November 29, 2009

11-20 through 11-28

Goodbye November!


Friday, November 20
Flowers in bloom at the lake house (where we spent part of the weekend with Matt & Amanda Tingle -- good times!)


Saturday, November 21
Down on the dock...I love it there (especially when the lake is full!)


November 22
Curtains, a new way of life for us (thanks to my awesome Honey (my grandmother))


November twenty third
Gene!!!! The NUT - WREATH IS DONE!!!!!!! I am so proud of it .. I think it will definitely stay up year round (maybe I'll just get different colored / patterned ribbons!) hah!


November 24
(another) Pumpkin Cheesecake -- and it made me make a mess!! (This was also the first time I used the "mean green mixing machine" from Mike's mom -- I will use for everything from now on!)


Wednesday, November 25
Thanksgiving Gathering at Mike Hawkins' House in Greenville
Tag: Mike & Brock


Thanksgiving Day, 2009
This is our first Christmas tree (a gift from Mike's grandmother!) -- we LOVE it .. Charley Brown as it may be - it's ours!


Friday, November 27
A little off roading -- good for new scratches on the car, dings in the paint, mud on the engine & a crushed bumper ... priceless!

Camped Friday - Saturday with John & Elizabeth up in Gorges National Park -- GREAT weekend!


Saturday (11-28)
Just before we went our separate ways ... until camping / off - roading comes around again. (Hopefully soon!)


November 24, 2009

11-15 through 11-19


Sunday, November 15
This tree grows through our back porch

Monday, November 16
Dinner (: 

Tuesday, November 17 
Pumpkin Cheesecake! (my first [pumpkin one] ever)

Wednesday, November 18

Nut Wreath! (check it out on Martha Stewart's web site! Thanks MG!) -- LOVED the craft -- & I had so much fun doing it! ... finished product soon to come! 
(1 Styrofoam wreath, hot glue gun (lots of sticks), 3 lbs of mixed (shelled) nuts, 2 yards of ribbon)

Thursday, November 19
*Happy Birthday Meredith!*
Slowly making progress!!! (Melissa, Carolyn, & Melanie I have missed doing crafts with y'all!)





November 15, 2009

11-9 through 11-14

As I sit here to upload the pictures for last week, I'm listening to Christmas music on the radio (this weekend preview has rocked) & it's about 70 outside. Absurd!

November 9
Dusk from our back porch


November 10
Spices for Steak .. YUM


November 11
Veterans Day. Thank you Veterans for all you do.


November 12
Mike & I walked downtown for ice cream (:


November 13
Our first lake trip since we've been married .. Mike LOVES Clancy.


November 14
Flowers. Flash turned down.



November 13, 2009

Christmas is in the air!!!!

AHHH!!!! It's November 13 (Friday the thirteenth, actually) - and I heard Christmas MUSIC on the radio last night!! Oh what a glorious, glorious sound! (: I squealed like a little girl when my friend Ben called me to tell me to switch the station because it was on! My heart lit up! I ab-so-lute-ly LOVE Christmas. Everything about it...the lights, the smells, the music, family time (lots of it), everything red & green, carriage rides, all of the lights, Christmas trees, wrapping and giving gifts, and of course that it is my Savior's birthday (I am also a HUGE fan of birthdays).

I also love traditions...Mike and I have an annual Christmas Date. In years past we've done it alone and with other couples, but this being our first year married I've requested that it be just us. I'm not sure what we're doing or where we're going yet - but I can't wait! I grew up loving to wake up around 4:30 AM and then waking my sister up to peak at all of the goodies that Santa left for us -- even in my last few years at home I woke up in the middle of the night, however I had been threatened by both my brother & sister to not wake them up...so I had to force myself to go back to sleep until later in the morning (such party poopers!). [Mike is going to have his hands full keeping me asleep until after 4:30 AM... hahahahah!] From dating Mike so long we sort of have our Christmas schedule - but we've been able to split up as needed to make it where we needed to be -- this year we get to stick together (: I'm not quite sure where we'll be or when .. or who we'll end up celebrating with and at what times, but I know that it'll work out. I think it'll be neat to start our own sort of schedule -- making the rounds, but also making time for ourselves. We've already decided that Christmas morning is for us...and since it'll just be us - we're going to open gifts from "Santa" and then head to Simpsonville / Ft. Inn to see the fam!

I've already been begging Mike to take me to pick out a Christmas tree the day after Thanksgiving. I love decorating and I'm so excited to decorate our first house! a few things I'm really looking forward to: hanging our stockings (hand made by Meredith!), putting up lights, decorating our hypothetical tree, baking lots of goodies .. ahh - the list could go on forever! I just love it all! I think I'm also going to try my hand at making a few decorations for us this year!

November 10, 2009

11-1 through 11-8

November is here -- and so our first month of marriage was gone. Just like that! I can't believe how quickly it flew by. I also can't believe how awesome it was. (:

November 1
rod iron fence
not mine, but i wish it was!

November 2
More fall colors -- beautiful

November 3
Clancy came to visit while the Martins are out of town for a few days

November 4
On a walk around the block with Clancy

November 5
Another walk around the block
The Poinsett Club is one of mine & Mike's favorite places for a date!

November 6
Lazy Friday evening (:
(before a walk downtown for my first Sushi dinner & a photography studio Grand Opening!)

November 7
Trip to Gorges State Park
Off-Roading (: with Mike & Kayla

November 8
Paris Mountain, SC
While Mike washed all the mud from the off-roading trip off the car, I walked around & got some pictures of Paris Mt. in the fall!

November 5, 2009

10-24 through 10-31

the end of October
We are making it. We are loving it.

October 24
fall leaves


October 25
steps leading down (to our back yard)


october 26
pizza dinner + The Road to Perdition with OD = a perfect way to spend Monday night
(loved the flowers from Pier 1)


October 27
trip to Mike's house to pick up some stuff...in the pouring rain led to pictures
of course..why not?!


October 28
Halloween Cookies


October 29
A little late carving "Pumpky" the pumpkin this year.
We got it done none-the-less.


October 30
Happy Shower Elizabeth! (:


HaPpY HaLlOwEeEn
October 31
This is my pregnant husband and our food baby.

10-19 through 10-23

October 19

October 20
Chicken Tacos
Yummy & healthy!

October 21
Coloring a Fall picture...I will send it to my sister when I finish it.


October 22
Mike & I live by the Confederate museum in Greenville.
It's pretty sweet.


October 23
Flowers on the block.

10-12 through 10-18

Pictures from our first week home from the honeymoon, back to "the real world" of work and life. This was also a week of great learning for us...learning how to be "us" at home.


October 12
Our sweet neighbor who lives above us planted these on our wedding day, for us to watch grow as we grow in our marriage (: Thanks Dana!


October 13
Happy Fall! (a fall flag that Dana also put out on our back porch)


October 14
Left over from the wedding...


October 15
A flower that I dried from Costa Rica held up to the sun light

October 16
Pumpkin Spice Candle
The Smell of Fall.
The Smell of our Home.


October 17
My grandparents 50th anniversary. (:


October 18
Fall, from our Front Porch

10-4 through 10-11: Honeymoon in Costa Rica

These first 7 pictures are from the honeymoon in Tamarindo, Costa Rica.


October 4
Our SWEET house for the week!


October 5
Hermet Crab (there were 1000's of them)


October 6
Breakfast Mike made us! Cheese quesadillas (with salsa and sour cream), pineapple cooked in red wine, and yogurt with fresh pineapple! YUM!


October 7
Iguanas were all over the yard!


October 8
Me & Mike at FT's for breakfast one day...one of our favorite restaurants on the trip!


October 9
About 10 minutes down the beach we found this B&B--Sueno del Mar. They served us a 3 course breakfast with unlimited Costa Rican coffee


October 10
Monkeys were all over the yard too...we couldn't ever get them to play with us though!


October 11
This was the lady who managed the house's dog -- Mike loved her.