Brighton

On the evening of our ten year anniversary, Josh and I had a lovely dinner at Little Sicily in Soho.  We enjoyed three courses of yummy Italian food along with a bottle of wine.  After dinner, we made our way to the Victoria Apollo theater for our entertainment for the evening, Wicked the musical.  Our seats were not cheap, yet it felt like we were in the nosebleed section!  We rented some binoculars and settled in to watch the singing and dancing commence!  Overall, I liked Wicked although I thought the story line was a little strange and cobbled together.  The voice of the woman who played the wicked witch of the west was AMAZING!  Josh and I had a lovely evening together and had more fun planned for the next day...

Josh and I in front of Buckingham Palace on our 10 year anniversary.

Binoculars to watch the show :)

Josh and I at Wicked

Wicked - two thumbs up!

The next morning, Josh and I left for Brighton.  Brighton is a sea side city with a large pier and boardwalk and Ferris wheel.  It sort of reminded me of Santa Monica in California, except with a pebble beach and fish n' chips!  We spent our first hour in Brighton walking along the beach and exploring the pier.

Brighton Pier

Brighton Beach

Me on the Brighton Pier...it was super windy!

Josh enjoying the view from the pier.

The pier was filled with amusement rides and games, like a carnival over the water.  The weather was lovely, about 70 degrees and super windy up on the pier.  We headed back down to the beach and proceeded to plop ourselves down and get comfortable.  For the next two hours, Josh and I both drifted in and out of sleep.  It was so relaxing to have the sun warming you from above, hear the water crash against the beach and feel the wind blowing over our bodies.  Completely amazing two hours!  And I also have those two hours to thank for the ridiculous tan marks I now have on my legs...

Josh and I in Brighton

Josh on the beach.

Brighton in the evening.

We finally roused ourselves enough from our slumber to grab some snacks and drinks.  We rented some deck chairs and enjoyed a few beers in the afternoon.  Josh and I had dinner at a Latin restaurant and then did a little window shopping before it was time to catch our train back to London.

At the station, be boarded our train and then got the dreaded news...the train was cancelled!  Apparently, some power lines were down and nothing was moving.  Everyone got off the train, Josh and I really didn't know what to do, there was no information for us from the station.  We made a phone call about a bus, but we wouldn't have gotten home until after 2:00 am...things were not looking good!  We were contemplating spending the night when a mass of people started heading towards one of the train platforms.  We didn't know what was going on, so we joined the line to find out.  Turns out, the train was going through London so we hurriedly hopped on.  It was standing room only, and we were really lucky to squeeze in.  Our journey should have taken about an hour, but because of the down power lines causing disruptions, our train kept having to stop and wait for other trains to pass before ours could go on.  We finally ended up rolling into London after about 2 1/2 hours.  We were so glad to be home, it had been a long day!

We really enjoyed our anniversary weekend.  I can't wait to see what this next year will bring!  Already, the next few months should be exciting.  Josh and I are going to Austria to hike in the Alps in September, Sam and Amanda arrive in late September and Mom and Dad are coming to visit in October.  Yippee!!!

Celebrating 10 Years!

Today, August 10th, Josh and I are celebrating 10 years of marriage.  It amazes me that 10 years have gone by already...sometimes it seems like we only got married a few weeks ago!  I feel extremely blessed to have Josh as my husband.  He is smart and funny, loving and kind.  He loves me for the person I am, even with all of my flaws.  He has been my rock when it feels like the earth is crumbling beneath my feet.  He encourages me to be the best I can be.  I am a better person because of him and I love him more than I can express.  Josh and I have been a couple for 16 years...half of our lives, how many people can say that at the age of 32?  I feel so fortunate that everyday, I get to wake up next to my best friend and the love of my life.

Our journey throughout the years has had its ups and downs.  In the last 365 days we have experienced the most thrilling moment of our lives and also the absolute worst.  I don't know what the next ten years of marriage holds for us, but I do know, that whatever comes our way, Josh and I will be side by side supporting and loving each other every step of the way. 

Here are some pictures of us throughout the years...starting with our very first date in 1996 (Sorry for some of the picture quality...cameras have really advanced in 16 years!)

Josh and I on our first date, QHS Homecoming 1996. 

Homecoming 1996.  Josh and I "officially" started dating the next day, October 6th.  The conversation went like this...Friend "So, are you guys dating or what?"  Josh "I don't know...do you want to?"  Me "Sure, I guess"...kind of a lame start to our romance!  LOL!

QHS Winter Dance 1996

How nerdy are we?  LOL!  I'm pretty sure this was our 1 year dating anniversary date...October 1997

Kibbe 1997...Ecology Club trip.  One of our teachers, Mr. Hadley said to us "I can tell you guys will be together for a long time"...how right he was! 

Josh and I on his motorcycle...my mom hated it!  Sometimes we didn't wear the helmets...ahhh to be young and fearless again! 1998

QHS Winter Dance 1997

QHS Prom 1998. 

Graduation from QHS, 1998. 

In front of the fireplace at Bass Pro Shops in Springfield, MO.  1999

New Year's Eve, 1999 - 2000.  We've rang in the New Years with a kiss since 1996, never a year apart!

Colorado Trip with Josh's dad, Jeff.  2000

Christmas 2000

Dinner out together during University, 2001

Hiking at HaHa Tonka State Park in Missouri...a camping trip with our good friends Jamie and Ben!  Autumn of 2001.  Josh asked me to marry him on Christmas Eve 2001 and of course, I said yes!

Our wedding day, August 10, 2002.  Best day of my life! 

Honeymoon in Florida, 2002

1st year Anniversary in Jamaica.  Celebrated and vacationed with our good friends Jamie and Ben!

Josh graduated in 2003 with his Masters Degree from MSU

Our first house, purchased in 2004.  And our cute and cuddly dog Harley joined our family. 

One first Pumpkin Carving Party in the Autumn of 2005

Thanksgiving 2006

Our 5 year Anniversary trip to to the St. James winery area, 2006.

Josh's birthday, 2007

My sister's wedding rehearsal, 2007.

10 year High School Reunion, 2008. 

My cousin Missy's wedding (August 9th!) 2008

Our amazing southwest road trip.  Joshua Tree National Park, 2009.

My birthday, 2009.

Christmas 2010

Orlando trip (we are on a air boat going through the swamps) 2010

A friends wedding in Quincy...also the day that we made it public that we were moving to England! 2011

Our first visit to London!  We had a few days to explore and try to find a flat.  2011

My brother's wedding, 2012.

Paris, 2012.

Stonehenge, 2012

Amsterdam, 2012

Venice, 2012

10 years of marriage
9 job changes
8 countries visited
7 years of home ownership
6 years of craft shows
5 businesses
4 addresses
3 chickens
2 continents
1 Harley dog :)

Here's to another 10 years together...and many more after that! 
Rachel

Our Olympic experience!

The Olympic Rings on Tower Bridge

Josh and I at Tower Bridge (Josh's head is covering up the Olympic rings!)

 The Olympics have arrived!  Josh and I welcomed the start of the Olympics by having some friends over to our flat to watch the opening ceremonies.  Our original plan had been to go to Victoria Park to watch on a big screen along with 30,000 other people, but changed our minds after the weather took a turn (rain).  The four hour ceremony was much more comfortable to watch from our couch than a blanket on the grass!  One of my favorite moments of the opening ceremony was when 6 jets flew over our flat in formation...reminded me so much of visiting Sam out at the Air Force Academy...love that stuff!  I loved the opening ceremony, I thought it was really well put together, apart from the bizarre tribute to the NHS (National Health Service).  Once the fireworks started we raced out to see if we could catch a glimpse, but we could only hear the booms going off.  Stratford ( where Olympic Park is) is only a few miles away from our home in Islington.

The hype surrounding the Olympics here in London has been quite high.  For months, the media has been warning Londoners (holy cow, I'm a real Londoner!) about how busy and crazy and plain mad it is going to be during the Olympics.  Basically warning us all to either stay home or walk everywhere.  It hasn't been bad for Josh and I though, we've used the bus and tube system since the Olympics began and haven't had any issues.  On Monday, Josh and I took the tube from Angel to Earl's Court for our first Olympic game!  We were lucky to have gotten tickets back in June, I'm so glad that we looked into buying tickets because our experience was amazing!

Almost to the stadium!

Earl's court in West London (near Kensington)

We made it to the games!

 Josh and I were prepared to wait to go through security for a while, our tickets said the wait could be a couple hours long, but that wasn't the case at Earl's Court and we got through right away.  The security was similar to going through an airport minus the taking off of shoes.  No liquids over 100 ml allowed and we had to go through metal detectors.

Security at Earl's Court

National Guard troops manning the checkpoints.

After getting into the stadium we still had a few hours to kill before our session started.  Josh and I wandered around for a bit, checking out the food vendors and licensed apparel.  While walking around we found out the the women's USA volleyball team was playing Brazil.  Josh and I tried to get a couple glimpses of the action.

The USA women's volleyball team!

America VS Brazil

We found a decent spot where we could kind of watch the game (we weren't allowed into the seating area because our tickets were for the next session).  It was fun to hear the roars from the crowd as the game progressed, and were please to hear that team USA won in the 4th set!

Go America!

Finally, it was time for us to take our seat and watch the first of two volleyball games.  The first was Japan VS. Italy.  Josh and I decided to root for Italy since we had recently visited Venice, it was fun to join in the IT - TAL - LIA chants throughout the game.

Josh at the Olympics with a Bulmers :)

Line up of the Japan and Italian women's volleyball teams.

The flags of the women's volleyball teams.

My two favorite flags!

The first volleyball game was really intense.  Japan and Italy were really good competitors, very close games, but at the end, Italy won!  Soon after the win, the stadium cleared of all the Japanese supporters, which was kind of sad.  Lots of empty seats.  The second game was Great Britain vs. Algeria.  The players for these teams were not up to the same standard as the Italian and Japanese teams, but it was still fun to watch.  After the third set, Josh and I decided to leave.  It was midnight and we had a 45 minute tube ride back home.  We were happy to hear that Great Britain won in the 5th set!

Italy VS. Japan

Josh and I at the Olympics!

Team GB

Team GB VS Algeria

Josh taking in the game.

Overall, Josh and I had a great experience at Earl's Court.  We feel very privileged that we were able to take a part in such an awesome event.  Later on in August, Josh and I will be going to the ParaOlympics.  We have tickets to watch athletic events at Olympic Park.  I am really looking forward to being inspired by the ParaOlympic athletes...seriously, I think after watching them compete I will have zero excuses for my running laziness/complaints!  We are still searching online for other Olympic tickets and plan on going to watch the marathon on August 12th.  It is an exciting time to live in London!

Rachel