Labor Day Weekend

If walls could talk, what would they say? If streets could tell us who walked them long ago or what happened on their dingy cracked miles, what secrets would be revealed?

That was what was going thru my mind as we walked thru old Savannah, Georgia this past labor day weekend. For as long as I can remember I’ve loved old buildings the rustic look they have, the history bursting through the creaking siding, brick or tabby. Maybe it’s because the days ( and the things left behind) long past have a mystery to them for me because I live in such a modern world. I have seen pictures and drawings of the old southern towns but I wish I could go back in time just for a little while to watch America grow up. Since Matt had lived there before he knew just what streets would make my creative mind go wild! We walked past gorgeous old victorians and town homes being renovated, thru square after square full of amazing old oaks with spanish moss flowing to the ground. My favorite and most everyone else’s, Forsyth with the glorious green space, fountains, and musicians playing their well rehearsed tunes. One of the duos we came across were playing the bagpipes and I thought of how my Scottish loving sisters, had they been there would’ve burst into a celtic dance.

On Saturday of our trip after much encouragement (and possibly and tad bit of bribing) I convinced Matt to drive us to the outskirts of Savannah to Boneventure Cemetery. I had heard it was beautiful and I wanted to photograph it so badly,
We arrived and were at once in awe of it peacefulness. It wasn’t errie at all, which I expected, it being a burial plot and everything. As we walked the well worn paths, I happily clicked away on my trusty camera while stopping every minute or so to take in the quiet and to think about who these people were when they were alive, one thing stood out: they were old Savannah’s upper class. Some of the headstones were as tall as six feet and made out of pure white marble. Not that it mattered now, they were long gone, but who were they while they lived? A found an answer on one of the gravestones that made me want to strive to be a better, wife, sister, daughter and friend. A freemason who bones surely turned back to dust many years before, had this written on his : ” He lived life, not for himself, but for others”.
After leaving the cemetery the last adventure I made Matt go on was to Wormslowe Plantation. Unfortunately and neat at the same time, the family still lives in the 1800′s plantation house on the property and no visitors are allowed. We were able to drive down the driveway to the marsh and take pictures for a fee, which me being the rule follower that I am, paid It was SO worth it to me and I will treasure those images of the oak trees arching over the path forever!!

Our nights in were spent with our friends, Trae and Jessica and their adorable pups, BeBee, Clairee, Jackson and Reebsie, who make their web debut on this blog as I fell in love with them all and couldn’t stop taking pictures of them. Both evenings we went out to hear amazing music, the first we listed to Trae’s friend, Lauren who loves 60′s and 70′s country, she and her music partner, Kyle were really talented at bringing there voices together to create a beautiful harmony.
Saturday night we were once again put in a trance by our super talented friend, Trae Gurley. Y’all, Frank Sanatra himself, would be in awe with the voice that comes out of that man. He played the guitar and sang at our wedding reception and we were so honored that he did. We are so blessed to have such talented friends and generous ones at that, who shared their too cute bungalow with us the whole weekend. We were sad to leave them on Sunday morning but wanted to spend time with my dear Meme and Pop in Brunswick. I don’t get to see them too often and I wish they lived closer, but I do love having a place to stay near Saint Simons and the beach. Matt and I took a quick trip over to the island, just to stand on the place where we were married, it hasn’t changed at all and it will forever be special to us. Afterward we went back to my grandparents house and we went thru old pictures of my mom growing up, it was a sweet time and I’m so glad we went.

A few of my favorite things

We made it

It’s over, the weekend we’ve all been dreading for a year. We spent the days with each other, remembering loving and laughing sometimes too, Maggie helped with that with her wild puppy behavior:) Saturday morning Forrest, Matt, Betsy and I drove to Twin Branch Nursery to pick out a tree. This place was truly a gem in the busy suburbia of Roswell, just a few miles off the main road was five acres of beautiful trees, plants and flowers with fountains and benches. We all loved the peaceful nursery and had a great time wondering the trails in search of the perfect tree for Andy’s memory. Unfortunately, the nursery didn’t have very big fruit trees, the pear and apple tree they did have were tiny babies and sort of wimpy looking so we decided to forego the fruit tree and go for a tree that would change colors in the fall and grow big and give lots of shade. The tree we picked is an October Glory and will be seventy feet tall and bright orange and red in a few months.

 

Today, We traveled to Canton to worship at Genesis where Andy learned, lived and worked for a while.  The people are sweet and loved Andy very much and we thought it was the perfect place to plant the tree, they plan to make the yard into a garden so that the young men going thru the program can sit underneath for quiet times and enjoy the peace that the outside brings. After service we all gathered out in the backyard to the perfect spot for the tree, everyone seemed to have their own opinion on where it should go, so Forrest picked a spot and the digging began…

Now I’m sitting here watching editing pictures with HGTV on in the background reflecting on the past few days, it’s been rough to see those I love so much in pain. And to think how much we all miss Andy and how sad I am I wasn’t able to know him better, he was a wonderfully kind person and was very very loved. One thing I have learned this last year, treasure your family every single time you talk with them or have them next to you, they the greatest blessing you will ever receive. I’m off to go spend time with my sweet husband and cook breakfast for dinner!

Dear Andy,

We miss you. But we are grieving not for you but for us.

We are grieving because we want you to be with us. We hear your voice, see that mischievous grin and miss you. Talk about your life and tell stories of the numerous pranks you played on many of us and miss you. We think about the things that will happen in the future, weddings and babies and we miss you.

This weekend we will celebrate your life, celebrate that you were here with us. Betsy suggested that we plant a fruit tree in honor of you, and on Sunday we will do just that. And these few paragraphs passed along from Betsy is a perfect explanation of why we want to do this:

One of the Bible’s main metaphors for accomplishments is the bearing of fruits.  God compares His people with fruit trees that bear good fruit: “ I am the vine, ye are the branches just as a branch will die when it is cut off from a vine or trunk, we will die spiritually if we are cut off from Jesus”.  Abide in Me, and I in you, He tells us, As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.  God touches us with the Spiritual fruits of love, joy, peace, faithfulness and kindness, in hope that we have the desire to learn and instill in others these attributes through out our life’s and to be committed  to grow and bear much fruit.  Just as a “good tree” is one that bears “good fruit”, a good heart is one that produces good spiritual fruit. In Jesus’ parables, (parable of the sower, parable of the fig tree) spiritual accomplishment is  compared to the  bearing of good fruit.  These parables tell us that God expects us to bear good fruit through out our lives. But it also shows that God will not give up on us as long as there is still hope that we will bear fruit. One can read these parables today and draw similar conclusions based on similar circumstances. During my younger years attending Sunday services and Church functions I was blessed to have  many good people nourishing me with “good fruit”, but for me none was as dedicated and steadfast in passing on the Spiritual fruits to the youth group in our Church as my Aunt Sue.  She touched many lives and till this day I can see her accomplishments through seeds she had planted. The youth group she helped nourish has grown to be spiritual leaders in today’s Church planting seeds in the lives of others and continuing her work of “bearing good fruit”.  I for one have learned much from them and although there were many hard times in my life I have been blessed by these seeds that were planted.  Through these experiences I believe we can become more like God by having His Spirit dwelling in us. As we grow spiritually, we should see more evidence of that miracle, more “fruit of the Spirit,” And with more fruit, there is more to give to others.  (Norm Sora (Charlie), Kalihi Congregation)

We will celebrate you by planting an apple tree that represents good, and life. Celebrate the wonderful son, brother, grandson, nephew and friend that you were.
Your wonderful, spirited soul is with our Savior, praising the Father who is worthy, and that is the sweetest and most joyful thought that one can think of right now.  We are blessed that we knew you, the wonderful, smart and silly Forrest Andrew Robinson.

I love you brother in law.

Summer Fun

Matt’s parents have a house on Lake Hartwell and are so gracious to let us join them whenever we can. Most of the time we are there is spent laying out in the sun or playing on the jet ski or boat. A few weekends ago I went with my sweet mother-in-love (she came up with that and I think it’s the perfect name:) to the local farmers market. Here are some of the pictures I took while she shopped!

And introducing, Maggie Mae Robinson. The newest dog child of Karen and Forrest! Maggie is a Springer Spaniel all the way from KY, she is 10 weeks old and full of energy and love, the perfect addition to our family.

Honeymoon Part two- Naples

 

Our two hour trip to Naples was pretty uneventful.  Unfortunately I didn’t take any pictures of our drive thru the everglades/alligator alley, I was pretty into distracting myself from the fact that there were scary gators surrounding me  by playing the new angry birds, rio . We drove straight to publix to pick up groceries for the week, and were excited about having a kitchen to cook in. Naples was so relaxing and our schedule was so lazy, which was just what we needed after the wedding. Our days were spent on the beach in the morning and wondering around downtown Naples in the afternoon and dinner, sunset walks on the beach on the evening, and many trips to the blockbuster in publix for movie nights The second night we were there Matt wanted to show me some of the homes/mansions of Naples and we drove past some of the most gorgeous houses I’ve seen. One of the homes is by a famous architect and is owned by a german doctor who only visits a few times a year, and as we pulled up, so did he! It was very cool to say the least but we felt a little stalker-ish so I snapped a few pictures quickly and we left. Another little adventure we took was a day trip to Sanibel Island, it was where my parents honeymooned 26 years before and were my family has vacationed in the past and I wanted to show Matt around the island. I was surprised how much the beach and the shells have been over picked since my last visit to the island. We still had fun walking the beach and taking just a few shells (Matt said I was only allowed 10, but I got away with more;) On our walk we saw the most beautiful parrot own by a medium who helped the police solve crimes (for real!). The next day was Matt’s 30th birthday, I made breakfast for him and we spent the day relaxing and watching movies and had dinner at P.F. Changs, which one of our favorite restaurants. I tried my hardest not to rub in the fact the Matt is now super old and I think I did i pretty good job, maybe Our last days in Naples were spent with as much time at the pool and beach as possible without getting burned, we can’t wait to go back!

Naples:

Sanibel:

Last few days in Naples:

The Honeymoon

We spent our first night as husband and wife at the Cloister on Sea Island, It was beautiful and had been completely renovated since I was there last and it did not disappoint.

 

The next morning we were driven to the airport and made our way down to Miami for the next few days! Our hotel was very nice,                                              

 

But they charged extra fees for EVERYTHING, including replacing bath towels every morning! Not to mention it was 30 blocks away from restaurants, starbucks and shopping. But the back of the hotel opened up to the boardwalk and we used it everyday to walk down to ocean to go to dinner or meet Matt old friends. I felt like we had flown out of the country the whole time we were in miami, the language wasn’t english and the overall feel of the city was like that of South America. We ate at several restaurants that were incredible, from spanish cuisine to dinner style at the pink big, the food in Miami is good. After two days, hundreds of dollars spent on taxi rides and the ridiculous fees our hotel kept adding onto our bill, we decided to leave a day earlier than planned and called the rental agency to get a car. While we waited we walked around Miami one last time and had a delicious pizza lunch. Then we were on our way to Naples for the rest of our 10 day honeymoon!

c Coming up…Naples!