Happy fall y'all!!

It's the little things that make you stop and say ahhhh...... for me this fall, apparently besides watching Bella love the cool air and just sit on the back deck and let the wind blow in her face and watch the leaves flying all over the place, it is the fact that I have noticed this year more than ever before, the change in the leaves!! I think it probably has alot to do with the fact that we now live in a much more "wooded" area as we drive to, from, and through our neighborhood .... I just couldn't help but capture the moments late last week, and am just now getting around to posting, but with the weather we have been having this week (yesterday there was a threat of snow), I am sure before long I will be wishing for the fall weather to return..... I guess winter decorations are around the corner :)

In a few weeks I'm going to wish I could have this view driving into the neighborhood!!

















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An Iron Bowl win!! Oh and Thanksgiving too! :)

We had a great long weekend of Thanksgiving, it all flew by so quickly! It was filled with family, friends, fun times, and way too much food!! We packed up the car Tuesday morning and headed down to Mobile. Bella always gets a bit "crazy" when we tear her crate down, but she should know by now, it is usually to head to Mobile!

Bella excited for the car ride and trip..... We took her bed to mobile so we sat it on backseat and she loved having it to lay on.....



Unluckily for Bella between Atlanta and Mobile we stopped to pick up a holiday gift for someone and had to use her bed to cover it up because she was quite intrigued by it and we didn't want her getting to it, she was still determined to be on her bed.... Luckily it's ok for her to be on top of the gift just not chew it :)




We got there Tuesday afternoon and Nathan arrived Tuesday night. Wednesday we got ready for Thanksgiving, and Thursday we spent the day with a much smaller crowd than is usual at my parents' house, but it was so much fun to get to spend so much special time with everybody!! It was only 15 people, but was great!
This thanksgiving I have sooooooooo much to be thankful, I could go on and on.... just to name a few: good health, healthy family, much happiness, my new husband / marriage, my amazing family and my newly inherited family, nieces and a nephew I officially became the aunt of this year and love to absolute pieces, a puppy that is a child to me and is the absolute light of both Evan and my lives, I am blessed to have been able to have the wedding weekend I always dreamed of and marrying my best friend. I am so blessed and lucky, and am reminded on a daily basis of the many blessings including family and friends I have in my life that are always there through the rain and the sun shine, and I am so very lucky to have each of them in my lives and by my side! Bella was hanging out around the house with us all for the several hours before we actually eat the Thanksgiving meal. Bella was SO shy, and sorta hung around me, Evan, Nathan or my dad the whole time. She was shy and cautious around everyone else, but it was more of a crowd than she is used to. However, when Rose and Mae Mae arrived a little later, but before we all ate, Bella LOVEDDDDDD sweet Mae Mae. She is the perfect height and would chase Bella around and Bella would just give her kisses, it was so sweet, I didn't catch a picture of the two of them together, but it was so cute!

I did, however, catch a picture of Mae Mae and her Pops AFTER Thanksgiving dinner....






Papa (Evan's Grandfather) had sent one of his famous hats to my dad a few months back. My dad thought it was the perfect opportunity to share it with someone that could REALLY use it, our family friend Ronnie, who we all so lovingly called as "uncle baldie" when we were little, needless to say, now we have two more people who would also love a "papa hat"!!!





We also attempted to take "family pictures" (attempted being the key word) - if I find one that works, I will be able to do a post entirely of pictures of you all witnessing our many ATTEMPTS as they are quite entertaining - thank goodness for digital "film" now- if this was real film we would have gone through MANNNNYYYYY rolls before we even got a decent shot, but we will wait and see what comes of the shots before we reveal the results! :)

Friday we watched the Huskers win all the way from Alabama, and then Friday afternoon we headed over to Pensacola. One of my dad's college roommates, Robbie and his wife Lynn have been very dear friends of my parents for many many many years. They lived in Mobile for a few years when I was young and I was lucky to have become close to and grow up with their two kids Leslie and Matt. Leslie got married last year during Thanksgiving weekend in Pensacola. This year we headed over to see them all, as well as the newest addition to the family, baby Julian!!! What a cutie pie! You all know I have such a soft spot for babies, but he really is a cutie. When we got there he was sleeping and I said, don't worry, I believe in never waking a sleeping baby, but my mom was staring at him so much Leslie couldnt keep him from our arms any longer! The poor thing is a bit "colicky" and we were told cries ALOT unless in his moms front pouch carrier and bouncing (only worn by his mom, he cant be tricked into anything else). I expected to hold him and him start crying within 2 minutes, well luckily for me, he gave me about 10 sweet minutes. I kept telling him not to cry, because I take those things personally! :) I guess it worked. It was so good to see alll the Newtons as usual, and especially great to meet sweet Mr Julian!! Leslie is a great mama and before long I am sure he will be past this phase and they will both be sleeping for at least a few hours straight at a time! :)

Me and Julian....





Saturday we watched the Tide Roll.... there is nothing sweeter than an Iron Bowl victory, and luckily Alabama was able to take that home!! Aunt Esther was not feeling well and was unable to make it down for Thanksgiving Day, but came down on Saturday and spent the day with us as well as part of the day Sunday.

Nathan got a bit into the game and sat on the floor to watch part of the game (im not really sure why) and then decided he was cold so got a blanket - Bella thought it looked fun and joined him.....right on his lap..



Nathan having a chat with Bella and Big Al... I think he wanted her to bark ROLL TIDE!



Sunday after dad cooked his famous breakfast (at a brunch hour) for us all we started to pack up and head towards home... since Aunt Esther doesn't love driving and hadn't been feeling great, and we practically pass her house on the way to Atlanta, I drove her and her car to Montgomery and Evan got there 2 minutes after us and then I got back in the car with Evan and Bella for the rest of the ride home. It rained the ENTIRE DRIVE. I have never seen such a thing. Usually it stops and starts or rains part of the way and not the other, etc, well this time it literally rained from door to door without a single rest! YUCK.

All in all it was a great trip! Bella had a fantastic time in Mobile, Uncle Nathan decided to teach her a new trick - JUMPING UP ONTO A BED!!!!!!! Every morning she would go push his door open and he would hear her coming in ... he would then just pat on his bed, and UP SHE WENT!!! I think Uncle Nathan loved the morning puppy time until she finally jumped up and off so many times he said ok fine, I will wake up and come chase you around the house! Bella also loooooooves my mom. She just curls up next to her chair or right next to her feet. My mom the not so dog lover even wanted to pet bella and told her she will miss her when we left!! This is HUGE. And I think it goes without saying, Bella absolutely LOVES my dad!!! And well my dad loves Bella - I am pretty sure if my mom said sure we can get a dog, he would get one right away. Dad would take Bella out and Bella would come back in happy as can be, tongue hanging out searching for water and my dad would come in out of breath, I am not sure who wore who out more. They also went on walks together and played rowdily in the backyard, but both had fun, so thats all that counts, right?!

When it was time to leave, Evan took Bella into the backyard before putting her in his car... Bella apparently knew it was time to leave and did NOT WANT TO LEAVE, she ran away and in circles FAST around him for about 10 minutes before even considering falling for the "sit" trick so Evan could guide her to the car holding her collar..... it lasted so long I was able to catch it on video - you can hear my dad laughing in the background, it was quite a site to see... after the video ends, my dad went into the fence to help him capture Princess Bella.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xwV2CvBwOdo&feature=youtube_gdata_player







All in all it was a fantastic time spent with family and friends!! Hope everyone also had a great Thanksgiving!
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Do Puppies get a tooth fairy?!

Things have been busy around here- I have been busy with Rodan and Fields and also trying to get another business up and running. I have also been getting more into the holiday spirits as the holidays come along as now that we have a house of our own, it's fun to get to decorate and get into things, and I have been trying many new things from my severe addiction also known as Pinterest!!


The pumpkins I had on the front porch were a Pinterest inspiration... They're fake pumpkins so I can use them each year!




I am also in the process of painting some old ikea furniture that i still love the shape of, but the honey brown color that I fell in love with right out of college just isn't as appealing to me anymore, and also doesn't match the colors in our house as much, so I am slowly working on many things at once. At times it feels a bit overwhelming, but it has all been fun thus far!!

This past week I became a Georgia voter for the first time.





Prior to this year / getting married, I never really felt I had an "identity" worth voting for any state other than Alabama, and usually did absentee ballots to Alabama. When I went to change my names at the DMV I registerred to vote as a Georgia voter! This past Tuesday I got to express my right to vote for the first time in Georgia, and besides a bit of drama (which I will no go into, as it is a bit personal) with my voting experience it felt good to cast my vote, and the biggest news is ---we will now be allowed to buy alcohol in Dunwoody on Sundays!! WOHOO!! It's not like I really have the need to buy alcohol on Sundays, but if I am ever at the store on a Sunday and feel like picking up a bottle of wine, or we are going ot someones house and need to stop and pick up a bottle of wine, its nice to be ABLE to! :)

Bella has been LOVING the cold weather, I usually leave the back door cracked (it doesnt shut itself all the way anyway for some reason without pushing it pretty hard) while we are on the main level, and Bella will nudge it open and go out and run around a little bit or just sit on the back deck and watch all the leaves flying around off the trees! One day she just stuck her head out the door, with her tail tucked tight listening to several other dogs bark back and forth in the neighborhood behind us....




I would be so curious to know what they were saying, because even from inside and her head sticking out, Bella seemed pretty scared! She then heard my camera click, and turned around startled to see what was going on behind her! :) Just me with the silly camera!
Bella has been watching alot of Arizona basketball..








I think here she thought the players were looking at and laughing at Ev, so she did too :)



And to set the record straight, for those that have never experience their puppies losing their teeth (i for some reason have come across several peopel who didnt realize this happened and have had puppies themself), and to let you know that Dr B was a little off, and in fact Bella did not already have all of her adult teeth a few months ago.... look what i found the hard way (by stepping on them barefoot!!!) over a one and a half day period.....



they are dropping like flies! Do puppies get visits from the tooth fairy?! Maybe the University of Arizona frizbee and bandana we got her in Tucson will suffice! :)

Hope everyone is enjoying the Fall weather before it officially becomes Winter.... It's been a bit chilly around here, especially in the basement, but who can complain when this is your cuddle buddy?!





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Back to where it all began....

Last weekend, Evan and I went to Tucson for Homecoming. It could not have been more beautiful weather - maybe a bit on the chilly side for Arizona, but not a cloud in the sky, and beautiful surroundings. As everyone knows, Tucson is where Evan and I met- we didn't start dating until after Tucson but we still have many shared memories there and it's still both of our alma maters! No, I can't say that when being invited to Evans graduation party in Tucson I ever dreamed I would be meeting my future mother and father in law, brothers in law a sister in law to be and so much of my future family! :). But it's definitely a special memory I admittedly cherish more now than I did at the time!! :)





I have to admit, I did fall in love with the beauity of Arizona when trtying to choose a school to go to, but I dont think I FULLY apprecaited the beauty of the desert and the mountains until after I had graduated and moved away, and gone back to visit. Or maybe it is just now I appreciate it more since i dont get to see it all the time anymore. We stayed out in West Tucson, and the surroundings were absolutely beautiful as was the hotel!






Saturday we walked around campus. spent time with friends, Jenn and I took ourselves on a self guided tour of the Tri Delta House, tailgated on the mall, and attended a total of 11 minutes of the Arizona football game!!!

Met up with some sisters on the mall.... all TriDeltas met up near the tent they had.... yes, even our designated male... Justin! He was practically a DDD himself when we were in college!  I mean he was ready to do the sorority pose and all!!

The tent at the tailgate was having trouble with one of the support bars holding part of it up, so the guys rigged it to make it stay.  This is the system they came up with.....

I took some pictures of some of the many new things at the TriDelta house....


"with three deltas on the door..."









Evan was clearly entertained:). Man in the hall!!!




Love the new courtyard. The top left window was my room for the two years I lived there!





They even planted some brand new pansies out front just in time for our arrival!




The game was then already looking so awful that we all decided we would rather be a bit warmer (it was cold out there, especially in the seats that were already not getting sun light!) we had great seats though...





...too bad the team wasnt playing any better. We then headed to a bar to watch the Bama game -- or should i say a true flag football game. I said, I think that is what they meant by flag football when they invented the sport, because honestly, there was nothing but a few steps back and forth and flags beign thrown in the air alot!!! I have got to say, both teams put up a huge fight, going into overtime only made it more stressful, but I am still proud to be a Bama fan!!!! At least it lived up to all of the media hype!
Sunday we took Jenn to the airport, and Evan and I spent the day getting some UofA gear, eating at our favorite local restaurants and relaxing by the firepit at the hotel!! It was a great and relaxing way to end a fun weekend with friends!!










The story of A mountain... We could see the back side of it from the hotel!




The relaxing and warming campfire view!




We picked up Bella on the way home from the airport. I think it's fair to say we had a puppy that was happy to see us on our hands...





But a verryyyyyy tired puppy from all the playtime at camp...






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Trick or Treat?

I have a bit of blog catching up to do, so over the next few days I should have us all caught up to date, before things get hectic again with Thanksgiving and the holidays!!
This year was our first Halloween to actually be able to entjoy it and get trick or treaters!
The neighborhood has a neighborhood party, this year over 450 adults and children attended- WOW! They had pizza and all gathered near the pool area, then once everyone was done socializing and eating their pizza, all the kids disperse and go trick or treating! Evan and I headed home a little before the pizza party ended so we could be home before the kids got there, and also we had our friends Keri and Adam over for a few beverages and appetizers for dinner to celebrate Keri's birthday a day early!! Bella dressed up for Halloween and was quite ready for Halloween when the day finally arrived! We had tried on her costume before to make sure it fit and to make sure she would wear it. She wasnt a huge fan of the hat, but didnt mind the body part at all!

We had an "adult" trick or treating basket off to the side in the ice chest!








Bella getting all dolled up! Notice the hat already off!








Bella waiting for trick or treaters...

















Bella was a bit jealous that me, Evan, Keri, and Adam were allowed to eat candy as the trick or treaters came around, so Bella got to also indulge and enjoy a few of the Halloween treats Maggie sent her, after she mastered reading the card :)


















The groups of kids got bigger and a bit rowdier and it became harder to control Bella and hand out candy while enjoying the company of friends, so after a little while we put Bella back in the house -- the weather was beautiful so we had the windows cracked, and Bella didnt want to miss out a second of the fun, so she nuzzled the blinds open and stuck her head into the window to see what she was missing outside... she's cute, even through a window!


















Two days after Halloween, Aunt Diane came and spent some more time with us before leaving to head home! Good news is, Bella was ALL ABOUT Aunt Diane this go round, I believe they became best buds, and luckily Bella did not agree to go home with her, althought Diane really wanted to take her!! And yes, I did break a big rule in our house and allow Diane to hold her on her lap on the couch -- thankfully Bella hasnt tried to reenact that again! :)











Hope everyone had a safe and happy Halloween !!!


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