Last night I started with the running (ouch), did some strength training (more ouch), then did 5 balance games (don't trip!), and ended with super hula hooping! I'm telling you, that hula-hooping is the best calorie-burning exercise in the world! Then I redid the body test and somehow my BMI had gone up, but my balance was just a smidge better. The game also has 2-player running, so I'm hoping to get Andrew off the couch a couple times a week. ;) If not, maybe Morgan will come run with me!

One of the other things I love about this game is that it uses all of the Miis that have been created on your Wii. I've done step aerobics with my Ma and sister, bounced soccer balls of my head with Andrew as the referee, and even had my Pa leave me in the dust while running! It is so fun to see who is next to you or cheering you on (or kicking your butt!) on the screen!

If you have a Wii, definitely think about getting this game!

This past Sunday was my Sister-to-Be, Allie's, first bridal shower! She and Jake are getting married in less than two months, and we are so excited to have her (officially) be a part of the crazy Lalla family!

The cake, with little Allie & Jake snowmen:

Allie with her Mom and sisters:

Candid gift-opening shot... nice gift! ;)

Allie with her shower hostesses:


Ma, Aunt Patty and I had a great time being with Allie and her family. The hostesses planned some fun games... my Ma and I both left with prizes. I finally got to hear all of the plans Allie and her mom have been working on for the big day, and I can't wait to see it all come together! She picked out beautiful navy dresses with champagne sashes for her bridesmaids. And Jake, my Pa, Dan, Matt and Andrew are going to look very spiffy in their tuxes with navy vests. I can't believe there are only 60 more days!

Turkey Day 2008!

Andrew and I had a great Thanksgiving! We left Wednesday night when I got off work and stayed the night at Jake and Allie's new house. Their house is really nice, and we enjoyed staying up late watching StepBrothers and playing old school Super Mario on the Wii. We went to Andrew's parents' house Thanksgiving morning, and enjoyed the day with them watching the parade. I really enjoyed putting up Christmas decorations with my sisters-in-law, Mara and Anna... it was a blast! I always feel right at home with them and feel so lucky to have 2 additional sisters. Later in the day, we headed to my parents' house (when I finally remembered that I had my camera!) to enjoy some Turkey Dinner!

My Aunt Patty and My Ma... and Dan sneaking around in the background!

My Ma and Pa teamworking in the kitchen!

A shot of the family at dinner.

Precious Maddie waiting for her Turkey Dinner

My Pa's amazing homemade Toffee Crunch Cheesecake with a gingersnap crust... YUM!

Andrew, me and Kitty Bug in front of our Christmas tree this past weekend.

We missed out on seeing Andrew's extended family, but I'm hoping we'll make up for it when we head to Lake Lanier with them to see the Christmas lights next weekend! They are all a fun bunch and I can't wait to see them! I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving!