5 years.

Today is our 5 year anniversary...hard to believe that it's been 5 years since our wedding day.

I feel so blessed to have a wonderful husband who loves me so much, teaches me so much, & is absolutely my best friend...

I love you babe!

kinda funny, well not really...

So, Monday evening it was thundering & lightening before it ever started to rain.

After dinner, we went out on the front porch to chill in our new rocking chairs & watch the storm (I love a good storm!).

We had outside for about 5 minutes when we heard a siren sound that went on for several minutes.

Shortly after our next-door neighbor came outside to tell us that it was the city's tornado warning siren. Bet he thought we were a couple of geniuses!

Sort of funny that we sat there not alarmed at all...guess we'll know for next time!

things i'm loving...

checking out cookbooks from our library.

my $3.26 thrift store basket to stash my

sewing stuff.

Etsy...i'm simply addicted.

red & turquoise together with a splash of white.

small vintage mirrors...i'm working on a collection.

having 3 weeks to get settled in before

starting work.

the material i got at Hobby Lobby to make throw

pillows for our bed.

our front porch rocking chairs.

the outdoor toss pillows i got for our rockers on

clearance from Restoration Hardware.

my new 'work bag'...Vera Bradley's

'Meet me in Paris' in turquoise.

the built-in bookcase in our living room.
beadboard wallpaper.

having a Hobby Lobby just 20 minutes away...

dangerous, but i love it.

life is good!

d-e-l-i-c-i-o-u-s

You've got to try what we had for dinner last night...

Greek-style Baked Spinach & Shrimp

12 oz. of spinach w/ stems removed

2 tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil

2 green onions, minced

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 can of diced tomatoes, drained

4 oz. of crumbled feta cheese

3/4 lb. of medium-large shelled & deveined shrimp

salt & pepper to taste

hot steamed rice

Wash the spinach, but do not drain. Place in a large pot & cover & steam for about 5 minutes until completely wilted, stirring occassionally. Drain well by pressing out excess water with a spatula.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Lightly grease a 1.5-quart casserole dish.

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onions & garlic & saute for about 3 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes, salt & pepper and then spinach and half of the feta cheese.

Remove from heat & stir in the shrimp. Transfer to the casserole dish. Crumble the remaining feta on top. (I also added some bread crumbs to the top)

Bake for about 30 minutes, until the shrimp are white & firm.

Serve over hot rice.

Hope you love it as much as we did!

words to live by.

"Be not the slave of your own past.
Plunge into the sublime seas,
dive deep,
and swim far,
so you shall come back with self-respect,
with new power,
with an advanced experience,
that shall explain and overlook the old."

-Ralph Waldo Emerson-

what could be better?

It was 99 degrees today...gross.
We ventured out a bit late this afternoon & evening after it cooled off a bit, but stayed around home for most of the day.

To me, there's nothing better in this summertime heat than fresh fruit.
I'm so enjoying the delicious in-season blueberries & fresh GA peaches!

So, when I stumbled upon this recipe I knew I had to try it...

Blueberry-Peach Freezer Jam

4 cups of blueberries (washed w/ stems removed)

1 cup of peaches, finely chopped

1/4 cup of fresh lemon juice

4 1/2 cups of sugar

3/4 cup of water

1 1.75 oz. package of Sure-Jell Fruit Pectin

Rinse plastic containers with boiling water & then dry completely. (I used 3-16 oz. Ziplock twist & seal containers)

Mash blueberries thoroughly (I pulsed them in my blender). Measure exactly 2 cups of blueberries into a mixing bowl. Peel, & finely chop peaches. Measure 1 cup of peaches & add to bowl with blueberries. Add lemon juice & then sugar. Mix well.

Mix water & Sure-Jell in small saucepan. Heat over high heat until boiling, stirring constantly. Boil for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Immediately add mixture into mixing bowl with fruit. Stir for three minutes until sugar is completely dissolved.

Quickly pour mixture into containers & cover with lids. Leave at room temperature for 24 hours & then place in freezer. Thaw in refrigerator before using.

Can't wait to try it out tomorrow!

settling in...

That about sums up the last 2 weeks for us.

We left our house in Durham with our moving crew Tuesday, July 6th.
Since then we've been unpacking boxes, organizing our new place, & finding our way around town.

I'll be back again soon with more detailed updates, pictures & news from Nashville...

the adventure begins...

Alas, the new adventure begins...

We're picking our giant moving truck up tomorrow morning.
Our lovely helpers will arrive tomorrow at lunch-time.
We'll load all afternoon & evening and most likely pull out early Tuesday morning.

It's hard to believe that we've been here nearly 5 years and that it's time for the start of yet another adventure.

More to come once we get settled in our new place...

who knew?!

My last day of work is Thursday... :-(

Who knew that almost 5 years ago when I took my 1st job as a nurse that I would fall so in love with such a place, such patients, such awesome co-workers & the most wonderful manager ever.

I feel so blessed to have spent the 1st 5 years of my nursing career in such a wonderful place.

I have learned so much & been touched by so many amazing people who have taught me what being a nurse truly means.

We've shared many tears, many laughs, and we've worked together as a team day in & day out.

I never could have imagined that leaving my "9100 family" would be this difficult.

Thank you to all of my amazing friends who have made this part of my life journey so wonderful...who knew that I could love you so much!

9100 Rocks!!!

advice?

We ended up selling our washer & dryer with our house as the buyers were really hung up on having them & we didn't want to lose an offer negotiating over something we could replace.

This leaves us shopping for a new washer & dryer in the midst of everything else we have going on.

Does anyone absolutely love or absolutely hate their washer & dryer & want to share that or any other advice you have?

I love to know what others think before I buy things for myself!

P-A-R-T-Y!

4 pounds of chicken
4 pounds of beef
6 Vidalia onions
8 bell peppers of assorted colors
10 Roma tomatoes
6 avocados
30 tortillas
1 pound of white rice
1 pound of black beans
5 limes
lots of cilantro & cumin
fresh strawberries, pineapple, peaches & kiwi
+1 bottle of Nellie & Joe's famous key lime juice

=1 fabulous fiesta

We celebrated Dr. Tarr with a fiesta-themed party Saturday night!
His lab members & some of their significant others joined us to celebrate.

We enjoyed chips with salsa & guacamole, chicken & beef fajitas with all of the fixings, black beans & rice, a fruit salad & key lime pie!

I used Paula Deen's key lime pie recipe & it was to die for!
Thought I'd share...

(Please note, I said it was to die for, not good for you!)

Crust: 2 cups graham cracker crumbs

1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1/2 cup butter, melted

Pie: 1 cup heavy whipping cream

1/2 cup sugar

1 (12-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk

3/4 cups key lime juice

1 tablespoon key lime zest

1 pint half-and-half

Fresh lime slices. for garnish

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a medium bowl, combine cracker crumbs and brown sugar. Stir in melted butter. Press the mixture firmly into bottom and up sides of a 10-inch spring form pan. Bake for 8 minutes and let the crust cool completely before spreading the pie filling over it.

In a large bowl, with an electric mixer at medium speed, beat cream until slightly thickened. Gradually add the sugar, beating until soft peaks form. Add condensed milk and beat until stiff peaks form. Beat in lime juice, lime zest, and half-and-half. Once the mixture as reached desired flavor and consistency, gently spread pie filling over cooled crust.

Cover and freeze for 4 to 6 hours or until firm. Cut into wedges and garnish with fresh lime slices, serve cold.

welcome to Belmont!

Exciting news...

Late Wed. afternoon as we were driving home from enjoying ice cream @ Maple View Farms, I got a call from the director of the nursing program at Belmont offering me a position there beginning August 1st!

She asked me to think & pray about it, which we did until Thursday afternoon when I called to officially accept their offer.

Several of the details are still up in the air, but here's what I know so far...
*My title---Adult Health Adjunct Professor (Full-time)
*My responsibilities---classroom, clinical & lab teaching (more clinical-focused for the fall semester)
*It's a 10-month position, so unless I want to make more $ & work in June & July, I'll have those 2 months off!
*Benefits include health insurance & a membership to work-out facilities on campus (I'm excited about that!)

I've spoken to the director several times over the phone & have received e-mails from various people on campus welcoming me.
They have done a wondeful job making me feel wanted & welcome.
In some strange way, I feel like I know them well despite the fact that we've only talked over the phone & never physically met.

I'm super excited & anxious to get more details on what I'll be teaching and to meet my future co-workers!

how i've spent the last 2 days...

Attending my wonderful babe's final defense & afterwards finally being able to congratulate Dr. Tarr! Enjoying a lovely celebration dinner last night at Nantucket Grill (complete with slices of Mile High cake for desert) with Chris' family

Picnicking at the Eno River for lunch today

Spending time at Maple View Farms & enjoying delicious ice cream in homemade waffle cones (can't beat it!)

Chilling on the couch this afternoon while I finished reading "We Were the Mulvaneys" & Chris read an entire Agatha Christie mystery

Enjoying another celebratory dinner at home tonight, just the 2 of us

Just resting & enjoying each other's company & much needed time away from work

powerful quote.

Here's a powerful quote from our sermon this morning. I underlined my favorite part.

“God is never doing just one thing in what he does with us. He is always doing thousands of things that we cannot see. He never has only one purpose in what he does. He always has thousands of purposes, in everything he does. He is infinitely wise, and everything he does relates to everything else that he does sooner or later. For those who love him and are called according to his purpose, all of them—all of them!—work together for good.”

- John Piper, You Will Never Be Thirsty Again

under contract!

We are now officially under contract on our house!!!

The buyers signed the contract last night & we signed it this morning.

They are scheduling their home inspection for this week, so we are hoping & praying that it goes well and that there are no surprises.

We are set to close on July 12th, so we are planning on moving out the week before.

After waiting for so long, things are moving so quickly and it's hard to believe that it's all real.

We are so thankful that God's timing is right and that He knew just how perfectly things would fall into place.