Sunrise in Texas

Gorgeous

Margherita Chicken

Let's talk about chicken.  With fresh basil, tomatoes, parm and mozzarella.  Yum!

Fry your chicken up in a hot pan sprayed with cooking spray.  Saute in some fresh cut tomatoes, salt, pepper, and oregano.  Get those juices hot!  Add some mozzarella and heat til melted.  Transfer to a plate to rest, add the basil garnish, and serve with a sprinkle of parmesan!

Yum!

Disney!

The first night we got there, we headed to dinner at the restaurant at the top of the Contemporary, the California Grill!

Had some good food and dessert there

Our hotel was super nice!

With a great pool/hot tub/beach area

We headed to Epcot one day.

Met Mickey, Pluto, Chip and Dale while we were at Thanksgiving lunch

Magic Kingdom Cinderella's Castle all lit up and decorated for Christmas

Went for a nice bike ride around the resort

Obligatory Christmas tree photo

Huge fireplace.  This was a good themed resort for Adam and I.  Geology related in that it was Grand Canyon-esque and had some fossils scattered through, and the rock stratigraphy in the fireplace was supposed to be the strat column at the Grand Canyon.  Also Native American themed, and since Adam is 75% native american, it was very fitting.  

THANKS-giving!

For this Thanksgiving, I was at Disney World with Adam, my dad, and his girlfriend Suzi.  We took the trip to spread my Mom's ashes at one of her favorite places (plus I told my dad for his 60th birthday, I would pay his way there).  So, off we went to Disney World.

I hadn't been since I was a kid, so I wasn't sure what to expect.  We stayed at the Wilderness Lodge,  since I wanted to do Disney BIG!  We had a blast going to all the parks as well as relaxing at the lodge.  Everything from good food, good rides, good shows, good relaxation, and good company.

It was a bittersweet trip, since it's the last of my Mom's ashes to be spread.  I miss her so much.  But we did have fun, and it was Adam's first trip to Disney World.  I don't know of any other place where you can stay at a resort AND visit different theme parks all day AND have millions of places to choose to eat at for dinner.  I think the closest competition would be Universal Studios, or one of the Great Wolf Lodge places (although those are just water parks). 

Pics to come soon!

Fault Architecture field trip

We took a field trip in Texas to see some awesome structural geology.  We saw everything from relay ramps to faults to shear zones to slickensides.  It was great.  Plus we saw some fossils and had nice scenery.

Here are some dinosaur footprints with the field trip leader showing us how they walked.

Baby fossilized "clams"

End of day waterfall sunset

Anniversary Photos

Since Adam and I didn't use our free engagement or bridal photo session that came with our wedding package, we did an anniversary photo shoot with out wedding photographer.  We met her at UNC where I went to grad school (go Heel's!), and had her take our photos around campus.  The iconic Old Well was definitely a spot where we took some shots. UNC is a very historic campus, it began in 1795 and is one of the three oldest public universities in the United States, and one of the highest ranked.  I had an interesting experience as a grad student there, from frustration with my advisor to fun with my friends.  Take a look at our shoot!

Jamaica baby!

I definitely think EVERY couple should go on a honeymoon.  We had a fantastic time at a Sandals in Ocho Rios, Jamaica, thanks for my parents for our trip!  It was their wedding present to us, and we had a fantastic time. 

This was our little house we stayed in - ours was on the bottom left.  We had a fantastic time in the resort, and everything was great.  The weather didn't cooperate too much, but we still had fun ziplining, sitting in the hot tubs, going in the water, paddle boating, snorkeling, and everything else.  

Here was the view from our balcony.  Like a gorgeous jungle.  

One of the photographers cut down some coconuts from the trees and gave me one - I don't like coconut juice I have decided.

We made it into the pool a few times, and the swim up bars were fun.  There was also a water slide in another pool around the corner (this place had so many pools!) that we had fun with.

Ahhh the beach.  We had a great time here.

When it got chilly, we snagged a hammock on the beach and would lay together and just watch the water. 



Wedding day

I wanted to share some of my favorite photos from our wedding.  It was a December wedding, 6 days before Christmas.  Snowflake and blue were the theme/color. 

We were married on a Christmas tree farm in North Carolina.  The farmhouse is called the Rand-Bryan house and was part of history (look it up!).  The woman who owns the house renovated it and turned it into a venue.  Where I got dressed was her old parlor, and our caterers set up in the kitchen, and the ceremony/reception was in the old dining room and the addition that was added. 

We had some great pictures taken on the front porch and on the inside of the house.  They had decorated very nicely for Christmas, so my decorations were minimal. 

We had a lovely ceremony, with our closest friends and family present.  We kept it very small. 

The house had Christmas trees and wreaths and garlands everywhere. 

We didn't do our first dance to our song (Eric Church Guys Like Me), and instead did it to what Adam had always envisioned for his first dance.  Bryan Adams Everything I Do. 

Visiting my grandma

I made a trip to Canton, Ohio last March to visit my grandma.  My cousins Lisa and Rusty and my Aunt Claudia were all visiting too, along with Rusty's baby girl and baby mama. 

We had a great time, and I surprised grandma by showing up.  We all managed to keep my visit quiet, and when I walked in her kitchen, she couldn't believe it!  Grandma started crying and was speechless.  She had no idea I was visiting.  We spent the weekend making food, playing beer pong (grandma has a trick shot and sank 2 cups), playing cards as we do at all family gatherings, and going to the local flea market.  I also met my new baby cousin, Lita, who was about 6 months old. 

How many Italians does it take to make family dinner?  All of us!

Grandma playing beer pong with us (she did use wine instead).

My new little cousin Lita and I on St. Patricks Day.