One Year!

I cannot believe Grant and I have been married for over a year now! It's been a great year filled with many many memories. We are truly happy and blessed to be together.

For our anniversary I got Grant a really cool stunt kite. The kite's wing span is 8' 2"!! Grant hasn't gotten a chance to fly it yet, but I am sure he will love it once he gets it out to the beach.

Grant got me a new ring to match my wedding band! I LOVE it!! He got in engraved too -- "Together Forever." It really is beautiful and more than I ever expected.

Not only did Grant get me a new diamond ring, but he planned a special trip to Charleston, SC. Neither of us had been there before and we both fell in love with the city. We stayed at a really cute B&B called the Phoebe Pember House. This was both of our first time staying in a Bed and Breakfast. It was super cute. The door to our room was number 28 -- the same as our wedding date!
While we were in Charleston we ate at amazing restaurants (including Melvin's which is known for having the best cheeseburgers according to Emeril), walked the entire city, rented bicycles (at a rental place at 280 Market Street with a bike lock with 2800 as the combination), went on a carriage ride, went on a ghost tour, toured WWII ships and truly enjoyed spending the weekend together.

Charleston has some of the most beautiful homes and Bed and Breakfasts. One of our favorites is the Wentworth Mansion. This is a 5 diamond B&B where Reese Witherspoon and Ryan Philippe spent their wedding night! Fellow guests at the Phoebe Pember House told us that you can walk into the house and ask to go to the top and get a great view of the entire city. So we rode our bikes over to the mansion and did just that. It was really a great view!

The weekend came and went so quickly. On our last day we woke up early to go to an estate sale that ended up being a poor yard sale...but we were able to go to breakfast at Josephs. It was pretty good. The walls were covered in signed menus from Martha Stewart, Rachel Ray, Vanna White and even Danny from the Real World New Orleans among others. Grant got some fabulous French bread French toast and I got some of the biggest pancakes ever (but they weren't as good as the pancakes at Ivey's in Gainesville).
I cannot wait to celebrate many many more anniversary weekends with Grant. :)

Jordan and Ryan

Last weekend my best friend and her boyfriend came to visit.
It was just like old times. Jordan got up and we headed straight to the beach on the first day. It seemed a little cloudy for a bit, so Jordan did not put on as much sunscreen as she should have. I think that maybe this time she learned her lesson! We left the beach at around 4:30 PM after the damage had already been done. We showered and Jordan applied aloe to her newly reddened skin and we went to dinner and out in Jacksonville Beach.
On Saturday we decided that we should avoid the beach so that maybe Jordan's skin could recover enough to allow us to lay out on Sunday. So, we went to St. Augustine and rented scooters!
They were so much fun! I had never ridden a scooter before, but now I am planning on doing this more often. We had a blast! Look at Grant! He is such a stud!!
That night we made a quick stop at TPC Sawgrass to show Ryan what it looks like in person -- not in the EA Sports Tiger Woods video game. :) We made some dinner and stayed in playing card games and catching up.

On Sunday we headed out to the beach again.
Jordan wore a t-shirt to try not to bother her burnt skin any more. We stopped at Walgreens and bought two boogie boards. The waves were great! Grant, Ryan and I had a real fun time playing with our new boogie boards. Unfortunately, a wave got the best of one of our boogie boards and cracked it in two! It was totally worth it though! We left the beach around 3P to shower and take Ryan and Jordan back to the airport. It was sad to see them go, but at the same time I knew I'd see Jordan again in June, so I wasn't as upset.

More pictures

Just a side not of Becky's post, she showed her scores of when she won but when I won...
Me: 280,610 Becky: 81,280

Orlando =)

Grant and I have season passes to Sea World and a few Disney tickets that expire in September. Knowing that the next few weekends were going to be busy, we decided to go down to Orlando this weekend. I got a great deal on a 4-star hotel on lastminutetravel.com, so we stayed the night and were able to see and do a lot. We got up early on Saturday and drove straight to Magic Kingdom. We got there at about 10AM and went straight to Space Mountain to get a FastPass. While we were getting our FastPass we saw this Disney trash can moving by itself across the pavement. We went up close to it and heard it talk! It was talking about how it was going to use a FastPass to go on Space Mountain! The trash can had a FastPass sitting on top of it. Little kids tried to take the FastPass and the trash can would chase them and yell at them to get the FastPass back. It was really quite funny. Disney should definitely invest in more of these trash cans.

Anyways, Grant and I got our FastPasses and went on a couple rides until our time came to ride Space Mountain. We rode Buzz Lightyear, an interactive ride where you shoot targets using laser guns. The first time Grant got a higher score than I did, but I definitely beat him the second time we rode the ride. See our scores below. Grant = 60,700; Becky = 77,800.

Grant's Score

Becky's Score

After we went on a few more rides it started getting really hot outside. I am not a big fan of crowded amusement parks when it is sunny and 90-degrees outside. So, Grant and I left and went to go check into our hotel. Once we found it we decided to go to the pool for a bit. It was really nice and relaxing. We then showered and grabbed dinner before heading back to Magic Kingdom to ride a few more rides, catch the parade and see the fireworks. I found that this is the best way to do Disney -- go in the morning for a little and then come back at night. This way you completely miss the hottest and most crowded part of the day. At night there were no lines for the Haunted Mansion, Pirates of the Caribbean (which has been upgraded to include Captain Jack Sparrow) and the railroad ride. Our timing was PERFECT!

On Sunday we got up early and headed to Sea World with the sole intention of feeding the dolphins. Last time we went it was really crowded and we did not get a chance to feed the dolphins and I was bummed. Once again our timing was PERFECT! We entered the park and went straight to the dolphin pool where the line had just started to form to get the fish. Grant headed to the ATM while I waited because they only took cash or travelers checks -- who does that anymore!?! I got my fish and headed to the pool. I was so excited! The dolphins were really beautiful and super nice. It was definitely the highlight of my day!

Next, we went to feed the sting rays. I was terrified. To feed them you have to put your hand into the tank and let the rays swim over it and suck up the fish off your hand. I was able to feed three of the fish to the rays. The other two fish were snatched right out of my hands by hovering birds! Not nearly as good an experience as feeding the dolphins. I have now decided that whenever we drive through Orlando (which is quite often since it is right on the way to Fort Myers) we must stop and feed the dolphins (or at least until our season pass expires). =)

We left Sea World at about noon with just enough time to stop by the Florida Mall. Orlando has two great malls. Jacksonville has two mediocre malls. Grant was a great sport and joined me as we shopped for a couple hours. We actually spent more on him than on me! =) I did get some really cute plaid shorts to wear when we go golfing and to THE PLAYERS Championship this weekend.

In all, it was a great weekend. I love my husband and I love feeding dolphins and shopping! =) Peace out.

Our Weekend

Grant and I had a good time with the family this past weekend. On Friday night we went out to a Faith Night at the Jacksonville Suns stadium. Being back at the ballpark reminded me of the summer I spent in Nashville working with some of the best people around doing some amazing work and all the while learning a lot about myself and my purpose. Here are some photos from our night.

Aw! Grant, you are so handsome!

Look at those sisters!

That's me, just hanging out.

My three handsome brothers all grown up!

My Aunt Di and my little brothers.

Me and my Aunt Diane taking in the game.

On Saturday we went to see Vacancy. It was a pretty good movie. Afterwards we had some Portillo's for dinner thanks to some thoughtful and generous aunts and uncles. You know who you are. ;)

This one is for you, Eddie. We saw this set up at the movie theater.

Sunday was a good day too. Grant and I took out our new bikes for a test drive on the beach. Both of us are still feeling it today! It's tough to ride on the beach!!! I am really enjoying living where we're at. It's so nice to ride three blocks and be at the beach in one direction and inside the TPC Sawgrass in the other direction. We truly are blessed.

Happy birthday Grant, Happy wedding Mandy and Apartment Update

So a lot has happened since my last post.

1. Grant turned 25! For Grant's 25th birthday I got him a fabulous new bike, a golf glove and some very cool plaid shorts. However, it turned out that the bike had a flat tire, so we have not been able to go riding yet. Grant has gotten good use out of his new golf glove though as we are taking lessons together at the TPC Sawgrass -- be jealous! We signed up for group lessons, but were the only people to select this particular class...so it is just me and Grant and our fabulous instructor JP. So far we have learned grip, stance, chipping and 3/4 swings using a 6-iron. It is only a matter of time before we are professionals. Tiger Woods watch out! We learned how to chip last week. JP set up a friendly contest to see who could chip the best. I beat Grant on 6 of 7 balls. It was great! He still owes me dinner. =)

2. Last week was Mandy's wedding. Mandy is one of my best friends from college. She introduced me to Grant. =) It was a great weekend. I was able to be there as Mandy started her life with Scott and see some of our other friends from college. I absolutely love Mandy and her entire family! What a fun weekend!! Her and Scott are now in Hawaii and I am VERY jealous!

Me and Mandy before she said "I Do"

Mandy & Scott on the fabulous limobus!

The bridal party at Sanibel Island -- It was REALLY sunny!!

Me and Grant =)

Me and Mandy on the bus. :)

3. Here are some photos we took of our apartment today. It is really starting to feel like home!

Happy Easter!!

Today Grant and I celebrated Easter and the last day Grant will be 24. =)The Easter bunny brought me tulips and a bunny filled with chocolates. The bunny brought Grant a nice basket filled with his favorite chocolates. We went to church with my family and then to brunch at the Sawgrass Marriott where we got to see the Easter bunny! It was a little too cold for my liking, so we spent the rest of the day at the gym (working off that Easter chocolate) and in front of the TV watching Zach Johnson win the Masters. The weekends definitely go by way too fast!!

Tomorrow is Grant's birthday. I hope he likes his presents!! =)

Back to Back to Back

Much has happened since my last post. I'll start with the most recent. The Gators won their third national championship in the past 12 months. It truly is GREAT to be a FLORIDA GATOR!!! And, it is a truly amazing and quite a historic accomplishment for our athletic department. What a disappointment to Ohio State fans across the country! Grant and I watched the game at our place. We wanted to make the trek to Gainesville, but now that we are both employed neither of us wanted to drive back in the middle of the night!

Last weekend Grant's parents drove all the way up for Fort Myers to visit us and see our new place. We took Grant's mom to the beach in the afternoon. It was really nice to spend some time with them and show them our new place. We also introduced them to Ms. Pac Man. I am not sure if Grant's dad is sleeping or playing Pac Man!! Don't worry -- my high score of 63,440 is still in tact!! We also watched some PGA TOUR action in HD. I am sure Ed's golf watching will never be the same! ;)

My Aunt and Uncle from Chicago came to visit too. I was able to go to Savannah with them for a day. It was beautiful outside until we got off the trolley and it started to pour! Other than that we enjoyed some pecan pralines, authentic sweet tea and a fabulous dinner at the Old Pink House.Grant's birthday is coming up. He will officially be 25! Some of my favorite weeks of the year are the 6 in between my birthday and Grant's. I love being one year younger than him even if it's just for a small amount of time. :)