What is your favorite memory of 2009???

Okay peeps I would love to know something great from each of you from this fabulous year of 2009!!!

I will start:

Mike and I celebrated our first anniversary at Arrington Vineyard which just happens to be down the road from our home. We took a picnic and reminisced about our first year together. Halloween was also lots of fun dressed as vintage Bonnie and Cylde. Mike's favorite words to me,"Let's ride Bonnie!"

I spy the magical Blue box!!!!

I must give my MAN major props today. I never thought I would see a day that I would have a Tiffany & Co. box in my hands and today I had TWO. Well, apparently Mike had planned on giving me the boxes for Christmas, but the 18 inches of snow in VA delayed their arrival. So when I got home from work today he asked me to come talk to him in our bedroom and there they were. I LOVE YOU SOO MUCH MIKE!

"You are nothing short of my everything!"

Ralph Block

XOXO

The White House, Smithsonians, and politicians "Oh mY"

For those of you who have never been to the area it is all really REALLY close together. I didn't realize it until Mike and I started dating long distance in 2005. You can be in 4 states in about 30 minutes. For my job I went ahead and got a VA and DC license and have considered Maryland. "crazyness" I know! The place I am most excited about being closer to is NYC!!!!!! If you know me you know I LOVE LOVE that place. I will soon be a 4.5 hour car ride or 4 hour train ride or 1 hour flight away. I will decide on a job officially tommorrow. I had 3 offers and have narrowed it down to two. Once that is squared away we will begin the hunt for a home. I will definitely miss our TN home soon to be known as our country get away. There is TONS to do in the area. Once established I am going to work on getting to tour the White House. Since I was a little girl I have been fascinated by old homes. I believe the WH would be the "crem dela crem" of them all. DC has 16 Smithsonians, Ford's theater, Nationals MLB team, Washington Redskins football team (I will always be a Titan though ;o)), Arlington Cemetary, National zoo, Nation's capital, Mount Vernon, and I could go on for days. There are also lots of cool things to see in the surrounding cities. One of my favorite places is Annapolis, MD. It is one of the oldest cities in MD and it sits on the western shore of the Chesapeake Bay "yummy Maryland Blue Crab". There are so many more things than I have mentioned above. So even though I have seen alot over the last couple of years I do not believe I will ever run out of new things to do.

Happy Birthday Jesus!

White House Cemetery War Cross

Isaiah 9:6-7
(6) For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. (7) Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and forevermore. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will do this.

Thank you God for blessing our lives with Jesus! I am given more than I deserve, but I try to not take a moment for granted. This year we are spending Christmas with the Cherry's because I will soon no longer be a Tennessee resident. I have accepted a job in Washington DC to be closer to my hubby. For those of you who do not know Mike has been working the northern VA area since September. We will be moving January 23rd!! It is definitely mixed emotions, but mostly excitement. More to come about the move soon! As for now I am going to savor every second I have with my family and friends. Merry Christmas Everyone!! I am so blessed to have you apart of my life. XOXO

The past few months......

Well the picture uploader put them in reverse order so they will go from most recent back to this summer. Mike and I have been on the go nonstop since July. Mike changed jobs at the end of August. So on top of wedding palooza this fall we have been traveling lots to see each other. In this next year Mike and I may be moving to the Washington DC area so please keep us in your prayers for the upcoming changes in our lives. It's alittle stressfull, sad, and exciting all at the same time. We have so much to be thankful for! My first big catch deep sea fishing in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico!

Dorado aka Mahi Mahi

Mike, me and his mom having dinner at Trio in PV

Sam and Ian's wedding in PV, Mexico November 10, 2009


Yorktown High School Buddies at Ian and Sam's Wedding in PV, Mexico

James and Hillary came to spend Halloween with us in Nashville.

Connor aka Quailman, Mike and I aka Bonnie and Clyde, James and Hillary aka Mexicans

Cousins and Cousin in laws at Blake and Hailey's wedding in Jackson, TN

Blake waiting for his bride October 24, 2009!

Mike and I at Amy and Bryan's Wedding

Amy's big day October 17, 2009 Fayetteville, AR

Amy's Bachelorette Party in Nashville, TN Labor Day weekend!

Mike's cousins wedding in Washington State August 22, 2009

Eating crabs with the family in Washington State YUMMY!!

Los Angeles, CA to visit Ashley in July

Now the holiday traveling begins..........

Happy Father's Day!

Happy Father's Day DADDY!!!

I have been so blessed to have had a great father. As I go through life and meet people I have come to realize even more how important a father is in a shaping a girl's life. My dad hasn't always had the easiest road in life, but he would never let you know it. He is the most optimistic non-complaining man I know. He doesn't even realize the lives he has touched and what a strong person he is. I cannot imagine life without him. When Mike and I began to get serious I made it clear that before we got engaged he better have permission. I love you daddy! Thanks for everything! It is NEVER taken for granted. I will always be daddy's little girl!

“The first man a little girl falls in love with is her Dad.” ~ Author Unknown

This is for all my BRIDES!

"The right gown is like a kiss; you just know inside when its' right." Melissa Sweet

As you have probably noticed I love quotes. This one is by Melissa Sweet which is who made my wedding gown. She is a southern designer and her dresses are elegant and couture. My wedding dress was definitely my big splurge for the wedding. To each it's own! Good luck to all my friends getting married this year!

and now I work with adults.....

After 2 and 1/2 years of working full time with children I have gone into a different area of my profession. I know I will miss my autism babies. I am now working in a skilled nursing facility with outpatient services. I am loving it! I get to be involved with the families and improving the quality of life for my patients. Majority of my patient's are geriatrics and I love their sweet hearts. When I am taking care of my patient's I treat them as if they were my own family. Most of my patients have had CVAs, cancer, pneumonia, TBIs, and dementia. My job reminds me to never take a day for granted with the ones I love. Being a Speech Language Pathologist you have a large range of things you are qualified to do. That is one of my top reasons for loving what I do. I tend to get bored easily, so having options is good. We can work with newborns through geriatrics. This field is in a high demand all over the world, it's flexible, it's growing, and it's recession proof. If someone is looking for a career change the rehab setting is the way to go. That includes us, occupational, and physical therapy.

http://www.asha.org/public/slp.htm

Happy 40th Anniversary Mom and Dad!

Today 40 years ago my high school sweetheart parents were married. They have truly set an example for all of us to follow. In today's world it seems people especially Hollywood forget the importance of marriage. Thank you both for raising me in a Christian home filled with lots of love. I love you both more than you know.

A parent's love is whole no matter how many times divided. ~Robert Brault

The Final Recap of our wedding weekend!

Geez I was doing so well keeping up with my blog and now it has been over a month. I wanted to do this so I would always have the memories since I started my blog after we were married. The day I have waited for my entire life has finally arrived. All of my bridesmaids which was a troop :o) met at Lovelace Cafe for our bridesmaid breakfast. My mother's best friends, my sister in laws, grandmother, and aunts were the hostesses. It got the day started off right. After breakfast we all went to the Rodney Mitchell Salon and had hair and makeup done. They served us Mimosa's while we waited. Jenni my hairdresser did an amazing job on my hair.

Now it was time to head to the wedding site the Governors Club"Pleasant Hill Mansion" to finish getting ready. I savored every moment because I could not believe this day was here. Once Mike and I were dressed the million and one pictures had begun. Mike and I decided to have our pictures done before the wedding. I had originally wanted to wait for our pictures after the ceremony, but a good friend of mine gave me a great idea. Mike brought me my bouquet in a private room. We got great pictures of the initial reaction and also some alone time before our big moment. I really like this idea because it's very intimate. I don't know how people have time after the ceremony to even do pictures. We finished with the pictures and it's ceremony time. Right before I walked down the aisle. I looked out and saw so many people I loved so much and how perfect everything was and just thanked God for everything. I of course started crying. My dad looked at me and asked if everything was okay and the only thing I could say was "It is all so perfect." I then grabbed his arm and started down the aisle to meet my soon to be husband. We had stringed instruments for the music and my childhood preacher did the ceremony. Jack my brother's son put on quite a show during the ceremony, Yote Mike's dog was a groomsdog, and the guys wore pirate flag stickers on one side of their tuxedos. Mike had a few requests along the way and I wouldn't have had it any other way. We are now husband and wife and the party has begun. Mike and I had a room setup for us immediately after the ceremony so we could eat and have a minute together as newlyweds. The food was wonderful and the band had everybody dancing. After we finished eating we cut the cake and had our first dance to "Tupelo Honey" by Van Morrison. The father/daughter dance was to "My Girl". The garter toss was caught by Mike's friend Hien Pham and my bouquet toss was a battle between several girls. I think a couple of them got a piece of it. Mike and I talked to guest and danced some until it was time to go to our hotel room at Opryland Hotel. The next morning bright and early we left for our honeymoon in St. Maarten. This was all made possible by both sets of our wonderful and supportive parents. WE LOVE YOU BOTH!!

My recap of the most wonderful weekend of our life! Part 1

So here it goes...... Most of our family and friends arrived in Nashville on Thursday night. That night we had everyone over for a cookout at our house in Murfreesboro, TN. Friday the guys had fun in Nashville and the girls got pedicures and manicures. Everyone was supposed to be at the rehearsal at 5:30. I totally forgot about that being in the middle of rush hour, so all that being said only 5 people made it. At this point we decided we would wing it because weddings really are not that complicated. Our wonderful rehearsal dinner was at Stoney River Steakhouse in Franklin, TN. Mike and I LOVE LOVE this place. We enjoyed great food, drinks, and lots of touching toasts from family and friends. The two that stick out in my head are Mike and Justin's toast. Justin "I would like to thank Mariellen for having such hot friends and best wishes to you both." If you know him that is definitely something he would say. After dinner my sweet bridesmaids and friends had me a lingerie shower. There were lots of great memories shared and of course tears were shed by all. We finally went to bed to get some sleep for the big day. Our wedding ceremony was out side, so for an entire year I prayed for nice weather. In the middle of the night I was woken up by thunder and immediately started praying for God to move that rain out of here. Here are some pictures from the dinner taken by my sister-in-law Maura McConnell. She also did our engagement pictures.

It's a new year!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

So we rang in 2009 as husband and wife at BB Kings in downtown Nashville. The night started at Past Perfect for dinner and our best friend Conner joined us. We really didn't have any plans after that except to have a good time. Some friends we hadn't seen in a long time randomly invited us to BB Kings. It was a great time and I would definitely recommend it to friends next year.

In February we attended Scott and Katherine's wedding at Riverwood Mansion in Nashville. It was a big reunion with old friends. We all stayed at Opryland hotel and good times were had by all. My favorite memory of the weekend was when Mike jumped in the river inside of Opryland hotel and ran around in it. It was one of the funniest things I have seen in a long time. The water was so dirty it ate the glue off the bottom of his shoes. HAHA He keeps life interesting that's for sure. This is our prom picture from the wedding!

In March we held the first annual Bar Golf event with friends downtown. We all dressed up in cheezy golf attire and played 18 holes. (well Mike quit at 15) I wish you could see Mike's outfit better in this picture it was a good one. There was lots of dancing and karaoke at many bars. I believe Conner won the game.

We have 3 days before the big 1 year!!!

A Tennessee Christmas in 2008

There is nothing like Tennessee Christmas. This one was especially special because it was the first time in over 2 years my entire family was together because my brother Don had been in Iraq for the past 15 months. We had so much to be thankful for in 2008 and lots of love to share. 2008 was my most memorable year: Don got home safely from Iraq, Gina and Adam got engaged, Mike and I got married, and we bought a house. This was the first time that Mike had spent Christmas with the Cherrys. We played the Wii, rode four wheelers and loved on our Jack and Mae. I absolutely LOVE the Holidays!!!

Murfreesboro Tornado April 10, 2009

As many of you know a tornado blew through Murfreesboro, TN this past Friday. It started in our community Blackman about a mile from our neighborhood. God was definitely looking out for me and my family. We were minutes from being right in the middle of it in our car. We did not have any damage. Please pray for all the people that did lose everything, the families that lost loved ones, city officials, and all rescue personnel. It has been so neat to see everyone here in Murfreesboro come together to help each other. We went to check on a friend's house where we knew the tornado had touched down and neighbors were immediately out checking on one another and covering roofs. This first video I found on you tube shows the devastation and was done so beautifully. Two lives were lost and this is in memory of the mother and baby.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n_vboJmpx6w
This is the tribute video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2YIq54tOxyQ
This is a video of the actual tornado.

Fall 2008

September 2008

Mike and I bought season tickets to the Tennessee Titans this past year. We had the best time and it was an amazing season. Each game we had a big tailgate with lots of friends. I believe my favorite game was when we beat the STEELERS! I hope we can do it again this year.

October 2008

In October we went with a large group of couples to the Smokey Mountains and stayed in a cabin for the weekend. This picture is from the hardest hike of my life. It was pretty much straight up a moutain and I honestly didn't know if I would make it. The temperature went from 55 degrees to 32 at the top. The guys rocked climbed to the very tip top and the ladies waved from the bottom of the rock :o).

November 2008

Mike and I have to rotate holidays each year because his family lives in the Washington D.C. area. I LOVE going up there. This year we spent Thanksgiving with my wonderful in laws. I really am lucky to have married into such a great family. This picture is when we took the nephews to the Natural History Smithsonian. It was an adventure with these wild boys and a lot of fun.