Jeremy and I took a little vacay to Key West back in July. Here's a little photo recap.

While we were there we....

Saw some beautiful sunsets,

Posed for pictures in front of said sunsets,

Did lots of touristy things, like pose with a giant buoy,

Took our picture at mile marker zero,

Saw some six-toed cats at the Hemingway House,

Hung out with family,

Posed for ridiculous pictures,

Took these little kayaks out in the OCEAN,

Ate ice cream every night (what? It's vacation!),

Ate lots and lots of fresh seafood and tons of peel and eat shrimp and overall had the best time ever. We also snorkeld, shopped, rode jet skis, laid out by the pool, and ate some more.

Did I mention we ate?

Sweet Home...

I've been wanting to post something about the horrible storms that went through the south a few weeks back, but words have escaped me. The people that were affected weigh heavy on my mind and heart everyday. My friend Katie posted
this the day after the tornado hit.

Alabama was my home from 1997 until 2010 and more specifically Tuscaloosa was home to me for the past three years. Jeremy grew up in Tuscaloosa and it's been so difficult for him to see places once so familiar, now unrecognizable.

"Rejoice ALWAYS; pray CONTINUOUSLY; in EVERYTHING give thanks. For this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." I Thessalonians 5:16-18.

Chicago!

I knew I would love it, I just didn't know how MUCH I would love it!

Mom, Molly and I took a long weekend trip to Chicago this week and it was fantastic. Yes, we went during one of the coldest times of the year and it was great! Chicago is by far the largest city I've ever visited (does that make me sound bumpkin-ish?) and it was such fun!

We saw all the sights we could in our three days there: Magnificent Mile, Millennium Park, Art Institute, Sears Tower, Garrett Popcorn (yes, please!), Giordano's Pizza (double yes, please!) and lots more. We walked, a lot and rode every possible mode of transit they offer in Chicago - it was great! Here are a few pictures from the trip.

Map break!

The Chicago River - right next to our hotel!

Big city snow!

No game, of course, but we had to take the "L" out to Wrigley Field to see it.

Pier Park

On the Skydeck at the Sears Tower. It's called Willis Tower now, but it will always be the Sears Tower to me.

The Art Institute of Chicago - the whole time we were in there all I could think of was "Ferris Bueller's Day Off."

Millennium Park

Riding on The "L"

A Day Late and a Dollar Short

When is it officially too late to wish someone, "Happy New Year?" I hope that January 30 is not too late, because here it is! Happy New Year to everyone from Jeremy and me. Here's a picture of us in front of our new house. Apparently on one of the few very sunny days we've had here in Tennessee lately.

We've been busy with things around the house and hopefully more pictures of that will come soon.

For now, Happy New Year! Hope 2011 is wonderful for you!

Scattered Thoughts

I just got home from a couple of days away visiting a good friend. It was wonderful. It was so nice to have some time with her, and her sweet baby girl, just to hang out, catch up, and enjoy being together. I'm not sure if she knows, but it was good for my soul. Thanks for that!

In other news, Jeremy and I put a contract on a house and waited 30 days for the seller (whom you would think would be eager to move) to find a place. We waited and waited and waited and she never found anything. Our closing date came and went, so we terminated the contract. I was SO excited about this house and very disappointed that we had to walk away. I keep telling myself that things happen for a reason. I can't wait until the day I understand exactly why this happened.

It's back to the drawing board for house hunting. More waiting. More hoping. So it was good when I read a friend's status update on Facebook today. It said,

"My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus blood and righteousness."

What a great reminder in this crazy, crazy world. I love the depth of old hymns like that. That song will be in my head the rest of the night and probably through tomorrow.
Great words to meditate on.

"I dare not trust the sweetest frame, but wholly lean on Jesus name. On Christ the solid rock I stand, all other ground is sinking sand. All other ground is sinking sand."

Chihuly at Cheekwood

Jeremy and I went to see the Chihuly exhibit at Cheekwood last week. It was such a cool exhibit and I'm glad we got to see it before it ended...even in the cold and rain. Of course, I walked out of the house with out my camera, so here are a few of the shots I got with my phone.

A Weekend Away

Jeremy started his new job in September and his company is headquartered in Hartford, Connecticut. He's been spending a lot of time there in training, I went up to visit him for a weekend early in October - since he had a free place to stay and all, we decided, why not!? While I was there, we drove over to Boston - it's only about 45 minutes away and neither of us had ever been. It's fabulous city and we had a great time seeing the sights. The picture above is the USS Constitution. There is a TON of history in Boston - really cool!

Cruising the Boston Harbor. It was a beautiful, clear, sunny, but COOL day when we were there!

Lunch at Cheers. I had the best grilled cheese sandwich of my entire life there. Seriously. Three cheeses, roasted red peppers and black olives - so good!

Me posing with all the buoys!

The next day, Jeremy showed me around Hartford. He found this cute little park to go running. We went to see the fall colors.

I was scheduled to fly out on Sunday night, but due to computer issues on my plane, the flight was delayed indefinitely. The airline informed me that I would miss my connection and wouldn't be able to get to Nashville on Sunday. So, I stayed one more night in Hartford and flew out at 5:45 on Monday morning (yikes!). I was able to get some neat shots from my window seat, though.