Extra, Extra Read All About It

Just in case you missed it... here is our wedding announcement that appeared in The Alexander City Outlook and The Birmingham News the weekend of Memorial Day.

Our NYC To Do List

We live in a place where there are an endless number of places to see and things to do... all unique to New York.  In an effort to keep track and complete all of the things we want to do, my dad suggested that we make a "NY To Do List".  So we did.  Although we have checked some of the items off the list, it seems to grow a lot faster than it shrinks.  I'm sure the list will be updated soon, but as of now, this is our list.  I guess we better get busy!

·       Walk/Bike across the Brooklyn Bridge

·       Visit the Hampton's

·       Ride the gondola to Roosevelt Island

·       Eat at Campagnola (a fancy Italian restaurant below our apartment)

·       Eat at Magnolia Bakery (we’ve been told they have the best cupcakes in the world!)

·       Attend a Yankee’s game

·       Take a bus top tour of the city

·       Visit the Bronx Zoo

·       Visit the Central Park Zoo

·       Go rowing in Central Park

·       Ride Sea-Doos in the Hudson

·       See Niagara Falls

·       Take Clancy to the “secret” water dog park at 60th Street

Team Apple

Well, we did it... officially traded teams from PC to Mac. The trustworthy Dell computer I had throughout college, finally began to show her age in the past couple of weeks. After much thought, George and I went to the Apple store and bought a Mac Book on Saturday. Since then, we have not stopped trying to figure out the new, unfamiliar applications Apple offers and adjusting to the discrepancies in completing simple tasks.

One of our favorite attributes of our new Mac Book is a program called iChat. It easily allows you to video chat with your friends, family, etc... Anyone who has an AIM (AOL Instant Messenger) account or a .MAC account can use the program. Please let me know if you do have either one of these accounts, so that I can chat with you. My AIM screen name is bbstegall and George's is stegagm23.

We took the silly pictures below using Photo Booth.

Our Humble Abode

In response to many requests, I have posted some pictures of our tiny apartment in New York City.  Hopefully they will give you a better idea of where George and I call home...

The lovely entrance to our apartment, built in 1900.

The biggest area in our apartment... the kitchen and part of the living room.

       

Views of our living room.

Views from our kitchen... our front door and our "office".

Our cozy king-size bedroom perfectly holds our queen-size bed and a bed-side table.  The picture conglomeration is above our bed.

My favorite addition to the apartment... our bedroom air conditioner.  It is a lifesaver!

Jazz Fest

Besides spending time with my family this past weekend, I also had an incredible time with my friends at the one and only Jazz Fest. For those who have never had the privilege of experiencing this festival, it is a 2 night concert in Alex City on Friday night and at Lake Martin on Saturday night. The Jazz Fest has proven to produce some of the most unforgettable memories with my friends from the past 5 years of my life. I would even go so far as to say that it comes in a close second behind Memorial Day weekend.

This year was no different. The bands Friday night pumped us up so much, that we decided that we, too, should be professional singers. All I'll say is that Toby Keith made a mistake by not choosing us to be the back-up singers for "Should Have Been A Cowboy." Although a little more low key, Saturday night we relaxed and became huge fans of the Zac Brown Band. If you've never heard of them, you should definitely check them out!

I'll add pictures as soon as they are sent to me!

XOXO,
Britt

Father's Day Weekend

I was so happy to be able to go home this past weekend for Father's Day. Sweet George let me go back to Alabama while he and Clancy battled the heat in New York. As I drove from Atlanta to Alexander City early Friday morning, I could not help but smile the entire way. The two and a half hour trip seemed to last only minutes as I watched the sun come up while listening to my old friends Rick and Bubba and country music on the radio (a treat, since neither of them are on any NY stations). I bet I called George 25 times to tell him how great it was in the first hour I had been there! I wanted him to experience it with me!

The rest of the weekend with my family was just as wonderful. We sunbathed, skied, played games and raced cars, visited Nana, went to church, and spent Father's Day with Jan on the lake. My dad is so special to me, so it meant the world to be able to spend Father's Day with him. I just wish it would have lasted longer... however I had to go back Sunday evening to help Clancy give his dad his Father's Day present and to celebrate my and George's 6th month anniversary! I can't believe we have already been married for half of a year!

Britt

Belmont Stakes

The view from the Long Island Railroad Train, on our way to the Belmont Racetrack.

George and I upon arrival to the track.

A lively fan... he must have gotten lost on his way to 'Dega!

George posing with his favorite legendary Triple Crown winner.

Watching the horses at the Paddock.

George and I made a last minute decision to attend the 2008 Belmont Stakes race on Long Island, in hopes to witness Triple Crown history. It turned out to be a fabulous decision, despite the fact that Big Brown didn't pull through for the win. One thing that did surprise us was the diverse crowd attending the big event. The attendees ranged from people I would expect to see in the infield at Talledega (see picture above) to people dressed in swanky, sequined cocktail dresses. I guess we had expected a crowd similar to The Masters... we were wrong to say the least!

We had a great time and look forward to attending more horse races in the years to come!

The overrated Big Brown, before the race.

The winner, Da'Tara

Summer in the Park

The closest lake that we could find! It is way too dirty to swim in.

Clancy wanted to see the rowers too, so he found a hole the perfect size.

At Belvedere Castle, overlooking all the sunbathers.

Wade came with us because Pat was wedding planning.

Clancy was hot, so we kept dousing him with water.

We are so glad that the temperature here is consistently hot! As long as our air conditioners continue to work, warm weather in the city is a lot more enjoyable and event-filled. One of our favorite places to escape to is Central Park. We always find something new there! Our past adventure took us to Belvedere Castle, the big lake, and beach volleyball courts. Clancy found many new friends that looked just like him (we saw 3 other ruby Cavaliers!), and I realized how immodest some people are... They shamelessly WALK (they were not just laying down) around millions of people with tiny bathing suits on. Although overwhelmed, I must admit, I was slightly jealous of how much cooler they must have been!

MD08

As many of you know, George, Clancy, and I ventured back to good ole Alabama for a wonderful 5-day Memorial Day weekend. It was the first time we've been home since December... magical to say the least! Most of our time was spent with family and friends while relaxing on Lake Martin. George was also able to spend some time at home in Birmingham. Our visit was full of so many great times... Words could never express nor would time allow me to tell you about all of the unforgettable moments!

Best of all was getting the opportunity to visit with my great-grandmother, Nana, while she was in ICU. She is always full of great stories and funny comments! I am happy to report that she is out of ICU and doing better in the nursing home. She is so special to me, and I thank everyone who has kept her in their thoughts and prayers.

Some of the other highlights of our visit were getting to celebrate my dad’s birthday on Saturday, playing with friends at Uncle Larry & Sharon’s theme park, spending time with both of our families on Sunday, attending a Kansas concert, and hanging out at the one and only Sinclair’s. The pictures below are of some of the good times had by all…

Most of the gang at Uncle Larry & Sharon's after a fun-filled Saturday of boating under the direction of Captain Gunn.

The "grown-ups" with Jim and Meredith celebrating my dad's birthday.

The annual MD picture of all the girls on the back of the boat.

The whole family after a sunny Sunday on the lake and a delicious barbeque.

Hallie and Eva Pierce playing on the dock... Pierce loved touching Hallie's face!

Hagen and George finding new ways to play with Dad's birthday present (a cornhole game).

Clancy Died and Went to Heaven

On Wednesday, May 21st, around 7:30 pm, George and I were in the midst of attempting our first flight with Clancy in cabin. If you would have asked us then, we probably would have said that it was a stupid idea, and we should have let him stay with the dog sitter for the weekend. The stressfulness of getting him in and out of his dog carrier and trying to keep him quiet and calm during our 2 hour delay, was almost too much for us to handle. However, it turned out to be completely worth it. He was truly the happiest dog in the world while in Alabama... back to his familiar routine of running through the woods as fast as he could, swimming after ducks, being surrounded by so many people who would play with him, pestering Mitzy and Tiger, and (successfully) chasing butterflies... ALL WITHOUT A LEASH! He even got to meet Eva Pierce. We were so happy that we took him with us!