1 Year Anniversary and the Celebration of a Beautiful Life

Growing up in NC, I have had the privilege of visiting many of our beautiful spots.  So, marrying non-NC native, Juan-Pablo, it has been a joy getting to share some of my favorite places with him! 

Asheville is one of those places, and we had been planning a trip there to celebrate our 1 year anniversary on October 30, 2011, for some time.  After dropping Trigger off at Aunt Kara camp, we drove up on Saturday morning, and started the day with a trip to the Biltmore House.  It's such a beautiful place, and the grounds are even more lovely.  It was a wee bit chilly though!

We spent the night at the quaint (and now highly recommended!!) Beaufort House Inn http://www.beauforthouse.com/ and of course, had a great meal at a wonderful restaurant in downtown, Table. www.tableasheville.com.  I was even excited about what I thought was the beginning of a baby bump....little did I know, this is nothing!

12 weeks!

We had a great time, and were suiting up for a hike in the Pisgah National Forest on Sunday, when we got an urgent phone call from my mom, asking us to come to Winston-Salem.  My maternal grandmother, GramaHope, had gone in to the hospital unexpectedly on Thursday, and unfortunately a sudden diagnosis of Acute Myeloid Leukemia was taking her fast.  I believe God works in mysterious ways, and by being in NC, we were closer to home, and could arrive quicker than most of the family.  Sadly, we had to say goodbye to this beautiful lady two days later.  But, in some weird way, it seemed fitting to finish out our anniversary weekend honoring a woman who has been like a second mother to me, and also a brilliant example of a devoted wife (63 years of marriage to my grandfather) and mother (to 5 boys and 1 little girl, my mom) for the 32 years I've been on this earth.  I thank God every day that I got to have such a close relationship with her, although I miss her every day.  And I think how happy I am that we got to let her know that her legacy will live on in our baby...she was so very excited for us.