Friends Tomorrow Night!

I'm so excited to have our friends over Sunday night, and I realized I've never properly introduced them. I found some pictures (including one from our GRAMMY's PARTY - please note my sequined-bolero just for the occasion) and thought they would provide the perfect material for introductions. (In the last picture, we are all wearing name tags as a joke because AARON cannot remember anyone's names. EVER! It's hilarious.)

First up is Chris and Allison. They are our best carny friends! Allison used to teach at Mattoon Middle School, where I work now, and Chris got his degree as an architect. They made a deal to give it up and start their own business with carnival games and rides, IF Chris would take Allision to Europe when they were done. (She has a minor in Spanish, too!) The deal worked, and now, six (?) years later, they're still at it! Here is a picture of them on the day they found out they were going to have their little girl, Hadleigh Reese.

They have a dog named Dexter and they travel from about March - October, collecting amazing stories on the carnival circuit. I wish you could meet them to hear some of the most hilarious tales I've ever heard AND to eat some of Allison's delicious cooking/baking/whatever you call it. She's always coming up with themes for our next party, and when she hosts, it's with the complete place-card, labeled dishes you might expect. Little Hadleigh is still waiting to come to our house because she's such a tiny little thing! She will make her grand debut in about April, with likely one of the cutest outfits you've ever seen - the girl has more clothes than any big person I know.

Next, we have Jayme and Aaron. Jayme and I work in the same district - she's a high school psychologist. (She does a trillion other things, too, like counseling, mothering, nursing, and organizing tons of data, but her actual title is psychogist.) As you can tell from this adorable pic, she's very professional, too. Jayme is so much fun and probably could have been a professional shopper (that is a fashion snuggie). In her free time, she loves to talk about Financial Peace. (hahahaha!) Her husband Aaron works at a local bank and is a wiz at Priceline deals. He has a...WIDE VARIETY of friends and is really funny, as you can tell from this image of him at a weiner roast last Fall. (His hair is not actually that scary.) The two of them live in Charleston in a beautiful wooded area with their dog, Piper, and cat, Kitty. (Truth.) They have an adorable house with a POOL that I'm ready to start using soon... They are a lot of fun because they are always up for just about anything, including taking in foreign exchange students or playing made-up games. :)

Adam and Abbie are about the cutest couple you're going to meet. (They are pretty much always like they are in this picture!) Adam is our technology minister at church and he definiely adds a ton of interest with awesome videos and lots of creativity. He has an amazing singing voice and actually graduated with a music focus, so he gets to use those talents by directing Christmas in the Chapel every year. He might be the biggest Colts fan I know, but he's bounced back from his superbowl-induced depression, so that's a positive. Abbie is always happy and smiling - unless you get her going on the topic of thank you notes, at which point she transforms into a rather angry little elf. She is also an encyclopedia of Friends-trivia, which prior to meeting her, I thought was a title held my college roommate, Susan. But seriously, she knows ev-ery thing about that show. She's also a recent Aunt and she works at Sarah Bush in Mattoon.

In a later edition, I'll tell you all about Carly & Jim; Amanda & Ryan; Chris & Kelsey; Liz & Kong; and Lydia & Nate. Quite frankly, I'm too tired to write anymore.