In a Nutshell

Thinking back on the past year, this has been the most eventful, wonderful, and challenging year of my life! I cannot believe that so much has happened. 2014 was incredibly difficult, but absolutely fantastic at the same time!

Here's some of my biggest moments of 2014!


1.) I GOT MARRIED!

 Ringing in at numero uno is the fact that I married Taylor Cook: the most wonderful, sincere man a girl could marry, and my best friend. I am so thankful for who he is, his love for the Lord, and his patience with and love for me. He's kinda great ;)

Now, marriage is definitely a challenge. I constantly learn how selfish I am, and how, more often than not, my motives are very self-centered. Marriage challenges me to become a better, more organized, more giving person, who relies more heavily on God than ever before.

My biggest challenges of the year have come from my biggest blessing of the year :)



2.) I went to the Bahamas!

I had never been anywhere outside of the Southern United States and I had always wanted to go on a cruise, so when Taylor and I decided to go on a cruise to the Bahamas for our honeymoon, I was beyond excited! We had a great time and I've really been craving Taino beach lately ;)




3.) My best friend got married!

Meredith and Brett getting married was a wonderful part of the year! She found a man that could "tame her" (her words, not mine), a man who loves the Lord and treats her well. I'm so happy for them!

Photo by Jessenya Sosa

4.) Another best friend got married!

Challice and Billy got married less than a month ago! Their long-distance, six year relationship was finally blessed with marriage! Yay! I'm so happy for all God is doing in their lives!







5.) Two of my other best friends got engaged!

My friend Bri and my friend Stephanie both got engaged recently. I'm so excited for them! They both have great guys who treat them well and love them for the awesome ladies they are.

6.) My mom started her own business!

During my wedding planning, mom and I made the decorations together. She made everything gorgeous. Ever since then, she has been making flowers by hand out of lace and other fabrics, and crafting bridal boquets out of them. Her work is fantabulous (yes, I made that word up) and I am so proud of her! Check out her business on Etsy here.


7.) One of my best friends opened her own pottery studio!

My Gracie is so talented! She has always been artistic and I've always hoped she would make a career out of her talent. This year, she opened a studio near Ocean Isle Beach, NC called The Clay Cottage. She makes pottery to sell, and she offers "paint your own" pottery. Groups or individuals can come in and paint pre-made pottery. She also hopes to start teaching lessons soon too. Check her out here.


There were other wonderful things that happened this year but the list is far too long. There were some hard times too, but I'd rather focus on the good, especially since my life has way more blessings than it does hardships!

I'm one blessed cookie! How about you? What were some of your biggest moments in 2014? Did anything life-changing happen? Comment below :)