Birthday Blurb from The Tennis Guy

Sweet Kait,

I wanted to pop in on this special day and remind you of how much I love you.  Twenty three years ago God saw fit to see you into this world and I'm so glad he did.  Today, I'm proud to call you my wife, and look forward to celebrating many more birthdays to come.  I hope that you're enjoying your day, and know that I love you more than anything in this world. 

Seth

One year ago today...

I said "I do".

I married the love of my life.
My "gentle giant".  (He is 6'5"!)
It was the best day of my life and I can't believe a year has gone by so quickly!
We have had such an awesome year together. The Lord has blessed us so much and we owe it all to Him.

I love remembering our wedding day.  It was filled with so much love, joy, happiness, and even a few really funny memories that I can look back on and laugh.

Here is one:


I was watching my bridesmaids walk down the aisle and there were only 2 left to go.  All of a sudden, I just lost all my "control" because I was so nervous and started to tinkle on my self!  Once I noticed what the heck was going on, I looked at my wedding planner, Katie, and said "KATIE, I AM PEEING ON MYSELF AND I CAN'T STOP!"  My dad was with my too, since we was about to walk me down the aisle, and he looked at Katie and said "WHAT DO I DO?!"


Yep.  True story.

Oh, the memories.  So, the harpist had to play an extra stanza of the song while I made a quick trip to the bathroom to relieve myself.  I then ran back to the door where I was supposed to walk out and everything was fine.  And don't worry, it was just a little accident.  I didn't have to change clothes or anything...I mean, I really couldn't have changed into anything else.  I didn't have a "backup dress". (How many people do? None..)

Or here's another:

My brother didn't try on his suit when he picked it up (good job, bro!) and had to have the right one overnighted. He picked it up an HOUR before the wedding. It worked out though..

It would have been a funny sight to see him in a suit 4 sizes too small on him, though!

Here are a few of my favorite photos from our special day...

 My best friends.

 All my maids, my mom, and Seth wrote on my shoes!

 Here is Seth reading letters that I wrote to my future husband since I was 16 years old all the way until our wedding day.

 This was right after the "accident" hah!

 My dad and I did the thriller dance in the middle of our father daughter dance!

 Of course, hubby had a tennis cake.

Seth, I love you.  A year ago today, I thought I couldn't love you more..but I was wrong.  You are such a wonderful man inside and out and I am extremely lucky to call you my husband.  Thank you for putting up with my stubbornness.

Life is so much sweeter with you in it and I am looking forward to saying these exact words when we celebrate 50 years together. 

Headin' South!

Tomorrow the hubby and I are heading to Charleston to celebrate our first year of marriage!  I can't believe it's already been a year-time sure does fly!

We both had a tough week at work, so this could not come at a better time.  Speaking of work, I am going to be looking for a new job for when we move to Raleigh next month!  Job hunting makes me nervous/sick to my stomach/ etc...wouldn't life be easier if jobs were just thrown at you?  But alas, they are not...so I am going to begin my search.  Please keep me in your prayers, thanks!

My birthday is also coming up... :)  It's on Tuesday...and I am so excited.  I love birthdays.

Also, we found a rental house in the Raleigh area for law school!  It's so perfect for us, we cannot wait!

It has a front porch, a screened in "side" porch, and a bathtub! The house we live in now doesn't have that.  It also has a fenced in backyard for our puppy!  It's in a great neighborhood, about fifteen minutes from hubby's law school, and fifteen minutes from his parents. It's going to be great living so close to our family. 

Guess what that also means for me?  I get to decorate a new house! Yahoooo!!!!!  I am already thinking of ideas for paint/curtains/ mantle decorations (the living room has a wood burning fireplace)  So, you'll be seeing lots of updates/DIY in the next couples months as we moved.

Speaking of decor...we are going to be getting a new couch.  I'm thinking about one from IKEA because I like the prices.  Anyone out there have a couch from Ikea?  If so, do you like it?  

BUT..


I AM NOT EXCITED ABOUT PACKING.  Does anyone else HATE packing as much as I do?  (Logan, I know you do!)  We have exactly one month to pack up everything and be moved. 

Sadly, the amount of  "stuff" in our house has increased, due to my decoratings/ DIYing self.  Hubby is begging me to donate/sell/give away some things...I guess I better get on that.



A couple more random pieces of info.  My "professional" blog makeover is almost done! I CANNOT wait to show it off. I loveeeeeee it.  Here's a sneak peek of what it includes:

My favorite flower ever! I love hydrangeas.  Love them.  I may or may not have picked those from the middle of a neighborhood cul-de-sac.  I couldn't help myself...I was dreaming about hydrangeas for weeks and when I saw them, I had to have them.  (Just know that the bush had like 100's of stems.  It was GINORMOUS)  So, I'm sure no one even missed them. :)


I hope you have a great weekend! We'll be soaking in the South Carolina sun (IF it doesn't rain!)  I'll be back soon with updates on our trip! 

Have a happy Friday!

-Kait

What I'm Loving Wednesday!

Yay! I finally have time today to do a WILW post!

Here's what I'm loving, and be sure to link up with Jamie at This kind of love!

I'm loving that next weekend we are going to Charleston for our anniversary!  Have you ever been?  Got any good restaurant reccomendations?

I'm loving all the cute things on forever21's website! Here's a few that I like:

I'm loving that summertime is ALMOST here! We are having a cookout in a few weeks and I cannot wait for sangria, grilled hamburgers, and great company!

I'm loving  this sparkly nail polish by OPI (Mad as a hatter)

I'm loving that the weekend is almost here! I can't wait to lay out in the sun.

What are you loving this week?

-Kait

Sangria and cupcakes!

I woke up this morning around 4am with a mini stomach bug/food poisoning...it was horrible.  I don't know about you, but there aren't many things I hate worse than getting sick to my stomach.

So, I didn't go into work and lied around in bed all day being pitiful.  The only productive thing I've done is go to the grocery store and walk Penny.

I also scored some great deals at CVS yesterday:

2 bottles of shampoo
2 tubes of Neutrogena sunscreen
3 deodorants
18 rolls of paper towels

The total before coupons and sales: $56.67
The total after coupons and sales: $5.25
That's a total savings of 91%! :)


I'm getting my coupon binder ready for Harris Teeter triples week that starts on Wednesday-that means the store will triple any coupon up to .99 cents!

In just 12 days, hubby and I are making our way to Charleston for our 1 year anniversary trip!!  I am so excited-I can't wait to lay out on the beach with a good book in hand.  Here's where we are staying (it looks great!):

Boy am I ready.

My birthday is also coming up on the last day of May! Hubby has been asking me what kind of sewing machine I may want....  :) whoo hoo!! Looks like I may be getting one!

If you have a sewing machine, I would love your input! Do you like yours? What kind do you have?  Was it worth the money you paid?

I am a beginner at sewing, so I don't need anything extravagant, but I do want something that will still be great to use when I do get better at it.

Now, I am going to leave you with a few random photos I found while perusing the internet from bed all day:

OMG.  If I found this picture a year ago, this would have SO been my exact wedding cake.  I love love love it. 

Also, I found a YUMMY recipe I am sharing in celebration of summertime being so close!!

Does this not look absolutely incredible?

Strawberry and Peach Sangria 

Here's what you'll need:

• 1 750-ml bottle dry white wine
• 1 1/2 cups Essensia (orange Muscat, a sweet dessert wine)
• 1 1/2 cups sliced strawberries
• 1 cup peach liqueur
• 3 peaches, each cut into 12 slices
• 1 large orange, cut crosswise into 6 slices
• 1 large lemon, cut crosswise into 6 slices
• 1/4 cup strawberry syrup (optional)
• 3 to 4 cups ice cubes

Mix white wine, Essensia, strawberries, peach liqueur, peaches, orange slices, lemon slices, and strawberry syrup in large pitcher, smashing citrus slices slightly. Let stand at room temperature at least 2 hours or chill up to 4 hours. Serve sangria over ice.  taken from epicurious.com

YUM!!!!!

Also,  I CANNOT WAIT to make these cupcakes.  We are hosting a cookout in a couple weeks and I found the perfect dessert.

My all-time favorite flower is a hydrangea.  And look at the cupcakes:

  P-E-R-F-E-C-T.

Can you tell I was lazy and unproductive all day?


Hope y'all had a great Monday!

-Kait

An assortment...

Look at these beautiful flowers I picked from our yard!  Few things smell better than a fresh rose from the garden, dontcha think?  I love the colors in the yellow/orange/pink rose.  This is one of the bazillion reasons why I love summertime...

 See that blue pillow right there?  It's a placemat from Target ($2.99) that I made into a pillow.  LOVE IT!  I'm thinking about stamping "Howdy" on the front.

 And lastly, I added some pizazz to a plain white dishtowel...RUFFLES!! I lovee ruffles.  I mean, who doesn't?  I plan on making more for gifts and such.  It's so easy and a great inexpensive way to add a lot of "cute-ness" to your kitchen!

Also, a few good summer reads for you:

1. Something Borrowed by Emily Griffin.  Such an easy and good book..I am planning on seeing the movie this weekend with my sis and mom-in-law!

2. The Help by Kathryn Stockett.  I've only read 60 pages, but I already love it. They are also making this into a movie as well.  Guess I'll have to see that too

Got any good summer reading for me?  I would love any suggestions!

P.S. I am in the process of getting a "real" blog makeover (from someone who knows what they're doing) so be patient, and I promise it's the last one for a long long time!)

To my mother...

Dear Mom,

Sometimes I don't always tell you how thankful I am, or how much you mean to me, but I want you to know that everything I am is because of you.

You have taught me...
how to be a Godly woman
to work hard for what I want
to laugh when things don't always go as planned
to understand the value of honesty
that the best things in life aren't just handed to you
 that studying DOES pay off
so does eating your green beans
kindness is the best "retaliation"
and so much more...

Thank you for raising me into a lady and for always supporting me even when it may have been hard to do! (For instance, when I was age 12-18)

Thank you...
for giving me my first kitten at age 5
for dragging me to church when I wanted to sleep in
for bringing me lunch at elementary school (because that was the cool thing to do)
for throwing me an awesome Sweet 16 birthday party
for allowing me to be a cheerleader (because that was SO important to me then)
for letting me go off to my college of choice (Gig 'em Aggies!)
for letting me run off to NC and chase a boy (who is now my husband, thank you!)
for the wedding of my dreams.


Thank you for all you do.



You are my hero. 

I love you so much!


-Kait