Justin & Ally Phillips

What we're doin' these days

2008-10-15T14:12:00.003-05:00

A whole lotta stuff!! Clearly, we need to add some pictures, but, the computer with all the pictures is painfully slow, so, apologies!

August was an eventful month, with Ally getting called to Young Women's and being thrust right into Youth Conference. Things haven't slowed down since!

Justin started his final year of undergrad in August and we're very excited! He is currently filing all graduation paperwork and tying up last minute details.

Fall has been filled with football games, work, running (Ally is currently training for a 10k and eventuall a half marathon), school and finally putting the finishing touches on the house. We spent Labor Day Weekend shopping for furniture have a bed and dresser for the guestroom, but, no mattress. Hopefully soon! --Especially since the Phillips family will be here for Thanksgiving! (and, Ally's birthday)

Ally has also recently been channeling her creative side by making jewelry--look for her designs to appear for sale on Etsy in the very near future.

The next few weeks will be jam packed as Ally leaves for her first work trip on the 25th and will get her wisdom teeth out the week after she returns--which only leaves two weeks to heal and get ready for the Holidays. Oh my!

Lots of exciting things going on around here. We'd love for you to come and visit!!

We'll post pictures soon.

Promise.

She may not be crafty, but she sure can cook!

2008-07-21T19:54:00.002-05:00

True story my friends, true story... Here's a little of what Ally's been doin' in the kitchen (feel free to stop by and help us eat it):

Miles of mini cupcakes for boss' birthday....

Ice cream sandwiches for the YM

Signature chocolate-chocolate chip cake with mint buttercream icing for the YM.

Think we've solved the mystery of the weight gain? Yeah, us too....

In other news, Ally is now full time at Cox and working like a mad woman in the interim without the Associate Director. But, here's to working hard and showing the higher ups what she can do!

And, if all else fails, a career in cooking may be right up her alley.

Beach Pictures!

2008-07-08T21:32:00.005-05:00

The pretty canal near the condo we stayed at (thanks again Brett & Amy!)

The sunburn....

Horse riding and car parking on the beach! Just like Pismo in the old days.

Don't you love the mass of seaweed??

Ally at the beach--self portrait of course. We should also add that new suit got pooed on by a seagull. Yep.

The Strand, old town Galveston.

Not to toot our own horns, but, this is a pretty darn cute picture.

Beach Bound!

2008-06-26T14:29:00.002-05:00

Yes, yes, it's no Hawaii, Florida or California beach, but, it's the best we can do for a weekend trip (no three day weekends either!).

We're headin' to Galveston.

Tomorrow.

Headin' out. Beach bound. To get a tan. And have some fun in the sun.

We've really missed the beach! Three years inland has been hard--we had no idea how much we missed the ability to go to the beach for a few hours at least. Wow. Especially in the Texas summers.

That said, we're excited. Plus, beach = road trip.

Have a fun and safe weekend everyone--we'll be back on Sunday night with updates and pictures.

Weekend Round Up

2008-06-23T12:12:00.004-05:00

Costco run (we have Costco cards now. Excitement commences!)

Lots of yummy things from Costco, including some yummy organic ravioli, tri tip (yummmmm), and A's personal favorite: giant tub of jelly beans.

After Coscto run--oh, oh, we also got a TV. It's awesome. So, yeah, after Costco, we had a BBQ. Because, really, what more does one need in a day than Costco, World Market (for TV stand) and BBQ? Nothing. One needs nothing. And, it was a really tummy good time BBQ. And it was the best.

We're doin' it again on the 4th of July.

But now, we're all very tired. And it's only Monday....

365 x 3 + 1 day (leap year) = 3 years!

2008-06-18T10:22:00.004-05:00

It's our anniversary.

3 years ago we got married in California, and now, we live in Texas with our three little pets (aka "the kids" to anyone who knows us) and are loving every minute of it.

A lot sure can happen in three years!

PS. Look at how skinny Ally was.... sigh....

Tales from kickboxing.....

2008-06-17T15:35:00.003-05:00

Let's first explain a little bit about this great city that we live in: it's the most frightening place in the world.

Women are the size of pencil lead and wear designer everything, dogs are treated better than must humans (we're specifically referring to small "designer" dogs, although, will admit our mutts are spoiled too--however, our mutts have never gone shopping with us or had an LV leash/collar/carrier), the city's official hair color is blonde (trying being a medium blonde and affording highlights in this town = not gonna happen), you see Maserati's on an almost daily basis, occasionally run into a sports star at the movie theater or a sports mogul at the mall. It's total and utter insanity.

Usually, Ally's kickboxing class isn't a typical snippet of the city. It's usually hard working people who want to break a sweat--no one looks cute, no one has makeup on, no one cares.

Occasionally, there are the HP Twats (if you live here, you totally know who we're referring to), but, they are manageable, usually. Most of the time.

Last night, was a different situation entirely. For that, we bring you, the first installment of
"Why Ally May Need to Find A New Place To Kick Butt, As She's Not So Sure She Can Continue to Sweat with Annoying Big City Twats":

Pink boxing gloves (for real)
Booty shorts
No sports bra--regular bra--to which, we say "that had to hurt"
Dangerously straddling the tan line of "What ethnicity are you, blondie?"
Blondie blonde blonde hair
Way too excited to be doing 4 sets of lunges after a really intense 60 minute workout "Come on guys!" (to which Ally thought "If I could kill you with my mind..."...only, not really, because Ally doesn't really hate like that)
Baby pink nails
Way too much interest shown by the instructor (was she his girlfriend? was he just way too into her? some things we may never know)
Constantly checking herself out in the mirror. Yes, you're a size 00. Yes, you're boobs are still huge. Yes, you're still blonde and way-too tan for a white person. Yes, yes, yes.
Squeaky, nasally voice

Did we mention this was just one person??
Should we continue?

HP Twat(s)
Who think they're the next face of Abercrombie
It's probably their goal in life
Seriously
Doing the whole "I'm trying to be sensual so I'm pretending to do that pouty lip thing that Abercrombie and Hollister models do. How am I?" (dudes, you've got nothing on Derek Zoolander...Because he is, in fact really, really ridiculously good looking)
Drinking a Jamba Juice (!) during the workout (I'm sorry, when did water go out of style?)
Doing that laugh thing to make it seem like their voices are deeper than they actually are
I'm sure they were all of 16-17 years old

Yikes!!

And that was the adventure that was Monday Night Kickboxing

On this note, we do love our city, and we mean no harm in our comments. It's just that, come on. If you know our city, you know this is oh-so-true.

Reason 1,052 that Texas is awesome

2008-06-10T17:17:00.006-05:00

Safari. Hello.
For Memorial Day weekend we met up with the clan and went to Fossil Rim in Glen Rose for an adventure. Who needs Africa??

Some wild animals... I don't know what they are...

This guy was cool. He was also up on the fact that cars=food. No dummie here.

Mid shake. Ha! Loved this shot.

Read the sign:

Everyone wants to see the giraffes... They were pretty cool.

The zebra ws really fond of us.

Hence, this happened:

And this. Yes, he's/she's putting the head into the car. Which resulted in shrieks from Ally, per that sign.

Why don't I work for National Geographic??

Update:

2008-06-10T10:14:00.001-05:00

The source of the smell we have learned in that a block of ice melted in the mini fridge over the weekend and leaked all over the carpet. 1970s carpet. Collective "eewwwwww!" please. Thanks.

And, it's still there today.

Double ick.

I'm willing to rip this carpet up myself. I'm just saying.

Weekend Round Up

2008-06-09T10:19:00.002-05:00

Yes, I know, you're dying with anticipation for all the exciting things we could have done. Right. Because we're that cool.

Saturday:

-Morning run
-Trip to the tailors--which, by the way, being short (ahem, 5') is not cheap. Ally's bill for the tailors (2 dresses, two jackets) will be $86!! Help! Does anyone know a cheaper tailor in the Dallas area? Well, it would be easier if Ally had a sewing machine and could do it herself....Or just ship if off to her mom, but, yeah, that's not happening. So, trip to the tailor: terrifying.
-Lunch date
-Trip to Bass Pro Shops (because what is a weekend without a store jam packed with people getting way too excited over a camo print travel mug? For real. And Ally sticking out like a sore thumb. Good times. Please note, Ally is not ragging on people who enjoy a camo print mug. It is just not her cup of tea. And was a little scary.)
-Cleaning the house
-Grocery store (which, by the way, did not have arugula. I have no idea. I must shop at some weird store)
-Putting together patio furniture (since no one volunteered to help us--hmph. And, we've got to get it put together before the YM come over on Wednesday night. Ah! The stress! Did I also mention that I'm supposed to make a cake because it's two of the YM's b-days this week? And I'm no Sarah, but, I made the mistake of making a cake for the dessert auction that apparently was a big hit--very ugly, but, I guess, yummy....So, I'm making that. On Wednesday. How? When? Help!)
-Dinner a la Giada
-Watched "Finding Nemo" on ABC because our TV is broken and can't connect to the DVD player, so, no matter how many movies we have or how close we now live to Blockbuster (around the corner, yesss!), we cannot watch a movie. Which, won't lie, we love Nemo, so, no real complaints there.

Sunday:
-Church. Where Ally found out that her Primary class will be doing Sharing Time next week. And the stress level rose again. To a dangerous level. And, we should add, it's on Family History and Temple Work, so, any ideas for sharing time (for Jr & Sr Primary) are greatly appreciated. Oh, and, a girl that Ally VT pretty much ran from her. How's that to make you feel good?? Yeah....
-Not much else
-Dinner a la The Neelys
-Got phone call while cooking from BFF L. Which resulted in Ally at DFW at 10:45 PM to pick up L. Because we're not letting her take a cab home at 10:45 PM. To which Ally said "It is OK if I go out there and pick her up? I'm sorry,I know it's last minute", to which Justin responded "Of course. I think it's good that you watch out for your friends".... Awww.... so, that said, I'm pretty much the official DFW Taxi Cab. Feel free to call.

And, that's pretty much the excitement that was our two days away from the office. Goodness! When is the next 3 day weekend?

Also, I should add that my office is being re-painted and all, which is super cool, except, there was some miscommunication in the proper plug/un-plug procedure of the mini-fridge, and now it smells like something died. And it's not getting better. And the mini-fridge is currently right behind my chair. And no, I can't move it. Nor can I move myself. And yes, the fridge is plugged in. Yuck!!

I'm seriously considering going out and buying a Fabreeze plug in on my lunch break. What do you think??

The Lord of The Flies

2008-06-04T12:38:00.002-05:00

Or whatever the heck the title of that book is. Our house has suddenly become a mecca for flies. And we're not talking happy little flies (not that those are really acceptable either, but, just not as scary and annoying). No, we're talking the size of the cap to my water bottle sized flies. Flies so big that when they fly by, they wake the doggies. And literally, one flew into Ally's fact the other day and scared the daylights out of her. Because they are evil.

Although, on the upside, we did discover that a spider had killed one. Ha! Score one for team spider (weird). And, to make matters worse, Target apparently does not have fly swatters. Seriously. We're in the South. It's summer. Get some dang fly swatters in stock. Like yesterday. Nor could we find any fly killing chemicals. Ants? Check. Fireants? Check check. Roaches? Check. So, currently, the flies are winning. And taking over our life. And driving us insane.

Any manner of clothing, towels or shoe has been used to attack these things. And, similar to cockroaches, they just won't die. We found one trying to swim (fly?) out of the sink. Pesky little things.

Any advice for getting these buggers out of our house? We're desperate!

Have you heard?

2008-06-03T12:49:00.003-05:00

Ally has her own site:

Check out the hilarious tales of a Big City Socialite as she navigates life with her trusty bottle of Coco Chanel, international cell phone and a Hostess cupcake.

So, please, add this site to your bookmarks and check it out:

http://shabbyprincess.blogspot.com

They look so innocent

2008-06-02T09:26:00.002-05:00

Did we ever tell you about the time that Ally managed to get locked out of the house by a pair of sweet and fuzzy four legged canine creatures? No? Really?

Did we also mention that on this day Ally was home sick and did not bother to straighten unruly curly mass or dress in anything other than her hot pink SMU jammies? No?

And did we mention that because she was in her jammies and barefooted it wasn't really going to work if she went next door and asked a neighbor (who she's never met) to use their phone to call the husband and have him hurry home with a house key?

And that the moral of the story is that it must have looked rather hilarious to passers by to see a 5 foot tall 110 pound pink ninja-like thing scaling the back fence and eventually getting herself onto the balcony, thinking maybe, maybe by some chance, someone had left the door unlocked. Or maybe, just maybe, since said canine creatures managed to lock the front door, that larger canine creature who lives in room with balcony may be able to pull a Lassie and unlock door. He didn't. Instead, he looked at her with annoyed optimism wondering why she was outside and why he was inside--why she wasn't opening the door, and most importantly: why.isn't.mom.playing.with.ME?!

Which then resulted in Ally lowering herself back onto the newly acquired roof and managing to use what little strength she had left to lower herself down the nice and splintery fence to a point and which she could drop to the ground while not breaking any bones as long as she avoided the flagstone walkway (she survived).

Thus, eventually, making it into the house where two very happy canine creatures were waiting, and in fact the front door was locked.

Complete with a scratch mark across the door where larger canine creature had jumped and thus, locked Ally outside in her jammies.

While sick. On a Sunday.

The Backyardigans

2008-05-29T10:12:00.004-05:00

We love having a backyard. And one that is not gross--like our old one. And one that we actually enjoy using.

OK, OK, I'll stop. Also, the BEST thing about our backyard is that we can have friends over for BBQs--which we loved our very first Sunday at the house (more are in the works, one this weekend perhaps? 4th of July for sure!), but, we don't really have an outdoor dining space, so, it's cook outside and then hoof the food inside.

Ha! Not anymore. We took advantage of Memorial Day Sales and got ourselves an outside dining set.

Behold...

And we got the bench seat with it too, so we can cram our friends kiddies in there (kidding, we don't cram. Especially our friends beloved children. We just thought the bench was easier--and more fun)--plus, it's good for extra seating around the pool when needed.

And, because I believe that my house should be in Charleston, I needed some good outside adirondak chairs....so, we got 2 blue and 1 white (fjord blue, do we see a trend here? Seriously, just bought the blue for the name!)...although, looking at this picture, I'm thinking I may need the footrest.... thoughts....?

So please, come over and help us put this crap together! Kidding, kidding... You don't have to help, we've got it mostly under control. But, seriously, come over and enjoy our yard.

It's so boring without friends.

Pretty in Pink

2008-05-20T15:20:00.005-05:00

First of all, big collective exhale: graduation is over. We all survived. Normalcy has (sorta) returned. Only downside is that when it's summer session, all the snack shops on campus close and I am starving. My stomach is making noises I was not aware of. And there's nothing I can do about it. I have a $10 bill, but, the vending machine doesn't take $10s. Boo. Seriously, I'm not a happy person when I haven't got a full belly. If it get's really bad, I may have to hoof it to the 7-11 across the street.

Ok, enough about my hunger pains....

We had stake conference this last weekend, and, last week was one of my best friends daughters very first birthday. Now, anyone who knows me, knows that I cannot resist occasion to slip into BabyGap, CrewCuts or BabyStyle. I don't have the means to fully clothe a child from any of these stores, but, I always like to shop there for the little babies in my life....When I can.

Zoe's first birthday was just the occasion. And I got her this:

And this.... (so she could be a little more modest, he he)

So cute! I love that my friends have children and I love playing with and spoiling them--it's good practice. And, it doesn't hurt that my friends have super cute babies! (like Zoe, Katie and Elle--love 'em).

I can't wait to see Zoe all pretty in pink--if it's at church, I'll try to snap a picture of her.

And I'm still hungry....But, I worry.... as to what happened the last time I went to a 7-11....

The joys of the daily grind...

-A

Poets & Pirates in Cowboy Town

2008-05-05T11:08:00.002-05:00

Last weekend was probably one of the most fun weekends we have had in a while....Wait, wait, OK, not fair. We had a great time when the fam came out to help us move and the fantastic BBQ we had on Sunday. That was great.

Let us re-phrase: the best time we've had on a non-house related weekend. There, better?

We ventured up to Frisco, TX to see LeAnn Rimes, Brooks & Dunn and Kenny Chesney play. It was a blast.

It's been several years since Ally has seen her beloved KC and even longer since she'd seen LeAnn Rimes (circa 'Blue') or Brooks & Dunn (circa 'Boot Scootin' Boogie'. Does that date her much?). It was a very, very fun event.

Brooks and Dunn put on a great show and had everyone singing and cheering along. Best part of the show: the encore. Ally hates when performers don't encore when the crowd asks (ahem, Tim McGraw). Listen, someone pays good money to see you in concert, you can sing one more song. It won't kill you. Really. Won't kill you at all. Just do it.

Needless to say, Kix and Ronnie totally delivered. They encored with "Brand New Man" and as Ally said multiple times throughout the show "It's just not a Brooks & Dunn show without Boot Scootin' Boogie"--they closed the show with that song. It was amazing. A-Maze-Ing. Really.

To add to the wonderfullness that is Kix and Ronnie, we've got to add that when we were walking to will call for our tickets (long story, we hate Ticketmaster), we noticed a Marine in front of us, in civ clothes, but, carrying his blues. Hmm? Why would a Marine be in blues for a concert?? Weird. But, OK, whatever makes you happy: you're serving our country, wear your blues if you want.

Well.... this Marine wasn't just wearing his blues for nothin'! During the performance of "Only In America" the stage was flooded with Military Men in their uniforms. Brooks and Dunn had asked local servicemen to come up on stage in their uniforms and stand on stage during the song. So, as they start singing the song, the jumbo-tron cuts away from Kix and Ronnie and shows all these guys in uniform--then, the crowd realizes that they are walking on stage. It was a really, really special thing. It was so great to see those guys getting honored for serving our country. Ally always gets teary at stuff like this. She cries at the Olympics. This was really great of Kix and Ronnie to do.

Thanks to all the men and women that keep us safe! We love you!

Of course, the whole reason we were really at the show, was so that Ally could see her beloved Kenny. Who did not disapoint either. Last week he had broken a toe or something at a show in SC, but, you couldn't tell from his show in Frisco. In a different move, he opened the show with "Summertime" (he usually opens with "Young". Is it sad that Ally knows this??), which, was fitting. The best part of any KC show is the video montage that is played right before he takes the stage and throughout the show, usually clips from music videos of the songs. The opening montage is always clips from the VI's (US & BVIs--he's got a house on St. John), and, Ally's favorite thing to do is say "I've been there!", and get overly excited. Pirates and Poets was no differnt that "Guitars & Tiki Bars" of 2004 or "Margaritas & Senoritas" of 2003. We don't talk about 2005, 2006 or 2007. Bitterness. Anyways... some places of interest in the video montage
-Foxy's (Vost Van Dyke, right?)
-Foxy himself. Met him, he's awesome
-Cane Garden Bay (Tortola, BVI)
-Soppers Hole (Tortola, BVI)
-Mongoose Landing (St. Jong, USVI)

Great memories from the Virgin Islands and great time with Mr. Chesney.

The Day Has Finally Arrived!!

2008-04-16T11:41:00.000-05:00

Yesterday, albeit, being tax day and all isn't usually our favorite day of the year, but, it sure is now! Yesterday we signed all the paperwork for our house. It was officially ours at 2PM Central Time, April 15, 2008. Yeppers, we are homeowners. Although, we do not have possesion until 6PM this evening, so, Justin is getting a kick out of the fact that we are landlords--for a day! Ha. He has made it clear that he will be waiting there at 5:59 tonight. Too funny! Ally and her bff Lauren Morrison will be at the gym getting in shape and ready to rip down a bunch of wallpaper!

We are over the moon excited and can't wait to get start on all the fun/craziness/hell that comes with a new home. We are excited to paint, set up our furniture, decorate, decorate, and create a beautiful space. Needless to say, Ally is getting very little done at work today, unless you call online shopping for slipcovers, bedding, lamps and candles "work", in which case, she should definatley get a raise!

We can't wait for you all to see our house--once it's decorated of course. We'll post pictures of the progress as we go.

Thanks again to everyone who made this possible.

YAY!!

Very overdue Holiday pictures

2008-04-01T21:03:00.001-05:00

Well, we got around to posting some pictures from that time of year...Check them out from several posts ago, under "Running Late". Here are some more!

Road trips make puppies very sleepy...

Ally and her "other half", Lara

And presents on the tree....

Merry Christmas!

Butch is confused...

Yes, Ally's new book is rather perfect for her...

Berlin calling..

A little De Laurentiis for everyone

2008-04-01T11:46:00.000-05:00

As you all know, Ally adores Giada De Laurentiis and has been on pins and needles waiting to hear of the birth of her first child. Well! The happy news has arrived. According to People.com, Giada and husband Todd Thompson welcomed a little girl on on Saturday March 29. They named her "Jade Mare De Laurentiis Thompson", which, is totally adorable because "Giada" is Italian for "jade", which Giada was named for her bright green eyes. Awww! Isn't that the sweetest? Wonder what is Italian for "Allison?"--seriously, if anyone knows, let Ally know.

Ally's so happy for her favorite Italian!

Read the story at: http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20186936,00.html

Picture courtsey of WireImage and People.com

Can't wait to see pictures of Mommy & Baby De Laurentiis!

Our new home!

2008-03-31T13:21:00.000-05:00

Yes, we have a house! We are very, very excited about buying our first home. We will close on April 15 (funny, right) and begin the move-in process on the 17th with a deadline to be finalized and in by April 26.
There will be lots to do, including scrape wallpaper and paint. Moving is never fun, but, we have had numerous people volunteer to help and we think it's also a good time to cash in some favors. Ally is least excited about calling the utility companies to get our service changed--that is the WORST. But, with the move comes a great house where we hope to host many a holiday (hint, hint, families), backyard BBQ, dinner parties and will be a home that will lend itself to one day having a family. Plus, it has a great "wing" for Rachel to stay in--with a balcony! Did we mention covered parking? Yes, that is a real highlight for us as just a few weeks ago Ally nearly drowned trying to make it from our driveway to the house after nearly 5" of rain in one day!
We couldn't be happier about the house, but, with a move comes a new neighborhood and new quirks to adjust to. We have spent the last (almost) 3 years in the exclusive neighborhood of Preston Hollow. Honestly, we didn't want to leave PH. It's got great schools and is located right in between Highway 75 and the tollway, only miles north of I-30 and south of 635--it is commuting perfection. Plus, it's close to Northpark mall, SMU, and grocery stores. We looked at many homes in our beloved Preston Hollow (when your neighbors are Mark Cuban and the Perot compound, it's hard to leave!), but, didn't find anything we liked.
Per our realtor's request, we looked at homes near SMU in an neighborhood called "The M Streets" where we saw and fell for several adorable Nantucket cottages. Ally's response was that we should have been living in those houses the last 3 years! Ha. The M Streets are not in our ward, but, we really tried to take the church factor out of the equation and look for the house we really loved, no matter the location.
One step inside 7124 Windedale Drive and we were in love. We loved everything about it--especially the fact that is in our ward, and only minutes away from our best church friends, the Kelleys. So, our new neighborhood is called Merriman Park and, what do you know, after 2 years of living across the street from a park, we, again, moved near a park! Merriman Park is just a few blocks away which will be great for dog walking and all sorts of fun. Plus, should Justin ever have any other emergency hospital situations, we are closer to Presby! Ha ha. It will take time to adjust to Merriman Park, but, the area is up and coming with a new multi-use commercial/residential property going in just blocks away. Can you say home value?!
All in all, this is a very exciting time and we can't wait to share our home with our family and friends--although, Ally has instituted a strict "pay for play" policy regarding use of the pool: wallpaper scraping and or painting is required for use of pool. Unless otherwise noted of course.
Enjoy the pictures and please ignore the wallpaper! We will re-post more when we get settled and some furniture (which, lets face it, could take a while).
Thanks to everyone who made this possible!

Fun times at Presbyterian Hospital of Dallas

2008-03-11T16:06:00.000-05:00

Really.

Last week we had our first hospital visit as a married couple. Which was not exactly the way either one of us wanted to start out the week.

On Monday, Ally's dad came into town to look at an airplane and took us out to dinner. All seemed well--we should probably preface this by the fact that on the preceding Friday, Justin was very sick. OK. So, Monday, after dinner, it returns, and it was worse. So, after *several* long hours, and after much begging and pleading from Ally, Justin finally agreed to go to a hospital. This was of course met with "Do you even know where you're going?!?" by an angry Justin who was not thrilled with the situation. Yes, Ally knew exactly where she was going and he's just lucky she didn't get mad and take him to the hospital further away from the house!

Good thing is that the doctors and nurses at Presby work rather quickly and within about 1.5-2 hours, the diagnosis was in: gallstones and an inflamed gallbladder. That would need to come out. Which means SURGERY! Not so much what we wanted to hear at 3:00 AM. Luckily, they had Justin pretty hopped up on the medication, so, he was at least feeling better!

We met the surgeon at about 7 that morning and played it by ear regarding when they would do the surgery--and it probably would have been Tuesday but Justin thought it would be a brilliant idea to walk to the bathroom by himself. Crash-bang-boom (x2) later, and he landed himself some CAT scans and an MRI. And no surgery that day. Thanks.

Bright and early Wednesday morning his bloodwork was done and, for a real surprise, the scrub nurse came in on time at 10:15 to get him to pre-op. By 2 PM on Wednesday the gallbladder was gone and Justin was on the road to recovery.

Despite the pain of surgery, Justin seems to be feeling better--who knew that all the problems he'd been having were caused by that pesky little gallbladder! Sheesh. We are so grateful for the doctors and nurses at Presby and that they were able to remove his gallbladder safely and that Justin is doing better now.

Not our favorite week, so, we don't have pictures to post...although, Ally does wish she had one of Justin in his snappy little hospital outfit.

Everything went well, so, we can't complain--although, Ally is still catching up on her sleep! She didn't get to be in half awake land on the pain meds for four days. She was wide awake for 35 hours +....

Running late...as usual (with pictures)

2008-02-25T11:49:00.000-06:00

Wow! It has been a very long time since we've updated this. That's what happens with school, holidays, graduation and court cases! My word. You'd think we were just slackers, but, we aren't--we promise. We're just very busy!
Let's see, quick update:
We went home for Thanksgiving and had a great time having Thanksgiving dinner with the Phillips' and pumpkin pie with the Frosts. We also had Ally's 23rd Birthday with Ally's long time friends, Nikki and Bri. The whole family came over that night and, of course, no party for Ally would be complete with multiple cakes (3 in all--all ice cream, of course) and Pirates of The Caribbean plates.
Once we returned home from our nice Thanksgiving break it was time to hunker down and get ready for finals. And more finals. And then Ally's graduation! Which took place at night, in the freezing, freezing cold--it wouldn't be an SMU graduation without awful temperatures! In May, it's in the 100s, in December, the 20s. Wow.
We made it home for Christmas but spent our first week back in court--which was no fun at all. The court case did not officially end until Feb. 4, 2008 when the verdict came in.
All were thrilled when the verdict came out in the plantiff's favor and now a precedent has been set for the state of California. In fact, local businesses are already preparing their buildings and asking tenants to move out. Sounds mean, but, it will save lives later. And that's all we care about!
That said, Ally is finally back at work...still at Cox, but looking for a permanent home. Justin is back in school and our lives are pretty much back to normal.
We're looking forward to summer and hopefully attending Rachel's graduation in Hawaii in June....But, as crazy as everything has been these last few months, we don't seem to be planning anything further than next weekend!

Hope you feel informed...!

The gang the day after graduation...

Ally and Bri (who was part of the trickery):

Aren't we cute?

Yes, Ally is elevated, and still short!

One of Ally's many birthday cakes:

Birthday fun!

Us on Thanksgiving:

When we have time....

2007-10-14T21:24:00.001-05:00

The countdown to Ally's graduation is still on. Two months from tomorrow! Over the weekend she ordered her graduation announcements, reserved cap & gown and bought her SMU ring. Exciting times around here.
Justin is staying busy too. He completed his first safety audit with Rogers O'Brien on Thursday and will complete another with Champerlain this Tuesday. Needless to say, he did awesome and everyone loved him (who wouldn't?)--this is great for networking and gaining experience--and internships and jobs.

Our lives really are revolving around work and school these days, but, when we get a chance, we kick back with our "kids"--our wonderful pets, Hanna, Butch and Lizzie. We thought we'd share some pictures of our pride and joy with you all.

Hanna looking all pretty after a day at WufSpa

Butch has a really hard life...Sleep, play, sleep, play, eat, sleep....

Our littest killer, Lizzie. Her life is hard too.

Hanna with her mess of toys

So sleepy!

He just makes himself at home anywhere

I'm just so pretty!

Kitty loves to sun herself

What's new?

2007-09-24T18:25:00.000-05:00

Now we're finally getting back into the swing of school--we're both very busy these days and more tired than ever! Tests and projects really take a toll on you! But, we're making it through. Although, it's safe to say that we wish it was Christmas break already!
Ally is ready for the semester to end and is busy working with the SPCA again, freelancing their new strategic marketing plan. Justin is getting in good with the folks and A&M Commerce and will be doing safety audits in the next few weeks. He was the only non-senior picked for this--which is needless to say, very cool!
Hard work does pay off! Work hard, play hard. Now we're just looking for our next chance to play!
We had so much fun "playing" in Utah and would love to go back soon.
Here are some more pictures from Utah...
Utah was great and Ally is a little nostalgic--already missing her cousins. We had such a blast with the Southam's and are hoping that they'll come visit Dallas sometime soon. If nothing else, cousin Spencer has an office in Dallas and we get to see him occasionally.
Love you!

The clan at the top of Snowbird. Clearly, good looks run in the family!

Darin and Bailey

No trip to Utah is complete without going to the Salt Lake City Temple.

The two of us outside the SLC Temple at night--so pretty!

Labor Day Weekend in Utah

2007-09-14T19:26:00.000-05:00

What better way to start a new semester than ditching class? That's what we did...Sort of. Justin's school didn't have off Labor Day. How weird is that?
So, we took off to Utah on Friday for a fun-filled weekend with Ally's side of the family. We went up to Flaming Gorge (where Ally's mom used to work), Vernal and the of course, Salt Lake City. We got to meet Darin and Michelle's daughter Bailey and Justin got to meet Ally's cousin Shauna, her husband Spencer and their three beautiful children. We also saw Ally's Grandpa and had dinner in Vernal with her aunt and cousin Kimberly and her boyfriend, Robert. Great way to start the semester!

Check out the bear that we saw on the way to Vernal

Vernal Temple

Ally & Kim

At Snowbird...Baby Bailey and proud parents Darin and Michelle

Welcome back!

2007-09-14T09:10:00.000-05:00

Well, school is in full swing here in Texas and we're both adjusting to it.

Justin drives 1 hour each way to Commerce on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Ally is fortunate enough to live only minutes from work and school at SMU--however, Wednesday's have been hard for her. Class from 12 noon to 10 PM. Only 13 more to go! Remember when school involved PB&J and naptime? Whatever happened to that? Where does the time go?

It seems crazy to think that Justin has been in school for two years now and tht Ally is steps away from graduation (everyone, mark the calendar: December 15, 2007. Be there). It's been a long road for both of us and we're really excited that Ally will soon be finished--keep her in your thoughts as she is taking a very challenging class load and working and looking for jobs this semester!
We have lots more to say, but, keep checkin' back! We love you all!