Wrapping up 2015

Of course it wouldn't seem right if I didn't do one last "dump" post before the year was over would it now. I've had a few pictures and drafts waiting for a place on this here blog of mine for a good minute and well I just haven't had the time or energy to sit down and put the words together. So here you go, the last little bit of 2015 and how we spent it.

*Early December we went to the Hubbs Battalion Ball down in Nashville. We ended up staying the night down there and had a great evening out with friends.

*The morning after the ball we went to breakfast at Biscuit Love. I'd been wanting to try it for a while now and well it was tasty, I have to say its not some where I'd rush back to.

*While the hubbs was at a match I took advantage and tagged along. After dropping him off I headed into town to check out the Franklin Factory and Market. I picked up some tasty 100 layer donuts and some Bison for our Christmas Dinner.

*I'm in love with our new fire place mantel picture. I had originally planned to put it over out bed but I just love it here.

*It just wouldn't be a complete holiday with out some freshly made Gingerbread loads and a Candy Cookie Cake for our work New Years Eve Pot Luck.

* I hadn't been to a match with the hubbs recently so I decided to tag along this particular day. Bonus we had lunch in Nashville and did a bit of window shopping.

*Our first ever date way back in 2006 was to "Ice" at the Gaylord in Texas. When I found out last year that they did it here at the Opryland Hotel & Resort I told the hubbs we had to go. We enjoyed it and had such a great time.

*My childhood puppy I had before moving to Hawaii was adopted by my best friend Ang. we found out late on Sunday night that she ended up having to be put to sleep. She had, had so many problems of the years but lived a long long life!!!

*Right in the mist of preparing dinner one evening after work our power went out. We decided to take the pups on a walk to give it time to come back on but no such luck. Out to dinner we went and ruffly two ours later when we returned there was still no power. I decided it was the perfect time to watch a movie on my computer.

Our First Full Day

Enjoying our first full day together. Thankfully the hubbs got in so early that we pretty much had an entire day just the two of us. After leaving the Hanger he wanted to stop off at the Company area and see some of his guys and say hello. After a quick visit we headed home and got settled. The pups where beyond thrilled to see their "daddy". 

 I had breakfast planned for us, knowing he was going to be getting in early enough to eat but since he'd eaten a bit at his last layover he wasn't really hungry. Myself on the other hand, hadn't eaten since 3am that morning. Almost 11am and I was starving. We called his mom and dad to tell them the good news of his return and they where behind thrilled. His mom asked him if I knew he was coming home when he did because I hadn't mentioned anything to them the weekend prior when we where together. He told her yes I did, and that he knew better then to surprise me with a Homecoming because he knows how I like to have everything planned out and just perfect. Yes Yes I do. I would have been devastated if he'd ever pulled something like that. 

We decided to venture out and grab some lunch at Noodles and Company, followed by a trip to Verizon to upgrade my phone. Lucky for him he was able to upgrade his as well. That then led to a stop at Best Buy since it was right there, followed by a trip to a couple gun stores and then the local hardware store. Not exactly how we had talked about spending our day but that's ok, he was / is home and we are together so that's really all that matters. After the last store even though it was only 2pm:ish I was exhausted and ready to get home. The lack of sleep from the night before, the early morning and running around for 2-3 hours had finally caught up with me. We headed home to relax for the evening. 

 Since I'd made dinner ahead of time the day before I simply just had to put it in the oven to cook. Talk about a easy peasy first night at home. We spent the rest of the evening lounging and cuddling on the couch watching a bit of TV before calling it a night at 7:20pm. Yup, you read that right we where in bed well before the sun went down. Over the past week between the both of us we hadn't got much sleep. From his traveling back to the States to my house cleaning and excitement, sleep was not something that came easy. 

We are both beyond thrilled and excited that he is home and I couldn't be more blessed that God has safely gotten us through another deployment. 

I can't wait to see where life takes us and what our future holds. 

As hard as deployments are there is one good thing that comes out of them, they most definitely bring us closer together. I love this man more than words can say and I'm truly grateful to have him as my husband. 

We Can't Say Goodbye to you at a Park….

Being of April I was babysitting for one of my favorite families and had a conversation about something on my Southern Bucket List. I knew with Football season over it probably wasn't going to happen. Little did I know that one conversation led to the best surprise a group of parents and co-workers could put together. 

6 of my sweet co-workers put together a little lunch-eon in our classroom. I was so surprised and shocked. I had no clue at all, they completely caught me off guard and it was the sweetest little going away party. (although I'm so excited yet sad about the party coming up this week that some of my parents are throwing for me.)

Everyone made a dish to share, there was so much food & sweet tea. They know the way to my heart!!

About 12:45 Kristen made the comment "I know something you don't know", she just couldn't hold out any longer. She went next door to the other room and next thing I know is they are bringing food over to my room. Jamie said "You didn't think we were going to say goodbye to you at a park did you". 

(the party this coming week is at a park)

We had enough food to probably feed about 10-15 of us. It was so fun to have our own little party in my room. As if food and drinks wasn't enough they out did themselves with gifts to. 

A beautiful necklace and earrings set, Palmetto Tree and Crescent Moon Charm and a Monogrammed Cutting Board. Seriously have I mentioned how well they know and love me.

Because food, sweet tea and a few little gifts was not enough they had one more surprise. Remember that conversation I mentioned about my South Carolina Bucket List?! Well M totally out did herself, she told another one of our parents who happens to work at USC about our conversation. 

I wanted to have my picture taken with Cocky before I moved. USC's Mascot!!! Why? I haven't the clue, but living in Columbia you can't help but become a Gamecock fan. It becomes in your blood as much as it's in the locals. They live, breath and sleep Gamecock Country. 

You can imagine my shock and surprise when Cocky came walking into my classroom. It took all we had to keep our voice's down not to wake up the little ones. I had tears streaming down my face, with excitement. To some it may not be that big of a deal, but for me it was. This move from the South to TN has taken a toll on me. I am having the hardest time excepting it. I've built a life here, made friends that have made a lasting impression on me, I have a job at a school that I absolutely love. As much as I'm ready to go and be settled with my husband, I'm going to miss my life here so much. 

Our Director told us we had Cocky for 15 minutes all to ourselves. What were we to do, it was kinda funny at first we all just stood around laughing like a bunch of little school girls. 

We had so much fun joking around, laughing, dancing and offering Cocky Chicken. He didn't take so lightly to the offer. I tell you he plays a great mascot, not once broke character or talked. Even when little Mac woke up he went over and "patted" him back to sleep. I'll remember this day forever!!!! 

And this amazing lady here, Jamie. My YaYa Sister! I can't begin to say how much I love her friendship.

After Cocky hung out with us a bit, he went upstairs were all the Older Hall kiddo's were waiting. They had NO clue why they were up there or who was coming. They were so excited, Clemson vs. Gamecocks rivalry starts at a early age down in the South. I remember my 2nd week at the school I was subbing in the Kindergarten room and one of the little girls asked me if I went for Clemson or Gamecocks. I didn't even really know who was who at that point but if someone was to ask me today, hands down I'd say I'm a Gamecock fan for sure. 

When me and two of the other girls walked in the kids were CHANTING as loud as they could……..

USC GO COCKS, USC GO COCKS. 

They were loving it, and I couldn't help but think "he's here just for me, all of this was for me". It was such a special day!! A couple of the older hall teachers asked me if I wanted to come work on the Older Hall that afternoon, since after all I was the reason for them being all riled up. lol NOPE, thanks for the offer though. They were so load, our heads were pounding betimes we left. I did have to get a picture with my favorite little man and Cocky though. Future Gamecock right here people. 

I'm really going to miss this place, I've made so many great memories here.

It's not goodbye but rather SEE YOU SOONLY!!! 

Country Cruising Day 7- At Sea

It was our last day at sea and our last day on the ship, tomorrow we are back in Miami. But of course we still had full day ahead of us. 

After the whole Trace Adkins ordeal, Flying Dutchmen (which is the supporting travel agency) had to quickly come up with a plan B for Saturday. Their solution was a poolside 14 hour all day music festival. It was the largest music fest put on at sea. Friday night the pool was drained and made in to a seating area, a stage was built and magic happened. Each of the remaining artist that were on board were given the chance to preform again. The music started at 11am and went well in to the night. Brandy and I got up earlier than the other two and went out to get seats so we were able to enjoy the day. 

We found a place right but the hot tub and the smaller pool. Only down fall was it was some what shaded. We considered moving but the view was great plus we had plenty of room to kinda spread out. 

We hung out here the entire day, went in and grabbed lunch and even brought it back out to the poolside to eat. It was a good bit chilly that day. After enjoying 80+ degree weather for the past 9 days we were cold. Thankfully we each had a long sleeve of some sorts to put on. The goosebumps were bad though. We tried keeping warm with our towels but it only helped a little. 

We sucked it up and waited it out till we saw the ever so amazing…...

Neil McCoy. 

Of course he didn't disappoint at all. He's so personal and caring. But watch out because he has jokes and is quick on his feet. He closed out the poolside session and then they moved it in side. The sun was setting and the temps were dropping. 

Blessed with the Best!!!! 

One of my favorite pictures of the three of us from the week. I can't wait for our next adventure together. 

After Neil played we headed to the room to shower and get ready for dinner. We wanted to have one last evening out together in the dining room just us girls. 

After dinner we headed to the main theater for the ending of the Music festival and then hung out while they had the jam session. It def. wasn't the same as when they had it in the Atrium but still a good time. 

Nancy and I, she's such a doll. Life wouldn't be as entertaining as it is with out her in it. Gotta love her!

We stopped in Bliss to hang out for a bit and see everyone one last time, after our late night / early morning horrible meal in the Atrium. It def. was bitter sweet saying goodbye to everyone not knowing when we'll see them again. Maybe next year, maybe sooner. I'm excited about our upcoming move (more on that later) because I'll get to see Bryan (above) preform a bit more. 

Joe (below) what can we say about him….he's such a sweet heart. He's gonna make a beautiful lady pretty happy one day. He is the perfect addition to Brandon and Leah, and I'm glad we got the chance to hang out and know him. 

Country Cruising Day 6- Cozumel

We woke up not so bright and early, seemed to be a theme there. We grabbed some lunch and headed off the ship to enjoy the day in beautiful Cozumel. Forgive me but the area we went to just wasn't beautiful to me. As luck would have it we were walking off the ship and ran into the guys. Not that big of a deal really, we like Joe. Ben on the other hand, that's a little questionable. We were hoping for a girls day but how are you suppose to say no sorry you can't come with us. 

After much standing around and trying to figure out how the heck we were gonna get to the beach we agreed to get in a taxi and go. Not really knowing were we were going but heck I guess that's partly the fun in things sometimes right. 

We ended up at probably what we called the most touristy beach ever. Loads of people, inflatable blow up things and crappy lounge chairs. We saw a little sign of relief when we saw one of the bands from our ship at the same beach. Still it was a WTF moment of how did we end up here. 

We ordered a drink, lounged around a bit, took a dip in the ever so chilly water and worked on our tan. Before we knew it, it was creeping up on 5pm. Ship return time was 630 but we'd rather not cut it short. I'm not trying to get left here or anything. 

When we got back to the pier Nancy and Sarah though it would be fun to take a bike taxi back to the ship. Little did they know when they got on neither of them had anything less than a $20. So they talked me into getting on, in hopes I did. WRONG, that man got lucky that trip. I'm sure we were quite the sight riding back to the ship. 

Another towel animal just for Sarah, another one we couldn't really figure out what it was. 

After getting back to the room we showered, change and got ready for the evenings show. 

Lone Star was our last artist to preform in the main theater. Sadly no amount of alcohol could help us manage to sit through the entire thing. One of the guys (I forget his name) was sick so that had some to do with it but not much. We knew a couple of their songs but nothing to make us want to get up out of our chairs and start dancing. We bailed half way though. Sarah's mom and Aunts said the 2nd half was the best but we just couldn't make it past the first. 

We spent the evening hanging out in the Atrium listening to the jam sessions. This was were different band members got together and played. Wasn't always country music, in fact it hardly was. But it was a nice change of pace. It was a younger crowd of people and everyone let loose and had a good time. 

Ok this guy!!! Let me tell you, about him. He was on the cruise last year by himself (who does that), some how he found out I was from Texas and the rest was history. Total creeper / stocker guy. We always ran in to him all the time. No matter how much we tried avoiding him it just happened. And from the moment we saw him this year it was the same thing all over again. I know it sounds bad but really if you were there you'd get how awkward and uncomfortable he could make things at times. Well the 2nd or 3rd night he sat at the end of our row by Nancy, it took her a minute for it to register who he was and then it all clicked. 

We saw him in Bliss late in the evenings, even asked if we'd dance. This evening he was wearing this shirt he'd got in Cozumel……Sarah and Nanc though it was the funniest thing and had to get a picture with him. In turn they made me as well. I tried offering to take shots to avoid it but that didn't happen. Talk about a awkward moment. Lord help me!!! Later that evening when we were in Bliss Nancy pointed it out to someone and he told her she had to try it out if she liked it so much. FACE IN PALM. 

The Hawaiian Trio!!! Love these two!! 

Nancy and I hung out in Bliss a bit later that night talking with Carey and Brian. (loser dude ben in the middle blah!!!) They were always so sweet and fun to hang out with. They had to make sure we got down to our floor that evening or really that morning I should say, since we'd had a bit to drink. 

Perfect opportunity for a little cartwheel action in the hall way!!! 

No worries I'm 100% confident I can handle myself even when I've been drinking. (can't speak for others)

Country Cruising Day 3- At Sea

We were surprised to see that the guys beat up back out to the pool deck. We really didn't think they would follow through but they did. Even Elliot came back out after he changed to say hello but was the smart one and went back to his room to get some rest. I'll give it to him, he did come back later that afternoon and hung out with us for a bit. 

At some point in the morning Sarah's mom passed by and saw us knocked out and snapped a picture. I can imagine the comments and stories from people as they passed by. We were really out and didn't hear a thing. Mid morning Sarah woke up and decided to go back to the room because she was afraid of getting burned. Smart one I suppose. When she came back out we were telling her about the picture her mom got and she though all along she wasn't there when her mom passed by. Sorry to break it to you honey you were. It was so funny when she saw the picture. 

One of many bathroom breaks with this girl!!!! 

We spent the day by the pool listening to the different artist play. It was quite warm out because the ship was just sitting for the longest time. We were in and out of the pool a good bit, but it only seemed to cool us off for a quickly minute. We enjoyed some yummy drinks to keep us nice and refreshed. Eventually we decided we'd grab some lunch before heading down to get ready for the evening. The first picture is probably how we really all felt but we know how to push through and have a good time. 

Craig Morgan night in the main Theater for the late show. Definitely one to remember for sure. 

Shots and Wine…..well why not. This was the first one of a few that night, once you get up moving and dancing you don't even remember what all you've had. Its once you sit down for a while is when it all hits you. And it hit me and Nancy hard that night. 

Moscato's the only way to go. We brought a couple bottles on with us to enjoy during the show. 

Bathroom breaks in two's something about drinking that makes a girl gotta pee. I've never understood it. lol But hey sometime you make the best memories in the bathroom. One of my fav's of Nanc and I. 

While Nancy and Brandy went on yet another bathroom / drink run, Craig called up two guest to the stage. Joe and I may or may not have made a scene to get Sarah up on stage. It was priceless, I know she was hating us for it while she was up there. She kept looking at us with these evil eyes telling us she was going to kill us. At one point while he was sing / talking he stopped and looked at Sarah and gave her a towel. Told her to cover up her boobs that she was distracting him. OMG, talk about the funniest moment ever. All while Nanc and Brandy are getting drinks. I was hoping they would walk in while she was up there because they'd be completely lost. But no such luck, shortly after she came down they walked in. 

It was such a great show, he's a former service member himself. 

Not sure how but I guess no one took any pictures after the show. Probably a good thing I suppose. We met up with some friends at the Karaoke bar and hung out there for a bit. At some point I lost the girls, not sure what happen there. I had my moment for the trip and the alcohol caught up with me. After getting sick and sobering up Steve and I went looking for the girls. Come to find out they were on the pool deck listen to one of the artist play. Thankfully by this point I was feeling fine but that's more than Nancy could say. Poor girl was DONE. She wouldn't even dance with me. Thankfully Elliot took me up on the offer while Sarah took Nancy to bed. Brandy was having the time of her life dancing with Joe, she even introduced me to a group of people by the wrong name all of which I knew. We laughed about it later and continued with our night. After a little walk around the ship, taking in the views from area's we hadn't seen Sarah and I decided to call it a night.

 It was definitely a great night one I'll remember forever!!! 

Country Cruising Day 2- At Sea

Our first full day at sea and we spent the entire day literally, in the hot tub other wise known at a Spa by some Californians we met. Sarah's Mom and Aunt were in there and we went in to chat with them and never left. So many people came and went, there were so many different conversation going and of course endless amounts of drinks. Brandy and I got out at one point to go to the restroom and look who we ran into. (below middle) Nancy happened to be walking up at the same time so we were able to get a quick hello in. The only one at that. Brandon (top left) and Joe stopped by to say hello on their way to play a little basket ball before they had to get ready for their evenings performance. 

I really couldn't imagine going on this cruise with anyone else. We have so much fun together and I just love these girls to pieces. 

There were several different artist that played through out the day while we were hanging in the "Spa". Wynnona and her husband came out and did a Q&A session. But the one that caught our eye was Bryan Edwards because of his "Aloha" shirt he was wearing. Nancy and I called him over and we chatted for a bit before we convinced him to get in the spa with us for a picture. 

That evening Montgomery Gentry preformed in the main theater for our show / concert. 

I knew a hand full of their songs, they defiantly made you want to get up on your feet and dance and we did just that. The two of them together were so funny but so genuine at the same time. 

Later that evening we made our way to the Atrium to watch Brandon & Leah. I absolutely LOVE her voice and their songs, well there not country but who cares. She's amazing. If you've never heard of them just google or YouTube their names. They made the cutest couple ever and Joe is the perfect addition to the group. 

Eventually we made our way to Bliss were we met up with everyone for the evening. We hung out, had to many drinks as we always did and did a little dancing ;) I think it was always one of those times of day we all enjoyed the most. You could really let loose and not worry about anything. We always managed to meet knew people each night to. Some stuck around and others not so much. 

We made our way to the Atrium for our late night / early morning food fix and the let down was still there. It was the same as the first night Salad, Burgers, Hot Dogs, Chicken Wings and Spinach did. It was pretty horrible but we some how managed to eat it any ways. 

After eating someone had the bright idea that we should stay up and watch the sunrise. I'm pretty sure it was Nancy's idea but I could be wrong. We toyed with the idea for a bit, Sarah was not so sure of it at first. We were all pretty tired but figured what the heck we were already up and the sunrise was in about a hour or so. So why not. Everyone was on board and we made our way to the back of the ship. We got absolutely no pictures of the sunrise (well minus two but nothing spectacular)

From left to right top- Joe, Brandy, Ben, Me, Nanc, Sarah and Elliot (who we met early that night). 

Carey and Brian. 

Sarah, Elliot and I made our way down to a lower deck for a better view. While they sipped on some coffee, I enjoy a cup of Hot Chocolate (I don't do coffee). As we watched the sunrise, it was nice to sit down and just chat away from all the craziness and nonsense. 

Eventually the rest of the group caught up with us, there was talk of going back to the room and going to bed. Which seemed funny because there was people getting up and coming out for breakfast and here we were still dressed from the night before. Someone came up with the idea to go change into our swim suits and go lay out by the pool and get a few hours of sleep. This way we had good pool side seats for the day's concerts. It sounded like a crazy idea at first and again we all went back and forth with it and finally agreed we do it. Everyone split and went their separate ways with the plan to meet back up by the pool right after changing. 

When we got to our room there was a little something waiting for Sarah, she loves loves the towel animals. So to say she was a little excited to see them would be a under statement.

We changed and headed back up to the pool deck were we continued our day…..