A "Bunch" of Blogs

8 THINGS ABOUT ME

2008-12-28T15:14:00.002-06:00

Nothing like being tagged to suck me back into blogging. Thanks Ashley I.

8 TV Shows I watch:

1. The Office

2. How I Met Your Mother (So funny)

3. Dancing with the Stars

4. The Hills

5. Say Yes to the Dress

6. Cheer U (Sorry, I still have some cheerleader in me)

7. Top Chef

8. Project Runway

8 Things that happened to me today:

1. Went to church.

2. Had a mild panic attack because I thought I lost my work keys and they are $75.00 a piece to replace!!!

3. Started a load of laundry.

4. Cleaned out and reorganized the bill drawer.

5. Cleaned out and threw away receipts because my husband is trying to see how many receipts he can stash around the house before my head explodes!!!

6. Put away all of my clean laundry!!! Don't worry I am sure I will have another pile by the end of the week.

7. Looked at paint samples for the kitchen. I decided on Awning Red!!

8. Prayed for a win by the Cowboys!!!

8 Things that I look forward to:

1. Starting to repaint the kitchen.

2. Spring semester of classes. (Yes, I am aware that I am a nerd)

3. Epicenter starting back on January 7th.

4. New Years Day Bowl Games!!!

5. Watching the Cowboys game today (Well I may be regretting it later)

6. Sleeping in Wednesday, Thursday, Friday & Saturday morning.

7. Going back to work on the 5th after my 2 week break.

8. Getting all of my school stuff organized for the spring semester.

8 Things that I wish for:

1. A hot tub.

2. A new car. I don't really need one, but since my car will be paid off next month, I really have the new car itch.

3. The ability to be on time.

4. To know what Allie is thinking.

5. A week long vacation with my hubby!

6. New flooring throughout our house.

7. A black Kitchen-Aid Stand Mixer.

8. To feel and hear God every moment of everyday.

I tag Lis, Lindsay, Jen & Ry.

Love Dare

2008-10-28T11:31:00.002-05:00

Good morning!! I just wanted to share with you guys about a book that I am reading. If you have been to see Fireproof, you might have already heard about it. When I was on the Hillside Women’s Retreat, I took some classes on family and marriage. In one of the classes our teacher encouraged us to check out a few books and one of them is Love Dare. I immediatly went over to the bookstore and picked up a copy. I have done a 40 day love your spouse better challenge before, but this book breaks down all of the ways we are to love and really describes them like I have never heard before. For example, I had no idea that I was not kind, but after reading some of the attributes of a kind person I realized that there is much room for improvement in this area in my life. Anyway, after you read a couple of pages (seriously, I have not had one longer than 3 pages) about the attribute it gives you a “dare” for the day. Most of the dares are pretty simple but they really challenge you to think about how you treat your spouse. I have been immensely blessed by having read this book and I highly recommend it for anyone whether you have been married 2 months or 50 years.

PS. Love Dare is on sale at Lifeway for $9.99.

I feel a little more official...

2008-10-18T21:19:00.000-05:00

Check it out.

Happy Birthday, Amy

2008-09-18T00:29:00.000-05:00

Today is Amy's Birthday. Please join in with me in wishing her a Happy Birthday. Amy is the most amazing wife and best friend I could ever ask for. This will be one of many birthdays that I will get to share with her in our amazing lives together as we walk with God. Happy Birthday, My Love!

Christopher

In need of creative ideas

2008-09-16T22:45:00.002-05:00

I am helping throw a baby shower for one of my best friends, Anna. I am in need of some ideas on decorating or other ideas that maybe you had at your shower that you loved or have seen at other showers. I really want to make this a special time for Anna. This will be her first. She is having a girl and is decorating the room in pink toile and black and that is the color theme we are planning on using for the shower. I was thinking about doing kinda a shabby chic shower. I am pretty hesitant to do any games because most of the shower games I have ever played have been pretty cheesy. Anyway, if you have any ideas, I would love to hear them.

Sick, but finally some time to blog

2008-09-14T19:37:00.002-05:00

Wow it has been forever since I have blogged. I have had so many things to blog about, but know I can't seem to think of all of them. I guess I should update you as to our requests for your prayers. Back in May I submitted my resume to be the Student Ministry Assistant at our church, Hillside Christian Church. After a very long 3 months I was finally offered and accepted the position. I started on Wednesday. Chris and I are so excited for this new phase in our lives and can't wait to see what God has in store for us. Everything has been great so far and I really think that I am going to love it. I love being around the kids anyway and now I have more opportunities to spend time with them.

On Thursday I started getting sick and today I can barely function. Hopefully, I will be feeling better tomorrow. I think between quitting at the law firm, starting a new job and school I over did it this week. Anyway, I guess I better try to get some homework done. I will try to set aside some more time to blog.

Thanks for all of your thoughts and prayers. I love you all.

2008-08-14T11:50:00.000-05:00

Please pray for Chris and I. We are being faced with a very difficult decision and need God’s guidance so much. Please pray that our minds and hearts would be clear to see God’s plan and trust in Him wholly for whatever the outcome. Thank you so much.

Talula Does The Hula

2008-07-25T15:33:00.004-05:00

I saw this story on the internet today. I can't believe someone stole the name Chris & I were going to use for our first born (which by the way is not happening anytime soon)...

The Associated Press
WELLINGTON, New Zealand — A family court judge in New Zealand has had enough with parents giving their children bizarre names here, and did something about it.
Just ask Talula Does The Hula From Hawaii. He had her renamed.

Judge Rob Murfitt made the 9-year-old girl a ward of the court so that her name could be changed, he said in a ruling made public Thursday. The girl was involved in a custody battle, he said.

The new name was not made public to protect the girl's privacy.

"The court is profoundly concerned about the very poor judgment which this child's parents have shown in choosing this name," he wrote. "It makes a fool of the child and sets her up with a social disability and handicap, unnecessarily."

The girl had been so embarrassed at the name that she had never told her closest friends what it was. She told people to call her "K" instead, the girl's lawyer, Colleen MacLeod, told the court.
In his ruling, Murfitt cited a list of the unfortunate names.

Registration officials blocked some names, including Fish and Chips, Yeah Detroit, Keenan Got Lucy and Sex Fruit, he said. But others were allowed, including Number 16 Bus Shelter "and tragically, Violence," he said.

New Zealand law does not allow names that would cause offense to a reasonable person, among other conditions, said Brian Clarke, the registrar general of Births, Deaths and Marriages.
Clarke said officials usually talked to parents who proposed unusual names to convince them about the potential for embarrassment.

What were these parents thinking??

Lip Fur

2008-07-09T12:04:00.003-05:00

Ok most of you know that I am an avid Yankees fan. The term avid is probably not the right word...let me put it into perspective. Sunday night we were watching the Yankees vs. Red Sox on ESPN. The game was tied in the bottom of the 9th and the Red Sox put in Manny Ramirez to pinch hit in hopes that he would knock one out of the park. I had knots in my stomach watching Manny walk up to the plate, but the knots soon turned into mad hysteria when he stood there and took 3 strikes right down the middle of the plate without even swinging the bat. At which point, I stood up and yelled "SUCK THAT MANNY!!!" Chris and Allie looked at me with horror in their eyes to see what I had become.

Anyway, on with my story...Jason Giambi, who despite his obvious steroid use, has been one of my favorite Yankees for a while. He recently decided to grow a Magnum PI style mustache. I am not a fan, but it has brought him out of his slump and now the Yankees are only 4 games behind the Red Sox for 2nd place in the AL East. This morning as I was getting my dose of Sports Center before heading off to work, I became intrigued by the Yankees latest rally to "Support the Stache" in an effort to get Giambi added to the All-Star line-up. Last night they even gave away fake mustaches to the first 20,000 fans at Yankee Stadium!! This morning, the American Moustache Institute had the following to say in support of Giambi, "Giambi's significant first-half production as well as his powerful lip fur -- indicating great intellect and good looks -- make two very compelling reasons for his place on the American League All-Star roster." LIP FUR?!?! I think this might have gone too far.

Don't worry I still love the Yankees and anyone in a Yankee's jersey!!

Take me out to the ball game...

2008-07-08T12:56:00.014-05:00

Last night, Crystal and Jacob took us to watch the Amarillo Dillas play. The San Diego Chicken was there for entertainment which proved to be a good idea because the Dillas got pounded. We had such a great time with our friends and are so blessed to be surrounded by such amazing people. Here are some pics of the fun.

Valenzuela doing the Chicken Dance.

Me & Chris

Valenzuela & Noah

Miquel & Sophie

Jacob & Crystal

The Ingram's (Ashley, Brad and Noah)

The Girls

Crystal & Valenzuela

Chris feeding Brad Cotton Candy

The San Diego Chicken

The Boys

Ashley & Noah

2008 Firm Golf Outing

2008-07-07T13:48:00.011-05:00

Last Thursday was our annual firm golf outing. Seeing as how Chris and I are not avid golfers, we usually commit most of our afternoon to the pool and then drive around on the golf cart the rest of the afternoon. This year my co-hort in office crime, Jan, and her family played so Chris tagged along and worked on his putting skills. We had so much fun spending the afternoon with Jan and her husband, Kyle, and their son, Brad. Brad is also a member of our church’s youth group and is an amazing young man. Here is a pic of Chris and I and then more pics of people that none of you know.

Winning team: Allen, Paul, Brad, Warlick and Lewis.

Sam

Tyler, Jerry, Terri, Joanna

Chris putting

Brad throwing up the dueces!!

Joann, Todd, Kenzi & Adrian

Brad, Shelby, Kyle & Jan

Bob & April

Crystal, Jacob & Valenzuela

2008-06-30T14:46:00.006-05:00

I am beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel as far as my summer school goes. My EDT 3343 (Education Technology) class ends on Thursday. I have 1 more project left and it is a big one. This class has been great because it is self passed so I have been able to put it off until the weekends, but I have had 50 assignments due over the course of 4 weeks. To say that I am tired would be an understatement. My other class lasts for 4 more weeks. Hopefully I can make it through.

We have been able to squeeze in a little bit of fun. A couple of weeks ago our friends, Jacob and Crystal, came over for a little cook out and to watch the Ultimate Fighter finally. Have no fear, Crystal and I looked through InStyle magazine and talked about clothes and make-up while the boys watched guys beat each other senseless.

Jacob and Crystal have been such a blessing in our lives. Besides the fact that Crystal’s family owns the best bakery in town and has kept a steady flow of goodies coming our way, they allow us to share in the life of their beautiful daughter, Valenzuela. Here are some pics from our evening.

Allie giving Valenzuela a kiss.

SOOOO CUTE!!

How can you resist those cheeks?!?!

Jacob and Chris

LOVE!!

Crystal and Jacob!!!

My cheering squad

2008-06-16T21:32:00.006-05:00

On Monday nights, I play on a city league volleyball team with Higley, Higley's mom and some other friends. They are usually pretty uneventful, that is until tonight. My small group girls had called me after work to see if I had dinner plans and i mistakenly told them that I could not go to dinner cause I had volleyball. About 10 minutes after I got off the phone with them, they called back and asked if they could come. I know my girls all to well and figured it would definitely mean some form of embarrassment for me, but told them where and when my games were anyway. They arrived at the park in with signs, megaphones and sporting face paint. They yelled the entire time "Go Amy's Team!!!" "Go Team Amy!!!" "You need to have a baby!!" I could not stop laughing. Here are some pics of my crazy cheerleaders.

Haley, Holly and Laney

Holly, Me and Haley

A close up of one of the signs. Yes, those are the words to R. Kelly's Bump & Grind. They are so weird. And because I know some of you are thinking it, no, we do not sing this song at small group.

A close up of the other sign. They are obsessed with wanting me to get pregnant so they can babysit! Would you leave your child with them??

I WON!!

2008-06-10T08:46:00.004-05:00

I WON! I WON! I FINALLY, FINALLY WON SOMETHING!!!

I love all of the Gina's designs at A Touch of Whimsy. If you have not seen any of her stuff yet, you should definitly check it out. She has made me some really cute stuff and you can find really good ideas for baby shower gifts. Anyway, sometimes Gina has Freeby Friday's on her blog and this week I won a free luggage tag!! I am so excited. This is design I picked out...

I can't wait to get it and see how cute it is in person.

Campers need your prayers

2008-06-05T11:14:00.001-05:00

One of our Hillside Christian students just called from camp and said that there are between 30-40 kids that are sick. They think it might be food poisoning, but they are not sure. Please pray for all of the students and leaders at camp. Pray that God’s will would prevail over Satan’s attempt to ruin their camp experience.

Joy

2008-06-04T08:46:00.003-05:00

I wanted to share with you my conviction this morning. Chris and I have been discussing buying a new house in the next year. If I had my way, we would have already been moved, but I know that financially it is better if we save up some more. Anyway, on my way to work this morning, I drove by several houses that are for sale and reminded myself that I needed to look them up on their respective real estate agents web sites to see what the inside looked like and how much they were asking for them. I did and was immediately filled with envy for the lucky people who would get to live in these houses. I then looked down at my clock and realized that I had just enough time to Morning Coffee before I began my work day. I clicked the link and begin to cry at my desk as I knew that God meant these words especially for me this morning. I am so blessed. Blessed to have an amazing husband. Blessed to have my family. Blessed with an amazing church. Blessed with unbelievable friends. Blessed with a roof over my head, food, clothes and money to pay for it all and I always want more. I need to learn to live in the joy of my surroundings and the grace that my Heavenly Father has showered on me rather than wallow in my own self pity.

Backtracking

2008-06-02T16:44:00.001-05:00

Ok, I have been doing some backtracking in hopes of getting caught up on my blogging. I think I did it. Thanks for all of you who hung in there through my blogging hiatus. I would like to say that it wont happen again, but considering my 6 hours of Summer classes started today, I would not hold my breathe if I were you.

I have a few prayer requests that I need to recruit all of my faithful prayer warriors help with...

1. The Hillside Christian 11th and Grad camp left this morning for a week of time with God. Please pray for the camp leader, Brandon, and all of the other leaders (Brad & Ashley Ingram, Jordan M., Johnathan, Tessa, etc.) who are helping out this week that God move through them like never before to touch the lives of the 120 campers. Also, please pray for the campers that God would prepare their hearts and minds for the word he has for them and that they would be willing to hear Him this week.

2. My brother, Andrew, set off Saturday night for his 3rd mission trip to Taiwan. Please pray for him and the rest of the TBC team that God would protect them and guide them into the areas were he needs them most. Please pray especially for Andrew as he will be there for 17 days this time and it always take a physical toll on his body. You can follow the events of the trip here and also find a daily prayer list.

3. Doors have been opening for Chris and I lately. Please pray that we would hear God's voice and feel His peace in the months ahead.

Distraction

2008-06-02T16:20:00.005-05:00

I have mentioned that I had an excuse for my lack of blogging and here is my proof...

Kitchen Before

Kitchen After

I am soooo excited about how well the cabinets turned out. Chris and I did it all ourselves. We are contemplating tackling the floor next (if you did not notice, it is dreadful), but we are not planning on being in the house after a year so it is making it hard to sink anymore money into it.

Jen's Graduation Brings a Visit from Papa & Ola Faye

2008-06-02T15:55:00.008-05:00

Last weekend, my cousin, Jenny, graduated from SJCA. It was a great weekend to celebrate Jenny and we were all excited that it also brought Papa and Ola Faye into town from Oklahoma. Jenny is headed off to Texas Tech in the fall and even though I am going to miss her immensely, I know that God has amazing things in store for her future.

Uncle Bruce, Jenny (the Grad), Aunt Brenda and Cousin Adrien.

Me, Jen & Adrien

Me & Adrien

Uncle Dennis, Papa and Uncle Mike

Adrien, Ola Fay and my mom

Papa

Papa, Ola Faye, Me & Chris

Our Soldier

2008-06-01T14:15:00.005-05:00

Last month, my brother-in-law, Charlie was home on leave from Korea for 20 days. It seemed to go by so fast. I am sure it went by faster for his wife, Michelle and their 2 kiddos, Arianna and Camden. Here are a few picture I snapped before he left to go back to Korea for another 6 months. Please pray that God would keep him safe and return him quickly to his family.

Camden

Arianna

Charles, Chris and Uncle Joel

Charles and Chris

Brothers!!

Matt and Leah's Wedding

2008-06-01T13:52:00.007-05:00

** Editor's Note**
It has become difficult when I am telling a story to differentiate between if I am talking about my best friend, Ashley Higley, or my sweet new friend, Ashley Ingram. Therefore, I have decided that they will know be referred to by their last names only. Sorry girls.

On May 16th, Higley's little sister, Leah got married. Chris and I were so honored to get to witness their beautiful wedding. We did not take very many pictures, but here are a few.

Matt searching for Leah's garter.

Leah tossing the bouquet! She looked amazing by the way.

Me and Higley.
Have I mentioned that I LOVE that Higley is back in A-town? I have gotten to see her about 7 times in the last 2 weeks. She is such a blessing in my life.

Chris stealing a kiss from Higley.

FABULOUS!!!

2008-05-25T00:44:00.003-05:00

I have been anticipating my new blog design and was so excited tonight when I got home and saw it. It was done by Kelly at Fabulous K Blog Designs. Isn't it amazing?!?! I stumbled across Kelly's blog a while back and even though we only know each other through cyber space she really seems to know me and the types of things I like. She nailed it when she designed my blog. I am so excited and could not thank her enough. Kelly has an amazing design style and everyone should click on over and have her design a layout for you. Thanks again Kelly you are truly FABULOUS!!!

Cardboard Testimonies

2008-05-23T08:52:00.001-05:00

A while back, I asked for your prayers as God was working through our church and the role that Chris was going to play in some services. This is the video of that service. Everytime I see it I am still brought to tears and my heart rejoices for the changed lives. God has taken Chris on such an amazing journey and I know that he has plans bigger than we can even imagine for how Chris will do work for His glory.

More Proof

2008-05-22T13:17:00.002-05:00

I Also received this in an email today from my wacko husband...

This is one of his favorite shows. He has had it marked on his calander for over 2 months now and is anxiously awaiting the start of the new season.

Oh dear!!!

2008-05-22T08:37:00.005-05:00

Last night Chris went to go iron a shirt for work at about 11:15 while I watched Top Chef. While he was waiting for the iron to heat up he went to the website of one of his new favorite stores, Restoration Hardware. I turned him on to this gem of a store last time we were in Dallas and he found one of these Yes, that is a telescoping metal back scratcher!! He is now convinced that Restoration Hardware is one of the greatest stores ever along with Dillards and Steinmart where he had also never shopped before he met me. I know, I think he lived in a hole before. Anyway, after he finished ironing he came in and told me that he had sent me an email of something that he had found at Restoration Hardware that he really wants. I was anxious to see what it was and even more excited at the prospect of getting a jump start on ideas for his birthday. I got to work and opened my email to the following message:

"OK, I know we are on a budget, but you need to look at this and see that if I had a pair of these then I would never leave the house. I wonder if I can get approval for these to be worn at work."

Fleece-Lined Down Foot Duvets

$11.99
Lightweight cotton foot duvets
Plumped with a generous layer of insulating duck down
Finely woven combed cotton covers keep down intact—even through machine washing and drying
Lined with soft elasticized fleece cuffs that tuck the warmth inside
Comfortable non-skid sole prevents slipping
Imported
Machine wash
In eucalyptus, garnet or chocolate; all have chocolate accents and lining
Small: youth sizes 3–7; women's 5–7
Medium: women's sizes 8–11; men's 7–9
Large: men's 10–13
Web only
Sorry, only available in medium chocolate and large eucalyptus

ARE YOU KIDDING ME?? MY HUSBAND IS SO WEIRD!!!

**Editor's note**

I have been informed that I am lacking on my blogging!! I am aware of this, but I have an excuse and hopefully, I will have proof to show tomorrow. Love!

2008-05-16T10:59:00.003-05:00

I mentioned last week that Friday night I was getting to have dinner with my dear friend, Anna. Anna and I met in 1994 when my high school, San Jacinto Christian Academy, purchased Anna's school, West Texas Christian School. Anna was a grade above me, but we instantly bonded after spending a year side by side on the bench of the varsity volleyball team. Anna now lives in San Antonio with her husband, John. I miss her so much. Anyway, I was hoping that she would have some news to tell me at our dinner and she did!! She is pregnant. She is due December 1st and I can not wait!!!! Here is a pic I snapped in the parking lot of Abuelo's.
After I had dinner with Anna, Chris and I went to his brother's house to hang out with the family. Here is a picture of Chris doing what he does best, acting ridiculous.

Wednesday was the last Epicenter until school starts back again and that bums me out, but hopefully, Chris and I will be able to stay in touch with most of the kids throughout the summer.

Tonight, Chris and I are going to Leah and Matt's wedding. Leah is Ashley's little sister. I am so excited for Matt and Leah and can not wait to celebrate with them.

Guess I better get back to work. Love.

2008-05-09T09:37:00.001-05:00

Nothing too exciting in the Bunch household to report so I will just leave a list of the latest happenings...

1. Chris’ little brother Charlie came home on leave from serving with the Army in Korea. He is here for 20 days so we have to cram in a lot of family time.

2. Needhams came home and reclaimed their kids Saturday night about 11:30 pm!!! FREEDOM!!!!!

3. I was almost sick to my stomach watching Dancing with the Stars Tuesday. I was so afraid Jason Taylor was going home. Question, why can we not seem to get rid of Marissa? She annoys the daylights out of me.

4. I lost .6 lbs this week. Not much, but in my books a loss is good no matter how much.
5. Our friend Jacob got baptized Wednesday night at Epicenter. It was so amazing. I cried my eyes out.

6. Tara was in town visiting Brad and Ashley and came to Epicenter to hear Brad speak. I don’t remember the last time we saw each other, but it was so good to see her again. She is as beautiful as ever.

7. I finished my finals on Tuesday night and ended the semester with a 4.0. I am going to try to enjoy my 3 weeks of freedom before summer school starts.

8. I am going to get to play Summer city league volleyball with my best friend, Ashley H., starting May 19th. I am so excited that Ashley is moving back to town and can not wait to play volleyball with her again. Hopefully I wont be too rusty.

9. I am having dinner at Abuelo’s with one of my oldest and dearest friends Anna. She is in from San Antonio and making time for me. I am so excited to see her.

10. Tomorrow is going to be all about Chris and I. We have been so busy lately and Chris has been dying to have a Saturday where we can sleep in and make breakfast together maybe go out for lunch and then go see a movie. I love that he wants to spend so much time with me. It makes me realize how lucky I am to have such an amazingly attentive husband. He is always so careful to look out for my needs. I love my husband.

Happy 1st Birthday Allie!!!!

2008-05-01T08:36:00.005-05:00

It is hard to believe that my baby is 1!! I can not believe, and am a little ashamed, of how attached I have become to her. I always had dogs growing up, but I remember my mom having to force me to go outside and play with them. We were never allowed to have dogs in the house, maybe that is the difference. I know that sometimes Chris rolls his eyes at me for the way I treat her, but she has brought me so much joy over the last year. I remember when we went to pick her out. I had been hinting about wanting a dog for about a month and one Friday night Chris said that he had picked up a Thrifty Nickle and they had an add for a Dorkie. He had already called the lady and he said he really wanted to go check them out. I was shocked. We decided on the way out there that we would hold hands and squeeze the others hand if we wanted one. I know we are retarded with the hand thing. We have lots of little hand squeezes that mean different things. Anyway, as soon as we sat down and Allie crawled into my lap Chris gave my hand a good squeeze. I was instantly attached. Her first year has been full of many new adventures and I can not wait to see our future kids fall in love with her as much as we have.

I rationalized my desire to make Allie a birthday cake by blaming it on Delaney and stating that "I thought it would be a fun project to keep her entertained for the evening." I have attached the recipe I found online if anyone is as insane as I am and would like to make their dog a cake.

Jerky Cake

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 cup soft butter
1/2 cup corn oil
1 jar strained beef baby food
4 eggs
2-3 strips of beef jerky

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Grease and flour an 8x5x3 inch loaf pan. Cream butter until smooth. Add corn oil, baby food, and eggs. Mix until smooth. Mix dry ingredients into beef mixture until batter is smooth. Crumble beef jerky and fold into batter. Pour batter into loaf pan. Bake 1 hour and 10 minutes. Cool on wire rack 15 minutes. Frost with plain yogurt, cream cheese or cottage cheese. Crumble another strip of beef jerky and sprinkle on top of icing. Store in refrigerator.

Allie licking her bone/candle.

Delaney and Allie. It is hard to decide which one is more spoiled.

Dylan and Allie. I have no idea what he was doing in this picture, but it is the only one I had without his face covered.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ALLIE!!!!

Free to Good Home - 14 year old boy

2008-04-30T11:39:00.003-05:00

Yes you read correctly, for this week, we have a 14 year old boy that might be better off with another family. We are watching the Needham’s again. They dropped the kids of Sunday morning before church and will not be home until Saturday evening. Makes for a long week in the Bunch household. Not that our time keeping the kids isn’t crazy enough, but instead of staying at their house they are staying with us while their house is being remodeled. Anyway, I digress. Donna called me on Saturday to tell me that Dylan had gotten into a fight at school last week and would be serving 2 days, Monday & Tuesday, of OSS (Out of School Suspension) and then 2 weeks of ISS (In School Suspension). So Monday and Tuesday he sat at our house and watched movies and played video games all day. Believe me I would have had him doing other things (ie scrubbing toilets with a toothbrush), but apparently his parents are more upset at the school for kicking him out than they are at Dylan for getting into a fight. To make matters worse, last night Dylan and a friend went to the Disturbed concert that Donna had bought them tickets for. Chris and I were both concerned about him going to the concert. The name of the band itself should tell you that their music is not known for its spiritual or uplifting lyrics and melodies. Our instructions from the Needham’s were that if we could get the boys to the concert that the friends step-dad would bring Dylan home. Chris told Dylan that he had to be home by 11:00, which I thought was more than generous, and that if he could not make it by that time he needed to call and Chris would come and get him. At 11:50 when we still had not heard from Dylan and trying to call and text him with no answer, Chris took off to the venue to see if he could find Dylan. At 12:10 Dylan comes running to the front door and before I could even get it open his mouth was running with excuses, mainly that his phone had died (which I tested and was true) and that he could not remember our numbers. I asked him what his mom’s number was and he recited it back to me. I asked him why he did not use someone else’s phone and at least call his parents and have them get in touch with us. I explained to him how concerned and upset we were that he did not even attempt to get in touch with us and that we were worried that something had happened to him. I could hear my own mother’s voice echoing in my head which creeped me out a little. I explained to him that part of being 14 meant he was more responsible and that because of his lack of responsibility he was not allowed to go anywhere for the rest of the weekend because he had not shown us the respect we deserved and that he had not proved himself responsible. I also confiscated his cell phone. I told him that Chris was very upset and that he was lucky Chris was not home. Dylan looked totally defeated. I don’t think he thought we would punish him. I don’t know if we handled it the right way, but I don’t want Dylan to think that just because Chris and I are watching him, he does not have to obey. Any advice from the other parents out there would be greatly appreciated.

Yeah for summer

2008-04-26T20:19:00.004-05:00

I know summer is not quite here yet, but with all of the little changes that have been going on in my life (i.e. weight loss, school, etc.) I decided that my look needed a make-over too.

Old me....
New me...

A few pictures until I have something interesting to say

2008-04-23T08:32:00.011-05:00

Allie is too cute not to share!!

Allie likes to help me with my homework.

Haley is weird and a little scary!!

Haley walking on Holly's back! Looks dangerous!

Holly giving Haley a pony ride and Allie wondering what they heck these crazy girls are doing.

Allie needed a ride too!

Chris' surprise silly string attack!

The huge pizza we ordered from Papa Murphy's for UFC fight night!!

Ummmm....

2008-04-17T08:47:00.003-05:00

Well I have had nothing to really post about this week. I have been sick so I have hardly left the house. I did make it to WW and was happy to have lost another 2.4 lbs. That brings me to a total of 19.2 lbs so far. I still have alot to go, but I am making progress. It is nice to not feel like a bloated cow in my clothes everyday.

Oh my gosh...as I was sitting here typing this trying to think about things I could blog about, I realized that Haley and Holly, 2 of my small group girls, spent the night Friday and I have pictures of that I could post. I will have to get on that.

Also, an update from last weeks prayer request, church Sunday was amazing. Chris got a DVD of the service and he is going to try to edit it to the part that he participated in. I will share more about it when I have the video to post. Please pray again for this weeks service. I know that God is working in the lives of our church, friends and family and I am so excited to see what God has in store for us.

Old Friends + Blogger = New Blogger Friends

2008-04-11T16:16:00.003-05:00

I have three new additions to my "Blogs I read Daily" list. You should check them out, I know you will be blessed.

Lindsay used to go to church with me at good ole' TBC Amarillo. We also cheered together at another "favorite" spot...SJCA. While at SJCA she met her husband, Jeremy, who was a crib baby with me in the church nursery. Visit her page to see where God and the Army takes her, Jeremy and their 2 beautiful daughters.

Sarah cheered with me at HSU. Her and her husband, Kyle, live a hectic life with 3 growing kids.

Tara (Boto Family) went to HSU with me also and has recently been blessed with an adorable baby boy, Tyson. She also happens to be Ashley's sister-in-law. Small world.

Generosity Revolution

2008-04-10T16:30:00.002-05:00

I just wanted to share a little about what is going on at our church. If you click on the link below it will take you to the text of a story one of the local news stations ran the other night. If you scroll down to the left hand corner you will see a place to watch the segment (I would recommend watching it).

Who's life will you impact next?

Chris and I can not stop talking about the amazing things that God is doing in our lives and most of it has come from the passion our pastor, Tommy Politz, has brought out it us. We are so grateful for the amazing staff and their prayerful, servant hearts that lead us every week.

I have been praying all week about what the Lord would have me do with the $50.00 I received. Last night God showed me His plans and I am so excited. I can not wait to put them into action. Please pray for the recipient of my money, Tina, and that she would hear God pleading for her to return to Him and allow Him to be her lover and sustainer. I might have more to share on this later, but for now please just pray.

Also, please pray for Chris. God has called him to step out of his comfort zone this week and Chris needs your prayers for God's comfort and strength. I will have more to share about this on Monday, but for now please lift Chris up.

I am so grateful that when I feel the need for prayer support one of the first places I turn is to my blog friends. I love you all.

Staci

2008-04-08T10:10:00.015-05:00

As I previously mentioned, my "cousin," Staci, came in to town last week from sunny Orange County, California. I use the term cousin lightly, because her grandmother was my great-grandmother's sister. It makes our brains hurt to hard to try to figure out exactly how we are related, but I am closer to Staci than some of my other actual cousins. Staci and I met for the 1st time when I was a senior in high school. My grandmother (pictured below) took me to LA for my senior present. We stayed with Staci's grandma and spent the whole week being entertained by Staci and her crazy family. I had the best time and will never forget that trip. A few years later, my family went to Cali for summer vacation and was once again entertained by the "crazies" in California. Staci tagged along with us for most of our adventures that week including our trip to Disneyland. Staci recently graduated from Humboldt State University where she majored in Kinesiology and played 4 years of soccer for the Jacks. She also played for the New York Magic this summer. She is now getting her masters in Physical Therapy from California State University at Long Beach. Staci is one of those people that you are just drawn to. Her personality is so bubbly and warm that you just want to be around her all of the time. When she called a few months ago to see if she could come visit I was ecstatic. Here are some pictures and a recap of our week.

Tuesday: Staci and I laid around the house until about 1:30 when he met my brother, Daniel, for lunch at one of my favorite places, Basil Docs. My best friend, Ashley Higley, was in town for the day and stopped by and visited with us for a while. I was so glad that Ashley came by to meet Staci and it always makes my day to get to give her a hug.

Later that evening we meet my parents, brothers and grandma at Cattle Call for dinner.

Grandma and Staci at Cattle Call.

Staci enjoying her first Chicken Fried Steak.

Wednesday: Staci and I were so miserable after eating such fatty and greasy foods at Cattle Call Tuesday night that we could barely get off of the couch. Luckily we made it to the gym to help us feel a little bit better. We spent the rest of the day eating salads and fruit in hopes that our conscience would stop beating us up. Wednesday night we took Staci to Epicenter, the youth service at our church. She loved it.

Thursday: I sadly had to go back to work so my parents entertained Staci at Palo Duro Canyon. Later that night we all gathered at our house for dinner. I was in charge of dessert and decided to try Mary Beth's suggestion of the Pioneer Woman's Apple Dumplings. OH MY GOSH!!!!! They were so good. I used reduced fat or diet everything that I could in it and it was still one of the best desserts I have ever had. After dinner we watched old home videos that Staci's grandpa, Ray, used to make and send to us every year. We all laughed at how silly everyone was and cried a little when we heard my great-grandmother's voice. I had forgot what she sounded like and it made my heart hurt for her so bad. Even though it was sad at times I think we all felt better after being reminded of the amazing people that have influenced our lives and to be able to call them family.

Andrew and Daniel.

Chris and Staci.

Grandma and Staci.

Me, Daniel, Staci and Grandma.

Chris had to get in one too.

Friday morning Staci had to be at the airport by 8:15 so we all met at the Donut Stop for breakfast. We definitely could not let Staci leave Amarillo without tasting one of the best things about our town. I think Amarillo is the only town in the country that can proudly boast that we have a donut place so good that Krispy Creme only lasted 6 months before it went out of business.

Dad and Mom

Daniel, Staci, Me and Andrew.

Staci and I.

Staci leaving Amarillo.

I was so sad to see her go, but so grateful for the visit. Staci spent the rest of the weekend in San Antonio going to the Final Four and tons of fancy parties and events. She has a rough life.

Alive and Tagged

2008-04-07T08:38:00.014-05:00

Well I survived the week with my cousin, Staci, but have not had time to upload my pics yet. I have great plans for that tonight. Ok, I know RyAnn just rolled her eyes cause she thinks I won't get around to it until Thursday, but I promise to try to do something productive tonight besides watching Dancing with the Stars!!

I was tagged by Ashley who although she lives probably less than a mile from my house and who seems to be at church at the same times I am, have not actually gotten to hug in about a month. We did share a wave through the car window at the carnival at church from about 50 feet away, but I don't think that counts as quality time. (I secretly think Ashley is trying to avoid me due to the enormous man crush my husband has on her husband. Chris is like a giddy little school girl whenever Brad calls. ) Anywho, here are the rules:

1. Link your tagger. Post the rules.
2. Share 7 facts about yourself (random and weird).
3. Tag 7 friends.
4. Leave a comment letting them know they've been "tagged."

Brace yourselves people. You are about to get a little insight into the craziness that is Amy Bunch...

1. I had two imaginary friends/crushes when I was a kid. One was with B.J. from B.J. and the Bear, you can read about my obsession with him by clicking on his name. The second was with Elvis. Elvis was my first imaginary friend/boyfriend at the ripe old age of 3. I was obsessed with all things Elvis. I had an Elvis t-shirt, Elvis book (which I begged my grandma to spend $75.00 on) and tons of 8-tracks. I used to beg my parents to let me stay up late and watch the Elvis movie marathons all night. My mom still gets embarrassed when people remind her of my infatuation with Elvis. She used to have to go behind me at church and clean out the pews because I had written "Elvis was here" and I love Elvis" all over the offering envelopes within a 3 pew radius of where we sat.

2. My "crew" in 3rd grade used to pretend we were the characters from Saved by the Bell and reenact the latest episodes at recess. I, of course, played Kelly Kapowski and whomever her boyfriend was for that episode was played by my boyfriend, Nathan. One week Nathan would be Zach and the next week he would be Slater. Chris' role never changed. By 4th grade he had totally mastered his role as Mr. Belding.

3. I have a signed autographed picture of Chuck Norris!!

4. I sing a song to Allie every morning when I get her out of her kennel. It goes a little something like this..."Good Morning! Good Morning!! It's time to rise and shine!! Good Morning!! Good Morning!!! I hope you're feeling fine!!!" I have no idea why Chris hates it when I do this?!?!

5. My morning is just not the same without watching at least the first 20 minutes of Good Morning America. This has been a staple in my morning for about the last 5 years. I love Robin, Diane and Chris like they were my own family.

6. I am a HUGE sports freak. Chris was never really into sports until he met me. I am really into football, especially the Cowboys, but love watching it no matter who is playing. The first year of our relationship was a little hard on Chris due to the fact that I booed and heckled him every time he tried to carry on a conversation with me during a sporting event. He got a glimpse of my craziness the first time he watched a football game with me and I stood up and through my imaginary penalty flag, I don't think he truly realized the severity of my passion for sports until I wore the same shirt and shorts during every game of the Yankees short stint in the playoffs last season. I was convinced that their winning or losing was based on my clothing. I am a die hard Yankee's fan along with every other member of my family. I have informed Chris that even thought I took a vow to be married to him until death that did not include, should the event arise, my receiving a call or meeting a member of the Yankee's team who wishes for me to have their baby at which point my marriage to Chris will be null and void. Don't worry God has assured me that any relationship I have with a member of the Yankee's will be looked upon favorably and my crown in heaven will double in size for my contribution to the team. I am sure that it will be no surprise to you that I hate any and all things even remotely associated with the Red Sox and have never felt convicted for having thoughts about how I could injure or do severe damage to Manny Ramirez or David Ortiz. One of the greatest moments in my life was watching the Yankees and Red Sox play in Yankee Stadium and seeing Melky Cabrera go to the wall and bring back Manny Ramirez's near home run drive for the final out of the 8th inning and then joining my brothers and every other member of Yankee Nation in chanting "RED SOX SUCK! RED SOX SUCK!" until I had no voice left. Priceless!!!

If you can't read Daniel's shirt it has a picture of Jesus and says "Jesus hates the Red Sox." It was a huge hit at the game.

7. I am married to Christopher Shawn Bunch. Enough said!!

Thanks Ashley. That was fun and turned out longer than expected. Anywho, I tag Ry, Rachel, Nissa, Mary Beth, Melissa, Nelly and Suzanne.

Anniversary (continued), Friends and Easter

2008-03-27T09:16:00.017-05:00

Ok, here is my last little bit about our anniversary. I had to show you the ring Chris got me. I have been eyeing it for several years at James Avery and am so excited that it is now mine. I did have to ask if the fact that he got me a ring with a black stone in it was his way of telling me that this how he has felt about our first year of marriage, doom and gloom.

We also got each other cards. Here is the picture of the card I got for Chris.

Here is the picture of the card Chris got for me.

I guess we really were meant for each other.

Last Thursday, my friend, Elisabeth, came into town to visit her family. I was able to take Delaney and run over there and visit with Lis and rock baby Ella to sleep. It makes my heart so happy to see my friends blessed with families. I love seeing how much their kids remind me of them and watching them grow up into amazing, talented children of God. I can't wait to see what God has in store for beautiful Ella. Don't you all think that Elizabeth should start a blog so we can keep up with Lis and Ella??

Here are some other pictures of my weekend with Delaney. (Incase you forgot, I have been babysitting for the Needham's since Delaney was about 8 months old. The Needham's are like a second family to me and both the kids were in our wedding.) Somehow Dylan managed to escape this weekend without getting his picture taken.

On Friday night, Katy, our niece and other flower girl, spent the night with Delaney. They crashed in the living room while watching movies.

Apparently, Ben and Lilly had a sleep over too.

The Needham's have a huge gym at their house so the girls had to help me work out Saturday morning.

Delaney had never decorated Easter Eggs before so she had a blast making all of the eggs look like members of her family and my family.

Squirtle the Turtle.

Me, Chris and Allie

Delaney and her egg.

I don't know if Chris was quite as amused as I was that

she made his egg bald and have a goatee.

Allie and her egg.

It was a great weekend, but we were glad to go back home. We have had something every night this week and will spend this weekend getting ready for my cousin, Staci's, arrival from California. She has never been to Texas before and is really excited. Well I better get back to work.

Love.

UGH!!!!!

2008-03-25T16:03:00.000-05:00

IT IS 4:00 AND I JUST NOW REALIZED THAT I FORGOT TO PUT ON MASCARA TODAY!!!!!!!!!!!

More prayers

2008-03-24T09:43:00.002-05:00

I promise a more upbeat and positive update later tonight/tomorrow. I have tons of fun pictures from our weekend with the Needham's to share.

I wanted to once again turn to my blogger friends who are so faithful in prayer and ask you to lift up all of the people who will be attending the memorial for Aaron Williamson today at 4:00. Paul, Aaron's dad, came by the office this morning and was his normal perky self and prayed and spoke to each of us at the office. The strength and peace God provides amazes me. Our firm will be sitting with the family as our firm is like a family of its own. For those of you who do not know, 4 years ago our firm sat as family at the funeral of another one of our attorney's who lost his 18 yr. old son in a tragic accident. We are only a firm of 22 people so for us to have to grieve through both of these tragedies in such a short period of time is very hard on us. We have several family events a year and there are always kids running around up here. Most of us have watch these kids grow up and have even babysat some of them.

Please especially pray for the students that will be in attendance. Paul told each of us to expect a difficult and realistic service. They will not sugar-coat Aaron's suicide; they will deal with it head-on as being wrong, sinful (but forgiven by Christ's salvation), and part of Satan's influence in this world. They will also make the service a true celebration of Aaron's life, and use this horrific tragedy as an opportunity to minister to everyone in attendance about the certainty of God's love and our salvation through Jesus Christ. Paul summed it up perfectly this morning, saying "If you can stand it, it will be awesome." I know that God is faithful to save in any circumstance.

I hear the Savior say,“Thy strength indeed is small; Child of weakness, watch and pray, Find in Me thine all in all." Jesus paid it all, All to Him I owe; Sin had left a crimson stain, He washed it white as snow.

Prayers

2008-03-20T16:03:00.006-05:00

Please pray for the Williamson family. Paul Williamson is one of the managing partners at the law firm I work for. He called a few minutes ago to let us know that his son, Aaron, passed away today. I do not have any other details at this time. Aaron was a senior at AHS and he and his family are members of Trinity Fellowship.

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God. 2 Corinthians 1:2-4

My Wonderful Wife

2008-03-19T09:26:00.003-05:00

Hi, this is Chris. Amy's husband. I know from time to time Amy talks about me on her blog. I just think its time I talked about her. She is always so caring and thoughtful of other people. I just want you to know what an amazing person she is. She has a heart of gold and when the time comes she will be be the most amazing mother there is. She is a devoted Christ Follower. She is the reason that I am who I am to this day. I love you baby! Thank you for all you have done for me!!

Christopher

I am back

2008-03-19T08:54:00.014-05:00

Well it was a great weekend, but I am glad to be back. I guess I should catch everyone up a little before I tell you about our trip.

I think I mentioned that last weekend, I went to Melanie's baby shower. Melanie and I have been friends since the 3rd grade and she is now expecting her first, Jacob, at the end of April. I am so excited for her and Brancent and can't wait to meet Jacob. It was great getting to see her, her mom and grandma at the shower. I also got to see my high school friend, Melissa. Melissa is a very talented seamstress and made Melanie tons of cute cart covers and other items. Melissa also gave Chris and I our first "anniversary" present. I had to share because I was ecstatic when I opened the package. I don't think Melissa knew that I have tried to add a "B" in every room of our house. (If you don't know, our last name is Bunch.) Anyway, the only room without a "B" was the kitchen. Thanks Melissa, your gift now hangs proudly on our stove.

I also ordered some of these adorable towels from Anna Maria Horner.

Ok, back to the trip...we went shopping in Dallas Thursday-Sunday. We were so tired when we got back home, but had a great time together and even squeezed in a visit with my friend RyAnn and her family.

Braxton tried to act shy.

This was Brock and Chris' attempt at making sad faces! I don't think Brock has a sad bone in his body. He has one of the best laughs I have ever heard.

Love you Ry!

When we made it back to town Sunday night, we stopped by my parents house to pick up Allie and my parents dog, Macy, so my parents could go to Dallas for a few days. I of course had to make Chris take a picture of Allie's first sleepover!!!

On Monday, our real anniversary, we slept late and lounged around the house together. It was perfect. We did make it to Canyon to revisit the site of our wedding.

Of course we had cake. I don't really know what happened to it in my parents freezer, but it tasted amazing much to my chagrin. I was really hoping it would taste bad for dieting purposes. No such luck.

I have more to post about our anniversary, but have not uploaded the pics yet. Just wanted to catch everyone up a little. This weekend we are babysitting the Needham's so I am sure that I will have lots of stories about our lives with a teenage boy and a 9 year old who thinks she is 16. Fun!!

About to hit the road

2008-03-12T07:48:00.004-05:00

I am a little behind on my blogging. On top of the events of Monday, I also had a midterm last night and a ton of homework I had to do before we leave to go to Dallas today to celebrate our 1st Anniversary with a weekend of shopping!! YEAH!!!

I did want to brag on Chris. Saturday was the 2 year anniversary of our first date. I totally forgot, but not Chris. I came home from Melanie's baby shower and found a really sweet card with some make-up bags I had been eyeing. My hubby is the best.

I have a lot more to blog about, but it will have to wait until we get back. Chris is loading the car right now. See you all again on Monday!!! Have a good weekend.

Too much drama for me...

2008-03-10T11:24:00.003-05:00

This morning has been crazy!! I went to leave for work this morning and when I opened the garage door, I saw that the alley was kinda smokey. As I got in my car and drove down the alley I saw smoke coming out from under the eve of the elderly man's house that lives across the alley and one house down from us.

I immediately grabbed my phone and called 911. Thinking back on it I am amazed at the clarity God allowed me in that moment. I remembered Edwin's house number and street like it was my own. I don't even know how I knew his house number, but I did (actually God helped me). Anyway, I hopped out my car and ran up to the front door. I tapped the door knob to see if it was hot. It was not so I tried to open the door. Praise the Lord it was unlocked. As soon as I opened the door, smoke rushed out. I could not even see my hand in front of my face. I did not want to go into the house, because I had never been in there before and thought that might not be the best decision. I instead stood at the door and yelled for Edwin. I could not hear him responding. About that time, a car pulled up and 2 men jumped out. One of them was a friend of Edwin's who comes over and checks on him every once in a while. God had allowed them to come over that morning even though they never came to check on Edwin in the morning. They ran into the house and found Edwin sitting in a chair that was on fire. We think that maybe he was smoking and fell asleep. Edwin told them that they needed to get the chair out of the house!! They instead dragged him out in his pajama's. His arm was pretty badly burned, but other than that he was in pretty good shape. I ran home and got him a blanket and Chris' house shoes. (Thanks Chris!!) I also ran next door and woke up the elderly women that lived there and helped her wrangle up her 4 dogs and 1 cat!! (I don't know how you live in a townhouse and have that many animals!!) Soon after the police, fireman and paramedics arrived. Edwin refused to go to the hospital and really only cared about smoking another cigarette and going back in his house. I told the police that I had noticed that he had been leaving his garage door opened when he left the house and obviously, I thought he was suffering from dementia.

An hour later I was back at work and only suffering from mild smoke inhalation and burning eyes. Please remember to keep Edwin in your prayers today and in the days ahead. The fireman said his house was not a total loss but it would require a great deal of cleaning and some major structural repair in the back of his house. Also, please pray for Edwin's family as I am sure they will have to struggle with getting him in full time care.

Thank you God for your divine intervention and amazing arms of protection and for the fireman, policeman and paramedics who face those situations everyday.

Another Blogger

2008-03-06T10:19:00.006-06:00

I love it when my friends start blogs. Even though I talk to them often, sometimes I just like to pull up their blog and see pictures of them. It always makes me smile and helps me feel not so far away from them. One of my best friends from HSU, Rachel, started a blog today. Don't let her modesty fool you, she has a beautiful daughter and an amazing family that I am sure everyone will fall in love with. Rachel is one of the most sweet, sincere and honest people I know. Everyone should take a trip over and welcome her to the blog world.

Rachel & Landyn Reese at my wedding.

I can not even imagine what God was thinking...

2008-03-05T09:48:00.003-06:00

when he allowed the announcement about the new Beth Moore Bible Study to catch my eye on the church web site. The title of the study is Loving Well. Silly old, newly wed me, thought it would be about loving your husband/family/kids well. Sounded good to me. I am always looking for new ways to show Chris and other loved ones my affection more. I walked into class last night, bought the book and sat down and immediately flipped it over to see just how Beth Moore was going to help me love my hubby more. This is what I read instead..."Are you loving well? Some people are a joy to love, some people are difficult to love, and we all have to deal with some people who are humanly impossible to love. God wants to demonstrate His might by doing through us what we can not possible do on our own. He wants us to learn to love all of these types of people-and love them well." WHAT??? That is not what I signed up for!! Why in the world would God think that I needed this class?? Oh yeah, I know why!! DANG IT!!! I won't share the names of all those people that immediately popped into my head when I thought of people that are difficult to love, people who have hurt me before, people I don't necessarily trust, etc., but lets just say the list was long. I often fall into the rut of not challenging myself when it comes to doing and being the Christian God has called me to be. I mean I do good and act the right way most of the time so that should be enough. Right?? Nope. God is calling me to love better, love EVERYONE better. I can already tell that the next 4 weeks are going to be a humbling experience and I hope I am up to the task. I will keep you posted on my epiphanies about loving well.

In other news, I lost 1.2 lbs. Not a vast improvement but a little better. I learned some new tips last night at my WW meeting and am hoping to see an improvement again next week.

PS. Chris thought I should have added to my survey of things you might not know about me that I scramble eggs for Allie every morning. See I love Allie well.

Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God and he who loves is born of God and is coming to know and understand God. 1 John 4:7

New Survey

2008-03-04T09:15:00.003-06:00

You know that I am a sucker for surveys. I have seen this one floating around on a few blogs and since no one tagged me on it :( I have decided that I am going to do it anyway.

10 years ago:

I was having a major case of senioritis. I was also helping my mom take care of her mother who had cancer. She passed away 9 days later. I miss her so much and can't wait to see her again in the presence of our amazing God. Just so this survey is not totally depressing, my grandmother used to own a cafe in town. She was known across the Panhandle for her 6" tall Meringue Pies. I used to love to go to her cafe and help her with the cash register when I was little.

Things on my to-do list today:

- Go to Ulta to get make-up

- Go to Target and see if I can find a neat little thank you gift for Chris.

- Go to Weight Watchers

- Go to new Beth Moore Bible Study at church

- Spend a little time with my amazing husband

- Crash

What would I do if I were suddenly made a billionaire: I don't think my mind can quite grasp a billion dollars...I would probably pay off our cars, buy a new house, pay for the rest of my brothers' school, give away a lot to several charities and set up a revocable living trust (that is all I do all day and I know that I would need one to avoid tax issues).

Three of my bad habits:

1. Asking Chris where my cell phone is. I do this a lot, most of the times it is meant as a rhetorical question and me just talking out loud, but it still annoys him.

2. Being late.

3. Returning phone calls (See I admit it Ry!!)

Five jobs I have had:

1. Salesperson at Trolley Car Bridal

2. Salesperson at Bealls

3. Checker at United

4. Trinity Baptist Youth Intern

5. Courier

Five things people don't know about me:

1. I won the first gymnastics meet I ever competed in and I am pretty sure I can still do my floor routine.

2. I hate the feel of thirsty stones and turn them over and put my glass on the cork part.

3. I was captain of the varsity girls basketball team in high school.

4. I had a cat when I was little that had a clubbed foot and I named her Jessica (aka Juicy) after the little girl that got stuck in that well.

5. I ran over the retarded newspaper lady on her handicapped bike while backing out of the driveway when I was 16. The worst part is that I left her laying on the ground behind my car so I could run inside and get my dad. (FYI: The newspaper lady walked away with a skinned knee and elbow. Although, she did always pull over to the side of the road and get off of her bike when she saw me driving down the street after that so I guess the emotional trauma was more than the physical.)

Don't you all feel like you know me better now? That could be a bad thing!!

Words of Affirmation

2008-03-03T11:32:00.003-06:00

As any couple should, Chris and I read The Five Love Languages. Chris' love language is hands down words of affirmation. I know that I do not always do a good job of making Chris feel and know how much I appreciate him and how proud of him for the man of God that he is growing into each day. I am always searching for ways to tell him how much I love and admire him. Today I stumbled across this 30-Day Husband Encouragement Challenge for Wives. Some of the things are so simple, but I think it will give me a goal everyday to uplift Chris in a new way and hopefully over the course of the next 30 days some of them will become habit.

My Man is On a Roll

2008-02-28T21:27:00.002-06:00

Not only did Chris get a promotion, but yesterday I came home and found this on the bed...

And inside it was this...

It is the cutest little sweater and a necklace with matching earrings. Isn't he sweet? Just wanted to brag on my baby a little. Tomorrow is Friday!! YEAH!!!

OMG!!! NEW HILLS TRAILER!!

2008-02-27T11:17:00.002-06:00

Yes friends that is right, the new season of The Hills starts March 24th and I will be glued to the tv like all of the other teens. Oh wait...I am 28!!! Holy cow I need a life!!!!

My Wednesday is starting off splendidly

2008-02-27T08:25:00.003-06:00

Well first of all, my friend Ashley (aka Ingram Gang) found my blog on the blog world. I am so excited that she has a blog. I have not known Ashley that long and had not worked up the nerve to ask her if she had a blog, but I totally thought she needed one. Yeah another blog to divert me from doing work!!!!

In other WW news I lost .8. I am starting to get really frustrated. I think I am mainly frustrated just because I know I am not doing as well as I should be, but still think I should loose more weight. I just can't believe that my rationalizing all of my poor health decisions is not paying off?!?! I was super bad this weekend. Saturday, I called my grandma and asked her if she wanted me to bring her lunch. She of course wanted Sonic. Even though I did get a grilled chicken sandwich, I also got onion rings and ate most of them. Then Chris and I were forced into eating lunch with some other couples in our Sunday school class at my most un-favorite restaurant, Pei Wei!!! Then I let Chris decide were he wanted to go out to eat to celebrate his promotion and he picked Hummers (For those who don't live in the beautiful metropolis of Amarillo, Hummers is basically our local version of Hooters). I know that I have not been making this whole weight loss thing easy and if I would just stop lying to myself, I might do better. Pray for me this weekend, I have a wedding shower, lingerie shower and UFC fighting party to attend. I need strength badly!!!!

Ok that is enough rambling for one morning. I am off to read more of Ashley's Blog.

Love.

I am so proud!!

2008-02-26T09:43:00.004-06:00

Well not necessarily so proud that my husband finds great amusement in taking pictures of himself, but that he got a promotion and a raise yesterday!!! He is an insurance agent with Nationwide Insurance. He has been there almost 2 years and about 6 months ago they started asking him to fill in and train new agents because they were short on trainers. He taught about 3 months of training and they posted an opening for a trainer. Chris applied and was VERY disappointed when he did not get it. Last week they posted another training position and Chris found out yesterday that he got it. I am so proud of him. He has worked so hard and has moved up a lot faster than any of the other agents who started when he did. Along with more money and a job that he loves, he will now have normal work hours from 9-5:30 Monday-Friday. I am so used to him not getting home until 8:00 and being home alone on Saturday's. I don't know what I am going to do with him home all of the time.

I can't believe it is already Thursday

2008-02-21T15:22:00.003-06:00

My week has been all messed up with Monday being a holiday and I just have not been able to play catch up and now it is already Thursday!! I have not blogged in over a week so I will try to catch you up on all of the stuff going on in my world.

First, I wanted to mention that Charlie Hall performed a concert at our church on Sunday, February 3rd. It was amazing. If you have not heard of him I encourage you to check him out.

I did not do so hot at WW last week. I gained 1 pound. I dont know what I did wrong. Actually, yes I do...I only worked out once that week. Anywho, I was really bummed about it but also motivated to do better and be more diligent with my workouts and it paid off. This week I lost 2.8!! Technically with my gain from last week it should really only be 1.8, but I was still pumped about it. I am aiming to meet my 10% goal by the time Chris and I go to Dallas in March.

Last Friday (the 18th) and yesterday, I observed at several elementary schools. I learned alot and was so grateful for the experience. I think that I am going to talk to one of the teacher's about being my mentor. She has been teaching for 21 years and I learned more in 4 hrs. in her class than I have in all of my other observation hours combined.

Saturday (the 19th) Chris and I went to dinner with our friends, Brad and Ashley. They were able to find babysitters for their 2 little ones so we got to have a really nice long dinner filled with great conversation and encouragement. Brad is the High School Youth Pastor at our church and has been such a blessing in our lives and the lives of the students. They are amazing people and we are blessed to be able to call them friends. Here is a cute picture I stole of Brad and Ashley from Brad's myspace.

I think that is about all I got for now, but hopefully I will have more for you later.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY RYANN!!!

2008-02-13T16:58:00.002-06:00

Today is RyAnn's Birthday!! I think today is also the anniversary of her ACL Surgery?? Anywho, I met RyAnn 10 years ago when we were seniors in high school. We both had traveled to Hardin-Simmons to try out for the cheerleading squad. We instantly hit it off. I remember the first night of try-out's we met in my hotel room to practice. We were both so nervous but made the squad and from there our friendship continued to grow. RyAnn has seen me through so much. She has taken me to the ER when I was sick, laughed at me for all of the stupid choices I made when it came to boys and was by my side on one of the most important days of my life, my wedding day. Even though we live 6 hours away she is always so good to call me and check in every week. You could not ask for a better friend, mother, wife and Christ follower. Love you Ry!! Hope you have an awesome birthday.

Jesus Paid It All - Kristian Stanfill

2008-02-07T09:54:00.001-06:00

We have sang this song a couple of times in chruch and everytime I hear it, it brings chills all over my body. I grew up siging hymns and to hear them revamped gives them a whole new depth. Anyway, I just wanted to share.

CAUTION VENTING SESSION AHEAD

2008-02-06T13:44:00.000-06:00

Ok I am not a person who forwards very many emails. I usually only send forwards if it something I find generally interesting or funny or it is a get to know you quiz (I love those). Call me a party pooper if you want to. Forwarded emails annoy me especially when the sender never sends me any emails other than forwards!! As annoyed as I get at forwarded emails I have hit my limit with forwarded text messages. A girl I know, who will remain nameless, sends both Chris and I text forwards. I just got 2 from her in the last 10 minutes while I am at work! She has also been known to send them late at night and at generally other inappropriate times when I don't want my phone ringing. Usually, I can tell by the title that they are not even worth my time and don't read them.

Ok problem solved. I sent her a text and asked her to remove me from her forwarding list. It sure did feel good to get that off my chest.

Weekly Update

2008-02-06T09:39:00.000-06:00

Well it has been another pretty slow week in the Bunch household. Friday night we had made plans to have dinner with my parents but Chris got sick so we had to cancel. Luckily, he was feeling better by Saturday night so we went to our new friends, Jacob and Crystal's, house to watch some UFC fighting. A couple of other people from church came and we had a great time. Sunday of course we watched the Super Bowl. I really did not care who won because I hate both teams but I was glad that it was an interesting game in the second half.

I lost another 1.4 lbs!! Yeah!! I have decided that my weight loss might be more if I just cut those 2 Diet Dr. Peppers out that I drink a day. I may be fooling myself but I am going to try it and see if it makes any difference.

I have a hair appointment after work and that is pretty much all of the excitement in my life. Sad I know. OH!! I know what else has been going!!! Allie is in heat! Even though we have no plans to breed her, we have not had her fixed yet. The whole thing totally grosses Chris out which I find amusing.

I will leave you with a couple of Ski Trip pictures that the girls in my small group took. Happy Wednesday to everyone!!

If I saw Heidi Montag on the street, I would...

2008-02-04T14:29:00.001-06:00

punch her, slap her, kick her...is that to harsh?? Ok I am sure that I have lost about half of my readers now that you know that I watch The Hills religiosly and despise Heidi Montag. Yes, I am aware that I have issues but that girl and her looser boyfriend (or ex-boyfriend), Spencer, make my skin crawl. However, I did find her debut music video to be hillarious. I pray to God she is not serious about having a career in music and that NO ONE buys her album.

Another WW Report

2008-01-30T09:28:00.001-06:00

Well I hate to admit that I have nothing exciting in life to report other than I had another good WW weigh in yesterday. I lost another 1.8 lbs!!! I have been sick since I got back from the ski trip and did not get the work out last week like I wanted. I am sure the people at Zach's appreciate the fact that I did not contaminate all of their equipment. Anywho, I am back in the grove this week and feeling much better. Since I have nothing else to report, I will do this survey I stole from Kelly.

1. WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE? Yes, my first name was actually the name of my dad's crush growing up, Amy Hughes. We actually went to church with her and her family when I was in middle school and I was the same age as her son, Brandon. My middle name, Renay, is after my second cousin.

2. WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU CRIED? On the ski trip. I was asking my girls who God is to them. Little did I know that one of my girls, Kristen, lost her father a couple of years ago and she shared about how God is her father. I blubbered like a baby.

3. DO YOU LIKE YOUR HANDWRITING? sometimes

4. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCH MEAT? turkey

5. DO YOU HAVE KIDS? Not yet.

6. IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOURSELF? I hope so but I would probably roll my eyes at myself alot.

7. DO YOU USE SARCASM A LOT? probably too much

8. DO YOU STILL HAVE YOUR TONSILS? Yes

9. WOULD YOU BUNGEE JUMP? no way I am not a dare-devil

10. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CEREAL? Cracklin' Oat Bran

11. DO YOU UNTIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF? Nope

12. DO YOU THINK YOU ARE STRONG? Sometimes

13. WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE ICE-CREAM? Rocky Road

14. RED or PINK? Pink!

I DON'T KNOW WHERE NUMBER 15 WENT* That's ODD.

16. WHAT IS THE LEAST FAVORITE THING YOU LIKE ABOUT YOURSELF? I am pretty spoiled. I don't think I realized just how much until I got married. I am trying to work on it.

17. WHO DO YOU MISS THE MOST? My great-grandmother who died when I was in 8th grade. She was amazing. I also miss my grandparents who live in Oklahoma cause I don't get to see them as often as I would like.

18. DO YOU WANT EVERYONE TO SEND THIS BACK TO YOU? I want everyone to POST this on their blogs!

19. WHAT COLOR PANTS AND SHOES ARE YOU WEARING? Brown pants and some really sexy brown heels

20. WHAT WAS THE LAST THING YOU ATE? a peach fruit cup

21. WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW? Thanks to Chris and the I-Pod docking station he got me for Christmas...Dave Matthews Live from Radio City Music Hall

22. IF YOU WERE A CRAYON, WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU BE? Red

23. FAVORITE SMELLS? Chris

24. Who WAS THE LAST PERSON YOU TALKED TO ON THE PHONE? My boss, Jason.

25. DO YOU LIKE THE PERSON WHO SENT THIS TO YOU? Yes, she is FABULOUS!

26. FAVORITE SPORTS TO WATCH? Football and Yankees Baseball

27. HAIR COLOR? Dark Brown (I am getting my hair done this weekend so any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!!)

28. EYE COLOR? Hazel

29. DO YOU WEAR CONTACTS? No

30. FAVORITE FOOD? Mexican

31. SCARY MOVIES OR HAPPY ENDINGS? Happy Endings

32. LAST MOVIE YOU WATCHED? Bee Movie - Very cute

33. WHAT COLOR SHIRT ARE YOU WEARING? Cream with a pink sweater

34. SUMMER OR WINTER? SUMMER! (Sorry Ashley)

35. HUGS OR KISSES? I ♥ both equally.

36. FAVORITE DESSERT? creme brulee

37. MOST LIKELY TO RESPOND? Hopefully all of you!

38. LEAST LIKELY TO RESPOND? Kelly because she already did it.

39. WHAT BOOK ARE YOU READING NOW? too many textbooks so I have not picked anything up for casual reading in a while

40. WHAT IS ON YOUR MOUSE PAD? a picture of Allie when she was a little puppy

41. WHAT DID YOU WATCH ON T.V. LAST NIGHT? One Tree Hill and Rob and Big

42. FAVORITE SOUND? Laughter

43. ROLLING STONES OR BEATLES? Beatles

44. WHAT IS THE FURTHEST YOU HAVE BEEN FROM HOME? Bahamas or Cancun actually, I think NY is farther.

45. DO YOU HAVE A SPECIAL TALENT? Wouldn't you like to know!!

46. WHERE WERE YOU BORN? Amarillo, Texas

WW Report

2008-01-23T14:02:00.000-06:00

Well I weighed in last night and had lost 2.2 lbs. I am totally pumped about that number. I know it does not seem like very much but considering the food I had to work with while on the ski trip I was just hoping not to gain. Thankfully I was doing all of that skiing and burning the hamburgers and fries I porked down. Hopefully this week I can get back into my routine and have another good week next week.

Ski Trip

2008-01-23T11:43:00.000-06:00

Well we made it. We left Friday afternoon at about 5:00 pm with plans to make it to Winter Park by 2:00 am MST but, we hit some bad weather and the buses' windshield wiper fluid froze up so we had to stop about every 20 minutes for someone to clean the windows. We finally arrived in Winter Park at about 4:30 am and were up at 7:30 am so everyone could make it to the slopes by 9:00 am. 2 hours of sleep was not enough but, somehow I managed to make it through the 1st day of skiing. Saturday night I actually got about 8 hours of sleep and woke up refreshed for my 2nd day on the slopes. Sunday night was the night of the dancing freshman girls (see below) and I only got about 4 hours of sleep before we had to be on the buses by 8:00 am. About an hour after we left bus #2 completely shut down and we had to wait 3 hours for another bus to come from Colorado Springs. We finally made it home at about 10:30 pm. It made for a long day but we had such a great time. The Lord kept everyone safe and we had no major injuries. We also had a great time of worship and fellowship. The trip was a huge blessing and a great chance to bond with the kids in the youth group further.

Allie trying to stow away in my suitcase.

Making my way slowly down the mountain.

A nice picture of my nostrils.

Staying warm on the lift.

I took a lot of pictures of Chris.

Blake and Haley. They are in my small group.

Another member of my small group, Holly.

Chris and I admiring our snow blades!

3 of the crazies in my room, Ally, Madison and Kristen.

14,000 people were at the slopes on Saturday and 13,000 on Sunday. Pretty crowded but still fun.

Haley and Holly.

Haley, Me and Blake.

Me & Holly.

Me and Blake.

The 3 other girls in my room, Aimee, Whitney and Kaci.

The dance party had just begun!! They danced to "I like to Move It" for about 3 hours.

If you are wondering about the large cans in their hands, don't worry it is not beer. They had these huge cans of energy drinks that turned out to be a mistake. I was awoken at about 1:45 am to Madison crying at the foot of my bed while Ally was dry heaving in my bathroom. Lovely!

I am alive...I think

2008-01-22T12:41:00.000-06:00

3 nights with 6 freshman girls + 4 days with 70 high schoolers + 2 days of skiing + 1 bus breakdown + 14 hour bus ride home = 1 tired Amy

Pictures to come.

Off to the Mountains

2008-01-18T10:43:00.000-06:00

Well I have not had much to post about the last couple of days because I have been so busy doing mundane stuff that I have not had time to do anything fun. School started on Monday so I have spent most of the week familiarizing myself with my new classes and requirements. FUN!! This afternoon Chris and I, along with 70 youth and 11 other adults, are leaving to head to Winter Park, Colorado for a weekend of skiing, fellowship, worship and fun. I am in charge of checking everyone in this afternoon before they load the buses. I have to write their room number on their right hand and then after they pick what bus they want to ride on, I have to write that number on their left hand! Should be fun!! I think if I can make it past check and the 9 hour bus ride I can make it through rooming with 8 freshman girls!! Please pray for us and the kids that God would begin preparing their hearts now for the words Brad has for them. I promise to come back with a slew of pictures!! Love.

New Year Resolutions

2008-01-15T13:35:00.000-06:00

Yes, I am aware that it is January 15th and a little late to be blogging about this but rest assured that I did actually put my resolutions into effect on the 1st. I was hesitant to blog about my weight struggles before but I have come to realize the more people I tell the more motivated I am to stick to my goals. I know there are millions of men and women around the world who also made this one of their resolutions but, I will share nonetheless.

I have never been a skinny girl. Even when I was cheering in college and working out non-stop I was always pretty short and compact but I have never been as big as I am now. I will not share my exact weight cause I think that might be a little much but, I will tell you that I have gained 30 lbs since my wedding in March!!!! Holy freakin crap, every time I say that I feel a sense of shock go over my whole body. I think when I was single I was always innately aware of being single and overweight and thinking that my odds of landing a man where slimmer so I always had a reason to keep my weight somewhat in check. Even then I was still overweight but, once Chris put that ring on my finger, I think a flood gate opened in my stomach and all of the sudden there was extra room. I was/am so comfortable with Chris and know that he will love me no matter what and I think I let that comfort get the best of me. Chris too has gained weight since the wedding but, not as much as me. We are both vowing to make a new lifestyle for ourselves and have done very well over the last 2 weeks. Last week I went to my 2nd Weight Watchers (WW) meeting to weigh in and I had lost 5.2 lbs!! (Picture me doing the Elaine!!) I was so excited. My goal is 45 lbs. I hope that everyone else that is struggling with weight loss will keep checking in on me. I have a bad habit of getting discouraged if there is only a small change and then quitting! I am not doing it this time. I want to be healthier for Chris and for our future family.

Some of my other resolutions are as follows:

Read 3 chapters in my Bible a week.
Blog at least twice a week.
Clean out my guest room.

Last Tuesday

2008-01-15T13:17:00.000-06:00

Last Tuesday, I went with my mom and brothers to watch my cousin, Jenny, play B-Ball at my old high school. If you did not already know, I went to a private school from K-12!! I did not realize then what a sheltered environment I was in and as I have looked back on over the years I wish I had gone to public school. My parents pulled my brother's out of SJCA after I graduated and they both had such positive public school experiences. Anyone who asks, I always tell them "If you are thinking about putting your kids in private school to avoid the influence of sex, drugs, alcohol, etc., they are going to find it if they want to find it. It will not matter what school they are in." Then I go into a lengthy dialogue about my beef with private schools. I am sure not all of them are the same but after going to that game the other night, I left resolved in my opinion. Wow, I had no intention to get on my soap box about private vs. public schools. I really started out this blog with the intentions of posting pictures of my cousins from dinner that night, so here you go.

Jenny and Adrien

My Aunt Brenda and Jenny

Brenda, Jenny & Adrien

Merker Look-alike Meter

2008-01-09T10:08:00.001-06:00

MyHeritage: Family tree - Genealogy - Celebrity - Collage - Morph

New Year...New Chair

2008-01-08T16:52:00.000-06:00

Chris and I got a new chair for the living room. Here is a before and after of the corner where it resides.

I think that I need to branch out of my brown color box. What is my deal?? Everything in this picture is brown!!! I will get back to you after I have totally finished this corner of the living room. I am determined not to leave it looking all drab and blah.

New Year's Eve at Home

2008-01-08T16:47:00.000-06:00

Last year we went out with friends for New Year's and had a blast but this year we decided to stay home and enjoy a night off. We were so busy over the holiday's it was nice not to have plans. I fell asleep at about 10:00 and Chris woke me up at 11:50 in time to ring in 2008. Here is a pic of me enjoying a glass of wine and my last candy bar before I started my new year's resolution to shed my post-wedding weight.

The more I look at this picture the more "white trash" it looks. Candy bar and wine...really???

Benjamin and Katie

2008-01-08T16:41:00.000-06:00

December 29th we had dinner with Chris' brother, Kerry, and his family. After dinner our niece and nephew, Katie and Benjamin, came over to play for a while. I am pretty sure that they entertained us more than we entertained them.

Lunch Date

2008-01-08T16:28:00.000-06:00

On December 27th I had lunch with my dear friend, Elisabeth, and her new beautiful baby girl, Ella. Lis and I have been friends since 9th grade and went to HSU together where she met her husband, Jason. Ella was born on December 6th so this was my first chance to get to meet her. We had such a great lunch and I loved getting to hold Ella and hug on them both. They live in San Marcos so I know it will be a while before I get to love on them both again. I forgot my camera that day but, here is a picture of the Wier's.

Ella was so quite all through lunch and made the whole parenting thing look like a walk in the park it got me thinking...YEAH RIGHT!!! I know I wont be so lucky. Love you Lis!! Kiss Ella for me. Oh does she have a middle name yet??

Christmas Day

2008-01-08T16:16:00.000-06:00

Christmas morning we woke up and drove across town to my parents. We ate, laughed and went to the movies as is the Merker Family Christmas Day Tradition. We saw National Treasure. It was soooo good. If you have not seen it yet I highly recommend it.

Mom & Dad's Tree

My parent's dog, Macy, enjoying the bone we got her.

Daniel trying to avoid getting up.

Daniel after he woke up! Scary.

Mom making breakfast burritos.

My husband!! Enough said.

Christmas Eve

2008-01-08T16:04:00.000-06:00

Our Holiday's started off with Christmas with my family on Christmas Eve. This year my step-grandfather even came which made it extra special. Since my grandmother passed away 10 yrs ago he does not come very often. We were so glad to have Dave celebrate with us this year. Here are some pics of the festivities.

My grandma (always alert and chipper)

Me, Mom, Dave, Andrew, Dad & Daniel

Andrew counting his money.

Squeezing in!

Jesus' Birthday Cake! I used Hershey's "Perfectly Chocolate" Cake recipe. AMAZING!!!

After everyone left Chris and I opened one gift from each other (we had already opened one about a week ago). I got a new charm for my charm bracelet. It was a little puppy and is so cute. In case I never shared this Chris' started the charm bracelet for me on our wedding day. It had a gorgeous heart charm for our wedding day and dolphins since we were going to swim with them on our honeymoon. So thoughtful.

I will have more pictures if my mom will email me the ones from their camera so there will be more to come.

Merry Christmas!!!

2007-12-25T22:05:00.000-06:00

We hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas!!

Love, Chris , Amy & Allie

"Excuse me but, I think you are in my car!"

2007-12-20T15:34:00.000-06:00

Today at lunch I ran to a couple of stores to find one last gift for Chris. I was walking back out to my car and was about 10 feet away when I clicked the unlock button on my key chain. There was a lady walking about 6 feet in front of me and she walked right up to my car opened the door and got in. I was so confused...I thought that was my car? I stopped and looked further down the row of cars. Two spots away and on the other side of a huge truck was another black Honda Accord. I thought to myself, "Maybe I did park that far down." I looked back at the first Honda and noticed that it had the same David McDavid tag on the back bumper as mine did and the same cross hanging from the mirror. About that time the woman who had sat in my car opened the door. I could tell that she was looking around at all of the crap in my seats so I walked up to the car and said, "Excuse me but, I think you are in my car!" She was so apologetic. I guess she had clicked her unlock button about the same time I hit mine and saw the tail lights flash and thought it was hers. Crazy!!! Now I finally have a reason to keep my car junked out...so people know that it is not theirs.

Allie's Latest Victim

2007-12-20T09:59:00.000-06:00

Last night I was sitting at the computer and could feel a cord knocking up against my leg. I reached down and pulled up the headphones that came with the computer. I then bent over to look under the computer table to find Allie sitting there with her sweet and innocent face. I looked again at the headphones and noticed something was missing...

I am beginning to think that my dog has an addiction to devices that go in or around ears. I swear it is always something with that dog. R.I.P (Rest in Poop) earphone covers.

Old friends and my first swim meet

2007-12-17T22:00:00.000-06:00

Saturday morning I braved the 3 inches of snow to have breakfast with my oldest and dearest friend Ashley. We met at our favorite breakfast spot, Calico County, and had a great time together. It had been almost 2 weeks since we had seen each other which is a long time for us considering we saw each other every day for almost 3 years when we lived together. I forgot to take my camera that morning but, in case you forgot what the gorgeous Ashley looks like here is a picture.

After breakfast I went to my first swim meet. My small group girls are all on the swim team at Amarillo High School so I went to cheer them on. They did so good. I was so impressed with them. My girls are truly amazing.

After the swim meet I met Chris at the mall so we could finish our Christmas shopping. Luckily we finished by 1:30 and were able to come home and enjoy the rest of the afternoon with each other.

Journey

2007-12-17T19:57:00.001-06:00

Sunday night my family came to our church to see our Christmas program "Journey." As of Sunday morning they had 5,000 people who had attended the program since it started on Thursday and they were out of tickets for the remaining shows. Luckily, our youth minister had set some tickets aside for us. Two of my small group girls took turns playing Mary. I was so proud of them for having the courage to audition and commit to the event. I swear I learn more from those girls than they do from me.

Chris posing with a goat in the "market place."

Me and Holly (aka Mary)

Holly holding baby Jesus.

It is a good thing it is Friday

2007-12-14T17:57:00.000-06:00

I got to work this morning and the receptionist called to tell me that a client was at the front desk to see me. I spin around in my chair and happen to look down at me feet and see this...

I dont know if you can tell or not but those are navy blue trouser socks with my black pants and black shoes. NICE!!! Even though you could barely see the socks because my pants are so long I took them off and went barefoot all day which was fine with me since I hate wearing socks. I guess I should explain that I am not color blind but that when I get dressed in the mornings Chris is still asleep so I just reached in the drawer and pulled out the first pair. I did not even know I had navy socks but apparently I do. Good thing it is Friday cause I think my brain is fried.

So You Think You Know Carols?

2007-12-13T10:10:00.000-06:00

Check out this webstite to take a Christmas song quizz and see how you do. This was my score:

You got 84% correct. Not bad. You stand to be the life of any winter holiday party you attend, should caroling break out.

Christmas Survey

2007-12-11T09:15:00.000-06:00

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? Wrapping paper
2. Real tree or Artificial? Artificial, I am allergic to the real ones
3. When do you put up the tree? I try to put it up the weekend before Thanksgiving but this year Chris made me wait until the week after…Scrooge!!
4. When do you take the tree down the tree? After New Years Eve
5. Do you like egg nog? Disgusting!!!
6. Favorite gift received as a child? The 5 ft. tall and 3 ft. deep doll house my dad built me was pretty awesome.
7. Do you have a nativity scene? yes
8. Hardest person to buy for? My parents
9. Easiest person to buy for? Nieces and Nephews
10. Mail or email Christmas cards? mail
11. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? A really ugly pleather purse from my aunt and uncle
12. Favorite Christmas Movie? A Christmas Story
13. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? Only as a white elephant gift
14. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? Pumpkin roll
15. Clear lights or colored on the tree? Clear
16. Favorite Christmas song? I like almost all Christmas music except for Feliz Navidad and Little Drummer Boy
17. Travel at Christmas or stay home? Home
18. Can you name all of Santa's reindeers? YES!!! On Dasher, on Dancer, on Prancer and Vixen, On Comet, on Cupid, on Donner, and Blitzen. But do you recall...the most famous reindeer of all...Rudolph...
19. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning? Christmas morning
20. Most annoying thing about this time of year? Not enough time to enjoy it.
21. Favorite ornament theme or color? The ceramic ornaments we painted every year as kids
22. Favorite food for Christmas dinner? Ham and broccoli and rice casserole
23. What do you want for Christmas this year? I have a list developing…purse, more place settings of my china, new chi hair straightener
24. Who is most likely to respond to this? Chris
25. Who is least likely to respond to this? My mom

Nutcracker

2007-12-10T12:25:00.000-06:00

Saturday night went dinner and to see the Nutcracker with our friends Kale and Joselyn. I had not been to the Nutcracker since high school and Chris had never been. This year they had all new sets built by a guy out of New York and all new costumes also. It was amazing!!! Chris really enjoyed it too which is a good sign that we will be making more trips to hear the Amarillo Symphony and see the Lone Star Ballet. YEAH!!

Dinner with Kale and Joscelyn.

Chris and I.

The Nutcracker ornament Chris bought me!! Isn't he sweet??

Our tree!!

Elfed

2007-11-29T10:46:00.000-06:00

I stole this from RyAnn.

http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=9635417075

YEAH FOR CHRISTMAS!!!

The joys of living in the Texas Panhandle

2007-11-24T23:41:00.000-06:00

Anyone who has ever visited the Panhandle of Texas will probably tell you that we have crazy weather. Here is an example...Monday I think our high temperature was like 75. I think we even set a record. Tuesday again it was fairly warm. Wednesday a little cooler and very windy. Thursday very chilly. Friday I looked outside to see this...

I am thankful that my man can bake!!

2007-11-24T20:26:00.000-06:00

We had Thanksgiving on Thursday with my family. We had a great time. My parents, brothers and grandma all came over to our house. Even though I spent the whole week cleaning and getting things ready it was worth it to have everyone together for the afternoon. Chris pitched in and learned my late Grandma Vivian's secret to the perfect pie crust.

Yes ladies, ALL of the crust were done totally and completely by my husband!! I was very impressed. I made the fillings. We had so much fun baking together. We made 2 pumpkin pies, a pecan and an apple. We also made green bean casserole and Chris made the mashed potatoes. Anyway, here are some more picture of use getting things ready.

Chris carving the turkey due to my dad's recent fear of cutting objects.

Andrew stealing a pickle.

Busy kitchen.

I always forget to take pictures throughout the day. I really should try to get better at that. I hope everyone had a wonderful thanksgiving.

Why My Dad is No Longer Allowed to Use Power Tools

2007-11-18T13:47:00.000-06:00

Sunday night I get a call from my dad. He said "Does Chris want a table saw?" I asked him if he got a new one and that is why he wanted to give his old one to Chris. To which he replied, "No, I almost cut my thumb off yesterday and I don't want to ever use it again." WHAT?? No one even called to tell me that they sat at the emergency room for 3 hours while they stitched my dad up!! He is doing ok but he did cut his thumb pretty bad. Lets just pray that we don't have a an incident like that with Chris once we get the table saw moved over here!!!

I know I owe you 2 more posts to complete my list for the week but, they are not ready yet. 5 out of 7 is not bad.

Allie's New Coat and Fall Photo Shoot

2007-11-18T13:45:00.000-06:00

I found a really cute coat for Allie at Dillard's of all places. She loves it. Here are some other pictures of her that I have taken over the last few weeks.

I love my new leopard print coat!!

First hay ride.

Playing in the leaves.

Allie's "Blue Steel" Pose. (If you don't know what I am talking about, watch Zoolander)

Allie's "I am too good for you" pose.

Allie is sick of the paparazzi always following her around!!!

How Allie Almost Met Her Maker

2007-11-18T13:38:00.000-06:00

Last week Chris and I decided we would try leaving Allie out of her crate while we were at work. Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday all went great. My parents came over Wednesday after work and Chris and I were bragging about how good she had been. She had not chewed on anything, gone to the bathroom anywhere or done anything that would get her in trouble, that is until Wednesday night. Monday and Tuesday nights some one was home after 5 to play with her until bedtime but Wednesday night when we went to church after only being home from work for an hour apparently made her mad. I forgot to take a before repair shot but you can see in this photo where Chris had to cut carpet out of one of the closets to patch the hole she dug while we were gone. She also scratched about 3 inches of paint off of the door way!!! I was in shock when I saw what she had done. Chris busted her and then put her in her crate and said she had to stay there all night. I started crying cause I did not think that was fair that she had to stay in there because we had been gone all day. Chris caved and let her come out to play until bedtime. Needless to say she has been back in her crate everyday since. Poor Allie!!

Chris' Life Changing Committment to God

2007-11-18T13:11:00.000-06:00

Chris has been struggling for months with his career decisions and where his professional life was headed. As many of you know we have become very active in the youth group at our church. I have worked in youth ministry before and felt totally comfortable jumping in head first. Chris on the other hand was a different story. The first Wednesday night we were headed to help with Epicenter (Youth Meeting on Wednesday nights) Chris was literally sick to his stomach. He was so nervous about interacting with the kids he was a walking basket case. After that first Wednesday night you could not keep Chris away from those kids if you tried. He loves those kids and they love him. He was become really close with the youth minister, Brad Ingram, and Brad has really helped Chris grow in his walk. A couple of weeks ago Chris went to his small group, where him and Brad meet with several high school boys, and came back home with tears running down his face. He said that he felt like God had him on a leash trying to take him down a certain path and that he had been pulling and fighting to go another direction and he could not fight anymore. He knew that God was calling him to be a ....YOUTH MINISTER!! Every since that moment Chris has been a changed man. He is so at peace with his life and where God is leading him. You can tell that a huge weight has been lifted from his shoulders. He has been meeting with Brad and they are reading through some books together and Chris is taking some Bible classes at the local junior college next semester. Until he feels he is ready he is going to try to stay at his current job but we are fully devoted to the journey the Lord has for our family. I will keep you posted on any changes but be looking for many more entries about our experiences with the youth at our church and be praying for Chris as he embarks on this new chapter of his life.

Date Night at the Balloon Festival

2007-11-18T12:56:00.000-06:00

A couple of weeks ago Chris and I got to have a date night!! I am sure for those of you who have kids you are wondering why we don't have date night more often? I guess we do cause we always do things like go to dinner and go to the movies but we don't call those date nights. We reserve this phrase for a planned outing as a couple not just "Hey do you want to go to Chili's?" Does that make sense?? Anyway, we went to dinner at Carino's, which I love, and then we went to Amarillo's annual hot air balloon festival. The festival has only been in existence for a couple of years and this is the first year that it has really been worth going to. We went to the Balloon Glow which is where they fire up all of the balloon's right after the sun sets over the beautiful panhandle horizon. It was a little cold but we had a great time. Here are a few pictures.

My goal for the weekend...

2007-11-16T09:56:00.000-06:00

is to get caught up on blogging!!!! UGH!!! I have been so mad at myself because I have so much to blog about but there are so many things that I have not had a chance to blog about that would provide background information to my new blogs!!! Anyway, blogs coming this weekend to a blog near you are:

1. Date Night at the Hot Air Balloon Festival
2. Chris' Life Changing Commitment to God
3. Allie's New Coat (along with about 800 pictures of the worlds cutest dog)
4. Why my dad is not allowed to use power tools anymore
5. Allie almost met her maker today
6. Date Night with 10th grade girls
7. Hallmark Holiday Open House - A Glimpse at my Psychotic Side

Plus many more. If I do not have all of this updated by the weekend you can all feel free to boycott my blog!!!

Halloween

2007-11-01T09:38:00.001-05:00

Most people will post really cute pictures of their kids all dressed up for Halloween but not me, I post pictures of my husband!! Chris and his friend, Kale, dressed up as Double Dare contestants. I loved that show. Anyway, I hope everyone had a Happy Halloween.

Oh before I forget again, I wanted to let everyone know that if you want a blog header like mine, Kelly has set up a website for you to place an order. For a very reasonable price she will make your blog look amazing.

Finally

2007-10-31T11:07:00.000-05:00

Yes finally I can take a break from work to blog!! I have to admit that I have gotten on 3 times from home to blog about the much anticipate video of Delaney singing and after waiting forever for the video to upload getting kicked off blogger. I just kept getting frustrated so I would not blog at all. I still can't get the video to upload and Chris has not had time to help me figure it out but I don't think I can boycott blogging much longer.

Anywho, Saturday, October 13th, was WTAMU's homecoming. When I was going to school at WT I went to 1 homecoming game and the stands on the home side were not even full. The football team was terrible back then but they have since hired a new coach and totally rebuilt the football program. Last year they were the conference champs and are well on their way to a repeat this year with a 9-0 record so far. Now every game is packed on both sides with WT fans. My brothers are going to WT and Andrew is in the marching band so every WTAMU event is a family affair. The homecoming festivities include a parade which Delaney loved and of course the game. GO BUFFS!!!

Cheerleaders at the parade.

My attempt at taking a picture of my brother, Andrew.

Delaney waiting for the next float.

Delaney's Loot

Herdsmen running Jack, the Buffalo.

The home side was so full we had to sit on the packed visitor side.

The hill was even getting crowded

Delaney and I

Chris pretending he doesn't like Delaney

Daniel trying to be cool

My mom being weird

My dad and Delaney.

My Man!!

2007-10-12T09:19:00.000-05:00

1. Who is your man? Christopher Shawn Bunch

2. How long have you been married? Almost 7 months!!

3. How long dated? 1 year and we were engaged for 10 months of that year

4. How old is your man? 28

5. Who eats more? Honestly? Chris for sure!! It almost makes me sick when he eats a full meal right before bed after we just had dinner a few hours before.

6. Who said "I love you" first? I think Chris did. It is all still such a blurr to me.

7. Who is taller? Chris by almost a foot.

8. Who sings better? Definitely Chris.

9. Who is smarter? I am going to have to say me but I am sure I will get a good beat down later for it.

10. Whose temper is worse? Definitely me. I am a treat!!

11. Who does the laundry? Me

12. Who takes out the garbage? Chris

13. Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? Chris

14. Who pays the bills? Me

15. Who is better with the computer? Chris

16. Who mows the lawn? The lawn boy.

17. Who cooks dinner? Chris does 95% of the time.

18. Who drives when you are together? Chris which drives me crazy cause he always drives the speed limit even if we are late to something. I hate that!!!

19. Who pays when you go out? Usually Chris

20. Who is most stubborn? We are both pretty stubborn but, I am going to have to say me.

21. Who is the first to admit when they are wrong? Chris, usually he admits that he is wrong even when he is not.

22. Whose parents do you see the most? I don't even have to think about this question...mine!

23. Who kissed who first? He kissed me first. He was tickling me and leaned in for the kiss!! Smooooth!!!

24. Who asked who out? He asked me out.

25. Who proposed? He did of course!!

26. Who is more sensitive? Definitely Chris.

27. Who has more friends? Me.

28. Who has more siblings? We both have 2 brothers.

29. Who wears the pants in the family? I guess Chris (although I secretly think I do)

I tag anyone who wants to do this. It was fun!

Is anyone sick of pictures of my dog yet??

2007-10-10T16:46:00.000-05:00

I am sure that none of you are sick of seeing pictures of my spoiled dog yet, right? Well I guess you all might as well get used to it cause until we have kids (which wont be anytime soon) you will just have to suffer through looking at this adorable face...

I will have to video her doing her tricks. Her daddy and I are so proud of her!!

Anywho...I observed a 1st grade class yesterday morning and a 2nd grade class yesterday afternoon. I loved the 1st grade class mainly because I enjoyed the teacher. The 2nd grade teacher was like at a 10 all afternoon with her high pitched voice and overly obnoxiously cheery tone no matter what the situation, I was about ready to kill myself by 3:00!!!

Today it was back to work as usual but Chris and I are staying extra busy this week keeping Dylan and Delaney. For those of you who do not know, I have been watching them since Dylan was 6 and Delaney was a baby and they are 13 and 7 now. They were both in my wedding and we consider them a part of the family. I took a great video of Delaney belting karaoke last night in the basement of their house when she thought no one was watching that I will be sure to post later. Well I guess I better go pick up the kiddos!!

OH, Before I forget I wanted to give a quick shout out to Kelly who jazed up my blog!! Isn't it fancy!!

Happy Birthday Chris!!

2007-10-08T08:37:00.001-05:00

Yesterday was Chris' birthday!! I started the morning off with a rousing rendition of HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU complete with serving Chris his favorite, Sonic breakfast burrito. Then he opened gifts before we headed out the door to church. After church we went to my parents for lunch. Since my dad and Chris have birthday's a couple of days apart they had previously agreed on chicken fried steak and all the fixins but, they could not come to an agreement on the dessert so we had 2. Here are some pictures for your amusement!!

Is it just me or does it look like Chris is wondering why he married me??

Chris is excited I woke him up early to open his presents!!

The old fashioned razor he wanted.

I think he was trying to tell me he was not about to put on the Birthday Boy crown I made him!! (I also made one for Allie but she was not having any of it)

My grandma trying to get the party started with her kazoo!!

Chris' Cheesecake

YUMMY!!!!

Dad and his German chocolate cake!

Grandma and her 50 year old son.

To top the day off, Ashley came by for a little while and I got to talk to Brock and RyAnn last night, not to mention the fact that the Yankee's won!!!!

I love you baby and I hope you had an amazing birthday!!!

Going Private

2007-10-06T22:49:00.000-05:00

Beginning Wednesday, October 10, 2007, my blog will be going private. If you are interested in keeping up with the Bunch's please leave me a comment with your email address so that I can add you to my approved readers list.

Much love,

Amy

Happy 50th Birthday, Dad!!

2007-10-05T21:33:00.000-05:00

Today is my dad's 50th birthday!! I can not believe that my Dad is 50. I think it is hard for me to imagine because he still feels so young to me. In spite of all of his aches and pains he is still a kid at heart and has a love for life that is infectious. If you have not had the opportunity to meet my Dad you are truly missing out on being in the presence of one of the most uplifting, loving and Godly men I have ever known and I am privileged to be able to call him Dad. I love you Dad and I hope you have a wonderful birthday.

Oh the weekend

2007-10-01T16:38:00.000-05:00

I wish it was still the weekend. We had a pretty lazy weekend. Saturday morning I went to my friend Elisabeth's baby shower. It was great to see her and hug on her and her baby bump. She is waiting to find out the sex of the baby, which I think makes it more exciting. Saturday afternoon I worked on homework and took a couple of tests and then Saturday night we went with my family to the WTAMU football game. The football team at WT was not very good when I was going there but now it is really exciting to go to the games. Plus my little brother, Andrew, is in the marching band. We had a great time but were tired and wind blown when we got home.

Sunday we did the church thing and came home and watch/slept through the Cowboys game. I made it through the first half and then took a good little nap through the second half. I am so glad they are playing well, I hope they can keep it up. Sunday night we had our small groups which was fun. I love my girls and I hope they are enjoying the experience as much as I am.

Did not want to to leave any of you in suspense about the ear plug...we have no E.T.A. of the ear plug as I refused to squeeze the poop as Chris suggested I do. I knew the end result would be me dry heaving!! Allie seems to be acting like her normal spoiled self so we will assume she has passed it.

Warning this post contains talk of poop!!

2007-09-28T11:46:00.000-05:00

So I have tons of friends with kids who are always posting about their kids antics and ailments. They always notify their readers of any potential gross talk with a warning so I had to do the same in the telling of the following story.

Chris thinks that I am too loud and/or is annoyed by the fact that I hit the snooze 4 times in the morning and insists on using ear plugs. (They look exactly like the ones below)

The night before we left to go to Oklahoma we were packing and Chris accidentally knocked one of his ear plugs off of his night stand and onto the floor. Guess who found it? That's right it was Allie. I ran over to get it out of her mouth but she has discovered that if she has something in her mouth that she is not supposed to we will try to pry it out unless she swallows it quickly. So what did she do but swallow it whole. Chris and I immediately started freaking out and debating whether or not to call the vet. Instead Chris opted for searching on the Internet and actually found a vet's website where they discussed a Yorkie swallowing an ear plug. Maybe it is a characteristic of their breed?? Anywho, the online vet said that she would pass it within 24 hours so Chris and I had a good laugh considering we were about to drop her off at my parents while we were gone. We relished thinking about the fact that either my parents or one of my brothers, preferably Daniel, would have to follow her around while she did her business to make sure she passed it. Well she did and Andrew was the lucky one to find said ear plug in the poop. Crisis averted!! That is until this morning when once again Allie found an ear plug and ate it right as I took a step towards her to get it out of her mouth!!! STUPID DOG!! (Not really she is a genius!) Looks like I know what I will be doing all weekend...poop watching!! Be awaiting pictures of my findings...just kidding!!

OK so I am averaging 8 days between posts!!

2007-09-24T22:22:00.000-05:00

I just realized that after typing this post the other day I never published it!!! I am a retard!!!

This is so frustrating!!! I want to post!! I have things to post about but, the only time I have to post is after midnight and by that point I can barely hold my eyes open!! I do apologize and while i would like to say that it wont happen again I know that is probably not true. Ya'll are just going to have to bear with me through this whole working full time and taking 10 hours thing for a couple more years. Anywho, about my birthday...It was amazing. I woke up to find hand made notes from Chris through out the house. He is so sweet. He actually dug through my scrap booking stuff and tore out little pieces of paper and used the craft scissors!! Very impressive. Here is one of them. While I have not asked him, I am sure he did not write this poem but at least he went to the effort to look it up online!!

He also made me a birthday card and he bought be one in case the homemade one turned out poorly!! So cute.

I have been begging for an IPOD. I have never had one and am so pumped that I finally have something to listen to as i walk. This is the one he got me.

I thought I would only use it for music but the picture quality is actually amazing. I am very excited.

At work Chris showed up with flowers and loudly sang Happy Birthday to me so that everyone in my office could hear and came running to my office to see how red my face was. I was super embarrassed but at the same time knew that this was something I agreed to as part of being married to Chris.

For my birthday dinner I requested going to Boot Hill Saloon and Grill. If you did not watch America's Next Food Network Star you might not be familiar with Rory but, here in Amarillo she is a celebrity. She was runner up on the show and has opened up a restaurant in the small town of Vega, about 30 minutes from Amarillo. The food was amazing. For an appetizer we had Chicken and Green Chili Wantons that melted in your mouth. They do not have a very large selection on the menu but she told us that they are looking to add more items in the coming weeks. I would highly recommend it to anyone who lives around here.