5 on Friday!

Well if you are a regular reader than you know our big news already but   ~ONE~    We bought a house on Monday!  

    ~TWO~ So yesterday was Thanksgiving.  We celebrated with my family in the house I grew up in.  My parents are retiring and moving to Florida in the spring so it was our last Thanksgiving at home.  They built the house before I was born and so it was home for 29 years (even though I haven't actually lived there in 11 years).  Maybe for my 30th Thanksgiving we can host in our new house.  That means I have to figure out how to make a turkey.   I made mac n' cheese, sweet potato casserole, & pecan pie - recipes to come!

 

 

~THREE~
I decorated the new house for Christmas even though we don't live there yet.

  Just the basics so far but there will be more to come.
  ~FOUR~
Eric's mom got us an early Christmas present - furniture for our great room.  We got a couch, oversized chair, and ottoman.  It's being delivered on Tuesday.Currently our couch is so uncomfortable that only Layla Jane will lay on it, needless to say this will be a big improvement.

~FIVE~
We got to spend the night before Thanksgiving with friends visiting from out of town and had a really fun night. Better yet we have even more out of town friends coming on Saturday. 

5 on Friday!

5 on Friday are my favorite posts and I have taken about a month off so I am excited to be back and sharing some things that make me smile today!

    {one}    

    I just had 2 fabulous weeks of vacation and have been home for 2 weeks now.  You can read about all my travels here... Jamaica & Haiti Grand Cayman Island
Cozumel Savannah        {two}    Layla Jane got her monthly Bark Box yesterday.  For those of you with puppy "children" you should check Bark Box out.  Each month you will get a package with 1-2 dog toys and 2-3 types of dog treats for your dog.  You tell them how big your dog is so they size the toys and treats appropriately.  The toys are high quality and last longer than the normal 5 minutes to destroy a toy.  Also 10% of the money goes to dogs in need.  Check it out, your dog will thank you forever.

      {three}   Eric sent me this yesterday....bah humbug!  I think I will put up my tree on Tuesday, he will learn to love it and Thanksgiving will come just the same & it will be celebrated & there will be food, lots of food!  

He obviously missed my Christmas inspiration post from earlier this week.         {four} I got to spend yesterday in my favorite town - Charlottesville with my friend Terra and her girls!  These girls make me so happy!  

      {five}  We have been trying to make wedding related decisions lately.  So far we have chosen our bridal party and not much else but we spent Saturday with our parents at Sharp Rock Vineyards in Rappahannock to check it out as a possible wedding venue.  I love the setting & I love the wine!  

5 on Friday!

    [one]   We were able to spend a night in Charlottesville this past Friday.  We love, love, love getting to spend time in Charlottesville and we never have enough time to get everything we want to do there done (despite the fact that we only live 45 minutes away).  Not counting the fact that there are always about 15 different restaurants we want to eat at.  Also I got to see four of my best friends (plus one fiance)  from college for dinner.  We love to sit on the downtown mall and have a couple drinks while people watching and Friday nights is one of the busiest times there.  These are from Miller's.  Fun fact: this is where the Dave Matthew's Band got it's start, it's not why we go there but just something cool about it.  We go there because their beer menu is extensive and their appetizers are amazing...it's hard to pick just one (or two).  

 

    [two]   I got a new laptop Sunday night.  My laptop had been on it's last leg for a while.  It had fall off the table a few too many times and the screen was only attached to the keyboard by one hinge.  It was in safety mode all the time, battery power was non-existent, etc.  So on Sunday night when it would no longer turn on for longer than 5 seconds at a time, I took the plunge and bought a new one.  I didn't want to spend a lot of money on a laptop as it seems regardless I end up replacing them every 3 years or so.  This makes my fourth one since my trusty college one died.  I wanted something good for the budget but also lightweight/small and easily portable.  I happened to find one originally $628 on sale for $395 that met all of my qualifications.  So far it works great and I love it.     [three]   We had a football party on Sunday which was really fun!  We love hosting gatherings and cooking for other people at our house when we can.  Hopefully soon we can have get togethers in a house that is our own!  

    [four]   My vacation starts tomorrow!  Perfect timing because it is supposed to be getting cold here & I will be soaking up the sun in the Caribbean then heading to Savannah for a few days!    

    [five]    Last, but most certainly not least...WE'RE ENGAGED!!  Eric proposed on Monday and I said yes :)  We are so excited!      

5 on Friday!

    {one}   I decorated my mantle for fall finally!  I even made a little DIY fall leaf garland.  

    {two} One week with 3 shifts at work is all that stands between me and 18 days off work.  I am going on a Western Caribbean cruise with my mom, my Gramma & my mom's cousin Shirley.  Then I have a few days to hang out back in Florida and my mom, my Gramma & my 2 aunts are going to Savannah, GA for 4 days.  I am so excited for vacation, a week of Caribbean sunshine, & most of all to go to Savannah as I have never been there!  I will be savoring this time because as of now, the next planned time I have a whole week off of work is next August.     {three}    Last Saturday night we had friends in town from Richmond.  We went out to dinner at a local BBQ restaurant with a big group of people.  It was so good!  Then we went to Bdubs after to hang out for a bit since that's the only place to go in Culpeper after 10pm.   

    {four}   I made Sea Salt Caramel Chocolate Chip Cookies on Sunday.  They were really, really good.  We both loved them.  We took them to our friends Travis & Erika's to watch the Redskins game that night and they were fans too.  These will definitely get made again!  

  {five}   I'm meeting some friends/coworkers for breakfast this morning.  Work has been insane lately so it's nice that we can take some time to get together outside of work!    

5 on Friday!

    {one}    Saturday we met my friends Katie & Lyle at Graves Mountain Lodge for some fall fun.  It was the first day of their Apple Festival.  So much for fall weather though, it was 90 degrees & HOT!! We wandered around the vendors, at some lunch, & bought some apples & apple things.  I of course didn't take any pictures of us there or the beautiful scenery.  Lyle did snap this one picture of me with a mini apple.  

     {two}   I had an unexpected night of being on call Monday which meant instead of sleeping all day Tuesday I could run errands.  The hospital has been so busy for the past several months that it was such a nice surprise to get an unexpected night "off".  So Tuesday I was able to visit my friend T and baby HJ, get a pedicure, pick up a book from the library, etc.  

 

    {three}   A new haircut, which is basically the same haircut but trimmed up with new high & low lights!  I love getting my hair done. Don't mind the horrible no makeup self portraits.  I am horrible at self portraits!  Ha!  

    {four}   I baked some cookies on Sunday.  Peanut Butter Double Fudge Brownie Cookies.  

    {five}  

  (Although I will say I wish it was just getting crisp & not raining all weekend)    

5 on Friday!

    {one}   My iPhone 5S came on Monday even though the shipping estimate was October 21st-30th!  I got the gold one and I love it! :)  

    {two}  

May & October are my favorite months of the year!  I am excited for all things fall related this month, starting with the Graves Mountain Lodge Apple Festival this weekend and ending with a vacation at the end of the month!


{three}

I'm excited for the return of fall TV.  Some of my favorites are back.  Nashville, Revenge, Top Chef, etc.  I also recorded Super Fun Night the other day and watched it but it was not as good as I wanted it to be.

{four}

Check out my lemon cake debacle from Monday here.

{five}

I'm so happy to be in the midst of 4 days off.  Things have been insanely busy at work lately and I worked some overtime last week.  It's so nice to have the whole weekend off (to include Sunday night which doesn't count as a weekend on night shift)...it's a luxury for a hospital nurse like me!