Trip to Fort Lauderdale

This past week I was on Spring Break (working at a school definitely has its perks!) so Johnathan and I decided at the last minute to plan an impromptu trip to Fort Lauderdale! We had heard friends say they really liked that area, so we thought it would be fun to check it out! 

We left Thursday afternoon and arrived around dinner time. Thankfully we found a great pizza place and enjoyed a low key meal!

 Saturday morning when we got up, it was pouring down rain outside! I was seriously depressed thinking we weren't going to be outside much, so we went into town. At a traffic light we see this Ferrari  next to us with a young guy driving - we both thought "who is this kid driving a Ferrari?" Well, we looked a little bit closer and it was Matt Stafford! I really wanted to roll down the window and yell "Go Dawgs!" but Johnathan was embarrassed, so I snapped this picture instead! 

Thankfully the rain and the clouds cleared out quickly, so we headed straight for the beach! Right now I am reading the Hunger Games series, and I am obsessed! I have literally read the first two books within about 4 days, and now I am on the last book. I can't wait to see how it ends!

 View from our hotel room Friday evening overlooking the inner coastal waterway. 

 All day Saturday was spent at the beach again, then we decided to get ready for dinner early and go to a local bar to grab a drink. We were sitting next to the water when this random guy  flew up to us! He's wearing some jet pack that propels him with water. It was entertaining!

Quick picture before heading to dinner!

Dinner on Saturday was at a local dive called Rocco's Tacos. It was a fun Mexican restaurant that had great food and margaritas! 

On Sunday morning we decided to drive up A1A along the coast line to see a few towns north of Fort Lauderdale (Boca Raton, West Palm Beach). It was an absolute gorgeous day and I did not want to leave, but we had a lot of fun!

30th Birthday Surprise!

Hi friends! I am sorry I am late to get this post up, but I wanted to share with you pictures from Johnathan's 30th Birthday Weekend! He had no idea that I had been planning a surprise party for him for about 2 months, so I was really excited when everything came together and he was completely surprised! His actual birthday is February 17th, and I had convinced him that I was taking him out of town for the weekend, so since we'd be gone, we needed to get together with his immediate family Friday evening to celebrate with them. Little did he know that there would be about 50 more people there to celebrate with us!

 This is what surprised looks like!

 Friends and Family + Barberitos + Live Music = Good Times!

 Our good friends Tim Miller and Ben Jones came to play music, and of course Johnathan got a chance to play some Johnny Cash!

Mmm, cookies and cream DQ ice cream cake is always a big hit!

 Lauren got a hold of my camera ...

On Saturday the girls went shopping all afternoon while the boys recovered and played ping pong at Brendan's house! We went to dinner at The Red Barn, where Kevin sang with our waiter, and then we went to Ziggy's! Always a good time!

On Sunday most of our friends had to leave and go home, but Kevin was able to stay until Monday. Sunday was honestly one of the prettiest days we have ever had on the island ... 75 degrees, sunny, and no humidity! We picked up some sandwiches and rode bikes to the north end of the island. The pictures below somewhat capture how pretty it was! 

A Surprise Weekend

This past weekend I surprised Johnathan with an early birthday present by taking him to Athens! I had told him not to make any plans for the weekend but to be sure to pack a bag because we were going out of town. When we got in the car Friday afternoon, I couldn't keep the surprise any longer and ended up telling him where we were going because I was so excited! 

Friday night we went to the Georgia Theater to hear the band Yacht Rock,  a 70s and 80s cover band. We had heard them another time in Atlanta, so I knew it was going to be a blast!

 On Saturday morning, we went to Last Resort, one of the best restaurants in Athens! They have such a good menu, and our meals were amazing! After lunch we walked around downtown, headed to the Arch, and walked around North Campus. It was such a pretty day, and so nice to be back in our college town!

 Saturday afternoon we headed to Atlanta to surprise one of our dear friends, Ryals, for his 30th birthday! He knew we were coming to go to dinner with him, but little did he know that all of his other friends and family would be waiting on him at the restaurant! Lauren did such a good job surprising him. I think my favorite part of the evening was his DQ ice cream cake, which spelled his name "Ryalas" - hmm, oh well - it tasted good regardless!

We had such a good weekend getting away together and spending time with friends. Check back in a few weeks for more 30th birthday celebrations to come! 

Lately ...

Hi Friends! I apologize since it has been so long since my last post. We have been very busy the past few weeks, so here are a few pictures to show what's been going on!

A few days before Labor Day, Johnathan and I took our nephews to the Neptune Park Pool by the Lighthouse to celebrate Jack's 5th Birthday! 

Here are the cute boys! So happy! 

 Eating chicken nuggets .. and Jack was being very nice to share his new birthday present with his little brother!

 These are my favorite pictures ~ T.G. put these sunglasses on upside down and could not stop laughing! Too cute!

Last Friday, Johnathan and I took the john boat to the south end of sea island since the weather has been so nice! We were able to get a lot of good pictures -

 Beautiful picture of the Cloister with the moon in the background ...

 Sun setting as we are going back to the dock 

This past weekend we traveled to Atlanta to celebrate the wedding of Brenae and Tyler! It was a perfect day for their wedding - the weather was amazing, and the ceremony and reception were beautiful! Brenae looked amazing and they could not be a happier couple!

 Me with my dear friend Meghan - we had such a good time catching up!

On Sunday afternoon we went to my sister's tennis match. She did such a good job and she and her partner won in three sets! Way to go Lauren! 

The Breakers, Palm Beach

Last weekend Johnathan and I celebrated our one year anniversary! It is hard to believe it has already been a year! We celebrated by going to The Breakers in Palm Beach, Florida. The trip was absolutely amazing ~ here are a few pictures!

Driving around West Palm Beach before we checked in. We went down Worth Avenue (which is basically Rodeo Drive on the East Coast) and looked at some beautiful homes!

Arriving at the hotel!

Main Lobby of the Hotel

Here are some pictures of the resort and the beach. It is hard to explain in words or pictures how beautiful everything was! 

 Lots of pictures of each other :)

On the night of our anniversary, we at dinner at the Flagler Steakhouse on the resort - it was amazing!

When we got back to the room, Johnathan had a sweet surprise for me! He had wrapped a frame with a picture of a road bike in it! I am so excited that I get to pick out and get my own bike!

On our second night in Palm Beach, we ventured off the resort to a section in West Palm Beach called City Place. Its a really nice outside shopping area with retail shops and restaurants. We at at a really neat place called City Cellar. They have a huge selection of wine and a great menu! 

We had such a fun trip and were so excited to get away for a few days. We are already brainstorming on where our next trip will be next year! 

A Great Day

Yesterday was the first glimpse of warm weather - I am hoping it is here to stay! We took advantage of the beautiful day and headed to the beach after work. We took Lucy and went for a run from the Coast Guard Station to the King and Prince. Below are a few pics of the absolutely picturesque sunset we got to see! 

We headed home and got ready for dinner. Johnathan told me we needed to be dressed up and ready to leave by 7 p.m. After we got in the car and before we even left the driveway Johnathan said, "Oh no, I forgot something inside - I'll be right back!" - well, a few minutes passed and I started to get worried, so I headed inside to find our dining room table set with candles, our fine china, crystal and sterling silver. I was so surprised and he totally had me tricked into thinking we were going somewhere! Johnathan made dinner and it was so nice! I have such a sweet husband!

Our Sweet Nephews

Last week Johnathan and I had such a great time babysitting our little nephews, Jack and T.G. They are too cute and were so excited to spend time with them! We spent most of the night playing in their playroom. Jack was such a ham and kept posing for me to take his picture!

T.G. in his Iron Man helmet!

T.G. and "Jack in a box!"

After we played for a while, we went down and I read them some books before they went to bed. I hope that we can babysit again soon - they are such great boys!