Five on Friday

February is here! And even though it's the dead of winter, even though temperatures are dipping down into the 20s at night, even though we have our fireplace on at some point every morning or evening in our house... there's a light at the end of the tunnel.

Tonight, where I live, the sun officially sets at 6:00pm. In 30 days, Daylight Savings Time begins and we'll all get to enjoy extra sunlight in our days. Right behind that? Summer. Bring on the warm weather, days spent at the beach, and vacations! Until then, let's dive into today's Five on Friday.

{One}

Over the last 5 years, we've had quite a few photoshoots with some exceptionally talented photographers: engagement, bridal, wedding, a fall mini session, baby #1 announcement, newborn session, a Christmas mini session, a motherhood mini session, fall porch-raits, and another newborn session. I haven't been great about printing out these photos and putting them around the house.

That changes... now! As we work to get settled into our home and make it more "ours," I'm intent on printing out photos, framing them, and displaying them around the house. I'm tackling a photo gallery in our upstairs hallway first. Patrick surprised me by purchasing these frames for me and as soon as we have our photos back from our photo session last week with Joshua Aaron Photography, we'll be getting that hung up.

I'll be swapping out a few photos {need to make room for Evans!} but here's a sneak peek of what I'm thinking:

{Two}

I would say that the number one thing that I have missed during my pregnancy with Evans was going to breweries, but you know, with a pandemic going on... I can't blame that on just being pregnant anymore, can I? I'm not sure we would have made it to very many breweries in the last year pregnant or not thanks to COVID.

However, I think we're about ready to venture out to one in the next few weeks! Fingers crossed. Our first day date after Riley was born was to check out the newest brewery in town, Steel Hands Brewing. This time around we've got another new brewery to enjoy: Savage Craft Ale Works. I've had my eye on this one since the day they created their social media and web presence nearly two and a half years ago. Am I a little bitter that they waited until after we moved from West Columbia to Lexington to open? You bet. Our old house was just a 7 minute drive away and my old office {before we relocated to Cotton Town this summer} was just 0.9 miles away. Savage Craft Ale Works was on my way home from work! Luckily, I'm still pretty close by and can easily get to this one.

{source: Savage Craft Ale Works}

How awesome does this place look? They have a huge outdoor area, a massive rooftop bar, a taproom, a delicious looking menu, and more. We're letting the crowds die down a bit {they just opened last weekend} but you better believe that we'll be there very soon!

{Three}

Who remembers the days when my bike and I used to be best buddies, putting in miles all over the Charlotte Greenways, around Kiawah, and on the Palmetto Trail? I love to bike - give me a decently pretty day outside {anything other than super cold or rainy} and I'll happily pedal around for miles.

My bike is currently residing along the roof of our garage. Patrick installed a pulley system to hang our bikes from to maximize space in our garage... and probably to keep me off my bike once we moved into our new neighborhood because it was too hot / I was too pregnant to be out biking. That has changed. I'll be reunited with my bike over the weekend {as long as it doesn't rain!} and I'll get to explore our neighborhood by two wheels for the first time. Plus, it's time to get back in biking shape so that I'm ready to hit the trails around Kiawah with Riley this spring.

{Four}

Is anyone else having all of the pre-pandemic feels lately? I keep running into little reminders of what life was like this time last year thanks to Facebook memories and date-stamped photos on my phone.

 Last winter, my sister-in-law and her fiancé were easily able to fly from London to the United States to visit us for a week. While they were here, we went to a crowded Soda City Market {with no masks!}, spent an afternoon at a brewery, and went out to dinner on Main Street. We even celebrated the life of my husband's grandmother inside a packed church and in a private event space at a local restaurant. Amy, our mothers, some friends, and I went out to dinner one night and to see Wicked in a crowded theatre, too.

At work, we were working on a local annual event that draws thousands of people each year. No masks, no social distancing, no worry over anything other than weather affecting attendance.

This year? Can't do any of that.

{Five}

It's time.

We've been putting it off since November.

Riley's about to have her world rocked, but it is 100% time to ditch the diapers and dive headfirst into potty training. Almost. I'm still putting it off another week or so but before I head back to work, we're going to try and tackle potty training at home. So... y'all have any tips or tricks you want to share?

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Happy Friday, y'all! Hope you have a great weekend!