2 years ago...

we got engaged!!! 2 years ago on this May 30, Philip and I were on the beach at Clearwater on a little beach get-a-way. We went out to dinner at BeachCombers restaurant, then went to watch the sunset on the beach. He got down on one knee and asked me to marry him:)What a happy happy day that was for me:)

on the sand dune where he asked me

The roses and champagne waiting for me back in the hotel room

scripture based promises for our marriage

happily in love

curtains

After months and months of searching, I finally found curtains for the kitchen. Our kitchen is dark red, and our living room is brown and navy so I wanted to tie the 'breakfast area' in with the two. I wanted red and navy curtains that weren't plaid. and let me just tell you how impossible that was to find. Mom and I went to literally every fabric store in lexington. just looking for fabric! she was going to make the curtains for me. but we couldn't find any. Alas, last week I found some (and I didn't measure, so i didn't order enough, and then I was frantically searching for more). my sweet husband put the rods up and hung the curtains for me, and I love them!

BEFORE. gosh, i can't believe I left these like this for over a year!

AFTER

now, to figure out what kind of curtains I need in the formal room... why am i so behind on decorating???

storms

So i went to bed pretty early last night. I worked the past 3 days, and 3 12 hour shifts in a row can wear a girl out. plus philip is on nights right now, so he was not home to hang out with. so, to bed i went. But around 2 am I woke up to a door banging against the doorway. in our house, this isn't that weird. Maya likes to get her paw under the bottom of the door and pull it again and again, making that noise. a lot. but it kept going and going. so i thought ' maybe I accidentally locked maya in the pantry'. that too has happened. a lot. so I called for her, and she came. so now I started freaking out. and let me preface this by saying I do freak out over every little noise. way more when Philip is not home to wake up and investigate. So i called him. he didn't answer. the banging continued. I called him again. no answer. i texted 'please call me, i am scared'. nothing. so i got up and turned on every light in the house. and sure enough, our spare bedroom door was closed but banging against the doorframe. i looked outside and yes it was pretty windy, but its been windy before and never done that. i called philip, again. no luck. i stuffed a towel under the doorway trying to make it stop. there was no way I was opening that door to see what was making it bang. i figured it was probably the wind, but you never know. i even thought maybe a window broke and that was making the wind pull the door. and I thought 'i should probably go in there, this rain will ruin everything'. but fear got the best of me. what if it was a monster or a person? trying to get out? i stuffed the towel harder.
So I came down to the couch and turned on the tv. yes, there was a tornado watch. and a severe thunder storm warning. and lexington was covered in green on the radar and moving to the 'red'. I called philip. this time he answered. he stayed on the phone with me as long as he could trying to help me go back to sleep. but I was convinced that there was a person in our spare bedroom and that now me and the animals were going to get sucked away by a tornado. so we all stayed on the couch. jackson was determined to sleep right next to me. and he kept pushing me off the couch. maya was wanting to sleep on my chest. I think they were as scared as I was. so it was a long night last night. praying I dont get called in to work today- I need today to clean and catch up.
oh, and i still haven't opened that door. philip can do it when he wakes up.

1 year old! or is it 7?

Happy Birthday Jackson!!!

This morning he woke me up (like he always does) by sitting next to my side of the bed, whimpering. sometimes pawing. But I couldnt get mad at him like I often do. I mean, it is his birthday. So instead I sang Happy Birthday to him. not the whole thing, a condensed version.  and he looked at me, turning his head to the right then the left as I serenaded him in an off key voice. but his little nubbin of a tail was wagging. So he might have been thinking 'this is awful' but it seemed to make him happy.

Yesterday I made a trip to the Bluegrass Barkery to get Jax some birthday treats. For those of you who have pets, you must visit this store. It is like a Toys-R-Us for your furry friend. and they encourage you to bring your pets with you. Everything there is all natural; toys, food, shampoo,drinks,etc. it's all good for them. So i was planning on just getting him a little birthday cake. But then I saw that they make beer for dogs (its really just broth with some glucosamine in it-for their joints. you can get chicken which is a pale ale, or beef which is a dark ale). and I knew Philip would love it. And then i saw a toy labeled 'tough and indestructible'.perfect for a dog that can find a way to destroy metal. So i had to get him that too. Then i forced myself to get out of there before I bought him more stuff he really didn't need. this is not a good sign for when I have kids...

We waited to celebrate Jackson's birthday until Philip got off work. because he left at 5am this morning, and neither Jax nor myself were in any mood for a beef flavored beer and granola birthday cake.

Happy Birthday Lil' Buddy! You have brought so much entertainment, love, and slobber to our household:) 

Belated Mother's Day

I havent blogged in over a week... (sorry aunt ellen!)
I feel like i have had a lot going on, but not really.
Sunday we had a late mother's day celebration, since Mom was out of town on actual mother's day. We grilled steaks, corn on the cob, loaded mashed potato casserole and fruit pizza. The steaks were amazing, compliments of aunt ellen. she knew if I was in charge of buying them, I would not get the good stuff, like she does:) lucky us! Matt and rachel were in charge of the corn. of course, rachel loves corn. and I made a loaded mashed potato casserole from a recipe i found here. and of course I made fruit pizza, a Wilhoite favorite.

I love having family get togethers. I always feel the most 'myself' when I am around my family. it's like plugging my batteries in and getting them recharged. :)

* prayer request: they have found a mass on my Grandma B's lung. she has to have a biopsy on Friday morning to figure out what it is and if it is cancerous. Please say a prayer for her and for the procedure.*
*praise!: my Godchild Tyndall recently had to go into the pediatric ICU from DKA, a complication of her diabetes. She is recovered and doing so well! Thank you Jesus:)*

Ty holding the stuffed animal we sent her :)

I'm Lovin' It

To keep up with my friend Megan who does 'what I love wednesday' blogs. and my friend Kari who does 'Magnificent Monday' blogs, I am going to do a "I'm Loving It" blog. due to my work schedule being ever changing I can't commit to one day a week where I write about what I am" lovin'". So, these will be sporadic when the mood hits me:) as it is now...
Having just got back from a wonderful dinner with my good friend Ann, I am loving the new restaurant Josie's in chevy chase center. (thank you Whitney for introducing me!)

Owned by the same people that used to own Murrays- they serve breakfast alllll day (and lunch and dinner). it is YUMMY. like closeyoureyes-when-you-take-a-bite yummy. try it out, you'll like it.

Two Words: Orange Leaf. it's all the rave here in Lexington, and I am no exception. What is there not to love about getting your own bowl, putting the amount you want in as many different flavors as you want, with whatever toppings you want. how can that go wrong? You know what's even better?
nurses get 10oz free this week for nurses week!!!!

SUNSHINE! the sun has finally started shining again in our neck of the woods. hallelujah! hopefully the rainy season is coming to an end and summer can officially start!

3 weeks until we leave for Boston. which i am oh so excited about because Philip is on a night rotation right now which puts him exact opposite of my work schedule. so if he stays over 15 minutes I can get a quick kiss when he is leaving and i am coming in. Hopefully this will be what we will be looking at soon~

Fenway park

 a little over 1 month until Wilhoite Family Vacation!!! We are switching it up and going to TN this year to houses on a lake. I love family vacation. and i am so excited Philip gets to come to part of it this year.

our chalet for the week

Hope everyone is having a happy Tuesday :) :)

nerd alert, I know

A few weeks ago I posted on facebook asking for good book suggestions. I got several good recommendations. But the one that was repeated was the 'Hunger Games'. my brother and his fiance read the books and both seemed to like them as well. So i decided to give it a shot.
I got online to see which Lexington Public Library had the first of the trilogy available. and NONE of them did. not only were they all checked out, they were all on reserve! a little annoying, but a good sign for the quality of the books.
So I bought the first one. which i don't usually do because I am so cheap. but i read the first one in almost a day. I was hooked from the first page. The next morning, I went to Target at 8am and bought the second. and a few days later, the third. because I could not wait to see what happened. I loved the series 'Girl with the Dragon Tattoo' but it took me about 150 pages to get into the first book. This series hooked me from the beginning and I literally could not put it down. I highly recommend them. They are different, but oh so addictive. Every few chapters I would tell Philip about what was going on, and he would come home and ask me ' so what is happening now?'. These aren't 'girly' books. boys will like them too.
There are movies being made, and I will watch them. but they will undoubtedly not be as good as the books. movies never are. 
I sent these books with my Mom to the beach and she is hooked as well. So i have all 3 if anyone would like to delve into them, and i think you should.

Thank you for those of you who suggested I read these books. I owe you:)

my favorite reading spot

Momma

Today is Mother's Day. and I like to think that I show my mom how much I love and appreciate her often. but I do like that she has a day that is devoted to celebrating her being a mom. because there are only two of us in this world that can call her that. (well I guess Philip and Rachel could technically call her that too, but you know what I mean).
Now that I am 'older', i look at my  mom in a completely different light. I look at her and wonder how she did it all. How she raised me and Matt the way that she did. How she managed to go to work, get dinner on the table, spend time with us, take us to sports, cheer us on, clean, laundry, the list could go on. I think back on my childhood and know that is exactly what I want for my kids. To have parents like i have. who love each other and love God and love us so much. God blessed (well, blesses) me so much with my mom. She constantly shows me how to put others first. she is all the time doing something for someone else. She is always there to encourage me, pray for me, or just listen to me. I can only pray that one day I will be able to be what she has been to me :)

On another note: I would like to say happy mommy-to-be to my friends & cousin that are expecting! There is about to be a baby boom in our group of friends and I am so excited for it:) Crystal is expecting a little girl, and it makes me so happy! we need more girls in the Wilhoite family to balance out all the testosterone:)
Happy Mother's Day to all the moms, grandmas, aunts and mommy's-to-be:)