Bachelorette Party!

I thought it would be fun to take a group cooking class for my bachelorette party!  My bridal attendants/best friends and I drove to Huntsville, AL on a Friday night and cooked with Chef Margaret at The Chef Next Door.  Margaret is an excellent cook and does a fantastic job teaching cooking classes!  We really had a great time!
    
 Me and my girls with Chef Margaret

Every single one of these ladies made major sacrifices to come celebrate with me, and I am so grateful for their HUGE efforts!  These girls are such a blessing to me, and I love them dearly! :)  

We learned a new healthy dinner recipe that I have made several times since!  I LOVE it!
 

 Grilled Honey Lime Chicken Lettuce Wrap

  

Orange-Cilantro Rice

Corn and Black Bean Salsa

 Guacamole (Jason's favorite!)

Traffic was pretty bad heading to Huntsville so we arrived about an hour later than planned.  By the time we/Margaret finished cooking we were ready to eat!!!

After we ate dinner, we headed to The Westin Huntsville in the Bridge Street Town Centre where my sweet friends surprised me with the cutest lingerie party I have ever seen!  In keeping with the holiday season, the theme was "Naughty or Nice?"  I have such creative and talented friends!

 
 I mean just look how CUTE!!!  
Stockings hung on the dresser with care, gingerbread cookies decorated with red underwear! ;) Sparkling grape juice topped with a candy cane treat, made for a refreshing drink that tasted so sweet!  Hershey's kisses and cupcakes galore, could a girl ever ask for anything more?! 

I was pretty excited to get to wear THE "bachelorette party veil", previously worn by Bonnie and Lizzie!  :) 

The next morning we woke up and got ready for breakfast at Panera Bread.  Then we headed home to watch Alabama play in the SEC Championship!  Thank you sweet friends for all your hard work!  You truly made this night/morning so perfect!

  

My Graduation!!!

I thought this day would NEVER get here!  After 3 challenging years of graduate school, I finally earned my Doctorate of Physical Therapy on December 4, 2012!  Can you tell how excited I was!?!  

Unfortunately, the power in the building went out as we were marching down the aisle.  My mom had her camera out ready to snap a picture, and as soon as I approached their aisle the room went pitch black dark.  So...I graduated in the dark!

I would have never made it this far without the constant encouragement from my family and friends.  They lived through it all, including the multiple meltdowns and unpleasant moods that accompanied the stress.  I cannot thank them enough for continuing to cheer me on the whole way through!  I am pretty sure they graduated on this day as well!  ;)    

Love from the brothers...

My younger brother, Grant, REALLY wanted to be there, but my graduation night fell right in the middle of his finals at Auburn.  We missed him, but I know he was there in spirit!  And of course Mom made sure we remembered him in our pictures! ;)

I love my parents SO much!  And that is an understatement!  I am blessed beyond measure to have them as my parents!  Thank you, Mom and Dad, for always believing in me and for helping me achieve my dreams!!!

Some of my favorite memories of PT school are my rides to and from school with Jason.  I think Jason enjoyed our rides also, except for maybe the days I had tests. ;)  He got up extra early to come pick me up, and waited patiently for me to get out of class.  He even carried my heavy backpack for me until we parted ways to go to our classes.  Isn't he the best!?!  I just love him to pieces!!! 

 I am so thankful I had the opportunity to get to know these incredible girls and that we got to share in this experience together!

Afterwards, we celebrated at The Fish Market.  It was a great ending  to a great night!

Engagement Pictures

Jason and I had so much fun taking engagement pictures with our very talented photographer, Ann Wade Parrish!  Here are some of our favorites... 

With compliments from the chef

Saturday night, we were treated to a one-of-a-kind dinner by our best friends Josh and Bonnie at the 360° Grille in Florence. 

Local cheeses...filets...grouper...bread pudding and coffee...a simply amazing meal.

We laughed and ate for nearly 2 and 1/2 hours atop the Renaissance Tower, which rotates 360° over approximately 1 hour and 45 minutes and provides panoramic views in every direction over Florence and Muscle Shoals, the Tennessee River, and Wilson Dam (historical narration provided by Jason).

As if this wasn't enough, we were given a truly incredible wedding gift -- a Canon Rebel T3 -- which we subsequently used to capture the evening.

We don't know how to adequately thank them for this AMAZING night and gift!