A Proposal & Planning

For those of you that didn't know (& if you didn't know...have you been living under a rock?!) Christopher & I are engaged!

On the 18th of October, he asked me to spend forever with him & we all know what my answer to that was ;)

You can read the full story of how he asked here, at The Southern Stylista (my style blog!)

& I'm going to insert a few pictures here...

My gorgeous ring, he did such a good job!

We were so excited to show off the ring to both of our sets of parents, these pictures were the only ones we got that day!

Now that we're officially engaged & I"m finishing up the end of the semester at Jacksonville State, I'm actually getting a little bit more time to do wedding planning. 

We have set a date: May 30, 2015-so mark your calenders!

The biggest to-do on our list was to book a venue...

When we thought about a venue, there was only one place that I could think of, South Wind Plantation in Wellington, AL.

The day we went to look at my horse, Gypsy for the first time, we drove past South Wind & I fell in love. I told Chris, "Wouldn't it be so perfect to have a wedding there?" But we weren't engaged & they weren't even doing weddings!

Flash forward a few weeks later when we went to pick her up, they had a sign out front-they were doing weddings!

I tried not to get my hopes up too much when we called, they only had one date left in May.

We went to look at the venue & I fell in love. Not just with how gorgeous the venue is & all of the things that are included (so much bang for your buck!) 

But I fell in love with Mrs. Ginger & Mr. Bobby-the owners. They are so precious & after spending three hours with them...yes THREE hours, that day...I can say that we honestly became fast friends & I know that by the time our wedding gets here, I will be sad to leave them!

So without further ado, we said, "Yes!" to the barn!

This is the driveway at the entrance & the home where the bridal party will get ready.

This is the barn where the reception will take place, if weather permits the wedding will be held outside, to the right of the barn.

These are the only pictures I'm going to share at this point, you can always google South Wind Plantation & find their website & FaceBook pages and find more, but I want everyone to be surprised when they see it on the big day :)

So far, we have booked the photographer (just today actually!) that we will be using for our engagement & bridal sessions, as well as the wedding.

We are using Mrs. Amy Sullins from Amy Cole Photography-her work is amazing and I cannot wait to meet her & have her work with us!

(Look her up on Facebook, you won't be disappointed!)

I'll be making a trip to South Wind on Monday to look at the venue again with my mom, sister, wedding coordinator, and maybe some bridesmaids if I can talk them into it-so expect more planning updates then!

That's all that I have for now...& trust me, I know...I'm behind, hah!

Can't wait to share more details with everyone & most importantly, I can't wait to spend the rest of my life with Christopher!

xoxo, jordyn 

Love & Loss

A week ago today I said goodbye to my sweet Paint. 

She touched so many lives during the seven years that I had her. She taught me everything that I know about horses and more than that, she taught me so much about love and life. 

Since her passing, so many people have told me they were sorry and were praying for me. So many people have shared their "Paint" stories with me, the stories that have made me laugh, cry, & made me so incredibly proud to have her in my life. 

She was a teacher, a best friend, a horsey-soul-mate, and now she's my guardian angel. 

I got Paint when I was only 13 years-old, she was a sort of surprise gift from my daddy. We drove to Ragland to look at a truck for daddy & the guy that owned the truck had a daughter that had several horses, Paint was just one of them. The man's daughter offered to let me see her & it was love at first sight. 

It took a night full of begging, but that next weekend Paint was delivered to my house and it's been history since then. 

We explored every inch of our farm and of Barfield, sometimes riding with friends, sometimes just the two of us.

She taught so many of my friends to ride, we would spend hours on her just in the yard or grooming her/braiding her mane & tail. 

She even taught Chris how to ride. :)

She wasn't always rainbows & sunshine though, let me tell you. She was a tough teacher, I landed on the ground a few times & she would just nudge me with her nose as if to ask how I got down there. 

She would challenge me when I was on her, but I could put any little kid on her and she would be a complete angel. She knew that I was able to handle it, I guess that's what they mean by horse-sense. 

I won't ever forget a single day that we spent together, she's been there through all of the important parts of my life. I can't imagine doing anything big without her being there for me to talk to about it. 

Paint was sick for a short time, so I had more time (although there is never, ever enough time) to say goodbye. Last Tuesday, when Chris came to the house to get me before I left for school, I knew something was wrong. 

We rushed to my parents house and when I jumped out of the truck and went out into the pasture where my parents were waiting with her. 

She sat up on her front legs and whinnied to me as I walked across the pasture, she was waiting for me. She wasn't doing anything without me being there. 

My mom always told me that Paint would walk through fire for me & now I know it's true. 

I almost believe that if I had asked her not to go that day, she would've tried her hardest to stay...but part of having animals is knowing when it's time to let them go. 

As silly as this may sound to some, when she was finally gone...I sort of prayed for a sign that she was okay & just then my other six horses which had been at the top of the hill "keeping vigil" over us, swept down the hill, galloping at top speed. It was all the sign I needed to know that Paint was galloping in Heaven & I didn't need to worry.

I know this has been a sad post, but I really needed to share it, the entire story & get it all out. 

I don't and won't ever be one of those people that lost "the" horse of their life & stop loving horses altogether, I can't do that. Paint taught me too much for me too waste all of that & I love rescuing horses too much for me to ever stop that work. 

But she will always be the horse for me. 

"As you shut your eyelids tight, you disappeared into the stormy night. I saw your soul gallop off happy & content, as I whispered into your ear, "Goodbye, my friend."

Impressive Hours

January 31st, 1987-September 23, 2014

"Always loved & never forgotten"

Big thank-you to everyone who sent texts, calls, facebook messages, or instagram comments this past week, I really appreciate it. Also thank you to Jessica & everyone at Twin Creeks Vet Services, for everything. 

Summer 2014

This summer flew past, literally...I have no idea where it went!

It seems like just last week I was taking finals & celebrating the end of my third year of school & here it is, the day that I begin my senior year of college & my first day of the Education program at Jacksonville State. 

This summer I learned more than I ever thought I would have. 

I spent mornings with Chris learning how to work calves...and learning how to wake up before sunrise. 

I learned how to put up vegetables and can pickles for the winter, I even learned how to make tomato juice so that we'll be able to have fresh tomato soup in the chilly winter months. 

But I have to say, my biggest accomplishment was learning how to use all the beef we have in the freezer...it's harder than you would think!

One of the best things I received this summer was...

my sweet new gelding, Wrangler. He's been such a good teacher for me this summer and I couldn't be the equestrian that I am today without his attitude, because I've had to overcome a lot with him. But I wouldn't have it any other way. 

Since I got Wrangler this summer, I did a lot of trail-riding with my friend Tess. 

It was so nice to have someone to ride with this summer & I see so much of myself in her, so it's just fun!

I also turned twenty-one this summer & I was so lucky to be able to celebrate with my family & my best friends. I don't know about y'all, but I'm content with my birthday situation now & I don't have to have anymore ;)

I guess my favorite thing that I did this summer would be my trip to the beach with Christopher. We went to Panama City Beach, Florida and had a complete blast. It was so nice to get away & just be able to spend some time with each other & not have to worry about anyone else but us. 

Also, my sweet Daddy turned sixty this summer & we had a really fun surprise party for him & invited a lot of his old friends & current friends. 

My sweet friend Courtney & her boyfriend Kaleb came to visit and Christopher & I took them up to Cheaha to Bald Rock. It's always fun to show people that aren't from around here the beautiful views that Clay County has to offer. 

And to close our summer out, Christopher & I went to see Whitney & Brian Anderson get married. 

Casey & Brett went with us and we had such a great time. The wedding was beautiful, the reception was so much fun, and we had an awesome time getting to see old friends that we hadn't seen in a while. 

Overall, the memories were amazing & I'm so thankful for this summer. It was a great opportunity to recharge & relax a little bit. Plus, I had a wonderful time making wonderful memories. 

Thanks for reading, y'all & I can't wait to share with y'all what the Fall semester has in store for me!

-Jordyn

Beachin'

Christopher and I have been back from the beach a little over a week now and I have to say that I think it's about time that we go back again! This was our first official beach vacation for just the two of us & it was perfect in every single way. Our trip was the 24-28th of May. 

We stayed at the Origin at Seahaven, which is actually across the road from the beach...which is somewhere I said I would NEVER stay. But it was so nice & so much cheaper! It was right across the street from Sharky's & we had private beach access. 

Although Chris wasn't smiling in this picture...we actually had a great time hanging out on the beach for the three days we spent on the coast. We rented a set of chairs and an umbrella which is my advice to anyone that is going. It's so much easier than carrying all your junk down to the beach! All we had to carry was my beach bag and Chris' Yeti. 

It was a little sea-weedy, but still beautiful!

The best part of this trip was the fact that my Rep koozie came in right before we had to leave! I'm obsessed with how cute they are & I'm so proud to show it off because it's true...only the best get the bow! 

The second best thing about this trip is that at the beach, Chris dresses up! Who wouldn't love a guy dressed in white shorts, a seersucker shirt, and camel leather slip-ons. =)

We ate at a ton of really good places, even venturing out of our comfort zone into St. Andrew's Bay. The two best places we found there were The Captain's Table and Uncle Ernie's. Not to mention that there was the cutest little antique store that I had to go into and pick a few things out. We also walked around the docks, it was so fun to see a new side of the beach that I had never experienced before. 

After dinner on our last night we went out to the pier for sunset and it was incredibly beautiful. 

We actually ended up seeing some locals that had been fishing off the pier, fish a terrapin all the way up to the shore. Apparently you aren't allowed to pull them out of the water, so you have to beach it. 

Chris and I ended up getting to know the group of people fishing the terrapin and we learned a lot about it, including the fact that apparently they aren't good to eat, so they are only a trophy fish (hence why you aren't allowed to pull them out of the water). 

It was huge! It took two grown men to pick it up for pictures!

Chris got to hold the rod while they ran down to the beach to take pictures, he was pretty proud of himself! 

It was an amazing trip and I'm so thankful to all of the people that made it possible for us to get away for just a few days! 

Until next time...

xoxo, jordyn 

Happy Birthday To Me!

My twenty-first birthday took place on June the 13th. 

I had to start off my day by waking up early and driving Chris' truck to Woodland to get tires put on. What a great way to start off my birthday, right? Oh, and I had to get several things for Chris at the Co-Op in Wedowee too before I could come back home. 

When I did eventually come back home, I headed to my Mama and Daddy's house to meet them, my sister, and Chris for lunch, cake, and presents. 

My Mama got me the most perfect cake...

I also thought Chris had forgotten to send me flowers...but when I walked through the door at my parents house the most beautiful ones were at the table. =)

I swear, Christopher is always full of such surprises!

Instead of going out for my birthday, Chris and I threw a shrimp boil and invited all of my friends. It was so good to see everyone, especially people that I hadn't seen in some time!

I had such a blast and I cannot wait to see what the next twenty-one years will hold. 

A huge thank you to everyone who helped me celebrate, I love you all! 

xoxo, Jordyn