One Year

We officially entered our second year of marriage this weekend. To celebrate one whole year, we took a little walk down memory lane. (Sounds kind of like we're an old married couple now!)

1. We watched our wedding video and laughed at all the quirky things that we never realized happened.

2. We ate part of the top tier of our cake, which was still pretty yum.

3. We took a walk at Radnor Lake (the spot of our third date - and where I first realized that Dan was the cutest boy I'd ever met).

4. We visited Covenant Pres, where we were married. (Unfortunately, it was locked, so we just looked at the outside of the building. That was okay.)

5. Lastly, we ate dinner at the Capitol Grille (located at the Hermitage Hotel, where we stayed the first two nights of the honeymoon). The onion bisque with a toasted brie sandwich is aaaaamazing.

Patty did a wonderful job preserving the cake!

Of course, Dan made lattes - he makes the best!

Apparently, it was no good at all...

Radnor Lake is one of our favorite quiet spots in Nashville. It's a great place for dreaming and scheming... for us, that might be a little dangerous!

Alaska, Part Two: The Bush

The Bush was very much part two of our trip. Fairbanks and the Bush couldn't be more different.

We made our way through several villages by way of a small Bonanza plane, and it was an incredible experience. The first day we flew, it was -35 degrees F (1 degree colder and we could not have safely flown), but it was a gorgeous sunny day and you could see everything. The rugged landscape was breathtaking.

The beautiful people who live in these tiny villages were also a pleasure to meet. We enjoyed meeting several Christian teachers who live and work among the native people, and we have such respect for what they do.

Enjoy the pictures!

It was cold.

This was just lying on the Wilson's kitchen counter when I came inside. A moose leg. It just looked so appetizing that I thought I would sneak a taste while no one was looking.

Us with our fantastic pilot, Jerry.

Our sweet friends, Bill and Wanda Wilson. We stayed with them and their wonderful kids. They consider Dan to be a brother, so it was a real treat to get to know them.

The view as we are about to land in a village.

I flew a plane! With lots of assistance.

The view is breathtaking - too much for a camera.

Dan finds new friends in all shapes and sizes. This one is particularly cute!

And these are pretty cute, too.

The high school class in Chuathbaluk.

Dog sled race!

Dan makes the news...

http://www.army.mil/-news/2011/01/13/50368-musician-storyteller-visits-wainwright/?ref=news-asiapacific-title6

Alaska Part 1: Fairbanks

"And to our right, you'll see a native Alaskan in his natural habitat." That's my favorite quote of the week, spoken by one of the Air Force guys we met at the retreat this weekend. It was -20 degrees and we passed by a man outside in nothing but jeans and a flannel. That's what I call acclimatizing. We city folk from middle Tennessee just don't see how 15 degrees is considered unseasonably warm.

Our week in Fairbanks has been eventful. Enjoy the pictures!

This is where we've been staying. It's so warm and cozy.

Okay, not really. We do stay in an actual house with actual heat.

Dan plays for a youth group

Trivia: is the sun rising or setting? Answer: Both!

The beautiful woods after a snowfall

Some sweet friends we met along the way...

House concert on Fort Wainwright

Marriage retreat at Chena Hot Springs

Ice Museum - a work of art

Some of the folks at the singles retreat this weekend

This is THE place to stay if you're ever in the Fairbanks area.

Next week, we'll be in the bush. I hope to see some moose!

Notes from the Tilt-A-Whirl

It's a dizzying read, but it's good.

Notes from the Tilt-a-Whirl trailer from Gorilla Poet Productions on Vimeo.

One of my many favorite sections:

Ants are easy to describe. They have six legs. But what words do I have to capture the transcendent? The truest description I conceive if sure to have a false side. Which of these twenty-six letters should I use to try and shape you a bust of the Infinite?

Shall I tell you a poem about footprints in the sand?

Should we talk about spheres, about spinning, about war, about philosophy, about children and insects and soil and tombstones and stars and antimatter? It is not enough.

When the Artist set Himself to this same task, naked mole rats happened. So did haiku, Saturn's rings, the three forms of water, fire, Greek people, and the occasional egg-laying mammal.

Why We Love Aldi

Today's grocery list:

Gallon of milk

Bag of lemons

Butter

3 bags of cranberries

Celery

12 Eggs

Baby Carrots

A bag of apples

Another bag of apples

4 grapefruits

A bag of sweet potatoes

3 logs of goat cheese

Mouthwash

12 rolls of toilet paper

6 paper towel rolls

Soap

A pair of shoes for my niece for Christmas

TOTAL: $50.84

Publix - I love the variety, thanks. But Aldi is kinder to our bank account.

Aldi, you win.

Greenville and Charleston, SC

This past week we were in South Carolina -- partly for work, partly for play. Our first stop was Lewis and Melissa Young's house in Greenville, of course. Dan lived with them for 4 1/2 years after college. Of course, he was on the road for the majority of that time. But you'd never know. He walks into the house and it's as if he never left. Melissa's had a trunk full of his fishing gear sitting in the guest bedroom for years, which she was more than glad to get rid of finally. And they still make him clean up after himself.

We had a dinner party for some of our Greenville friends. For dinner, pumpkin pasta and asparagus. For dessert, poached pears with a vanilla bean sauce. We had to roll our guests out to their cars. But fortunately, everyone enjoyed it.

I took some photos of trees on their gorgeous property. They've had a little more rainfall than we have, and so I enjoyed the beautiful colors while I could. The one below I've titled, "Don't Be Shy."

We also visited the Citadel, Dan's Alma Mater. The campus was empty for fall break when I took these pictures, but we did drive through the campus the day before when all the students were there. So I saw the freshmen (the "Knobs") walking rigidly in the gutter from one class to another.

My talented husband. We found this hanging on the wall in one of the common rooms -- memorabilia of a talent show Dan won while he was there. He's the one holding the guitar in the second picture down.

It was quite chilly out, but we did stop in at the beach for a few minutes.

And, of course, Kaminskys, one of Dan's favorite little places in Charleston. Their flour-less Chocolate cake is pretty fantastic.

We stopped in on some old friends, as well. Below is Bryan Ray, looking at Dan suspiciously. Bryan was Dan's best man. What an incredible friend. And he has an adorable wife and two little boys. We really enjoyed hanging with them for a few hours.

Oh -- and the reason we went to South Carolina in the first place. Dan played at Fort Jackson and made some great connections with chaplains at the chaplain school. I didn't get many pictures of this either. (Sigh.) It really was an encouraging time of ministry. We stayed with John and Isie Kenyon (ahem, no pictures) and their five beautiful kids. They were a treat for me to get to know.