Of all the Bad Timing...

My camera is BROKEN. I do not know why. I have brand new batteries in it, and it will not even pretend it is going to turn on. I am going to North Carolina again on Monday and Tuesday for... the RUNNING OF THE SAUCE. That's right. On Tuesday, Courtney's BBQ will finally have our sauce professional bottled, in glass bottles (uuuh oooh!! look who's movin' up!!), with our NEW LABELS! Then on Thursday, we leave for Jamie's wedding in New Jersey which we are VERY excited about! So, hopefully somewhere between work this weekend, my trip to the big city of Louisburg, and Jamie's wedding, I will be able to get my camera fixed so you guys can see pictures of everything!!

Me being sad about my camera...

Go Cocks!

Matt and I managed to make it to Columbia for one football game this year! We headed down for the Kentucky game and met up with Matt's parents. It was so much fun just being in Columbia again (although it made me a little homesick, of course). It was also great being able to see Mom and Dad D. since we don't get to see them very often. Not to mention, Gamecocks WIN!


We set up our tailgate spot in the parking lot next to Public Storage: the PERFECT place!




While in Columbia, we stayed at the Hampton Inn in the Vista- if you ever have to stay in a hotel in Columbia, I would definately suggest this one. Matt and I loved it! We also ate lunch on Friday at Bull Market. I had never been to Bull Market, and if you haven't, you must! Also, check out the women's restroom. I know that sounds random, but it is BEAUTIFUL.

Saucey!

I have a new job! Not really a "new job"...but more of a project. For almost a year now, my dad has slowly been looking at marketing our sauce (the red, mustard, and grilling sauces and rub). He has now passed that ball to me! I took on my duties by planning my very first business trip to Louisburg, NC to glad-hand the bosses at Bobbee's Bottling, our sauce manufacturer. (Louisburg is above Raleigh and in the middle of NOWHERE! To give you an idea, my hotel turns off the lobby lights at 9 every night to save on the electricity, the clerk told me. When I left this morning around 8am, there were three other cars in the parking lot, other than mine-not exactly a hoppin' tourist's spot!). Our first run of the sauce is scheduled for the second week in October, hopefully in time for me to set up a booth at the Southern Christmas Show!

Bobbee's Bottling, Inc.

"Matt, what are you going to twirl now?!"

So, Matt lost a bet a few days before our wedding...and had to shave his head. Well, I was like, no way are you shaving your head right before our wedding!! So he didn't. I thought the issue was gone, forgotten about, never to come up again. Oh, I should have known better.....

My wonderful husband with his head full of beautiful (yet sometimes crazy messy!) hair.

My insane husband after I shaved his head!! (Different, but not bad, huh?!)

A Day in Charlotte

On Wednesday, Matt and I decided to get out of Clover and head to the city! We started our trip to the Discovery Place in uptown Charlotte. Now I normally associate the Discovery Place with school field trips, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and warm milk. But not this time. Matt and I went to see "Body Worlds-The Anatomical Exhibition of Real Human Bodies". Yes, I said real. If you guys have not heard of this, go to www.discoveryplace.org to check it out. It was simply amazing! I'm talking we saw embryos in test tubes through the first eight weeks of pregnancy (on the eighth week, the "embryo" had visible hands and fingers!), a REAL smoker's lung, blood vessels, and on and on and on. To my disappointment, but not to my surprise, I wasn't allowed to use photography within the exhibit, so you'll just have to go see it yourself!!

After spending a large portion of our day staring intently at human cadavers, we went across the street to Stool Pigeons. If you are ever in Charlotte for any reason, hit up Stool Pigeons. We had the best time there!!!

My Mom Turns 50!

My Mom's 50th birthday was on Thursday, so my sister and I threw her a pool party Wednesday evening! Everyone from work came and joined in the fun- I think she really enjoyed it!
(This post is coming a few days after the party because I have been sick, with something we think was just a stomach bug/flu thing, or potentially something I ate...but I gotta tell ya, I haven't been sick with stomach stuff in so long that I forgot just how horrible it is!!! Poor Matt had no idea what to do when I woke him up at 3am -the fact that I woke him up probably contributed to him running around "What's going on, what's the matter? What's going on? What do I do!?" - he did bring me chicken soup and ginger ale when he came home from work that night though! Anyway, I am feeling better, and thank goodness for that!)

An Afternoon with Parker Ann

Today, my sister and I babysat Alison Munsey's baby, Parker Ann, for the afternoon. Alison has returned to nursing school this semester. And while Parker stays with a babysitter while she's in class, Alison had some errands to run this afternoon and didn't want to take the baby since it's been so hot! Parker is four months old and an absolute DREAM! She is such a happy baby (she didn't cry at all while we were there! Granted, she has started teething so she was a bit fussy from time to time but nothing major). And I enjoyed every minute Lee and I played with her!





(Hey Alanna, notice any family resemblance between Parker and Munsey?!)

Another guest!

Saturday night, Matt and I had another guest! This makes two nights this week where we have had friends over! - a huge accomplishment for two people who only really see co-workers and our neighbor on a regular basis. Matt's friend Alan spent the night with us and had a blast - not too much to it, just beer and cards. But I have to say it was way better than watching black and white movies on TCM and falling asleep at midnight!

Girl's Night IN

I never did figure out what was wrong with my camera, but it appears to be working now! -Just in time for a "Ladies' Night" with my sister and a few girls from work! We ate dinner, drank LOTS of wine, and even sang karaoke!! It was so much fun to hang out with women again! And it reminded me of the dinner nights we used to have in Columbia (which, granted, made me slightly sentimental, but that's okay!)

Summertime in Summerville

Don't worry, Holly! I'm still here! I am having some trouble downloading pictures from my camera to the computer. Not being exactly the best at working my way around a Mac, I am hoping Matt can fix the problem when he gets home from work tonight. In the meantime though, I do have some pictures from our trip to Summerville! We went last week for Dad D's birthday and had a blast! It was so nice to get away for a while, and to see his parents. (Matt hadn't seen them since our wedding!) Matt's Dad made "Beaufort Stew" (also known as Frogmore Stew), which I was very excited about! If you have never had it, you definately need to try it!

Dad and his Fire Pit


The weather was so beautiful while we were there, we decided to play Frisbee!
Mark's dog Seven watched from the sidelines.

Rummy!

Since Matt and I no longer go out like we used to, we have been looking for other activities to keep us busy around the house. Matt has been trying to get me to learn to play Rummy, and I finally did. Last night, we invited our neighbor Rachel to join us in the fun! I especially had fun, because i WON!

Matt and his game face

Matt was being a sore loser!


Celebrating my Victory!!

Alanna's Bachelorette!

This weekend was Alanna's Bachelorette Party in Charlotte! It was such a great time, and it was so nice to hang out with everyone!

BLACKJACK!

Okay, you all know that I have never been one to stay on the cutting edge of technology (remember the skinny cell I had for three and a half years, and the DELL computer that took fifteen minutes to boot up?!)
Well, all of that has changed! Yesterday, Matt brought me home a Blackjack!

This phone does everything! I can watch tv, listen to music, check my email or look at anything on the internet for that matter, and so much more! I have never been this excited about a cell phone!

The Birds!

To add "ambience" to my balcony, I recently hung a bird feeder. I have slowly attracted more birds than I know what to do with! And while my neighbor and I enjoy looking at the various types of birds that come to the feeder, I believe there are two individuals who enjoy it WAY more than i do!




Kittie and Stella have become so fixated on the feeder that when it is empty, they follow me "meowing" until I fill it up again!

Honeymoon in Orlando!

I am still waiting to receive pictures from my wedding, but I have a few from the Honeymoon that I am going to post for everyone to see! We were in Orlando for 5 days and had a BLAST! We visited Islands of Adventure and rode every rollercoaster possible, then went on to Universal Studios. On Thursday, we visited Epcot, by far my favorite! Going through the countries was so much fun! We had escargot in France with lots of wine! Spiced tea in Moracco, sake in Japan where we were given a traditional wedding toast, and of course we had to visit Italy! We had a sample of three different types of wine, during which I found the best wine I have ever had, recommended to us by our server, Maruzzio. It is called Nero D'Avola, Cusumano. It is made from the Nero D'Avola grape of Sicily. WONDERFUL! Our visit coincided with the Garden Festival which was BEAUTIFUL! The pictures are from Matt's cell phone so the quality does the gardens no justice!