Christmas 2007

Well another year has past!!  This one went by WAY too fast!  I can't believe it's already been almost one year since we've moved to Texas.  Another 3-4 months and it's been a year.  

As usual, we had a great Christmas, spent with Paxton's mom and her fiance Steve.  We spent the weekend before Christmas at their house just hanging out.  On Christmas Eve, we went out to eat at a Chinese Restaurant, as tradition.  Then as part of my family tradition we read the Christmas Story. Below is the Christmas book that I made.  It turned out really well.  I am trying to find other projects like that that I can do!  It's so fun.  

Anyway, we woke up Christmas morning around 7:30 and started the opening of gifts.  From the pictures below you'll catch a glimpse of what the morning was like.  We had such a great time over at Ann & Steve's house, we didn't want to leave.  Can we move back in!? :)  haha.  No, but thank you for letting us stay and eat all your food and take over your house for a few days.  We had a really great time and a great Christmas.  I really love this time of year, taking a break from everything and spending a couple weeks with family and friends and reflecting on the birth & life of our Saviour.  I am so grateful for all that Paxton & I have been blessed with, and especially grateful for how blessed we have been with the move to Texas.  We both have great jobs, a great home, great ward, great friends and awesome family close by.  

We hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas holiday and wish everyone a Happy New Year.

We love you!      

This is our little Christmas tree in our apt.  We didn't have enough room to get a big one, and we actually prefer this one anyway.  There are already ornaments AND lights on it, and it's easy clean up!  If only they made 10 foot fiber optic trees!!!

Ann gave us the pleasure of a Nintendo Wii!!!!!!!  We were both shocked and amazed when Paxton opened a huge bag with the Wii, games, and accessories inside!  What a treat it's been, and I'll let you know Ann, we will be working on our rules and limits to playing it,... eventually. hehe

Ann got a Cowboys jersey of her favorite player.  Go Romo!

I got a gift card for new running shoes, which was desperately needed.  After a quick trip to RunOn, I came home with these bad boys! They're great; very comfy, and on top of that, they're cool lookin!

This is the Christmas Book that I made.  I bought fabric, ribbon, and stuffing, and hot glued it all together! Turned out great eh?

Thanks again for all that ya'll have done for us.  We are so grateful for each of you and your kindness and love you show for us!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

Logan, the Sky Angel Cowboy

I received this email from a lady in my ward at church. Logan is a 13 year-old boy who lives on a ranch in a small town in Nebraska.  Logan listens to this Christian Radio station broadcasted from Houston,TX.  He called the radio station distraught.  His words have wisdom beyond his years.  It made me cry.  Very touching. It sure gets you in the spirit of Christmas.  Check it out.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zCdZwitrNoY

Meanwhile, Paxton is working late tonight.  It's 7pm and he's still not home :(  He should be soon.  He is so busy again, studying away for the next CPA exam in January.  He's such a hard worker- I love it.  

Oh, yet again, Paxton is leaving town for 5 days.  This Sunday the 16th he'll be going to New Orleans for another audit.  He gets back Thursday.  So if anybody wants to hang out, give me a ring:)

I am staying pretty busy.  Just occupying my time with working, reading, working out, baking, and Christmas shopping.  I also have a few little projects I want to work on, but one requires a sewing machine.  Hmm-- Sarah??  :)  hehe.  

I'm so excited that it's actually getting cold here.  It's almost Christmas-- so it's about time it starts dropping below 70 degrees.  It was actually 42 degrees today!!!  

Well, that's about it.  See ya!

We Got Elfed!!

So has anybody found themselves developing road rage since they've moved to Dallas??  I know I have.  I think I've always been a pretty fast driver, and well under control.  I just hate getting behind stupid drivers!  Grrr.  And "stupid drivers" to me is defined as SLOW DRIVERS.  There is a Toyota minivan that lives in our apt. complex and they leave around the same time I do for work.  And it just so happened that the other week i got caught behind this wretched minivan 3x in a row!  Ugh!  And then tonight I was driving w/ Paxton from Fort Worth and it was getting pretty busy on Hwy 121.  I was trying to weave in & out of slow cars and i was getting so frustrated when everyone was putting on their brakes!  I mean- Why were they slowing down on the highway!  Then I remembered we were comin up on the stop lights.  Who has ever heard of stop lights on a highway!??!?!?!?  So weird and annoying.  Whew!  Oh well, I get over it.  Paxton said that he thinks I've gotten more road rage since I've moved to Dallas.  My response was- I just have more opportunities in Dallas to get road rage.  Idaho- there's not a lot of traffic.  I guess I just have to learn to live with it, cuz it ain't gonna get better!
This is a pic of me on our way to Texas from Idaho-- this is a road rage pic of me- i look annoyed- and gross-- don't mind that part . :)  But do mind the snow in the background!  Ohhh how i miss the snow.  I dont know about you, but it just doesn't seem like Christmas time when the sun in shining and it's 60 degrees outside.

 

On a lighter note, my brother sent me this fun link of... well something.  I can't explain what it is- i want you to check it out for yourself.  But his was personalized, and now here is ours!!  I just absolutely loved it! Hahaha!

http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=1167535069

Hope everyone is having a great time getting ready for the holidays!  I've already gotten the few Christmas decorations i have out and up in the apartment.  I made a quick stop at Hobby Lobby to get a few extras.  It's so fun.  Now i'm trying to figure out what Christmas goodie to make for my fam, friends, and neighbors.  Any good recipes/ideas?

Who are these guys??

Hey this is Paxton doing this post.  Abby usually does them so I felt like I should let everyone know that I was doing this one.  Okay, so I was looking at the pictures that we took from when we went to Six Flags the other night, and I couldn't help but comment on these pictures:

In this one Jeni looks like she was posing for a magazine photo shoot, Brian looks like he just stole something and he got caught by the camera, you can't really see Eric, and Garrett just looks silly.  I wonder why Jeni and Garrett weren't walking closer together?  And last, why does Kathleen have so much cash in her hand?

This is actually going to be the cover of Eric Rawlins new album.  It will be released in January 08'.

Anyway, I thought some of you guys would enjoy these pictures as much as I did.  We really had a lot of fun that night, thanks guys!!!

Sisters

This post is dedicated to my sister, Katie!  She came from Idaho to Texas to visit me for a week during Thanksgiving.  We had this trip planned for about 5 months, and it finally came to pass last week!!!  YAY!  And BOO at the same time-- because now she's gone!  

We had lots of fun while she was here though.  One thing she was ready for was SHOPPING!!  Wow-- she never got sick of it.  She got here Tuesday night, so we just hung out.  We woke up Wednesday morning ready to go shopping!  We went to Grapevine Mills Mall, Garden Ridge, and Sam Moon.  That night we made Mexican Meat Pie for dinner, and pumpkin pie for the Thanksgiving Dinner the next day-- as you'll see pics below.  Thursday of course, we hung out at Ann & Steve's and ate yummy Thanksgiving dinner, watched football, and slept!  Now everybody knows about the "after Thanksgiving Day sales" and Katie wanted to take advantage of it, so we got up early Friday morning and went shopping @ Vista Ridge Mall all day.  Then Friday night we met up w/ a bunch of friends and went to SIX FLAGS!!  It was lots of fun, but unfortunately Katie has sinus/equilibrium problems... so .. uhh-- yeah it made her a little dizzy and nautious! SORRY Katie!  I hope you still had fun!  I think she still did.  We went out to eat afterwards-- Genghis Grill-- yum!  Ok, so then Saturday we were supposed to get up early to go to Tyler, TX to Paxton's aunt & uncle's house, but Katie was still feeling a little sick, and wanted to sleep in.  I mean- it was her vacation- and she hadn't slept in once!  So- she stayed at the apartment while Pax & I went to Tyler for the day.  We came back that night and guess what we did.  MORE SHOPPING!  We went to the Galleria.  That was the biggest mall she'd ever been in with more expensive stores she'd ever seen... all the name brand stores: Tiffany & Co., Gucci, Louis Vuitton...  Anyway, but she still bought some clothes.  Every time she went shopping she got clothes!  She was prepared to spend her money.  She had saved up money for this trip- so she went all out when she had the opportunity.  After the Galleria, we went out to eat at Uncle Julios.  She wanted to go out to eat at a really good mexican restaurant-- so everyone thought-- well that's easy-- Uncle Julio's!  She loved it!!

It was so good to have her here for the week.  We have so much fun together shopping, laughing, talking, and playing games.  Thanks for coming to visit Katie!  Miss you already!

@ Uncle Julio's

She had to get a picture of her in front of a HUGE Texas sign-- because everything is bigger in Texas!

Our pumpkin pies- yum

on our all-time favorite ride-- the SWINGS

Love you Katie!

@ the Irwin's & Uncle Julio's

We spent the day in Tyler at Paxton's aunt & uncle's house.  We had another Thanksgiving meal and hung out with more fam.  It is always good to visit out in Tyler- we always have such a fun time.  It's nice to get out in the country where they live- it's so relaxing. 

These kids loved to be pushed around on a little tractor toy.  It was kind of tiring, because I had to stop every 2 feet and pick them up on the tractor to get them back on track- and not running into walls. Luke is such a cute, silly boy.

Cowboy Luke- dancin'

After playing with the kids & eating some turkey, we were out! (Thanks to Neil- we have this picture :) 

We went to the Galleria for a bit more shopping, then we took Katie, my sis to Uncle Julio's for a lil taste of the best Mexican food in Dallas.  She thought it was very tasty- probably the best she's had also!!

Katie sat and played with tortilla dough the whole time.   She wasn't hungry, but kept herself entertained by making animals and trying to slice the dough in mid-air!  What a cutie.

Six Flags Over Texas

Friday night, we and a few friends went to Six Flags.  We got all bundled up for the 40 degree weather-- it's so much fun to dress up warm and play outside at night.  We all had tons of fun riding the Titan(twice for a few), Superman, Mini Mine Train, & Shock Wave.  We also watched a glass blower make a hummingbird and a rose!  Wow- it was very impressive and made me appreciate those little glass figurines.  Anyway, after a cup of hot chocolate, a few headaches and nausea, we headed to Genghis Grill.  Can we say YUUUUMMM!!  That was so yummy.  I wasn't even that hungry, but I ate that up quickly!  It was such a fun night, we need to do this every year guys! 

Notice, both Rawlins are making the SAME FACE!! (above & below)

Everyone on the swings, except Pax-- he doesn't like rides that go in circles! :( He was the photographer.

Soup Overload!

Hey Ya'll.  So- the other day I decided I wanted to make one of my favorite soups- Chicken Tortellini Soup.  So I got everything prepared, and dumped everything in our biggest pot we had, not thinking I'd have a problem fitting all the ingredients in.  So I poured most of the ingredients in- chicken, onion, broccoli, carrots, LOTS of water, boullion.  And- it was almost full to the brim!!  And I still needed to add the tortellini noodles.  So we dumped those in and it was completely full.  Well, we let it sit for awhile so the noodles and veggies could cook.  I didn't even think about the fact that noodles expand when they cook.  You can imagine what happened-- our huge pot was overflowing with soup!  We had to dump some of it in our next biggest pot- and after awhile- that one started overflowing!  Sheesh!  Needless to say, we have a HUGE pot of soup in our fridge.  If anyone is hungry for a yummy meal, they can come to our house w/in the next few days.  After about Thursday- I'm tossin it!

Hunk Husband Survey

Tag- I'm it! Bloggers sure do like this game huh? I guess I do to. I feel special when someone thinks about tagging me-- Anyway, this is a Hunk Husband Survey- I know I don't even have to take this survey to know my husband is a Big Hunk! (that's where I would put the Big Hunk candybar-if it were a Candybar Poster) Ha ... so here it goes...

What is your husband's name: Paxton Lomax Hobson

How long have you been married: One year, one month, and 12 days

How long did you date before you got married: Well- see now that's a tough question. We're still trying to figure that one out. I'd say ... a cumulative of 9 months- with a 2 month "official" engagement- but we knew we were getting married 6 months before the wedding day.

Who eats more? Paxton does-- for a few reasons: 1-He just CAN eat more than me, 2- He's not trying to keep his figure, 3-He doesn't really have to worry about becoming obese.. Now it'll all probably catch up to him-- but he'll still be a hunk!

Who said I love you first: Paxton did.

Who is taller: Paxton-- by 4 inches or so. I can still wear those heels and be a teeny bit shorter.

Who sings better: I'd say me. Pax has a good voice, it'll just take some time and practice to hit the right notes all of the time. He does some of the time, but sometimes he tried to harmonize to songs-- yet he cant read music. I asked him what line he's trying to sing and he says-- I'm just singing what sounds good to me. Awww- what a cutie.

Who is smarter: We are smart in different areas-- he is smarter obviously w/ math, econ, business type subjects, and I am smarter w/ English, Health, and I would say that I'm good at Math- but he's quicker. ??

Whose temper is worse: Neither of us have a really bad temper-- we hardly get MAD at eachother for things. And it depends on our stress levels and the situation-- we have both gotten mad eachother a few times- but it's always out of the ordinary. I don't know--- I'm blabbing.

Who does the laundry: Well I did it last time :) When we lived in Rexburg, Pax did it majority of the time because I hated lugging our dirty clothes down stairs, outside in the cold and into the laundry room/lounge- so Pax did it. And now in Texas- I'd say it's 50/50. He's so good about getting things done- I love it.

Who does the dishes: I'd say I do it more than Pax does-- we both help and load as we go. I empty more than he does and handwash more- except the Foreman Grill.

Who sleeps on the right side of the bed: Me

Who pays the bills: Paxton!

Who cooks dinner: I do-- that's IF I cook anything. Sometimes we're on our own-- in that case, Paxton probably wouldn't eat anything.

Who drives when you are together: Paxton- unless we go to the grocery store. :)

Who is more stubborn: I think I am, but sometimes Paxton--- it's all situational.

Who is the first to admit when they are wrong: Paxton is really good at this-- so-- he does. I just know I am right most of the time, so I don't give in.

Whose parents do you see the most: Well- that's a little obvious. Paxton's. If we're in Texas- Paxton's. If we're in Idaho- mine.

Who kissed who first: Paxton leaned the 80%- maybe 90% :)

Who asked who out first: Paxton asked me out first.

Who proposed: Paxton proposed- of course. Unlike my parents. My dad proposed to my mom and she said No. So my mom had to propose a few months later to get him back.

Who is more sensitive: Hmmm... that's a hard one. I think I am probably-- just a little more though. Paxton is a pretty sensitive guy. He just doesn't like to show it to everyone.

Man This is LONG!

Who has more friends: Haha- that's funny. In Rexburg we kinda had a contest/game to see who knew more people on campus. Some days we'd be walking and I'd say hi to like 4-5 people and he didn't know anyone. And vice versa--- so we both like to think we have more friends than the other.

Who wears the pants in the family: Paxton does- but if i want something, he'll give it to me.

Where did you meet your husband: First time we met, I was on a date w/ another guy that I liked. Everyone else was there w/o dates, including Paxton. We went to a Comedy Standup-type Show. Afterward we went to Dairy Queen and hung out for awhile. I remember Paxton being the center of attention- crackin all the jokes. I remember thinking-"He is really cute and funny, one of my roommates should go for him"-- b/c I liked the guy I was with.

What was the first thing you said to your husband: Paxton claims it was "Hi, I'm Abby"- this happened when I got in the backseat of a car and Pax was there. I was with this other guy, so I don't remember that. ??

Where was your first date:Our first date we went out to eat at Chili's, then to a friend's house. We played the piano, danced, and played Nertz. It was the funnest date EVER- b/c we were both laughing and playin off eachother's jokes and just had a blast.

Where was your first kiss: At the top of the stairs outside my apartment.

Where did you get engaged:At "This is the Place" Monument in Salt Lake City!

Where were you married:Salt Lake City Temple; October 6th, 2006

How did your reception go:Which one? We had 2- one in Dallas and one in Idaho Falls. The Dallas reception was amazing. It was so much fun. We had yum yum food, music, dancing, cake, and family! The I.F. reception was also amazing. There were finger foods, chocolates, music, family, and my hubby by my side. What more could you ask for.

Where was the honeymoon: Santa Barbara, CA

If you could have changed anything about it what would it have been: Wish it was LONGER. We were there for 2 nights and 2 & 1/2 days! Quickie!

Tag Someone: I tag Anjeannette, Anneka, and Stephanie-- cuz I don't really know your stories :)

The results have come back, and My Husband is ONE MAJOR HUNK! :) hehe. I love him to death!

Ok, so I'm finally done. Why did that take me all day? I started this morning before church, and now at 2:30 I'm posting it! YES! Well hope it wasn't too boring for ya'll.

Lieutenant Hobson

Over a month ago, we were at Paxton's cousin's house- Matt.  Matt is a Ranger in the army!  Pax thought he would look pretty studly if he put Matt's Ranger clothes on.  Actually, he and Matt went hunting that morning.  Unfortunately, no coyotes were out in the morning, so they ended up shooting plastic water bottles off a fence post.  Pax hit the bottle 5 times before it slowly tipped over.  So in the pic, Pax was re-enacting his experience :)  What a silly guy!

I locked him out - ha.  

Dallas Stars Hockey Game

One night we were invited by Curt Anderson to go to a Dallas Stars game.  We stayed in the Baker Botts suite w/ all you can eat FOOD! YUM!  Anyway, i discovered that i LOVE hockey games.  It was SO exciting.  I could not get over the fact that the refs didn't stop the players from fighting.  By the end of the game i was cheering on the players to fight more! haha- not really, but i definitely got excited when a player showed any kind of anger! Here are a few pics in motion.  I definitely think hockey should be a more advertised sport.  It's definitely more exciting than football- and hockey players are WAY tougher than football players too!!  Anyone think otherwise--- if so, you're wrong! :)

Long Awaited Pictures...

Hey Guys!!  We have internet now- which means I can post pics from the last few days, weeks, months!!  We actually don't have too many pics of everything we've done, but here's a few.  

So I know this is a little late- so like a few weeks late- but oh well.  The Hobson family has a SUPER fun tradition every year of having a pumpkin carving contest.  And there are no rules- you can get outline patterns or free-hand carve your pumpkins... so there was a variety.  Paxton ended of with the WIN-- it was really good, but so was everybody elses! :)  

Paxton's pumpkin- for the WIN

Abby's pumpkin- 4th place

For more details- you can visit Heather's blog- she posted it awhile ago- of course- because it happened awhile ago! :)  It sure was a fun night though!  Can't wait for next year.