Thanksgiving '12 memories

We celebrated our Thanksgiving at home this year. No traveling to a distant location for us. We just hopped next door for a Waln family Thanksgiving. It made things so nice and relaxing. I spent the morning tidying up the cottage and simmering some hot apple cider.

I loved having the sweet and spicy aroma of cider in the house as we enjoyed our morning. Jason was in and out smoking his traditional ham that  he always does. He does an amazing job~ I must say. ;)

There is always a super-sized feast at the Walns and this year didn't dissapoint. I wish I would have gotten more picutes. Family gatherings always make my heart happy.

I was feeling pretty fat and happy after dinner so I fully allowed myself to realax.

After hanging out with the family for the afternoon, Jason and I headed back home to relax and savor our last Thanksgiving in our cozy cottage.

 We snuggled up on the sofa in our pjs and watched some fun holiday specials on TV. It was both of our first time to see "A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving" ~so cute!  I love me some Charlie Brown. =) The rest of the weekend.....well, reality set in. Time to pack!! We spent the whole day surrounded by boxes and packing tape. It was a very productive day. We will be moving in officially next weekend! yaay!! I will miss some of the aspects of living in the country~  the privacy, the beautiful rolling hills, the ability to have a bonfire... well, that's about it. I'm ready to go back to city livin'

Oh! And one more thing.. it's definately been kinda odd this year not having our Christmas decorations up yet. As long as I can remember it's been a tradition to put them up Thanksgiving weekend. It doesn't feel like the Christmas holiday quite yet. Oh well. Playing Christmas music helps a little. Hopefully we'll get settled in the new place quickly and get some deco. up.

It's Fall Ya'll

We've had quite a busy fall. After we got back from Florida, it was tough to get back into a routine. I wanted to stay on vacation. We definately hit the ground running right when we got back. I can hardly believe that Thanksgiving is this week. Where has the time gone?! I could write a novel about all of our different activities. I will spare you and share my pictures instead. =)

We went to the pumpkin patch with this lovely group of friends from church. I couldn't remember the last time I had carved a pumpkin and it was definately a challenge. Jason took to his carving with intensity and was the first one done. He's amazingly handy and talented like that.



Excuse the blurriness of this one. This is my pirate and Jason's crow. My pirate's mouth fell off but overall, you can tell it's a pirate, right?! I was bummed to be reminded of how short the life span of a carved pumpkin is. WE enjoyed them for a few nights anyway.

This is our cozy cottage. Doesn't fall make it cute?

Speaking of our home... this just in...

WE'RE MOVING!!

Everything fell into place like the week after we got back from Florida. God just worked everything out for us to be able to live here in this cute little place in town and like 5 min. from everythning. While we will miss the peace and quiet and lovliness of country living, we are very excited to be in town. Praise God for his blessings!

All of the walls were white in our new place so we, along with some sweet friends, spent a Saturday making the place our own and painting the walls our choice colors. I am extremely happy with the greys and blues we chose. (more pictures later)

Happy Haloween!! Jason and I helped out at our church's fall festival. I think Jason is super convincing as Clark Kent.. don't you think?

We met up with mom and dad in Hardy, Ar. to celebrate her 60th birthday. (hard to believe huh?!) It was the perfect fall day for a walk around Mammoth Springs and antique shopping in old town Hardy. It was definately great to spend time with mom and dad. A wonderful day for sure. =)

We had a presidential election this year. There is a lot of fear and unrest in our country after Obama got re-elected. But you know what? God is still in control and he is the one who ultimately decides what happens. We have to trust in him no matter what.

I didn't get pictures, but another highlight of our fall season was having a bonfire at our home. It was the last time we entertained friends at The Cozy Cottage. It was so much fun. I love entertaining.I am looking forward to having more indoor space in our new place.

Catch ya here again soon. =)
 

our florida getaway

We planned our Florida vacation around our 2 year anniversary for a good reason. This is where we spent the first night, our anniversary, on Treasure Island.

We exchanged gifts on our patio. It was divine.

 

 

We had fun watching people run from the storm. My hubby particularly enjoyed himself.

 

After a lovely morning, we drove to Orlando.

 

 We splurged and had a day O' fun at Universal studios. It was super fantastic (except for the rides that made us a little motion sick). That would be the Harry Potter ride (bottom left) It was unlike anything I had ever been on~ so many holographics and the ride spun upwards and downwards and all around. Crazy. Our stomachs were so crazy mixed up that we had trouble enjoying the simple roller coaster that followed. I definately think the rides in Florida are longer and faster.

 

It rained off and on all day, but we only had to break out these bad boys once.

 

 

 

A great memory. =) We ended our day at universal with an Anniversary dinner at Emeril's

 

 

We definately spoiled ourselves that day~ we saved our pennies so we could~ After our day in Orlando, we drove a few more hours to stay with these amazing people.

This is my bestie Candice and her husband Mike. They were amazing hosts. These cuties were there too...

I am kicking myself for not getting a family picture.

We enjoyed all kinds of adventures with our friends.

 kayaking on  the bay was definately a highlight. Jason caught something like 20 fish!

He's a happy boy!

On Wednesday night we joined Candice in leading worship. Mike is the pastor of their church in Cape Coral and Candice, the worship leader. It was amazing to help them out and lead worship together.

We stopped by a few beaches...

Fort Meyers, Sanibel Island and Naples. Ahhh.. we loved us some beach time. We could have definately gone for more.

 We had a date night in Naples and had ahhhmazing seafood. That night was a highlight. for sure. We loved everything about Naples.. the food, the shops, the beach.....

~  AHH PERFECT~ so romantically perfect

 We even squeezed in some girl time.. I love this woman. She's my soul sister and an inspiration to me. I am truely blessed to have her.

It was hard to say goodbye. My husband, who tends to be a little bit of a home body didn't want to go home.. I wonder why..

I wasn't ready to go home either...

It was an amazing trip. Perfect. Hopefully we won't let too much time pass before we go to the beach again or visit our amazing friends.

Or.. simply have moments like this.