Exciting Saturday

You can't beat a Saturday when it's spent shopping. That's exactly what I did today. I met my sister-in-law (Jennifer) at the galleria and we hit up Belk's 1 Day Sale. Lucky for my husband there wasn't too much that I couldn't live without. I did buy a dress that was originally $200 (I have NO IDEA why it was so expensive) for $42. That's a good deal, right? Jennifer did good too but she's preparing for her honeymoon to Hawaii so she needed a bit more things than I did.

Brent even joined in on the shopping (granted a few hours later). We went to Lowe's and ordered our new countertops! I'm so excited. I tried to post a picture of the color but I've already forgotten exactly what it looks like. All the colors blend together. It's a pretty basic color of granite though. I had the mind set that if this was the house we were going to live in long term I'd be more selective. However, I hope to branch out and leave the townhouse behind one day when we have a larger family and for resale we didn't want to pick anything that would limit the future owners.

We even squeezed in date night tonight. Pablos & Inception.

The cherry on top is that Charlie got a bath!! He's laying on the foot of the bed as I type this. He smells like apples and is so cuddly :)

Blog Name Change

I decided to change the name of our blog. I needed something a little more creative. If you read this post earlier then you know I was trying to avoid stalkerish situations that could arise from having our whole name on the blog. Well blogs seem to be as complicated and passports and other documents when it comes to changing them! I changed the url and all of the sudden all the blogs that followed us got the screen of death message telling them that our little blog no longer exists! I've changed the url back to the old link but have decided I like the new Title.

Meaning behind the title: If you know my husband then you know everyone (except his side of the family) refer to him as "BR". Prior to becoming "BR's wife" I was known as "AJ" and most friends (his and mine) still use that rather than "Ashley" when addressing me.

Hopefully this gives the blog a bit more character and a little less personalization. Stalkers are not wanted... we all encounter enough crazies in the real world each day--no need for online crazies as well!

Random Creativity

Lately I've been thinking about photo books. I LOVE taking photos but do not love having them printed. I decided to look around and found a 25% off coupon (I also LOVE coupons) for a site called picaboo. I decided to make a book of photos from our Honeymoon. I chose the "Classic Leather" design in the Charred Wood color. I can't wait to see it. If it turns out nice I'm going to use this site to create a book with photos from our 1st year of marriage. Their "Classic" design starts at $9.99. If you make a book before July 31st you can use the coupon to! Happy Photo-booking :)

Sad Puppy

Charlie is pathetic. He is moping around like Eeyore from Winnie the Pooh. He misses Hartselle terribly. Maybe it's the Memaw biscuits or sleeping all day with company but this pup is pathetic. His little tails been dragging the floor since we got home around 6pm. Here's to hoping he cheers up soon.

this photo was taken 5 minutes before this post...

see the resemblance?

photo info: here

Destin Pictures

We're back... is it time to cruise yet? We had a great time at the beach with our friend's Zeb & Jana. They are super fun and enjoy going to bed early just like we do. The boys didn't want to cooperate for many pictures and plus who enjoys all that wind blowing hair in your face while attempting to smile?

We stayed at the Majestic Sun in Destin, Florida. We didn't see any oil but we did see the crews on hand to clean it up just in case some washed ashore. 3 Days of sun just wasn't enough... it's been hard to get in the swing of waking up early to go to work (and I've only did it 1 day so far this week).

I get to pick Mr. Charlie (our dog) up from my Memaw tomorrow so maybe that will make tomorrow go fast. It's just too quiet around here without the sound of him chewing on his bones all night. 

Destin update

It's our last day on the beach and the weather has been perfect. I'm not sure where tropical storm Bonnie is headed but it doesn't look like she's coming to where we are anytime soon. We've spent the last two days being lazy and eating delicious food- what more could I ask for?[a new iPhone 4 that allows me to post a photo of what i'm seeing now would be nice... Orignal iPhone doesn't support image uploading :( ]

I've taken plenty of photos and will post those once we are home tomorrow afternoon.

Happy Saturday!

Time to Beach it up

We are going to the beach in two days. I can't wait!! We are going to Destin with our friends Zeb & Jana. I went and got a haircut as well as a mani & pedi today to celebrate having to pack tonight. I'm going to pack light. I'm only taking 1 outfit per day (along with a swimsuit for each day). We all know my style is non-existent so there's no need in trying to pull a miracle out of the closet now. I'm going to take my nikon and try to talk Zeb & Jana into taking a few beachy photos before dinner one night. Zeb and Brent are like little children when it comes to wanting to take nice photos...they do not mind. I doubt I'll be able to pull off this feat but I'm going to try.

Well it's time to pack... and watch the Braves. Beat those Padres.

Leah & Bart's Wedding

We made the journey to Hamilton last night for Leah & Bart's wedding. Leah was a beautiful bride and it was fun getting to hang out with friends from college. Here's a recap of the wedding in pictures:

Leah's HUGE cake 

Posing with the Bride

Leah & her nephew

Congratulations Mr. & Mrs. Hyche!

Packages :)

I got a package today! The box of Arbonne products I ordered was waiting on me when I got home from work. Growing up, my grandmother kept me stocked in clinique facial products but lately (well since college) I've been a faithful user of clean and clear purchased from Wal-Mart. I thought it was about time that I did something good for myself and tried to get my complexion back in order. Tonight will be the first night I do the whole routine. As embarrassing as it is I am going to do "before" and "after" photos to see if the eye cream really helps rid my face of these dark circles under my eyes. I was so embarrassed on my wedding day when the makeup artist said "Are these always here?" I was like "Um...Yes?". My friend Amber (who deals in Arbonne) said this would do the trick. We shall See! If anyone wants to order anything let me know. I became a preferred client so I have an online login and can help you out.

Have a great FRIDAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Home Improvement Reveal

The dining room is back in order...

The color is a little off because my canon purse camera is not the best in the world but this gives you all an idea of what it looks like until you come and visit. We picked a paint color that was in the rug I got for my birthday last year (which I just noticed is not visible in these pictures...oh well). I think Brent and his dad did a great job on the trim work. I need to find a center piece for the table and hang curtains. I think it's all coming together pretty nice. It's definitely an upgrade from the old tan generic walls we had beforehand. I'm just glad it's DONE.

Next mission: granite countertops and a tile backsplash! 

Trying out New Things

In the past 24 hours we've did several new things. Last night we went to Chuy's. It's a new Tex Mex restaurant at the Summit. We had a 2 hour wait but it wasn't as bad as it sounds. They have a pretty large patio where you can order drinks and help yourself to the chips & salsa bar. It was nice sitting out and looking over an area of Birmingham. The picture I took of Brent really doesn't show the view but it's nice up there. I'm glad the Summit's in a building phase. I like having more places to eat & shop.

(taken with my iphone)

I ordered the deluxe quesadillas. Needless to say I didn't make a dent in them. They were delicious but I could only finish 2 of the 4. Brent went withs Chicken Al Carbon soft tacos. They were fajita style and he said they were yummy. He compared their chicken to Superior Grill-- that's a huge compliment coming from him!

(my quesadillas- once again...from the iphone)

Today we went to a new store at the Galleria to check out sunglasses for Brent (since his sank to the bottom of the lake).  The people at Sanibel Sunglasses Company were really helpful and nice. Brent literally tried on 10 pairs and ended up deciding on frames and lenses that will be special ordered (they didn't have the combination he wanted in store). They made it so easy that he even splurged and got me a new pair! I love when I'm rewarded for being a good wife :) We had checked out the Sunglasses Hut last night and they were so/so in the customer service department. If you need new glasses check out Sanibel first.

(Cheesing in my new glasses- just for you dad!)

We then went to Brent's aunt Jennifer's HUGE neighborhood pool and soaked up some sun. Brent refused to let me keep him indoors all day like I did yesterday. We've always wanted to go to her pool since our neighborhood pool is ridiculously small and crowded so today we showed up and basically begged her to let us in. We'd tried calling her before we arrived but were apparently dialing her old cell number. Oh well, we made it and had a good time hanging out with her and her son Connor. 

Perhaps my favorite "new" thing we did this weekend was have Pizza from Pizza Express for dinner. I am OBSESSED with Pizza and yes, I ate my whole half of the medium. That's it though- no more pizza until after the cruise :( got to get in shape before I'm forced to spend 7 straight days in a swimsuit. 

sidenote: I watched "It's Complicated" for the first time last night and thought it was hilarious. If you haven't seen it yet it's worth netflixing. 

I'm off to finish up housework. This is going to be a LONG week in the office. Let's hope I stay sane!

Can't handle it like I used to..

I've been DEAD all day. Blame it on the Sinus infection/ ridiculously sick feeling I've had all week or the fact that I was out until way too early this morning (We celebrated my good friend Leah's bachelorette party) but the two combined absolutely kicked my butt. I slept until 11am, showered and then proceeded to sleep until now (3pm). I know I've bored Brent to death but I just can't run on fumes like I could in college. Last night would have been described as a relatively calm one back in the day and it's taken me this long to regroup. I'll have pictures to post soon of the Girls Night Out fun- I've got to get them from a friend because crazy photo woman (me) had a camera with dead batteries. I'm going to try and put my best foot forward and disregard the strong desire I have to continue sleeping and visit the Summit with BR. He's dying to look at sunglasses (since his are at the bottom of the lake) and try out a new tex mex place that opened earlier this week. Wish me Luck!

4th of July

We spent the day at the lake with my dad and sisters (and their guests). It was fun! The waves killed Brent though. We anchored out next to a parade of boats (had no idea it was a parade until it was over) and it really was like being in the ocean for about an hour. A big wave knocked Brent's hat off and while grabbing it his Oakley's fell to the bottom of the lake. Look's like I"ll be sitting some money aside from my next paycheck to surprise him with a down payment towards a new pair. Here are a few pictures to recap our day:

floating on the 4th

Our Captain

My beautiful sisters modeling in the sunset

 

letting dad take the photos

...wishing we could do this every day...

sunset before the fireworks show

As for today, I've slept. Literally napped on the couch for 3+ hours. I can't even begin to describe how much I've enjoyed being lazy. Brent's been putting the finishing touches on the walls in the kitchen and dining room. Hopefully I'll be able to post the "finished product" photos this week. House is still a wreck... but not for much longer. It's time to hit up the grocery store and prepare for reality. Is it okay that I'm already looking forward to my next time off work? Life's so much more relaxing this way!

Disaster Zone...the kitchen

The work continues... we didn't do anything until last night. Brent primed the top of the walls (the ugly blue you see in the pictures below) and tonight he has primed the bottom of the walls and taped off the entire area so we can begin painting the final colors tomorrow.

Brent hard at work sanding down the trim work

If you know my husband then you know this is driving him more crazy than it is me.

Charlie taking a break wondering when his food will go back to it's normal spot. He keeps going into the dining room to eat and his food bowl is no longer there! 

Brent swears there is nothing I can do to help. I've devoted my night to washing clothes and picking up take out for dinner since there's no possible way to get in there and cook. We will spend all day tomorrow on home improvement but will take a break on the 4th to hang with family at Lake Guntersville . We will spend the day anchored out floating and lounging around until time for the fireworks. Last year the show was great. It lasted a long time and their were hundreds of boats anchored out. It takes a while getting back to the marina but it's worth it. I'll be sure to post pictures. 

Hope everyone has a great 4th of July weekend. BE SAFE!!!!