Five on Friday: snowy week!

O N E

We got more SNOW this week!! And this time it was actually pretty, fluffy snow! I am totally a summer/beach girl but snow makes me giddy like a little kid. My [25 week preggo] sister called me and said Ella James wanted to build a snowman and being that said preggo sis wasn't feeling the snow, I did what any aunt would do and bundled up to play in the snow with my niece. And she looooved it. She ran around in circles saying, "it's snowing, it's snowing!" Melt. My. Heart. Bella sprinted around like a wild monster for all of 60 seconds then was totally over it.

T W O

Of course we had to make snow cream, duh. Do people up north like snow cream or is it a southern thing? It is my jam! and so easy! All you need is:

-a heaping mixing bowl of fresh, fluffy snow

-a can of sweetened condensed milk

-a few teaspoons of vanilla

Pour the sweetened condensed milk over the snow and stir until the consistency of regular ice cream. Then add a few teaspoons of vanilla, to taste. If you want it to be thicker, add more snow. If you want it creamier, add more milk. Then add whatever toppings you would like [I like mine plain]. So simple and yummy!

T H R E E

I delivered a baby this week! The whole baby concept just blows my mind. #1 I will never understand how a woman's body can survive through that torture childbirth. #2 while being such a beautiful and amazing process, it is quite possibly the most horrific, traumatizing sight. I am 99.9% sure my husband is going to faint when I have a baby due to the amount of blood at the scene. And y'all, newborn babies are SLIPPERY! And so precious!

F O U R

What did y'all think about the Bachelor this week? I was totally blown away that he sent Kaitlyn home. I'm not a huge fan of Becca… they will most definitely be broken up within 6 months if he chooses her. Whitney seems much more "wifey" and willing to live in middle-of-nowhere Iowa. This season has been less than average at best if you ask me.

F I V E

We got a new bookshelf in our room and I am sliiiightly obsessed with it. Now to style it perfectly! I want to collect lots of cute odds and ends to display on it along with my ridiculous amount of picture frames [I am definitely a picture frame hoarder]. Here are some of my inspiration pics:

Hope you have a happy Friday and a great weekend! Xoxo

Thoughts for Thursday: Home

I have always been a homebody. Like, even when on vacation I would feel homesick and want to go home. It's kind of a joke in my family now… they all make fun of me for always wanting to be at home. Home is my happy place. And "home" took on a whole new meaning when I got married.

My husband and I decided not to live together until we were married so we timed it so that our new house would be finished right before the wedding. Well our wedding night was my very first time sleeping in our new home [he had been there a few weeks already]. The day after our wedding I woke up and felt an unsettling feeling. Where am I? This is not my home. I feel so homesick.

We went across town to my mom's house to get the last of my things and permanently "move me" into our new house and those feelings got 10x worse. It hit me like a ton of bricks that I will likely never spend the night at my parents' house again, being that we now live in the same town. Confession: I burst into tears as we drove away from my mom's house. I know, I know, embarrassing right? It was the day after my wedding and I am crying to my husband of 12 hours because I am officially leaving my "real home". But this was a huge change for me!

I texted my cousin and told her how ridiculous I was feeling and her response: "I felt the exact same way when I got married but pretty soon Garrett will feel like your home and you will only get homesick for him." Her words couldn't have been more true. I have realized that home is truly where your heart is. I could live in a cardboard box and as long as Garrett is there with me, it would feel like home. And that is how I know that he is my person. He is my home.

Linking up with Annie

Meghan from Champagne & Suburbs: Marriage guest series!

I am SUPER excited to start my guest-post series today with my real life AND blogger friend, sweet Meghan over at Champagne and Suburbs! Her post is real and honest, which is why I love her! I texted her after reading and told her it made me tear up… it's not often that you read posts that are so relatable and honest. Thank you, Meghan, for spilling your heart out! You are a true gem!
**************************************************************************
Good morning, y'all! I'm Meghan over at Champagne and Suburbs and I hope you are having a great week!   I was honored and excited when Owen asked me to write a guest post regarding my marriage.  But then I got a little nervous, because I wanted to be honest and let's be real, the truth can be scary to put on a public forum.  So, here goes nothing!

  When DG proposed to me, we had been together for about 2 years, which was exactly how long I wanted to be in a relationship with someone before committing to marriage.  By the time we got married, we were together for about 3 and a half years.  One of the reasons I felt confident in our marriage was the fact that we lived together for the majority of our relationship.  I know that is something that is sometimes frowned upon, but I knew I had to live with someone before I could commit to marrying them.  I mean, what if he just stood in front of the fridge with the door open trying to decide on what he is going to eat for too long?  What if he was too sloppy or worse, too clean?  (I'm a clutterer and a hoarder.  The first plane ticket I ever had is still in my wallet with my first ticket to a Broadway show.  I know...).  So I needed to know if I could live with him before I committed, so I felt like we had that part under control.     One of the biggest parts of our first year of marriage has been the most controversial.  My in-laws are not thrilled about our marriage.  We haven't spoken to DG's father since he walked out of our wedding reception during dinner without saying good bye.  His mother told me every single thing we did during our wedding weekend that upset her in a two hour conversation.  His sister did not take a single picture of me at the wedding or reception.  And y'all, it hurts.  Still stings.  And for long time, it was a source of anxiety for me.  And I didn't know how to talk to DG about it.  How do you tell someone that their family hurts your feelings daily?  And that no matter what you do, you think about it a lot?  Seems silly, right?  But the good news is I actually do tell him this often because I cannot hide my feelings.  He is understanding and supportive, but for a while we weren't sure how to move forward.  We realized that cannot control their feelings and we realized that we have to make ourselves happy.  It is important that we do that for our mental sanity individually but also as a couple.     If you do not know DG or me, our relationship could come across as... dysfunctional.  But that's why it works.  The one thing I have always needed is someone to put me in my place.  I am strong-willed, opinionated, and loud, and DG will shut me down when I'm wrong.  There are not many people who can do that, and that is one of the biggest reasons why I knew we would work.  On the opposite side, DG needs to be checked too.  We're both passionate and like being right, which makes for interesting conversations at times.  However, it is what works for us, and I wouldn't trade it for anything.  

  Lastly, I figured that marriage would not be that different.  We had been together for a while and were used to living together.  However, marriage is way different in the best possible way.  I can't really put my finger on and I can't quite explain it, but marriage has been wayyyy better than I expected.  I want to go on record and say it is not easy to live with someone else and it is not easy to have to talk about your feelings and your needs, but in the end it is worth it to have someone listen to you and care.  

  So that's it.  It's a quick snapshot of our first year of marriage.   Stop by my blog and say hi sometime!  And Owen, thanks for having me!    

Weekending

This weekend was just pure rejuvenating. I feel refreshed, re-energized, and re-focused on what really matters in this crazy life. Friday night and Saturday were spent at my church for a women's conference called Pursue the Passion with my sisters and mom. The worship music was led by the amazingly talented and adorable Meredith Andrews [pictured below]. Y'all, she is tiny but has a BIG voice. The featured speaker was Jen Hatmaker, and she was a-ma-zing. She is hilarious, bold, and an amazing God-fearing woman. She had me in tears laughing. She is also the author of the book 'Seven' which is hugely popular.

A quick rundown of what I learned and what really spoke to my heart this weekend: I am spending too much time wasting time and too little time following Jesus. We studied a passage about two sisters, Mary and Martha, and Jesus had come to their house. Mary immediately sat at Jesus' feet to listen to him, gain knowledge from him, and spend time with him. Martha was too busy running around trying to make sure her house was spotless and everything cleaned up instead of dropping it all and spending time with Jesus.

"As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a women named Martha opened her home to him. She has a sister named Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet listening to what he said. But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, 'Lord, don't you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!'

'Martha, Martha,' the Lord answered. 'You are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed--indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.'" -Luke 10:38-42

This hit me like a ton of bricks. I will be the first person to admit that I am always running around trying to make sure my house is clean and perfectly decorated, my studying is accomplished, groceries are bought, guests are impressed when really none of these things matter. News flash: NONE OF THESE THINGS WILL GO TO HEAVEN WITH US OR EVEN HELP US GET TO HEAVEN. The only thing that will is a relationship with Jesus. So, I am making a conscious effort to re-prioritize my life and focus on what truly matters.

Saturday night was date night! We went to the restaurant where we had our rehearsal dinner and it was so nice to enjoy drinks and a nice meal with my handsome husband. Sometimes I feel like we go days without having a real, true conversation because we are always so busy! We got home just in time to put my niece to bed. My husband may or may not love her more than he loves me. These two completely melt my heart.

Sunday was church, gym, studying, taking the doggy for a walk, grocery shopping… the usual. This is my last week of my OBGYN rotation [I cannot believe it!]! I am pretty sad to be leaving this one but that just means one step closer to graduation ;) Happy Monday loves!

Five on Friday

O N E

We [and when I say we, I mean my amazing husband] made shrimp scampi with zucchini noodles for dinner one night this week and it was delicious!! I gave him a spiral slicer in his stocking for Christmas but we hadn't used it yet. I was thoroughly impressed with how easy it was to use. You could hardly even tell that they weren't "real" noodles. I added a tiny bit of pesto to my pasta for a little extra flavor and it was sooo yummy [and healthy!]. We will definitely be having this again soon!

T W O

Did anyone watch the UNC v. Duke basketball game Wednesday night? I may or may not have shed a few tears. Total heartbreaker. Me and hubs met and both graduated from the amazing University of North Carolina so we share a love of all things tarheel blue. Needless to say, Duke is a 4-letter word in our household. We lost in overtime and I'm pretty sure our neighbors could hear my husband screaming. I still love my heels and all the memories I have in baby blue Heaven.

T H R E E

Confession: The Bachelor is my guilty pleasure. Please tell me I'm not the only one?? This season has been so-so, definitely not one of my favorites. Usually they go to all these amazing locations but the last 2 weeks they have been in Iowa and South Dakota… super non-exciting. I think Whitney is going to be the last one standing. She seems the most "wifey" to me. And I really loved Jade until she sat on the couch with him and proudly showed her nude modeling videos… totally awkward and inappropriate. I was thinking she would be the next Bachelorette until that happened.

F O U R

I am totally in nail polish withdrawal. I'm not allowed to have my nails painted during this rotation because we could be called in for a C-section at any point, and supposedly nail polish traps bacteria and increases the risk of infection when "scrubbing in" for surgery. [I couldn't have them painted last month for my surgery rotation either… tear]. So, until these bare nails can be painted again, I will continue lusting over these Spring colors:

Mint Candy Apple by Essie

Splash of Grenadine by Essie

Tart Deco by Essie

Are you an Essie or OPI gal?

F I V E

I am starting a guest-post series on Wednesday all about marriage! Marriage/weddings/engagements/etc. is my favorite thing to read about on other blogs so I thought it would be fun to hear all about the marriages of some of my favorite bloggers! Be sure to check back on Wednesday for the first guest post of the series!

Ice, Ice, baby

NC got hit with the dreaded ice storm last night. I was prayyyying the weather forecasts were wrong and that we would get lots of fluffy, white snow. Instead, we got 2 inches of ice. Patients were canceled so I took advantage of the day off with studying, homemade chicken noodle soup, and catching up on the Bachelor that I DVR'ed. I will admit, it was so nice to have an unexpected day off at home!

This is currently what our front steps look like. I literally stood there for 5 minutes trying to figure out how to get down them without busting my a**. Thankfully I only fell when hubs was home so he could get a good laugh out of it. Bella girl felt the same way about the ice. When I let her out this morning she just stood there all "um excuse me mom, I'm supposed to go out in this?"

Stay warm, friends! Xoxo

Weekending: Valentine's day at the beach

Why do weekends always go by so fast?? I was NOT ready for Monday this week. However, there is snow in our forecast for Tuesday and I am totally a kid at heart, hoping it snows and work gets canceled! I may or may not sleep with my pi's inside out all week ;)

Friday after work G and I packed up and headed to the beach. The drive was actually really nice. We played anatomy trivia on his iPad for the whole 2 hours like total nerds. This week was so crazy, it was nice to have some alone time and husband/wife conversation. It was sunset as we were getting there so of course I grabbed a glass of champs and went on the deck for sunset. Then sister and her husband cooked dinner: chicken enchiladas. They were soo yummy! Then we played a really fun dice game that 

mom introduced us to.

Saturday morning we were up bright and early to head to my aunt and uncle's beach place for breakfast. My uncle cooked eggs benedict, and it was aaaamaze. After breakfast it was straight to the aquarium where sweet EJ had a blast! She calls sharks "sharps" and was deathly afraid of the fake alligator. G and I couldn't stop talking about how much fun it will be when we have kids of our own to add to the madness!

Saturday afternoon we braved the frigid temps and let Bella play on the beach. Crazy girl swam just like it was summer time! She is a beach lover just like her momma. While my niece napped, me, G and my momma met my aunt and uncle at a little wine bar down the road. We enjoyed a delicious cheese tray, wine, draft beers, and good company! Then it was home for G and I to cook dinner: chicken parmesan with spaghetti squash. Everyone loved it!

Sunday morning we headed straight home so we could spend the day cleaning, studying, grocery shopping, going to the gym, and doing all the normal "Sunday" chores. It was a great weekend but I sure wish it would have been longer! How was your weekend?!

Five on Friday!

[ONE]

I am halfway done with my OBGYN rotation and I have LOVED it. I mean really, treating adorable pregnant women then getting to see the sweet babes that are born… what could be better?! It is giving my baby fever like craaaazy. Note to self: YOU MUST WAIT.

[TWO]

We are heading to the beach house this weekend with my family for a relaxing Valentines day. We will take my niece to the aquarium [her favorite place ever!] and let our doggy swim and run wild on the beach. The beach is my happy place so it will be nice to relax for the weekend!

[THREE]

Our bathroom has a big jacuzzi bathtub and ever since we moved in a little over a year ago, it has not once been used. I'm somewhat embarrassed to admit that. You see, I honestly cannot remember the last time I took a bath. I have always been a shower girl. However, I always see these amazing, romantic pictures of people with their candles and magazines and bubbles in their bathtub. So the other night I decided I would give it a try. Turned the water on, lit candles, got my bubbles, sat in the bath for about 2 minutes and was miserable. I was hot as crap but my shoulders and head were freezing cold. So I did what any shower lover would do, pulled the plug and hopped into my shower. Ugh, it was so unromantic and quite hilarious. I guess it will be a year before I give it another try. #teamshower

[FOUR]

Unless you live under a rock, I'm sure you've seen the news of the 3 Muslim students murdered in Chapel Hill. This hits so close to home. This is my college town and a piece of my heart will always be there. The hate and cruelty in this world scares me and makes me so sad. If it's this bad now, how much worse could it possibly get for my future children? This world needs more Jesus and love.

great article about the incident

[FIVE]

We are planning a graduation/2nd anniversary trip this December. Have any recommendations of all-inclusive resorts?! I want warm, white beaches with clear oceans!

And I will leave you with my 2 favorite pictures of the week: our sweet pup goes straight to the fireplace in the morning while we are getting ready for work and gets so close I am actually scared her whiskers are going to burn off. Aaaand my niece is literally the most adorable child I have ever seen. Ever.

Weekending: Chapel Hill!

Happy Monday!! This weekend was a great one but it sure flewwww by. I start my OBGYN rotation today so I really enjoyed a stress-free weekend between rotations with NO studying! [P.s. I passed my end-of-rotation exam! So happy!]

Friday was my last day of surgery. I celebrated with a post-colectomy selfie. I am going to miss the excitement of surgery but I am NOT going to miss the looong hours.

Friday night we spent the night with Garrett's first cousin Rob and his wife Katie and their sweet little girl. Rob plays baseball for the Milwaukee Brewers and has to leave next week for Spring Training so we wanted to spend some time with them before they leave for the season! 

Saturday morning we got up bright and early and headed to Chapel Hill. Since we both went to college in Chapel Hill and met there, we are always SO excited to go back and visit any chance we get. We met our best friends Morgan and Greg at Southpoint mall for lunch and shopping. G and I both agreed we didn't need to shop… that didn't exactly go as planned. I scored this gorgeous blouse for 40% off at Anne Taylor Loft [it's much brighter in person… super cute]. I also racked up on new Lululemon goodies. Patterned crop leggings, short sleeve top, and a long sleeve top that isn't online. Have I mentioned my Lulu addiction before? Guilty.

Then it was to the hotel to get ready for the First Pitch Banquet. Every year before the baseball season starts there is a big banquet to raise money for the UNC baseball team. All the former UNC baseball players return and it is SUCH a blast to see everyone and all the wives. We are truly like one big family. A lot of our friends [G's former teammates] are playing professionally so we don't get to see each other nearly enough. It was such a great night!

After the banquet we pretended like we were still in college and went to all of our favorite bars from undergrad. I couldn't tell you the last time I stayed out until 2am. Whew, I paid for it all day yesterday but it was definitely worth it!

And what exciting plan did we have for the Superbowl? Well, I watched it from the comfort of my own bed and couldn't have been happier. We were so exhausted from a busy weekend, we decided to stay home and relax. I did miss all that yummy food and dips though!

 

 

Hope everyone has a great Monday!