~Happy 50th Wedding Anniversary, Daddy and Moma!!!~

On a rather warm day in June...June 30th, 1961...my parents, Edgar and Martha Bryan were married (at the young age of 18!) CONGRATULATIONS...Daddy and Moma! Thank you for staying faithful to God and to each other!
(We kids knew that we wouldn't be able to be together on their anniversary (for our family would be here in Colombia and Andrew and family would be in AK!) so we celebrated back in Jan. 2011.
Janie E. took these fun family pics for us. Enjoy!
~These are the very steps in the girls dorm at God's Bible School where Daddy would meet Moma for their dates...way back when. =)~

~We love you, Daddy and Moma, and think y'all are the BEST!~

~Moma still flirts with Daddy...and most of the time gets her way. ;-)~

~I love this picture...for if you know my Daddy, he has a neat contagious laugh!~

~Daddy and Moma's oldest son and family.  Andrew, Vonnie, Heidi, Kate, Drew, Grant, Taylor and Tyler from AK.~

~Their next son and family.  Lincoln, Lyn, Keith and Kelsea from VA.~

~Their oldest Daughter and family.  Laura, Daryl, Natasha, Brittany, Darla, and Bryan from OH.~

~Me...the baby of the family...Heather, Phillip, Kimberly, Sarah, Noah, Elijah, and Mary from OH, COL., ARG. everywhere. =)~

~Daddy asked Moma to marry him in the room of the window above their head.  This used to be an apartment building but it is now the Taft Museum in Cinci, OH.~

~Gramp and his 8 grandsons in the girl's dorm parlor at God's Bible School.~

~Gram and her 9 granddaughters.~

~L to R: Vonnie, Andrew, Laura, Daryl, Lyn, Lincoln, Moma and Daddy, Heather and Phillip.~

 ~This was a fun pose! =)~

 ~Daddy and Moma with their original 4 children.~

 ~What a fun picture.~

We are standing in birth order in front of the William Howard Taft Museum where Daddy proposed to Moma. (I left this one big so you can double click on it to zoom it closer.)
~ALL BECAUSE 2 PEOPLE FELL IN LOVE!!~

Daddy and Moma,
Though we are SAD that we cannot be with y'all on your SPECIAL day...
Our family is sending LOTS of LOVE, BEST WISHES, and HUGS your way!

~Melanie and Kimberly teaching S.S. and Our "Christmas Dinner in June"~

~The Lord really helped Melanie as she taught the Sunday school kids.  She used the flannel graph that was given as a gift to our church.   Before she came to Colombia she had found some fun fish crafts on sale at Hobby Lobby and had purchased them...knowing she might teach S.S. here.  When she was asked to teach the story of Jonah...She knew that the fish that she had found on sale back in the USA would be the perfect craft for that lesson.  Isn't that neat how Jesus "coordinated" everything?! =)  Kimberly was her assistant.~

~After church Noah and a VERY FRIGHTENED Elijah sitting on Sis. Farly's brother's motorcycle. (Elijah was exhausted but was also SCARED that the loud motorcycle might start up and go off with them. =)~

~We invited Bro. Jimmy, Sis. Farly, and their 2 daughters, and another couple over for Sunday dinner.  Here Natalie, and Kimberly are helping get ready to eat.~

~Us ladies working in my kitchen...From L to R: (Me) Heather, Sis. Farly, Gloria, and Melanie.~

~A few months back Bro. Jimmy had told us how he WISHED we could spend Christmas here in Colombia with them.  We did spend Christmas 2007 and 2008 here, but then we spent the last 2 Christmases in the USA and it looks like this coming one will be spent in Argentina, Lord willing.  So, they were surprised when they arrived to find that...I had decided to set the table with my Christmas China, play Spanish Christmas music, and have a "Christmas dinner in June" so that we could "celebrate Christmas together." =)  Here's a place setting on our table.  I bought each person a choc. candy bar to put by their place card.~

~Everyone visiting in our living room.~

~Gloria and Jaime~

~Kimberly, Noah, Natalie, Gaby holding baby Mary, Sarah, Melanie and Elijah.~

~Baby Mary loves her new walker we got her Saturday and goes lots of places in it now...mainly backwards. =)~

~Noah, Gaby, and Sarah sat at a table outside our front door.~

~Our table.  I served Louisiana rice and baked chicken, a green salad with my homemade Italian dressing, Angel biscuits and jam, Candied carrots, Homemade blackberry lime-ade, and Strawberry pretzel dessert.~

~Bro. Jimmy, Sis. Farly, Natalie and Gaby!~

~Melanie, Kimberly, and Natalie's table.~

We had a good Lord's day!!

~A pastoral call and some of God's BEAUTIFUL flowers!!~

~We Enjoyed DEVOURED some YUMMY pimento cheese sandwiches with the cheese Melanie's grandparents sent us! =D~

 ~Phillip wanted to make a pastoral call on a couple men from our church who work in a meat market.  I knew that Marisol had taken me to a Flower market right outside that market where you get beautiful flowers for CHEAP!  So, we all went and had fun seeing and buying flowers!~

 ~Phillip got tears in his eyes when he saw all the different kinds of BEAUTIFUL FLOWERS that God has created.  These pictures don't do it justice...it was AMAZING how many types of flowers there were!  What a mighty God we serve!~

 ~Then we went inside the market and looked around, ate breakfast, and bought some veggies.~

 ~Eating breakfast.~

~Our breakfast of scrambled eggs over rice, and cafe con leche (coffee with milk) to drink.~

~Melanie enjoyed seeing inside this market.~

~While we ate breakfast...we had a beautiful view of a mountain and a famous church in Bogota, but it's hard to see it in this picture.~

~Then we went to see Esneider and his Father-in-law Luciano who sell meat in this market.~

~Mr. Luciano asked if I wanted any meat.  I told him some meat to grill out would be great.   Here he is cutting it for me...then he surprised us and GAVE it to us for a gift!  Later, we went back to the flower market and bought flowers for both of these men to take home to their wives!~

~We got home and had fun putting lots of flower arrangements together!~

~Some pretty hydrangeas in a vase with rocks and limes.~

~Beautiful purple roses. (We got 25 purple roses for $3.00!! =)~

~A neat red flower~

~Snapdragons and a flower that they call "Shrimp".~

~We made Melanie this flower arrangement for her room.~

~Phillip bought me this branch of GORGEOUS orchids for our room!~

~Here is a closer picture of the "Shrimp" flower. =)~

~Kimberly's flowers she bought for her desk.~

~ Hydrangeas that we put in Melanie's room.~

The Lord really helped Melanie as she gave the devotional Thursday evening. I'll post pics soon! Right now we have to run get groceries for we are getting company for Sunday dinner. =)