Somebody's gotta do it....

Maddy and Luke are such fun, loving, and sharing people that they came up with the brilliant idea of having a group honeymoon. So, a group of 60 went to Cozumel following the wedding.

David and I had planned to go for over a year, but the airline tickets were a little too ridiculous for us. So, we offered to house and dog-sit while everyone else was in Cozumel. Some people may think this is crazy, but this house & dog-sitting was like no other. Seriously!

We lounged by the pool, swam laps, enjoyed the hot tub, and played with the pups for a week. I know it sounds brutally challenging, but somebody had to do it. LOL!

Here are a few pics of us being sad that we didn't go to Cozumel.......

(I sure hope you can sense my sarcasm!)

Ethan hates showers and baths, but he loved this pool!

I thought this was cute

Me and Sophie (daughter of the newlyweds)

Ethan was one hot dog!

Me and Sophie again. We became buddies!

David with Ethan, Sophie, and Arnosh

I met my mom for some fro-yo at the new Orange Tree in Edmond.

It was absolutely delish! I tried the peanut butter, the cookies and creme, and the coffee.

The coffee was my favorite. Oh, and I just had to add some toppings. = )

This was my mom's creation. She tried the fruity flavors and added fresh fruit on top.

I think we both liked the peach the best. It tasted like a real fresh peach!

David and Ethan playing catch

Wet Dog!!!

Catching some rays!

Gotta get my Vitamin D - Doctors Orders!

Ahhh, so relaxing.

A special thanks to our wonderful friends for allowing us to house & dog-sit. It was so nice to be able to stay in OK for a week so we could visit our other friends and family, shop, and dine, then return to our "resort" for some relaxation. I think it worked out perfectly for all of us.

Wedding in OKC

David and I traveled back home to OKC for my best friend's sisters wedding. We drove to OKC on June 5th and attended the rehearsal dinner that evening. It was at the groom's parents home. It was absolutely beautiful. We couldn't have asked for better weather. The decorations and food were fabulous. It was so nice to be able to see everyone before the big day.

Purple Iris!

They were the centerpieces at the rehearsal dinner.

Jordon and Mark

David had a good time!

Having a good time!

Mother of the Groom & Mother of the Bride

The ceremony on June 6, 2009

Madison and Lucas - So in LOVE!

The Beautiful Bride!

I like sneaking photographs

of the Happy Couple

The 7-tiered cake was amazing!

Each reception centerpiece was different.

They were gorgeous!

Me and my Best Friend, Jordon (sister of the bride)

David and I had a blast. We are so happy and thankful to be a part of this family.

CONGRATS Maddy and Luke!

Whirlwind of Fun in the WINDY CITY & MOre!

David had spring break last week. Pretty sure it's his last one, but hopefully he'll be able to take plenty of time off for family vacationing when he's a doctor.

We drove to Chicago on Wednesday, which was the 6 year ANNIVERSARY of our ENGAGEMENT. The time sure does fly! We checked into our hotel, parked the car, got ready for the evening, and then walked to Giordano's. They make the BEST pizza! We shared a small and only ate 2/3, but we were stuffed. We were pretty exhausted from the day so we just went back to the hotel and relaxed.

On Thursday we went our own ways. Many might think this is weird, but it was perfect for us. Yes, we have many of the same interests and love spending time together, but I didn't feel like seeing any museums this time. I wanted to stroll up and down Michigan Avenue. So, I did and it was fantastic!

We started our day by walking over to a Corner Bakery off Michigan Avenue. Both of us had their Swiss Oatmeal. If you've never had this, please try it if you ever get a chance. It's amazing! We always had to stop and get some every time we went to Dallas back in the day.

David bought a City Pass and toured several museums. He had a great time. He's really into that sort of stuff. Shopping is definitely more my thing. It was so fun to shop at my own pace. I walked well over 6 miles on Thursday. It was a bit chilly and really windy, but I didn't let that get in my way. I went into so many stores. Of course, I didn't spend a lot of money. I just purchased a few things. A couple of purchases I'm most excited about was the pie crust cutters from William-Sonoma. I've been looking for these for about 4 months now. I'm so happy I finally found some. I'm also super excited about the glass nail file I got at the Symphony store. I know, it probably doesn't make any sense at this point that I purchased a nail file at the CSO gift shop..... but it has a clarinet hand painted on it. So, I LOVE it!

We met up later on after all the museums closed and were non-stop busy until almost midnight. I was exhausted and crashed when we got back to the hotel. I had to get a good nights sleep before heading home.

We drove home on Friday morning. I was home long enough to do a couple loads of laundry, have dinner and go to Hobby Lobby with my dear friend that was dog-sitting Ethan.

Saturday morning we drove to Buffalo, MO for a friends wedding. The wedding was beautiful, the bride was radiant, the reception/dinner was fantastic, and the party was a blast. We were there until after 11pm and then headed to our hotel up the road. After we got up on Sunday we had lunch with the bridal attendants and then headed home.

I'm spending today trying to recover from all the fun we've had these past few days. I am also attempting to detox from all the eating out I've done. I had sliced zucchini, carrot sticks, and some cabbage for lunch. For dessert I had some pecans. It was so good to eat natural food again. I think I'll have to make a fruit smoothie here in a little bit.

So, that's a very broad overview of our week. Now..... I think it's time for a nap. = )

Giordano's for Wednesday night dinner

Our HUGE small pizza

Swiss Oatmeal from Corner Bakery

Chicago reflection on the Bean

Crazy skywalk connecting a couple of buildings

Awesome!

Revisiting a mall I went to when I was 15. It has 8 floors!

David enjoying a meatball sandwich from Gino's East

A night view from the John Hancock Observatory

Another view....

My delicious coconut latte...... Do you see the heart?

Never thought I'd be so happy to see the Arch and call St. Louis my home.

Love St. Louis!

Me and Lacey

David and Greg

Party Favors

CHEERS!

Table decorations

Boys will be boys!

Newlyweds

The HAPPY COUPLE!

Vermont in a Nutshell

I recently went to visit my bestie in Vermont.  We have been friends since 6th grade!  I'm so thankful and blessed for being able to go spend time with her and her family.  

It's pretty interesting that both of us are from Oklahoma, but our husbands have taken us different places for different reasons.  Hopefully we'll be able to live close to each other again one of these days.   

Here are a few things from my trip:

1.  Monday: I caught my flight out of STL, had a layover in Cleveland, finally got to New Hampshire around lunch time, we stopped at a Chili's for lunch, drove (through what I consider to be a blizzard) to my besties home in Vermont, ate some awesome homemade cheesy ham and potato soup for dinner.

2.  Tuesday:  We went to Montpelier and shopped, bought my sweet glittens (fingerless gloves/mittens), Jordon got me a sweet handmade mug for my Christmas gift, had a late lunch (clam chowder for me!) at the New England Culinary Institute, were told by a couple of people throughout the day that we didn't look like we were from around there because we had cute hair, clothes, and wore make-up..... ha!  

3.  Wednesday:  I saw Lake Champlain, spent the day at a mall with my bestie and her adorable and extremely well-behaved son, ate lunch at Applebee's and had some chocolate therapy from Ben & Jerry's.

4.  Thursday:  Lazy Day!  We hung out at the house all day and relaxed while watching it snow out the window.

5.  Friday:  drove up to Norwich University to have lunch with my bestie's husband, saw some covered bridges, went to another little mall and a walmart, had some delicious homemade chicken marsala for dinner.

6.  Saturday:  I woke up and was soooo sick all day, had to have a doc call in a script, my bestie's sweet husband picked up my script and lots of gatorade for me.... they are lifesavers!

7.  Sunday:  Still sick, but slightly functional, spent the day trying to recover.

8.  Monday:  Drove from Vermont to New Hampshire to catch my flight, flew back to STL, VERY happy to see my hubby after being apart for a week, and my dog was so happy to see me that he must have licked (kissed) my face for an hour, went to bed.

We had planned on having a Girl's Day on Saturday, but my sudden illness kept us from doing anything.  Some of the events on our list were Ben & Jerry's, Cabot Cheese, a maple syrup company, an apple cider mill, and some other places I can't currently recall.  Sight seeing was not a priority on my list, but those things would have been fun.  The point of my trip was to spend time, catch up, and live life with my bestie and we did just that.  My trip was absolutely wonderful, but I just wish I hadn't gotten sick.

Thanks so much for everything, Jordon and family!!!  XOXO!

Jordon & Me, 1996?

July 2007 (Jordon's baby shower)

Bridges of Vermont