Pray for Harper

There is a blog that I have been following for awhile now and the blogger, Kelly is just amazing! She recently had her first daughter Harper and she is now having some breathing problems and has
been air lifted to a Children's Hospital. To get more details you can go to Kelly's blog here or check my side bar for the blogs that I follow.

Please just keep Kelly and Harper in your prayers!



~Allison

Tennessee in all of it's splendor!

We had an amazing trip in Tennessee. The first day we got there it was in the 70's and sunny...it was amazing. The first thing we did when we got there was open up the 2 doors and just look at our amazing view! We had looked forever online and finally found a cabin that Nick felt satisfied with that would be secluded enough. Some of the cabins are very close to each other so I did understand where he was coming from and it was PERFECT!! We went with a cabin rental company called Volunteer Cabin Rentals and we have never had any problems with them. My parents have also gone through them, and their cabins are great. The cabin that we had was called "Unforgettable" and it was just that. It is the perfect place to go to for a romantic getaway... that is for sure! It was just great for us to get away from work, school, and bills and just spend some quality time together. This past semester was difficult trying to balance working

opposite shifts, going to school at different times, and just life! That is the best way to put it.

I just can NOT wait until the day that Nick and I are in a relationship that does NOT involve

school! :) It will come soon enough...so back to TN...Our first night there we did not go into town and do anything...we stayed at the cabin and made dinner (a little side note here....making dinner all 3 nights included putting a pizza in the oven! ) The reason we did that was we wanted something easy, we didn't want to have to buy a bunch of food, and we didn't want left overs...so...what better than a frozen pizza???

Ok so then after dinner we hung out in the hot tub, played pool, watched a movie, and checked

out the heart shaped jacuzzi tub....can you say heavenly? Then on day 2 we made breakfast, got

ready and went into Pigeon Forge. It was sprinkling rain and was very foggy!!! So we went to the Christmas Store that we've been to a few times now...didn't find anything, then we went to lunch, and then to the outlet mall. I found tons of stuff and Nick didn't find much, but I guess that is how the cookie crumbles. :) hehe. I have to add this though. When we were driving back I think it was around 6pm and it was dark!! I mean really dark, then it was still foggy! I can not explain how bad it was, unless you've driven in the mountains before it is hard to explain. We could not even see in front of us when we were trying to get back to the cabin. Luckily Nick just got me a GPS for Christmas so we used that and it showed how the roads curved, but it was still really really scary! At one point I had to get out and walk a little bit so Nick knew where to drive. Ugh! It was crazy!! So then when we got back we just hung out at the cabin, again sitting in the hot tub, watching a movie/TV, played pool, and I think we sat in the jacuzzi tub again. We had to get the full benefit of our cabin! Then on day 3 we really took an easy! We woke up late, ate breakfast, sat in the hot tub while it was sprinkling rain (that was so awesome), we were in there for awhile and then decided to start getting ready and our plans were to go to the Old Mill Restaurant.....Yumm-O! We had been there before with my family, but man is the food there good! To say the least...we were NOT on the diet while we were there. :) Then we went back to the outlet mall to get a few more things we didn't get before and went back to the cabin. Our main intention for that day was to eat at Old Mill and relax at the cabin. It was rainy and foggy on that day too, but not nearly as bad as before. We also made sure to get back earlier so it wasn't as dark. To say the least...It was amazing! I feel so grateful to have been able to spend that time with Nick! I remember going to TN with my parents when I was younger and I always wondered why they didn't take us other places for our family vacations like the Bahamas, or somewhere exotic and fun like that, but looking back on it I'm glad we did go to TN. Hey it says something that now with my husband we choose to go there for a vacation. I know someday I would like to take my kids and stay in a cabin. It is just such a fun experience.

Not to sound like a complete corn ball, but when I am in TN I feel so close to God. I guess it is partly because how could someone look at a mountain and not believe there is something greater out there then all of us? Not only that, but just everything, the sky, clouds, I don't know how to put it into words, but when I am there I just feel so at peace. Also because I have so many family members who are from TN it makes me feel like I am in touch with my "roots" I think of my great-grandma Kitts, my grandpa Isley, and many family members I never even had the opportunity to meet.

This is starting to be really long and I still have to add pictures. I have decided to start blogging at work, save it, and then I will add pictures when I get home....Hopefully it will work.

Try not to be too jealous of our awesome Tennessee vacation! :)

It was exactly what we needed before starting our final semester in college!!!!

~Allison

We are the traveling fools!!!

Wow...it's been a long time! It seems like we did a lot of traveling over our Christmas Break. It all started on Christmas day when we went with my parents to Michigan to visit my aunt Debbie and her family. We originally were planning on going to a wedding further north in Michigan, but after learning it was a 4 hour drive just one way, we decided to not go. Then on my birthday we went out for lunch to......Yummy P.F. Changs. That place is good...especially if you like Chinese. ;)


Then we drove home and Nick went and got me a birthday cake from DQ...if he got one...I had to get one too. :) hehe Here is a picture of the cake he picked out...

He also got me a beautiful heart pendant necklace and we ate pizza. It was a fun relaxing night.
After that trip we were home for awhile and then went to Kentucky to see Mike, Tara, and Maddie and then headed to Tennessee to stay in a cabin. I will post more about that later. I have been on the computer way too long tonight.
So next time I will fill you in on New years and Tennessee. :)
Take care.

~Allison

One Promise Fulfilled

OK, so I have realized that I've promised more pictures, the recipe to Nick's birthday
dessert, and this video. So for the record I have fulfilled one of my promises and I am now
not the World's worst blogger! Yay for me! :)



Sorry it is sideways, but I didn't have time to wait to rerecord then wait to upload it to here, so I'm sorry, but you will have to deal with it sideways! :)
This is a video of the Christmas tree we got down in Tennessee
last year at this HUGE Christmas store. We saw it and debated forever
if we wanted to get it, but now there is no question about it! We are glad
we decided to get it. In this video it is playing the song "Carol of Bells",
but there is a total of 4 songs that the tree plays.
This means in our tiny apartment we have not one, but 2 Christmas trees! :)
I can't believe how close Christmas is!
Merry Christmas Everyone!

Wowzers!!!

So right now I am pulling a Sar. I am at work and I decided to blog.
Once again...there will not be any pictures...I'm sorry. I will have to get
back on the bandwagon soon. I can not believe how fast this month is
flying by. The other day I was joking with Nick and said, "Hey there is only 18 more days
until my birthday." But after I said it I was thinking wowzers....December is
flying by!!! I am ready for Christmas to be here, but I will be sad when it
passes and then it will be a whole year until we can celebrate it again.

On a different note...I was so frustrated before I came into work tonight.
I have a final on Thursday and I was trying to be a good student and work ahead on
it, but when I went to go pull it up on our computer....You guessed it.....IT WASN'T THERE!!
Ugh! I have no idea what I did or what happened that all of my work did not get
saved. I think what happened because I had a bazillion different windows opened up
that either 1. I saved it under something completly different or 2. I renamed it with
an existing file and the other file was not what I meant for it to be. GRRR so
frustrating....so much work down the drain. I seriously probably had a 1/3 of the
Final Study guide done and now...I have NOTHING.

Nick is so amazing though. Every day he shows me how amazing he is. After I told him...
well lets be honest...Once I yelled that I no longer had the study guide on the computer
he tried to find it for me, in his very calm it's not the end of the world way.

So things we have coming up....Nick is officially done with his semester, I still have
an unofficial week left. I said unofficial because I really only have 2 tests, but I won't be
done until Thursday after 3pm. Then after that...Yay a much needed break.
Over our break we will be working, spending time with my side of the family for Christmas, missing his side of the family, getting things ready for our FINAL semester of our college careers, going to Tennessee and staying in a cabin, and of course...I will be blogging. :)

I will blog more with pictures and a video of our singing
Christmas tree.....

~Allison

Thoughts In My Head....

This will be quick. I really felt as though I should write something to stay connected to my little space here in blog world. :)
Things have been a little crazy, we have celebrated Thanksgiving, which I have to say I am realizing more and more each day that I have SOO much to be thankful for. I should even be thankful for being stressed because of homework and work, because at least I am able to go to college and in 5 months...only 5 months!! I will have a Bachelor's degree. Also, at least I have a job. I definitely don't like it all of the time and wish I could stay home with Nick instead, but at least I am able to work and earn money and then reap the benefits of having that money. (not many, but still.)

We've gone Christmas shopping and we have almost everyone done! I have to say I love getting my niece, Maddie gifts. She is soooo fun to shop for. I haven't had the chance to get any of Nick's presents yet, even though all of mine from him are wrapped and under our tree. He is a Christmas freak...but it is just one more thing that I absolutely love about him!

Our Christmas Breaks will be starting soon...Can't wait....but that also means that a lot of stuff is due to finish up the semester and then finals. YUCK! I did get lucky this semester though...I only have 1 final, but a lot of projects. Well I should get back to homework so I'm not overwhelmed this week.


~Allison

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!!!!

Awww....Look at our Christmas tree...it's soo small. :) hehe
It is actually just the perfect size for our apartment. I can not wait until we grow up, get real jobs, and have our own house...then I will have a HUGE Christmas tree. I'm talking like 10 feet or more...it will be big. So the next pictures are of some of my favorite ornaments. I love that Mom Doyle has been getting us ornaments even when we were dating...It's so fun to put them on the tree and then reminisce about that part of our relationship and where we are now.

Here is one of our first ornaments...from 2003. Our first
Christmas as a dating couple.



Here is an ornament we got in Jamaica when we went there on our honeymoon.


This is the ornament we got last year in Tennessee when we celebrated our first Christmas as a married couple.













Then of course....it isn't Christmas unless the 3 Stooges are there... :) hehe
These are just a few of our favorite ornaments that we have so far. Later on I will post a video of our singing tree...more to come later.


~Allison