Beach Bunny

In approximately 48 hours, I will be here...

& enjoying these each evening!

Tomorrow at noon, my Hubby & I are taking off work and heading to Destin, Florida with my parents for an entire week!!! Woohoo!!! My brother & sister-in-law are joining us for the first part of our trip then they're heading down to Naples to spend some time with her family. I can't wait to feel the sand beneath my toes. I've traveled to lots of places & it's really difficult to find a place that has sand as soft & white as the Florida Panhandle. Hopefully I'll come back with a nice bronze tan!!! Have a great Memorial Day...I know I will!

Anniversary Celebration

Hubby & I made dinner reservations to celebrate our anniversary & we headed out to a local steakhouse called Flame. They normally have fantastic food & we weren't disappointed. We both ordered filet mignon & they were both cooked perfectly! We also got a free dessert because Hubby told them it was our anniversary when he made the reservations. Flourless chocolate cake with raspberry sauce & whipped cream...YUMMM!!!!

A mini-photo session with the self-timer!

Another fun shot before heading out to dinner!

Since we're trying to watch our budget & we are headed to Florida with my parents next week, we opted not to do official anniversary presents. Besides, the traditional gift for a 2nd anniversary is cotton...there really isn't anything personal about buying my husband a shirt, a towel, or a set of sheets for our anniversary. So, I chose a sweet Hallmark card & called it good. However, I had hinted that flowers are always welcome. ;o) When I got home from work there was a beautiful bouquet of spring flowers. What a great Hubby I have!

2 years & counting...

Today is our 2nd Wedding Anniversary. It's hard to believe that 2 years have already passed since I said "I Do" to the love of my life. We've had some ups & downs & I know I've certainly learned so much about myself in those 2 years. I've learned that those times when we can just be ourselves & laugh & cry are those that I cherish the most. I've learned that it's those little things about Hubby that make me love him the most...even when he drives me crazy. I've realized that as long as we remember the love we share for each other & turn to God each day, we'll be able to make it through anything--both good & bad. I've come to appreciate the ways in which we are different people & I'm realizing that we don't need to be exactly alike to love each other like crazy, because it's those differences that make us the couple we are & I can't imagine things being any more wonderful.

Right before we saw each other for the first time..we chose to see each other before the ceremony & it was one of the best decisions we made for that day!

Our getaway car, a surprise from my parents...a Vintage Rolls Royce!

My husband lights up my world & there isn't a day that goes by that I don't thank God for the man he brought into my life. Happy 2nd Anniversary Hubby...I look forward to so many more.

All photos taken by My Photographer by Kimber

Weekend Rewind

Well after a long weekend full of activites, I've finally got a chance to sit down & relax (even though there is a huge pile of laundry sitting on the couch that needs folded along with a full dishwasher that needs to be unloaded). We've been super busy this weekend as we have just run from place to place & task to task. Friday we had college graduation for my sister-in-law, we had a luncheon celebration with her family & then headed over to graduation. She & I actually both graduated from the same school, so I knew full well what we were getting in to as we headed into the arena and saw a sea full of guests. There are actually 3 different ceremonies to accomodate all the guests & graduates so it was quite the affair. The entire ceremony lasted about 2 hours--I guess it could have been worse. ;o) She graduated with a degree in Psychology & then is heading onto Nursing School followed by getting her Master's in Nursing....I'm so proud of her!!!

Myself & the beautiful graduate, Millie! Is she not just gorgeous?!?

Millie walking in for the processional

The sea of graduates & guests--see why it took awhile?

Millie with my brother & her parents.

Friday night, we ran a few errands and then met some friends for late dessert & drinks at one of our favorite places, Fedora's. We had a great time & didn't get home until after midnight (which is quite late for us!)

Saturday morning we got up early & headed to a wedding--it was short & sweet & even included some minor mishaps. The bride & groom just went along with it & everything ended up being perfect. They had a great brunch reception, & everything was beautiful. The happy couple is headed out for a 2-week Honeymoon in Hawaii--I'M SO JEALOUS!!! After the wedding we headed to a local nursery & picked up a few things for our new flower bed. We purchased 2 azaleas, an Endless Summer Hydrangea, & 4 hostas of various shapes, colors, & sizes. We headed home & spent the rest of the afternoon pulling up sod, planting shrubs, & arranging landscaping rock. Today after church we came home & finished the bed off with a nice layer of mulch. I'm super pleased with how it looks (& hopefully it will partially cover up all the meters & phone equipment on the side of our house!)

The finished product!

I'm actually quite exhausted from the yardwork & it's nice to be able to relax for a bit! This week is no less busy than this weekend, tomorrow we have dinner with my cousin & his girlfriend, Tuesday is our 2nd Wedding Anniversary (I can't believe it's been 2 years already) & Friday we are leaving town with my parents to go to Destin, FL for a week...I CAN'T WAIT!!!

Early Weekend for ME!!!

Today is my last day of work for the week...we've got a cram-packed schedule for the next few days! My sister-in-law is graduating from college tomorrow so we've got a celebration lunch for her & the ceremony at 1:30. It's supposed to be really nice outside!!

Hubby & I are also meeting up with some friends later tomorrow night for drinks & dessert at Fedora, a local fondue place. I absolutely love this place!!!


Saturday we have a wedding at 10:30 in the morning with a reception brunch to follow, then we have grand plans for a new flower bed on the North side of our house---what doesn't get done on Saturday will get pushed to Sunday after church, but before a golf outing for the men of our small group. Also, I'm hoping to have my cousin & his girlfriend over for dinner on Saturday night (if we can get the details ironed out)!

Have a great weekend everyone!

Weekend Rewind & a slight Bedroom Makeover

Hubby & I had a very busy, but fun weekend! Friday night we had dinner at a local pizza place with a couple from church. We had a great time just fellowshiping and after dinner we headed back to our house for some more socializing & no-bake cookies (one of my favorites!) Saturday I had to work then I headed to a baby shower for one of my friends from college. She is expecting a baby boy in June! After the shower I headed to my parents' house where my husband had been recruited to help with re-mulching all of my parents' flower beds....let me just tell you this is quite the job & my dad was very thankful for the help. We had pizza delivered & enjoyed a quick meal with Mom & Dad before heading home.

Myself, Sarah, Kelly & Miranda at the baby shower

Sunday was of course Mother's Day so we headed down early on Sunday morning to attend church with my parents'--then it was back to their house to fix lunch. I volunteered to take care of all the planning for lunch which included my parents, my mom's parents, & Hubby & I. We had hamburgers, homemade french fries, & homemade peach cobbler. I do have to brag on myself--the french fries & cobbler were both amazing & I received tons of compliments. I got my mom a more practical gift of neat plastic plates for them to eat outside on & also some new colorful dish towels. She absolutely loved them! My brother came down later in the afternoon & we simply sat around inside because it was COLD!!! My cousin was also having a come & go graduation party so we made an appearance at that later in the afternoon.

My beautiful mom showing off her dishtowels

In unrelated weekend news, we have recently had a slight makeover of our master bedroom. We've just changed out the comforter & pillow shams but man is there a big difference. Hubby & I were both really tired of our old comforter & it looked very tired as well. It was only 2 years old but it looked like we'd had it forever. So...Hubby & I were casually looking for a new one, hoping we'd happen on something we absolutely loved...and we did. The only requirement was that the color scheme had to remain the same because I didn't want to have to change all the accent pieces, wall hangings, window treatments, etc. in the room.

Here is our before picture...

& Here is our after picture....

Hubby & I are both so much happier with the new look...the other comforter set was just so dark--at least this has a little bit of life!

Happy Mother's Day!!!!

Happy Mother's Day to all the mom's out there! God has blessed my life with an amazing mother who is not only my mom, but my best friend & confidant for almost everything in my life. Each day I am reminded of the incredible relationship we have & the fantastic opportunity we have to see each other almost every day of the week. For some girls this might seem like a bother & a struggle--but for me it's a chance to learn as much as I can from the woman who has taught me everything I know. I know I've mentioned my mom before & how important she is to me; but it can never be said enough. I know that I will continue to learn from her each and every day & for those who say..."You're going to be just like your mom someday!" I respond with a feeling of joy and excitement that someone might think I have the ability & love in my heart to be as amazing of a woman as my mom is.

Mom & Dad with their new joy, Josie

I also have the incredible blessing to have both of my grandmother's still here with me. Grandma Smart, the Woods Grandma, is so full of love and advice & instruction when you need help with cooking, cleaning, gardening, etc. She's who taught me how to bake my first apple pie & I still call her with those everyday questions like "What should I do if I have wax on a dry-clean only shirt?" She is soooo loving & such an amazing inspiration for how I hope to live my life.

Grandma Smart & I at our wedding

Grandma Herndon, the Town Grandma, is just a special, special woman. She has an amazing heart for God & for His will & I know that it was her who prayed that Hubby & I would be brought together when none of us even knew he existed. She has had some ups & downs in the recent years, but when she's having a great day she is still the good old Grandma that I still remember. The one who used to paint my fingernails, knit me sweaters, & take me to Wal-mart for a special toy. She is an amazing woman of God & I can only hope to have the prayer life that she does as I continue to walk on this earth.

3 Generations: Myself, Mom, & Grandma Herndon at my brother's wedding

In addition to my own mom & grandma's, God has also given me an amazing mother-in-law who although she lives 10 hours away, still finds a way to make her presence and love felt in our lives on a regular basis. I could not have asked for a better relationship with my Husband's mother & I know that once she moves back home that we will have some amazing times & experiences together. The relationship that Hubby & she have is something to be envied & it is truly fascinating & exciting to witness.

Hubby & his mom on our wedding day

There are so many other moms in my life, and I hope you all know just how special & amazing you are. I can only hope that someday, with lots of guidance & love, that I can somehow be a combination of all the fantastic women in my life.

Happy Mother's Day!

Probably one of my favorite pictures of the 2 of us---Mother & Daughter

Crazy Spring Storms!

What a morning!!! The weatherman was calling for storms overnight, but they were a little delayed in getting here. They arrived this morning about 8:00 am, just as I was preparing to leave for work. So...my dad told me to stay put at home until the winds blew through. I grabbed some old sheets and laid them on the ground so I could bring Bogey in during the storms. I brought him in (muddy feet & all) & tried to get him to dance around on the sheets as much as possible to get the mud off. I called my dad to find out what the radar looked at (I had lost my television at this point) and basically simultaneously as I was calling the tornado sirens start going off. So...now I'm trying to talk to my dad over the tornado sirens & trying to keep Bogey under control!

Needless to say, something else had to go wrong. I turn around to look for Bogey & he is now marking his spot, urniating, peeing, or whatever you want to call it on my door frame to my bed room. Not really a huge deal, except that HE'S PEEING ON MY PURSE!!! My purse was laying on the floor right next to the door & it was definitely getting splattered on. So, I promptly scream an expletive, hang up with my dad & start cleaning up urine--all while the tornado sirens are still going off. I should probably mention at this point, my dad realized the storms were already past me so I was basically just ignoring the sirens. I finish cleaning up the dog urine, wipe my purse down with disinfectant wipes, & then try to relax while the rest of the storm goes through. Bogey stayed in the house--but boy did he know he was in trouble!

Finally the winds seem to calm down so I call my mom to check & see how the weather is where she's at (since this is where I'm headed for work). She says to stay put that they are getting round 2 of straightline winds. My power starts flashing in & out & then it's gone...no power means no garage door means no going to work anytime soon. I've just put Bogey outside only to find out that I should bring him back in (& of course he's headed out into the rain at this point). So, I go back to the door & invite him in again & I make sure to get him somewhat dried in the dark. We finally get calmed down & I light some candles & grab a flashlight to read my book in the dark while I wait for my power to come back on. Bogey was very behaved this time around...it might have helped that I was watching him like a hawk.

I finally made it to work about 10:00am after my power came back on & I got Bogey back outside. We didn't have any damage that I can see---just some flower pots over on their side & an outdoor pillow that was on our porch was in a neighbor's yard 6 houses down. Work is certainly going to be crazy with lots of claims to turn in & questions to answer. At least the day will go by quickly.

Oh & did I mention that Hubby was over an hour away set to play in a golf tournament this morning? How come he's never home for the exciting morning experiences?!?

Finally...a Weekend Recap on Hump Day...

Well with birthdays & weddings, roadtrips & rain, work & play...things have been a little crazy around the Layman house the past few days so I'm just now getting around to including the details of our fantastic weekend! Forgive me, this post may be a long one!

Friday we headed out to Oklahoma City for a quick little road trip. Hubby had purchased tickets to the Lion King for my birthday back in February so I finally got to cash those in. The trip was fairly uneventful & fairly quick except for the monsoon we had to drive through almost all the way there. Thank goodness it was not raining in OKC when we arrived. We stayed at an almost brand new Hampton Inn in the Bricktown district of OKC--we even got an upgrade to a King Suite on the top floor! Woohoo!!! We had a bit of time before our dinner reservations so we decided to drive around and find the memorial for the Oklahoma City Bombing. I do have to say it was quite moving & amazing to see.

This is a quick shot of the memorial site. Each chair represents someone who perished in the tragedy. Notice the small chair on the left side--there were small chairs to represent the children in the daycare who were killed that day. It was a beautiful memorial with lots of visitors even on the day we were there.

We had dinner reservations at the Melting Pot (our first time there) & while the food was good & we had a great time I'm not sure if I would return. The cheese fondue & dessert fondue were both amazing, but I wasn't real impressed with the main course. After dinner we headed over to the show & it was amazing just as I expected it would be. Hubby had never seen the show & he liked it as well! The weather was misty & kind of gross so I failed to get any pictures of us...again!

Saturday morning we got up and headed home--we had a wedding at 6:00 that evening. We were friends of the bride & she is the girl who does my hair all the time & also styled it for our wedding. She was absolutely beautiful & again I failed on taking pictures so you'll just have trust me. It was the first Catholic wedding for Hubby & I (who were raised & still are Southern Baptist) so it was definitely an experience but everything seemed to go very smoothly. We headed out fairly soon after the ceremony since Hubby & I were exhausted from our long day.


Sunday (Hubby's actual birthday) we had church & then relaxed at home. He was very happy with his gifts from me. I ended up with a them that I didn't even realize until I was wrapping the presents: WHITE Vineyard Vines' polo (we sent it back because it fit really weird), WHITE Oakley sunglasses for golf, WHITE North Face workout shirt, & WHITE Tiger Woods belt! Yes, everything I bought him was white--but he loved it all so that's always a plus.

Hubby's presents from his lovely Wifey!

Sunday evening we went to Branson with my parents & ate at Cantina Laredo for Hubby's Birthday dinner. This is probably one of my favorite restaurants of all time. We also walked around the Branson Landing with Josie, my parent's dog before heading home.

Hubby & I down by Lake Taneycomo at Branson Landing.

Josie really enjoyed the walk & was quite the attraction herself.

On Monday evening after work we had around 20 family & friends come over to our house for cake, ice cream, & a birthday celebration. We had a great time & my cake turned out very good! Hubby is more of an icing fan than a cake fan so as long as the icing is good he doesn't care. The cake I simply made from a Pilsbury box mix, but I made homemade cream cheese icing. YUMMM!!!! Here's a few shots from the party!

Hubby posing with his cake while my dad lights the candles!

My beautiful creation: 4-layer chocolate cake with chocolate fudge icing (from a can) in between the 1st & 2nd layer & the 3rd & 4th layer. I put my homemade cream cheese icing in between the 2nd & 3rd layer and then drenched the rest of the cake in cream cheese icing. The cake was all topped off with colorful sprinkles! I was definitely quite proud of myself!

Hubby blowing out his candles--notice Dawson's face in the background...PRICELESS!

I had quite the crowd at our house!

My brother & sister-in-law decided to use a Victoria's Secret box as their wrapping!

Lydia & Dawson both enjoyed getting to help out with opening presents! I don't know how thrilled their mom Andrea was but I thought it was adorable!

The aftermath with paper & presents strung everywhere!

The rest of our week is pretty low-key with Hubby starting to study again for the CPA exam. We'll be doing yardwork tonight since it will be the first night without rain in awhile. Our grass is soooo long & thick!!! I can't believe it's already the middle of the week, but we've got another big weekend coming up with a baby shower for me, a round of golf for Hubby & Mother's Day on Sunday. Hopefully the weather will warm up & we'll have a nice weekend for a change!

Happy Birthday Hubby!

Today is Hubby's 26th birthday!!! Happy Birthday to the most important man in my life! I love you!

We're having dinner at Cantina Laredo with my parents & then a birthday party tomorrow evening with friends & family. It will be my first attempt at a layered-chocolate cake so we'll see how it goes (Hubby's request of course!) Even it's ugly I'm sure it will taste just wonderful. I'll try to recap our wonderful weekend & birthday events soon!