Aloha!

Good morning friends! 

I have an overdue post that I really want to write and share about. We went to Hawaii back in April, and I have yet to share any photos from our awesome trip! Chris's company, SunLife Financial, awards the reps who meet goal every year by sending them and their spouse on an awesome company reward trip. This year, the trip was in Maui, Hawaii!! Chris made goal, and even sold enough to earn us an extra day in Hawaii, which they call bonus day. Woo Hoo! One proud wife right here. So off we went to Hawaii!

When we arrived, the sun was setting and we were greeted with real flowered leis!

We went out three days before the company part of the trip started, so we could have a little time on our own. We stayed at the Grand Waliea in Maui, and I must say that it was BEAUTIFUL!! This was our view every morning:

I could get used to waking up to this every morning. Yes, please!

Our first night there, we went to dinner at Bistro Molokini. We were pretty exhausted from the flight and time difference (It was 5:00 in Maui, but 10:00 in Nashville), but we still enjoyed a yummy, relaxing dinner and walked around the property after dinner.

The next day we started our morning at the spa for a couples massage and then spent the afternoon on the beach for some much needed, relaxation time! The beaches there are just gorgeous! 

On our way to the spa!

Lunch by the pool!

Beach day fun :)

That night we went up the road to a local restaurant called the Monkey Pod and had a good time eating some yummy fish tacos and lobster pizza! 

My most favorite part of the trip was the Road to Hana adventure! The Road to Hana is a must do if you visit Maui. You spend the day riding up the mountain to a little town called Hana. Along the way, you stop at other little towns to do some local shopping and enjoy some local foods. There are also several hiking and waterfall stops. The views on this trip are astonishing. They were some of the most beautiful views I have ever seen. Here are some pictures from our wonderful day traveling to Hana!

Breakfast stop!

Walking around doing a little local shopping.

Chris with our Christmas ornament. We collect an ornament from every place we visit! 

Enjoying the ride :)

Gorgeous views!!

We hiked to a waterfall!

Black sand beach..pretty cool to see!

A friend of ours who used to live in Maui told us that we must stop at Coconut Glens for his homemade coconut ice cream, and I am so glad we did! It was DELICIOUS!!

We had an absolute BLAST doing the Road to Hana. We also stopped to explore a cave, had a picnic lunch overlooking the beach, and bought some yummy homemade banana nut bread. It was an all day adventure, and we had so much fun along the way!!

That night, we went to Humuhumunukunukuapuaa back at the Grand Waliea. This restaurant is named after the state fish, and it is on a saltwater lagoon filled with tropical fish. It was hands down the best meal I have ever had. 

Beautiful food presentations!

The next day was "bonus day" for Chris's company, so we had to say goodbye to the Grand Waliea and check in to the Hyatt Regency. That night, the company hosted a dinner reception and dance party at the hotel overlooking the beach. We had a great time catching up with all of Chris's co-workers and enjoyed the food and music.

Unfortunately, I had to fly back home the next day and Chris stayed for the remainder of the company trip. My school had state testing the next week, so I had to leave early to make it back to work. Chris got to enjoy a few more days of beautiful Hawaii (which of course he took no pictures of). It was such a great trip, and I feel so blessed to have had to opportunity to go!! I hope you enjoyed reading and reminiscing our trip with me! 

Happy Monday!!

-Anna 

SWEET new blog!

Hello blogger friends!!

After a long break from blogging, I am back at it. The last time I posted was last July! Crazy. I got so consumed with my new teaching job I started last August that I just stopped blogging..even though I had more to blog about than ever at that point! I also was never pleased with my prior blog "theme and title," which led me to do some shopping on Etsy. Hillary, from Simply Yours Design, installed my new and improved blog template. I decided to go with a sweet theme because that is going to be my new classroom theme next year, and well, because I think I have a pretty SWEET (I know, cheesy) life and want to get back to sharing and writing about all the sweet things going on in my life. 

So..what do you think, do you like the new blog template?! I am still wanting to add a few things to it.. but I am not so blog savvy. Hopefully I can get some more help from Simply Your Design's Etsy shop. Now that I am out for summer (Whoo Hoo!!), I am hoping to start blogging on a regular basis. I want to share my thoughts, recipes, classroom ideas, and all the fun things going in my life! 

Today was the last day of school (half day, thank goodness), and I am so happy to be out for summer for a number of reasons. The first being that we are moving into our new house this summer!! I am beyond excited to finally be moving into our first home together. We bought the house back in April and will be moving in June 21. Just a few short weeks away! Take a look at the new White home...

Isn't it adorable?!!?

It is in the Sylvan Park neighborhood in Nashville (close to the West End Area), where a few of our favorite restaurants are located in Nashville. My sister, Jennifer (who is an amazing interior decorator and owner of new store Simply Southern), came up to Nashville last week to help me pick out new furniture, paint colors, and fabrics for our new cozy home. I cannot wait to get in there start decorating! I will post pictures along the way of course. 

So that's my main summer project..organizing and packing up our current townhouse and getting ready to move in to our quaint cottage! Speaking of.. I am about to start cleaning out the guest bedroom closet! 

I am so excited to be back in the blogging world! Happy reading!

Happy Monday

Hey people! I know, I know..my title is a bit annoying unrealistic..I mean, not many people consider Monday to be a happy day. Weekend is over, work week is beginning..your mind is filled with all the things you HAVE to get done this week. 

But today (even though it's terribly gloomy here in Nashville, and my to-do list is forever long).. I am going to make this Monday a happy one! 

Little catchup- Happy 4th of July!! I hope everyone had a wonderful celebration on the 4th..even though it was the most awkward day to have off..middle of the week? Yuck. However, we still managed to have a good time with friends even with the cloud hanging over everyone that they really had to go into work the next day. We had friends over at our pool, grilled hamburgers, played a little catch phrase..good times all around!

My parents came into town the next day and stayed through the weekend. We had an absolute BLAST.  We enjoyed eating out at a few yummy places for lunch, did a little shopping, enjoyed dinner at Mafiaoza's (a must eat place in Nashville), listened to some tunes at the piano bar, grilled steaks, saw the new Spiderman (request of Chris and my dad), and I got to take them to see my new classroom! I did not get one picture from the weekend. I am soooo mad at myself for that. Ugh..not one picture..so sad. Oh well, guess we were having so much fun I forgot to stop and capture the moments. 

Chris and I enjoyed a relaxing Sunday afternoon after my parents left. We went to church, ate some lunch, and literally spent the whole day cuddled up on the couch watching TV...it was storming outside..and in my mind, lounging on the couch is a must do while it's storming. We ended our comfort Sunday with a little Mexican food at Chuy's. Yummy.

On this rainy Monday morning, I am up enjoying my morning coffee..catching up on laundry..and heading to the gym soon. Going to spend the rest of the day working in my classroom..between traveling and conferences.. I only have 8 full days left to work in my classroom. Ahh!! Where does the time go?!? 

We will be leaving for California on Thursday! PUMPED. We will be staying in L.A. with Chris's brother and his family for three days...enjoying the beach and some quality family time. On Sunday, Chris and I are going to rent a car (hopefully a convertible.. my request..I want the wind blowing in my hair as we drive the coast. Yes, I'm cheesy)..do some sightseeing in L.A. and then drive to Solvang..a cute little Danish community in Santa Barbara Wine Country. The plan there is do some hiking, biking, wine tastings, and enjoy each other's company! Summer vaca 2012 is going to be awesome..I will definitely have pictures to share after!

I came across this while browsing Pinterest this morning...and it is a simple reminder that every day should be celebrated..for it is the day the Lord has made!! Even Mondays y'all... 

Love to all...go and enjoy your journey and your Monday!!

-Anna 

Summer Bucket List

Well friends, tomorrow is officially the first day of summer! If you're like me, your summer pretty much begins in May...but to celebrate the official beginning of summer, I want to share my summer bucket list. This list consists of a few small things..a few big things..but all in all it is just a list of things I MUST do this summer. 

I am a total list person. Like an OCD list person. I make a "TO DO LIST" for things at home, things at school, I make grocery lists, I make a menu list for the week, and I make Chris's "TO DO LIST," just because I enjoy doing it.  I even get a rush when I am able to check things off. And I don't believe in scratching off like my mother some people, and making a huge, ugly mess..I draw little boxes beside each "TO DO" so I can neatly place a checkmark there. I know...OCD. 

So, I figured if I make a list of things that must get done on a day to day basis in the White home..why not make a list of things I want to do that I am going to really enjoy?! Now, some of the things on the bucket list have already been checked off...considering my summer technically started over a month ago. But here is it..SUMMER BUCKET LIST 2012:

-Make a chalkboard for my kitchen...check! (Found an old one at a flea market and revamped it!)

-Make a collection of healthy recipes to cook...

-Go to CMA Music Fest...check! Four days of country music concerts, total blast.

-Go to many Nashville Sounds Games...

-Plant potted flowers for my patio...

-Plant an herb garden...check! Thanks to my cousin's plant knowledge, I now have one!

-Go to California...that will be a check on July 12!

-Have a cookout with friends...

-Go to the lake and spend the day on a boat...

-Visit all antique malls and flea markets in Nashville...

-Go to a concert at the Ryman...

-Go to the beach..check! My sisters and I had a blast!

-Cook something new at least once a week...

-Have a picnic at the vineyard...

-Take a painting class..check! Now have a beautiful masterpiece!

-Go to a wine tasting...

-Make scrapbooks of all my wedding events and honeymoon...

-Go on a hike...

-Run a race...

-Make fresh salsa...

-Go to a museum...

-Go to a farmers market...

-Go to an Atlanta Braves Game (my husband is obsessed)...

That's the list..for now, anyways! I probably will be adding to it as the summer goes on. I start school on August 6th..so the countdown is on to complete my list!! In the meantime, hope you're enjoying your journey! Happy Summer!!

-Anna

Happy Father's Day!

I cannot let today pass without sharing a few words about my wonderful Father! First and foremost, he is a wonderful man of Christ and raised me and my sisters in a home filled with Christian love. You really can't ask more from your dad than that, right? Above all the other great things he gave me, that is what I appreciate most- a Christian home. If you know my dad, then you know what I mean when I say he is selfless, down to earth, positive, caring, and overall just a super happy guy. I cannot say enough great things about him. Him and my mother both sacrificed all they could to make sure us girls had what we needed and more, and on this Father's Day I want to say, I love you daddy!!