Surprise Sunday Funday

Today was the first day in I don't even know how long that I got to wake up in my own bed in my own house without an alarm set or a thing to do before noon. GLORIOUS.

I awoke at about 8:45 but was determined to just stay in bed and relax and eventually I fell back asleep. That is, until I woke up to this:

Eggs, Sweet Potato Hash Browns, and a Biscuit. Top of the morning to me.

B surprised me with breakfast in bed! What a dear. He even fixed pumpkin spiced coffee! I think I finally have him on the fall bandwagon. After breakfast I got the grand idea that we should go to Piedmont Park, bring a blanket, and relax for a couple of hours. He was up for it and we headed to the park. Much to our surprise, when we walked to the park we found ourselves at the Atlanta Art Festival, which was being held in the park over the weekend.

We walked around and checked out some cool exhibits, ran into friends Jason and Allie, and eventually made our way to a nice patch of grass where we settled in and listened to some music while enjoying delectable King of Pops popsicles.




Watermelon Mojito and Strawerries & Cream. King of Pops, indeed.



There was a cute guy and girl duo on stage singing some perfect Sunday tunes by like Hallelujah and Tequila Sunrise. The weather, while not as crisp as I'd like, was a comfy temperature that made for some perfectly pleasant deep breaths and relaxation.



Not a bad view.



After leaving the festival we stopped at one of our my favorite spots for a margarita and some tacos. We sat on the porch and watched some cute kids pass by, waving to the puppies who sat on the other side of the fence hoping for the occasional chip to be tossed to them from their parents who sat at the next table.

This was a good day.

As thrilling as the wedding planning process is, I am reeeally looking forward to more days like this in the future once we are married and things calm down a bit (that is, after my India trip... and Thanksgiving... and Christmas). It is so fun to wake up with no idea where the day will take you and to be surprised by the mini-adventures you find.

30 days and counting!

Today is September 13th and this time next month I am going to be a WIFE.

Holy. Cow.

We had our Walk Through with our wonderful vendors today at the Atlanta Botanical Garden where the reception will be held. Our florist, our caterer, and our wedding planners were all in attendance as well as my parents. Unfortunately B had a work commitment and couldn't attend. Let me tell you how cool it was to sit at the table with these people. I think that people in the wedding and event business have their own language. There was talk of chivaris and 4x8's and high tops and coffee and cake courses going back and forth like you would not believe. It was impressive. I just sort of sat back and observed while the little girl in the dress up bridal gown my Gamie made me jumped up and down screaming "Yippee! Woohoo! It's happening!"

I feel so blessed and lucky to have this team of experts coming together to make our day go off smoothly. I know there is still much to be done, but after this meeting today, I feel so assured that no matter what happens, it is going to be an incredible day. A perfect setting and backdrop for the biggest and most significant commitment Bryan and I will ever make. Talking through the details makes everything so real, and now it's a matter of days- not months- until I get to walk down the aisle to the kindest man I know.

I am keeping my fingers crossed for cool, crisp, fall weather on the bog day. In fact Bryan told me last night that I have to stop saying the word "fall" because I am driving him nuts. Oops. I think I am sort of willing the season to change so that we get those beautiful orange, yellow, and red hues we're hoping for in the background of the pictures. But even if it rains or it's hot as blue blazes- we will still be sitting down enjoying some delicious surf and turf and drinks at our reception surrounded by loved ones this time in one month. So really, it's all good.

Levy Parterre, where the cocktail hour will be. BEAUTIFUL.

Morning Chats with Ben

I called my sister this morning, which I do most days, to check in and see what is happening today in her crazy, busy, 2 kid-having life. She lives a state away so it's sort of our way of shortening that distance a bit. I was surprised when I heard that someone had answered, but I didn't hear the standard "Hey sister" I am usually greeted with. I said "Hello?" and heard and excited reply of "Heeeyyy Mommmaaaa!"

I said "Hey Ben, this isn't Momma, it's Aunt Paige." He said "Oh! Hey Aunt Paige, I thought you were my mooommaaaa." If you haven't had the pleasure of speaking with my sweet, just-turned-3 nephew Ben, you may not know that the last word of every sentence is a bit drawn out which makes conversing with him one of my favorite activities. I went on to have a 6 minute conversation with Ben. Here are the highlights:

"Hey Aunt Paige, you can come to my Cailou birfday party when I turn 4 in thirty weeeeeks!" (Not true.)

"Really? Thanks bud- can Uncle Bryan come too?"

"Yes, Aunt Paige, he caaaannn! Okay, see you at my Cailou birfday party and Christmas!"

"Hey Ben, you know what happens even before your birthday or Christmas? Uncle Bryan's and my wedding, remember?"

"Yes, Aunt Paige, I dooooo. And Ben's gonna be the ring bear, and I don't know what Momma's gonna be."

"Momma is going to be my Matron of Honor."

"Yep. And my daddy's going to wear a black jacket just like Ben!"



"Hey Ben, where are Momma and Daddy? Who handed you the phone?"

"Ben just went up and gwabbed it all by himself!" 

"Wow- okay! Can you hand Mom or Dad the phone now?"

"Yep, sure can! I will go find my daaaaaddyyyy."

(Sister- your 3 year old can answer the phone now all by himself. Congratulations and I will pray for you. In the words of my favorite Momma blogger- carry on, warrior.)



"Okay buddy, I will talk to you later. I love you!"

"Okaaaay!"

"I love you Ben."

"Okaaaay!"

"Do you love Aunt Paige too?"

"Yep, sure do!"



Pure. Sweetness. What a great way to start my day. I am so thankful for that little man.

NOLA, Dinner Dates, Showers, Sweet Jack, and Charleston

Holy cow these past few weeks have been INSANE! At some point every day I have thought to myself "Ooh I have to blog about this!" and then quickly scurried right along to the next fun thing. I suppose rule number one of blogging is not to let too much stuff happen in between updates so that you have a post the size of Texas. So, this one will mostly consist of pictures!

First up was my incredible bachelorette party in New Orleans! I was completely overwhelmed and humbled by all of the work that went into organizing it (thank you Marisa!) and all of the friends who made the trip to The Big Easy to help me celebrate my last few days of singledom.

First we spent the trip down laughing at the Animals section of Pinterest.

Then we checked into the stunning Roosevelt Hotel. BEAUTIFUL!

Then there was Bourbon Street...  

What an amazing trip. I am so blessed to have these wonderful women in my life and I can't wait to celebrate with them in October at the wedding.

I returned to Atlanta and Bryan and I got to enjoy dinner with my godparents, Larry and Lynn, at a restaurant called Woodfire Grill where we had never been. They treated us to a 7 course dinner that was out of this world. There were scallops. There was chocolate. There was a wine pairing. It was such a treat. The coolest part about it is that B and I genuinely enjoy hanging out with them. They are so supportive of our relationship (pays to have a couple who ran Pre-Cana sessions for years for godparents), are full of wisdom, and are ridiculously fun.



7 courses are better than 1

The next Saturday was a shower hosted by some of our oldest family friends, the Bohans, the Carscallens, and the Johnsons. It was held at Grace 1720 and was so much fun! The venue had sort of a Tuscan feel, and they used rosemary in the flower arrangements that made the whole room smell amazing. It was just beautiful and made me feel super loved.

My place setting at the shower

That weekend I even got the chance to decorate a little bit for Fall (way too early, but the next few weekends I would be out of town). Yes, I know I am not officially an H yet, but I figured since Bryan lives here too, it is allowed. Plus I won't have to buy a new letter next Fall.

Happy Almost Fall Y'all

Then the following week we got an early surprise when Bryan's brother and sister-in-law had their sweet baby, Jack, two weeks early! Laurie was a bad ass and had one of the quickest deliveries I have ever heard of without any medication- quite impressive. I was singing the theme song for Sweet Jack in my head the whole day before finally getting to meet him that night.

"Sweet, Sweet Jack..."

Is there anything like holding a brand new, soft as can be little baby? My favorite part was when he opened his eyes and looked around at everyone. You just wonder what they are thinking after such an incredible journey seeing the world for the first time. Truly a miracle to witness. Love him already.

This last weekend over Labor Day we headed to Charleston for Sally's bachelorette party which was oh so fun. We ate at some wonderful restaurants and made friends with Angelo at a bar called Henry's. We went to that spot all three nights and literally danced the night away. I feel like we never do that anymore. We do lots of going out with friends these days, but rarely do we just dance the whole night- especially with just the girls. It is good for the soul, I tell you. The accompanying drinks were not so good for our livers, but hey. Win some, lose some.

When in Charleston... monogram things using preppy colors.



Sally's bachelorette crew, sans Steph who was playing photographer

Notable moments from the weekend included Sally's shower games, running into a band member from Needtobreathe (a band Sal and I are HUGE fans of, and most Furman grads), aforementioned dance parties, bottomless mimosas, and a whole lot of singing Sweet Brown's infamous hit. All in all, a successful bachelorette party! 

Looking forward to traveling to St. Louis this weekend for my friend/roomie from college's wedding!