Category: Life

Being at Home

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Oh the joy of being at home. Something that Dan and I never seem to get enough. There is just something too good about waking up sans alarm on a Saturday, in your own bed. Then proceeding to have a cup of coffee on your patio, in the cool January weather, while perusing articles online. And to sum up the best morning ever, hearing your husband call to you that breakfast is ready and going inside to the smell of bacon and Dawes playing over the speakers, as he whisks you around the living room for a quick waltz. Seriously. Such little things make for the greatest morning. Trying to savor every minute of this phase of life.

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Ignore the weeds covering the yard.

Other than idyllic Saturday mornings, two weekends IN A ROW, at home, meant:
Going to the movies. I’m trying to play catch up on all the best picture noms and we are way behind. The Big Short was so stinking good. Thankful for my finance classes. The Revenant was… in terms of cinematography, just beautiful. In general, a film I could appreciate, but not need to see again. And I, along with everyone, hope Leo finally wins an Oscar 😉
Hanging out at some new Houston places, along with some old favorites (El Tiempo, always). Axelrad opened last month and is a very cool beer garden. I loved the simplicity of it, but the colors really amped it up. The tap handles were gorgeous and the beer selection was diverse. We also finally tried Reef, a seafood place in Midtown. Turns out the porkchop ended up being the best dish!
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Axelrad taps

Savoring this sweet, sweet weather. Houston may feel like the pits of hell in the summertime, but winters are on point. Thankful for a park down the street, a fun loving dog, and the best patio bar to relax at. (Cottonwood wins every time.)
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Shake it off
Playing catch up! After weeks of not being home much, I cleaned up and cleaned out. So much went to Goodwill and the church. I feel like they are probably overwhelmed every January as people purge for the new year. I definitely felt the urge to purge, and I haven’t even read any Marie Kondo books 😉 Even our fridge got a refresh!
MTV Cribs anyone?
This wasn’t even 1/2 of it.
Finally, FRIENDS! Yay for friends (not the show, but yay for that too- we’ve been Netflix binging). Y’all rock. Houston has some fine people.

2015 Reflection

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2015, man. Every year just keeps getting better. With all the ups and downs in this life, I’m extremely grateful that our ups, far and away, outweigh our downs. I can pretty sum up 2015 as travel + work on the house. And those are fun things 🙂

AXO’s!
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We skied in Steamboat Springs, explored more of one of our favorites cities, NYC, tried lots of beers in Portland, Oregon, relaxed by the pool in Cancun, listened to live music in Nashville, ate our weight in pizza and pasta in Italy, attended the Great American Beer Fest in Denver, and had lots of friends & family time in Austin, Fredericksburg, San Antonio, Dallas, and Jackson (and they visited us too!). I was maid of honor in a beautiful wedding, we tried lots of new Houston restaurants, took Barley out as much as possible, and got really settled into our small group. We built a fence, painted lots of walls, remodeled the kitchen & added a bathroom, and spent a lot of time at IKEA.

I honestly can’t believe how fast it’s gone by. Looking back and reflecting, my heart is overwhelmed with the goodness in Dan & I’s lives. I hope I never take any of it for granted- that travel to new places (& old) would always feel like a special luxury, that our home would always fill me with delight when I pull into the driveway, that food would always make me feel adventurous, and that my family and friends always make me feel loved. Here’s to 2016!

And an article by Mark Manson I really enjoyed as I think about the new year (via SwissMiss)-

“This is the most simple and basic component of life: our struggles determine our successes. So choose your struggles wisely, my friend.”

November Festivities

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Seeing as we are half way through December, this post is way delayed. But oh well. November was so good!!! With the remodel finally wrapping up, we were able to get some serious friends and relaxation time in. It was like we were on a remodel hangover and the first weekend we could take a break, we did. And did nothing house related! Woo! But some other so good bits from the month…

I turned 26! We celebrated in Austin at Jacoby’s (East Austin has gotten way too cool) with Chels & Katie and our boys (men?). LOVE quality time as grownups with our husbands, who I think are all pretty darn awesome…. note how much we match our significant others. It’s kind of creepy and maybe narcissistic? But fun 🙂

We hosted our first tailgate!! In true Callie form, I stressed out about the details while Dan was beyond chill (and very last minute) about all of it. It was a pretty cruddy day, but the rained cleared up by the time the tailgate started and we found a great spot on campus! Everyone brought treats & drinks and we grilled up some burgers & dogs. Such a fun time. And we crushed KU!

We had a Novemberfest party. Dan & I are trying to make an Oktoberfest party an annual thing for us, but due to the state of our house in October, we pushed it back a month. Dan brewed an Oktoberfest beer that was great and I cooked up some goodies. Tara came into town and was a god send in helping get everything ready. Phew. Too bad I took almost zero pictures… I did get a few of some of the food. So there’s that. This mulled wine was a huge hit! As well as this pumpkin spice trifle. And both were very easy 🙂 We also did brats and pretzels with beer cheese dip.


We checked out the new movie theater in town, where we had delicious food, a pillow, blanket, and recliners. Best way to see a movie!

We went to the park & had a picnic- the weather is good! Finally!!!! (Although it was 82 and humid beyond all December reason this weekend, so that was maybe premature. Unfortunately.)

I cannot believe Christmas is NEXT WEEK!! Meanwhile, I’ll be in a t-shirt. Thanks Houston.

 

Thanksgiving

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Oh my goodness do I have so much to be thankful for. Thanksgiving is such a good time to enter the holiday season with a grateful heart. This was definitely one of my favorites yet in terms of getting to see so many of our loved ones in the span of just a few days. Being in the car was definitely worth it! We spent Thanksgiving with my family in Colleyville, with my dad’s side visiting from Mississippi, then spent the weekend in Georgetown with Dan’s family, including a day trip to Waco to visit his extended family. Our holidays are never relaxing, but they are very full of all the best things 🙂

I hadn’t been home since the beginning of August and it felt SO good. My mom is a superhost and kept us all well-fed at a beautiful table. I also really cherish any time I get to spend with extended family since it doesn’t happen as often as I’d like. I still can’t believe how big my cousin’s little girls are! They probably spent half their time cuddling up with Barley, which he greatly enjoyed. My grandparents also treated us to ICE at the Gaylord where we wrapped ourselves in parkas to endure the 17 degree temperature. The theme this year was Christmas Around the World and I thought it was really well done. It’s amazing the time that goes into the sculptures considering how impermanent they are. The Gaylord has the best Christmas decorations I’ve ever seen in one place. It’s pretty magical.

Then at Dan’s parent’s we finally got to meet our new niece!! Holding babies gives you a feeling that can’t be beat, and this baby was just the sweetest. She looked really cute in Dan’s arms too 😉 And Ellie & Robbie were so much fun- it’s awesome to see their little personalities. I’m looking forward to having Dan’s sisters back in Texas (I know his parents are loving it) and can’t wait to have them all visit soon in Houston! This weekend, Dan asked if I was sure I was ready for kids. I responded with, “Yes, one… not three.” In Waco, we built our own pizzas (Dan was really proud of his cheese stuffed crust) and spent time chatting next to the fire with all his family. It was lovely! Another thing to be grateful for- marrying into a wonderful family.

Now we can officially start celebrating Christmas! We picked up & decorated a tree last night 🙂

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Life Update

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Holy cow, has life been whirlwind-y lately!!! We got back from Italy over a week ago and have been going almost non-stop since. I haven’t even gotten a chance to look through all the photos yet… kind of dreading it but also looking forward to reliving it. I think we probably took over 1,000. Dan and I (together) are probably in 3. I get so awkward asking people to take our picture! And then half the time, they don’t turn out anyway. ANYWHO. We had friends in town last weekend and the weather was basically the best, so it was really nice. Plus, we had some great food at Local Foods, Provisions, and Cedar Creek. Some photos from the good times:

OH and by the way… THIS is happening. No big deal, right?! More on this to come. And Italy. And woa, life, slow down please.

One sneak peek from our day trip to Capri… Man, what a great time.

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This blog post is all over the place. Like my life. Forgive me while I get it together.

Happy Anniversary, My Love

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We had pretty limited wi-fi (and I didn’t feel like doing anything but Italian things while away) so I didn’t get to post anything on our anniversary. So here it is, a week late 🙂

Reliving the day that started it all! One whole year that has completely FLOWN by. And honestly, every day has gotten better. I can’t even imagine being paired with someone who so perfectly fills in my imperfections, who makes me laughs in ways that help me forget any worries, and encourages me so completely. Here’s to many more days of travel and happiness and house projects and cooking and unconditional love. Life with you endlessly fun.

Thank you again to everyone who shared our wedding day with us- what a joy to be surrounded in celebration by everyone we love.Your support of our life together means so much.


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Barley’s 1st Birthday

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Dan finds it silly to celebrate a dog’s birthday. I told him I wanted to throw Barley a party and Dan said he wouldn’t attend. So he’s a big party pooper, clearly. But! Seeing as we don’t have children to spoil, and considering how much of our life revolves around him, I think he needs to be celebrated. Because I just adore him. A bit surprising considering how adamant I was that we weren’t going to get a Great Dane. Now I can’t imagine life without him 🙂 Yes, I’m bringing full on cheese. For his birthday he got this collar that I found on Etsy and we are meeting up with some friends for drinks at Cottonwood- his favorite bar 😉

Looking back over these pictures, it’s INSANE how much he has grown.

Happy 1st Birthday Barley boy!!

Summer Daze

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Houston gets reallllly hot in the summer. I grew up in Texas, I’ve lived through Dallas summers, I know it gets hot. But the humidity in Houston totally ups the heat game. Between that and the mosquitos, I feel like everything outdoors has been semi-miserable since June started. And I haven’t really been enjoying the summer time, just kind of waiting for it to be Fall already. This is on top of getting ready for the remodel/ being out of town all the time anyway. But thinking back, relaxing outside on summer nights at home can be pretty magical.

All this to say: thank goodness for having friends over to grill because it saved me and now I want to take advantage of the rest of the summer, even if it is hot 🙂 Oh and it may have had something to do with the watermelon, which I had for the first time this whole year. Juicy goodness.


Summer Goals:

– Make homemade ice cream

– Take Barley to the beach

– Blend up some frozen margaritas

– Not complain about the weather- embrace it as a warm hug

– Go to an Astros game

– Go swimming

I’m giving myself to the end of September 🙂

Dallas Days

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I’ve gotten to head home and visit my family twice over the last month, which has been great!! When I moved to Houston, I kind of resigned myself to never living in the same city as my parents again, so visiting lots help make that feel a little less depressing. I was able to see best friends from high school, celebrate at a baby & wedding shower, shop for house things with my mom & sisters, and explore Dallas a bit. Having grown up in the suburbs, Dallas always feels new and now that Tara has lived in Deep Ellum for the last year, it’s fun going with an actual local 😉

Some pictures from the weekends, even though I slacked a bit:

^^ Laura & Alex’s wedding shower at my parent’s and Ash’s Baby shower 

^^Barley hated every second of learning to swim.

Lunch with mom’s at Celebrity Cafe  

^^He’s gotten huge. To scale: Dan is 6′ 4″. 

Dinner in Ft. Worth (whoops, not Dallas) for Tara’s birthday

^^ My parents treated us to a really fun night out at Trinity Groves, which lots of great restaurant concepts. We tried LUCK (Local Urban Craft Kitchen) for dinner, which only serves beers from DFW, and Off Site Kitchen for games & drinks. 

Barley had a great time too 🙂

#HilburnsGetHitched

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Man, I think I’m just now starting to recover from the weekend! But my heart is so full! Katie and Josh got married Saturday night. Seeing such great friends get married is the best. Knowing that they’ll get to care for each other, laugh with one another, and love on one another FOREVER. Just the coolest and it makes me smile from tip to toe. I get way more emotional at weddings now that I’m married- knowing just how good marriage is. *Disclaimer- I may still be in the honeymoon phase*

With so many pastors in the family, it was bound to be full of great speeches and a terrific ceremony. The wedding & reception were at our church and it made for a great background. The whole thing was just beautiful. Plus, Katie got us flower crowns and I’ll be forever grateful. I could live in those things. Getting to spend time with good girlfriends all weekend was pretty great too.

I didn’t go too crazy on pics, but the photographers were amazing- they’ve already put up a couple from the first look on Instagram, and I can’t wait to see how the rest turn out!! Helps to have such a cute couple 🙂

Bridal Brunch: At Tiny’s No. 5. I’m in love with Tiny Boxwood’s so I was excited to try this location. And apparently they are opening one in Austin soon!

white jeans on the end.

the cutest gift from Katie, stocked with earrings, home made lip balm, a robe, and other goodies

The Rehearsal Dinner: At the church, with beautiful centerpieces. I was crazy nervous about giving a speech, per usual. Dan said the nerves were endearing and I’m going to go with it. Oh, and Dan made the beer and it was excellent 🙂

AXO’s!

 

Erin made the cutest stand in bride to walk down the aisle 🙂

Wedding Day Prep: We spent the morning getting ready at the Hilburn’s home then headed over to the church! There was an evening service so they had lots of volunteers there to flip the space from church to a reception hall. In less than an hour. Impressive. I’ve also never worn more makeup in my entire life.

Wedding Time: And then it was time!!! They both looked beyond ecstatic standing at the altar 🙂 We spent the rest of the night dancing, feasting on chicken and waffles, doing our wedding mad libs, and enjoying time with friends and family!

my handsome date

  

Hope you’re having fun in Nicaragua, Mr. and Mrs. Hilburn!