Memories...

I started this blog well over two years ago, and have said many times since then that I really want this blog to be a place where I can document our lives so that we can look back on it. I love that. I have always loved looking back on things I have written and of course pictures and reminiscing and thinking back on all the memories of whatever it is I'm looking at. I love memories. It's what life is all about, making memories. That's what I would like my blog to be... a place for memories in the making, and down the road, a place to re-visit those memories. So, that's what I will do... post anything and everything that I think people will enjoy reading/viewing, and that one day we will enjoy looking back on to see what our point of view was at that particular time!

With all that being said, I've decided I want to basically re-cap the past two years until the present. 1 year and 9 months to the day later...  I'd like to document everything that went into making our wedding day everything that it was.... everything from the initial details, to the actual day and everything in between.   Pretty much my favorite time period up until this point. Oh how I loved the *Winter of 2010-2011*, my heart melts.  In the blog world, most of the time I've seen people post wedding details as they are planning the wedding leading up until the actual day... well in true Brooke fashion, I'm going to do my own thing and switch things up a bit and recap the planning events leading up through the wedding... I'm excited!

So, spend some time and go from this post back through older posts because the posts from the wedding are all back-dated to 2011! I'm going to do my best to catch up some important/fun things from 2011 through the present, the end of 2012 (can't believe it)!!!

And, eventually this blog will be an up-to-date place for me to post day-to-day things going on in the life of these bears!

Our 1 year anniversary

We debated for awhile what to do for our 1 year anniversary... should we go back to Orlando and stay around there? a cruise? doing something wintery (like skiing, lodge, etc.)? Ultimately, we decided we didn't want to fly anywhere (i.e. Brooke didn't) and wanted to road-trip... we ended up booking a stay at the Ritz Carlton Reynolds Plantation on Lake Oconee in Georgia. It was gorgeous, amazing! We couldn't have picked a better trip for our 1 year anniversary.

The Ritz Carlton Reynolds Plantation where we spent our 1 year anniversary (2012)

It was about a 5 hour drive, and when we arrived there were chocolate covered strawberries and champagne with a card to Mr. and Mrs. Druliner for us... the Ritz is so nice because they really don't miss an opportunity to make it personal and I love all the little details! The planation is gorgeous so the first day we stayed around there and in the winter months they do smores every night around a bonfire with hot chocolate so that was lovely. For the remainder of the trip, we did some hiking, we rented a canoe and went fishing in Lake Oconee and rowed around the lake and saw the beautiful mansions that are on the lake and golf resort, my favorite was probably the two times we went to the spa it was sooo relaxing and beautiful and they had a great area for couples and an awesome indoor pool with a fireplace at the end of the pool over looking the jacuzzi, then we went horseback riding, and we dined and had drinks at all the restaurants around the resort which were all 5 star. Not only were we there for our anniversary but Valentine's day also which is one of my favorite things about our wedding date!

Pulling in to the Ritz, the front of the lodge!

The view from the patio off our room, we were on the 1st floor and could walk right out and down to the lake and hammocks

The back of the lodge, and the grounds, absolutely gorgeous, this is where the bonfire with smores was every night.

Lounging on hammocks

Being silly on the swings

Mr. and Mrs. ... MARRIED 1 YEAR BEARS!

BONFIRE!

Smores with heart shaped marshmallows! Like I said, it's the little details!

Mr. and Mrs.

The lake and beach

The infinity pool looking over Lake Oconee

On a canoe, fishing Lake Oconee

Handsome fisher bear sporting the FSU sunnies

Swimming in the indoor spa pool, see the fireplace at the end? love! We spent a lot of time at the spa...

Horseback riding!

My first time on a horse! Not a huge fan, but it was pretty cool

Mr. and Mrs. on horseback

Flowers from my love on our anniversary

This was a surprise!

At our anniversary dinner using the chamagne flutes from our wedding for the first time since we were married!!

Happy 1 year!

 

2011 in review

2011, obviously, is my favorite year to date. 2007 was my fave for awhile because that's when I both graduated college and met the love of my life, but 2011 stole the show when I married said love of my life! So, we began 2011 in January with our bachelor/bachelorette parties and my bridal shower(s) (one hosted by my wonderful aunt and mother, the other by my home church), then our wedding in February! The rest of 2011 was just enjoying life as newlyweds! Everything is recapped below:

January 2011 (pre-wedding):

The beginning of 2011 was super busy and soooo fun! I had my bridal shower, my bachelorette party, Aaron went fishing for his bachelor party (but then he went out with his guys the night before our wedding because they were all in town), and we had a couple's wedding shower that our church hosted for us! My bachlorette party was on Saturday night, January 29th and my MOH Crystal organized everything and they surprised me, blindfolded at the Grand Bohemian Hotel downtown Orlando where we had matching t-shirts and a Tiffany and Co. theme, then we went to a fantstic dinner and night out in downtown Orlando, it was a blast and I appreciate all the work from Crystal and all my girls! My bridal shower was the next day January 30th and this was hosted by my Aunt Kim and my Mom and was held at my mom's house, it was a french/pink and gold theme and was absolutely stunning! Our couple's shower form our church family was so sweet because it was something Aaron and I could enjoy together and they even set up a money tree for us and did a beautiful job on everything!

Bachelorette Party!

Bridal Shower!

Aaron Fishing trip with my Dad, etc.

February 2011 (WEDDING!): 

February 12, 2011.... best. day. ever.

Remainder of the Spring 2011 (Post-Wedding):

We spent immediately following our wedding just getting back into the routine of things (ie. returning to work and grad school), as well as me getting my name changed from Brooke Nicole Roberts, to Brooke Roberts Druliner! Soooo exciting (although the actual process of changing your name is ridiculous!). We enjoyed our time as the new Mr. and Mrs. and wrote a bunch of thank you cards form the wedding! People were so generous and amazing to us!

Newlyweds / Thank You Notes

Summer 2011:

During the summer we discovered the panhandle beaches and spent a lotttttt of weekends on Destin Beach. Both of us grew up at the beach, but neither had to been to the panhandle gulf coast and let me tell you, the beaches here are 2nd to the beaches of a Caribbean Island!!! Clear blue/torqoise water and sugar white sand... heaven!

Hanging out on the Gulf Coast beaches and our favorite restaurant for oysters in Destin, The Back Porch!

Fall 2011:

One of the most memorable things about the fall 2011 is that we took an awesome trip to Boston, MA! Neither of us had been there, and it was the first time we rode on a plane together (Aaron's first commercial flight actually!). We had a blasttttt! I had a conference up there that I had to present at, so I did that for a few days then we got to have some fun! Boston is amazing and we are both kind of obsessed about moving there possibly one day (post-doc at Harvard for Brooke?? We'll see!) We did the famous Duck Tour which is a tour of the city on an amphibian vessel that they used in WWII, so it drove on the road and turned into a boat and we sailed on the Charles River, it was great because we got to see the overall tour and then we knew which places to go back and check out further. So, we visited the John Hancock Tower, the Prudential Building (ate lunch at the very top), visited Harvard and MIT, the Isabella Stewart Gardener art museum (Aaron was in love), cemetery where Sam Adams, Paul Revere, John Hancock, etc are buried, the North end with all the Italian food and Mike's pastries, as well as the Old North Church where Paul Revere lit the lantern, Boston Commons, Bunker Hill monument, Fenway, ate at Smith and Wollensky's.... etc.! I'm probably missing a bunch of stuff!

Just some picture from our Boston trip!

... and my brother Brent moved to Tally for a semester at TCC, we miss having him here! We also bought a GMC SUV which we love!

Getting Brent set up in his apartment/dorm room in Tally!

Aaron and his new whip!

and finally for the Fall, we got our little bundle of joy:

Sugarbear!!

Christmas 2011:

This Christmas was wonderful because it was our first Christmas as Mr. and Mrs.! And, it was really the first time since the wedding we got to see everyone again in a big group so that was nice! Here is our first Christmas card as "The Druliners":

Merry Christmas from the Druliners!

I'm sure I missed a lot of stuff since I am trying to catch up, but those are a least the highlights of the year! And with that, we are ready for 2012!!