disclaimer!!

i DID technically write most of the post below in october...just never posted it! however, i edited it a little bit tonight...so the date says october..but i didn't post until today!

okay - so let's catch up....AGAIN?!?!

well, i have to say... i did state in the beginning that i might not be that great at updating this blog... BUT, at least i didn't forget about it, right??

so, i am going to give you a super quick recap of the past...i don't know...almost year??!!....whoops!

we came home for bo's spring break/time off in march. bo had been pretty unhappy in mississippi for a while, not to mention that we never* saw each other.. so, we had a very nice and busy visit for spring break. little did we know when we left mississippi to come visit home, that it would be a life-changing trip...

*i am not exaggerating this part. bo worked the better part of 17+ hour days - monday thru friday. on saturdays he usually worked 8+... AND he had grad school work... so when i say never, i mean just about never...not naggy-wife-i-haven't-seen-you-in-5-hours never.

ahem, now that we are all cleared up on that.

so, while we were here (here - rocky mount), bo expressed his desire to get out of the coaching profession... i was pretty floored. i knew he was unhappy, i knew he didn't like mississippi state, but i had no idea he was ready to be done coaching. now, i could go into some long thing about why that was such a shock...blah, blah. but hopefully, if you are reading this, you know bo and i, and if you know bo - then you already know why this was a shock.... (plus i said quick update of the past 6 months) if you don't know us...it could be considered somewhat creepy that you are reading our blog....haha - just kidding (kind of...)

we were flying out on saturday morning. on friday morning, he applied for a job in rocky mount at a lil' place called rmr, got the job, and we started planning our move back here...

we got back to lovely starkville on saturday afternoon and started packing saturday night. now, some of you may say - well you got there late december and were moving back in late march - so you probably didn't have that much to pack up, right? WRONG. you see, i am kind of OCD over stuff like that. every. single. box. that had been moved... had also been unpacked. and not just unpacked, but everything had been assigned a "space." and we had ONE week to pack it all back up and move it again!

so, we arrived back in rocky mount on sunday, march 28th. its been a complete whirlwind since then....so, maybe here is the 'super quick' update:

my very beloved grandmama passed away the day after we moved back. this made for a pretty tough first week back home-and has been pretty hard for me since then....

we lived in a 'pack house' that was one-room + one small bathroom for the first month or so that we were here. it was great and we were so thankful to have somewhere to stay... BUT, you put two people in a one-room + one small bathroom house when they are only use to seeing each other a couple of hours a day... the walls kinda start to feel like they are closing in... i love my husband more than anything... but not in one room ALL the time.

we bought a house that we absolutely love in may and that i am having the best time decorating!

bo is really liking his new job - and all the free time that he has as well!

i have settled back in at work for the most part.

its very weird to not be completely consumed in football (although bo we were still pretty consumed) this fall...

bo has taken up hunting. he killed several deer during hunting season - one of which was a very nice buck.. and then another nice buck.


chloe is very happy to be back near her "meana and bompa".

and just to clear the air on the question of the year. we have moved back. we are not pregnant. and we really aren't sure yet when we are going to try to start a family! we will be very excited when that time comes and will welcome it if its before we think we are ready - but we don't have any plans of that right now! we are just enjoying being married and having free time to spend with each other!!

so, that's the update on us...

stay tuned for more about what is going on around the brown household - but don't hold your breath.. it could be a while before the next update...but hopefully not!!

Still adjusting...

I think its becoming pretty obvious that I am NOT very good at updating this thing. We are still adjusting to this new life. Its hard to describe to people, because everything is so different and it all changed so quickly.

We are definitely thankful for the opportunities that we have been given and we are so very blessed to be able to take advantage of them.

Its funny how you put certain expectations on things - knowing that its probably going to be completely different from what you are expecting - but then, you are completely surprised when things don't exactly meet your expectations... does that make sense?? It doesn't necessarily mean that the reality is worse that what you were expecting - but just different... That is kind of where we are right now.

For example, obviously I had expectations on what our apartment would be like. When we got here, the apartment did not meet those expectations, and I am still not crazy about it. I am very thankful that we have somewhere to live, that is safe, but I am not one bit crazy about this apartment. The funny thing about it, is that our neighbors (I will tell you more about them later) have made this adjustment easier and definitely entertaining! Now that we have been here for two months, and I have seen the town and the other places that we had looked at living, I know that this apartment was the best place for us (hopefully just for 6 months though!).


We really haven't done a whole lot. I haven't seen my family in a month which is a BIG change...but, you know what? - its alright. This move has really done something for US. Me and Bo. And if we walk away from this with nothing - we have grown so much and learned so much about each other - that it is all worth it. I guess marriage is another one of those things that you go into with expectations... And usually, its quite different than what you expected.... (can I get an AMEN??? haha)

When Bo and I were doing our pre-marriage counseling, one of the things I remember the most about our pastor saying to us was, "I recommend that ALL newlyweds move AT LEAST 1000 miles away from their families." Now I should say, I knew I was marrying a football coach - that this was his dream - and that as his wife, I would be following this dream as well, and that it wouldn't only be his dream anymore, but ours... I can also say that at THAT time, I was absolutely not ready to move away from my family. I knew eventually I would have to (possibly kicking and screaming) but I also knew that being Bo's wife was what God had planned for me... And if you KNOW me, you know that this was absolutely not what I had planned for me (before I met Bo)....

So, taking you back...

I just knew that the plan that I had was going to work so perfectly into what God had already planned, that it could not possibly be anything but God's plan... I was absolutely certain that I was going to work at Rocky Mount Recyclers and that I was never going to leave - and I was even more certain that when I met my future husband, surely he was going to want to live in Rocky Mount, NC and he would never dream of taking me away from all of MY plans..... and more importantly - there was absolutely no way that ANY MAN could make me feel comfortable enough to actually MOVE me way from my family and ME be okay with that???? ... Absolutely not - never in a million years would I have thought that would happen. And. here. comes. Bo.

It wasn't long - and I knew. We both knew. It was weird because most couples these days date for sooooo long (not that there is anything wrong with that) and we didn't. We. just. flat . out. knew. And we also knew that he could be going anywhere, at anytime. So when we got engaged in February, we planned the wedding for that July. And we have never looked back.

We were very blessed in that right after we got engaged, the new head coach at NCWC offered Bo a coaching position (he was living in Florida at the time doing a strength and conditioning internship at USF), Bo accepted and we were married in Nashville, NC in July 2008 and then lived there until December of 2009. As I said before, I wasn't ready to move away - and I knew that in marrying Bo, I would eventually be away from my family and friends. Lucky for us, we had that first year (and some change) of marriage in our hometown and things fell into place for us to move here. When I say that things fell into place - its like God made a way for me to see that when He showed Bo and I that we were to be married - He really meant - go be his wife - submit to your husband.

When the call came from the coach at Mississippi State offering Bo a position here, I was ready, and more importantly, WE were ready. We were able to see so many great relationships of friends (mainly coaches at NCWC - thank you wives!!!!) that were away from their families and doing great, along with other things that happened that made us BOTH ready to embark on our new journey...

It hasn't been an easy road to haul.... marriage is hard enough in itself - and in a place where neither of you have ANYONE but each other - it makes it hard to fight about the little stuff. Bo and I have been so blessed - because the only thing(s) that we usually fight about are the little things that don't matter... (usually, because he....just kidding!!) And in a place where all you have are each other - you realize that maybe there is more to your marriage than.... toothpaste in the sink, clothes on the floor, dishes in the sink, shoes in the MIDDLE of the hallway, socks on the couch....HECK, I could go on for DAYS about the little stuff that Bo people in a marriage do!!! The important thing is, that we have realized, in TWO months that the little crap doesn't matter!!! I absolutely CANNOT wait to see what else we are going to learn!! I can see now why ALL newlyweds should move 1000 miles from home (750 counts, right??) Its so exciting and refreshing - Bo and I don't know the future - and frankly, I am done trying to make plans for the future. God has blessed me with a husband that is going to take care of me (and ONE day - not anytime soon - a family) and I could not be more thankful. We are done trying to plan our future - its all in God's hands - and we couldn't be happier. God has blessed us with so much and we have so much to be thankful for!!

If you are still reading, thank you... I say all that to say, that we are really doing great. There is a lot of stuff that we could complain about, (Mississippi, long hours, etc...) but in the end, there is way more to be thankful for. WE have grown so much in our move to Starkville. The expectations that we had set for this place and this level - it doesn't matter anymore if they play out or not - because we are stronger, more in love, and so much more appreciative of what we have in our marriage -and that, my friends, greatly surpasses any expectations we could have set...

Until next time. . .

Pictures of our Apartment!!

Here is the front of our apartment. Its so welcoming, don't ya think??

Here is the view from our back door. This porch is shared between all five apartments.
The back door.

Looking from the living room to the front door.

From the top of the stairs looking down.

The upstairs bathroom.

Guest room - its all ready for guests... HINT, HINT.

Another shot of the guest room.

This is walking in from the back door.

Walking into the living room from the front door.

Our bedroom

and again.

Part of the hallway. The picture on top was our Christmas gift from Jake! We love it!!

The office. (its not always this messy - sorry)

the office again.

Walking in the front door. Our bathroom is to the right, the door you see on the right is the office, and the door on the left is our bedroom.

the kitchen

the kitchen - looking from the living room (we still don't have a kitchen table...)
the living room - looking in from the kitchen

So, this is our apartment. I had planned on writing more - but it took me so stinkin long to upload all these pics... maybe later. Anyways, its still kind of growing on us... I don't think we are going to renew our lease...

That's it for now! Maybe now that some of you have seen how kind-of-cute our guest room is, you will let us know when you plan on coming to visit!!!

Catching you UP!!

Well - where should I start? I guess I will first explain that this blog serves two main purposes. The first is to keep our family and friends informed on what is going on with us (hopefully I will be pretty good at updating this). The second is for documentation purposes on our end! With that being said, there will probably be stuff on here that doesn't interest most of you...so don't feel obligated!

I also feel like I should put a disclaimer in here that writing is NOT my strong suit!! I was not an English major and I am pretty horrible with grammar...so please bear with me!

Now I will start!

Just to catch you up - we are now living in Starkville, Mississippi! We moved right after Christmas for Bo's job. He was coaching at his Alma Mater in Rocky Mount, NC - and now is an assistant strength and conditioning coach/GA at Mississippi State. So, we have been here almost a month! Wow!

Moving was quite an adventure! We hired a moving company and on the day of the move it felt like everything was going wrong. We were supposed to leave on Sunday, drive to Atlanta and spend the night, and drive the rest of the way on Monday. . . did not happen that way. I will spare you all of the details of what went wrong; but we did not leave until Monday morning, Bo was driving my dad's suburban pulling a trailer with part of our stuff, and I was following behind. I was quite emotional (if you can imagine that) - leaving family and friends and everything you know, nervous about Bo having to pull the trailer 750 miles, Chloe was freaking out, driving all day by myself...you get the point. But, we drove all the way here in one day. Now, I should probably mention that I had never been to Mississippi before and when Bo came for his interview he was barely here 24 hours. ALSO, we had not seen ONE picture of the apartment that we are living in (talk about a LEAP of faith)!!

When we started driving into Mississippi there was NOTHING on the highway - when i say nothing - I mean, no lights, very few buildings, and no cars... Anyways, we found our way to our 'neighborhood' - which is very hilly, very dark, and very much in the country. Our landlord told me that he would just leave the apartment UNLOCKED, the keys on the kitchen counter, and would be by later in the week to meet us and collect the rent and the pet deposit! After pulling up to the wrong set of apartments and Bo having to back the trailer up in the dark and on a steep hill - we found our way to a different building that housed our little apartment... I got out of the car, with Chloe in tow and walked into our new home. I quickly looked around, decided I absolutely HATED it, and went back out the front door and held in all of my tears until Bo finished parking the truck and trailer. AS SOON as he got out of the truck, I started crying hysterically and told him that there was NO WAY I was staying in this apartment...

So, the three of us walk back into the apartment when I decide that my mom is the only one that can possibly make me feel any better about this situation. At this point, I think that I became as dramatic as I possibly could. Chloe started scratching - which made me cry harder because I was convinced there were fleas in the apartment. I decided that Bo also hated the apartment - which he agreed that he did - but what man is going to argue with his hysterically crying wife?? I told my mom that Chloe could not walk around the apartment because there were so many rats (obviously this is part of the super drama queen part). So, we then left the apartment to find a hotel - and I am not kidding about that part. We spent our first two nights in Starkville at the Hampton Inn.

When we woke up the next morning, Bo convinced me that we had to come back over here. I cried the whole way here. **Sidenote - our apartment has natural gas that heats the apartment, water heater, stove, oven, etc.** When we got here, my head was pounding (from crying so much, I'm sure). But, here comes the drama queen - right back out. I just KNEW my head was hurting because I was getting carbon monoxide poisoning from this apartment. Also, Chloe kept wanting to be held - and my reason for that was that she was getting it too and needed to be up higher so that she could breathe. So, I start crying again. Poor Bo.

As we set out on our way to Lowe's to buy carbon monoxide detectors, we pass the appliance repairman that was coming to fix our stove. We had to turn around and go back into the carbon monoxide infested apartment while he let all kinds of gas leak out of the stove. This of course forced me and Chloe (the ones that were suffering) out of the apartment and left Bo in here with the repairman. Finally, Chloe and I decided that we had gotten enough fresh air and that we could go back into the apartment for a little while. The repairman was finishing up so I took this opportunity to ask him about the carbon monoxide and how to get to Wal-Mart/Lowe's so that we could get the detectors (that I was sure were going to go CRAZY when we got them back home). This conversation that took place with this exceptionally nice man, cannot possibly be replicated through a blog. You will need to make a note to ask us about this so that we can tell you in person/on the phone. Anyways, he did inform us that {insert super-thick country accent} "if you caaaaan't get it at THE Wal-Mart, you aaaiiiin't gettin it in Starkvull."

After he left we set out again in search of our life-saving carbon monoxide detectors. We went to Lowe's, Bo went in (while Chloe and I sat in the car and I talked to my mom) and he bought two 4-star rated carbon monoxide detectors (which he was SURE to mention - so that I would be satisfied, I'm sure). We got something to eat and headed back to the apartment. By the time we got back, I felt much better. So, I wasn't all that surprised that our new little life-saving devices did not go off. Drama queen had receded and I had accepted that we would be living in this apartment for 6 months. I could either continue to hate it or I could try to make it feel like home. I decided to try to make it feel like home.

With all that being said, we have had a pretty good month here - and if nothing else, we have a lot of stories that will be really funny "one day" (still not that funny - to us/ME). Here is a "quick" recap of the past month!!

Our furniture/stuff arrived much quicker than expected, unharmed.

My parents (and Cameron) came down on New Year's day to switch cars with us (Bo had driven my dad's suburban - so they brought us the Explorer and drove the truck and trailer back).

We had a great time with them - seeing some of downtown Starkville and just hanging out!

Bo started work and school and he loves his new job. He works A LOT of hours but he is learning a lot and enjoys what he is doing. He's not as crazy about the school part! But, he is doing great in school so far and seems to have no problem balancing everything.

I am working from home for Rocky Mount Recyclers. I'm still adjusting but I think its going to work on both ends. I am very busy with work, for which I am thankful - since Bo works so much - it gives me something to do.

Slowly, but surely, our apartment seems to be coming together. It feels more and more like home - even though I am pretty (almost positive) sure we will be moving at the end of our lease.

Our second weekend here our pipes froze and we had no water. We then learned that our heat works (somehow??) from water and so therefore we had no heat. So once again, we spent two more nights in the good ole' Hampton Inn. I think they know us by name now. Also, out of the five apartments in our building, we were the only apartment that had the frozen pipes.
A. W. E. S. O. M. E.

I went to San Antonio, Texas last weekend to surprise my mom for her 50th birthday! Mom, Dad, Lil' Garry, and Cameron were in south Texas hunting for the weekend. Lauren and I met in San Anton (we can say that now that we have been) and surprised Mom. You would have thought that she had no idea who we were. It was great, she was surprised and absolutely had no idea that we were coming!! We had a great time there (although we all missed Bo and Chloe). We did the riverwalk, walked around San Anton, and just had a great time visiting and hanging out!! Its amazing how quickly time passes when you live 12 hours away from your family.

So, here we are...hopefully all caught up!! I head to NC tomorrow for work and I'm not quite sure how long I will be there. But, I will hopefully update you guys again soon (and MAYBE I will get some pics posted tonight - but I should probably be packing...)

If you have made it this far, thank you for reading! Hope you all are doing well and we hope to hear from you all soon!!!!

Brittany