Can you believe 1 year ago today Boots and Totty.com posted its very 1st blog entry! It was quite a boring entry if I do say so myself, but none the less it has gotten me where I am today!

So here is the breakdown of what B&T.com has accomplished in the past 365 Days.

{in no particular order}

1. We showcased over 18 pairs of shoes in the Shoe of the Month Club.

2. We showed how to build a raised garden, how to install an in ground sprinkler system, and how to attempt to grow grass.

3. Also showed how to collect and recycle rainwater and how to install energy efficient windows.

4. Don’t forget we also renovated our Bathroom, Basement, and Kitchen.

5. And gave face-lifts to our Guest Room, Master Bedroom, Living Room and Dining Room.

6. We also had Mr. Sanders refinish our Hardwood Floors.

7. Let’s not forget all the holidays, birthdays, and anniversaries.

8. Gave Target plenty of free publicity.

9. Gotten some free publicity ourselves.

10. And continue to search for the Best Burger in Richmond!

With a grand total of 151 posts in 35 categories, I’d say it was a pretty busy year!!  BIG THANKS to the the 16,681 visits to the site and the 352 people that published comments.

It’s a nice treat to read them and know that you guys enjoy my silly stories!

A normal Sunday for Mr. vB and I includes me waking up first, starting the coffee maker, and feeding the kiddo’s. (Boots, Bailey and Milo)  Once my coffee is ready I sit on the couch and catch up on my favorite blogs until Mr. vB wakes up. {which could be anywhere from 9:30 to 11 o’clock.. sometimes I have to make a little extra noise downstairs to get him moving! Luv You Hon!}

BUT this Sunday morning we shook things up abit!  Mr. vB and I have been trying to change up our workout routine and we have always said we wanted to try a Yoga class.  Well I mentioned this to my friend/neighbor, Karen, who is a Yogi and teaches over at Yoga Source in Carytown. She suggested that we come try out her Sunday morning class.  I mentioned this to Mr. vB and surprisingly he was down for it, even though it meant waking up early on a Sunday! {yes- Sunday at 9am is still early to my husband!}

So off to Yoga Source Mr.vB and I went this morning.  And an hour and a half later we emerged from the studio feeling awesome.  The class we took was called Slow Flow Vinyasa and it kicked our butts!  It was definitely a bit of a challenge since neither me nor Mr. vB had any clue of the poses that Karen was talking about, but she helped us to get each just right!

**Side-note- I have always been the type of exerciser that thought you had to SWEAT BUCKETS to get a true workout, but boy was I wrong.  Mr. vB and I used muscles this morning that we didn’t even know existed.  At one point I even looked over at Mr. vB and he WAS sweating buckets!  We are sure to be so sore in the morning!**

I was so impressed by Karen’s teachings that when I was suppose to be clearing my mind of all thoughts, all I could think about was how I was going to write this post!!  For anyone looking for a great Yoga class/instructor YOU HAVE GOT to try out Karen’s class.  She teaches multiple classes during the week over at Yoga Source, and she also does private sessions.  Karen even has a once a month Yoga session at a cool loft downtown called “Last Friday’s”.  Check out her website for the full scoop! www.yogawabisabi.com.

Happy Birthday to my Most Amazing Husband!

I know you prefer to be anonymous on this blog, but today you are center stage!

I love you very much. xoxo Mrs. vB

Mr. vB and I rang in the New Year with our good buddies, the Bashams, down in Raleigh. {You can check out Joettte’s own blog here.} Prior to us leaving town, you might remember me mentioning that Mr.vB had been on vacation and he was up to some renovations in the basement.

His allergies have been going haywire lately and we thought it might have something to do with him spending so much time down in the unfinished basement. {His office and music studio are down there.}  We originally used carpet tiles to hide the ugly cement floor because we could get them all for FREE!  4 years later, the tiles have accumulated tons of dust and pet hair, but more importantly condensation is starting to collect underneath them. It’s not their fault {the carpet tiles}, it’s ours, as we apparently did not seal the concrete floor properly the first time!  I had a mold and moisture guy stop in a few weeks ago and luckily we had no mold, but he did recommend removing the tiles and resealing the floor with a resin based product.  We also thought this would be a good time to ditch the carpet tiles and see if it helped Mr. vB’s allergies.

So last week our Basement looked a little something like this.. {I’m totally embarrassed showing this to you guys.  Our Basement had turned into a total catastrophe!!}

As of last night it looked like this..

Pretty Amazing Transformation, eh?

I am currently working on a post with the full step by step details on how we accomplished it all.

Our next step down here will be to drywall the ceiling and the remaining cinder-block walls.  But that will be after we finish dealing with the floors upstairs.  Remember me mentioning that little project too?  Our entire first floor is about to get a little face lift of it’s own!!

I can..

Our Kitchen Floor is halfway ripped up…

and our Basement is under construction (again)…

But these are good things- I think.

Mr. vB started pulling up the kitchen floor late Monday evening.  The good news is that we discovered hardwood floors hiding under that horrible tile.  They definitely look rough now, but after some sanding and stain, they should be beautiful!

And as far as the basement goes, we finally have a plan to make it a finished space.  The picture above is the framing around the furnace and hot water heater.  We are also enclosing Mr. vB’s office area in a really neat way!  Pictures to follow soon- Stay Tuned!

When it comes to exterior Christmas decorations, normally Mr. vB and I stick to the basic wreath on the door and white candles in the windows.  This year, however, Mr, vB has decided to mix it up.  This is what I found when I got home from work today.

9 boxes of LED rope lights on the counter and 6 more boxes on the floor.

When I asked what exactly we were going to do with all these lights, Mr. vB let me in on his little plan.

Here is the exterior of our house before..

And After 15 boxes of LED lights…

The inspiration came from houses we saw on Monument Ave with similar rope lights spilling over the balconies.

Kinda funky.. kinda fun!

It’s making me rethink my wreath though! I might need to do something a little less traditional than the ornaments that are on my current wreath.  I saw in a magazine yesterday the idea of spray painting a wreath.  Wouldn’t a bright red wreath be cool, or maybe a lime green wreath??

I did also replace my Confederate Jasmine with the cutest little fir tree ever.

Guess I gotta get some funky decorations for this guy too!

I see a busy weekend in my future! Stay Tuned!!

I picked up the November issue of Richmond Magazine purely because of the front cover and tag line.

I luv, luv, luv a good hamburger!  Currently my favorite burger is from Five Guys Burger and Fries. Ever been there?  It’s amazing!  I don’t know which I like better, the juicy burger or the fresh fries.

But after reading the article about the Best Burger in Richmond, I am up to the challenge of testing out the competition.

I have enlisted Mr. vB and our good friends, Amanda and Dave Monger, to help with this challenge.  Our plan is to rate the burgers the same way that Richmond Magazine did.  We will rate the patty, the bun, the vegetable toppings, and other toppings on a scale from 1-5.  {5 being the best.}

Here are the contenders: Cafe Gutenberg, Honey Whyte’s, Racine, Delux, The Hill Cafe, Davis and Main, Dot’s Back Inn, River City Diner, Can Can Brasserie, Tarrant’s Cafe and The Belvidere at Broad.

Once we have tested every last burger we will crown the 1st Annual BBURP.  {Best Burger Upon Richmond Prize)

Will my {5} guys be able to hold that sacred place in my heart?  Stay Tuned to find out…

Remember the poor lamps that Mr. vB destroyed broke during the “paneling project” in the master bedroom”?

Well they’re about to get a second chance on life.

I hit up Home Depot today and found a replacement socket to fix the bobble-head look.

And after conning Mr. vB into helping me, we got it fixed in no time! Boots wanted to be involved too.

But besides fixing the socket, I am also thinking of maybe painting the base a new color.  I’ve been itching to use a peacock blue color somewhere in my house and this may be a good fit.  I also picked up a fun golden velvet lampshade at Ikea this weekend that I think will really pop with the blue.

(have no fear-the shade is shiny because I left the plastic cover on it in-case I need to return it!)

Now I just have to talk Mr. vB into showing me how to use the paint gun on the air compressor.  I figure that will be the easiest way to paint the lamp so you won’t see any brushstrokes!  I am hoping to get to that tomorrow night. I will keep you posted!

Now that is was Official..

It was time to go on our Honeymoon!!

Mr.vB and I picked Little Dix Bay in the British Virgin Islands and couldn’t have been more pleased.

The entire resort was wrapped around a crescent shaped beach.

Our home away from home for a week was this cute little bungalow literally steps from the water.

Our days consisted of floating in the clear blue water…

Having cocktails..

and then doing them both simultaneously.

We also fit in some time at the spa,

some time in the pool…

and some time getting dressed up to go eat!

We also made some dear friends that celebrate the same Wedding Anniversary as we do!

{We made a deal with Jenn and Bob that we would all return to LDB for our 5 year anniversary!  How awesome is that?!}

Our last night on the resort we were treated to dinner on the beach.

By the time we had dinner it was so dark that our waiter scared us every time he came to our table!

We were all very sad to leave.. but knowing that we would be back in 5 {short} years made it a little easier!

It’s hard to believe it’s been 2 years since Mr. vB and I tied the knot!  It seems just like yesterday!  Here’s a walk down memory lane.

(I apologize in advance for the grainy photos.  I spent longer than I would like to admit scanning them onto my computer.  We had a great photographer, Sarah Hazelgrove, but at the time she did not upload her digital photos.  We only have paper copies.)

It was the year of the white track suit- what can I say?  At least mine had my cool new initials on it!

Here is the vB Family Crest which was a key part in many aspects of our celebration.  We had these custom flags made, as well as used it on our invitations, and Guest Welcome Boxes.

Me and my ladies…

Mr.vB and his men…

Both of these photos crack me up because Mr.vB and I were SO NERVOUS!!!  I couldn’t even look at the camera.

Our Ceremony was held at St. Joseph’s Villa in Richmond, VA.

This is my FAVORITE photo that Sarah took!  It was as we were leaving the Church and headed to the Reception!

Our Reception was held at The Main Street Train Station in Downtown Richmond.

It’s still a working train-station with trains arriving even during Wedding Receptions!  My mom joked that she would let each train passenger have one cocktail and then she was going to push them on their way!

Mr.vB surprised me with these awesome Custom made Converse.  He had them made in our wedding colors and I loved the “Just Married” tag-line.

Introducing for the First time.. Mr. and Mrs. vB!!

Our First dance was to Paul Simon’s Late in the Evening.  We took dance lessons as we really wanted to wow the crowd!

Apparently we didn’t warn the photographer that we were going to do the DEATH DROP at the end of our number.

We had also planned for the wedding party to grab the fake instruments that we had laid out by the dance floor and start dancing around at the end of our First Dance.  If you have ever heard Late in the Evening, you know how perfect it was!

We created a candy bar for our guests instead of handing out favors.  Each guest got a cute little take out box and filled it to their heart’s content.

Mr. vB and I left our fun filled evening with guests lining the front stairs of the station waving sparklers!  It was such a great send off!

Next stop- Little Dix Bay- British Virgin Islands!