Puttin' on the G.R.I.T.S.

Sugar Cookies from my Grandma

2012-01-25T08:00:00.000-05:00

My paternal grandma, Velma, was an amazing cook. Her house had a very distinct home-y smell, almost as if the decades of delicious meals she had prepared had lingered around. I'm sure you're grandma's house has the same smell. She passed away when I was eight years old so I was a little young to learn her recipes from her first hand but I am very lucky to have several of her best, in her handwriting, on her recipe cards. One of my favorites is her sugar cookies. I can't even tell you the last time I made her sugar cookies which means it was long overdue! When she would make them, she would roll them into a ball and mash them with a fork covered in sugar but I decided to use cookie cutters. If you take the easy road, I promise they'll still taste good. As I work my way through my grandma's recipes, I've found several that I've seen in other places (this one included!)- either identical or nearly so- which makes me think that those recipes have made their way around over the years. I remember looking at her recipe as a little girl and wondering why she put tartar sauce in them. :)

Sugar Cookies
2 sticks of butter, softened to room temperature (NOT melted)
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
2 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp cream of tartar
1 tsp baking soda

1. Cream together butter, egg, vanilla, and powdered sugar. In a separate bowl, sift together flour, cream of tartar, and baking soda.
2. Slowly add flour mixture to liquid mixture until JUST combined. Do not over mix.
3. Press together in a disc shape on wax paper. Wrap tightly with plastic wrap. Refrigerate overnight.
4. Roll out dough to 1/4" thickness on floured surface. (I find it to be a little easier if you break the disk into 4 chunks and roll out each one individually. Don't worry if the edges seem like they're falling apart. Keep rolling and the center should stay together. Don't forget to flour your rolling pin!) Cut desired shapes with cookie cutters. If you'd like to leave them plain (without icing) sprinkle white sugar on cookies at this time. (note: keep cut, unbaked cookies, in the fridge if they're not in the oven. If you leave them out on the counter and let them reach room temperature, they will bake up all puffy and they''ll lose their shape! And don't over crowd the pan! I bake 4 at a time so the edges don't touch!)
5. Bake 350 for 8-10 minutes on parchment paper lined cooking sheet. I'm still learning my gas oven so they're a little uneven.
6. Let cookies cool completely before decorating with royal icing.

Royal Icing
3 egg whites
4 cups powdered sugar
Food Coloring

1. In large bowl, whisk egg whites until frothy.
2. Add powdered sugar gradually while mixing on low until mixture is shiny. Start with 3 cups of powedered sugar and slowly add more to desired thickness. You don't want it so runny it slides off your cookies. This should take approximately 5 to 7 minutes.
3. Add food coloring and transfer to piping bag (or a large plastic bag with the end snipped off)
(I prefer Wilton color gel instead of regular food coloring. You can find it at Hobby Lobby and Michael's. I used a piping bag with a very small tip.)
4. If your icing is too thick and doesn't spread itself out after you fill in your outline, just use the back of a spoon to gently push it around.

P.S. I've added a little printer friendly button right down below each blog post so you can print my recipes if you wish to. If you open each blog post individually by clicking on the post title, they print out easily.

Lemon Icebox Pie

2012-01-22T14:10:00.000-05:00

Lemon icebox pie is one of my favorite desserts. I really just love lemon. I love the smell of lemon. My favorite cleaner smells like lemon Pez. I drink lemonade until it makes me sick. This is a perfect dessert for your Easter lunch. Or a cookout come Spring. Those of you who are snowed in right now probably don't want to hear me talk about Spring, huh? :-/

There really isn't anything to this pie. Sweetened condensed milk is the start of some of the best desserts. This recipe is nearly identical to my key lime pie recipe. And please do not put whipped cream on this pie. After you make the filling you will have left over egg whites for a reason! It must have meringue!

This recipe is made for a 9 inch pie, I just made them in small individual dishes this time.

Lemon Icebox Pie
yield: one 9" pie or 4 small pies

crust:
1 1/2 cups crushed graham cracker crumbs
6 tablespoons melted butter
1/4 sugar

filling:
1 can sweetened condensed milk
3/4 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice (none of that stuff in the plastic lemon!)
3 egg yolks (save the whites!!)

meringue:
3 egg whites
7 tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla

1. Finely crush graham crackers in a food processor. Mix in melted butter and sugar. Press graham cracker crumbs into a pie dish. Bake at 350 degrees for approximately 8 minutes.
2. In a large bowl whisk together sweetened condensed milk, lemon juice, and eggs yolks. I usually give it a quick taste to make sure it's tart enough. The egg yolks aren't going to kill you.
3. Pour filling into pie dish and bake at 350 degrees for approximately 10 minutes. Remove and set aside to cool.
4. For meringue: Let egg whites reach room temperature. Beat egg whites in a glass or metal bowl until stiff peaks form. Make sure you bowl and beaters are very clean. If any fat or yolk gets into the whites they won't peak for you. Add sugar gradually once peaks have formed. If you add all of the sugar in the beginning you will be beating your whites for 30 minutes before they peak up for you. Add vanilla and continue to beat. I choose to put my meringue in a large piping bag. I cover the top of the pie with a good layer and the put little dollops on it pulling the bag straight up to create a little peak. Bake at 325 for a good 20 minutes of so until the meringue is golden brown.

If you make this pie the day before you plan on serving it, wait until the day of to top with the meringue. It will droop and sag if you make it too far in advance. I prefer my lemon pie cold, so after I bake the meringue, I stick it in the fridge until it's time to serve. Don't let it sit in there too long or the meringue will form little sweat beads and droop.

Spring Flowers...a little early

2012-01-08T21:06:00.000-05:00

All of the Christmas decorations are packed up and put away until next year. My house was pretty sad and empty even with the decorations up so you can imagine how empty it feels now. I picked up a couple bunches of hydrangeas from Whole Foods (don't they have the best flowers? And cafe con leche...and macarons..and...yeah, that's why I don't shop there!) to warm up the living room a bit. Love fresh flowers.

Todd has been helping me a bunch in my yard. I planted a bunch of Nikko Blue hydrangeas in front of my porch. I've still got 5 (may have gone a little overboard!) white hydrangeas to plant in the backyard.

I want a yard that is full of flowers all year long. I have a hard time keeping a houseplant alive so this should be interesting. I want a camellia somewhere. I've got hyacinth and daffodil bulbs in the ground. I really have no idea what I'm doing!

I've been pinning potting sheds on Pinterest. I'd love to have a bench on the back porch where I can keep all of my pots and garden tools. And I'd really love to have one of those fancy potting sheds with a chandelier. I'm sure my flowers would grow better!

I don't know how many more cold days we will get. We had 2 or 3 days this past week that got pretty cold but that might be it for the year. It's been so warm everywhere this year. If you normally get snow, have you gotten any this year?

Chocolate Chess Pie

2012-01-02T11:21:00.000-05:00

This is my gramma's recipe. I thought it would make a perfect addition to our New Year's Day black eyed peas and collards. Well. What happened was...I made the first pie. And then we ate it. I had every intention of taking pictures of it for my blog. But we demolished it. At 10:00am. So then I made another one. And we ate half of that one too. Before I could take pictures. It just happened. In our defense, we shared some with my neighbors.

If you've seen the movie The Help, you remember Minny's chocolate pie. I did a little google search to find the actual recipe they used for the the movie and it's nearly identical to my gramma's recipe. I made The Help's version too. We had a little taste off and really couldn't tell the difference between the two.

It's a fudgy-gooey chocolate pie. Nothing fancy about it. Just good. My gramma's version has sugared pecans on top but I am kind of pecaned out after Thanksgiving and Christmas so I left them off.

Happy New Year's weight loss! ;-)

Gramma's Chocolate Chess Pie

1 pie crust
1/2 cup butter, melted (1 stick)
2 1oz squares unsweetened chocolate baking squares
1 5oz can evaporated milk (2/3 cup)
2 large eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla
1 1/2 cup granulated sugar
3 tablespoon all purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon salt

option pecan topping:
1 1/2 cup pecan halves and pieces
2/3 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1 tablespoon light corn syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Melt butter and chocolate squares in 30 second intervals in microwave safe bowl. Stir after each 30 seconds until smooth.
3. Whisk evaporated milk, eggs, and vanilla together. Add to chocolate mixture.
4. Stir together granulated sugar, flour, and salt, then add to chocolate mixture whisking until smooth.
5. Press pie shell into 9" pie plate. Prick bottom with form.
6. Pour filling into pie shell and bake for 45 minutes (maybe 50 depending on your oven).

For pecan topping:
1. Bake pie for only 40 minutes. Remove from oven.
2. Stir together pecans, light brown sugar, corn syrup and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Sprinkle over pie.
3. Bake an additional 10 minutes.

Let cool at least one hour before serving. Top with whipped cream.

Best of 2011

2011-12-28T18:54:00.000-05:00

I'm not too sad to see 2011go but I am excited for what 2012 has to offer. I love that about a new year. A fresh start. A chance to get everything off on the right foot. There will be no New Years Resolutions. I will probably "mark all read" in my Google Reader the first week of January because really...who wants to read 500 posts of New Year's Resolutions. On New Years Day, I'll be sleeping in and enjoying a standard southern lunch of black eyed peas and collards!

Here are some of my favorite memories from 2011...

1. A memorable morning morning sunrise on Driftwood Beach, Jekyll Island, Georgia.

2. A memorable girl's trip to New Orleans to see our beautiful friend get married and eat 435 beignets. And Pretty in Pink Megan's car being stolen out of valet.

3. Spring flowers at Callaway Gardens

4. Our road trip to Nashville. Big Bob Gibson's white bbq sauce and a stop at the Jack Daniel's distillery.

5. Saw cars a la The Great Gatsby at the Concours d'Elegance on Amelia Island.

6. A beach weekend with friends at Seaside.

7. Meeting the very inspirational floral and entertaining genius James Farmer.

8. Rivalry game- Florida at Auburn.

9. My favorite recipe of the year: crock pot BBQ pulled pork sandwiches.

10. Moving into my new house.

Christmas Lens Bokeh

2011-12-26T22:37:00.001-05:00

Someone must have been reading my little lust list because there was a Canon 50mm 1.8f lens under the tree with my name on it Christmas morning. I've been dying to play around with it since I unwrapped it! We've been so busy the past 48 hours that tonight was the first time I've really gotten a chance to use it.

Lighting in your house at night is terrible. I don't have any type of photo editing software so my pictures always have an orange tint to them no matter what I do. It's just bad artificial lighting.

I hope I can squeeze in a little more time with it before I take my tree down this weekend. This blog does a good job of explaining bokeh.

I think I'm going to take a few continuing education photography classes at the local college...I just feel like I'm wasting a great camera. I need to learn how to use it.

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas with your loved ones. Don't forget your black eyed peas and collards for New Years Day!

Christmas Decorations

2011-12-18T15:29:00.000-05:00

Christmas has come so quickly after my move that I've had little time to prepare. Luckily, almost all of my gifts are purchased (although still en route) and I used what Christmas decor that I had from the past. I had to buy a few new things, mainly a much bigger tree. Can I just say...as much as I love the convenience of an artificial tree, why haven't they found a way to make the bottom look more realistic? Hate that flat bottom! It's still a good tree for Wal Mart but I probably should have splurged for a nicer one. Nonetheless, my house is as decorated as it's going to get. I'm just pooped!

That wonky bow up top is just going to have to stay. I found a 300 year old ladder in the garage that was so wobbly that I had to prop it up against the wall so I wouldn't fall into the tree. Once I got it up there, it was there to stay. Maybe Santa will bring me a new ladder for these tall ceilings! My drapes were hung yesterday. The rod isn't in the right stop so they're just sitting up there for the time being. Love a bold buffalo check!!

Can't wait to get rid of those crab pillows. I'm having new pillows made. The beachy theme has been good to me but I'm ready to embrace a new look.

My gifts were all wrapped in solid paper. I love craft paper with a beautiful bow and in this case, an ostrich feather!

The stairs got a little something too. I've got so many ideas pinned for next year. I wish Christmas was still a month away so I had more time to decorate. I have plans to be in all of my favorite home decor stores on December 26 to snag up all of the Christmas decoration bargains for next year!

If I were my own Santa...

2011-12-13T01:53:00.000-05:00

Striped Fringe Napkins, Set of 4, Pottery Barn, $49
Antique Silver Pitchers, Pottery Barn, $79
Monogram Pillow, Gramercy Fine Linens, $88
Canon 50mm Lens, Amazon, $104
A Mess of Greens: Southern Gender and Southern Food, Barnes and Noble, $24.19
Calligraphy Return Address Stamp, ETSY, $42

I have a folder in my bookmarks for things that I've got my eye on at any particular moment. I usually pull up each item every so often until I eventually decide I don't really need it, and then I delete it. I've made my stand on Christmas gifts but if I were to buy myself a whole mess of things...

Baby Steps

2011-12-06T11:31:00.001-05:00

Very, very slowly this house will come together. I have committed myself to finish each room completely before I move on to another room so that I don't have a bunch of rooms missing their finishing touches. I probably should have started somewhere other than the living room/dining room because they need a lot. First of all, I hate my couch in here. It's always been a horribly uncomfortable couch but now that it matches the floor, I dislike it even more. To Craig's List it will go! I have picked out a new beautiful tufted couch, ordered fabric samples (stock picture...not my fabric choice) and I think I'm ready to pull the trigger.

I just don't know if I want 2 couches and 2 chairs, a couch and 2 chairs, 2 couches and no chairs. The coffee table too, that's going. I need a bigger TV (which is why mine isn't hung yet, it's just sitting up on the mantle) and an area rug, too. The fan will probably go- I think it needs a pretty chandelier.

A lady in my neighborhood came over this Sunday to measure the big front window for drapes. Matching drapes will also go on all 3 windows in the dining room. Hopefully those will be back to me in a week or two.

The chairs in the dining room need to be reupholstered. I need to make up my mind about a mirror for above the buffet. A chandelier will replace that ugly contractor's grade light fixture above the table. And a gallery wall opposite the buffet. I haven't found anything I even remotely like for that wall!

I barely have any Christmas decorations up because I know they'll just come down in a few weeks and I'll be left with an even more empty space. Hopefully I'll have the tree up by the end of the week. I did manage to get a magnolia leaf wreath on my door. My porch is still with out urns of flowers, garland, or rocking chairs. Again, hopefully this weekend.

My flower beds need flowers. I would love to have my house numbers painted on the transom above the door. And we haven't even begun on the kitchen/breakfast room/downstairs bath or upstairs! There are empty flower pots everywhere, bolts of fabric stuffed in closets. I wish I could snap my fingers and have it all done but I'm afraid it's going to take much, much longer than that. I'll share more specific details (and better pictures) as I finish them.

This weekend is the Holiday Home Tour which I'm obviously not a part of. Maybe next year!

Ebates

2011-11-28T12:35:00.001-05:00

There was some chatter on Twitter this afternoon about Ebates. I am a big, big fan of Ebates. (I have not been compensated to write this blog post.) I signed up for Ebates a few years ago but only started using it about a year ago but it has really paid off! This is how it works....

You want to purchase something off of a website. Let's use Sephora as an example. I go to ebates.com, sign in to my account, and type "Sephora" into the search bar. The Sephora Ebates page pops up and tells you what percentage back you will get from your total purchases on that website.

AND! (My favorite part!) Below that are a list of all of the current discount codes offered at that site. So instead of googling "Sephora discount code", they're all listed right there for you. Click "SHOP NOW"...

A tracking ticket will be generated in a new tab/window and will automatically redirect you to the Sephora website. Now don't close the Ebates tab! You have to leave that open in the background and if you close the Sephora tab at any point, you have to click the "shop now" tab again to generate that tracking ticket. That's how Ebates knows you're buying something! Now just shop on the Sephora site and make your purchases like normal. A day or two after you've made your purchases you'll get an email from Ebates stating that cash back has been credited to your account.

Each quarter you will receive a paper check or direct payment into your Paypal account from Ebates. I have always received my payments and yes, it really does work. It's cash, to you, no funny business!

If you purchase something using Ebates and then RETURN IT, Ebates knows and your cash back will be deducted from your account.

If you feel like Ebates made a mistake and you should have received credit for something you purchased, all you have to do is: My Ebates > Tracking Tickets (right menu bar) and find the tracking number.

Then click that "Click here to contact Customer Care" link right above your tracking numbers. (Side note: I really did order something from HSN. SO WHAT!)

Email it to them and they'll get your account fixed!

If you have a tendency to forget to use Ebates, write it on a Sharpie and tape it to your keyboard or monitor. That way when you sit down to shop, you see it.

Here is one of my favorite tricks. I want a chandelier and area rug from Home Depot. I could easily run down the road and purchase both of them but I obviously can't use Ebates in the store. What I'm going to do is purchase them both online and select "pick up in store". My purchases will be available almost immediately, I won't have to pay shipping, and I got to use Ebates! Best Buy and Wal Mart also offer in store pick up. See a TV in Best Buy you want? Go home and order it using your Ebates and you'll get a little percentage back. It may not seem like a lot at the time but it really does add up. Especially at Chrismtas!

Flower delivery sites? HUGE percentage back! And if I'm ordering something that could be purchased on several sites, I use those handy tabs over on the left to find the store with the highest percentage back.

Sign up here and get shopping!

Starboard Clothing Co. Giveaway

2011-11-18T08:00:00.000-05:00

My friend Ben has a fantastic company called Starboard Clothing Company. If you haven't heard of them before, Starboard specializes in handmade bowties from Annapolis, Maryland. They come in a bunch of fun fabrics (I love the gingham!) including a Lilly Pulitzer tribute print!

I'm a big fan of companies backed by good, honest, hardworking people which makes Starboard just that much better in my book. Todd is also a fan of Starboard and that man loves his bowties!

They just added a few winter and Christmas bows too! These would be perfect for Christmas parties and family pictures! They also make great gifts for your beau so make sure you check out the Starboard website!

In honor of the their new bows, Starboard wants to give one to one of you!

There are a few different ways to enter:

Like Starboard Clothing Co. on Facebook
Follow Starboard Style on Twitter @StarboardStyle
Tweet about this giveaway
Leave a comment here letting me know that you've done so. Don't forget to include you EMAIL ADDRESS in the comment so that I can contact you if you've won!

For multiple entries, do all of them! Two people will also win Starboard koozies!

Deadline to enter: Friday, November 25th at 11:59pm.

Dining Room Ideas

2011-11-13T13:12:00.001-05:00

Because you can see the dining room from the front door and from the living room, I want the two rooms to flow together. This is the view into the living room.

You can see the placement of the windows better here..

There are three windows in the dining room. Two will perfectly frame the sideboard and the other looks out onto the back porch. I'm using the same fabrics for the drapes and the accent fabric from the living room will also be used for the dining chair seats. I found a great antique dining table with 6 cane back chairs- it's exactly what I was looking for! I had also been searching for an antique dresser with Hepplewhite pulls to use as a sideboard and I found one this weekend!

It's a good mixture of the white-antique-feminine-rustic farmhouse. I want to do a gallery of framed antique prints on the one bare wall. And I still have no idea what I'm going to put in those display cabinets!

T-minus 5 days until move in!

Christmas Presents

2011-11-05T17:07:00.000-04:00

Source: eddieross.com via _grits on Pinterest

I have to confess something. I hate Christmas shopping. Not so much the act of going to the stores with a Red Cup (from Starbucks, of course) in hand and Christmas music playing in the background because I love that. I love bringing home bags of goodies and wrapping them up with big pretty bows and putting them under the tree. But I really, really dread picking out the gifts. I get so stressed out trying to find the perfect present for each person on my list and the next thing I know, it's December 20 and I have wasted my favorite season running around to a million stores looking for one specific thing that I've actually missed the whole season. Too often I have run out of time trying to figure out what someone special on my list would love, and I'm forced to purchase some generic gift with zero meaning behind it simply because I must give them something. I hate that.

There are 50 days until Christmas. I have not purchased a single gift. I have bought 500 ornaments, candles, napkin rings, countless Red Cups, and already found the Christmas radio station. I want to spend the next 50 days baking, hanging Christmas lights outside, decorating the tree, and finally learning how to make divinity. I want to go on holiday home tours and go to a holiday performance at the symphony. I want to help out someone in need and hopefully brighten their holiday a little bit. I want to watch the Michael Buble holiday special and light my first fire in my fireplace. I want to drive around our favorite little towns in Georgia and pick out our ornaments for this year. I want to go to Fantasy in Lights and ride the trolly with hot chocolate in one hand and Todd's hand in the other.

I don't want to spend the next 50 days stressing out about how meaningless the gift was that I got my grandma or if I thought the gift I bought my sister was better than the one I bought my brother. I don't want to worry about my parents spending money on me. I don't want anything. I just want to enjoy every minute of the next two months.

When I have a family of my own, I don't want Christmas to be a huge present blow out. Not that I wasn't thankful that my parents always went completely overboard when I was a child...but there are very few presents I actually remember. I remember the pajamas and matching robes my mom made for my sister and I and I remember getting my kitten, Olive. But one of my most memorable Christmas' to date had nothing to do with the presents. Christmas morning was brief. We got through the presents quickly, loaded up in the car and spent the next week at a cabin in Maggie Valley, North Carolina. I can remember nearly every minute that we spent there. I remember my chair falling backwards at Joey's Pancake House and me rolling across the dining room in front of a few hundred people (that might be because my sister retells the story every chance she gets). I remember teaching my little brother how to ski and going to that amazing Christmas store where my mom found seaweed for her Christmas tree.

I just wish there wasn't so much pressure and emphasis on Christmas presents.

But don't you think for a minute I won't be the first person in line for the after Christmas sales!

Living Room Ideas

2011-10-29T13:22:00.001-04:00

I just wanted to share with y'all the ideas I have had for my new living room. I am going to take my time finding the right pieces for everything, so it will be a while before it actually looks anything like my "idea board" (which by the way, looks terrible! I clearly haven't figured out how to make the ones that actually look like the room but whatever!)

This is the living room, standing at the front door looking towards the dining room. I apologize for the grainy phone picture. There are a few details you can't see. The big front window for one...it looks direclty into the living room. The stairs are directly to the right in the picture, right when you walk in the front door, and there is a bathroom underneath them. There are also two large columns that kind of divide the living room from the "passage way" to the kitchen. I could stare at this living room forever. It is an absolute dream!

This is what I have in mind.

I like these layouts...

Source: southernliving.com via _grits on Pinterest

Source: Uploaded by user via _grits on Pinterest

Source: decorpad.com via _grits on Pinterest

Wordless Wednesday: Cheerwine

2011-10-26T08:00:00.000-04:00

It's finally available here!

And yes, it does taste better from a glass bottle!

Do you like Cheerwine?

Ruffle Christmas Tree Skirt

2011-10-23T14:50:00.000-04:00

This past weekend I tried my hand at the ever popular no-sew Christmas tree skirt that is all over Pinterest. It was made by one of my absolute favorite home decor bloggers, Miss Mustard Seed. I'm not at all going to pretend like this was my idea. She did a tutorial for HGTV that you can follow to make your own like I did. But I will be honest, it. takes. hours.

It is a lot of work. It's a ton of cutting and a ton of glue burns on your hands. I tweeted a picture of my finished skirt and had a few people ask if they could pay me to make one for them. It's not that it's at all hard, because it's not, but most people don't have 6+ hours to lay on their living room floor gluing ruffles.

It's very sturdy- I made a mistake on one of my ruffles and had to stand on it to pull the ruffle off. It might be possible to make in other colors too, if natural linen isn't your thing.

If you would like for me to make you one, I have made an ETSY store to sell them.

DIY Christmas Trees

2011-10-23T10:00:00.000-04:00

I've had Christmas on the brain all weekend. I was browsing through my "Old School Pinterest" (read: binder full of magazine rip-outs) and came across a little Christmas decor project. I used foam cones (found in the floral section) for the forms and lots of hot glue.

My appliques of choice were scrunched up tissue paper, a thick fluffy yarn, and silver and white glitter. You could also use those little pom pom balls in the kid's craft section, feathers, or a fun festive fabric. They would be really cute in a cable knit fabric or red burlap for texture.

I added this cute little trim to the bottom of one. The glitter was hard to capture but I'm sure with Christmas lights near it, it will be sparkly.

I found the silver taper candle sticks at Michael's but Wal-Mart sells clear crystal ones for a few dollars if you want something less visible. The cheaper the better since you are gluing them to the cones. Also, Michael's seems to have more cone sizes than JoAnn's. They had one that was larger than these three...I might go back for that one.

My Favorite Bookcase

2011-10-20T13:20:00.000-04:00

This bookcase is still my favorite piece of furniture. I bought it back in February at Scott's Antique Market in Atlanta. I have changed very little with the shelf styling since I first put it together. In fact, I think the only thing I did was swap out that lettered cone shell for an antique camera and add a few more old books (a few hand dated in 1904!).

I'm faced with a situation. In 4 weeks, I am moving. Into a beautiful house in a historic district here in town. That's right. I am finally trading in the "luxury apartment living" (HAH!) for a house with a beautiful front porch, transoms, coffered ceilings, wood floors, and bungalow-style built ins.

The only problem is, the entire interior is painted a greyish blue color. While it's a beautiful color that fits in with the historic neighborhood...my go-to color for the past 2 years has been teal. And the two just do not go. I can deal with replacing shower curtains, lamps, bed linens, and throw pillows but I do not want to paint this bookcase. The teal color is what caught my eye and made me buy it. I probably wouldn't have noticed it if it had been any other color.

This bookcase is so me. The things that fill it are some of my absolute favorite things and inspire me. I'm not in love with the bottom two shelves...I need to work on those.

I'm trying to get away from the "shabby seaside" (note: NOT tacky beach condo) decor that I've been drawn to the past few years. I've got big ideas for my new house! The redecorating process has absolutely consumed me the past few weeks. I think I've finally got an inspiration board that I'm pleased with. Stay tuned for that!

Cinnamon Sugar Nuts

2011-10-19T09:00:00.000-04:00

Everyone loves those sugary cinnamony nuts that they sell in every mall come December. I have tried a few different recipes in the past that weren't just right. I found this one on Pinterest and using that bloggers method with a few changes of my own, I think I found a winner!

Ingredients:
1/3 cup water plus 2 tablespoons water
3/4 cup white sugar (for step 4, an additional 1/8 cup)
1/4 cup brown sugar (for step 4, and additional 1/8 cup)
1 HEAPING tablespoon cinnamon (so really 1 1/2)
2 cups of nuts (I used almonds and pecans)
1 tablespoon vanilla

1. In a heavy saucepan, add brown sugar, white sugar, cinnamon, and water.
2. Heat over medium until it starts to boil...let it cook down a bit to thicken.
3. Add nuts and turn the heat up to high. STIR CONSTANTLY until the mixture really begins to thicken and the suguary mixture is really sticking to the nuts. It should dry out pretty quickly and become harder to stir.
4. Remove from heat and QUICKLY add vanilla and your remaining brown and white sugar. Stir, stir, stir!
5. The mixture should stick immediately to the nuts. Dump them out on to wax paper to dry.

After they have dried and cooled, store whatever is left of them (haha!) in an airtight container. They should last a week or two...but I doubt they'll make it that long!

His Auburn vs. My Florida

2011-10-18T09:00:00.000-04:00

I'm trying to forget everything that happened during the actual game but the hours leading up to it were full of fun! I think our tables of food grow with each passing Saturday and luckily this Saturday's night game gave us plenty of time to enjoy it all with friends. A friend from high school drove over from Atlanta to tailgate with us and I am so, so glad she did! We graduated a few years apart and had plenty to ~~talk~~ gossip about. We couldn't have asked for better weather either. (Out of the all of the pictures were took, there are approximately 3 where a certain gentleman wasn't making a ridiculous face. That certain gentleman is in big trouble!)

Here's to next Saturday being a bye week! I think my Gators need some R&R!

(P.S. I told y'all I loved that J.McLaughlin scarf!)

Meeting James Farmer

2011-10-17T09:00:00.000-04:00

If you remember back a few months, I wrote a blog post about one of my favorite do-it-all guys, James Farmer. He creates beautiful floral arrangements and tablescapes, whips up classic southern dishes, and throws together perfectly planned parties. He just came out with a book, A Time To Plant, that is chock full of big beautiful pictures of his work, recipes, and really useful information. And this month, his work is on the cover of Southern Living! Needless to say, I am a big, big fan!

On Friday, I was lucky enough to attend one of his book signings at Frou Frou on Eighth in Opelika, Alabama. Frou Frou on Eighth is a great little floral shop full of southern flair and is owned by a good friend of James'.

James was a delight to meet. He took his time talking and taking pictures with everyone that was there. It's always nice to meet someone you really admire and find out they're even nicer than you'd expected. This was a total Justin Beiber fan moment for the grown up southern girl!

James' book would make a fantastic Christmas present for the gardening/entertaining lover on your list. If you have a chance to go to one of his book signings (dates and locations on his website) in your area, you won't regret it! And rumor has it, James will be on The Today Show on Tuesday, October 25.

Perfect Cords For Fall

2011-10-08T00:12:00.003-04:00

I have been searching high and low for a pair of ivory skinny cords for fall. Every pair I tried on were just not right- 6 inches too long (hate getting things altered), looked painted on, no stretch (grr, J.Crew), too low rise, material too thin (hate being able to see the front pockets).

I ordered the Land's End Corduroy Slim Leg Cords last week in ivory with a custom inseam (genius!!). They came today and they are perfect! Perfect length for flats, very soft and comfortable, and not super low rise (which means no muffin top or plumber's crack!).

I would love to see these in a burnt orange color!

Update: I wore them yesterday and they held up great! They held their shape well and didn't seem to stretch out too much. If you're on the "smaller size of a size" then you probably could get away with ordering the next size down- if you want them really snug that is. Or try petite!

(I did not receive any form of compensation for this review.)

Pumpkin Spice Muffins

2011-10-02T17:42:00.001-04:00

Pumpkin Spice Muffins
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon cinnamon (I gave it a few extra shakes for good measure)
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cloves
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 1/2 cup pumpkin (1 can)
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla

cream cheese filling:
4 oz cream cheese (I used reduced fat and kept it cold so that it wouldn't run everywhere)
2/3 cup powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Whisk together all of muffin ingredients (no special way...just put them all in a mixing bowl and give them a good whisk).
3. Mix together cream cheese filling ingredients.
4. Using my 1 1/2 T cookie scoop (cookie scoops are one of my FAVORITE kitchen tools. They make baking so easy.) I put one scoop of muffin mix in the bottom of each muffin liner and gently evened it out across the bottom. Then I put about a 1 1/2 teaspoon scoop of cream cheese filling right in the center but don't spread it out.. Then I put another 1 1/2 T cookie scoop full of muffin mix right on top of the little dollop of cream cheese and gently spread it out around the edges so the cream cheese was hidden.
5. I gave each muffin a little shake of cinnamon sugar and baked them for approximately 15 minutes.

Yield: 12 muffins

Tip: Pumpkin baked goods are even better cold so keep them in the fridge!

Fall Bucket List

2011-09-19T22:04:00.001-04:00

What are some of the things on your fall bucket list?

P.S. Have any of y'all had the APPLE CRUMBLE latte from Starbucks? I think we must be part of the test market because no one on Twitter had seen it offered at their Starbucks. Well, let me just tell y'all- it's delicious!! It is far better than the pumpkin spice latte in my opinion! I hope it becomes available to everyone so y'all can try it!

Recent Reads

2011-09-18T16:05:00.000-04:00

I was one book short this month! I try to read five books a month but two of the books I read this month were a little longer than normal so I guess it's okay.

The Color Purple is a classic. It's not the most exciting read and the language can be tough but it's a classic.

Same Kind of Different As Me is now one of my favorite books. I ugly-cried through most of this book and when I was done, I literally just sat there and stared at the wall. This book really, really touched me.

I think I've found a new favorite author! I love Diane Chamberlain! I loved both of these books and could not put them down. Lots of mystery, drama, little bit of love story- I'm really looking forward to reading more of her books.

Have y'all read any of these?

I also finally got around to watching Something Borrowed which was really cute- and Dex is mighty cute too! I also watched Fried Green Tomatoes this weekend which is one of my absolute favorites. I didn't even realize that Sipsey is also Constantine in The Help!

First Tailgate Of The Season

2011-09-12T22:37:00.002-04:00

Y'all, I am just not a fan of 11am game times! We got to campus around 8am on Saturday but it just doesn't give you enough time to enjoy the tailgate!

We started out with bloody mary's and mimosas (I found a great champagne at Total Wine that made perfect mimosas...I will be sure to share it when I remember the name.)

We had a table full of good food. I brought my pumpkin spice cake pops, hashbrown bake, chicken salad and rolls, and the other girls brought monkey bread, pigs in a blanket, fruit kabobs, crescent-wrapped brie, and a few other goodies. Early games are tough to plan food for because it's got to be something that can hold up for a few hours and typical tailgate food just isn't appealing at 8am. I think we did a great job covering all of the bases with this one.

Now let me tell y'all about these bloody marys! I had every intention of making my own mix but with 5+ hours of travel time to get to Auburn, I had to limit the things I could make and bring. I was standing in front of the bloody mary section at Total Wine and a man picked up a bottle of Zing Zang and said "this is the one you want." So I went with it. I rimmed the glasses with bacon salt that I found at World Market, Todd hunted down Bakon Vodka, a shake of Crystal hot sauce, and pickled okra. For being pre-made, the guys loved them!

Despite the beautiful forecast, it was stinkin' HOT. I was very glad I stashed a little bottle of SPF 70 in my wristlet. We were all a sweaty gross mess afterwards. I can't wait for the cooler games!

I had a very sweet lady make a few gameday outfits for me. I basically drew her pictures of exactly what I wanted and she stitched them up! I have an outfit planned for every game already!

Ps. Todd and I are planning on going to the Auburn @ South Carolina game...are any of y'all? We love making new friends. :)

You can share your tailgate blog posts at The Belles of Saturday.

Recipe: Pumpkin Spice Cake Pops

2011-09-09T09:45:00.000-04:00

These were a labor of love. I wanted to make an orange treat to take tailgating this weekend. I used my pumpkin whoopie pie recipe and turned it into a cake pops. I mixed the cake as the recipe says, but poured it into two round cake pans (a large sheet pan would work just as well) and baked it until a knife came out clean when poked in the center. I let them cool and crumbled them up into a large bowl. I used the same cream cheese frosting, too. I just dumped the whole batch of it into the crumbled pumpkin cake and mixed it up. One great thing about pumpkin is it makes a really moist cake. It sticks together well which makes this whole process a little easier I think. I used a small cookie scoop to make equal size balls and rolled them smooth. I stopped at 35 balls because I just didn't need 100 cake pops. This cake makes a TON. I then melted a very small amount of candy melts in the microwave (about 30 seconds) and swirled lollipop sticks in it before sticking them into the cake balls. (Candy melts and lollipop sticks can both be found at Michaels, Hobby Lobby, JoAnns, etc). Dipping the end of the stick into the candy melt before putting it into the ball helps the ball stay on a little better. I lined them all up on a cookie sheet and stuck them in the fridge overnight.

Today I took them out of the fridge and let them reach room temperature. Now, I know all of the cake ball pros out there say to freeze them, do this, do that...I was overwhelmed with all of the different ways to make these so I just kind of winged it. I poured my candy melts into a glass bowl and melted them over a pot of water- SLOWLY. If you melt them too fast, it'll lump up on you. I also added a few spoonfuls of Crisco so that it would thin out a bit. One cake pop at a time, I gently spooned the candy over the cake ball and used the spoon to help it cover. If you try to dunk them in the candy, the ball will more than likely fall off. Give it a good coat and then stick it on some wax paper to dry. I topped mine with cinnamon and chopped pecans. I also made a few with just plain orange sugar for those who don't like nuts.

I am also not putting these back in the fridge or freezer. I don't care what anyone says, candy sweats when you take it out of the fridge or freezer and they'll look terrible, so they're staying out until Saturday!

I already know I do not have the patience to make all of the fancy cake pops there are out there. These look adorable all tied up with their little ribbons but lawdy! They take some time, y'all!

Recipe: Crock Pot BBQ Pulled Pork and Simple Slaw

2011-09-03T19:37:00.003-04:00

Crock Pot BBQ Pulled Pork

Pork Butt Shoulder (For reference, I'd say 2.5lbs would make 4-5 sandwiches)

Root Beer (Buy name brand- the cheap stuff is too sweet. I might have also bought the glass bottles because I'm a sucker for nostalgia.)

Salt and Pepper

Your favorite BBQ Sauce (I like vinegary BBQ sauce...I'm definitely NOT a ketchup based sauce girl. I got mine from a restaurant in Georgia.)

1. Cover your pork butt with a good layer of salt and pepper. I think I also threw some garlic salt.

2. Put your pork butt in the crock pot on HIGH and set the timer for 8 hours.

3. Pour root beer into crock pot until it's about 1/2 way up the pork.

4. Cover...and wait. I did flip my pork over about half way through.

5. At the end of the 8 hours, shred up the pork with two forks and cover with your favorite sauce.

Simple Slaw
Whole mess of thinly shredded cabbage
a shake of salt and a shake of pepper
1 tsp celery seed
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup mayo
1/4 cup cider vinegar

Put it all in a jar and shake it up. I make this several hours ahead of time so it has time to sit.

Now, I wouldn't eat a whole pile of this on it's own as it's not your typical sweet mayo-ish slaw. I like mine very vinegary and ON my BBQ sandwich. I want it drippin' down my arms!

Recipe: Hashbrown Bake

2011-09-03T12:51:00.002-04:00

This is a simple and delicious recipe that is perfect for those early tailgates. You can make a big dish of it and it still tastes good at room temperature. You can easily add other things. If you'd rather brown up some sausage, instead of using ham that would be okay, add mushrooms, onions, whatever you want really!

I prefer to use the Simply Potatoes Southwest Style Hashbrowns. You could use plain if you wanted but these just give so much flavor.

You can use a large disposable casserole dish if you're talking it to a tailgate...just double the recipe. You don't have to be exact. Just throw in your veggies and meat so they've got a good amount of egg, milk, and cheese mixture swimming around them.

If you don't like bell peppers well...I'm not quite sure what to tell you.

It doesn't photograph so well but I think that's a requirement of The Best Dishes.

Hashbrown Bake
(This makes one 9" pie plate...You might need to double or triple this recipe if you're using a bigger dish.)

1 package Simple Potatoes Southwest Hashbrowns
Butter
1 cup chopped cooked ham (in the meat section, already cooked and chopped up for you.)
1 cup shredded cheddar (I used a shredded mexican cheese that I had on hand)
1/2 cup diced bell pepper
3 large eggs
1/2 cup milk
salt and pepper

1. Preheat oven to 425.
2. Press hashbrowns into a 9" pie plate. Dot with butter.
3. Bake for 20 minutes until it's slightly golden. Lower oven to 375.
4. Beat eggs and add milk and cheese. Add diced bell pepper and ham (I don't measure these, I just throw in as much as I want..)
5. Pour mixture into hashbrown shell.
6. Bake until it no longer giggles in the center..usually about 35 minutes.

Giveaway: State Traditions

2011-08-28T09:00:00.005-04:00

This giveaway is CLOSED! The guys over at State Traditions have chosen Palm Trees, Pearls, and Everything Southern! Thanks all for entering!

Six more days, y'all!! To celebrate the start of football season, State Traditions wants to give one of y'all a hat and koozie to help you (or your significant other!) tailgate in style! State Traditions is a company out of Birmingham that specializes in shirts and accessories that reflect traditions across the country. They offer products for 15 different states, in various team colors. Their products are a great way to show your team spirit without wearing the same hat that everyone else is wearing. I can imagine someone seeing your beau wearing one of these hats at a tailgate and saying 'I wonder where that guy got that hat!"

While you may not be a hat-wearing type gal, I'm sure your boyfriend or husband would love to have one! And you can never have too many koozies! I have opened up the comments to EVERYONE, so you don't need a blogger account to enter.

To enter:
1.) Follow State Traditions on Twitter or "like" them on Facebook.
2.) Leave a comment here letting me know you'd like to be entered and which hat you'd like to win.
3.) YOU MUST INCLUDE YOUR EMAIL IN THE COMMENT!
Winner will be chosen Friday, September 2.

Recent Reads

2011-08-19T12:37:00.000-04:00

Here is what I've read since I showed y'all a month ago. I don't usually read a lot of memoirs but three of these are true stories and I'm reading a forth now. Summer at Tiffany was really cute. I love the 40's, 50's, and 60's so I find myself drawn to books written for that time period. I think this would make a cute movie, too. Still Missing is basically the fiction version of Jaycee Dugard's book. In fact, I think she saw the story on the news and wrote the book. It was still good, as good as that type of book can be. I really struggled with The Glass Castle. It took a long time to get into it, and while I can say I enjoyed it after I was done reading it...I don't know. I'm kind of apathetic about it.
Does To Kill A Mockingbird need an explanation? My only request is that the movie be remade by the same director that did The Help. How great would that be?!

ETSY: Football and Tailgating Goodies

2011-08-16T22:31:00.002-04:00

Any of these are a great addition to your tailgate! A few of the items are available for other schools so make sure to check out the sellers stores. (I was not given anything for telling y'all about these items, I just like to support the little man.)

These picnic baskets are adorable! There are a few other schools available...sadly, no blue and orange!

This Auburn platter is a steal at just $8! (ETA: Apparently the seller changed the price to $38.00...hm, not cool.)

This chandelier is just crazy and fun and would be cute hanging from your tailgate tent.

Cupcake wrappers

Deco Mesh Wreath

Banner and Pom Poms

Seaside

2011-08-15T12:56:00.000-04:00

We spent the weekend on the gulf beaches. It was hot, hot, hot!

Luckily, we had a tent which made it bearable until about 3pm when we had to call it quits!

The view was more enjoyable from the 11th floor, in the AC! I'm such a wimp!

Got lots of Seaside goodies to bring home. Including a cookbook I've wanted- because the cover is pretty...duh!

I didn't take nearly enough pictures. We went with two other couples and sadly, we only have one picture of our whole group and I don't have a copy of it. I think it's the heat...I don't want to move much less pull out my big camera to take pictures. It just turns me into Oscar The Grouch. The End Of Summer Beach Trip means it's time for Heat and Humidity to pack their bags and get the heck outta dodge! They have overstayed their welcome and I'm ready for their more enjoyable friends, Fall and Leaves, to arrive!

Southern Living Idea House

2011-08-09T11:18:00.005-04:00

I realized that I never shared with y'all when we went up to see the Southern Living Idea House in Senoia, Georgia. I know I shared pictures over on Seasonally Southern but I don't know how many of y'all follow that blog so I figured I would repost them here. Plus, I'm hoping that the more I talk about fall and winter, the sooner they will get here.

The Idea House is obviously the one on the far right. All new construction and while beautifully done, I kind of wish they had found an old factory or school to renovate.

I loved the animal murals on the walls of the baby's room and of course the transoms above every door. And a Jack and Jill bathroom between the two was just perfect.

Master Bedroom

Master bedroom sitting area. I love sitting areas in the bedroom!

The master bathroom was flawless! Attached by a hallway of built-ins, the tub, his and her's vanities- ah! Love!

While the house itself was beautiful, the details are what really made it amazing. We obviously went in December so the house was decorated for Christmas. There were magnolia wreaths and garland swag everywhere. And burlap bows on the middle floor staircase! I also really appreciated that they used antiques from local antique stores.

Half bath, middle floor.

The kitchen was absolute perfection! I love the idea of having this separate room off of the kitchen to house your upper cabinet needs. It's a great prep area for parties so you can leave it a mess and keep the main room of the kitchen tidy. The kitchen was, naturally, my favorite room in the whole house.

Loved this sitting room off of the kitchen. There was a TV behind the picture above the fireplace. I hate being separated from the action when I'm in the kitchen and this way, you stay in the conversation while you're cooking.

Dining Room and Living Room connected to the kitchen by big rolling doors.

Great use of typically wasted space!

Family room, bottom floor. I loved that rolling turquoise door (with it's original hardware!). LOVED.

Outside living space, downstairs.

I won't inundate you with more pictures than I already have... The top floor had a craft room and another family room. I took away some great detail ideas for when I renovate a house of my own one day. I also learned that I can like browns. I'm usually drawn towards white (and of course, turquoise) but I loved the decor in this house. If you ever have a chance to visit a Southern Living Idea House, you absolutely should!

And as if this day could have been any more perfect..it snowed while we were there!

Crafty Weekend

2011-08-07T19:21:00.003-04:00

I made my first deco mesh wreath! I saw a blue and orange wreath on ETSY and decided to make on myself rather than ordering it. I think it turned out pretty cute. I really struggled with what to put on it though. I'll probably add something else.

I ran into a few beginners problems- I bought the wrong wreath form and couldn't find the standard type used to make deco mesh wreaths so I improvised. I used a foam form, covered it in blue ribbon so the white form wouldn't show through, and used floral pins to pin the mesh in place. I found the glass football ornaments at Hobby Lobby and used floral pins to hold those in place as well. The laces on the footballs were in the wrong place, so I just drew new ones on them with a gold paint pen. I am pretty pleased with my first try.

ETA: I'm not going to do a how-to because there are loads of videos on You Tube. That's how I figured it out! I could only find Poly Deco Mesh at Hobby Lobby (my Michael's or JoAnn's didn't carry it) but you can also order it from this site; they have a bunch of great colors! The blue in my wreath is from the 21" roll and the orange is from 5.5". The method closest to mine is this one.

Planning Ahead

2011-07-29T11:40:00.000-04:00

I got my 2012 planner yesterday. I absolutely love getting a new planner (almost as much as I love a brand new pack of good pens...and the two together, woo lawdy! Almost too much excitement to handle!) Last year I used a turquoise (shocking, huh?) leather one from Gallery Leather. I got it at Barnes & Noble for about $15 and I really liked it. The selection on the Barnes & Noble website is pretty lacking but they have fun colors in the store. The leather date deskbook from Graphic Image is nearly identical (although a heck of a lot more expensive!)

Erin Condren's Life Planner's are all the rage among bloggers this year and while they're really cute and customizable, I prefer to have lines to write on. I went with the Spiral myAgenda.

I don't know if this one is new this year but I don't remember seeing it before. It came yesterday and is absolutely perfect! I wasn't sure if the cover would be substantial enough to go without the leather cover since it is technically a "refill" but it's hard plastic and just fine! It also came with a convenient little "myEssentials" booklet for your addresses and online login's and passwords. Overall, well worth the $24 and I'm really happy with my choice. Every single weekend from September 1-December has something planned. Just the way I like it!

My 26th birthday was Wednesday! I bought myself a few little presents including white jeans, a chunky gold bracelet. I got a few giftcards from my family and best girlfriends that are burning a hole in my pocket but I'm trying to save them for my mile-long fall wishlist!

Thank you all for your book recommendations! I think I made 10 trips to the bookstore in the past few weeks. I've got plenty of choices now! I think I'll do a monthly update on what I've read. You can also friend me along on Goodreads- there is a link over on my right sidebar!

Recent Reads

2011-07-19T14:55:00.000-04:00

I am way, way behind on the Emily Giffin bandwagon. I read Something Blue first and then Something Borrowed but I am okay with that because it made me love all of the characters equally. These two and Love The One You're With are my top picks. Heart Of The Matter was good...just not as good as the others. (Does anyone else think Emily Giffin must have been cheated on because every one of her books has someone cheating!) I haven't been able to find Baby Proof in any local bookstore and I'm an instant gratification kinda girl so I'd rather not order it online. Plus, I've heard it wasn't the greatest so I'm not in that big of a hurry to find it. Tell me I've heard wrong?
Little Bee took me three attempts to get through the first 40 pages. The climax lasted about 20 pages and then it was boring again. I'm glad I finished it because I love the feeling of shelving a newly read book but I don't think I'd recommend it to anyone.

Tell me what I should read next. And for the record, YES, I HAVE READ THE HELP. If you suggest it, you need a lesson in reading comprehension!

Last Shuttle Launch

2011-07-14T17:34:00.001-04:00

Last Friday we made a quick trip a few hours south to see the last launch of the space shuttle. I have seen more launches (in person) than I can count but I felt it was important to go down for the last one. Some say that nearly one million people came to see it. (I realize that 99% of the world doesn't care about NASA but if you had any clue how many everyday things/luxuries came from NASA, you might give it a second thought.)

Unfortunately, it was very overcast and probably one of the must "blah" launches I've ever seen. The blanket of clouds muffled the rumble a little and once it went through the clouds, we couldn't see it. We couldn't see the solid rocket boosters fall off either. Bummer!

Sea Island

2011-07-05T13:44:00.001-04:00

The Cloister, Sea Island

We went to Sea Island this weekend to see some friends who have been coming over every summer for years. Todd and I have been up to St. Simon's and Jekyll Island more times than we can count- it's a great quick little day trip and always more fun to experience it with friends. We had lunch at Brogden's and then spent the afternoon shopping before meeting back up with the boys at the beach.
Have you ever been to Sea Island or the Jekyll Island Club?

J.McLaughlin Giveaway!

2011-06-21T17:05:00.001-04:00

One of my favorite items in my closet is my orange printed J.McLaughlin scarf. I got it last fall to wear to Auburn and Florida football games once the weather started to cool down but ended up wearing it everywhere. I had been eying it on the J.McLaughlin website for a little while and put in a call to my local store in Ponte Vedra to see if they had one. I think it was a Wednesday and I told the sales lady that I wanted to wear it to a football game that Saturday. She called around until she found one, had it overnighted to the store (at no cost to me!), and I was wearing it on Saturday. (In fact, they hunted down the navy gilchrist dress in New York for me, too. I'm a sucker for amazing customer service and they have never let me down.) I get so many compliments on this scarf- in fact, many of you have commented on my blog or Twitter asking me where I got it.

I think one of the best accessories you can have is a great scarf. It adds so much to an outfit with minimal effort. J.McLaughlin scarves are really soft (so they're extra cozy for travel) and they don't wrinkle. They're lightweight enough to wear in the warmer months, too. I've worn it with plain white t-shirts, dresses, jeans and boots, boots and skirts, I could go on and on...

Eliza from J.McLaughlin emailed me a few weeks ago and asked if I'd like to do a giveaway. One lucky person will win one of my beloved printed scarves (in the color of their choice).

To enter you must "like" J.McLaughlin on Facebook and follow them on Twitter. Please comment letting me know you have "followed" and "liked" and don't forget to include your email!
Deadline: Tuesday, June 28.

Wordless Wednesday

2011-06-08T16:37:00.000-04:00

My birthday is next month. Just sayin'.

Buffalo Chicken Lettuce Wraps

2011-06-07T00:28:00.000-04:00

I feel silly even calling this a recipe but several people on Twitter asked about it so I thought I would share my simple little meal with you complete with cheese iPhone picture. This is one of my favorite simple go-to dinner ideas. I love, love, love PF Changes lettuce wraps. I think they are one of if not the best thing on the menu. I also love buffalo chicken wings. I love spicy food.
I use chicken cutlets because they're thin and they cook fast. I lay them all out on a broiler pan or baking sheet. In a small bowl mix buffalo sauce of your choice with a little melted butter. I try not to eat butter on a regular basis (I obviously always use it while baking or cooking important meals) so when it's just me, I use the "I Can't Believe It's Not Butter" spray. I literally unscrew the spray cap and pour a little into the bowl with the buffalo sauce. Sounds gross but less calories wins in my book. If you ever wonder what makes buffalo wings at a restaurant taste so good- it's the butter mixed in with the buffalo sauce. You can skip this step if you want.
I brush the sauce onto the chicken cutlets and broil them until they're cooked through. Usually around 15minutes flipping halfway through.
Using a knife and fork, shred the cutlets up and cover in more buffalo sauce.
I like my lettuce very cold and crisp. I usually wash the head of lettuce and put it back in the fridge while my chicken is cooking.
You can top these with ranch dressing, water chestnuts, avocado would be good...anything!

Terrariums

2011-06-06T16:45:00.000-04:00

I always pay close attention to the decorations in Anthropologie. Lately they have had terrariums all over their tables and shelves. The good thing about terrariums is that they allow you to grow plants in your home that otherwise probably wouldn't make it (unless kept in a bathroom) because of their need for humidity. I really shouldn't be giving anyone plant advice because I killed my Buddy Purple within two weeks of having it and burnt a birdsnest fern right up!

I bought some cheap apothecary jars at Homegoods and river pebbles at JoAnn's. In the bigger jar I decided to use a Silver Leaf Fern because it doesn't need as much light and likes higher humidity than other ferns. Because I plan on keeping the lid on the jar, it is going to get steamy in there!

In the smaller jar I needed something that was going to stay small. I love Hen and Chicks succulents because they're uniform. My type-A personality needs uniformity.

The rocks on the bottom will hopefully help with drainage. I tend to overwater.

Mine are very, very basic but I don't exactly have the best track record with growing things. We shall see!

I like these too..

images via google

Just please don't put a plastic dinosaur or mushroom in yours. ;-)

All Things Farmer

2011-06-05T01:22:00.001-04:00

I wanted to share one of my favorite blogs with you. Our friend Brian introduced me to James Farmer's blog, All Things Farmer a few months ago. James is a landscape designer turned great cook, party planner, decorator, and connoisseur of all things southern. His blog reads like an issue of Southern Living and we all know those are words to live by. I am a huge supporter of the farm-to-table lifestyle and will live vicariously through James' blog until I have a garden of my very own.

I had a hard time narrowing down which bits and pieces of his blog to share with you (you really just need to mosey on over there yourself)...

Peach Tart

This will be a perfect addition to my Peach Recipes Folder that I have been working on. Surely I'll need quite a few good recipes for the peaches Todd and I pick in the next few weeks. ;-)

Where to find the best sweet tea on the road.

Just look at his Peach Dinner...Is it not perfection?

This tablescape just does it for me.

He's has a book coming out this September and I hope to catch him at one of his book signing.

He also has a website where you can read more about his services. It's never too early to start perusing his special events planning...is it? ;-)

(All images are from www.allthingsfarmer.com and www.jamesfarmer.com)

Jack Daniel's Distillery

2011-06-03T09:03:00.001-04:00

The Jack Daniel's Distillery is in Lynchburg, Tennessee. We hadn't planned on stopping there on our way to Nashville but that's the beauty of traveling without an itinerary. I have to admit that I wasn't entirely on board when Todd mentioned he would like to take a tour of the distillery. Whiskey isn't really my cup of tea but once we got there, I really enjoyed it. The drive to the distillery is beautiful. The rolling hills, red barns, white fences...I could get used to that!

The large grey building up on the hill in this picture is where they keep the barrels of whiskey. If I remember correctly there are about 70 barrel houses on the property and they are huge! We saw them on the horizon before we even got into Lynchburg. They don't allow pictures inside any of the buildings.

Back when Jack Daniel's was started (in the mid 1800's) , this is where all of the business was conducted. If everything looks like it's got a dusting of black powder in these pictures that's because it does! Apparently it is common for the trees and buildings around breweries to grow a black mold because of the yeast that is used. It's harmless and actually makes everything look really "rich".

The tour lasted about an hour and at the end...well, Lynchburg is in a dry county...so we got a nice glass of lemonade. ;-)

Occasional Chairs

2011-06-01T17:00:00.001-04:00

I would love to have a bold occasional chair for my living room. I don't, however, want to pay $500 for it. I thought y'all would enjoy these cheap(er) options from Target...

Swoop Armchair- Floral $199
Clybourn Loft Armchair- Smoke $379.99
Canary Print Slipper Chair $299.99
Athens Slipper Chair $299.99
Abstract Print Slipper Chair $299.99
Gerber Slipper Chair $299.99
Bethesda Upholstered Chair $299.99
Coventry Armless Nail Button Chair $299.99
Curves Hourglass Chair $169.99

Don't forget to use Ebates and you'll get 3% back! Plus, Target ships for free since it's over $50!

Nashville

2011-05-31T14:54:00.002-04:00

We had another one of our signature jam packed busy weekends. We got in the car at 6am on Friday morning and pointed it towards Nashville. It took us approximately 12 hours to make a 5 hour trip because one of the best things about driving to your destination is that you're able to stop along the way. I'll save the Jack Daniel's Distillery tour for another day.

We had lunch in Decatur, Alabama at Big Bob Gibson's BBQ. They were featured in this month's Garden & Gun magazine (if you don't subscribe..you should. It's one of my favorites.). The BBQ was good, their famous white sauce was good (different but good), but their lemon ice box pie was amazing!

We met up with Megan and her boyfriend, Sean. We had dinner and a fun night out in Nashville. I wish we lived closer because these two are an absolute hoot! We had a great time experiencing downtown with them.

On Saturday we explored downtown Nashville and went to Hatch Show Print.

For those of you who aren't familiar, Hatch Show Print is one of the oldest letterpress print shops in the US. The shop is filled with previous posters and all of their wood blocks. It really is a neat shop. I love the idea of having a custom poster/invitation made for a rustic wedding.

One of my very good friends got married on Saturday night. We drove out to beautiful Franklin for the ceremony and back to town for the reception at the Hutton Hotel. The groom and I have been friends for 14 years and I was so happy to see him marry such a sweet girl. I should have taken more pictures at the wedding (and I should have taken my nice camera...I only had my point and shoot with me. bummer!)

On Sunday before leaving town we went took an impromptu tour of the Belmont Mansion. Belmont is a small (beautiful) college now but you can tour the mansion that was built in 1849. They still have about 40% of the original furnishings in the house and cast iron gazebos outside.

Question...

2011-05-25T23:01:00.000-04:00

Something today really made me think. Being a part of the blog and Twitter world allows us to share so many of our day to day struggles with everyone around us. It's great therapy and for most of us, it feels like we have 50 of our best friends sitting in our living room crying right along with us. I've noticed more and more than when someone shares something sad, scary, worrisome, etc on Twitter or their blog, the most common response is "Oh I'm so sorry. I'll be praying for you." It comes from nearly everyone whether they are believers or not.
What I'm wondering is...how many of you actually follow through with those prayers?
I am willing to bet that 60% of the time people say "I'll pray for you"...it never happens. It's almost become the trendy thing to say instead of "I'm so sorry...let me know if there is anything I can do." I'm guilty of it. We are all. We get caught up in our to-do's and forget that we had promised a prayer. I try to write in my prayer journal every night. I forget some nights. Okay, I forget a lot of nights. When I sit down to write, I do pray for what is weighing heaviest on my heart but I honestly just forget some. I will tell you that if I know I won't pray about something for you, I won't tell you that I will.
Maybe I'm wrong. Maybe everyone who says "I'll pray for you." really does and I'm just the odd man out.

Weekend in Alabama

2011-05-24T00:33:00.002-04:00

We had a very busy weekend! I was on the road at 4:30am on Friday. We had lunch plans in Auburn with one of Todd's good friends, Brian. After lunch Brian (smarty pants horticulture professor with a bunch of fancy letters after his name) took us on a tour of Auburn's greenhouses. Todd and I both love plants and I especially love growing things you can eat! We picked a fresh carrot right out of the ground, rinsed it off with a garden hose and ate it. I wasn't surprised that it tasted completely different (much better!) than a carrot from the grocery store.

Brian told us all about the research they were doing. I really loved the organic greenhouses where they were growing black cherry tomatoes (which tasted exactly how a tomato should taste!) and green bell peppers. One of the guys working in the greenhouse showed us the box of bees that pollinate the organic greenhouse. If they didn't let the bees do the work they'd have to hand pollinate all of plants with an electric toothbrush!

A few more stops to see friends and we made it to Birmingham around 10pm. I was completely pooped! We were up bright and early for breakfast with Brian, Allyson, and their precious little boy Caden! We haven't seen them since football season when Allyson was still pregnant so I was very much looking forward to meeting their new addition. He is such a good baby- barely made a peep all afternoon!

After breakfast we went to the Pepper Place Farmer's Market. I love love loved this farmer's market. I was on the hunt for peaches and despite being not quite ripe, I have still eaten 6 of them since Saturday. :-/

I wish Jacksonville had a farmer's market like this one. I couldn't really buy much being so far from home. Big bummer!

Next up was the Birmingham Botanical Gardens.

Before we knew it, it was time to head back to the hotel. The main reason we went to Birmingham was to attend one of Todd's fraternity brother's wedding.

The ceremony was short and sweet (about 20 minutes!) and the reception was lots of fun! I obviously LOVED their choice of getaway car and they had dueling pianos! How fun is that!?!

Next weekend...Nashville!

Baking and Bowties

2011-05-19T09:30:00.001-04:00

How neat is that? (Imagine that it isn't completely out of focus, argh!) Todd's birthday cake turned out much better than I had hoped. I wasn't sure what to expect but he confirmed that it was delicious and I was obviously pleased that the layers were pretty. I wish I could share a recipe with you but the truth is, I had a few recipes printed out when I started and ended up mixing them all together and making up my own steps in order to get it just right. I had a few mishaps...the frosting being a big one. One of the recipes called for melting the butter and then letting it thicken. That was obviously a mistake but one I did not realize until I had about 3lbs of melted chocolate that resembled ganache and would not thicken. I started over with a simple chocolate buttercream and added the ganache to it as the liquid. Honestly, this cake is really just a simple cake recipe (doubled) and a buttercream frosting. I did use throw away tin cake pans because in the beginning I thought it would be easier than washing cake pans over and over to get the 10 layers but in the end- being able to slightly bend the tin pan made getting the very thin layers a "piece of cake" to get out of the pans. I didn't rip a single layer! If you have any specific questions you can email me!

This weekend we are heading up to Birmingham for a wedding and next weekend we are off to Nashville for another!

I got Todd this bowtie from High Cotton Ties.

Honestly, I love buying bowties. They come in such fun prints and colors and the crazier they are the better! I'm really quite sure Todd doesn't mind that I enjoy buying them so much. This one just so happens to match the pink Kate Spade dress I'm wearing this weekend...

2011-05-14T07:00:00.000-04:00

Happy Birthday, Todd!

Made him a 10 layer birthday cake...

It took about 5 hours to make.

It better be good!

Wordless Wednesday (...kinda)

2011-05-11T10:25:00.000-04:00

Words to live by...

Anita's Garden Shop

2011-05-05T19:05:00.000-04:00

Several weeks ago Todd and I were walking around my favorite part of town and we found the most perfect little flower shop.

Anita's Garden Shop is full of potted flowers and plants, beautiful wreaths, unique pots and other accessories. We left that afternoon with several plants and I've been waiting for another opportunity to visit them again.

Last week I was looking at flowers on 1-800-Flowers and several other flower delivery websites and noticed that the majority of them are no longer delivered by local florists. They're shipped from the wholesaler or from a warehouse in a box and you have to put the arrangement together yourself. I don't know about you but having someone ring my doorbell with a beautiful arrangement with a big ole happy bow on it is 99% of the fun of getting flowers. I don't want a box of buds that I have to put together myself. And this is killing the local florists! People open flower shops because they love flowers and these large flower distribution companies are bypassing the little guy! It's only a matter of time before it shuts them down. That makes me sad!

I gave up on ordering flowers and stopped into our favorite little garden shop today. They do fresh cut arrangements as well but I love the idea of giving someone a beautiful potted plant that they can watch bloom again and again. They were so helpful!

I picked out what I wanted in each pot and she "dressed them up" as she called them with moss, a bow, and a little card. I can't wait to give these to my mom and gramma this weekend. I chose orange begonias for both of them and my gramma's has some neat ferns and ivy mixed in with it.

I encourage you to use your local flower shops! And if you're sending flowers to someone out of town- search for a flower shop in their area and call them directly rather than ordering from the popular websites. That's the only way these mom-n-pop's will stay open. They aren't getting much business from the big websites anymore!

Key Lime Pie Recipe

2011-04-30T23:05:00.000-04:00

I promise this will be the last recipe blog post with crappy iPhone pictures. I have been forgetting to take real pictures before it's too late to take them. No more, I promise!

Key Lime Pie

5 egg yolks
1-14 oz can sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup key lime juice
graham cracker crust

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Beat 5 eggs lightly. Add can of condensed milk and key lime juice. Beat until just mixed.
3. Pour into graham cracker crust (you can buy this already made or make your own...whichever you prefer).
4. Bake for 15 minutes. Allow to cool and refridgerate for a few hours before eating.

Garnish: I top mine with a squirt of whipped cream and almond slices.

And before anyone asks, NO, regular Persian limes are not the same thing as key limes. You can use whatever lime you feel like using but it's not truly key lime pie unless you use key lime juice. You can buy key lime juice concentrate if you don't want to squeeze the limes yourself.

Pound Cake Recipe

2011-04-30T12:24:00.000-04:00

Might be a little behind on this one. This week was an absolute blur and I'm glad to see it go! I made this pound cake last weekend for Easter. It's a great classic pound cake. My personal favorite is lemon but I'm not one to turn away any flavor. This recipe came from Southern Living. I also made the custard sauce in the recipe but I was not a fan. It was a little to tangy for my liking- I'm more of a glaze kinda girl.

Classic Buttermilk Pound Cake

1 1/3 cups butter, softened
2 1/2 cups sugar
6 large eggs
3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 325°. Beat butter at medium speed with a heavy-duty electric stand mixer until creamy. Gradually add sugar, beating at medium speed until light and fluffy. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating just until blended after each addition.
2. Add flour to butter mixture alternately with buttermilk, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Beat at low speed just until blended after each addition. Stir in vanilla. Pour batter into a greased and floured 10-inch (12-cup) tube pan.
3. Bake at 325° for 1 hour and 5 minutes to 1 hour and 10 minutes or until a long wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan on a wire rack 10 to 15 minutes; remove from pan to wire rack, and cool completely (about 1 hour).

Up next: the unbelievably easy and probably-the-best-I've-ever-had key lime pie that I made last night.

Easter Weekend

2011-04-24T23:02:00.001-04:00

I failed to plan this weekend and I'm afraid we spent a good part of it laying around on the couch watching movies on the new Roku that Todd brought me. I have a confession to make...I don't have cable. I'm going on a year now and haven't missed it a single minute. Even when I had cable I never watched TV. You couldn't pay me to sit down and watch at primetime TV show. As a result, I can't name most actors and haven't heard of the majority of TV shows that are on now. I have never been a fan of awards shows and even more so now because I have no idea who these people are. I do like movies and especially ones that are based on true stories or books that I have read. We rent movies from the Red Box here and there but I think it's a drag to have to take them back and I tried Netflix back in college, lost the first DVD I rented and ended up paying like $20 for some Lindsey Lohan movie. I'm a mess, I know!
Every month I would pay my cable bill and think "wow, I didn't turn on the TV a single time this month"..such a waste of money. So I cancelled it. I'm still learning the Roku but it's basically like having Hulu, Netflix, Amazon Movies, and a bazillion (actual number) other channels and movie at the click of the remote! I can watch 60 Minutes, episodes of Sarah's House on HGTV, or any movie I could think of. And Pandora! It's quite a neat little thing. You do have to pay a few bucks for some of the movies but it's nothing we wouldn't pay at Redbox. I guess that's how this weekend ended up in such a lazy haze!

I've been looking forward to Easter for quite sometime. I love our little church. We started going to a new church last Fall and they are just the most loving kind people I have ever met. They have reached out so much to us and always make us feel so welcome. It's definitely something that was missing from my other church. There are only about 40 members but they all make it a point to ask us how we are or send an email saying they're glad we came. After church I went to brunch with this handsome man and his bowtie!

One of the little boys at church loved Todd's bowtie because he said "spies wear bowties!" I thought that was the cutest thing!

You're never too old for an Easter basket! I made Todd a little basket full of his favorite beer from a local brewery and candy, obviously!

I made a delicious buttermilk pound cake for this weekend. I'll share the recipe a little later.

I hope you all had a wonderful Easter!

Southern Living Weddings

2011-04-10T18:00:00.001-04:00

First, before any of you ask, no, we are not engaged. And that's all I'll say about that!

I was contacted by Southern Living earlier this week to do a review of their new wedding idea guidebook. While I am not planning a wedding of my own, wedding season is upon us and chances are if you're not planning a wedding, you're attending a wedding, and let's be honest- we all love seeing pictures of a great wedding.

I saw this Southern Living special a few weeks ago and gave it a quick thumb through at the checkout. I try not to be that token girl who buys wedding magazines although I'm not planning a wedding or the one who wanted to buy the smocked baby outfits down although there aren't any baby Grits in the near future (whoops).

This is one great guidebook. I also love that the pages are heavy so it's built to withstand many flip-throughs and dogears- If you're planning a wedding, you need this!

One of my favorite features of the whole book (it's a fav in the monthly SL, too) is the "Made By Southern Hands: Wedding Gifts". Great personal gifts for the bride and groom. I have given the personalized hanger (although I prefer "Mrs So-and-so" rather than the first name) as a gift before and I think (I hope) the bride loved it. It's a great touch for wedding pictures, too.

The second half of the magazine is real weddings...each one more precious than the last. It's to be expected from Southern Living, but I love that all of the weddings they chose had personal touches that were specific to the bride and groom. There aren't any over the top modern weddings in a fancy hotel in L.A. While some are more formal than others, each one stays true to the southern roots you've come to love in Southern Living.

This would be a perfect cake for a Georgia bride. The overturned orchard basket as a cake stand surrounded by peaches. Love it! There are countless unique ideas that would not only make your wedding personal, but would be great for any party really!

Popular dress shops...

I love this list of kitchen essentials. Every newlywed couple needs a fully stocked kitchen...unless they don't cook.

As you can see, I've done enough damage with the page markers!

It's on newstands until April 22. Hurry out and get one (even if you don't really need it).

Winner: Haymarket Design Giveaway

2011-04-04T11:40:00.000-04:00

I'm so glad you all love the beautiful things from Haymarket Designs as much as I do! I picked the winner this morning (after cutting up approximately 150 little pieces of blue paper and writing a name on each one) and the winner is...

Congrats, Mrs. Matched! (And from the looks of it, she's got quite the good luck streak with giveaways. Go buy a lottery ticket!)

The good news is...if you didn't win, Hillary has offered a discount code through the end of April. Enter GRITS for 15% off your order! Now go order something pretty to spring-ify your house or office!

Haymarket Designs Giveaway

2011-03-27T23:02:00.001-04:00

I am really excited about this giveaway from Haymarket Designs (although I am secretly wishing someone else was hosting it so that I could win). I have been thinking about a table tray for a little while now and when I saw a request from Haymarket Designs on Twitter, well...the boring table tray I had in my mind was replaced with these...

And they've been stuck in my head ever since. How cute are they!? I love them! These prints are everywhere right now and this is the perfect way to add a little something without spending a fortune. I'm seeing one of these in my office to hold a pencil cup, stapler, and a julep cup with flowers in it. You can have any design done in a ton of different colors (she does custom color matches, too!):

She also does trash cans, tissue box covers, and picture frames..

If you'd like to win a Haymarket Designs medium tray (I picked the tray because it's my favorite-you pick the design and color!), all you have to do is visit the Haymarket Designs website and leave a comment here telling me what your favorite item/design/color is. Deadline to enter: April 3rd at 10pm.

Dream House

2011-03-23T10:11:00.005-04:00

Todd and I daydream about buying a sad old house one day. It needs to have a badly overgrown yard, crumbling exterior, scary interior, but good bones and lots of history. We want a house that has a story to tell. I see these old boarded up houses all the time and they always make me wonder what they were like back in their glory days. What were their family holidays like? Did they sit out on their big porches and wave to people passing by? I just love to think about the hustle and bustle that once filled them. It makes me sad to see pieces of our history being left to rot.

We spend a lot of time on the weekends driving through small towns saying, "OH! I like that one!" and he will point at the house across the road, 'I like THAT one!" This past weekend we were in Opelika, Alabama when we came across this house. I think I was half way out of the car with my camera in hand before Todd even pulled over in front of her (with a FOR SALE sign in the front yard!).

Sure, it isn't as sad and run down as we'd hope for, the majority of the work had already been done for us, but this house is as perfect as a southern home can be. We walked up on the porch to sneak a peek in her windows. She was just a beautiful on the inside. The wide wrap around porch, the contrast of the big dark door against the white house and grey-blue floor, the columns, the windows, the walk out from the upstairs bedroom, the symmetry, everything was perfect! I pulled out my iPhone and searched for the listing. If there were any possible way for me to move to Opelika, that house would be ours.

Later that night Todd was looking up a website to a store we had passed in town that afternoon. Historic Possibilities has a store front when you drive in to town- they salvage pieces from old homes like mantles, doors, windows, etc. We also learned that they've done some historic renovations....and then....we saw this.

That. Is. Our. House. Just when I thought the Dream House couldn't get any better....

(ETA: I think there was some confusion....they look the same because they ARE the same! Someone got a hold of that run down beauty and restored her to her former glory! Those are the before and after pics!)

Spring has SPRUNG!

2011-03-22T19:00:00.003-04:00

This past weekend was full of fun spring-like activities! I spent the weekend up in Georgia with Todd. We drove over to Auburn on Saturday and spent half of the afternoon looking in the little shops right by campus before getting two giant lemonades from Toomers and spending the other half of the afternoon at the baseball game.

I think we played the timing pretty well because it was a warm day and from what we heard, the first few innings were just plain hot!

We welcomed Spring on Sunday by spending the entire day at Callaway Gardens. The flowers at Callaway right now are gorgeous!

There were tulips and daffodils everywhere and cherry trees in full fluffy bloom!

We have probably been to Callaway 10 times in the past few months and we always find something new when we go. I think our next adventure is the bicycle trails.

There are also huge azalea gardens at Callaway but they aren't in full bloom yet- one of the ladies told us they should be in about 10 days or so.

I had a little old German lady take our picture under the cherry blossom trees (although I had my camera on the wrong setting for the first one so it's blurry! Dang it!). She was nervous at first but I think after she took the first one she really enjoyed it because she started telling us where to stand and how to pose. It was really cute.

There is a plant fair and sale next weekend and I'm pretty sure we're going back. We bought an annual pass this past weekend which gets us some pretty good discounts on different programs and events at Callaway so we are going to make full use of that before it gets too hot.

If you want to read more details about Callaway in the Spring, head on over to our other blog.

Oh, Gatsby..

2011-03-14T01:00:00.000-04:00

This weekend we visited Amelia Island for a famous antique car show. Cars are not really my forte but there were promises of "Great Gatsby cars" so I was in the car and ready to go at a very painful hour this morning. We stayed up entirely too late watching movies last night (Catfish and Inception) and losing an hour with the time change did not help one bit! (sidenote: we stopped for coffee at McDonald's and I got Oatmeal- have you had it? I loved it! But apparently it's got more sugar than a Snickers bar...and I added a packet of Splenda.)

A few of the cars had women (and some men!) dressed in decade appropriate outfits which was by far my favorite part of the whole event. It's so much fun imagining what life was like back when these cars (and clothing) were the norm.

It's nearly impossible for someone who doesn't really know how to use a camera to take pictures in blinding afternoon sunlight. All of my pictures are washed out. Big bummer!

There were plenty of Gatsby-ish cars. I love everything The Great Gatsby (wish they would get on with the production of the new movie already!).

There were plenty of new cars, too. Todd loved the Cadillac CTS-V. Boys will be boys!

The weather couldn't have been more perfect and I was glad to tag along with Todd to do something he wanted to do. Every time I thought about whine- I remembered how much fun it was for him to be drug through the Southern Living Idea House while I ooed and aaahed over magnolia garland and burlap bows. Loads, I'm sure of it! I think we're planning on going back next year- had I known all of the women would be wearing big sun hats I would have worn one too! Next year I'll be prepared! Really though...I'm trying to figure out how I can be one of the period girls and ride around in an old car pretending I'm Daisy Buchanan.

What I've Been Up To

2011-03-09T11:03:00.001-05:00

I spent the majority of last week in Scottsdale for a meeting. I was able to get away for a little while and have lunch with Dirty Martini! I emailed her the minute I knew I would be flying out west and I am beyond thrilled that I was able to see her (I may have been equally thrilled that she brought red velvet cupcakes with her!). I just wish she lived closer (hopefully her nomadic husband will have the same wish and move her to the southeast where she belongs.) I told myself over and over "don't forget to take a picture together" and wouldn't you know...I forgot. Argh!

One of our lunches at the meeting was a really good chicken salad sandwich which reminded me that it's Spring and it's time for chicken salad and one of my personal favorites- tomato sandwiches. I love big ugly tomatoes on cheap fluffy white Merita bread. Yum yum and yum!

I've also got a few pages dogeared for Easter. I really want to make that strawberry pound cake on the cover of this month's Southern Living. Have any of you made it? I'm also dying to make pulled bbq in my slow cooker. I never even had a slow cooker until this past Christmas and after one disastrous attempt at pot roast a while back (I just transferred it to my big trusty All-Clad and finished the cooking) I haven't been back. But I think the BBQ pork could be good. I'm going to give it a try.

Weekend in Eufaula

2011-03-01T02:57:00.000-05:00

This weekend we loaded up the car and headed down to Eufaula, Alabama. Todd has been visiting Eufaula since he was a little boy. His family now owns some property including a pretty lake house they are renovating. Although the main purpose of the trip was to help his dad with a few projects, I agreed to go along because I just love Eufaula and I was promised some beautiful old home site seeing.

I really don't care that the fields of purple are all weeds. I still thought they were beautiful!

In fact, all of the flowers were blooming and I'm fairly sure Todd was very tired of hearing "LOOK AT THOSE FLOWERS!" come Sunday...

There is an old train depot in the middle of town. It's such a neat building and completely falling apart. I wish someone would buy it and turn it into a market or maybe a little place with shops and delis. There were a few bricks with people's names carved into them from the 30's but the date above the door says 1872. The sun was really bright and it was a terrible time of day to be taking pictures so my pictures are a little washed out. Oops! You live and learn...

There is also an old Civil War Jail...

And the Conferderate hospital.

We found the sign from Sweet Home Alabama in the visitor's center.

Our schedules for the next few months are jam packed with fun stuff! We are planning trips to Amelia Island for a old fancy car show, Washington D.C for the Cherry Blossom Festival, Kentucky for Keeneland, a move, a birthday, two weddings, Easter, Mother's Day, and this week I'm heading off to Scottsdale, Arizona for a meeting (which I had to bail on plans we already had to attend). I sure hope gas prices go down or we won't be going anywhere!

Charleston

2011-02-22T09:00:00.000-05:00

As we all know, Charleston is my favorite place on Earth. There is something for everyone there. The food is amazing (I never met a fried green tomato I didn't like). The people are really nice. The shopping is great. The homes are breathtaking and it's rich with history. I couldn't think of a more perfect place! I have gotten more emails than I can count asking for recommendations in Charleston- where to eat, sleep, shop, etc. Todd and I spent quite some time putting together a Charleston Suggestions blog post over on our other blog. If you're planning a trip to Charleston anytime soon, check it out. As always, if you have any questions or want a specific recommendation that isn't listed, feel free to email me. I'm not a Charleston expert but I like to think I know my way around a little. Also, if you have any suggestions of your own that we haven't listed, feel free to leave them in the comment section over there so others can be sure to check them out.

The Teal Bookcase

2011-02-20T19:46:00.000-05:00

I've been working on filling up my bookcase that we got at Scott's last weekend. I have wanted some type of bookshelf or sideboard for a while now to display all of my little finds...I was running out of end tables and counter space. I had to recruit the poor maintenance man to help me get it out of my car and into the house on Monday and I'm sure he was cursing me the entire time.

It's still a work in progress but I'm sure it's one of those things that I will change a little every time I walk past it. That rusty black fan was a Scott's find too. I've been looking for one for a while so I was very happy to find one for the right price last weekend.

All of the old books are Todd's finds. The three on the upper shelf are a series that we found at different stores so I think we will try to find all of them.

And I absolutely love my mint julep cup of cotton. I have a big apothecary jar in the guest bathroom full of cotton bolls but I couldn't find one that would fit in between the shelves so I just stuck them all in a mint julep cup. If I run across a smaller apothecary jar then I will probably switch it. I'm pretty pleased with the way it turned out.

My Valentine

2011-02-15T11:44:00.000-05:00

Another weekend, another adventure. This weekend Todd and I went up to Atlanta to Scott's Antique Market. It's something that has been on our list of things to do for a little while now so I was really looking forward to it. We both love looking at old things- he's more of a books, toys, farm tools, and cars and I'm more of a kitchen stuff, rusty baskets, and jars. We spent all day Saturday walking around looking at the hundreds of booths in the exposition center and still didn't see it all! We had to go back on Sunday to finish. My sweet valentine made dinner reservations at a fun fondue restaurant for Saturday night. I really liked celebrating valentine's day a few days early... it felt like a more special day and not everyone was out to dinner because that's what Hallmark told them to do.

I have to be honest, Todd does sweet things for me all the time. He always brings me little presents, does sweet things for me (like this weekend when I got in the car after antiquing all day to find 2 tin ceiling tile picture frames on my seat that I had mentioned liking earlier in the day that he bought without me knowing), and jumps in the car the minute I say I want to do something without hesitation. I drag him along to all of these silly home tours, antique shows, and little road trips- and although he says he likes doing these things too....I appreciate that man so much. He makes every day seem like Valentine's Day.

$100 Giveaway!

2011-02-06T20:23:00.001-05:00

I've got another awesome giveaway! Y'all know how much I love Ebates. Whenever I hear someone say they are going to order something online, I always remind them, "Don't forget to use Ebates!". For those of you who don't know how Ebates works...
Say I'm going to order something from a website, well, before I go to that website I log onto my Ebates account, type the name of the store in their search bar and click their "shop now" link. a code will be generated automatically and the original store website you want to stop from will open. You just go on shopping like usual. Every store has a different cash back percentage and sometimes Ebates will have special double cash back periods which mean even more money back! Each quarter you will get a check or deposit into your Paypal account. There is absolutely nothing fishy about it. I've used Ebates for two quarters so far and cannot believe how much money I have gotten back just for going to one simple website before I make my purchase. They also have any available discount codes listed right there with the website link to make it easy for you! I cannot sign it's praises enough! I LOVE Ebates!

My friend Rob over at Ebates has offered to give one of my readers $100 for signing up for Ebates! You must follow THIS LINK to sign up for the giveaway. It will log your email address next week Rob will pick one winner. Your Ebates account will be credited $100. Just like that!

Here are some great deals for Valentines' Day:
20% cash back on Teleflora (AND additional discount codes!)
20% cash back at FTD (and additional discount codes!)

Sign up here! Giveaway ends February 14.

Apothica Giftcard Giveaway

2011-02-04T09:00:00.000-05:00

Spring is coming up and that means it's time to ditch the heavy dark make up and refill your bag with bright pink blush, pretty glosses, and light tinted moisturizer instead of that heavy foundation. To help you do that, I am hosting a giveaway from Apothic a for a $50 gift card! Apothica carries a ton of great brands, Bobbi Brown being my favorite.

Hands down, my favorite Bobbi Brown make-up product is her pot rouge in pale pink. I have used this for years (the same pot, too..it lasts FOREVER) and I will not be giving it up anytime soon. The best part about this is it gives your cheeks a dewy look that is perfect for summer when powder blush can start to look cakey in the humidity. It's easy to throw in your purse and reapply with your fingers or a little sponge.

I also love her cream shadow in beach honey. I have super dry skin so the cream products always work best for me. They stay on all day and even act as a primer if you want to put another shadow on top of it.

To enter this giveaway you must do one of the following:
1.) Write on Apothica's Facebook wall.
2.) Tweet about Apothica (Bonus if you retweet Apothica's tweet about this giveaway)
3.) Write something on your own blog about Apothica. (Bonus if you write about my fav Bobbi Brown and link to Apothica.)

Leave me a comment here telling me which one you did and I will enter your name into the drawing. If you do all of them, I'll enter your name 5 times! PLEASE include your email so that I have a way to contact you if you win.

Deadline: February 18, 2011

Spring is a-comin'!

2011-02-02T22:55:00.000-05:00

It was 78 degrees here today. I feel so much more comfortable and attractive in bright spring and summer clothes. I love wearing dresses and pretty fabrics. I like color! I don't know how to dress myself in the winter and the colors are all so drab! Many of these pieces will be making their way into my closet very soon and I cannot wait to wear them. (Some of them are already there, woops!)

I'm also seriously considering buying a sewing machine and making my own dresses. It's rare that I find something that fits perfectly- dresses just aren't made for girls with butts! Spring and summer will give me plenty of practice and then I'll be ready for football season! I always have a gameday outfit idea in my head but can never find the perfect dress- I might as well make it myself! My mom can sew very well so lets hope I've got some of her talent.

Chicken Pot Sticker Veggie Soup

2011-01-30T18:26:00.000-05:00

I saved this recipe from Danica's Daily (one of my favorite meal idea blogs) a few weeks ago. I finally made it over to Whole Foods last night to find pot stickers since we don't have Trader Joe's here. I wasn't able to find the mini pot stickers so each serving has half as many pot stickers as hers does but that doesn't change the taste at all. I loved this!

2 tsp sesame oil (I just used olive oil because I didn't have sesame)
3 carrots, peeled and sliced
2 summer squash, halved and sliced
2 c fresh sliced white mushrooms
1 garlic clove, minced
32 oz Organic Chicken Broth
3 Tbsp Annie’s Organic Teriyaki Sauce (I probably used 6 tbsp and it was a little salty)
1 tsp (dashes) Srirachi or your favorite hot sauce (I used Crystal and added probably 4tsp)
1 tsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 Package Trader Joe’s Mini Chicken Pot Stickers
6 c Organic Spinach
4 Scallions, sliced

1. Heat sesame oil in a large sauce pan over medium heat. Add carrots through garlic and sauté for four minutes. Add Teriyaki Sauce, hot sauce and chicken broth. Bring to a boil.
2. While the soup boils, heat the olive oil in a medium skillet and add pot stickers. Cook for two minutes or until slightly browned and remove from heat.
3. Add pot stickers to the soup mixture and boil one minute. Add the spinach and cook for an additional minute. Remove from heat and stir in scallions, reserving a small pinch to top soup boils.

I didn't use exact measurements or times when I made mine. It's a soup. Cook, taste, add, cook, taste, add. You get the point. I loved that this didn't make a huge pot of soup that will go to waste- it's just enough for a few meals.

New Orleans

2011-01-25T15:11:00.000-05:00

I'm still recuperating from a long weekend in New Orleans with some of my favorite ladies.

We ate amazing food. Including beignets. Twice. And a memorable dinner at Commander's Palace.

Bought beautiful new shoes.

Saw an unbelievably gorgeous girl get married to a very sweet man. Still dreaming about that chocolate-whatever-it-was-with-the-long-spoon. I'll let her share pics first.

Experienced a little Nola flava via hysterical street performers, artists and piano bars.

Any trip with these girls is one to be remembered. Unfortunately Pretty in Pink Meg's car was stolen from the valet lot at the hotel on Saturday and a cabbie threatened to pull a gun on us when I asked if he wanted to play cash cab. I think our next trip will be to Charleston- we need a little purification after this weekend.

Sunrise Saturday

2011-01-16T22:43:00.001-05:00

I had a date this Saturday with a handsome man and a sunrise. He joked as we piled into the car at approximately 5:00am that I am the only person he knows that likes to wake up earlier on the weekends than I do on weekdays. It's true. I despise waking up early during the week (and I rarely do thanks to the World's Best Job) but I could not think of a better way to spend a Saturday. I will save the full details for our little travel blog in case any of you would like to go there too (it should be up later this week) but I couldn't wait to share the pictures with you now.

There is a beautiful place not too far from here..

There aren't many people, not a gas station for miles...

There is driftwood covering the entire beach.

It was well worth getting up at 4:30am on a Saturday for. Well. Worth. It.

I think the beach is more beautiful in the winter.

We left with hands full of sand dollars. I grew up on the beach and had never found a real sand dollar.

And then I ate the best butter pecan french toast in the world with this handsome man.

I loved this Saturday.

Pistachio Pudding Cake

2011-01-14T03:51:00.002-05:00

This recipe has been around for a long time and I'm sure y'all have all heard it if not make it yourselves. I had forgotten all about it until one of Todd's friends brought up pistachio pudding the other day. Thankfully, I will have company this weekend and if the cake isn't gone by Sunday, someone will have it in a to-go box. I can't be trusted around this cake! It would be a great cake to make on Easter and obviously St. Patrick's Day. It's super simple and can be doctored up any way you want!

1 box white cake mix
1 small box of pistachio pudding
4 eggs
1 1/4 cups water
1/4 cup oil
1 tbsp some type of extract (I actually used 1 tbsp of vanilla butter nut extract and a splash of almond extract)
(And yes, I added about 6 drops of green food coloring to enhance the color of the pistachio pudding. A little "enhancement" never hurt no body!)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix all ingredients together and pour into a greased bundt pan. Bake for 50-55 minutes. After removing the pan, run a knife around the edges gently to loosen the cake. Place your plate on top of the pan and flip it over. It should come out easily. If it doesn't- you're probably going to have an ugly cake. ;-)

I topped it with a simple almond glaze. I mixed approximately 1/4 cup powdered sugar with a splash of almond extract and a few splashes of milk. Stir it up, if it's too thick, add a little more mix. Drizzle over the top. Let the cake cool before glazing it or it'll run right off.

You could add pistachios to the mix, you could glaze it with an orange juice glaze, you could frost it completely. And if anyone asks, you tell them that yes, you absolutely made this cake from scratch, it took hours, and you are really quite exhausted.

Hey, four eyes!

2011-01-13T08:00:00.006-05:00

I need new glasses. I got my first pair in high school when I couldn't read the board in chemistry class. I remember my mom taking me to pick them up and holding them like a delicate little baby because I knew they cost an arm and a leg and because I'm pretty sure my mom threatened that if I broke or lost them she would put me up for adoption but that's neither here nor there. A few years later the frames were dated and the lenses no longer strong enough so I ordered a new pair. And wouldn't you know...I left them in a hotel room. I got another pair (that I never really cared for) and who even knows what happened to those! Sound familiar?
I have been without glasses for over 2 years. I'm sure the other drivers on the road would appreciate it if I didn't have to slow down to 5mph when I approach a street sign so that I'm able to read it, only to speed back up...until I get to the next one.
I'm not spending hundreds on another pair of marked up designer glasses from my optometrist office so I'm ordering from glassesusa.com.

Michele Burgundy $39- Including lenses!

They have a good selection of cute glasses frames (and some designer glasses too!) at prices that won't hurt if you break or lose them.

Alicia Black-- $38 including lenses

I would prefer to buy everything online so you might as well buy glasses online too! It's simple: select your glasses frames, fill in your rx (or fax or email!), and add them to your cart! You can even virtually try them on! And if you don't like them once you get them, exchange them for a different pair of glasses!

Enter Blog10 at checkout for 10% off.

Come Along With Us...

2011-01-12T10:09:00.005-05:00

We have started a new little project. As you all know, Todd and I love to explore the "lesser knowns" and I love to share them with you here on my blog. We were in the car a few months ago and Todd said to me, "I want to start a travel blog. I want to write about all of the places we visit so we can give people ideas of things to do around here each season...and I want to call it Seasonally Southern." And so Seasonally Southern was born. I did a few "test posts" on my blog to see if anyone would be interested in where we were going and what we were doing. Judging by your "y'all do the funnest things!" comments, I'm guessing there are at least 5 of you who would read what we have to say. We get a lot of ideas of places to visit from Southern Living and the old fashioned way- asking the locals. We love local favorites and seasonal ways of fun (ie. apple picking). Todd does a good amount of the writing (and has quite a knack for it if you ask me!) but you'll hear my stories, too. As a matter of fact, we already have several trips planned for 2011! So please...come along with us!

No worries. Puttin' On The Grits isn't going anywhere and I will continue to share little snippets of our journeys but if you want to read more detailed blog posts about them, click over to Seasonally Southern. As always, if you have any suggestions, we would LOVE to hear them. We are always looking for new mom and pop's, local favorite restaurants, farmers markets, neat stores, and small towns with big character!

Comfort Food

2011-01-07T23:11:00.000-05:00

My sister gave me this cookbook for Christmas. I have had my eye on it for a few months now, thumbing through it every time I went into Borders, but resisted purchasing it for myself. I have spent hours, you read that right, hours looking through, tagging pages, making notes in the margins and even placing the recipes on the tentative 2011 event schedule in my mind. I realized that if I mark every page it defeats the whole purpose of marking the "good" recipes but how can I not!? If all good southern grannies were to make a cookbook of their best comfort food recipes...this would be in. Everything you could ever hope for is in here. Simple recipes like collards and buttermilk cornbread, meat loaf and home-cooked pole beans, fried hot dogs, okra and tomatoes, poppy seed-chicken, pound cake banana pudding (I mean, SERIOUSLY.), and divinity (I have dreams about divinity!).

There are great stories throughout the recipes. And a foreword by Pat Conroy!

"Comfort food is a secret but articulate language. It is a way of telling families how important they are to you, and how much you want them to be happy. But its deepest expression is a wordless and fooldproof way of letting our families know the profound depth of our love for them. Comfort food says I love you without saying a single word."

And this gem! This just screams "TAILGATING!" to me! It's a barbecue sundae, in a Ball jar of course. How perfect is that!? With their slow cooker barbecue pork and root bear baked bears...YUM! I cannot wait to start cooking my way through this. Come to think of it...I think I'll give the divinity a whirl tonight before the Florida humidity comes back...

White Christmas

2010-12-28T20:45:00.000-05:00

We had a white Christmas! We spent 14 hours on the road in 3 days in order to visit my family in Central Florida and Todd's family in Alabama for Christmas. It was exhausting but well worth it! We got the best of everything and when I got out of the car on Christmas night and saw the snow I couldn't stop saying, 'TODD! LOOK! SNOW!!!" I tried to convince him to stay outside and let me play in the half-inch that had accumulated but he won that battle. We spent all day Sunday driving in the mountains and eating at our favorite restaurant. One of my favorite things about the mountains is how different it looks each season- we go up there nearly every weekend that I'm in town and it looks new each time because of the seasons.

I'm really looking forward to trying recipes out of my new cookbooks and planning a trip or two out of my new travel books. I got a really special gift this year (I got a few very special gifts this year actually) from my Gramma. She gave me her cast iron skillet that is four generations old (now 5?). She wasn't able to be with us on Christmas but she taped a card inside the skillet and there is something so special about seeing my grandmother's handwriting explain how the skillet once belonged to my great, great grandma Bessie Elizabeth from Virginia. There are few things in this world that a southern grannie holds near and dear to her heart like she does her cast iron skillet so I am honored to have it!

Winners for the FashionABLE scarf giveaway:
#24 Beth's Blog
#49 Ashlee
#56 Corbie
Email me at puttinonthegrits@gmail.com with your name, shipping address, and scarf choice so I can get them sent out to you!

Sea-Salted Caramel Chocolate Pecan Bars

2010-12-20T01:23:00.002-05:00

I'm not a huge sweets lover. My favorite food group is "salt" so I tend to favor peanut butter or caramel sweets due to the saltiness. I saw a recipe for something similar to this and after I started making it, I added a thing or two here and there and nearly died when I tasted it. It's hardly a recipe. (And yes, I am DARN PROUD of that picture. I had to lay on the living room floor with my plate of goodies to get just the right light!)

Sea Salted Caramel Chocolate Pecan Bars
13 honey graham crackers
1 1/2 cups dark brown sugar
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
3/4 cup unsalted butter
4 tbsp heavy whipping cream
2 cups pecan pieces (If you know what's good for you, you'll only buy 'South Georgia Pecan Company" pecans.)
1 generous cup chocolate chips (I used milk, you can use which ever you prefer.)

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Spread pecans out over a baking sheet and give them a light toast in the oven until they become fragrant. 10 minutes will do.
3. Cover a jelly roll pan (it's a cookie sheet with sides for you non-Martha types..it MUST HAVE SIDES or you'll be cleaning out your oven for days) with parchment paper (if just makes life easier..and NO wax paper and parchment paper are not the same thing. Use PARCHMENT.). Lay out your graham crackers so they are covering the bottom of the pan.
4. In a pot melt together the brown sugar, butter, and whipping cream over medium-high heat until it starts to boil. Remove from heat and stir in pecans and vanilla.
5. Pour butter mixture over the graham crackers and spread it out as best as you can. It's okay if it doesn't cover it completely but try to get it close. It'll spread while baking and fill the rest.
6. Bake for about 15 minutes until it's nice an bubbly.
7. Remove from oven and immediately drop desired amount of chocolate chips all over the top. Let them sit and melt for about 3 minutes. With a butter knife, lightly smooth over the chocolate chips just enough to remove the "chocolate chip shape" and lightly spread the chocolate around.
8. Immediately top with coarse sea salt. Let them harden for at least an hour. You can put them in the fridge for a few minutes to harden the chocolate. Remove the sheet of bars with the parchment paper and cut into desired shapes/sizes with a large kitchen knife.

Enjoy!

Give-To Giveaway

2010-12-14T22:54:00.002-05:00

'Tis the season for giving so I am putting a little spin on the typical giveaway, as I'm sure you all have enough cinnamon-scented candles and note cards to last a lifetime, and I'm going to do what I call a "give-to giveaway".

FashionABLE is a non-profit organization that works with women in Africa who have been sexually exploited due to the effects of poverty. By making scarves, these women are given an alternate means of income which allows them to get out of the sex industry.

I love that fashionABLE helps these women become contributing members of society rather than just handing them money. The fashionABLE mission is to create sustainable business in Africa so that the women are not dependent upon charity, but instead are a vital part of a developing economy.

Giveaway: I am going to give away THREE fashionABLE scarves. There are six different styles and I will allow the winner to choose which one they want. All you have to do to enter is leave a comment telling me which scarf you would choose! You can proudly wear your scarf knowing that it helped get a hardworking woman back on her feet.

Check out fashionABLE's parent organization Mocha Club, too. Their mission is to show that you don't have to give thousands and for $7/month (the cost of 2 lattes..hence the name "Mocha Club"), you can make a huge difference. There are a number of difference projects you can choose from.

Deadline to enter: Tuesday December 21
***I have extended the giveaway until NEXT Tuesday, Dec. 28th!

(I was not given any form of compensation for this giveaway.)

It's the most wonderful time of the year...

2010-12-07T23:08:00.000-05:00

My tree is up! I have to come clean...I put my tree up about a week before Thanksgiving. This is my absolute favorite time of year and I never feel like I get enough time to enjoy it. There is nothing wrong with celebrating Thanksgiving with a pretty tree lit up in the background now is there?

This will probably be the last year that I have an artificial white tree with my teal-beachy theme as my main tree so I'm going to enjoy every last minute with it. This tree, along with the my Pottery Barn seagrass section, will probably find it's way into a sunroom in the very near future!

Last weekend we went to Eufaula, AL (which was in Sweet Home Alabama) to visit Todd's family. I had never been to Eufaula before and being the sweet man that he is, Todd was more than willing to make 14 circles through downtown so that I could take pictures of all of the beautiful homes.

We also explored a few small towns on Sunday on our way to our main destination (which deserves it's own blog post). I tell ya...there is nothing better than small town America.

We've got exciting plans this weekend with The Brocks Rock family and I am really looking forward to it! I apologize for the picture overload lately. We go so many neat places every weekend I want to be able to take you all along with us.

Gift Ideas

2010-12-03T01:39:00.000-05:00

Last year I posted a few fool proof gift ideas and I'm happy to say I still love every gift I listed (and own every single one of them). Here are a few new gift ideas for the hard to shop for...

Mongrammed Silver Plated Julep Cup $24

What southern girl wouldn't love a monogrammed julep cup? You could use it for the obvious, or even for make up brushes on your bathroom counter or pencils on your desk.

Saddle Leather iPad Cover $59

This would be a great gift for a brother-in-law or a boss. Monogrammed of course.

Monogrammed Throw $49

I don't know anyone who doesn't love a good blanket. While Barefoot Dreams blankets will always be my absolute favorite, they aren't they most budget friendly. These look cozy too and would look even better draped over the arm of the couch.

The Laura Mercier Creme de Pistache collection is making an appearance again because I absolutely love it. I ran out of the souffle a few months ago but they now have hand lotions, sprays, and a few other goodies. It isn't the cheapest stuff in the world so you better like the person you're buying it for. I was going to say it would be good for a mother-in-law but then we go back to the whole "like the person you're buying it for" thing... ;-)

My last idea...I was actually given this a few years ago by one of the ladies that I work with and I thought it was really creative. It'd be a good for a gift swap, secret santa, etc where you don't really know the recipient. Get a cute popcorn bowl (Target, Walmart, etc all carry some type), and fill it with a couple boxes of candy, some microwave popcorn, and either a popular DVD or a giftcard to get a movie. Does Redbox do giftcards? Or Netflix? Put it all in the bowl with some crinkly paper in the bottom, wrap it in plastic and put a bow on the top. Done and done!

Craft Project: Moss Covered Letters

2010-11-30T21:41:00.000-05:00

While driving around looking at houses this weekend I saw a giant moss covered letter hanging on a front door. I've seen them in magazines but never in person and seeing it from a distance, hanging on that front door, I knew I had to have one. Luckily, they're very easy to make. You can buy them on ETSY and other websites but I'm just rather make things myself.

You will need a big letter (this one is 23", I think), moss, a ton of glue sticks (I used about 20 mini glue sticks on one letter), and a ribbon of choice.

You have two choices. You can buy a bag of loose moss and simply glue it all over your letter or you can do what I did and buy sheets of moss. It is a thin layer of moss with mesh on the back. I traced the letter onto the mesh and cut it out. I needed two sheets of moss for a 23" letter.

Glued the moss on. If you use a smaller letter, one sheet of moss should be okay.

Attach the ribbon! You can easily change the ribbon for the season.

After I hung it on my door, I realized it was a little too big for my tiny apartment entry and would be much better suited for a house so it'll be on it's way to a dear friend. I made a smaller version much more suitable for my humble little abode...

I got all of these supplies at a regular craft store. Enjoy!

Weekend Travels

2010-11-29T00:37:00.001-05:00

I'll refrain from posting 25 pictures of a turkey since I'm pretty certain that is what every other blogger will be doing. We've all seen a turkey, right? Todd spent Thanksgiving with my family which meant a lot to me. I hadn't seen my parents since Easter so it was good to get back home and spend a few days with them. It makes me sad to see our family gatherings get smaller each year- whether people die or just decide to stop making the drive, it seems like we lose a few each year. My grandfather, the anchor of our family, died a few years ago and it just hasn't been the same since then but we make the most of it.

We took advantage of the beautiful sunset and took some pictures out on the golf course. My nutty little cousin wanted to be in the middle of every picture and after looking at the pictures we had taken, we joked that it looked like we were trying to take a family picture out there!

I was so lucky to be able to spend the past 6 days with Todd. According to Twitter, I have turned into a complete cheese ball so I'll spare you all the details but we sure did pack a lot into the past few days! This weekend we drove up to St. Simon's Island and Jekyll Island. We visited the Retreat Plantation ruins...

And went to my favorite shop, Dutchman's, on Mallery Street before having dinner at Barbara Jean's and finishing the night with divinity from the sweet shop.

We explored a few other sites after dark and have already picked a weekend to go back so we can get good pictures.

After church today we drove around and looked at houses...one of my favorites...

I am exhausted and no where near ready to start another work week. I need a weekend to recover from my long weekend!

I Got A New Toy!

2010-11-21T15:12:00.001-05:00

A few weekends ago Todd and I were up in the mountains driving around enjoying the beautiful leaves. We pulled over to take some pictures, both pulled out our point and shoot cameras, and I asked him why he never uses any of his big-fancy cameras. He immediately opened up the back of his jeep and started pulling out cameras left and right, lenses, tripods, and all kinds of other doohickeys I can't name. He spent the rest of the afternoon giving me a photography lesson that I enjoyed way more than I ever thought I would. I've never really had a huge interest in photography but I think passion is contagious and the more excited he got about showing me things, the more excited I got about learning them. The next thing I know, I had a brand new toy on it's way to my door.

Last weekend was my first time using it and while my pictures are still really bad compared to what this camera is capable of, I'm really looking forward to learning how to use it. Thank God Todd is a patient man and loves to teach because I am a pain in the butt! He did a great job helping me pick out my camera and I am very happy with the purchase. I may have even gone as far as to tell him I was glad I bought a camera instead of the new Louis Vuitton bag I had my eye on...

Here are a few of my favorite pictures so far (click to enlarge):

I also ordered a camera strap (because let's be honest, it's necessary) from the ETSY shop Cotton Candy by Natalie and am waiting for it to arrive. I'm still on the hunt for a cute (and affordable) camera bag.

Emerson Made

2010-11-20T23:26:00.000-05:00

I am in.love. with Emerson Made. I want a flower pin in every color- the possibilities are endless! You could attach one to a suit jacket, a cardigan, a dress, a winter coat, a knit hat or a cloche, your work tote, or even on a ribbon for a belt. They are so fun! I think one of these beauties will be the first thing on my Christmas List (read: list of things I want and end up buying for myself before Christmas ever comes along). I have been to the website at least 20 times since I stumbled across it and I don't know how much longer I can wait before I order one. If I could just make up my mind about which one I want...
And seriously, how pretty is Emerson? I love her hair!

A Perfect Fall Weekend

2010-11-15T20:21:00.003-05:00

We went to Auburn for the football game...

And won...

Somehow talked Todd into going into the cute little shops in the middle of the game...

Spent Sunday eating good southern food...

And looking at beautiful leaves...

It was a perfect fall weekend if you ask me.

And I got to wear my new scarf!

Special Christmas Tradition

2010-11-07T13:53:00.001-05:00

I'm going to be honest, this is one of those things that my mom did when I was younger and I thought it was really stupid. Once I was old enough to know what she was doing, I rolled my eyes every year she would show me my "ornament for the year". She would tell me, "One day, you'll be glad that I did this! One day you'll have a Christmas tree with your own family and you'll be glad you have these!" Uh huh, right mom! Kind of like the "memory boxes" she made for each one of my siblings and me as we were growing up, the quilts she sewed for each one of our "future children" while she was going through chemo in case she wasn't alive when they were born, and every McDonald's Happy Meal toy that she saved in the 1980's (remember The Hamburgler?). My mom was that mom.
Well...she was right. Last year she handed me a box full of "my ornaments". There is one for every year since I was born, each one hand-labeled.

It's like seeing your grandma's handwritten recipe cards. I don't know that I'll ever put these on my family tree. I like the idea of having a big family tree with our own ornaments on it but I might get a special little tree to put these on that is away from traffic...I would be heartbroken if anything happened to one of them.

I plan on doing this for my children one day and I will tell them, "you'll be glad I'm doing this!!"

Banning Mills

2010-11-02T08:29:00.002-04:00

This weekend we tested our limits a little and went zip lining at Banning Mills. I'm not afraid of heights so I really wasn't all that scared but I don't think I can say the same for my partner. ;-) Luckily, they started us out with smaller zip lines to get use used to the equipment and ya know, the whole jumping thing.

The entire "eco-canopy tour" took about 4 hours and our feet rarely touched the ground. There were a series of 13 zip lines, several "cable bridges" and wooden ladders (which made my heart feel like it was coming out of my mouth), and some light hiking.

Halfway through the tour...the zip lines got bigger. I'm talkin' 1500 feet long, 50 mph, 300 feet above the river longer.

I think it's safe to say we both had a great time! We picked a "middle package" which included everything except the two biggest lines. Since neither of us had ever done it before, we played it safe in case one of us chickened out (the tours are non-refundable). I think another trip is definitely in our future (hopefully with a bunch of friends in tow!) and we will be able to tackle the screaming eagle!

Good Deals

2010-11-01T14:20:00.001-04:00

I'm not a big fan of Rue La La, Gilt, and sites like that because it's too much pressure. Your heart is racing as you frantically search through the items before they sell out in 2.2 seconds and you usually end up buying something you don't really need just because it's on sale. But one "bargain website" that I do love is Groupon. You sign up, select cities,, and you'll get emails daily with the "daily groupon". I'm not a big fan of daily emails but these really don't bother me. I signed up for my city and Atlanta since we spend a lot of time around that area. This morning I got an email about a deal on 2 tickets to Callaway Gardens for their Fantasy of Lights (which was featured in the Atlanta section although it's a bit away from Atlanta). We had already talked about going so it worked out perfectly that I got 2 tickets for 52% off! I just paid and printed them out! They have coupons for restaurants and things to do around the city.
Sign up here!!

If you shop online a lot, you NEED Ebates. How it works is, you log into ebates, you search for the store you are going to purchase something through and you connect to that website through the Ebates website. Once you make your purchase, you will be credited a certain amount to your Ebates account. For example, you get back 4% from your Sephora orders.) This "rebate" can be used with the website discount codes and the majority of the time, Ebates will tell you if there are any active codes at that particular store. You get your rebates through Paypal or a paper check every few months. (P.S. Groupon is on Ebates, so not only will you already be getting a great discount from Groupon, you'll get a 6% rebate on your purchase!)
Sign up here!!

Also, if you like to read, I think Borders has the best rewards program. It's completely free (the basic one I signed up for is) and I think I get a 30% or 40% off coupon emailed to me every week. If you sign up in the store, I think you get a $5 off coupon right then too.

A Tip

2010-10-27T18:46:00.000-04:00

So this weekend I went from owning zero pairs of boots to owning two that I am completely in love with. Here is a little tip on how to keep your boots from doing the dreaded flop over (I had already "fixed" the pair on the right)...

You take one of these...I know you have a pile of them sitting around because you "might need that Southern Living from June 2004 one day and if you throw it away WHATEVER WILL YOU DO!?" Mmmmhm. Thought so. Roll it up. Stuff it in your boot. It'll unroll inside and hold your boot up!

I mean...I guess you could get all fancy and buy those things you stick in there but I'm much too cheap for all of that nonsense.

[healthy] Broccoli Salad

2010-10-19T22:50:00.007-04:00

1/3 cup fat free mayo

1/4 cup plain fat free yogurt

3 tbsp sugar (I use splenda)

1 tbsp white vinegar (I like to use a little more)

Salt & Pepper

1 bunch broccoli

3 bacon slices, fried & crumbled

1/3 cup chopped red onion

1/4 cup golden raisins

1/2 cup frozen peas, thawed

Apple Picking & Sightseeing

2010-10-11T15:13:00.006-04:00

We are so good at packing as much as possible into a weekend. By the time Sunday rolls around, I feel like I've been on a week long trip and haven't wasted a single minute. Granted, everyone loves a relaxing weekend at home here and there but these are my favorite kinds of weekends.

This weekend we drove up to Ellijay, Ga for the Apple Festival. We didn't really have much of an agenda so after we had had all of the fried festival food we could handle we decided to drive out to Mercier Orchards to pick apples. I have always wanted to pick apples! I have to give Todd credit for going to a festival and picking apples all day on a Saturday during football season! He kept checking the score on his phone and "War Eagle!"-ing everyone he saw. (Thankfully they won...wish I could say the same for my Gators!)

Once we had a trunk full of apples, cider, and gourds, we literally sat in the parking lot looked at a map and said, "Chattanooga? Let's go!" So we went!

We spent the day on Lookout Mountain walking around Point Park and Rock City. We also went up to Covenant College and walked around the campus. It's at the top of Lookout Mountain and makes you feel like you're in another world. It was so quiet, small, and unbelievable beautiful. If I had that view from any place on campus when I was in college I might have actually enjoyed it! We had dinner at The Terminal Brewhouse in the warehouse district of Chattanooga and loved it! The majority of the food is local and organic and they had a beer that tasted like orange juice!
Another great weekend on the books and already looking forward to next weekend!

Pumpkin Whoopie Pies With Cream Cheese Frosting

2010-10-07T22:24:00.005-04:00

After a little Twitter talk, I've come to realize that not many people know what a whoopie pie is. We got whoopie pies from the Amish. Amish women would make them for the farmers and when the farmers would open up their lunchboxes and see them, they'd yell "WHOOPIE!" hence the name whoopie pie. They're typically chocolate with a vanilla frosting center like a giant oreo but this version is amazing. You can only make them in the fall and winter when you can buy canned pumpkin. I can't take credit for the recipe. It's Martha's. My only advice would be to make them very small. This recipe says that it makes 12..it really makes about 50 because there is just no way you can eat one the size of your hand. What am I going to do with them all? GET THEM OUT OF MY HOUSE ASAP. That's what.

FOR THE PUMPKIN WHOOPIE COOKIES
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon ground ginger
1 tablespoon ground cloves
2 cups firmly packed dark-brown sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
3 cups pumpkin puree, chilled
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
FOR THE CREAM-CHEESE FILLING
3 cups confectioners' sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Directions

Make the cookies: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or a nonstick baking mat; set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk together flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves; set aside. In another large bowl, whisk together brown sugar and oil until well combined. Add pumpkin puree and whisk until combined. Add eggs and vanilla and whisk until well combined. Sprinkle flour mixture over pumpkin mixture and whisk until fully incorporated.
Using a small ice cream scoop with a release mechanism, drop heaping tablespoons of dough onto prepared baking sheets, about 1 inch apart. Transfer to oven and bake until cookies are just starting to crack on top and a toothpick inserted into the center of each cookie comes out clean, about 15 minutes. Let cool completely on pan.
Make the filling: Sift confectioner' sugar into a medium bowl; set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter until smooth. Add cream cheese and beat until well combined. Add confectioners' sugar and vanilla, beat just until smooth. (Filling can be made up to a day in advance. Cover and refrigerate; let stand at room temperature to soften before using.)
Assemble the whoopie pies: Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside. Transfer filling to a disposable pastry bag and snip the end. When cookies have cooled completely, pipe a large dollop of filling on the flat side of half of the cookies. Sandwich with remaining cookies, pressing down slightly so that the filling spreads to the edge of the cookies. Transfer to prepared baking sheet and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate cookies at least 30 minutes before serving and up to 3 days.

25 Tips for Celebrating The South

2010-09-28T21:00:00.000-04:00

To date, the September issue of Southern Living has been my absolute favorite. It's more of a guide book than a magazine really. I don't think there was a single section that I didn't love. This list came from that issue. I'm going to list it here for safe keeping...

1.) Welcome friends with a beautiful table.
2.) Enjoy the blues.
3.) Write a charming thank you note. (I love sending thank you notes.)
4.) Savor Savannah.
5) Build with barn wood. (I would love a big dining room table made from reclaimed wood.)
6.) Smoke like a pitmaster. (I'll leave this to the men! Every man needs a good grill.)
7.) Keep it sweet. (Make good, true southern sweet tea.) (This goes without saying...)
8.) Float a river. (More times than I can count!)
9.) Put up pickled okra. (I've never made it, but I do love it!)
10.) Do the Texas two-step.
11.) Do the Carolina Shag.
12.) Do the Appalachia flatfoot.
13.) Rediscover Mr. Faulkner
14.) Celebrate small-town mayors.
15.) Grow an heirloom bounty.
16.) Gather 'round at Galatoire's.
17.) Bring back old-fashioned storytelling.
18.) Plant your family's tree. (I want a weeping willow tree in my yard so, so bad!)
19.) Pass along your garden's best. (I will have a garden one day.)
20.) Visit the shrimp docks. (Or go shrimpin' yourself!)
21.) Catch a break in Music City. (I don't know that I'll ever be doing this one!)
22.) Make a pie crust. (Check!)
23.) Make a perfect apple pie. (Check!)
24.) Honor the queen.
25.) Count your blessings.

Do you have any to add?

Auburn vs. South Carolina

2010-09-27T21:26:00.004-04:00

I had such a great weekend! I spent the weekend with Todd and, as usual, couldn't have asked for a better weekend. I had never been to an Auburn game before, actually I had never been to a game that Florida wasn't playing in so it was a new experience.

Auburn has a beautiful campus and while tailgating, we walked around and I got the full tour! I saw Samford Hall, got lemonade at Toomers, didn't walk on the seal, and if you're on Twitter you probably already know that I ran into a few of some of my favorite bloggers. It was approximately 150 degrees outside and we were all melting!

Amy, Me, Blue Eyed Bride, and All Things Fluffy, Fashionable, and Famous

EKM and myself

SEC games are always great and this one did not disappoint. I love all of their traditions. I saw Tiger Walk, I got to see their legendary eagle fly and land on the 50 yard line and after a hard earned win, we went back to see everyone roll Toomer's corner.

We went up to Pine Mountain and Callaway Gardens, ate at the Callaway Gardens Country Store (which was really, really good..)...You know when the 75% of the plate is brown that it's going to be good!

Despite the rain, the drive and the view from the restaurant were really pretty! I'm really looking forward to going back once the leaves start to change!

Recipe (kinda): Ahi Tuna Salad

2010-09-21T20:43:00.003-04:00

I went to a local restaurant called Salt Life Food Shack a few weeks ago for the first time and I had an ahi tuna asian whatever salad that I absolutely loved. I tried to replicate it last night and even though I cooked the tuna a little too long it was still really good...so good in fact that I made it again tonight and did a much better job on the tuna. This definitely isn't "fall food" but I'm just not ready for all of that heaviness yet.
To make this:
1. Salt and pepper (and sesame seeds, if you want) a fresh piece of tuna. Lightly oil a grill pan and, over medium, slowly sear both sides of the steak. I cook it until there is just the smallest amount of pink around the sides. Once it's cooked to my liking, let it sit on a cutting board for a few minutes.
2. My salad contains chopped romaine lettuce and a bunch of coleslaw cabbage mix from a bag (this is serious cooking business right here!). And because I've got a problem with avocado, a bunch of chopped up avocado. In my defense..it was on the salad from Salt Life so I was just trying to be authentic. :-)
3. For the dressing...I love this: Kraft Light Toasted Sesame Dressing. I hate bottled dressings. I usually always make my own salad dressing but I wasn't feeling it the other night so I just bought a few...I probably bought 4 different kinds trying to find one that I liked and this one is fantastic..and light!