Hello Austin!

Last Wednesday I left around noon for Austin, Texas, to see my bestie Lauren Williams. Her husband, Rob, is also deployed, so we were really looking forward to this time together - and it was a blast! The drive is LONG, especially with crazy rush hour traffic, but I finally arrived around 7:30 that evening. We spent the night catching up and watching Jersey Shore (haha).


Thursday we went to the San Marcos outlet stores. Victoria's Secret, Juicy Couture, Bebe, and Betsey Johnson had no problem taking my money! It was nice to spoil myself a bit, especially with all the good deals I found!



We headed on down to San Antonio and stayed at the Omni Hotel on the Riverwalk. What a beautiful hotel with a great view! I have not been to the Riverwalk since I was a kid! I appreciate it a lot more now.


We had a yummy dinner at the Iron Cactus along with a few cocktails.


Friday we headed out to Sea World, since military dependents get in for free. :) We saw all of the exhibits and rode the rollercoasters. And it wouldn't be an Amanda and Lauren adventure without causing a bit of trouble. On one of the rollercoasters we were taking pictures as we were going up the hill...... and then the coaster STOPPED, right before the peak. We thought something had malfunctioned and that we were going to go backwards. But no, a guy came on the loud speaker and told us to put our camera away! WOOPS! It was quite embarrassing, but kinda funny at the same time. Sea World was a blast but we were ready to leave by late afternoon.







That evening we indulged in sushi and then took the rest of the night easy by staying in at Lauren's house.


For our last night together we ate at Maggiano's italian restaurant and hit up 6th street with Lauren's friend Ali. I was really excited for dinner at Maggiano's because we met up with Ashley Hook, who I had not seen in months!



I did NOT want to leave on Sunday, but i made the long 6 hour drive back and arrived at my place by 9. I am so glad that I got to visit Lauren and just get away from it all. It was a much needed mini vacay!

Baby, you're a firework!

The first few weekends in September were packed with excitement. Labor Day weekend was a busy one! Friday night I got to catch up with a good friend, Sarah Haney, who I had met at church camp many years ago. I drove to Cushing and we had a great time reminiscing and meeting her friends.


Saturday I drove to Norman, ready to see a bunch of friends I had not seen in awhile. Joe and Joy played host and hostess to me all weekend and let me stay in their guest bedroom. They are such wonderful friends, I don't know what I would do without them! I celebrated my good friend Clark's birthday Saturday and Sunday night with a group of people I used to hang around ALL the time in my college days! It was nice to reunite with the old gang and have a good time. Sunday ended up with an all day movie marathon with Joy and Joe :)



On the 10th I went with a group of friends to Choctaw, Oklahoma for the annual Oktoberfest event. This is actually the first year I went! They had all kinds of food, beer, wine, shopping, and entertainment. John, Stephanie, Tim, Joey, Kari and I all rode together to the festival. I wasn't in the mood for beer (even though I love trying different kinds of beer) so I tried out different German wines instead. Very tasty! :) It was a fun and different evening and I definately would like to take Ryan next year!


The following weekend I took my sister-in-law Allison to Tulsa for the Katy Perry concert as an early birthday present. Unfortunately I had to work as manager on duty that Saturday morning, so we got a late start driving to Tulsa. But it all worked out and we made good timing. We stayed at the Doubletree in downtown Tulsa - BEAUTIFUL hotel! We got all dressed up Katy Perry style and had a blast at the concert. Katy did not dissapoint! Her singing, costumes, and set designs on stage were just as fun and crazy as in her videos! Oh and the best part - we had floor seats so we were very close to the stage!!!

DAYS GO BY

I cannot believe I have not posted since July! Blog fail!
So much has happened since then. First off, here are some pics from Dianna's baby shower:




The weekend of July 23rd I was able to catch up with some good friends that I have known since middle school. Lindsay Poe, Lindsay George, and I drove to Tulsa to stay with Lisa Pursifull. It was like one of our old school slumber parties - except we had a few margaritas since we are now "of age" haha. I am so mad that I did not take pictures that night, but our 10 year reunion is coming up in October so I am sure I will take plenty that evening.

On July 26th I celebrated Grandpa and Grandma Clayton's 55th wedding anniversary with the family up at Olive Garden. Ryan, Allison and I chipped in and got them a beautiful silver double frame with an engraving of their names and wedding date. Grandpa was not feeling the best that night but he still seemed to enjoy himself.



August 22nd was mine and Ryan's one year annniversary. It was too bad that we did not get to be with each other for this special day, but we did get to skype and my parents took me out for dinner :) A few nights before our anniversary his sister took me out for a girl's night on the town with her friend Chelsey. We got all dressed up and had a great time. I am very thankful for BOTH of my families. :)



The following evening my parents hosted a nice family dinner. Matthew, Michael, Brooke, Ava, Ella and I were all there. It is amazing to see how much my nieces are GROWING! And I learned quickly that meal time with those two girls is always an adventure! :)





One Saturday afternoon in August I went with my friend Lindsay and her son Connor to the Science Museum (used to be known as the omniplex). It had been years since I had been their last, probably high school. Connor seemed to have an absolute ball, even though he was too young to understand a lot of the exhibits. I know Lindsay and I had fun just watching him run around!