Days 2, 3, & 4...Late!

I'm a tad bit late posting the remainder of our trip. Here's a recap:

Friday we were still on working life schedules and woke up at 5 AM! YIKES!! Of course, no pancake houses are open at 5 am so we had to lolligag around until 7:00. That's pretty hard on two people who thrive on finding good food to eat. We may or may not have stopped at Krispy Kreme while the hot light was on to have a 'snack' while we waited.

We played a little miniature golf which I STINK at but we had a blast!





This is what I'm going to look like if I don't stop eating!! Ha ha!


We dressed up on our last night and went to a really nice restaurant and I felt like a princess. Matthew truly knows how to treat me like a lady!




I didn't get any real good pictures because self-timers only work well if you have somewhere good to set the camera. The toolbox in the back of a truck isn't the best place.

We ended the trip with a stop by Bass Pro Shop. I know most women think I'm crazy, but I LOVE that place. There's bookoodles of stuff to look at so I'm never bored!! Also, they have a really good women's clothing section. That, if nothing else, is a nice incentive for going!!!


And, seriously. Going back to work after having such a GREAT weekend is not fun. It just makes me look forward to the next time! :)

Romantic Getaway...Day 1

I mentioned a few weeks ago that Matthew and I were celebrating our anniversary in Tennessee a few weeks after our anniversary. The trip has finally arrived!!! I left work early today, we dropped the kids off, and we headed out to Tennessee. We have been so excited about this trip, especially Matthew. He kept telling me I had a surprise waiting for me when we arrived.

Boy, was I surprised!!! I almost cried because of the sweetness of my husband. Just the fact that he thought of it by HIMSELF, was amazing to me. He definitely knows how to touch my heart.


I assure everyone that the bottle is grape juice only! LOL! I asked Matthew how he was able to have all this done before we got here. His answer: he talked to an old lady from the resort and told her he wanted to do something special for his wife. After describing what he wanted, that was all it took for her!


One funny thing today: you know the incident on Sunday that included me locking my keys in my car? Ahem...Hubs was apparently jealous that he had NEVER done that before and decided that Tennessee would be a good place to try it.
The good thing about the situation was that he had left his window down about an inch or so. He REMOVED THE ANTENNA from the truck and proceeded to try to reach the lock through the cracked window. I hurried to the other side of the truck to try to guide him to the lock. About the time he almost had it unlocked, the antenna slipped right out of his hand and onto the truck seat. An even better part of this story...the cell phone was in the truck. Although Hubs didn't find it as hilarious as I did, he did have an alternate plan. He suggested I go inside a store and try to call a locksmith or the police or whoever people in Tennessee use in situations like we were in. While I distracted the cashier in the store by using the phone and asking for locksmith numbers...


In the parking space next to us was a large van that was used for advertising only. Matthew decided to remove the antenna from the van to use as a replacement for the one he dropped. About the time I had a fairly cheap locksmith on the phone to come to our rescue, I saw the truck door swing open. I'm sure the locksmith thought I was a real dummy after the way I sputtered and laughed and told him "Nevermind! My husband just unlocked the door with another antenna!"
Of course, we put the antenna back on the van. I'm not real sure that I should be admitting that we actually took an antenna off another vehicle. If seen by the right people, we could have been arrested or something like that. Maybe??? I don't know.

So, anyway. Day 1 of our trip has proved fun and exciting already!! Stay tuned for more updates and pictures...
:)

Happy Valentine's Day!!!

Happy Valentine's Day from the Noe family!

The kids and I went to Mr. Chase's birthday party today and had a blast!!! We had the perfect ending to the party...I locked my keys in my car along with my phone, purse, diapers, wipes and everything else. A HUGE thank you to Alesia and Bill for calling someone to come help and even PAYING for it! Y'all were lifesavers today.

The kids and I came home and decided to make some Valentine's Day cupcakes. Boy, did they enjoy themselves.






I promptly dipped them in the bathtub afterwards. LOL!!!
As of now, these munchkins are running around the living room singing Amazing Grace, shouting "Hallelujah!" and testifying. Kari just said "Okay, Sister Bubby come sing us a song" to which Malachi simply replied "NO!" These are great times!

Hubs is asleep since he is working such an odd shift and has to get up at 12:00 to get ready for work. Trying to keep these 'younguns' quiet is like trying to muzzle two rat terriers.

I have two pieces of news...a sad news and a happy news.

News #1: We had a death in our family. Hercules has finally gone on to hermit crab heaven. I succeeded in starving and thirsting him to death. I will admit that we had a scare with him a few months ago and I called the family and reported his death. Soon after I reported his death I thought I saw movement in the cage. I filled his sponge with water just in case he was just playing a prank on me. About 30 minutes later, Hercules rose from the dead, folks! But this time there was no doubt that he had given up the ghost for the final time. We mourned for ummm... about 20 seconds and then we were done. Aunt Lacey has promised something different this year. Yay.

News #2: Congratulations to Jon and Latasha!!!

They got engaged last night and I'm so happy for them! I'm sad too, though, because I honestly feel like my daughter is getting married! Kari did say that when Toshi and Jon get married that she was "marrying them too and we were all going to be married" so that could be interesting. I don't think Kari is any more ready to give her up than I am. But she will be in good hands! I love you guys and I couldn't be happier for anyone!!

Happy Valentine's Day, Matthew!! I love you bunches and I'm thankful for the day God decided to put it in His will for us to be together!

Just Some Pics

We had an awesome anniversary!! Thanks for all the sweet comments...Matthew and I enjoyed them all!! I even got a dozen hot pink roses sent to work and picked up for lunch too! My hubs has a romantic streak a mile long and I like it.
I'm posting some pictures of my sweet babies for my mommy tonight. She's missing her grandbabies this week.
Hope the rest of you all enjoy!!!








:)

A Love Story

I've spent most of the day today trying to remember what I was doing each hour on this day 7 years ago. I remember waking up on my wedding day so excited about marrying the man that I had wanted to marry since age 5 that I could hardly stand it. While my mom, sister, best friends and everybody else were nervous about everything going perfect....I was only anticipating the moment when the pastor pronounced us man and wife.

When I was 5 years old (which would be 21 years ago), I had a gigantic crush on Matthew Noe. The cool thing is that he had a crush on me too. My mother in law still has the first love letter he ever wrote me and that's a true story!!! It goes something like this:

Ashley,

Do you like me? I like you. Circle yes or no.

Love,

Matthew Noe

I'll be honest and say that me and Matthew probably set the record for break ups when we were teenagers. Every time we would break up we would go in search of finding God's will and sometimes made some "weird" choices. But when it was God's time, He put us together for the final time. On February 7th, 2004, Matthew Noe became my husband. I still remember the first time I introduced him as my "husband" and not merely my "boyfriend" and also the first time he introduced me as his wife. I was so proud that I probably didn't stop grinning for months!

I think the most exciting thing about this anniversary is celebrating the miracle that God gave us. I was reminded once again today just how far God has brought Matthew and I. Tomorrow is 4 months exactly that God saved Matthew's soul and 3 months since He put our home back together!

The weekend after Matthew got saved, my father in law preached a message about God making things brand new. Not patched up. Not merely mended. Not halfway put back together. But BRAND NEW. He gave an example of a mommy and daddy bird that have worked so hard to build a nest for themselves and their babies. A terrible storm comes along and destroys everything they've built and worked hard for. Unlike most of us humans, the birds don't stoop to the ground and pick up the pieces to rebuild the nest. Instead, they get BRAND NEW material to rebuild. They build a home stronger and better than it EVER WAS BEFORE.

How many people told me that even though God had saved Matthew that our marriage and home would never be like it was before??? They were SOOO right but not in the way they thought. Our home and marriage are nothing like they were before because God made it brand new. A brand new marriage, a brand new home....BETTER THAN IT HAS EVER BEEN.

Shouting ground there, friends!!! God is able to do ABOVE anything we could ask or even think and I'm living proof of that. I wish I could just stand with a megaphone to the world and tell them just how awesome and powerful God is!!! Just to be able to give them the hope that things can change, that their situations can be turned completely around with GOD'S help.

So, as Matthew and I celebrate 7 years of marriage on Monday, we have so much to be thankful for! I thank God that He gave me such a love for my husband. I think he's the best thing EVER and, of course, I think he's the most handsome man in the world. Not to mention the fact that he's such a good daddy! If he's been gone longer than an hour the kids are already asking where Daddy is. I've graduated to rank #2 in their eyes and I'm not complaining at all! Not to be mushy here, but I am so in love with this man that God has blessed me with!! The better part is that Hubs is in love with me too!! He tells me every single day that he's in love with me and that I'm the most beautiful woman in the world. That takes love, folks. Bless his heart, not only did God give him a wife but blinders on his eyes too! Ha ha!!

Please join us in thanking God for a unified home and another year to serve the Lord together! We are going on a small trip together the weekend after Valentine's Day so our actual anniversary day will probably be spent at home with the kids. Our babies...a whole other post in itself. We are two very blessed people! :)