Welcoming Elias

Brent and I feel so honored to be baby Elias's Godparents.  He will always have a special place in our hearts as he is the first God child to both Brent and I. 

Elias was born on October 16th and weighed in at almost 10lbs...WOW! He has the most beautiful blue eyes like his sister and a full head of dark brown hair!! Today he was introduced to St. Dionysios Greek Orthodox church....a very special occasion for the entire church. Brent and I watched from "our pew" with big sister Eleni as father blessed this wonderful families newest addition at the alter.

Peter and Mary were undoubtedly proud parents during the introduction. 

Every Sunday we look forward to going to church.  We have been blessed with a wonderful and close knit congregation, every one is so supportive of each other.  After service we all get together for lunch and great company.  Today was extra special as we celebrated Thanksgiving together with turkey, salad, sweet potatoes and much more!

Proud dad Peter and Eli!

Nouna, Peter and Eli

 Eli, I just cant get enough of you!!!

Nouno Brent is so excited to be baptizing Elias....from the first time they met in the hospital there was an instant connection! Brent already cant wait to play sports with him, and judging by his hands we might have a football star!

Eli was an angel this morning....regardless of all the loud Greek voices and little yiayias grabbing his sweet hands he still managed to catch some Z's.  He did wake up for a few minutes though to check out Nouno.

Big sister Eleni is amazing! She wanted to sit in the front row this morning (never wants to miss any of the action) but when she heard a baby cry she would immediately look back at her mom to see if baby brother was okay.

Eleni is like a celebrity at church! She is such a happy girl and gives the BEST hugs! She knew that Elias coming to church for the first time was a special occasion.... so what better way to celebrate than with sweet treats!

Thank you Jouras family for making Brent and I part of your family.....we love you!

Just yell "PULL"

Today after church, my mom and I went to my friend Katies beautiful bridal shower while the men went to the shooting range for some father-son bonding time. 

By the looks of their bucket they had a great time shooting clay pigeons.

  

A few hours later we met them at the range! We didn't mean to interrupt their bonding time but we couldn't resist being outside in the perfect weather.....esp. since it will be freezing before we know it!

Shooting has been a hobby of my parents for a few years, but I have never been to the range with them.  As soon as I got there my dad wanted to teach me how its done!

Brent looked pretty great in his shooting gear...and he wasn't too bad of a shot either. 

Thanks mom and dad for taking us out! 

A great end to a wonderful weekend.....Love ya Draper!

100th Anniversary Celebration!!

 

This past weekend marked the 100th Anniversary of Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church.  The elegant affair took place at the Hyatt Regency downtown.  As soon as we walked into the hotel we were greeted with several friendly faces from both the KS and MO church.  The food was delicious and the Greek band was SO FUN!

Since Brent and I have started house hunting we were originally not planning on going....trying to save every penny! But when my friend Katie said she had two extra tickets we decided last minute that this was something worth splurging for!

Katie and I met at camp back in middle school! It has been so wonderful to watch each other grow up.

Lately, Katie and I have been getting together on a weekly basis to go over details for her wedding, but last week we got side tracked over a bottle of wine and started planning Brent and Drew's friendship! Just as we expected, they hit it off right away!

A few of my favorite moments from the night:

Angelo always starts the party!

The soon-to-be bride and groom!

My Theo and Thea are so much fun!

I loved watching all the Maibs dance with their yiayia!

So this picture makes me laugh every time I look at it! Adam wanted to be as tall as Brent in the picture but he couldn't do it without laughing!! We love seeing you Adam!!

Brent and I are also proud to announce that we will be baptising baby Elias! Just call us Nouna and Nouno!!

Trick or Treat!

Last weekend Brent and I went to Louisburg Cider Mill with some more Drapers.  Originally our plan was to go to the pumpkin patch....but we skipped the patch and went straight for the apple cider doughnuts and pictures with pumpkins.  

 

Carly and Tyler always have a great time together!

 Cute family picture!

 Pumpkins mark the beginning of fall which is my favorite season! The weather is getting cooler, windows open, pumpkin candles, and the holidays are right around the corner! My sister Kristina and her boyfriend Taylor came to KC to enjoy the weather with us.  While Brent and Taylor threw the football around Kristina and I played with the puppies.

My husband is a natural!

Even Koukla wanted to get in on the football action!

 Introducing Kristina and Taylors new puppy!

 Koukla Time!

Love is a Beautiful Thing!

On of our favorite songs is Love is a Beautiful Thing by Phil Vasser.  In fact, that was the song played at our reception as we got introduced as Mr. and Mrs. Draper!  Steve Willis with Underpin Photography took these amazing photos.

 I had the greatest morning with my bridesmaids.  We woke up early, ordered room service and enjoyed getting pampered!

The wind was insane on our wedding day! Bobby pins were falling out of my hair left and right! Made for a great photo though!

Brent looked fantastic!  We waited to see each other until it was time to walk down the aisle.  Such a wonderful moment seeing my groom for the first time!

Yiayia and Papou were so proud of Brent and I....Yiayia even let me wear her garter.  It was my something old and something blue.

A special day for both our families.  Thank you for everything!

Our wonderful bridal party!

Thank you to everyone...families, bridal party, friends...etc for celebrating our love and commitment to one another.  It was an unforgettable day filled with thousands of special moments.  It surpassed all of our dreams and we are forever greatful.


 A few special photos

My girls made me feel like a princess the day of the wedding.  Thank you for taking such great care of me :o)

My dad giving me away

Our first kiss as husband and wife!

Our first dance 

We Are Official!

In the eyes of the government, we are official! On Friday October 1st I received my new social security card!

The Drapers!

Time is flying! Its hard to believe that we are a few days shy of being married for a month.  Why is it that when you are growing up time seems to be moving in slow motion; but once you have your life together, it goes too fast?

A few pictures of us enjoying our Saturday.  Koukla not so much....she is terrified of cameras but hopefully she will adapt.

Handsome hubs

Best Buds

So crazy about my Koukie

We meet with our photographer on Monday evening, can't wait to share our wedding pictures!