**Alternatively titled- Stuff we Love: WVU Football!!!!
In 10 days, it begins.
60,000 screaming, die hard West Virginia fans will converge on Mountaineer field to watch our boys whoop up on Liberty. No offense Liberty. But it's true. We will fight the good fight and do battle with honor. And you can bet your cotton socks that if there are any injuries, we will surely bleed blue and gold.
Around here, the preparations have been made for months. We've begun stocking up on Stella & Rose's Lime Juice for a long season ahead. The football shaped crock pot has been taken out of storage and the dust wiped away. New jerseys (Not as in NJ, but as in new.....jerseys) have been purchased and just two days ago we picked up a new blue & gold squeaky football for Cooper. Because he's a die hard fan too.
Yes, football season is nearly upon us. It is a day Blue & Gold fans have been counting down to since....well...since the end of the last season. And there is no better time of year than when the Mountaineers are on the field. Can I get a "Hell Yea" from my Blue & Gold buddies???
So Let's Bring on the Mountaineers!!!!!!
Here's a lil' shot of us from last year's season opener:
And just to give you an idea of just exactly how serious all of this is, I decided to repost my entry from last year here too:
The smoke from the tunnel was still dancing around the field in small, quickly disappearing swirls of clouds. Just then the sun broke through the overcast sky, and sent yellow lines of light streaking through the haze to the ground below. Sitting in row 2 of section 102, I was surrounded by an ocean of gold 60,000 strong.
And I've never felt so big and yet so small in my whole life.
The crowd was roaring as kick off drew near. But I sat in silence. Staring up at the brand new score board of the Milan Puskar Stadium, I watched as the graphics heralded in a brand new era. A brand new era indeed.
Just nine months ago, we were a team betrayed. Left days before a bowl game with no coach, no time, and according to 84% of the country, no chance at rising up to a win over Oklahoma in the Sugar Bowl. But as the gentleman's shirt next to me proudly proclaimed...
"84% Wrong."
I watched the highlights from that bowl game with a rising pride in my chest and a lump in my throat. For that is the spirit of what it truly means to be a Mountaineer. And the further away I go from home in this life, the more important it is for me to be reminded of that. And often.
Of integrity. Of rising up. Of doing the hard work to get the job done. No matter who doubts you. No matter who says that you can't.
I sat there in that stadium as the smoke danced toward the sun and stared out at an ocean of gold surrounding me. All of them. Standing there so full of hope, and so full of the promise that only a brand new season in a brand new era can offer. Just then the tears broke through behind my sunglasses and were sent streaking across the flying WV tattoo on my cheek below.
And I've never felt so big and yet so small.
Yea, there's no doubt about it. It was a damn good day to be a Mountaineer.
When she laughs, she laughs with her whole heart. Loud, wild and free. She laughs because it's her, it's who she is. And she doesn't care who sees. When she laughs, you can't help but laugh along with her. And you find yourself smiling more just by being around her. By bearing witness to an untamed heart.
When she loves, she loves with her whole heart. Loud, wild and free. She loves because it's him. And she doesn't care who sees. When she loves, you can't help but love along with her. And you find yourself smiling more by just being around them.
By standing in the presence of a boundless love. Of a love story just yet unfolding. And bearing witness to two untamed hearts.
Who found each other.
Married: Ronnie & Scott
Ronnie & Scott were married last month in Greenwich, CT on a cloudy, giant soft box in the sky, photographer's dream light kind of day. Where they laughed together. And loved together. And they didn't care if everyone saw!! Ronnie & Scott, you two actually glow. I'm not sure I ever fully understood that saying until I watched you two together on your wedding day. But glow is the only word for it. You light up in each other's presence. And you make everyone else around you light up too. So from all of us who were honored enough to be there with you that day,just let me take a second to say... thank you for that. We love you guys!!
So much love
J&M
Ronnie's dress was absolute simple perfection. LOVE it!!
Gotta love me some J.Crew silver strappy sandals
Helllooooooo Gorgeous!!
The fellas were not looking too bad themselves
Our handsome groom
Yea.....I KNOW!!!
How cute is Ronnie's dad? He was awesome!
The church in the center of town in Greenwich was insanely beautiful.
Probably my favorite part of the day is the coming back down the aisle part. It's just filled to the brim with so much "holy cow, we're married!!!" goodness that I can't help but break out in a full on epidemic of goose bumps every time I see it!! Love this part!!
Ronnie, I only hope you know how beautiful you are!!
After the church, we headed over to the marina for cocktail hour and a cruise on this yacht. I would've let them borrow my yacht but it was in the shop that day. :)
Itty bitty pretty details.
A lot of the details paid honor to Ronnie's Chinese heritage, like the favors and the table names below.
How pretty were the bridesmaids' dresses??
Again, the fellas were not looking too shabby themselves!
LOVE that laugh!!
The best man gave a killer toast that had everyone busting up.
Yesterday was amazing. Ahhhhhhh-mazing. The kind of amazing that makes you say ahhhhhh. Not like the ahhh as in when you're at a doctor's office with a popsicle stick in your mouth. But the kind of ahhh that says this is just what I needed. That kind of ahhh lets you take a deep breath, fill your lungs as full as they'll possibly go with fresh salt air, and for a moment...just be.
Yesterday we got to do everything on our list....except the laundry. And I am ok with that. :) Because it gave me time to do the things I haven't done in a long time. Like flip through that stack of magazines that has been piling up all summer, patiently waiting for a little attention. And as I flipped through them one by one, I came across this awesome ongoing segment (is that the right word?) that one of them does called: "I love my {blank} life."
I thought long and hard about what my entry would be...,y'know for when said magazine calls me up and asks me to be on their cover. Naturally.
And this is what I came up with: I love my {Un-Ordinary} life.
Now, I realize the more grammatically appropriate word here might probably be: extraordinary. If something is not ordinary, it is extraordinary. Amazing, exceptional, fab, fantastic. But somehow the word extraordinary just doesn't feel that....well....extraordinary anymore. Or at least not extraordinary enough to describe what I'm feeling.
No see, I wanted something that conveyed the absolute polar opposite of ordinary. Un-ordinary. The anti-ordinary. Ordinary's arch nemesis. Twice removed. Extraordinary after all, really breaks down to just being extra-ordinary (that's at least how I remembered to spell it in grade school anyway). And who really wants more of ordinary? Who is really in need of some extra ordinary laying around the house?
So there it is. I love my Un-Ordinary life. A life that is anything but ordinary. I love big risks and not playing it safe. Putting yourself out there and taking the chance that you might fall. I love the road less traveled. I love my life.
And I want to know what you love about yours. I want to know what makes you, YOU. So, I came up with a contest for it!!
The RULES:
Post a comment with the sentence "I love my {Blank} life" and then fill in the blank. (**I realize there is boundless opportunity there for potty mouths, but let's try to keep it PG. Justin's grandma reads this blog!! :) :)
Then we'll go through and pick our favorite and the winner will receive a $50 Starbucks card. Because, hey, who doesn't love their life more with a lil' bit of free Starbucks money to play with??
And in closing, here's a shot that I took of Justin recently that epitomizes to me our Un-Ordinary life together. A life of lying on the grass and staring up at a big blue sky. Of watching scary movies in our pajamas. And having more peach cobbler than we could ever need.
* Watch scary movies in our pajamas
* Chill in the hammock
* Wash a couple (hundred) loads of laundry
* Put clean sheets on the bed
* Starbucks run!!
* Take Coop Dog on a hike
* Drive in the country and buy random baked goods at little country stands
* Drink more apple cider
* Go peach picking (or whatever is in season) and make a cobbler
* Grill out: mahi mahi sandwiches with avocado preferably
* Themed movie marathon night, Justin's famous homemade popcorn included
So as you can see, we will be very busy indeed :) But we did want to hop on and give you a little sneaky peek of what's coming to a blog near you in the very near future!!
And in honor of Sundays and everything I love about them, here's an oldie but a goodie from Craig Morgan:
After the stadium and a quick outfit change, we hit up the rest of the WVU campus and ended up in a random corn field. You know...as ya do!!
Rachel & Terry have a tradition of him buying her Tiffany jewelry for all their big occassions. I told Justin WE need a tradition like that!! :)
Rachel & Terry, we LOVE you guys! And can't WAIT to see you and all your peacock feather fabulousness in just a few weeks!! (**P.S: T minus 15 days and counting until we BRING ON THE MOUNTAINEERS!!!!)
Stuff we Love
