Visit from friends

We'd only been in Mesquite for about a week when some good friends of ours from Mississippi dropped in for a visit. The crazy thing is that we hadn't seen them in 5 years! And within a week of moving here, they just happened to be visiting friends in the area, so they made sure to drop by our place on their way back home. We were so excited to see them! Ike and I were actually both Farsi linguists in the Air Force and were stationed together in Monterey, Ca, and then Augusta, Ga. I met Brandy when she and Ike started dating and she moved to Georgia to be closer to him. Actually I take that back. I met Brandy, originally at Ike's house when they were "just friends." Lol. Then she became my roommate in Georgia, while Ike shared a house with Lucas and a few other guys.

Here's a picture from the 2006 Air Force Ball. Still funny to me that Lucas and I weren't officially dating at that time but of course we were each other's dates. And this is when Brandy said she needed a roommate and I said, "YaY!!! You can be mine!" Or something to that extent. I'm pretty sure there was squealing and jumping up and down. I mean, we are girls. 

Roomies!!

Halloween 2006. Cowboy & Saloon Girl, and Dorothy & the Scarecrow. 

We've had so much fun, and shared such great memories with these guys over the years. We attended church together, went camping together, visited the South Carolina state fair, and got engaged about the same time.

We're so glad we got to visit with them. This was the first time we'd all hung out as old married couples. :)
It was like no time had passed! And seriously, these two are adorable! Brandy, we are still laughing about how y'all turn down the air to 65° at night and it's so cold that you sometimes have to use a heater in the morning....during the summer!! We're gonna have to make a trip to Mississippi soon so we don't go another 5 years without seeing each other. 

Tax Free Weekend Rocks!

For some reason I thought that "tax-free weekend" only extended to school supplies. Which is why Lucas and I cleared out 125 spiral notebooks from Walmart this morning. Seriously! At 17¢ a piece, we made out like bandits! But anyways, apparently it applies to clothing and shoes as well!

I found these adorable pumps from ASOS marked down from $37.47, to only $11.92! And that is literally all that I paid. I couldn't be more excited!

ASOS PARIS Point Court Shoes

I love the black, floral pattern on the shoes! I've been wanting to try this look pretty much ever since I saw Olivia mixing floral and leopard prints, making it look uhh-mazing. 

Olivia Palermo

I love her style! I doubt I'll be trying anything that adventurous but I am so excited about my floral print heels and I am definitely planning on wearing them with some cute cropped pants. What a steal! 

source

Clothes shopping

With temperatures over 100º every day, I am pining for Fall......and new clothes!

source                                                                                                 source 

I am IN LOVE with these lace-up over-the-knee boots. The ones on the right are Emilio Pucci but Victoria's Secret is selling a Colin Stuart look-alike that I am obsessed with. The price is $228 though and I am having a hard time justifying this purchase. But seriously, how gorgeous are they? And I can totally envision myself wearing them with this Camilla fitted dress with ruffled hem, by Reis.

source

I'm pretty sure I'm going to end up buying this little dress. I can even wear with a blazer or leather jacket for chillier weather. Isn't it so cute?! Just perfect!

And look at these shoes I have on my watch list on ebay. Love!!

They're from the House of Harlow line. There's still 4 days left to bid so I'll keep an eye on them. 

I wish I had someone to get more excited about clothes with me. Lucas tries, but he's not the greatest girlfriend. Although he has agreed to a Hunger Games party/dinner when it comes out on video and we watch for the first time. I suspect he's really just in it for the food. Lol. Next on my list: make new friends here in Dallas :)

Sayonara, San Antonio

Going through the big "D"....and I DO mean Dallas! Yep, we've moved!!!

After exactly 4 years of living in San Antonio, we've packed up our belongings and moved to the Dallas area. It has been a whirlwind of emotions, preparations, and decision-making, that ultimately has led us to leave San Antonio. We have been blessed with great friends who have helped make the move easier, and a great church that has supported and prayed for us throughout.

I snapped this picture from the truck as we drove away. Last look at our home.

 Grover did a little of this..

But mostly this......

And even some of this.... Brandy, do you recognize that shirt? I still don't know how I ended up with it. Lol. And FYI, I am wearing shorts, although it doesn't look like it :)

Lucy, rode in the passenger seat of the rental truck with Lucas, but I somehow missed her in this shot. This might have been when she tried taking a nap on the floor. 

So are we are finally moved in and started to become familiar with the area. Thankfully we made three trips up here within the last month so it doesn't feel that unfamiliar to us. Thanks to our church friends who helped out; Diana, you were amazingly kind to clean our house for us. We couldn't have done it without you. And thanks to LeeAnne for driving my Jeep for us. You're the best!!

We are excited about what the future holds for us here and we are so thankful for God's provision!

............"in all your ways, acknowledge Him, and He will direct your path!" Proverbs 3: 6

Map it

This isn't a novel idea by any means, but it's one of those projects I've come across so many times on Pinterest that I finally decided to actually do it myself. It's so easy! I used a complimentary road map from Cracker Barrel and a red paint chip. The rustic frame I bought for maybe $1, if that, at the flea market. 

The idea is to use a map and a heart to highlight special moments, ie., where you and your love met, got married, etc. I chose to map Georgia because that is where Lucas and I met, fell in love, and got engaged. It's also home to the BEST Japanese steak house, Miyabi's! We've seriously contemplated trips back to Augusta just to visit our favorite restaurant again. :)

Here's how my art project turned out!

 I centered the heart right over Augusta, GA

I ❤ it!

Memory Lane 7-7-7

After a week and a half of enjoying our summer off (we went to Houston to visit family for a week, then a quick trip to Dallas) we are home again and enjoying some down time with just us and the puppies. Today I realized it has been exactly 5 years since Lucas and I got engaged! We both realized it at the same time.

Me: Hey, babe what day is it?

Lucas: Ummm, July 7th.

Together: Hey, it's when we got engaged! 

Aww, such fond memories. I still remember how special of a day it was; July 7, 2007. A perfect day, 7-7-7 ☺

It started out w/a sweet card.

He thoughtfully included directions because even though i'd been there a million times, he knew I'd still get lost. lol

One of our favorite places to go was the Lock & Dam Park on the Savannah River in Augusta, Georgia. We used to take the dogs on walks, go hiking, or ride our bikes along the river and have picnics. I loved that he chose that place to propose to me.

 No celebration is complete without a pinata......filled with rose petals! :)

The spot where he proposed :)

Afterwards, we shared a candlelit dinner. He actually brought everything here! Chairs, table, and even table linens! Plus food, of course, from a little Mexican place we'd found together. Dee-licious!

He even brought the wine glasses from our first date on September, 16, 2005, at the Air Force Ball. Isn't that a sweet touch?

Can't believe it's already been 5 years, and then again I can't believe it's only been 5 years. I can't imagine my life without him.

We graduated!!

Wow! It has been almost a year since I last posted. Here's what's been happening during this past year:

Sept. 15, 2011, Lucas and I quit our jobs to finish up school. This past January, we both started student teaching at Southwest High School here in San Antonio. It was pretty nice being at the same high school since we could carpool together and save on gas.

 In January we both took the PPR (Pedagogy and Professional Responsibilities) EC-12 exam and passed. Then in April, we took our content exams and successfully passed those as well. whew! We both graduated this past May with our bachelors degrees and we couldn't be happier to be done with school! Well, at least until we start working on our Masters :) Here's a few pictures for everyone who couldn't make it.

 Enjoy!

Lucas graduated with a bachelors of science in Math from the University of Texas, San Antonio.

Graduated with honors. So proud of him!

I graduated from Texas A&M University, San Antonio, with a bachelors of science in Biology. Our graduations were a week apart so we were both able to attend each other's commencement ceremonies.

My pink, zebra striped graduation cap. I love how it turned out. And yes, those amazing leopard heels have faces on them! How awesome is that? Thanks Toya, I am still in love with these heels :)

Summa Cum Laude

Thanks LeeAnne and Trevor for coming out to celebrate with us!

I thought this random shot was hilarious. Look at our faces. lol.

Isn't our god-daughter precious? Love her boots!

Awwww

To celebrate our graduations, we went to the lake and had Crawfish & Shrimp Boil. It was delish!! 

Lucas's first boil. It turned out great!

The feast! Shrimp, crawfish, corn, potatoes, and onions. Plus butter to drizzle over everything. It was sooo good.

Great way to celebrate and kick-start the summer.