First Weekend as a Homeowner

We christened out first weekend as homeowners with 2 different trips....

to Lowe's!! :)

The first of many trips I'm sure!  Friday night after our workout, we drove just over the border into SC & picked up a whole lotta things!  A rake, inside broom, outside broom, ladder, paint supplies, floor cleaner, and too much to even recall.  The good news - it was all FREE!!

The downside of B's job is the crazy amount of traveling he does...but that traveling provides us a lot of perks truthfully.  He stays in hotels typically 3 nights a week & those stays = mad hotel points!!  So last weekend, B traded a hefty amount of points for 2 $200 Lowe's gift cards!  How fantastic is that!?!

So every Lowe's purchase we've made thus far, has been F, R, double E!  Including this...

Our new rug!

Whatcha think??  I love the pattern, I'm just wondering if it's too small for the space.  It's a 5'x7'.  Our friends who came over Saturday seemed to like it and think it was a good size, especially whenever we get a chair for that corner.  So for now I'll definitely leave it, but what is your opinion?

Saturday we slept in a bit and then got our workout on!  I ran a bit at the gym, then ran home (about a mile) to do my P90 video while B finished his workout at the gym.  We originally thought it would be a pool day, but the weather changed a bit and was slightly chilly & overcast - so we did some house things & ran a bunch of errands.

I made a target run while B mowed {why can't everything from Target be free!?  Ughh...that place gets so much of my money!!} and then we dropped off our keys to our apartment so now it's really, really official, we're all moved out!  We also picked up my car from getting an oil change & 2 new tires - spending more money.  Yuck!

Friday night I made Lemon Drop Cupcakes, so I finally got around to frosting them after all our errands Saturday.  

Yum!!  They are SO good!  Unfortunately, not so good for you, so please, someone - come eat the leftovers!!

Saturday night we had a few friends over to grill & hang out.  It was, as always, a good time and we, of course, love having every one see the house!  :)

Sunday we slept in a good bit - so needed!  I made Carolina Charm's Breakfast Sandwiches and we watched a little Dexter (Shocking end to season 4 btw!!! Whoa!) before attempting to lay out on our patio.  B made me a shirley temple and I read some magazines...but it was just so dang hot!  And no pool to jump in, ha.

B and I set out for a run in our new 'hood and found a nice 3 mile loop.  When I'm feeling brave, I'll definitely attempt that loop twice to get a good 6 miles in!  Maybe this week...

Then we headed back to good ol' SC for our 2nd Lowe's trip of the weekend!  I got some gloves so I can weed our flower beds (yay! Insert sarcasm), a hose, some car wash supplies, and some paint samples!!

So these are the options for the kitchen...

The lighting in these pics isn't the greatest so bare with me...but the top is a gray, 2nd is a mocha brownish, 3rd down is called universal khaki - kinda brown, kinda gray and the color in our downstairs bath, and the bottom one is too light so don't look at it!

What's your pick??  Tell me yours & I'll tell you mine ;)

The rest of our Sunday was lazy, just the way we like it!  And today was back to the work week...bleh.  But the good new friends, we're already a day down!!

Happy almost Tuesday, y'all!

Midweek Randos

I can't begin to tell you what a relief it is to have the thought and anticipation of moving lifted off our shoulders!!  I feel about 12 pounds lighter {ok, not really, but that would be fantastic!}  No, but seriously, big sighs of relief over here!

While we're super happy to be moved in, this guy is still a little unsure....

I think he still feels like he's a city kitty & just isn't used to the 'burbs quite yet!

All these neighborhood sounds and the big space of this house - as opposed to the old apartment - are just a little daunting for this little scaredy cat!  He'll come around I'm sure!

Now that we have a fenced in back yard, I think Benson might feel a little more safe in the 'burbs if he had a companion!  Or I'm just looking for a reason for us to get a puppy ;)

Problem is - we really have no clue what kind of dog we want.  All we really know is not too big, not too small, friendly.  Help!!  What kind of dog should we get??

Hopefully we'll get a pup sometime this summer!

And the summer countdown is in full effect, y'all...30 days!!!  Pure survival mode from here on out.  Kids are antsy, teachers are antsy, testing season is coming & summer's knocking at the door.  30.

The first book I plan to read this summer - 50 Shades of Grey!  I've read the reviews & I just need to check it out for myself :)  Judge away!

Yesterday I took out our trash bin & recycling bin.  Most mundane of tasks to most.  Not for me!!  It was really, super, exciting to take out our trash & recycling bins!  For the house that we own.  Craziness!

Don't mind me, I'm just living in a constant state of disbelief over here :)

Happy hump day, y'all!

Moving Weekend!

** I feel like all my blog posts lately have been rather long winded recaps of major events in my life!  Hah, so please excuse the length of another long reap post....I think my life is slowly returning to a normal pace :) **

All last week, I was waiting, waiting, waiting for the weekend to arrive!  I guess this isn't too different form normal (ha!), but this weekend was moving weekend & B and I could hardly contain our excitement to finally, freaking move ALREADY!!!  We could barely concentrate all week!

B got back into town Thursday and that night, we got to packing!  We were very successful & got a lot done.  We packed his car full, then met at the apartment after work Friday, packed my car full & took it all to the new house!

We unpacked, grabbed a quick dinner & then went to make a purchase B has been SO looking forward to... a new TV!!  60 inches baby!  Oh, my man is so happy!  And the picture is pretty dang amazing, I can't lie.

We made one last trip to the apartment Friday night for a 2nd round of moving things & picked up BenCat.  We slept on the air mattress Friday night in our new bedroom....even though we woke up partially on the floor {we apparently have a slow leak} it was still fun to wake up in OUR HOUSE!

Saturday was for real, moving day.  We picked up the Uhaul & my dad, brothers & uncle met us to help us load up! It went surprisingly fast - even with a trip to go pick up our new couch from the distribution center.  We were at the house UNloading before 11am!

In the midst of moving...sadly I did not take a single photo :(  I fully regret it, but I was just trying to get through it - the type A control freak in me really comes out at times like these ;)

The rest of the day was spent unpacking, arranging, putting together, setting up, etc.  Oh my good gracious, I was tired!  All of our fam came over in the midst of the chaos-that-was-moving for lunch and my mom stayed to help with all the unpacking, arranging, putting together & setting up!  Thank you, thank you mama!!!

Then, my sweet mom, grandmother & aunt took me to Target for a few little house warming gifts :)  We got new bath mats & a hamper!   A new homeowner's dream ;)

Our friends Justin & Andrea helped us break in the house with a little grilling & family style dinner.  We had a few drinks and just relaxed in front of the new TV - it was a perfect Saturday night! (and I was asleep before 10! ha)

The boys, all matchy, matchy before dinner :)

Sunday, we slept in a bit and relaxed that morning before unpacking a bit more, hanging some things on the walls and settling just a little more.  We managed to squeeze in a run, lots of errands, some Dexter, and I put together our 2 new side tables!!  That's right, just call me Bob...the builder.  Obvi.

It was super rainy Sunday & our new lawn was looking rather jungle-esk.  In hopes of not getting kicked out of the neighborhood after only being moved in a day, B managed to cut the damp, front yard during a short break from the drizzle.  The back yard is still jungle-esk, but Lord knows I'm not cutting it I don't know how to cut it...I'd probably lose a limb!

B & his new toy :)

Well without further adieu....here are some pics of the new house!!!  B took them last night & uploaded them to Facebook...so if you're my FB friend, you've probably seen all these.  I just picked a few of my favs...and I left out the rooms that are empty - ha, we'll fill those eventually!

The kitchen!

One of my favorite spaces!!  The eat in area is to the right which houses our kitchen table.  Red is not my fav color for walls - I love it as an accent color! - but it's gotta go.  We'll be picking a paint color soon and probably paint it one weekend in May!  Our first project :)

The family room - right off the kitchen!

I love this room.  B really wanted his new TV, we both really wanted a new sectional couch, & I really wanted new side tables :)  So we compromised and got it all!  Ha

TV - Sharp Aquos

Couch - Overstock.com

Side Tables - Ikea

The office

One thing we loved about this house is it had a living room space we could use as an office for B without having to sacrifice a bedroom.  No one ever uses a living room anyway!  Ha, or at least we figured we wouldn't.  Clearly we need a bigger desk and some rugs for all these hardwoods would be great!!  Ha, again...eventually!

Our Master Bedroom!
I did not take this pic....I would've made sure the sheet was tucked in ;)

Our master bedroom - my favorite part is probably the amazeball fan!!  And the master closet (a total work in progress - but huge!).  And the master bath.  Ok I love everything about the master bedroom :)  We just need the mirror & dresser that matches our bedroom suit.  One day!

The Bonus Room!  Please do excuse the large piece of glass still wrapped from moving on the floor, ha.

I love, love the bonus room!  The built ins are fantastic, as are the hardwoods!  A great hang out spot & my new workout room :)  that also needs a rug!

So that's the pad, friends.  Clearly, you can see that we have quite the Type A tendencies - as I mentioned - as everything is pretty much unpacked and quite settled!  We feel very accomplished....I just couldn't go to work this week with chaos at home!

It's an amazing feeling to have a HOUSE to call our own!  I don't think the newness of this feeling will be wearing off any time soon :)

Spring Break 2012

Well, since almost 2 weeks have passed now, I thought maybe I should get around to blogging about our Spring Break Cruise!  Even though it's a little belated, I wanted to make sure I blog about it so it's officially in the record books :)

**Tons of pictures!!  You've been warned!**

Back in late December, we found out that Brandon had won a sales incentive prize from work...an all expenses paid Caribbean Cruise!!!  We were so excited!  We love vacay {captain obvious here!} and did I hear *free*!?!  I've been on a cruise once before, but this would be Brandon's first.  Since I'm a teacher, the best time to take our cruise seemed like Spring Break, so we booked it!

Little did we know, this would coincide with lots of wedding (shower & bachelorette) and house fun...but it's ok.  It was a nice get away for B & I in the midst of it all.

We flew out early Monday morning of my spring break for Miami.

Just a little sleepy :)

First glimpse of our boat - Majesty of the Seas

Panoramic from the top deck

Obviously, our first task was to get a drink & get changed into our suits!

Mission accomplished

Sailing away....

So long Miami!

King of the World!

Our first night, we didn't want to get fried, so we headed in from the pool to nap & then got ready for dinner.  Dinner every night was delish in the dining room!  The first night, I had filet :)

First night dinner - only pic

Day 2, we woke up in Nassau, Bahamas!  After a quick morning run over looking the ocean & a little breakfast buffet, our mission - a little sight seeing & a lot of beach!

Tourist much?

We couldn't pass up some Rum Cake!  We got Key Lime Pie
Rum Cake - to be eaten once we move :)

Señor Frogs!  We passed by on our quest to find a beach...we planned to head back for lunch.

Beach!!

Not too shabby

Another cruise ship pulling into port

Ahhh refreshment

Bucket O Beers - yes please!

This is the life!

After our bucket 'o beers, we headed back to Señor Frogs for lunch.

Thank goodness, I'm barely tall enough to drink!

Oh the spring breakers!!!  So many of them.

That night, back on the cruise ship, was formal night.  B & I got all gussied up (after another nap in our room....I mean we're on vacation!) and headed to the dining room.

Overall, Nassau was probably our favorite day!  The public beach we parked it on was so fun & relaxing!  We definitely had a good time.

Day 3, we were docked at Royal Caribbean's private island.  Unfortunately, their private island wasn't so private, in our opinion.  3 boats were docked there that day!!  That's a whole lotta people!  We spent some time on the island and then headed back to the ship's pool for the rest of our day.

Our view of the parked ship

Sunset sky

Day 4 we were back in the "States" - Key West!! We woke up to a gorgeous view from our balcony, attempted a run (a little more rough than the beginning of the week) & were excited to explore Key West.  We both had never been & so many have raved about their bars!

Gorgeous homes all over!

The owner of B's company & his family frequent Key West - we asked for a little
advice on where to go & their recommendation did not disappoint! 

Key Lime Pie shots - when in Rome ;)

The bar had live music & the musician's sweet pup was just lounging in his
guitar case :) 

Thursday night was our last night on the ship.  We took a picture with our table mates for the week & one of our servers.  The ladies we sat with each night were from Brazil!

Friday morning, we were back in Miami & it was time to go home.  This might be the first time that we've ever been ok and even a little excited to be leaving vacation!  Ha, it's not that the cruise wasn't wonderful....because it was!!  {Although it's super expensive to drink, fyi!  We managed to work our way around that a bit ;)}  But we knew heading home meant we were one step closer to getting our house!!!

We left tan and excited to head back to the CLT for closing the next Wednesday.  Our Key Lime Pie Rum Cake is awaiting Saturday night - we'll finally be moved in & that will call for some celebrations!

And now that we've bought a house {$$$} I'm going to need B to keep winning free vacations, because Lord knows our bank account won't be ready for another vacay for a while ;)