Hubs Joins Me in the 30 Club

Today is the best day. You wanna know why?
My wonderful husband was born 30 years ago today.

Hubs' birthday is better than our first date. Better than when I moved to Missouri. Better than our first cruise. Better than when we decided to expand our family with a tiny human. Better than when he proposed. And, yes, better than our wedding. I know you're thinking "What?!?! No way!" But, for me, it's true. None of those amazing things would have happened without today. So today is my favorite day.

Happy Birthday, Turtle.

Heres to Our First Year, and Many More to Come

One year ago yesterday Philip and I decided to elope. We drove down to Eureka Springs, AR and said our vows under a blue umbrella in front of one of the natural springs. We had a wonderful day despite the rain. I think with it just being the two of us, it made the significance of the day, and the meaning of our vows that much stronger, especially since we wrote our own.

So in honor of that magical day, I'm going to share our vows with you.

His

I take you as my true love, my faithful partner, and my best friend.
I promise to love you with my fullest heart, to share your dreams and encourage you to pursue them, never holding you back.
I promised to love honor and cherish you, to love your imperfections, as you love mine.
I promise to be your knight in shining armor, and to rescue you whenever you need rescuing, and sometimes when you think you don't.
I promise to forever be by your side through the hard times and the good, through the sad times and the happy.
I love you for all that you are, all that you were, and all that you will become.
On this day, and until my last, my hand is yours to hold, and my heart, forever, yours to keep.

Hers

I take you to be my best friend, my partner in crime, and my only love.
I promise to life you up when you are down, and to encourage and inspire you in every part of our life.
I promise to laugh with you, believe in you, and to make sure your smile never fades.
I promise to love you with my actions, not just words, and to share your dreams, no matter how big or small.
I promise to cherish you when our life is simple and when it's hard, when our love is easy, and when it's an effort, when we're old and while we're young.
I love you for all that you are, all that you were, and all that you will become.
On this day, and until my last, my hand is yours to hold, and my heart, forever, yours to keep.


These words ring true just as clearly today as they did then. We had them printed poster size, framed, and hung them up in our living room where we can see them ever sing day.

Did you write your own vows?

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Being Grateful for the Awesome Things About Hubs

Being married is truly amazing, but it's not always sunshine and rainbows. It's hard work. So in order to stay positive during the tough times, we try to focus on the good things about each other, and make sure the other knows how much we appreciate what the other does for our family. So here are some Awesome things about my Hubs (that I can share in a public forum anyway).

1. He supports our family financially.

I'm in school full time, I have this blog, and my blog design business. Believe it or not this takes up a lot of time and energy. And my wonderful Hubs works 10-12 hours a day 6-7 days a week to provide for us and keep us comfortable. He has never pressured me to get a job of any kind, even though I have offered and looked and applied for jobs. 

2. He supports me emotionally. 

I have big dreams, and he is right there beside me cheering me on and lifting me up, and holding me accountable. And boy do I love this about him. I don't think I would be as successful as I have been without him there beside me. 

3. He tries. 

We, like every couple, have our own issues and spats. But we compromise and agree to terms. Hubs tries so hard to hold up his end of the bargain. And I will admit that he does a much better job at it than I do, without holding it against me. 

4. I always have a snuggle buddy. 

Be jealous. My husband loves to cuddle and snuggle with me, and during these colder months it's awesome! We don't have to keep our thermostat turned up very high because of this. Not to mention the intimacy benefits of cuddling, if you know what I mean. 

5. I'm spoiled. 

Yep. I get everything I need, and just about everything I want within reason. I mean, hello shed! I did a whole post on this... Here. 

6. He keeps me laughing. 

Seriously. I am always laughing at some crazy thing he's saying or face he's making. I mean you've all gotten a small taste of it through the Conversations link-up. 

7. He's always on my side. 

If I'm mad, he's mad with me. If I'm upset, he helps me through it. If I'm happy, he's happy. He stand up for me when necessary. It's nice to know I always have a partner to lean on, to vent to, to get advice from. I do my best to do the same for him. We stick together, and I think this is a very important aspect in our marriage.

8. He helps around the house. 

I hate putting the laundry away. He does it for me. I hate putting the dishes away. He does it. He takes out the trash, cleans out the liter box, and takes care of all the car stuff. It's so so nice to have someone help with chores without complaint. 

9. Surprises. 

Hubs brings me little gifts all the time. Be it my favorite candy from the store or a little something from my Amazon wish list. Sometimes it's just a sweet text in the mornings. These little things are amazing and it shows that I am on his mind all the time. 

10. He's just a good man. 

He's is absolutely the best man that has ever been in my life outside of my family, and really even compared to some of the men in my family. I just cannot put to words how grateful I am and how blessed I am to have my husband. I honestly do not know what I would do without him now. 

What's awesome in your life right now? What are you grateful for?

Linking up with

 

My Top 12 Photos from 2014

So I love taking pictures and when Chelsea announced that she was hosting a link-up featuring your 12 favorite photos from 2014 I was all in! (you can see her post here)

These are my absolute fav moments and photos of those moments of 2014.

From the top left going clockwise around the center.

January: It's so beautiful when it snows here, and this just happened to be my first snow in Missouri.

February: We celebrate Love in February. These two cuddle bugs taught me how to be more loving and affectionate in my own relationships.

March: WE GOT ENGAGED! and it marked the first year of us "officially" dating.

April: WE ELOPED!

May: I made a solo trip to Georgia to visit my mom for Mother's Day.

June: I started school again. Bachelors Degree, here I come!

July: Philip is warming up to taking more pictures with me when I ask him too. And sometimes we get amazing little gems like this one.

August: My birthday month! Good Grades, New Dress, and My first attempt (and fail) at being a fashion blogger.

September: Philip's birthday month! We made a trip down to Georgia to visit my parents, and Mom and I threw a little surprise party for Philip and her Husband (they share a birthday!)

October: Trying on funny costume pieces in Target. I have to figure out how to make shopping more fun for Hubs.

November: It's starting to get cold again, so the babies are being more snuggly.

December: Bear. My early Christmas present.

What are you top 12 memories and photos from this year?

Grateful Hea - Oh, LOOK! A shiny!

As I sat here looking at the blank page and willing the blinking cursor to inspire my fingers to type out some words, A flash of light on my hand caught my eye. You see, normally I don't wear my wedding rings around the house because it can get caught on things and loosen the settings. I'm terrified of loosing a stone, and limit my ring wearing to when I leave my house, or have company over. Hubs does the same thing. But lately, I've been missing them on my finger, so this morning I slid them on right when I woke up.

I love my rings. Philip picked them out all by himself, even though I had pinned A LOT of "inspiration" for him on Pinterest. I have never seen a set of rings like mine before, and they are so perfect for me and my style. Every time I look down at them I smile because they remind me of how much my husband loves me and that he really does know me.

I love being married to Philip. It's the most natural thing for us to be and I couldn't imagine life any other way. So, today I am grateful for the traditional symbol of love and marriage that I get to wear proudly on my left hand.

What are you grateful for?

Linking up with

Monthly Musings: November

There are so many things I could talk about with this prompt. I could go on and on about all the gadgets, clothes, food, and beauty things in my life, because I really am thankful for them. But as I started to write about those things last night, something felt off. I felt shallow. So I deleted every word and put my computer away.

When I woke up this morning, it hit me. The things I am most thankful for are not really things, it's people. Two people in particular.

Yep. Those two faces are my favorite faces in the whole wide world. If it weren't for them I would not be where I am or who I am today.

Philip, my wonderful Hubs. He does so much for our little family and he puts up with all my crazy antics, like my over-the-top excitement about Christmas decorations (read about that here) and my need to purchase every color of nail polish available. He reigns in my crazy and I bring him out of his shell. We're a perfect match. His unyielding support for my school dreams and goals is amazing. I don't think I'd be doing as well as I am (I made the Dean's List!!) if it wasn't for him. And he's always showing me with little things how much he loves me; a kiss every morning, a touch as he's passing, letting me buy those fleece lined leggings, and being my model for my crochet projects. I honestly do not know what I would do without him now, and I am so much happier here with him than I have been in years.

BUT, if it wasn't for my mom, I would not be here (literally!), I might have given up a long time ago. She's been my rock, my shoulder to cry on, an amazing source of support and encouragement. Quite honestly I might still be back in Georgia working at that miserable job and living a miserable lonely life. She's the one who encouraged me to follow my heart and move to Missouri to be with Philip. She's the one who helped me pack all my furniture in storage and stuff my little car full of clothes and other random items to take with me. She's the one who calls my phone and leaves a voicemail of herself reading my favorite childhood book. She's the one who inspires a lot of my creativity and nudges me to explore things. She's been the one true constant thing in my life since I was born and for that I will be forever thankful.

What are you thankful for?

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Conversations with...

... My Hubs

While I like to think I'm pretty decent at cooking, I don't particularly like it. I do like cooking for people, especially my husband. And my favorite is when he helps me cook. We end up having some pretty hilarious conversations during prep and of course while we eat. Take this conversations for example:

Hubs: Hey, smell my hands. *He shoves them in my face*

Me: Oh. *scrunches nose* Garlic.

Hubs: What? You don't like the smell of garlic?

Me: I like the smell of garlic, just not all up in my face.

Hubs: You must be a vampire then.

Me: I thought you were the vampire.

Hubs: I'm only a vampire from the waist down.

Me: *laughing* From the waist down??

Hubs: Yeah. I got fangs in my pants! *gestures to his crotch*

Me: *dies of laughter*


I'm not entirely sure what he means by "fangs in his pants" and I'm pretty sure I don't want to know.

What conversations have you had lately?

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Awesome

Awesome is a many faceted word. It's a perfect adjective for life because life also has many facets. After the amazing response Anne received from her post about 20 Awesome Things last week, she decided to create a new link-up for the first tuesday of each month where we can all share the awesome things in our lives. I freaking love this idea and was definitely one of the bloggers who voted "yes" to the link-up! So today I am sharing with you 10 awesome things that have happened since I moved to Missouri last September.

1. I got to marry the love of my life. (duh, that's why I came here in the first place)

2. I gained two fur babies. They are like our kids and I miss them when we're not home.

3. I started school again. After nine years I'm going to finish my degree!

4. Since starting school, I have made three fabulous girlfriends. Dana, Boni, and Kaity. I freaking love those girls!

5. I got to re-decorate my very own home. To be quite honest, we are still in the process, but it's way better than it was a year ago.

6. I started this blog!! Yep. In January Peaches in Missouri was born, then after I changed my name, the blog got a name change too! This blog has brought me so much joy and introduced me to so many wonderful women, I'm so glad I followed through with my whim.

7. SNOW. I have never seen so much snow as I did last winter and it's beautiful! I love getting to see all the seasons here. There are only two seasons in Georgia (Summer and Winter with no snow).

8. No traffic. It's amazing. Living in such a small town there is really no such thing as traffic here.

9. I have been able to purchase a few items that I have wanted for a while now. It's nice to have the means to indulge your materialistic wants sometimes (Thanks to my Hubs).

10. I am truly happier than I have ever been in my entire life. I'm not sure I knew what being happy really was until I came here and got to be with Philip all the time. Love will do that to you.

What are some Awesome things in your life?

Linking up with

Grateful Heart Monday

Linking up with Ember Grey for #GratefulHeart Monday

I know I say this almost every week, but I cannot say it enough. I so grateful for my husband. He does so much for me, for us. He works so hard and so much to make us a comfortable life, a comfortable future. All the while supporting me and my dreams, do anything and everything to ensure my happiness.

Sorry for the gushy crap today. And I don't mean to make my life sound so amazing and perfect, because it's not. Sometimes I forget to be grateful. When he huffs and puffs if I ask him to help me cook dinner. When I've had a bad day. When he turns the volume up too loud while playing the PS4 while I try to study. When he leaves his dirty socks on the couch. When he gets frustrated too easily at a task. When I get frustrated at a task. It's these time when I need to stop and take a breath and remember that these little things do not make a bad life, only a bad moment.

Philip is an amazing man and he deserves the best. I don't think I always succeed, but I try every day to make sure he knows how much I appreciate and love him.


What are you grateful for?

An Interview With Philip

I've seen this going around Bloglandia over the past couple months. I can't remember where I saw it first, but the most recent one was from Casey and her fiancé Eric. His answers had me rolling! So, after our walk this evening, I sat down with Philip for his turn. My apologies for his overuse of the word "stuff".

Sadie, Sadie

Not linking up for TIOT today, but I have some exciting news! And now that I have had the chance to tell most of my immediate family, I am going to share it with you. Let's go back to Philip's four day Easter weekend. We got so much accomplished! Read all about it here. The last day of our weekend adventure, Monday, April 21, 2014, we went to Eureka Springs, Arkansas. We didn't just look into a couple of wedding venues and packages while we were there...

He Asked...

...And I said "YES"!

I'm not going to say I didn't see this coming. We had talked about it a lot before I moved here and even more after I got here. I knew it was going to happen at some point, I just didn't know exactly when. One day I showed him a cute proposal video my friend posted on Facebook (that after an hour of searching, I can no longer find) and he said he wasn't creative enough to do anything like that. I told him while that sort of elaborate proposal would make a great story, I'd rather have an honest and heartfelt proposal and it doesn't matter who's around or if it was a grand spectacle.

Our first anniversary was March 28 and I got this crazy idea that the gift he purchased was going to be a ring, no, THE Ring. In a panic I turned to Twitter to get gift ideas to match my guess. I ended up making him some "Open When..." cards and got him his favorite candy, but I also ordered a ring for him. If he wasn't going to propose, I was.

On the day of our Anniversary, he came home with Frozen (aka My New Fav Movie) and informed me that the rest of my gift would not arrive until the following week. I gave him his cards and candy, but his ring had not arrived yet either, so we played a waiting game. Mid week, his ring arrived; I got lucky that I checked the mail before he got home! So I ran inside and hid it until the gift he ordered made an appearance. A week and a half later, still no sign of this surprise he kept promising was on it's way.

Wednesday, April 9, 2014 we were on our evening walk. I was slightly annoyed at the delay in my plans because I have a hard time holding on to surprises. We were passing the big pasture where the pretty white horse I love lives, when he slowed a bit and said "You know I'm always gonna be here for you, right?"
Confused, I replied "Yeah," smiled, then tried to pick up the pace again. I had calories to burn!
He didn't quite match my step, "You know how much I love and care about you, right?"
"Yes. I know." I smiled again. "I love you too." I made another attempt to pick up the pace, I had calories to burn!
"Stop a minute. Look at me."
"What? What's the matter?" Now I was concerned.
He kneels. Right there in the middle of the street. That's when it hit me: Holy Shit! It's happening now?!
"Will you marry me?"
I squealed and hugged him. Then he slipped the ring on my finger, "OMG it's beautiful!"
I hugged him again. "You forgot to say 'yes'," he teased.
"Yes!" I replied laughing.

When we got back to the house, I pulled out his ring and told him about my plan of proposing if his gift wasn't a ring. Then I started crying, told him how much I loved him and that I couldn't wait to spend the rest of our lives together and proposed to him too! He hugged me and whispered "yes".

Then we went to the grocery store to get more bananas and ended up with French Silk Pie, vanilla cream pastries, wine, and cheap champagne as well. I had burned a lot of calories doing housework, on top of our walk, so I deserved a piece of that pie! I made Philip pop open the bubbly (safety glasses were worn) and we enjoyed a quiet night slightly interrupted by all of the congratulations notifications from various social media accounts.

So, there it is folks! My adorkable proposal story. I hope you're not all making appointments with your dentists for cavities you got from all the sweetness in this post. #sorrynotsorry

10 Ways to Show Your Love

I used to be insanely insecure with myself, which made me insecure in my relationships. I sought reassurance and confirmation daily, and I am sure that was part of the reason all my past relationships failed. I have come to love myself and accept the person that I am, and I have found a wonderful man that does the same. I don't have to ask for them nor look very far to find signs that he loves and cares for me, they are displayed openly in our daily life. And I do my best to give him no reason to doubt my feelings for him as well.

Philip has agreed to help me write this post, which makes it extra special. We are going to share with you ten things that we practice in our own relationship that make us happy and feel closer to each other. A few of these helped a lot in the beginning when it was long distance.

Even if none of these things apply to your relationship, I hope this list inspires you to look at the little things that you do and appreciate them even more.

1. Every morning give a goodbye kiss.

Never let anything keep you from giving affection daily. Even though Philip gets up far earlier than I would ever dare, he still gives me a kiss before he leaves, waking me up just enough to know he's gone for the day. 

2. Send sweet or thoughtful text messages.

It only takes a few seconds to let someone know they are on your mind. Philip has never been good with words, so he joined Pinterest. There he finds quotes and lyrics that represent what he feels, what he wants to say, or our relationship in general. I have awoken to one nearly every morning since April 2013. We also have a message board in our kitchen that has the prompt: You are Loved because __. I love leaving him a note there for him to find in the morning.

3. Do what your partner likes/wants to do without complaint.

Relationships are about compromise. You can't always do what you want to do, and you won't always like what you're partner likes to do. Sharing activities and doing new things can bring you closer together and make great memories. Who knows, maybe you'll discover that you really do kinda like that T.V. show.

4. Save water, shower together.

Does this really need further explanation??

5. Listen. 

Really listen to what your partner is saying, and not saying. Sometimes it's what's behind the words that you need to pay attention to.

6. Know and Support your partners goals.

Helping each other grow as a person is a great way to help your relationship grow. Philip wants to move into an more IT based field, so I encouraged him to sign up for an online certificate training course. He does classwork, while I write and work on this blog. And, it's no secret I am trying to lose weight and get healthy. Philip has played a huge role in motivation and accountability for me, and I think I am really going to be able to stick with it this go round.

7. Don't stop dating each other.

Sometimes, as a couple, you fall into a comfortable rut and one day you realize you're not having fun anymore. Set aside time to get dressed up and get out of the house. Go to a nice dinner, see a movie, or explore your city. Long distance? Philip and I would have Skype dinner dates before I moved to Missouri.

8. Unexpected and thoughtful gestures.

As Philip says, "Surprises keep the spice!" When your partner has had a bad day, stop and pick them up their favorite candy, run them a bubble bath, or perhaps that movie from RedBox they've been wanting to see. Last Friday was our first anniversary, Philip told me that my gift would not arrive until the next week, so he surprised me with my new favorite Disney movie so I would have something to open that day. And I surprised him with a gift even though I told him that I wasn't going to be able to afford to.

9. Appreciate what they do for you and your life together.

A lot of times the small things you do get overlooked and taken for granted. Try to stop and take notice of what your partner does for you and your relationship. Let them know you appreciate their efforts. Philip puts the dishes away because he knows I don't like to and I make sure he has a healthy meal for breakfast, lunch, and dinner because he'd be stuck with frozen pizzas and Taco Bell if I didn't.

10. Tell them. 

People like to hear that you love and care for them. Those three little words can have a lot of power if you support them with your actions. I make sure to tell Philip every night when I come to bed that I love him and he tells me every afternoon when he comes home from work.

What do you do to show your partner Love? 

All of Me

Sometimes in life, especially as a woman, a wave of emotion can hit you so unexpectedly that it literally takes your breath away. Anything can trigger it, but this time, it's a song. As your heart stops and you brace yourself on the walls of your shower gasping, you just let the emotion take over. Like the water, it washes over you, seeping deep down to your core. Something awakens in you, even though you thought you already knew, now you know for sure and it's more real than you could ever imagine. Tears blend uncontrollably with the water dripping down your face and you soak in every word, every note with understanding and truth.

How I Got to Missouri

My name is Amanda and I was born and raised in and around Atlanta, Georgia. I always said that I'd never move away, even for a man. Well, I was wrong.

Just under three years ago I was dating this guy who really brought out the geek in me. He got me started on this online game and after seeing all the cute pets and fashion for the characters you play, I was hooked. Lets just face it, that is the real reason girls play those type of games. I made a bunch of friends to play with even after my loser boyfriend quit playing and the relationship ended. One of those friends was Philip. Just so happens that in February of 2013 we were both newly single. We started talking to each other more and outside of the game. Soon Philip confessed that he had always had a bit of a crush on me (insert cute giggles and blushing) and I admitted that I was starting to like him too.

It was the end of March, specifically the Friday before Easter. Philip and I are chatting on Skype and he was telling me he was excited about having the next few days off work. I joked saying he should come and visit me. He responded saying "what the hell, why not?" and about 14 hours later at 5:00AM he showed up at my door. I was nervous that he wouldn't like me in person, not to mention very surprised he came at all. We had a wonderful weekend together and he returned home Monday.

Our romance grew over the summer, even through my super tough patch. He was there for me when I was struggling with my job and when I stopped talking to everyone, including him. I literally went into some crazy hibernation, gorging myself with pizza and ice cream, but he gave me the space I needed. Only God knows why, but Philip was there for me when I finally worked myself out enough to come out of hiding, put on real clothes, and wash my hair.

His next visit, planned this time, was the weekend after my birthday in August. This time I was able to take him to see a coveted landmark in Atlanta: The Big Chicken. And we hung out with my amazing roommate and his boyfriend. Another great weekend.

Fast forward to the middle of September. I was having a particularly rough day at work. After sobbing on the phone to my mother while I was running errands for my boss, I had decided, with her encouragement and support, that I was just going to do it. I was going to move to Missouri and start over. I called Philip to tell him my decision and to ask him if he and his two cats would take me in or turn my crazy ass away. He likes my ass too much to turn it away and all animals love me, so here I am!

It's four months later and I'm sitting on the couch and he's fallen asleep to Conan. Pumpkin is curled up on my left and Misty has chosen her usual spot in Philip's lap. I couldn't be happier.