2010

This year has been pretty special for me. Getting married was the obvious highlight and the proudest moment of my life. My husband provides me with constant inspiration to be a better person. I’ve grown into my own skin more and more this year and have put to rest a lot of different fears and insecurities and have continued to develop personally.
As a team, Ryan & I are starting to figure out where to invest our time, which direction to go, and how we want to live our lives together. Planning the wedding in the first half of 2010 left us very little time to focus on much else but that. It was totally worth all the hard work though! Check out our Style Me Pretty feature...

http://stylemepretty.com/2010/11/09/north-carolina-lakeside-wedding-by-smitten-photography/ 

The wedding also brought us closer to our families, emphasizing the importance of nurturing those relationships, and all that we have to gain from doing so. Now, with the wedding behind us, we’re beginning to map out what we want our future to look like and what we need to do to get there.

Chico turned 7 years old this year. It’s crazy to me how old we’re both getting. His personality still continues to amuse and delight me while turning everyone else off and I wouldn’t have it any other way. He apparently knocked a tooth clear out of his mouth at some point during the year, but remained fairly drama free otherwise.
Ace had a pretty big year in 2010. He no longer inhabits the garage while we are away. We finally figured out that his chewing and destruction were all a direct result of being pissed off that he was forced to deal with secondary accommodations. He & Chico now stay together in the house without incident.
Hank was, and is, a bad motherfucker. I couldn’t be more proud of my boy. He definitely took his looks to the next level this year. I can’t wait to see what the next year brings for his horns. On a side note, he is intolerant of the snow and barely attempts to g out in inclement weather.
Jr. became slightly more aggressive during rut this year and is still trying to heal his broken leg. He continues to successfully bust out of his pen in an attempt to find freedom and start shit with Hank. Even in his more aggressive moments he’s still just a big sweetheart.
Ryan and I look forward to ending and starting another year in Georgia together and we couldn't be more excited about it. The anticipation of all that’s possible is definitely something to celebrate.

Happy New Year Y’all!

It is Christmas in the heart that puts Christmas in the air. ~W.T. Ellis

You dont have to call me Mr., Mr. The whole world calls me Hank.....

Candy Cane Cast

Christmas is in the air, y'all! We took Jr. to Kannapolis get his leg rewrapped early Saturday morning and the vet was nice enough to render his cast seasonal. Nothing is more amusing than taking a goat through Kannapolis and Ballantyne than taking a goat that's rockin' a Candy Cane cast through Kannapolis and Ballantyne. He hadnt made as much progess as we had hoped, so he will be in his splint for another three weeks and then we'll have to bring him back for another check up.

Thanksgiving in Buffalo, NY

Holy shit it was cold, but I couldn't have been happier. This was the first Thanksgiving in a few years that I had spent with my mom, sisters, nieces, and nephew. Ryan, Ace, Chico, and I set out early as hell on Wednesday morning and made the long drive from NC to NY. Getting there took almost 12 hours but we made it incident free. As a side note, there are an alarming amount of dead deer along the sides of I-79. It's definitely an interesting ride with plenty of tunnels, tolls, mountains, and busted down trailers. Oh, and there is definitely plenty of signage so that you dont miss the opportunity to stop by Southern "X" Posure in WV. Awesome. We had a pretty enormous surprise shortly after our arrival.  We had all been led to believe that Sarah would not be able to join us this year and we all fell for it, except for her co-conspirators, Mom & Frenchy. She had been dropped down the street and arrived roughly 10 minutes after mom did, armed with a 12 pack of Stella Artois and a bad attitude, just the way we like her. We all spent the next few days eating, drinking, being merry, and freezing our asses off. It was awesome.  We laughed, played guesstures, had dance parties, snuggled, and drank an absurd amount of Irish coffee. Ace was like a rockstar. He got all the attention from the kids and all the table scraps all while Chico stayed crated in the basement rendering him unable to steal Ace's 5 minutes. I'm pretty sure that this is what Ace imagines heaven to be like. Him being the adored King and Chico being the drunken frowned upon peasant with nothing to offer anyone. Ace is currently working his way back to reality and working through what seems to be a substantial depression. Friday we went to Mighty Taco where the tacos were glorious and sold in six packs.  Then we went to Niagra Falls where the winds were gail force and there was a travel advisory for a potential wintry mix of 8-12 inches. Next up, the casino, topped off by a delicious dinner at Buffalo Chophouse. This is a glorious place with amazing atmosphere, but what really won me over was the bartender who was pouring BOGO wine. I had never heard of such gracious and generous double pours, but they do exist and they are fabulous. The Calamari was amazing and Ryan and Paul ordered steaks the size their faces. When we woke up Saturday morning there was no snow so it was time pack up and get back on the road. I felt so sad to leave my family and our three days of gluttony. It's not just my belly that's full though. My eyes are full of tears of sadness & happiness and my heart is overflowing with love for my nieces and nephew and for the rest of my family. I love y'all.

Like a Rock.

Cue the Bog Segar, cause it's fittin to look like a Chevy commercial up in here. My husband bought his first brand new truck on Thursday night and I'm pretty sure it suits him.

He did what???

So, Jr.  broke his leg last Wednesday. Well, technically, he dislocated it in the joint, but realistically, it’s broken. He can’t walk on it and will have basically no mobility in it for the rest of his life.  He may eventually be able to use it as a peg leg, but that is the best case scenario.  He could have had surgery on it, but that was going to cost upward of 1300 dollars with lots of maintenance and no guarantees of a better result than simply setting and splinting it. Initially, we thought it was the result of another goat brawl where he gets it caught in Hank’s horns. We’ve seen it happen and it always looks like it will result in a broken bone. However, we spent a lot of time with the boys this weekend and after further inspection of Hank, who now looks more like a Texas longhorn than a goat, it seems to be pretty impossible that Jr.’s leg could have gotten caught in his horns. They are just too big and have grown so thick and close together that I don’t see how a leg could even fit.  Anyway, Jr. seems to be relatively unaffected by the break. He is still acting like his old self and making inappropriate advances towards Ace whenever he gets the chance.

I do.

I chose you alone
from all the world
to love and cherish
throughout all the changes of life.
I dedicate myself to you alone
and to your life's work
to join with you
so that together
we may serve God and others
as long as we live.
God be my help.

Holy SHIT!! I’m MARRIED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Honestly, I thought this day would never come. When I was little, I can remember scoffing at anyone who ever suggested marriage. “What on earth would I want to do that for?” I’d say. Then there was the period of time where I thought all men were worthless as life time companions and really only served the purpose of accompanying me on motorcycle rides and drunken benders. They were all bad, I thought. Then there was the time where I just didn’t want to be tied down. Sure, there were some decent guys out there, but certainly not spectacular enough to tie myself to for the rest of my life. I couldn’t even phathom what a guy would have to be like in order for me to want to marry them.


September 5th, 2010 was a day I will never forget. I couldn’t sleep. I had woken up at 2am, 6am, and then finally 7am. Everyone else was still sleeping of course. Why wouldn’t anyone answer my, “come be with me” phone calls?? Ridiculous, I thought. I took myself down to the lobby to see what the continental breakfast was all about and decided to take a much needed relaxing soak in the hot tub. My mind was so unsettled, I mean I hadn’t see Ryan for almost 11 hours. That never happens. I had made an phone attempt at 2am to lure Ryan to my room, but I could hear Cody in the background threatening to tackle him and take him down if he even moved toward the doorway. Oh well, it was worth a try. Anyway, I had had enough of the hot tub and decided to head back upstairs. I got back up to our room and Kelly & Doreen were up. We exchanged funny stories from the rehearsal dinner which ended up being quite the blowout for all of us and then Doreen made us breakfast. Scrambled eggs & venison sausage. I killed my second breakfast. What happened to nerves killing your appetite?? Good lord. It wasn’t much long after that we decided Mimosas were in order. Sarah came, then Melissa and the girls, and then slowly everyone else who was getting a room for the night was over visiting. I was calm and then I was nervous. Calm. Nervous. Repeat. Getting ready wasn’t a big production for me. I did my own hair, my own make up, and kept it all pretty natural. Easy. Done. Now I was really nervous. We still had to get ourselves to the venue and get some things set up. When we finally arrived, we realized we’d forgotten the burlap runners. Sunofa. Then, we discovered that leaving my candles for our sweetheart table in the jeep, overnight, was a pretty bad idea. Why didn’t I think of this? I had searched Waxhaw the day before for the perfect candle holders and fought with the crazy lady at the antique shop about selling me the candles to go with it and now they were melted and looking pretty absurd. What are vintage candle holders without candles??? Ughh. Oh shit. I forgot my lucky horseshoe brooch too. My word, had I not prepared at all??? Where was mind?? I had spent so much time looking for a horseshoe to carry on my wedding day because I read that it was good luck for an Irish bride to carry one on her big day. Phone calls were made and shit got handled, but I was still rattled. I still had to get set up and then get dressed and the photographer was already there. Ok, dressed. Pictures are underway and it is probably the most beautiful day that I’ve seen in quite some time. It’s sunny & 85 with no humidity. I’m feeling pretty good. Melissa gets there with the kids and they already begin stealing the show. I know I’m biased, but Raymond is the cutest ring bearer I’ve ever seen. The outfit Melissa and I envisioned for him is to die for. Sharon (our photographer) actually looked at me and said, “Are you kidding me???” about three or four times. We nailed it and he was working it. Pictures are done and it’s only 4:30. Now we wait. What the hell am I going to do for a full hour?? My nerves kick into overdrive. Beer. That’s clearly what we need. Coronas for everyone. The next hour took an eternity, but it was go time and I was so ready. I couldn’t believe it was here. Dad & I walked down the aisle and as soon as I laid my eyes on Ryan, I was fine. I was so happy, I couldn’t stop smiling. I have never been so sure of anything or anyone in my life. I was looking at the sweetest, most loving person in the world and he wanted me to be his wife. This was definitely the best day of my life. How did I get so lucky? This man cherishes me. He loves me with all his heart and puts nothing before me. I didn’t think someone like this even existed, but he does. And now he’s mine. : )