i did it!
i graduated from college on saturday! congratulations to my brother, zack, and his girlfriend, chelsea who also graduated this weekend. i keep catching myself saying out loud, “i can’t believe i am done with school!” over and over and over. i’m so glad i finished and now i can focus my energy on my family and career.
i want to send an enormous thank you to my parents…for your sacrifices and emotional and financial support that you provided me over the past several years. for continuing to pay tuition after i spent too much time skipping town and having fun and lost my scholarship AND after i didn’t finish my degree in the four years you hoped i would. for being patient and having faith that one day i would find the focus needed to turn my tassel and walk across the stage in flowers hall. and for showing me the importance of hard work, honestly and generosity. you guys are incredible and i couldn’t be more proud to be your daughter.
thanks to the rest of my family and friends for the good and bad times. for the hundreds of special and crazy memories that i will take with me throughout life.
and thank you to my fiancé and stepson for being my number one fans and the loves of my life. thank you, brad, for working your behind off the past year so i could work a little less hard and finish my degree. thank you, thank you, thank you for supporting our little family. this is just the beginning!
xoxo,
one happy UNA alum
14 days!
i can’t believe in 14 days, (not-so) little landan will officially be a 5th grader! this year has flown by way too fast but i feel like i have really been able to take it all in a little better than i have the past few years…having a child helps you do that. i love having a kid around the house. landan helps me slow down and cherish all the little pleasures in life. through a kid’s eyes, everything is cool or magical. as adults, we often forget to use our creativity and imagination. we get stuck in the day-to-day routine and responsibilities. but landan brings me back down to earth. he shows me how special life is and unknowingly reminds me not to take the stressful things in life too seriously. when it comes down to it, the time we share with those we love the most is all that matters.
my favorite part of the day is tucking landan in at night. every evening, he tells me how much he loves me and i tell him the same. sometimes he says things that really make me melt, like “You make every day so awesome!” or “I can’t wait to wake up and see your beautiful face!” we share a hug and a kiss and i tuck him in tight. then i blow him a kiss as i walk out of his room and he catches it and squeezes it tight. the few minutes we share before lights out are so special. i often wonder how long this will last. i fear that one day he’ll wake up and be too cool for a few special moments with his ole stepmom. lately, i’ve tried to stop dwelling on those silly thoughts of what may come because all that matters is the present moment. and the present moment with my favorite 4th grader is pretty darn fabulous.
easter sunday.
our plans for easter were to simply relax as much as possible. so, we spent the day doing just that! brad’s family came over and we grilled burgers, hunted for easter eggs, and passed around baby levi. he is so stinkin’ adorable. here are some pictures from our day.
i hope you all enjoyed a sweet easter sunday with the ones you love!
a backyard picnic.
today is the first day of landan’s spring break! after taking elsie to the vet this morning, we decided to pick up some BBQ sandwiches and head home to picnic in the backyard. we spread a blanket on the green grass, let elsie outside and enjoyed the cool breeze and warm sunshine. i’m loving the warm weather we’ve had lately, but i must admit, i’m a little worried about how hot this summer is going to be! thank goodness for several pools nearby. :) here are some pictures from our afternoon outside.
my favorite fridays consist of this.
i was so happy for the arrival of friday this week! don’t get me wrong–it was a great week–just a long one workwise! on tuesday, brad’s brother, taylor, flew home to the states after spending 2+ years overseas serving our country in afghanistan and germany. we gave him a big, heartfelt welcome at the huntsville airport and mama grier almost got us arrested for throwing confetti all over the place. 
i was so excited to finally meet my soon-to-be brother after several skype calls and facebook interactions. taylor camped at wilbeth tuesday through friday and he’ll be spending next week in other parts of the state before he departs again to his next assignment in arizona. i loved seeing brad so happy because of the time he got to spend with his brother the past few days and i have to admit, we’ll be super sad to tell taylor farewell again in a few days. tomorrow, we have a big celebratory BBQ at mama chris’ house {brad’s grandmother}. i’ve taken lots of pictures so far this week, so i’ll be sure to post a few of them very soon!
so, i spent this lovely friend evening at home with my boys {and elsie!}, doing a whole lot of nothing, except for some crazy dancing and singing around the house with lando fernando. have i mentioned how much i love to be silly with this kid? here’s a snippet of our fun evening together. i love friday nights at home. enjoy!
sunday.
we had a relaxing weekend on wilbeth. we did a few of our favorite things…watched movies, ate pizza, and danced around the house. i ran ten miles saturday morning and spent the rest of the day on the couch. we knocked out the first season of modern family {finally!} and brad mowed the yard for the first time of the year. we went to florence to spend some time with family and out of town visitors and i organized our disaster of a closet. all in all, a nice weekend with my beautiful family. unadventurous and calm. i sure love to soak up those kinds of weekends when i get the chance {which lately seems to be few and far between}. sometimes its fun to be lazy with your favorites, right?
will cruise for brews.
earlier, i told you a little bit about my experience on the asheville brews cruise. here are some pictures from our brewery adventures!
