Day 2 of Blalock Family Cruise - KEY WEST, FLORIDA

Good morning...almost Good afternoon!  Timothy slept until 10:30AM.  This is unheard of.  He may have even slept longer if he didn't receive my wake up call.  I was wondering why I hadn't heard from him yet (he's one of those "I only need 4 or 5 hours of sleep" types) and thought for sure he had already been to breakfast.  Nope!!!  His inside cabin created the perfect sleeping cave.  And with no light whatsoever and a little jet lag, Timothy stayed in dreamland wayyyyyy past his norm! 

Bright eyed and bushy tailed.  And what is that I spy?  Is that the start of a goatee on Timothy??  I'm liking it.

TJ's was chilling on his top bunk when we came to get him to disembark.  

Uncle Bo LOVES his niece and nephew.

We were all wishing there was some way we could tour Key West while riding instead of walking...

...and then we saw the trolley's.  We hopped on and off all afternoon.

The butterfly conservatory made me think of my sister in law Julie.  She loves all things butterflies.

First Blalock Family Photo

The happy couple.  Spending time three days in a row??? This is a record.  :)

Tim and his mama

Our Junior Bridesmaid

In front of the southern most part of the USA.  Care to swim on over to Cuba?  A mere 90 miles.  We could see it off in the distance.

Fresh coconut juice.

St. Paul's Cathedral was beautiful.  I loved all of the architecture in Key West.  In fact we liked a lot about Key West.  That's the beauty of a cruise.  You can check out different spots for a day and then decide if they are worthy of a return trip.  We'd love to vacation a week in Key West.  A very fun city.  With a beach!!

We took a dip in the pool after we were aboard.  Dinner was in The Lido.  It's a casual dining serve yourself buffet.  We like it because you are in and out of their quick, there is a large selection, and no set time.  The flexibility is nice and leaves lots of time to enjoy the rest of the ship.  We went to a show tonight.  The entertainment is impressive.

Tomorrow is a day at sea.  What to do?  What to do?  Loving this vacation!

Day 1 of Blalock Family Cruise

The streak has been broken.  It's been circa three years since Timothy Mitchell Blalock has taken a vacation.  Tonight, we boarded a jet plane on a red eye flight to Tampa.  Tomorrow morning will be the rest of the Blalock Bunch for a Caribbean Cruise!!

Oh yeah.  Paul Frank eye mask, a backwards hat and neck pillows.  We were so ready to catch some zzzzzz's.  But we didn't.  Not much.

Mrs. Blalock raised this boy right. 

But handling all of the bags?  That's a bit over the top.  (But don't think that I dared try to take anything off of his hands :) )

Two "lip" photos in one post?  We were a bit delirious by this point.  (But obviously didn't pass up a self portrait opportunity).

Meet the rest of Timothy's family.  His brother Tom, sister-in-law Kathy, Katie, TJ and Mama Blalock.  They road tripped from Georgia and were waiting for us at the airport.  Very nice.

TJ and Katie.  Ready to board the ship.

Our ship was awesome.  The Holland America Ryndam.

After getting settled into our room, the mandatory lifeboat drill (but new policy says you don't have to actually wear your life jacket, SCORE) the first of many meals on board, we chilled pool side.  I walked the ship for a bit (wedding dress, wedding dress, wedding dress) while the others played chess, read kindles and other family fun.

Uncle Bo and TJ play slap while Grandmama looks on.  I know she is thrilled to have her family close by for an entire week.  I am so grateful to get to tag along.  It's going to be a great week!!!

Wedding Date and Venue Announced!

Friday, September 9th, 2011
6pm

El Adobe de Capistrano
31891 Camino Capistrano
San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675
Our wedding ceremony and reception will be at El Adobe de Capistrano in the historic heart of San Juan Capistrano, California.
Our ceremony will begin promptly at 6pm at the outdoor wedding patio.
The reception will move into El Adobe's Palenque Room where amazing authentic Mexican cuisine will be served. Merriment and dancing will continue throughout our celebration.
The restaurant site has been recognized as a California State Historical Landmark. Situated just two short blocks south of the historic Mission San Juan Capistrano and the Train Depot.
Parking is located behind the restaurant with overflow parking located a few blocks away in city parking.
To read more about El Adobe click www.eladobedecapistrano.com/index.php

TMB + MMH (Soon to be TMB + MHB)

Timothy and I both took today off work on Valentine's Day and I got to plan a mystery date!  I picked Timothy up and we exchanged valentines. 

Chocolates and a little blue box with the Tiffany's mini bead bracelet that I've been coveting.  Best valentines day present ever.  Even sweeter was the card with sweet words from my sweet T.  I love that man!!!

My something blue for the wedding. 

A Charlie Brown themed valentines from me for Timothy. He loves all things Charlie Brown.   Hints leading up to our mystery date to...

Knott's Berry Farm

Taken. :)

Tim loves rollercoasters.  Me?  Not so much.  But I tried to give it a chance.  

This shot was before I got sick on The Mexican Hats ride.  Never again.  Spinny rides and me do not get along.  Not even a little.

A little cheese from Lucy and Charlie Brown.

Bumper rides and their subtle signs.  Knott's Berry farm is NOT Disneyland.  Customer service is not a priority and it's not the same experience as being in that magical place.  BUT it has some great rollercoasters, is relatively inexpensive and is a nice change of scenery.  Made for a great mystery date.  

Sweet T. + Sweetness Divine = True Love Forever :)

The story of us

Boy meets girl.  Boy and girl fall in love.  Boy asks girl to be his wife.  She said yes. 

Tim and Melinda met through a match maker (aka E Harmony) last summer. After nearly month of phone calls (lasting into the wee hours of the morning) Tim asked Melinda on their first date.  An evening of dinner and laughter at Crystal Cove's Beachcomber in Newport Beach, California turned into talking until just before Tim's Sunday morning shift at his restaurant. And as all good romance stories go, somehow they both knew that they were both about to begin something very special.

The following week Melinda asked Tim to tag along on a business trip to San Diego. When her work was done for the day they drove to Seaport Village to take in the sights and enjoy dinner in nearby Little Italy. An after dinner stroll along the water ended near the USS Midway museum and they shared their first kiss. Fireworks literally went off in the sky (talk about timing!) and Tim joked that he would never be able to replicate that moment no matter how hard he tried. Neither one of them disclosed that they too were both experiencing fireworks on the inside!

In the months that followed Tim and Melinda began surprising each other with monthly mystery dates. Each time, trying to "out do" each other, they were able to experience many firsts together including a balloon ride over Irvine while listening to The Blind Boys of Alabama, the shark exhibit at The Long Beach Aquarium, Toy Story 3 at El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood and Melinda's personal favorite, an interpretative dance recital at UCI. (What a good sport Tim is!)

Both Tim and Melinda recognized early on that God had His perfect hand in orchestrating their meeting, falling in love and mutual interest in spending their lives together. The old cliché it just feels so right rang true and their friends and family shared in their excitement throughout their courtship believing that they are God's best for one another. It was an answered prayer to years and years of praying that these two souls would be blessed with one life together.

In December Melinda returned from a family Christmas in Sisters, Oregon with plans to spend New Year’s Eve with Tim. She had a sneaking suspicion that he might pop the question but had already ruined the chances of that by guessing earlier that it would be that night. Or so she thought. Tim showed up from work with an hour to spare before the clock struck midnight. Melinda was finishing the touches on a New Years cake she made (A Tiffany Blue Box cake, but of course) and Tim asked her to come join him on the couch to watch the countdown from Times Square. He said, let’s both close our eyes and when we get to 2011 we'll open them and the first thing we will see is each other. Unsuspectedly, Melinda (for reals.... she thought it might happen on a "picnic" on New Year’s Day) obliged. And the second that 2011 arrived Melinda felt Tim grab her left hand and slip a ring on her ring finger. Girly screaming ensued as Melinda buried her head in Tim's chest. Tim waited for the squealing to die down and said, Wait! Wait! I need to ask you a question! Melinda lifted her head off his chest and was speechless (for. the. first. time. ever) as Tim said, Melinda Marie Hughie, will you be my wife? It was really happening! The answer she squeaked out was, YES! On 1-1-11 Melinda and Tim became engaged to be married. Melinda just happened to have her camera nearby along with a manicure suited for shots of her new bling. (And what a beautiful bling Tim chose).

Tim and Melinda are so excited for their upcoming wedding on 9-9-11 and are enjoying the joys of being engaged and planning a special day to celebrate with their close friends and family.

Thank you for reading their story and for the special place you hold in their hearts and for all that you do to support their courtship, engagement and future life together as husband and wife!

Hughie Family Photos

It's been 17 years since all of the Hughies (my parents, siblings and their families and myself) have all been together in one place at one time.  We live throughout the country and distance tends to keep us from all being together.  This made a family photo shoot a requirement!  I took on the project of hiring a photographer and coordinating the details to make it happen.  Since my parents live in an itty bitty town and it was the day before Christmas eve, it wasn't so easy to find an available and affordable photographer to take on the job.  I went the economical route (although it wasn't exactly cheap) and hired a local photographer.  She captured some great shots, but her editing skills weren't stellar and her pricing for getting the prints printed (or the digital file for that matter) were astronomical.  What was supposed to be a relatively simple process turned into some heated negotiating.  I was able to eventually get the disk AND my friend Melvin saved the day and artistically edited the images (although he refused to remove the under eye baggage...ugh).  I'm so grateful to have these shots.  I love them and know that they will be treasured.  Especially for my parents to have a photo with have their entire family in one shot!

My mom and dad and their beloved Jake.  They will celebrate 50 years of marriage in 2 years.  5 children, 2 daughter in laws, 2 (almost 3) son in laws, and 6 grandkids.  They have created quite a family and a legacy as well.

Child #1 Janice (Graffius) and her family: husband Mark and sons Gregory and Andrew.  (Along with the snowman that my brother David and family created!)

Child #2 David and his family: wife Julie and sons Caleb and Mason

Child #3 Ken and his family:  wife Sonia and son Nicolas

Child #4 Melinda Marie with dad and mom (family to follow, smile)

Child #5 Dana (Everett) and her family: husband Nick, daughter Elle and dog George

LOVED all of the snow.  It really felt like Christmas with the winter wonderland.  Somehow the beach and palm trees just doesn't feel the same.

Andrew (age 17) and Gregory (20)

Mason (6) and Caleb (7)

Elle Julianne (6 months)

Nicolas Kenneth (2 months)

LaLa and her nephews and niece

Nana and Papa Oregon and their grandchildren

The original Hughies ~ party of seven!

L-O-V-E

Jammies

I love these photos of our baby niece and nephew, Elle and Nicolas.  They are so cute in their jammies.

December 2010 - Elle 6 months and Nicolas 2 months