Thirty Years

Two songs that always make me  think of my parents - I suggest playing while you read:

 

I've heard it said that it's not until we reach our mid twenties that we can fully recognize our parents as real people. Something inside clicks, and we realize that not long ago they too were twenty-five; scraping by, unsure of what the future held, trying to carve out their place in the world.

I've always been grateful for my parents, but there's been a shift in the last few years that's opened my eyes to all that my parents have done for my sister and I. When I look at pictures of my childhood I can still feel the sense of comfort and security that their love for us and for one another provided. Steady, honest, real love. 

My mom's excitement for life and desire to celebrate even the smallest occasions, paired with my dad's passion for travel and adventure made for the best kind of childhood. Beautifully warm holidays and family vacations that were peppered with as much learning and culture as my dad could pack in. From school projects to Sunday night dinners, my parent's desire to "live big" has lit a fire within me to never settle for ordinary.

There are certain images of my parents that stand out from the rest; my mom bent over a sewing machine making our Halloween costumes by hand, the sound of the computer keyboard tapping into the wee hours of the morning while my dad tried to crank out just one more article to bring in extra money for our family. It's the memory of my mom steadily pacing in the hospital waiting room while my dad was in the operating room undergoing surgery to remove his prostate cancer. It's the look of complete adoration on my dad's face when he watches my mom as a grandmother.

I've been asked why I decided to marry at a young age. Clearly, finding the right person had a lot to do with it -- but even more so, it's my parent's model of marriage that has given me so much to look forward to.

From 1979, when wearing a powder blue leisure suit in public was socially acceptable through the 80s and 90s when my mom's hair soared to new heights (literally), one constant has remained -- their love and deep respect for one another.

In their thirty years of love and laughter, silly and not-so-silly arguments, diaper changes and late night feedings, chorus concerts and graduations, hard times and moments of pure joy, from walking Brittany and I to the bus stop to walking us both down the aisle -- they've done it all with such grace.

Here's to the next 30!

Orlando in Photos

As promised, a photo/instagram overload from our family trip to Orlando:

A very big thank you to my parents for taking us on this fun-filled excursion :)

Congratulations Kellie & Paul!

It's been too long since I've posted about what's been going on with my life. Jake and I have been traveling quite a bit and our home life has been a little different too. Our friends Kellie and Paul and their cute pup, Theo, move in with us from Massachusetts while they waited to close on their first house.

Kellie went to middle and high school with Jake and I in upstate New York, so we are really excited to have her and Paul living in Charlotte now. They closed on their house today and we couldn't be more excited for them! It's a gorgeous 5 bedroom home about 20 minutes from Jake and I in a really pretty lake front community.

I'm super excited to have old friends living so close!

Pelican Point

I'm slowly settling back into reality after a quick get-a-way with family to Florida. We had a wonderful vacation full of great food, sunshine and all things Disney (more photos to follow).

During our trek home up I-95, we made a pit stop in a sleepy fishing village on the Georgia coast. Pelican Point Restaurant welcomed us with its slightly eccentric nautical decor. We had plenty of limey beer, fresh off the boat shrimp and lots of other great sea fare. 

One of my favorite moments came when our server asked, "Y'all ain't from around these parts are you?" We admittedly are still Yankees (as they refer to us down south),  but it's places like Pelican Point that help me to embrace living in the South in all of its unapologetic glory.

Autumn Reads

My brother-in-law, Adam, shared this site with me and I have fast become addicted. There's nothing quite like fall to make me want to curl up with a good book.

I have been lucky enough to contribute some photography to a great new Chicago lifestyle blog, The Urbaness. They just released a stellar reading list that I think you should check out.

I'm currently reading this, and hope to move on to this book before I catch the film.

Do you have any good reads to recommend?

Bonus Room In Progress

I've been working on decorating our upstairs T.V. room, or bonus room, as we call them down south. This room is pretty much where everything that didn't fit in any of our other rooms has gone to live. I've made an effort lately to edit out some of the junk.

Last week we got a new couch, which motivated me to get a move on with finishing this room. In a better effort to share just how strange I truly am, it's only fair that I disclose that I named our couch Sophia Lauren. I call her Sophie sometimes, for real.

Rather than my usual before and after posts, I thought it might be cool to give a sneak peek of the room "in progress" and share a list of what I would like to eventually do. Once everything is finished I will share the before pics (which are quite grotesque) and the afters (with Sophia Lauren in all of her glory - girlfriend loves herself some pillows).

(For all of you creepers, that is Flipping Out on the T.V. - I love Bravo like no other.)

Bonus room to do list:

1.) New ceiling light fixture.

2.) Finish the wall design. I started painting the trellis pattern and then gave up on it. At first, I wanted to do the entire back wall -- but now I am thinking of just adding 2 more columns that would line up with the space behind the mirror. What do you think I should do? Oh, and if you suggest painting the entire wall, then you might need to grab a paintbrush and help a sister out.

3.) Add a word art canvas to the left wall behind Sophie. I have an old piece of art that I can paint over, which would keep cost down. I think what we have up now is too small in scale for the wall.

4.) Get a bar/ credenza for the wall where the guitar is. We want to have a place for storage and snacks/beverages. I was thinking that a tall, long and not too deep piece might fill the space nicely. I'd love to find an antique if we can.

5.) Area rug. I saw one at Ikea for $19.99 that I'm a big fan of, can't beat those Swedes' prices!

6.) Find a few cozy matching throws to keep Sophia Lauren warm in these cold winter months. Okay, I'll stop now.

Any suggestions? I'm all ears.

Wisconsin Comes to North Carolina

We had a wonderful visit with our family that was in town from Wisconsin last week. Some of the highlights included:

Celebrating our niece, Madelynn's first birthday a little early, getting our two niece's together in the same spot (a first!), the guys squeezing in two rounds of 18 holes, North Carolina BBQ at our favorite Charlotte spot (Madelynn was the hit of the joint), evening bonfires accompanied by hard cider and s'mores...

Fewf,

... a night out at a fancy French restaurant while my mom babysat miss Madelynn, capping off each night with trashy telivision (Teen Mom, The Kardashians and The Real Housewives of N.J.) and perhaps my favorite day of all, a picnic at a vineyard on a small island in the middle of a pond under a weeping willow tree.

Photo overload begins now:

(Addie and Maddie's first time meeting. When Addie walked in she said to Jenna, "Excuse me, Madelynn's mom, can you let her walk?")

(My mom made a bunch of the food for Madelynn's birthday party. We all thought it was pretty hilarious that she made 5 dozen meatballs and two trays of baked ziti for 7 adults. Let's just say we had a lot leftover.)

 (The mayor of Midwood Smokehouse, or Charlotte for that matter)

(Drinks to accompany our bonfire.)

(Passed out after a day at the winery)

We loved spending quality time with far-away family and are so happy that they made the trip down south! And yes, I thought about running away with Madelynn, but somehow I was able to hold myself back.

I can't wait to get together again at Christmas!