Giving Thanks!

There is so much to be thankful for this year!  BellaRose tops the list indeed.  I am grateful for this reminder of being thankful.  It is so very easy to get caught up in the day to day life and stress and to overlook how truly blessed we all are.  I am thankful for my wonderful husband and for his strength, I am thankful for my family who love us so passionately and deeply, I am thankful for my friends who stand by me daily, I am thankful to be home for the holidays and for BellaRose to begin her own traditions, I am thankful for the ability both physically and financially to cook this thanksgiving dinner and open our home to our friends.  I am thankful for the heat that just turned on and the cider simmering on the stove. I am thankful for Christmas music and my new sink!  I am thankful for a good cup of coffee and a kiss from BellaRose.  I am thankful for warm mixed nuts with rosemary and shallots and sweet potatoes and all the other trimmings.

I am thankful! 

Farm dreams

Last week BellaRose and I went with Annie and Will to Annie's friend's house who has chickens.  She also has 50+ baby chicks that all fit in a little kiddie pool in her garage.  They were the cutest little things!  I know it is Worth's dream to have chickens one day.  Not something this Atlanta girl ever expected in her future, but if my dreams include a barn and a beautiful Hanoverian Warmblood then they might as well include some chickens too!  Will and BellaRose got to get some eggs from the chicken house and they made for some delicious eggs in the morning.  B-Rosey was a little freaked about the chickens at first and would much rather have played with the tractors but she came around eventually.

The leaves are all on the ground now, snow has fallen from gray skies, that means only one thing.  It is time.  Time for what you ask?  It is time for our annual Christmas Vacation Christmas Party, people!  Come on come all to our home December 6th after the Black Mountain Christmas Parade for the Grant Family Christmas Party.  It is THE only way to get the Christmas season started off with a bang.  Get your Clark Griswold and Cousin Eddie quotes ready and bring your blankets because we are watching it on the side of the house again!

BellaRose enjoying the fall foliage.  Such a sweetie Baby.

Courtney and Paul got married this weekend!  It was such a beautiful wedding.  It was a little chilly, but beautiful none the same.  Courtney was a gorgeous bride and Paul was a handsome groom, and as you can see the view was not bad either.  One of the coolest things they did was have a candy bar for the guest gifts, it was a hit!  It was a fun filled, event filled weekend.  I think that we were all exhausted on Sunday.  I did not have a camera so I am stealing some from Kim.  Thanks Kim!  Courtney and Paul are off on their honeymoon in Antigua or Anguilla, one of those.  No matter where it is, all I know is that I want to be there too!  Maybe not necessarily "with" them, but you know what I mean!

There is so much I want to share with you, and most of the sharing involves pictures and yet again I am left camera-less as Worth has the camera on another hunting adventure, which turned up fruitless (or I should say deer-less) the last time.  I guess it leaves me with more to blog about next time!  I would like to give a shout out to 2 of my bestest friends in the whole world, Annie and Becky.  They both celebrated their birthday on Sunday.  Annie is one whole year older then Becky, and as I told Annie before they are really not birthdays that are much cause for celebrating!  Just Kidding, come on people, any birthday is cause for celebrating.  I hope I can with them soon, very soon.  Happy Birthday dear friends.  

Findings with a Toddler

~Found my keys in the pouch on the water heater meant for papers regarding water heater

~Found BellaRose bouncing on her changing table after she climbed up on changing table

~Found a strand of my hair bound tightly around her toe

~Found her lip busted after she fell flat

 on her face running in the leaves

~Found side of her nose bleeding when I came home from the gym

~Found She had written all over the computer desk with pencil. Hello Magic eraser

~Found water all in my shoe after she spilled her water bottle

 ~Found that if I tell her "no" and stomp my feet like I am coming to get her she stops action that I said "No" about

~Found you never know what to expect when you go looking for BellaRose

~Found that most doors in our little 

house are closed because of never knowing what to expect

~Find that I never sit down during the day

~Trying to find my sanity, and loving it all (most of the time)

A blue eyed boy meets a brown eyed girl....

.......the sweetest thing (thank you Bono)

Worth and I had the most lovely weekend getaway to Valle Crucis, NC (just outside of Boone).  We stayed at The Taylor House Inn.

I have worked at the Taylor House when I was waiting tables and have always wanted to stay there.  It certainly met my expectations.  I just like the personalization and hospitality of staying in a B&B.  Saturday evening we ate at The Mast Farm Inn.  Yet another place that I have always wanted to go.  The food was outstanding.  They have a set menu and Saturday nights menu was Chicken Pot Pie, which I don't care for in real life, but LOVED this go round.  This was such a wonderful getaway because we had no agenda and nothing to do!  Perfect.  My mom stayed here with BellaRose and played with the duckies at the park.  Thank you SO much!

A little Math

WORTH                                                               PLUS+                              SUNDAY

PLUS+ an amazing fall wedding day 5 years ago!

EQUALS = THE SWEETEST BABY IN THE WORLD!

Tomorrow Worth and I will celebrate our 5 years of marriage.  The 5th anniversary is what..... platinum, .... golden,...... diamonds?  Hey I like that!  It is hard to believe that 5 years has already gone by so fast.  I will tell you that I married the Great Love of my life, and I will tell you that he is a Godly, strong man, but I will also be realistic and tell you it is hard at times.  We don't always like each other, and we argue, but we are always deeply in love and committed to one another first and foremost!  We swore before you and God that we would love each other til death due us part and we mean that even in times when we think "how could it be possible".  We are committed to BellaRose and raising her up to be a good,  and considerate person.  We are so thankful for these last 5 years and all that it is has taught us.  We are thankful for all the influences in our life.  We would not be who we are without you.  Thank you for sharing in this journey with us and we look forward to the rest of our life together.  

Good times

The time change is really throwing us off.  Who knew that just an hour would rock us this much.  BellaRose woke up at her normal time of 6:30 but it was really 5:30.  That is a little rough when I only had just gone to bed, or so it seemed to me, since that was at 12:30 am.  With little rest and a desire to be outside we met up with Matt and Margaret and hit up the parkway to go to Graveyard Fields.  The trip was short lived as BellaRose had taken no nap either!  We still were able to walk around a little and just the drive alone and hanging with Matt and Margaret was enough.  This picture of Margaret is her 19 1/2 weeks preggars.  Isn't she just the cutest?  They find out on Friday what they are having!  What do you think?

Here are some of the snow pictures I spoke of on the last post.  Check out BellaRose throwing the snowball.  Worth I believe was asking her to throw the snowball to him but as you can see her aim is a little off.  

I am now making cookies because Katie told me to!

aahh Boo!

An elephant in a tutu!  Of Course!  Does anyone know of a cartoon or children's book where and elephant wears a tutu?  I know I have seen it somewhere but I could be thinking of "Angelina  Ballerina" but that is a mouse.   Becky and Annie thought of a hippo that wears a tutu in Fantasia, but I know I have seen an elephant somewhere.  So think about it and let me know! 

Happy Halloween, or fall festival whatever you choose! 

The thrill of the hunt

Oh well!  I was going to show you some wonderful fall snowy pictures from the other morning but when I went to go look for my camera it turned up missing!  Can that really happen, something turning up and it being missing all at the same time?  Now there is some food for thought, or I could just have the phrase wrong.  The bottom line the camera is gone, and I fear it is with my husband who has gone out hunting.  The weather turned cool and he could no longer sit around and work he had to go into the woods.  This only proves his point that we are all like animals when the weather changes.  Although he is not like a deer who is out in the woods to find a lady, at least he better not be!  No he likes to catch those deer off guard when their attention is on "other matters" if you know what I mean.  Now initially I had no intentions of posting about hunting, but look here, got yourself a little hunting lesson!  There will be no pictures of deer, as Worth had no luck acquiring a deer this go round.  Better luck next time my dear husband!

Finale to Rocktober!

The house is clean except for a stray "30" confetti here and there.  The pictures are all uploaded, the guest have all gone home, all 

signals of Rocktober's conclusion.  I know we have another week of this glorious month and admittedly Halloween is one of my favorites, but in so far as birthday Rocktober is concerned the finale was on Saturday!  Boy o' Boy what a party!  Sadly there are no group pictures but the house was filled with family and friends and the food was outstanding and all gone I might add.  No leftovers for the Grant household.  Thank you so much to my mom, my sisters Angela and Kelly, my husband Worth, and my dearest friend Annie for  a fabulous 30th birthday

 celebration.  Thank you!

Look how beautiful the house looks!  They put pictures of me growing up on the butcher paper hanging from the blinds.  Also check out that lamp on the right.  That is my present from my mom.  It is so unique and beautiful.  I also had my favorite, a Cookies and Cream ice cream cake.  

 Blairis only slightly jealous of my ice cream cake.  You will get your cake in due time my young friend!

Pumpkin Carving Contest

We went to one of my favorite events of the year on Saturday, Matt and Margaret's annual pumpkin carving contest.  Sadly we did not win, and have yet to win, but we still had fun.  We are going to brainstorm all year long on how we are going to carve our pumpkin for next year.  You guys aren't going to have anything on else.  We did get honorable mention which pretty much means "you did not win", but it is really fourth place.  I am not a sore loser, I promise (yeah right).  

Worth and Jennifer Young were playing foose ball with the babies and it was quite the sight.  You should have heard Jennifer's little boy, Davis, laugh.  It was the laugh where you can only let out a little a bit of a honk because you are laughing so hard.  It gave Worth and Jennifer quite the workout!

Margaret, the hostess, being all cute and preggars.  They get to find out what they are having soon!  I can hardly wait to hear what Baby Lowrance will be.  I already love her/him!  Don't you just want to eat Davis up.  Look at those curls.

Well this is likely my last post as being a twenty something.  I am leaving a decade behind.  Boy I have done a lot of things this past decade, maybe soon I will share 20 things I accomplished in my twenties.  Now won't that be fun for all of us.   

The Great Outdoors

Headed to Boone on Sunday to hike up Snake Mountain in Meat Camp (yes this is really the town's name).  Worth has been wanting to hike up this mountain in all the time I have known him, we decided Sunday would be the day.  Ben, Worth's cousin, and his girlfriend, Nicole came along.  This hike did not disappoint.  The weather was insane with how perfect it was.  I took 176 pictures.  It was near impossible to only pick 12 to post today.  BellaRose did amazing.  She only slept for about 20 minutes and that was on Worth's back in a very crooked backpack!  We, of course, had to hit up some Boone Bagelry while we were there.  This is one of our favorite places.  Who knew that a toasted blueberry bagel and a scrambled egg could taste so good.  I will leave you with the pictures.  This is really where the saying "A picture is worth a thousand words" really is true.  If you want to see more I have an album up on facebook and will be making a kodak gallery album soon.  enjoy!