Par-tay!

Amity sure does know how to throw a party! And not to toot my own horn, but who else got photos of the decorations? Randy/Amity: 0, Lauren/Phil: 1. It's okay, I am sure that at the next family gathering you'll have your chance...

Moving on! the party was a success! And, our wonderful hostess made everything look so easy! Maybe I'll try hosting one of these myself one day. But I'll start off on a smaller scale...

Dinner was fantastic (and I can't forget dessert!), and the company was even better. Loved trading stories about childhood and hearing how everyone has different memories of how things happened. Very entertaining, but I of course stick by Phil's version of how it went... AND that he is the inventor of the do-it-yourself mechanic shop!

Sunday at the river

On Sunday we spent the afternoon at the Guadalupe River with Phil's coworker Floyd and his girlfriend. Floyd owns a ski boat so it was lots of fun getting to hang out in the sun. My St. John tan is long gone so it was nice to get a little color again. (Just have to remember to generously apply the aloe so that the tan/burn doesn't peel off!)

All along the river, different property owners have installed rope swings from their trees which we had lots of fun swinging from. They installed ladders so you had to climb up onto the tree and swing off of it. And let me tell you, it seems much higher when you're up there than it looks from the ground!! It was very fun... luckily Floyd happened to know the owners of this particular property because they came over to find out why we were using their swing!! Turned out that since Floyd knew the guy, we all ended up swinging and hanging out, so what could have been a sticky situation turned out just fine! Hopefully you can see the blur that is Phil swinging into the water in the photo above.

Phil also got to try water skiing for the first time. Turns out it's a pretty fun sport, and much, much easier to be successful at than wakeboarding. I think he did pretty great for his first time!! Then again, what are wives for if not to be their husbands' cheerleaders from the boat?!

Tomorrow is a big TEST day for some important people in our lives! Karthik is taking his MCAT after many, many months of intense studying. This day has been long-time coming, and we can't wait for it to be over so we can spend more time with him!! And Dana is taking her GMAT tomorrow which will determine where she goes back to school for her MBA and ultimately where she lives the next few years of her life. So needless to say, tomorrow is a big day.

Good luck to both of you-- we know you're going to ace those tests! And we can't wait until you're successful and of course wealthy, all because you did so well on these standardized tests. Just remember who wished you luck on their blog, when you're deciding who to give the biggest Christmas gift to when you are head honcho doctor and business woman.

AND we want to know how you celebrate when this is over with! We'll be in Houston next weekend, and we think a celebration is definitely in order.

I am Demi Moore's long-lost twin!

Felicity sent the coolest website, where you upload a photo of yourself and you get a list of matches of which celebrity you look most like. My best match, surprisingly, was Demi Moore (73%)! Who knew?! I thought it was going to be one of those joke websites where it comes up with a picture of some monkey but it's not, and the results are cool! My other matches include Shania Twain (64%) and Sarah Michelle Gellar (53%).

Philip matched with Jason Biggs (66%), David Schwimmer (63%), and Ed Harris (61%), amongst others.

http://myheritage.com/FP/Company/tryFaceRecognition.php

Back in Texas

Philip and Brad made it in just after 1:00 this afternoon, safe and sound, but of course extremely tired. They met Stacy, Logan, and I at the outlet malls in San Marcos; Stacy had no clue they were coming in today and I guess my lying skills are better than I thought because I was able to keep the secret for the few hours we shopped before they arrived.

Looking forward to all the siblings being in TX now and all the fun weekends and holidays to come!

Freeeeee!

With Phil in San Diego with his brother this weekend, I am a free woman! I can do what I want, when I want (as if that's any different than normal, haha). Really, all I plan to do is catch up with my girl friends and spend plenty of time with our puppy. Except Cooper is always on edge when one of us is not home, so I will pretty much be stopping him from barking at every little noise which he thinks may be Philip coming home.

The boys will be playing golf and hanging out in CA until Sunday, when they begin their long drive home. But I am sure they are well equipped with rap music and snacks to keep them awake. What better way is there to spend an 18 hour drive, after all?

Did Cooper contract Rabies?!














Nope, just a bad case of Reddi-Whip.












**Side note: it was the very end of the can and rather than throw away the remanants (or eat it ourselves), we decided to see how he would react. Clearly, his reaction was favorable.

Statistically speaking...

In response to recent comments about our need to update our blog, we have conducted a statistical analysis of blogging in the family over the past five months. As you can see from the data chart above, our hypothesis has been proven true. (Hypothesis: Lauren & Phil's blog has been updated much more frequently than the others, as a trend & total over time.)

Our data parameters began in March 2006, at which time the last female child in the family, Felicity, created a blog of her own. We counted the number of posts (only one post per day counted) and created the data table and corresponding chart above. We are not counting this post as part of our July count, and remember we still have two days left this month.

Clearly, our posting outnumbers anyone else's. I guess that just proves our life is soooo much more interesting than y'alls.

And, in response to your blog posts, nanny-nanny-boo-boo, stick your head in doo-doo. ;)

(The blogger was not working properly this weekend so I only got to post about half of the weekend's fun!)

After the wedding, Philip and I headed to Stacy & Logan's apartment where Stacy had generously waited up for us to arrive. We got a tour of their very spacious and nice apartment and headed to bed. It was definitely past our normal bedtime!
The next morning we decided to take Logan to Zilker Park, but as soon as we arrived, got out of the car and began to walk around, it began to rain! We did get a cute photo of mommy and Logan first, though.
Next we drove around and it turns out that it was only raining in parts of the city. We ended up driving to the Capitol and walking around on the very beautifully landscaped grounds, and while it was extremely humid and hot, at least it was not raining! Logan loved playing in the grass and chasing the birds, and then Stacy played peek-a-boo behind a tree with her. So cute!!

The day also gave Philip an opportunity to prepare for fatherhood. Note how cool he looks with the Starbuck's beverage in one hand, and stroller in the other. Just five short years from now, we can start thinking of having one of our own!

Happy birthday!

Hope you have a wonderful birthday! Wish we could be there to celebrate with you... but this can serve as your IOU for a fun birthday celebration in the future! Love you!

Congratulations, Cuca & Joseph!

On Friday evening, we traveled to Austin to attend the wedding of one of our high school friends, Cuca, and her husband Joseph. The ceremony was held at St. Edwards University's church and the reception was at the Hilton. Everything was beautiful, as to be expected, and Cuca, who was voted Miss Photogenic in high school, was of course radiant. No need to sort through photos for the good ones of her!

It was a wonderful evening, and we were able to reconnect with friends we had not seen in a while, which was especially nice. Thanks, Cuca, and congratulations to you and Joseph! We wish you a lifetime of happiness together!

Happy Birthday, Randy!

Hope you have a wonderful birthday! We will celebrate soon! Love you!

Kevin Fowler

Last night, we saw Kevin Fowler in concert at "world-famous" Floore's Country Store. It was a very Texas evening-- Floore's is a Texas dance-hall where Willie Nelson used to play every Friday night, but now all the famous Texas music artists like Pat Green and Robert Earl Keen play here. Actually, both of the aforementioned are playing later this summer and we hope to attend those concerts too! Kevin Fowler is an artist we found out about at the last Pat Green concert we went to back in October, and his songs were so catchy, and he had a great voice LIVE that we decided to make a CD of some of his songs, and there has been no turning back! Some of his famous songs include "Beer, Bait, & Ammo," "The Lord Loves a Drinkin' Man," and "Hard Man to Love."Let us know if you want us to make you a copy of our Kevin Fowler mix CD.
The people-watching at Floore's was also really good! There were all sorts: the Wrangler/boot-wearing cowboys, the teeny bopper girls with short denim skirts and cowboy booys and their popped-collar Abercrombie boyfriends, and then the general TX music lovers like us who were out of place and even on the preppy sideof the spectrum. Luckily, we were in the of-age crowd, and got to wear cool wristbands that allowed us to drink, unlike our teeny-bopper counterparts.

This is my "joker" face. This happens when I am very hot (for example, when I go for walks at 4:00pm), and I have to stick my tongue out to pant, which forces me to smile. The appearance reminds others of the Joker from Batman. Do you see the resemblence?

New Bedroom Furniture

One exciting thing has happened since the last post... we received our new bedroom furniture! We ordered the Java Bed and two nightstands from Storehouse, and it arrived on Monday. It is such a different feeling sleeping so high up on a real bed, rather than with the mattress/box spring on the floor! We love it... our next step is to buy the matching dresser. We had to wait and see where one would fit in the room with the bed and night-stands in; now we just need to take measurements to verify the one we want will fit, and soon we will have a complete set! We also need to get some pictures up on the walls so they don't look so bare, and buy a rug for the edge of our bed that extends the whole width of the bed. But, for now, this is a HUGE improvement.

Nothing very exciting is going on in our lives right now. Just working and getting caught up around the house now that we're back from the trip and getting settled in to married life. Thought we'd share some more photos of the trip just so that we would have something to update the blog with!


Lauren and Phil on our wedding day -- before the ceremony

Jennelle, Greg, Lauren, & Phil at the ferry dock as we leave beautiful St. John

Lauren with the moms before the ceremony

Bride and her father before walking down the aisle

Phil and Jack on the sunset cruise

Robin, Phil, & Lauren before dinner at Lime Inn

Phil, Greg, Carol, Felicity, Lauren, Larry, Jeanette, & Jennelle on BVI excursion boat after a full day of visiting the Virgin Gorda Baths and snorkeling in the caves in the BVI

The happy couple... and if you look closely, you can see iguanas in the background!

Mr. & Mrs!!

...and we're off!

Our flight leaves tomorrow morning at 7:26am as we travel to St. John for our wedding! We arrive in St. Thomas at 4:54pm to check into our hotel and get situated, so that Thursday morning we can personally appear at the courthouse and obtain our marriage license. This will be the final step in assuring that our wedding ceremony on Sunday should go smoothly! There are other details like getting my dress and Phil's suit steamed, getting hair/makeup done, etc. but as long as we have our marriage license and show up to say "I Do", we will be happy.

We will be sure to take tons of photos of the trip, and share them upon our return. Wish everyone could be there to join us!

Happy Spring!

This is a photo of our front door. Doesn't it just make you feel so welcome? My salesperson, Debbie, gave me the wreath for my birthday, and it makes such a wonderful addition to our new home! Perfect for spring-time.

... apparently we're not the only ones who feel at home when they see the wreath. Earlier this week, we noticed that a little birdie had taken residence in our wreath, building a nest and all. Then today, we realized that there are three little eggs inside! They look just like the Robin's Egg candies that are in the stores for Easter...

You should see us every morning... we have to tap on the window so that the bird flies away before we open the door to leave, so that we do not run the risk of it flying inside our house! We have to go through a similar process when we come home every day as well. It's an interesting little game we play with her. Come to think of it, we should probably name the little lady. Any suggestions?

A few of the Chandler Chicks participated in the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure this past Saturday. As always, it was a wonderful experience for a wonderful cause. And these girls are such fun to hang out with so the walk was lots of fun!

On Saturday afternoon, my wonderful bridesmaids hosted a shower for me at Patti's home in San Antonio. First came the super cute invitations courtesy of Dana, and the other girls got together to plan the food, decorations, etc. There were pink flowers on the table, pink cupcakes, pink cookies, blackberry wine punch, and lots of my other favorite things. We had a wonderful turnout and I had a great time seeing everyone and of course receiving fabulous gifts (that we have already unpacked and begun using!). We even played a fun game where the girls had emailed Phil a list of questions about me to see if the way he answered was the way I would answer. He did a really good job which either means a)we know a lot about each other, or b) I am very predictible. Either way it made for a fun afternoon. Thanks to everyone involved!

On Friday evening, Phil and I hosted dinner for 6 guests. My mom was in town this week for my birthday and bridal shower, and I wanted to have my bridesmaids over for dinner the evening before the bridal shower they were hosting on Saturday afternoon.

Dana came in from Dallas and brought her Maltese puppy, Bella. Her and Cooper had lots of fun playing in the mud puddle in our backyard that afternoon (which Dana didn't really appreciate since she had to bathe Bella afterwards due to the mud, sticks, and "trees" in Bella's fur after they were done playing!). Then Jennelle and Greg brought their dog, Oreo, over so we remained entertained all evening watching the puppies run around and play with each other. Cooper is about 6 lbs and Bella is about 3 lbs, while Oreo is about 30 lbs, so it was an interesting dynamic! But, they each puppy ended the evening with all their appendages so I think it turned out quite well. :)

Dinner was also very nice-- my mom made a salad and yummy dessert, and Phil and I made spaghetti and garlic bread to accompany them. If I do say so myself, it all turned out great and a good time was had by all.

Pictured above L to R: Amanda (holding Bella), Jennelle, Lauren, Dana. Not pictured: Lena, Mom, Phil, Greg, Oreo, & Cooper.

FInally! Photos of our new home! Well, at least a few rooms. Of course, it is always a work in progress but here are a few photos as of today. This one is a view of the living room taken from the dining room.

View of living room as you walk through the front door.

View from living room through dining room and into kitchen.

Take the Quiz: What Age Do You Act?

You Are 31 Years Old

Under 12: You are a kid at heart. You still have an optimistic life view - and you look at the world with awe. 13-19: You are a teenager at heart. You question authority and are still trying to find your place in this world. 20-29: You are a twentysomething at heart. You feel excited about what's to come... love, work, and new experiences. 30-39: You are a thirtysomething at heart. You've had a taste of success and true love, but you want more! 40+: You are a mature adult. You've been through most of the ups and downs of life already. Now you get to sit back and relax.

What Age Do You Act?

Okay so now that my 23rd birthday is coming up, should I be worried that the age I act is 31?! Maybe that just means that I am so very mature and responsible, much more than most 23-year olds! Or maybe the quiz found out that I am in bed by10:00 every night...

Happy birthday to the twins!

Bridal Shower

This weekend was our second bridal shower, graciously hosted by Sabrina, a friend of the family who I have known my whole life. She is a wonderful hostess, and I had such a wonderful time! It was great to visit with friends and all the talk about the wedding has me so excited! I absolutely cannot wait!!

Philip got a new car today!!!! It's a 2004 Toyota 4Runner with about 28k miles. It's the "Limited" edition so it has all the bells and whistles... leather seats, sunroof, power everything... very nice. So much easier too, now that we have a house and are making quite frequent trips to Lowe's.

House update

So it's now Saturday and the schedule has significantly changed. When Robin & Jack arrived on Tuesday, they recommended that we refinish the hardwood floors before we move all of our furniture in the house. So yesterday instead of finishing up painting we began sanding and filling the floors, and today Philip & Jack should be able to apply the first coat of polyurethane. Tomorrow they will apply a second coat, and likely move everything from the apartment to the house on Monday after we get off work. But I am so excited about how great the floors are going to look that I don't mind the revision in our schedule; I think it's definitely going to be worth it! It is very hard work, and Robin & Jack have been fabulous helping us out, working long hours to get everything done before we have to be out of our apartment on Tuesday. We have two coats of paint in the master bedroom and one coat in the living room and second bedroom. Jack is painting a second coat on those two rooms this morning (you would be amazed at how fast and great of a painter he is!!!). Everything is coming along well and I cannot wait to see the finished product! Photos to follow...

Home Sweet Home

This week is an exciting one for us! We are closing on our house and moving in to our first home together! This past weekend, with Robin's help, we selected paint colors for each room in the house, and Robin & Jack are graciously planning to come to San Antonio this week to help us beautify the house with fabulous paint colors. However, I'm not going to share the paint colors so that everyone will make plans to come visit us and see the new home! (Although it is very likely that I will get really excited and start posting photos, so don't fret.)

Here is what our hectic week looks like:

Monday: Walk-thru at new home with realtor 5:30pm
Tuesday: Closing at title company 12:00/Robin & Jack arrive/Purchase interior wall paint
Wednesday: Robin & Jack help us paint while we are at work (and Lauren in Dallas for business trip)
Thursday: Robin & Jack help us paint while we are at work
Friday: Phil & Lauren both take off of work to help finish up painting and get the house move-in ready
Saturday: Rent U-Haul and move everything from apartment to new house
Sunday: Clean apartment/Begin unpacking

I am sure the following week will be spent unpacking, unpacking, unpacking... and, well you get the idea. But we also need to do some furniture shopping so that we have some of the important things like a Floormate, bed, dresser, washer/dryer, lawnmower, etc. We have quite the long wish-list of things we want to buy (flat screen TVs, laptop computers for wireless internet, dining room set, etc.), and of course, donations are gladly accepted. ;)

Wish us luck! We look forward to getting all settled in the upcoming weeks so we can begin to host visitors, and maybe even a fun house-warming party!