Recap of big things lately...

Since this is the first post of our new blogging adventure, I figured it would be appropriate to start things off with a recap of things happening in our lives lately. And, since it was only 8 months ago today that we got married, I figured that would be a good place to start.

We had our ceremony & reception in Austin, Texas on August 8, 2009. It was HOT, but a lot of fun. Most of our good friends and family were there to celebrate with us and show their support, and it was amazing! All the planning and leading up to the wedding flew by, and so did the night - I didn't want it to be over! The following week, we headed back to Irving for a few days. I turned the big 2-5, and that evening we headed on down to College Station for Blake's graduation the next day. Family reunited once again, this time obviously in a much smaller dose, and watched on as Blake crossed the stage! It was another happy day; we were both glad to be finished with school and were looking forward to whatever else came next.

For us, what came next (the following week) was our honeymoon! After much debate and changing our minds about 20 times about where we wanted to go, we decided on ARUBA, and we're glad we did! Although we arrived a day late because we were sleepy-heads and missed our flight on the first day, we had a great time the first night hanging out in downtown Charlotte, NC, and made sure to get our butts to the airport at least 3 hours early to get those seats! (We were, after all, on standby). Once we landed in Aruba though, relaxation began. The beaches were beautiful, our hotel was wonderful - nice, quiet, and romantic - and there was just the right amount of activity on the island to keep us entertained when we didn't feel like being lazy beach bums. We had fun parasailing, riding jet skis, walking around the town, enjoying wonderful meals and drinks, and just lounging around enjoying the beautiful views & sunsets.

After we got back from the honeymoon, I went straight back to work and Blake started his ruthless pursuit of employment. He was able to find work here and there, working on some designs, but the plain and simple fact remained that no matter how good the contacts, nobody seemed to be hiring. As he'll say, it was almost a joke to people he met and talked with, about how bad things were and how nobody was looking to hire. Booo!

Anyway, summer ended and fall moved right along. Blake finally got to experience Wurstfest (which I'm sure was at least a little disappointing after being in Germany for 4 months!) and we had a great time. October also meant one of my best friends' wedding! My dear friend Sarah married Sean Sears on October 24th, 2009. It was a good time! Sarah was one of my very best friends in high school, and I've gotten to know her parents and some of her family pretty well - this family can party! Sarah's brother, Kevin, is getting married in May, and I expect the same showing there. :)

We spent Thanksgiving in College Station with Blake's parents before attending the A&M vs. UT game. What an awesome game! Even though we didn't come out on top, we definitely showed up and made them work for the win.

Then came Christmas and we traveled to New Braunfels to hang out with the group down there. It's always a pretty big showing at the family get-togethers in New Braunfels, and it's usually a lot of fun. Blake, however, contracted some sort of 24-hour bug on Christmas Eve, therefore was unable to partake in any Christmas activities. :(

Then came the new year...Hello 2010!! We spent New Year's Eve in Denton with a close group of friends at a very budget-friendly bar - we made out only spending $14! And yes, we DRANK. Having a hook up is great, isn't it? We all had a really good time together celebrating under the Blue Moon, and it really was just a very HAPPY New Year's!

January meant the beginning of yet another year, except this year will be the first full year of being married! Woohoo! It's exciting to start a new year knowing that it will be different than any other year of your life :) Number of resolutions: ZERO. Why bother? We have things in mind that we'd like to focus on throughout the year, individually and together, and it will just be up to us to stay on top of it...but hit the gym on January 1st despite being hungover to get a good start on losing weight? Nope. Not for us! January did, however, bring the new year's first big blessing - a job for Blake! We were so excited for Blake to go in and interview with Southern Botanical, a company he knew of to be a great one to work for, and much more excited to find out they wanted to hire him! It was just what he was hoping for, and it has been working out very well for him so far.

January also meant the one-year anniversary of the marriage between two of our dear friends, Matt & Jamie Fletcher, who now live in Pembroke, Georgia. Happy Anniversary to you two lovebirds! :)

February brought a couple more blessings to two of our wonderful friends, with Eric Bitner and Calli Boyer's wedding and the birth of my wonderful friend Sarah's baby boy, Rylan! Also, we recently found out that Calli & Eric are now expecting a baby too!

March brought two more weddings. The first was the wedding of Garrett Latham & Elizabeth Russell. Garrett is one of Blake's closest friends, and Blake stood by him as a groomsman at their wedding in College Station. It was a beautiful wedding and a wonderful reception, and we wish them the very best that married life has to offer!

The second was the wedding of Jill Pence and David Kientzy. We attended their wedding and reception in Fort Worth and had a blast! Again, best wishes to them as they begin their wonderful journey! :)

It also brought another baby! A co-worker of mine, Kristine Williams, and her husband Kristian welcomed baby Samantha into the world on March 17th.

Oh, and before I forget...just to set the record straight...there are no current plans in the near future for the Gores to add to the family!

:)