One Year

Happy Anniversary to Mr. Pennington

I love you Daniel!

Here's to many more years of bliss!

Moving

We moved into our new place and we are neck deep in unpacking, painting, carpeting, cleaning, sorting, etc.  We are thrilled to be back home and once everything settles down we are looking forward to having family and friends over! Also, once its all said and done you will get to see some fabulous before and after photos of our new place. Oh and I started new teacher training this past Monday!  Wow this summer went fast!!!  New teacher training... you heard me right.  I got a job! Can I just say how thankful and excited I am to have a job after spending the last year in school.  God is so good to Daniel and I.

Apartment 254... you were awesome... even though you were tiny

home sweet home

As I write this post, I am thinking back to exactly a year ago today.  We were shaking our booties at Walnut Creek and celebrating our wedding rehearsal.  Its so hard to believe that tomorrow will mark one year since we said "I do."  Tonight, in a panic I asked Daniel were we still newlyweds???  I'm not sure I'm ready to give up that title.  Happy (early) Anniversary Daniel!

I know this is short, but lesson plans are calling my name.  I am such a procrastinator.

   

Doughnuts, Palaces, and Queens

Happy Hump Day!  This post was intended for much earlier in the week, but bare with me, I'm a busy lady.  So with that said lets recap the weekend!  My weekend rocked!  My mom and I went to see the NC Symphony perform at Tryon Palace on Saturday and it was wonderful.  We headed down to New Bern early in the afternoon and had a  delicious dinner date.

Once we arrived at the palace we put down our chairs in a good location and headed out to explore the grounds.  If you live in eastern NC and have never been you really should take a day trip or even stay overnight in historic downton.  The gardens of Tryon are absolutely beautiful and you could go multiple times each year and see completely different plant life each time.  They even have a vegetable garden, which my mom and I oogled over because we love fresh veggies!

Much to my surprise they have built an amazing new museum in New Bern called the North Carolina History Center and its breathtaking!  We got there too late to go, but I am already planning a weekend getaway for Daniel and I to visit.  I envision myself working there one day ;)

The symphony concert was nothing short of amazing.  The NC Symphony was celebrating their 80th birthday in conjunction with Craven County celebrating their 300th so there was a celebration all around.  The concert was a lovely mixture of 1920's pieces with George Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue being the feature and songs dear to the heart of the symphony.  They played a piece that was played at their first concert in 1932 and paid tribute to one of their own musicians who composed a brilliant piece of work that was used when the US Open was played in Pinehurst a few years back.  

Families were stretched out across the lawn in a sea of picnic baskets, blankets, and lounge chairs.  As the sunset, the illumination of the orchestra created a magical glow on the palace and immediately following their last piece fireworks began to go off over the riverfront.  The star of the show was certainly the director, who was from Wales and he threw in some lovely English humor about the American Revolution and Governor Tryon (a British royal governor).

I know this post is getting a little lengthy, but I cannot go without mentioning the event of the century that I would have loved to of attended.  The Queen of England, Elizabeth II is celebrating her 60th year on the throne this week and it looks like the Brits had a fantastic time celebrating.  Not to mention the fact that I love any excuse to see the beautiful frocks that Kate chooses to wear for these events.  Do you find it ironic that the two longest reigning monarchs have been women?  I don't... it simply proves women can handle the strains of power far better than men. :)

the hiking chronicles

The gloomy rain has set in once again this week and its making me itch for the outdoors.  This past weekend Daniel and I did have the luxury of getting outside for a little while before the rain rolled in, so we took a hike in a local park and had a lovely morning.

We set out to a park we had not been to before (well I have, but not in many, many years) called River Park North.  Its a lovely little sanctuary of nature in the middle of a city and they even have paddle boats!  We didn't get to try the boats this time, because you have to reseve them, but they are certainly on the list for next time.  We walked the entire span of the trail and back again, during which we saw some incredible animal and plant life.  I even saw a snake in the water!

my new running kicks

My two favorite animals of the day were the little family of turtles and the beautiful blue dragonfly.  They were everywhere chasing each other... we were actually afraid they were going to crash into us a couple of times.

daniel's best karate kid pose

 We really had a lot of fun and I recommend it to any looking to get outdoors.  In addition to the hiking trails they have fishing areas, paddle boat and fish boat rentals, picnic areas, a playground, and a science and nature center.  Also for all you local Greenville residents "Sunday in the Park" starts up this weekend.  Its an awesome free concert series in Town Common Park every Sunday during the summer months.  Pack a picnic, grab your lawn chair, and enjoy an evening of free music.  I hope to see you there!

One last thing... if you are interested in music you may want to check this out this weekend too.  The North Carolina Symphony is playing at Tryon Palace.  Tryon Palace has a special place in our hearts, because if you remember thats were Daniel asked me to be his wife .  We went to this event last year and it was phenomenal.  They play outside on the giant lawn overlooking the river and it is simply beautiful.  They performed a Star Wars tribute last year... much to Mr. Pennington's liking!  Best part of it all... its free!

happy weekend!

summer

embrace the camera and #photoaday

Today you get a two for one post.  Its Embrace the Camera day over at the AndersonFamilyCrew, in which we are all encouraged to get out from behind the camera and take pictures with our kids, husbands, and family.  So here's one of me and my handsome hubby!  You should try it!

Also, I have decided to drink the kool aid and join the rest of the cyber community with the Photo A Day Challenge.  I think its actually pretty cool... If only I can remember to take the pictures.  Lets see how this goes.  The basics are that you follow the challenge list and take a photo related to that each day and load the pic to whatever social media source that suits you.  Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, or blogs are all great options! It kicks off tomorrow... with morning!

Consistency

Consistency (n)- the achievement of a level of performance that does not vary greatly over time

I do not think I would use this word to describe my blogging in recent months.  I actually do not think that I would use this word to describe much in life right now, but thats not always a bad thing.  Lets recap the last two months...

1- I GRADUATED!!

The Dean of the COE told me how much she loved my shoes

2- NEW PINK BICYCLE!!!

Surprised?  I think so!

 

Isn't she beautiful? 

3- TURNED 25!
* no pictures for this... I left my camera at our apartment so I need to track some down from others who took pictures

Life has been pretty good lately... now the tough part... finding a job!  If you know of a high school social studies position let me know!

happy hump day!

Wedding Showers

The return of the wedding series I started 8 months ago... our wedding showers!

One of the things I was so thankful for during the time leading up to our wedding, was how generous and loving our friends and family were to us.  It is incredible the amount of love that people pour out on you during such a special time.  We had two miscellaneous showers about a month before the wedding.  My family hosted the first one at the church I grew up in my whole life, the place where we were married.

It was such a fun day, not only because of all of the amazing gifts we got, but because we got to see so many wonderful people and spend time with them.  The color theme for the shower was light pink, gray, black, and white.  Originally, those were the colors for our wedding, but we had to change... look forward to the dramatic story later on :)!  My family was so helpful and we pulled it together really quickly.  I cannot say enough about how wonderful the food was as well!  There is nothing better than shower food!

Pottery Barn dinnerware... Thank you Stacy we LOVE it!

Our second shower was hosted by Daniel's family and it was just as wonderful as our first shower!  The color theme was tiffany blue... Mrs. Jan knows how much I love Tiffany's!

very, very, very funny story 

My sister-in-law and I 

YAY COOKWARE! 

I have heard so many horror stories from brides about dealing with the stores that they choose to register with.  Daniel and I looked around at our options and we decided to go with Target, Bed, Bath, and Beyond, Pottery Barn.  We had great success with registering with these three stores and there was a no hassel return policy for all three.  I really I cannot recommend these three enough!

Kreacher's French Onion Soup

I hope the name of this post didn't send you running... you should stay I promise!  When Daniel and I went to Disney last August, one of our favorite purchases was The Unofficial Harry Potter Cookbook.  It might be one of Daniel's favorite books!

We had not had too much time to dive into the recipes, but back on Valentine's Day I got a little adventurous and tried a recipe: Kreacher's French Onion Soup.  One Word: DEVINE!

Kreacher's French Onion Soup (Serves 6)

4 medium onions

1/2 stick butter, melted

1 baguette

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

1/4 teaspoon sugar

1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

6 cups beef or chicken stock (I used beef)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Peel the onions, cut them in half from pole to pole, and slice as thinly as possible.  In a heavy soup pot, heat the butter.  Remove the pot from the heat.

Remove one end of the baguette and slice six 1-inch-thick slices for the croutons.  Dip pastry brush into hot butter and brush onto one side of bread.  Place the slices butter-side up on a baking sheet and sprinkle with the cheese.  Toast the bread in the oven for about 10 minutes or until browned. (I waited until the soup was almost finished)

While the bread toasts, return the pot to the heat and add the onions.  Season with salt and pepper.  Stir in the sugar and continue to stir over medium-high heat until the onions have browned, about 15 minutes.

Blend in the flour.  Gradually, add the stock while stirring and bring the soup to a boil.  Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook uncovered for 30 minutes.  

Ladle the soup into bowls and float a cheesy crouton in the center, then sprinkle cheese around the crouton.

Along with the soup I found a Garlic and Herb Marinade beef filet loin at the grocery store and it was out of this world.  I served it along side Sautéed Green Bean with Butter and Brown Sugar and Garlic Mashed Potatoes.  I think Daniel ate fourths it was so good! 

Treasuring Hunting

Yesterday's lunch date turned into shopping for treasures at a local antique store.  My friend Jessica was mentioning some ideas she had for her wedding that required some vintage touches and I suggested we hit up a local antique store near my house.  So off we went... let's just say it was an experience.

This place was a two story conglomeration of ancient artifacts who's value was very much up for debate.  They had some nice pieces of furniture I could see myself refurbishing, but there were also random items that I think someone just called "vintage" rather than "old" and decided they could sell them at an antique store.  

Just one section of the store!

Jessica found some exciting travel supplies... all her bags are packed and she's ready to go (cheesy... but I watched Armageddon last night, so Ben's sweet serenade is on my mind).

Oh you know, we all need a bucket of rusty railroad spikes... only $2 each. I guess I could use these in my classroom when we talk about the Transcontinental Railroad.

 Julia Child wannabe...

              

 


The big find of the day was an old Polaroid camera, which Jessica really wanted!  However, the rude sweet gentleman and lady working at the front could not sell it to us, because there was no tag on it.  Oh, well it's their loss of a sale.  So we left empty handed, but it was a fun place to explore.

Tomorrow morning I'm off bright and early with the some of the ladies in my family for a little vacay road trip.  It will involve lots of shopping (outlet malls!), eating, and maybe even a fun show! I'll be back on Friday with a recap, so enjoy the post I have set up for you guys while I'm gone!

Spring Breaker

Happy Easter

Daniel and I had a wonderful Easter celebrating Christ with our friends and family!  We headed home Saturday when Daniel got off work and spent the afternoon with his friend visiting their sweet newborn baby.  Sunday was a full day with church, lunch at my grandma's, a pitstop at my mema's and then the afternoon at Daniel's parents.  It's so nice to see everyone, its just too short of a time period to do it all in.  Nevertheless we dyed Easter eggs, Mr. Bunny came for a visit, and we were sent home with really full bellies!  I hope your Easter was just as special!

I was lovin' this skirt... looked like an easter egg!

In other news, I have officially finished my project that had to be submitted so now all that stands between me and graduation is two and half weeks of student teaching!  I am so pumped that I have made it this far and its been sweetened a little bit by Spring Break!  I am headed out Wednesday morning for a little overnight girls trip that should be a blast.  Check back for details.

Today, I'm meeting up with a friend for some lunch and its such a beautiful day.  You should check out my friend Jessica over at her blogs Beautiful Adventure and Twisty Twig.  She is an amazingly talented crafter and calligrapher.  If your in the market for some fancy work she does a great job!  We are finally celebrating her recent engagement!  I can't wait to hear all about the wedding planning... (oh how I miss that...maybe not all the stress though)

Happy Monday!