Looking forward

All week I've been excited for this weekend!  This weekend all of these fabulous people will be in town!!

Aunt Stacy & Uncle Scott, Erin & Ryan (who if you recall just got engaged!), and Ashley & Richard!  Naturally I'm overly excited to see Erin's ring in person and celebrate with all of them!!  Erin & Ryan will be staying with us too so its always fun having house guests!  I get to play hostess so I'll be baking lots tomorrow :)

Also, our friends Justin & Andrea will be here!  Well Andrea lives here, but Justin lives in Va Beach, with Ryan actually, so we don't get to see him as much!!

Saturday, all 8 of us are going to our apartment pool!  They're having an "Hasta la Vista Summer" pool party complete with Qdoba, frozen drinks, & a DJ so of course we will be partaking =)

Most exciting of all....Saturday is the start of FOOTBALL SEASON!!!!!  Well, preseason, but that still means PANTHER FOOTBALL is back!!!

Erin, Ryan, Ashley & Richard are going to a family friend's couples shower Saturday night, but Justin, Andrea, Brandon & myself are planning to scalp some tickets!!  Can't wait to put on my jersey & watch my team in action! So, so, excited!!!

I can't believe my last full week of summer is drawing to an end :(  Although I'm sad summer is on the outs, I am looking forward to starting school! There's nothing like welcoming a new school year, a familiar routine, a new beginning, and fall!  It's always a little exciting and I welcome routine.

I got the email today that my Erin Condren planner sent!!  I can't wait to get it and fill it up with all sorts of stuff coming up!

Next thing we know, we'll be wearing sweaters, jeans, not sweating, drinking pumpkin spice lattes, and layering cardigans, scarves & clogs!  Well maybe not clogs, but you get the idea.  So come on fall, anytime now!  I'm looking forward to you!

Hope you & yours have a splendid weekend!  And GO PANTHERS!

Holy Recap Batman

I went from a blogging fool to a non-blogger overnight.  Whoops!  Too much of a good thing maybe?!  After being locked in B's backseat most of the week last week, guess I wasn't much interested in my computer anymore.  So now to recap from where I left off....

Let me first just say, I have NO clue how my husband does what he does!! He spends close to 6-7 hours (give or take a few!) in his car EVERYDAY!  By about 230 on Wednesday I was ready to scream, pull my hair out, and throw a three year old tantrum I was so tired of being in a car.  I would go insane if I were him.  But I am beyond grateful for a hard working husband who is extremely disciplined and wants to provide well for our family!

We try to remind ourselves often that this is just a season and we are hopeful one day he won't be traveling as much!  But absence makes the heart grow fonder, right!?

After Nashvegas, we were Michigan bound and finally, Thursday night we arrived to this piece of West Michigan heaven...

Brandon's Mom's house sits on about 8 acres complete with a barn, pasture, horse arena, coy pond, and beautiful scenery!

B's sister Ashley tends to the barn and horses and gives riding lessons. Brandon & Ashley both grew up barrel racing, but Ashley still barrel races almost every weekend in the summer & is quite good at it!

Ashley & her husband, Casey, are actually in the process of buying the house from B's mom.  They have lots of cool plans for renovations for the house over the years and are excited to make it their own!

I cannot tell a lie...all of these pictures are from my MIL & SIL's facebook :) But they're too pretty not to share!!  I love, love, love visiting up there and cannot wait to share their home with our kids one day!

Michigan in the summer time is like pure joy, I can't even describe it. Although they've had their share of hot & humid up there this summer, for the most part it tends to stay a little cooler and less humid than down south.  In fact, the house doesn't even have AC!  It gets a little warm inside, but there's usually a nice breeze and it just feels peaceful.

Friday morning I hung out outside for a bit with these sweet babies...

Charlie & Cody!  They are some really sweet pups and love to greet you when you pull in the drive!

Cody is pretty much the best dog, well, ever!  If he wasn't an ALASKAN Malamute and didn't have enough fur to warm a small eskimo village, I'd steal him away to NC.

He's a gentle giant and one in a million for sure!  Most Alaskan Malamutes are not near as friendly or gentle as he is!  He's my buddy :)

After Brandon worked a bit Friday, we moved some of his childhood things to store at his grandparents since we just don't have room to bring it all home yet!  It was fun to look at pictures, horse ribbons, trophies, and cute childhood odds and ends!  I stole a "Brandon" puzzle to put in a little boy room one day as well as one of his high school sweat shirts to cuddle up in in the winter :)

Friday night Ashley & Casey, along with 2 other friends, came over to the farm & we all cooked out some delish chicken, corn, pineapple & cheesy potatoes.  Yum!  After we had a good ol' fashioned bon fire, complete with s'mores and a burning couch!  I even wore my cowgirl boots =)  It was so fun I didn't even take pictures!!  Oops.

Saturday didn't quite go our way unfortunately.  We were supposed to head out to the Coast Guard festival in Grand Haven, MI on Lake Michigan, but they rain had other plans.  Boat docked, filled with gas, and rain pouring down, we called it at noon.  We went to visit B's mom at work and said our farewells as we didn't feel the need to prolong the dreaded 12 hour drive home...bleh.

So 2 tanks of gas, a McFlurry, and 11 hours and 45 minutes later, we pulled back into home around 145 am Sunday morning.  We were sad to leave and sad to cut the trip short :(  Unfortunately, because it's so far away, weekend trips on the regular are near impossible and our time up there always seems too short and too few and far between!  But hopefully we can go for longer toward the holidays and of course are looking forward to whenever we get to go back!!

This week I am trying to soak up every last ounce of summer.  Soon I will be bidding farewell to summer because teacher workdays officially begin next Thursday and I'll be going into school probably every day next week anyway, to move around and set up my office (yes I get an office, but no classroom, ha!).

So I think that recaps to where I am today.  Hopefully my non-bloggingness is over :)  Until next time...

Blogging Fool

That's me.  I am a blogging fool this week!  Its not my fault, though.  I'm holed up in the backseat of B's Ford Escape with a mobil hot spot and my mac.  Pinterest, facebook, & blogger are all consuming :)

Yesterday I fell in love, y'all.  I fell in love with a new city!  Like maybe I need to live there kinda fell in love!  I fell in love with Nashville.  Brandon and I stayed in Nashville last night and the city pretty much captured my heart. We're already trying to figure out when we can go back & stay longer than a night!

B really likes traveling through Nashville & staying there for work, but hates that he's always alone and can never go experience it.  Not this week!  Since I'm along for the trip, we figured we'd have a little Tuesday night date night in downtown Nashvegas!

B was gracious enough to indulge me and take a timed photo before we stepped into the heat!  :)  Just look past the messy desk!

Pause.  Can y'all see my shoes in this pic??  No?  I didn't think so.  So I took a close up pic for you!

How awesome are these shoes!?  Three and a half inches of tan, wedged gloriousness, and quite comfortable I might add.  I got the exact same pair in black, ON SALE, at Belk last week.  Probably should have told y'all sooner! They were having a big sale.  I got each pair for $17.50 and saved $103!  Just sayin' ;)

Resume to Nashvegas...our hotel was off Broadway in the heart of all the honky-tonk country flair Nashville promises.

Every restaurant & bar, and I mean EVERY one, has live music 7 nights a week!  So fun!

We ate at a BBQ place called Rippy's Smokin' Bar & Grill.  Brandon had eaten there before, but it had been a few years prior, & my SIL suggested it as well.  It had a great rooftop patio!  If it wasn't 157 degrees 101 degrees we might have actually eaten up there :(  Maybe next time.  Their pulled chicken plate was DE-lish!  I ate it all, no shame!!

After dinner we wanted to explore Broadway a little more!  Our next stop was this place...

The Stage was featured in the movie Country Strong (which I loved!) so we wanted to stop in and check it out!

They, of course, had a band and they were really awesome!  We took a video of them covering one of our fav Jason Aldean songs, but I don't know how to edit it unfortunately.  All around the bar they have pictures hanging autographed by any body who's anybody in Country Music!  Lots of country music stars stop in there on the regular to play, as well!  Just not last night, ha.  You can catch a lot of the videos on their website!

There was a giant mural adjacent to the stage with all the "founders" of country music.  In fact, the man on the top left is my relative, the King of Country Music, Roy Acuff himself!  (See...Nashville's in my blood!  I think that's why I liked it so much ;)

We stopped in a music store off Broadway & found even more Roy Acuff stuff!  I told B once we have a house we need to buy a canvas print of him like they had in the store to display in our house.  He said we'll see!  They had lots of his music for sale.  Have you ever heard any?  Look up "Night Train to Memphis", I think that's my favorite ;)

While I so loved The Stage, I also loved another stop off Broadway.

If you're gonna visit Nashville, let alone live there, you have to get some authentic southern, country garb.  While B considered a sweet cowboy hat, I picked out these bad mama jamas!!

 

How gorgeous are these!?!  Holy moly I can't wait to wear rock these thangs!! These are the REAL DEAL!  I'm talking gen.u.ine. FINE, real leather!!!  Yes!  I will create opportunities to wear these if need be :)  If I wasn't gonna be cremated, I might say bury me in 'em!

I told B he should at least pick out a big belt buckle or something, but he assured me he was ok.  

Nashville, you done swooped this southern, wanna-be-country, city-girl right off her feet in a most unexpected twist of events :)  The country music, bands, and bright lights are calling me back!  So return, eventually, I will!

Until then....

Congratulations are in Order!!

I've known for about 3 weeks now that one of my very best friends, my MOH, my cousin Erin would be getting engaged!  And it was killing me!!! Finally, Ryan, Erin's boyfriend now fiance, popped the question last night!!!

I missed her call last night, but knew exactly why she was calling when I saw it this morning!  I was sad for all of an hour all morning that I missed her call and was dying to get the details!!  It was so fun to hear about it all when she did call!

I am beyond thrilled for them and am so, so excited!!!  It will be fun to help plan their big day now on the other side of my wedding :)  I've already created a new Pinterest board to gather ideas!  Erin & Ryan are some of our very most favorite people & we love hanging out with them!  Welcome to the fam Ryan!!

Weekend Bliss

Weekends are pretty much my favorite....whether durning the school year or not.  It just seems like all the most fun things happen on weekends!

Friday was our usual...we worked out, grilled & watched a movie :)  Perfect Friday night date night at home!  We watched Lincoln Lawyer.

Have you seen it?  If not....go rent it!  Awesome movie!!  I loved it.  It was first a Michael Connelly book, too, so you could read it if you fancy.

Saturday was lots of fun....my friends Dana & Alex got married!  I blogged about Dana's bachelorette party a few weeks back.  I met my friend Courtney for a quick work out Saturday mornings, then we took some flowers to Dana's reception venue for her so she could get all dolled up!

B & I sweated it out at the pool, then it was time to get all dolled up ourselves.  We clean up alright I think!

The ceremony was great & B did a good job of taking pictures!  I teared up as usual....I just love a good wedding!!

Might be my favorite!  Sweet glance :)

What a good first kiss!! 

The fun continued at the reception!  There was good food, good friends, and good dancing!

Me & Court

Lisa being...well herself!!  Ha

A good one of me & Lisa :) and Lane in the background, haha 

Lisa & Steve

I specifically wanted to take a cute picture of Brandon & I all dressed up, but we forgot!  I think Courtney took one of us at our table so I'll have to steal that one from her.  Dana & Alex also had a photobooth!

Too much fun!  As you can see... :)

Sunday was filled with lots of procrastination & laziness as well as some packing there at the end!  We dropped Benny off at my bro & SIL's and this morning I became a back-seat-tag-along-salesman's-wife :)  Let's just say I'm very thankful for mobil hot spots & pinterest!  But more on that later...

Here's to August!