Merry Christmas everybody!!

Things are great with the Benacs. Right now we're making thousands of red marks on tests and finals so we can send all our little intellectuals home for the holidays with a report card. This is quite the tragedy because all we really want to do is drink eggnog and celebrate Christmas. 

Since we last wrote our days have been filled with fun, family, and firsts.

In early November we spent the weekend in College Station visiting Drew's family and brother who goes to college there.  David marched at half time of the football game and told us all about his everyday life in the Corps.  We just found out that he passed his classed this semester and they're letting him come back in the fall (great job Dave!)  A&M got creamed by OU but managed to score at least once which was occasion enough for a first ever touchdown kiss (an A&M tradition- sorry no picture).

The very next weekend we took our first camping trip together!  Went to a state park just North of Houston, the weather was great and we got to do some awesome hiking.  Here we are at our campsite.  

Next we headed home for thanksgiving and were able to spend some great time with both sides of the family.   It was fun coming home for the first time since being married.  The first night at the Williams' Drew freaked out when he woke up in Hannah's bed but then remembered he was married now and sleeping with Hannah was okay.  The Benacs were great hosts (you set out the red towels and everything mom - thanks) and it was fun to hang out with the boys. 

That very next weekend we were off again. This time to Dallas where we were able to see our good friends Mark and Megan (getting married in February) as well as Cody and Emily.  Hannah spent time with Megan at a shower while Drew and Mark worked on building Hannah's Christmas present (pictures to come next time).  Cody and Emily were awesome hosts as always.  We loved catching up, going to church, watching Cody coach, and who can forget the great chicken fried steak at J. Gilligans! 

On our way home from Dallas we made an awesome discovery and bought a $10 tree at IKEA. Who knew? It survived the highway trip on the top of the Accord and now sits beautifully decorated in our living room.  Check it out! 

We are both so blessed to have so many special ornaments from our families including these two latest additions from the Benacs.  

We have loved getting ready for out first Christmas together.  Hannah has decorated the apartment and it looks amazing.  We have been able to have several guests over recently and are so thankful that our home can be a place where God's love is felt and shared.  

God has been so good to us lately.  He has continued to watch over us and is leading us.  We have had an awesome answer to prayer over the last few months as Drew has been accepted to two medical school!  You can be praying that the Lord would lead us and prepare the palce he wants us to be next year. 

This weekend we will celebrate Christmas together (Whoohoo!), go to a Shane and Shane Christmas concert on Saturday night and then head home on Sunday.  We can't wait to see most of you soon.  We love you and Merry Christmas again!

Hi Everybody! We are so excited to have our blog up and running so that we can tell you guys about everything that's been going on with us lately.  There has been so much!

Thank you again to everybody for all the work that went into the wedding.  We absolutely loved it and have incredible memories that we will treasure for the rest of out lives.  

(And thanks Josh for some beautiful pictures!!! More to come)

After the wedding headed off to Hawaii.  We had the most amazing time and got to do so many fun things.  We spent lots of time on the beach, went hiking, ate lots of good food, went to a Luau, went snorkeling, rented a convertible, ate more good food, and loved being married.  This was such a sweet time for us to be together and it couldn't have been better.  Thanks Grandma Shack!  Check out some of these cool pictures from the honeymoon. 

(View of Waikiki beach where our hotel was from the Diamond Head hike went on.)

(Huanama Bay - a famous place for snorkeling.  We saw some of the most colorful fish and even got so swim beside huge sea turtles! It was awesome and incredibly beautiful)

(Here we are at the Luau.  The best part was the sunset)

(One of our last days there we rented a convertible and drove all over the island. We went to the North shore where one of Drew's friends is from, saw the local sites, went hiking,  and witnessed some great surfing.)  

(One of the cool shops we found on the North Shore.  Great cookies here)

We were so sad to leave Hawaii and really want to go back.  Life back in Houston carried on without us while we were gone so we returned with huge piles of papers to grade and an apartment full of sweet new presents.  The last few weeks have been really fun as we have been able to start our lives here together.  All our new appliances and gadgets have somehow found a home and we are loving using them to cook new things.  We love driving to and from school together everyday.  The 3rd graders and Chemistry kids are doing well.  They are getting anxious for the holidays but everyday God seems to give us some form of encouragement to keep going. We are slowly seeing some of the lives of these kids change.  Praise God! Here is a picture of Hannah's class and some of Drew's students who decorated his room the last day before the wedding.  

Apartment life is as good as it gets. We take long showers (they pay the water bill) and enjoy scenic dinners on our balcony from time to time.  See below

This last weekend Drew turned 23!  Hannah cooked special meals all weekend long and topped it off with a homemade cheesecake that was the best thing any human being has ever tasted.  Here is the gourmet cook herself in action...

In other news... we're headed to College Station this weekend to watch Drew's brother David march at the A&M football game. It will be fun to see the Benacs and spend time with friends in College Station.  Drew bought a new suit with some extra wedding money and has been offered a medical school interview at UTSA.  We are so thankful for all that we have and for all of you.  We don't know what lies ahead in the next year(s) but we are assured that the Lord will continue to call his people and he will be faithful when he does (I Thes 5:24).  All of this is for his glory.  

Much love, Hannah and Drew