A Belle and her Beau

That's what I am talking about!

2009-03-02T09:19:00.007-05:00

I got my snow, I got my snow!!! Can you believe it? On March 1st at that.

I was in Athens on Saturday night (bach pics to come) and my grandparents live nearby so on Sunday morning I went over and met them for lunch. It was nasty and raining when we walked in to the restaurant and less than an hour later when we walked out there was at least 2 inches of snow on the ground. Since this Georgia Peach has no experience with snow or ice everyone though it would be best for me to stay the night with the g-parents. Good thing! The snow kept coming and kept coming and last I checked we were up to six inches ... yes, I was the girl out in the yard with a ruler measuring the snow. Ha! My grandfather said he had not seen snow like that around here since 1977. This is serious stuff, folks! We lost power around 3 pm Sunday afternoon and it was finally restored around 2 am. We were living "Little House on the Prairie" style for a couple of hours but it was fun.

Puppy paw prints!The g-parents sassy cocker spaniel did not know what to think about all the white stuff!

I think she liked it much better inside where it was warm and dry!

So I got my fix ... we may not see weather like that again for another 10 years!

xoxo~

Gettin Ready for a HootNanny!

2009-02-27T16:10:00.013-05:00

First off, I must say that the term HootNanny makes me laugh hysterically inside. I wrote the title of this blog and then got scared that it might have an underlying meaning that I didn't know about so I give you a disclaimer: I think that the term HootNanny means a big par-tay! Thus I am going to a HootNanny this weekend in Athens-town, G-A! Bacherlorette-ing with the girlfriends and it is gonna be fun.

In mental preparation for the trip tomorrow I was looking thru pictures from my bachelorette party ... we went to Destin and I had a ball. Probably because I have the coolest friends this side of the Mississippi :) The pics are quite humorous (and some quite inappropriate) and let me remind you that behavior like that is only acceptable once in a lifetime! On your Bachelorette Party, of course.

I am sure to come back with a story to tell. These pics can hold you over in the mean time!

I have no idea what could have possibly been so funny!

"Stage diving" in the limo ... by everyone's reaction it does not look like they were amused :)

The final product. A Bachelorette Bash with good times had by all: Mission Accomplished!

Have yourselves a fun weekend as well!!!

xoxo~

Can I get a Yee-Haw!!!

2009-02-27T08:51:00.004-05:00

Can I get a Hellz Yeah!!!

Today is MONUMENTAL in the life of A Belle and her Beau. As of 8:39 a.m. we are officially 100% out of credit card debt!!!! Hallelujah ... I want to shout from the roof-tops! In all honesty it only took us a couple of months to pay off our credit cards once we really became serious about doing so. But it wasn't easy and it wasn't always fun. Saving money and/or paying off debt is much like dieting, at first it completely blows and you are miserable but after a couple of weeks you begin to get used to it and it becomes second-nature, so to speak. For the first month it definitely sucked to write down every single solitary penny I spent (even if it was just 97 cents on a coke) when I was so used to just running a debit card and trashing the receipt. But when the Beau and I totally grasped the concept of Every Penny, On Paper, On Purpose our spending habits have completely changed.

We are not in the clear yet though. We still have student loans and the Beau's car is not paid off. Before I began Financial Peace University I had the mind-set that student loan debt was "not bad debt" and that everyone had a car payment. Well, if I would have just used a little bit of common sense I would have realized that all debt (minus your home) is bad debt and if you owe $20k on a car, in fact you are in $20k in debt. With lots of prayer to be strong and faithful in paying down our debt we hope to have my student loan paid off by the end of this year and the Beau's loan and car paid in the following 2 years. Again, that will come with lots and lots of prayer.

Proverbs 22:7 says,

"The rich rules over the poor, and the borrower is servant to the lender."

The bible gives us over 800 scriptures on how God intends us to handle our money ... you can find them here.

xoxo~

Blogger Blahs and Catching Up

2009-02-26T10:26:00.011-05:00

I have the Blogger Blahs in a bad, bad way. I have been averaging about a post a week but that is all I have been able to muster up. **Point is case .... I have just sat here staring at my computer screen for five minutes thinking of what I should write next** Basically, I got nothin. I should possibly go back to my original intention of making this my online scrapbook. We will see ...

I do have just a couple of pics from Monograms and Mimosas on Saturday morning. I have been waiting on some more pictures {helloo LEF} but I will show you the ones I have, or the ones I stole rather.

First of all, if you are a bride you totally need to request a Monograms and Mimosas shower. The bride got the CUTEST stuff! Let's be honest, you could monogram a piece of poop and it would be cute. It was really fun to plan as well. However, it was at my house and I took on the "catering" ... I now know why caterers charge an arm and a leg - it is serious hard work! Especially when you are working in a kitchen as small as mine.

The bride in her adorable new monogrammed apron!

The "party favors"

Me with the bride and I am pa-pa-pa-pasty white. Come on spring! {APK, I promise I will not be this white in your wedding dear}

Hope you all have a terrific Thursday!

xoxo~

Showers and Sleep Overs!

2009-02-19T14:56:00.004-05:00

At 5 o'clock EST my 3-day weekend begins. I took tomorrow off to prepare for Monograms and Mimosas. Ya'll I am beginning to panic ... I have enough food to feed an army, the hostess gift has been purchased and wrapped, the decorations are cute, I have gift favors, the mimosas will be flowing HOWEVER none of this is going to matter if everyone can't fit in my house!!! Last night 11 girls were over for book club and that is when worry set in. If 20 people show up on Saturday we will be tight (real tight) but if more than that come I am basically screwed. My calculations are showing that we will have between 16 and 18 but if peeps are feeling real shower-y on Saturday morning I might be out of luck.

Oh well, I can't worry about that now. This is what we will "brunch" on:

Breakfast Casserole

Sausage Pinwheels

Pigs in a Blanket

Party Ham Rolls

Strawberries and Fruit Dip

Cheese Ring

Cinnamon Rolls

Orange Blossoms

Cheese Straws

To drink we will have Passion Fruit Mimosas, Strawberry Mimosas, Traditional Mimosas, and coffee.

I probably went a little overboard on the menu but I would much rather have too much than not enough. Pictures to come on Monday.

Tomorrow night 2 of my besties from out of town are coming in early to slumber-party-it-up with me! Very exciting ... aren't they cute??!!

In book club news, we chose to read Jen Lancaster's Bitter is the New Black for this upcoming month ... changing it up quite a bit from Redeeming Love :)

I knew I would love this book when I read "...or why you should never carry a Prada bag to the unemployment office!" Who has read it? Thoughts?

A few of you have asked over time about my book club ... it is not a bloggy bookclub, its the real deal, but I would love for anyone to read along and I will be more than happy to chit chat with you about the book!!!

xoxo~

V-Day Weekend

2009-02-16T15:16:00.008-05:00

I have enjoyed reading about everyone's Valentine weekend. It sounds as if many of you were spoiled by Cupid! The Beau and I started out the Valentine weekend by doing something very, very romantic ... I am not sure if it is even appropriate to share on the blog. However I don't like to hold much back so here goes. I had been out of town for an entire week so ..... we did ..... (keep in mind we only do this kind of thing once a year) .... our taxes. I know, right? You wish you were me.

Saturday afternoon we drove up to Atlanta, shopped for a couple of hours and then went and met up with one of our favorite couples at their house. The boys lounged around and the girls prepared a fancy feast (not really all that fancy but it was fun). On the menu was Cajun crab dip from Fresh Market (my fave), the Beau's favorite kiwi-mandarin salad, shrimp pasta, strawberry cupcakes and petit fours.

After dinner we went to Cafe Intermezzo, which I highly recommend, for more dessert and coffee cocktails!

Sweet, simple Valentine's Day with my sweet husband and sweet friends!!! I wouldn't have had it any other way.

xoxo~

Yummie Tummie!

2009-02-12T14:07:00.005-05:00

Please tell me that you all know about Yummie Tummie tanks and I have just been living in a hole! I am in Birmingham this week for work and I had a little bit of free time yesterday so I ran in to a little boutique ... and this is where I struck gold. On a little table with the Spanx were these amazing tank tops/ camisoles called Yummie Tummie!

As I have illustrated in the first picture the cami is basically broken up in to 3 pieces. The top is just your basic camisole or tank. The middle is where the magic happens!! It is tight stretchy material that is supposed to suck you in real good and eliminate muffin tops! Whoo Hoo! Then there is an extra piece of material at the bottom for extra length ... always good if you are tall like me.

Bad news is that these come with a hefty price tag. Boo! The tank in the first picture retails for $62 and the cami in the second picture retails for $72. Yikes. But what a great concept!!! I didn't try one on but when I came home and went to the website I found out that it was one of Oprah's Top Picks for Summer and Heidi Klum also endorses them. And we all know we can always trust Heidi and Oprah ... except when it comes to politics :)

Beau- I didn't buy one so don't freak out in case you are reading! Dave and FPU is really crampin' my style! But we are "living like nobody else so later we can live like nobody else" ... then I will be living like nobody else with no muffin tops!

If you have one of these let me know how it works for ya!

xoxo~

Party Pics

2009-02-11T12:00:00.013-05:00

Here are some pics from Cupcakes and Cocktails ... finally.

my cupcake hand towel ... courtesy of Tar-jay.

pink, black and white m&m's ... you have no idea how many bags of Valentine m&m's I had to pick through to get only the white and hot pink ones. I bought the black ones from the m&m station at Swoozie's.

I got this Chocolate Cream Cheese Cupcake recipe from Buford Betty's blog and they were sinfully delicious! I completely copied her by putting the diamond rings in the cupcake for decoration. Thanks BB for your help - yours were much cuter than mine though :)

I molded a cheese ring that I made in to the shape of a heart ... served with strawberry preserves. Yummmm!

The beautiful bride-to-be with her special pink/black wine glass. Sportin' her pink and black attire in true fashion!

All the pretty bridesmaids ... excluding me - I was having a crazy bad "face-day". Ha! Ironic that the heart said UR HOT. Should have said UR NOT!

xoxo~

Cupcakes & Cocktails

2009-02-03T13:51:00.004-05:00

Is it only Tuesday?!? There is a lot of week left but that is actually a good thing because I have lots going on! I am in full party-planning mode. I know that I showed you the invitation for Monograms and Mimosas but I haven't told you all about Cupcakes and Cocktails yet ... and it is actually occurring this Friday!

*Invitations ordered from Wedding Paper Divas ... such a fun company!

So for months I knew I wanted to have a Cupcakes and Cocktails par-tay for my girlfriends around Valentine's Day and I began planning this party in my head. Well my friend Page got engaged so I decided to definitely have the party and give it in honor of her. It is going to a small little gathering of her bridesmaids and in my mind it is going to be super cute ... lets just pray that I execute! Haha!

I am a little bit nervous because this is the first real party that I have hosted at our house AND I am giving it all alone. So basically if it sucks it will be all on me. Kidding, kidding. I really think that it is going to turn out fab! I am serving appetizers, wine, a "pink drink", and 3 different types of cupcakes - I am making 1 myself but the other 2 are being "professionally" done! Everything is going to be pink and black ... I have lots of little details that I will share but they will have to be revealed on Monday because I don't want to spoil everything for the bride and any other guests that are readers! In keeping with the pink and black theme I think I am going to sport this number ...

the pink dress and maybe I will add some black jewelry. I had this on in a picture I posted previously and a couple of you asked where it was from (I am very bad at answering questions sometimes). You can find it here ... all the way at the bottom on the left!

So if this party is a success Cupcakes and Cocktails might become a tradition ... next year you all can be invited!!!

Wish me luck! I probably won't be around anymore this week because I have some work travel and such but I will give you all the details from the shin-dig on Monday.

xoxo~

ps- I have to make it known that I have the world's greatest husband ... we ordered a leather chair and ottoman for Christmas and long story short it was delivered to his parents house who live 4+ hours away. Guess who took off work and is making the 8 hour journey for the chair? Yep. Bless his heart but I had to have that chair by Friday. You understand.

Super Bowl Snack

2009-01-30T16:02:00.002-05:00

You all know I wouldn't leave you on the Friday before Super Bowl Sunday without a recipe to serve at your party on Sunday! Now until yesterday I didn't know who was playing or what time the game started but I sure did know what I was going to whip up! This is a super easy, super good recipe that I promise you all will enjoy. It is called Redneck Caviar and there are all sorts of versions (so feel free to add or leave out any ingredient) but this is how I make mine ...

2 cans of white corn, drained
1 can of black eyed peas, drained
1 can of black beans, drained
1 can of Rotel
1 large can of diced tomatoes (or you can chop up fresh ones yourself)
2 large bell peppers, chopped (I will probably use one red and one green for lots of color)
a little bit on cilantro
a couple of chopped green onions
a few shakes of garlic powder and garlic salt
about 3/4 a bottle of zesty italian dressing OR ceasar dressing (I prefer ceasar because it is creamier)

Shake up all ingredients in a large bowl and place covered in the refrigerator for appx. 12 hours. Best served with Tostito Scoops.

Now for all you weight watchers ... don't hold me to this because I do not know for 100% positive but someone told me that this is 0 WW points. Obviously excluding the chips. But like I said that is just hear-say!

What are you serving at your Super Bowl soiree??

xoxo~

What's IN a ring?

2009-01-30T10:40:00.002-05:00

A couple of weeks after we got married the Beau's mom gave me a gift ... the ring pictured above. It was the Beau's great great (maybe another great) aunt's wedding band. It is a thin, platinum band with some etching and 4 teeny-tiny diamonds embedded across the top of the band. I thought that it was so sweet of her to give it to me, it fit perfectly, and I have worn it on my right hand since the day I received it. However, I didn't fully appreciate the significance of the ring until last night.

I was laying on the couch watching a Seinfeld re-run waiting for the Beau to get home from work. I had the ring in my hand and I was just twirling it around when I noticed engraving on the inside of the band. It took a couple of seconds to figure out what it said because the engraving was faint. My eyes finally adjusted and in a fancy font was written:

John to Anne 12-23-1925

Chills went down my spine. This was not just some old ring. It was the legacy of a marriage ... a bride who was married 2 days before Christmas just over 83 years ago. Wow!

My imagination begin to turn as I started thinking about John and Anne. My immediate thought was that their love story was similar to Noah and Allie's in The Notebook or at least set in the same time period (although I read that their story did not begin until the 1940s). I began to wonder where this couple lived? How many children did they have? How old was Anne when she got married? Maybe John had returned from war just a few years prior. Did he have to leave 14 years after their marriage to serve in WW2? I hope not but its a good possibility. Its a good possibility that he didn't return. Yes .... this is how my mind works!

I will treasure this ring forever and will hopefully have the opportunity to pass it down one day to my daughter or possibly my son's wife.

Later I begin thinking that the Beau and I did not have either of our wedding bands engraved. But that will be done soon ... very soon. Maybe 83 years from now someone will lay on their couch and wonder about my love story. Good thing I have a blog :) lol.

xoxo~

Ms. Wang, my husband agrees completely!

2009-01-28T15:55:00.002-05:00

"You don't alter VERA to fit your body, you alter your body to fit VERA!" - Bride Wars

I had about 7 extra pounds sticking to me like white on rice that were accumulated during all of my fall travel and over the holidays. I finally got sick of it and I have been "dieting" (I use the term extremely loosely) for about 3 weeks and the majority of the extra weight is gone. Fyi - my only tricks are portion control and lots of water. Anyway, I was cooking dinner the other night, the Beau walked in and tugged on my semi-sagging pants and our conversation went something like this:

Him: You are about to lose your pants there buddy!
Me: I know man,what are we going to do about that? (thinking that the only logical answer to that question would be for him to say that I needed to buy new ones)
Him without missing a beat: I guess you better start eating more! Exits room.

Seriously? Seriously. At my house we apparently don't alter (or buy) clothes to fit our bodies, we alter our bodies to fit our existing clothes. You can't win for losing at my house. And I mean that in the most literal way possible.

xoxo~

"Whys" of the Week

2009-01-28T10:19:00.005-05:00

I can pretty much guarantee that I went through a stage of being one of these annoying children who asked Why multiple times a day/ after every statement. You know the kind.

Go get in your bed.

Why?

Because it is time to go to sleep.

Why?

Because we sleep when its dark outside.

Why?

Please Lord don't give me kids like that! Anyway, here are my Whys of the Week ....

Why are all my favorite shows re-runs this week (ie. Desperate Housewives, Two and a Half Men, Big Bang Theory, How I Met Your Mother, Grey's, etc.)???

Why are the Ice Storms effecting me when we have had no bad weather whatsoever??? I have eaten dinner by my lonesome for the past 2 nights because the Beau has worked until after 8 pm because of the Ice Storms. Boo!

Why am I almost-25-years-old and my face continues to break out every single solitary month??? It will be real cute when my teenage daughter and I can share acne medication!

Why can I never remember everything I need at the grocery store??? And on that subject, why is my grocery bill always out of control??? There are only 2 people living in my house!

Why have I just now discovered these "faux twinkies"??? I don't think I have ever even had a real Twinkie but, boy, I have been missing out ... if the real ones are better than these I think I might die and go to heaven!

Why do the Cirque du Soleil Kooza tickets at Atlantic Station have to be 100+ dollars a piece??? I really want to go for Valentine's but I know the Beau isn't going to fork over $200+ for us to go (especially after I refused to go with him to see the Bodies and King Tut exhibits). Although I know it would be totally worth it! That might have to be a mother/ daughter event.

Anybody got the answers???

xoxo~

Please don't make me pay for my advice!

2009-01-26T14:34:00.003-05:00

I have a question ... a boring question (possibly a stupid question) but I figure that you all are here to help me with the fun stuff and the not-so-fun stuff. Right? All you finance peeps listen up. For the past couple of years (since I have had a real job) I have claimed 0 and 0 on my taxes so I have always received a tax refund. I understand now that you should really try to break even ... receive nothing, owe nothing. But hindsight is 20/20 and nonetheless I am expecting to receive a refund this year of about $2,000 and the Beau will most likely be eligible for a refund of the same amount. So since we are getting refunds I would like to maximize the refund as much as possible (obviously). Here is my question - should the Beau and I file together as married or file separately? We don't qualify for any major deductions because we don't yet own a home or have anything significant to write-off. I am just a little confused ... marriage sure does complicate these kind of things :) Any help or advice you could give me will be much appreciated!

In other news I have been quite busy preparing for 2 showers I am hosting this month at my house!!! I LOVE giving showers and I have the tendency to go a little overboard but I have had the best time planning and I can't wait for it to all come together. One of the showers I am planning is for a college friend and it is going to be Monograms and Mimosas and I have to tell you that it is the most fun themed-shower to plan!!! I am going to try and wait to share all the details until after the shower so I can share pictures, etc. but I have to show you the invitation now because they are so cute I can't stand it. My "in real life friend" Emily at Savannah Redtops designed them for me and I couldn't be happier. I emailed her letting her know the type of shower and the colors I am using along with the basic information and she worked this up for me in just a few hours. She totally read my mind ... Thanks, Em!

xoxo~

Rebelling against technology.

2009-01-21T09:52:00.002-05:00

You could say we are living in the dark ages. In fact, it would be a pretty fair statement. The Beau and I don't own a lot of gadgets. Neither of us have an i-pod {gasp!} ... I know, I know, we are like the last people on planet earth. We don't have fancy phones or a Wii or any other game system for that matter. We don't have satellite radio or any sort of sound system hooked up to our television (surprisingly enough we do have a flat screen, hdtv or whatever you call it). We don't even have a digital camera any more for crying out loud ... mine broke this summer and we have yet to replace it! I am truly not complaining - these are just not things that we ask for for Christmas, birthdays, etc. We would prefer to go on a weekend getaway or a nice dinner out for our anniversary rather than buying a video camera. It's just us. And of course I would prefer jewelry or clothes or furniture if you are buying solely for me :)

Anyways, for Christmas this year the Beau's parents bought us a GPS which is awesome for me because I can't find my way out of a paper sack ... I seriously have the worst sense of direction. It's actually quite embarrassing sometimes. We haven't really been anywhere since Christmas so on our way to Atlanta this past weekend we decided to use the GPS even though we knew where we were going, we just wanted to try it out. Bad idea. Since we knew where we were going I was getting uber frustrated when it wasn't giving us the most efficient directions. Then it kept saying things like this .... turn right on to Lakewood Doctor or turn left on to Hammond Doctor. Are you kidding me!!!???!!! This is a 200 dollar NAVIGATION device and it doesn't know the difference between DRIVE and DOCTOR??? That is the stupidest thing I have ever heard of. We were both so mad but it was also quite humorous.

So in conclusion I think that the GPS is an idiot and I am frightened to use it again ... although I am going to South Carolina later today for work and I am depending on it to get me there. Maybe I am the idiot.

xoxo~

The Ultimate Girls Night Out & Pearls Night Out!

2009-01-20T13:20:00.003-05:00

The Beau works in Atlanta. We live about 50 miles south of Atlanta so that I can be close to my job and family and he commutes. It works for us. We have definitely toyed with the idea of moving half-way between here and there and we have even given thought to moving to Atlanta. But for now (and most likely for forever) we are 100% happy with where we are. You get the small-town living without being too far removed from a major city. There is one reason that I desperately want to move to the ATL .......... Nail Talk & Tan. We are talking about a nail salon ladies. Yes that is right, I would uproot and move given the opportunity to visit this particular nail salon once a week. First off let me tell you that every single nail place in my town is horrible - I am talking about nasty, filthy, disgusting, needs to be shut down asap. Let me also tell you that I don't spend money frivolously but I do love a good mani/ pedi every couple of weeks. It is my special little treat to myself. I enjoy every single solitary second of being pampered on! Since I don't like to go within a 5 mile radius of any nail salon in my town I will get my pedi in Atlanta at Nail Talk & Tan (specifically the one in Dunwoody near Perimeter Mall) any chance I get.

So when the Beau told me that he wanted to go to Atlanta this past Saturday for a boys night out with some friends from work I told him I was riding with him and immediately started planning the Ultimate Girls Night Out with one of my Atlanta besties. Of course our first stop was to my fave nail salon. With your standard pedi at NT&T you also get a massage and I am talking about a real, wonderful, full-out massage. Well of course you don't lie down on a bed or anything but you get hot washcloths on your face, they massage your temples, rub your head, and work on your back and shoulders for a good 20 minutes. 20 minutes of pure bliss. The whole experience takes close to 2 hours so you can't be in a hurry. Also note that this place is squeaky clean or I would never in a million years let them put a washcloth on my face! During the 2 hours 2 magical things happened. The first being that it snowed and we all know how much I love snow! The second being that I found my new favorite polish color ... OPI Pearls Night Out! I just took a picture of my foot with my new polish but I decided you all might be grossed out so I won't post it. Ha. I will try to explain instead - the color is a pearl white with a hint of metallic making it look like a winter wonderland on your nails! Very appropriate since it was snowing outside. It is a welcomed change to the dark reds, purples and blacks I have been wearing on my toes all winter. White is the new black!

Our next stop was to a little place called Chocolate Pink where we shared a Cookies and Cream cupcake and a Red Velvet cupcake. Heaven on a plate!!! And then we were off to see Bride Wars ... the ultimate chick-flick for our ultimate GNO. Good times, good times!!!

xoxo~

My Theory.

2009-01-16T11:53:00.002-05:00

My theory is that .... alackofcaffeineismakingmeatotalemotionalandhormonalwreck!!!

Did you get that? Oh sorry. What I said was: a lack of caffeine is making me a total emotional and hormonal wreck.

Do you think that is possible?

I told ya'll that my NY Resolution was to drink only one coke per week. Let me emphasize that nothing in the whole wide world is better to me than a fully-leaded coke in a big ole styrofoam cup with crushed ice. I haven't had a sip of caffeine in 5 days! I had cravings and they have subsided for the most part. I had headaches and they too have finally subsided. But I am a basket-case (remember my post from Wednesday) and the lack of caffeine is the only variable that I can blame it on.

Am I the only one who cried (okay, sobbed) through President Bush's Farewell Address last night??!! No snide comments please and thank-you ... I might cry. haha :)

PS- I am saving my one coke for tomorrow when I go and see Bride Wars. Whoop, Whoop!

xoxo~

Coming out of the closet isn't so hard after all.

2009-01-15T09:03:00.003-05:00

When I first started blogging it was sort of a secret. Not a huge secret because my mom knew and after a couple of weeks I told a couple of my close friends. But never in a million years would I go and post my blog address on my facebook page or anything like that. It's just not that kind of blog. Now that I have been blogging for about 6 months more people that I know have come to find out about the blog ... and that is totally fine with me. Many of my friends read it and many family friends read and I like that they find me interesting :) However I don't go around blabbing about having a blog and I get really mad at the Beau when he talks about my blog in front of a large group of people. We were at a wedding shower the other day and a group of us were about to take a picture and he said something like .... I hope you know that all of you are going on the blog. I wanted to punch him because a.) he doesn't even know what I write about because b.) he doesn't even read it! Which, by the way, does not hurt my feelings in the least. Anyways, you get the point ... I don't so much like to talk about my online life offline. haha :)

Last night my book club met at a cute little restaurant downtown for dinner, drinks, dessert, etc. As I mentioned in a previous post, we extended Redeeming Love for 2 months. We won't discuss the book until February but we wanted to get together in January just to catch up and have some girl time. This is the first time we have all gotten together outside of someones home and I had the best night! Well somehow blogging came up, a few of the other girls have blogs, and I divulged about my blog. gasp. And then this morning I emailed them all my blog address. double gasp. And they all are probably about to come over. triple gasp. Hello Girls!

So basically I came out of the closet to my book club and it wasn't so hard. What was I so worried about? Who knows! Here we are last night in all of our glory ...

xoxo~

Calling my name ...

2009-01-14T16:34:00.006-05:00

It's been one of those days!

xoxo~

Keen on Keeneland?

2009-01-13T09:57:00.002-05:00

The Beau announced to me on Sunday that he was planning a trip for us to Lexington, Kentucky one weekend in April to go to the Keeneland horse races. This is something he did with his family growing up that he really enjoyed. I'm a creature of habit and my family used to take long weekends to the beach or the mountains or sometimes places like Disney World or New York but we never drove 5+ hours to a horse race and I never have had the desire to do so. So of course I am apprehensive. I love to travel and discover new cities but this wasn't high on my list of "places to visit". I am also not big on riding in the car for more than 4 hours and I would rather put that money towards a big vacation this summer. But the Beau is super excited about this and thinks we are going to have a blast. Maybe we will ... I just don't know a lot about it. The picture above that I googled looks very pretty. So you tell me. Have any of you ever been to these horse races? Is Lexington a fun town? Do you think it is a trip worth taking? Give me the scoop!

xoxo~

A Quick Game of Catch-Up

2009-01-12T15:41:00.007-05:00

Well I spent five full days on Jury Duty. It was an experience to say the least. It was a lot of up and down, in and out, waiting, waiting and more waiting but the time spent in the actual court room was very interesting, very sad and very disturbing. On Friday night around 6:00 p.m. my fellow jurors convicted a man on 3 counts: incest, child molestation and aggravated child molestation. Makes me sick to my stomach! Since it was an open court room a few of us stayed to hear the sentencing ... this man will spend the rest of his life in prison. I have thought a lot about the case since Friday, I can't seem to get it out of my mind. I feel like justice prevailed but it still doesn't take back what the man did to his own young daughter. It amazes me what human beings are capable of.

During all my waiting I was able to read Redeeming Love for my book club. I could not put it down and I finished it in 4 days. I cannot rave enough about Francine Rivers and I encourage every single person to pick up this book. Now I will tell you, I like chick-lit (good-old fashion trash) and I was apprehensive about being able to get in to this book but it is seriously the best book I have ever read. Hands down. I cannot wait for book club on Wednesday to discuss it. It is a wonderful story of forgiveness and Christ's unwavering love. Please, please, please read it! I want to read the book of Hosea before Wednesday .... do you think that is possible? I don't even know how long Hosea is. Anyways, I am definitely going to order The Lineage of Grace series and the Mark of the Lion series also written by Francine Rivers.

Since I did not get out of court until 6 pm on Friday night my mom and I decided to leave for Atlanta on Saturday morning and spend the night on Saturday night. We picked up a couple of great lines and I am excited about sharing them with you all soon! I had the chance to meet up with the lovely Blue-Eyed Bride and that was such a treat!!! We will have to make a tradition out of that BEB and maybe next time we will have more time to visit. :)

Last night the Beau and I went to our first Financial Peace University class at church. It was amazing and we are already completely on-board. I think that this class is going to be so good for both of us spiritually and finacially. I am sure I will be talking a lot about this class so get prepared!

Hope you all have a wonderful week!

xoxo~

This little piggy went to market.

2009-01-07T11:26:00.002-05:00

On Friday morning my mom and I are headed up to Atlanta for the weekend to go to market. The holidays basically cleared her store out and I am very excited to get some fun new stuff in. Are any of my bloggy friends buyers or do any of you own stores? Will any of you be at the show this weekend? If so, let me know! We are planning to be there Friday thru Sunday but plans might change if this case doesn't conclude. I am praying we will be released on Thursday. Fingers crossed!

xoxo~

Fulfilling my civic responsibility.

2009-01-05T19:34:00.005-05:00

I may not be around too much this week because I am fulfilling my civic obligation and serving on Jury Duty. Today was very looong and I was chosen as an alternate juror for a criminal case. Since I am an alternate I will sit in on the hearings but I will not have to give my opinion and that works for me. They said the trial is expected to go until Wednesday or Thursday so you probably won't hear much out of me ... our computer at home does not like Blogger as much as my computer at work (oh the irony) and it makes me crazy - I tried cropping this pic and it didn't work on the first try so I am not fighting it.

Hope you all had eventful Mondays and I will catch up with you all asap!

xoxo~

Another Day, Another Dollar

2009-01-02T09:14:00.003-05:00

Back at work. You? It's 2009 and I am ......... exhausted. I have been running ramped since Thanksgiving. I didn't take off any extra time during the holidays and, believe me, we get the bare bones ... Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, and New Years Day. Between holiday festivities, parties, family and friends we have not slowed down. I am ready for some good r&r.

So ... lets take a little vacay. If time and money were no object, where would you spend a lavish 7 days and 7 nights? I choose here.

xoxo~

We hope ...

2008-12-31T15:35:00.003-05:00

that 2009 brings each of you peace, love, health, wealth and happiness!!!

Ya'll be safe tonight!

xoxo~

We are getting crazy tonight, girls.

2008-12-31T10:00:00.003-05:00

Welch's Sparkling White Grape Juice is what I picked up last night as my beverage of choice to ring in the new year! You are jealous you aren't gonna be with me tonight, huh. Now I have absolutely nothing against indulging in an adult beverage (and the Beau definitely has nothing against it) but for about a year my body has taken a complete and utter hatred to the slightest bit of alcohol ... I think it might have to do with the medicine I take. But anyhow, it's weird. I couldn't even get down a half a glass of wine the other night at a wedding. So tonight I decided I would take an alternate route but still be able to pop a bottle at midnight :)

I started to regret not making any New Years plans this year but it is probably for the best ... and definitely best for our budget. My number one New Years Resolution is to get 100% out of credit card debt (we are very close) and to start saving like nobodies business. We are starting Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University in January and I am pumped ... I have read some of his books and I listen to him on the radio religiously but I think the class will be great for the Beau and I to do together. My second resolution is to only drink one coke per week ... it sounds easy enough but you people don't know how much I LOVE coke. I love it ... it is a sickness, really! I have a couple of other personal resolutions and I am excited about a new, fresh year. 2008 has been an absolutely great year for me but change is always good and I am looking forward to making some good changes.

So, tonight I think the Beau and I will get take-out, watch some movies, and I will drink my sparkling grape juice at midnight. However, tomorrow I have some real plans. I am going to have some friends over for a late lunch and I have a menu all worked up. This is what we are having:

Pork Tenderloin
Collard Greens
Mixture of black-eyed peas, tomatoes & jalapenos (this sounds gross to me but the Beau loves it)
Macaroni & Cheese
Brown Rice
Home-made Corn Bread
And not sure what for dessert

I think that will be an appropriate New Years Day meal, don't you? Macaroni & Cheese and Brown Rice might be 2 of my favorite side dishes of all time. Want the recipes? Sure you do!

Macaroni & Cheese (Paula Deen's Recipe)

4 cups cooked elbow macaroni
2 cups grated cheddar cheese
3 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup sour cream
4 tablespoons butter, cut into pieces
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk

Cook macaroni and drain. While macaroni is still hot, add cheese. In separate bowl, combine all other ingredients and add to macaroni. Pour mixture into casserole dish and bake at 350 degrees for 30 - 45 minutes.

Brown Rice

1 cup white rice, uncooked
1 can of beef broth
1 can of beef consomme
1 package of Lipton's dry onion soup mix

Combine all ingredients into baking dish. It is going to look like a lot of liquid and not enough rice but don't worry, the rice will absorb all the liquid while baking. Bake at 350 degrees for appx. one hour.

Oh and another question ... am I the only person that has to work today? I will probably be back later because I am bored to tears. Please try and keep me entertained!!!

xoxo~

Smorgasbord!

2008-12-30T10:47:00.009-05:00

First and foremost, I have some birthday shout-outs! My bff, Fran, turns the big 2-5 today ... mercy she's old :) Lord knows we have been through it all together since we met in the 5th grade - I can't believe that was 15 years ago! We went to college together and shared a 2x4 freshman year (also known as a dorm room) and she stood beside me as my maid-of-honor in my wedding. Anyone that knows her can testify that she is one-of-a-kind and I love her to the moon and back! Happy Birthday to my Fran-Fran!!! And all you locals better leave her a happy b-day comment ... you know who you are and I know you are reading :) Ha!

Miss Georgia Girl is also celebrating a birthday today! Although she has gone MIA on the blog-front I forgive her because she was my blog inspiration. She got that sweet baby girl home from China and I know she keeps her busy! Happy Birthday A. - I hope that it is the best one yet!

I got to see Georgia Girl and her entire family on Christmas night ... it was truly the best part of my Christmas. GG's precious, precious mama has been sick so a whole group of her friends got together and surprised her at her front door Christmas evening holding candles and singing her favorite Christmas carols. I could barely get any words out though because I was afraid that I would "ugly cry" ... I am such a baby! It was a very special time and made me so happy to live in a town with such wonderful people. Here are a few pics I stole from GG's facebook ...

And a couple of other random pics of my girls and me over the Christmas holidays at various parties ... I love and miss all of you!!!

xoxo~

The fun's over - I am ready to hibernate!

2008-12-29T11:39:00.007-05:00

I hope that you all had yourselves a merry little Christmas. We sure did and I am sad that it over ... I always am. I am really dreading taking all the decor down ... everything is going to look so bare! I guess everyone still has New Year's Eve to look forward to but I have never been a huge fan of the holiday. In past years there has always been such a hype about NYE plans and it always was a little bit of a let down. This year I think the Beau and I are going to stay home, have dinner, and ring in the New Year from the comfort of our couch. Maybe as the clock approaches midnight I will turn on the Sex and the City movie to the part where Auld Lang Syne plays - it was such a pretty version!

There is not too much going on for us in January so I would be content to hibernate during the entire month. I have just the tools to keep me busy! I didn't get Marcia Brady's new book for Christmas but I did get these ...

I finished Prep last night and it was soo good and soo addicting. I received the first 2 Twilight books and I am saving those for Monday when I report for Jury Duty! I will probably start sTori Telling tonight.

For book club we are reading Redeeming Love during the months of January and February (we extended it for 2 months because it is a longer book). I just ordered it from Amazon today and I am ready to get started! I have heard such wonderful things about this book and I think it will be a good one to have discussions about.

While I was perusing Amazon I put these in my basket - I haven't ordered them yet but I plan to soon. A few of them I have been wanting for awhile and others I had never heard of before but I am sure, from the titles, they will be right up my alley!

All by Celia Rivenbark ...

1. We're Just Like You, Only Prettier: Confessions of a Tarnished Southern Belle

2. Stop Dressing your Six-Year-Old Like a Skank: A Slightly Tarnished Southern Belle's Words of Wisdom

3. Bless your Heart, Tramp: and other Southern Endearments

4. Not Tonight, Honey ... Wait 'til I'm a Size 6 by Susan Reinhardt

5. Somebody is going to Die if Lilly Beth doesn't Catch that Bouquet by Gayden Metcalfe & Charlotte Hays

6. Don't Sleep with a Bubba ... Unless your Eggs are in Wheelchairs by Susan Reinhardt (this one is in honor of my bf Fran - love you dear)

So, I think that is enough to keep me busy for at least a month. Anything else that you can think of that I should add to my list?

xoxo~

Christmas Poem 2008

2008-12-23T09:42:00.002-05:00

Twas the eve before Christmas eve and all through our condo*,
The Belle is not relaxing nor is the Beau.

They both are still working and that really sucks,
A few days off is not in their luck!

The stockings are hung by the chimney with care,
But neither will be filled for their is no money to spare :)

No worries were had - we are still young newlyweds,
And their are no children to nestle all snug in their beds.

Instead we'll stay up late and drink Bailey's by the fire,
Knowing 2008 has brought us our every desire!

Screw the recession and money that's tight,
We'll just hug each other with all of our might!

Christmas is about families and memories - not things,
We are anxious to see what 2009 brings!

We pray many blessings for God to bestow,
And please don't forget that we would love some snow!!!

Merry Christmas to you and yours!
Much Love, A Belle and her Beau

xoxo~

*we live in an apartment, not a condo, but for rhyming sake!

Just call me crazy for Brady.

2008-12-22T14:55:00.005-05:00

Here's a story about a man named Brady .... yep, I am talking about the Brady Bunch. I love The Brady Bunch. Always have, always will. The Beau made a weak attempt in trying to embarrass me over the weekend by telling our house guests that A Very Brady Christmas was my absolute favorite Christmas movie (this is not a lie). It didn't work though. I am not embarrassed or ashamed. I plan on watching it this Christmas Eve just as I have watched it every Christmas Eve for the past 10 or 12 years.

Please tell me that at least a couple of you have watched this classic. Yes, I consider this movie a classic :) I cry every single time I watch it when Mike gets trapped in the building and Carol starts singing "O Come All Ye Faithful". It's so emotional! If you didn't watch the Brady's when you were a kid there is something wrong with you and we can't be friends. Kidding. Sorta.

Now if you are really crazy (like me) you will put this on your Christmas wish list...

I have watched Marcia, Marcia, Marcia on Celebrity Fit Club and I am very interested in reading her new book. Don't judge - homegirl apparently has a story to tell. If it happens to be under my Christmas tree I will be very happy and I will report back! If it is not under my tree I wonder if the girls in my book club will think I am weird for suggesting it? Ha!

xoxo~

Day One (Thurs) - Party One - Take One!

2008-12-19T09:17:00.002-05:00

Talk about needing a haircut - the Beau needs one in a bad way. And that beard need to go. I don't know what it is about him and his need to grow a beard in the winter time. Hellooo? It ain't even cold!

3 more days of Christmas Chaos, 4 more parties ... let the games begin!

xoxo~

I'm dreaming of a white Christmas ~ with every Christmas card I write

2008-12-18T14:03:00.003-05:00

I have been checking weather.com about, err, 10 times a day for the past 10 days just to see if there is any inkling of hope that there could possibly be a dramatic turn of events resulting in me seeing some snow between now and Christmas. Don't worry ... there is not. Today it is 72 and tomorrow will be 73 stupid-degrees. I am so jealous reading all of your blogs with beautiful pictures of white powder all over the ground. Couldn't we just get a couple of flakes?!? I really like living in Georgia near my family and friends but I also like seasons. I want to live where there is a distinctive winter, spring, summer and fall. And I don't like it to get over about 85 degrees - unless I am at the beach. I am living in the wrong state folks because none of my stipulations are being met here. If any of you just have a couple of seconds and would like to put a word in on my behalf to the Big Guy upstairs in regards to some snow I sure would appreciate it. Thanks!

xoxo~

I almost made it a week.

2008-12-18T11:42:00.005-05:00

I know I promised that I would go at least a week or two before sharing another recipe with ya'll but I just couldn't resist. Lots of you seem to be hosting Christmas dinner at your homes and if you are in need of another side dish I have one! This is a Grape Salad and it is so yummy that it can be eatten as a dessert. Seriously. I made it last night for the party we are going to tonight and I licked the spoon when I was done like it was cake batter.

Ingredients:

3 cups red seedless grapes

1 8oz. package cream cheese, softened (I should own stock in cream cheese)

1 8oz. carton sour cream

1/2 cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 cup chopped pecans (holy cow I had no idea how expensive pecans and walnuts are ... yikes)

Mix cream cheese, sour cream, sugar and vanilla together in a large bowl.

Fold in grapes.

Spread in medium sized baking dish.

On top of mixture, spread brown sugar and then the pecans.

Refrigerate for 8 hours or overnight. Serves appx. 10 people.

So I marked lots off of my list last night - go me! Going for a brow wax at lunch and few highlights tomorrow at 4:30. Hallelujah!

xoxo~

It's time to hunker down

2008-12-17T14:18:00.003-05:00

and for me to devise a plan. I am getting a little flustered as the days before Christmas are getting scarce and I have lots and lots to do. This is what I have on tap through the weekend:

After work today I must prepare dinner, wrap a couple of gifts, prepare a dish for tomorrow's work Christmas party, prepare another dish for tomorrow's night-time Christmas party, make sure that house is clean for guests that are arriving on Friday (yippee!).

Tomorrow I must attend work Christmas party during the day and attend a Christmas party for the Beau's local alumni chapter of his fraternity that evening. The latter party will be loads of fun I'm sure, however it will probably run late so all household chores must be done tonight (pressure!).

Friday night Couple #1 arrives to stay the weekend with us and we will attend Engagement Party #1 for Bride #1.

Saturday afternoon I must attend a Christmas Shower for Bride #2, Couple #2 arrives to stay Saturday night with us (in addition to Couple #1) and we will all attend Engagement Party #2 for Bride #3 that evening. Whew!!! You with me?

Sunday morning the Beau and I will wake up super early to hug our guests good-bye and drive 2 hours to attend Family Christmas Celebration #1 and drive 2 hours back home that afternoon. There will also have to be some convincing of the Beau to let me stop by some mall at some point to pick up appx. 3 last minute Christmas gifts.

In addition to tasks I have listed above, my eyebrows need waxed something serious and I would love a couple of highlights before I see every single soul that I know this weekend. And their mama. Literally.

xoxo~

Welp, Its been been real and its been fun ...

2008-12-17T09:17:00.007-05:00

But it ain't been real fun! Ya'll I don't even know where to begin in telling this story. My experience last night was catastrophic-hysteria.

Okay so let me preface by telling you that we live in this gorgeous, antebellum-style, historic home in town that is broken up in to 4 separate apartments. Behind the house are 2 carriage-style apartments. The only terrible thing about our living situation is that we do not have our own washing machine and dryer hook-ups. There is a washing machine and dryer that we can use but we have to share it with the other 5 tenants and you have to walk outside and you have to use quarters and it is just a huge pain. So, basically, I do as little laundry as possible.

The laundry has begun to pile up and I mean really pile up. So the Beau and I decided to go to the laundry mat last night. We just think it is a nice, fun, clean, classy, safe place to spend a Tuesday night. I kid, I kid. It was just the best solution to get all the laundry knocked out as quickly as possible. We pile up our many loads of laundry and get to washing. The machines there are huge and it costs $4.25 just to wash one load - but that is okay because you can wash like triple the clothes. We load up about 5 machines and then realize that one of the machines has a serious malfunction because it is pouring out water. These machines are heavy-duty and once you start them there is no way to stop them until the load is completely finished. So the Beau runs over there to find out that there is something wrong with the door (it is a front-loader) and it will not stay shut unless you push it in. There is a timer on the machine and there was 27 minutes left at this time. I was freaking out asking him if he was going to stand there and push the door closed the entire time. He said that was the only option and, mind you, there is water still pouring out even when he is holding it shut - it was just a lot less than before. There was no attendant at the laundry mat and we could not find a mop or anything to soak up all the water.

It was a huge mess but good thing we were in jovial spirits because we laughed hysterically the entire time! It was all we could do.

The Beau holding the door shut!

Bless his heart!

Still holding it!

Never a dull moment! The funniest part of it was after about 20 minutes of holding that door shut the Beau looked up and said, "Washer was full" like Uncle Eddy on Christmas Vacation. I laughed so hard I couldn't breathe!

Just another day in Paradise!

xoxo~

Since I am being sentimental today

2008-12-16T15:23:00.005-05:00

Two things you should know:

Number One: I love the holidays ... like I really, really love the holidays. For several different reasons.

Number Two: I can be a teensy-weensy bit emotional. Especially around the holidays. It's not a dramatic emotional ... more like a I always tear up at the Christmas Eve service while singing Silent Night kind of emotional. Nothing too out of the ordinary.

Today I ran home for lunch and made a pb&j for lunch because I spent the majority of my lunch break running errands and didn't have time for much else. I pulled out the loaf of Sunbeam bread and took notice ... you usually see this on a loaf of Sunbeam

But during the holidays you see a picture like this

Little Miss Sunbeam is praying and in small words it reads, Not by Bread Alone. Has anyone ever noticed this? I got a teensy-weensy bit emotional. One reason I love the holidays is because people take time to spread messages that they wouldn't normally throughout the other 11 months of the year. I thought that this was such a simple message but so strong at the same time.

Are there simple things about the holidays that you love?

"Jesus answered, 'It is written: Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.'" Matthew 4:4

xoxo~

Attention all Newlyweds!

2008-12-16T09:00:00.004-05:00

My friend, N, told me about the sweetest idea the other day that I have to share with all you newlyweds. You will need to go and purchase a clear Christmas ball like the ones pictured above ... make sure that the top can be taken off. Then cut off a sprig of your Christmas tree (this obviously only works if you have a live Christmas tree). Put the piece of the tree inside of the ornament.

Now you and your Beau will always have a "piece" of your first Christmas together! Awww ... how sweet!!! {tear}

xoxo~

Come on in ... watch your step!

2008-12-15T09:24:00.023-05:00

Can I get you anything? Wanna look around?

This is my first Christmas as a blogger and I am so excited to participate in Boomama's Tour of Homes! Since we have already established that I am so incredibly nosey this is right up my alley {squeal}!!! Okay, shall we get started?

My wreath was my one decoration purchase of the year and I am thrilled with it. I would prefer that our door wasn't stark white but what can you do??!!

Not too much decor in the kitchen because it is rather small ...

This is my funky, little lime green, grinch-esque tree. It needs something ... not sure what though. Perhaps some ribbon tied to the branches?

Just a few plates on the wall ... follow me in here where things get a little more festive!

What you can do with cheap Christmas balls!

I worked really hard on my mantle this year as it is the main focal point of the house. Our stockings are my absolute favorite. This is the mine ...

This is the Beau's ... it says CHEER.

Our first "married" Christmas tree! The tree skirt was an early Christmas present and it is awfully cute. The middle green panel is monogrammed with our last name and the 2 red panels on each side are monogrammed with each of our first names. Once we have kiddos we will put each of their names on a panel!

Get ready because ornaments are my thing! I think I have mentioned before that I have been collecting Christopher Radko ornaments since I was in high school. They are the only things i really collect. They are pricey but I treasure them and I love getting them out of their boxes each year. Each ornament has a special meaning and serves as a reminder of events, trips, memories, etc. I will share with you some of my favorites!

I was an ADPi in college and met the most fabulous group of girls imaginable! I am so thankful for each and every one of them.

This was given to us as a wedding gift. I will always remember our wedding day and the thrill of being a newlywed!

This little guy is a golf tee ... I got it after I went with my mom and dad to the Masters golf tournament in Augusta. My mom and I got video-taped while we were there because we were decked out in our Lilly spring dresses - we were in a commercial!

This snowman has the Eiffel Tower behind him (you can't see very good). I spent a couple weeks in Europe one summer and it was one of the best experiences of my life!

This is my prince-charming. I got him before I went to college in hopes that one day he would come!

This is my Hawaiian Santa - a great big surprise trip I took with my parents to Maui!

This is the ornament commemorating September 11th.

A pair of ice skates. For years my friends from high school would go up to Atlanta before Christmas and go ice skating and eat dinner at Cafe TuTuTango. I wonder if that place still exists?

And Muffy Vanderbear! I used to LOVE Muffy when I was little. Did any of you have any of these bears?

I guess that about wraps it up ~ I sure did enjoy showing you all around! I hope that you will come back next year. Merry Christmas!!!

xoxo~

Because I love each and every one of you

2008-12-12T13:41:00.005-05:00

and because I want you to all receive a ginormous amounts of compliments on your "domestic-ness" I am going to share with you my 2 favorite appetizers. Ever. After this I won't share any more recipes for like a week. Or two. Promise.

I had Book Club on Wednesday night and I was sick and didn't go to work but I was in charge of snacks so I had to go and drop off the food - I received 3 requests the next day for the recipes.

The first is a Hot Spinach and Artichoke Dip. Let me tell you, all spinach dips are not created equal and this is best in the world. It is a Pampered Chef recipe and calls for all sorts of fancy equipment that I do not own so I will just tell you how I make it. mmmmK?

Ingredients:

1 package of frozen creamed spinach (heat in microwave like package instructs)

1 jar of marinated artichokes, drained and chopped

1/4 cup of mayonnaise

1/4 cup of sour cream

1/2 cup of grated fresh Parmesan cheese

1 clove of garlic, minced

Mix all ingredients together and bake at 375 degrees for about 20 minutes. I prefer to serve with baked pita chips but the Beau prefers Fritos.

The second appetizer is my all-time favorite. All-time ... that is saying a lot. The recipe doesn't really have a name that I know of so I just call them Pinwheel Things.

Here is what you need (I usually double everything and make make 2 batches):

1 roll of Pillsbury Crescent Rolls

1 8oz. cream cheese

1 bag of Real Bacon Pieces or Bits

1 Bushel of Green Onions, chopped

First you spread out your Crescent Rolls to make one large rectangle. Try to smooth out all the perforations. Then you will spread your cream cheese on top of the dough like this -

On top of the cream cheese, add your bacon and green onions.

Now you are going to roll up the dough (from the long side) like a jelly roll and then cut into about 1 inch slices. Discard ends. When cutting it is best to use a serrated knife. Put on a greased cookie sheet. They should look something like this -

Bake at 375 degrees for 10-12 minutes. Serve and graciously accept all compliments!

Okay, so hurry along now and go make yourself fat! One more thing, let it be known that I do cook real meals every once in a while. I just prefer fun food like this :)

xoxo~

Summoned!

2008-12-12T09:40:00.003-05:00

Good Morning! I have been out of commission for the past two days but, never fear, I am back!

Yesterday I received a very important piece of mail ... I have been summoned for Jury Duty! I report on January 5th. Now I know that most people dread Jury Duty but I couldn't be any more excited! It probably has something to do with the fact that I am the nosiest. person. EVER. Plus having Jury Duty makes me feel like a real live grown up :)

Go ahead - tell me about your J.D. experiences.

xoxo~

I promise I will quit eventually ...

2008-12-09T10:35:00.012-05:00

I know, I know ... enough with the recipes already! We have just had a million things to attend here lately and I have been on a roll in the kitchen preparing the healthiest of snacks. Last night was our Sunday School Christmas Party and it was just sort of a finger food type deal ... my favorite - I could eat my weight in appetizers and dips! I was asked to bring dessert. I went with an old favorite, Peanut Butter Blossoms, and a new recipe that I found on Kelly's blog a while ago, a Chocolate Chip Cheese Ball.

Peanut Butter Blossoms always go fast at any event and require NO effort. Get yourself a roll of peanut butter cookie dough and a bag of Hershey Kisses. Roll your cookie dough in to small balls and put the balls in a greased miniature cupcake pan like so ...

Bake on 350 degrees for about 8 minutes. They will look like mini cupcakes.

While they are hot and fresh out of the oven, stick a hershey kiss in the center.

Before removing from pan, let cookies cool.

The Chocolate Chip Cheese Ball requires a little bit more effort but not much. The ingredients are:

1 8oz. package of cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup butter, softened

3/4 cup confectioners sugar

2 tbsp. brown sugar

1/4 tsp. vanilla extract

3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Mix together cream cheese and butter until smooth. Add sugars and vanilla and mix. Lastly, add your chocolate chip. Refrigerate for a few hours. Form in to ball. Refrigerate for another 2 hours. Serve with graham cracker sticks.

When the Beau got home last night I asked him to taste the Chocolate Chip Cheese Ball since I had never made it before and I didn't want to bring something gross to the party. After sampling it he said, "Oh my gosh, that is so good. It tastes exactly like Dunkaroos!"

Not exactly what I was going for but that's okay!

xoxo~

Dedicated to making you all fat!

2008-12-08T14:49:00.004-05:00

This weekend went by way too fast! Friday night the Beau didn't get home until around 8pm so we went out for pizza and turned in early. Saturday afternoon we went over to a friend's house boat to watch the Alabama/ Florida game and grill out. I was cheering for the Tide because a friend that was on the boat with us is a huge Bama fan and he said he would go down the slide (that is attached to the house boat) naked if Alabama pulled through. So I was cheering hard because I knew he would! Florida ended up with the victory but it was a really good game. It was probably for the best that Bama did not win because if he had gone down that slide he would have had hypothermia for sure!

Most importantly I brought over 2 tasty treats. I told ya'll I like party food! For an appetizer I brought a Pepperoni Cheese ball .... I got the recipe from bestie. The Beau loves this. Here are the directions:

Ingredients~
1 8oz package cream cheese (softened)
1/2 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 stick butter
1 package pepperoni (chopped)

Beat together, form a ball and refrigerate. Best served with Wheat Thins.

I also brought S'mores Brownies for dessert! I got this recipe from the newest Paula Deen magazine. They were scrumptious!!

Ingredients~
Graham Crackers
Box Brownie Mix with ingredients to prepare
Mini Marshmallows

Line a 9x13 baking dish with tin foil and grease. Arrange graham crackers at the bottom of the baking dish to cover the entire dish. Make brownies as box instructs and pour over graham crackers. Bake at 350 degrees for appx. 18 minutes. Take out of oven and pour mini marshmallows on top of brownies (~2 cups of marshmallows) and crumble up a half cup of graham crackers and pour on top of marshmallows. Bake for an additional 10 minutes. Let cool completely before cutting.

On Sunday after church I rode with my friend, Fran, to a neighboring city to pick up the cutest chocolate lab puppy that you have ever seen - she gave it to her boyfriend for Christmas. I got to hold it the whole way home and I fell in love! Too bad we can't have dogs at our apartment! **I got a little creative with my picture collage :)

Tonight we are going to our Sunday School Christmas Party and I am bringing dessert. I will be back tomorrow with more recipes!

xoxo~

Santa Claus Came to Town!

2008-12-05T11:42:00.007-05:00

Last night was my small town's Christmas parade! Now the parades in my town can often be pitiful but we go year after year anyways and this years Christmas parade was pretty good. The wine could have had something to do with it but nonetheless. A few of us gathered at a friend's house who lives on the parade's path. The Beau didn't get to join us because he doesn't get home from work in time for any 6 o'clock activities but the rest of us had a great time eating chili, drinking wine and cider (not together of course) and watching all the little kids scream "Merry Christmas" 695 times! It got pretty cold last night and the pictures even suggest that it was snowing ... it wasn't - just an illusion.

Me (on the far left) and some of my high school buddies. We all live in the same town but I don't get to see them nearly enough!!!

A 1/2 the group shot ... it really looks like it is snowing in this one!

Fran, me, and Alli!

The little pony was so cute and tiny!

And, of course, there was Santa in the firetruck at the very end of the parade! A good way to get you in to the Christmas spirit ... although I didn't need any help, I have been in the Christmas spirit for months!!

On a completely unrelated note, G.A. and this Izzy and Denny business is really starting to get on my nerves. I have been meaning to discuss this with you all for a couple of weeks now. And Desperate Housewives has more drama than ANY soap opera I have EVER watched and that is getting on my nerves too. My two fave shows are really infuriating me!!! Rant over.

Have a great weekend!

xoxo~

Take Note

2008-12-03T09:55:00.006-05:00

Last night I hosted my first dinner party of the holiday season. My mom came over until the very last second helping me put all the finishing touches on my Christmas decor. I must admit, it looks pretty darn festive. I hope to post pictures soon - the problem is that all I have is this stupid little camera phone because my real camera has been broken for at least 3 months. Anyhow, it is always so nice to eat and fellowship with sweet friends ... and the holidays make it even more special. We have many-a-party to attend in the next 2 weeks so lots of my posts will likely be about food. I love everything about holiday party food! I have a pile of loose papers right here beside my desk with recipes that I have jotted down from all of your blogs. Please keep the recipes coming!

Okay, here is where you should take note. I do not cook low-fat, reduced-fat, non-fat (none of that non-sense:) ) when cooking for guests. Like everyone else, I have ways of trying to keep a semi-slim and trim figure but skimping when guests come over is not one of them! So, if you should ever dine at my home ... you have been warned! haha. I promise it will be tasty though. Last night was no exception to this rule. I had an appetizer, salad, pasta dish and dessert ~ it was hard to accept compliments though because everything was soo easy.

For something to snack on while the pasta was in the oven I made a Holiday Cheese Ball. My friend's mother (hey Fran!) is notorious for making this cheese ball and it is always a hit. It takes about 2 seconds. Here are the only 3 ingredients you will need ... oh yeah you will need some Ritz crackers to serve too!

Mix a dry ranch dressing packet in with 8 oz. of softened cream cheese. Form in to a ball. Roll the ball so that it is completely covered in the bacon. Serve with crackers. **So sorry the picture quality is so terrible**

I made a Mandarin Orange and Kiwi Salad and the recipe is in this post.

For the main course I made a Creamy Chicken Pasta that I got from my town's newest Junior League cookbook .... these cookbooks always have the best recipes. This dish was delicious and easy as pie. It is kind of a different take on poppy seed chicken - surely all you Southerners are familiar with poppy seed chicken! Didn't have time for pics ... I was running out of time but here is the recipe:

Ingredients:

12 oz. angel hair pasta, 2 cups cooked diced chicken, 1/2 cup softened butter, 2 cans of cream of chicken soup, 2 cups of sour cream, 1 tsp. garlic salt, 1 tbsp. parsley flakes, Parmesan cheese

Directions:

Break pasta in half and cook according to package directions. Meanwhile, in large bowl, combine remaining ingredients. Stir in cooked pasta, then pour in to a greased backing dish. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and bake at 350 degrees for 45 to 60 minutes or until bubbly.

Dessert was probably the biggest hit of the night. It is a recipe that my mom has been making for years and she calls it Peach Yums. What you will need:

All you do is crush up all of your coconut bars (I am not even sure why these cookies are called coconut bars because they taste nothing like coconuts) and pour one stick of melted butter over the crushed cookies and stir. Then drain your peach halves and keep juice. Pour half of the peach juice in the bowl with the crushed cookies and butter and pour the other half in to the bottom of a baking dish. Arrange the peach halves on the baking dish and scoop the cookie mixture in to the pit of the peach. It will look something like this:

Bake at 350 degrees for approximately 20 minutes. Best served with vanilla ice cream!

EAT, DRINK & BE MERRY!

xoxo~

Well done, Mr. Beck!

2008-12-02T16:01:00.005-05:00

For December my book club chose to read Glenn Beck's new book, The Christmas Sweater. If you are a reader and have, say, 1.5 hours of spare time I really recommend you read this. It is a quick, easy read (like I said, I read it in less than an hour and a half) and although it was somewhat predictable, I felt good after I finished it. It really put me in the Christmas spirit and in a good frame of mind. The book is based on a true, personal story of Beck's childhood and it served as a wonderful reminder of the real meaning of Christmas.

So go ahead, put it on your to-do list of "things to do before Christmas" .... #1,452: Read the Christmas Sweater :)

xoxo~

Everybody stop what you are doing

2008-12-01T14:46:00.002-05:00

and share in my excitement! You are not going to believe it. It just snowed. Here in Georgia. For like 2.2 seconds. You Northern girls probably think I am crazy but snow makes me so happy. I would give anything for a white Christmas. I wish ya'll could see how this little town of mine reacts to a few flurries. It is hilarious. School will shut down for at least 2 days. The line at Publix will be out the door. Ridiculous but I love it! However I don't think I will see anymore "snow" this week. No worries though ... those 6 flakes that I saw made me giddy!

Here are some things you should know:

~My sister-in-law and I got up at the crack of dawn, in the hustle and bustle, on Black Friday .... I came home with a tube of lipstick and a Christmas hand towel. Probably won't do that again.

~On Saturday I went to a couple of local stores and this guy whipped me up the prettiest wreath ever in less than 5 minutes. I should have married a gay man and my house would be gorge!

~The Beau and I got our tree yesterday.

~The stringing of the lights was almost the death of my marriage.

~I broke a $100 ornament in the first 10 seconds of decorating. I started collecting Christopher Radko ornaments when I was in high school - they are pretty but totally not practical.

~I am on a semi-diet (read: not-eat-everything-in-sight-diet) until Christmas. Of course, this diet excludes any Christmas Party or social gathering. It also excludes any treats that people bring to my office or give me as a gift .... simply because I wouldn't want anybodies feeling to get hurt :)

~I just ate a chargrilled chicken sandwich from Chick-fil-A and I am still starving ... my body is used to french fries and milkshakes. haha.

~We are having company over tomorrow night so all my decorating has to get done tonight. I will try and share pictures tomorrow.

xoxo~

Gobble til you Wobble?

2008-11-27T18:14:00.009-05:00

I sure did ... did you? We ate Thanksgiving dinner around 12:30 - it is currently 7:15 p.m. and I am still miserably full! Thanksgiving with the in-laws was officially a success! The food was good, the company was good, the nap afterwards was good and looong, and tonight we are going to see Four Christmases. The movie theatre here has one screen called Mugs and Movies and luckily Four Christmases is playing in that theatre - that means the Beau can drink beer so he is equally as excited as I am. The weather is warmer than I would prefer (I am currently sitting on the porch) but that's okay ... we have a fire going in a pit outside so that is nice! A recap of our day -

The Beau was up bright and early frying our turkey. I had never had a fried turkey before and it was delicious!

"Before" Pic ... the Beau and me with his sister and her boyfriend

"After" Pic ... "Girl I think my butt gettin big!"

And like all the fine people of the world, we sat outside and I made s'mores ... like I had any business putting anything else in my mouth!

Happy Thanksgiving to all ... and to all a good night! I hope that you all find some good stuff tomorrow if you brave the crowds. We will be out bright and early!

xoxo~

O Happy Day!

2008-11-25T09:39:00.003-05:00

Six more hours of work and then the Beau and I will be embarking on our Thanksgiving travels and, ya'll, I am more than ready. I need a break from work like no other! We are spending the week/weekend with the Beau's family, which will be a change for me, but I am putting on my big girl panties and being optimistic. My biggest concern is the food. How dumb is that? But I am picky about my Thanksgiving meal and if they have stuffing instead of dressing I might cry. I know, I know ... silly. Everything is going to be fine, and it's not about the turkey and the dressing anyways. We have oh-so-much to be thankful for!!! I complain about having to choose between our 2 families on where to spend the holidays but, in reality, we are very lucky to each have wonderful, happy, healthy families. Not everyone has that luxury. I often complain about my job (truthfully for no apparent reason) and about the Beau working so much but we are so fortunate to both have secure jobs - especially in this economy. I am thankful that I married the man of my dreams this year ... I am very thankful for that. I am thankful for our church and the group of friends we have found through our Sunday School class. I am also thankful for our country and the freedom each one of us enjoys. I give thanks to our troops who won't be with any family during the holidays ... what a tremendous sacrifice they make. So, so much to be thankful for!

I think I mentioned before that Thanksgiving became extra-special in my book because the Beau popped the question on Thanksgiving night in 2006. Talk about something to be thankful for!!! I am sure my kids will get really tired of hearing the story each and every Thanksgiving :)

It is so funny how much we have changed just in the past 2 years ... I don't even feel like that looks like us!

I am off to eat lunch with my daddy and brother who is in town from college but hopefully I will be able to check in a couple of times throughout the week. I wish all of you safe travels, a house full of family and love, and a heart filled with thanks!!!

xoxo~

Email to the Beau

2008-11-21T11:03:00.002-05:00

five minutes ago ...

My email:

i just checked weather.com and it is supposed to be around 70 degrees in (town his parents live in) at thanksgiving. if that forecast doesnt change we might be changing our plans. who wants to eat thanksgiving dinner in their bathing suit? i already had my thanksgiving day outfit picked out. guess you will have to take me back to atlanta shopping this weekend.

His reply:

Something is seriously wrong with you!!! We will turn the air down low so you can wear your clothes

Oh dear!

xoxo~

One day at a time

2008-11-19T14:31:00.003-05:00

As many of you know, the past 2.5 months were extremely, extremely busy and stressful for me as I travelled for work constantly. Things have started to calm down and I am returning to my regularly-scheduled life and I couldn't be any happier! There is a lot left on my running to-do list but I am marking things off at a steady pace. Such a good feeling. My house is pretty clean (I still have one junk room that I am going to tackle this weekend), my Christmas shopping is half-way done (what would I do without the internet), the stockings are not hung by the chimney with care but all the decorations are ready and waiting (I always wait until after Thanksgiving to decorate), and I finally ordered my Christmas cards today (after months of debating). Take a peek at the cards - oh and please excuse the editing job!

After work today I am running over to the closest "city" to do a little bit of necessary shopping. I do not have a coat. It was 22 degrees last night and poor, pitiful me does not have a coat. In all fairness, I have some fleeces and a north face jacket but those aren't exactly practical for work. I used to have 2 pea coats, a red one and a black/white tweed one, but they both have mysteriously disappeared. I cannot live without a decent coat for one more day so that is my mission. I really also need a couple of new turtlenecks and a sweater or two because with it being this chilly in November we might be in for a long winter ... even in Georgia. Maybe I should also spring for some new gloves and a scarf. Stay warm!!!

xoxo~

PS: If I am going to freeze my tail off I would really, really like to see some snow this year ... especially around Christmas. So if any of you Northerners would like to send some my way, I will take it :)

Too good to turn down

2008-11-18T16:34:00.004-05:00

It is almost quittin' time here at my office so I have to be quick but I had to share ....

So do ya'll remember this post when I talked about the little Vera Bradley PJ shorts? Well, this morning I went to verabradley.com to order a pair for my sister-in-law for Christmas and, lo and behold, they were advertising PJ pants (even better than shorts) on the homepage for FIFTEEN dollars. They are marked down from $46!!!

I don't know about you, but that doesn't look like a $15 gift to me! A great present for a cousin, aunt, friend, etc ... any girly girl would love a pair.

One gift down!

xoxo~

Time flies when you are having fun!

2008-11-17T09:53:00.009-05:00

This weekend flew by as have the past 6 months! The Beau and I are celebrating our 6 month anniversary today ... if you consider dinner at home and a new episode of Two and a Half Men "celebrating". It seems like our wedding was just yesterday and, at the same time, it feels like we have been married forever. But regardless, I cannot imagine my life any other way! We have been so busy but we have had so much fun .... I look forward to the next 6 months and hopefully we will have a real celebration in May (like an exotic vacation ~ hint. hint.) :)

Lots to report from the weekend.

Friday night started with an Engagement Party here in town for one of my very best friends from high school. It was so great to see everyone -we had a blast!

The bride and groom-to-be. Such an exciting time!

A delicious spread of food!

I had to crop out the boys because they were not cooperating.

The bride, me, and H ... we have been best friends since 5th grade!

Our whole group. Take two ... being silly (and to think he is going to be a surgeon)! :)

Saturday morning the Beau and I drove up to Atlanta and went to Phipps to do a little bit of shopping. Well I had this platter that I received as a wedding gift that really wasn't my taste and didn't go with anything in my house. It came from Belk so while we were at the mall I was going to exchange it for something else. I figured I might get $50 for it tops and I would just get something practical for our kitchen. Well it turns out that this mall's Belk didn't have a home store but the lady said we could still receive a gift card at customer service. When I returned the platter, the lady gave me a gift card for $178. I was in shock! I am go grateful to be given such a generous present (from family I barely know) but I find it strange that you would spend so much on something that you have no idea if the person will love or hate. That's why people create registries ... but that is beyond the point. Anyways the Beau (because he is such a sweetheart) told me to go look for a cocktail dress for a wedding that we are going to in December and we would use the gift card towards a dress. Well for the first time in my life I couldn't find anything that I loved and after trying on 10 dresses I told him that I would just come back another day with my mom or a girlfriend. On the way out we stopped by the men's shoe department and the Beau was looking at some new driving loafers ... which in all honesty he really needed. He finds a pair that we both really like and I open my big, fat mouth and tell him to go ahead and use the gift card to buy the shoes. Good one. Now I will be searching Belk for a $40 dress. That's going to happen. A tube of lipgoss, anyone? The joys of being married ... sharing and caring. He better be glad I love 'em!

Saturday evening I dropped the Beau off downtown for his Employee Appreciation Party that, I might add, spouses, dates, etc. were not invited to ... stupid economy. So I met up with my friend Jenn for a pedi and an incredible sushi dinner at Genki. It was my first time there and it might have been some of the best sushi I have ever had in Atlanta. So any of you Atlantian sushi-lovers should definitely give it a try ... right in Buckhead on Roswell Road. Mmmmmm!

On to the most important part of the weekend ~ what I cooked last night! We had some friends over for a Sunday night dinner and I tried 2 new recipes that turned out fabulously. I did a shrimp pasta and a mandarin and kiwi salad ... both were to die for! Now the shrimp pasta is not, I repeat, not low-fat in any way, shape, or form but both the salad and the pasta were great for having company over. This will be my from-now-on meal for special guests. It was pretty easy too!

Divine Shrimp Pasta

1 pound cooked shrimp (I got mine from the seafood counter at Publix)

1 block of cream cheese

1 jar of sweet roasted red peppers

1 cup of chicken broth

3 teaspoons of crushed red pepper flakes

1/4 cup chopped basil

1 package of linguine or vermicelli noodles (I used linguine)

Cook your noodles and drain. Pull the little tails off your shrimp and cut shrimp in half. In your blender, puree the cream cheese, chicken broth, roasted red peppers, and red pepper flakes. Put the noodles back on the stove on low-medium heat, add the pureed mixture, the shrimp and the basil. Stir together, cover, and let simmer ... it will thicken up as it simmers. So good and makes a great presentation!

Mandarin and Kiwi Salad

Romaine lettuce (I used a bag salad)

11 oz. jar of mandarin oranges, drained

3 kiwis, peeled and sliced

1 large red onion, sliced

Croutons

4 oz. bleu cheese crumbles

Toss lettuce, oranges, kiwis, and onion together. Add croutons and bleu cheese to the top. Super simple!

Salad Dressing

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

1/3 cup red wine vinegar

1/4 cup fresh lime juice

4 tablespoons orange marmalade

1 teaspoon fresh ground pepper

1 teaspoon salt

I added some mined garlic as well even though it didn't call for it. Shake well. I served the dressing on the side. Enjoy!

Ya'll have a great week!!!

xoxo~

A whole lot of nothin

2008-11-13T15:59:00.004-05:00

That's right, a whole lot of nothing has been going on in the life of a Belle and her Beau. I have been busy this week, hence my lack of posts, but I can't begin to tell you what I have done. Couldn't be all that interesting since I can't remember! I did travel on Tuesday and Wednesday so that basically killed my entire week. Last night I managed to get home in time to attend my Book Club (for the first time in 3 months) and then stayed out way past my bedtime. For December we are looking for a light, easy read since everyone is always so busy during the holidays ... preferably a Christmas-related book. Anyone have any suggestions?

I am only working a half-day tomorrow and have an action-packed weekend planned. Friday night we are going to an engagement party for one of my very best friends from high school who is getting married in March ... I went and ordered my bridesmaids dress today and I am so excited. My group of girls from high school are still extremely close and we have so much fun when we all get together - which is not often enough. I am really looking forward to seeing everyone!

On Saturday night the Beau has an employee party in Atlanta so we are going to drive up early on Saturday and hopefully get some Christmas shopping in beforehand! And on Sunday night we are going to have one couple over for dinner out of the 52 couples I need to have over at some point. I need more hours in the day and more days in the week!

So I know that Halloween is waayyy behind us but I just had to share my little triplets Halloween costumes. **To clarify to any new readers ... they are not my triplets. They are my cousin's but I am obsessed :)

Too stinkin cute!

Okay well I may not check back in until Monday so ya'll have great weekends ... some good football this weekend! Gooo Dawgs!

xoxo~

"Blessed are we who can laugh at ourselves ...

2008-11-07T15:31:00.002-05:00

... for we shall never cease to be amused."

Last night the Beau and I were both in the kitchen washing dishes after dinner. I said something, can't remember what, that I thought was funny and I laughed for probably 5 minutes. Note that this happens at least once a day. But last night, as I was busy laughing at my own joke/comment, the Beau stood there and looked at me like I was absolutely nuts. He finally said, "you laugh at yourself more than anyone I know."

What can I say ... I find myself hilarious! Obviously the Beau doesn't find me quite as amusing.

Hate it for him.

xoxo~

Give thanks!

2008-11-05T10:15:00.015-05:00

As I was pacing around my house last night I decided to pull out some Thanksgiving decor. Thanksgiving has quickly become one of my favorite holidays ... quite possibly because the Beau hit one knee on Thanksgiving night in 2006 (I will share pictures with you one day). Today, I will share some of my favorite Thanksgiving things:

I bought these 2 platters at Swoozie's right after Thanksgiving last year for 50% off so this is the first year I have been able to use them. It was like pulling out brand new presents last night ... don't you love it when that happens??!! So cute, so festive, SO CHEAP!

I absolutely love these ... they are squash, gourds and assorted fall fruits (or are they vegetables) that are actually candles. They are gorgeous when they are lit but I couldn't get a clear picture of them while they were burning. I ordered these from Williams-Sonoma last year and I like them so much that I am afraid to light them too often because I don't want them to lose their shape!

I picked this soap up the other day from Bath & Body Works for only $3. That is as cheap as you can buy Dial from Wal-Mart. The scent is Sweet Cinnamon Pumpkin and it smells soo good. I want to wash my hands every five minutes just so I can sniff 'em!

For some reason I have been really in to candles lately. Pumpkin Pie from Yankee Candle smells just like the real thing ~ and since I have no idea how to cook the real thing ...

This, my friends, is worth $10. I ran in to a Williams-Sonoma while I was in Birmingham a couple of weeks ago and knew I had to have whatever it was that smelled so yummy. It was Mulling Spice! I haven't used it to make cider yet but if you put just a teaspoon of the spices in a pot with boiling water it will make your entire house smell just like the holidays!

UPDATE: We finally made a decision to spend Thanksgiving with the Beau's family and we will spend Christmas with my family. I am totally fine with it and I am open to beginning new holiday traditions. I picked up these cups and napkins at Swoozie's to take as a little gift when we visit at Thanksgiving ... cause I am a sweet daughter-in-law like that :)

I also saw these fill-in-the-blank cups (but didn't purchase them) and thought they would be cute if you were going to a Thanksgiving celebration with lots of kiddos!

Is there anything special that you love about Thanksgiving ... I love getting new ideas??!!

I also quickly wanted to say that we all have so much to be thankful for and despite last night's election (that did, in fact, leave me saddened) when it all comes down to it this is what I believe:

You're the God of this city, You're the King of these people, You're the Lord of this Nation!

xoxo~

Got Roots?

2008-11-04T16:50:00.002-05:00

Lord knows, I do! But I am off to have that fixed in one hour. Thank goodness cause nothing makes you feel better than a fresh cut and color!

Ya'll have a great night and may God Bless America!

xoxo~

My new favorite kind of Lilly

2008-11-04T14:27:00.007-05:00

Hopefully everyone is already familiar with one of my all-time favorite blogs, The Adventures of a Georgia Girl. If not, quickly familiarize yourself. I have been following GG's (Georgia Girl's) journey of adopting her little girl, Lilly Lu, from China for about a year now. GG finally went to China this summer to pick up her precious baby. I love clicking on her blog and hearing her hysterical stories of what her family has been up to and I cannot get enough of the pictures of Miss Lilly.

Well guess what? GG and I live in the same small town in Georgia! Our dads are best friends and you can find them eating together at this same little restaurant at least twice a week. I have been commenting on GG's blog since she got home with Lilly telling her to bring that child to see me! But she now has 4 kiddos to juggle and I have been gone so much that I haven't been able to meet Lilly Lu in person. Until today! My mom called me on my cell phone as I was walking out of the school where I voted today. She said that GG and her whole gang were up at her store and for me to come up there and see them. Since it only took me 5 minutes to vote, I had plenty of time before I had to be back at work so I raced up there. Tell me she is not the cutest thing you have ever in your life seen ... and go over to GG's blog and tell her too!!

We are both double L's. She is Lilly Lu and I am ... sorry, can't tell :)

Clinging to her mama ... she wasn't so sure about me at first!

I could eat her up!

Making a big ol' mess and looking cute doing it!

xoxo~

Lame Joke

2008-11-04T14:01:00.005-05:00

When Fat Phil Fulmer announced his "resignation" yesterday, 6 Knoxville-area Krispy Kreme's immediately shut down.

xoxo~

Today is the day!

2008-11-04T10:52:00.006-05:00

I took a sick day yesterday but I came in to work today feeling like donkey (no political pun intended). I seriously didn't think I could sit at home today ... I am a nervous wreck! I have some fun stuff to share with you all today to keep our mind off all things political while we work the 9 to 5. But first I must go and cast my vote and pick up some comfort food - I think Chick-fil-A is calling my name!

And for all my Georgia girls out there .... I will leave the Presidential race alone but remember, Saxby for Senate!!!

xoxo~

My chances aren't looking good

2008-11-02T20:15:00.005-05:00

You probably won't win Wife of the Year if you haven't seen your husband in over a week and you dress like this ALL weekend long ...

Yes, I wore the same sweatpants three days in a row. Yes, the crotch hangs down to my knees. Yes, I am ashamed of myself. No, all these pictures were not taken in my house (in case you were questioning my taste in interior design) ... we were at my grandparents for awhile this weekend.

In my defense, the "best business trip evah" went south and I have been dog-sick since Thursday morning. And believe me ... you don't wanna know!

Best Business Trip Evah!

2008-10-29T16:15:00.005-04:00

I graduated from college in May of 2006, went on a cruise the next day with my precious group of college girls (see pics below), came home, moved to Savannah the following day and started a job 2 days later.

I will be honest with you, the transition from college in to the "real world" was not easy for me. I was living in one of the neatest, most beautiful cities in America and I was going through some sort of funk. For about a year after college I was constantly nervous and anxious and ,to say the least, I didn't fully appreciate the two years I spent Savannah. I liked it fine but I didn't love it. Now I am down here this week and think ... what was not to love???!!! Savannah is amazing! The same thing with my job - when I had it I thought I absolutely hated it but thinking back now it was an awesome first job. It is funny how life works, huh? But I am so glad I have had the opportunity to be down here this week because I have had such a great time. A few of you commented or emailed me about wanting to plan a trip and you definitely should!!! Now, I will tell you ... it is HOT in the summer time. And I am talking about miserably hot. I suggest coming in the winter :) Last night I ate with my sister-in-law at a little English Pub downtown called Six Pence and it is a great place to go. Some of my other favorite restaurants are Il Pasticcio (that is where I am hoping to go tonight), Sushi Zen, Jazz'd, and A'Vida. Oh and, of course, you must go to Lady and Sons - just to say you have been! If you can, stay by the river and be sure to bring your spending money because the shops on Broughton Street are FAB!

Tonight I am meeting up with 2 of the girls that I used to work with down here. These girls are 2 of my favorite people in all the world. We are all different in age, background, etc. but when I moved to Savannah and started working with them they both took me under their wings and I love them both tremendously for doing so. We were the 3 Musketeers and we went through a lot together in 2 short years ... we travelled the world together, we went through engagements, weddings, break-ups, boob jobs (haha - not me), deployments, infertility, new houses, and the list could go on for miles. We were only friends for a short while but they will be my forever friends. I have not seen either one of them since my wedding in May ... we have lots to catch up on and I can't wait!

xoxo~

For old times sake

2008-10-27T20:07:00.002-04:00

Today I was in "college town" for work. I rode through campus and down greek row just for old times sake. I was flooded with memories ... and something about this time of year makes me really miss college.

Tonight I am staying with my bff and her husband since they live near tomorrow's event. Bff and I are curled up on the couch, 2 glasses of wine, a fire blazing, and Sex and the City is in the dvd player. This is why I probably miss college the most.

Her husband says he worries about us because he says we love each other more than we love our husbands ... and he says we are always touching each other and we always sit extra close. haha!

Now I love the Beau but there is nothing like a night with your bestie that you haven't seen in way too long.

xoxo~

ps: bare with me this week, sweet readers, this has potential to be a loong, busy week!
pss: I am off to Savannah tomorrow ... whoo-hoo!

Wickedly Wonderful

2008-10-24T10:55:00.008-04:00

I can't believe I am just now getting around to telling you all my most exciting news of the week! So you know a while back I posted that Wicked was at the Fox Theatre and I really, really wanted to go. Well this month my travel schedule has been crazy busy and this week was the one and only week I would be in town while the show was in Atlanta. I never ordered my tickets and figured that I would just have to wait until next time. But on Wednesday my fab friend Taylor, who knew how badly I wanted to go, called and told me that she snagged us 2 tickets for that night! I was beyond excited and left straight from work on Wednesday to drive to Atlanta, which is less than an hour away.

We met some of her husband's co-workers (whom we got the tickets from) at a restaurant near the Fox, ate a quick dinner, and then went to the show.

**the pictures aren't ultra-clear (we were having some technical difficulty) and don't mind me ... I wasn't looking too spiffy but I didn't have much notice :)

Let me just tell you. The show was soooo unbelievably good. I was telling Taylor afterwards, it absolutely amazes me how talented the actors and actresses are! Not only can they sing (which is an amazing talent in and of itself) but they can act, dance, and are gorgeous on top of everything else! I mean couldn't I have gotten a tiny piece of the "talented pie" ... just a sliver would have been fine. One thing that you may want to know about me is that I LOVE to sing but, unfortunately, I can't. At all. Anyone that knows me can testify. But anyways, the show was phenomenal and I would go see it again in a heartbeat. It was funny and sad and sweet! After talking after the show there were so many things that I noticed but didn't completely process until later. Like, if you have seen it, the significance the scarecrow and the tin-man played.

Two days later and I am still singing its praises. Literally. My favorite musical number was a duet with Glenda and Elphaba called "For Good" - although "Popular" ran a close race! I will definitely be asking for the soundtrack for Christmas!

xoxo~

Whats your pleasure!

2008-10-22T13:00:00.020-04:00

I am really, really bad about responding to tags and posting awards so if you tagged me or gave me a fabulous award I am truly sorry if I didn't play along like a good friend. Since I am trying to do better in many aspects of my life I will try to do better at this as well. I will begin today! My "in-real-life" friend LyndsAU tagged me to play a Favorite Things game. Here we go ... some people used only words and some used only pictures - I think I will use both.

Clothes

If I could only choose one place to shop it would be BR. Banana never lets me down! Their clothes are classic yet stylish and hold up so well. I can shop for clothes and shoes, for day or night.

Furniture

Restoration Hardware ... no explanation necessary. Everything about it is drool-worthy!

City

I know, I know, I broke the rules and chose 3. I am sorry but there was no way for me to choose. From top to bottom is New York City, Lake Lucerne (Switzerland), and Dubai - in no particular order.

There is absolutely nothing like New York at Christmas. There is no way to describe it other than magical.

I was only in Switzerland for a few days but it stole my heart. Lake Lucerne is the prettiest place on earth. No questions asked. I can't wait until the day that I can take the Beau! Please (pretty please) put this on your list of places to go before you die.

Oh Dubai! Dubai is in the United Arab Emirates and is known as the "playground" for the Europeans. I was in Dubai for almost 3 full weeks with my last job in February of 2007. There is nowhere in the world like it. Everywhere we went all I could say was "this is insane" or "are you kidding me right now." The city is unbelievable ... that is all I can say :)

Sweets

Cupcakes are my all-time favorite treat but my flavor-of-the-week is this :)

Sounds sorta gross but girls, you will think you died and went to heaven!

Drink

Coke. Fully-leaded. It is my first true love and my worst addiction!

Music

I am a country music girl through and through! And I LOVE these two!

TV Series

Friends is my fave of all-time.

Desperate Housewives is my favorite new show. I am not saying it is the best show on tv but it is my guilty pleasure :)

Film

Serendipity! I know what you are thinking ... Whose favorite movie is Serendipity? Extremely random. I don't know why it is my favorite ... I just love it. Maybe it has something to do with my love for New York at Christmas. Who knows!

Workout

Sorry, I got nothin. Pathetic with a capital P ... but I am trying to be honest here!

Pastries

You can't beat a blueberry muffin!

Coffee

I am sooo ready for Christmas!

Anybody, and everybody, can play along!

xoxo~

Wise Man

2008-10-21T16:25:00.006-04:00

A wise man once said ...

I am both tired and hungry and have a killer headache. I figure making the decision to cook dinner is pretty irrevocable as is the decision to go walk or hit the gym. So I will do neither. I will, however, do something small around my house but I won't light the world on fire ... don't you worry.

What I did yesterday:

Cleaned the kitchen.

Yep, that's all. But don't judge me. I went above and beyond ... I swept, swiffered, and mopped. That in itself deserves some sort of recognition!

xoxo~

Tis Life!

2008-10-20T15:30:00.005-04:00

Life is still crazy and I am determined to get my life back in order THIS WEEK. No excuses! I have a laundry list a mile long and if I get through half of it I will be pleased. The weekend was fun and I hated to see it end. We went to Athens for the UGA/ Vandy game and had a family reunion. Yep, that is how we do it down here ... we all get together to tailgate before a big game once a year and call it our family reunion. Works for me! I got to hang out with my brother which is always fun because he is a riot. He is in college and doesn't come home too much but we always have such a good time when we all get together. He is too cute as well ... if any of you need a sweet southern boyfriend I am taking applications! haha.

Told ya he was a cutie. Anyways, we went to the same college but he was a freshman when I was a senior and we were only there together for one semester because I did an internship in Jacksonville, Florida my last semester. We know a lot of the same people though and I am always trying to get the latest and greatest gossip from him (bad, I know). He told me something really disturbing and it was the first time I had heard of this ... he said there was a new website called JuicyCampus (dot) com. I don't even want to link to it because it is so terrible. Anyways, he said it was an anonymous website where you can link to your college and write things about people and then everyone reads and comments. Of course most people use this site to write ugly gossip about others. My brother said that a couple of his buddies were on the website and telling him the stuff they were reading and he said he couldn't even look at it because the stuff they were saying was so awful (he is really kind-hearted). I don't understand how this is not slander. He said that there was a post with hundreds of comments talking about the nominees for Homecoming Court and people were bashing all the girls that are on the court and saying very hurtful, untrue things. Homecoming Court at a big college is an honor .... I feel so sorry for those girls! People are really taking the fun out of college and I can only imagine how a website like this would impact one's self-esteem. My feelings get hurt at a drop of a hat ... if someone wrote something about me on a public website I would definitely withdraw from school. People, girls especially, can be so ruthless. What do ya'll think about this website? Are any of you familiar with it?

On another note, when we returned home last night I walked in to a disaster. Typical after being gone for weeks. My suitcase from Costa Rica was still laying in the middle of the floor, dishes were piled up in the sink, many-a-load of laundry needed to be done, etc. What did I do? I laid on the couch and watched Forgetting Sarah Marshall and then Desperate Housewives. I am getting it together this week though ... starting tonight! I will give you an update tomorrow on what I did - just so I am held accountable :)

Oh and get this. This morning at work I got a letter from a Leadership Organization in our community and it said this: "The members of (blank) were asked to nominate someone who they felt exemplified potential as a mover and shaker in our community and your name was selected." I am honored and so excited to participate because I like to be involved and volunteer, all that good stuff, but a "mover and a shaker" kinda made me laugh. I can hear the Beau now when I show him the letter tonight. He is going to say something along the lines of "A mover and a shaker, huh? Lets start by moving some of these clothes off of the floor. Then you can shake it in the kitchen while you fix some dinner."

Mark my words. He is silly!

xoxo~

An oldy but a goody

2008-10-16T21:04:00.001-04:00

If I ever need a reason to smile I watch this .... it takes only 30 seconds!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4dXGj_-orxw

I wish I was saavy enough to upload the actual video to the blog but I don't know how to do that. Any advice?

xoxo~

A McCainiac

2008-10-14T22:08:00.001-04:00

Be a McCainiac ... buy your t-shirt here!

xoxo~

Gal to Gal ... Sad News

2008-10-14T14:19:00.003-04:00

I am always receiving emails from DesignHerGals ~ I love this company ... they have the cutest stuff around! I know many of you like it too because I see your little look-alike gal on your blogs. DesignHerGals is hosting a virtual walk for breast cancer and you pay $5, design a girl for the virtual walk, and the proceeds go to to patients with stage IV breast cancer. It is so neat because you can go online and see all the different gals who are walking. If you would like to give a monetary donation this October I think this is a noble charity to give to.

Well the email I received yesterday evening from the company was heart wrenching. Read here:

To our dear friends -

It is with great sadness that I must let you know that our Gal to Gal Foundation President, Dorit Shapiro, lost her brave battle to Stage IV breast cancer yesterday. For those of you who have not had the pleasure of meeting Dorit - I can tell you that she was an incredible woman who believed passionately in the purpose behind the Gal to Gal Foundation.

As you may know, this year's virtual walk hopes to raise $250,000 by asking each and every one of us to take 5 minutes and $5 and go to www.galtogalwalk.org and create your virtual walker. It is our hope to grant hundreds of wishes for Stage IV breast cancer patients and their families this holiday season. With your help we can!

Dorit's wish was not for herself. It was that we make this goal and that no woman living with Stage IV should feel alone in this journey. Please join Dorit's virtual self and all of us today in her honor!

Attached is a tribute to Dorit where you can listen to her own words spoken 1 week ago (!) as we kicked off this event. Unfortunately after this speech she took a turn for the worst. She will be missed by her family and friends very much! Dorit just turned 38 years old with 2 daughters (ages 4 and 8). Please help us grant Dorit's wish.

Watch now!

With hope in my heart!

Jeanne Fitzmaurice

FounderGal to Gal Foundation

Can you imagine??!! 2 girls at home ages 4 and 8. My heart hurts.

xoxo~

Just an observation

2008-10-13T20:17:00.004-04:00

Has anyone noticed that Samantha Harris, the host of Dancing with the Stars, has 72 different bones protruding out of her shoulder. It does not look normal. And it is not your average "oh you look skinny ... you can see your shoulder bone and the other little bone right above your shoulder." Ya'll know what I am talking about, right? She has lots of bones - too many.

This might be a biased observation because when I lived in Savannah I used to listed to Kidd Kraddick in the morning religiously (I don't pick it up where I live now) and Kellie Rasberry hated Samatha. I am not really sure why but I hate her too now - I shouldn't say hate, that is harsh, but I dislike her as well on Dancing. How I miss the Hizziewood Hizzle and my friends on the KK show!

Just call me RandomMan!!!! haha. Sorry, unless you listen to KK you probably have no idea what I am talking about!

xoxo~

Not too shabby

2008-10-13T17:43:00.002-04:00

How was the weekend, girls? The Beau and I were both at home this weekend, which is rare, and it was so nice. I spent Saturday morning cleaning (if you could have seen my house you would have died) and we spent the afternoon watching football at my parents. Sunday afternoon we went and saw Fireproof. I know that many of you have seen it and many of you have blogged on it so I won't elaborate too much but I did love it! I cried my way through the movie and by the end I felt like I had been beat to death. My head hurt and my eyes were heavy ... but totally worth seeing. Check out this website for some great literature and resources on "fireproofing" your marriage.

www.fireproofmymarriage.com

I left this afternoon for the week, I will be gone until Friday. I have been travelling the majority of the weekdays for the past 8 weeks and today was the first time I really didn't want to leave. Of course, I never want to be away from the Beau but he works 65+ hours a week and has an hour commute each way so we don't get to spend a whole lot of time together Monday - Thursday. And those few hours in the evenings are precious to me. I just feel a twinge of guiltiness ... I swear I can't tell you the last time I have cooked dinner or have even been to the grocery store. There are about 5 different couples we need to have over, I have missed Book Club the past 2 months, we have missed several different activities with our Sunday School Class (including going to see Fireproof together since they went on a week night). I told the Beau last night that I hope all of our friends had not forgotten about us. It took a good amount of time for us to find a good social-network and Sunday School Class and as soon as we did I basically fell off the face of the earth. But there is light at the end of the tunnel - there is only about 3 more weeks of this and I will be at home all of November and December! Just in time for the holidays :)

On a better note, when I checked in to my hotel just a little while ago I was super impressed, it's not too shabby! If there is one thing I am snobby about it is HOTELS (okay, to be fair there are a few things I am snobby about but hotels are highest on the list). I have heard horror stories about the cleanliness of hotels and if I thought about it too much I would probably just sleep in my car!

In 2006 the Beau and I went to Orlando for his birthday for the Food and Wine Festival at Epcot and we had this whole package for 2 nights, 2 days at the park, etc., etc. Well to make a long story short I refused to stay in the hotel that had already been purchased, the Beau thought I was being a B until he went in to the bathroom, we checked out (no reimbursement) and went and found a Marriott. I am super-serious about cleanliness in hotels ... my house might not be spic-n-span all of the time but, by golly, I am not staying in a mediocre-clean hotel.

Anyways, back to my point, the hotel I am in now is totally cute! It is a Hampton Inn but it is downtown and is more of a boutique hotel. My room is red and black (one of my fave color-combos ... besides pink and green, of course) and I am really liking it here. The housekeeper even left a little note saying that she "had the pleasure of cleaning my room today" ... how nice is that. If I ever find pleasure in cleaning any room someone better call an ambulance!

xoxo~

Chivalry is alive and kickin'

2008-10-10T11:51:00.005-04:00

At least it is Birmingham, Alabama ... this is where I have been for work the past several days.

Yesterday I was leaving my last event before heading back home and I was carrying a box to my car through a fairly busy parking lot. The box was small but it was slightly heavy. My car was maybe 300 feet away and 2 different guys (whom I was working with indirectly) came over and politely offered to carry the box to my car. And then, most impressively, a boy who could not have been over the age of 15 was with a group of about 6 of his friends and he went out of his way to come over and ask if I needed any help. AND he called me ma'am ... I about died because I am NOT a ma'am (quite yet)! I declined all offers but I thought all day about how nice all 3 of those people were - and I am obviously still thinking about it!

I can only hope and pray that if I have a boy one day he would be polite enough to ask someone if they needed any help ... especially as a teenager! You can instill good values (and good manners) in to your children but ultimately they are the ones to decide if they are going to use them or not. This boys mama would be so proud!

This incident just reinforced how important it is to be nice and polite and that manners really do matter ... especially to this southern girl!

xoxo~

Think Pink

2008-10-08T14:25:00.017-04:00

I just love this campaign and since October is National Breast Cancer Awareness month I wanted to share. This month, and every month, I encourage you to Think Pink! I know that won't be hard for all of you preppy pink lovers out there!!!

Oh and speaking of pink, have any of you seen Victoria's Secret Pink Collegiate Collection? It is cute beyond words! Football pride and pink rolled in to one ... couldn't get much better!
And to save the best for last :)

xoxo~

Back to Life

2008-10-07T21:37:00.015-04:00

We are back to reality! I don't even know where to start, the past 5 days have been so much fun and I am still floating on cloud 9! On Thursday we flew in to Liberia and took a 30 minute bus ride to our villa. I had no idea what to expect. The Beau and I went to Saint Lucia in May for our honeymoon and stayed at a Sandals resort so that is kind of what I had in my head. It was nothing like that! We were in a very remote area with the prettiest scenery I have ever seen in all my life. We arrived at a nine bedroom villa that overlooked the ocean. Each couple had their own room and there was a large porch where we all ate meals together everyday. The villa was completely staffed and we were pampered from the moment we arrived. Here are some shots of where we stayed ...

It is the rainy season in Costa Rica but that did not stop everyone from having a blast. Many of the guests went on a zip-line tour through the rain forest (the Beau and I did not as we just did a zip-line tour in St. Lucia) and had a great time ... I stayed at the villa and had a full body massage with the mother of the bride. Seriously, the best massage I have ever had - not to mention we were on the back porch with a nice breeze and calming noise from the waves. Other days, some of the guests went to another beach and went surfing and many of the boys went deep-sea fishing ... the Beau did both, I did neither. What did I do? I devoured 2 books, relaxed on the porch, hiked down to the ocean, rested in the sun (and managed to get strap lines), ate like a queen, sipped pina coladas, and I LOVED every minute I was there.

Of course since I was on the trip there had to be some sort of drama! On Saturday (the day before the wedding) most everyone went down to Tamarindo to surf but Layne (the other bridesmaid) and I stayed behind ... we aren't really the surfer-type. Anyways, we decided to sit in the hot tub for a little while as it was sprinkling. For some unknown reason I went under water to get all my hair wet. No big deal? Well when we got out my hair immediately started turning green. We are not talking about a little green tint, it was bright blue-ish green! This has never, ever happened to me. There must have been some serious chlorine in that water. I had no idea what to do so I did nothing. When I walked inside to get something to drink the Costa Rican men who worked at the villa were laughing so hard and were making jokes ... of course I didn't care because it was really funny. After the Rehearsal Dinner, Layne was able to get on the internet and find out what to do about green hair! She found something that said to wash it with tomato juice and the acidity would get the green out. All we could find was tomato sauce (like spaghetti sauce) and we spent appx. 1 hour that night washing my hair with tomato sauce. I was gagging because it smelled like vegetable soup and it had to sit in my hair for about 30 minutes. But it worked like magic, thank goodness! Only me, only me!

Sunday was the deep sea fishing trip and the Beau was beside himself he was so excited. They went out from 7 am - 1 pm and caught lots and lots of dolphin. They were able to bring many of the fish back to the villa and that afternoon the cooks made ceviche with the fish they caught. It was soo good and we also had mahi-mahi for dinner. Here is the Beau with his biggest catch of the day

The wedding was Sunday evening at 5 pm. It is weird because the sun rises at 5 am and sets by 6 pm - it was always completely dark by 6:30. It rained a little bit during the ceremony but it made everything more sweet to me! The bride was absolutely beautiful ... see for yourself

This was before the ceremony ... I want to get someone to frame this picture in a double mat and also put the one of her and I from my wedding in it to give her as a gift!

The 2 bridesmaids ... I really liked our dresses and the bouquets were gorgeous!

Here comes the bride - trying to stay dry with the photographer!

After the ceremony ... we were just a little bit wet!

After dinner, a steel drum band came to play and they were so much fun!

It was definitely a trip and a wedding to remember! The bride and groom are staying here until Friday ... dreamy!!!!

xoxo~

In the event of an emergency

2008-10-01T10:45:00.006-04:00

you can find me here until Monday! We are off to a destination wedding in Costa Rica!

If we have skies like this during our trip I may not ever come back.

We are leaving here at 5 am tomorrow morning and ....

Number of bags packed: 0

Number of pounds lost: 0

Number of highlights received: 0 (I am most upset about this)

But whatever, it's not about me ... it's all about the bride and I am soo excited! Although I did manage to get a mani and pedi last night.

On Sunday, Taylor (the bride) and I will be reversing roles. We have been the best of friends since high school and I can't wait to see her marry the man that God made for her. His name is Tyler so they will be Taylor and Tyler ... I think that is cute!

I will post a picture just like this, but with her as the bride, when I get back. You are going to be gorgeous, Tay Tay! She reads my blog but says she doesn't know how to comment ... whatever, she graduated from Georgia Tech and is an engineer - she is the smartest person I know!

I didn't get the Beau a birthday present so I am sending him on a deep sea fishing excursion and I have never seen him more thrilled. Taylor's cousins go to Costa Rica often and they like to fish, the last time they went they caught this ...

If the Beau catches something like this he will die and go to heaven. I will SERIOUSLY never have a chance of making him that happy for the rest of my life :)

And Lynds, if I see this little guy I will try and bring him back for you!

I hope you all have a great rest-of-the-week and weekend!

xoxo~

TV Talk

2008-09-29T23:21:00.005-04:00

I am not really a tv fanatic ... Gossip Girls, 90210, The Hills, the gazillion reality shows, I could take 'em or leave 'em. I do like Grey's Anatomy and Desperate Housewives but I wouldn't cry if they were taken off the air. My favorite shows of all time are sitcoms like Friends, Will & Grace, Seinfeld, and Everybody Loves Raymond. Now that is quality tv in my book! Sitcoms don't seem to be very popular anymore and I am not sure why but do any of you watch Two and a Half Men?

Funniest. Kid. Ever. Hands Down.

If you have never watched this show you need to watch re-runs because it isn't quite as funny as Jake has gotten older - but still pretty funny. The Beau and I watch 2 re-runs almost every night and we both love this kid! You have to appreciate dry humor though because it is extremely dry.

My dad and I also like The New Adventures of Old Christine. Do any of you watch that? It is pretty funny as well. Barb makes the show ... I love her voice.

I am not expecting many comments from ya'll on this one because I have a feeling you may not be in to these shows but they really are good. Seriously :) Maybe you all will surprise me!

I think I like sitcoms because it is easy tv and nothing too terribly bad ever happens. I am going to share something incredibly embarrassing. You ready? I watch Nick at Nite every single solitary night as I fall asleep. Pathetic, huh?! I like to have the tv on as I fall asleep and I do not like to watch anything remotely scary so Nick at Nite it is. I have probably seen every episode of Home Improvement, George Lopez, Roseanne, The Cosby Show, Family Matters, and The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. The Beau is such a sport and turns it on channel 64 every night before he gets in bed even though he HATES it. Last night he was trying to watch some show called The Unit and I could not fall asleep with it on because something about those kind of shows scare me. I HATE Law and Order, I hate CSI, and/or anything of that nature. Basically I hate anything with mature content, haha. Sucks for him cause who wants to be married to the Nick at Nite girl? I always tell him that I am sorry that I prefer wholesome, light hearted comedy ... he says that he doesn't think that Roseanne is wholesome!

Oh and I forgot that I also like Mad About You and The Nanny .... oh gosh, I really am pathetic!

xoxo~

Happy Birthday, Buddy!

2008-09-29T09:52:00.011-04:00

Today's post is all about the Beau because it is his birthday and I won't be home tonight to celebrate with him :( But that is what he gets for making me work! Just kidding ... kinda.

Let me tell you about how we met.

In the fall of 2005, sweet sorority girl

meets wild fraternity boy (living his glory days)

at this particular 70's Sigma Chi/ ADPi Homecoming social at some filthy bar. Yeah, can you believe I married that?? Me neither. If you could only see the skin-tight pink corduroys he had on you would be really grossed out!

But something about me had him at hello (I am teasing honey, I was all about your get-up that night). So he stalked me for about 3 weeks until I agreed to go on a date with him (again, I kid). And after one date he knew he wanted to marry me (and that is the whole-hearted truth).

The End. :)

We have both grown so much as people in the last 3 years and I love who he is now and I love who he was then ... wild child and all!

I love that he can drink beer with the boys and that he knows and appreciates the finest of wines.

I love that he loves fishing in South Georgia and that he fell in love with New York City.

I love that he will wear Carhardts on Tuesday (okay, thats a lie ~ I don't really love that) and Citizens on Wednesday.

I love that he can talk baseball with one person and Wall Street to the next.

I love that in college he would be the first one out at night and the last one to go home ... because now he makes a point to be the first one to arrive at work each morning and the last one to go home.

I love that I can always trust his judgement ... from food to finances.

I love how much he loves me ... and I am here to be the first one to tell you that I am not always the easiest person!

I love you now, then, and forever more!!!

xoxo~

The Run-Down

2008-09-25T19:58:00.002-04:00

I have a lot on my mind, girls! This post calls for a list ...

1. Sasha, Petunia, Muffy, Northern Belle, and Tracy: I have not forgotten that I owe you all "prizes" and I am so embarrassed by my tardiness! I have not been at home for more than 24 hours in, uh, I can't remember when. But that is no excuse, all of your goodies will be shipped at the beginning of next week. Pinky promise!

2. I have been tagged and given awards by many of you and you all are too sweet for words! Thank you, thank you ... I will post them all very soon!

3. Mrs. Mojito, I got your "pay it forward" present in the mail yesterday and it totally made my day! You have absolutely no idea how much I love cards and stationery ... you are the best :) Oh, and in all my 4 months of being married the Beau has never ONCE gotten home from work before me ... until yesterday. He called to tell me that I had a package and I told him that it was probably from you and to open it up. He finds it so amusing that friends that I don't know IRL send me little gifts. "From the outside looking in, you can’t understand it. From the inside looking out, you can’t explain it." I got that little quote from one of my sorority
t-shirts, haha, but it is soo true for bloggers!

4. Grey's Anatomy comes on in appx. 30 minutes and Ugly Betty is on now! I can hardly contain my excitement!!! This post is taking a really long time ... I am not a great multi-tasker.

5. In exactly one week from today "we flying first class up in the sky ... pop the champagne ... living the life." That is right, we are flying first class to Costa Rica next Thursday!!! The first class part was a nice surprise, thank you amex and delta ... we appreciate it :)

6. Old Navy has some seriously cute work-out and yoga wear as well as some sleep attire. Cutest stuff I have seen there in awhile! I wanted to indulge in lots of it today, however, I refrained.

7. So I just posted yesterday that I am dying to see some Broadway shows ... top on my list being Legally Blonde. Well then today KappaPrep posted on her blog that LB on Broadway is being CANCELLED!!!??? What is that about? Somebody please explain!

8. The beau's birthday is on Monday so we are going to the lake this weekend with 2 of our best couple-friends from college to celebrate. We always have the best time with them and I have been looking forward to this for several weeks! I miss these 2 girls so much (and the beau misses their significant others just as much) and I cherish the limited time I get to spend with them. The best part of our relationship with them is that I won't come back on Monday with lots of fun, fancy pictures or stories (well there might be a couple of stories). But for the most part, the girls will spend the entire weekend in our pajamas, talking, eating, laughing, crying, and drinking wine and the boys will do whatever they do. I can't wait!!!

9. I am feeling a little under the weather but there is NO TIME to be sick. I can be sick another week but not this one! Maybe I should go get a B-12 shot to boost my immune system.

10. I am not going to elaborate too much but the beau and I truly have received some divine intervention this week and I feel like a 52-thousand pound weight has been lifted off of my shoulders. I have tears in my eyes as I am writing this! Anyways, the issue was money ... isn't that always the issue??!!! We are now 89.99% debt-free and I never imagined I would feel this much relief. Do any of you listen to Dave Ramsey? If not, I encourage you to do so. The beau and I are really making a conscious effort to "act our wage" ... which is a really difficult thing to do. But we can do ... I can do it ... I really hope that I can do it!!!

11. I just saw a preview for the movie Four Christmases! I love Reese Witherspoon, I love Vince Vaughn, I love funny, and I love Christmas movies. This will be fantastic - I am sure of it!

Ok, that's all. Hope I didn't bore you too much, I realize this was pretty lengthy and random!

xoxo~

Give my Regards to Broadway!

2008-09-24T08:21:00.002-04:00

The Broadway musical, Wicked, is coming to Atlanta's Fabulous Fox Theatre and I really, really, really want to order my tickets today ... I just have to decide on a night! Have any of you seen it? I absolutely love going to shows although I have only been to a handful in New York. Each one took my breath away! I have seen Les Miserables, Beauty and the Beast, Hairspray, and I have been to the Radio City Christmas Spectacular a couple of times (if that counts).

I have been wanting to take a trip back to NYC just to go to a couple of shows. I have been dying to see Legally Blonde, Jersey Boys, and WICKED!!! And now Wicked is coming to Atlanta and that should be just as good ... I hope!

I would love to hear a bit more about Wicked if any of you have seen it! Are there any other Broadway plays that you LOVE?

xoxo~

Hmmmmm

2008-09-23T09:52:00.011-04:00

Vera Bradley for boys?? Are you all aware of this? No, they don't have a line of luggage out for the men in our lives just yet, but they do have TIES. I love men's ties and I love/hate Vera Bradley. My Vera luggage is probably the best investment I have ever made because I use it all the time and it has been all over the world. I have had my same pattern (the red bandanna) for almost 7 years and it is in tip-top shape. It is a little faded and I am so sick of looking at it but it has been very good to me. I am not scared to check it at the airport, people think I am crazy but it has never been harmed. It has been thrown around at the Atlanta airport more times than I can count, it has been to the Middle East and back, New York on multiple occasions, all over Europe ... you get the picture, it is good quality stuff. The beau is mortified when I check it at the airport but who cares, right? Well, when I was in college VB was all the rage and it kind of lost its value in my mind because I couldn't go anywhere without seeing it everywhere. I just got tired of seeing it so much. But I will continue using my luggage until it rips in to shreds and then I will probably break down and buy a new set to use for the next 10 years. So anyways, I went in to a Vera Bradley store the other day just to look around and they have so many cute gift options and new accessories ... including neck ties! The beau is (on most occasions) a "preppy frat boy" and likes to dress up and agrees on most things I buy for him. He will embrace the Vineyard Vines, Southern Proper, Burberry ties that I occasionally bust out with but he will balk at some things and say they are "way too gay". If I told him I was getting him a Vera Bradley tie he would say that he would refuse to wear it ... but if I gave it to him and he saw that they are really nice-looking he would definitely wear it. Now, some of them are a little too feminine for my taste but some are delish!

The beau's sister looves Vera and I think I may have found a part of her Christmas gift! These little PJ shorts are a pretty good deal at $26 ... which ones do you like best?

I have a couple other cute finds on the radar that I will share soon! Have a good one ...

xoxo~

Nothing tastes as good as skinny feels!

2008-09-20T12:03:00.002-04:00

I will start by saying that I have packed on a couple of post-wedding pounds. And on top of that, for the past month I have basically lived in a hotel, on an expense account and, well, I haven't missed a meal! We are going to Costa Rica in t-minus 12 days so I am trying really hard to watch what goes in my mouth.

Yesterday evening on my walk all I could think about was food! So I started telling myself, "nothing tastes as good as skinny feels." I then began to chant it to myself ... for four miles, I chanted. I had to reduce it a little so it sounded good in my head :)

Nothing tastes like skinny feels.
Nothing tastes like skinny feels.
Nothing tastes like skinny feels.
Nothing tastes like skinny feels.
Nothing tastes like skinny feels.
Nothing tastes like skinny feels.

Say it with me!

Nothing tastes like skinny feels.
Nothing tastes like skinny feels.
Nothing tatses like skinny feels.

xoxo~

Better Late than Pregnant

2008-09-19T15:14:00.002-04:00

I am sorry, that was a semi-inappropriate title but it was the first thing that popped in to my head! I really am late on posting this ... at the beginning of the week I won a "Pay it Forward" giveaway from Mojito Maven. Whoo-Hoo! But the whole point was to actually pay it forward and I am just running a teeeny bit behind. But hey, like I said, better late than never! Here are the rules that I stole off of her blog.

HERE ARE THE RULES:

The exchange focuses on doing an act of kindness without expecting anything in return other than that the recipient will, in their turn, pass the kindness along and pay it forward.

This is how it works... I am going to agree to send something fun, cute, & nice to the first 3 blog owners who post a comment on this entry. In turn, those three will post this information and pick 3 people they want to send something to and so on.

Unfortunately, due to postage costs, I can only pay it forward within the United States. If you are interested in participating, be one of the first 3 blog owners to leave a comment! The little something you send can be something you made, bought, were given or found. Just a gift that will make the person smile.

If you'd like to join in, be one of the first 3 people to leave me a comment. You have to promise that you will then post about this on your blog, link to me, and then send something to the first three people who sign up to play along through your blog. I hope people like this idea. It's a small way to bring a smile to someone's face!

I am already thinking of what I am going to send you ... so you better hurry and comment!!!

xoxo~

Triple the Love for your Thursday

2008-09-17T15:45:00.005-04:00

Remember how I told you a couple of weeks ago that my cousin had TRIPLETS??!! Well I finally got my hands on some pictures and I couldn't help but show you. I have been dying of cuteness all morning! You will have to excuse me if I go on and on about these bambinos but you have no idea how long this couple prayed for this miracle. If any of you are struggling with infertility my cousin, H, knows your heartache. They had many ups and downs but God is faithful and He blessed them 3-fold ... in His time. Check this out ~

This was 48 hours before her children were born! Doesn't she look happy? She was ALL belly :)

Still in the hospital with the tubes in their noses ... bless their sweet hearts! Instilling good "dawg" values in them early!

There is nothing like a girl and her mama!

The whole fam - I can't even imagine having 3!!! I have no idea how they do it.

A beach pic! I can't get enough of them ....

So precious, and they all have their own little personalities!

The boys with their daddy! I bet they will be best friends :)

xoxo~

While we are on the subject

2008-09-17T15:45:00.004-04:00

I want to continue to talk about the holidays! Have any of you thought about what you are giving this year? By this time I usually have a pretty good idea of what I want to get for my mom, mil, and sil ... because buying for girls is fun! But this year I haven't seen anything that has completely wowed me. I love it when I have those "ah-ha I know what I am getting you for Christmas" moments but I have not had one of those in quite awhile. I am usually a pretty good gift-giver and like to put a lot of thought in to buying for people and for some reason I am struggling. Plus my sister-in-law has a birthday at the end of this month and my mother-in-law has one at the beginning of next month. I need some gift help, people. My sil is very cutesy, girly, preppy and so it is not that she is hard to buy for ... I just haven't found the perfect thing yet. My mil likes anything and everything and my mom owns a gift store of her own so she is really hard to buy for!

The beau is going to see his family over the weekend (I can't go because I have to work) and I had to buy a gift last minute for him to take to his sister. I picked up this Voluspa candle from Anthropologie (it smells soo good) and this Seersucker Tote. The tote I got her is pink seersucker with navy trim and I am having an H monogrammed on it. I didn't want to put her whole monogram because I have a sneaky suspicion that she will be engaged soon.

I really like both the items I got for her but it is just not going to be THE perfect gift and I really hate it when that happens. So give me some cute, fun, girl gift ideas! What is your "perfect" gift to give?

Note that I have worn out Williams-Sonoma ... my favorite gift to give used to be the soap and lotion set but I need something new. I also need to go easy on anything monogrammed :)

xoxo~

This could get ugly

2008-09-15T13:28:00.002-04:00

Alright all you newlyweds and not-so-newlywed girls ... we need to talk. We are half way through September and Thanksgiving and Christmas will be here before we know it. This will be my first time going through these holidays as a married gal and I am starting to get nervous. Why? Because I am selfish. And big on holiday tradition. And I really, really like my family and how we celebrate these holidays. We always have lots of friends over on Thanksgiving night to eat left-overs. I don't want to miss that. We always go to the Christmas Eve service at my parents church. I would die if I missed that. We have a big crew that comes and eats dinner on Christmas Eve, we always have the same thing and we always have the same breakfast on Christmas morning. I want to continue with those traditions.

But now there is the Beau's family who wants us to be around for the holidays as well, which is completely understandable. Except that I don't want to miss out on my family's traditions and celebrations. I know it is selfish ... but frankly, I don't care. The Beau is generally a very easy going (read: lets me have it my way) kinda guy but he isn't going to let me win this battle without a fight. He thinks we should do either Thanksgiving or Christmas with my family and the other with his. That's the dumbest solution I have ever heard! I am kidding but, seriously, this is going to sting! I have tried pulling the card that the girl should be with her family blah, blah ... it is not working. I like my in-laws (a lot actually) so that is not the issue. It is just that I know this transition isn't going to be easy for me.

What about ya'll? Where are you going to spend the holidays? If this is your first married Christmas or Thanksgiving are you going to spend it with your family or his? I especially want to hear from you who have devil-in laws!!!

Hopefully, this won't be an issue next year as I want to take the Beau to Europe over the holidays. Christmas in Paris 2009 sounds good to me!

xoxo~

The moment you have been waiting for

2008-09-15T09:28:00.003-04:00

I was soo busy all weekend that I did not have time to cut up all your comments to the Giveaway Post and pull one out of an actual hat ... instead I told the Beau to choose a number between 1 and 53. This was much quicker and was totally legit because he had no idea about the giveaway :)

Okay so the Drum Roll, please .........

He chose #37! The lucky 37th commenter is Petunia! Yay!

Choosing the winner of the second umbrella was a bit tough because so many of you had such great, helpful suggestions. If I was a millionaire I would send all 53 of you monogrammed umbrellas! Thanks to all of you for offering your advice!!!

Many of you suggested Etsy and it is a great tool but, as mentioned, it is more for people who are hand-making products. You see, we don't hand make nothin :) But we sure can buy it and sell it!

We decided to award Sasha the second umbrella for her suggestion of starting a blog and adding pay-pal. If the blog grows we can then think about doing a traditional website. I think this will be a great start! Plus, Sasha is super good with the technical aspects of a blog so we may can convince her to help!!! I will let you all know when the blog is up and running!

Petunia and Sasha: Please send me an email and let me know whether you would like a pink or green umbrella, what you want as your monogram, and where you want it shipped!

This was fun girls and we will do it again real soon! A couple of you mentioned that you would like to purchase an umbrella even if you didn't win. If you are still interested, you can send me an email as well and we will work something out!

xoxo~

Never Forget

2008-09-11T00:31:00.007-04:00

Seven years ago today and my heart still aches. I am extremely patriotic and get very emotional when it comes to our great nation (hence why I cried my way through the Summer Olympics). My heart aches for the families who lost loved ones. It aches for the city of New York. It aches for every last person who was directly, or indirectly, affected by this tragedy. My heart and prayers go out to each and everyone one of you ... especially today.

The Beau and I visited Ground Zero last April and here are some shots we got ...

The pink sign the man above is carrying says, "One room available for a displaced person".

"Now we go forward — grateful for our freedom, faithful to our cause, and confident in the future of the greatest nation on earth."

-George W. Bush

"There ain't no doubt I love this land ... God Bless the USA!"

xoxo~

Wedding Wednesdays

2008-09-10T23:36:00.010-04:00

Lets talk about something fun, shall we? How about Bridesmaid and Groomsman Gifts? Those are always fun (well, most of the time). I have been in my fair share of weddings and I have gotten some fabulous bridesmaids gifts and, to put it kindly, some not so great gifts.

My feelings are that the people in your bridal party spend a lot of money to have the "honor" of participating. Bridesmaids dresses are not cheap (or the one I chose wasn't ... typical), tux rentals aren't either, showers are pricey, and lets not even talk about gas to get to said showers, parties, wedding, etc. With that being stated, I feel that the gifts should be nice, useful and thoughtful.

For my girls, I chose a pair of pajamas from Victoria's Secret and had the pocket monogrammed in lime green with the girl's first initial. I only did the first initial because there were a few girls who were engaged and it just made it easier. I also had a pair of pj's and mine were monogrammed in pink! Everyone wore them while we were having our hair done and getting ready. They made for some cute pics ...

*These pictures did not come from my photographer and are not as clear. Sorry 'bout that, but you get the idea :)

I said before that I wanted the guys in navy blazers, white shirts, light linen pants, and pink ties. Most everyone had a navy blazer that matched and a white shirt but the boys all bought a pair of the same linen pants in lieu of renting a tux. We picked out a Vineyard Vines tie that I adored but we didn't feel like we could ask each groomsmen to purchase a $75 tie on top of the pants. Solution? The Beau gave the ties as groomsman gifts and I think everyone really liked them. I know I did! The Beau and his groomsman wore pink with beach-chairs and my dad and his dad both wore the green with beach-chairs. Here is a little snippet from the VV website ...

The groomsmen were super good sports ... they were not allowed to sit down once they put on their pants because we couldn't have that linen wrinkled!

Oh my, I almost forgot the best part of the b-maids gift --the presentation, of course! I had the pj's wrapped in personalized paper that said "To my bridesmaids! All my love, Belle" ... but it said my real name. The paper was pink with a white font and it was precious. If you are interested in the personalized paper let me know!

This was the best picture I could get my hands on tonight, I am still in a hotel room. The gifts are stacked up and surrounded by our welcome bags. I will talk about those next week!

I would love to hear about your fave b-maid and groomsman gifts!

xoxo~

Where have you been all my life?

2008-09-09T21:46:00.002-04:00

40 comments in justa few measley hours! I give something away and you all start crawling out the woodwork. I LOVE IT! But guess what I am going to do now? I am going to go through every single comment and add you all to my blog roll. Now that I know you are all out there I will expect to hear from you more often! Don't be shy ... you are all filled with such nifty ideas!

The blog roll thing isn't going to happen tonight though, gals. I am hittin the hay early. I am exhausted and I have a 7 hour drive ahead of me tomorrow. (sigh)

xoxo~

Due to inclement weather around the country we are having a GIVEAWAY!

2008-09-08T23:35:00.006-04:00

I am hosting my own giveaway because I am just that sweet and I knew many of you could use one of these ...

Do you like? I hope so! Seriously, I am really sweet but I could also use some help. These 'brellas are coming from my mom's store. She has owned a store in our town for about 8 years and she carries stationery, invitations and gifts. It is kinda like a small-town version of Swoozies. We love Swoozies! But anyways, I think that she really needs a website so all the lovely preppies of the world can buy all our preppy lovely things. So this is the kick-off!

Preppy, Lovely Item of the Month #1: The Monogrammed Umbrella in Pink with Brown trim or Lime with Brown trim.

To win one of these 'brellas, in your choice of pink or green, all you have to do is leave me a nice lil comment by Sunday at midnight. Easy enough? I told you I was sweet :)

But wait, you forgot I needed some help! The mutha, nor I, have any idea where to begin in creating a website. So, if there is anyone out there who can give me any good, easy advice on building this website I will give away a second umbrella, also in your choice of pink or green. And we don't need any fancy-shmancy site ... just something basic where we can sell her stuff!

Okay, so I am giving away 1 umbrella just because I am sweet and all you have to do is leave a comment. I will randomly draw a name out of a hat to see who the lucky lady is. Again, I will draw the name Sunday at midnight. I will give away the 2nd umbrella to the smarty-pants who gives me the best and EASIEST advice. However, if I don't get any advice it is no prob, I will just give away the one 'brella.

Until Sunday ... I will pray for no bad weather!

xoxo~

You guys were right

2008-09-08T17:06:00.006-04:00

At 2 o'clock this afternoon I had not had a bite to eat, I was shakey, and tired. I was on the way to another event for work and I didn't have much time so I whipped in to a Starbucks. I am not a huge coffee drinker but I remembered lots of you talking about the seasonal Pumpkin Spice Latte. I decided to give that a try and it was sooo yummy! This will most likely be my next addiction. Truthfully, I hate paying $5 for a cup of coffee but this was 100% worth it.

Oh and when they ask you if you would like to try a slice of the pumpkin loaf you should say YES! It was equally as de-lish-e-ose. Thanks Starbucks ... you have officially put me in a pumpkin state of mind!

I am off to my last event of the evening but I will be back later with the details of the giveaway!

xoxo~

Perfect reason to have a party

2008-09-08T12:09:00.008-04:00

My mom gave me a few "treats" on Sunday and now I have to have a Halloween Party. Contain yourselves because this stuff is CUTE! Of course, Martha is the mastermind behind all this fun decor. Bet you never would have guessed that :)

The mutha gave me these ...

They are wine labels that say Goblin Grog, Swamp Cider, and Witch's Brew. What a great, easy, fun idea! If I can't manage to have a party myself and be "the hostess with the mostess", I will definitely bring a couple of bottles of wine with me to wherever we do go so I will be "the best guest ever" :) Just kidding. Or I can give out a bottle to all of my friends as an adult Halloween treat. You get 6 labels (2 of each saying) for just $5.99. Grab a bottle of two-buck chuck and stick that label on and you will be the hit of Halloween!

She also gave me these ...

Aren't those fun? I think I definitely need to have a Halloween Par-tay! You can all be invited!

For lots of other divine Martha Halloween decorations go here!

xoxo~

Somebody please notify my boss

2008-09-08T00:07:00.004-04:00

of National Stay at Home Week. You tell mine and I will tell yours! Deal? Deal!

xoxo~

Weekend Wrap Up

2008-09-07T22:03:00.014-04:00

We drove up to the Blue Ridge Mountains in North Georgia for the weekend. I had never been before and it was such a fun trip! Just as I had hoped, we had a great, relaxing time. On Friday night we ate dinner at a good restaurant on the way up and we got to the cabin fairly late. Saturday morning we got up and went on a short hike to see a suspension bridge ... it's the largest suspension bridge east of the Mississippi. Just giving you the facts ~ I knew you wanted to know that :) Here are some pics ...

After our hike we wanted something to drink so we stopped at this gas station/ restaurant/ store/ bait shop. It was the most bizarre store I have ever stepped foot in (but they did have some good home-made fudge). Outside the store there were these huge anti-Obama billboards. They were actually too mean (even for me) so I don't think I am going to share them even though I did take pictures. But have a look at these ... WARNING: these could be the most redneck, white-trash images you have ever seen.

After that experience we did a little shopping downtown and then went and ate barbeque here. If you are ever anywhere near these mountains I would suggest stopping at this little joint because it was soo good! We went home and changed in to our bathing suits so that we could go tubing down the river but unfortunately once we got there it was already closed for the day. Instead we decided to go to this apple orchard. We are all looking around, sampling all sorts of different apples, ciders, jams, etc. and the next thing I know the Beau shows up with a hot apple fritter and a huge scoop of ice cream. I took a bite and it was some kind of good but I refrained from getting my own.

That evening Katy and I made tacos and we watched (and made the boys watch) Definitely, Maybe.

Have ya'll seen this movie? It might possibly have been the best light-hearted, love-story movie I have seen in a looong time. Abigail Breslin is way too cute and Ryan Reynolds is too! Go rent this tomorrow if you haven't already watched it.

We spent the rest of the night playing Cranium. And if you haven't played this game you are totally missing out. We always seem to play this with other couples and always end up either in World War 3 or laughing so hard we can't breath. Luckily, the latter happened this time. Sometimes it gets a little competitive! If you are not familiar with the game, there is a part when you have to act out a word, sort of like charades. Well the boys were both acting out the word and Katy and I were in competition to guess the word first. The word was: REPRODUCE. You can only imagine how the boys were trying to act out that word (especially after a couple of beers). My stomach hurt so bad we were laughing so hard. I would pay a million dollars to have had that on video!

We came early home this morning and I immediately left to travel for the week. 6 am is gonna come early ... I wish we were still in the mountains!

xoxo~

Ps: As I was writing this post I laughed a little bc I thought it was funny I was talking about suspension bridges, tubing and apple orchards. As many of us probably know, these things aren't really "in my element". But it's fun to step out of the box every once in a blue moon!

I am home ...

2008-09-05T15:48:00.002-04:00

But not for long! We are headed to the mountains in just a bit for the weekend with another couple. I am looking forward to a fun, relaxing weekend with sweet friends! Oh and don't worry, we are not camping, we are staying in a mountain house. We are planning on watching football, going on a few hikes, and not much else.

I am leaving again to travel for work on Sunday night and won't return until Friday. And I have been gone from this past Monday until today. I haven't been home yet though - I am terrified of what my house looks like! It probably is not a good idea to even stop by. Whatcha think? Maybe since I will be gone so much this fall, the Beau will realize that we really do need a maid and this ain't no joke. Lets hope for that.

On another note, we need to spice things up around here! I am going to do a giveaway at the beginning of next week so stay tuned. You will LOVE it, cross my heart!

Have a great weekend!
Have fun!
Be Safe!
Be Good! (or be good at it)

xoxo~

I got some lovin'

2008-09-04T22:23:00.008-04:00

I am a little behind on accepting these sweet, sweet awards and I apologize! 3 in one week makes me feel really famous! You girls are too much!

The Blue-Eyed Bride gave me this beauty:

~Mrs. Guru~ at Off the Beaten Path gave me this. I am so proud :)

Mojito Maven gave me this sweetness ... I am just giddy over all of this. Seriously!

There is a little game to go along with this last award. Fun! Lets play ... you have to answer the following questions with one word answers. Yikes, this might be tough.

1. Where is your cell phone? hotel
2. Where is your significant other? home
3. Your hair color? white (he he)

4. Your mother? precious

5. Your father? perfect

6. Your favorite thing? friendships

7. Your dream last night? forgot

8. Your dream/goal? many
9. The room you’re in? hotel
10. Your hobby? travelling

11. Your fear? cancer

12. Where do you want to be in 6 years? SAHM
13. Where were you last night? hotel
14. What you’re not? cold-natured
15. One of your wish-list items? furniture
16. Where you grew up? tennessee
17. The last thing you did? movie
18. What are you wearing? nightgown
20. Your pet? sadie
21. Your computer? dell
22. Your mood? relaxed
23. Missing someone? Beau
24. Your car? nissan
25. Something you’re not wearing? bra
26. Favorite store? unfair
27. Your summer? amazing
28. Love someone? abso-f'ing-lutely (in the words of Mister Big)
29. Your favorite color? pink
30. When is the last time you laughed? today
31. Last time you cried? yesterday (don't worry, it was a good cry)

Thanks ladies! You make my day ... today and everyday!!!

xoxo~

I HEART Ann

2008-09-04T22:02:00.004-04:00

I ran in to Ann Taylor Loft today and I fell in love at first sight ...

This leather number is oh-so-chic and it's a lot cuter in person. It is full price at $199 now but never fear, it will be on sale by October and then it will be hanging in my closet! When I went online to find this picture to show you all it read "as seen in people style watch". So you don't have to take my word for it, lots of other people must think that it is cool too :)

xoxo~

Wedding Wednesdays

2008-09-03T23:11:00.014-04:00

I started a post mere seconds ago to tell you that I am worn slap out and to ask if would it be okay if we did Wedding Wednesdays tomorrow. I immediately felt guilty, erased the post, and here we are. Do you love me? Say you love me. Okay, thanks. I love you all too. If you knew how tired I was you would love me even more :)

I know I said that we would talk about Photography this week. Well to be honest with you, I am not sure why I said that because, uhhh, I don't really know anything about photography. I do know that my photographer was awesome and that she is hysterical ... you can check out her blog here. She can probably tell you more about the art of photography. I can tell you that a photographer is one thing that I definitely suggest splurging on. I am not big on traditional, posed pictures and I found the perfect person to convey what I wanted. I wanted natural, fun shots. I feel like I got them. She captured every single detail. I didn't have a videographer and I was slightly concerned about that but when I got my proofs back I knew that there was no need for one. When I look at my wedding pictures I am flooded with happiness and wonderful, wonderful memories. That is priceless. I get teary eyed just thinking about it. Here are some of my favorite shots:

Oh and no fancy borders tonight, girls. K?

This one of my dad and brother may be my favorite of all time. Seriously. How sweet is that?

A little golf course dip and kiss :)

I am most fond of pictures of me in which you cannot actually see my face!

(Okay ya'll, forget the tears - I am about to CUSS. It is taking appx. 3 minutes for each photo to upload. I am SCREAMING!)

Or when there is a little veil action!

This is the first time I had seen the Beau that day.

In front of the magnificent church.

Our oh-so-preppy wedding party! They are the cutest!

I guess the best man is giving the Beau some good advice before I walk down the aisle :)

Here I come!

And ... we are married! Whoo Hoo!

Okay kids, it is bedtime. I got you through the ceremony, can we finish the reception up tomorrow? Pretty please. It is now already Thursday so Wedding Wednesday is all jacked up anyways. I'll tell you what ... I will let you see this little video. But it is not staying up for long because it has our names on it. Only my avid reader friends will have the privilege! Night night!

Click here!

xoxo~

J. Crew or Jimmy Choo?

2008-09-02T21:01:00.008-04:00

I was flipping through my new J.Crew catalogue (since I am not watching 90210) and I have a question for you. Am I the only one who thinks that the Crew is getting a lil pricey? Now J.Crew is definitely not your run of the mill shopping mall store but $600 shoes, $450 handbags, and even a $3,500 dress! That is a little excessive for a store that would be a stretch to call "designer". I'm just wondering what ya'll think. Maybe they have always been that expensive and I have never really noticed but, geez, I am noticing now!

The clothes are as cute and classic as always though. These are my fall must-haves ....

Gold, driving moccasins - I love all the colors but the gold is my fave!

I adore both of these dresses ... of course if I get them both, one of them will have to come in a different color!

No questions asked, this sweater will be on my body at the first sign of fall. I love the femininity of it. I have a boyish figure, straight up and down, so most sweaters (especially crew necks) don't exactly flatter me. This one, however, should be just right!

xoxo~

2 Tragic Events

2008-09-02T19:35:00.003-04:00

Numero Uno:
I just got back to my hotel room from eating at Ruby Tuesdays (which can be tragic in itself but that is not what I am talking about today). The tragic part is that I ate there ALONE! I have never in all my 24 years eaten at a real, sit-down restaurant all by myself. This is major for me. I travel a good bit with my job so I am used to eating by myself but never in a restaurant. I usually just order something and bring it back to my room or eat in the car when I am in a hurry. I hate to see people sitting by themselves at restaurants, it makes me sad. My dad says that he likes to eat alone, read the paper, and relax but I hate it when he does that! Most folks who eat by themselves probably are fine and prefer to eat alone or they are on business, there are thousands of different reasons they could be eating alone, but for some reason my heart always hurts when I see people eating by themselves.

Anyways, I decided that I would be a big girl tonight and go eat at the restaurant. Let me just tell you, it was not relaxing, it was not fun, and I did not enjoy it one bit. I ordered a sangria to take the edge off and sucked it down in about 2 minutes. Once I ordered and my waiter took away my menu I had nothing to even pretend to be looking at so I reached for my phone - and it was dead! You have to be kidding me. So I just sat there all alone in a restaurant that, by the way, smelled like urine. Sick! The Belle is having a pity party and will never do that again!

At least 90210 premiers for 2 whole hours tonight. I ate dinner at 5:00 just to ensure I will be home in time to watch every second of it!

Numero Dos:
You probably already know where this is going. I get back from the restaurant, iron my clothes for tomorrow, packed up my bag because I am checking out early in the morning, washed my face, brushed my teeth, and crawled in to my big, comfy, king-sized bed. The little piece of paper beside my bed says that the CW is on channel 7 so at promptly 6:50 pm I turn it to channel 7. Guess what is on channel 7? NOT THE CW! Its the AngelOne Channel. I am frantically flipping through all the channels trying to find the CW so I can watch 90210. I can't find it!!! I decided to call down to the front desk and ask them why the piece of paper says that channel 7 is the CW when, in fact, it is not the CW!!!!! The front desk lady replies, "this area no longer gets the CW". Again, YOU HAVE TO BE KIDDING ME.

The Belle is sad. Very sad.

xoxo~