Happy 6th Anniversary!

Happy Anniversary to my loving husband, you are forever my puzzle piece.  You fit together with me in a way no one else could.  The past six years of marriage have been the best of my life.  Our marriage has not been without challenges but I am so glad you have fought each battle by my side and that each time we have come out stronger.  You are a constant source of love and encouragement.  Thank you for leading us spiritually and for putting me in my place when I am too critical of myself.  I love you more now than ever before and my sincere prayer is that every year our marriage continues to grow and flourish.

Here are some of my favorite pictures from our 12 years together (6 years dating and 6 years of marriage).  In includes some serious throwback pictures.  

High School Days:

At the MARTA station on the way back from a concert!

Windy Gap

Prom 2003

Family Trip to Savannah

The day I left for UGA - we were both really fearful that having a long distance relationship wouldn't work but thankfully it only made us stronger!

College Days:

Formal in Charleston in 2005

We have always been silly and I love that!

Kyle visiting UGA for game day!

The night my life changed.  After my senior day as a Georgette Kyle proposed, one chapter was ending but another was beginning.

My graduation from UGA for my Bachelor's Degree

Our Engagement and Wedding:

The picture from our Save the Dates for our wedding

Official engagement picture with Bowman Photography

The best day EVER!

First Dance

Toasting to a Happy Life

Adventures:

On MARTA on the way to our honeymoon to St. Lucia - 2008

Photo Shoot with Alex - Divot is such a cutie!

Kyle graduating with his Master's Degree from UGA

Maui for the T-Mobile PEAK Award Trip - 2012

Fun evening at a friends wedding!

Beach Trip with Our Parents to Tybee Island

Renewing our vows for our 5th Anniversary

10 Year High School Reunion Photo - 2013

Fall Photo Shoot - 2013

Expedition Everest Challenge 5k at Disney After Photo - 2014

Colorado Trip - View from the hike on Hanging Lake Trail - 2014

Happy 30th Birthday Kyle!

I can't believe it but Kyle turned 30 this month.  We had a really fun birthday celebration with friends.  We spent the afternoon as the pool and then had friends over for a Bingo night and the unveiling of his birthday beer.  His good friend Blair brewed the birthday beer which was called the One Legged Kiwi IPA.  It was such a fun night.  One thing that has constantly improved as we have both aged is our appreciation for one another and the friends in our life.

In honor of his 30th I made him a card with 30 reasons why turning 30 rocks:

30 Reasons Why Turning 30 Rocks!

1. This is the age range that you’ll get your Doctorate, in your 30’s you will finally realize your lifeline dream to be Dr. Jones.  (I still don’t support paying a small Asian man to follow you around for a day to call you Dr. Jones all day but you 2 years left to change my mind)
2. You have AWESOME friends.  It may have taken 30 years to sift through the sea of acquaintances but you did it and you have a really incredible group of friends.  You are also mature enough now to put the work in to keep those amazing friends.  Iron sharpens iron and you are surrounding yourself with the people who bring out the best in you.
3. You get to check a new age group box on forms.
4. You get to say “I remember when I was in my 20’s”
5. You are now the youngest in your age range!
6. When you get carded now it is a compliment instead of an annoyance.
7. You don’t have to worry about being 30 because you are in a place where you are comfortable with who you are.
8. You are not alone; we are all there or almost there with you.
9. You finally learned to quit trying to find yourself and are making the most with the skills and gifts you have to create yourself exactly where you are.
10. “There are far, far better things ahead than we leave behind” – C.S. Lewis
11.  People naturally take you more seriously when you are in your 30’s.
12.  Being an adult is no longer a struggle because you have years of practice under your belt.  
13. You don’t have to wait for Santa to bring you the things you want; you can get your own.
14.  Like the Christina song, you just “Keep Getting Better”
15.  Instead of stressing about acne you can look forward to stress about wrinkles and gray hair.
16.  You have finally matured enough to realize the things people stress about in their teens and twenties are often insignificant.
17.  You have an appreciation for the little things in life and are content with life’s simple pleasures.
18.   You can afford to spend a little more money on things that have better quality and will probably last a lot longer.
19.  You can look back on your childhood and realize it wasn't that bad and appreciate how much you have grown through all the bumps along the way.
20.  You have realized perfect doesn't exist and that is a complete relief.
21. You realize your parents were right about just about everything.  Regularly you find yourself thinking “Oh! That is what they meant.”
22.   Like a fine scotch you are getting better with age and are best when sharing in the company of your dear friends.
23. You get 10 full years to prepare for turning 40.
24.   All the life lessons you learned in your early 20’s can now be applied to your life.
25.  Your wife is hot! Even before we were as mature as you are know you recognized a good thing when you saw it and always worked to maintain our relationship. Glad we both managed not to mess up such a good thing.  I love you!
26.  You are MUCH smarter now and have a wall of degrees to prove it.  I can’t find to add your final degree to your amazing list of accomplishments.
27.  Age is just a number.  You know how to embrace your inner child and remain goofy, loving, and carefree.
28. Turning 30 is not game over its like leveling up in a video game.  You collected everything you need and you are ready for the new step up.
29. You are the same age as your childhood heroes (James Bond, Indiana Jones, John McClane, and Ghostbusters).  Almost all iconic cinematic heroes are over thirty.
30. You have an excellent perspective on life and have learned how to appreciate the good things in your life and not sweat the small stuff.  Turning 30 is just the gateway to the next exciting chapter in your life!  In your 30’s you’ll complete your doctorate, we’ll buy our next house (a real one with a yard and doors), and we’ll try and start our family!

Chad and Amanda's Wedding

This couple came into our lives at a perfect time.  They moved to Atlanta shortly after two of our best friends moved out of state.  We were excited for our best friends for their new opportunities and adventures but it was sad for us to not be able to see them as often.  It also left a pretty noticeable hole in our social calendars which was a constant reminder that they had moved away.  Chad and Amanda were looking for friends in a new city and the timing was perfect.  God provides people in our lives at the exact time that we need them.  Our friendship with them has always been natural and easy.  We have fun whether we are out on an adventure or just chilling in our comfy pants watching TV.  Amanda is my sweatpants soul sister and I’m so glad we get to spend so much time with them. 

It has been so fun to watch them plan their wedding and finally this month the big day arrived and it was an awesome day.  The venue was beautiful, her dress was beautiful, and the room was full of excitement for them.  After the ceremony and dinner it turned into a giant dance party which was awesome!  I was honored to get to read during their ceremony and I loved the reading she chose.  It is a beautiful representation of marriage and I managed not to cry while reading it, victory!  Although I did shed a few tears when I saw her brother who is deployed overseas on Skype, beautiful moment and total tear jerker. 

Love by Roy Croft
I love you
Not only for what you are,
But for what I am
When I am with you.
I love you,
Not only for what
You have made of yourself,
But for what
You are making of me.
I love you
For the part of me
That you bring out;
I love you
For putting your hand
Into my heaped-up heart
And passing over
All the foolish, weak things
That you can't help
Dimly seeing there,
And for drawing out
Into the light
All the beautiful belongings
That no one else had looked
Quite far enough to find
I love you because you
Are helping me to make
Of the lumber of my life
Not a tavern
But a temple.
Out of the works
Of my every day
Not a reproach
But a song.
I love you
Because you have done
More than any creed
Could have done
To make me good.
And more than any fate
Could have done
To make me happy.
You have done it
Without a touch,
Without a word,
Without a sign.
You have done it
By being yourself

Sojourn

We have been blessed to get to be part of a high school youth ministry called Ignition for 6 years.  It has changed dramatically throughout that time including some pretty significant ups and downs.  I’ve mentored girls all the way through their sophomore through senior year and looped back around again.  This year one of the girls from my first small group graduated from Georgia Southern. 

It has been a roller coaster and a complete joy.  I am so thankful that God granted us this opportunity.  Two years ago our resolve was put to the test when the youth pastor that we loved dearly left the church due to some unfortunate circumstances.  It felt like the floor had fallen in beneath us.  It forced us to examine how we felt about the way the church handled the whole situation and made us dig really deep to continue on with the ministry we loved so dearly.  The next year involved all the volunteers being pushed outside their comfort zones.  We were rotating as speaking pastors for youth services and trying to keep morale up with the kids. It felt like we were barely treading water but I learned a lot about faithfulness and digging deep in that year.

God was faithful and after a tough year the ministry was blessed with a new youth pastor.  Not only were we thankful for having a pastor again but also for what it meant to the ministry which was having a spiritual leader with a full time focus on strengthening the students and the leaders.  Fast forward a year and Andy planned an incredible event for the Ignition leaders.  We spent the evening at Perimeter church with one of their ministries called Sojourn.  A sojourn is a stop or rest on a journey.  Their mission is to be a stop for groups or ministries to get out of day to day activities and reflect on the dynamics of the groups, skills for leading/following, and bonding as a group.  The idea being that the things you learn during the sojourn/stop can then be applied to your regular activities once you resume your journey.  There were a series of challenges and activities that put our leadership, listening, and team building skills as a group to the test.  During and after each activity we stopped and talked about what worked and what didn’t.  It is amazing how much a simple game or activity can teach you about the way you interact with others.  The things that can be hard to see in a larger environment are easier to see when you isolate them in a focused activity.  It gave us some great insight and was a lot of fun.  After the challenges we prepared to head up for the zip line.  We got geared up and climbed up the robe wall to the top of the platform.  Until I reached the top I was completely excited and energized about the zip line.  The second I stepped to the edge of the platform I lost my nerve and felt butterflies in my stomach.   It was very comforting to be surrounded by such a great group of people who were encouraging and even sang a few lines of “Let It Go” from Frozen to ease my nerves.  As I stepped of the ledge it was an incredible freeing feeling that comes from letting go of control and trusting whole heartedly.  We ended the evening playing laser tag which was a ton of fun!

I think we all walked away feeling closer and more unified as a group.  On a personal note I walked away feeling more motivated to work on personal issues of wanting to be in control.  The way I stepped off the ledge and let go on the zip line is how I need to mentally handle more situations in my life.  I have the right equipment and strong faith and God will handle the rest.  God is so much better at taking control than I am and I want to continue to work on being more trusting and less anxious.  I have so many blessings in my life and I want to focus on having a humble and thankful spirit rather than allowing anxiety to cast a shadow on the joy in my life.  

Proverbs 3:5-6
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.”

Edwards, CO

I was very charmed by this town although it was a bit smaller than we expected.  We started the day at a lovely bookstore called Bookworms.  In the back of the bookstore they have a café that serves coffee and crepes.  We shared a savory crepe with chorizo, avocado, egg, cheese, and red peppers.  I then caved and got a dessert crepe with Nutella and powdered sugar, excellent life choice if you ask me.  I wanted to bring all the books home but alas the reminder that the loft is at capacity space wise resulted in me writing down a lot of names of books to request from the library until we can build a home library to house all my book friends.  We went in a few shops, mainly girly stores so Kyle lost interest pretty quickly.  Then we found our favorite brewery from the trip called Crazy Mountain.  It was tucked away behind some buildings but I’m glad we asked a local and found it.  It was a large open space with wood picnic and bar tables.  They have some fun and creative names including an ESB called Horseshoes and Hand Grenades.  The weather was beautiful and the beer was delicious.  We shared a flight so we got to try a small taste of everything they have on draft.  We asked them how long before they distribute in Georgia and they didn’t have a clear timeframe but said they were working on it.  Here’s hoping they make it down our way sometime soon!

Glenwood Springs

This was my favorite day of the whole vacation.  It was just one of those perfect days, if such a thing exists on earth.  We hopped in the car and started the 60 mile trek west of Vail to a town called Glenwood Springs.  The drive was beautiful; I think the key to making driving and commuting more fun is to have scenery as beautiful as the Rocky Mountains everywhere.  Since I was driving poor Kyle had to keep taking pictures with my phone because I just wanted to capture it all. 

Once we arrived we started our day at Glenwood Springs, a mineral hot springs.  They have two pools – a large warm pool that stays at about 96 degrees and a really hot pool which stays around 105 degrees.  We spent most of the morning wading in the larger pool but we switched over to the smaller hot pool several times and it was extremely relaxing.  There was a light cool breeze outside so it felt great to be in the warm water.  It was also very therapeutic.  We also read in lounge chairs beside the pool and I did my best to hold in my ugly crying while reading “No Fault in Our Stars” by John Green.  Fantastic book but ugly crying happened more than once throughout the course of the book.

Around lunchtime we split up and my parents went into town for lunch and Kyle and I headed to Yampah Spa to check out the intriguing vapor caves we’d heard about.   I was nervous about it because I am super claustrophobic but some life experiences sound too cool to walk away from because you are nervous.  Thankfully the caves were not low or cramped and the access to them was via stairs so I was able to enjoy the caves with no panic attacks, victory!  They warn you to only go down in the caves for 10-15 minute increments and to come up for water in between.  They had a lovely solarium with lounge chairs to rest on while you recovered before heading back into the caves.  The caves were amazing.  It was a series of three chambers with increasing temperatures as you moved further into the caves.  The first time we stepped into the first chamber the heat took my breath away a bit.  Even having taken hot yoga and living in Georgia in the summers this heat was on another level.  Once I slowed my breathing and adjusted to breathing in the hotter air it felt wonderful.  I don’t sweat much even when I did high intensity exercise so it felt amazing to release all those toxins.  I could feel the tension seeping out of my muscles and felt extremely relaxed.  I’m not sure how people manage to spend all day there but we thoroughly enjoyed our three trips down to the caves.  We spent about 10-15 minutes per trip so about 45 minutes total and I felt so much lighter and more relaxed when we left.  If I lived near a place like that I’d go at least once a month, especially since it was $18 per person for a day pass to access the caves and spa facilities. 

That alone would have made for an excellent day but we iced the cake with an amazing (and super hard) hike up to hanging lake.  Everyone we met talked about this great hike near the town of Glenwood Springs called Hanging Lake.  You can only access it from one side of the interstate but it’s truly a gem and I’m glad we found it.  The books say it’s a lovely 1.27 mile hike.  Which is true but as you walk up to the trail the signs note that it is a very difficult hike and have some warnings/instructions.  After conquering the caves I was feel up for the challenge so we started the ascent.  And ascend we did, 1.27 miles was accurate but they left off that it’s all straight up a mountain.  It’s a very popular trail so it was easy to follow and there were lots of other explorers making their way up.  As we passed people coming down the trail they reassured us that the view was worth it which was a nice boost to keep us climbing upward.  When we made it to the top we were not disappointed.  It’s a beautiful crystal blue lake that has a series of waterfalls that feed into it including one called Sprouting Rock.  We sat on a bench for a few minutes and just soaked in the sunlight, the view, and the sounds of the waterfalls.  Then we of course took out the camera and did our best to capture how beautiful it was.  Before heading back down we took a small side path to climb up a bit further to see Sprouting Rock.  I’ve not seen a whole lot of waterfalls in my life so I was duly impressed.  Between being reenergized by the beautiful view and the much less cumbersome downhill hike going down was a breeze.   Then we understood why everyone we passed on the way up looked so happy. 

After such an exciting day we headed back to Vail and snuck in a quick nap before heading out to dinner.  It was a day I’ll remember for a long time and I’m so glad I got to share in such fun adventures with my husband.  I was so proud of him for taking on that hike with me!

Vail, CO

Vail is best known for being a ski town but I’m glad we went in the summer since we don’t ski.  I also always prefer warm weather to cold weather so Colorado in the summer was a much better fit for me.  It’s a really cute and quaint mountain town.  The streets are cobblestone and lined with shops and restaurants.  At the entrance to the town there is a beautiful covered bridge above the Gore river which runs through the town.  You can tell a lot of money was invested in the town since there were several beautiful sculptures and water features throughout the town.  

I loved exploring the art galleries and shops.  I found an artist that one day I’d like to own one of his pieces of art.  His name is Houston Llew and interestingly enough he is from Atlanta.  He uses copped and glass to make limited sets of art with an image on the front and a quote on the sides.  They are small but beautiful and the hardest part will be choosing which one since he has over 50 for sale right now although Kyle and I were both drawn to one with an Emily Dickenson quote. 

Other memorable things from our time in Vail include the Betty Ford Alpine Garden, Bingo Night at the Red Lion Inn, and an amazing dinner at Mountain Standard.  We lucked out that most of the restaurants were running off season specials so we also had a lovely meal at an upscale French restaurant called La Tour. I had a lovely seafood bouillabaisse and asparagus with aioli and truffle oil.  

Vail Valor Races

I have really enjoyed the races we've done so far this year so when I saw a Memorial Day race in Vail while we were there I signed us up.  I was excited when my parents agreed to join in as well.  We decided due to the elevation and the fact that it was vacation that we’d stick to the family fun run.  We got to write who we were running for on Memorial Day and it was powerful to see all the names up on the board.  I named my grandfather from my dad’s side of the family.  He was a colonel in the air force and passed away when I was 7.  I didn't know him very well since he passed when I was younger but I always admired and respected him and have heard lots of wonderful stories from my family.  It was the only military funeral I've been to and I was very struck by how many people from the air force were there and were part of the service.  I am very thankful for the people who sacrifice their own safety to help preserve the freedoms we experience here in the US. 

The races itself was fun but the elevation did affect me more than I thought it would so we ended up walking some of the race which was fine.  It was fun to share in the experience with my family and it’s a great memory we have together.  It also ended up being a fantastic deal because we got a T-Shirt, a finisher medal, and voucher tickets for their brunch even called Feast of Vail.  The Feast of Vail was a lot of fun.  They had live music and local restaurants with tents and tables serving small plates of food from their menu or in the style of their restaurant.  It helped us decide where to make dinner reservations and gave us a great chance to try a lot of the local restaurants.  

Red Rocks & Golden, CO

On Sunday we slept in (by our standards which meant sleeping past 7 AM).  We then grabbed coffee and bagels and enjoyed a leisurely start to the morning.  After packing up we set out for Morrison, CO to see the Red Rocks Amphitheatre.  It is on my bucket list to see a show there but since the timing didn’t work out to see a concert there I settled for a walking tour of it for this trip.  Sometimes a place gets hyped up in your head and it doesn’t live up to expectations.  Red Rocks was not like that.  It was absolutely beautiful in person.  The red rocks against the white clouds and blue sky was a stunning combination.  During the day a lot of locals go there to take yoga classes and do boot camp style workouts so there were lots of people at the park and it was fun to see the park in a more natural every day sense.  The view definitely confirmed my desire to go back for a show!  For now I’ll just have to settle for watching our Incubus at Red Rocks DVD again.

After Morrison we tried unsuccessfully to find the walking trails for Dinosaur Park thanks to GPS issues but settled to head straight for Golden.  In Golden we took the famous Coors brewery tour.  It was a lot of fun and the facility was massive.  We met a lovely family from the area and they gave us some great suggestions for restaurants and activities during our trip!

After Golden we headed to our condo for the week in Vail.  We only made one other stop at a highly recommended pizza place called Beau Jeau’s.  They make their own crust with honey in it and cook their pizzas in a wood fire grill.  Then they have honey on the table to drizzle on the crust and it was so delicious!  The food was excellent and definitely lived up to the hype.  I’m hopeful that maybe one day they will franchise further out so we can have the chance to eat there again.

Denver, CO

I have been slacking with my blogging.  It feels like it has been much longer than 3 weeks since our amazing trip to Colorado!

We flew into Denver on a Saturday and hit the ground running.  Our first stop was the Denver Botanical Gardens which were very peaceful and beautiful.  Like the gardens in Atlanta they are next to a large park in the heart of the city but still managed to feel tucked away.  I was the most impressed by their Japanese garden, bonsai tree exhibit, and alpine garden.  I enjoy botanical gardens even more now that I have my Canon Rebel t4i.  I love practicing photography on plants because God’s creations in wildlife are so beautiful that it’s hard to get a bad shot.  It is hard to get a great shot but it’s impossible to make flowers look bad, wildlife always make me reflect on the beauty and thoughtfulness of God’s design.  Everything in nature works together in such harmony – insects, water, and flowers.  We also had lunch at 10:30 AM since the time change was really messing with us.  It felt perfectly natural to share a Jalapeño cheese pretzel and chocolate éclair since for us it felt like 12:30 but I think the garden café employees probably found our menu selections a bit odd.

After the gardens we met up with Kyle’s cousin since he was also in Denver for work.  It was a lovely coincidence that we were there at the same time since he lives in Kansas and we don’t get to see him often.  After meeting with Chris we headed to the hotel and took a nap.  Naps are one of my favorite luxuries of vacation.  I may not love the idea that I’m getting older but thinking about daily naps in my retirement and twilight years softens the blow a bit. The rest of the day we explored Downtown Denver.  We tried a few highly recommended breweries and did a pretty extensive walking tour.  I racked up 17,000+ steps that day.  I think my route may have been a bit ambitious, but we did it!  I always love seeing the layouts and neighborhoods in new cities.  I love the feeling when you turn a corner and discover a whole new vibe and collections of shops and restaurants.