Prom 2010…

…the one BIG difference about this dance, prom or otherwise where a suit or tux is required is that it was the first time that I had absolutely no involvement.

We have had some epic moments this past year and signs that Raymond is growing up and this was just another one. I'm not sure of all the details, but I remember calling him a couple weeks ago to see what he was up to and he was renting a tux. What? Renting a tux and he didn't even have me go with him, best part, he was paying for it!

I take back the "absolutely no involvement" comment above, he did ask for me to help him select a corsage, and I felt honored so we went to SIAM Imports here in Buford and they did a great job.

Here are some pics from last night, hope you enjoy them as much as I did taking them:

I think they are both smiling because she didn't poke him with the pins :)

georgeous corsage for a georgeous girl no pins here ;)
ready for the big night
sporting the shades
the cute couple
she has him right where she wants him
outside the restuarant
Dominicks on the square in L'ville

New job, new experiences and…

…spring football right around the corner, means that life is only gonna get a little more crazy, and we are only talking about Robert! Our high school easy going guy is about to be slammed and I just hope I will be able to deal with all the emotions that will come with it all.

New Job: Robert has his first official job. Right before spring break he went for an interview, but since we were gonna be out of town they didn't inform him that he was hired till we got back. He will start working at Chick-fil-A, with Raymond and I'm hoping he will enjoy it as much as Raymond has this past year. I'll keep you posted and let you know how that turns out. In the mean time, we hope you keep supporting the world's best fast food chicken place around:

New Experiences: Robert is in chorus for the first time ever and joined the class for 2^nd semester, this week they hosted their 18^th annual variety show and he was only in the class group numbers, but I was proud of his dancing moves, who knew a lineman could move like that? I think he had fun, but it was a busy week on top of everything else and over all I was proud of him. I was reminded that he attended his first show when he was 6 years old and now 10 years later he was part of it. I didn't get any pics of him, but here is one of another boy I'm super proud of:Brandon, of course, who else?

funniest part, Ms. Murray, singing "pants on the ground"...it was too funny, you had to see it to believe it!

Spring Football: Well this needs no introduction other than the fact that it means that Buford football will officially be underway in less than a week, not that they have ever stopped. However this is when the coaches get a sneak peek at what they got to work with for the upcoming season. It may be a tough season, however I think for the most part anything outside of adding another ring to these fingers will not be acceptable:

SB2010 + PCB = …

…an eye opening experience and a family vacation we will not soon forget J The best part was getting everyone's schedule on the same game plan, Ray was able to take some time off from work, Emma was on spring break (she attends pre-k in Hall County, which has a different school year calendar), Rob & I were on spring break and lil Ray was able to get some time off from work too. Heather was even on spring break and was able to join us as well.

For those of you who know use well, know we are spontaneous kind of folks, we never plan, when we do things don't always work out, however this time was a little different, the Cheatham's wanted to go to the beach and in order to do this Stacy was all over the internet finding the best deals possible. She found a great deal that was hard to pass up, so we were on board and booked our rooms. I'm still trying to determine if we were being frugal or cheap, but as Megan said "you can deal with anything for four days" and in the end that's what we did, made the best of our vacation and enjoyed our time with each other.

When it was all said and done, you had the entire Contreras clan (5) + 2, Heather and Cole joined us, the Cheatham's (4) – 1, Celia had school and couldn't join us, Megan and Lindsey + Courtney joined in the fun as well. This would turn out to be the 5^th beach trip that Stacy & I have taken together, with either all of our families or part of them which made it that much more fun. The only prayer I had was that we returned with as many people as we left with and God was good and watched over all of us while we were there.

The other fun part of this trip was that our oldest was on the verge from no longer being a teen, lil Raymond turned 20 while we were down there. There was no better place to be when I took time to reflect that my first born was no longer a teen, there is something about being able to look into the ocean and see one of God's wonders to know that is all is okay in the world and we have been blessed with so much and a great son! It's been tradition for the last several years or longer to have a big family/friend dinner at "Frontera", however this year we traded it in for a big family/friend dinner at "Margaritaville", we were not disappointed even with the 2 hour wait.

Here are some pics from our time @ the beach:

sand pie anyone?

sand + water = happy little girl taking it all in and planning the rest of her time @ the beach yeah, he loves the sand too
an awesome big bruder...she really loves him brandon and rob creating mermaids with Linds & Courtney
ray & heather catching some rays the finished product
i want to buried in the sand too...oh yeah, don't forget to make me into a mermaid too
@ pineapple willies for ray's b-day lunch ;) @ Margaritaville getting ready to celebrate our 1st borns 20th b-day :)
best friends

not Frontera's traditional sombero, but it will doBrandon and Linds joined in the hat fun I want one too
well there no question, only a pirate hat would do heather & ray
rob, linds, & brandon, I love these kids, just seeing them puts a smile on my face :)
my tough guyz the whole gang

What will we think of next…

…to make this the best ever Easter for Em and the fam. The boys are getting bigger and Em is the only little one around so this year we tried something a little different to make sure she had a great Easter, overall I think we all felt it was a success.

Raymond invited two of his employees over with their families and between the two they each had 4 kids, so Em had plenty of little ones to "play" with and it was a great way to get to know these families as well. So with that said, we planned a cook-out, colored eggs, and had activities set up so all who came could have a good time.

The boys still received their Easter "goodies", however this year instead of hunting for eggs, they helped their dad hide them. I can't help but think and reflect that one day, not any time soon, but one day they will be hiding eggs for their own little ones. They are such great big bruders as Em would say and make me so proud each and every day!

taking her time, can't miss a spot what's the saying? watching a boiling pot isn't gonna make it boil any faster...she was tired by the end of the evening but did a great job
cascarones...it isn't a real Easter with out them!
there is always $$ eggs, where could they be?
i'm not really sure if this basket is needed, but Raymond always has to buy her one, he loves his princess and she loves her daddy :)
entertaining the guest, Em was a great host
no discrimination here, kids of all ages were welcome to color :)
time to crack the eggs...cascarones that is, Em got a kick of getting Raymond
Robert getting Stacy with a cascarone...it is said to have a cascarone cracked on your head will bring good luck, let us know how that works for you Stacy :)
Em is loving sharing the "luck" with uncle Andy.
Payback is always fun, no mercy for his little sister
Heather opening up her Easter "goodies" that we bought for her
Who's ready for an Egg Hunt?
and off they go, I love seeing my husband with little ones, he is sooo good with children!
looking for those $$ eggs.

There is so much to be grateful for and today I am grateful for my family and all they do to put others first and let's not all forget the real reason for the season and be reminded that through Christ's death, burial and resurrection, He paid the penalty for sin, thus purchasing for all who believe in him, eternal life in Christ Jesus!