Sew....I Think I'll Start a New Hobby....

I feel like a real wife now.  I have a sewing machine. :)

My mom asked me if I wanted a new purse or wallet for my birthday, but instead I told her that I would really like a sewing machine.  I'm not exactly sure where this strange desire came from, but I have a beautiful new machine and ZERO sewing skills to go with it.  My mother in law also gave me some wonderful sewing accessories for Christmas so now I'm equipped to start some new projects.  I'm thinking I'll get started with some napkins, maybe a table runner or even panel curtains.  I also need to pick the fabric for our headboard so I can finally finish it! 

Does anyone know of any good blogs or resources for patterns and inspiration for a beginner? 

Tour De Tejas: Fredericksburg and Enchanted Rock

To wrap up our Christmas break, B and I took a day trip near Austin to take in some of the sites we've been wanting to explore the past few months.  After a quick stop at Torchy's Tacos for some sustenance, and Summer Moon Coffee for some caffeine, we headed out into the hill country.  So grateful for my company car!

 

The first stop on our list was to Enchanted Rock.  B had been there a while back, but I had not been as of yet.  Mac and Tommy have told us that they loved their excursion there so we thought we would enjoy it as well.  When we lived in Arizona, hiking became one of our favorite activities in the desert.  I've missed big mountains here in Texas, but this was a nice way to get back outdoors.  We took the Loop trail around the outside of the park.  The terrain was beautiful and the peace and quiet was also a treat.  We circled back around and then climbed to the top of the rock.  I was certainly winded after spending over a week layed up on the couch!  It was so windy at the top!  The views of the hill country were beautiful.  Part 1 was a success!

After our hike we headed into Fredericksburg.  Blake had a single mission to have a Fredericksburg Pretzel while we were there.  It was our first stop in town.  I thought it was quite tasty even for a girl that doesn't love pastries and sweets!  We strolled among the shops and popped in a few.  Everything was still decorated for the holidays. There were so many people out and about as well.  Hunger set in and we found some German food at a restaurant we had seen on the Day Tripper show on PBS.  We both enjoyed a cold beer and shared a sausage platter complete with sauerkraut, German potato salad and potato pancakes.  Yum!  Such a cute and quaint town. 

On our way back home we headed to one of the wineries that I've been wanting to experience near Fredericksburg, Becker Vineyards.  We shared a tasting and found a couple wines that we actually thought were tasty.  No surprise that my favorite was the most expensive bottle.  Champagne taste on a beer budget! :)  The setting was beautiful.  I'd love to venture back when things are in bloom, especially the lavender. 

Tired and sore we headed back home after a pit stop off at the new HEB in Dripping Springs. ( My hubby is always such a good sport when I'm grocery shopping!  )  I would definitely recommend our day trip to anyone who is looking for a getaway from Austin.  I can't wait to explore more small surrounding cities in Texas; it actually felt like a mini vacay!

Our First (Married) Christmas

Blake and I have spent quite a few other Christmases together as a dating couple, but this year was our first time to have our first official married Christmas together! It was a really special holiday season celebrating the birth of Christ. One of my favorite traditions that we experienced this year was Advent at church. It was such a great time reflecting on anticipation and hope of God sending His son to earth in the form of a man. It truly prepared my heart for the season and what it is truly about.

 We have had a tradition during the last couple of years to have a "Holidate" together. This year, my sweet husband, took me to see the Nutcracker after a nice dinner at La Condessa, a restaurant we have been wanting to try. Blake had never been to the Nutcracker before. My favorite post ballet comment was, "Those guys have an easy job; how hard is it to life a 90 pound girl? The hardest thing those guys have to do is wear those tights!" He's a funny one. I enjoyed the show and it certainly got me in the spirit of the holidays. La Condessa was delish! If you go - I highly recommend their ceviche.

We also enjoyed a few holiday parties, including a progressive dinner block party, a white elephant gift exchange with our Gospel Community Group and each had a company party to enjoy. No wonder December flew by! We also had fun decorating our home together. It was fun to combine some of the decorations that we have each been passed down from our families. One of our generous neighbors loaned us their Christmas tree and with some help from my mom we pulled together some decorations for a woodland inspired tree. I'm still enjoying how it turned out and how festive it looks around here. B also did a wonderful job decorating the outside of the house with luminarias and big bulb white lights. Watching Elf while we decorated makes any task more fun!

We headed home to our parents' a few days before Christmas with wrapped presents and several batches of cookies in tow. It was a relaxing few days spent taking walks, prepping for the holiday meals, heading to the movies, playing with cousins and wrapping a few more gifts. Our families bless us in such a big way since they make it so easy on us to get from one house to another during the holidays without missing out on too much.

For Christmas eve we had dinner with my aunt and uncle and Tommy joined our family too. We had fabulous BBQ Shrimp. I hope this becomes our new tradition! Afterwards, the Parrish, Moseley and Erwin families came over for desserts, coffee and Brandy Alexanders. YUM! It was so nice to have everyone together. We made it all the way to 11pm (after a few cups of coffee) for church at KUMC, then headed to bed with Sugar Plums dancing in our heads!

Christmas morning might have been one of my favorite memories of our trip home. Dad woke us up with the traditional Winter Wonderland medley. He handed us each a spoon and we danced around the house. Blake was a bit overwhelmed, but he caught on fast :). We dug into our stockings and had traditional breakfast casserole and Blake's family's Cream Cheese Bread as we unwrapped gifts.

We quickly cleaned up and then headed to the Parrish's. We were excited to not miss Paul and Whit before they had to leave and we all opened our gifts together. It was so sweet of them to wait so I could enjoy watching them open their gifts (that's my favorite part!). Another treat was the fact that the Brown family joined us for Christmas Dinner. I've never had the chance to celebrate with a friend before and it was so great to catch up! We had an incredible meal and spent a relaxing afternoon sitting around the table chatting.

Next we headed to Don and Jill's house for my family's dinner. The kids were going crazy over their new toys and loving playing with their cousins. Too cute. I missed my cousins and it was great to have a chance to chat and hear what's been going on with them. The Parrishes came over (grandparents too!) afterwards to taste test our cookies and watch some football while some of the boys sat by the fire.

We were exhausted by the time 9pm rolled around and headed home to relax and go to bed. It was such a nice day overall. I will cherish our very first Christmas together!

Weekend in Review: Ashley's Visit

Disclaimer: This post is really old and i've had it saved for a while wiating for some images.... but it was such a great time with Ash that I still wanted to post it!
I'm a little behind, but wanted to catch you up on my weekend adventures and joys....

I had such a great time spending a few days with Ashley. We covered a lot of ground in a few short days, caught up on life and reconnected. It was so sweet to just pick up where we left off. I'm so grateful for her friendship and for the time we got to spend together. She is such a person of depth, substance, wit, intelligence, passion and grace. I'm blessed to know her!

Thursday night Ashley arrived and we headed to Postino for dinner. One of my all time favorite spots in AZ. Over a good beer and some bruchetta we chatted under the misters. We shopped at the waterfront and headed over to Urban. It was a blast to try on a bunch of things together. Solid girly time.

Friday morning I had to go into the office, but Ashley walked into Old Town and enjoyed some time at Sola and other shops along the way. I made it home after picking up my hubs from the airport and we then went to the Biltmore for some pool time. After almost getting kicked out for not actually being guests at the pool, our kind waiter let us stay. We enjoyed a few drinks and some nice weather. Thank goodness for cooler days!

That evening we came back and prepped for Saturday's shower and then got cleaned up ourselves. We headed out into Old Town to meet up with some friends for some Mexican food. It was good to be with friends new and old all at one table. We tried to get into the Vig afterward, but the wait was insanely long - so we all came back to our casa for some vino (the boys chose some alternative beverages) and fun on the patio outside. SO nice to enjoy the last of the evenings where you actually want to be outside.

We got up very early Saturday morning and decided to head to Sedona to show Ashley the beauty of the red rocks and the "Vortex Effect" - just kidding about the vortex. We hiked West Fork Trail just north of the town. It's so beautiful there regardless of when you go. Blake and I did this hike last Winter and the trail was flanked by snow. This time it was a red dirt trail and the creeks were still flowing and the foliage was green and beauitful. It was a great time to chat and continue to catch up for Ash and I. We had lunch by the creek - packed in sandwiches, fruit and granola bars. Yum. It was a quick trip but totally worth it to get out of the heat and into nature. I think we just need that sometimes for our sanity. We stopped at one of my favorite Sedona joints for a Dirty Chai at the Bike & Bean . Blake scouted the merchandise while the rest of us put in our order for some much needed caffine.

Ashley had to return to Texas that night to be up Sunday morning to speak at our home church. I was so sad to see her go, but so thankful I had such great time with her. I'm honored that she would come to visit us during her short trip to the states. So so so thankful for our time together and for her friendship. She is precious to me.

Maybe we will have to make a trip to visit Ash in the Czech so we can do it all again soon!

Will you take me back?

Dear readers,

....or maybe there aren't any at all.....I honestly could be just throwing words out there into a black abyss.  But I've decided that's completely okay.  I think this blog is more for me than for anyone else.  (Well  maybe for my parents who enjoy reading to know the details of what we have been up to).  I have had a couple requests to start writing again - so thanks to those who have encouraged me to get back in gear!

At any rate, if you are out there, will you take me back and forgive me for being gone for so long?  I've once again shown you my lack of commitment to this blog.  I can't believe I haven't written since this summer! 

So much has changed since then and lots of exciting things have happened in our lives.  We are settling into our new marriage (quite nicely if I say so myself).  We've learned so much about each other in the last several months.  Already into month 8, we have managed to weather the storm of a relocation to Austin, Texas, new roles at work and jumping into a new community and new church.  We are loving being back closer to family - just 3 hours away.  We have already spent a couple weekend with each set of parents and cherished not having to get on a plane to travel for the holidays.  God has been so faithful to us in this time.  He's provided wonderful friends here in Austin and a church we are so grateful to be a part of.  We also love our home and exploring new parts of Austin that I never touched as a college student. 

TFTN has a new look for the new year.  I decided I wanted to take it a more simple route.  I'm hoping to still include more pictures as I write in coming months as well.  Would love to know what you think!

Bye for now!