Drop-In to celebrate your upcoming wedding with hot chocolate & treats at ByFarr in the Vista this Thursday, Jan. 10 from 5:30pm-8:00pm. Bring your fiance, family and/or your girlfriends along for the get together.

Last night we hosted a Bridal Stationery Drop-In to meet brides-to-be and celebrate their upcoming big day. Delicious cake by Nonnah’s, champagne, the smell of freshly cut flowers and the hum of our letterpress all combined to make a beautiful evening. We had a wonderful time visiting with brides, couples & families while we printed coaster sets on the letterpress. I can’t wait to do it again!

Special thanks to: Lucas from Kickstand Studio for these photos, Nonnah’s for sweets and dessert specials, Rentzall Chapin for champagne flutes, Lake Murray Flower Shoppe for flowers and Blue Marlin & M Vista for dinner discounts.

We have coaster sets & stem charms at the shop, stop by and pick some up for your home, friends & family. Contact me any time for help with your design.

Cheers!

As I sat in our boat this weekend watching the annual fireworks show on Lake Murray, I couldn’t help but think how incredibly blessed I am and I had to ask myself what really matters?

It’s so easy to get caught up in the day to day life. Here are 3 things that I am remembering today on Independence Day to focus on what matters in my life.

1. Love my family and friends.In the last year we lost a young friend and one of our close friends lost their father. Life is so precious, don’t put off calling someone back, visting and getting together. Chris and I have a large calendar where we plan time in the coming months for spending time wih friends and enjoying ourselves. Finding a way to be intentional with your free time is very rewarding. We mark dates that we can hang out with friends and family and then act on them.

2. Live: Go after your dreams. Do not be stopped by fear. As ByFarr has grown, and I’ve dealt with being my own employer it’s been crazy scary at times, but I wouldn’t change it for the world. What’s your dream and what fear is stopping you from getting started on it today?

3. Learn: Be intentional, don’t waste time. Take advantage of every opportunity. I listen to a podcasts and audiobooks while I’m driving & exercising. Chris & I both fall asleep lots of nights with a book in our hands. Download a book you’ve been meaning to read and make a goal to finish it within the next month.

One part of my life that I’m really working on is being intentional. New Years Day 2011 we lost Chris’ grandmother. Chris & I visited with her from time to time to gather stories from her life, but I was extremely sad that I didn’t make more time with her prior to her passing. So President’s Day 2011, I loaded up with my mom and drove to Ohio. The goal: to record stories from my Grandparent’s siblings. What I recorded are priceless glimpses into the past that made history spark and come alive to me. I’m still in the process of recording family stories and I’ll share them here from time to time. As we celebrate America’s Independence, and remember all the lives that have been spent in earning and protecting our freedom, I thought it would be appropriate to include  one of my favorite stories from my Great Aunt Vera about World War II.  Enjoy! The War is Over

What really matters to you?

Part of the dream when buying our house was to have a place to host family and friends. Of any event we could host, I can’t think of anything that brings more joy than hosting my sister’s wedding. My now brother-in-law is a glass blower – that passion led us to a mason jar theme for the wedding.

Chris and my brothers moved the wood working saws to the back room of the shop, got antique motors of the way by hanging on the wall, and put a coat of paint on vintage pocket doors we installed at Christmas. After doing this and knocking down cob webs, the shop looked impressively ready to host a reception (or a ceremony if it rained.)

The weather was beautiful the day of the wedding with a light breeze coming off the lake. Friends and family gathered by the water for a 3pm ceremony. My sister was gorgeous in her LaRoque dress and her groom beamed with joy as they exchanged vows and began a new chapter in life. This was such a blessing to share such a special moment with grandparents, family and friends.

Everyone enjoyed the food by Happy Cookers, cupcakes by Cupcake and conversation at the reception. Lucas with Kickstand Studio captured treasured moments throughout the day.  After a round of congratulations, we bid a farewell and a welcome to Happily Ever After.

View more photos of the special day here.

We took Captain to the Clinton Boykin trials Saturday. We’ve never been to a dog field trial event before…so we didn’t know what to expect and neither did Captain. They had different courses for novice, intermediate and advanced and a natural abilities course for dogs who haven’t been trained. We didn’t win any ribbons in the natural ability but Captain had a fun time.

We watched the trained dogs on the duck dog shoot-out course while we visited with other Boykin owners. One girl noticed Captain’s Gamecock collar and asked if he was named after Captain Munnerlyn, and yes, that is at least part of the story of his name. After a BBQ lunch, we got to visit with most of Captain’s dog family. We bought Captain from Dan Stone at Duke’s Lodge. Dan’s family was there with Captain’s sister, Bow. Mike from Florida had Captain’s dad and the owner of Captain’s granddad was there with with one of Captain’s cousins. It was great to visit with the Duke’s Lodge crew and Captain had a great day meeting other dogs that look like him.

We struck out on an adventure Saturday morning knowing we were to trying to pack more into a weekend than we should. Chris has been planning to build a small sailing skiff for months, so we headed to Vandemere, North Carolina to buy boat building supplies from Graham Burns at B&B Yachts. {bandbyachtdesigns.com}

Graham gave us a tour of the 45ft catamaran he’s building, then Chris and Graham talked boats and loaded supplies while Captain and I wandered the shore line in search of sharks’ teeth. Graham is an amazing boat building talent; he’s a native Australian who settled in NC after circumnavigating the world on a boat he built and designed himself. When Chris asked him about future plans and adventures, Graham told Chris “I’m not done with crossing oceans yet.”

We left Graham’s and headed into Oriental. We had dinner by the waterfront at one of the local hangouts – the Oriental Marina & Inn {www.orientalmarina.com}. After dinner, we checked into Captain’s Quarters Bed and Breakfast {www.thecaptainsquarters.us} and visited with Roy, the owner, who we met during our previous stay in October. We walked from the Bed & Breakfast through a quiet, historic neighborhood to the waterfront. We enjoyed the night time view while our dog, Captain, explored the shoreline.

We woke up Sunday morning, had breakfast with Roy and headed back to the waterfront for coffee at The Bean {www.thebeanorientalnc.com}. One of the trademarks of Oriental is the public dock. Boats traveling the intercoastal waterway or passing through the area use the dock to stock up on supplies or stop in for dinner and entertainment. The rules are simple, A sign on the dock reads “48 HOUR DOCKING EVERY 30 DAYS”. Of course we had to take a picture with Captain on the town dock before we left town.

We decided to take the scenic route home through the Bogue Sound & Crystal Coast region. We wanted to drive this area to find more fun places to visit in the future, so we caught the Minnesott Beach-Cherry Branch Ferry towards Beaufort.

We loved Beaufort (pronounced Bow-fort for Beaufort, NC and Bew-fort for Beaufort, SC with it’s historic homes, restaurants, antique and gift shops all on the waterfront. We had a lunch of shrimp and crabcake sandwiches at Finz Grill {www.finzgrill.com} and left Beaufort knowing we would return soon for a longer visit. On our way back to the truck, we stopped in at the NC Maritime Museums’ Harvey W. Smith Watercraft Center {www.ncmaritimemuseum.org/beaufort/exhibits.html} just long enough to inspire us to hurry home so Chris could start on our next boat.