WTF?

So we have this huge tree in our front yard. The branches became too long in the spring and started rubbing against the shingles on our rooftop. Normal people would hire a tree trimming service, right? Not Nigel. Why did I come home one day to find my husband on top of the house trimming the tree? Paul Bunyan-style! Well, no one can say he's not a self-made man (these were large branches, guys. It took approx. 4 hours).

WTF - Part Two

Here's the newest addition to our family - my niece, Nataly. She's one month old in this picture. Sleep, my angel. You'll have plenty of time to see the world.

Here I am with my cousins; Grandma's in the middle. All of my cousins are not pictured. If we did that, we'd have about 100 or so in the shot. We're a pretty large family comprised of mainly the Fontenots, Thibodeauxs, and Citizens. Needless to say, you have to get to family gatherings early if you want the main ingredients in the gumbo (shrimp, chicken, sausage, crabs, etc.). If not, you're going to have to go to the bottom of the pot because everyone has already gotten the good stuff. Hahahaha!

This is me and my two older sisters at Mom's birthday party.

Orange, Texas - we had a double-hitter that weekend. We celebrated two milestone birthdays - my Mom's 60th and my Grandmother's 80th. We reserved a room for about 25 people and wouldn't you know it, about 40 showed up. My people, my people...

Me and my little cuz. Isn't she adorable?!

Oh Mama!

Here's my Mom. See the dimples? It's like I'm looking in the mirror 30 years from now. Ha! Love you, Mom.

In April 2008, we celebrated my Mom's 60th birthday. Here's Nige throwing up the ice - A Phi A, baby! So what's with the Mexican flags and festive decorations in the background? We celebrated at a Mexican restaurant in Beaumont. We had a blast! Mom had so much fun.

Chillin' at Grandma's Party

Nigel and I try to celebrate every family holiday/birthday/major event together. Family is very important to us and we cherish every moment that we have with them.

Grandma Fontenot's 80th Birthday

This is the first picture (as an adult) that I've ever taken with my Grandmother (shocking, I know!). In April 2008, my Grandmother celebrated her 80th birthday. We had a wonderful party in her honor and I got to see so many of my family members that I haven't seen in years. It was wonderful! Letha Mae Fontenot - here's looking at you, kid!

Mr. and Mrs. Prentice

So it's been almost two years since our wedding and we're still on our honeymoon. We are so blessed to have one another, our family, friends and loved ones. Life is good and it's only getting better. Someone once told me, "If I had to go through all of the mistakes I made in the past to get to this moment, it was all worth it." I couldn't have said it better myself. Love you, Nige.

Party Like a Rock Star

Christmas 2007. Crime - impersonating a rock star. Intent - to entertain his nephew and have a freegin' good time! Culprit - Nigel, aka, Van Halen.

Check THIS out! Nigel is playing a video game with an electric guitar with his nephew, Darren. Mom looks on, intrigued. "Hey, I wanna play!" Okay Mom, you'll have your chance.

Guitar Grandma

Christmas 2007. This is Nigel's mother, Christina - playing a video game with her grandson. It's great to see her having a good time. Mom has been through a lot these last 3 years. But she's a warrior.

Miracle on 34th Street

Me and my cousin Tonya. Tonya is a walking miracle, to say the least. A month prior to this photo Tonya had a serious medical ailment. She has a malfunctioning kidney and receives dialysis treatments. One day, Tonya was rushed to the hospital due to multiple seizures. She had 8 seizures in one day. She went into a short coma and awoke with family by her side. Through prayers and the help of some very special doctors, Tonya was able to smile and take this picture with me a month later. She's a pretty dynamic individual with a strong will to live. Love you, cuz.

Our Future's So Bright We Have to Wear Shades

Left to right: Immanuel (my nephew), me, and Andrea (my niece). I guess we all thought we were so cool in our shades. This was the perfect day - the family came to Austin for a fun-filled visit, the weather was beautiful, everyone was happy, and we had SO much fun! Here we are off to the grocery store to pick up dinner and cook a big meal for the family. It was Mexican food night. Yum!

All in the Family

Chris, Jamil, and Mack (Nigel's Mom, sister, and brother-in-law). Update: As of December 2008, Chris is cancer free. Thank God! She's a cancer survivor two times over. Jamil is about to finish her medical residency in Houston and become a full time pediatrician at Texas Children's Hospital. Mack is about to finish his Ph.D. at Rice University in May 2008. Mack was recently awarded the first ever Ken Kennedy-Cray Inc. Graduate Fellowship at Rice. Cray Inc. is a global super computer leader in the U.S. The fund provides support to graduate students with a preference given to those involved in high-performance computing. We are so proud of Mack!

Mother's Day

My Mom! Sara. It's Mother's Day and Nigel and I made a surprise visit to Orange to celebrate Mother's Day. Mom is my closest girlfriend: she's fun... she's cool... and she's always by my side. Can you see the resemblance? She has dimples deeper than mine! Ha!

Baby Love

Nigel and Christian

Oh Boy! Oh Boy!

Angela and son, Connor. Now this is an interesting story. Angela and her hubby were set to adopt a baby boy. As it turns out, they adopted two adorable twins - Connor and Christian. Here's the scene: It was a very exciting day for Mom and Dad. They get the call that the birth mother is in labor - they eagerly rush to the hospital to greet their son to the world - the wait was intense - and after what seemed like an eternity.... the doc comes out and states that Angela and Brian are the proud parents of not one, but TWO twin boys. Oh boy, Oh boy!

This is baby Caelyn. Nigel and I attended her one year birthday in November. Caelyn got her first start in the world on our wedding day. She's very special to us. Mom and Dad are Qiana and Chad. Chad is A Phi A, Nigel's fraternity brother - he was also a groomsman in our wedding!

Sky High

Nigel's holding Dennis, his nephew. We're celebrating October birthdays in Houston and Dennis is as happy as a lark. "Big hugs, Uncle Nigel!". He's so excited to be tall! You can almost hear a rendition of R. Kelly's "I believe I can fly."

Birthday Bash

Left to right - Chris, Jamil, and me. We're getting ready to blow out the candles.

Something that amazes me about Nigel's family is that they celebrate EVERY FAMILY MEMBERS' BIRTHDAY together. I mean it. They never miss a one!

I've always heard "in-law" horror stories from my friends about the relationships they have with their in-laws. But it's never affected me. When I married Nigel, I married them. They're in it for better or worse, and vice versa, and they accept me like one of their own.

So when it came time to celebrate October birthdays, me, Jamil, and Chris celebrated together with all of his immediate family in Houston. Unfortunately, my family was unable to be there, but it was still fun.

And here's the catch - my actual birthday is in September! They missed celebrating my birthday, so when October came around they included me in the October birthday celebration - gifts and all! They REALLY are fabulous in-laws and I love them very much.