2nd Annual Seidel Family Fishing Trip

This past weekend Vic and I left College Station and headed to Port Aransas for the 2nd Annual Seidel Family Fishing Trip (Vic, me, his parents and his sister). Vic and I had a pretty long but fun week of work and settling in our house, so we were exhausted when we got to Port A on Thursday night about 11:00 or so. Our first day of fishing (Friday) was spent catching lots of hardheads, though Steve and Janice did catch a few redfish. However, on Saturday, we did great! Well, Vic and Jill did great! Steve and Janice and I participated and had fun only catching one each! Vic caught 4 redfish and Jill caught 8 allowing us to limit out at 15 redfish! I will say for Steve, he tends to get to fish less than the rest of us, as he is getting bait for us or getting fish off of the girls' hooks or fixing knotted fishing line. But, it was truly Jill's day as it seemed that the second she cast, she had fish just a minute or two later. Steve said she had the "mojo" for that day! In the evenings, Steve and Vic cooked dinner and we all played card games. The condo was really nice and had a beautiful view of the water and some houses. It was a really nice weekend!

This is the redfish I caught! Even if it was the only one, it ended up being the biggest at about 27 inches long!

The Seidel Family and most of the fish they caught that day!

Jill & I were sunburned and happy and took in some super fun Port A shopping! One store was super expensive though and we had more fun just seeing how much stuff cost! Oh to be rich!

How cute is my little fisherman Vic?

The Amazing Taylor Verett and Super Cute Mary Vickery!

Okay, so where do I even begin this next post? This is the story of The Amazing Taylor Verett and Super Cute Mary Vickery. Mary (my cousin) found out on Sunday that her boyfriend Taylor who is also our good friend (by the way they met at our wedding-how fun is that?) was getting to take some time off from the Air Force Academy for the week and coming to College Station to visit! Of course, I realize he was here mainly for Mary, but we are so thankful that they like us and want to spend time with us too! So, Tuesday night Taylor and Mary and Vic and I went to dinner at Wings N More and during the evening of visiting, it was decided that Taylor, being the electronic genius that he is, was going to setup our surround sound system in addition to an agenda of other items. Our home is already equipped with speakers in the ceiling and wall and Vic, of course, loved the idea of getting it all hooked up. So, over the course of the next 3 days (poor Mary - she just thought she'd get some romantic time with her boyfriend; who knew he was going to work for 3 days straight??), Taylor not only bought us exactly what we needed (speakers, receiver, wireless thing for outside (I can't remember the right names...sorry Taylor!) and outside speakers) but set it all up for us. And, I have to say the sound is just about as perfect as you could get. With the music, you feel like you are in a bar with a live band playing and with the TV, you feel like you could be in a movie theater! As Taylor and Mary would say, it is SWEET!

Not only that, they also setup our garage door openers and keypad entry. Now, this next part is very important. As many of you know, Vic and I love the Veretts...all of them! And, for as long as I can remember, though I love being a part of my own family, I have constantly said that I would also be happy being a Verett, living on Verett Lane, etc. So, when Taylor asked us what code we wanted for the keypad to the garage, he just happened to mention the code for many Verett garage door keypads. And, he also might have mentioned that if we used that code, that could get me one step closer to being as Verett as I can be! So, guess what?? If you know the phone number to Uncle Eddie and Aunt Nancille's home (is that right Taylor? their home?) or you know the garage door keypad codes to many Verett homes, you can also access our new home's garage door keypad! It's the same number! How fun is that? Some of you will not be entertained by this at all, but some of you will be super excited!This is Taylor and Mary finishing the task of installing the Garage Door Opener Keypad. Aren't they the cutest?

And, here is a picture of Mary, Vic, and Taylor putting our new lights for our front yard together. We have a steep walkway with a few steps that are hard to see in front of our house. So, Vic and I bought these super cool solar lights that come on at night. They look great!

So, lots was accomplished while Mary & Taylor were here (they also setup satellite in one of the guest rooms and probably did something else I am just not thinking of right now) and we are so thankful! Vic and I actually left the house before they did so that we could head to Port Aransas for the 2nd Annual Seidel Family Fishing Trip. However, when we got back, not only was everything installed and working wonderfully, but we also had a super fun card from them and Mary even baked us a cake! Guests like them are welcome back ANYTIME!

And, that is the story of The Amazing Taylor Verett and Super Cute Mary Vickery!

Oh and last but not least, here is a quick pic of our first cookout with friends in our new home! It was a fish fry! (katie, katerina, mary, taylor, kinsey, vic)

First Day in New House!

Well, after lots of packing (132 boxes) and stress with movers and some rain and closing on both the condo and the house all in one day, we finally got to unlock the doors to our new home. It really was a super exciting moment! From the second we got there though, it was pretty chaotic: like I said we had movers and rain, Vic's family staying with us, my dad in town for a visit, other drop-by visitors, appliance deliveries, dish network setup, re-keying of locks, trips to stock the house (sam's, bed bath and beyond, grocery store), unpacking, organizing, etc.! It was lots of fun, but very exhausting that first weekend. To be honest, I don't think Vic and I have caught up on sleep yet! There is just so much to remember and do and to be honest, I've been pretty proud of myself and Vic for doing a good job. I enjoy learning as I go and getting excited over the new nook or cranny we find or idea we come up with as we settle into our new home.

We have decided, however, that we are not going to rush to do anything major as far as decorating. Our new home is truly a blank canvas--freshly painted with neutral colors and we can change hardware, paint, fixtures, etc. over time and not be rushed. I am already excited to shop in catalogs and stores and online to find the right fabric for curtains, knobs for drawers, furniture ideas, paint colors and anything else that we may decide to do to make our house warm and homey! It really is fun and exciting!

I have lots to say about individual things going on at the house, but need to get back to doing some laundry (some things never change: even in a new house! haha). So, here are a few updated pics of some of our things in the home...again, nothing exciting yet. But, give us time--between Vic and I we come up with some great ideas (ok, let's be honest here - some of my talents and ideas truly come from my family as they are the best at being creative but I can't wait to get started on them!)
My camera is getting old and not taking great pictures, but this is Vic, Charley and Mary unpacking the room with the MOST stuff....the KITCHEN! It was amazing how many kitchen/serving items we had packed into that condo. I mean, we had gotten used to having to do to the entertainment center to get corning ware dishes to use, or to the linen closet to get serving platters, or even to under the stairs to get certain appliances, but I don't think we realized how nice it would be in the new house to have all kitchen/serving items in one room! Thank goodness for great organizers like Mary and Janice (Vic's mom) who were pro's at making the kitchen look great!
Slowly, we will get more organized and more furniture and decoration in our home. This, however, is a pic from today. It's amazing how small our furniture looks in this house compared to the condo!
And, even our outside it looking better (note the plants!) . Gosh we sure do love those great big windows! Janice cleaned them until they were as clear and sparkling clean as they could be! However, we do not have curtains or any kind of window coverings yet and it does get a little creepy at night; I mean - people can see in, but we can't see out. Fortunately, we back up to a greenbelt and really the only people who might see in are burglars and I'm really hoping we don't have any of those ever!! Okay - stay tuned! More to come!

Joe & Cassie's Wedding

Here are some pictures from Joe & Cassie's wedding! We are so glad they are happily married and can now rest from all of the wedding chaos that comes with every wedding! Vic and I had a wonderful time the entire weekend and look forward to lots and lots of memories with both Joe & Cassie! It was also a wonderful weekend for Vic and I to spend in Orange Grove and visit with his friends and family. Every event we attend with people from Orange Grove, I realize how lucky I am to be a part of Vic's life because of the wonderful friends and family he has. Check out the pictures below!

The Seidel Family

From little boys in diapers to good looking men, they have been friends!

Us with Mandee (top) and Jill (bottom)

Joe & Cassie's Rehearsal Dinner

Okay, before I get back to moving activities on this super fun blog, I need to post some pictures from the new Mr. & Mrs. Klatt's wedding! Vic and I drove to Orange Grove the weekend of July 10-12th for the big day for Joe & Cassie. Vic was actually a groomsmen in the wedding (Vic and Joe have grown up together and Joe was actually the best man in our wedding). As soon as we got to town, we went to the rehearsal and then rode on party bus's to the rehearsal dinner held at King's Inn. The party bus's were definitely the way to go...all you can drink and visit and sing to the music as much as you want all the way to the restaurant and back. The food was delicious, the toasts were great and the people were too much fun! Vic really enjoyed getting to hang out with some of his buddies from high school as well as the close friends we still keep up with. It was a really fun night! See pics of Mandee, Kate, Will, Denae, Crissha, Lindsey & Chris from the Rehearsal Dinner night.

Moving Day!

Quick update - we are moving today! Sort of. The movers are coming at 2pm to load all of our boxes and furniture up - we are up to 132 boxes-can you believe it? Who knew we had that much stuff crammed into our little home? Then, tonight we stay at the romantic LaSalle - me, Vic and Jill! (sorry Jill - haha). Then, tomorrow we spend the day closing at 9am on the condo and 1pm on the house and then the movers unload at 3pm. My daddy and Vic's parents are also coming into town for the big unveiling of our new home! I am a little stressed - lots to remember and lots to organize, but I think we are in good shape. I have a color coded labeling system, inventory of each box, and a spreadsheet of to-do's - I love organizing!

Say a prayer if you read this that all goes smoothly with closings, and moving, and appliance hookups, and everything else. We are so excited to move into our first house and Vic is already excited to start working on the yard (while I graciously provide him cold beer because I have never done much with yards - I have a lot to learn!).

I will say that we had our little moment last night of realizing it was our last night in the condo and it is starting to hit us. I know, I know - some people move all the time and it is silly to get too sentimental over a house, but we have such wonderful memories there before and while we have been married. So many friends have blessed us with their presence; Vic proposed to me in that kitchen; we've had dinner parties and cookouts and birthday celebrations there; we've had our own Friend Thanksgivings there; happiness and sadness have occurred; so much has happened and we have cherished and loved and plan to remember every possible moment. And, we truly look forward to everything that will happen in our lives as we live in our new home.

Okay, okay, I'm done for now. No tears! (at least not yet) I will update again soon!

Updates

I know, I know - I am sorry I have not updated. I have to say that a lot has happened in the last month, but I was too nervous to post about certain things for fear they would just fall through! I will give you a brief synopsis of what has been going on though.

Right after we got back from Port Aransas, we met our realtor with Re/Max. It was a Thursday night and we immediately liked her! She put our house on the market Saturday night and by Tuesday night we had an offer. It was so fast! It was the right offer and we truly believe the right couple, so we accepted. This was all exciting, but we had not looked at anything else. So, beginning Friday night, we spent the next 5 days looking at homes. It really is fun, but almost so overwhelming with so many decisions to be made so quickly, that it could be a little frustrating. I mean, we did it to ourselves. We really had a small window of time to look and find something, unless we wanted to just move from our condo to a short-term apartment lease and then keep looking. Vic was still in the middle of studying and really only had a few days to spend on this before he needed to get back to studying full time. So, our adventure was fun but also quick. We found a builder and style of home we just loved! It was only one house but we loved almost everything about it and made an offer. Unfortunately, we were outbid. The next day we found another house by the same builder with a very similar layout (but one we liked everything about), made another offer and it was accepted! I will post pictures of details eventually, but it is great. It's a 4 bed 2 1/2 bath, great backyard that looks out onto a greenbelt, great neighborhood, and just really pretty with great details inside. We truly love it. We will be closing on both homes on July 24th, assuming everything else goes as planned.

Vic and I have been packing all weekend because we are out of town next weekend and then only have one final weekend for packing before we move! We cannot believe it but are very excited! It is making me a little crazy to have stuff everywhere and our house in disorder! I like things nice and neat, but it's very worth it. We are very blessed to have found this house and so excited to move.

So, that is the biggest life-changing thing that has happened in the last month. Other than that just work and regular stuff. OH! Except my friend Megan finally had her baby - a 10 lb. 9 oz. baby boy named Cole William. He is really cute and sweet and I love being able to go visit them. So, that is SUPER exciting news. I am sure I will have many more things to say about the Meier Family and Cole as times goes on!

Also, I made a quick trip home this weekend to get my hair done. I stayed with my college roommate and best friend, Tabatha and really wish I could have stayed longer. I came back after one night and after packing some more, we attended a 4th of July cookout and then spent all day today packing. Also, at home, I saw all of my family, which I love to do. My aunt GG had her knee replaced but is recovering wonderfully, so keep her in your prayers.

Okay, that is all for now. I really will post lots of pics soon. For now, here are just a couple.
Our cute little condo that we love was for sale only 4 days before someone bought it up!
This is our new home that we will live in for a good long while. I can't wait to get there! Now, all it needs is a red door - won't that look pretty?

Also, these pictures are showing the breakfast nook, view of backyard, and view of built-ins and front door area.