hi friends

Let me start off the post by saying that no, I don't have any pictures to post. So sorry.

The last few weeks have been so busy for us.  I got a promotion at work and have been working alot.  I've realized that when you're busy the days fly by so quickly, so I am trying to savor every moment.

By the way, I am sitting in a coffee house right now and just heard the tornado sirens, and a cop drove by yelling on his loud speaker that "a tornado has been spotted in the immediate area"...scary!


Let me recap our last few weeks:

-Danny returned from a two week trip to Costa Rica on January 5th. I was so happy to see him. He brought home some beautiful pieces of pottery for me and we had a little mini Christmas celebration.
-On January 9th we volunteered at the MS Blues Marathon downtown. I kid you not, it was 18 degrees. We were freezing! It actually was really fun despite having to wake up at 5:30am and brave the cold.
-Our builder had to refinish some tile in our master bath - so that has been an ongoing project.
-We decided to be crafty and refinish a piece of my grandmother's furniture that I inherited and it turned out beautiful.
-I've starting painting again.
-Danny decided he wants to build a privacy fence in our backyard. By himself. We'll see how that goes ;)

Sidenote - the weather is getting really bad. Siren is still going off and I'm seeing lightning every 2 minutes. Yikes.


Someone asked us again the other day when we want to have kids. My answer? We are in no hurry. Maybe five years? Maybe later. We're really not thinking about that right now. But I do want kids so bad one day. Which got me thinking...we should take advantage of the years we have of just us, with no kids, and really travel and do all the things we want do. So we are planning a big vacation this year. I want to go to St. Lucia for a week, and Danny wants to go to Jamaica. We both want to go to Mexico, so we may compromise. Still in the early planning stages but I am really excited! I get 19 vacation days this year and I am definitely going to take advantage of them.

Our house is starting to really feel like home. It's taken a few months, but everything is finally falling into place. I love our little life in our little house.

Hubby asked me today: "When are you going to update your blog?" WHAT!! YOU READ MY BLOG?! I almost died. Great, great day in my blog world. I always knew no matter how mortified he acts that he secretly reads it everyday ;)

Ok, another sidenote - people keep running in and out of the coffee shop freaking out about the tornado. Should I leave? Or is it too dangerous to drive and I should just stay here? Hubby is still at work. Things are really quiet outside right now but it is so dark. I've always heard that it gets quiet right before the storm. I hope the tornado is not creeping around the corner....


I also have never mentioned my new years resolution - to lose some weight. I pay $50 a month for a gym  membership and haven't been since August. How pitiful is that? Danny gets super irritated because it's a ladies gym so he can't even go! Haha! I really am going to start working out again. Hubby wants to start exercising too so he is going to buy a bike - how fun!

I love blogging and I really value all of my "blog" friends. I love this creative outlet. I love how this really is a little community. I also love reading your blogs: getting decorating ideas, recipes, baby updates, everything! So, thank you for being such a supportive community of blogettes.

Have to go now. Weather is really, really bad. I'll finish this post tomorrow!

my little diary

When I was eight years old, my older sister gave me a present for my first communion. It was a matching set of pencils and a blank notebook. I began writing in my "journal" from the tender age of eight and I continued to write in it (at least three times a week) until I was eighteen years old. I recently found my old journal - an actual diary that documented ten whole years of my life. I consider it a real treasure. Everything in it is so special to me, from my thoughts and feelings to how my handwriting has changed from a little eight year old to a grown woman.

When Danny and I have kids, I will encourage my child to keep a journal from a young age as I did. Not only was it a creative outlet for me to express my feelings, it is my autobiography. I'm considering sharing a random excerpt from it...maybe like the first day of school when I was ten years old, or when I moved away for college when I was eighteen. Or my first car at sixteen. There are so many memories in that little book. It is now tattered and worn, and that only adds to the sentimental value.

And now, I consider this blog to be my journal. I'm probably not as transparent with my feelings as I would be in a book that I know no one else would ever read, but I do want my blog to document my life as a newlywed. There are certain things that I do not talk about...including my job and the details of my marriage.  I just feel like certain things should remain private. I do like to use my blog to record memories - sometimes bad, sometimes good, but always real. So, what does all of this mean? I'm refocusing the purpose of this blog. I started with the intention of creating a personal journal of mine and Danny's life and I feel now it is more of a scrapbook with photos and blurbs rather than a journal full of emotions. I want to look back and know exactly how I was feeling and what I was going through on any given day.

Just like my little diary I kept growing up, I want this blog to be my autobiography.

lucky #13

I have never been more proud of my alma mater than I was last night.

ROLL TIDE ROLLLLLL!

Last night Alabama beat Texas in the BCS National Championship game...this is Alabama's 13th National Title (the last one being in 1992). When I attended UA, I grew to love football - a sport I had never really been interested in before. If you have never been to a University of Alabama football game then you are really missing out. There is just an energy in the stadium that is hard to describe. I am so proud of my Tide today.

Remember the ROSE BOWL we'll win then, hey!, roll on to victory, hit your stride! Your Dixie's football pride, Crimson Tide, Roll Tide Roll Tide!!

our year - 2009

2009 was a busy and exciting year for us. There were alot of firsts, plenty of laughs and a few tears. We enjoyed our first year as newlyweds, built our first house, bought our first car, made new friends, traveled, tried new things, became a little more domestic and just enjoyed life. Here are some pictures that highlight our year.

We drove to Tuscaloosa, AL one weekend in January to visit some of my best friends from college. We also watched President Obama's inauguration.

In February we traveled to Destin, Florida for Valentine's Day weekend - the beach was beautiful. These pictures were taken around 10am one morning. So pretty.

We also went to the Mississippi State Rodeo (one of the top rodeos in the nation!).

In March, I started my first blog as a way to document my life with my husband. We also went to the St. Paddy's Day parade in downtown Jackson with a bunch of friends.

Spending time with my mom at her house in April.

Danny started his new job with the bank in May. This is a picture of us enjoying a hot summer day at my parents' house.

We took several trips to the beach over the summer - this was from Orange Beach, AL in May.

In June I spent my first night away from Danny when I had to travel to Memphis for work. I missed him so much. We were also saddened to learn of Michael Jackson's sudden death on June 26.

We spent the 4th of July in Destin, FL with some of my friends from college.

This was taken in mid July. We spent most of the summer playing at the beach and relaxing by my parents' pool.

My mother and I visited my sister who lives in Los Angeles for a girls trip in July. We went to Santa Barbara, Santa Monica and visited a few wineries. This is my sister and I on the pier in Santa Barbara.

In front of the Scooby Doo Van at Paramount.

At the LA Zoo.

We spent the month of August building our first house, cooking meals at home and even took a painting class!

On September 3rd my precious grandmother, Nannie, passed away. This was a really hard time for me. I miss her so much. I know she's with God and that gives me peace.

In October, we celebrated our first wedding anniversary, and closed on our first home. I began blogging more and more often and made some new blog friends.

Danny holding the papers to our new house!

Halloween night we played in our church's annual clue game. Danny and I were Mickey and Minnie Mouse. This is us about to race on the go-carts. So fun.

We celebrated Danny's 23rd birthday in November. We also celebrated Thanksgiving with my family (dad cooked the turkey on his Big Green Egg - see picture) and woke up at 3am on Black Friday to go shopping.

December was super busy. We had our first annual Christmas party at our house on December 12 - it was a success! About 40 of our closest friends showed up and we had a great time. Some of my best friends from Alabama even drove over!

We also went to the annual Belhaven Singing Christmas Tree with some of our friends. It was freezing and it even snowed a little bit!

I turned 23 years old on Christmas day. People always ask how we celebrate both; ever since I was little we do Christmas in the morning and my birthday in the afternoon with my entire family. This picture is me and my older brother with my mom's sweet new puppy.

On December 22nd, Danny left for Costa Rica to visit his family (he hasn't seen them since our wedding in October 2008). He won't be back until January 5th. I really miss him but I am so glad he is able to spend precious time with his family.

All of these things are just a small snapshot of our year. The most important thing that happened to us in 2009 was that we were healthy and happy. We both grew tremendously in our walk with God, and that is what I'm most thankful for. I feel closer to Christ than I ever have before. We found a new church home and everyone was so welcoming. And for that we are forever grateful.

We have a busy year ahead of us with traveling, working and settling into our new home. What do I hope for most in 2010? Nothing more than good health, happiness, and love.