GRATITUDES + BREAKTHROUGHS // JULY 31, 2018

Gratitudes

I got a notification on Instagram last week from Tidewater and Tulle, a blog that celebrates diversity in love, weddings, & romantic travel from Coastal Virginia. They were showing some love on the rest of the state and shared an image from Nurah + Vito’s wedding earlier this summer at Airlie! You can see it here!

I love the rolling hills and mountain views in Virginia but when one of my couples prefers the coast for the engagement session, I’m in! Colleen + Chandler are obsessed with the beach and really wanted to celebrate their engagement by the water. I had originally planned on making my way down to Virginia Beach on Thursday to enjoy some quiet time by the water, but the rain last week really ruined that plan. Instead, I woke up at 2am to be on the road by 2:45 in order to make it to the water for sunrise. Now, I am not a morning person. I never have been but that morning light during sunrise is what keeps me motivated. That and zero traffic while you drive in the middle of the night. Up top is a sneak peek from their session!

I also snuck in a meeting with Stephanie Dasch of Diamond Event Co. a wedding planner specializing in design, decor and planning! We were able to crave out a little time for a rainy afternoon at La Grange Winery in Haymarket. I went with their Albarino and Stephanie stuck to her favorite Chardonnay! It was so nice being able to sit and chat about our summer travel plans and to hear more about her business.

Last week, I forgot to mention that sweet Cathleen from Curious Fox Press surprised me with a gift! She knows the way to my heart with an OPI nail polish from their Iceland collection – That’s What Friends are Thor! What a cute name!!!! It’s perfect for this coming fall, a light raisin color with a hint of brown. She also snuck in her favorite bottle of Italian white wine Principessa Gavia! There was a small mishap. I left the bottle in my car because I planned on enjoying it while I was housesitting for my sisters. I think I left it in there too long because IT OPENED IN MY CAR. My car had an odd sour smell and I figured it was my coffee cup I left in there – I’m gross I know. But I was wrong, the entire bottle of wine was opened by the cork and spilled all over the cargo area. Thankfully I had a rubber cargo mat, but the smell was bad. I ended up breaking out my brand new carpet cleaner and went to work. There has been a major improvement on smell and when the weather dries out I’ll give it another pass to make sure the smell disappears!

I promised myself after a JCrew + Amazon order I was done shopping for this trip. I was wrong. I ran into Target to grab some toiletries and snacks to prep and I got sucked in to their clothing section and grabbed a few crisp tshirts + tank tops. I also stumbled upon the most adorable winery picnic basket with a full set of dishes that was on clearance so it had to go home with me. Anyone up for a picnic when I get back? Once I found the picnic basket I came down with the fever – the shopping fever and ran over to TJMaxx where I snagged a travel steamer (I did actually need that and had it on my list), a black jumpsuit (not needed at all, but it’s so cute) and a 3/4 length sleeve floral dress (also not need but on clearance and adorable). I am starting to pack and plan out my outfits with the intention of keeping it as light as possible with transitional pieces.

My nails are actually naked this week – ew. But I didn’t want to paint them for 4-5 days to redo them on Sunday before I fly out. I’m packing all neutrals so black, navy, denim, white and gray with a scarf or two for color + pattern. With that I’ve been thinking about nail polish that would go well with all of those colors. Right now, I’m leaning toward a bright pink like Shorts Story or Strawberry Margarita, but then I remembered purple! So I’m looking at Lucky Lucky Lavender as well. I’ll pop in next Tuesday to share my packing list and my nail color choice!

 

Breakthroughs

On July 30, 1983 my Mom married my Dad. They met in high school in the 70s. My Dad was a senior with long blonde locks down to his shoulders and my Mom – a freshman- had long flowy dark hair parted in the middle. They didn’t start dating though until my Mom was a senior in high school, my Dad actually took her to her senior prom in a baby blue tux!

They just celebrated their 35 wedding anniversary on Monday. Thirty- five years of marriage and almost 40 years together. That right there is incredible. My Dad while dating my Mom worked and saved for 6 months to buy the 10 acres they live on. From there with the help of his Dad (my Grandpa Freddie) and his friends they build my parents house from the ground up. Every 2×4, nail, shingle, piece of drywall was put in place for him to create a full life with my Mom. And they did.

They started their family with a golden retriever named Amber. Ber-dog as we called her. Then a baby deer named Bucky that my Dad found in the woods and wanted to take care of. He cut the band off of a pair of underwear and put it around his neck like a collar <- true story. Around this time I was born. And two years later Kellyn. Within that time period we had a red tabby cat named Snuffaluffagus – she died in a tragic accident. My Dad replaced her with a gray tabby cat that we named… Snuffaluffagus. Then Katlyn came and 13 months after Katlyn arrive we had Kensey. Me and Kensey are  6 years apart. To say my parents were busy with us was a huge understatement.

My parents marriage was tested when all four of us where here, but even more so when Katlyn was diagnosed with her first brain tumor when she was 5 years old. Katlyn went through 18 hours of brain surgery and 21 days in recovery at Georgetown Hospital. To put things into perspective I am currently 33 years old and my Mom was 35 taking care of Katlyn at the time.

Katlyn’s recovery was a miracle and we moved on. We started playing travel basketball and our vacations were booked around local tournaments. From there it was middle and high school sports. Sports banquets, newspaper interviews, Virginia state tournaments and more.

We lost my Grandpa Freddie around this time. A heartfelt loss for the family, especially my Dad. They were close, but together my parents got through it.

They added another dog named Kasey, one hermit crab named Hermy and 2 cats named Felicity + Calico. In there somehow my Dad convinced my mom to bring home 12 turkeys as pets. They all had names – I can’t remember them all. Elmo, Belbo, Henriette, Montgomery… and 8 others. He also snuck in a bass boat. It was my Mom’s turn to add to the family and she brought home a chocolate lab who loved pizza, brownies and Victoria’s Secret underwear, we named her Mocha.

Now that I think about it, from when we started driving they bought us 8 cars. Yup, between the four of us we had a few accidents + fender benders.

My senior year of high school my parents weathered a fire that burned my Dad’s garage to the ground. Everything went with it including his 1980 maroon corvette and his Dad’s tools. It was scary and devastating, but they were able to work through it to replace the garage and the corvette.

When college came all four of us went somewhere different: James Madison University, Virginia Tech, Longwood University and West Virginia University. They were able to support us through college financially, which I still don’t understand considering the cost. It was during this time that Mom + Dad surprised me with Aden, a rescue miniature pinscher from the shelter.

Since college we’ve all landed jobs and started our careers and more importantly our lives. During that time period my parents decided it was time to take care of one more, and took my Grandma Ruthie into their home on hospice. Where she stayed with us for 3 months while she peacefully transitioned out of our world. If you want to see a test of a relationship move in a sick family member and provide 24 hour care. This in my opinion was probably one of the hardest storms they weathered together. On the night my Grandma Ruthie passed my Mom sat beside her and rubbed her hand and told her over and over it was okay to go while my Dad silently grieved.

Kellyn and I went and got our Masters at George Mason University. Kensey got an event planning certificate at George Washington University. Katlyn has had additional surgeries since and went through yoga teacher training with me. In that time period we’ve had 3 marriages, 6 grand-dogs and one grand daughter. My parents have since added two more puppies to their home, Ziva + Zoey.

There are so many more stories to share but those are the big ones that stick out to me as I was their for 33 of their years. This is what 35 years and a full life looks like to me.

Happy anniversary to Linda + Doug!