Bowman Bunch

Happy 26th Anniversary to Us

2011-12-26T18:04:00.000-05:00

We decided to stay at the Gaylord National for our annivesary this year. We only stayed one night, as Chrissy is only home for 2 weeks. We had a great time, though. This is the Tree of Light, see the sign below to know all about it!

The atrium as seen from the bottom floor. So pretty! It seems a lot smaller than the one in Orlando, but it was just as pretty. Everything was all decorated for Christmas, of course.

This is when we first arrived and had already been to our room. We were heading over to the Ice Pavillion.

The preview talk and movie.

They gave us these huge parkas to wear while going through the display.

The slides made of ice...they wouldn't allow me to use the slide, though, as they said my heels were too high and they wouldn't allow stocking feet either! Next time...comfy shoes!

These ice sculptures were huge...so were the parkas!!

haha We look so big! LOL

They had this as the last display and had a recording giving the Christmas story!

Outside the Ice Pavillion and looking toward our hotel.

We took a walk around the Harbor area after seeing the ice. This tree was huge and changed colors in time to Christmas music being played over the loudspeaker.

Huge sculpture in the sand.

When checking in, I mentioned it was our 26th anniversary. They upgraded us at no charge and then this waiting for us when we got back to our room later that night. Awesome!!

We watched one of the Christmas shows..I believe this was the lighting of the tree...and it snowed inside!

Part of the show

The tree...all lit up.

These curtains of light were called "the Northern Lights".

The view from the hallway on the 18th floor near the elevators.

The view from our balcony.

Theron and me on our balcony!

We had a wonderful 2 days spending time together and celebrating our anniversary. We left MD late Thursday morning and then meandered home...shopping, eating, and laughing all the way home.It was a GREAT anniversary and I'm so thankful for my sweet husband.

Theron surprised me on the night of the 20th and brought this and some flowers home for me to "kick off" our anniversary celebration. He's very thoughtful!

YUM!

Thanksgiving Week

2011-11-21T08:24:00.000-05:00

We are on Perdido Key for the 5th year in a row. We love our vacation time here every Thanksgiving. If I had an extra $500,000 lying around, I'd buy this condo in a heartbeat. I'm behing on my postings, so thought I'd get ahead for a bit. :) My goal is to post at least one new posting a day on this Heading and one new set of pics for past adventures each day, too.

Kara and Samantha on our balcony. Kara's never been to this condo, so it was fun showing her around and seeing her reaction to the view. I love this place!

Sunset the view from our balcony. We headed off to meet TJ and Chrissy at the mexican restaurant down the street right after this. We had seen them at PCC when we stopped by on our way to the condo. Kara got to see her sister and we delivered all the packages to the other kids who are from our church whose moms sent stuff for them with us.

Ahhhh, the beach.

Our pretty Sammy

Samantha and Kara hiding from the camera

Sunset, time to eat

Sunrise! I got up to say goodbye to Chrissy and TJ as they headed to school this morning. I was going to go back to bed, since it was even 7 when they left, but I've decided to catch up on some work, then head out to read my Bible on the balcony. It's gonna be a lovely day. I'm so thankful that we were able to come again this year. What a blessing.

PCC Here We Come! Sept 2011

2011-09-22T23:04:00.000-04:00

It's that time of year! Can't believe how quickly time flies. The summer was here and gone. I'll upload the rest of the summer later, but wanted to at least get our trip to FL on here before we head back in November!

Tropical Storm Lee was heading toward the coast as we were getting to Perdido Key. The usual tranquil Gulf was rough and windy. It was beautiful to see, though! This is the view from our balcony.

The tide was coming in, but the condo next door didn't even bring their chairs in. They were still there the next day. I was surprised.

The "kids" spent the night with us at the condo on Sat night, then checked into PCC Sunday afternoon. Afterwards we all went out for lunch.

Chrissy and Amber being silly.

Chrissy and Amber

TJ, Johnny & Joey trying to ignore me

Theron & me

TJ, Joey, Johnny, Chrissy and I went down to the beach when we got done with lunch.

We waited for the weather to be clear (between squalls), but the ocean was still churned up.

Me & Lee on Perdido Key :)

I think that is TJ. The boys played ball and Chrissy and I took a walk.

The waves and swells were HUGE! Awesome show of God's power.

A pretty bird braving the storm.

Love those waves!

A random branch stuck in the sand.

My three sons and one daughter. :)

Not sure what Johnny was doing, but they were all acting crazy!

Another squall heading our way...time to go inside!

Here it comes!

Monday night Theron and I headed to The Oyster House in Alabama for a date night.

Holding the camera for a quick photo. We look funny close up. LOL

Sunrise on our way to breakfast with the kids to say goodbye.

We met Chrissy and TJ at Steak N Shake to eat breakfast before heading to Sarasota for Dad's 82nd birthday.

My kids and me before Theron and I left.

The view from our condo. Much calmer!

I had to take one more walk down the beach before leaving.

The birds were enjoying the nicer weather. The waves were still bigger than normal, but much smaller than they had been all weekend.

Yep, still a bit rough for the normally tranquil Gulf shore.

Bye Perdido Key! See you in November!!

Chrissy's Graduation

2011-06-10T16:00:00.000-04:00

We met up with TJ, Johnny, Joey and Chrissy at PCC and then took them to our favorite Mexican restaurant on Perdido Key. I told everyone to smile, so TJ started with the faces!

Chrissy took this of Joey, Theron and me, and lo and behold, Theron made a TJ face! Chrissy and I laughed so hard!! He's so funny!

This is after the graduation. Dakota, Johnny, Zeke, Chrissy and TJ just hanging out.

TJ, Joey, Zeke, Chrissy, Johnny & Dakota...some of her closest friends who helped make her years at PCC fun!

Funny Face Picture

Love this one!

...and then Johnny got hold of my camera....

....good thing he doesn't work for the yearbook!

TJ photographed by Johnny LOL

Theron, Chrissy and Me YAY Chrissy!!

Had to do a funny face picture

Chrissy's last time in her room

Chrissy wanted to go to Lambert's for her Graduation dinner. We had to do it after her graduation, which meant most of her friends were already gone. We took TJ, Johnny and Joey with us.

We had a good time, and the food was yummy, too!

The Famous Lambert's

We stayed in the same condo complex that we stay in for Thanksgiving, but just leased a smaller place. This one was 2 bedroom with a "bunkbed" room, too. Plenty of space and VERY nice!

Chrissy and I walked on the beach a few times. This is the walkway out to "our" beach.

I call this "Wishful Thinking". This bird kept stalking this fisherman. haha

The Luau, the pool, and fun

2011-05-17T17:42:00.001-04:00

Joe's Crab Shack

The Adult Pool

A view of the hotel from the conference center

The walkway back over to the hotel

Me and my honey! I love him even more than I did 25 years ago!

Where they dolphins were

Another view of the pool

Downtown Disney, by the Christmas store... since our anniversary date was on the column, I asked a passerby to take our picture. :)

Winter Park, FL

2011-05-05T21:59:00.000-04:00

My sisters and I had gone on a boat tour in Winter Park, and I wanted to show Theron.

We had such a nice time. The sun was bright and we even sat in the front!

The boats go out at the same time. This was one of them right ahead of us.

One of the canals on our little tour

Theron and me at the end of our tour

The loading area

Animal Kingdom, Epcot, and Magic Kingdom

2011-05-05T21:52:00.000-04:00

We went to Animal Kingdom on Wednesday. It was SO crowded we headed to Epcot after only a few minutes there.

Me at Epcot

We went to Mexico and had a very nice dinner. They even sang happy anniversary to us, sure wish that would have been on video, because it was funny!

This bird was trying to catch fish, but the planter kept turning around. Epcot was also crowded, so we spent a couple of hours there, then headed to the Magic Kingdom, our favorite park!

Part of the ride at Epcot. When they took our picture we thought it was funny, so decided to make faces. Didn't know they would make lots of images using them!

My favorite soft ice cream anywhere!

Me eating my favorite ice cream!

Getting ready to go into the Haunted Mansion, which is one of our favorite rides

I didn't realize that this grave person opened their eyes. It was creepy!

The castle in the evening.

Breakfast in Downtown Disney before heading over to Winter Park for the day

Orlando, Here We Come!

2011-05-03T17:54:00.001-04:00

We left our cabin in the woods and headed to Orlando on Monday, April 4th.

We stayed at the Gaylord Resort in Orlando near Disney World.

My honey and me on one of the rides at Disney.

A parade as we came into the park

Theron and me at the beginning of Splash Mountain

Theron and me at the END of the ride! We were in the very front and got soaked!

The castle at night with the parade passing by.

The view of the atrium from our balcony

The door to our balcony. We ate our breakfast out there and our decaf coffee at night.

The alligators in the Key West part of the atrium

Behind the waterfall

One of the fish in the ponds in the atrium

Just a plant I liked!

Savannah, GA & Blue Ridge, GA

2011-04-03T21:39:00.001-04:00

Theron had some meetings in Savannah, so we stopped there first for a few days. I have always loved Savannah (we lived there back in the early 90's), so I didn't mind working for a few days during our getaway!

One of the squares in downtown

These are out of order, but this is our car...packed to the hil....for just the two of us, however, in my defense, we were packing for over 2 weeks worth of travel and in about 3 different climates! :) Theron didn't even make any cracks about my packing. He is awesome and very patient!

We went antiquing one day and found this. We were going to buy it, but it was $19.95! The tag says, "No Guarantee". haha

Traveling through Atlanta...we don't like that city much, but it's never boring!

At a Steak N Shake right outside of Atlanta.

The creek right in front of our cabin

Bear Creek Hideaway

My honey, ain't he cute? :) And he's all mine! I am blessed.

Me, and I have no idea why I am standing like my back hurts. haha

Our little kitchen in the cabin. It had everything we needed!

One of my favorite spots in the whole place.

We arrived at the cabin late afternoon, Thursday, March 31st. It is a really nice cabin, but not "secluded" as they described it online. It is big, though, and well maintained.

Looking down from the top deck out back.

We walked up the road a bit to the pond. There were some geese swimming along.

Timer taken...best we could do by the creek.

The first couple of days were pretty chilly so Theron kept the fire going in the fireplace.

The driveway to our cabin taken from the cabin view

On our quest up the lane looking for the lost town and waterfalls

The view downstream from where I was standing on that rock.

This is the creek further up the mountain.

This is where we needed to cross over, but the water was just a little too deep near the other side for the Highlander. We didn't want to chance getting stuck in the water. We would have had to cross it like this another time or two to get where we needed to go to see the old town and waterfalls.

Part of the creek further down the mountain on our way to town.

Downtown Blue Ridge, GA

I was so thrilled to see the sun out and the flowers blooming!!

This corner cafe was where we ate lunch. It was a wonderful meal!! Their Tomato Soup and Deluxe Cheese Sandwich (Theron) and Chicken Salad Croissant and Pasta Salad (me) were the best we've had in awhile.

Touring Orlando

2011-04-03T20:48:00.000-04:00

We checked out of our hotel on Wednesday and headed for Winter Park. We took a boat tour of a series of lakes and canals. It was wonderful! We then went and ate a wonderful Italian lunch outside. So much fun!!

Jo and me waiting for the boat to get there.

Jo & Vanessa, aren't they cute?

Heading out on the lake

There were some houses of famous people. One was Mr. Rogers' boyhood home. Not sure if this was his or not, but it's pretty anyway! :)

We met up with Shaun, Alisha, and Mackenzie for dinner.

Precious little girl!!

She's adorable!

Three Sisters In Orlando: First Stop Downtown Disney

2011-04-02T23:25:00.001-04:00

February 24th, Theron had to go on a business trip. Vanessa, Jo and I headed to Orlando for three days. Our first stop was the hotel, then Downtown Disney.

Downtown Disney

It was a beautiful day. I couldn't believe I had left behind cold cold weather in VA.

Me, Jo, and Vanessa watching the people go by

A crazy mirror in the candy shop

Joe's Crab Shack. Jo is pretending she ate all of that food alone. haha

We split this dessert, but I am pretending I'm eating it all by myself! oink oink

We asked our waitress to take our picture and she seemed a little annoyed. Oh well, too bad, so sad! haha

I surprised Jo and Nessa and bought us matching jammies. They have Mickey and Minnie Mouse all over them. :)

I kept putting the time on and then running to sit between them. It just got nuttier and nuttier.

The next day...Disney World!!!

That's going into Downtown Disney...how'd that get in this spot?

On the tram. Apparently the lady behind me was not amused by my excitement. LOL

First view on Space Mountain from the monorail

Jo on the tram. I think we scared the little boy next to her.

In the Magic Kingdom

Nessa and Jo at the Haunted Mansion

Jo and me on Splash Mountain

Wedway People Mover...we were tired, so stayed on it for two times around. We laughed a lot on this ride.

It's a Small World and EVERYONE in the world was here. haha The line was longer

than I've ever seen, but it moved quickly. The park was very crowded, but thanks to FastPasses, we didn't wait in any line for very long.

It's a Small World

Nessa and I love the teacups, so Jo took some pics of us spinning around and around.

Me, pretending to throw up in the cup

It was a wonderful day! It went by too quickly, but we had tons of fun.

Sarasota at the Bowmans' home

2011-03-14T21:52:00.000-04:00

On our 2nd day in Sarasota, Theron and I went to church with Christine. It was a great service and wonderful afternoon. We ate a perfect lunch of fish, cooked apples, cole slaw, and all kinds of good stuff! Then, talked on the porch all afternoon. Great day!!

The view from their back porch. Beautiful day!

The orange tree in the backyard.

The oranges were SO orange!

I love the smell of oranges, but even more the fragrance of orange blossoms. Most of the blossoms were not blooming yet, and were supposed to do that later in the week...after we left!

Looking up into the tree.

Theron and his dad talking for a bit while I played outside taking pictures!

Happy Birthday, Brian!!

2011-03-14T21:45:00.000-04:00

Our first night in Sarasota we went to Theron's parents for awhile then headed to Jo's house for a birthday party for Brian. We had a wonderful evening full of laughter and fun. I sure miss my family!

Brian with his birthday banana split cake (made by Jo from Mom's recipe). It was scrumpdidlyicious and the recipe will appear on my food blog soon!

And he blew out the candles with one breath!

Theron, SanDee, and Jesse. Jesse surprised us and brought the kids. It was great to see them all!

Kailyn loves my dad and is very possessive of him. When I told her that he was my daddy, she said, "NO, MY pop pop!"

Vanessa, Kailyn & Dad

Watching TV and waiting for Brian to open his gifts

My VERY talented Grand Nephew! Haha Way to go, Riley!

Vanessa's reaction to being told her dance at work would be on You Tube soon! haha

Brian listening to his Hoops and Yo Yo card from us!

Thanking Dad for his gift. They look like they are sharing a secret! haha

All of the siblings plus dad minus Lisa. Ain't family great? ♥

After everyone left, Jo and I drove down to the lake and I took a picture of the beautiful moon. This camera doesn't do too well at nigth without a tripod, but you get the idea! It was so pretty!

St. Armand's Cirlce

2011-03-13T23:17:00.000-04:00

This is out of order, but our last day in Sarasota, I headed to Siesta Key Beach, FL. I spent exactly an hour sitting in a beach chair, watching the people go by, taking pictures and loving the sun and waves. Then I packed up my stuff and headed back to Jo's to meet up with Vanessa and Theron and Michelle for a trip to St. Armand's Circle.

It was very crowded, but I found a spot right by the water. :)

Theron and me shopping on St. Armand's Circle. On our way there, Theron stopped by Big Olaf's and got us all ice cream. Of course, I got Kaluha Crunch!

Vanessa, Michelle and me on St. Armand's Circle. This is not a good picture of any of us, but it's the only one we have, so here it is!! Sorry, girls!

Beautiful drive on our way back from the Key.

This house has sparkles in the paint, but they didn't show up in this picture.

First Stop: Savannah, GA

2011-03-04T14:08:00.001-05:00

We headed out on our trip on February 17th. We had a lot of road to cover, but had fun the whole way. Our first stop was one of our favorite towns, Savannah, GA. We had to work while there, but were able to do a little sight seeing, too.

We stopped here to get gas...I've heard it is all pretty dirty, so we got our gas and headed out!

Sunset when we were almost there

The Marketplace downtown

Trying to take a pic of us. I love Theron's expressions as they progress.

Uh, well, almost...

Got it, but I look like a Muppet!!

An old graveyard downtown Savannah

Me in the Market area

One of the Squares downtown. We didn't walk around the squares this trip, but plan to next time.

Valentine's Day Date Night

2011-02-11T22:31:00.000-05:00

Theron surprised me and made reservations at The Inn at Kelly's Ford for our Valentine's Day date night. We don't usually go out to dinner ON Valentine's Day, because everywhere is so crowded. We usually go out a night or two before. Tonight was perfect! There were two other couples in the dining room

and that was it. Very relaxing evening, wonderful food, romantic surroundings and my favorite person in the whole world...perfect night! I love being married to my best friend.

Samantha took a couple of pics of us before we left for our date.

Sunset on our way out to the restaurant.

The fireplace in the dining room. It was popping like crazy, and smelled so good!

Our table was by the window, so nice!

We asked the innkeeper to take our picture on our way out. We had such a nice evening!

The sign out front

Miscellaneous Oldies But Goodies

2011-02-06T21:44:00.001-05:00

TJ pulling up on his Sesame Stree Toy at my mom & dad's house

Chrissy and Mary's 2nd birthday (in Arizona)...right before we moved to FL. Love Chrissy's cheeks!

Grandma Bowman getting the girls ready to go outside and play.

"Santa" Davey & TJ on TJ's first Christmas

Chrissy, TJ and Mary at my mom and dad's Easter 1992

TJ, Theron & me when Theron came home for his R&R

(about 7 months into his year long assignment in Turkey)

Me, showing Theron I was losing my baby belly, I guess. haha

One of my all time favorite pictures of Theron and TJ. Theron left for Turkey when TJ was about 3 weeks old. He came home for his R&R when TJ was about 7 months old. They bonded quickly. :) That's Mary looking at TJ, sharing Daddy Time. :)

Christmas Party for Work

2011-01-17T13:27:00.001-05:00

One of my favorite duties all year, as Theron's secretary, is putting together the D.C. Christmas party. Here are a few pictures from this years luncheon. We always have it at the Occoquan Inn in Occoquan, VA. Great food and wonderful staff!

Carollers were out across the street.

More pics of D.C. in December

2011-01-17T13:21:00.000-05:00

Theron took me to D.C. for a couple of nights for our anniversary. The first night, Dec. 20th, we went to the Mall and saw the National Christmas Tree and the State Trees. It was SO cold, but a lot of fun.

Temple Baptist Church Christmas Party 2010

2011-01-17T13:17:00.000-05:00

This year's theme was A Cowboy Christmas. It was a lot of fun, as usual! Here was Karen Blakemore "roping" her husband Jon. I do belive they won!

Joey Bryan was one of the pony racers.

Yep, that's me. I decided to be a good sport and try it, too.

Instead of a cute little pony, I received a mop to "ride". haha

That's Joey, passing me up!

That red blur is me, being passed and almost knocked over by my friend's husband! haha All's fair!

Darlene and me warning our friend about opening her gift early!

I didn't want to get on the saw horse and saddle in front of everyone, so waited 'til they moved it into another room. Then, I made Mary take my picture!

My Mom

2011-01-13T23:29:00.000-05:00

Seventeen years ago today, my sweet mom graduated to Heaven. I miss her very much, but know she is happier than I can even imagine. She is with our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Wow, what a wonderful time she must be having! She's dancing on those streets of gold! I was going to scan some of the notes she had given me over the years and put them on the blog, but decided not to spend the day in the past, but to be thankful for the time I had with her and not make today a sad day. This month is a hard month for me, but I am determined not to dwell on the sadness, but be thankful for the blessing she was to me over the 29.5 years she was in my life. My earliest memory is of me sitting on her lap, and she was reading to me and singing to me. She was always singing. She'd sing in the kitchen while making dinner (usually humming more than singing words). She smiled easily and had a great laugh. Mom was mild mannered and the sweetest person I've ever known. If I got up earlier than my normal teenage waking hour, I would find Mom sitting at the kitchen table, reading her Bible. In my senior year of high school, I only went to school half a day most days. I would come home, eat lunch and Mom would sit at the kitchen table with me and we'd just talk. I cherished those times, and am so thankful we had them. I could ramble on more, but will stop for now. I'll scan those notes and more pictures in another day, but today, I just want to quote a Bible passage that wonderfully describes Mary Stone. The whole passage is "her", but I'll just put a few verses here.

Proverbs 31:26-28 "She openeth her mouth with wisdom; and in her tongue is the law of kindness. She looketh well to the ways of her household and eateth not the bread of idleness. Her children arise up, and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praiseth her."

25 Years and Counting!

2011-01-10T22:14:00.003-05:00

On December 21, 1985, I married my best friend. We've been blessed with 25 wonderful years as husband and wife. We have had lots of fun, met lots of people, travelled all over the U.S., laughed together , cried together, and grown closer with each passing year. Theron has served our country overseas and all over the United States, too, so we've been apart a lot of our married life, especially in the first 15 or 16 years. We enjoy the time we do have together, as the time apart has taught us to appreciate each other even more. We're already looking forward to the next 25!! Here are a few memories of these 25 years... and a few of the 3 years we dated, too.

This was BK...before kids...we took up square dancing in New Mexico. We had lots of fun. This is our graduation! We are getting pinned. :)

This one is for you, Jo. Mary's doll is just too scary! haha This is Chrissy and Mary playing house when they were about 2 or 3.

I believe this was in March of 1988, when Theron took command of B Company at HAFB. I was pregnant with the twins and didn't know it yet!

Here we are on our honeymoon in Hawaii. We took a dinner cruise one night. Wish I still had that dress!

In Juarez, Mexico before it was too dangerous to be there. This is April, 1985. Theron proposed to me a few days after this picture! We drove his truck into Mexico and followed a guy on a bike to this shop...we HAD to follow him, when Theron tried to get past him, he'd move his bike so that we'd hit him if we tried to go around! We didn't get mugged, though, and did get some good deals.

Fast forward a few years. This is November, 1988, right before the twins were born. My mom came and stayed with us for a few months as I was on bed rest. She was so awesome and she helped me enjoy those months that could have been so hard.

Theron and me playing Scrabble. Mom took this. I was pregnant with the twins.

This is our first date after the twins were born. Mom and Dad watched them as we went out to dinner. We were right down the street and only gone for an hour or so. I think this was about a week after they were born. I think I was still sore, as I look about to fall over! haha

The twins singing in their bedroom at Mom and Dad's house. They had their own room there as we stayed with them when Theron went to Turkey for a year.

The happy family right after TJ's birth. Theron left for Turkey when TJ was 3 weeks old.

This must be Easter of 1991. Theron was gone most of that year, but came home in between classes. I was very pregnant with TJ. :)

Our first official picture as a couple...taken at Olan Mills.

Our 5th anniversary, in Bizbee, AZ. I was pregnant with TJ. This is at the Gardners' home.

Chrissy, TJ, Mary and Samantha in April of 1996. Easter in Ft. Leavenworth, KS. Love this picture!!

Theron & me at my parents' house when we were first dating. We had known each other for years (he was my brother's friend), but when he came home from OK that December (1982), it was like love at first sight!

Mary's first picture taking experience. This is Chrissy, me, Theron, and TJ (Sammy's in my tummy) in Tombstone, AZ. We used to love going there!

Samantha, our little snow baby.

Theron, TJ, and me right after he was born. July 15, 1991

Our wedding cake leaned, so we leaned for the pictures so no one would notice! haha We had so much fun at our wedding and reception. Like I've said before, no bridezilla or groomzilla here!

The feeding of the cake....haha We were nice to each other and did not cram it in our faces. :)

Our bridal party!

They wanted us to pose like my Mom was giving me advice. We were both trying not to laugh. haha Isn't my mom so pretty? And she was such a wonderful Christian example, too.

I'd love to know what Pastor McCall was saying that made Theron and Rod laugh! That's Rod Salter, our best man. He's also a very talented wildlife artist now! Check out his site!

I now pronounce you husband and wife

Theron wore his uniform at the request of

Pastor McCall when he'd come home on leave. This is Easter one year when we were dating!

Thanks for walking with me down Memory Lane. I hope to post more oldies but goodies soon.

Thanksgiving 2010

2011-01-10T14:38:00.000-05:00

We had a wonderful vacation again this year. This makes the fourth year we've spent Thanksgiving in this condo on Perdido Key. We loved every minute. The weather was beautiful and

I even got some beach time in. Awesome!

Chrissy & TJ lookin' so thrilled to have me snappin' their pic so early in the morning.

The only evidence I saw of the gulf oil spill, besides the guys looking for oil who were digging up the sand all around the place.

A great perspective!

Yes, a dog on a motorcycle with helmet and goggles. Is this a Dr. Seuss world we live in? haha

Samantha and Chrissy at dinner one night when we went to a seafood place near the condo. Okay food, but way overpriced...we won't be goin' there again!

Mary and Samantha

Me & TJ

Theron & Me

Chrissy and Thereza on the balcony

Samantha and Nancy playing Yahtzee on the balcony

My pretty little girl

Enjoying the sun, wind, games and life in general!

Chrissy taking a picture of a sunset

This man followed this bird and it was so much fun to watch, I had to at least try to get it on film.

Thanksgiving evening

Our family, together again! We had so much fun.

It looks like they are all dancing or having spasms, but I honestly don't remember what they were doing. Probably laughing at Johnny as he was being such a card!

Snuggling with my honey

Trying a more comfortable position for the shot! haha

Guess Johnny didn't like dinner?

Thereza trying to hide from me?

Everyone's here, almost time to eat!

First Family Picture

2011-01-10T14:27:00.000-05:00

The first time in history that we've had a family photo session done with all 6 of us. These are just a few of the shots she took.

We had lots of fun, and Kaitlyn did a great job!

December 21st, 2010

2011-01-10T14:08:00.000-05:00

Theron and I celebrated our 25th anniversary this year. Wow, time sure flies when you're with the one you love! I'll post some "old" pictures later, but wanted to at least get some of these up from our trip into D.C. on the 20th and 21st. We had a wonderful time. We spent the day in D.C. at the Spy Museum and walking around the holiday market before heading to Ford's Theater to watch A Christmas Carol. Theron planned the whole day and it was fabulous!! We ended the day at dinner at Shmucks, I mean, Schmicks! haha It was a super day and I am so thankful for such a sweet and loving husband to call my own! We'll be taking our 25th anniversary trip this spring to Disney and then the mountains!

Ford's Theater

Inside the theater

My sweetie and me on the elevator at our hotel

McCormick and Schmick's where we had a very nice dinner

The view outside the Spy Cafe's window

China Town at night after dinner

October Fun Night at TBC

2010-11-08T10:30:00.000-05:00

Who IS that robed man?

The whole gym was set up with lots of games for the kids to play AND get candy!

Spin the wheel, get prizes!

Lots of people came, so I didn't get to take as many pics as I normally do. Our booth was busy all night long.

Another of my favorite kids!

More of my favorite little ones!

They should win a prize! Loved their outfits! Pretty family!

We even had Snow White helping with the face painting!

Some kids actually won goldfish at this booth!

Some of the other booths around the gym.

One of my favorite kids, Michael Blakemore, having fun.

Theron setting up our cups with the Moody's next door.

Mikaela at the Cup Toss, where Theron and I worked.

Bella, playing shy.

She is such a cutie!

One of my favorite little girls!

Pretty little Mikaela!

Two of the teens taking the easy way on the hayride.

Sammy and me on the hayride!

Fall in VA

2010-11-08T10:18:00.000-05:00

My favorite tree right before we left for Savannah, October 24th.

Wow, what a difference a week makes!!

Fall in VA is beautiful!! Love the changing colors and wish they'd stay on the trees a bit longer!

Savannah, GA Here We Are!

2010-11-08T10:13:00.000-05:00

Theron had to go to Savannah for business, and wanted me to go along. It was so much fun, even though we had to work. We love Savannah and enjoyed lots of nice evenings together seeing the sights.

This is inside The Lady and Sons, Paula Deen's restaurant in downtown Savannah. We were able to get right in for lunch one day.

Theron...and we even stayed on our low carb diet while eating there!!

Me at Paula Deen's...everything was wonderful, and the fried chicken was the best either of us had ever had!

This is what the line looked like to get in as we left! Whew, we must've gotten there just in time!

Down the street from Paula's restaurant.

Me!

My sweet, loving husband!

Theron and me. We had a great time!

Inside The Pirate's House restaurant. They had it decorated for Halloween.

Great food here!

The Pirate's House Restaurant...supposedly haunted and very cool inside!

Taken on our way home...the trees were beautiful along I 95.

Theron and Nancy Go to DC

2010-10-05T21:40:00.000-04:00

I wanted to go see Mary Poppins again before it left D.C. We had decided it just wasn't worth it, until I received an email from the Kennedy Center that I could get 40% off tickets if I came again. So, Theron and I bought some really good tickets and decided to spend the day in D.C. Here are a few of the sights we saw on our D.C. Date! We had so much fun!!

The President's Box at the Opera House

The Israeli Lounge outside of the Concert Hall.

This is the ceiling in that room. So very stunning!

The Concert Hall

The President's Box at the Eisenhower Theater

The Chinese Lounge outside of the Eisenhower Theater.

The Theater Lab

The view from atop the Kennedy Center

After the tour, we took a shuttle then metro to the Natural History Museum. This is a pretty building we walked along to get there.

Heading back to the metro

Self Portrait in the metro haha

Theron tried, since mine was so blurry.

Um, I call this Reflections on the Metro

We had a quick snack before the show started, so headed back up to the top of the Kennedy Center.

I snapped this not realizing I wasn't allowed to do that. The Mary Poppins photo nazi came and kindly told me to put my camera away. Okay, Okay...

Outside of the Kennedy Center.

♪♪Happy Birthday to Me!! ♪♪

2010-08-16T19:16:00.000-04:00

Theron made my day practically perfect in every way! My day started out with Theron taking me out for breakfast. My choice...Tropical Smoothie. He had to go to work, so asked me to open my gift before he left, since we'd be heading to D.C. for Mary Poppins at the Kennedy Center later. I was shocked when I opened up my gift and it was a mini Dell "notebook". Pink! So cute. For dinner, we went to Olive Garden on our way to the Kennedy Center. The traffic was horrific, but we eventually made it to the theater. We shopped for souvenirs before the performance. Theron surprised me and got me a tee shirt that I had my eye on since we saw it when we first walked in (they weren't "open" yet), along with some goodies for the girls and me. We absolutely loved the play, and I'm trying to figure out a way to get back up there to see it before its run in DC ends at the end of August. We got home around 11:30 p.m. and had cake and ice cream. The girls gave me their gifts during the afternoon, some great dvd's. I am so thankful for Theron and our kids. They are the best! It was one of the best birthdays I've ever had!

Dinner at Olive Garden with my sweet husband and crazy daughters

On the way to The Kennedy Center

My pretty girls at dinner

Almost there!!

We all look short and squatty in this one, not sure what's up with that!

MARY POPPINS!!

Theron and me outside the front of The Kennedy Center

The view of the stage from our seats...we were as high as you can get, but still had a great view of the stage.

Chrissy, Samantha, and Mary

Theron and me before the show started

Blowing out my candles at 11:30 p.m...while wearing my supercalifragilisticexpialidocious tee shirt! Theron also had bought me some beautiful roses for my special day! :) He thought of EVERYTHING!!

50th Anniversary Surprise in Kingsport, TN

2010-07-17T23:35:00.001-04:00

Theron wanted to do something really special for his parents' 50th Anniversary on July 3rd. We started planning about a year ago, then pulled it off this past weekend. We had such a blast from start to finish. These are nowhere near all of the pics, but are a few highlights.

Bethany and Samantha in the car...first time Bethany has been to a Pal's. She loved it!

Eatin' at Pal's in Bristol on our way to TN

Gotta love the ducks

My honey and me

The view from our front porch on the cabin we rented in the Cherokee National Forest.

Sunset

On our way down the long, winding driveway...very steep..we saw some deer.

Here is the fellowship hall where we held the party. This was the church Geronia and Christine were married at 50 years ago. Theron had it planned to the last detail.

He gave me free rein on the decorations, so Sammy, Bethany and I went to work.

The place settings...we had pictures of Moe and Christine (and some with their kids in there, too) on the tables all in matching gold frames I was able to find at Kohls. Thanks, Darlene, for the GREAT idea!!

Theron and me after we were finished decorating for the big day.

A few clouds the morning of the 3rd...this is the view from our porch again, which I loved to look at while doing my morning devotions. This particular morning, I even relaxed in the hot tub for a bit.

The finished product! We picked up the balloons before heading to the bakery to pick up the cake. We dropped the balloons off at the church first, as 2 dozen ballons took up most of the Highlander. :)

The beautiful cake made by a local bakery.

Waiting for us to bring the happy couple

Waiting...

They were shocked!! Christine said to Theron, "You pulled something on us, didn't you?"

Seeing the reception hall for the first time

Geronia and Christine with their cake and the original picture of their wedding day

This is another shot of them coming into the church

They wanted their kids to cut the cake.

They fed each other cake

Christine's siblings

Getting ready to walk down the aisle to renew their vows

The happy couple

Renewing their vows

Such a sweet ceremony

Love this picture!!

Theron, Christine, Geronia, Nuwonia, and Shonia

The original family members present at their wedding

Opening gifts

Clean up time

I tried to teach Aunt Janice to suck helium...it was so funny!! Love you, Janice!

The pictures we had put on their tables...and some of their gifts displayed at their house.

Theron and me on the front porch of our cabin

Samantha and Bethany on the front porch

A sign by a tent full of fireworks...Support Your Volunteer Fire Dept...hahaha guess they need practice

Together At Last

2010-05-30T15:22:00.000-04:00

Our first Sunday together as a family again. We were all home last weekend, but Mary was too sick to take photos. These were taken after church today. LOVE my family so much!

This was take two or three...

This is take 3 or 4. I had my fingers behind Chrissy's head...she told me to keep it on an adult level! haha Yeah, right!

TJ and Johnny wouldn't pose in front of the fireplace, so I took this of them "reading".

Mary, Liz, and Chrissy

Mary, Samantha, Chrissy and TJ...my quiver is full

Okay, think we got it this time. :)

More Oldies

2010-05-29T22:51:00.003-04:00

My mom and me at a Mother/Daughter banquet in 1988.

Theron and Nancy at Carlsbad Caverns in 1986.

TJ as a sweet little baby

What a cutie!

Wow, look at the dimples!

TJ and Uncle Brian

TJ, Chrissy and Mary

TJ in Annapolis, MD

Trip to NC part one

2010-05-21T17:56:00.000-04:00

Our company's annual meeting was held at the Grove Park Inn this year. It was awesome. Our room was in the historic part of the hotel and we loved it.

Me, posing at the window. There were stairs everywhere...and I like pictues of stairs...so took a lot of them! haha

One evening we went to Biltmore Estates for dinner and a private nighttime tour. It was awesome!!

Dinner, it was okay, but Sophie's is a lot better!!

My honey in front of the Biltmore mansion

One of Mary's predecessors and me.

A close up view of the Biltmore estate. They didn't allow us to take pictures once inside, though. The other is a view from behind our hotel.

Looking up at the Inn from down by the Spa. It was just gorgeous from any angle.

Easter Sunday

2010-05-21T17:19:00.000-04:00

A few pictures of our Easter Sunday. We have two services at our church on Easter. The choir sings for both services and have breakfast together beetween services. The other pictures are trees in our yard and a few pictures of TJ, Samantha, Theron and me.

Mary Stone

2010-05-08T12:56:00.002-04:00

Mary Stone. Wife, Mom, Daughter, Grandma, Sister, Aunt, Sunday School Teacher, Friend, Confidant, Helper, Mentor...My mom! My mom was such a wonderful mom. She loved all of her 5 children equally and was such a sweet person. She was godly woman, and was truly the picture of the Proverbs 31 lady. She was the best example of a wife and mom to me. When I was 6 years old, she led me to the Lord and I accepted Him as Savior. She had the best advice over the years, and was always there when I needed her. She listened and laughed and cried with me. When I was 16 years old, I told her that some day if my kids love me half as much as I love her, that I would consider myself a success. She was just so awesome, that even a 16 year old twit (me) could see how special she was. She was the epitomy of "love". When you read I Corinthians 13, that's my mom. I miss her every day, and know that one day, I'll get to see her in Heaven. What a day that will be! I do ask God to give her a hug for me every once in awhile, and I believe He does. :) Here are a few pictures of Mom over the years.

This is my mom, Uncle Jack and Aunt Edith

Vanessa, Davey, Mom and Grandma Dorothy

Lisa, Vanessa, and Mom on Grandpa's farm in IL.

Aunt Edith, Mom, Lisa and Grandma Dorothy

A surprise picture of Mom in the car as we drive to Illinois for vacation. That's a car filled with 5 kids and 2 adults and she SMILED when she turned around! Notice, she is sitting in the middle of the front seat, and one of us kids is sitting next to her. Talk about crowded!

Mom and Dad on one of their anniversaries

Mom playing pool with me! She was so much fun!!

Either Mother's Day or her birthday in the late 80's or early 90's

Mom and all of her grandkids, 1991.

They all loved her so much. Mary and Chrissy called her "Mom" because that's what they heard me call her. I was "Mommy" but she was "Mom". :)

All of Mom and Dad's grandkids, before Michelle and my kids came along.

A surprise picture, once again, and she's still smiling. :) This was at Theron's and my house the first time Mom, Dad and Lisa came to visit us. We had such a great time. I had missed her so much.

A picture at a Mother's Day banquet with Mom and my sisters. You can't see Mom very well, she is on the front left corner, then Nessa, Jo, and me.

Mother's Day 1991 with Mary and Chrissy. Mary was named after my mom, and Chrissy after Theron's mom.

Mom and Dad at my house in NM up in the mountains.

Mom and Dad gettin' cozy on the swing outside on Grandpa's farm. Aren't they so cute?

Mom and Chrissy on Mother's Day. I love this picture!! They were really laughing at something. Mom's cancer had gone to her spine, so she wasn't allowed to pick up the girls any more. She would sit down and tell them to climb into her lap (becuase they always wanted her to hold them and read to them). As they climbed up, she'd help more than she was supposed to, and sing "Climb, climb up sunshine mountain" to them. She was such a neat grandma. She wasn't about to give up holding them even if she wasn't supposed to lift them.

Mom with the girls and TJ. This is right after he was born...he was just a few hours old.

TJ with Mom. He was a chunky little thing! We lived with Mom and Dad when Theron went to Turkey for a year. That was a bittersweet year, as I missed Theron so much, but learned to appreciate the time with my parents. Mom had told me one day when I was so depressed, "Stop saying 'I'll be happy when..' and start being happy NOW. You have so much to be thankful for!" What words of wisdom! I was able to listen to that and enjoyed my time with her that year. That was her last full year of feeling well and she died about a year and a half later. I am so thankful I listened and relished the times with her that year. That was a hidden blessing at the time, as I missed Theron so much, but I look back at that year as a God hug for me. It not only gave me time with Mom and Dad and the girls and TJ time with family, but it strengthened my marriage, too.

She was very patient!

Mom and Dad with the girls. I think this is Easter of 1991.

Another picture of Mom with Chrissy, Mary and TJ.

This is the last picture taken of me with Mom. This was taken October, 1993. She passed away January, 1994. We got to see her in Dec. 1993, but she wasn't feeling well and didn't want any pictures taken of her then. I love you, Mom!! You are the best mom ever!!

More April Fun

2010-05-01T18:39:00.004-04:00

One of the ladies in my Sunday School class, Erin, just had a baby boy. Our class got together at our friend's, Choi, restaurant. Choi's Korean Kitchen! YUM!! We had a great time of fellowship and great food, too.

Our bush out by the driveway is in full bloom with lots of bees and butterflies all over it.

Spring has Sprung

2010-04-13T13:42:00.002-04:00

This is the tree right outside our bedroom window. I love it in the spring time! We aren't sure what kind of tree it is though. It blooms these beautiful light pink flowers then when they fade, the leaves are a brilliant green. It bears no fruit. The day I took these, the sky was my favorite shade of blue!

Fun Times in Fredericksburg

2010-04-13T13:28:00.003-04:00

We had a busy March in the Bowman household. One night the College and Career class held a going away party for one of their guys who is getting married soon and moving to Georgia before the wedding. Here are a few pics of the "after the party" time.The Weavers, my kids, and Johnny decided to play Quelf with Rommel before sending him off. Looks like Johnny had to balance something on his head for a certain amount of time.
TJ had to touch his shoulders while having his thumbs in his mouth. I think he had to do this until he rolled a certain number.

My Ape...before I added the hair and claws, someone shouted GUMBY! LOL

Our Sunday School class got together at the Blakemores' home for our game night. It was a lot of fun, and we laughed and laughed...and stayed late!!

Chatting in Karen's beautiful home

The Amazing Supper Race winners for 2010! Yay, my team finally won. I was just the driver, they had to figure out all the clues and tell me where to go.

The winners with their trophies. Pastor Mike gave me one, too.

The beginning of the Amazing Supper Race...they had to find

their clues before we could head out.

Disney, Sea World, Hodge Podge

2010-02-18T16:05:00.006-05:00

I'm trying to get more of our "old" pics onto the computer. Here are a few I uploaded today.

TJ and Sam at a Gunston Elementary function

All of us in D.C.

The last trip we took to Disney. I was so sick and taking DayQuil because I was determined to enjoy myself! :) It was in the 90's, so was very very hot.

Theron and me camping with my brother and SanDee when they came to visit us in NM.

Another time going over Splash Mountain! I love that ride! Jo and Michelle came with us that day.

One of our neighborhood Halloween parties in the Marguys' garage! We had such a great neighborhood back then!

Flashback to New Mexico

2010-02-18T10:11:00.007-05:00

These are pictures Theron took for me this week while he is in New Mexico and Texas. They won't mean anything to anyone but us, but I wanted to put them on here for those of you who visited us when we lived there. It was quite a change from the beaches of Sarasota for a young 21 year old newlywed. We lived in a 2 bedroom trailer on the top of this mountain. The Lincoln National Forest was our backyard. We cut down our first Christmas tree from our landlord's 70+ acres. We used to go driving up the mountain in the truck with a big light to find deer. haha It really was a beautiful place. Thanks, Theron, for taking me down memory lane! You're the best! Near our turn off

Up the road toward our house

The entrance to our driveway

Down the road from our old house

So pretty!

Going down the mountain toward White Sands

The turn off of the highway to our road...it used to be a dirt road, but now, 24 years later, it's paved.

The litte country store near the house

Home Sweet Home High Rolls, NM Elevation 6750!

The tunnel on the way to our house

Part of the Sacremento mountains, in the middle is the tunnel in a previous picture

Heading up the mountain

The White Sands Mall where I was an Asst Manager

A church we attended when the twins were babies

We came when it was just starting up. So glad to see it's still there.

Looking across the Tularosa Basin from White Sands Missle Range HQ

White Sands... we used to go there for picnics, watch movies projected on the sands, and Theron saved a young boy's live there once! He was lost in the park, and Theron was the helicopter that found him. I'll post the Army Times article soon.

Looking across the Tularosa Basin toward Alamogordo, from from White Sands Missle Range HQ.

So pretty! This is the mountain range near Las Cruces at the end of the Sands.
The Organ Mountains

Feb 2010 The Big Snow

2010-02-06T20:58:00.008-05:00

Most of these were taken the 2nd day of the storm. The first day it mainly sleeted. We had some snow before bed...maybe 8 inches? Two doves trying to get warm on our deck
Looking out the front porch Fri evening

I opened the door to the deck and found this. It scared me so much I didn't realize there were no footprints in the snow. TJ had done it to trick me! It worked!

Our trees with the burden of lots of snow

I think this was 10 inches...it ended up being just at 17 inches of snow and ice.

Even more snow

The Highlander

The RAV4

Snowscape

A new snowdrift on top of an old one

My favorite tree

The neighbor's trees bowing to me

Our trees

A tree by the corner of the house

Another view of the side tree

Our azalea bush

Home Sweet Home

Still snowing

Up Cranston

Down Danford

Our house

Our deck....dreaming of spring

Mary and me in the front yard

Snow Day Part Two Feb 6th

2010-02-06T20:31:00.008-05:00

Here are more pictures of our big snow of Feb. 2010! Mary, Sam and I took a walk in the afternoon. Here is Mary...knee deep in the front yard. That's me in the background trying to ruin her pic.

Is it this deep???

Mary by the birdfeeder in the backyard.

Me making a snow angel

Still making a snow angel

Samantha in the backyard

TJ starting on his "project".

Mary and Samantha at the soccer field down from the house

Samantha in the tree by the side of the house

Looking up through the branches.

Me under the tree

TJ progressing on his project.

The tree by our driveway

Blue in the snow

My favorite tree all laden with snow

Samantha getting tired of me taking her picture

Me sitting in the snow after lying down to get some shots.

Our truck all snowed in

Our front "walk" with all the reflector lights buried

TJ getting his igloo more defined.

TJ way inside his igloo or ice cave or ice house

Sleeping?

Making it a bit more clear

Blue inside!

Me in the igloo

Sun trying to peek out before going down

All cozy in the igloo

Christmas Time and Soccer Games

2010-02-02T17:23:00.003-05:00

Here is a collection of pics taken during December, 2009. Trying to catch up!! The Bowman Bunch Together....for a couple of weeks, anyway

TJ with his new orange soccer shoes. Their team ended up missing the final game by one loss.

Johnny

Christmas Eve Breakfast tradition...Cracker Barrel! This year it was us with Nina and the Fowlers. Notice the grouchy Santa behind us. haha

The other end of the table

Part Three of our Anniversary Trip

2010-01-21T19:35:00.002-05:00

Theron and I left after breakfast and headed to Culpepper and Warrenton to mosey around their downtowns. This is one of the fields behind the Inn.

This "little" guy was really watching us as we stopped to take some pics. I think he knew I'd eaten one of his buds the night before at the inn. They only use produce from local farms, so the menu changes daily. The beef I ate came from one of the farms, so really could have been his bud. :(

A frozen pond near the inn.

This is known as The Schoolhouse and is part of The Ashbury Inn. It is about 2 or 3 houses down from the Inn proper and has 4 rooms inside that they rent out. They are bigger than our room was, but we liked our privacy. Our view was better, too. We'll get the same room in April when we go back for Theron's birthday.

DC: Part One of Our Anniversary Trip

2010-01-21T19:18:00.003-05:00

Theron knows I love the National Art Museum in DC, so our first stop was the metro station to ride into DC for the morning.

This is inside the foyer of the museum. Love that ceiling!

We left the museum after a few hours of looking at some beautiful art. We walked to the metro station a few blocks over.

This is the National Archives building. We didn't go inside this time, but have before.

The Capitol building as I stand in the middle of the road to get the shot.

You can't tell very well, but the white you see on the water was ice. There was quite a bit.

Next, we headed to Middleburg, VA to shop and then on to Paris!