8 Great Years!

Happy Anniversary to us! Yes, hard to believe but it's been 8 years already... some days it seems like yesterday and some days it feels like 8 years ago. ;0) But we have been so blessed! We have a great friendship, a beautiful daughter, a gorgeous home and it just seems to get better with time!

Tomorrow, the 21st, is our actual anniversary. This time 8 years ago I was sitting at my rehearsal dinner looking forward to night out with my girlfriends and counting the minutes till our honeymoon! I know I should've been counting down to the wedding but I just wanted to get on that BOAT!!!!

Adam surprised me Friday night and got a room at the JW Marriott in Buckhead and took me out for dinner and dessert. The hotel was beautiful and we were on the 21st floor with a perfect view of downtown. We ate at High Cotton at Perimeter and then drove around town for a while and got dessert at Cafe Intermezzo in the city (where I had gone for my "Bachelorette party" 8 yrs ago). Saturday we slept late, took our time enjoying breakfast at the hotel and then shopped all day. Not a bad weekend!! :)

I can't wait to see what the next 80 years have in store for us!

Our House...

Here is a little background on our new house and the process that proceeded it... Dad agreed to build for us again so, we started looking for property to build on (a couple of years ago). It was a long process and tougher than before because we were looking for 2 lots and not just one. Our friends, the Taylor's, were looking too and we wanted to be neighbors. It didn't take long to figure out that lots in new subdivisions were reserved for a specific group of builders and lots with any size acreage were too $$$$!!!

After MUCH!!!! searching we finally found our lot (and one for the Taylors). It was such an answer to prayer. We wanted 2 lots in a nice area in a new neighborhood with amenities. And I had some personal requests between me and God. I wanted a house with oak trees and a lake that backed up to a horse farm. The Bible says to pray specific ;0) ... and well, I got 2 1/2 out of 3. We got a great cul-de-sac lot that backs up to a lake with 1 huge oak & 3 other big ones, and there are 4 horses across from the entrance to the neighborhood that I get to drive by everyday!

We started building in August & finished in late January.

Payton Olivia...

We had a new addition to the Lord side of the family this year! Payton Olivia Gadd. She was born on December 28th and Sarah Grace got to be there when she was born (not the actual moment!).

Krista got pregnant last Spring and it took a little while, but Sarah Grace got a pretty good grasp on the concept. She would yell into Krista's belly button and talk to the baby. And she loved to give her cousin kisses.

Since Payton's arrival, Sarah Grace has been great. No jealousy issues (so far) and she does amazingly good holding and feeding her. When people ask her now if she wants a baby brother or sister she says she already has a sister, named Payton.

Winter Holidays

Sarah Grace really enjoyed Christmas this year! She understood everything, and couldn't wait for Christmas to get here! She loved carols on the radio, lights on houses, and Santa at the mall. Her favorite song was "piggy puddin'" or better known as, We Wish you a Merry Christmas. She knew every word and wanted to hear it 10 times in a row every time we got in the car!!!

When you asked her what she wanted from Santa all she said was "a Barbie and an apple (a red one)" and later she added "...and maybe some Play Dough". The first thing she went for under the tree on Christmas morning was her big red apple and took a huge bite! "Santa" had brought her tons of toys and she wanted to eat the apple! :)

Not long after Christmas was her 3rd birthday... as if Christmas toys weren't enough! ;0)

We had a small dinner and party for her on her actual birthday with some of my family and then had a "Tinkerbell Party" with her friends and more family the following weekend. She was stubborn and didn't want to blow out her candles but she eventually did... and then she and the other little ones ran around hyped up on sugar for the next hour!

Estes Park, CO

We went on our annual Self family vacation to Estes Park in September. We all had a wonderful time!

Sarah Grace did great on the long plane ride, and during the long day trips we made while on vacation. She loved all the animals! We saw elk, moose, sheep, & chipmunks. The chipmunks were so tame that you could feed them from your hand... although Sarah Grace wasn't patient enough to wait on them, so she'd throw and run.

She had a different idea of what going into "the park" was. We meant Rocky Mtn. National Park, where we'd drive all day looking at scenery and animals (not her idea of fun)... she thought we were going "a park" and she wanted to find the playground. By the middle of the week she'd say "I don't want to go into the Mountain Park anymore." So, we had to find a little park in town with a playground so she could play. :)

She loved going on "adventures" and cooking out in then park at night (especially roasting marshmallows)... she thought she was very grown up! It was always her "job" to "keep her eyes "peeled" for animals, and she'd say "my eyes are naked, so I can see the animals!".

Beach Bums

It's been a long time since we updated everyone on pics of Sarah Grace (and lots of you have asked) and what we've been up to as a family.

Let me go back to the summer and fill you in from there.

New Smyrna Beach, FL 7/05

This was the first trip to the beach that she actually enjoyed the ocean and really played and had fun. Most days we couldn't get her to take nap because she wanted to stay on the beach and dig. She was covered from head to toe in sand, and the bath tub looked more like a beach when she got out at night. She loved all the beach critters... sand fleas, crabs, birds... You name it, she chased it or tried to catch it!

Hello!

Hi Everyone! Welcome to our blog... we just thought it would be a great way to keep you all updated on our happy little family and for us to get hear to from you!

Things are going great! We sold our house last September, after 6 days on the market, and we found land & started to build a new one. We just moved into our new house in Grayson (about 6 weeks ago) and are starting to settle in. The house is beautiful & it's great being closer to family! Here's a current picture...

Sarah Grace is wonderful...she's so smart and has a heart of GOLD! She'll give you her blankie anytime she thinks you need it more than she does. And she has an imagination that won't quit! :) Along with the creativity has come a case of delayed "terrible 2's" (a mild case). She's definitely got her own opinion and no fear of sharing it! Right now she's begging for a baby brother and asks "is he in your tummy yet?!". And it's always a boy... so if the Lord is listening to her prayers it looks like a boy might be next... ;0)

We'll keep you posted...