Happy Anniversary, Candlers!

Happy 3rd Anniversary to Shannon and Matt!

Catching Up, September 2009

When we got back from vacation, Andrew's family was at the house waiting for us! They had the pups at their house for the week while we were on vacation, and met us back in Macon to drop them off and spend Labor Day with us.

We went out on the boat and Andrew (successfully!) did some waterskiing. Mara and Anna tubed for a bit, and then we found a quiet cove and floated around for a while. It was a wonderful, relaxing day... and it definitely made coming back from vacation much easier.

On September 8th, Justin and Kara's sweet little Avery Grace was born! (Justin went to high school with us and was Andrew's roommate in college. Kara was also at Georgia Southern with them, and is such a sweet person.) Avery was born with CDH (Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia), and was brought straight to the NICU at Egleston in Atlanta after she was born. She had surgery less than a week after she was born, and has been recovering so well since- she is such a little fighter! Andrew and I got to go and see her last week, and what a blessing she is. She was very alert and content, and made the sweetest little noises. For a little person who has already been through so much, she is perfectly happy! We're hoping and praying that soon she will be leaving the NICU and heading home to her Mommy and Daddy.

And I believe that means we are finally caught up! :) From here on out, I can post about current events and more! Take THAT procrastination... he he he.

Catching Up, Vacation!!!!

August 29 through September 4, we spent a wooooonderfully long week at the beach! We went to Seagrove Beach, which is on the panhandle of Florida, in between Panama City Beach and Destin. It was a beautiful area, and it was only about 4 1/2 hours from Macon. We were just a couple miles from Seaside (where The Truman Show was filmed), and enjoyed a couple of dinners/lunches out. And I enjoyed a LOT of gelato.

Andrew's had it pretty rough at work the past few months, so he spent the majority of his time snoozing and boozing. (Note the slack jaw and tilted beer... it was a close one!) The weather was perfect- a balmy 80ish degrees, so we were never uncomfortably hot. We were on a private beach surrounded by homes rather than condominiums, so there were no crowds. We walked straight down the steps to the water each morning and didn't budge until dinner.

I spent the days snoozing and enjoying my Kindle. I only made it through one book (I read Twilight. AGAIN. Lord help me, I can't move on from that series.) Andrew's iPod and Sirius radio kept me boppin' in my chair (when his snoring wasn't drowning out the music, haha). We saw lots of dolphins and sting rays. Thankfully, we only saw 2 jellyfish. The water was perfectly calm the first 3 days... it was like sitting by a lake! The last few days, the waves picked up and Andrew especially enjoyed that.

It was a wonderful, relaxing, fun, relaxing, perfect (and did I mention relaxing?) week. No crowds, perfect weather, beautiful beach, delicious food, gelato (!!!)... we had a great time. Although we enjoyed it being just the two of us, we're hoping to vacation with family next year. My Ma and Pa's 30th wedding anniversary is next October... I can't think of a better way to celebrate than to be at the beach together! It's been probably 9 years since the Lalla's were together at the beach. I can remember the Astro van parked on the beach with the back open, Pa under his umbrella, Ma soaking up the sun... ah, family. :)

Catching Up, August 2009

In August, I made the fully responsible adult choice to ignore chores and, instead, play with my kids. And by play, I mean lay on the floor and take naps. How did I end up with 3 cuddlers? So far, my favorite thing about have the pups has been watching Kitty Bug open up to them. I truly thought she would never be happy around them. She is not a normal cat... she just started opening up to people a couple of years ago. (Now I can't get her to leave us alone!) She spent the first few weeks being a mean gargoyle at the top of the stairs. Once she realized they weren't going anywhere, she came closer and hung out on the couch while they played in the living room. And now, she's one of them. She rubs all over them and let's them lick her. And in the past week or so, Copper has started pouncing at her in his yippy happy puppy way. She gives him the look and just places her paw on his nose when she's ready for him to stop. Always entertaining... I can't get enough of these kids.

On August 14th, Andrew and I went to see my all-time favorite band, Incubus, perform at the Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre in Alpharetta, GA. The venue was amazing- seriously. Wristbands let us into our section (rather than taking our tickets in and out of our pockets), the variety of drinks was impressive (umm, a little too impressive... the next morning was rough), there was never any line at the restrooms, and the security guards were everywhere. I don't have any good quality pictures (this was one taken on my cell phone), but we were in the pit and probably 12-15 people deep away from the stage. The performance was absolutely amazing! They are on tour promoting their greatest hits album, but I hope they keep recording. I want to be a fan for the next 12 years, and longer!

After having the boat for about a month, we finally had the chance to bring the pups out for a ride. This is the only picture I got (again with the dang cell phone), but it went better than I expected! They both loved the wind in their faces, and curled up with me on the front of the boat while Andrew drove us around. We stopped at a tiny beach area where a family was stranded with their jet-ski. While Andrew towed them to their dock, the pups and I explored the beach. Penny, of course, took off in the water. She would walk in until she couldn't touch the bottom anymore, and rather than just paddling her legs, she would jump out further and then start paddling. Silly girl. Copper wouldn't swim, but he dug holes in the sand like there was no tomorrow- especially once he realized he wouldn't get into trouble. He also tasted a delicacy... duck poop.

I painted room #2 on the list... the kitchen. I'll post before and after pictures another day.

Here's a little glimpse into the pups' evening life. They love snuggling up in the sunroom and getting some comfy sleep in before I go to bed and put them outside for the night. Copper's flopped ears are always a sign that he is passed out!

Catching Up, July

In July, the pups grew some more. Andrew and I spent 4th of July at my parents house (my brother, Jake, threw his annual July 4th party there). The fireworks were awesome! Copper and Penny had just come from a night at Andrew's parent's house playing with Cole, and spent the first half of the party catching up on sleep. (By the way- Copper was terrified of the fireworks. Penny didn't care less until debris was floating in the pool... she chased those suckers down!)

Andrew did a lot of Xbox-ing, which gave me time to do what I wanted to... play with the pups, avoid chores, etc.

The pups went swimming at Shmimi & PePaw's house (my Ma and Pa). We learned that Penny is a water dog, and Copper is, too (as long as he's not in the water). By the end of the weekend, Penny was jumping in on her own (which makes me worry about winter visits!). Copper only enjoyed it when he was on a float... see the pathetic look he's giving Andrew in this picture? Penny is comforting him and Skipper (Jake & Allie's dog) is scheming a plan to push him back in!

Penny Bop and her Daddio having a moment... she's just a baby! :)

I turned 24 on the 11th... but my birthday came early when Trisha came to visit! We went out to Taki Hibachi for dinner, and then had drinks at the Tic-Toc room- home to the most delicious martinis. I got to spend a whole (lazy) weekend with my best friend and it was perfect.

Andrew spoiled me and got a gift that I swear was made for me... a Kindle! Quite possibly the coolest thing ever invented- now my purse isn't weighed down by the books I read during my lunch break!

Well, the good news is: we refinanced my car and saved a ton of money. And the better news is: we used the money we saved to buy a boat! Ever since we bought our house last May, Andrew has had the gotta-have-a-boat bug. (What? You've never heard of it? Check Web MD, under the husband illnesses section.) We live less than a mile from the lake (our road runs into it). We spent all last summer and the first half of this summer listening to the boats while in our backyard. His dream came true this summer... we're boaters!

My gorgeous and ever-youthful sister turned a young 28 on the 19th! Even the woman on the TV can't get enough of her! My older brother, Jake, turned 27 on the 23rd... we weren't able to spend it with him, but his sweet wife Allie came up with an awesome day for him. She gave him a GPS and a map with highlighted addresses... they spent the day around Atlanta visiting the zoo, the Sweetwater Brewery, and more! Jake had no idea where they were heading (aside from the address) until they got there. Such a fun day!








We enjoyed being boaters every chance we got. On this particular night, we had a picnic on the boat (fried chicken and pasta salad), shared a bottle of wine, and went fishing! (Ok, Andrew manned the poles, and I curled up with my Kindle... don't leave home without it!) We each caught a catfish- did you know those things growl?! Eww, gross.

Catching Up, June 2009

June was a pretty relaxing month for us (aka boring). We woke up, went to work, came home, played with the pups, went to bed... rinse and repeat. Nah, I'm sure something went on in June, but remember what I said in the last post about being forgetful? Yeah, all I have to go on are some pictures in a folder marked 'June' on the computer.

Andrew turned 24 on June 20th!

We had a great time celebrating with friends and his family.

Penny grew quite a bit.

And so did Copper Bud.

Around this time, Copper and Penny were allowed in the house more often... they finally started understanding the difference between carpet and grass!

Catching Up, April-May 2009

I kept putting it off and putting it off because, well, I procrastinate. A lot. I get it from my momma. (Along with forgetfulness and corny joke-telling... love you, Ma!) Anyway, to catch up, here are some snap shots of what we were up to in April and May of this year. (And I'll catch up with the rest of the months, too. Take THAT procrastination!)

Copper Bud recovering from surgery... he was neutered and had a tumor removed from his paw.

Penny was spayed, but didn't take long to recover at all!

I played another season with the Macon Women's Soccer League...
Blueberry Jammers!

We were in 1st place all season, but lost in the finals to the 4th place team (who went on to win 1st place, go figure). Such a fun season with these ladies... especially team dinner nights, and post-game adult beverage time. At least we waited until after the game, right?

We rented a pontoon (sp?) boat and went out on the lake with the Carpenters, Willbanks, and Josh. A very hot, but fun, day!

Copper and Penny kept growing, and learning which rules to break once Daddy was in bed.

We celebrated Josh & Callie's engagement with a night out at Taco Mac and Hooters... the big day is set for June 2010!

Andrew, his Dad, and his buddy Justin fenced in our backyard.

The pups absolutely loved saying goodbye to their pen and hello to their big kid backyard!

Andrew's cousin Holly had her sweet little girl, Hadley, on May 26th.

Wilbur-Cuz and Aunt Shannon came to visit Copper and Penny.

We had a Wesleyan mini-reunion, plus my Sister and Kara, at the hibachi table at Taki. So much fun, and we had the best chef in the house.