Happy, Happy Five Years

Today marks our five-year wedding anniversary, and it seems impossible. It seems like just yesterday I was walking down that aisle. I had found him, the one that made me feel whole. Today, I look back and am in awe of all that we have done, seen, and accomplished in just five short years.

We moved overseas, navigated and built a life far away from anything we knew, completely outside of our comfort zone. We leaned on each other, and we built a strong foundation for what will be the rest of our lives together.

We wrangled a baby german shepherd, somehow managing to raise her to be a good dog, though it took many years and several pieces of chewed furniture.

We traveled Europe, Africa, the U.K., and Scandinavia. We worked hard, and played harder.

We survived a deployment and more business trips than I care to count. We know distance pushes us, it makes us stronger, it makes us appreciate one another even more.

We moved to Dayton, made new friends, and tackled new hobbies, a new town, new jobs, and a Master's degree.

We made a BABY. A baby. We made him, together. The most perfect little gift from God - Jackson has showed us what it really means to love, to grow, to be completely and totally vulnerable. He gave our life and our growing family entirely new meaning.

We moved again, to tiny Rome. We bought our first home and made it our own. We are again navigating new jobs and new friends. We are growing, we are learning.

My heart bursts as I write this. I could NEVER have imagined where we would be five years from that special day - but here we are, and it all feels so exactly perfect, exactly right.

We were so young, just 22 and 23 when we said "I Do". We have literally grown up together, and I simply can't wait to see what the next five years, and many, many more beyond that will hold.

To Tyler, I am so lucky to have found you. So grateful for your never-ending support, love, and encouragement. For completing my sentences when I can't, for knowing what I need, even when I don't, thank you.

I love you, endlessly.

Father's Day

I have to say, we were blessed with one heck of a guy. Tyler is an incredible dad, and we soaked up this day celebrating everything he does to take care of our little family.

To the half that makes us whole, our multi-talented, funny, and loving mister, THANK YOU today, and every day for being the kind of dad I always dreamed my kids would have.

 

(We are working very hard on this whole walking thing. Almost.there.)

  

Unexpected Awesome

Sometimes, it's the most unexpected days that turn out to be the best. Unplanned spontaneity made last Saturday a great day with no expectations.

We headed out to run some errands... the dreaded Wal-Mart and Home Depot were on our list. After Walt-Mart, Jackson was MAD. He was hungry and over being in a shopping cart, and I didn't blame him (isn't everyone mad when they leave Wal-Mart?) Our car was parked directly between Wal-Mart and Applebee's, so we decided to head in for an appetizer.

When we finished, we noticed Bass Pro Shop on the other side of the parking lot. I'd never been in one, so we decided to take a walk and check it out. Jackson loved that place - we leisurely strolled the aisles, pointing out the (stuffed) animals all over the place.

I have to say, he was NOT a fan of the giant fish tank (and more importantly, the massive fish inside). Nonetheless, it was nice to ditch our plans and go with the flow.

Sometimes, you just need to slow down sand smell the roses!

 



Saturday Redeemed

After our Oz-Stravaganza adventure, we headed into Clinton, one of the most adorable little towns, ever.

Our hope was that Jackson (and I) would take a little nap in the car on our way there, and be a joy for the rest of the evening. Naturally, he fought sleep and screamed the entire way to Clinton. Despite the fact that Tyler and I were both ready to pull our hair out by the time we arrived, we put on our best attitudes, and luckily, the kid redeemed himself as we strolled through the town and enjoyed an early dinner.

Clinton is home to an adorable little farmers market, cute shops, and cozy restaurants.

After wandering in and out of shops, and buying some Adirondack cheese and jam, we settled into a patio table at Alteri's for some people watching and delicious grub.

 

(I don't always post pictures of food, but this was so.good. I had possibly the best salad ever - loaded with fruit and yogurt dressing, and Tyler's sandwich had eggs, peppers, salami... and who knows what else. We'll be going back there, probably more often than I should admit.)

 

#makingthemostoftinytowns

Oz-Stravaganza

Yep. You read that right.

Chittenango is a teeny-tiny town where the author of Wizard of Oz, L. Frank Baum, was born. As such, the town celebrates the iconic movie each and every year in Oz-Stravaganza.

Because we live just 30 minutes away, we knew this was obviously something we would have to experience.

We made it just in time for the parade, which featured the people of Chittenango walking or riding down the street in their chosen method of transportation. This included a whole lot of farm equipment. Some people were dressed up, some were not. I cannot for the life of me figure out WHY these people would be in the parade, and not dressed up. Come on folks.

The jury is still out on this whole experience. I guess I expected a whole lot more from the world's largest (and presumably only?) Wizard of Oz fest. However, it was a beautiful day and we ate some legit fair food, so I suppose it can't all be bad.

We can go ahead and cross that off of our list of things to do in Central New York.

 

It does, in fact, feel like we are in Kansas.

 

Baby safety?

 

 

Please note the yellow brick road. Yep - that might be the most awesome thing about this little town. Please also disregard Tyler's tongue? We had exactly one opportunity to get this right. 

 

 

The wicked witch seen here was the most legit character we saw all day - and she wasn't even in the parade, what a shame.

 

 

...When at Oz-Stravaganza....

 

This is pretty much how Jackson felt about the whole thing. Sorry, bud. No real lions, tigers, or bears here.

 

 

Before's and After's: House Update

We've still been hard at work putting finishing touches on our new home.

With yard work taking up at least four (yes FOUR) precious hours every weekend (and that's just mowing), things are moving slower. I won't complain though, because we are fully enjoying the beautiful start to summer.

Here are some before and after pictures of the rooms I am calling complete - woohoo!

The kitchen:

Before

 

 

After

 

 

 

Jackson's room:

 

Before



 

 

I don't have a good before picture (shame, I know). Use your imagination- It was lilac with matching purple-ish carpet.

 

After

 

(I had to throw one of the nugget in, for good measure.)

Our room:

 

Before

 

After

 

We're are feeling more at home and settled every day - thanks for checking in!