Grilling Up Some Birthday Fun!

Today my husband turned 28 years old. In 6 days we will have shared a decade of memories together. I am so excited for the adventures that we have shared and those that lay ahead. I am thankful for the excitement and the hiccups too as they too define our journey. Today we had the privilege of making more memories and celebrating with some pretty special people. For about a week we have been planning Ray's birthday which in turn was also our first house party. We have only been in this house for two weeks, but love that it is our home even though it is a continued work in progress. I just want to thank my husband as well as the friends that help make these moments so special. So without further adew... here is Ray's 28th Birthday Bash: Grilling Up Some Birthday Fun!

The night before the big shindig, the husband and I spent most of our night purchasing groceries, buying last minute decor, and setting up. We made our way through SAMs (I am seriously loving this place as it is where we also purchased our patio furniture.) Hobby Lobby (2X), and Kroger. Waking up on Saturday was a pretty early morning, but I was sure ready to get started. I blew up balloons..


(Toby was not a fan), set up the food table, and then made a morning breakfast as it has become birthday tradition to serve it in bed.



After morning breakfast, a doggy bath time, an unexpected neighbor visit, and setting up, we were ready to begin.

Our lunch menu included grilling hamburger sliders with toppings, fruit skewers, dips and spreads, crackers, cheese balls (of course), and watermelon fiz and other delicious drinks. Here are a few pictures of the food and decor.





From tasty food and delicious drinks, games, bubbles, pool time, doggy door fun, balloon rooms, and ice cream cake, I shall say that the party was a huge success. Enjoy a very large grouping of party pictures!


The Birthday Grill Master making yummy sliders.

Ray and Michael

The Dukes with little man Jacob.

Dustin and Paige with little Miss.

Ray and Jacob

Aunt Steph and Bryson enjoying some bubble time on the deck.

Cooking up lots of birthday fun with the husband!

The ladies

Stephanie, Kristin, and Mike

Steph and Michael getting some grub.

Stephanie and I with little man Jacob. This little man has gotten so BIG! He also LOVES the fans:)

Bryson and Jacob loved playing together!

Bryson and Jacob exploring the doggy door.

Kristin and Bryson with matching colored balloons. I love how Bryson picked a balloon for each person but only if it matched their shirt. So stink'n adorable!

Steph, Jacob, and GOOFY!

The pool was a huge hit for this little guy. With blue lips and all he was for sure going to get some hang out time.

Walking with mama.

Kristin and Jacob "bababa." Too cute!

Mike rock'n out with Bryson in the balloon room.

Happy 28th Birthday Ray! You have to love mint chocolate chip ice cream cakes. YUM!

The boys with the birthday boy!

Like Father like Son... Michael and Bryson. He sure loved those stairs. "Spin in Alicia's room... upstairs?!?"


The party was a huge success! The men relaxing on the new carpet!

We absolutely had a blast grilling up some birthday fun!
Happy 28th birthday love!

Easter 2012

Happy Easter!
Christ has risen from the dead. We are one with Him again. Come awake. Come awake. Come and rise up from the grave!

This Easter Sunday, Ray and I attended the Heights Baptist Church. We enjoyed our morning playing a bible jeopardy game with our ABF and then listened to a sermon that reflected on God "Our Father" and a message about hope and love. After service, Ray and I made our way back home and enjoyed treats from our Easter basket.


Yes this year, being a one car family and having little to no time to get small treats for each other, we actually went to the Dollar Store to pick up a few things that we both liked and then filled our baskets. From chocolate bunnies to gummy candies, bubbles, sidewalk chalk, play dough, and pool pieces, our basket was filled with fun spring toys and goodies.



Later that afternoon after a quick change into something more comfortable, the husband and I quickly whipped up a dessert to bring to Easter dinner at the Braggs. This may have been one of the best and most rich recipes we have ever made. We introduce you to deep fried Cadbury cream puffs. They were absolutely delicious.



At the Braggs we enjoyed an afternoon of Just Dance, Easter egg painting and hunting, snacking, washers, and a delicious meal with lots of sugary treats. Enjoy some pictures of our Easter Sunday.









We are all so blessed. But most importantly above any present given, it is the gift of grace that God has given to all of his people that truly defines Easter.

Happy Easter to All!

First Week's Random Ramblings!

This marks the first full week of home ownership for the Zellners. With the help of friends, we have packed, moved, unpacked, purchased some necessities... and some pieces we wanted, and have made our house a home. Now there are so many things that have yet to be done. I would have thought we would be further along with our unpacking; however, today we did make quite a bit of headway. We have been given the gift of a washer as well as a gift of a grill. We are so incredibly thankful for such amazing gifts and cannot wait to put both fully to use. From all the amazing words of encouragement and support we received, we are just constantly humbled by this experience as it is an adventure we've been patiently or impatiently waiting on for some time. Now we know that we will have our ups and downs with this next step as we've already experienced a jungle, a small ant infestation, some wasp nests that will need to be removed, but all in all things are going great. Anyway, here are a few random ramblings that have come to mind over this process.

1. It is amazing how many bathroom choices we now have.
2. This is the first time that we have had double sinks and we do not have to share.
3. Wood floors are beautiful but will take A LOT of work to keep them clean.
4. We now have a LOT more space to clean as compared to our 650 square foot apartment.
5. We can pick up our own mail in our front yard as compared to walking to the other side of the complex.
6. I love having a backyard.
7. We rarely use our front door.
8. We had previously found out that we were able to wash the couch cushion covers and so we did. They look great!
9. We bought patio furniture yesterday and cannot wait for it to be set up on Wednesday.
10. It was really exciting to do mundane things like put out the trashcans, send your first letter, and/or hear your door bell ring.

More ramblings are sure to follow. Stay tuned.

Good Friday Pedicures and Shopping!

Happy Friday! And what a GOOD FRIDAY it was!

We had hopes (small at best) that we would wake up early enough to go work out at 5AM, but quickly determined that sleeping in on our day off would be much more beneficial. I am so thankful that Ray took the day off as it gave us plenty of time to spend together out enjoying such a beautiful day. This morning we were met with a bit of a scare as Mattie accidentally pottied in the house but it was filled with blood. (I know a little TMI). But we quickly got her in to see the vet. She was diagnosed with a bladder infection and put on meds but she seems to be feeling a lot better already. After we dropped little miss off at the house to rest, the husband and I had planned on some relaxing pedicures. I was so excited as this was Ray's first time to go and was a fun activity for us to do together.

From heated towels, warm rocks, salt scrubs, and the massaging chair... it was amazing as always. Ray's face on the other hand was priceless.

For lunch, Ray and I made our way to the shops off of Bethany and enjoyed a delicious meal at Bonnie Ruth's French Bistro. It was absolutely delicious and a super cute cafe.

After lunch and being extremely full, we made our way to Garden Ridge to look for a few items for the home. We ended up finding quite a few things for a really great deal including a new rug, lights to be hung from the deck, and a few other pieces. But after a long day of walking and searching, we found some time to play!

Another magical stop to Sams... and we found PATIO FURNITURE! We absolutely love it and can't wait for it to be delivered next Wednesday. We truly have been blessed in regards to our home and little pieces that were left by the previous owner and our absolutely amazing gift from our friends the Fants... a grill!

It was a very GOOD FRIDAY! I am thankful for all of the amazing blessings given! Wishing you all a wonderful Easter weekend!

Welcome Home!

Ray and I couldn't be more excited to begin the journey of home ownership. And as the words on the front door mat read... welcome! Welcome to the next steps in our lives. The opportunity that we have been dreaming of. A place that we can call ours and a place to grow our little family... in the near future. The next pictures represent the past week of moving and the adjustments that follow. We truly are blessed. Thank you all for the words of encouragement as we are so excited for this exciting opportunity. Enjoy the next steps and WELCOME!


Friday night... our first night in our brand new home. The husband and I enjoyed a champagne toast. Yes this is a picture of our "house wine" that my sister-in-law gave us a few years ago but I just thought it represented the moment so perfectly.


Ray and our kiddos after a long exploration of the grounds. Poor Mattie kept jumping back into the car as she thought we would be returning to the apartment. She is still a bit confused but will hopefully get acclimated soon. Friday night, the husband and I borrowed a queen blow up air matress and slept in the master with the pups. At 3AM I was ready to begin our day, but sadly we wouldn't be waking up until 8AM. That next morning, we got up, enjoyed some breakfast, picked up the rental truck and were on our way. By 10AM we were at the old apartment with moving boxes in hand. We cannot thank our friends enough for their help.


After an hour of loading several vehicles and the truck, we were on our way home! I couldn't believe how quickly we were moved out. I give our moving people 2 thumbs up for sure! When we arrived I could not believe I was looking at OUR HOUSE! It was a bit of a jungle as the last owner had not mowed or taken care of any landscape for the last month, but at this point I was so excited to finally be home.



After our move, some whole foods pizza and wings, we said good-bye to our friends and hello to delivery men dropping off our new washer. A huge thank you goes out to my mother and father-in-law for our gift. It could not have been better timing. We are so appreciative! Within minutes it was set up and the cleaning began. How amazing it is to wash and dry your clothes where the machines actually work. No more double drying for this family. No wonder so many clothing pieces shrunk. ha! We then made our way to Target for a few home essentials. But we couldn't leave without a new bed for the kiddos.



On Monday, we came home to this beautiful orchid sitting on our porch from our Realtor. We could not have been more thankful to have her expertise and help on such an important task.



While I am a bit limited in some of my decoration, I did add a few Easter pieces of decor to our dining room table and look forward to the many trips to continue the beautification process of the house.


One of my favorite things to do is to sit outside on our back porch and play with the pups. This is definitely something I couldn't wait for... to have a yard for the dogs and of course a place to entertain.



So here's to home ownership, the ups and downs, and all the in betweens! I am absolutely excited about the journey ahead! Welcome Home!