Welcome to the Sunshine State!

Welcome Home!

There has been so much life that has happened since my last post.  So, I'm going to attempt to summarize the things that have happened since I left Annapolis by telling you all the things I've learned.

     1. It's a longgggg drive from Maryland, and flying is the much preferred method of transportation.  Also, I need to find a way to earn frequent flyer miles/get cheap plane tickets.

Moving truck being loaded



First sign to Pensacola!



SO excited to finally be in Florida-



and out of the car! 

      2. Having parents that can help you move and set up house is such a blessing.

Thank you to our dads for driving this to Florida!

At a well deserved seafood dinner.

      3. The sooner you can connect with the few people you know in the area, the better.  It leads to fun days, inside scoop, and more friends.
      4. Student teaching and flight school.  The things learned in these categories deserve multiple posts within themselves.
      5. The beach in Pensacola is GORGEOUS and paddle boards are fun, even in the Gulf!

Pensacola Beach

Selfie on the beach

Gorgeous Fort Pickens

     6. Derrick's dart board project exceeded my expectations.  However, he's just as competitive as I            expected.

Derrick's bullseye

     7. Downtown has some really cool events and makes for fun weekends and date nights.
     8. Great food + new friends+Jesus=Bible Study
     9. Ultimate Frisbee provides a fun and exhausting Saturday afternoon.

Gallery Night

Graffiti wall at Gallery Night downtown. 

Seafood Festival!

     10. Exploring our new home has been an amazing adventure :) 

Weekends in Review: Part 3 {8/8-8/10}

Sooner than expected but conveniently, Derrick and I were able to head to Southern Maryland on Friday.  We ran some errands in Annapolis and were home in time for dinner.  My mom cooked Derrick's favorite treat, flank steak, so he was in heaven.  Before dinner we enjoyed paddle boarding with my whole family! Everyone gave it a shot and I think everyone really enjoyed it!

Experts at posing

The next morning we met up with our other sisters to paddle board on base.  It was a little harder because it was rougher water there, but it was still really fun! (Unfortunately I didn't get as good of pictures.)

Then we cleaned up and hung out at the Petett's for a small get together with some family and friends.  It was a really laid back time and it was good to see everyone before the girls head off to college and Derrick and I head down to Pensacola.  

We headed back to Annapolis Saturday night and spend Sunday in D.C., but that will get it's own blog post :)

Weekends in Review: Part 2 {8/1-8/3}

Friday we were able to have some friends over for dinner.   To date, everyone has survived my cooking, so I consider it a success!  Our friend made us homemade hot fudge to go with our ice cream for dessert and it was delicious!  All she did was mix semisweet chocolate chips and milk in a bowl.  Then simply microwave for 30 seconds at a time, stirring in between.  It was some of the best hot fudge I've ever had and so easy! It ended the evening on a great note!

Saturday I was really excited to be able to go to a Rascal Flatts concert and see my friend John Lunde and some of his friends.  They performed really well live and I do love country music.  The rain held off and it made for a fun evening.  I took some iPhone pictures and video from way in the back at our lawn seats.

I was also glad to stay with another friend over night and visit briefly with her.  (Thanks for staying up and talking with me past midnight even though you had no voice!)

I was able to get back in time to meet Derrick at church the next morning, and enjoyed my favorite, a Sunday afternoon nap!

Weekends in Review: Part 1 {7/25-7/27}

Derrick and I look forward to being able to squeeze fun into every weekend.  Last weekend, I spent Saturday with Derrick, going to lunch in town and drooling over cool toys in a surf shop, before being able to go home and see my family.

It was nice to be able to see and laugh with my family, even though my brother spent all of dinner Saturday night referring to me as "the guest."  Nothing makes you feel like home like when your brother acts like you're a visitor in the home of which you were raised.  Dinner was filled with comments like, "Oh, you know that person, too?! How did you meet them?" and "You see in St. Mary's County we like sweet tea; I'm glad you're enjoying it.  Do they have that where you're from?"  As much as I would deny it, it was pretty hilarious how the comments just kept coming.

I got to see my home church family on Sunday and enjoyed a walk with my family that evening.  My mom even cut my hair for me!

The bro decided to be nice to me before I  left & post haircut. 

Meanwhile, Derrick enjoyed spending Sunday with his dad and a new favorite restaurant in Baltimore, Fogo de Chao.  If you've never heard of it, you should check it out!  Derrick and I went together before we left for St. Lucia for our honeymoon and thoroughly enjoyed it.  It's like a meat lover's paradise.

Below are some pictures from Derrick's and my visit to Fogo de Chao during our honeymoon.  I'm not sure Derrick has had many happier moments than enjoying that food.  So it was the highlight of his week (at least) to be able to go again and get some father-son time.

This is how much food was left behind…

I'm not sure the waiter was as entertained as Derrick was when he asked to take a picture.   Not everywhere serves meat off of giant skewers directly to your plate.  

Birthday Festivities

Derrick was serenaded at the Cheesecake Factory!  There was even a candle in his cheesecake. 

Derrick's birthday celebrations lasted all weekend, before it was even officially his birthday! We were able to have lunch with my parents and Caleb, then dinner with his family at the delicious Cheesecake Factory, and then another small get together with some friends in Annapolis.  It was really good to see some friends before they start TBS in Quantico.  

Derrick's birthday cake.

I was able to successfully make a birthday cake, which was a feat in itself.  I've enjoyed trying new recipes as we explore cooking for ourselves.  Anytime I get to use my new KitchenAid mixer and the cookbook my grandmother put together of family recipes, it makes cooking/baking that much better.

Our aquarium adventure.

We also went to the National Aquarium this weekend.  We loved seeing all the fish and had a blast! There was even a little 2 year old fella we saw a couple of times who came right up to me and grabbed my hand.  His mom said he had spent the last 20 minutes looking for us since the first time he'd seen us, and I never even learned his name.

The black tip reef was our favorite!

This sea turtle was rescued and had to have its front left flipper amputated.   

So many sharks!

The dolphins were awesome, but I was too distracted to get good pictures!

Overall, we had a really good weekend and Derrick enjoyed his birthday.  Thank you to everyone who helped make it special.   Happy Birthday Derrick!

Let's start at the very beginning

So, I decided to start a blog as of... this week.  I wanted a way to share what is going on in the day to day lives of Derrick and I now that we're married and out on our own.  This isn't meant to be something elaborate, but just a way to connect to friends and family all over the country (and world), wherever the Navy may take us.  Our lives may not be thrilling, but we laugh a lot and have fun with each other on the day to day.  I think it's safe to say we've enjoyed the first month of marriage :) 

Since I've never done anything like this before, I'm not sure how often I will post, especially once I start teaching, but I plan on posting pictures and sharing what is going on in our lives, especially since I've become 

Practically Petett in Every Way.

Feel free to share this with others, and I hope you enjoy catching up with us from afar.