Our Anniversary Trip -- Part 1

This past weekend we had a lot of fun celebrating our sixth wedding anniversary!! I am so grateful to God for my amazing husband! He is truly my bestest friend -- the one I want to spend all my days with!! :) All of our pictures are taken with our phones & iPod, as my point and shoot decided to act up... now let the pictures begin!!

We started with ShaynaMade pizza, wine,  and "The Collision" debate between Doug Wilson & Christopher Hitchens

All packed up and ready to go. It's amazing how just the two of us fill the car up perfectly for an extended weekend at the outer banks. I teasingly told Tony, "I don't know where we'd put kiddos if we had 'em." ;) I foresee a bigger vehicle in our future.   

A beautiful sunset down hwy 171 (Martin County). Tony stopped the car so that I could get a picture. :) The sky continued to fade into richer shades of pinks & oranges & blues. About an hour prior to this pretty scene, we spotted a fairly large black bear (at least 200lbs) prancing across the road in front of us. That was quite exciting!! On this trip we also saw a mouse, a cat, a crab, and a turtle all crossing the road. :) 

Making a blanket stitch by stitch ~ as the wheels on the car go round and round.

Early Saturday morning our feet touched the sand along the Cape Hatteras shoreline. We greeted each other with a hug and kiss and "Happy Anniversary's." :)  

A little souvenir I found while taking a morning walk. 

Breakfast at the Shipwreck Cafe. We read through some anniversary messages on Facebook and a very sweet email from a very sweet lady! It added just the special touch to our morning meal.

We walked to the top of the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse ~ a first for the both of us! Even shared a little kiss at the bottom, right near the threshold. :)  

hello moon, hello sun, hello dad

Saturday we had a lovely breakfast in bed and watched the movie Tangled. Vanilla yogurt, topped with raspberries, and drizzled with healthy chocolate syrup (made from raw cacao nibs, honey, and coconut oil). It was awesome and definitely a new favorite!! In the afternoon we gave our yard some attention with a weed eater and mower. In the evening we enjoyed a fabulous dinner with some sweet, sweet friends. Then we met Tony's parents at the beach. We all stayed up late talking, watching TV, looking at pictures, catching up on facebook, and eating cookies. After a few hours of sleep, Tony & I walked one block over to the ocean. There, Tony surfed, I captured some memories with my camera & took a lengthy walk. The moon and sun could both be seen. We enjoyed breakfast with his parents then packed up the car and made our way to church.

hello moon

hello sun

Sunday evening we went to my parents house to celebrate DAD!! Lasagna, salad, and rosemary bread graced our dinner plates. Coffee and pig-pickin' cake was for dessert. There was lots of talking and laughter. Garden & shed admiring. And some even prefaced dinner with a round of Skip-Bo (Miranda won)!!

hello dad

being silly with Joey

Pictures "borrowed" from Chrissie ;) 

A lovely sunroom

Isn't this sunroom amazing? I love all the little details. I will definitely look to it for inspiration when it comes time to decorate our little outdoor nook... one day. Click over here for more pictures. :)

In the garden - 06.16.11

Sunflowers open face toward the sun--opening one by one. Green tomatoes slowly turning a shade of red, and some orange. Cilantro flowers attracting happy little critters. :) The pea bed cleared with all remains stacked onto the compost pile. Soil was loosened and cucumber plants transplanted. Those bean beetles are still wrecking havoc, but new leaves continue to grow. An unknown culprit really likes broccoli leaves. A security camera may need to be set up to catch him or her red handed. ;) Two little raspberries on the verge of turning bright red! One for me and one for Tony! 

Gift & Grace Moments

I have been reading One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp as of late. Well worth the $4.99 to download it to my iBooks app on my iPod. It has been an excellent read thus far, and I can't recommend it enough. Just wanted to share a little snippet that I read last night.

To set the context, Ann is a mother of six. She had just been expressing much gratitude for all the beauties near and around her garden and kitchen: sunflowers, yellow finches, vases filled with flowers, quilted runner that her mama stitched for her... her heart is filled with joy as she gives thanks to God for all these "little" things. 

Then her children come in for lunch - brothers start to bicker and shoot harsh glares across the table. One throws a piece of toast at the other. Ann's joy quickly begins to fade... now for the quote:

"How do I have the holy vision in this mess? How do I see grace, give thanks, find joy in this sin-stinking place?... God tries to gently drive the words of Caussade from the knowing of my head to the bleeding of the heart: You would be very ashamed if you knew what the experiences you call setbacks, upheavals, pointless disturbances, and tedious annoyances really are. You would realize that your complaints about them are nothing more nor less than blasphemies--though that never occurs to you. Nothing happens to you except by the will of God, and yet [God's] beloved children curse it because they do not know it for what it is.... What compels me to name these moments "upheavals & annoyances" instead of "grace and gift"? Why deprive myself of joy's oxygen?

...Really? I lay my head on the table. Do I really smother my own joy because I believe that anger achieves more than love? That Satan's way is more powerful, more practical, more fulfilling in my daily life than Jesus' way? Why else get angry? Isn't it because I think complaining, exasperation, and resentment will pound me up into the full life I really want?When I choose--and it is a choice--to crush joy with bitterness, am I not purposefully choosing to take the way of the Prince of Darkness? Choosing the angry way of Lucifer because I think it is more effective--more expedient--than giving thanks?

... [and there is always something to be grateful for]. Father, thank You for these two sons. Thank You for here and now. Thank You that You don't leave us in our mess. Thank you for toast. Thank you for cross-grace for this anger, for the hope of forgiveness and brothers and new mercies." I look for the ugly beautiful, count it as grace, transfigure the mess into joy with thanks..."

Obviously, the chapter goes on. I pray that these words will be an encouragement to you on this here Tuesday!! May our hearts be inclined to give thanks always!! And may King Jesus fill our hearts with much joy!! 

Date at Lilly's Pizza

Yesterday afternoon we had a lovely lunch at Lilly's Pizza {a new favorite that some sweet friends introduced us too}. We were snuggled in a little corner--sitting side by side. Perfect for picture taking and catching up in the social media world. :)