year one: check.

I haven't blogged in months, mostly because life has just been pleasantly boring. I also haven't quite come to terms with the fact that we've been married for OVER a year now.What? Let's rewind a bit...

October is my favorite month. I love fall colors, clothes, and weather, and I also love that it marks the beginning of holiday season. And now, I have even more to look forward to when October arrives. Our anniversary! We decided to splurge and celebrate our first year of marriage with a trip to Mexico. We booked this trip back in March or April, so we looked forward to it for so long!

We stayed at the Valentin Imperial Maya resort in Riviera Maya. It's an adult only, all inclusive, b-e-a-utiful resort and we enjoyed every minute of our time there. Part of that might have been because they accidentally gave us a swim-up suite (a room that normally costs an additional $100 per night), but the rest of the place was pretty nice too! We arrived before lunch on Friday and met our friends who also decided to celebrate their anniversary at the same place! It was SO nice to see familiar faces when we arrived! We ate at the Japanese restaurant the first night, which is how we discovered just how big the resort was. You see, we got lost. Really lost. The map said the restaurant was "building 13," but it wasn't until we went to the opposite end of the resort that we realized there were 2 "building 13s." Did I mention that it's hot in Mexico? We finally made it and had a yummy Kanki-type meal. We then went to the sports bar where the boys got to play darts and we played drunken Jenga for hours. On Saturday, we went on an excursion to snorkel with sea turtles, ride ATVs, and explore an underground cave called a cenote. Despite the fact that we were in the van for about 2 hours there and back, it was an amazing day. You guys KNOW how I feel about turtles. Oh.My.Gosh. We snorkeled in Akumal Bay and I was beside myself - screaming through my snorkel - when I saw my first turtle. They are huge and adorable and it took everything in me not to hug them. I really didn't want to go to Mexico jail. The best part was when they swam up to the top and poked their heads out of the water. I'm squealing now just thinking about how cute they were! After snorkeling, we went to the jungle where they fed us an authentic Mexican lunch (amazing) and then we went on a lame ATV tour. We had some idiots in our group that made us stop every 2 minutes, so I know it would have been better if they weren't there. Finally, they took us to swim in the cenote. Y'all, pictures can't do it justice. The cave is filled with crystal clear, freezing cold freshwater. We had our snorkel gear on and just floated through the cave looking at the awesome stalagmites. It was like nothing I've ever seen. We got back to our resort and had another yummy meal at the French restaurant before our friends headed home the following day. Our anniversary day was my favorite - minus the sun burn. We spent the day lounging in our quiet little pool and then had dinner at the Italian restaurant. I may or may not have had 1-8 glasses of wine, but I swear it was the best meal I've ever had. Payton keeps making fun of me because I couldn't stop talking about the pizza or the balsamic they put on the caprese salad. Whatever! Balsamic is my jam.

The rest of the week was uneventful, and so incredibly relaxing. The resort also had a Mexican restaurant (one word: churros), an Indonesian restaurant, and two buffets for breakfast and lunch. The food was great overall! The service was fine, but I preferred the service we had at Sandals in Jamaica. As much as we loved this place, Sandals is the way to go. No one bothers you at a Sandals resort, but there are TONS of tour companies at the Valentin. They call your room and try and sell you crap all week long. It's easy to avoid, but still annoying.

I think about our trip daily. It was paradise! We couldn't have been more relaxed. I'm sure we won't be able to go on trips like this forever, but I hope we can do something every year to bring us back together and remind us to appreciate each other. I love being married to that man. He truly is the best.

halfway there

I've noticed that I'm not very good at this blogging thing. I want to write good blogs and I want to write more blogs, but I'm not as creative or thoughtful as I thought I was when I started this thing. Oh well, I'm still going to keep up with it as exciting things come to me.
Exactly six months ago today, I posted my 2014 to-do list instead of making New Year's resolutions. I thought it would be fun to look at it halfway into the year to see how I'm doing...

1. Write down a favorite moment from each day in my new Erin Condren planner. It will keep me feeling grateful!
So far, so good! I've written something good about my day, even if it's just one word ("pizza" is a frequent happy word), every single day in my planner. Even when I have bad days, I still find something to be happy about. It's a nice reminder that happiness is a choice, even when it's a difficult choice.

2. Try a new Raleigh area restaurant each month.
This has been so much fun! We have a great list going and hope to continue this for a long time. We've done local Raleigh restaurants every month except May, but neither of us had ever eaten at PF Chang's AND we went to a movie afterwards. We are going to try and go to the Food Truck Rodeo this weekend, so we might count that as our June date. 
January: Casa Carbone
February: Oak City Meatball Shoppe
March: Trophy Brewing Co.
April: Big Ed's at City Market
May: PF Chang's

3. Spend more quality time with Snowball, and get him back into light work.
Although I can't take much credit for this one, it has been a HUGE success! Mom hired an awesome girl at Snowy's farm to start training rides a few times a week since it's so hard for me to get out there regularly, and now she's even taking lessons from her every week! I still cherish every second I spend time with him because they are rare, but it will be so much easier (and more frequent) this summer since I have Fridays off. He's such an amazing animal and he's looking and acting stronger every time I see him. I might be biased, but he's just plain beautiful.

4. Plan a trip for our one year anniversary.
DONE! We jumped right on this one and booked seven nights at the Valentin Imperial Maya resort in Mexico for our anniversary in October. We are SO excited! I think we would have gone back to Jamaica in a heart beat, but we really wanted to try something new. It's all inclusive and beautiful, so I was all in! Oh, and there are tacos.

5. Convince Payton to buy that truck he's been dying for.
DONE. This was probably the first thing we got done this year! I am absolutely loving it, and I know he is too! I don't miss that little red Barbie car at all.

6. See a show or two. Or three. (First up - Les Miserables in February with my mama!!!)
DONE. Well, we saw Les Mis and don't have plans for any other shows YET, but we're always on the look out! It's one of my favorite things to do.

7. Put more effort into hanging out with friends and being more social. I'm so young, but act so old!
I think I've done ok in this area, but it might just be because we have another 748 weddings this summer. I do know that I've had a lot of fun, so I say it's a win!

8. Have a big summer barbecue at our house.
ALMOST THERE. My husband is incredibly talented and he built a brick patio (by himself) in our backyard! I helped like 2%. He's landscaped around it and bought a brand new grill, too! He still has to build furniture for it, but it won't be long before we can have a big party to celebrate it!

9. Finish 4 books. That may seem sad, but I just don't read very often...
I'm currently into two different books, but I know I'll be able to get through four by the end of the summer with all my days at Lake Gaston.

10. Eat less junk food/snack less.
Depends on the day....... But, I have ordered two rounds of Nature Box snacks and I must say they are pretty good! I probably won't do it every month, but I like the service.

11. Floss (almost) every day.
FAILED. Whatever. 

12. Be a more patient, understanding wife and appreciate my husband's talents and efforts more.
I think I'm doing a pretty good job at this? I guess this is something you'd have to ask my darling husband...

13. Take Scout on more walks.
FAILED. Sorry. Payton does it every morning, and I'm just a bad mom.

14. Watch more Netflix. We just started Breaking Bad and I'm in the middle of Revenge.
(and one for good luck)
FAILED. I seriously haven't watched anything on Netflix since I wrote this. I'm waiting for Orange is the New Black to come out this weekend and I'll get back on my game.

15. Take full advantage of our new.......................................... (Lake House)
We've only been three times so far this year, but we are LOVING it and are so excited to spend much more time there this summer! Scout is turning into a lake dog, too! So many fun family memories will be made at that little log cabin.

So, there it is! I guess I still have half of the year to make up for the fails, but I think I've done pretty well! 

Happy June! 

Wise Guy

Today is my horse Snowball's 16th birthday. He was just two years old when we met him at Larry Harward's little farm at the end of Campbell Road. He was scrawny and dirty, had only half of a tail, and sported the most adorable crooked, blue-eyed head I'd ever seen. On any given day, you could find Snowy wandering up the dirt road after escaping from his field to find a human to hang out with - preferably my mom. Sometimes he even climbed over the wheelbarrow while she mucked stalls to get closer to her. Needless to say, she fell in love with him quickly.

Rewind a few years...

I was either five or six when I went to my first summer horse camp in upstate New York. Pony was the first horse I ever really rode. She was a flea-bitten gray mare with a signature move that was pretty mighty: The Super Shake. I ended up taking weekly lessons at this farm with my instructor Jen and rode Pony just about every time. My tiny little legs were no match for her super shake, so I ended up on the ground almost every time. My first big accomplishment in horseback riding, though, was when I managed to hold on during a super shake in my very last lesson with Pony and Jen. I will never, ever forget that horse or that instructor because they are the reason I fell so hard for this sport. I idolized Jen, and Pony was the best teacher and babysitter.

When we moved to North Carolina, I started taking lessons at Longwood Farm in Apex. I think my instructor's name was Sharon, but I don't remember much about my time there. The game changer was when we found MacNair's Country Acres and Camp Cheval. MacNair's is breathtaking, but it is so much more than that. It is 280 acres full of fun, unmatched beauty, love and horses made of pure gold. Now, it also holds some of my most cherished memories and a pretty good sized piece of my heart. I started in Camp Cheval that summer and never looked back. At a certain point my mom realized that this wasn't one of those "little girls love horses" phases, so she had me choose between the dance classes I was taking multiple days a week or the horseback riding lessons I was taking just once a week. For whatever reason, I chose the horses. 

In no time at all, I was completely obsessed. I joined the 4H club, the show team, and found any excuse to get the barn. I learned how to wrap legs, pull and braid manes, clip, clean tack, and so many other skills that I am still so proud of. My first "show horse" was Lucy - a little chestnut mare with her forelock growing out of one of her ears. My best friend Chelsea and I spent night after night making lists of what we needed to prepare for our first big show and coming up with show names for our beloved school horses. I settled on Skip to my Lu. I loved Lucy (hehe), but she went lame before the big 4H show (gasp!), so I ended up showing Caramel. Caramel was a chestnut and white paint with a rocking horse-like gate. He had a reputation of being quite slow and lazy, but he turned it on at the horse show! I had so much fun waking up at the crack of dawn, getting my hair done into braided pig tails, and spending a whole weekend completely engrossed in the horse show life. If I wasn't hooked enough already, that definitely did it. 

The following year I was assigned Vogue as my show pony. Vogue's show name is Strike a Pose, which I thought was the coolest thing ever. She was a diva back then (I know she has much better manners now in her old age), but she taught me so much. That year at the District 4H show, against 50-something other riders, she gave me a blue ribbon in the Short Stirrup under saddle class! This was more than a decade ago, but I remember that exact moment and feeling still to this day. At that particular show, they start with 10th place and work their way up to first, so the anticipation and excitement was just plain awesome. Vogue gave me many more blue ribbons in that year, and I was absolutely devastated when it was time to move up to another horse. I remember getting to the barn and crying because I knew I wasn't going to see Vogue's name next to mine on the lesson sheet.

The year I had to give up Vogue was the same year I got Snowball. Like I said, my mom fell in love with him during her time helping out at Larry's farm. If I'm being completely honest, I didn't think much of him and I certainly never thought he had the potential to be a show horse. But, December 24th, 2001 changed everything. My mom couldn't bear the thought of him leaving (because at this point, no one wanted him and the owners were just tired of paying for him), so she convinced my dad that he should be ours. She signed the check and I received the greatest Christmas gift a girl could ever dream of. My very own horse! All of my birthday wishes came true! If only it was that glamorous and simple...

I was only 11 and although I was a pretty strong rider, I had no business training a three-year-old. We had loads and loads of help from Larry and our favorite person on the planet, Beth, and before we knew it Snowy was in a show ring! About a year later my mom got an offer to work at MacNair's, meaning we could move Snowy there. I was so beyond thrilled I could hardly handle it! I used to drool over the "top barn" (where the boarders lived) as we passed it to go down to the "school barn" for my lessons. I mean, come on, it is horse heaven! We moved him there and had one of my instructors ride him, just to hear her say he didn't have much potential. He was only four! I was so disappointed, but we had no intention of giving up on him. We put him in a training program with the brave and wonderful Alta, and she worked the baby-ness right out of him! She started jumping him and showing him in the little shows at the farm. I was so proud of him for proving the naysayers wrong! While he was in training, I only rode him a few times a week myself. I was fortunate enough to have another horse, Clark, available for me to continue showing. Clark was grumpy and long and had the funniest lead change ever, but he was so good at his job. I loved him and am so thankful that I had the opportunity to ride him for the year. We even won reserve champion in the Junior division at the 4H show! By 2004, Snowy and I were an official team. 

For the next 7 years, with the help of my amazingly wonderful trainer Nancy, we worked our way up from the 2' schooling divisions to the 3' adult divisions. He won me hundreds of ribbons and turned out to be the absolute best horse I'd ever ridden. No, he wasn't fancy. No, he didn't win those under saddle classes. Yes, he has his quirks, and yes, he gets mistaken for an appaloosa all the time. But he tried hard and worked hard and loved his job. He continues to teach me more about myself and life in general than anything else I've ever done in my 24 years. It's something I've learned is impossible to explain to other people, which means I have always gotten made fun of for being so obsessed with Snowy. I don't mind. 

Snowball is my greatest accomplishment, my pride and joy. He has more personality in his little pink nose than most humans I know. He is the keeper of my secrets, my confidant. He is my teammate, my partner. He dances through baths (usually because he's found another pile of poop to lay in). He hugs me with his neck as I pull his mane because he knows I'll stop to hug him back. He stops to sniff every.single.pile of poop on a trail ride. He whinnies at me from across the field, no matter how long it's been since I've seen him. He grabs the lead rope from my hands and grinds it between his teeth - something I'll never understand, but always allow. He doesn't like to bend to the left. He doesn't mind getting on a trailer, but he hates getting off of them. He always speeds up when we're heading towards the gate of the ring. He loves blue Gatorade. He has the best mane to braid, but would prefer if my mom held a bucket of hay in front of him while I do it. He has the laziest buck/rear combination, but always did it in flat classes or if he doesn't want to do a lead change. He always stops in his tracks when I fall off, like he's saying, "oops." He's laid back and mellow and gets along with any horse. He is perfect.

Snowy has taught me patience and responsibility. He's taught me how to love hard and laugh often. He's shown me that imperfection is perfection. He's proof that hard work pays off and that the underdog always stands a chance. I am forever indebted to this horse for the way he has helped shape me into the person I am. And the funny thing is, he has no idea.

His blue eyes stole my heart all those years ago and have held onto it tightly ever since. Happy Birthday, Wise Guy!

exciting things!

I'm tellin' you what... this year is off to a great start! I admit I've spent most of my time staring at my wedding pictures and attempting to narrow down my favorites list from about 800 to roughly 100. It is literally impossible. To all of my newly engaged friends: I cannot stress it enough... it is worth every single penny to hire a fantastic photographer (more specifically, hire Renee Sprink with Renee Sprink Photography). Yes, it seems like a lot of money, but think about it - you will be looking at these pictures and sharing them with your children and grandchildren for the rest of your life! The photographer captures things you as a bride would never have seen or even remotely noticed (perfect example - my flower girl high-fiving my bridesmaids after she walked down the aisle). Being a bride is hard work, so don't stress and let your photographer capture those memories and special moments that you would have otherwise missed. Oh, I could go on and on. And on. I just feel so lucky to have gotten to work with Renee and I want every bride to have that same experience!
On a side note, I think I'm obsessed with weddings. It's starting to worry me.

So, since I posted like 300 wedding pictures on Facebook, I'll just share one in this blog. This is one my mom said "looks like JQ" which made me LOL because obviously she meant GQ. Typical DD!

Now, onto the exciting stuff! Payton helped me cross one thing off of my 2014 to-do list already! He FINALLY bought a new truck! That man has been talking himself out of it for like a year now, so I am thrilled for him :) It's a brand-spankin'-new, charcoal gray, 4-door Ford F150. It's beautiful and he got exactly what he wanted. That makes me very happy! I have yet to get a good picture of it because he wouldn't let me go with him to buy it (rude) and it's already dark out by the time he gets home from work. 

And now. The news you've all been waiting for.... Today we closed on our new lake house!!!!!! (By we I mean my parents, of course...) We rented a house for Thanksgiving on Lake Gaston and instantly fell in love with the area. It was obviously meant to be because my dad found the perfect log cabin right down the street from where we were staying, so we all got to see it with the realtor while we were there. It's been a long time coming, but it's finally ours! Oh, it is just perfect. We are going to make so many amazing memories there and I'm ready to get started! I can't even begin to tell y'all how excited I am to take my kids there one day. We've been so excited about this that my mom even got a sign made for Christmas that says "The Cameron's Lake House." Maybe she jumped the gun a little bit, but now we can hang it proudly! 

Here she is, in all her leafy glory! The outside needs some work, but the inside is just beautiful. 

On another exciting note, I registered for Zumba classes yesterday! Since I rode horses almost daily for the majority of my life, I just never really felt like I needed to do anything more in regards to exercise (because if you've ever ridden Snowball, you understand). Now that I can't ride as much, I wanted to find something that I loved as much as riding to keep me coming back. I think that's been the biggest struggle... I can't compare anything to riding because it is my one deep-hearted passion. So, I figured dancing is the next best thing! I had my first class last night and it was so.much.fun. It was just like playing Just Dance on the Wii, but more intense. I catch on really quickly, so I honestly had a blast and it was a great workout. I'm going to do Zumba twice a week and hopefully try some of the other classes once I'm feeling a little more in shape. I'm just so happy that I love it. And if getting Snowy back into work is on my 2014 to do list, I need all the help I can get to get in shape myself! That horse is just like his mama... would rather be sleeping or eating than anything else.

I can't wait to see what else 2014 has in store for us. So far, so good :)

happy new year!

Happy New Year! I hope everyone had a fun, relaxing, love-filled holiday season. I know we did! Holidays are more fun when you're married :)

We kicked off vacation with the NC State v. ECU basketball game and seeing Anchorman 2. Both really, really great shows! Then we headed to Salisbury to do our big Craddock Christmas. With 17 people and a new baby, we decided to play Secret Santa and White Elephant. It was a big hit! We always have so much fun when we're all together, and we were ALL together for the first time in a long time! We headed back to New Hill for a Cameron Christmas late on the 24th and did nothing but eat and bum around all Christmas day - my definition of perfect. I made sausage gravy and biscuits and a cheese danish, and we also had gravlaks (my dad's are TO.DIE.FOR) and the most unbelievably delicious Christmas dinner I've ever had. Chateaubriand with homemade horseradish sauce, baked potatoes and asparagus. I'm drooling! We ended the day by going to bed at 8:30 :) Payton and I did some post-Christmas shopping on the 26th and then headed home. I can't remember the last time I was so relaxed. I cleaned and organized and caught up on some projects I had been putting off, all while wearing my owl PJs. I didn't want it to end!

On Saturday we had our December (double) date night at Angus Barn! Payton and I had never been before, so we thought we'd splurge for the holidays. We had a great time with Pam and Wesley, even though we weren't overly impressed (DON'T SHOOT). I've been completely spoiled my whole life when it comes to steaks, so I never order them in restaurants because I'm always disappointed. Although my filet was delicious, it just didn't stand up next to my dad's! Plus, my plate was so screaming hot that it actually cooked my what-started-out-as-perfectly-medium steak to well done. Boo! I'm sorry to all the die-hard AB-ers out there... but come to my house for a steak dinner and you'll understand! I did absolutely love the atmosphere and the rest of the meal, however. Overall, AB is so charming at the holidays and it was totally worth it. Plus, Payton made steak and eggs with the leftovers the next day and it was so, so good!

And now we're here. 2014 has arrived and I'm looking forward to a fresh new year! I have never made or liked new year's resolutions, but I would like to make a little (realistic) to-do list. Here it goes:

1. Write down a favorite moment from each day in my new Erin Condren planner. It will keep me feeling grateful!
2. Try a new Raleigh area restaurant each month.
3. Spend more quality time with Snowball, and get him back into light work.
4. Plan a trip for our one year anniversary.
5. Convince Payton to buy that truck he's been dying for.
6. See a show or two. Or three. (First up - Les Miserables in February with my mama!!!)
7. Put more effort into hanging out with friends and being more social. I'm so young, but act so old!
8. Have a big summer barbecue at our house.
9. Finish 4 books. That may seem sad, but I just don't read very often...
10. Eat less junk food/snack less.
11. Floss (almost) every day.
12. Be a more patient, understanding wife and appreciate my husband's talents and efforts more.
13. Take Scout on more walks.
14. Watch more Netflix. We just started Breaking Bad and I'm in the middle of Revenge.
(and one for good luck)
15. Take full advantage of our new..........................................

Next time, the secret will be revealed! I'm really dragging this out and making it a bigger deal than it is, but it's very exciting to me! Thanks for reading, and Happy New Year!

PS- I need to send a HUGE, HUGE, HUGE congratulations to one of my favorite couples in the universe and two of our best friends, Camry and Eric, on their engagement!!! You two deserve all the happiness in the world and I could not be more thrilled for you!