weekend recap: the one where i get engaged

{This actually happened three weekends ago.}

Y'all, I am ENGAGED! 

April 25th was our two year anniversary. 

We decided to go to Asheville, NC and the Biltmore Estate 

to celebrate our anniversary. 

I never in a million years thought we would get engaged on this trip. 

In hindsight, it was the perfect time to get engaged, 

I was just expecting it later in the year. 

I was all prepared to blog about the trip, the food, and the Biltmore. 

Planning posts in my head during the trip. 

The food was delicious. 

The Biltmore was beautiful. 

The trip was amazing! 

But for now, I will fast forward to the important part. 

We had heard that Biltmore on Saturdays are crazy busy. 

So, we did the Biltmore on Friday. 

Don't get excited just yet, 

I did not get engaged at the Biltmore. 

Most people would think that the Biltmore would be the perfect setting for a romantic proposal. 

And for most women it would be a dream come true. 

Luckily, for me, D knows me so much better than that. 

I am an introvert to the max and 

HATE being the center of attention. 

D knew that I would not enjoy a public proposal. 

Saturday was our actual anniversary. 

The weather had been beautiful the entire trip, 

but, of course, it was raining Saturday morning. 

Which messed up D's plans a little bit. 

He had planned to propose that morning while we were 

out exploring Asheville; 

maybe on a mountain overlook or downtown. 

I do not think he had an exact plan in mind. 

But when he saw that it was raining, 

he decided to do it in the hotel room. 

And I am so glad he did. 

It was a private, special moment just between the two of us. 

No, I  do not have a picture of THE moment he proposed. 

{Much to the disappoint of D's sister. ;)}

But that is okay with me. 

The proposal fit our relationship to a tee. 

It was simple and perfect! 

Now let the wedding planning begin! 

{Linking up with Weekending by BLovedBoston}

one year

On April 25th, D and I had been dating a year. 

A whole year! 

It is still hard to believe sometimes. 

We decided instead of buying each other presents we would take a weekend trip instead. 

We went to Charleston, SC and it was a perfect weekend. 

The weather was perfect, the city was perfect, & of course, the company was perfect. 

Bridge to Charleston

Our first stop was of course Chipotle. 

I love that D indulges my Chipotle obsession. 

Then we went to Patriot's Point. 

Patriot's Point is a maritime & naval museum. 

It houses the following decommissioned vessels:  

USS Yorktown -- CV-10 aircraft carrier 

USS Clamagore  -- GUPPY III submarine

USS Laffey -- DD-724 destroyer

Just a little insight to me, 

I love anything military, history, or airplane related. 

So, Patriot's Point was a big hit! 

D was such a trooper because we walked around that place for 4 hours. 

I literally took 110 pictures. 

I promise not to share them all. 

My favorite part was, of course, the flight deck. 

   

There was also the Medal of Honor Museum. 

It was a great reminder of the sacrifice and bravery of the people in our military. 

One of my favorite pictures of the whole trip

Saturday, we explored downtown Charleston for about 9 hours. 

After walking around Patriot's Point for 4 hours and then walking downtown Saturday for 9 hours our feet were killing us. 

But it was so worth it. 

We found our absolute favorite place to eat in Charleston ... 

Saffron Cafe & Bakery. 

I definitely recommend it to anyone visiting Charleston. 

We ate lunch there Saturday and then went back for brunch on Sunday. 

And the desserts were DIVINE. 

Philly Cheese Steak  

Eggplant, Prosciutto, & Mozzarella on Ciabatta 

Blueberry Croissant & Chocolate Hazelnut Torte

We walked through Charleston City Market and looked at all of the great booths. 

I did not buy anything but I was tempted a few times. 

Random Downtown Charleston Pictures: 

We stopped by Pearlz Oyster Bar. 

D really wanted to get some oysters while we were in Charleston. 

I hate seafood of any kind so I was just happy to have a place to sit down for a couple of hours. 

I am not much of a drinker but I did get 2 drinks while we were there. 

Pearlz has a great atmosphere. 

Another place we would both really recommend. 

D said their oysters were great too, 

if you like that sort of thing. 

We then walked down to the pier. 

We sat on swings and watched the sunset. 

I am telling you this guy is a keeper :) 

We were both exhausted, so we ended the night by eating at a little hole-in-the-wall pizza place. 

It was just what we needed after walking around all day. 

Sunday, we stopped for brunch at Saffron before heading home. 

And it was a necessity to try different desserts. 

Heaven in a Cup

Baklava & S'mores Bar 

I have already been teasing D about making the first anniversary too good. 

He has big shoes to fill to beat this weekend on our next anniversary. 

And I really like the no present thing, as long as we get to explore a new place each anniversary. 

I definitely recommend Charleston to anyone looking for a great place to visit. 

It reminds me a lot of Savannah, just a tad bit cleaner. 

We will definitely be going back. 

Linking up with Leeann @ Join the Gossip!

family visits

This weekend I took D to the farm to visit my family for the first time. 

To say I was nervous is definitely an understatemet. 

D was not really nervous at all. 

I am always jealous of his ability to just take things as they come. 

I tend to over-analyze every single new situation in our relationship. 

He is a great influence for me in that aspect. 

Overall, the weekend went really well. 

We stayed with a close friend of mine that just had a baby 11 weeks ago. 

Baby Luke is a sweetheart and I loved catching up on my baby snuggles. 

Isn't he adorable?!

Friday night, D and I visited with my sister and her family. 

Then we took my neices and nephew out for supper and ice cream. 

The girls (ages 13 & 15) loved him. 

D had them laughing all evening. 

Nash (3) was pretty quiet at first but warmed up to him eventually. 

After we dropped the kiddos off at my sister's, 

we stopped by the farm to see my Aunt and brothers. 

That visit seemed to go fairly well; definitely better than I expected. 

Both of my brothers tend to be overprotective and D is the first guy I have ever brought home to meet them. 

Both of my brothers were pleasant and did not give him the third degree. 

None of the tough guy brother stuff I was expecting. 

It probably helped that D did not meet both of them at the same time. 

That was the visit I was worried about the most and it went well. 

I was able to breathe a lot easier the rest of the weekend. 

Saturday, we explored the Downtown area of a neighboring city. 

Then we went back to my friend's house and spent some time shooting. 

My friend's husband has one of my favortie gun collections 

and he always lets me shoot some pretty cool guns. 

The weekend ended up being surprisingly relaxing. 

I loved seeing D interacting with my family and friends. 

It just added another layer to our still new relationship. 

A guy can only meet your family for the first time once. 

I am definitely relieved that the first meeting is done and over! 

quick update

I know things have been pretty silent in my 

little corner of the web. 

Life has just been crazy lately and I have neglected the blog. 

There have been a few big changes happen this year. 

The biggest being... I have been dating a guy for 5 months now. 

This relationship has been a complete surprise for me. 

I was always the girl completely content to be single. 

I honestly never thought I would be any good in a relationship. 

And it is starting to get to the point where I could not imagine my life without this guy. 

{Good Grief! I sound like a school girl.} 

It is just crazy for me to wrap my mind around still. 

We are both taking things slowly and, lucky for me, he seems to understand that I need to be cautious and over think every step of this relationship. 

It is definitely okay to feel sorry for him. ;)

On the weight loss front, I have FINALLY reached my goal weight. 

I am actually 5 pounds below my goal weight. 

Which means that since I have started my "get healthy" journey, 

I have lost a total of 80 pounds! 

WooHoo!

I have not calculated the total inches lost, 

but just this year, so far, I have lost a total of 35 inches overall. 

It is definitely going to be different just trying to maintain where I am currently. 

I am still not "skinny," but I am healthy. 

And that was, and continues to be, my main goal. 

Besides I like cake too much to be too skinny! 

So, for any of you who still visit this corner of the web, 

what has been going on in your life recently? 

I would love to catch up with y'all!