Finally an update!!!

So I wanted to give a quick little update of what we have been up to lately, and also post some pictures of the updates we have done to the house. Now since it has been a little while since I have blogged I'm not going to go into great detail but I will hit the important parts. So in July we got to take a long weekend trip up to Kansas to visit my Grandparents. They live in Overland Park, KS, which is right outside Kansas City. Ryan has never been there beofore so it was great to be able to show him where my grandparents and all my mom's brothers and sisters live and where I use to go during the summers when I was younger.

In August, we celebrated my 26th birthday and our 2 year anniversary! I can't believe it has already been 2 years! It totally does not feel like it on bit! It still feels like we just got married, but we can both honestly say that these past 2 years have been the best years of our lives. We have been through so much and we would not change on bit of it! I cannot wait to see what the next year has in store for us; I have a feeling it’s going to be even better than this past year.
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Cheers to 2 years!!!!

Also in August, we were able to make it up to Ohio for my cousin Michelle's wedding. Ryan and I have been up to Ohio a couple of times together because we both have family there, but this trip was extra exciting for me because Michelle is one of my closest cousin, we are only a little over a month apart in age and we always get told we look just alike. Michelle and I were like 2 peas in a pod when we were little and we have always been close, so it was very important to me to make it to her wedding. It was an amazing wedding and Ryan and I had a blast with my dad's side of the family, we did not want to leave.

September, as you all know is the beginning of football season, so to start it off right, for Labor Day weekend, we headed up to Knoxville to spend the weekend with Christen and Colby and to go to the first UT football game of the season. It was super hot tailgating before the game but we had so much fun! After a little bit of a rain delay UT pulled out a big win again Montana, 42-16!!! GO BIG ORANGE!!!!

Here are so updated pictures of the house! Hope you enjoy!!!

New Paint, Couches, and Accessories!!
(The blinds are soon to go)

New Green Paint in Our Bedroom
(needs a little more decor, its to come)

New Dining Room Table and China Cabinet
(the couch is gone now)



Once again...

I'm a slacker and I have not blogged in a really really long time. But just so you know I am still alive and kicking and I will be posting an update on life, our house, etc. soon! Please don't lose faith in me!

Cafe Eclectic

So I am finally able to do a post about a new restaurant Ryan and I tired not too long ago. If you remember back a little while I had said HERE that Ryan and I were going to try and visit the Top 100 (plus some) restaurant in Memphis, based on Urbanspoon. 

Well, our first restaurant was Cafe Eclectic. This is a great little cafe close to the Rhodes College campus. It is known for their Breakfast/Brunch, Sandwiches/Subs, and Desserts/Ice Cream. We went during brunch and we were very very pleased with the food, service, and atmosphere. Right when you walk in you see the coffee and pastry/donut bar, which got our attention right away. We took a peak of what they had to offer and then got seated. We checked out the menu and order our drinks while we tried to decide what we were going to get. I got the Rachel’s Omelet, which was a three egg fluffy omelet stuffed with grilled veggies, tomatoes, bacon, avocado, and cheese. I also got an extra side of bacon. Ryan got the French Omelet, which was a three egg fluffy omelet stuffed with fresh spinach and cheddar cheese, topped with a dollop of crème fraiche. Each came with your choice of toast or a biscuit and we both went with the biscuit. Everything we got was delicious and so fresh; you could tell they care about what they put into their food. We eat pretty much everything off our plates and also ordered a little snack to-go, a Blueberry Donut and a Blueberry Muffin.

We decided that we will be going back very soon to try out their lunch and their dessert/soda fountain.

Rachel's Omelet

French Omelet

Cost:

Rachel’s Omelet- $7.75

French Omelet-$7.50

Cafe Eclectic on Urbanspoon

Just to be warned this is a long one….

So I know it has been a while since I posted last, and YES I also know this seems to be the story of my life these days, but I do have good reason. When I left you last we were just about to close on our house. Everything went very well with closing. The date did get moved back a bit so we ended up closing on May 26th. Our closing was at 4:30 in the afternoon and right after we headed over to my parents to start packing up our cars with all the crap we had stored up in my parents bonus room. As you can tell, we were not wasting any time getting moved into the house. By Friday night we had pretty much all the big stuff moved in, and Saturday we spent our first night there! We just love it; it is so nice to have our own space again and for it to actually be ours!!! Since it was Memorial Day Weekend we had a little extra time to get settled into the house and to somewhat get organized, which was super nice!

Since we moved in we have done a lot in my eyes. We got a new couch and a new loveseat, we bought an antique farmhouse table that is about 9ft long for our dining room that I am in LOVE with, we found some furniture on craigslist that I stripped down and repainted, and hopefully this weekend we will start painting! We will see if this actually happens! HAHA!

New Dining Room Table



End Table Before

 

End Table After

Dresser Before

 

Dresser After

We still need a few big pieces, like chairs/benches for the dining room table, a china cabinet, and a pub style table for everyday eating. All of this will just have to come in time and I will have to teach myself some self-control because I, of course, want it all now.

This past weekend we took a break from everything house related because it was a VERY VERY special and long awaited weekend! SAM and TAYLOR got MARRIED!!!!! It was an amazing weekend and I do not think I have ever seen a wedding go as perfectly as theirs did and boy did they deserve it. Friday started off with an amazing bridesmaid luncheon, where Sam gave us the cutest beach/cooler totes with our names on them and a beach towel with our initial on them. Then we had the rehearsal and that went off without a hitch, well except for a little flat tire for the bride, but no sweat on that one. The rehearsal dinner was hosted by Taylor’s parents at an outstanding steak restaurant called Folks Folly. Now if you have never been to Folk Folly the next time you are in Memphis and want one of the best steaks you have ever eaten in your life this is where you need to go. It was beautiful and amazingly good! I had only been there one other time before and it was a really long time ago, so I was super excited when Sam told me that’s where they were having the rehearsal dinner. It was such a sweet night, the speeches where so meaningful from everyone who got up and spoke and Sam and Taylor’s moms put together the most amazing slide show of pictures and videos of Sam and Taylor growing up. It could not have been a more perfect night! Well except for the next night, of course!!! The wedding day came and all of us girls got all pretty and headed to the church to get ready and start taking pictures! Sam looked absolutely amazing and I know she just took Taylor breath away when he saw her for the first time! Their wedding ceremony was very thoughtfully planned out by Sam and Taylor and you could totally tell. It had bits and pieces here and there that you just knew came from them. The church was filled with love and you could totally feel it. They were pronounced as Mr. & Mrs. Taylor Nelson and then we headed out, after a few pictures, to party the night away at the Tower Center, which is on the 33rd floor of the Clark Tower that looks over all of Memphis. It was an amazing receptions, the food was to die for, the band could have played all night and I wish they would have, and most importantly the bride and groom had the time of their lives. Sam and Taylor headed out on Monday for their honeymoon in St. Lucia and I know they are enjoying every minute of it. CONGRATS MR. & MRS. NELSON!!!!

Update!!!

Our closing date got moved up a few days! We now close of May 24th!!! Only 9 more days!!!! WE CAN NOT WAIT!!!!!

We are HomeOwners!!!!

Well almost at least, we close on May 27th!!! Ryan and I found our Perfect Home! What we will consider this our First Offical Home!!! Yeah we had a home in Atlanta, but that was a rental and we couldn't turely put our personal touches into it. So without further adieu, Here is our New Home....

Front of Our Home!

Master Bath

Dinning Room

3rd Bed Room

Living Room

Living Room

Wood Burning Stove in the Living Room

2nd Bedroom

Kitchen

Master Bedroom

Hope you like it as much as we do!!!!

He's Back!!!

So Ryan moved back to Memphis on Sunday and it is the best feeling in the world to have him back and around everyday. I know its only been 5 days since he has been back but I just feel like a complete person again. Absence really does make the heart grow fonder.

We have actually been pretty busy since he has been home. Sunday we had dinner at my parents and then headed over to his parents house to just hang out for a bit. Monday night we meet after work for a little house hunting with our realtor David, then went to his sister's for dinner. Tuesday, I meet him during my lunch break and we went suit shopping for him, he has to wear a suit everyday, except Friday's, big change from what he is use to. Now all those shirts and ties he got while I worked at Macy's will really come in handy. Tuesday and Wednesday after work we went house hunting again, and we think we found our house. I will go more into this once there is more to tell!!

Today is Ryan first day at work and from the text he has been sending me throughout the day he really likes the new work place and all the people there. I can't wait to see him after work so that I can hear all about it.

More updates to come and hopefully soon!!

Happy Thursday!!!

The Verdict Is In.....

Ryan will be the newest employee of Green Square Capital!!!!!!! We could not be more excited and I could not be more proud of Ryan! He worked very hard to get this position and I am just so thankful that they saw what they saw in him and offered him this opportunity!!! He will be moving back to Memphis in 2 weeks and those 2 weeks better go by fast because I can't wait to be able to be around my Hubby everyday again!!! Once he moves back it will have been 6 months since we have lived in the same place and that was 6 months too many!! We have a lot of lost time to make up and I can't wait to start!!!

The Day That We Have Been Waiting For Has Finally Come......

Ryan FINALLY got not just 1 but 2 job offers yesterday. HELL FREAKIN YEAH!!! Sorry just had to do it!!

The first one came from Morgan Keegan and the second one came from Green Square Capital. Both job offers are for their due diligence departments!!! Now please don't ask me what he will be doing in these jobs because I don't even really understand what he does now, so I am really not the person to ask about this Haha!

This has been a long time coming and we are so thankful that it is here and that we can finally get our lives back in order!!!

Now, which one to choose??? This is still to be decided because Ryan has not gotten the full offer package from either company yet so once he gets that, we will have to sit down and way out the pros and cons of each job and pick the one that best suits Ryan!!!

So look forward to another post soon on which job he picks!!!

Best Resturants In Memphis

So most of you probably know how much Ryan and I love to cook and eat out at new places. So we decided that we (actually I decided this but I know Ryan will be right on board) are going to try all of the places below and give a little blog post about each of them!! Now I have been to some of these and they are the ones that are highlighted, if we end up going back to them (which we will) then I will post about them as well. Also, if we go to a place that is not on this list I am going to add it on at the end along with our thoughts about it!!

Now I do not fully agree that these are the 100 Best Restaurants in Memphis, but these the restaurants that Urban Spoon considers to be the Top 100. So I'm just going to say they are in no particular order as far as my opinion goes!!!


1 Texas de Brazil -Brazilian
2 Gus's World Famous Fried Chicken -Southern Soul
3 Soul Fish Café -Seafood
4 Germantown Commissary -Barbecue
5 Charlie Vergos' Rendezvous -Barbecue
6 Central BBQ (Midtown) -Barbecue
7 Las Tortugas Deli Mexicana -Mexican
8 Muddy's Bake Shop -Bakery
9 Bar-B-Q Shop -Barbecue
10 Huey's (Midtown)-Pub Food
11 Cafe Eclectic -Sandwiches/Subs
12 Gibson's Donuts -Donuts
13 Brother Juniper's College Inn -American
14 Restaurant Iris -Modern American
15 Houston's -American
16 Sakura Japanese -Sushi
17 Boscos Squared -International
18 Jerry's Sno Cone -Desserts/Ice Cream
19 Majestic Grille -American
20 Memphis Pizza Cafe (Midtown) -Pizza
21 Mary's German Restaurant -German
22 Osaka Japanese Cuisine (Cordova) -Sushi
23 Humdingers -Seafood
24 Andrew Michael Italian Kitchen -Italian
25 Las Delicias Mexican Bar and Grill -Mexican
26 Swanky's Taco Shop -Tacos
27 Bardog Tavern -American
28 Bonefish Grill -Seafood
29 Saigon Le -Vietnamese
30 Trolley Stop Market -Breakfast/Brunch
31 Kwik Chek -Mediterranean
32 Russo's New York Pizzeria and Wine Bar -Pizza
33 Cheesecake Corner -Desserts/Ice Cream
34 Huey's (Poplar) -Burgers
35 Kooky Canuck -Burgers
36 Southern Hands Family Dining -Southern & Soul
37 Fino's Italian Deli &Grocery -Italian
38 Bhan Thai -Thai
39 Booya's Burritos Burgers Sports Bar -Burgers
40 Flying Fish -Seafood
41 Bluefin Edge Cuisine & Sushi Lounge -Sushi
42 Pete & Sam's -Italian
43 Corky's Bar-B-Q (East Memphis) -Barbecue
44 Osaka Japanese Cuisine (Collierville) -Sushi
45 Beauty Shop -American
46 Eat Well Sushi & Grill -Asian
47 Little Italy Pizza -Pizza
48 Frank's South Main Market & Deli -Sandwiches/Subs
49 TAO TOO Asian Eatery -Asian
50 Folk's Folly -Steakhouse
51 Central BBQ (East Memphis) -Barbecue
52 Grand Pacific Buffet -Chinese
53 Fresh Slice's Sidewalk Cafe -American
54 Young Avenue Deli -Sandwiches/Subs
55 Tsunami -Asian
56 Huey's (Collierville) -American
57 India Palace -Indian
58 Belmont Grill -Burgers
59 Flight Restaurant and Wine Bar -American
60 Ching's Hot Wings -Southern & Soul
61 DejaVu -Cajun/Creole
62 Mosa Asian Bistro -Chinese
63 J Alexander's -American
64 Memphis Pizza Cafe (East Memphis) -Pizza
65 Paulette's -European
66 Osaka Japanese Cuisine -Japanese
67 Amerigo -Italian
68 Fuji Cafe -Japanese
69 Wiseguys -Pizza
70 Chang's House -Chinese
71 Happy Mexican -Mexican
72 Huey's (Cordova) -Pub Food
73 Molly's La Casita -Mexican
74 New Que Huong -Vietnamese
75 La Perla Tapatia -Mexican
76 Noodle Doodle Do -Soups
77 Huey's (Downtown) -American
78 Super Submarine Sandwich Shops -Sandwiches/Subs
79 Brad's Bar-B-Q -Barbecue
80 Pho Saigon -Vietnamese
81 Stix -Japanese
82 Makydo Sushi & Sake Bar -Sushi
83 Mama Mia's Pizzeria -Pizza
84 Panera Bread -Bakery
85 Firebirds Wood Fired Grill -Steakhouse
86 Kabob International -Mediterranean
87 Pho Vietnam Restaurant and Bar -Vietnamese
88 Blues City Cafe -Southern & Soul
89 Corky's Bar-B-Q (Cordova) -Barbecue
90 Fuel Cafe -American
91 Mi Pueblo -Mexican
92 La Guadalupana -Mexican
93 McEwen's on Monroe -International
94 Beignet Cafe -Cajun/Creole
95 Bryant's Bar-B-Q & Breakfast -Breakfast/Brunch
96 Erling Jensen -American
97 Sekisui Pacific Rim -Japanese
98 Nagoya Japanese Cuisine -Japanese
99 Ruth's Chris Steak House -Steakhouse
100 Garibaldi's Pizza -Pizza
101 Bari- Italian
102 Circa –International
103 S.O.B (South of Beale) - Gastropod
104 Napa Café –American
105 Bar None- Gastropod
106 Itta Bena- Contemporary American
107 Owen Brennan’s Restaurant- Contemporary French
108 Chez Philippe -French
109 Pearl's Oyster House- Seafood
110 Ernestine & Hazel's- Burgers
111 Capriccio Grill –Italian
112 Café 1912 –Bistro
113 D O- Sushi
114 Cafe Ole -Mexican
115 Arcade Restaurant –Dinner
11116 Au Fond Farmable – American French
117 Automatic Slim’s- Southern/Global

Ok, so I added in a few that I could think up off the top of my head, if you have any suggestions let me know!! Look forward to our post about each of these!!!

Oops I did it again.....

Ok so I am an awful blogger and the last post I did was back in October. Wow I mean really Kelsey that’s pretty awful. So since I can’t even remember what I did yesterday, I will try my hardest to give you the highlights of what has been going on in our life.

One of the biggest and most important was that on October 30th, 2011 I became an Aunt to Miss Lola Ryan Coupe. She is the sweetest, most precious little girl in the whole world. She is just perfect and is now almost 5 months olds and I just can not get enough of her!!!

Rocking the Bumbo and the Shades!!!

Miss Lola at 4.5 months!!!

I ran and completed my first Half Marathon and it was great and so fulfilling! I say that now but the day of and the days after where a whole different story. I have never felt pain like that in my life! I set a goal to finish in less than 2hr and 30min and I did!!!! I finished in 2hrs and 28min!!! I also raised a total of $760 as a St. Jude Hero! Thank you to everyone who donated. You do not know how much it meant to me and the kids at St. Jude!!!

Me crossing the Finish Line!!

Meredith and I After We Finished!!

Our holiday season was great! We spent time with our family and friends and we could not have asked for anything more, well other than Ryan finding a job here in Memphis. (We will get more into that whole situation a little later!!!) We rang in the new year with Meagan and Michael at there beautiful new home in Hendersonville, TN, just a little north of Nashville. We had such a good time with them; it was a perfect New Years. We are looking forward to a very fulfilling 2011 and we can not wait to see what all it brings.

A few other things that happened during my laps in blogging: I helped to host Meagan’s Bachelorette party and had the best time hanging out with all my girlfriends from college. It’s so great when we can all get together because it doesn’t happen all that often anymore. I was a bridesmaid in Meagan and Michael’s gorgeous January wedding. Ryan turned 26; gosh we are getting old, Haha!!! We had a great Valentines Day and got to spend the whole weekend together for it!!

So here is the deal with Ryan and I and our move to Memphis. I am still here in Memphis and Ryan is still living in Atlanta. Ryan and I have been able to see each other at least every other weekend, but we try to make it more than that. I am very much enjoying being back and having a job that I enjoy going to! It is so nice to wake up everyday and not dread going to work. I love all of the girls that I work with, there are 7 of us, and I really enjoy working with product again and using what all I learned at school and while at Macy’s. As for Ryan, he is still on the job search and I don’t want to jinks us but we are really hopeful that is just about to come to an end. We will know something on Wednesday hopefully. So, I will try my hardest to give everyone an update.

Where did I go....

So I promise that I have not completely given up on this thing yet. Life has just been a little crazy lately and hopefully soon I will have some time to sit down and tell you all what has been going on with us. Please don't give up hope on me just yet!!!