Alabamians in Yankee Country

It's been a while because we've been busy!  My (Leslie's) parents came up to Buffalo for a visit this past week and we had a fabulous time.  This was only my parents' second time ever flying, and their first time ever flying together.  This was also their first time in New York, and actually the farthest north they've ever been, so it was a totally new experience for them.  We took lots and lots of pictures, so I will put a lot up here.

They got to Buffalo on Tuesday, and we woke up Wednesday to snow falling!  It was perfect.  As you can see, mom and dad were very excited.

It ended up being very cold and snowy for the week they were here, and it didn't melt until the day they left.  Here we are at Dolci, a great little dessert spot near our house.  They had their first cannoli here and loved it of course.  Delish!

We walked up and down our neighborhood, Elmwood Village, and enjoyed all the little shops and the beautiful old homes.

On Friday night, Wes performed at a coffee house, and we had a good time hanging out and listening to our favorite musician.

On Saturday, it was beautifully sunny and totally freezing.  We went out to the harbor area on Lake Erie and enjoyed the sights.

Then we warmed up by introducing the parents to the best fast food in Buffalo: Mighty Taco.  Mmmmmm, super mighty.

Then we went over to Delaware Park near our house.  As you can see here, the lake is totally frozen and snowed over.

And of course I need to throw in a little pic of Boston and his cigar.

On Sunday we hit Niagara Falls!  It was gorgeous with the snow around it.  Up on the observation deck, the wind and mist from the falls was unbelievably strong and we were pretty much frozen.  But it was still amazing and fun!

On our last night we went to dinner at Bada Bing and dang it was good!  I recommend the bada-bacon-burger.

Well, that's been our last week.  We're getting ready to head out to Alabama for Christmas on Monday and we also get to stop through Nashville to see friends.  We're very excited to spend time with family and friends, eat treats, give and get gifts, and of course celebrate our Savior Jesus Christ!  Hope everyone has a merry little Christmas!

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas

First of all, this is a store down the street from us, and I just really want to call them and ask them what their hours are...

Anyway, hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving.  We had a good time at our friends' house even though we were missing family.  We came home that evening and got right into the Christmas spirit by putting up our tree and decorations! Yay!

Even Boston got into the spirit.  Doesn't he look so distinguished in his Santa hat?!?! :)

Saturday wasn't so great on the football front.  The best and most anticipated game of the year - Auburn vs. Alabama - was on, but obviously it didn't end the way we had hoped.

This was actually the first time Auburn has lost against Alabama since we've been married, so it was a sad day. We still love our Auburn Tigers, though, and we'll get them next year!  

On a side note, notice in the background the cute stockings hung on an actual fireplace for the first time!! Love it!

The weather is here, wish you were beautiful.

We got a little bit more snow in our neck of the woods this past week.  However, we've learned since we moved here that everyone has this idea that Buffalo is constantly covered in several feet of snow...and that is true in some areas...but we live in the actual city of Buffalo which doesn't get nearly as much snow.  The "Lake Effect" which is what causes all the snow actually hits the counties south of us, and sometimes even the southern part of our county, but we usually don't see all that craziness. I have enjoyed what little snow we have gotten, though, and I think if we have to deal with the freezing weather, we might as well get to enjoy some snow with it!

On Saturday we braved the freezing temperature and went for a walk at Delaware Park near our house with some friends.  It was a gorgeous day, but my legs were numb halfway through the walk.  Here are some shots of us at the park.  There was this area of ground that had a thick layer of ice on it, and it looked really cool because you could see the colorful leaves under the ice.





We had another Restoration Church gathering on Sunday night, and Wes got some pics of some of the cool folks there.  You'll notice in the last few that Dan's (the pastor) son Nicky managed to get in all the shots and it's hilarious.  

Last night we had our first meeting of what will become our small group.  Only a few people could make it, but we had a great time doing some singing, praying, eating, and of course playing some games.

Hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving this week enjoying family and friends, and thanking God for all His amazing blessings!

Firsts

Well, a few hours after my last blog post where I said we had not seen any snow yet, it started snowing!  We really didn't get much, and it was all melted the next day, but we got some shots of our first snow.  Here is our porch and the front of the house:

This past Friday Wes did his first gig here in New York.  He was searching myspace for artists in the Buffalo area to connect with, and he came across a guy named Tim Andrews who was kind enough to split a 2 1/2 hour set he had at a Starbucks with Wes.  They were both great!

At the end of the night, Dan Trippie, the pastor of Restoration Church who had come out to see Wes, requested that Tim do a John Denver song.  And then he got up there and sang it.  It was hysterical.  If you'd like to see video footage of this, go to Wes's facebook page.  It will be worth your while. :)

Several people came out to see Wes, which was really cool.  Here is his youngest groupie, Amelia.  She is the daughter of our Executive Pastor, Alex, and his wife Jennifer.

Dan, Wes, and Patrick:

Jennifer (Alex's wife) and Gina (Dan's wife):

These are our sweet new friends, Adrienne and Patrick:

Last night we had our 6th Restoration Church gathering, but it was the first at our new location.  Up until this point, we have been meeting in people's homes.  After many other meeting spaces fell through, we finally found a wonderful space to use until something more permanent happens.  We will now be meeting at Park School, a private school in Buffalo.  Right now we are using their dining hall, and it's the nicest dining hall in a school I've ever seen!  It worked out wonderfully last night, and we had a fantastic group of people show up.  Here are some shots of setting up the room and then of the gathering:

Here's Wes doing his thing:

All in all, it's been a great week and we're thankful for what God is doing here.  I'm still looking for a job - to no avail yet, but God always provides for us so I'm not too worried yet.  Honestly I am loving all my free time right now!  We miss everyone, and hope you're all doing well.  Love to you all!