so long summer

september 12th already.  while i do love summer, fall has to be my favorite time of year.  what's not to love about cooler weather, denim and long-sleeved cardigans, colorful and vibrant leaves, pumpkin bread, the start of football, warm, spicy candle scents, and the excitement of approaching holidays?  since i haven't been a faithful blogger, i figured i would catch you all up on some of the highlights of the summer.  

1. we bought our first pieces of furniture, an entertainment center and coffee table. 

  

2. we visited memphis where we spent nearly four hours at the zoo, shopped at anthropologie and the apple store, ate famous rendezvous ribs, walked beale street, and took a nap in the car. :)  we appropriately listened to this song {walking in memphis} during the drive into the city. 

we decided to check back with the kitty after walking around the zoo for 3.5 hours.  rolling over was the extent of her activity...almost as lazy as our cats.

notice the similarities. 

we played with this guy at the petting zoo and used some hay to get his attention.

best exhibit at the zoo.  this polar bear showed off with his swimming skills.

some sweet live music {taken with my canon}

words could not even express david's happiness. 

moist towelettes are a necessity.

3.  i turned 24 in august.  thirty sure doesn't seem as old as it once did. :)  being the good husband that he is and knowing how much i love my birthday, david made sure to start the celebrations a week early with a gift and flowers.  we also received cupcakes from david's parents which we nibbled on all week and recycled the box by using it to play with the cats.  

oliver climbed in and laid on the dry ice pack.  

so we closed the box and tiger sat on top.  what fun would having cats be if you didn't mess with them a little.  don't worry, tiger freed him later, and oliver was only partially traumatized.

4.  for my birthday celebration, david took me to hot springs for the weekend where we had our first couple's massage (highly recommended).  

we toured a historic bathhouse.  this was a common spa treatment used to help with physical ailments.  a person would sit in the box with his head sticking out like in the picture below.  

we tried it out on tiger, but for some reason, he didn't find it therapeutic. 

hot spring...probably around 140 degrees.

our hotel, the arlington.

stellar shades

4.  david started flying the c130J!  (btw, his ground evaluation is tomorrow and his final check ride is on wednesday.  prayers would be appreciated) 

5.  i visited colorado for the first time since we got married.  so good to be back in the dry climate with my sweet family enjoying the beautiful mountains.  

at the airport waiting for my flight.  

so fun to see marie and meet little shiloh.  he's so precious!

mom and josh took me to a yummy crepe restaurant downtown.

i will never get sick of that view.

i made david's bean dip, and it was a hit. 

mikayla has her permit, and i rode with her on a trip to the grocery store.  phew, it was scarier than i had anticipated although we did made it home in one piece, and she drove pretty well.  

 6.  mom and dad deal visited us for a weekend.  sadly, we didn't take any pictures, but we had a great time showing them around, playing with the cats, and doing some house projects such as planting our first bushes.  

before

after 

(burning bushes to remember us long after we have moved on)

the rest of the summer consisted of working, studying, reading, laying out at the pool, sleeping in, eating at whole foods, watching movies, and avoiding the ridiculous heat and humidity.  less than a month until the move and only a few more days of work for david and i.  time to house hunt, pack up the house, and head to our next adventure....TEXAS.  

do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to god.  And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in christ jesus.  do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.  -philippians 4:-6-7