One of the greatest things about being a "Party of Two" is the time Russ and I are able to spend together.  I love it! But, no matter how much time we spend together in the comings and goings of life...there is something special about escaping reality and vacationing with the one you love.  My family has always loved traveling and vacationing together.  It is certainly something Russ and I enjoy and intend to share with our future family one day. 

Since Russ had such a crazy December schedule and missed lots of Christmas events, he decided to plan a vacation for us to take after Christmas to Gatlinburg.  To be honest, we booked everything after Christmas...and didn't book our New Year's Eve accommodations until the day before!  Ha!  That's another nice thing about being a "Party of Two"...flexibility!  After our trip to Nashville, we were exhausted by midnight anyway, and Russ fell asleep!  I rang in the New Year with Dick Clark.  That's a sign that we are getting OLD!  And I'm embracing it!

Our trip was wonderful!  We slept in when we wanted, ate when we wanted, played when we wanted, and went to bed when we wanted.  We had no schedule.  We had no plans.  We played it all by ear, and we had a BALL!  Our room was so nice and cozy complete with a fireplace.

The weather was nice some days, freezing some days, and snowy others!  It was not crowded at all, and the rates were great since all the students were back in school.  We were able to drive through the mountains to see the beautiful colors of the mountains as I imagine it looks in the fall.  Then, we were able to drive up the snowy mountaintops and see the icicles and blizzard like conditions.  We saw a little bit of it all.

And it was divine!  I wouldn't trade my time with my hubs for anything!  If you have never traveled with "just the two of you," let me encourage you to do so.  Without a schedule.  Be spontaneous.  Enjoy each other, and be carefree!  It'll do you good!

I'm so thankful for our time together!  I'm incredibly thankful that my hubs loves to vacation as much as I do, and I'm thankful he invited me on this one!  I'm thankful for the laughs, the silliness, the fun, and the serious.  Memories were made!

Keep checking in to see more of our trip...

Special Mail

When I checked my mail today, I was in for a sweet surprise!  Baby J had mail!  Not just any mail.  Special mail from some very special friends!  Leah was my block partner in college, and she became such a special friend to me!  When I opened the package, I was giggling with joy as I saw the precious owl!  She knows me well!

Her sweet letter is what brought tears to my eyes.  Such a sweet and genuine heart, and incredibly thoughtful.  Baby J had his or her own stationary with a heartfelt letter inside.  Matt and Leah included some owl tissues for Mommy to use when I first lay eyes on that sweet baby face!  I was tempted to pull one out the second I read the words.  I sure needed them!

Russ and I are so incredibly blessed with such cherished friendships and loving acts even by those we have just met.  We are antsy with anticipation most days, and content with our time together some days.  We are anxiously awaiting the day God shows us immeasurably more!  Thank you to all of you who have not forgotten.  Thank you for your continued prayers and words of encouragement!  You have no idea how much we cherish them!  Thank you seems so inadequate, but it's all the words I have for now.  We are overwhelmed with love from you all!  And we are overwhelmed with love FOR you all too!

Praying for More...

Music City Bowl

Well, Mississippi State managed to squeeze into a GREAT bowl this year!  We were super excited about traveling to Nashvegas and watching our Dawgs play in the Music City Bowl!  Jamie and Charlie wanted to join us, so we ordered a few extra tickets.  I think there were around 10 of us this trip.  You may remember the fun we had at the Gator Bowl last year.

We arrived early on the 29th to check in early.  The alumni party was at Wildhorse Saloon.  It opened at 4:00 only allowing 1500 people before it was a "one in, one out" system.  We freshened up and walked a few blocks from our hotel to the Wildhorse.

Jamie and me

There was already a line down the street, which we stood in.  Once we were seated in fabulous seats by the dance floor, we ordered our supper as we watched the dancing and listened to the band. 

Lee and Kristin

Russ and Mama

Me and the hubs

We knew Dustin and Daddy would arrive a few hours later, so we made sure we had seats for them and made good use of our time until they arrived for our second serving of a full dinner and dessert!  Ha!  Kristin and I joined in on a few dances, catching on as we went.  And, of course, hopped on out there for "Cupid Shuffle" and "Cha Cha Slide!"

Shakin' it!

We had a ball visiting, playing, laughing, and dancing with friends all night!

Charlie, Russ, Jamie, and me

Mama and Karen

Dustin and Jase

I guess it wasn't just friends we enjoyed playing with!  Ha!  The brother-in-laws seemed to have a great time too!  I'm never quite sure what they will do next, but I never tire of finding out!

Lee and Russ

Russ can solve any problem with a pitcher of water!  My favorite part is Dustin's face!

Let's see...I think our group was there about 5 hours before Dustin and Daddy showed up.  We continued our party until around 2 am.  I hung pretty well!  There were a couple who made the walk home after midnight, but the Smiths kept going.  We moved our party from Wildhorse to Big Bang, and closed the place down.  I think it's pretty safe to say that we are no ordinary "preacher's family."  Haha!  I wish I had realized how cool we were when I was in school.  I'm sure I would have invited my parents along more often!

Me and my baby brother

Daddy and Mama

Party of Two

Kristin, Daddy, me, Jamie, and Dustin

The next morning, we all slept in.  We decided to eat lunch at the Old Spaghetti Factory downtown to catch a glimpse of the pep rally.  Well, the pep rally didn't work out because of our late start (Imagine that!) but our lunch was delicious!

Game Day!

We made it to the stadium in time to visit with some other friends who made the trek to Nashville for the game.  We got our seats, took a few pictures, geared up with our paraphernalia, and were ready for some FOOTBALL!!

Music City Bowl 2011

Kristin and Mama in their pom pom gloves

Russ and I game ready!  It was a little chilly, and Russ had no qualms about wearing his fur hat!  Haha!

The game was NOT what we had hoped for.  It was not pretty.  It was, however, a win.  A win is a win, I suppose.  We topped the night off with a night in the room playing a fun game of Headbanz.  We ordered room service and enjoyed our time together.  Well, most of us did.  Mama and Kristin were snoring before the game even started!

What a great way to end 2011!  I still have "visions of bowl games dancing in my head" for next year.  So, I'll be in Starkville cheering on my Dawgs this season!  Will you?

Post-Christmas Activity

I don't know about you, but I tend to get a little "low" after Christmas. I've anticipated all the family fun.  The build up over the weeks leading up to Christmas are filled with parties, dinners, and shopping.  Then, just like that...it's all over.  Work starts back, and everyone goes home.  This year, Dustin and I were the only Smithites staying at my parents' house.  We spent ALL day laying on his new Comfy Sack watching movies: old and new.  We napped, laughed, and enjoyed doing absolutely nothing.  At one point, Dustin, Daddy, Brodie, Farley, and I were laying on the Comfy Sack watching old movies.  It was a divine afternoon!

Brodie played a little dress-up with his new jingle collar and anklets.  He raced around the house jingling all the way!  Ha!

When it came time for Dustin to figure out how to get the Comfy Sack back to his apartment, the fun really began.  Ha!  He began by strapping it up to make it easier to carry...

In case you forgot about the size of this massive bean bag...it is 8 ft in diameter and 3 ft deep. 

It took at least two people just to pick it up...

This is the spot where I almost died.  Seriously.  I came in to help hold up the middle, and I soon found myself crushed between the steps and the comfy sack. 

Getting it out the door?  A whole other issue.  Three people, a tarp, and lots of interesting moves...

Too bad you can't see the actual motion here.  It was priceless!

After a half hour of trying to get the comfy sack out the door, the guys carried it like they would an endangered whale to the car.  There was absolutely no way it would fit in my brother's Explorer, so we decided the Yukon was best.

Hmmmm...let's see how this works.

While Mama and I laughed until we nearly wet our pants and my brother tried feverishly to get it in the car fast, my dad was not so smiley.  Hahaha!  I must admit that made it even funnier!

Another obstacle.  Time to check the  manual to get all the back seats out of the car completely.

After a few slammed doors, raised voices, and silent giggles...the seat was extracted.

And the labor resumed...

Needless to say, it was quite the show!  Not sure what the neighbors's faces looked like as they saw the activity, but the dogs were rolling their eyes I'm sure!

Russ came in after his Christmas week of working nights.  Daddy brought in the new punching bag Dustin brought home from work.  Only real men box in pink gloves!  Ha!

And only cool people punch like this...

The highlight of the night was watching Farley high-step in his new "Ugg boots".  HI-LAR-I-OUS!  We have never seen him prance around like that before!  Each step brought his feet above his body!  Hahaha!

Kristin and Lee invited us over for chicken rotel one night.  I was all in!

And it's not a family post-Christmas gathering without a family game!  Last Word was the game.  Hilarious confusion was the result!

It was a wonderful Christmas with family!  We were sad for the holidays to end, but we were ready to pack up and prepare for the bowl game!  We were Nashvegas bound within a few days!

From our family to yours...Happy Holidays!