How We Do It 'Round Here

The moon comes up and the sun goes down
We find a little spot on the edge of town
Twist off, sip a little, pass it around
Dance in the dust, turn the radio up
And that fireball whiskey whispers
Temptation in my ear
It’s a feelin’ alright Saturday night
And that’s how we do it ’round here
Yeah that’s how we do it ’round here

-Florida Georgia Line

This past weekend we headed to Winston-Salem for a quick visit to celebrate TJ's last weekend before he heads out West to Oklahoma and the big engagement! It is very rare to corral our whole family together, so the fact that we were all in the same place for a few hours is nothing short of a miracle. 

 One of our Winston Salem favorites!

Enjoying the company of the fam!

Happy early Birthday to me!

We arrived Friday evening and headed to Foothills Brewery for supper and a few drinks. We were certainly not disappointed with our choices either! Already in the mood for a pumpkin beer? Head over there now! Mama also surprised me with an early birthday present. Score!

The next day we woke up early (thank you full house that sent us to the sofabed. . .) and headed to the Y to complete a WOD on their outdoor track. Poor David is training for a Tough Mudder and hates running. After a few laps he threw in the towel and decided he would ramp up his training once the Fall temps hit;-) 

The Momma and I hit the mall later and I decided that instead of a "back to school" outfit I would get "back to school" makeup. Thank you Clinique for taking the little spending money I had left from this summer. . . The bright side? Coupled with my early birthday present my skin is glowy and glimmery! 

That evening Ashley's family joined us for a rainy cookout (thanks for grilling in the monsoon, Daddy!) of delicious food. It was exciting to get to know her family better and chat about wedding stuff. The best part? She asked us to be a part of her bridal party!! I'm so excited for my first bridesmaid experience to be on this special day! 

Adorable way Ashley asked us to be her bridesmaids!

"The Originals"

HOORAH!

Last May we were fortunate enough to watch my younger brother, TJ, commission as an officer in the United States Marine Corp. He then spent a few months as a civilian waiting for his orders. In January he headed to Quantico, VA for The Basic School (TBS). This past week we witnessed his graduation from TBS! And this kid didn't just graduate, he graduated number 4 out of 273 marines! We were so incredibly excited to be able to witness this accomplishment. A few pictures from the big day. . . 

The parentals at the USMC Museum. 

Before heading into the ceremony, please take note of how thrilled TJ is to be with his family ;)

So excited we got to be there!

My adorable husband watching the CrossFit Games on his "grown up Gameboy"

 Number 4 with some of his fellow "dean's list" buds

TJ and some of his frands.

Friday's Letters [07.26]

Happy Friday, folks!!

Dear TJ, We are so proud of you and all that you have accomplished in such a short time. We can't wait to see what's next!

Dear Keith Urban, You put on an amazing concert-one we will never forget!



Dear body, I am so sorry for all the havoc I have put you through these past few weeks. I promise the increased consumption of junk food and the decreased physical activity will end soon!

Dear David, Thank you so much for you patience and love. I know that I am not always the easiest to be around (pretty much every night when I get tired :) ), but I am so thankful that you continue to push in and love me.



Dear Daisy, I apologize that we continue to pawn you off on people this summer, it's not because we don't love you! With our travels done for the foreseeable future you can rest easy, you little Neurotic Nellie, you.

Greatest Weekend of the Year

One of my favorite weekends all year is Memorial Day Weekend. For as long as I can remember I have counted down the days to this glorious three day weekend that represents so much. Here is a glimpse at a few reasons why it's so wonderful:

honor soldiers

First and foremost this weekend is an excellent reminder of the incredible sacrifices these outstanding servicemen and servicewomen make for us each and every day. It is so easy to forget that when we are caught up in the mundane of our day to day duties, but without them we would live in a very different world. We truly are free because of the brave!

TJ and all his friends at Marine camp.

cookouts

Um, hello?? Who doesn't love the chance to pick out on grilled burgers and dogs after a long winter of pot roast and potatoes? The reintroduction of summer brews (I see you, Summer Shandy and Bud Light Lime) and cornhole are the cherries on top of the ice cream sundae!

Memorial Day Cookout last year!

start of summer

For most teachers this weekend signifies the start of a much-needed break. We still have a few more wake-ups until we're out for good, but this weekend kicks it off in a great way!

True story after this exceedingly long Winter!

skip Monday

I don't think this reason needs anymore explanation.

2012 Rewind

Happy New Year's Eve one and all! I've decided that people fall into two distinct categories: they either loved the previous year and are hopeful for the new year, or they are totally over the previous year and are hopeful for better times in the new year. Regardless of which camp people fall into, no one ever wishes to stop time. People are always hopeful for the new year, and I am no different.

Here is a glimpse at some of what we've been up to . . .

I set some goals and created a 30 Before 30 List. 

I completed my first 5k.

My sweet husband guest posted and kick-started his blogging career again.

We ventured to Charleston, SC for a few days.

We witnessed my brother graduating from NCSU and his commissioning ceremony into the USMC.

We celebrated our 2nd Anniversary.

I had surgery on my foot to remove a cyst.

We spent a week at the beach with family.

My kidneys relapse, and we tackled the minimal change disease again.

We announced our little family would be growing in the coming year!

And much, much more. Thank you for joining us on this journey!

Boo's Big Weekend Part 3

I'm back with the final details of the weekend (Part 1 and Part 2)! Sorry it took me so long for those of you on the edges of your seat, but this girl got crazy caught up in life.

Following graduation we headed back to Winston for supper with my grandma, uncle, and two sweet cousins. Well, I should probably say my grandma and aunt. My cousins were lost in Lego-land as soon as Daddy brought out the buckets. We got together to eat more delicious food and recap the weekend's activities!

Sunday morning I headed to church with The Momma for a special Mother's Day service. We got to see five sweet baby girls be dedicated to the Lord by their families. Her church seems to have the exact opposite problem we do. Where they seem to have an influx of girls, we seem to have an influx of boys! Following the church service we returned home for a Mother's Day/Graduation/Commissioning Ceremony Brunch with the Winston-Salem fam. It was here that Daddy presented TJ with his "big" gift-a 1944 M1 rifle! The gun saw time overseas during WWII and is in excellent condition. I was so enthralled with it I teased TJ about taking it on Pawn Stars to see what he could get for it;-)

Showing off his goodies

Daddy explaining the significance of the gun.

 Examining his new treasure.

After that we headed home to recoup before the big week at work-testing for me, project for Davido!

Boo's Big Weekend Part 2

I'm back with more details from Boo's Big Weekend! Sidenote: In case you were wondering who exacly "Boo" was, he is my (not so little anymore) brother. Boo has been his nickname since he was a kid. He won't admit but he loves it;-)

Saturday morning we were up and at 'em early again to head to the university graduation. Davido and I skipped this one when we graduated mainly because we just didn't see the point. We thought our departmental graduation would be more important. Due to the awesomeness of TJ, and the fact that is now a commissioned officer in the USMC, he was being honored at the ceremony. Of course we were going to go if he was being honored! The newly commissioned officers from all four branches were asked to stand at the beginning of the ceremony and the audience gave them a standing ovation. How neat is that?!? We were all so excited to see them recognized!

The ceremony dragged on after that. Since NCSU is such a large school they don't call the name of every undergraduate or masters student (thank heavens! The processional alone took over an hour), but they do call the names of those who received their doctorate. Rightfully so too. Those guys and gals worked their booties off!

Gotta keep that hat straight!

Hey, Ma! I'm on TV!

One of the more exciting parts of the three and a half hour long event (thank goodness for smartphones and iPads!) was getting to hear Phillip Rivers speak. P. Riv as I like to call my bud (no we have never actually met but I am quite certain we would get along very well if we ever did. . .) gave the commencement speech since he was a 2003 graduate of NCSU. It was a neat speech all about faith, family, and football-three of my most favorite things.

P. Riv!

Immediately following we skedaddled on back to campus for the departmental graduation. The emcee was a gregarious old professor who finished the ceremony with an experiment. I was quickly reminded with all the big words and equations why I did not do so well in Chem 101. . . One of the neatest parts of the ceremony was when they asked all the graduates to take a flower to the person in the audience who supported them the most in their tenure at NCSU. TJ chose the Momma and had her in tears.

 Momma and her Boo-man

I also can't forget to share that just prior to the ceremony Momma had a bit of a snafu. She thought we were going upstairs for the ceremony so when my dad went through a door she followed him without thinking. Well, she followed him right into the men's restroom. I was laughing so hard I almost wet my pants while waiting for the women's restroom.

Looking sheepish just after the event

Day 3 of the festivities continues tomorrow!

 

Busy Little Bees

So here's a look at what has been going on. . .

First there was this:

Then there was this:

Then we witnessed this:

And this was pretty neat too:

And finally we got to be a part of this:

And a whole bunch of stuff in between that I will fill in the details of tomorrow! Congrats TJ!!