now where were we...

oh yeah. somewhere not on the face of this planet. at least that's how it seems, seeing as how i haven't posted since AUGUST. shame on me. let's blame it on having so much fun lately i haven't even had time to stop and rest. which is actually kinda true. want proof in the form of photographs? comin' atcha. let's call this speed blogging.

when we last left off... i had just started work. then austin and i celebrated my first paycheck. i bought him a watch. i wore pleather pants.

lindsy and rj came in town. a lot.

we got new windows in the whole house.

we went to gatlinburg. and to dollywood. i ate cheesecake on a stick.

i decorated for halloween.

i made a new friend at work.

we went to the tennessee whiskey festival. austin proposed. with a bottle of shine. i said yes.

we celebrated dinger's birthday.

we went camping.

we forgot to pack dinner. or normal playing cards.

we made gross eggs for breakfast.

and hiked in the fog.

and i came over with hundreds of bug bites on my feet and ankles and elbows. fun!

we blew things up!

see? we have been busy! stay tuned for birthday shenanigans posts!

signal point and fall creek falls.

i'm working on getting caught up on some recent happenings including sharing a couple of hiking trips austin, ben and i took back in june.

for our first trip we took the very short drive up to signal mountain to hike the trail at signal point. you may remember that austin and i took a hike up there about two years ago as part of our first wedding anniversary. this time we actually hiked all the way in {about two miles, i think} until we found a swimming hole.

a ridiculously, extremely, awfully cold swimming hole.

i got in, but only for about three minutes. because i could no longer feel my toes.

the second trip we took was up to fall creek falls. i'd never been before and it's just about an hour drive so we loaded up the car and the dogs and took off. we started at the top and hiked down to the base of the highest waterfall in the eastern united states.

the puppies had a fun hike, too. ben's dog sandy really loves the water, juliet just appreciates being in my lap and keeping her paws dry.

it was a seriously hot day, but the hike had lots of shade so it wasn't miserable.

we packed some food for a picnic lunch and break from all the hiking.

after eating we went to what i think was the most crowded part of the entire state park to find a spot to swim/wade in the water. we tried to get as far away from the crowd as possible, so juliet didn't eat anyone. and would you believe it that we actually got juliet to swim?! it took a lot of coaxing and some lead-by-example demonstrations showing her the water wasn't too deep for her to touch, but by the end of the day she was {almost} voluntarily going in the water! i was so proud.

i can't wait for austin and i to go back to fall creek falls to camp! hopefully it won't take another 7 years before i can convince austin to take me.

also, recently austin and i have been doing a fair amount of traveling for his work. first, we spent a few days at a conference in nashville and i got to meet up with brandi, katie and boomer for some non-air-conditioned dinner. the next conference was in knoxville and apparently austin and i decided to take a 6 mile hike through downtown to prove a point to some middle-aged ladies who thought it was too far to walk.

turns out, they were right. it was too far to walk. but we did it anyway because i was not about to be told how far i could or could not walk by some strangers.

totally should have listened to them. but at least we burned some calories. and austin ordered us some drinks that looked like dirty dishwater. yum?

aaaand cue completely unrelated pictures to end this post. because i've got no good way to end.

birthday week extravaganza part 1

in case you missed it, my birthday was wednesday. and in case you don't know me my birthday is kind of a big deal. so for the past week or so we've been celebrating my birthday with lots of fun activities.

{also, if you did miss the fact that it was my birthday we might not be friends anymore. just kidding. sort of.}

for starters, austin, ben and i went camping on the hiwassee at gee creek campground. i've been begging austin to take me camping for literally years and since i was on fall break from school combined with it being my birthday week austin had no choice but to take me.

so we borrowed the cr-v and packed it to the top. i don't really understand how three people and one dog need so much junk for one night of camping.

camping fashion. love it? please note my failure to pack a hair brush...

the park rangers had some animals for us to check out! this little owl had so much personality to him. he was so cute!

the ranger told us about the falls at the top of this trail and how people like to swim up there in the summer. and when we got to the top o.m.g. austin and ben jumped in! do you know how cold i was outside the water and in dry clothes? those crazy kids were freezing.

after lots of fishing, campfires and hiking our camping trip was over. and i needed a shower. but on the way out of town we decided to stop by the little winery we had seen signs and advertisements for, thinking we would try a few wines, see if we like it, and maybe add to our wine glass collection. however, when we arrived at the winery there was no.one. to be found. cars were in the lot, the "open" sign was lit up, doors were wide open,  but we saw not a single person. it was creepy. we waited a bit for someone to show up to the tasting room but no one ever came. i then came to the conclusion that someone had perhaps kidnapped/murdered everyone and we needed to get the heck out of there a.s.a.p.

i have a vivid imagination.

and since i'm sure you all noticed this post was titled "birthday week extravaganza part 1" you probably assume there is a "birthday week extravaganza part 2" coming soon. and you would be correct. so. yeah. sit right there on the edge of your seat for part 2. i know the suspense is killing you.