10 years ago...

10 years ago i was in the midst of planning my 25th birthday outing. i wanted to invite anyone i could to come drink up downtown raleigh. i even invited a special guy that lived in greensboro. he couldn't make it, but we made plans to hang out a few days later. we made plans to go to a hockey game, that at the time, was just a game. little did we know it was our last first date. little did we know it was the beginning of our love story. little did we know it was the beginning of our life together.

once that date began, i knew. i knew he was it. it was over for me. he was my prince. my partner. my dream come true. it's a weird feeling, knowing you're on a date with the person you are going to share your life with.

very weird.

i can't explain all the feelings. i just knew. and people say that all the time,"when you know, you know." there has always been something magical, safe, comforting, and loving about keith. he has always loved me, treated me, and looked at me the way he did on that first date.

our journey has had difficult moments. what relationship hasn't? but all of those are clouded by all the great moments, adventurous moments, and awesome moments. our life together has always been that - a partnership. a life shared, from day one.

i could never imagine a more perfect love.

i could never imagine more laughter. more ridiculousness. more adventures. more happiness. more peace. more dreams.

it has been [almost] ten years since that very first date. our first date was december 20, 2005. and we are going to celebrate the anniversary of our first date the only way we know how....
by going to a hockey game.

xoxo,
ks

CUATRO

this journey started, not four years ago today, but rather almost ten years ago. it started as simply having a shared office space with summer colleagues. these colleagues blossomed into friends. one friend in particular was always a bit special. he always made my heart flutter and my stomach dance. even when i wasn't always in tune to it. i tend to wear my emotions on my face, and whether i liked it or not, it was very apparent to him how i felt.

the summer came and went with nothing more than butterflies and weak knees. several months went by that lead to many random interactions with this sweet soul. it wasn't until december that we actually were able to spend time together.

our journey together began at a hockey game. this memory can only be described as one of the sweetest memories i'll ever have. i was so consumed by this person, that i was seemingly unaware of the things around me. i took in everything about him. his beautiful hair. his gorgeous smile. how tall and muscular he was. his warmth. he made me laugh and i felt comfortable around him instantly.

for it was this night i knew.

i knew i had met the man that i was going to marry.

four years ago today, i married that man. our special day was so thoughtful, intimate, relaxed, simple, and so much freaking fun! there is not much [if anything] i would change about our wedding day. i loved doing the "first look" before the ceremony to spend a quiet few moments with my life-long sweetie. i loved the ceremony on the beach [including the dog!]. i loved the "secret" moments with our bridal party. i loved the all night dancing and photobooth. and i especially loved ending the night by jumping in the pool!!!

i really could go on all day about why this day was so awesome. keith and i committed our lives to each other in front of the people we love most in the world and then celebrated that with a kick-ass party. what's not to love about that? our wedding day [and week] will always be so special and memorable to us. simply reminiscing about it makes me smile.

it makes my heart flutter. it makes my stomach dance.

all those feelings that started ten years ago, they are still a part of the magic today. those feelings of love, happiness, joy and excitement are why our special day is so magical. they are why our journey together is so damn awesome.



and now, some wedding pictures. there are a bunch of kissing pictures. [sorry. not sorry.]

doesn't this dog look a bit like our newest family member? so wild.

happy anniversary, keith. i love you more than you'll ever know. thank you for sharing this life with me. i love who we are individually, but i love who are together even more. i love every bit of wild and crazy adventure. i wouldn't have any other way.

all my love,
FACE



and today is just a little bit more magical than a regular old, smelly anniversary. it is 5.15.15. and if you remember, we got married at 5:15pm. so, today, our day is just little extra special because it is all 5's and 15's. so, let's toast to 5.15.15 at 5:15pm. because this will never happen again in our lifetime. pretty amazing stuff, huh?

xoxo,
ks

life's little moments

last weekend was nothing out of the ordinary. other than it was exceptional.

sharing with you the "things" we did will show that it was in fact, regular and just as i said, nothing special. at least, not at face value. here is a small piece of what made the weekend amazing.

the husband + friends went to a regularly schedule hockey game. while we were there, we noticed that after hockey games on friday and saturday nights, the arena has a dance club + full service bar open to all who attended the game. we thought, "hell yeah! let's check that shit out."

so we did. it was everything an arena dance club could be. it was a regular conference room divided by partitions. you know, every club needs partitions. there was a strobe-ish light. the music was fantastic. all of your favorite songs completely club remixed. any song, from any decade, club style. we danced our faces off. it was a sight to be seen.

we let loose and did not care who tuned into our dance show. after all, if the 9-years-olds could boogie down, so could we. we laughed, sweated, and neglected to take any pictures. the time spent at the arena dance club was pure joy. moments that were not lost on any of us. we were completely absorbed in this novel experience that was just so much damn fun. it didn't hurt that so many songs of our youth were played. blackstreet, anyone?

any moment that is shared with people i love in moments that make me lose track of time and bring me true happiness, i'll repeat that shit. every single day.

and that is how last weekend felt. ALL of it. extraordinary. exceptional.

xoxo,
ks

hockey fan rant.

i am not sure if you are aware of this, but keith and i go to a lot of hockey games. we go to so many, in fact, we've seen a lot of different away fans. we tend to be very welcoming of away fans. after all, we are good hosts with great southern hospitality, y'all.
and typically away fans are nice to talk to because even though we root for different teams we all share one love. hockey.

however, this season has been different. i am not sure if it because the hurricanes have had a bit of a rough start. losing A LOT of games. firing a coach. and having to basically start over. so now large amounts of away fans come to the games. which is fine. why not? why not come to a stadium where you most probably will see your team win? i get it. plus most of these away fans used to live up north. hence their allegiance still to the northern teams of buffalo, boston and toronto. again, i get it. you grew up a rangers fan. so you'll always be a rangers fan. that's fine.

my problem is this. disrespect. simple as that. as i said, the hurricanes organization and its fans tends to be welcoming of its guests, 'canes fans or not. we appreciate visitors and friendly banter. what isn't necessary or frustrating to a home fan who is at every single game is that away fan that curses the entire game. that away fan that talks shit about the hurricanes the entire game. that away fan that makes fun of home fans the entire game. that away fan that claims that southerns don't know anything about hockey. that away fan that has no idea what kind of animal stormy is.

if everything about the hurricanes is so terrible. why are you at the game? montreal will gladly take you back. we don't need to hear you be rude and complain the entire game.what ever happened to common decency? since when did people determine it is OK to run around yelling disrespectful comments and insults for no apparent reason? i certainly do not do that.

i know not every away fan is a terrible away fan. we've met some pretty awesome away fans. but we've also met some pretty terrible away fans. so terrible that it makes us never want to go to that team's stadium to see a game (i.e., buffalo and washington).

i am a fan of many sports and have been to many football and basketball games in various arenas. and typically the home crowd welcomes visiting fans. again, there is teasing and polite trash talk. it wouldn't be a a true sports experience without these things. but both sides are there for the same reason: their love of the sport. so, they can revile in that together. laugh and "talk shop" over a few beers.

but this hockey season has really made me question these visiting hockey fans. what is the need to be a fan and act like an asshole? aren't you there to have fun and enjoy the game? where's the love of the game by being a dick and yelling profanities at the home fans who support this team, day in and day out? i am sure most of these fans who come to our stadium and behave this way, wouldn't stand for some visiting fan coming to their stadium and acting like a punk.

and this may seem like a silly thing to write about or to even be upset about. but again it goes back to respect. you wouldn't be a guest in someone's house and then start yelling about why it sucks or how much you hate it there. no, you wouldn't. because it's not polite. no matter what the reason is why you are there.

but perhaps having social graces and being polite are a southern thing.

the next home game is this friday. wish us luck...for a 'canes victory and good fan sportsmanship!

xoxo,
ks