I want to start today by explaining where the name for my blog came from:

I have the most creative mom and she loves coming up with “million dollar ideas” for people to do. As for me, since I fall into the general category of “creative”, studied art history, which doesn’t have many direct career paths to follow, and am just generally a scatter brained individual who likes to chase after whatever interests me at the time, she’s continually coming up with neat ideas for me to try out. Because I’m an old soul and appreciate many of the ways things were done during and before the earlier half of the 20th century, she thought it would be a fun idea to have a little school in my home teaching young girls the basics of etiquette and to call it… Miss Griffin’s Finishing School.

I preface with this to say that it was a fun idea that carried over when I decided to start a blog; I want to share how much and why I appreciate things of the past. However, this is not to say that because I use the term “Miss” that I am not married. “Miss” is a southern term for an adult woman and is used as a term of respect, whether the person is married or not. So that caused some confusion at first but hopefully that’s all cleared up. ‘Cause this guy, right here, is my husband:

And to sing his praises, this fantastic husband recently planned our fourth anniversary trip without giving me a single hint. This is actually pretty impressive considering that I’m a control freak and he gets excited and always wants to spill the beans. As it turned out, Fredericksburg, TX was the destination in question. I’ve always heard wonderful things about the town and since it is known specifically for its German food, wineries, and antique shops! Basically all of my favorite things!

Lets start off with the adorable cabin that we stayed at: man did he do good! It was a cute country limestone structure with a dried cactus wreath on the door. I was sold. Plus there was a king-size bed; I was officially on vacation. He told me later as well that he had made a concerted effort to find a place that didn’t have a full kitchen, knowing I’d feel obligated to cook rather than relax if there had been one. What can I say, he knows me well.

Bonus to these cabins (by Country Inn and Cottages) was that unlike in a hotel, we weren’t sharing a wall with anyone. I know that sounds weird but honestly I appreciated the fact that we weren’t running into people every time we went in or out, it felt more personal. Then we found out that they feed the deer in the pasture in front of the cabin which were really neat to watch! Further inspection of the property found us an old barn, a cozy outdoor fire place, and some elk!

I’ve spent a decent chunk of my life living in several places in Europe, all of which have longer, more detailed histories than practically anything on this side of the pond. But I’ve come to appreciate what I can find on this continent, even if it is more recent. Fredericksburg has a really neat history of being an area for German immigrants to settle down. Obviously this brought some yummy food to the area (sorry no pictures, I was too busy eating). This history is very important to the town of Fredericksburg and as a result, they’ve created some neat traditions and small museums to memorialize the first settlers. As some of you may know, as a kid I wanted to be a pioneer when I grew up. So understandably there was no way I was going to miss an opportunity to visit the pioneer museum!

They had a pioneer home, a school, a general store, a workshop, and more! Seriousy it was like a dream come true! Plus it was all decorated for Christmas, which is also my favorite thing, along with wine, antiques, and food of course. Have I gotten it across yet that I really loved this place?

One of the main things we wanted to make sure we did while we were there though, was visit the Admiral Nimitz museum. From my understanding he was born in Fredericksburg, TX, the decendant of German immigrants, and was the driving force behind the US Navy in the Pacific theater during World War II. Turns out he was one heck of a man and his grandfather’s hotel-turned-museum was really inspiring. 

Back behind the museum, as part of the complex, is a stunningly beautiful Peace Garden, a gift from Japan to the United States in honor of the admiral who to my understanding had been instrumental during the peace treaty at the end of the war.

The real purpose behind us going to Fredericksburg was to spend some time together celebrating our fourth wedding anniversary. This man of mine won big with location choice but I also know that part of that was because he knows me and loves me. Here I am getting all sappy but really, I am such a lucky girl.