Christmas Celebration

We have had a wonderful Christmas celebration.  The festivities started last night during our Annual Christmas Eve Candle-light service.  There is something so moving about this observance.  Sometimes it feels like we are so busy in the weeks leading up to Christmas, it is easy to forget why we even celebrate in the first place, but sitting in church, I remember deep into my soul.  The music was beautiful, the message timeless and seeing the faces of my friends and family in the glow of hundreds of candles made me eternally thankful for the babe born in a manger long ago. 

Afterwards, we came home to a casual dinner with friends.  We also enjoyed my DH's first attempt at smoking Boston Butt, and boy did he succeed!!!  It was super yummy!  I think it will become our standard Christmas Eve meal from here on out.  We spent several hours eating and laughing until it was time for everyone to scatter to their own homes and snuggle in their beds to await the arrival of Santa! 

Of course, this morning, my boys woke us and their sister up at the crack of dawn to see what surprises Santa had brought.  This year was the year of technology in our house (which I sit on the fence about, even though I love it!)  I was also the recipient of a huge surprise in the form of a new camera!!!  My sweet DH funded the recent renovations on Southern Somedays and he decided I needed a better camera as well and bought me my first DSLR.  I have a lot to learn now.  I have a great point & shoot but it is showing it's age (and my cell phone has more mega pixels) and mostly, I figure he got tired of my hinting.  I am so excited and a wee bit intimidated!

22 Years

Can it have been 22 years already? 

Where does the time go???  It was a cold December day, 22 years ago, that I walked down the aisle to become Mrs. DH!  What a journey we find ourselves traveling, together...

Romantic Getaway at Harbor House Inn

This man , who - by the way, is the most handsome, sweet and romantic husband a girl could ask for, surprised me last Friday night with a special time away (without children).  He arranged for us to spend the night here:

Harbor House Inn

We were welcomed on the front steps of the Inn by the wonderful and hospitable Innkeeper, Meg Tarbox.  She gave us a tour of the Inn, showed us all the wonderful touches to make our stay complete and then our room, which contained everything necessary to make us feel pampered and relaxed. Our escape from reality came complete with drinks, a basket of crackers, freshly baked cookies, sweets, and her fabulous, homemade Shrimp Dip AND was followed the next morning by an amazing, southern gourmet breakfast.  The Inn, and especially our room and bath, were so lovely we almost didn't want to leave to explore the local scenery.

The view from our room was just mesmerizing...

This is the view from the back porch of the Inn, complete with generous porch swing...

My sweet dear husband has known that the last few weeks (months) have been a little hard on me, and he thought some time away would help to get me back on level ground and give us time to reconnect and just be ourselves.  As anyone with children knows, it can be hard to find this kind of time together.  It was wonderful.  I love this man so much, and feel very blessed to have him in my life.  Knowing he knew what I needed, more than I did, means more than words can say.

We also fell in love with the little town where the Inn was located.  Georgetown, SC is truly a diamond in the South Carolina crown.  There are so many gorgeous homes (that are still lovely, cared-for private homes!) that I could spend days just taking photos and exploring the streets, soaking in all the history and beauty of this town. It is the 3rd oldest town in SC and lies on the Winyah Bay, and is still a working seaport.  The downtown is full of vibrant and unique shops and eateries, of which I can't wait to go back and explore more fully!  Also, there are several intriguing museums to keep you busy.  DH and I spent a leisurely evening strolling the boardwalk and enjoying the atmosphere which was relaxed and genteel with just the right dose of fun.  We had a great dinner at an inexpensive cafe that had rooftop/water front dining called the Buzz's Roost (the fried pickles were to die for!).  It was delicious and we enjoyed getting to sit and watch the coming and goings of the boats under the stars.  Georgetown stole our hearts and we will definitely be going back again.

To see my complete album of photos from Georgetown and our stay at Harbor House please click here:

Weekend at Harbor House and Georgetown

Happy Birthday...and 25 Years.

Today we are celebrating 2 momentous occasions!  It is my dear, sweet husband's (DH) birthday AND it is the 25th anniversary of the first time we went out!  How cool is that? 

Don't you just love this photo of us at my Senior Prom?  We were rocking the 80's to be sure!!!!

Happy Birthday, DH!

21!

Here we are....21 years after our young, naive, idealistic selves walked down the isle in a church, on a cold December night to say "I do". We were able to celebrate 21 years of (mostly) blissful marriage in much warmer circumstances than we began. It was a much needed and wonderful time for the two of us. We haven't been away, without children, in years and years and years and years (well, you get the point!). So, to think it has been 21 years is pretty amazing. I remember thinking, when we got married, that people who had been married 20+ years were old people! Oh, how time flies and taunts your younger impressions.

Even if I know we aren't "old people" it does feel like we have spent our entire lives together. We thought we were adults and mature when we got married, only to discover that we didn't have a clue. In the past 21 years, life has twisted, stretched, and often tried to slice us to pieces but a gracious, loving God has kept us together. DH and I have walked this path together, sometimes closer than others...but still together. We are becoming "grown ups" together...
I love this man more today than ever before.

So, since I have been neglecting blogland recently, this is my 1st trying to catch up post! Hopefully, in the next few days I can share more about what has been happening in the Southern Somedays world.

Father's Day

Yesterday was Father's Day! We celebrated in a "low key" way. DH and I spent a very late Saturday night (or maybe that was early Sunday morning) at a lovely wedding reception so we slept in [as much as you can in the house of the 2 boys of the rising sun] on Sunday morning. In the afternoon we took DS#1 to camp in the mountains. After dropping him off we came back south and stopped into Dreamland BBQ for dinner http://www.dreamlandbbq.com. After that we went to Lowe's (it WAS Father's Day, ya know) to pick up the supplies for the redo of DS#1's room we are going to tackle -as a surprise- while he is away this week.

I hope DH had a good day. He seemed to enjoy his very 1st pair of Crocs* (the "off road" version) and the kids got a kick out of Dad liking their kind of shoes.

It sounds kind of contrived but my DH is an amazing Dad. He has more energy and drive than any one person I have ever met. He works hard and plays hard [though his "play" looks a lot like work to alot of us!] and loves us all fully. He is the kind of Dad I think all children should have...one that loves God 1st and his family 2nd. He leads our children in Bible study and prays over us all. He will get down in the floor to play Legos or go outside and throw a ball....work for 12 hours and then come home and take dd to play tennis and then sit on the side of the bed to read, pray and tuck them in (and listen to what ever is on their minds) at the end of the day, or just hold a child - or Mommy - that is having a hard time. He is involved in our community in things he feels strongly will make our world, and mostly our children's lives, a better place and will further God's Kingdom. He makes me want to be a better parent because he leads by example. I am blessed.

Happy Father's Day - 2006

DH & "the other one" -Mohawk Trail-Florida, Mass. 2003

Happy Father's Day, sweetie!

Father's Day was a great day around here! We went to church in the morning and dear husband and I spent the afternoon doing some errands around town. In the evening we (the children and I) treated him to dinner at 'Chez Mommy'. The menu consisted of Ultimate Grilled Steak, Zesty Grilled Veggies, grilled corn on the cob, some cloverleaf rolls and for dessert, dh's recent new favorite dessert....Mango Pie. Unfortunately Dh had to be called in to run the grills as I am not a "griller". The last time I actually tried to grill something (hotdogs on a night when dh was out of town) I burned the hair off my fore-arms. Oh well....I think he enjoyed his grill time. LOL It was cool enough to eat on our newly redone deck so that was nice. After the kiddos were tucked in their beds we took the dog for a walk and then spent an hour or so, snuggling on the front porch in the cool of the evening.
Yesterday wasn't just Father's Day for Dh. He actually had one of those "grown up" moments, as he had to get his 1st eye exam and found out --- not surprisingly--- that he needed some glasses for close up stuff. I have heard this happens in the 40th year! I think he is struggling with the concept a bit but he does look nice in the pair he picked out.
My dear, sweet husband is an amazing Father. He is engaged, involved and shows sacrifical love to our 3 wonderful children. They wouldn't be who they are without him and his guiding hands. He is the kind of Father that I think all children should have. I am such a lucky woman.