Honeymoon Day 2 and 3

Oh, to wake up to this again this morning. Beautiful!

This is Dan and I at the resort before leaving for our excursion. The resort does beach drop-offs at various locations around the island. For our first full day, we decided to visit the Baths. You have to strategically plan when to visit this spot of the BVI because tourists from all over come to this location. On somedays cruise ships drop off hundreds of people and it definitely would kill the atmosphere and snorkeling if there were so many people in this location. 

The resort packed us a beach picnic for lunch and they give you snorkel gear for the duration of your stay. They go ahead of you as well and set up umbrellas to give you shade throughout the day. They think of everything to make your day so enjoyable.

The water was so blue and clear. The snorkeling was absolutely fabulous. I have been to the Great Barrier Reef off the coast of Australia and truly this was up there in comparison of wildlife. Of course, the reefs were exquisite in Australia, but the fish and sea creatures here were so comfortable they would swim right next to you.

It is such a natural wonder. There are rocks and boulders everywhere creating tunnels and passageways around the island. Dan and I loved exploring. Supposedly, Kenny Chesney took several pictures for different albums at this location. He loves the Caribbean and now we can see why...

We also met a couple named, Dan and Shannon, that became our beach buddies. Dan is a doctor and Shannon is a nurse from North Carolina. We traded off taking pictures for each other during the day. We later found out we had the same package and so we ended up spending some part of every day with them so that made for even better pictures and more fun for everyone.

After our excursion, we went back to the beach for a while and later in the afternoon Dan and I decided to venture into town. We walked to the city center near Spanish Town which was about a ten minute walk. It isn't an island like St. John or St. Thomas with several shops and tourist spots. This island is hardly affected by the resort-which I liked. Everything was natural and real and the people were living their daily lives.  We went to a grocery store and discovered that prices in the BVIs are a little less than America. Dan ended up purchasing a few things and then we (Dan) carried them back to the resort on our umbrella :)

That night we decided to try the other restaurant called The Pavilion. This night happened to be their Caribbean feast. This was ONE of the stations to eat from.  I think there were about eight total. It was unbelievable and all fresh.

That concluded our first full day. Don't we look very tropical in our attire? :)

On Tuesday, we scheduled an excursion to Norman Island. The resort took us out at 10:00am and then brought us back to the resort around 4:30pm. They took us to several different spots to snorkel and to explore the other islands.

The above picture is at our first stop. There were so many caves. 

The bottom picture is from a location called the Three Indians. This spot had the best snorkeling of the day. I almost didn't want to snorkel because it got a little cooler and the clouds covered the sun, but I am so thankful we got out. The wildlife was truly incredible. There were sting rays, turtles, fish of all kinds and a whole lot of reef.

Around lunch time the sun came back out and it was a perfect time to stop and eat. We docked at a floating restaurant and bar called William Thornton's (aka Willie T's). It is a little different crowd at night (we'll just say the guests wear a little less clothing than their bathing suit), but during the day we enjoyed ourselves and the meal-clothes intact :) 

We stopped at Peter Island for a while and we enjoyed this time to look around this island to see if we made the right choice about our honeymoon. We also looked into this resort, but were so glad we chose LDB when we left. The place is gorgeous and I'm sure very luxurious, but it looks more commercial. It does not have the same vibe as LBD and so we were happy with our choice.

Really though with landscapes like this and water this blue, you can't go wrong with the BVIs. 

Honeymoon: the resort

Welcome to the British Virgin Islands...

Dan and I left Atlanta around 8:30am Sunday morning headed towards to San Juan, Puerto Rico. After we landed, we boarded another airplane-we'll just say it was a little smaller and by that I mean there was room for eight! But I must say that the views were breathtaking as we flew a few feet above the ground in our crop duster :)

The picture above is of our ferry from the island of Tortola to the island Virgin Gorda. We stayed at a Rosewood resort called Little Dix Bay. It is definitely a place to go if you never want to lift a finger. Dan and I felt like royalty as all the staff learned our names and immediately called us "Mr. and Mrs. Fowler." We discovered Little Dix by searching for quiet, secluded Caribbean and also because my brother and his wife, Lynlee, went there for their honeymoon eight years ago. Hard to believe it's almost a decade for them, but they have made a wonderful life in Homewood, AL and two beautiful children since their wedding in July 2003.

As we boarded the boat, we were welcomed with the drink of choice, Rum Punch. We learned that different captains made the drink differently and some a little stronger than others, but nonetheless it was very tropical and something we looked forward to on our excursions. 

This is not the best picture because it was a little overcast when we first arrived, but this is the first shot of the resort from our boat. The main building in the picture is where we spent most of our nights eating and eating and eating. We'll get to that...

This is what we saw when we arrived. Ahh...relaxation. 

When we stepped off the dock, the staff immediately took our bags and delivered them to our room. We were escorted to our suite for the week. Ah-mazing!

This was our first view. You wash your feet in the basin at the foot of the steps to remove any sand. Then you can see Dan's shirt at the top of the stairs-Room 43 for the week!

This is the side and the front is below.

This is the view from our porch-literally about 20-25 steps and you're in the water.

This was our room for the week. They put different flowers on the bed every day. I liked to work them into my outfits every day-see picture below. They also placed a gift on our bed our first day and last day. For our welcome gift we got a pretty picture frame from the resort that we plan to display in our house. 

This is the view after you walk in and take a left. This is our bathroom!

Sooooo hard to come home to a one bathroom house after we shared this amazing place for a week. It had double vanities and sinks, a separate bathroom, a garden tub, an indoor and outdoor shower. Dan has a plumbing background growing up with his dad so he was definitely impressed with our room.

We were also pleasantly surprised with a bottle of Caribbean rum and Champagne. They were both ready for our arrival and enjoyed during the trip. 

Dan enjoyed our porch almost immediately after we arrived. This boy can sleep anywhere-anytime. Doesn't he look tropical in his outfit? I was very impressed that he picked it out himself for the special occasion. 

I was too excited to sleep and wanted to see every part of the island. The bay is not that large and is filled entirely of the resort. We were acclimated to everything and thoroughly impressed. 

This is the beautiful pool that we never stepped foot in-crazy, I know! It had a hot tub and another level that isn't seen in the picture. We were only twenty steps or so from the beach, though, so our days were spent there. Then one day we stayed poolside, but that was at the spa. The pool there was just as amazing and it was at the top of the mountain so the views were incredible.

This is the view from one of the restaurants. Again, it was a little overcast on our arrival day so this picture does not do justice to the colors of the landscape and water in the Caribbean. So bright and beautiful.

Our first day flew by and it was time for dinner before we knew it. We ate at the fancy restaurant called the Sugar Mill. We purchased a package with our room and that included unlimited food. Oh my goodness. It was so good and we didn't even indulge ourselves the first night. We thought we could only get one entree and one dessert, but little did we know that dinner can also consists of four appetizers and three entrees and as many desserts as you can stand. Like I said, we didn't know this the first night, but quickly discovered it and it changed our dining experience from there on out. Oh, writing this makes me miss being there. My stomach is glad to be back in America where I can only eat what I can afford on a newlywed budget-left overs :)

Happy Happy Honeymoon! Where did you go on yours?

Wedding Whirlwind...

May 21, 2011

Almost a month now...

The wedding has come and gone and I truly feel like it was a whirlwind. We don't have pictures back yet, but I promise to share some photos as soon as they're ready. For now, I do have a few pictures I can share and then most importantly, I get to show off a few photos from my favorite people. 

Mom and me before the reception. She looked absolutely beautiful!

Dan and I after the reception. 

Hard to believe it's come and gone, but we're married!

Thank you to all our family and friends

for indulging my silly side and participating in our photobooth.

Cody, Katie and Josh

Dan's crazy aunts-their words not mine :)

Karen and Lori

Ali, Spencer and Rebecca

Mrs. Usry and Mrs. Sumner

My sweet(although scared-looking) aunt Lisa and her

 almost unrecognizable husband, Donald

Sweet roommates from times in Athens, Jo and Ashley

Angie and Bo (Dan's sister-in-law and brother)

My mom with her boys, Pearson and Barrett, and Ms. Valerie and Mr. Bob, too. 

I love it!

Stephanie and Chad-LOVE you and your family ♥

Ok, so while it may be fun to get to know some of our friends and family who made it to the wedding, I thought I might try a different approach for the rest of the pictures. Here's what I imagine a caption could be for the remaining...

From another newlywed couple...

"MARRIAGE... IS.... AWESOME! Cheers."

Scary hair man, yep, that's my husband!

Jacqueline and Sarah B.: "Bridesmaids representing, what!"

Sarah Mac: "I'm eight and can still stick out my tongue and look cute-ha :)"

Sweet Ms. Sims, the mask is upside down...

"Bless her heart."

You can't pick your family...

I wear my sunglasses at night... 

All-American Family: Hannah rules!

Our first night out without baby!

Cowboys are my weakness

and ones in bow ties make my teeth sweat-ha!

So... you think the glasses are too much? 

Two thumbs up from one Ken doll needing a haircut and one fabulously fun princess Barbie 

Stealing kisses from Hill's prince-uh oh!

The apple doesn't fall far from the tree- Happy Father's Day, Mark :)

Oh no... Let's go!

Something sweet and sour

Here's looking at you!

You!   Haha, Come and get me :)

Family of five-family of fun

Simply sweet and perfectly pink

Yeah. Muah. Whoa. Yay!

Prayers and Polish

Our photographers, Alea and Kim

We love you- from the neighborhood!

Whoa!    Oh yes, it is me looking dangerously fabulous!

From the oh-so-blessed and truly happily ever after bride and groom, 

Claire and Dan