Vacation Recap :: Charleston, SC (pt.1)

We decided on a whim maybe a month before that we were going to go down to Charleston before the Summer was officially over. Going in September was completely different in the fact that was almost literally no tourists and the weather was slightly different than when we go in July. This year we decided to take our kayaks so that Anthony could get some fishing done and I could just follow along and explore with him. When we got to town it was a little before 7 a.m. on Sunday so we decided to go to Sullivan's Island and watch the sun come up before knocking on my Aunt and Uncle's door early in the morning. 

Anthony couldn't resist getting his line in the water.

After we went to the house, unpacked and hung out for a little bit we decided to go put the boats in the water despite the overcast skies and rain in the forecast. It didn't take long after we were off that it started pouring. That didn't stop us, until my skin started itching like crazy!! I ended up pulling off the water and leaving Anthony and my cousin Bryson to spend the rest of the afternoon on the water.

Monday/Labor Day

Anthony let me sleep in before we hit up the beach for the day. Sullivan's Island was the pick of the day and unfortunately it wasn't the greatest because there were these flies all over the place that kept biting us like horse flies. We stayed for a few hours and then decided to hit up downtown Charleston for our traditional pizza from Pizzeria Di Giovani's. They have the largest slices of pizza ever and this year we decided to get a full pizza instead. After dinner we were going to walk around the Market but the vendors were all packing up and we missed all the hype. Instead we went to the new boardwalk on Shem Creek and watched some boats coming in and out and hung out just the two of us.

We were thinking we were going to catch a beautiful sunset off Shem Creek but the clouds blocked it and it didn't leave much to be desired but it was truly a beautiful evening spent with eachother doing some boat and people watching. This trip was mainly focused on relaxing and doing our own thing and I noticed that I barely took 100 pictures with my camera but we had an amazing trip. Tomorrow I will blog about the rest of the trip where we visited Folly Beach and Boone Hall Plantation.

Blog-tember :: Ipod Shuffle

If someone asked me to list my top 5 things that I could not live without and in that would be music. It is what calms my nerves, creates the best dance parties, has been the culprit of not enough late work night concerts with my best girlfriends and I always have music playing when I am driving somewhere, working around the house and exercising. Anthony and I haven't always agreed to the same genres. I am a die hard country music fan and well Anthony, he is not. In the last year or so though I have been trying to branch out and really enjoy what else is out there.

So here we go, I put my ipod (iphone) on shuffle and these are the first ten songs that played. I honestly didn't realize I listen to these so much, but as I listened to them I couldn't help but realize that I am singing along to every word. 

Edens Edge / Amen - This song is my ultimate sing along with the girls in the car. We can sing every word and the beat is just perfect for car dancing to!

Justin Moore / Flyin' Down a Back Road - The title of this one says it all. I am a die hard Justin Moore fan and this song reminds of Anthony and I's early years of dating. We would literally go backroading all the time. He had his license when we started dating and we both thought it was so cool to just drive around in the truck after school before he would take me home or on summer nights. We almost always took a dirt back road from each others houses just to waste more time and there was the occasional pull off that was perfect for a little make out session ;)   

Tracy Byrd / The Keeper of the Stars - This was "our first dance" song at our wedding and my shuffle just knows that I always love listening to this one so I can have a little reminiscing of my favorite day ever.

Dixie Chicks / Goodbye Earl - This one brings back my 13 year old self and I am not ashamed to admit that these girls still grace my music selection. 

Iggy Azalea / Fancy -Just because this is the perfect song to really jam out to while running.

Taylor Swift / Blank Space - I haven't always been a fan of T.Swift but some of her newer stuff is luring me in and her lyrics are so easy to learnt to sing along to.

Johnnyswim / Diamonds - This is a new one I have been listening to. Johnnyswim is a little different from what I usually listen to but it is the type of music that I can listen to while sitting on the front porch, reading a good book and letting loose.

Sam Hunt / Raised on It - I just love listening to the words of this song.

U2 / Where the Streets Have No Name - This would be my relaxing running song, perfect for starting out the run and loosening up.

Rachel Platten / Fight Song - This would be the song that I always play after U2. It puts my mind in a great mood for pushing harder when I am running and gets me breaking a sweat. Last week when this song came on while I was running at the trail I just started singing it outload and throwing some dancing into my run. About a minute into this I looked around and realized there was a family coming up behind me on their bikes and they were just laughing at me. All I could do was laugh at myself and when they passed me I told them that is what good jams will do to you. I am sure I was their source of entertainment for the night.

What are some of your favorite songs? I love a good recommendation and who knows you might find me my new jam! Hope you all have a great Saturday. I am going to finish cleaning this house and packing for Charleston. We leave tonight and I have so much to get done (procrastination at its finest)

Oh Hey Friday

I am glad to finally get this work week over with. I used to think that every week of work before taking a vacation seemed to just creep by. However, this week flew by and I couldn't catch a break to get all the work done, it was carazy! This job is seriously causing me to be the busiest I have ever been. This vacation is definitely needed! 10 days off is going to be perfect to clear my head, get some sun and spend some quality time with my husband. On top of work I have been trying my darnest to keep up my running and it is proving to be a challenge. I only made it out two nights this week but those nights I was really able to clear my head and break a sweat. We finally splurged and bought a new desktop computer, we realized that working on our slow as Moses laptop was just not cutting it for my photo editing. I am seriously in love with it!!! Now I am pinning ideas for little office nook ideas. When I finally settle and how I am going to decorate this area in our living room I will be sharing it with all of you. And just in case I thought I wasn't busy enough I have been getting back behind the camera with some senior sessions. The kids that I have had gotten to shoot have been great in front of the camera and I have really been enjoying editing their pictures. For a while I thought that with all of the craziness at work I couldn't do my own thing and disconnect when I got off work but I am starting to get the grip of things and I think this trip to Charleston is really going to be the needed refresher and I can get back to my normal self. I hope you all have an amazing weekend!

Hello, Goodbye

Hello September, Goodbye August.

Hello Month with a Vacation, Goodbye Pool Days.

Hello Festive Candles, Goodbye Tropical Scents.

Hello Cooler Runs, Goodbye Sweat Sessions.

Hello Hoodies, Goodbye Tank Tops.

Hello Friday Night Football, Goodbye Lazy Friday Nights. 

Hello Baby Brother's Birthday Month, Goodbye Daddio's Birthday Month.

Hello Better Blogging Habits, Goodbye Blogging Dry spell.

Last Weekend Together

Anthony officially starts his new job as a post man this week which also means that this weekend was our last full weekend to have Friday, Saturday and Sunday together. It makes me a little sad to know I can't really plan big things to on Saturdays or even Friday nights but it also makes me a little eager to plan some fun stuff for myself. 

We enjoyed the whole weekend together this weekend. Friday night we cooked dinner together with plans of going to the fair afterwards but we both laid down and fell asleep for a couple of hours. It put a damper on that plan and we decided to skip out on going to the fair since it was so late and opted for some froyo and shopping at TjMaxx and Dunhams. 

Saturday we both slept in, tinkered around the house almost all morning and afternoon and I got in another nap. We met up with my parents and went to Columbus for my Dads company picnic at the Crew soccer game. It was the perfect night for some soccer. 

Sunday anthony let me sleep in and I woke up to Donald's Donuts waiting for me. We played with the dogs all morning, I did some reading while Anthony made some modifications to his kayak. Around noon we decided to hit up the pool before going to Sunday dinner at Grandma Spikers. 

Life Lately

I am positive that July went by quicker than June did. This whole year has been flying by and I wish it would slow down. I am excited for leaves changing colors and brightening up the hillsides, everything pumpkin, bonfires, and sweatshirts but I am not ready to say goodbye to sunshiny days, swimming in the pool, and wearing flip flops and tank tops. 

Life around here has been pretty...crazy and a little not normal. I don't want to do another monthly photo dump because I feel like that is all I have done for the last couple of months and then disappearing for the next month. So I thought I would fill everyone in and what has been going on.

Jobs. 

I got another promotion at work and am now a Case Manager due to the coworker I was coverings maternity leave deciding to be a stay at home with her miracle baby. Learning a whole slew of new tasks every single day is starting to be a little taxing on me and the stress levels have went up a few notches. It all comes down to the fact that it has brought me out of my comfort zone. Soon enough I will get a grasp on everything, unfortunately I don't think it is going to be as soon as I would like it. 

Anthony quit Sam's Club after being there for almost 8 years this past month. He was hired at the Dollar General warehouse in what he told everyone would just be temporary until he could get a different job. What we didn't realize was how short of a stint it would be, a mere 8 days! He was offered a job at the post office and he let his supervisor know he begins training on the 10th (tomorrow!) and they wished him luck! This is just a part time position with pretty good potential of becoming a full time one with is own route. This is all going to be a major adjustment but as always we will adjust and then more changes will come. 

Twenty-Five.

I kicked off my birthday weekend getting ready to go out to dinner with my hubby and my co-worker/friend Nora and her husband Brian. We made plans half way through the week and I invited a handful of friends hoping it wasn't too late for everyone to make plans. Unfortunately almost all of them turned me down or didn't answer. I decided that we would have just as much fun going out in a small group, enjoy some margaritas and maybe hit up some bars on Linden Avenue. Much to my surprise Anthony and I walked into Tlaquepaque to meet Nora and Brian to see a table full of all of my friends!!!! I was SO surprised!!!! It was awesome to see all my favorite people in one place! We had a party of 19 people, we all ate dinner, drank margaritas, they sang Happy Birthday to me while I dawned the sombrero. The night did not end there and we hit up Linden Avenue to do some bar hopping. We ended up staying out until 1:30 and Anthony finally took me home. The surprise party definitely went down in my book for the best birthday yet!!! I cannot thank Nora and all of my friends enough for surprising me and celebrating!!!!!! It definitely made turning 25 a lot better. We spent the rest of the weekend hanging out with family with little celebrations here and there.

Running.
With turning 25 I made a couple mental notes of some things I wanted to start doing or do in my 25th year. One includes running. Running for many reasons, to lose weight, to stay in shape, to sign up for my first race and hopefully a few more after that, and most importantly to relieve stress. I have found that when my feet hit the pavement and its just me counting miles all of the stress vanishes. It is fun mapping out new courses to run and witnessing some of the prettiest sunsets while I am totally in the zone for spending some time on myself and clearing my mind.

Furbabies.
Tyson and Diesel have been enjoying Summer with having different friends over to stay for different weekends. Mom and Dad went to Tennessee for an extended weekend and their dog, Tank, came to stay with us for a few days and right now our friends Jesie and Kris are on their honeymoon so their furbabe Emma is hanging out with us for a few days. Tyson and her have been running around like crazy and then they crash for a while and then they are back at it again. When we don't have company over I have been taking them on walks at least once a week when I am having a night off from running. Once it gets cooler outside we will be trying to do this much more often but with temps still in the 80s at night the dogs get worn out and we don't go as far.

Summer has been great so far and we are going to continue soaking up the rays and warm weather. I am looking forward to County fairs, swim parties, possibly some camping trips, and maybe some boating. Life is so fast anymore, I just wish it would slow down so we have some chances to absorb it all and document it so I can share every bit over here. I hope you all are having a great Summer!

Time Flies When Your Having Fun!

And just like that we are almost halfway through July and I should be being awarded the Blogger Slacker Award. I have fallen off the creative bus and then ran over by it. I am going to try to get back aboard and my fingers are crossed that I can keep my gears turning.

Summer has been full of fun and I thought I would give you all a big photo dump of what we have been getting into...

June was full of weddings. With me second shooting weddings with Megan and weddings to attend as guests I had a wedding to go to every single Saturday in June. It is a good thing I LOVE weddings! The first one that kicked off my wedding extravaganza was a childhood friends wedding at their family farm for Kaci and Justin. Us three girls all grew up showing horses together. 

Summer = Fresh Fruit (insert heart faced emoji) Has anyone else tried the new Long Islands? They are so good!

3rd Wedding of June was Cassi and Justin's. It was so much fun to get together with my friends that I get to see pretty often but it was fun to get all dressed up.



My cousin Missy had her baby, Albany, in May and brought her to Cassi's wedding. I couldn't put her down! Isn't she so precious!!!! I have some serious baby fever going on, I told Anthony that we need to get our own so I don't have to keep stealing other peoples!

When its not raining we have taken advantage of going fishing. On this particular Friday night Anthony, Chase and I went fishing at a private pond. I caught a bunch of blue gills in the beginning but I quickly got bored so I had the guys drop me off on the bank while they fished out of the boat I put a little dent in my summer reading.

I did some crafting for Father's Day for my Daddio and Grandpa. They are both the ones who gave me my sweet tooth so I thought a nice big candy jar would be perfect. We had a cookout at my Grandpa's house and I got to see my brothers new truck. My parents got a new one the week before and my brother couldn't resist upgrading too! I am so happy for both of them!

We have been spending lots of time chilling on the front porch. I read and Tyson snoozes.

When the weather cooperates (I can probably count on one hand how many sunny days we have had here in Ohio with no rain) we take advantage of taking the dogs for a walk at the Landing. We had never been here before but the majority of the trail is fenced so as long as there is no one else around we let the boys run unleashed.

DoubleCut has had a couple gigs close to home that we have taken advantage of.

Tyson makes Mondays even harder than they actually are. It is so hard to get out of bed to get ready for work when he is still snoozing and keeping Anthony's side of the bed so warm!

Anthony I spent one morning that I had off from work at the laundromat. Life had gotten so ahead of us that catching up with the laundry seems so endless so we got it all done in one shot!

Two weeks ago I started the 21 Day Fix by Beachbody and we have been eating much healthier. This chicken, peppers, pineapple and rice was delish!

Fourth of July Eve we went to another DoubleCut gig. One of my besties is the girlfriend of the guitar player and she loves it when we make it to gigs. It was pouring down rain but we enjoyed people watching and listening to some tunes!

We spend the actual Fourth of July at Anthony's Aunt and Uncle's house in Burton, Ohio. They have the perfect little get away. It is like heaven on earth! 

Another morning spent at the trail at the Landing. We were trying to beat the heat but the sun came out full blazing when we were 3/4 mile in and Tyson thought he was dying!

Wonderful Fourth of July fireworks in our hometown.

A new froyo shop finally opened up in town, Sweet Frog. I have died and went to heaven!!!!

This little guy showed up a couple days after the 4th and stayed with us for a few days while we tried to track down his owners. Luckily on day 4 we were contacted by his owner and he was safely returned. Poor guy got scared during the fireworks and took off.

Last week I wasn't feeling good so I took a sick day. Tyson slept with me the whole day on the couch! He is the biggest cuddle bug ever.

Saturday the sun was out and we were finally able to have a girls day at the pool. It was beautiful day, I got way too much sun and have been nursing my poor skin back to normal after being burnt since then and I am not looking forward to it peeling. After the pool day we hit up Sweet Frog and our men took us all out to dinner at the Japanese Steak House. 

Is everyone having a super busy and fun summer?

How has your weather been? I am pretty sure I can speak for all the Ohioans on here that we are ready for some non rainy days!

Do you have any suggestions for taking care of sunburn and peeling?