Laissez Les Bons Temps Rouler

This past weekend, my hubby and I went to Eureka Springs for the weekend. We had a hard time deciding if we were going to take Conner or not, but we did! The three of us had so much fun!

While we were there....

We stayed at the Crescent Hotel.

It was so much more manificent than we had imagined! We just love old haunted hotels. The Crescent Hotel was built in 1886 and it has been said that this hotel is one of the most haunted hotels in the WORLD! Buie and I were ready to but we didn't see any ghosts this trip.

We ate a lot!
This was one of the FREE breakfasts that we ate in the Crystal Dining Room at the Crescent Hotel. By far, THE best omelet I've ever put in my mouth!

We partied!

Buie and I wanted to go to Mardi Gras in New Orleans but decided we wanted something a little more TAME. Eureka Springs has an afternoon parade that is more family oriented so it was right up our alley! We had a great time! Well, maybe not Conner- he did NOT enjoy the sirens on the firetruck. Poor guy.

We shopped!

Conner and I hung out outside while Daddy went in his favorite store!

We relaxed! This is us hanging out on our balcony on the first night. It was so cold but such a pretty night!

10 Pet Dangers You Didn't Know About

Like any dog lover, we want to protect our pets. Right now, while we don't have children, our 2-year old Cocker Spaniel is our baby boy, so naturally we are cautious about what he eats, who he plays with and where he goes. While going through a box of recycling I found this article that I had torn out of a Good Housekeeping magazine, called 10 Pet Dangers You Didn't Know About. Well, obviously this caught my attention and hopefully if you own a dog, it will catch yours. Please take the time to read this article. Your little Fido will thank you too.

Save Some Bucks! (No, not deer)

The theme of these past few months seems to be "Save, Save, Save!" That is exactly what the Buies are doing in 2009. We have many many goals we want to see accomplished not only this year but in the years to come, as do any couple. It takes a conscious effort to spend less, however. We have been in the process of joining our two accounts so we have to constantly communicate about what and where we spend money. Do you have any tips on how your household handles the spending, the bank accounts, the bills, the mortage, etc.?

On the subject of spending, I found this great article on one of my favorite blogs, This Young House. This is a young couple who has great ideas on Do It Yourself and Home Improvement Projects as well as Home Decorating Ideas. This particular articles is right up our alley as we try hard to pinch our pennies in 2009!

Read the article about how to save more moulah!

Enjoy!

Eureka Springs or BUST!

This coming weekend the Buies will be headed to Eureka Springs and couldn't be more excited about it! Just from internet surfing, it looks like they have a pretty sweet Mardi Gras celebration. Our original plan was to go to New Orleans this weekend, which I have always wanted to do....but I think I waited to late in life. I'm too old to be stuck in traffic or in the streets with drunk people wallering all over you to enjoy myself. I should have made the trip to New Orleans during Mardi Gras many years ago. We are hoping that by going to Eureka Springs, we can still enjoy Mardi Gras but avoid the extreme craziness that comes along with New Orleans. We'll see if that happens.

We are trying to figure out what to do with our baby, Conner, in the mean time. We want him to go and enjoy the vacay as well but I'm not sure how fun it would be for him. We could take him around the downtown area on a leash but he would have to go back to the hotel room during dinner. :( So, we're still not sure but we need to make a decision soon!

jumping in ponds

This was a great weekend for the both of us. Friday night we got off work and met Buie's family for dinner at Outback which is always fun. Mrs. Carole brought me and Christina (Buie's brother's long time girlfriend) a roses for Valentine's day. I thought that was super sweet.

I saved up enough room at dinner to eat a "Chocolate Thunder from Down Under," one of their specialty dessert items that is surprisingly gluten free. It is a flour- less brownie with ice cream, chocolate syrup and whipped cream on top. Yum. Me and Buie finished off the whole thing even though they brought spoons for everyone!~ :)

Saturday morning we slept late, even though we both said we weren't going to. We piddled around the house for a while before going to take recycling to our local drop off center. Conner went with us because their is a park nearby. This is where the fun begins. As soon as we walk over to the park from the recycling drop off, Conner spot a group of ducks and some geese. I was in the middle of taking a picture of him eying the birds when he jumps in the water! haha. It was so funny! He was covered in gross water and was freezing the rest of the time in the park...so needless to say, we didn't stay long. But it was worth the time there to see him jump after those ducks!

I took this one about the same time Conner spotted the ducks.

I was taking a picture of Conner when all of the sudden he jumped in the pond. I still can't believe I caught it on camera!

Conner after he jumped in. He's was wet and very very stinky!

We found a duck feather!

Don't worry, I was holding him extra tight! I was afraid he would jump in again! :)

Walker/Buie Family Vacation Numero Uno

Buie and I are going on our first family vacation EVER with my entire family! I know what Buie is thinking..."YIKES! What am I getting myself into?" Well, I can't speak for him but I am totally pumped about it! My oldest brother, Chris, is living in Mozambique right now. He moved there in January and will be coming back to the States in late June. Since, obviously, we will need our "Chris fix" we decided to take a family vacay right when he gets back from Africa. Chris is doing all of the planning via internet from Mozambique-isn't technology amazing! We decided to go somewhere relatively close by so we will have less driving and more quality time, plus I don't think my parents enjoy laying on a beach as much as I do. (The beach vacay comes later on in September. See post.)

So the destination of choice is.... Deer Valley Lodge in Branson, MO. Check out the floor plans! If I haven't said it enough, I'm super pumped! It will be mom, dad, Chris, Craig, Nicole, me, Buie and if we can talk MeMe into it. We are also inviting Buie's parents, my in-laws, to join along. As of right now, I don't think Buie has mentioned anything to them since we JUST made these plans. (Mrs. Carole if you are reading this- then just know that you and Mr. Rufus are invited as well!)

While we are there we plan to shop, eat, see some shows, eat, shop, eat, play golf, eat, shop, see some more shows, and most importantly, take LOTS of pictures...which is why the family is bringing me along. :)

It's been a while since we took a family vacation and I have dreamed of the day when I could bring along my husband. Can't wait!






I think the best part is the air hockey tables! Chris and Craig are going DOWN in some air hockey!

Making Plans

This Valentine's Day falls on a Saturday, as you are probably well aware of. This being our first V-day as a married couple, we are excited that we have the whole day off together. I'm getting excited about spending the entire day together. While it is NOT unusual that we spend an entire Saturday together, it is, however, unusual that we will NOT be cleaning, doing laundry, or organizing our condo in some form or fashion. Let me just go ahead and make that clear...THERE WILL BE NO CLEANING ON VALENTINE'S DAY. And THAT, my friends, is reason enough to celebrate. We were trying to think of fun, inexpensive ideas to do during the day. Here are a few ideas:

Since we don't want to leave our beloved son at home all day, we thought the three of us would head on over to the local dog park. We actually have not been to this one, so it will be fun to try a new place. And hopefully Conner will love it, too, because even dogs need a little Valentine Love.

Another idea is going to the ZOO. We won't be bringing Conner to the Zoo but since he will be worn out from the dog park, we will bring him home for a nap with the kitties. Buie and I haven't been to the Little Rock Zoo in about two years, but we had the best time when we did go. Also, I took so many great pictures last time I was there and this will give me a great excuse to take more pictures! Animals are the best subjects for some awesome photography! Here are a few pictures from the last time we went to the Zoo in 2006.

To end the day, I'm sure we'll try a new restaurant here in town. Any suggestions??

What are you doing for Valentines Day? Do you have any other fun ideas for our "Date Day?" Do tell, please?! We are always looking for new and fun ideas and ways to spend time together.

The First of Many...

Our First Annual Buie Vacation is BOOKED! That's right, today I booked our vacation to Florida. We will be going with a few of our friends and my cousin, Lauren and her husband. I can not tell you how excited I am! We rented a beach house, called "Sunny Delight", near one of my favorite towns- Seaside. My family has been to Seaside a few times and I just fell in love. My cousin and best friend, Lauren, was married in Seaside. That was two years ago and I haven't been back since the wedding. I am definitely craving some beach time. So the countdown begins... 214 days til our vacation!