A Look Back at What Was 2012!

  

In 2012 we traveled to Beaufort, Topsail, and Ocracoke Island during the summer months and adopted our sweet little Kit Cat in January. 

Photography by Meredith Perdue
  
We took our engagement photos in March with Meredith Perdue at the North Carolina Museum of Art, and we loved every minute of it...

then we mailed our Save The Dates!

 

In April we booked our honeymoon to Antigua and we booked our cake baker. We also selected our linens and rental items and flower girl dresses.

We booked the amazing Dickens Band to jam the night away at our reception.

 

I celebrated my 25th birthday at Fox's Liquor Bar with great friends.

  

We were honored to have been thrown a couple's shower at Lake Norman, NC over 
the 4th of July, by my mother-in-law and sister-in-law.

We went and saw Jason Mraz and Christina Perri and ventured to 
Asheville for a friends wedding and did some exploring! 

I got to bachelorette party it up in Wrightsville, NC the weekend after Asheville with the most amazing girl friends in gorgeous NC weather, it was a BLAST!!!

 

 I got to vote this year and watch the olympics, hubby and I applied for our marriage license, we got to celebrate Halloween with our neighbors and we went to see one of our favorites, Dave Matthews Band in December.

One thing I've yet to tell you more about, are my BRIDALS, with Sarah Der!!! What a fun day that was, and how gorgeous the photos look! Can't wait to recap soon!

 

Photography by Sarah Der

 

In September we spent hours stamping our invitations with vintage stamps but then we finally got to mail them! What a sigh of relief that was. We also received our rehearsal invitation in which YOU helped me choose my rehearsal dress!

 

But what we all waited so long for... we got MARRIED!!!!!! It was the absolute best day of our life! Hubby likes to say that the two weeks we were away from work, getting married and honeymooning were the best two weeks of his entire life and I have to agree!!!!

 

Photography by Meredith Perdue

 

Our honeymoon in Antigua was all we could've dreamed and more, and then once we were home it was Thanskgiving the day after and the beginnings of our first Christmas! Thanks for the help in selecting our Christmas card!

 

That was a small wrap of 2012 but WHAT A YEAR it was!!!! It was by far the greatest year of our life thus far and we are so excited to see what 2013 has ahead for us but all the years we'll celebrate as husband and wife. Afterall the wedding is just the process but the marriage is for life, and we want to communicate and love each other every day through our vows that we spoke on November 10th, 2012. 

Thank you to each and every one of you for being part of the process, especially since I started this blog in 2012. It really was such a blessing! I hope you all have a beautiful 2013!

xoxo,
mrs. a.

But why is the rum always gone?! Our honeymoon!

Our Christmas wasn't too exciting and since the weather has been a bit dismal and I'm ready for NC to decide whether it wants to get hot or cold, I figured it was high time that I recapped our honeymoon for all of you! I mean, some dreamy photos of the beautiful beaches of Antigua can't hurt can they?! AND they beat staring at the pile of work you've accumulated while being gone on vacation.

So our story begins.. We left for our honeymoon on Tuesday morning at 6am to Miami followed by a flight to Anitgua and I would highly recommend leaving a day or two later for your honeymoon! We totally allowed ourselves to unpack some things from the wedding and repack things we may not have considered, like snacks, and making sure all the cameras were charged. Also let's not forget the mass amount of CASH you can take with you... A few taxi's here and there made the cash super handy.

Our honeymoon resort was called Cocobay and it is an amazing resort. It is a very quite resort with not a lot of activity but definitely what we needed to unwind and unplug. No TV's in the rooms, no wi-fi, just amazing views at every turn, the most gorgeous beaches you've seen and awesome rum!!

I just kept wondering in a Jack Sparrow voice, why the rum was always gone?! (Because I drank it, duh!) Seriously, one day I had about three drinks by the pool and said to hubs, "I need to take a nap" and laid down and passed out.. whoopsie daisy! 

We stayed at Cocobay for 8 nights and it was wonderful really. The view was superb. We arrived a bit after lunchtime and were greeted with cold towels and rum punch by the hotel manager in which we were informed of the little resort oddities, like the one restaurant in which you had to pre sign-up for dinner but none of this really bothered us. We were NOT on a schedule and had no place to go beside a beach or pool...

 

Our adorable Caribbean styled cottage!

 

Netting in case you want to sleep with the doors open.
 

HELLO hammock of relaxation!

 

Our bathroom decorated with local flowers upon arrival.

 

The view from bed..

 

The view from our porch.

Private couples massage on said porch...

 

If anyone knows us, we like champagne to get the party started.. OH and the awesome indoor/outdoor shower.. SO FUN!

I would definitely recommend this resort over and over though. It was so simplistic and yet authentic without the cheesy resort games, and mass amount of people because your hotel holds over 1,000 people. Our resort maxed out at I believe at 160 guests, all with their own cottage. We walked pathways lit with "C"'s on the lamposts on the way home from dinner and were greeted always by friendly staff. The food was also excellent. There were plenty of fresh vegetables that I loved and lots of fish to try, they even had homemade ice cream at lunch and dinner, in which the flavor was always different. YUMMMM! 

 

The grounds..

 

Nothing like local caribbean music..

 YUMMY caribbean spiney lobster... WOW!

 

OH and fresh coconut shrimp?! Out of this world!

 

 GOOD MORNINGGGGG!

 OK, enough chatting and more photos!!! Here are some more gorgeous photos of the infinity pools and gorgeous beach(es), yes beaches, there are 365 on the island, of beautiful Antigua!!

 

 Oh and we also had dinner on the beach.. super romantic, I'd highly recommend it!

I am saving the best for last though. Hubby and I decided to forego the private dip pool on the resort and opt for a private 8 hour cruise on a private yacht instead, a way to really leave a lasting impression and an awesome way to spend some honeymoon money. I have to admit, it was well worth it. It was just hubby and I and the the captain sailing the day away, with a trip snorkeling and looking at the many beaches that line Antigua's shores.. It was a day we'll never forget! Many thanks to Miramar Sailing and Captain Kevin for an amazing honeymoon!! 

That's all folks! Our amazing Antiguan honeymoon! Like I said, I loved the resort but even if the resort isn't your style, I'd highly recommend Antigua because it's a GORGEOUS island with the most beautiful beaches, warm weather, and soft sand. The people are friendly and so welcoming and it's not over populated with tourists susurprisingly, so it's easy to find a secluded beach with hardly anyone on it. Where else can you do that?!

Now if only we were there right now... Until next time.

xoxo,
mrs. a.