Vacation 2013, Day 1-Charleston, SC

So, please ignore the fact that Nate and I have been home from our vacation for 3 weeks now.

As a reminder, we drove to Charleston, SC and boarded a Carnival Cruise to the Bahamas. It was amazing and we are both totally game to go on another cruise! I'm going to try and break our vacation up into 3-4 posts. I might be done with them by December. (Kidding. Sorta.) In the end I'll share our pros and cons of cruising and the things we wish we knew before we left!

We started off our vacation by stopping at Nate's parents to drop off Tripp and Libby. We hung out there for a day and then started the 15 hour drive to Charleston around 3AM. We even managed to hit Augusta around lunch time, so we stopped at Chili's and I was able to see some of my old favorites! By the time we got to out hotel in Charleston, we both crashed. We stayed at the Days Inn in Mount Pleasant. They have a special stay and cruise rate which was around 70 dollars. We had that rate for both nights we stayed and were able to leave our car there for the week and take a taxi to the pier. This was much more convenient than driving to the pier, paying 100 dollars to use their parking for the week, and walking with your luggage tot he drop-off point. But I'm getting ahead of myself.

Our first full day of real vacationing was spent in Charleston. First on our agenda was the tour of Fort Sumter. For the two of us, the cost was 38 dollars with the military discount. We waited in the air conditioned building (which is right next to the aquarium, which would be another great place to kill some time) until the ferry returned from the first tour. Once on the ferry, we sat on the top deck, which is where I happened to get my first sunburn of the trip. The trip is about 20 minutes each way with amazing views of the harbor, Pickney Island (at least I'm pretty sure that's what it is called), and the USS Yorktown which is at Patriots Point on the Mound Pleasant side of the harbor. We even spotted a few dolphins swimming around!

The Charleston Harbor bridge. Mount Pleasant is on the right.

The USS Yorktown

Lovely Charleston

Pickney Island

Fort Sumter

Original Civil War cannons

View of Charleston from Fort Sumter

After the tour, we headed to downtown. I opted not to carry my camera around, however in retrospect, it probably wouldn't have hurt to snap a few on my camera. We wandered around for a bit before stopping for lunch at Bubba Gumps. We originally looked for a local place but found out that Bubbas gets all their seafood fresh from the harbor anyways. Nate and I love Bubba Gumps!
Sufficiently stuffed, we toured downtown and eventually stumbled on the Open Market. The Open Market is a loooooong building that spans a few blocks filled with local vendors selling everything from t-shirts, purses, photography prints, woven grass baskets (a Charleston tradition), and other random knick-knaks.
Even though there was plenty left to do, like carriage rides, ghost tours, and other random tours, we decided to just end our day at the beautiful Waterfront Park. It really was lovely with plenty of benches, open grass, and a fountain you could go wading in. The whole park was backed by these beautiful old brownstone-style houses and the view of the harbor and the Atlantic was amazing!

I think Nate and I would both love to go back to Charleston. Everything, and I mean everything is old and beautiful and full of history. We only caught just a small part of it.



<a href="http://www.bloglovin.com/blog/10263980/?claim=u6ay5vuszgu">Follow my blog with Bloglovin</a>

If You Like Pina Coladas

Ok, I really don't like Pina Coladas, but I'm sure there will be many other tasty beverages available to Nate and myself on our cruise!

The fridge is empty, house clean, bed made, laundry and dishes done. Just some quick packing and we head out tonight for Nate's parents to drop Tripp and Libby off for their vacations at Nana and Papa's. Then it's two days in lovely Charleston, followed by 5 blissful days on the Carnival Fantasy with stops in Freeport and Nassau.

We're pretty excited to say the least. I get to cross two biggies off my bucket list, swimming with dolphins and snorkeling! I promise to take lots and lots of pictures and rub them all in your faces later. :)

We Didn't Go Farrar

Over the weekend, Nate and I made an unexpected trip down to his parents.

I finished my new employee training Friday morning and stopped by work to find out that the event I was supposed to work Saturday was cancelled. So once Nate was done with work, off to Farrar we went! This weekend was a special one, not only did Nate and I finally get to meet our niece Grace, but we also made it to her baptism.

Yeah, I'm holding her. You really think I was going to give her up for some pictures? No way.

Please ignore my wrinkly pants.

I also didn't have my camera at first, so I didn't get any pictures of Grace with John and Alex, but I get a picture of her with the proud new godparents. 

And if I didn't get my fill of baby this time around, another niece should be making her appearance sometime in August. Don't expect anything from Nate and I in the near future.

Oh, and one of Julie's cats had kittens.

I'm in love!!
The only thing keeping one of them from coming home with me was the 2 pet limit on post. And Nate's allergy too, I guess.

I promise that mommy only looks annoyed with me, and wasn't actually mad.

Nate's parents are visiting us next weekend. It will be the third weekend in a row we'll see Roger and Julie. I think we're spoiling them. :)

Keeping It Clean

Nate and I have had an eventful few days. Friday, I had my first day of work and, well, it was work. But it felt great to walk away with that tip money again.

Saturday, Nate and I went to Lily, our niece's, 4th birthday party.

It was great to be able to do something with family, which is primarily why we asked to be stationed at Leonard Wood in the first place.

Monday, we got our new washer and dryer. Our old set was a casualty of the move, having been packed and re-packed at least 3 times. Lowe's took our old set, delivered, hooked up, and tested the new set. I love the set. I know I'm old when I get this excited over new appliances.

The laundry pile that was bigger than I am no longer exists. Other than Nate's pile of uniforms, we managed to get it all folded and put away as well.

My life is a sea of digital camouflage, green socks, and khaki shirts . My laundry piles consist of: whites, darks, colors, and Army.

And lastly, Candy Crush Saga is destroying my life. I got Nate hooked on it too. Seriously though, I want to kick whoever made this game.

Our House Is Now A Home

Yesterday was a glorious day at our house. Well, until I realized that Nate and I now had to un-pack and put away everything....

Oh yeah, I finished painting the living room too. And hung curtains. I keep you all so informed.

 Eventually we got 'er all out and the big things are put away. EVERYTHING was dirty. Everything. It all got a good wipe down before I moved onto the kitchen...

Our kitchen is now maneuverable as well. :)
Oh, and we have our bed again. It's about a million feet high....Kidding, only about three feet.

The only casualty in the move was our washer. It's hard to describe what happened, but essentially, it's not going to work anytime soon. So Nate and I ventured out to Lowe's and bought this washer and this dryer. They arrive Monday. Just in time for me to wash alllllllllll the laundry we have. The pile makes me cry a little inside. It's our regular laundry from the last 2-ish weeks, plus all of Nate's clothing and uniforms that arrived from Korea on Tuesday, and also our bedding, linens, and some clothes that I had in storage. Minus the shoes, the pile now looks like this...

I spy a puppy butt.

I want my mommy.

Besides that, the living room now looks like this:

Except the large stack of boxes, those are gone now too. Grey's Anatomy is still on the TV however.

And my last update is that I officially start my new job tomorrow. I'm not so much excited about the work as I am to have a reason to leave the house.

You are all so jealous of my exciting life, I know.

The Time We Almost Had A Bed

Due to our still glaring lack of furniture, (today marks the start of week 4 of waiting) Nate and I managed to get a few things accomplished. 

I ventured out to Lowe's a picked up 2 cheap planters and some Petunias to put up front. My dad always called me Petunia, so they are kinda special to me. I also happened to stumble on some in my favorite color, yellow, which put an even bigger smile on my face.

Now if only housing would let me dig my hands into  all that space along the house....

Love them!

Planting some flowers put me in worker bee mode, because a few hours later I was back at Lowe's (this time with Nate in tow) getting paint. I wanted to get the living room done before our furniture arrived, but my step stool is with our furniture....so for now, our living room looks like this...

Gotta love being short.

The color is Rockport Grey by Benjamin Moore color matched by Valspar. I had stumbled across this color on Pinterest a few times, then again on a blog I love to read, Young House Love. It's such a rich, moody color, and it looks great no matter how the light hits it. I think it will look nice with our brown/tan couch and the tan-ish curtains you see wadded up in the middle of the floor. I'm planning on using it in our master bedroom as well.

And speaking of bedrooms....

I finally got around to staining the wood for our bed frame. I then proceeded to give Nate a sad face until he put it together. You also get a peek at one of our dressers. I want to paint both of them. I might actually get around to it someday. Maybe.

 If you are nosy like me and like to see other people houses I'll humor you. Here is the mess that is the other side of the master.

Yikes.

So now it's Monday. Nate has work and I'm going to stare at my phone waiting for Nate to call and tell me the furniture guys are here.

Kidding, I'm probably going to take a nap. Gotta get rested up for when our stuff does get here. I have 3 weeks worth of laundry to do. yaaaaay.

Mother's Day 2013

First off, I want to wish a happy mother's day to all of you amazing moms out there. I'm not technically a mother myself yet, but I do love Tripp and Libby like they came from my uterus. They also act like I imagine my real children will act someday. They clearly got their personalities from Nate and I :)

But enough about my kids dogs, I'm going to brag a little about the incredible women in my life.

First off, there is my mom, Judy. This woman drives me up a wall and I love her all the more for it. My mom is my best friend. She has the biggest heart, and will bend over backwards to help out the people she loves most. I can't even begin to describe the amount of love and respect I have for my mom. Although we've had our moments (what mother and daughter haven't??) I am so grateful for everything she has given me and that she helped me grow into a type of woman I can be proud of.

Next, I have my sister, Carla. Don't think for one second that because of our 14 year age difference we don't fight like sisters. Because we totally do, which means that we love each other extra! My sister is a pretty incredible woman. She overcomes every obstacle she encounters and is still such an amazing mom to her boys. She has been and continues to be a wonderful role model for me.

Here's one of my absolute favorite pictures of my mom and Carla :)

Carla enjoys a Long Island Ice Tea... or three.

Third, Stacey, my sister-in-law. I love her. My brother could not have found a woman who fit into our weird family better than her. She is a rock and I think we'd all be a little lost without her. I know family is important to everyone, but she makes hers a priority, and I have so much respect for her. Plus, I've heard my brother snore, and anyone who can put up with that deserves a trophy or something. 

 Fourth, Julie, my mother-in-law. I am amazingly blessed. I LOVE my in-laws. First off, she had five kids. FIVE. I can't even imagine having one yet. She, along with the rest of Nate's family, have made me feel so loved and so much a part of their family. It's like I've been an Abernathy my whole life. She is just as much a mom to me as my actual mother.

And of course I have my sister-in-laws Sarah, Alex, and Sarah. (Yes, two Sarahs. Yes, it can get confusing.) I love that I have three more sisters that I get along with so well. I am so excited that Nate and I are so much closer to my family and his, and that I will be able to spend more time with these ladies and be able to brag about them a little more next year!

From left to right: myself, Sarah (Nate's sister), Sarah (Josh's wife), Julie, Alex (John's wife).  Front: Lily, my niece.

A Little Goes A Long Way

We've been in our house for roughly two weeks now. Here's a peek at how much has changed...

What a lovely TV...

Why yes, we are still furniture-less. And yes, those are my curtains crumpled up on the floor. It's a new look.
Our furniture gets taken out of storage tomorrow and we will hopefully get it by Friday. Hopefully.

In other news, Nate reported to his unit. He is with the Maneuver Support Center of Excellence (MSCoE) Ft. Leonard Wood. Not going to lie, that is pretty much all I know/understood. I know they do something with the schools and training at this post, and that's about it. He has a cubicle (insert laughing here).
I got a job at the Pershing Community Center as a banquet server. It's on post and pays more than minimum wage, so I figured it's not a bad place to start. I start tomorrow. By start, I mean I go to some building and watch hours upon hours of drool inducing safety videos. Yay!


Now, without 95% of our belongings, we haven't been able to do a whole lot in the house. However, we did add some small shelves that I'm excited to share, since it's really the first thing we've done!

First, make sure you have plenty of assistance. It helps if they are cute.

Yup, cute.

Then, enlist the amazing man in your life to hang the shelves according to the instructions on the packaging while you squat in the tub to take pictures.

Sexy poses are optional, but suggested. And suggestive. (I'm so clever!)

Fill shelves with desired junk! And TA-DA!!!

(FYI: We know the bottom shelf isn't level, but it does what we need it to. We aren't totally sure if it was us (ahem Nate) that caused it to be un-level, or a defect in the shelf. I'm going with the latter.)

We used two 18-inch Allen + Roth shelves from Lowe's and the basket (also Allen + Roth) is from there as well.

Project Breakdown:

Shelves: 2x 13.62(ea)

Basket: 9.99
Drill: already owned

Lowe's Military Discount: -3.72

Total: 36.27

Yup, it's actually happening!

At some point while Nate was in Korea, I asked him if he would build us a bed.

Silly guy said yes.

While in Georgia, our bed just sat on the floor. Not a big deal, but we do have two dogs that enjoy waking us up. I also really wanted a bed.

Nate is out buying the wood now (I didn't go, I call everything a 2x4). My inspiration is this West Elm bed with the outofthisworld price tag (roughly $1500). Nooooooooooo thank you.

Image via West Elm

But neither of us is that crafty, so we are also using this plan from Ana White. She makes me think I can build things, and then I think 'mmmm better not'. Then I find Nate.
(yes, that was a Pitch Perfect reference thankyouverymuch)

More pictures to come!

Here I go again.

After a year long blogging hiatus, I'm back.
I know, you can hardly contain your excitement.

Nate is home, we are in Missouri, and all is normal again. Today we received the keys to our home on post at Fort Leonard Wood. I'm excited. Nate might be too, but I was too busy running all over the house grinning like an idiot.

Anyways, here is a tour of our new and very empty home!

***You should be able to click on the pictures to make them larger, and then click through them like a slideshow. However, they will be caption-less, and you may get lost in my house. ***

View from front door. Kitchen on right, living room straight ahead, hall on left. 

View from living room to front door. Hall on right, kitchen on left.

My new kitchen. View from entryway.

Kitchen view from side door towards the entryway.

Living/Dining room with backyard entrance.
 LOVE the big window!!

Living room from the back door.

Tripp and Libby have a fence! 

Any tips for getting some more grass to grow?

Hallway. Doors on right are to utilities, straight ahead is the 1st bedroom, and on the left coming back is the linen closet, bathroom, then coat closet.

You can bet Nate christened the bathroom already.

First bedroom.

View towards the master bedroom.

The master is gigantic, here is just inside to the right.

From the back right corner to the other side.

Yes, we have THREE closets.

Out of the master, another closet to the left, the right half is another utility closet.

Back down the hall to the entry.

No carport, but a nice long driveway.

Side door that goes into the kitchen.

I can't wait to share new photos once we get our furniture (next week I hope!) Until then, we are camped out at Nate's parents who live a short 3 hours away!