Wednesday, June 27, 2007

the BIG flood

Since it has basically been raining nonstop for over a week, it is only expected that we are now seeing some major problems starting to occur. Parts of central Texas have received over 18 inches of rain just since last night alone!!! Craziness I'm telling you! So, I thought I'd share some pictures with all of you just in case you didn't believe the stories...they were hard for me to believe until I saw them for myself.

San Gabriel Park

South San Gabriel River in Georgetown


This picture was taken from what is normally a 30 ft cliff overlooking the river!


These last 2 pictures are at the end of Anthony's parent's street. Yes, that is the stop sign completely surrounded in water. You can even see the little saw horse just barely sticking out of the water in the first picture that says, "water over bridge"...you think!?! Just a little side note....they live on a dead end street. So, needless to say, this being their only point of entry/exit, they are completely trapped in with no way to get out. Let's all just hope & pray that it doesn't get any worse or we might need to call Noah here pretty soon!



If you want to see any more pictures, just go to either http://www.kxan.com/ or http://www.kvue.com/. That is where I got all these pictures from. No, we did NOT swim over to the Guajardo house just to take these.


Thursday, June 14, 2007

Life is a bowl of....PEACHES!

So, one of the great things about our new home is that we have some amazing fruit trees in the back yard. The peaches had just ripened & were perfect for picking so, that's what we did!

a few days before picking

our basket of peaches


Isabella just can't wait!


YUMMY!!!

So, if anyone knows of any great peach recipes we should try out, send them our way. Or, if you'd just like a nice juicy peach, come on over. They are definitely the best I've ever had. There's nothing like a truly fresh peach!

As for now, I'll leave you all with a little verse from one of my favorite songs about peaches!

Movin' to the country, gonna eat a lot of peaches
I'm movin' to the country, I'm gonna eat me a lot of peaches
I'm movin' to the country, I'm gonna eat a lot of peaches
Movin' to the country, I'm gonna eat a lot of peaches
Peaches come from a can they were put there by a man, In a factory downtown
If I had my little way, I'd eat peaches everyday!!!!!!!

Monday, June 11, 2007

the newest Rose in Texas!

& what a beautiful Rose she is!!!
Here is our newest little niece, Nadia Rose. She was born on Friday, June 8th at 12:09pm weighing in at 8 pounds, 5 ounces & stretching out to 19.5 inches long. She's the perfect little addition to Tina & Jaouad's growing family. Now the boys have a sweet little sister to love. YAY! Congratulations Mommy & Daddy; we're soooooo happy for you!!! Love you all to pieces!!!
I must add, Tina is quite the pro now. With only 3 pushes, Nadia was born in less than 10 minutes. Way to go!!!

Friday, May 25, 2007

Just because I can!

So, I'm writing this blog just because I feel like being super emotional & sappy. Blame it on the pregnancy hormones or just the fact that I feel like procrastinating since both the girls are sleeping & I need a little break from work before lunch. Plus, it's been far too long since I've updated & frankly I just have some things I'd like to share. What can I say, I come from a highly loving and emotional family who is not afraid to let the love pour out of our hearts from time to time. So to the point already, I just feel so lucky to have such amazing people in my life. God has truly blessed me beyond belief. I have the best parents anyone could ask for. They are the ultimate role models, as I'm sure you all already know. They have raised 8 amazing (if I do say so myself) children & are still going strong. I hope that Anthony & I can be just like them. I'm not so sure about the 8 kids part, but I wouldn't doubt if we come pretty close.
I'm am so amazed with the love that all my brothers & sisters share with each other. I'm sure we learned this from watching Mom & Dad as we were growing up & it just became part of who we are. I couldn't imagine life without a single one of them. They are all unique & special in their own ways. I can only pray that our children will grow up to be as close with each other as I am to all of my brothers & sisters. To make things even better, I think everyone has picked such the perfect match to suite themselves. I have the greatest brother & sister-in-laws ever. I probably couldn't have done a better job picking them out myself. You have to be a pretty special person to come into the Kemper family, accept all our craziness & just fit right in like you've been here all along. Way to go boys & girls!
My friends are some of the greatest people I could have ever hoped to come into my life. Of course there are a few that have been around since we were just little kids, the majority of my closest friends are from college. I love the fact that each time I talk to one of them, no matter how far away they are or how long it's been since we last spoke, we can always seem to pick up right where we left off. I wish that we were able to all live closer as we did in college but I know the miles really never matter. We will always be close no matter what!
Of course I couldn't finish this rambling blog of mushiness without including my wonderful, amazing, super-cute hubby! I couldn't be any happier than I am with him. We just celebrated our 3 year anniversary (maybe another reason for all the emotions) & it honestly feels like just last month we were getting ready to walk down the isle. I couldn't ask for a better husband & father to our children. Each day we grow stronger & closer together. It is so much fun to see his silly personality shine in Isabella. I love watching the two of them interact & just seeing the love that they share. Right now the 3 of us are the best of friends you could imagine. We have so much fun together. I know that our newest little miracle will bring even more joy & happiness into this loving family. I just want to thank you all for your love & all the greatness you have brought to my life. I really do love each & every one of you! MWAH!!! xoxoxoxo;) Of course my thanks go to God for providing all these wonderful people in my life. Hopefully I was able to bring a little tear to some one's eye with all of my sap or even the slightest little lump in your throat (or maybe just a laugh or little giggle.) Whatever the case may be I hope it made you feel all warm & fuzzy inside because that is how I feel right now. But, in all seriousness, I really truly am so grateful to be a product of such great love & I just felt like sharing. Hope you enjoyed it!

Monday, April 23, 2007

Movin' On U-up...

After almost 3 years of marriage & living in the same apartment, we have now decided to take the BIG step. We bought a house!!! It will all become official Friday morning at 8:30 when we have our closing. We are so excited & blessed that we have reached this point in our lives...our very first home. It is located on the East side of Georgetown (oh-so appropriately fitting the song) & less than 3 minutes to church...nice! With the new baby coming it will be nice to have more room to stretch out a bit. The best part, we have a HUGE back yard for Ruby & the kids to enjoy! We are so excited for everyone to come see it really soon. We'll post more pictures after we close, but for now, here's a little sneak peak of the front...


future home of the Guajardo family :):):)

Monday, April 09, 2007

Texas Bluebonnets

Last weekend when the sun was actually shining & there weren't freezing temperatures outside, Amy & I took the kids out for the traditional pictures in the bluebonnets. Isabella was more interested in picking the bluebonnets than she was in sitting for pictures. Although, we did manage to get a few good shots. Enjoy!

Amy & Cian




Hunting for Eggs

It was Isabella's 2nd Easter, but really her first year to participate. She had a great time with all her cousins hunting for eggs. Afterwards the war broke out with the cascarones. This is a big tradition in Anthony's family. Everyone has to come prepared with they're own confetti eggs. Otherwise, you'll just be attacked & have no way of retaliating. It's so much fun & makes a huge mess. Isabella loved it & really liked seeing everyone act all silly. We hope you all had a wonderful and Happy Easter!

Searching for the eggs...

& eating them along the way.:)


Isabella & Mommy after getting attacked.


What a mess!

Nothing like a blue tongue after all that candy.


So, we let Isabella stick to the peanut butter crackers.

Tuesday, March 27, 2007

H-O-T

This has always been one of Isabella's favorite words. She'll walk up to the oven when it's not even on just to say it. This past Saturday she found out the true meaning of the word, "hot!" We were over at Anthony's cousin's house having a barbecue & Isabella decided she was going to check out the whole situation. She was walking around the back yard & leaned in & touched the iron BBQ pit. OUCH! I was walking only 2 steps behind & still wasn't fast enough to get her in time. (Guess I'm out of the race for Mom of the Year!) We weren't sure just how bad the burn was so decided to take her to the emergency room. She sure did provide a lot of entertainment to all of the people in the waiting room. She was able to put some smiles on several really sad faces. After 3 hours of waiting, they put some burn cream on her hand (the same stuff we have at home) & bandaged her all up. She now looks like she has a turkey leg for a hand. Poor baby was more upset about being so tired than her hand actually hurting. Luckily the cream they gave us is some sort of miracle cream, because we apply it twice a day & you can't even see the burn marks anymore. It's amazing! I think her least favorite part of the whole situation is that she is temporarily unable to use her right hand. Anthony covered her other hand up with her socks the other morning & she thought that was pretty neat. Now we have 2 boxers!;)

reading a magazine in the waiting room

she really liked the bed in the ER


Isabella with her new hand

& realizing it's temporarily out of use :(

Thursday, March 22, 2007

Bella's 1st Birthday Bash!


the big ONE year old

It's so hard to believe that our little baby is already a year old. So much has happened in the past year that it seems like Isabella has been here forever yet, it still seems as if it all just flew by. We had her 1st birthday party this past weekend in Georgetown. It was filled with lots of food, family, friends & of course, fun. Isabella had a big ball pit for her & all the kids to play in, a wagon from Grandma & Grandpa to ride around in & all sorts of games for the little ones to enjoy. When it came to cake time I'd have to say she was less than impressed. We were waiting for the big show of smashing her whole face in the cake, but she really didn't want to have anything to do with that. Maybe next year. Isabella recieved tons of presents. More clothes than any little girl could dream of & enough books to start her own little library. (Thank you everyone!) As usual, we stayed for a really long time at the park & got completely worn out. It was totally worth it though. I'm not sure if there is any topping this party next year. Thanks to everyone who was able to come. It really meant a lot to us to have so many of our family & friends there. We love you all! Happy Birthday Bella Girl! Love, love, love you!!! xoxoxoxoxo

Daddy, Isabella & her Birthday Boxer, Ruby

the cupcake cake

see, not so interested...

but the books sure did taste great!

Daddy, Isabella & Mommy

Loving on Nana & Papa


Karen, Michelle, Brooke, Alice & Bella Girl

Amy & Cian, our cute little Irish nephew:)

riding around in the wagon with Alexis

crashed at home

the birthday bath



THE END!!!

Tuesday, March 20, 2007

Sweet Ruby

Thursday before Isabella's birthday, we got to pick up our little Ruby from the airport. She was exactly 8 weeks old that day & got to fly in from St. Louis. She is so playful & energetic and the perfect little addition to our family.

Isabella getting Ruby's bed ready the night before she comes home

soooo excited to meet Ruby

someone got a little too excited;)

They're always going for the same toy.

Monday, February 19, 2007

the littlest valentine

Cian Valen is here! He made is grand entrance at 6:33pm on Valentine's Day weighing in at a whopping 6lbs.50z. Cian has beautiful blue eyes & a head full of dark brown hair. (Although, I have a feeling it will be turning red before too long.) He is such a little cutie & the sweetest little addition to our big family. Congratulations Amy & Jamie! You done good! Or, as Grandpa Wells would say, "Atta boy...girl!"

our little Sweet Pea

Monday, February 12, 2007

3 Musketeers

Tina (5 months), Amy (9 months) & Cassie (3 months)

Here is probably the last picture we'll see of my 3 pregnant sisters. Amy's litlle Sweet Pea is due to arrive on Wednesday (Valentine's!) She will be going into the hospital at 6am Wednesday morning if Sweet Pea doesn't decide to make his appearance before then. We are all so excited to have a new little nephew in just a few short days. YAY!!! Then, we won't have to wait much longer before 2 more little bundles arrive. If anyone needs a baby fix, you know where to come!