4th of July FUN!

I know I'm late with this post, but I wanted to share some pictures of our 4th of July fun! 

Depoister/Hose Picture

This year we watched the Vincennes Parade with the Depoisters and even got to sit with my sister and her family!  Unfortunately we sat close to the end of the parade so the kids didn't get much candy, but it was still fun to sit and relax with some friends and family. 



Courtney, Addie, and I enjoying
the Vincennes parade!

A not-so-pleasant surprise was that a rotten egg fell from the building and splattered all over the sidewalk right in front of some of our group...oh my word!  It smelled SO bad.  Yuck!  (It was definitely a smell we will all remember!)  Jason (my bro-in-law) sprayed some Lysol on the sidewalk where the egg was, and that helped tremendously!  Yay!  Jason, our hero!

David and the Swanks waiting for the
Vincennes fireworks to begin!

Next, we went to a new pizza place in Vincennes and met up with our friends, the Swanks!  This was the first time we have gotten together with the Depoisters and the Swanks!  It was so nice to hang out with both sets of friends at the same time!  Isn't it great that God sends us so many good friendships in life.  I am super thankful for the time David and I get to spend with friends.  I think it is important for young married couples to have good friends.

David and his little buddy, enjoying
the fireworks...she kept saying, "wow!"

After supper we all went to the river-front to watch the fireworks!  David's family met us there so we could all watch the fireworks together, like we try to do every year!  It was so nice getting to hang out with so many people this 4th of July!

I know it doesn't sound like our day was very glamorous, but we really enjoyed the day (minus the stinky egg) with our friends and family!

Mother's Day Weekend

This year for Mother's Day, my sister - Courtney, her daughter Addie, and I went to Poplar Bluff to make a surprise visit to my mom!  We are sweet daughters aren't we!?! :)  Well, our mom thinks we are anyway! 

Our weekend was filled with relaxing, visiting with our family and friends, and of course most of our weekend was spent playing with sweet Addie Mae! 

It was so nice to get away from Indiana and spend some much needed time with my parents, grandparents, and Court and Addie!  The only thing that would have made the weekend a bit more enjoyable is if David and Jason would have been able to go with us.  Man-o-man, I miss that guy when we are separated overnight. 

The weather was perfect while we were in Missouri, so we tried to get some good family photos outside.  Addie was so adorable, as always so we had the brilliant idea to take pictures of her in the grass with the pretty flowers weeds all around her...we found out quickly she does NOT like to touch the grass!  It was so funny!

I want to leave you with a reminder to be appreciative and love your mom all year round...and not just on Mother's Day.  I fail at this all the time...but I try to do more things throughout the year too...even if it is just a phone call or a Skype date. :)

Here are a FEW of the MANY pictures we took:

 

Happy Mother's Day to 2 of the BEST Moms I know!

♪♫These are a few of my FAVORITE THINGS♫♪

I'm way behind on blogging, but today I wanted to bring back a little bit of Christmas!  This year, I did something completely new and hosted a Favorite Things Party!  (Yes, I got the idea from Pinterest!)  I figured, I like so many things from Pinterest that now (Well, December) was the time to actually begin using some of the ideas I have found!

Anyway, here is is...Favorite Things Party 2012!

The whole idea is, everyone invited thinks of their favorite thing (or group of things) in the $10-$15 price range and ask them to bring three of them!  So everyone brings three of the exact same gifts wrapped and their total spent should be $30-$45.   ALSO, everyone who came was asked to bring one of their favorite desserts or appetizers to share with everyone...we had QUITE the spread!

These are the numbers I chose to set for my party...I have also seen it done where people bring six $5 items, or three $6 items.  Set your cost based on what you think your friends will be able to afford.  I liked the thought of bringing bigger gifts rather than try to figure out a descent gift for $5 or $6. 

The idea is, you bring three of your favorite thing and you take home three friends' favorite things!! Fun, right!?!  Well, let me tell you, IT WAS!  I am already looking forward to planning my next Favorite Things party for December 2013! :)

Here are some pictures of my very first Favorite Things Party!




This isn't the whole group, we are missing a few...because we had to wait for one of our gentlemen to come take a group photo! Aren't our men, so good to us!?!






I LOVED sharing this party with some of my Favorite Friends!



 

This was what I gave as my Favorite ThingS...Watermelon Jolly Ranchers, Bath & Body Works Hand Sanitizer, Bath & Body Works Infused Socks, a TOMS Sticker, a TOMS Bag, a $5 Moe's GiftCard, and it was all packaged in a Birch Box Box (If you don't know what Birch Box is...I may just have to write a post about it)!  Some of them said I went a little overboard, but it was my party, so I could break the rules...right?! :)

 Some of the other items gifted were.......

Scarves, the Hunger Games DVD, candles, Christmas tumblers, homemade cookbooks, seasoning, $5 giftcards, chocolate, cute socks, etc.  We had a good variety of items...and I'm already trying to think of my gift for next time!!

☼ Addie Mae ☼

I would like to take this opportunity to SHOUT TO THE WORLD!  I, Heather Hose am FINALLY an aunt!!!  Those of you who don't know the story of my sister and her husband...they have been trying to many years to get pregnant, well finally after MUCH prayer from people in a few different states and fertility treatments, they brought a precious and beautiful little girl into the world!  I am just bursting with JOY and PRAISE to THE Creator of ALL things!  GOD IS SOOOOO GOOD!  I am so thankful that the Lord WANTS me to serve Him at all times...I am so undeserving of Him and His love!

                                                        Well, here she is...6lbs 1oz 19in long!

Isn't she precious!?!!

So Excited!

I am SuPeR excited right now!  My mom is on her way to visit!  She is really coming to Indiana to help my sister (C) and bro-in-law (J) move and prepare for Miss A's arrival (my sister is 8 months prego right now...more on this to come later!), but I am still excited because a.) she is stopping here first and 2.) she will only be 40ish minutes away instead of 4.5 hours!!!  YAY!  (yes, I did just say a...and 2...this came from an episode of Full House I watched when I was younger.  When Uncle Jesse would make a list he always said it like that...I have done that ever since...weird, I know...but I kinda like it!)

I haven't lived with my parents since I left for OCU in August 2005...I wasn't even really there during the summers because I either worked at our church camp as staff or stayed with C & J.  It is so weird though, because the past year or so I have missed my parents and grandparents (they live very close) SO much more!  David and I got married in June 2008, and we live about 1.5 hours from his parents.  We see them just about every Sunday after church (we meet them in Vincennes).  I LoVe David's family and feel very thankful and blessed we get to see them often...VeRy thankful especially since my parents do live so far away!  However, sometimes I think it makes me miss my parents more.  I have been happy lately that my sister is pregnant because I have seen my family more because they have came to bring her maternity clothes & came for a baby shower (those were two trips that wouldn't have happened otherwise!), and we all (C, J, David and I) went to the bootheel for my Papaw's 80th birthday party!

Isn't he precious!?! :)

                                                            
Another thing I am SO excited about is that my sister is FiNaLly expecting her first baby!  As little girls we always played house and LoVeD being "the mommy" to our baby dolls!  I think something happens inside us when we get married that makes us want to be mommys even more!  C & J decided they were ready after being married a couple of years, but God had a different plan.  My heart ached for them...especially my sister.  I wanted so badly to be able to help her somehow.  It isn't fun watching your sister hurt and long for something for so long...especially when we are constantly surrounded by bad parents and people who get pregnant unexpectedly and don't even want their children.  They are about to celebrate their 8th Anniversary and will be becoming parents very soon to an already spoiled, precious, and beautiful (you can tell that from ultrasounds, you know!) baby girl A. M. W.!  She is going to be named after 2 great grandmas! :)  We have prayed for this for a LONG time! 

They are going to be GrEaT parents!

                                                                 
Before you ask, we are still waiting.  We will soon be celebrating our 4th Anniversary, but I am still enjoying time with just David (and our 60-ish girls that live in our dorm!) for now!

My mom should be here in about an hour!  Now, the big question...where are we going to have lunch?!?!?!