chi.

Aww... I have the sweetest husband!  Ben surprised me Friday with this:

as a 5th anniversary present.

Oh what a difference!  Now I don't feel like I'm destroying my hair every time I straighten it.  And thanks to everyone for helping me choose the perfect flat iron.  Isn't it pretty?

Mott Lake.

This lake is only 5 minutes from our house - isn't that convenient?

We decided against bringing the Lillie-dog this time...

Kayaks!

Our 5th anniversary was last Friday and, as a gift to ourselves, we got kayaks!  Of course, we had to take them out to the beach right away.

And Ben took pictures of us on the drive home.  We got some SUN!

I think we're going to take them out on the lake tonight.  I wonder if Lillie would ride in a kayak...

five years.

A life lived in love will never be dull.

- Leo Buscaglia

Happy anniversary to my Ben.  I have loved every moment of this adventure.

mccartney in charlotte.

I've been such a HUGE fan of The Beatles for as long as I can remember.  It has always been a dream of mine to see one in concert.  So, when Paul McCartney announced a show in Charlotte, I jumped all over it! 

So I bought my ticket and now I'm just counting the days.  Can't wait for July 28th!

the fun theory.

I would LOVE to play on these stairs:



Also, if they're trying to get people to use the stairs, couldn't they just turn off the escalator?

Memorial weekend campout.

We spent most of the Memorial Day weekend camping and playing at the beach with friends.  We found a campground with space available a little way from the beach.  So we camped in the woods at night and played on the beach during the days.  And the weather was perfect!

Our obligatory self-photo.

The second day at the beach, we only brought one chair.  So Ben dug out a recliner.  He said it was very comfortable and cool.

Our friends' son, Douglas, ran and played with Lillie.  Richie said this picture looks like a dog food commercial.  They had lots of fun!

We actually didn't get a lot of pictures... I guess we were too busy having fun!

1st Lieutenant.

On Thursday, Ben got promoted to first lieutenant.  So we had a pretty casual ceremony and then some tasty food with friends and co-workers at the Pope Club. 

Col. Dunn made some nice comments about Ben before swearing him in.

Then I pinned on his new rank.

The ceremony was quick and afterward we got to celebrate!

We're so proud of 1LT Quigley!

ps. Thanks to Mrs. Dunn and Sarah for taking such great pictures!