This. Weekend. Was. Perfect.

Will got off early and we made it to PCB in time to check in, soak in the beautiful condo, and get ready for the maternity pics. I might have struggled with the new falsies I tried to put on and spent a little too much time on my hair, but all that matters is we still had to wait on the lighting to cooperate negating my lateness. Sadly, I don't have any pictures from the shoot because we really maximized our two hours of sunlight with tons of poses, three outfit changes (I seriously hope no one looked close as I straight up changed on the beach while Will tried to hold a towel), and the 500+ pictures we did manage to take.  The wind was TERRIBLE, so let's also hope she got some where you can see my face in spite of the wind whipping it around. Hence why my hair had no curl by the time we went to dinner:

But yeah...the real fun was Saturday when we hit the beach! 

Carrie drove down to enjoy the fun in the sun with us and it couldn't have turned out to be a better day. We laid out, I took them to a few of my favorite spots: Pompano Joe's for lunch, Hook'd Up for beverages, Kilwin's for ice cream, and even got some pool time in back at the condo before we finally called it a day.

I envisioned brunch, shopping, and another day of fun on Sunday, but let's be real...we couldn't hang that much in one weekend if we tried. Instead, I woke up to flowers, a delicious breakfast, and we spent the rest of the day watching Disney movies, napping, grilling wings, and calling all the maternal influences in our lives to send them our love.

It's weird to think that this could have been the last time we catch some zzz's on the couch as just a couple. I thought for sure we wouldn't fit or that I would be too uncomfortable in my state to sleep, but I think that was the most comfortable I have been in months; snuggled up and wrapped in his arms. Pretty soon it will be Charlie snuggling on the couch with him, and I guess that's okay too ;) She just better recognize he's mine first! Teehee

OUR House!

Until 6PM on Tuesday, we weren't actually sure we were getting this house, so I felt like talking in depth about it would jinx it. Technically, we still won't own the house until it closes, but we have offered, signed contract, inspected, negotiated, and signed a whole new contract, which means...we pretty much have a house!

Teehee just joshin'! That was the half a million dollar house we got to check out on our way to lunch with the realtor. It was fun to look at, but this purchase is an investment to rent out. NOT our fantasy home. Actually, it's kind of weird that we found this house and we really did fall in love with it against the cardinal rule of "don't fall in love with an investment house". I don't actually know if that's the cardinal rule, but we've most certainly heard it a lot. 

So what made us fall in love with it? It was built in '73, but renovated this past year. They took it down to studs and replaced everything from the ground up, including expanding the square footage. You walk in and it feels like a a brand new house. New walls, floors, windows, HVAC, appliances, bathrooms, fixtures, roof, and the list goes on. A list of things that we would have to replace in all the other houses we looked at. Basically, an ideal investment for newbies like us, and that's why it was hard not to fall in love.

Did you get a load of that kitchen?! We will own ALL new EXPENSIVE appliances and we'll never even get to use them. A cryin' shame! As a matter of fact, anyone need an oven? I'm thinking a $3,000 oven is way too good much responsibility for tenants.

I guess you could say it's been a really fun process with ups and downs, which I will share along with the best advice we received along the way, but I think that should wait until we actually have the keys. Admittedly, we love this house, but we are also standing our ground on the few demands we have left after the last inspection. Like I said, we have signed a new contract including those contingencies, and still...we aren't putting our eggs in one basket. 

Momma didn't raise no fool.

Our Christmas Angel

When I started this post, I planned on just recapping some of our Pensacola Christmas, but once I had the pictures uploaded I realized there seemed to be one star in all the photos. Not surprisingly, my favorite little princess {my niece for anyone new around here} stole the show, and as usual, stole my blog for the day. It's not her fault she's so darn cute.

The whole trip home was spent with all of our wonderful family, but Christmas evening we started a new tradition. Now that my brother has started his own family, they wanted to host dinner and considering how good he and his wife can cook- NO one was complaining! They made a FIFTEEN pound Ribeye cooked to perfection and Paula's Red Velvet Cake was out of this world. I would kill for more of that cake...

Maddie doesn't really get the whole unwrapping process yet, but somehow having a kid around makes Christmas that much more special. I already love every single thing about Christmas, and we truly embrace the years that we aren't stationed thousands of miles away. Next year we could be as far as Korea, so every memory is absolutely priceless. We are blessed to have such wonderful families, and we hope to never undervalue how precious the time together is.

The Year That Was 2014

You just can't finish out a year without a good round up, am I right or am I right? Usually it takes me all of fifteen minutes to pick my favorite shenanigans to share and call it a day, however, this past year turned out to be a doozy. It just goes to show, you never know where life is going to take you if you are open to experience it.

January || Had us packing up all of our household goods, saying goodbye to breathtaking Colorado, and retiring my orange shorts. All in all, it was a pretty big month for us full of many changes that were exciting and scary at the same time.

February || Moved to Enterprise, Alabama! Actually more exciting than it sounded, and now we never want to leave. We want to find out what Will is going to fly and chill here.

March || We ran the McGuire's 5K {mostly for the free booze}, and I was able to spend two glorious weeks at home with family and witness my niece's baptism.

April || Was my proudest month as Will graduated from WOCS and became a Warrant Officer, the first step on the journey to becoming an Army helicopter pilot. Mmmm mmmm....I love my man in uniform!

May || With warm weather came lots of outdoor activities, and our new favorite was by far tubing. The beach was fun, but you really can't beat hopping in a river on a whim and heading down your own Redneck Riviera.

June || I got to see my baby brother graduate from High School. Ten years my junior, I begged my mom to let me do anything and everything for that sweet baby, so it seems so surreal that he's an 'adult'. Eh...he's still a baby to me!

July || Will was safe in my arms after three weeks of zero communication while he was in Survival School, and I got turned away from a bar for my 'fake id' in Destin, Fl. Oh, and I shotgunned a beer like I was 21 again.

August || I painted a lot of owls.

September || We soaked up the last bit of summer in Panama City for Labor Day.

October || Man, oh man...if I had to pick a favorite, it would probably be October. We spent the month planning our big Halloween/Haunted House party {that I still haven't blogged about}, attended the good ol' Ten Year Reunion, got new ink done, had a blast with all of our besties in Jacksonville, actually had my husband WITH me for my big day, and possibly had the best Birthday month of my life. I never wanted it to end.

November || Celebrated Veterans and raised $1,000's for Charity {$23,000 to be exact}, which still makes me feel warm and fuzzy inside.

December || We took a leap and started the home buying process. We area learning the ups and downs and waiting to see if our house goes through {inspections on top of inspections}, and trying to remember to enjoy the process. We are learning, we are growing, and embracing this adventure...at least we are in it together!

If we didn't have all this fun stuff to look back on, I wouldn't believe 2014 even happened. It went by WAY too fast, which I say every year, but that doesn't make it any less true. I don't know what 2015 is going to bring us or if it can hold a candle to 2014, but I am most definitely looking forward to enjoying the South while we are here, Will graduating, and BOTH of us turning 30 this year. I guess that means I'll be leaving the 'Twenty-Something' blogger club soon. Oh well, I ain't scurred. Age before beauty ;)

Peace Out 2014...It's been real!

I'm Still Alive

Hello my dears! Hope everyone is having the best holidays EVER and getting some much deserved relaxation. We haven't had any relaxation yet, nevertheless we are having a great time so far. It's funny, most people say they get annoyed with their spouses after too much time together, but we have spent every moment together, and I swear it makes me love him more. He really is my {sexiest} bestest friend.

I didn't plan on taking a blogging break last week, but it was pretty nice to just be in the moment and enjoy the family time and excitement. If you follow via Insta, then you know that we basically bought a house this week {more on that later} and the rest was filled with holiday parties and playing with our Christmas toys. Oh, and every yummy holiday food one could hope for, plus Red Robin because we love RR and don't have one near us.

Tonight, my in-laws showed up to hang with us for a day or two, so that will be awesome as always, and we will try to make the most of the week we have left. I see naps on the couch, cuddling while watching movies, lots of pillow talk, and hopefully time at the gym to work off the holiday poundage. We ate pretty good, but considering mom sent cakes and sweets home with us...who knows how we will feel when that's all gone.

In case we don't chat before the New Year, I hope you all have a wonderful and SAFE NYE celebration! Don't drink and drive, don't ride with someone who drinks and drives, and beware of other vehicles on the road. You know nights like NYE are amateur nights, so please take care of yourselves and your family. I care about every one of you!

"You (c/o 2004) Are Going To Hell In A Handbasket"

I was ten minutes late after driving the two hours home, but compared to everyone else, I was half an hour early. I'm pretty sure they didn't want to be awkwardly sitting there like I did, although they didn't realize that it made it easier for people to come to me, which was waaay less awkward. I knew I would recognize those I've stayed close with or have on Facebook, but I was so thankful that we had name tags for the rest. Supposedly seeing how everyone has changed is the fun part...I think not.

The funny thing was that I felt like we fell through a time warp and we were eighteen again. We all looked the same, we are still looking to find ourselves, and there was just something magical about reuniting in our home town. We've all known each other for the better part of our lives, so it's only natural to pick up where we left off.

Before I get too mushy gushy, dinner at The Fish House was amazing, but the real fun was the 'after party'. We were a few complimentary cocktails deep, and then it was party time! I'm pretty sure all reunions should end with a pub crawl around all the old haunts.

I must say, though, there was one big downside of the night. As you might have guessed, I was missing my best asset to show off, and that would be Will. Due to many unforeseen circumstances he had to stay home, but he still managed to be there in spirit...

Ten years ago, our delightful Principal Eaton, aka Nettie, told us that we were going straight to Hell in a handbasket. I can't remember what caused her to bestow her 'wisdom' on us, but it was probably because each generation loses hope in the next at times. I just wish I could look good ol' Nettie in the eye, and say haters gon' hate.

On The Shores Of Panama...

Thanks for voting! It was 50/50 on the votes for the Six Word Short story, but that's okay. Homeboy did use a semicolon like a boss, but since mine was actually an original idea, I still feel better. As for the sandwiches, you ALL voted correctly! #2 and #3 were BOTH my creations, and way better than that boring old Portobello. I mean, Italian dressing makes a great marinade, but where is the creativity in that? I swear that contest was rigged.

In case you are tracking my wrist situation, it's Tendonitis, so now I'm rocking a sweet brace. At least I didn't have to wear it on vacation, because it totally would have clashed with the sand and sun. No wrist pain was going to get in my way of this...

We were supposed to have 7-8 people, so we got the biggest condo at the Shores Of Panama Resort. Come the week of, we were down to five which meant we had three rooms, three bathrooms, and a HUGE condo all to ourselves. No one was complaining.

Gulf Coast Jam was our reason for going and while we loved Carrie Underwood, Big & Rich, Dierks Bentley, and Blake Shelton, we most definitely spent more time in the condo and at the beach than anything. People kept telling us it was going to rain, but it was PERFECT all weekend, so how can you not soak it all in? Mimosas, anyone?

Yes, we planned to dress alike. They boys have their bromance <see below>, and we have our...er...womance. There was another term I could have used, but the one I looked up is way better, haha. We got those shirts last time we were in PCB and they say "Unsinkable". The boys were away in training, so it signifies our support of them and how we can never be defeated when it comes to taking care of them! Plus I bartered and we got'em cheap.

The food was amazing, as always, but we tried new places this round. The goal: Eat as much fresh seafood as possible. Mission accomplished! Pineapple Willy's was our favorite lunch spot, Saltwater Grill was our big kid dinner, and Liza's Kitchen was one of the BEST brunches in town. We also went to the All American Diner, but you gotta be drunk for that.

Full of mimosas, we decided to visit Race City to let our inner children out. We played in the arcade, batting cages, and had a blast on the double decker go kart track without any major injuries. We may have had one person do the walk of shame when they got kicked off the ride, but my husband was on his best behavior! For once...

Then it was back to the beach. One of the best parts of the whole weekend, was when I found out my best friend from Elementary school was also in town for the weekend. I haven't seen Jess in fifteen years, and it was crazy to get to run and jump on her! She hasn't changed, I haven't changed, and we picked up right where we left off. Will said she was kind of shy, but I assured him she wasn't. She's just very chill and go with the flow. I love that that hasn't changed about her, and it reminds me of my roots.

Between the festival, out of this world seafood, booze, and the biggest condo I've ever stayed in, I think this may have been the most expensive 48 hours of my life. Too bad I don't regret it one bit. You just can't put a price tag on making such amazing memories, connecting with old friends, and getting to spend quality time relaxing with my hunny.