Home Sweet Home

We are back!! It has been a busy 2009 so far! Trevor and I decided we were tired of the apartment life, and since rental prices are higher here in Asheville than some mortgages, we decided it was time to buy. We found this great condo and fell in love with it. It's on the top (third) floor of the building, which made for a difficult move. But with the help of wonderful family and great friends we managed to traverse the two flights of stairs with all our belongings! My amazing parents came up from Alabama to help. Before moving in, we managed to paint all the walls. I am not one for white walls, so they were gracious enough to tackle the huge painting job so that we wouldn't have to do it after moving in. Below are some pictures of our new home.

Kitchen from the living room -before:

And after:
Living room from the dining room:
View from the entry way - before:
And after:

There are three bedrooms in the condo. We are using the one designated as the master bedroom (with the attached bath) as the guest room. So come visit us!! Here is our bedroom - before:And after:

I finally got my red wall!

The condo development is very pet friendly, so we will be able to have our boys more often!! We will have shared custody with my parents. All dogs should have four caregivers, right?!? They will still spend a lot of time with their grandparents... they love Alabama, all the grass, and spending time in the Man Cave with my dad. Louie, on the other hand, doesn't give a lick where he lives. As long as he has his fuzzy green blanket, he is home!

Charleston

Last weekend Trevor and I decided to take a mini-vacation. Here in Asheville, we are within a few hours of many wonderful cities, but we chose to visit Charleston, South Carolina. Trevor really wanted to see the ocean, and Charleston is the closest coastal city for us. We had never been there, but it quickly made our list of favorite places to visit! The city is beautiful and it is rich in Revolutionary and Civil War history. We spent all day Saturday walking through the historical downtown district. The streets were narrow, and often made of brick or cobble stone, and the houses were amazingly beautiful! Although all of the houses are currently personal residences, most are historical landmarks with plaques detailing when and by whom they were built. Many of them are older than the United States... amazing... they truly don't build them like they used to!
This was one of my favorite houses... even the ivy growing on the pillars was trimmed and gorgeous.

We didn't have time to tour Fort Sumter, but we did stop at a park in the city that commemorated the fort and the Confederate soldiers who fought on behalf of the south. There were statues, busts, and replicas of weapons throughout the park. There were hundreds of churches in the downtown area, all of which are beautiful. We saw the first Baptist church in the south (founded in 1682)...

And St. Michael's, which the church George Washington worshiped at when visiting the area.After a day in the city, we made our way out to the Isle of Palms, one of the many islands that make up the Charleston area. Because it is the off-season, hotel rooms are pretty reasonable. We stayed at a nice little hotel right on the beach. This was the view from our balcony:After a year of living in the east, we finally touched the Atlantic Ocean!! I was great, but a little strange! After growing up near the Pacific, I felt like I was looking the wrong way to be seeing the beach... and it was really strange to watch the sunRISE instead of the sunSET! The tall grass growing along the shoreline really helped set the two oceans apart. Atlantic or Pacific, the ocean is amazing, especially the sound of the waves. Before heading home, we drove over to another island called Sullivan's Island. There, we discovered Fort Moultrie. This fort played a role in both the Revolutionary War and the Civil War. We could have walked around there all day! On the top of the main fort wall was a cannon, and behind it there was a waving flag. I don't think you can tell too well from the picture, but there are only 15 stars on the flag. The shoreline near the fort allowed for a great view back on the downtown area and the HUGE bridge that links the islands with the mainland. It was a great weekend and we cannot wait to go back to see the Citadel, Fort Sumter, and the famous plantations.

Seven Falls

Trevor works for a development company called Seven Falls. They are creating an upscale housing community and Premier Arnold Palmer golf course just south of Asheville. The grounds are extensive, and as the name implies, contain many beautiful waterfalls.

The week before Thanksgiving, we had Taz and Tanner with us. It was great to share our home with them again, even if it was just for 10 days! While we had our boys with us, we decided we would go on a family hike at Seven Falls.

It was a chilly day, and with the lay of the land, there were many areas that never received direct sunlight. It made for some beautiful iced trees and iced falls!

I can't wait to see it later in the winter, with snow all around, and then again in spring when all the trees bloom and green up!

Oops

We have become quite fond of our new kitty. Gracie is curious and mischievious and so entertaining. Sometimes she has quite an attitude...

But mostly she's just a sweetheart...

So, I decided it was time to take her to the doctor for a well kitty check-up and to get her whatever immunizations she might need. They performed several blood tests that look for viruses stray cats are prone to carry. They also tested for paracites and other icky stuff. Everything came back clear. However, the doctor did find two surprising things... testicles! As it turns out, she is a BOY! Oops! So, Gracie is now Louie.

Sweet Home California!

I had the wonderful privilege of spending Halloween and the first few days of November in San Diego with my oldest and dearest friend, Amanda! It was great to be back on my old stompin' ground, driving those familiar streets and freeways, eating at some of my favorite places, and just thinking back on nearly thirty years of memories.


Amanda and I made a trip to La Jolla. We walked along the beautiful shores and finished the trip off with a visit to Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory! Mmm, mmm, mmm... they have THE BEST toffee!

However, this trip was a particularly important one because I got to meet two important people. In June and July of this year, two very special baby boys came into the world, Caden and Jackson. Here they are.... Caden and Amanda:
And Jackson and Sarah:
Aren't they beautiful?!? They are both absolutely adorable.


I am so grateful to Amanda, Eric, Caden, Guiness, Tea, Marley (the dogs) Fan, Calvin (the horses), and Pudgie (the cat) for opening their home to me. Caden and I spent a lot of time cuddling:

Caden and I also shared our first visit to a sushi bar! Amanda and Eric love sushi, and I have always wanted to try but had no idea what to order or where to go (you can't be too safe when it comes to sushi!). It was a great evening, and the sushi was great... and I really loved the Monkey Ball. Look, even Caden was excited about what he was seeing:

It was an amazing trip. Next time I am hoping Trevor can join me and that we can stay longer!

Happy Halloween!

I know we are adults and we do not have kids yet, but Trevor and I always take full advantage of the holidays for fun! This weekend we went to Hickory Nut Gap Farms to run through the corn maze and do a little pumpkin pickin'!

We weren't sure where the corn maze was supposed to end up, so once we caught sight of the pumpkin patch, we ditched the maze (but not before snapping a few shots).

While in the maze, we came across these beautiful berries. I don't know what they are, but they looked like jewels in the sunlight.

They sky was beautiful and the farm fields were picture perfect.

Here's Trev with two of our pumpkins. Then it was time to go home and start carving!

Here's the pumkins before the carving, and then Trev concentrating on his masterpiece.

TA-DAA!

We have our pumpkins proudly displayed on our balcony.

We wish you all a safe and happy Halloween!!

Meet Gracie

Well, now we have a cat. We would like you all to meet Gracie!

So, this is how Gracie came to be a part of the family. About six weeks ago we were sitting in our living room when I started hearing a kitten meowing. We don't see many animals around our apartment complex, so it was definitely out of the ordinary to hear what seemed to be a kitten right outside our sliding glass door. I went outside to check it out, and low and behold there was Gracie. She was tiny and although she had a flea collar on she had no tags. As soon as I walked outside, she ran over to me and jumped in my lap. She was so sweet! So I brought her in and gave her some water and milk.


We had plans that day, so when it was time for us to leave we put her out on our patio. We figured she would find her way home (or her family would find her), and if not we would figure out what to do with her. When we returned home, she was gone. But...


Later that evening, I started hearing her cry again. I was outside looking for her when the guy who lives upstairs brought her down. He had her out on his patio and was out checking on her when he heard me calling for her. He said the manager (who lives across the breezeway) found her and asked him to take care of her. Because he lives on the second floor he didn't feel she would be safe staying with him, as he was worried she might try to jump off the balcony. So, he asked if we would take her. And we did.


At that point, we were thinking, "What are going to do with this cat?" We put fliers up all over the complex hoping that her owners would identify her. We even called PetCo, thinking they would be able to help since they do animal adoptions. As it turns out, all of their adoptions are handled through an organization called TAG, which we called. A week later, the lady from TAG called us back and informed us that they work on a foster care system. They ask the people who find the animal to be the foster owners until they can (eventually) find a suitable home. We had her put our name on the list.


Two weeks later, we hadn't heard anything. At this point, we were attached to this cutie pie. So, now she is officially ours. She's been a lot of fun and defnintely keeps us entertained. I have never been a cat person, in fact I have always had allergic reactions to cats! But Gracie doesn't make me sneeze! And she is the most affectionate cat I have ever met. She loves to cuddle! And as you can see, she feels right at home.

Gracie Lu (that's her full name) is growing like a weed! We think she had doubled in size!


She loves to play in my Green grociery bags and sleep in front of the warm fire.

Taz and Tanner haven't met her yet, but we are sure that they will grow as fond of her as we have. She's a cutie patootie, and I am glad she found a safe and happy home with us!