thankful heart.

thankful heart.

This Thanksgiving, my heart is bursting full of thankfulness for:
+family laughs
+wood burning fireplaces
+fresh baked apple pies
+crisp Michigan air
+warm scarves and mittens
+roommate reunions
+pumpkin recipes
+pups who specialize in snuggling
+lazy coffee mornings
+a brand, spankin' new camera
and.... 

+family togetherness
(This means I can take endless photos of Uncle Joey and our ridiculously cute nieces.  Could they be any cuter?)

Here's to a wonderful and ever-so-thankful Thanksgiving to you and your family!

meet jacqlyn.

meet jacqlyn.

You know what's wonderful on a lazy Monday evening by the fire?

A really great blog.

(...And leftover pumpkin scones.)

Since I can't eat a scone with each of you, 

I bring you Jacqlyn from Plain and Fancy. 

Believe it or not, Jacqlyn and I actually know each other.  A rarity in the blog world, I know.   Prepare to be amazed but... we danced together on our high school dance team for years.  Believe it.

Why you should adore Jacqlyn's blog: 

She has a wonderful sense of wilderness and adventure, a pleasantly optimistic life outlook and well-written posts that leave you excited for the next one.  She truly seems to "just make the best of everything".  

via (jaclyn's blog)

Want a shout out dedicated to your blog? Contact me.

for Harper Annie.

for Harper Annie.

In case you didn't know, my BESTEST friend of ten years is:

Pregnant.

Has A Bun In The Oven.

With Child.

IS GOING TO BE A MOM!

Let's flashback to the first time I heard Brianna was pregnant, shall we?  

Picture me, emotional Ashley on the night of her wedding rehearsal, seeing her best friend for the first time in MONTHS.  Already a roller coaster of emotions, right? Well, add the word "baby" from your best friend's lips on the happiest and most emotional weekend of your life and you have overwhelming joy.  It doesn't get better than that.

  Yesterday, when I saw Brianna for the first time with her ADORABLE pregnant belly at her baby girl's shower, I immediately started crying.  I actually had to hug her around her belly.  A hug for three :)

It's easy to say that the three of us slathered Breezy and her baby girl with ridiculous amounts of love.

Proof below.

Colleen, Mommy-To-Be, myself and Jen

Serious love. Right here, y'all.

Harper Annie, 

I cannot wait for you to enter this world and meet everyone who already loves you so much.  You are going to be blessed with the most incredible Mommy and Daddy that God could give you.  I pray for you and your family so often.  If you're anything like your Mom and Dad are, you won't be anything short of wonderful.  I cannot wait to meet you.

You are so, so loved.

Breezy & Elliot, I love you both and am so excited for your little girl.  

 For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. Psalm 139:13-14

today is so great.

today is so great.

A beautiful Georgia day.

Why? I'm officially "on break", "off of work" and doing "whatevs I feel like" for the next nine days.  I'm so ecstatic, it's unreal.  In fact, I just painted my nails without one guilty "you should be grading papers now or doing something else that needs to be done" thought.  Glorious.

And it get's better, I fly to Michigan in several hours.  

Soon I'll be cuddling with my parents' pups, frolicking with my bestest girl friends and visiting family upon family.  I can hardly wait.

Here's to having somewhere lovely to visit and many more loved ones.

I am thankful.

this one time in spain.

this one time in spain.

It has been an interesting week.

On Thursday, I was having a horrible, terrible, no good, very bad day.  After my students had refused to behave or learn much of anything, my only wish was to be seen by a doctor and take some magical pill to cure my ridiculous cold/sinus awfulness.

Plan foiled.

As I'm headed through downtown Atlanta, BANG.  Two overly-friendly Argentinians swoop in front of my car and there goes my bumper.  My car once again looks as if it's encountered a Great White Shark.

And since Argentinians speak Spanish and I heard "Oh Dios mio" multiple times, I realized that I've never shared my muy bonita trip to Spain with the blogosphere.

Picture this: A "Study" Abroad trip to the picturesque Northern/vacation/ocean town of Santander, Spain.   Living with a Spanish family.  Doing a lot less studying and much more endless exploring.  I mean, wearing your bathing suit to class so you can walk to the beach after is not necessarily a difficult way of life. 

It was an unreal two months. Spain, I love you.

Discovering this beach was the best day ever.

Unimaginable beauty, right here, friends.

Back in the day when my locks were short.

This view is from a small island outside the city where I spent my 21st birthday.

It is the perfect combination of beach, beauty and history.  Have I convinced you to book a flight yet?

small snaps.

small snaps.

 Hi friends. I had a great, great weekend.  A "happy list" weekend.
I've decided to call these "small snaps" because they're photos and they're, well, small.  This is what happens when you Instagram your weekend. :)

1. Best friend, Jamie, came to visit from Nashville.  Can you say "Girls' Weekend"?  We spent two days waltzing in and out of Atlanta's ridiculously cute boutiques and sampling some of my favorite Hotlanta cuisine. 

2. Saturday morning consisted of Jiffy Pancakes and homemade mixed berry sauce by yours truly.  I'm not one to toot my horn, but...they were quite delish.

3. My sweet, sweet Mem & Pop (also know as "grandparents") passed through town for tons of puppy love and one scrumptious latte.

4. Their pups make my heart melt.  In fact, all pups make my heart melt these days. 

Amidst all crazy schedules and relentless to-do lists, spending time with friends and family is always just want I needed.

the last of wedding love. reception.

the last of wedding love. reception.

Here you have it, my last post of the last part of our wedding.

Portrait time.  Dance time.  Party time.

The reception.

Enjoy!

Our thank you card pictures. Cute, right?

Blue hydrangeas, green apples.

Such a sweet dance with Dad.

And blogger had decided to jumble up the order of things, but you get the idea, right? :)