95% Certified.

If you follow me on twitter then you may have seen me post about my scuba classes last week... Although I was apprehensive to give scuba a try, I did and it was fun! Until Saturday....

All last week, Scott and I took scuba classes in preparation for our honeymoon to Honduras in April. I was nervous, excited, and ready to learn. Heck, I've never had any real issues with water so I was like why not.

Let me recap my training.

Monday: Class. Going over chapter reviews.
Tuesday: Pool. Practicing tasks like flooding mask and clearing it, taking regulators out and putting them back in, sharing air with buddy, etc.
Wednesday: Pool. More of what we did Tuesday plus practicing emergency ascent without mask, pretending like we were out of air(in the deep end), sharing air, etc.
Thursday: Class. Took our final exam.

I did all of these things with ease. I scored a 96 on the exam and felt really comfortable with the underwater tasks.

Saturday rolled around and that meant it was time to test our skills in the open water.

What could go wrong, I thought to myself... Welp, a lot.

We arrived at Reveille Peak Ranch in Burnet, Texas. We were using the quarry at the ranch for our test. It's relatively more clear than the lake and we wouldn't have to hike a mile to get in the water. Lake Travis.

Oh and I almost forgot. The water was 54 degrees... That's 14 degrees colder than Barton Springs, for those of your familiar. Basically effing cold!

We wedged ourselves into wetsuits, hood, gloves and boots and jumped in. I'd say there was at least 40 extra pounds strapped to me. I was already feeling a bit claustrophobic with all the extra gear, but nonetheless, survived the first descent, less a nose bleed.

Next up, our second descent. This time we were to descend to the platform, and do some of the tasks preformed in the pool earlier that week. We were told to flood our masks half way, and all the way. These weren't difficult for me. Next we had to take our regulators out and put them back in(all while being underwater 25 ft!!!!). This is where I had a problem. I take the regulator out, go to put it back in, and my mouth doesn't completely seal over it.

I breath in gulps of water and my mask starts to flood. Cue freak out mode.

You can only imagine how I must be feeling. Of course I panic and immediately start to swim to the top, instructor by my side. He's feeding me air bubbles at this point as I'm fleeing upward, trying to breath out the whole way up (at least I remembered that part. You can cause your body a lot of harm when you hold your breath and ascend to the surface.) But of course on the way up I'm trying to get little snip-its of air but I just keep sucking in water. It was the scariest thing I have ever experienced. I'm tearing up as I write this because I was so frightened!!! :(

Talk about living out a worst nightmare...

I got out shortly after that and just felt like a complete failure. Everyone else had completed all the tasks, and stayed in while I had to get out and sit by myself and warm up.

I guess scuba isn't for everyone especially me! I was really sad afterwards because I felt like I let a lot of people down that were counting on me.(Scott, instructor, other classmates). But in the end, I needed to do what I needed to do, and that was whatever made me feel comfortable. I wasn't comfortable scuba diving. My ears hurt, I had a major scare, three bloody noses, uncomfortable attire, etc. Sadly, it's just not for me.

I think I'll stick to snorkeling...

And to end on a good note...

A funny looking picture of Scott!

I'm very proud that he powered through all of the training and was able to get certified!

Maybe this isn't the end of my scuba experience, but for now, I'll say it is.

That's a fake smile.

Bridal Shower

Hello friends, I am back and ready to share my bridal shower with you! I finally got the pictures back, sorry they weren't taken with a fancy camera, but they're pictures nonetheless!

Let me tell you, my friends and family know how to make a bride feel loved/blessed/special... Like I'm overwhelmed by the love these ladies showered me with last Saturday. We made memories that I will cherish!

The day went something like this...Everyone arrived between 2 and 2:30. We munched on yummy chips, veggies, dips, taquitos, nuts and wraps oh and I can't forget the sweet bundtini's (pictured below). We played a few games, one of them being "Guess how many" and the other "How well do you know the bride" quiz. Some of the answers were hysterical. My MOH scored the highest with 10/15 right. Needless to say, it was pretty tough! We then went on to opening gifts, my bridesmaids being first. They scored custom hangers for the day of, and coach purses...They were upset they didn't get two piece velour suits, but a purse would suffice. Then it was my turn to ascend the mountains of gifts set aside for me. It took quite a bit of time, but I'm oh so grateful for them. Our house is starting to look more and more adult with all of our new matching goodies! Matching silverware, dishes, drinking glasses, wine glasses, and list goes on. SO MUCH FUN!

Ok, now are you ready for a boat load of pictures? Here you go!

Me and my bridesmaids with our dress of hangers. Isn't it funny how Bailey and Anne are wearing pretty much the same thing?! Down below is me and my mom and my two grandmas, maw maw and mee maw! I love those ladies.

Pictures of my bridesmaids opening their gift from me and some other shower guests... Love baby Elliott!

Some highlights: hot plate, "Scott & Brooke Hamilton" wall hanging, white wavy bowl, "Austin" apron, Butter dish!, "Hamilton" tote!, and antique bracelet. 

 

My rehearsal dinner dress, a new bathing suit for the honeymoon and a VS gift card ;) and much much more!

Last but certainly not least, pictures of me with the shower hosts.

My mom, Aunt Sally and Aunt Kim put this shower together for me and I couldn't have been happier with how it turned out. From all the little details, to the special gifts I received. Speaking of which, I wanted to share two special things I got, that I will be wearing on my big day.

First being diamond stud earrings. Let me give you some back story. I chose my date to be April 20th, because I wanted April, and a Saturday, and it also my Aunt and Uncles Anniversary. I thought it would be special to share our Anniversaries. This was the note I got with the earrings:

"I am so happy you have found such a wonderful man to share the rest of your life with. As we go forward and share our 'Anniversary Day' I'm sharing with you a gift that I received from Uncle Jeff many years ago on one of our Anniversaries. I hope you love them as much as I do. I wish you health and happiness and a little 'sparkle' for the future!" 

I can't come up with the words for how thankful I am. I was completely shocked when I opened these up. and yes, there were tears shed when I read this to everyone...It made me quite emotional!

That's not the only piece of jewelry I opened up... My mom passes her 150 year old antique bracelet down to me. It was given to my grandma from her cousin when she was little girl. It was then given to my mom for her wedding and my Aunt Kim used it for hers. I adore this heirloom bracelet, and will wear it as my something old on my wedding day.

Wow, sorry for such a long winded post. If you stuck around, I thank you! It was oh so fun reliving that day!

Weekend Shenanigans!

This weekend was a blast, to say the least! I am counting my blessing on this Monday morning. I saw/felt/gave so much love over the weekend. Let me recap!

Friday started off by catching up with my BFF, Bailey. She came into town for my bridal shower, so it was fun giving her all the deets on the wedding plans thus far. We also took a surprise trip up to iFly for her Boyfriend's Belated Birthday celebration! It's an indoor skydiving facility(seriously, what will they think of next?!) If you're in Austin, I highly recommend it. Scott and I didn't get to do it this time, but watching them was hysterical! I can't wait to try it myself! Lord knows I won't be doing the real thing!

 

How awesome is that?!

Afterwards, we went to our neighborhood hole in the wall, and it was like a high school reunion! So fun running into everyone there, just like old times.

Saturday I celebrated my good friend Aly, at her Bridal shower. I love that girl! We've been planning our weddings together ever since we got engaged and I can't tell you how awesome it's been to share advice, struggles, celebrations with someone else going through the same thing you are. It was great seeing her and all of our friends together.!

Later that day, it was my turn! We had actually planned our showers on the same day, imagine that! They were at different times, so it worked out nicely. My shower was hosted by my mom, Aunt Kim, and Aunt Sally. They did such a great job! I was so surprised with how everything turned out. But more on that later this week. I can't wait to show y'all the pictures and share some special gifts I received. The ladies in my life  really know how to make me feel loved!

Just a preview of the little bunt cakes that we had. They were so yummy!

Sunday I witnessed my in-laws beautiful vow renewal. It was their 40th Anniversary. What inspiration! I'm going to do a special post on that too!

I hope y'all had a fun weekend as well!
I'm linking up with Sami for Weekend Shenanigans!

Weekend Rundown

Who else agrees that Super Bowl weekend needs to be a minimum of three days?!

Despite the lack of three days, I made two work just fine. Today is definitely a Monday though, whew!

Some friends and I started with weekend off early with Happy Hour right after work on Friday. We headed over to Serranos for their HH. $2.50 margs and nacho bar, score! I told Scott before we started that I wasn't going to be out late and his response was "sure." Haha Needless to say, we were out until 12(that's late for me). Lots of laughing, dancing and singing for us.

Excuse my extremely red face, I was a little toasty on account of alcohol. oops!

Courtney and I got in on some impromtu karaoke fun. We saw an open mic and knew what we had to do.

After such a fun night Friday, I took it easy on Saturday. So did Melvin. That silly dog LOVES his kennel.

 While Scott was out running errands, he came home with some pink boxing gloves! Can't wait to try them out later this week.

Scott and I did some major house cleaning and finally "remodeled" our bathroom. I put it in quotes because all we did was change out the mirror/medicine cabinets and change out the light fixtures. $200 well spent, I tell you! I posted before pictures in this post, but sadly forgot to take another picture before swapping them out. But here is the finished product. SO happy with these improvements.

Sunday was spent doing lots and lots of errands and prepping for our Super Bowl get together party. A small get together, turned party. I was happy though, there was a great turn out. But maybe next year we will attend one instead?!

Super Bowl means good eat, treats and football! Wasn't that game awesome?! I really wasn't sure who the winner was going to be. Glad it was in the Ravens favor :)

 Happy Monday!

Blissful Weekend

This weekend was filled with so much goodness! Where oh where do I begin?!

Oh, I know. Babies!
Friday afternoon, after I got off work, I headed over to meet my friends precious 13 day old baby. I'm going to be honest, I used to not be interested in babies, but as I get older, I fall more and more in love with them. Baby Elliott made it easy on me. She was just as peaceful and calm as the pictures. She instantly curled into me and my heart melted right then and there! Newborns are so perfect :)

They just make my heart happy. It sure is fun growing up and seeing your friends pregnant bellies grow and meeting their sweet babies!

Next up, and very much different than babies, is Django Unchained. One word: Intense! That movie was so unreal! And I'm sure it's not far off from what it used to be like in Texas during that time, which is extremely sad. But Quentin Tarantino has a very odd sense of humor and can shed some light on some of the most politically incorrect situations. And of course there was a ton of gory scenes, oozing sounds and guns. My vote would be to go see it.


Saturday, I did a bit of shopping and while I was out, I found my wedding shoes. Very happy with them! They will be perfect for the big day!

Saturday night, we tried out this awesome Chinese BBQ restaurant (Din Ho for you Austinites). The reviews are true! You must go try it out for yourself. Scott had the duck ;)

Sunday was perfect! I joined some friends for church at The Austin Stone. It was the start of a new series that I'm ready to jump into.

 

Afterwards, we went out to Lakeway and picked up this beauty(table). More on that tomorrow.

Mine and Scott's family came over to celebrate my moms Birthday. It was almost like a mini Thanksgiving. We fried a turkey, ate green beans, potato salad, mashed potatoes, and rolls. And of course we watched the Ravens win :) See you at the superbowl, Baltimore.

My thanks go out to Martin Luther King and my state job. I was off on Monday and spent it with my mom and MIL looking for MoB and MoG dresses! They were a hoot! My mom fell in love with the first dress she tried on, and scored an awesome deal on it ! I can't wait to see everyone dolled up on April 20th! Just 87 days away :)

Happy Monday y'all!

Ravens Football

This weekend we watched nothing but football. The playoffs are my all time favorite part of the football season, even when my team doesn't make it. It's always fun watching the best teams battle it out. I tend to root for the underdog every time.

Speaking of "my" teams...I grew up as an avid Cowboy fan because of my family and friends were nuts for them. I have always had the liking for them, good or bad.

Furture SIL and me at a cowboys game Dec 2010

I still love the cowboys cheerleaders!

Here lately I have been rooting for another team, the Baltimore Ravens... I know. SO random! I have no affiliation with them whatsoever. I've never been to Baltimore, or Maryland for that matter. I didn't know much about the team. I don't necessary like the Raven, but they caught my eye at the beginning of the season and I have been keeping up with them ever since. Not many of their games are shown here, but when they are, I watch them! Especially this weekends playoff game.

They played one helluva game on Saturday against Denver. It was so close the whole time, leading them into double overtime. The Ravens were able to score a field goad during sudden death, deeming them the winners!

Next up, they go head to head with the Patriots... I would root for anyone over the Patriots, just saying :) But I do hope the Ravens kick their butts!

Vacation has Ended

Welp friends, I'm back to the real world today. My vacation with Scott was wonderful, but I'm happy to be getting back into the swing of things. Starting now!

We ended up getting back a day earlier than planned, but I didn't mind too much. I love vacations, but I'm a huge homebody! I was happy to get back, get the house in order and take down our Christmas decorations. Our house is so bare now!! But nice and clean, which I am a fan of...

Now, let the vacation recapping begin!

Saturday: We drove from Austin to Angel Fire and ended up arriving around 8pm. We warmed up the condo, ordered pizza and watched Pitch Perfect. That movie is hilarious!

Sunday: Our first ski day! We drove into Taos(about an hour from AF) to take some lessons. Scott takes a specialty lesson only offered on Sundays, so I took a private two hour lesson while he was out. I love getting instructors there because they really know what they are talking about! Plus it's always good to get a refresher on your first day skiing. Although it was freezing, like in the teens freezing, I still managed to have a good time! It was quite beautiful!

Monday(New Years Eve): We drove into Taos, except it was a bit different than Sunday! It was a freakin blizzard outside! We saw that it was going to snow, but we I didn't expect it to be as bad as it was. We could barely see the road when we were driving in. It was definitely the most snow I've ever seen or skied in.

When we got back to our truck to head home, this is what we found! Snow up to my knees!! Craziness!

We eventually got out of there and had a very slow drive home. If you curious as to what we did for New Years, well we laid on the couch in our robes and watched TV until 11... We figured we'd celebrate central times zone New Years Eve. That counts right? We were so wiped from skiing in a blizzard!
Tuesday(New Years Day): We celebrated a year of Engagement! I blogged about that here. I talked about the start of our chili and champagne tradition.

I decided I needed to take a break from skiing, so I stayed in and Scott went skiing in AF for a few hours. When he got back, I suited up and got ready for some sledding action! I have never been before and have always wanted to try it. We walked around for a bit, trying to find the best hill. We saw some paths that some other people had made and tried them out. Watch for yourself to see how our sledding adventure worked out!

Pretty freakin funny, right?!?! annnnnnd here are some stills for your enjoyment!

So many great times and memories...
Wednesday: We stayed in AF to ski, and ah I was in heaven! I love skiing there! Ok, so the snow might not be as awesome as Taos, but I just feel much more confident there. It's less competitive, not as steep and just a wee bit warmer, like 20 degrees :). I got this really beautiful picture of some snow fluffed trees. Aren't they awesome!

The rest of the trip was pretty uneventful! Lots of relaxing, talking, eating, and watching TV. I wouldn't have had it any other way. :)

Christmas Spirit

I am beyond excited that it's beginning to look and FEEL like Christmas in Austin! I've been having fun and spending time with friends and family doing Christmas type things.

We went to a gingerbread house making party. One word: FUN! Some people showed up with their A game and made some incredible houses! Scott and I had fun building our "starter home," compared to all the other mansions. I had fun with eating the accessories..."One for me, one for the house."

Some houses were complete with solar panels(top left), and a car port(bottom left). Thanks to Thane and Amy for hosting such a fun party!

Last weekend we Scott hung the Christmas lights, and we put up all of our Christmas decorations, which is not very many. I plan on buying up deals after Christmas to add to our collection. We did get some stockings as a gift from my aunt, which I'm very happy about! She said it was against the law to not have stockings.

I'm on the look out for some cutesy doggy stockings, so if you know of any, let your girl know!

Last week, Scott joined me and some of my work friends for our Holiday Happy Hour. I had a great time, minus overcoming my sickness. (I was so sick last week!! Sorry for the lack of posts).

I love my co-workers, and I'm glad we get along so well! We need to have another outing pronto!

Continuing our Christmas outings, last night I went with my future mother in law and my mom to the Austin Symphony Christmas Sing-along! I LOVE this Christmas tradition. This was my third time going to this concert. It puts me in the Christmas spirit, and gets me pumped up for the season. I love that the whole auditorium sings along and all the joyous kiddos excited to see Santa, Rodolph, and Frosty.

 Happy Wednesday friends!

Linking up with Shanna for some randomness Wednesday!!!

Quick Update

Since I haven't posted in a week, I wanted to show you a snip-it of what I've been up to in pictures. I suppose I have been pretty busy trying to catch up from the Holiday. That's pretty sad considering it's been a whole week! So here I am, finally posting!

My holiday break started at 11am on Wednesday.

We met up with Scott's parents and sister for a movie. We saw Life of Pi. Wow! That was a great movie! I def recommend it. Oh and if you can see in in recliners with food, do that too!

Thursday

Turkey day. I made cream cheese brownies and green bean casserole for the family feast.

Friday

We set up our Christmas tree. These are all of our random ornaments. We don't have a theme for our tree :)

Mac was being a bit dramatic, and wanted attention. He kept moving from place to place just sitting alone and crying. Doesn't that sound sad?! He really does get attention, don't worry... Just cracked me up!

Saturday

Melvin had his first adventure to Canyon Lake. We went out to spend the day with Scott's sister and her family. Their new house was just precious!

You must watch these videos!

Melvin wasn't the best swimmer. He just needs a little bit more practice.

Sunday

Thanks to Kyndal for the pic!

I spent Sunday with girl friends celebrating at a baby shower. One of my good friends from high school is expecting, and due in January! Such a fun time.

Got lots of cuddles from this little man

Thursday

Last nights dinner that I cooked all by myself. I'm getting better(kinda) at this whole domestic thing.
That's pork cutlet, stuffing, peas and carrots. Mmmm! I want some more right now.

Tomorrow is the first day of December, CRAZY! It's going to be one busy month, that's for sure. Maybe I'll start my Christmas shopping soon... Maybe not?... Happy Friday everyone!