Rock My World!!

Markus made a kick A pot of Red Beans. All I told him was the spices to put in. Let me say it was seasoned perfectly. He rocked my world tonight...hand delivered dinner to me @ work. Now that's what I call service. Thanks hunny for an awesome dinner. You surprised me and even yourself!!

Old School

I thought this was a cute one. Markus had the perfect frat boy hair here. We look young here because we were! It was taken 4 years ago on Valentine's Day :)

Happy Bday Daniel!

Daniel @ Papa's funeral on the swing @ St. Patricks Church

Easter dinner @ his Grammie's house

Hanging out @ Auntie Jenn's house (see Bogey)

My little nephew is 1 today. I cannot believe this year has flown by so quickly. Seems like just the other day I was at the hospital holding him as he was just hours old. Happy Bday little guy. We love you!

Mother's Day Tradition

Last year I wanted to do something different for Mother's Day, so instead of the usual go to church with my mom then go to see my MIL for dinner... I decided my POST HERE may be a new tradition for Mother's Day until we have kids. Seems like the past 7 or so years Markus and I have been together we have always done everything with his family for any kind of holiday. So I thought it would be nice to change things up a bit and have my mom over for Mother's Day. Last year I bought a bistro set which I was super excited about and we had dinner in the garden :). Which is a love of me and mother. It was very nice. Markus even liked eating outside and he never likes it, but went along with my mom's suggestion to eat outside, so we did. I think mom really enjoyed it especially since she was by herself and my other sisters weren't doing anything special for her. So I told mom we'd do this as long as I wasn't a mom, cause when that happens it will then be my day. Of course I told her we won't forget her, but I would be the QUEEN then :) So I've been working on a menu for her. Last year she must have loved my spinach balls so much that was her only request... something spinach. I will post the menu soon when I get it finalized.

What kind of things do you do for your mother on Mother's Day? Anything special, sweet? I just think it's a day of such honor and it's fun to wait on mom for once :) Now if I can just get Markus to do something like this for his mom then we would be in business. Esther, don't hold your breath, remember he's still in training.

FIVE

Here is a list of 5's about me:

5 things I was doing 5 years ago:
Working 2 jobs
Burying my daddy
Dating Markus wondering if he would ever marry me
Buying a wedding dress (almost a year before the wedding and with no ring) **that's confidence**
Watching Markus become of a member of the LDS (mormon) church and his family not appreciating it one bit

5 things I'll do tonight:
work (weird I know)
play on computer
eat
water my plants
listen to Markus play Call of Duty

5 things I would do with a million dollars:
get butt implants (screw them ta-tas)
go to culinary school
Open Jenni Lynne's
Have NO DEBT by paying for things in cash
Invest it (haha I know right)
Give with NO strings attached
Hire someone to give me the garden of my dreams
**Yeah I Know it's 7 but which ones would you take off? That's what I thought**

5 places I have lived:
BR, LA
Renton, WA
Bocage Condos
Live Oaks
Pin Oak

5 jobs I have had:
Sales Associate
Receptionist for Hair Salon
Runner
Bookkeeper
Wife (this one I don't get paid for)

5 things I want to be doing in 5 years:
raising kids
100% caught up scrapbooking
Fixing up my 2nd home :) hint hint (hey we might have 3 kids by then)
Maybe going to school (BIG MAYBE)
Living outside of Louisiana
**So I guess we'll see about these things**

5 people I tag:
Jolie, Naomi, Amanda, Jess (if you haven't done already) and you too Courtney :)

Luxuries

I think we Americans enjoy plenty of these.  I miss mine.  I'm about to miss more too.  A luxury is defined as a free or habitual indulgence in or enjoyment of comforts and pleasures in addition to those necessary for a reasonable standard of well-being or  a pleasure out of the ordinary allowed to oneself.  

So here is to the luxuries of this world that clearly I MISS:

I miss not being able to eat out on the weekends when I don't feel like cooking.

I miss buying anything my little heart would desire from Hobby Lobby (which I haven't stepped foot into since before Christmas)

I miss fixing up my house.

I miss shopping the sales.  Any sale. Especially at PB.

I miss trips to the mall.

I miss getting my hair done when it desperately needs it.

I miss grabbing food off the shelves and not really NEEDING it.

I miss ITunes cards.

I miss working only ONE job.

I miss going to Pottery Barn.  Haven't been there since January.  DO you remember how much I loved that store :)

I miss scrapbooking.

I miss going to baby showers or bday parties or anything that would require you to bring a gift.

I miss making whatever I wanted for dinner even if I had to buy the ingredients before I got home.

I miss going to my in-laws whenever we felt like it.

I miss not caring about what the cash register says.

I miss my house being clean. (weird, I know)

I miss reading books.

I miss going out with friends.

I miss not paying for football tickets (thanks to my in-laws :))

I miss going out for lunch.

Ok so clearly I could go on.  But one day I hope to look back at this list and laugh at it.  AT least that is my hope.  What do you miss or have given up... lately??  

A Quote

Finish every day and be done with it. You have done what you could; some blunders and absurdities crept in; forget them as soon as you can. Tomorrow is a new day; you shall begin it serenely and with too high a spirit to be encumbered with your old nonsense. This day is all that is
good and fair. It is too dear, with its hopes and invitations, to waste a moment on yesterdays
~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Given to me by my sissy Jolie


Thank you for this awesome quote Jolie.

Florida Cousins

Markus and I went to Florida the 1st weekend in April. I have taken way too long to make this post. We had a blast. It was so nice to get away. I could seriously make Florida my second home if I had to. We went to visit Markus' Aunt Nancy & Uncle Bruce along with his cousin Mendy and her daughters. They were precious dolls. They remind me sooo... much of me and my sisters when we were kids. Here are a few fun pics we took. It was Lauren's Bday while we were there :)

Miss Ava

The girls around Markus not wanting us to leave them

They love Markus, can you tell?

Megan enjoying the vanilla bean ice cream... spoonless

The littlest pet shop gift we gave Lauren... I think they were excited

The yummy chocolate cake

Megan showing Markus how to use the noise-maker

Uncle Bruce with his granddaughters :)

The 4 of them
Lauren, Olivia, Megan & Ava

Just the 3 of them

Aren't they the cutest girls ever! We had a fun time shopping with the older 2 girls and watched Marley and Me too. We can't wait to go back and visit :) They have so much energy. I just need like half of it.

Paw Paw: The Last 5 Years In Pictures

Christmas 2004

My Wedding Day

July 29, 2005

This picture I will cherish forever. It wasn't planned or posed. I gave him a kiss and told him to look straight ahead and that is when the next picture was snapped

He did such a great job of looking towards the photographer without seeing well

I love this picture of them. Granny looks like the Queen :)

Me and Paw-Paw dancing

Louis Armstrong, "What a Wonderful World"

**This was the Daddy/ Daughter Dance**

Kathryn's (my niece) birth Feb (5th or 6th) 2006

**One of my favorite pics I took of him. With his great-grandchild in his arms and his hat on the rocking chair**

PERFECT

Grandpa's 90th Bday Celebration

August 2007

Livonia, La.

Easter Sunday 2008

*This is when Paw-Paw starting talking to Jesus*

Daniel is in Naomi's belly here :)

After the Services

The family got together at Grannys after the funeral services. I wish I would have taken more pictures of everyone while we were all together I just wasn't in the mood. Horrible to say, but I actually for once didn't feel like taking pictures. So here are the few I got.

My cousin Amanda and her family

Jaime, Granny & Shari

Daniel munchin on who knows what

All the Grandchildren and Great Grandchildren who attended the funeral

Lydia & Steph @ my house later that evening

The twins with Jaime

All of us at my place for a good game of Apples to Apples

Bye Bye Paw-Paw

But not forever... Grandpa's funeral was Wednesday, April 15th. It was simply the most beautiful day. You couldn't ask for a better day. I took several pictures around the church grounds before the service. Naomi and Steph brought the kids and they needed some entertaining so we took them outside so they wouldn't disturb everyone else during the viewing. Here are some pics I took.

Lydia & Kathryn holding hands. Cute Cousins!

Kathryn playing on a bench under the trees

Family Picture time: The Thibodeauxs

Uncle Markus holding Daniel, I just love this pic :)

Me & Markus

Father & Son

Uncle Markus grabbing hold of Daniel, so cute!

More of Daniel on the swing, he takes the cutest pics (or is it me?)

Uncle Markus swinging with Kathryn, Daniel, & Lydia
**favorites of this picture: Markus' feet WAAAYY up in the air, Kathryn sitting back to enjoy, Daniel leaning forward to take a peek, and Lydia turning around looking at me**

Awww... cute cousins, Lydia & Kathryn (sitting next to Uncle Markus)

Stephanie & Braden

Natalie & Daniel

Overall the funeral service @ St. Patricks was nice. Much more personal than I remember Daddy's memorial service here almost 5 years ago. The military burial was certainly like deja-vu all over again. Of course I didn't make it through taps. As soon as I heard the horn, tears began to fall. What an honor to be buried this way though. There is something about seeing the American flag drapped over the casket of your loved one and to know the honor and sacrifice that go behind it. It's hard to say good-bye. I'm so grateful that one day I will be reunited with my Paw-Paw. I'm sure it was a sweet reunion between him and his 2 children that have gone before him. We were lucky to have know him and honored to have been called his grandchildren. This day made me proud to be a LeBlanc and the heritage behind the name and the legacy Paw-Paw left for us. He will be truly missed. Once again I'm sad that my children (one day) won't have had the opportunity to know their paw-paw (my dad) and my paw-paw (their great), but the stories and memories will live on. Easter Sunday will never be the same in our family... I just can't believe I didn't see him on Easter Sunday like I had planned on. That was the only thing I wanted (other than the Easter egg hunt) to do and neither happened.

Easter Sunday

I was excited to go to church today in my new dress I got from my trip to Florida. I loved it. It almost felt like I was a kid again getting a new Easter dress :) I was going to take some pictures after church in front of the temple but it started raining as soon as we got out go figure. We had Easter dinner/lunch (all the same) at my mom's house. I was excited cause all my sisters that live here were there, (miss you Jolie). It was nice to be together. It probably only happens once a year if we are lucky. Markus was feeling a bit out numbered since he was the only boy there other than Naomi's son, Daniel. Needless to say he kinda sat there like a bump on a log for a good majority of the time. His mom called and even invited him to come over by himself. I had to laugh. He probably would have been much happier there than at my moms. I got some cute shots of the kids. They make me laugh. Course some of them were cranky so Markus was a bit over that, but maybe when it's his kids crying he won't be as annoyed, or will he? Who knows but here are some cute pics I took:

Ashley as Tinkerbell

Ashley cheesing it for Auntie Jenn
(her mom says she never smiles for her)

Lydia playing phone with Grammie with a spatula

Lydia got the biggest kick out of playing phone...

Angie holding our newest nephew Braden. What a cutie!

Jazz got a new Easter dress too. I thought this was hilarious

Daniel looking out the window at all that rain

Daniel playing with the spatula/phone while he has one of those minature people stuck in his mouth. You know those 80s people that went in trains or something.

A close up of Braden sucking his thumb while trying to get himself to sleep

Chunky monkey at 15lbs and only 2 months old. Gotta love it.

Well there you have it the adventures we had on such a rainy Easter Sunday. I was a bit disappointed we didn't have our Easter egg hunt, but oh well. The kids certainly didn't know the difference that is for sure. Happy I got to be with my family for Easter. I'm so grateful for such a beautiful season that helps us come unto Christ. For after all He is Risen. He lives! I'm thankful for this day to celebrate His resurrection. Hope yall had a Happy Easter!