Another Young wedding

We had such a wonderful weekend in Fort Worth celebrating Andrew's brother's wedding! I also had a birthday last week and we celebrated when we met up with his parents on Friday. We had a wonderful lunch at Mi Cocina in downtown Fort Worth and then it was off to get ready for the rehearsal.

The rehearsal and wedding ceremony were at The First United Methodist Church, a beautiful chapel in the heart of downtown.

This is Andrew's youngest brother and his girlfriend Baylie in the pictures with us, not the ones that got married. I just realized we didn't get a picture with the bride and groom at the rehearsal but they were busy visiting with everyone. 

The rehearsal dinner was at the Reata downtown and then afterwards a cocktail party on the rooftop where we could watch the fireworks. I did a terrible job of taking pictures after we left the church. 

Finally a picture of the bride and groom!

The ceremony was beautiful and was followed by a reception at the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History. 

There were different flavored cakes on each table and you could go around and taste different ones. And even take some home!

We had so much fun dancing! The whole wedding party danced to "Footloose" and then it just went downhill from there.. Ha 

It was such a wonderful weekend and we were so glad to be a part of it! Best wishes to the happy couple!

{photo credit to my mother-in-law, Lori Young for some of these photos}

Andrew turns 28!

Yesterday was Andrew's birthday and we were so thankful to be able to spend the day together. Lately, his work has been taking him out of town for more days of the week than he is home. Which stinks, but we are making it, one week at a time. We have learned so much and our marriage has grown stronger over these past few months. We know that God is teaching us something during this time and we are trying hard to see the lesson instead of having a pity party for ourselves. So we are thankful for days like yesterday :)

Andrew got his birthday present about a month or so ago when we went in our local golf store to "price" a new set of golf clubs. There was a deal we couldn't pass up and we both agreed to go ahead and get them then. So, as a reminder of his birthday present (I was afraid he would forget:-), I got him a golf themed cake (note the golf clubs on the back of the golf cart). I didn't realize that I had started a theme - last year he got Saints tickets and a Saints cake and this year, golf clubs and a golf cake. Andrew pointed this out to me last night. We will see how long we can keep that one going.

Andrew's mom has a family dinner/celebration planned for later this weekend so we decided to celebrate last night with a couple of our close friends. We went to a new Italian restaurant in town that we have been wanting to try-- it was fabulous! We especially loved the atmosphere on the outdoor patio/courtyard complete with a large hanging chandelier, faux grass wall, and large running fountain. The weather was perfect last night too. The food was wonderful but our appetizer was my favorite (picture below) - I guess I was too busy eating by the time our main course arrived to take a picture but it was all good.

Andrew & Kyle have been friends for a really long time and I love their friendship. Aren't they the cutest? Me and Heather are thankful that they brought us together. Look forward to celebrating many more occasions with them in years to come!

Happy Birthday Avery Mae!

Can't believe Avery Mae turned TWO this past Friday! She is just the sweetest most fun-loving dog that I have ever had and I just love her to pieces! People tell us all the time that when we have kids that Avery will be "just a dog", but I know there will always be a special place in my heart for our fearless, chicken chasin', squirrel lovin', daddy kissin', duck huntin', accident prone little chocolate dog.

This is a photo collage I made and posted to Facebook on Friday:

And then Andrew made one too - and I had to include it because he had some pictures of her duck hunting that I didn't have. They had a great duck season this year and it finally clicked with Avery why she was there and she did awesome!

And yes, I did make her a little birthday cake on Friday.

She loved it! It's so easy to make. Here is the recipe I used for all you fellow dog lovers:

1 cup whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 cup natural peanut butter
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup honey
1 cup shredded carrots
1 egg

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 8" round pan (I used a 6") or an 8x4 inch loaf pan. Combine all ingredients. Pour batter into pan and bake for about 30 minutes.

I also combined some peanut butter and honey and used for icing. Add a dog treat on top and there you have it! Super super easy!

Friday night we took the Ranger and rode some trails behind Andrew's parent's house. It was such a fun and laid back weekend. Here is one of seventeen attempts to get a selfie of us on the Ranger - I just love it :)

 Hope you all enjoyed your weekend and your week has gotten off to a great start!

-Laura