We had a super busy + fun weekend. Friday night, we spent the night printing. Then, Saturday we headed to Houston to celebrate our niece’s 4th birthday. The party was held at a huge gymnasium where she and her brother take lessons. There were foam block pits to play in, slides, trampolines, lots of squishy surfaces to walk on and big spaces to run + roam in. The party was so much fun. Em truly enjoyed herself.

On Sunday, we took Em to the zoo for the first time.

She loves animals. She makes lots of animal sounds. Tiger growls. Lion roars. Elephant noises. She stomps like a rhino. When she saw them all in person, she got so excited. And, surprisingly, she wasn’t scared of them. Like the monkey below – she wanted to touch him. Don’t worry, he was behind a thick glass.

She also got to ride a carousel for the first time. She squealed with happiness when it began going up and down and the music started playing.

So much fun! How was your weekend? Anything exciting?

A few weeks ago, we took a weekend road trip to New Orleans. It was a special road trip because we were meeting up with some very special people. People I’ve been friends with for quite some time. Some of them I’ve known for 5 years. Most of them, however, I had never met in person.

Although I don’t talk much about them here on the blog, these friends have played a huge role in my life. Originally, we met because we had a big event in our lives in common. We were all planning our weddings, and all of us blogged about our wedding journey on Weddingbee.

Since our weddings, we’ve stayed in contact and many of us have gone through new journeys together. House adventures, business ventures + baby adventures. I love having these girls in my life. We’re spread out all over the world so it was very special to gather for a few days of fun!

kacey, em and i just got back from a whirlwind road trip. friday we went to dallas and joined friends for a pool party. then, we headed to tulsa to meet up with my cousins-in-law. next, we headed to midwest city to visit kacey’s grandmother. em also met other family members there for the first time as we gathered for a nice family dinner. lastly, we drove to oklahoma city to meet up with a friend, and then we headed back home.

kacey grew up in tulsa. i had never been, so he showed me around. we went to the center of the universe -

it’s a spot downtown where you stand in the center of a circle on the ground to hear your voice echo. it’s pretty cool -

chandler park,

turkey mountain,

drove down riverside and passed by his childhood home. the top window is where his bedroom was. and those trees? he use to spend his afternoons climbing them.

his street was a dead end. they use to throw block parties here and light fireworks for the fourth of july.

all these memories got us talking about our little em. what will her memories be? what will she look back on and smile about?

weekend before last, e, kacey and i took a little day trip to new orleans. we hit up court of two sisters for brunch with friends and went to morning call for my favorite powdery new orleans beignets.

this weekend, kacey and i took a little babymoon to san antonio, san marcos and fredericksburg, texas.

friday night, we found a fabulous sushi restaurant in san antonio where we ended up eating two nights in a row. it was so yummy, and i was a good girl and stuck to the cooked rolls.

saturday, we drove from san antonio to fredericksburg, a quaint little german town, and popped in and out of the shops including this cute one. for lunch, we dined at rathskeller. it’s a cozy, easily missed restaurant that’s located in the basement of what use to be a hospital. after, kacey grabbed a german beer at the fredericksburg brewery, and we continued strolling along main street. we happened upon this amazing german structure in a little park area. wonderful right?

sunday we headed to san marcos, had lunch at center point station and headed over to the humungo outlet mall. i think i spent an hour at the pottery barn outlet trying to decide on bedding and drapes for the nursery. after much going back and forth, i ended up just getting a mobile. it’s cute and was a great deal.

we had such a great + relaxing weekend. how about you, what did you do this weekend?

enough with this cold weather. right now, i wish i were here…

and while i’m at it, i’d like one of these…

followed by watching this…

ahh, i feel warmer already!  |  pics via our maui vacation taken in november of 2008.

this time three years ago, kacey and i were enjoying our honeymoon in st. lucia. care to come along as i reminisce?

for the first three nights on st. lucia, we stayed at ladera which is a magnificent resort that’s very open to nature. it has the most breathtaking views of the pitons and caribbean sea. everywhere there is this beautiful rich wood, and lots of it is carved.

although the suites & villas are close, each was super private and quiet. at night we only heard the sounds of nature and babbling water from our private plunge pool.

each suite and villa at ladera has only 3 walls. the 4th is an “open wall” allowing for uninterrupted panoramic views.

ah, and then there was the beach! such a beautiful beach!

ladera was very laid back. it was like we were on nature’s time. no phones. no tv. yes, there was internet, but it was on one computer near the open air reception area. it was a place to go for peace, quiet and inner reflection. it was the perfect calmness we were seeking after the whirlwind of the wedding.