Gina's Bachelorette!

Well the time has come for Ryan and Gina to get married! In fact, they will be Mr. and Mrs. by the end of this weekend. I cannot believe how quickly their engagement has gone by!!

Gina, Sarah, and Emily all headed down to Richmond for the Bachelorette celebrations. Since Brandy and I both live here, Richmond seemed like the easy decision for a location. I was only able to attend the Friday portion of the celebrations so I invited everyone over for a little happy hour and catch up session. I was so excited to see everyone, get a look at all the new engagement rings (Sarah and Emily), and talk about the upcoming wedding for Gina! Have I mentioned I cant believe how fast time flies?

Our Happy Hour Napkins

We had decided this would be the low key night, but knowing us it went from casual glasses of wine and champagne to shots of whipped cream vodka in a matter of minutes. We headed out to the bars for yet another crazy night together.  



A Sip for Every Whistle

I was so sad to miss the Saturday night portion of this weekend but I am counting down the days until we all get together again, this time to officially celebrate the new husband and wife!

*I have about 100 pictures from Friday but my camera is in Hampton so I will have to entertain you all with them at a later date :)

Memorial Day

I know I know, this blog hiatus is ridiculous. Since I have been neglecting the blog recently, I will start way back when with Memorial Day.

On Friday Jon and I headed down to Hampton. Now, even though everyone hates on Hampton - I love it. There is something about growing up on the water that I will never take for granted, and having so many friends in the same neighborhood doesn't hurt. Not to mention the man on the corner of Kecoughtan and LaSalle that welcomes us home every time. I have mentioned him in one blog post before but let me just refresh...

There is a man who hangs out on the corner in the most brightly colored suits just waiting, day after day. Now, there are a few theories we have all come up with: pimp, preacher, restraining order from some one at 7-11...or maybe he is just waiting to get famous...from a blog post perhaps?

Perfect Example of Our Hampton Greeter

Anyways, after catching up with the family, Christie and the Clarks, Jon and I headed over to my grandparent's house for a double date- and the most delicious dinner. In fact, when Jon and I first started dating we - of course -played the get-to-know-you question game and when the favorite food question appeared I said "my Papa's fried shrimp" without hesitation. You may remember we also had these for Christmas Dinner, mmmm mmm good. And now Jon can testify they are the best fried shrimp - ever. :)

Not only that, my Nama surprised me with my favorite dessert, peach cobbler. To say we eat well when they are home is an extreme understatement.

Saturday morning went back to Nama and Papas for another family tradition- Saturday Morning Breakfast. Every Saturday morning, we are all home, we roll out of bed and head over. Now when I say roll out of bed it is not an expression...I mean hair sticking up, large tshirt, pj bottoms, and barefoot kind of breakfast. And that did not change, except Jon chose to actually get dressed and comb his hair. I guess one of us has to look presentable in case we need to stop at 7-11 on the way home or something.

Another meal large enough for an army later, we were off to get ready for the festivities of the day: a wedding, a graduation party, and dinner with Jon's family.

Katie and I were bridesmaids in our nanny, Rea's, wedding that morning. Now I cannot get through a wedding without tearing up and this was no exception. The sheer happiness on their faces said it all and the tambourine player that moon walked to R.Kelley at their reception quickly became my new favorite type of entertainment.

We left the celebrations and headed straight to a graduation party for my dad's god son - and family friend - Eddie before heading to Gwynns Island. It was great to catch up with so many people and I was so happy we had finally made the trip down to Hampton.

Katie and I before the Graduation Party

Now, as for Gwynns, I had no idea what to expect. Heck, I didn't even know where it was. But one box of Nerds and two bottles of water later, we were on our way.

A short hour later we had arrived. After a nice dinner we capped off the day by visiting to a local beach for sunset. Just as I was taking out my phone to take a picture of the beautiful scenery I realized I had missed a call from Reavis. I excused myself and walked farther up the beach to return his call. I can not explain how excited I was to hear the words "We're engaged!" seconds after he picked up the phone!! I know everyone says "they are perfect for each other" when talking about engagements, but it is 100% true. I hope we are all lucky enough to find someone that makes us as happy as they make each other :) Congratulations Will and Sarah!!!

Local Beach at Gwynns

I had a wonderful time relaxing by the Bay and enjoying the extra day off with Jon's family...even though I came back slightly more red that a cooked lobster. Now I not only know where Gwynns is, but I can't wait to go back!

Time Flies

Well here we are at another Friday. SO much has been going on recently, and it certainly wont be slowing down this weekend.  As I type, everyone is on their way to Richmond for Gina's bachelorette! It seems like yesterday I was writing about Ryan and Gina's engagement and now their wedding is only 3 weeks away!!

For now I will just have to leave you with a short photo recap of the past few weeks until I can sit down and really do it justice.

Braved the Rain for the National Harbor Food and Wine Festival

Jon's First Stay in Hampton



Mom and Jon at Rea's (our childhood nannys) Wedding



Gwynns Island with the Fernandez Family (***this picture was taken about 2 minutes before Reavis told me he was engaged!!!!! SO ALSO, CONGRATULATIONS WILL AND SARAH!!!!!!)

My Office Countdown to Africa

And, Of Course, Anxiously Awaiting Their Arrival!!

Now maybe you understand why there has been no time for blogging! I hope the photos hold you over until all the stories (which are totally worth the wait) ! :)