anniversary

warning: this post may be overloaded with gushing about ross pinson. proceed with reading at your own risk.

we woke up early & enjoyed a quick little breakfast of sliced cherry tomatoes and hard-boiled eggs at our kitchen table.  the sun was just coming up on our drive to the airport; a brightly glowing grapefruit warming the cool blue sky and thin cotton candy clouds.  we just couldn't stop looking at each other.  thankfully, we'd both given up on stifling that pesky uncomfortable feeling in our throats last night and finally let it out; so this morning was calm and warm with love.  until we got to the airport, that is, but even that wasn't so bad.  i parked the car and got out with him, and we must have looked like a couple of high schoolers the way we were kissing and looking longingly into each others eyes. the whole goodbye scene was kind of silly, which was nice and it helped the tears go away.  but hey, the longest we've been apart since we've been married is a whopping two nights, and today we embarked on our 5 weeks of long distance marriage- so i don't feel too bad about being cheesy or a little teary or anything else for that matter.

i know it's easy to say right now, since i was just in ross' arms a few hours ago, but i feel really good about this season.  ross prayed over us last night and again this morning, and theres a peace in my heart about how sweet this time apart will be.  the way ross and i enjoyed every little minute this past weekend proved that sometimes we need a deadline to stop taking our time together for granted.  and speaking of this past weekend, i have to take a few minutes to gush & brag about how cool my husband is. 

we got back on sunday from what seriously felt like a second honeymoon.  ross planned every detail & kept everything as a surprise, and he completely swept me off my feet.

late friday afternoon we arrived in dallas and pulled up to an incredibly beautiful hotel, the adolfus. i fell in love with the gorgeous french style and had ross cracking up as i freaked out about all the beautiful furniture, mirrors, fabrics, etc. straight up swoon. 

we quickly headed out to catch our dinner reservations at a resturant ross picked out for the evening, nonna. mouth wateringly-delicious. incredible service, atmosphere and especially food. the lobster ravioli is to die for. 

 

afterwards we headed to the big event of the weekend/year: WICKED! i'm afraid even my most eleoquent descriptions would fall flat & i would fail miserably at describing what was by far one of (if not the) most entertaining, talent-packed, captivating performances i've ever had the pleasure of seeing. my super high expectations were puny in comparison to the reality. we had a blast.

that night we also had the pleasure of celebrating one of ross' best friends' engagement with a whole house filled with baylor people. can a day get any better?

yes it can. when we got back to the hotel, there was a bottle of champaign waiting for us. i was practically get whiplash from all of the surprises my husband had up his sleeve.  seriously, my husband is the man. 

we snoozed & snuggled our way through our breakfast plans, but managed to get up & going in time to meet one my best friends for lunch before the next surprise: rent bikes & ride all around round rock lake. the weather could not have been nicer and i was very grateful to be burning off some of the calories from friday nights praline nougatine semifreddo with pistachios and acacia honey (basically a fluffy little white slice of heaven).  we took lots of breaks to admire the views, and enjoyed riding by all the pretty houses an dreaming of one day (many, many years from now) owning a house of our own. 

that evening we enjoyed a couple of drinks at the adolfus so we could walk around and admire it some more before our next surprise: dinner & dancing at sambuca. loved it. we definitely want to go back. for us, sambuca has it all: swanky atmosphere, great food, live music, and a dance floor.  of course ross told the band we were celebrating our anniversary while i was in the bathroom.  so they called us out later in the evening to dance to the song ross and requested: brown eyed girl. 

and THEN, as if my heart wasn't already exploding with love and gratitude and shock, ross says to me,

"i know we said that the wicked tickets were are gift and we weren't going to do anything else, but..."

and pulls out from his pocket the infamous pretty little teal box with white ribbon and i couldn't keep from tearing up at the words that came with it, as he talked about this past year, our future, and especially the next 5 weeks. 

it was nice coming back to college station yesterday and enjoying a usual sunday.  unpacking, laundry, a game of tennis, a long walk and snow cones.  spanish salad and garlic bread for dinner and then a movie.  

ross said he wanted to make our anniversary weekend extra-special since we wont be together on the 4th, and he absolutely did.  i am incredibly blessed to have him as a husband and best friend, and i'm also starting to feel pretty spoiled. the reason i wanted to write down all those little details is because i know in the next 5 weeks i'll be drawing from the fullness of our weekend and reliving it all.

i feel like shouting out elf-style "i'm in love, i'm in love and i don't care who knows it!"  can't freakin wait to drive back to the tiny college station airport in 5 weeks and pick him up.  thankfully, i have that long to try and plan a few surprises of my own. that ross franklin leaves a tough act to follow...

happy friday!

here are a couple of the songs that have been on repeat in our home this week. 

they are especially sweet on a lovely summer friday afternoon.

for our one year anniversary gift to each other- we got tickets to WICKED!

can't. freaking. wait!

...and some pump up music for tonight:

life here; an update

sarah called me today.  

just typing that i get a little choked up.  

she called right as i went on my ten minute break and it was so wonderful and refreshing to hear her voice, even if it was just a short tease.  it's hard when your friends are all far away; especially when your best friend chased down her dream of living in madrid. 

 i've been a little absent from the blogosphere (wow, that's really a word) lately and it's because sometimes talking about what's going on in your life is difficult when your heart is missing the things you aren't doing... namely, living with & close by best friends.  

i miss you so much it hurts, smiller.

  friends, i miss you so much that sometimes i feel like i can't breath.  

ok, enough of the emo drama queen bit.  

life here lately has been good.  we're young and we're just trying to have fun with the stage in our life... even though the transition had bee pretty touch & go.  

ross has been my rock. 

 my silly, cooking, dancing, singing, joking, snuggling, 

hard-working, rock.  

after a loooong day or work & studying, we actually went out

 and had good time.  

this past weekend was especially great, but for some reason i sadly did not take any pictures! chuval stayed with us for three nights, or in her words, "for like eighteen years."  

red beans and rice, tiger football, crafts, shopping, big, rainy weather and lattes made for a fantastic little bryan weekend.  

ross & i even celebrated our 3 month anniversary by seeing the bryan community theaters production of guys and dolls. sooooo good!

 {sit down, you're rockin', rockin' the boat}

it turns out the theatre is tucked right behind the 

golds gym, HEB, and joannes fabric which we always go.  who knew? hidden gems...

lots and lots of rain.  like, almost everyday.  so when it's sunny, and we're free, 

we take advantage by partaking in some poolside reading & studying.

and by that i of course mean napping. 

snapped this while driving to work the other day (not too safe).

i really do have a pretty commute. i'm thinking about video taping it or something, 

because it really is nice. 

and sometimes you just need to be really grateful about the little things 

that make you smile.  because even when i miss my friends, ross is here.

and when i miss my mom, she sends me a card in the mail.  

and when we're lonely, sad, or happy we have music. 

and when it rains we have blankets.

and when it's cloudy we know the sun is just waiting to come out,

to warm our skin again and kiss our cheeks. and because even when

 we feel hopeless we know that Jesus doesn't think so at all.

  and then life once again seems full and beautiful and precious. 

because it's all gift. even the hard parts. 

month one

"come, grow old with me-

  the best is yet to be."

  {robert browning}

yesterday we celebrated our one month anniversary.  a baseball game, free hot dogs & beer, and a yummy chocolate torte from a little local bakery.  it was perfect  :)

this past month i've been trying to best describe what it feels like to be married. to me, marriage feels like a firm & warm hug; that great feeling that rushes over you when someone you haven't seen in a while hugs you. and i mean really hugs you.  your heart is happy, you feel safe, and you're just glad to be there. 

similarly, the greek orthodox church explains the mystery of the Trinity with an image of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit locked dancing in a circle, holding hands.  the church holds that the three are in fact one through their fierce, joyful love for one another.  perfect community. 

which is exactly what God wants for us here on earth.  firstly, He created us with a need to hold his hand.  we are not whole without Him.  secondly, we are called to live in community with those around us.  family, roommates, neighbors, coworkers, etc. we all need each other.  

in marriage, you know he will always be there for you.  his hearts desire is to love, please, protect, and provide for you... for the rest of his life.  he's not letting go of your hand.  so, you get locked into your own three-part dancing circle with the Creator.  we get a glimpse of who He is and what he wants for us.

all that to say, it's been an incredible month, and i hope it's in God's plan that we will have many more anniversaries to celebrate.  i've found that marriage is a powerful way God reminds us of his perfect love & challenges us to die to ourselves daily.  in the words of one of my favorite college professors, blair browning, "marriage is great. i highly recommend it." 

{p.s. ross also just convinced me that we had to order some drawer pulls from anthropologie. yessss. my husband rocks!}