November!

Oh November. Such a lovely month you were :D Here's a quick recap of our month!

PNC- I started a part time job at PNC! Kristen has worked there for years and has always tried to get me to work with her.I finally have time and decided it would be a nice way to earn us some extra income. I work in the Champions Club as a server and wine attendant for Hurricane's games and Men's NC State Basketball games. It is SO much fun. I really love the job. All of the people I work with are super nice and fun. I've always wanted to be a waitress too- so this definitely feeds that dream! Some nights I am exhausted when I get home, but I really love it. I cant say it enough. haha. And it makes REALLY good money for a part time job! It's perfect for me :D

A shot of the basketball court from the Champions Club!

My baby brother GOT ENGAGED! If you thought I felt old before, my brother is now getting married! AH! He asked me to be apart of the sweet event to capture some pictures. His and Brittney's first date was in a bookstore (at a Starbucks) and the first time they said I love you to each other was also in a bookstore. Let me share that they love going into bookstores to look for new geology books for her. :D He created this sweet book with drawings that told their story and convinced her to come into the bookstore. She found it and the rest is history :D It was such a sweet proposal. I could not be more proud of my brother. I am SO excited for him to marry Brittney too :D I am VERY blessed in the fact that she is an amazing woman that will treat my brother so very well for the rest of their lives.

The cute little bookstore he proposed in 

The book!

I was really nervous..haha 

Of course she said yes! :D 

Double Date!- John and I really wanted to go see Mockingjay Part 2 when it came out in the theaters. We invited the Kinlaws along for some fun. We went to Lynnwood Grill and Brewery for dinner and to try their beer. Then we went to the renovated Raleigh Grande. Movies will never be the same again! :D

Gibson Wedding!- Brad and Jenny tied the knot! They had asked me months before to be their wedding director. I had so much fun doing it!! We went down on a Friday afternoon and I got things set up for the rehearsal, while John, Krystal, and Josh got checked into our AirBnb. We didnt have access to the wedding venue, so we made do outside at the hotel the family was staying at. haha :D 

Improvising at its best!

                                     

                                      

We rehearsed it a few times and then went to their beautiful rehearsal dinner! The next morning I got up SUPER early to get ready. Then I headed to the wedding venue. We were staying walking distance so it was easy for us all to get there without worrying about parking. I spent the morning helping set up for the ceremony and then getting things ready to switch the room over. Afterwards, I helped Jenny get into her dress and walked her out for Brad and Jenny's "first look". It was very sweet. 

                                     

                                      

                                      

                                      

Wedding time came and not to toot my own horn- but I did a great job! Everything went very smoothly on my end. I was WAY too busy to get anymore pictures though :( The wedding was pretty and the reception was fun. We helped clean up and then went to change and headed downtown for the night- so much fun!

On our way downtown!

                                      

Brad and Jenny had shrimp and grits at the rehearsal and wedding and they were delicious each time. I decided to try my hand at them one night after the wedding- they were DELICIOUS! :D

                                      

Weekend of Parties- 

The weekend before Thanksgiving was full of crazy!  I literally had 3 parties to fit into 1 day. The first was a champagne brunch to celebrate Carolyn Moore! :D Such a cute Breakfast at Tiffanys theme! 

Next was 42 Craft Beverages 2nd Anniversary party! 

Last was our neighbors 30th birthday- HAPPY BIRTHDAY Tristin! I had a great time at all of them :D

Thanksgiving!- John and I hosted our annual family Thanksgiving! This year we decided to deep fry a turkey and it was DELICIOUS! We didnt have as many people this year as people were all over, but we had a great time with the family that did come. :D

 

After dinner we had a visit from the Hoaglands! We had not had a chance to meet Eddie and Christina's sweet babies yet and what a joy it was! They are some of the sweetest little people!! It was also so great to see Christina. I always forget how we are basically the same person in different bodies. We love you guys so much :D

The STAIRS!- We have been talking about putting stairs up to our attic since before we even bought our house. Everything has just gotten in the way and we have not been able to do it- UNTIL NOW! Black Friday and the weekend after Thanksgiving was filled with stair building! I snapped some before shots and some after shots from the weekend. It's not completed yet, but it's getting close! So proud of my hubby, FIL, and Joel for working so hard on this for me! :D

 Before

 Before- we had to use a ladder to get in...

 Planning

 Ripping out walls...

 Stairs! (I had to work at PNC so I missed some in between pics. haha)

 Cant wait until they are done! now I'm not scared to go in the attic anymore :D

 And just like that- November came and went!

October!

Ummm y'all. I'm 30. THIRTY. The BIG 3-0. When did that happen?! like seriously. When did I get to be so old. Alas, I shall embrace the new decade. I know my 30's will bring great things:D I dont even feel any older, just everything around me keeps reminding me that I am now old. I wonder if this happens to everyone...lol :D

The first two weeks of October were spent on our epic trip! Again, I'll post the link to our blog once it's finished :D

When got back on Oct 11th and took the 12th off to recuperate some. I'm not gunna lie- the time change was rough! I know it was only 3 hours, but dang. It was hard to get back on our schedule!!

My mom did send me these gorgeous flowers when I got back to work!

That weekend, John and Krystal threw me a 30th birthday party :D They gave it a camping theme since we camped so much on our trip. We had a fire and roasted hot dogs and smores. It was so much fun. So much love from all my friends. It was great!!

 Thank you John for an amazing party :D 

 The Hutch's!

 The Chases!

 Julie came by!

 The Klings :D

 So much fun. Of course I didnt get pictures of outside, or the rest of the people. Just know a good time was had and I am a very blessed woman :D

Sunday, John and I got up and John told me he wanted to go to At Home. Umm. Yes, please. I'll never turn down a trip to there. We needed more fall decorations, so he said that would be a good place to go. After we were done shopping, he told me that my mom had actually wanted me to stop by because she made a cake for me. I had no idea- but when we got there- SURPRISE! My mom threw me a surprise party too! My in-laws, mom, a few of her friends, my brother and Britt were there- It was so nice. There was tons of food and it was a great time again! Of course I forgot pictures :( But honestly, I was so surprised! It was nice to be able to celebrate with my family :D

The next weekend, John went out of town for Brad's bachelor party! The Kinlaws were in Iceland. So, I decided to invite Jenny over for a little girls sleepover. It was Me, Jenny, Bailey, and then Carter crashed the girl party. haha. Jenny and I made pizzas, sat up and talked, and watched Quantico. It was very relaxing and enjoyable. :D

It was too bright for Bailey girl.

 Pizzas!

 All the snuggles :D

Over the past few months, my eyes have been super dry. My doctor had restricted me to glasses (hence why I'm wearing glasses in ALL of the pictures since July). But I was finally cleared for contacts! I was so excited! I cant wear them all of the time, because my eyes are still so dry, but I can sometimes! And that makes me VERY happy! Selfie at the eye doctors office!

John and I had purchased a Livingsocial for Second Empire! Of course it was about to expire, so I quickly made reservations for the same week. We ended up going on a Wednesday. The food was amazing. Seriously. I wish the pictures came out better, but YUM. The experience was also very cool :D 

 My handsome hubs!

 The next night, we went to Turnpike Troubadours! We had given Josh a ticket for his birthday and the time had finally come. They were REALLY good. It was a really fun night :D

The last weekend in October was Krystal's birthday and Halloween! Friday night we celebrated Krystal with a Murder Mystery Party. It was AWESOME. I am loving these themed parties lately! We all got dressed up in our 1920's attire, made food and drink that you would have had in the 20's and then tried to find out whodunnit! Kallie and her fiance, Andrew, came up from GA to play. It was so good to see them! Here are some pics from the night! Again, I wish we had gotten more pictures! Krystal did a great job on the decorations, and we even made a secret entrance! So much funn!

 Deciphering clues!

 Kristen DID IT! :D

 Vicky and the Congressman..

 Happy Birthday Krystal! :D

Saturday was Halloween, we spent the day at the Kinlaws watching the Clemson game and hanging out with friends :D After the game, Krystal and I sat in rocking chairs and handed out candy for awhile! We got a ton of trick-or-treaters!! 

I got to snuggle this cutie on Halloween!

                                     

                                                  

Before the party, I gave Krystal her birthday present- I made it Scandal theme! So much fun! 

October went out with a punch for me! I got Strep throat-reminding me that you are never too old to get sick. It was no fun at all. Luckily, I have a great husband who will take good care of me!

It also taught me that sometimes you just have to adult- I had to replace the battery in the mustang. Which was actually very simple- you go to Advanced Auto parts, have them test the battery to find out it's reading Zero charge (so lucky it started that morning!) and then have them replace it for you! Haha :D The blue you see is battery acid- no wonder the battery died! 

 

My first month of being 30 was amazing. I cannot wait to see what else this year holds!!