A Weekend Away in Kentucky

Sometimes you need a little time away from your busy life to get perspective and this past weekend we did exactly that! My best girlfriend of 15 years and her fiance (Congrats Holli and Justin!) invited us to his family's country home in rural Kentucky. The land is sprawling with beautifully blooming trees, a large creek edging the property, goats, turtles, donkeys, chickens, a cat named Callie, an 1800's log cabin...oh there was so much...I wish you could have been there!

We arrived late Friday night to put on some old clothes and take a tour of the property on an ATV. Trudging through rocky creeks and muddy hills we even got a few glimpses of deer running about!

Saturday morning the boys woke to get breakfast at a local pool hall while us girls stayed back to lounge around. I took a few pictures of the land during the wee hours (ahem...ahem 9 am)...as I stepped outside all I could hear was the rushing water and the rooster crowing. I kid you not. Surreal.

Once the boys came back and we all filled up with some much needed coffee, we took the ATV's out for another run about the land. With the sun shining and a warm breeze blowing, it couldn't have been a more picturesque day. I found a new friend in one of their donkey's named Herman while Adam took a liking to Big Mamma, their massive turtle. There is a scientific name for that turtle but unfortunately, I'm not the one to ask. Moving on!

We had a bite to eat at a local bar-b-q restaurant then headed back to the house for some outdoorsy fun!

Let's just say we got a little dirty....okay...really really muddy! Actually, while the boys were shooting at targets us girls went "mudding" then jumped in a mud puddle for an added bonus. We were covered and the boys seemed to toe the line between shocked and impressed.

After much needed showers and scrub downs we settled in for the night. We had a big bonfire planned and even bought s'more stuff but we were rained out and turned it into an indoor party. 

Note that there were board games and wine included :)

Our final day was the laziest of them all as we woke up ate, had some lunch, visited a local marina and headed back home.

Justin and Holli in their matching cuteness...

No makeup hotness and the hubby!

I hope you enjoyed your weekend and have started this week off with a bang!

Hopefully we'll be able to visit again, but until then, I'll talk to you soon...

xoxo bd

St. Pattys Rainbows

Seeing as St.Patricks Day is around the corner I thought it was very serendipitous that we saw 3 rainbows last night! We have been bombarded with thunderstorms over the past week but it was nice to see how beautiful things can become once everything is calm.

Happy St. Patricks Day!

Birthday, Moving and Reminiscing...

So as you can see through my obsession with Instagram, I had quite a busy yet fun weekend.

We arrived in NC at 3 am on Friday and only slept for a few (literally) hours until we had to buck up and start packing. It was so sweet to be with all of my family to reminisce about the smell of Papa’s home or how we couldn’t ever go in the front room to the bowls we would eat cereal out of. Also, I found it very apparent who I got my jewelery obsession from, my grandma. That lady had boxes and boxes and boxes of necklaces, rings, bracelets, watches, earrings, baubles…you name it, the stash was over flowing.  

It may not have been the most typical birthday but it sure has become one of my favorites as we will never be able to celebrate there again.

On Friday night we went out to my favorite Mexican restaurant in Forest City called Mi Pueblitos. Don’t get it twisted, hands down the best fajita quesadilla on the planet.

We stayed up late packing and woke up the next morning to have many, many helping hands from the church weused to attend. They have a team called ‘Hearts with Hands’ that rocked out the entire moving process. All of the furniture and boxes (for the most part) were in both moving vans within one and a half hours of them arriving. What?! We were so blessed by their help and would not have been able to get it done as quickly had they not been there. Thank you, Cornerstone!

Saturday night we drove to Spartanburg, SC–about a 30 minute drive- for dinner at the famous Beacon restaurant. Double burgers slathered in onions, cole-slaw by the pound and a heart attack not to mention piles of french-fries.I hadn’t been to the Beacon since I was little and seeing as I got 2 days worth of calories in ½ of a burger…it might be a few years before I decide to revisit.

More reminiscing was had, jokes were told and the rest of the dust was swept from the corners. It is sad knowing that I will never be able to go back to that house and have it look the same or even that town. I will forever remember learning to put on makeup with my grandma for the first time, having Christmas in the basement, being scared of the storage room, “hiking” in the backyard, the creepy doll that sat atop the dresser in the kids room for all those years, the uncomfortable waterbed….the list goes on. Frankly, unless you’ve been there this entire post is probably boring but it's good to put my thoughts somewhere. Thank you for actually reading!

The drive home on Sunday was interesting as Adam drove the large moving van through the mountains before the sun even came up! Our view from the cab was amazing and we even saw a few snow flurries! We unloaded all of our things that morning and have gotten back to the hustle and bustle of the week. I think I need to recuperate!
 Have a wonderful hump day...can you believe it's already Wednesday???
I'll talk to you soon!
xoxo bd

A wee celebration

.....and tomorrow will be my birthday. The big 2-4.

We will be leaving on a weekend trip to North Carolina to help pack up my grandfather's home as it has finally sold!

 I thought I should say a quick hello before we head off as we'll be without wi-fi (ooohhh we can do it, right?) until Sunday. We will leave Nashville this evening and drive through the night with my brother, Josh and his wife, Amber. That's right, driving through the night. Should be fun. Should be interesting. Should be tiring. But on to what I enjoy much more....

This past week has been sweet; Adam has made this an entire birthday week starting last Friday. He would say, "Wherever you want to go, we'll go. It's your birthday!" "Want to eat out tonight? Where? It's your choice, its your birthday week!"

Yummy dinners, movies, window shopping at the mall, new makeup and many starbucks trips have made these past 6 days oh-so-delightful! He surprises me everyday with his endless love and affection...there's no better match for me than him.

So much has changed within the past year in my life. A year ago we were living in Memphis packing up our home and searching for a new place to live. Adam was feverishly studying for finals and I was worried about where I might work. A year later we have moved back to Nashville, both got jobs and are trying to figure out what the future holds. If you asked me the difference between 20 and 24 I would say that I am such a different person. I have learned much and have been humbled greatly. You never know what God will throw your way or show you; It's unbelievable.

All of that to say, I'm excited for my 24th year and continued learning. I hope you have a lovely Spring weekend...talk to you soon!

xoxo bd