Dear Reggie,
It was a cool, misty April day. I remember looking at the clock in the bridal room at our church, surrounded by my Mom and my best friends. It was time! Time to go see you, my hubby to be!
We hurried out the back door, outside, and around to the front of the church. I had never jogged in 4-inch heels until that day…ok, maybe jog isn’t the right word. Regardless, I had never moved so fast in 4-inch heels!
I remember hearing the music we had planned months before. A few guests made their way in just moments before the ceremony began as the church bells rang. I remember your brother giving me the thumbs up and saying, “Good luck, Steph!” I remember being walked down the aisle by my Mom and Dad, and smiling while seeing our family and friends there to cheer us on. I remember you, standing, waiting, smiling at me. I remember how handsome you looked in your pen-striped tux. Gosh, you were (and still are) so very handsome!
I remember you holding my hand and looking at me – and with that look I knew to just relax.
And how we giggled at our shaking hands as we lit our unity candle.
I remember the tools that you mysteriously retrieved from under my gown at our reception. And the way you held me tight as we danced to our song. I remember not wanting our special day to end.
So many wonderful memories from the day that we promised forever to each other five years ago. Here we are creating even more amazing memories each and every day with our sweet son who absolutely adores you…and I couldn’t be happier. Five years ago today I married the love of my life, my best friend, my everything. Happy Anniversary! I love you!
xoxo,
Stephanie
Photo credits: Katie Collier
Winter is still here, as witnessed by this week’s snowfall. While out and about, I couldn’t help but notice the simple beauty of snow on all of the tree branches. This part of winter never gets old to me – the quiet, the peacefulness, the serenity of everything covered in a perfect blanket of snow:
Last week I celebrated another birthday. It was a special one, my first one as a new Mom! Remington gave me lots of extra reasons to smile on my special day. And Reggie surprised me with an iPhone and a roaptrip to Nashville! It was our first trip without taking Remington along – he had a wonderful time with Grandma and Grandpa! While we were only gone one night, we sure did miss our little guy! We made certain to document our time with fun photos using Instagram:
Reggie is the best at giving personal, thoughtful gifts! I was beyond excited when he surprised me with a little getaway for just the two of us! We both love antiquing and hunting for unique pieces that get our creative side going. He wanted this trip to be inspiring as we continue to search for our next home. He also knew that I’d love to visit one spot in particular in the Music City. More on that in a minute!
Our first stop was at The Most Awesome Flea Market in the World! It was a crisp sunny morning, so we strolled up and down the outdoor portion before heading inside. Whoa! It was a huge building, filled with all sorts of stuff, and since we only had a short time, we decided to keep moving down the road. We finally arrived in Nashville just in time for some lunch at Rooster’s, seen on Travel Channel’s Man v. Food. I highly recommend the Diablo Shrimp appetizer! Yum!
Next, we visited some local antique shops before going to Antique Archaeology in Marathon Village. Reggie and I love watching American Pickers, so he knew I would definitely enjoy going to see their Nashville store. A local band played while fans and shoppers spotted several of the vintage items ‘picked’ on the show. After taking in a nice afternoon nap, the sun set on Nashville, and we set out for a night on the town. We tried the city’s best burger at Rotier’s – a must try! A perfectly grilled cheeseburger on French bread with lettuce, tomato, pickle, and mustard. Sooo good! We visited Robert’s Western World, and listened to live music by the Don Kelley Band. Reggie picked up their CD, which served as the soundtrack on our way home. The neon lights along Broadway were so colorful and fun to see. People filled the sidewalks, and always seemed to smile as they made their way to hear their favorite bands play on a Saturday night.
The sunlight streamed into our room on Sunday morning, and we made our way to breakfast at Fido, which we found out later happens to be one of Taylor Swift’s favorite spots. Reggie and I both tried their breakfast specials. I had the Special Scramble – a wonderful melange of eggs, spinach, bacon, grilled onions, and cheese with hash browns and toast on the side. Poached eggs, spinach, and homemade hollandaise sauce paired with grits and toast made Reggie smile from ear to ear – he loves eggs Benedict, and their Bayou Benedict did not disappoint! Nashville is known for good food, really good food – and for this reason alone we would definitely go back! Before leaving Nashville, we drove by the Parthenon, home to the city’s art museum (we’ll have to visit next time!). Then it was time to head home to tell our little guy all about our travels…ok, so we didn’t really tell him about our trip because we were too busy showering him with hugs and kisses and “did you grow while we were away?!”
Thank you to my parents for watching our sweet baby boy! And thank you to Reggie for making this the best birthday yet! I love you so much!
Just a quick little post to wish you all a very Happy Valentine’s Day! May your day be filled with love, sweet moments, and your favorite dessert!
I’m so lucky to have my hubby and this little guy as my Valentines!
Four months and ten days ago, our world became forever changed. We had been blessed with this tiny, perfect little miracle that was all our own. All the tears, the night feedings, the all day feedings, the diaper changes, the tight grasp of his fingers…they were all ours. Becoming a parent has been one of the hardest things I’ve ever done, however, it has been so rewarding at the same time. More on this in a later post. So I’ll start at the beginning, when our sweet Remington was a newborn, but not before a little of the backstory. It was Friday afternoon. I met up with Reggie to run some errands, and we talked about how our due date was fast approaching – only 5 days to go! It’s so funny to hear opinions on due dates while you’re pregnant – one camp says the first baby is always early, another says they’re always late, very few say they are right one time. Well, I figured I had a while to wait since I hadn’t made any progress at my last appointment. This was fine with me! Who doesn’t love a little extra time, you know, to get even more ready, to feel extra prepared, to hope the anxiety would pass… As Reggie and I drove around, he casually mentioned that it would be cool if our little guy came the next day, since we didn’t have any plans for the weekend. I think maybe the little one heard us talking, because that every afternoon we found ourselves checking into the hospital after fighting rush hour traffic. Fast forward through hours of labor to Saturday, September 15th. It was time! We were going to meet our baby boy any minute! I’ll spare the details of my c-section, which went very smoothly. We loved our hospital and all the staff was so completely wonderful. My favorite memory, one that still makes my eyes well up with tears of happiness and awe and wonder…starts with this photo that Reggie took in the operating room:
