New Year's Eve
of
Texas Hold 'Em & Tapas
We spent a
relaxing
Christmas holiday
in our hometown with our families and old
friends. |
Our Small Group
Christmas
Supper |
Byron's Graduation
Our good friend Byron
graduated from PA School. Yeah!!! Now, together he and Je can eat Costco
Pizza, bake lots of bread and visit the Chick-Fil-A drive through
several times to use the coupons for free sandwiches! Congratulations! |
Trail of Lights
Festival
To
help get us all into the holiday spirit, we walked through the
Trail of Lights with Byron and Je to see the glowing light displays. |
|
The Great Outdoors
With dear friends,
we
camped under the stars and enjoyed the fresh,
cool air. We were also able to celebrate Dena's 30th birthday together. Of
course, we didn't leave home with out heaters, hot water dispensers, ribeye shish-kabobs, a big pot of tasty chili and smores to enjoy by the
campfire :) |
Our
Thanksgiving Holiday |
Tyler turns 2! |
|
We hear wonderful
news from cousins, Ken and Simone as they welcome Paige Ellie into their
family on November 22nd. |
|
We cheered on Alan,
Vanessa, Joe, Grace & Winston at the Susan G. Komen
Race for the Cure 5k to increase breast
cancer awareness and research. |
 Happy
fall birthdays celebrated with Brian's
Dad,
Danny, Leslie, Marcus and Carita. And
Byron hits the
big 30! |
This
November, we celebrated the blessing of friends and family at a Thanksgiving
Potluck where everyone brought a delicious dish to share.
|
Happy birthday to
Jaime Chloe! Born October 3rd
to Jerry, Jessica and big brother Jayden. |
|
Catching up with
DJ and Madison at 4
1/2
months. Boy, have they changed! |
Welcome
Rebecca ShingRan to the world on
October 20th. Congratulations to our friends, Will and Joyce. |
You know Fall has
arrived when football is in the air. We rejoiced in the victories
of Tiffany and her
IM football team as they captured the championship title and of the
Horns as they beat KU 66-14. Hook 'Em!
|
|
Touring the Northeast
    
This October, we took our first
trip with friends Joe and Grace. Together we visited
northwest
Connecticut, the lower Hudson Valley in
New York (to see Char
& Sherman),
Boston and
Martha's Vineyard in
Massachusetts. We shared a wonderful time peeping at vibrant foliage,
learning about America's rich history, delighting in hearty meals and
creating cherished experiences.
|
|
 Doris & Hsin
~ October 1, 2005 ~
Rehearsal day ~
Wedding day
Bachelorette Weekend ~ Bridal Shower |
Kara's 1st Birthday
~ September 23, 2005
~
 |
Joe's 30th Birthday
 We help our friend, Joe, celebrate his
big
birthday on a beautiful day at the lake. |
|
The Newest Additions to Our Extended Families
Congratulations to our cousins
Melissa and Don on the birth of their second child, Alicia, on August 13th and to our
cousins Marcus and Alex on the birth of their third child, Alessi, on August
24th.
|
Aunt Theresa
1929 ~ 2005
|
Yee-haw!
Joey & Jenni are married in true Texas style at the Salt Lick
with a simple, country
wedding.
~ September 4, 2005 ~
We
also celebrated with them at their shower and Brian at Joey's bachelor
party.
|
|
Wild Times with the Kids
[ Kelsey, Caleb & Tyler ]
 |
Announcing the birth of
Callie Christina on August 30th.
Congratulations to Steve, Pat and big sister CJ. |
|
In August, we day tripped to
Longhorn Caverns
State Park with Byron & Je. The formations were out of this world.
 |
|
We
send-off Jean back to school in
Chicago.
We'll miss you! |
Amanda Visits
Texas
 |
|
 A
Special Engagement
James & Karen were engaged in
Boston, then
friends and family congratulate them back
home. |
Jenny &
Jerry's
Wedding
~ June 26, 2005 ~
|
|
The Fourth of July
on
Florida's Emerald Coast
This
was a very special trip we took with good friends to the Florida
panhandle (post-shark attacks and pre-hurricane) for blue-green water,
sugar white sand and sure-to-be lasting memories. We had a great time
cooking together, relaxing on the beach and laughing at stories that
never get old. |
Madison & DJ's
Red Egg Party
|
Rini & Albert's
Farewell
|
|
Baby Dixon, Jr. and Baby Madison
enter the world on June 7th!Congratulations to mom and dad, Mimi & Dixon.
~
Baby Kara ~
9 months old
|
Summer
Musical in the Park |
Toni & Tommy's
Wedding
~ May 30, 2005 ~
|
|
Visiting the Hill Country with
our Family
This
June, we
were so fortunate to spend a wonderful time at home and in the
hill country with all our parents,
Jennifer's grandmother, Tiffany, James, our niece
Kelsey and nephews Caleb and Tyler. We picked peaches, shopped along
Main Street and strolled in Fredericksburg.
|
We've enjoyed lots of visitors this
May. First, John and Donna hung out with us at our first grilling get
together. We caught up with Jennifer's cousin, Yolanda, from Edmonton.
Jennifer's mom and sister Tiffany visited to celebrate Mother's Day
ending Tiff's
semester in Spain.
We spent a wonderful weekend with Brian's parents and the
following with our friend Jean. |
Our
friends Albert (law) and James (engineering)
graduate this year from the University
of Texas. Congrats, guys!
Our small group
enjoys the
Salt Lick together marking Albert and
Jocelin's first visit.
|
|
Happy Birthday Dear Fri-ends, Happy Birthday To You
This spring, we celebrated Rini's
birthday with crawfish and our new small group and cheered on James as he
marked another year of life at Rudy's BBQ and Gas Station. Our friend Je
also gave us a reason to celebrate with a big meal and yummy carrot
cake. Winston turns 30! with lots of steak and good friends. Ling
and Rachel celebrate on Sixth Street. |
Sunset Valley
Farmers Market 9th Anniversary
 |
Caleb's Big Day
~ April 23, 2005 ~
Caleb turns FIVE!
Baby Kara ~ 7 months |
|
Barcelona
In March, we visited Europe beginning
with a family reunion in
Barcelona. Jennifer's sister,
Tiffany, was
studying abroad so a trip was due. Barcelona was a new experience for us
all, but it was fantastic to have Tiff as a tour guide. The new sights,
sounds and tastes were all delicious and fun, especially as we enjoyed
them together.
~
Throughout our trip
we savored many new flavors. To record these culinary adventures
we kept a food
journal to help us recall it all.
 |
Provence ~
Paris ~
Versailles
 From
Spain, we traveled by train to Montpellier where we rented a car to
explore Provence (first
half,
second half) through back roads and
where trains can not travel. It was friendly and relaxed under the
Provencal sun where every day is a Saturday.
Ah,
the city of love (as Brian likes to call it.) The pace of
Paris required an adjustment, but after
every turn we were rewarded with another
monument, great museum, history lesson or crepe stand calling our name.
One evening we were fortunate to attend a classical concert in the upper
chapel of Sainte-Chapelle, the most beautiful chapel in the world. We
can't wait to go back!
 One
afternoon we day-tripped to beautiful
Versailles. The gardens were elegant
and the weather pleasant for a walk. |
|
Venice ~
Cinque
Terre ~
Florence
 Even for
a sinking city,
Venice is still living out her glory. The day we arrived
a marathon was taking place filling the jam-packed finish
at San Marcos Square with athletes, supporters and tourists.
 The
views in
Cinque Terre, the Italian Riviera, were spectacular, especially at dusk when colors
are dazingly vibrant.
We hiked along the coast through the five villages that make up CT then
treated ourselves to yummy seafood and amazing focaccia.
 Florence
was a short stop for us, but we still managed to enjoy a lot of gelato
and tried lots of new flavors. Michelangelo's David (for us a highlight
of the city) stood gracefully and was so artfully crafted out of marble.
Then, more gelato! |
Rome ~
Pompeii ~
Naples
 Rome
was packed with people who journeyed to see Pope John Paul II one last
time as well as those who just happen to be in town. It was the
ultimate Vatican experience to attend the Pope's funeral in St. Peters
Square.
We also visited Rome's many historical sites such as the Colosseum,
Roman Forum, Palantine Hill, Pantheon, Spanish Steps, Borghese Gallery
and Gardens, several Piazza's and of course the Trevi Fountain.
Pompeii exceeded our expectations as a very well-preserved city
with expressive molds of past residents who were caught by surprise of
the eruption. Our
visit to Naples, birthplace of pizza, included tracking down a famous
pizzeria and trying out their unique, clam-shaped pastry, the
sfogliatella.
|
|
 Also
in February, we
visited
Maisy and her parents Marla and Russell,
Brian's cousin. Those bright eyes and
curly hair are just so enchanting!
 Kelsey, Caleb, Tyler & Kara
are so much fun to play with. We enjoy seeing them grow. Kara just loves to smile when you look at her :) Kelsey is a budding
shutterbug as you can see in most of these pictures that she snapped. |
Charlotte Comes to
Visit
We shared a
wonderful reunion of college mates this February when Charlotte came to
town. The theme for the weekend was catching up with old friends and
eating at our past hangouts.
 |
Baby Fun in
January
Introducing Garrett
Hill (son of Hoyt and Caroline) and Callie Brown (daughter of Dave
and Meg). Also, a night of fun and games with our nieces and nephews.
|
|
In
February, we celebrated Jennifer's birthday with a
picnic and gathering of
some of our closest friends. Following a day of non-stop rain, God
provided gorgeous sunny skies and a nice cool breeze. |
|
Announcing the birth of something new
With
many baby showers being held for friends and family (and many more to
come), Jennifer wanted to give a more personal gift so she began sewing
pieces for the parents and babies-to-be. Knowing there had to be others who would
also want to give unique baby gifts handmade with care, she has started her own
company named
Billy & Jane.
She sews baby bibs,
burp cloths and blankets that are functional yet very stylish with each
style named after a special baby in our lives. Starting up a small
business has been a challenging learning experience as she leaves the
corporate world and begins her career as an entrepreneur.
Launch parties were held
last December in Houston and Austin to commemorate this new beginning.
www.BillyandJane.com |
|
Our Far East
Adventure
After traveling for
about a day, we finally arrived at our destination of Thailand. There, we
experienced many interesting and unusual sites. By God's grace, we left
the country two days before the tsunami hit the region. This was our first
overseas trip with Jennifer's whole family. It was also our first
trip to Vietnam where we were astounded at how many people speak English
really well. They are hard working and live hard lives, at least compared
to American standards. Hong Kong embodied the wealth and luxury of Asia
and while we were there enjoyed lots of great food and even a little
shopping. We even met up with the Hong Kong Texas Exes to watch the Horns
win the Rose Bowl!
Bangkok
Pattaya
Hong Kong
Ho Chi Minh
Mekong Delta
|
