So I don't forget...

Davidism

2012-02-16T21:55:00.001-06:00

"I think people in jail should only eat vegetables, they should not be allowed to have ice-cream or cake." - David Herrington

DIY Camera Purse

2012-02-13T22:02:00.003-06:00

Lately, I have been drooling over all of these lovely camera bag/purses I've been seeing online. I hate carrying our gigantic LowePro backpack when I just need a camera body and a lens or two. Plus the backpack fully loaded weighs a LOT. The only problem with these cute little purses is that they cost $185 and up.

So, I did what any normal person would do and I looked on Pinterest for a do-it-yourself option....and I found this tutorial. I didn't feel the need to reinvent the wheel (or tutorial in this case - this post is just showing my bag - if you want step by step instructions click on the "this tutorial" link above).

I spent a week looking for a purse and finally found one. It's bright orange, which I love. It's good quality soft leather and I got it from Steinmart for $35. Original price was about $90 - so I'd call that a deal.

I went to Hancock Fabric and bought some 1 inch and 1/2 inch foam. The brown and white fabric I already had on hand.

Then I sewed a long pillow case, cut the foam and made a box with a bottom and a divider to separate my camera and lens.

Here is the finished product. It's perfect to carry one camera body and one lens with some other smaller items. If I ever need more than that I'll still have to carry the gigantic back pack, but for most of the day to day picture taking this purse/camera back is perfect.

Teacher Appreciation - DIY Flower Vase

2012-02-13T07:30:00.000-06:00

This week is teacher appreciation week, so each day we will be doing something special for David's teachers. Today we made a vase of flowers for both of his teachers. I picked up some tulips at Publix and some craft sticks at the Dollar Store. I had everything else on hand already.

What you'll need:

Glue gun and glue sticks
An empty can (you see two below because I had two vases to make) - empty and washed
Craft sticks
Emblishments (buttons, fabric, ribbons, etc)

Hot glue the craft sticks to the outside of the can. I used a tiny dot on both ends of each stick. I placed the first stick on the can (so it would be straight up and down and not crooked) and David put the rest of them in place after I added the hot glue to each stick.

Next, pick out whatever embellishments you want to use. David picked out the ribbons and told me where to place them. I added the ribbons since it was more possible to burn little fingers using the ribbons. I also added some buttons using hot glue.

The finished project.

33

2012-02-12T22:22:00.000-06:00

That's how old I am. Today. And yesterday I was 32. So you know what that means, right?

My Brad spoiled me and surprised me with so much. It was an entire birthday weekend. First, we went to dinner with friends (as we do every Friday night) but ALL of my closest friends were there to surprise me. I walked in and was shocked to see everyone and THEN saw my favorite father-in-law! He drove 9 hours to come for my birthday weekend.

We ate some great food, had some adult beverages and Gigi's cupcakes. Then I was gifted some great birthday gifts. Seriously, I'm too old for birthday gifts (but I'll take them!). Even got two new fantastic lenses for our camera. :) It was a GREAT night....I am thankful to Brad for making it happen and for my friends for being there and making the evening even better.

Saturday started with David's basketball game at 8:00 (his team won), then we had to be downtown for him to finish his last mile of the Mercedes Kid's Marathon at 10:00. At 6:00 pm we had a baseball practice (and it was 33 degrees outside), then we went out for BBQ.

I am spoiled. And blessed. And thankful.

MY GIRLS.....

Ava, me and Emily....

My favorite tweens....these girls are awesome.

Me and my man. He's really happy, he just hates pictures and never smiles for them.

And for the rest of the pictures, check them out on Facebook.

Alexa Grace - 1 Year Old - Sneak Peak

2012-02-05T21:44:00.001-06:00

I have had the honor of photographing Alexa Grace since she was 2 weeks old....and this weekend we did her 1 year old photoshoot.

Here is a sneak peak of some of my favorites.

My Lion Tamer

2012-01-29T13:46:00.002-06:00

Basketball Game #3

2012-01-21T12:16:00.002-06:00

Team Herrington had a game this morning. It was a big win (25-7). David scored 15, Kalob scored 6 and Triston scored 4.

Here is David guarding one of his best buddies (on the opposite team).

This is one of our plays. David walks the ball down the court and calls "ONE". They then line up a row right at the top of the three point line. Then David yells "GO" and the all run and spread out. David will either run the ball in to try and shoot a layup or pass the ball to one of the teammates who is open.

David and Davis. Love these two.

Fireworks

2012-01-17T23:10:00.000-06:00

Our neighbors put on a fun fireworks display on New Years Eve that we enjoyed from our porch. Brad was taking some video with our new camera and caught this video.

The part you can't see is that some of the fireworks blew up in the road and into our yards instead of up into the sky. That is what prompted David's "SWEEEET!" comment. He said this while I was slightly panicking.

Homemade Spray and Wash {Recipe}

2012-01-16T08:00:00.000-06:00

I ran out of Spray and Wash today. Hmmmm.

I googled "homemade spray and wash" and came across several recipes, including this one. So I decided to attempt it. As you may recall, I make my own laundry detergent....so why not attempt my own Spray and Wash too?

So I took my old bottle and the ingredients you see below and made some.

Homemade Spray and Wash Recipe:

Pour the following into your old Spray and Wash bottle -

1/2 cup white vinegar

1/2 cup ammonia (this will knock you over, so do NOT take a whiff)

1/2 cup Wisk

Then add enough water to almost fill up the bottle. Shake well. Then use.

After I have had a few washings to use this - I will let you know how it works and will update this post.

If it doesn't work, I'll need to find a use for this gallon of ammonia I now have. :)

Chicken Pot Pie Without Peas {Recipe}

2012-01-15T20:17:00.000-06:00

I have a special spiral bound recipe book that I was given as a wedding present almost 14 years ago. It was blank when I received it and I only write down recipes worth writing down in it (i.e. favorites and/or family recipes). Some of the recipes in this book are Brad's moms Harvey Wallbanger cake, Leslee's Cranberry Relish, Tee's corn pudding (not a family recipe just out of a Southern Living Cookbook), my mom's gingersnap cookies, Brad's mom's dump cake, Jeanine's vegetable casserole, etc.

And Chicken Pot Pie. I should mention that it does NOT have peas in it. Brad won't eat them. David probably won't either. So I leave them out.

Unfortunately, I didn't write down who or where I got the recipe from. I spent about 5 minutes on the internet tonight trying to find this exact recipe and I can't locate it. So....if you are the author of this recipe (like you'd be reading my blog anyhow), then please forgive me and let me know it's yours so I can give you proper credit.

This is worth making. And eating. So get a pen and write this down. Or print it out. Whatever you wish.

Chicken Pot Pie {out of Bethany's Spiral Recipe Book} Without Peas (how's that for the name)?

2 chicken breasts (boiled and chopped up)
1 can corn, drained
1 can green beans, drained
3 potatoes, peeled and chopped
1 cup carrots, peeled and chopped/sliced
1/2 stick butter
1 can chicken broth
1 pint milk (whole milk is probably best, but I use 1%), plus 1/4 cup more
1 tbs dried parsley
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 tsp Cajun seasoning
Pillsbury Crust (found in the refrigerated section

Add the potatoes and carrots together in a pot of water. Boil for 8 minutes. Drain. Mix together with the corn, green beans and chicken. In a pan, melt the butter and add the flour. Cook (while stirring constantly) for 2 minutes. Then slowly add the can of chicken broth and the milk. Cook for 7 minutes or until slightly thicker. Add seasoning and mix well. Pour the cream mixture over the veggie/chicken mixture and mix together.

I think this recipe originally was made to fit a 9x13 pan, but I like to use a pie plate, because it's chicken pot pie....why would you use a 9x13 pan??? You can divide this in half for two pie plates or put it all in one large pie plate. If you use two pie plates they aren't super full, but I like them like this. Spray whatever you use with Pam and spread the veggie/chicken mixture in the pan. Cover the mixture with a crust and pinch the edges. Cut a few slits in the top for steam to escape. You can always use a bottom crust and a top crust, but since I made two pies with this I use the second crust in the package to top the second pie.

Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes or until the crust has begun to brown and the veggie/chicken mixture is bubbly. Your 7 year old son may even love it, like mine did. That makes a mama happy when he enjoys something that I make without having to bribe him to eat it.

Enjoy.

Basketball Season is Upon Us

2012-01-15T17:02:00.002-06:00

Basketball season is in full swing. We've had two games and our record is 1-1.

David is #23 below.

Here he is shooting two foul shots.

W. and David before their first game of the season (playing against each other).

5 years old

2012-01-08T22:04:00.005-06:00

I was looking through our pictures from our trip out west in May 2010 and came across this one of my boy. That was not quite two years ago and he looks like a baby. Waaaaaahhh! He's growing up.

Will I look back in two years of pictures I took this weekend and think the same thing? Probably.

Happy 2012!

2012-01-04T05:00:00.000-06:00

We rang in the new year with some super awesome friends at the Inverness Country Club. They had an adult buffet, kids buffet, a magic show and lots of dancing. David refused to get on the dance floor so he and his buddies played hide and seek all night while the girls danced the night away.

The night ended (at 9 p.m.) with a balloon drop for the kids. We then came home and watched a great fireworks display by our neighbors (while the guy on the other side of them called the cops)!

We had a fun night and are happy to welcome 2012!

That a boy

2012-01-03T21:03:00.002-06:00

One of David's Christmas presents was a hunting rifle. A big one.

Today, Brad, Ray and David went shooting and took their arsenal of guns, including the new hunting rifle.

David shot his gun a few times...it's pretty powerful so he's going to have to get used to it. Check out his FIRST SHOT (close to the right eye...or the foxes left eye). Amazing, huh?

Baby Robert - 3 months

2012-01-01T22:50:00.000-06:00

2011 - A Review

2011-12-28T22:57:00.001-06:00

January - Brad surprised David and me with a big Disney vacation for Christmas 2010. We started out the new year spending 6 days at the Disney Parks and Sea World. It was definitely a magical vacation.

And....I flew to Denver to visit my childhood best friend, Angie. We had a great time and she took me skiing. I was terrible, but didn't get hurt. BONUS!

February - We went hiking at Tannehill.

March - For Spring Break we went to Mobile and New Orleans. We toured the USS Alabama, went to Fort Gaines and the beach, went to a NBA game (Denver Nuggets vs. New Orleans Hornets), and visited the New Orleans Zoo and a few other places and ate beignets. :)

Oh, and I was in Allison's wedding! But I have no pictures to prove this. I did blog about it though.

April - We were invited to spend Easter with some friends and their family at the Birmingham Zoo. David and John Taylor rode a camel too.

May - The 5/6 year old Giants were season champs! Brad was head coach and David played second base.

June - we went hiking with some friends and found a river to swim in.

July - My bff, Cara, followed David's All Star team all over central Alabama to support him and hang with me. Brad was head coach and David played first base.

August - David played football on the K/1 team. Brad was head coach and David was quarterback. These boys below are his best little buddies.

September - David turned SEVEN. And we had a joint birthday party with his friend, Ethan.

October - Girls Night Out at Monica's. Much fun was had by all. And many snacks were consumed, including Gigi's cupcakes.

November - We spent Thanksgiving with some sweet friends and their families. Coach Wade pulled David's loose tooth out. Walker lost his tooth the same day.

November bonus photo....David and his best buddies.

December - David's big Christmas present this year was a hunting rifle. We look forward to teaching him how to use it in the next year and then going hunting in late 2012.

2011 has been a wonderful year. Full of new friends, fun trips and photography. :)

Y'all....

2011-12-26T09:57:00.001-06:00

....Brad gave me/us this for Christmas.

No lie.

I can't believe it.

It is the camera of my dreams. And it takes HD video, too.

Now I need to learn how to use it.

Alexa Grace - 9 months

2011-12-18T22:59:00.003-06:00

Here are a few pictures of my favorite 9 month old little girl, Alexa Grace. Love this sweet baby!

We turned out dining room into a photo studio this weekend. What do you think?

A little shooting

2011-12-13T20:38:00.000-06:00

Last weekend Brad took David and his buddy, D, in the backyard and let them shoot the BB gun (with lots of supervision, of course).

When they finished shooting they counted the holes in each target and compared their results.

Untitled

2011-12-12T19:58:00.001-06:00

This past weekend I took a photography class. I took the class with a friend and had a nice time. My next step will be a 6 week Samford class - maybe after the first of the year. Here are a few of the pictures I took.

DIY Paper Christmas Garland

2011-12-09T15:40:00.001-06:00

While pursuing the internet this week I saw some cute Christmas garlands made of paper. So I decided to make my own.

Here's what you'll need:

- Cardstock in whatever color you choose (I used red and lime green) - I used 9 sheets that were 12"x12"

- A hole punch, the one I used is 1" (I wouldn't go any smaller than 3/4" as the smaller they are the harder they will be to push through your sewing machine)

- Ssewing machine

- Thread

I used my hole punch to cut out about 6 million lime green and red circles. The picture below shows the circles cut from just the edges of the paper you see...you can fold the paper in half and then in half again to get to the center of the paper.

Line your circles up a few at a time on your sewing machine so you can easily slip the next paper circle under the needle.

I kept my stash of extras right in front of my sewing machine so I could quickly grab the next batch.

Here is the finished garland. I sewed several pieces (rather than having one huge garland) and just twisted the thread around the branch where I had left off with the end of the last garland.

This is the skeleton of the paper I used...I'm going to use it to decorate some Christmas packages.

The Davis Family

2011-12-09T08:00:00.000-06:00

Brad and I both worked at Enterprise Rent-A-Car (which I've always said was the job from hell, but the two good things from that time of my life are 1) It made me so thankful for the job I have now, and 2) I made several good friends at ERAC who I am still friends with today). One, or both of us, were there from 1998 to 2001.

While working there we met Jeff and Kelli who also worked there. We set them up. And, yep, they got married. Seriously.

We have all left Enterprise (except Kelli) but have stayed friends ever since. They have two cute boys.

We did their Christmas pictures at Railroad Park (the same day we did the Hogan's) and here are some of my favorites (especially the last one). Hope you like.

Hogan Family Photos

2011-12-08T21:00:00.001-06:00

Way back in 1997 I started college (GASP! - Yes, I am old) at Samford. At school one day I saw a note on a bulletin board advertising for a job nannying for two little kids. I called, interviewed and got the job. I had a fun time and really enjoyed working with those kids (until a decision made by them made me decide I had but to quit). Sad.

I digress.

While I was working for this family Brad got a job with the husband's company. That is where he met Ray. That was in 1998. Brad left that company later that year, but he and Ray have stayed great friends. Back when we met Ray and Melanie - they had no little people. But now they have three cute kids.

A few weeks ago we took some pictures of their family down at Railroad Park. The location was really interesting and urban. I love how the pictures turned out. Here are a few of my favorites (with some extras of Emma).

Boone - 2011

2011-12-06T14:44:00.000-06:00

Brad grew up having real Christmas trees.

I grew up with a fake tree.

When we got married I was super excited to start a tradition for us to get a real tree each year. And that's just what we've done. And all but one year we've gone to a local Christmas tree farm to cut a tree down. But last year was different - we started coming to Boone. You can read about it here.

Well, we did the exact same thing again this year. Except we took 2 days off work and spent a long weekend in Boone this time. It was wonderful.

This year it didn't snow...so that was a huge bummer (and it drizzled the day we cut down our tree)....but being that there wasn't snow all over the ground we got to do some hiking. We hiked to Linville Falls,

went to Grandfather Mountain (and Brad even walked the bridge),

bought David a sled so he could sled up near Beech Mountain,

drove the Blue Ridge for a while,

went shopping in downtown Boon, ate at several really great places, and finally cut down our tree.

We went back to Circle C Christmas tree farm. It's a lovely little farm and again we found the perfect tree. Yes, I suppose, you can say I'm a tree snob. Yes, you can buy these trees in Birmingham. But....no, you can't cut them down.

After walking through what seemed like a thousand trees - we finally found the perfect one! It's almost 9 feet tall - and our ceilings are 9 feet tall. Perfect, right?

We've decided to try and make this a yearly tradition if our vacation schedule and pocketbook will allow - as this is one of our favorite memories from this Christmas and last. In fact, when talking about last Christmas the first thing David talked about was our Christmas tree trip (even before our trip to Disney).

Making memories with my two favorite people is my favorite thing to do.

School project

2011-11-28T21:02:00.001-06:00

A month or two ago David had to put together a timeline for school.

These are the pictures he picked.

Love it!

A great thanksgiving

2011-11-25T09:08:00.001-06:00

We were invited to spend Thanksgiving with some wonderful friends yesterday. It was great. These are some of my favorite friends in the world. I absolutely adore their whole family and they made us feel so welcome like we were part of the family. The kids had fun. The food was great. The company was even better.

Mama KK has a knack for decorating...this was just one of the tables all set up for lunch (gorgeous, huh?) -

David's two front teeth have been loose for a long time now. He pulled one tooth out a few days ago and couldn't get the other one. So he decided to let Coach do the "paper test"...where he wrapped a tiny bit of napkin around the tooth and pinched it....

...and IT CAME OUT!

Then W's uncle also pulled his front tooth out. Check out our toothless boys -

The boys -

After we ate lunch with them, we went to another friends home for dinner and dessert and more laughs than I can count.

I am so thankful for my family. For my home. For my job. For Diet Coke. For our Troops. And especially for sweet friends who make us feel like family.

DIY Half Apron

2011-11-23T16:28:00.001-06:00

I found this lovely tutorial on one of my favorite blogs...and I decided I needed to make a few for Christmas gifts for my nieces.

I picked three non-matchy matchy fabrics, which work together well. Then got to cutting and sewing. I followed Raechel's tutorial and it was perfect. I thought about taking step by step pictures of my own, but I would never create a tutorial as good as hers and, really, what's the point? If you want to make this apron, go here: HALF APRON TUTORIAL by Raechel Myers.

Here is the finished product.

David tried it on.

So did W.

And another picture of the curtains in my kitchen modeling the apron. :)

Apple-Orange Cranberry Sauce Recipe

2011-11-22T23:20:00.001-06:00

So. This is the best cranberry sauce. Ever.

My sister-in-law, Leslee, makes it every year and I love it (and I really really hate cranberry sauce - so to say I love this stuff is big).

Since we won't be together for Thanksgiving this year I decided I needed to make it myself. I asked her if she was willing to share this super secret family recipe. You know how some people are with their super secret family recipes. Lo and behold - she said she would send it to me. She texted me saying she took a picture and emailed it to me. I expected to open up the picture and see her great grandmothers handwriting on an old tattered and stained piece of paper for the recipe that has been passed down for generations Nope. Not even close. It's a picture of a page out of a recipe book. WHAT? I realize that most recipes are adapted from recipes out of recipe books....but I was disappointed that this wasn't a super secret family recipe.

I have changed that.

I now present you with Leslee's Super Secret Apple-Orange Cranberry Sauce (aka a recipe out of an unnamed recipe book - I'd love to give credit where credit is due but the picture doesn't show the name of the cookbook...if she will provide me the cookbook name I'll happily update this post to include it).

Leslee's Super Secret Apple-Orange Cranberry Sauce

1/2 orange
2 cups water
1 Granny Smith apple
3 cups fresh cranberries
1 1/4 cups sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground cloves

Squeeze the juice from the orange half and set the juice aside. Remove the membrane (white stuff) from the inside of the orange shell and discard. Cut the shell into small dice. Put into a small saucepan with the water, bring to a boil and cook for 10 minutes.

Drain and set aside the orange peel.

Peel, quarter and core the apple, then chop into small pieces. Place in a saucepan.

Sort the cranberries, discarding any soft ones.

Add to the apples along with the reserved diced orange peel, the reserved orange juice, the sugar, cinnamon and cloves.

Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to a simmer and cover partially. This is what it looks like as soon as you mix all the ingredients.

Simmer gently, stirring occasionally until the sauce has thickened, the apples are tender and the cranberries have burst. This will take 15-30 minutes. The finished product will look like this.

Transfer to a bowl and let cool before putting into fridge. Can be served cold or at room temperature.

If you make this, please let me know what you think of it! I'd love some feedback. And I'll let Leslee know what you think of her super secret family recipe. :)

Football end of season video

2011-11-21T22:07:00.001-06:00

DIY Owl Christmas Ornaments

2011-11-18T11:09:00.001-06:00

Now that football and my latest ARM test is over I can focus on Christmas (until January when studying for my next ARM test begins)....

I found this adorable owl Christmas ornament on Pinterest. So I printed off the pattern and made a few of my own.

This is my first group of owls....now that I've made a few I realize I should have used more colorful felt. I'm heading out to Hobby Lobby in a bit to buy some more felt. Do you think I can go into Hobby Lobby for $4 of felt and really spend only $4 on felt? Doubtful. That store sucks me in.

Hunger Games

2011-11-15T19:15:00.001-06:00

I read the Hunger Games trilogy this summer and thought they were really good. The first book was definitely my favorite and it's being made into a movie, which comes out next March.

I can't wait.

This trailer looks REALLY good....click here to see it.

Who wants to go see it with me?

The end of an era...

2011-11-10T06:00:00.000-06:00

...okay, so that's a bit extreme. But the era of the 2011 season of Chelsea K/1 football is over. But that's kind of a long blog post title so I went with the more dramatic "end of an era" one. You are welcome.

Our boys made it to the playoffs....and they played Hoover on Tuesday night in the first round. Hoover won. Hoover is undefeated and are just a really good team. My little guy had a rough game....the Hoover players were just pounding him (and a few of the other ball carriers) like crazy. This whole season he never came off the field with an injury but during two tough hits he was crying pretty badly about his arm...so he sat out for one play. He turned out to be okay, but between him getting hurt, getting pounded on the field and the big loss (and our first shut out) he was pretty emotional at the end of the game. BROKE. MY. HEART. After the game we went to dinner with "the group" to celebrate our great season....and he was fine by the time we got to dinner.

We ended the season winning more than we lost (5 wins, 3 losses).

This was Brad's first year head coaching and David's first year as quarterback....so I'd say they both did great. Brad did a really good job recruiting some awesome guys as his assistant coaches - which really helped to make the season what it was.

While I am truly sad the season is over I am looking forward to some down time between now and when basketball starts in December. I have a lot of Christmas gifts to work on. :)

The Vickers

2011-11-09T21:40:00.001-06:00

A few weeks ago we did a photo shoot for some friends of ours, the Vickers. We went to the Town of Mt. Laurel and the colors of the trees were lovely. Here are some of the pictures from that morning.

My Family

2011-11-08T22:29:00.000-06:00

Over Labor Day we made a quick trip to Florida to see family. It was the day after I had surgery, but I was able to relax and sleep in the car while Brad drove...so it worked out. I was exhausted by the time the weekend was over, but I'm thankful we could visit. We don't get to see them often enough. Here are a few pictures from the weekend.

These sweet kids

2011-10-31T22:33:00.000-05:00

Here are a few pictures from a photoshoot I did this weekend.

Quilt for Aly

2011-10-29T16:07:00.002-05:00

So it's been a LONG time since I've made a quilt. This one is a gift for a sweet friend's daughter and is about a year late (so so sorry Mykell). But better late than never, eh?

I talked to a friend of mine who is well versed in quilting and was telling her how it's so not perfect and I couldn't get the binding right and my corners aren't straight enough. Her comment was:

Finished is better than perfect.

Thank you, Lascella, for that comment.

Aly, I hope you like it.

Baby E.

2011-10-26T19:55:00.000-05:00

I had the privilege of photographing this sweet little girl last week. She was 10 weeks old and (as you can see) is so super adorable. Her mama is awesome and was very welcoming to me coming into her home. I get to meet her brothers and the rest of her family this weekend when I take pictures of the whole family at her grandparents farm house. I am so excited I can hardly stand it. I love families and I love farm houses!

Homecoming Game

2011-10-25T22:00:00.002-05:00

Tonight was our homecoming game for the K/1 Chelsea Hornets.

(Coach Jimmy giving Walker and David a pep talk before the game)

Two days ago a sweet cheerleader, who David went to Kindercare with, showed up at the house to decorate the front door and mailbox for him. She also had a nice little gift to give him. Her mom told me that she picked David because she knew him. :)

Before the game, each player gave a cheerleader a rose and then walked off the field with them.

(Please notice that Savannah is looking right at David but he's too shy to look directly in her eyes so he was looking past her).

(How adorable is this?)

Unfortunately, we played Hoover (the only undefeated team in our league). Our boys hung in there and played hard. The first first down came in the 4th quarter along with the first and only touchdown of the game (scored by David!).

We lost, but it was still fun. Our boys play Hoover again in the playoffs so they will be practicing hard the next couple of weeks. I am so glad that our cheerleaders made the game even more special for these players.

Alexa Grace - 6 months - Part II

2011-10-23T22:41:00.002-05:00

Here are a few more favorites from my 6 month photoshoot with Alexa Grace (here is Part I). This little angel gets more adorable each time I see her. I'm smitten.

This post brought to you by my camera phone

2011-10-13T10:51:00.006-05:00

Camera phones have certainly come a long way in the past few years. I took so few pictures with my Razr (even though I loved my Razr while I had it) because the quality stunk. I now have an iphone 4 and the quality is pretty amazing. I snap pictures all the time, so here are a few from the past few weeks.

After practice on Sunday we went to the baseball fields to sign up for basketball. David and Walker watched one of the games together.

I made this bag last night and without a pattern. I didn't have time to sew on the name and the flowers so they are just hot glued on. It's not super sturdy but it's cute and will serve its purpose.

We had my best friend over for dinner on her birthday and David and Brad went to the store by themselves and picked out a cake to bake her by themselves. They also decorated it by themselves. It melted my heart how hard David worked to make this cake pretty for Cara.

A couple weeks ago we went camping and while Brad was packing everything up David and I went on a 2 mile hike. The dogs were tuckered out so he was giving them some extra ear loving on the way home. He loves to love on his puppies.

While Angie was in town we ate at Pablos with some girlfriends and we downed this entire pitcher of margaritas. And I remember the whole night too. Impressive.

My big boy before a game.

While camping Brad made some amazing salsa. He roasted the garlic, onions, tomatoes and bell peppers. Then blended it all together. I just knew the tomatoes were going to spray all over the camper, so I had to take a picture of it before hand. Luckily, no messes were made in the making of that salsa.

We took one of David's buddies, Davis, to the Barber Race track last weekend. Pa was also up for the weekend so we got to spend some time with him too. The boys loved the races and running around all day, and especially rolling down every single hill they could find. Luckily, no one threw up, but they both said they felt like they should. It was a fun day.

Looking at the pictures on my phone always brings back fun memories from whatever I was doing at that moment in time. I love my iphone!

These boys

2011-10-07T22:48:00.001-05:00

Addie

2011-10-05T20:40:00.002-05:00

This sweet angel, Addie, just turned two years old.

Her mama, Lexie, and I used to work together while she was in college. We became close friends and she was there for me for a lot of big things that happened in my life: when we got our foster kids, when they went home almost 2 years later, when Brad had his accident, when I (finally) got pregnant, when I had David and everything in between.

She has moved on and is now a kindergarten teacher and loves her job. We don't see each other that often, but I am still so thankful for her friendship back then (I couldn't have made it without her) - and our friendship now.

She asked me to take pictures at Addie's second birthday a few weekends ago. It was fun. It was even better that I know several of her friends and some of her family. As always, Lexie did a great job on the party. Oh, and she is one hot mama too.

Alexa Grace - 6 months

2011-09-30T06:00:00.000-05:00

Remember this little girl? Well, she's 6 months old now.

Check out a few of my favorites from her photo shoot from last weekend.

She's such a sweet and happy little girl.

Seven

2011-09-29T06:00:00.003-05:00

David...

...you love your Sammy-dog and Radar and Kitty.
...you always want Radar to sleep with his head on one of your pillows in your bed.
...you are a little super star and the quarterback of the Chelsea K/1 Hornets!
...your best buddies are in "The Group".
...your favorite restaurant is Pablos.
...you love all of my girlfriends and have decided you want to marry each of them at different points in your little life so far.
...you love to go camping.
...you made the 6 year old All Star team this year and played first base.
...your favorite toy is any kind of gun, especially Nerf guns.
...you got your first love note this year and you tell me your girlfriend is a girl who cheers for your football team, named Taylor Wise. She is also in your first grade class.
...you are really good at riding your bike and always wear your helmet, even though you don't want to.
...you are quite the band wagon fan and don't stick with one team from year to year (except Samford and the Gators). I wonder who you will cheer for this year? Auburn or Alabama.
...you love green monster smoothies.
...you like playing football and baseball, but your favorite sport is basketball.
...you have a very sensitive heart and have a lot of compassion for people and animals.
...you know more about football than I ever have and love to watch it on TV.
...you got your first cavity this year.
...you wear size 3 shoes.
...you still don't watch much TV, but you like to watch Americas Funniest Home Videos with me...we both like to watch people fall, and then laugh at them. A lot.
...you love to play board games, especially The Game of Life (thanks, Cara).
...you are very healthy and have only been sick three times in your entire life.
...you are a math whiz and love to read.
...you have Mrs. Smith and Mrs. Watts for first grade and they are awesome.
...you have 34 classmates in your first grade class.
...you like to help me bake.
...you have started rolling your eyes and sighing at us when we ask you to do something that you don't want to do.
...you like me to snuggle-bug you at night.
...you love to eat my crepes for breakfast and that makes me so happy.
...you love to play in the sprinkler and help us wash the trucks.
...you remind me to me recycle.
...your favorite songs are "All I do is Win" and "Firework".
...you like the dance around the house in your boxers.
...you have developed a little attitude this year and show your hiney when you get mad.
...you took good care of me when I had a couple surgeries this year.
...you always leave your socks all over the house.
...one of your favorite activities is jumping on our trampoline.
...you go to the Y after school and the counselors adore.
...you are too old for the pumpkin patch and don't want to go this year. :(
...you like to build things with Legos.
...your favorite fruit is strawberries.
...your favorite teams are the Celtics, the Heat and the Gators. Your favorite pro players are Lebron James, Tim Tebow, and Cam Newton.
...you like to dive into our bed from the bed post.
...you get annoyed with me taking pictures of you, but I can normally bribe you.
...you like anything remote control.
...you are funny and make me laugh all the time.
...when I take pictures with my iphone you always ask if I'm going to put it on facebook.
...you have recently become independent more than ever before. This makes me sad and happy all at the same time.
...you tell us you want to go to Samford University.
...you like for me to rub your back and you always return the favor.
...I embarrass you when you are around your friends, but you still like to snuggle with me.
...you are my heart.

I love this boy.

This boy

2011-09-14T23:23:00.003-05:00

He is tough.

He is tender.

He is amazing.

He is loving.

He is compassionate.

He is a great friend.

He loves to read.

He is a football player.

Pinterest Inspiration

2011-09-11T08:45:00.002-05:00

My name is Bethany.

I am addicted to Pinterest.

I had a few girlfriends over yesterday to make a fall wreath for our front doors. I found this inspiration on Pinterest.

We used the following:

- A wreath

- Yarn (one skein - or several of different colors if that's what you want)

- Hot glue gun

- Felt

- Buttons (optional)

- Scissors

You'll want to take the yarn and cut off a few yards and scrunch it up into a ball (this will be much easier than passing the entire skein of yarn through the center of your wreath 300,000 times).

Hot glue the end of the yarn to the back of your wreath and wrap. And wrap and wrap and wrap and wrap. And wrap some more.

Then you'll end up with something like this:

Then grab some buttons and some felt (not shown).

Make felt flowers. Here is a good tutorial on how to make the rose type flowers. I also really like the wreaths she made too.

Then hot glue the felt flowers onto the wreath however you want.

I have a feeling I'll be making more of these for Christmas gifts this year in my effort to do Handmade Christmas 2011!

One Cool Cat

2011-08-31T17:49:00.001-05:00

DIY - Football Poster

2011-08-27T23:20:00.008-05:00

This Sunday is our pep rally for all of the Chelsea Football/Cheerleaders. I decided to make a big poster of David to hang on the fence at all of our home games (starting with the pep rally tomorrow).

I didn't find this idea on Pinterest, but it should be there. Slightly obsessed with Pinterest, by the way.

What you will need:

- 20x30 poster on photo paper (so it's stronger than a regular poster)

- 20x30 foam core board

- Rubber Cement (buy the no-wrinkle, acid free kind that is safe for pictures)

Who knew they still even made rubber cement? The last time I used it was in 5th grade. Seriously. That was, um, 21 years ago. Oh em gee.

You will spread the rubber cement on the foam core board and on the back of the picture - small amounts at at time because it dries pretty quick. Smooth it out as you go.

If you accidentally get rubber cement on the front of the picture - it's okay - as it will rub right off when it dries.

The picture below shows the depth of the foam core board. It's not super thick but enough to be sturdy when it's hanging on the fence. And I hope to salvage it after the season and hang it in the play room.

The finished product!

Next up - I'm making a football burlap door hangar for our front door. Will post pictures when I'm done.

Just kidding

2011-08-25T22:45:00.004-05:00

I know I'm wishy-washy. Apparently very much so. I went to wordpress and like a lot of features of it, but also hated my template. I couldn't get past how lame and boring it was. So I (think) I am back to blogger.

So let's try this again, shall we?

Thanks for sticking with me.

And since I haven't posted HERE in too long, here is a sweet picture of my boy.

And this one is definitely one my favorites from the season so far...David and all of his best buddies.

Oh and one other little Wordpress problem is I can't remember my log in. My computer logged me out and I didn't write my password down either. DOH!

Okay, another change

2011-08-03T08:08:00.002-05:00

So I said the other day I had thought about moving to Wordpress? Well, I did.

I continued to think about it and realized that I like Wordpress so much better for several reasons and it was worth the switch.

If you follow me, please change the link for my blog to: http://bethanyandbrad.wordpress.com/

I've imported all of my old posts to my new blog, so all the history will be there too.

Thanks for following....hope to see you all on my new blog. :)

Done....finally

2011-07-31T17:57:00.001-05:00

It only took me two days to get my blog where I wanted it. I have been considering moving to Wordpress and I imported everything there, but couldn't find a free template I liked enough. And since I make no money on my blog I can't justify spending $100 on a template. Ya know?

So - what do you think?

Please excuse our construction

2011-07-30T15:29:00.001-05:00

I'm revamping my blog and have had so much trouble today. So now I'm attempting to build my own header, but am having trouble with that too. Geesh! So for the next few days this boring grey and white stripe is what you will see. I'm not blog savvy enough to take my blog "down" while I fix it. So you may see some changes over the next few days. Please just bear with me.

Thankyouverymuch!

cousins

2011-07-30T11:02:00.005-05:00

Last weekend we met Brad's brother and his family right outside of Mammoth Cave, Kentucky. We camped at Jellystone in Cave City. A fun time was had by all.

We went to Mammoth Cave. We played games in the lodge. We swam in the pool and went down the massive water slide a bunch. And we canoed down a river 8 miles. I have no pictures of the canoe trip - but just imagine us floating down a river (they said it was a Class 1 river which means no rapids and it moves at 0 miles an hour)....it took us about 3.5 hours and was sooo slow. But it was a lot of fun. It was first canoe trip as an adult. We'll definitely be doing that again.

Here are some of my favorite pictures of the weekend of David and two of his cousins, Savannah and Olivia. David and Olivia are only 11 months apart and they adore each other. I have a picture of David kissing Olivia on the cheek, but since they are cousins I guess that's not okay, so that picture won't get posted. :)

Another wedding!

2011-07-28T23:13:00.003-05:00

This past weekend my good friend, Emily, called me at 8:00 in the morning. I was like "WHAT?!?! Do not call me at 8:00 on a Saturday". She left me a message so I listened to it immediately (not sure what made me do that since I almost went back to sleep). Turns out she had a wedding to photograph that day in two hours and woke up feeling very sick and couldn't stand up without getting sick.

She asked if I could fill in for her.

How could I say no?

So, her sister and I shot the wedding. We had fun. The bride was super sweet. They had a beautiful wedding. It was lovely.

While Emily is going to be doing all the editing of the photos for the bride...I went ahead and edited a few of my own just to post here.

All Stars - State Tournament

2011-07-26T21:06:00.003-05:00

Well, All Stars has been over for a few weeks now...so it's high time I update about the season.

It was GREAT! They came in....

Second in Invitational.

First in District.

Second in Area.

Third in the STATE!!!!! Woo to the hoo!

They played hard and were coached well.

Next up, football, baby. :) Practice starts next Monday. Brad is head coach. I'm team mom. Let the craziness commence.

Wedding

2011-07-25T21:46:00.003-05:00

A few weeks ago Brad and I shot a wedding for a friend's friend.

Here are a few pictures from that wedding. How beautiful is the bride?

As a note: normally I upload my pictures to Photobucket so that I can make them larger on my blog, but that takes so much time and I just wanted to quickly get these up....sorry about how small the pictures are.

Baby Campbell

2011-07-13T20:15:00.002-05:00

Recently I took some pictures for a friend of her newborn son, Campbell Garth. Adorable, huh? He was 12 days old when I took the pictures, and like my last newborn session he was WIDE awake!

He is absolutely perfect. And has a super sweet mom and dad and a very proud big brother, named Emory, who played on David's baseball team in the spring.

Alexa Grace

2011-07-10T21:48:00.004-05:00

Recently I took pictures of Alexa Grace at 2 weeks old.

Well, now she is 3 months old. And so precious. I met her mom and dad at the local botanical gardens a couple of weeks ago and here are some of the pictures I took.

A First and a Second

2011-07-09T20:06:00.004-05:00

This sweet thing had her second birthday a few weeks ago. Emily (her mom) did an Art Party and it was a lot of fun for the kids.

Emily helped Ava finish her painting.

I gave her a dress for her birthday that I made. It was my first attempt at making a dress (or any clothing for that matter). I'm pretty proud of myself....I did the whole thing myself (except for the button holes which I had a friend do for me since I'm lame and can't figure out how to make my machine make a button hole). I asked Emily not to pay any attention to the construction as the underneath of the dress was a mess....but she understood. I'll have to work on that on my next one. :)

I have to say I'm proud of myself!

Area Champions!

2011-06-18T12:33:00.004-05:00

Last weekend our Chelsea 6U All Stars played in Wilsonville. AND won that Area Championship! They played 6 games in 4 days. The team that we had to play (twice) to win the championship had already beat us 3 times. But the boys dug deep and played hard and came out on top. I thought Brad was going to have a heart attack on the field!!

It was a great weekend!

David and his best friend, Ethan:

Love this:

All Stars

2011-06-12T17:18:00.004-05:00

So, it's baseball season.

My blog posts are all about baseball now, since that's what is encompassing all of our time now. It's a ton of fun. No complaints here.

The only complaint is that I go back to work tomorrow after being off for medical leave for the past 3 weeks. It's going to be a rough return to the office. Blah. :(

But back to All Stars - here is another cute picture of our team I just had to share.

We had a tournament this weekend. After 8.5 hours at the ball field with a long rain delay, we ended up losing the first game but winning the second. So we've moved onto the next game which is tomorrow at 6pm. It's a double elimination, but luckily no matter where we end this tournament we do advance to next weekend. :)

Support

2011-06-08T17:37:00.003-05:00

The terrible tornadoes that recently hit our area came through Alabama on a Wednesday (April 27th to be exact). By Saturday, our regular season baseball team had pulled together a bunch of stuff to pack some zip loc bags full of necessities.

Each bag was packed with a toothbrush, toothpaste, wash cloth, hand towel, finger nail clippers, bottled water, soap, comb and a package of bandaids.

Brad printed out some pictures of our team so that the boys could sign them. Each bag had one picture included.

They all took pride in signing their names. I thought they would enjoy dropping items into each bag, but they actually had no interest at all. The parents packed the bags while the boys kept signing away.

We were able to complete 29 bags and we gave all the left over extras to New Heights United Methodist Church so they could make more bags.

While this was a very small donation to some folks who lost everything in the tornadoes, we think it was great to get the boys involved in giving something to people in need.

Double Play David

2011-06-04T16:15:00.003-05:00

This weekend is the Chelsea 6U invitation in Vincent, AL. We won our game last night and won both games today. This means we play tomorrow at 5:30 and if we win that game we play in the Championship at 7:00!

Our boys are doing SO great.

David got a double play today - and for this he earned the game ball!!!

This is the whole team. We have one good looking group of boys!!!!

Memorial Day

2011-05-30T10:06:00.002-05:00

This brought tears to my eyes and made me thankful to live here:

Memorial Day

Day 4 Post Op

2011-05-27T19:48:00.003-05:00

In the reading materials that my surgeon provided it said that days 2 and 3 post surgery would be the worst days and eventually the pain would ease off after day 3. Apparently my body isn't ready to accept that it's now day 4.

It's crazy to think that 24 hours after my surgery I was sitting at the ball field cheering (but still quietly cheering) David's team to victory.....and now 96 hours (that would be 4 days) post surgery I'm pretty miserable and wouldn't have even considered going to a game tonight.

I'm glad that I knew this pain and these feelings would come and I figured I was prepared for them....however, they can go ahead and move it along.

I'm hurting. My stitches are poking out of my incisions to healthy skin which is causing it to get really irritated. I'm itching. I'm tired of having to move slow. I'm tired of sitting on the couch and having it be very hard to get out of the couch. I'm tired of missing David's All Star practices and missing doing my Team Mom duties. I'm tired of taking meds and vitamins the size of a baby carrot (slight exaggeration there, but that's how it feels)....I take 21+ pills/vitamines a day right now. I'm tired of being nauseous. I'm also tired of being tired.

I hade my first post-op breakdown today. I cried and cried. And Brad was so sweet and just listened to me. He didn't try and offer advise or make me better, he just listened and hugged me (kinda as hugs are pretty much off limits now). :)

As Jenny Thrasher said of herself today - I can also say of myself today:

I am Mrs. Major Crankypants.

I know without a doubt this is all worth it - I'm just in the middle of it now and want it to be over.

Here is my attitude adjustment:

One great thing that has come from this - is I have seen who my greatest friends are. I love the fact that we are being showered with dinners and help. Brad and I haven't had to prepare a meal since the weekend. It's wonderful not having to worry about it. And one friend has taken David off of our hands several times (including him spending the night with her). I have the best girlfriends ever and am so thankful for them.

Breast Reduction time

2011-05-25T17:18:00.006-05:00

Ten years ago I went to a plastic surgeon for a consultation to have a breast reduction. I didn't like him at all (he creeped me out) and it was very important for me to be able to nurse if we ever got pregnant.....so for those two reasons I put having the surgery done on the back burner.

Well, I had David and nursed him for 11 months, so looking back I'm really glad I didn't go through with the surgery 10 years go.

In November 2010 I went for a consultation to a different doctor, but didn't like him either.

What is it with plastic surgeons being creepy?

I kinda decided that maybe this wasn't something I should do - I was a little discouraged.

A few weeks later I went to The Fitting Touch (a local bra fitting specialty place) and they highly recommended Dr. Grady Core in Birmingham. They said he sends his patients to them to be fitted after reductions and that he does "really good work". Well that was really good news to me because I want really good work. After some prompting from some friends and family I got up the nerve for a third opinion from Dr. Core in March 2011.

I was very comfortable when I met him, his staff and nurse. I felt absolutely no awkwardness - thankfully! Finally.

He showed me a lot of pictures and from what I saw he does indeed do very good work. Of course it's a little odd looking at tons of before and after pictures of breast reductions...but I had to see what I could expect.

I left his office very encouraged and after talking to Brad about it once again (he has always been supportive of me wanting to have this done) I scheduled the date. May 23rd.

I told some close friends and family members, but didn't broadcast it (it is after all an oddly personal surgery). I also didn't want any unsolicited advise and the people I told I knew would be very supportive through the whole process.

Sunday night my last meal was at 10:00 (yogurt) and couldn't eat until after my surgery. When I got to the hospital I was a nervous wreck, nearly crying and sick to my stomach. Brad was super sweet and just sat with me the whole time. I played on the ipad (which helped) and he read a book.

My surgeon was a little delayed so instead of it starting at 1pm they didn't wheel me back until 3pm. I wasn't out of recovery and in my room until 7:30. That's a long time with no food...and unfortunately, I really like food!

Brad had to leave the hospital at one point to go coach David's 5/6 baseball team in their first playoff game for the second half. We knew about these games when I scheduled my surgery but I had no other options. Mom was with us all weekend and stayed with me at the hospital until Brad got back after my surgery.

Brad and David arrived at the hospital around 8:00 and they brought me a strawberry milkshake (my favorite). I couldn't eat it from my nausea (so thankful the anesthesiologist gave me a fantastic cocktail to avoid me puking). I didn't feel fabulous but at least I wasn't throwing up like I've done in the past after having anesthesia. I did eat that delicious strawberry milkshake around 1am when I finally felt up to eating.

Mom took David home while Brad spent the night at the hospital with me. Other than the hospital room not having a/c (augh!) and them only giving me pain meds every 6-7 hours, when I'm allowed to have it every 4-6 (double augh!) everything was fine.

I came home yesterday around 11am. Mom fixed up our big recliner for me with about 7 pillows. I laid around all afternoon.

David's final playoff game (to determine the champion for the second half of the season) was last night. My bff Cara came to spend the evening with me, while Brad went to coach the team to victory. Cara drove me to the game and took care of me while I was there. I wasn't able to cheer (she scolded me if I did - because I did indeed hurt) and I had to sit still, which I did). I was able to see my boy and his 9 buddies win the game....since we won the first half play offs and the second half playoffs, then we are 2011 5/6 Chelsea Giant CHAMPIONS! It was a good game and I'm so glad I was able to be there (I cried more than I'd like to admit about having to miss his games due to my surgery....so since I was able to be there it really meant a lot).

Gretchen, a sweet friend of mine and mom to David's best bud, Ethan, let David spend the night with them last night after the game (after she cooked and delivered dinner and pumpkin bread to us), she also took him to school this morning, picked him up this afternoon and let him play at their pool until about 5:30. She's been a God send helping us out.

David his home now playing on the Wii, while I update my blog. Another awesome friend is bringing us dinner tonight.

I will say that all the reading materials I've read say that the second day post op is the worst. I concur. Completely. The swelling is very very painful today (which is day 2). Hoping tomorrow (day 3) will be better. I'm also taking something called VitaMedica (recommended for any plastic surgery) to help in my recovery. I took it 1.5 weeks up to the surgery and will take it for 2.5 weeks after the surgery. The vitamins were expensive, but if I can help in my recovery the $106 didn't seem so bad. This definitely hasn't been fun, but I'm trying to remember why I did this and how it's going to help me in the future (no back pain, ability to wear normal clothes, no shoulder pain, ability to exercise like I want...did I mention no back/shoulder pain?

I am so thankful for my friends and family who have helped out so much already. Brad ended up staying here with me (even though he was supposed to be in Tampa today - something that was scheduled well before my surgery date). I thought I could handle him not being here with the awesome girlfriends I have taking care of me...but when he told me last night that he thought he needed to be here with me I almost cried with relief. And I'm really glad he was home today - being this is my worst day yet. He's been wonderfully helpful and sweet and gentle and he even helped me brush out my hair. :)

Several friends are bringing us dinner, or already have brought us dinner, and some have just sat with me to keep me company and some have helped with David....thankful for all of them too (Lisa, Gretchen, Allison C., Allison G., Jenny, Cathy, and our 5/6 year old baseball mamas, etc). I'm very very thankful for everyone helping out so much now. It makes going through things (even a surgery) so much better. :)

Giants Party

2011-05-23T09:50:00.003-05:00

The 5/6 Chelsea Giants are undefeated for the second half of the season! Woo-hoo!

We had the team party at our house on Saturday after our game and we had a fabulous time. The weather, company, and food was all great.

And here is one of my favorite pictures from the day:

I'm headed to the hospital for a pretty big (in my opinion) surgery, but I'll be back in a few days to get more pictures posted from our party.

On the go

2011-05-11T18:45:00.000-05:00

For Mother's Day I was given the best present ever for a Mac/Apple lover......an iPad.

It's awesome.

How did I ever live without one?

It's definitely a great piece of technology.

Does that make me a geek? If so, I'm proud to be a geek with my iPad in my lap.

I'm updating my blog from baseball practice tonight. Cool! So far, so good. With the MiFi we have I can also be online anywhere we are. Double cool!

I haven't figure out how to upload a picture to my blog from the iPad. I'll go research that now.

Adios!

Sweet Home Alabama

2011-04-28T09:40:00.004-05:00

This hit Tuscaloosa (and about a dozen other areas in Alabama) yesterday:

We watched this and several other tornados live on the news channels yesterday destroy everything it its path - it was surreal.

This is the type of destruction these tornadoes left behind:

Thankfully, we are fine - the closest deadly tornado hit about 25 miles from us. Thanks to everyone for your concern, emails and texts.

Please pray for my precious state, the people who are affected by injury, those who lost a house or have damage...and especially those who have lost family members and friends. The death toll is expected to climb and right now it's well over 100.

Easter 2011

2011-04-27T19:16:00.004-05:00

Some sweet friends of ours (The Curran's) invited us to spend Easter Sunday at the Birmingham Zoo with their family.

We had a great time.

It was definitely one of my favorite Easters. Our friends made us feel like family. In fact, David wants to be part of THEIR family (he said so many times)...which doesn't surprise me at all. I kinda want to be part of their family also.

The day was all about these two: John Taylor and David.

We walked the zoo, listened to an Elephant talk by a zookeeper (lame) at the new Elephant Exhibit (cool), went to a show and saw cute animals, watched the boys run and play, Brad got shocked by 220 volts intended for elephants (yep, for real), Brad survived said 220 volt shock, David and John Taylor rode a camel, I took 100 pictures, we had a picnic and wrapped up the day with an Easter egg hunt for the kids.

Thankful for friends who invited us to be part of their family for a day.

CHAMPIONS!!!

2011-04-20T21:35:00.004-05:00

I may not have mentioned this before, but Brad is head coaching David's baseball team - the 5 and 6 year old Chelsea Giants.

We have quite a few kids who have never played baseball before and some who have played for a couple of years. We've got a pretty good mix of capabilities. I've come to learn the following over the past 5 weeks:

We have the BEST kids in the league.

We have the BEST parents in the league, they seriously are all so great.

We have the BEST coaches in the league (especially the head coach...no - I'm not biased).

We have some of the funniest kids, too!

I've had fun watching these kids learn to hit the ball, field the ball and throw the ball. They've improved so much since mid March.

Chelsea breaks the baseball season into two halves. The first season ended this week and due to our record (6-2) we made it to the playoffs. We played Monday night and beat the #3 team. In this game David caught a pop fly and had an unassisted triple play. Go big D!

Then last night we played the #4 team (who beat the #1 team) and we beat them. So....that makes us:

FIRST HALF CHAMPIONS!

Now we have one more half to play. But we have sealed in a spot in the very last game of the season (between the two half champs). Can't wait!

GO GIANTS!

Quack Quack (a.k.a. Donald - you know the Duck)

2011-04-14T22:10:00.004-05:00

This guy....

....is named Quack Quack.

He lives in a pond near our good friend's home. Whenever the Vickers' come home Quack Quack follows their car to their house so that he can visit with them.

He's the coolest duck ever.

He even plays football.

For real.

I want a duck.

So....when we move to the country - I've decided we'll have two chickens, a goat, AND a duck. That's not too much to ask for now, is it?

Who you looking at?

UPDATE: Sadly, Quack Quack met his maker about two weeks after I posted this. He was crossing Highway 41 and was hit by a car. Thankfully someone in the neighborhood picked him up and buried him before all of the neighborhood kids came home to see him.

Legos and noses - they don't go together

2011-04-14T11:25:00.001-05:00

Early this morning around 2:30 am David ended up in my bed saying that his nose hurt really bad. I was still half asleep so I just pulled him into the bed and tried to console him by rubbing his head and snuggling with him. That didn’t work. He just sat there and started crying – he said it hurt him a lot…..but I’m sure he was really scared too – he kept asking me if he was going to die. Bless his heart. I kept asking him to just blow his nose and maybe whatever it was would come out (TMI Alert: I just thought it was an extra large booger). Finally, after about 30 minutes of him crying and me not being sure what to do (way to go, mom!) – he pulled out a Lego from his nose. Seriously. It was a small Lego – like the kind used as a light on top of a car or plane – but still – it was a LEGO. I asked him where the Lego came from. He said “I don’t know”. I assured him that he was not going to get in trouble, but that he needed to be honest and tell me the truth. He said that it happened at the YMCA after school. I never got around to asking him why the heck he put a Lego in his nose. We’ll cover that tonight. But he does now know how serious it could have been if the Lego didn’t come out (the whole time he was thinking he might die). I think he learned his lesson. At 3:00 am we both rolled over and snuggled back to sleep. I was so thankful that Lego was on my night stand and no longer up his nose.

My latest photography job

2011-04-12T14:46:00.004-05:00

So it wasn't a paid job....But I had a lot of fun....It was for a great cause....In memory of an employee at Vulcan....His son was 3 and his dugher was 1 when he passed away....His best friends drove down from Nashville for the tournament....His brother was planning to come from Japan (but stayed since his military duties came first)...I really can't stand golf....And it poured like crazy for about 20 minutes....And I got soaked, but kept my camera dry....But I have an appreciation for golf now....these folks had a blast....And $6,500 was raised for the two charties that are important to Steven's wife....Here's the link to my picures on facebook if you want to take a look: Steven Judd Memorial Golf Tournament

Herrington household excitement

2011-04-07T20:33:00.001-05:00

Baby A - Part III

2011-04-03T21:56:00.004-05:00

A few more of sweet Baby A.

Cookie fun

2011-03-30T21:33:00.003-05:00

This weekend my friend, Allison, came over and we practiced making sugar cookies.

I pre-made the dough so all we had to do was bake and then decorate them.

Allison was really good considering this was her first time decorating them - she has a really steady hand.

We tried adding polka dots to the wet icing and it kinda made it look like they were painted on.

I don't know why I didn't take any final pictures. Doh! And you can see the filling was too runny at first, so the pink cookies looked terrible. Lesson learned.

I am making some cookies for a wedding party this weekend...so I'll post pictures of those when I'm done.

More Baby A.

2011-03-26T23:31:00.001-05:00

Baby A.

2011-03-25T14:37:00.007-05:00

A few days ago at a business luncheon I was talking to a colleague of mine and he told me that he and his wife had a new baby girl. Of course, I nearly squealed with happiness for them, I luuuurve babies! He told me their story and, boy, it's a good one. But it's not mine to share.

Anyhow, I asked if they were planning to have any newborn pictures of her taken and he said that they hadn't yet decided when to do them. I know from ~~obsessing over~~ looking at newborn photography blogs and Facebook pages that newborns need to be photographed between 5 and 14 days old, otherwise they won't sleep. And everyone knows the sleeping pictures with the babies on their tummies are some of the best.

Our tiny subject, who I'll call Baby A., was exactly 14 days old - so she should sleep, right? That's what the pros say. Well, she was wide eyed and bushy tailed as they say (um, who is "they" anyhow?). We didn't get very many sleeping pictures of this little angel - but I got lots of pictures of those beautiful blue eyes (you can't quite see just how blue they are in these first two shots, but I will enhance them in the other pictures I edit...more to come, promise). She was sooo alert. More than any other two week old baby. Ever. She even had really good control of her head. She's a strong girl.

She has a very proud mom and dad and has a great start to life already. She was a perfect little babe and only cried a few times when she was hungry or chilly. We used a heating pad and space heater to try and keep her warm...I think it worked pretty well.

I definitely learned some things from this first newborn photoshoot. I see NOW what I should have seen THEN (like make sure in the other pictures that the blanket isn't covering up her right eye - DOH!). Lessons learned. No worries, mama, if you are reading this - we did get some great pictures.

I am so glad that this sweet family let me into their home to photograph their bundle of love. I am glad to have made two new friends through a business luncheon the other day. I hope to be able to take more pictures of Baby A. in the future.

P.S. I seriously need a baby now.

Best Friends

2011-03-22T18:17:00.002-05:00

Ethan and David

My boy

2011-03-20T23:31:00.001-05:00

Spring Break 2011

2011-03-19T16:54:00.006-05:00

Since this is David's first year of public school - this is also our first official spring break.

Our week started by spending a few days in Mobile.

While in Mobile we visited Gulf Shores, Dauphin Island, took the ferry, played in the Gulf of Mexico, toured the U.S.S. Alabama and a submarine, ate ate Felix's Fish Camp (amazing).

Then we went to New Orleans for a few days.

While there we went to the Audubon Zoo, the IMAX theatre, the Aquarium, the Insectarium (stupid)....which are all part of the Audubon Institutes. We also went to an NBA game (New Orleans Hornets vs. Denver Nuggets), walked Bourbon Street during the day, tried to avoid it during the night, went to Bourbon House (amazing upscale seafood restaurant and had some of their amazing Frozen Bourbon Milk Punch - sounds gross, I know, but it's delicious), rode the trolly, rode a city bus with millions of school children that just got out of school and swam on the top of a building.

It was a great start to our week.

I had to go to work Thursday and Friday, while David and Brad hung out together....then Friday night we ended up coming to Logan's Landing RV Park for the weekend to round out spring break. I love this place....it's really nice. Unfortunately the pool isn't open yet and Logan Martin lake is still to cold for swimming. We've gone on several walks and took a 2 hour nap today (HEAVEN!).

It's back to reality Monday. But I'm sooo thankful for this special first spring break with my little family.

{pictures to follow once we get home}

David Da Vinci

2011-03-10T22:02:00.004-06:00

Tonight at school was the Fine Art Festival. The older kids put together a play of sorts and some others played instruments. Then all the other students had a piece of art displayed around the school.

David was very proud to walk me around school and remind me where each of his teachers are (art, computer, library and music). Then he showed me his art.

His favorite teacher (other than his kindergarten teacher) is Mr. Cecil - the art teacher. He seems like a fun person and his room was so cool....very comfortable and homey feeling. It even smelled good and he had jazz music playing. Awesome. My elementary school art teacher certainly wasn't like that.

I'd love to know how he went about creating his art. I wonder if they copied something or if they followed instructions from Mr. Cecil. All I know is I LOVE it and he was so excited to show me his art. He's a great little artist. Don't you think?

{This WILL get framed and hung somewhere in our house.}

Blog Hop

2011-03-09T13:52:00.004-06:00

Blog Hop - have you seen this?

I linked up....if you have a blog, you should too.

They did it!

2011-03-07T20:36:00.002-06:00

Allison and David are finally married! Woo-hoo.

I'm so thankful that she asked me to play a part in their special day.

From folding paper cranes, stringing those cranes, untangling those cranes, hanging those cranes, to making her veil, collecting mason jars and picture frames, making headbands for the bridesmaids, to taking their engagement pictures (well, that was mostly Brad), to going shopping for all the food the day before the wedding with Allison and prepping that food, to throwing them an engagement party with some other friends a couple of months ago, to decorating the Mark's house, to praying for NO RAIN....and thankfully we got very little rain.

The wedding was so perfect - in every way. I seriously don't think it could have been any better.

She was stunning.

He was handsome.

Their friends were there to support them (and help). Family all got along (and when does that actually happen when two new families come together?).

Their vows were the best ever said.

I'm so excited to see them start their new life together. So glad to be their friend. Love these two.

I must make these

2011-03-03T13:39:00.008-06:00

Over at How about Orange I saw this picture today....

...aren't they absolutely darling? (By the way, I'm fairly certain I've never used the word 'darling' before, but I feel that it's entirely fitting for these flowers). I've been crocheting lately and when I read what type of material/yarn and hooks were needed to make these - it made me smile. My great Aunt Sylvia (my grandma's sister) passed down tons of the thin yarn needed to make these - along with a big book of crochet hooks....I've never known what to use that really thin yarn for - but now I do. And I can't wait to make some.

I'm not sure how I was lucky enough to score getting these passed along to me. While I always thought it was awesome that I ended up with them....I've recently become even more grateful as I've started crocheting a lot again.

The tutorial is found here - by the adventures of bluegirl xo (oh and you have to check out this post too - how CUTE...actually, I'd consider that little bird darling also). I need more time in the day. There's not nearly enough time for me to try all the things I want to do. Sigh.

This moment

2011-03-01T21:12:00.002-06:00

I don't remember what they were laughing about, but I love this moment they shared...

Sugar Cookies

2011-02-28T22:09:00.002-06:00

I've recently been encouraged by a sweet friend of mine, Amanda, and the sugar cookies she's been making. She's actually selling them (and doing great, by the way) - she has her own company and website now. She made 150 cookies over one weekend for an event recently. Wowzers.

I'm not looking to sell mine, but I think they are fun to make. I've always made cakes but they are so so so time consuming that the cookies are actually more enjoyable to make.

I made some Valentine's cookies for David to take to school on February 14th. I wrapped each one up and attached a heart that he signed.

And this weekend I made some basketball cookies for his end of the season basketball party. This time I used orange extract instead of vanilla and they were so yum.

Bunco - Halloween - about 4 months late

2011-02-17T06:00:00.000-06:00

How did these pictures never get posted? I uploaded them, but never clicked 'publish'.

Better late than never, eh?

I hosted October Bunco at my house and here are some pictures of the group.

Hamburglar, Zach Galifianakis (click the link for the uncanny resemblance) and Holly Hobby (costume completely made by the talented Robbie)

Allison - the Bride of Frankenstein

The whole group

Buncing-off to determine the winner for the evening

We have the best Bunco group around. For real.

Light box

2011-02-15T20:56:00.003-06:00

For my birthday, Brad gave me a light box (click the link to see what it is). It will allow me to take much better pictures of the things I make and sell. Even if I don't sell my stuff I like photographing it so I can look back and see what I've made in the past.

There were no instructions in the box, but I think I set it up correctly. I will ask Brad to help me later to make sure the settings on my camera are correct for capturing images of items in the box.

Here's my first attempt photographing some items I've recently made:

Crocheted infant cap

Kitty - I didn't make him, but he was curious about the box

Crocheted dish cloths

Wedding rehearsal bouquet made of felt

Turning 32...

2011-02-14T22:55:00.004-06:00

...wasn't so bad. In fact it was great. Having a birthday on Saturday is just wonderful. Especially since it was the nicest weekend we've had around these parts since - um, October.

Brad let me sleep in. Hallelujah!

Then David and his basketball team won their game in the a.m. My little star scored 7 points. :)

Then we ate a late breakfast at Huddle House.

Then we went to Tannehill for a hike. Brad planned to get a few pictures of me and big Dave.

We hiked a few miles. And were kept laughing the whole time.

After being at Tannehill for a few hours we came home to get dressed and then head off to dinner at my favorite restaurant.

Brad surprised me by having my best friend join us for dinner. I know that Cara's school schedule is crazy right now and that she wouldn't be able to join us (that girl studies every single night of the week and on weekends).....so when she knocked on the door and I saw her I nearly jumped up and down.

This is our second annual birthday dinner at Bernie's on Main (which is my favorite place to eat). I am so glad she joined us. Dinner was fabulous and the company of Cara and my family was great.

To top it off Brad gave me some brand new fabric scissors - that I've been wanting for a long time. These scissors made this girl very happy. I know being giddy over some scissors sounds completely ridiculous to most people...but if you are a crafter at all - you'll probably understand. He also gave me a light box for taking pictures of my stuff to either sell or post here. I haven't used it yet, but will very soon. Just wait.

Brad is so good at always making my birthday something special. I love that man.

Breckenridge

2011-02-13T19:10:00.006-06:00

After we skied at Keystone we drove over to Breckenridge (or Breck, as the locals call it) for dinner.

We parked at one end of the village (I don't know if this is an accurate word for it, but it's certainly much more quaint than a 'city') and walked to dinner at the other end.

We ate at this place called Empire Burger. It was delicious.

We saw lots of snow. Lots.

We saw lots of cute buildings - really close together - with lots more snow. I like this picture...I'm not sure why.

We saw ice sculptures.

And snow sculptures.

(Me, Angie, Trey, Donny and Bobby)

And ice cicles. Trey tried all afternoon to get one that he could break off and eat. He was successful.

We also saw Christmas trees...even though it was the end of January. Maybe it's Christmas in Breckenridge all year long?? I could live there.

Denver - The day I attempted to ski

2011-02-08T20:50:00.006-06:00

Months ago when Angie and I planned my trip to Denver she had told me how she wanted to take me skiing. Then she separated her shoulder while snowboarding in late November and I was a teensy bit relieved that we most likely wouldn't be going skiing while I was up there - due to her injury.

But then, the week before my trip Angie started telling me about all the warm clothes I needed to bring for skiing. WHAT?! I played along....still thinking it wouldn't happen. Maybe I'd get altitude sickness and not be able to go.

When I arrived in Denver and the plan was most definitely to go skiing. Crap. I am not athletic and am in no shape to ski. I was terrified. I didn't tell Angie or Donny, because this is their thing and they really wanted to take me.

And regarding that altitude sickness - apparently a way to avoid it was to keep hydrated. I carried a water bottle with me the whole weekend and every chance she got Angie would shove it in my face and say, "DRINK".

We started out our day at 5:30 am to pick up a friend of theirs and drove to Keystone, which was about 90 minutes away. By this point I had psyched myself up and was very excited about going. Giddy in fact, like a kid.

I could handle this skiing thing, right? Sure. At one point right before we started skiing I sent Brad a text message to let him know we had arrived at Keystone. Here was his response:

"Don't die".

Seriously. Nice, huh?

We rode in the gondola up the massive mountain -

Trey and Donny (with their super cool Never Summer snowboards) -

So....I started down the bunny hill. It was pretty easy, in fact I didn't fall even once. I did this twice and Donny told me I was ready for the training hill. It wasn't too long and I made it down that without falling too. I guess seeing me do SO WELL as a beginner, Donny thought I could handle the hardest run in the Rockies: Schoolmarm.

Actually what you can't see in that picture above is that the Schoolmarm run a GREEN run, which is for beginners (apparently). It's the long training run that the instructors take new students down. Donny and Angie served as my instructors. Schoolmarm was 3.5 miles long. Geesh.

Most people can get down Schoolmarm in 10-15 minutes. It took me an hour and a half. For real. I fell a bunch. And rested even more.

Donny and Trey were being so sweet and sticking with me (and Angie) so make sure I was comfortable and ok. Angie promised she wouldn't leave my side, but I felt so bad holding the boys back. So about 2/3 down the run they finally went on down the hill and snowboarded for a while. They actually circled back on us. EMBARRASSING!

Clearly, I was not ready for the 3.5 mile run - beginner or not. It was rough. My legs were screaming the whole time.

You know how when you are lifting weights and you get to the last few that are so hard you want to drop the weight? Then finally your muscles are so fatigued that you literally can't lift it one more time. That's how my legs felt the whole time going down that mountain. But in this case my life depended on it, so every few minutes I had to stop in the middle of the mountain run and take a break. But I really didn't want to die (remember Brad's text) so I really didn't care.

And some of our best pictures from the day came from sitting down smack in the middle of the run (for one of my many breaks).

Props to Angie (and Donny and Trey) for being so supportive and not getting frustrated with me being so slow - even once.

Because I kept myself from going very fast, basically the entire 3.5 miles I was doing the pizza wedge or keeping my skis pointed together in front of me - to slow me down. I only got to the relaxing/stand up/skis pointed straight point ONCE.

My skis looking out over the Rockies -

At the very end of Schoolmarm some goober fell right in front of me and my options were to: a) hit him, b) hit a couple trees, c) fall. So I choose to fall and ended up sliding down the hill on my back - spinning like a turtle. Angie got the last half of my fall on video, but it's from so far away you can't really see what happened. So sad. I would have loved to have that to look back on...and post on facebook for everyone to laugh at.

After we left Schoolmarm we went back to the much shorter beginner runs. I got pretty comfortable on them and that's where Angie and I stayed for the remainder of the day.

We spent a lot of the day here:

But that's okay. I was really comfortable on these training runs and still had a TON of fun.

Angie went down Schoolmarm on her own while I rested at the lodge for a bit (my shins from the boots needed a rest) and she took a fall and her previously separated shoulder was hurting her a lot. Once she got back to the lodge we both decided we were done. The boys decided they were done too.

End of the day picture -

We grabbed some coffee here (which is where we spent a lot of time this weekend)...

and headed to Breckenridge....or as the locals calls it - Breck.....or as I call it - The Breck.

We ate dinner in Breck. Or is it at Breck?

Thanks, Donny and Angie, for treating me to such a fabulous day. Can't wait to do it next time I visit you guys in Denver.

Because I'm cleaning out

2011-02-06T17:01:00.003-06:00

I was doing some early spring cleaning last week. I went through a cedar chest that we have (that was given to us from Brad's grandparents)....and tossed a bunch of stuff. Some of it was junk and some of it was sentimental. I've realized hanging onto some stuff just isn't necessary. It's just things. I still kept the really sentimental stuff (like my diplomas, year books, baby blankets), but also tossed all of my trophies.

I had to take pictures before I tossed them (simply for memories)...so here they are....

My (only) science fair award -

I was never known as the smart kid - but somehow I won first place in 1988. That would have been 2nd grade. I'm pretty sure this is the year that my science project was on bubbles. For real. I remember my dad helping make bubbles (using Dawn dish soap, glycerin, water and probably something else). We made a ton of bubbles out in front of our house. It was a lot of fun. And I won first place. The picture is proof. I have no idea what I learned about bubbles or wrote on the tri-fold board, but I remember it was cool. Or this could have been my project on clouds. I really can't remember. But still - I won first place. Amazing.

After elementary school I was just the choir kid. I had honors classes, trig and physics...but I didn't really excel in any of those. But I did sing - in musical theatre, church choir and school choir.

Here are some awards for choir -

I honestly don't remember getting these, but I'm sure at the time it was very exciting.

Denver - Girls Night Out

2011-02-04T22:14:00.007-06:00

Angie and two of her girlfriends took me clubbing in downtown Denver while I was in town. We stayed in a fabulous place on the 29th floor and had the best views.

I am not a clubber. I do not go clubbing. And Lord knows I do NOT dance. Ever. I'm more of a people watcher. But Angie insisted and I'm glad she did - the evening turned out great.

Angie, Jennie and Linsday, before we left. They are sexy girls!

We went to Club Beta downtown. We got there at 9 pm. So, 9 pm is a little (okay, so WAY) to early to show up. We were literally the first four people there. Luckily, the cover charge was free for women on Friday nights. Woo-hoo.

We started out with a shot....

Then because we were all alone Angie started doing cartwheels:

Lindsay and Angie were doing the cat walk (please notice that we really are the only ones in the whole place):

Angie decided to be 'one with the wall':

Because it was a little boring on the dance floor we spent a bit of time in the bathroom (I KNOW, odd) with our new friend Evie. She works the bathroom. For real. She had gum, hair spray, tampons, perfume, washcloths and soap that she'd give you. Of course a tip is expected. She was actually kind of cool and we spent a while talking with her over the course of the night.

The only time I've been anywhere with a bathroom attendant was when we were in New York City. See....I told you I don't get out much. Apparently this is common in the clubs. To keep things like this from happening:

Then we went to Jackson's, where the cover charge was $5 for women and free beer until midnight. I do not drink beer. It tastes like pee (not like I've ever tasted pee...but if I had to imagine what pee tastes like - it would taste like beer). However, since I was already on the inebriated side - I decided free Blue Moon beer actually tastes okay. Who knew?

We left Jackson's after a few beers and went back to Club Beta. By then there were more people there. We went upstairs and took some pictures in the photo booth. Why would we pay $5 per for 5 pictures on a little tiny sheet when I could take them for free with my camera?

This is proof of where all we went that night, we even got a VIP stamp:

After leaving Club Beta we walked to Illegal Petes which is a restaurant that stays open late serving awesome nachos and playing loud music.

At the end of the evening, we walked back to the free Mall Ride and hopped a ride to our place. Thankfully, none of us went overboard drinking so we all woke up feeling just fine. It was a really fun night and I'm glad we went out, you know, clubbing. I got to know some of Angie's friends and see parts of downtown Denver I wouldn't have had the chance to see otherwise.

Here's the morning view - I could get use to this - see the peak in the center of the picture directly below? That's Pikes Peak. Brad, David and I drove up it last May on our summer vacation out west.

Thanks, Angie, Lindsay & Jennie for such a fun night!

Skiing - Before and After

2011-02-01T20:06:00.006-06:00

I was in Denver this past weekend visiting Angie, my childhood best friend, and her family. We had a blast.

On Sunday, Donny and Angie took me to Keystone to ski. I had the best time.

More on the whole trip later (I'm exhausted)....so for now, I'll just show you the before and the after picture of our day of skiing (there were about 75 pictures taken in between these two....and I'll share some of those later).

One word describes this picture: TIRED!

My favorite blog

2011-01-26T15:12:00.003-06:00

Other than mine (of course).....my favorite blog is Young House Love: http://www.younghouselove.com/

It's great and I so wish I had time, resources, style and knowledge (oh, and cute old house to fix up) to do what they do.

Maybe one day....and until then I can follow their blog and drool.

I've been creating - Part II

2011-01-24T22:55:00.004-06:00

In addition to the scarf I made earlier - I also made these dish clothes for my mom for her birthday.

My great aunt made us a handful of crocheted dish clothes for our wedding and I still have 1 left (after using it for 12 years). These things are tons better than anything you can buy at the store. They scrub dishes really well and clearly they last forever. You can throw them in the washing machine and dryer and they are good as new. Plus they are so much cuter than boring dish clothes from the store. Right?

Happy Birthday mom.

I've been creating

2011-01-23T10:05:00.005-06:00

I am really good at picking up one project and starting it, getting half way done, then getting tired of it and putting it down. Often times I don't finish it (well, most of the time I don't finish it). I don't even know how many quilts I've started over the years and never finished. Maybe it's a little bit of ADD. Not sure. But anyhow, I've always wanted to make a scarf. Easy enough, right? I consider myself fairly creative and can usually figure out something I want to learn on my own....with a little YouTube tutorial helps. I do wish I could knit, but that's too hard....I get frustrated when I drop a stitch and the only way I can figure out how to fix it is to pull it out and start all over. And THAT'S no fun. I never really liked the way crocheted scarfs look - until a friend made me one and I loved it.

So...I decided to make my mom a scarf for her birthday next week. (Don't worry, she never ever reads my blog). The best part of this project is that I FINISHED IT. For real. My first one ever. And it only took me 2.5 days of crocheting - I did it on my lunch break, in the orthodontists office and at home at night. I'm so proud of it - and I want to show y'all.

Ain't she pretty?

PARTY TIME!

2011-01-16T22:16:00.005-06:00

This weekend I helped host/throw an Engagement Party for Allison & David. I have known Allison for 10 years...we met at our first job right out of college, Enterprise Rent-A-Car (a.k.a. the job from hell). I hated my job, but am thankful for the lifelong friendship with Allison that I gained from working there. We started at Enterprise the same week and quit on the same day....which isn't important to the story, but I just thought I'd share.

The party was hosted at Nordan's home (which is picture perfect, looks like it's right out of magazine and is a great venue for any party....oh and he and has the most amazing kitchen ever - complete with tons of counter space, an awesome gas range and a double oven. LOVE!). Amanda did a lot of work the week before the shower (making the pastries, the tarts, the brownies and the sugar cookies). Emily worked on putting together the table tent cards. And I made the table decoration, the banner and pecans ahead of time. (We did have a couple other people who thankfully went in and helped pay for the party.)

Yesterday afternoon, Amanda, Emily and Ashlee-Jean came to my house to finish up the prep work. We grabbed a quick bite to eat for a late lunch/early dinner at Whole Foods and then got to Nordan's around 5:45 p.m.

We finished all of the prep work and started baking everything around 7 p.m. People started arriving at 8 p.m.

Amanda put together a fabulous menu for the party. She is one girl who knows about food and what goes well together. And hopefully this is the start of a beautiful friendship for us - we learned through this process that we have a lot in common. :)

Here's what we served:

Sugar Cookies (with D's and A's on them) -

Chicken Taco Rings (served with sour cream and salsa) - this was the only non-vegetarian thing served, and Pear & Cranberry tart (on the right of this picture) -

Double Tomato Bruschetta (this was hands down the best thing we served - it was amazing) -

Pastry Wrapped Brie, served with apple slices (not shown) and french bread -

Black Bean & Corn Salad, served with tortilla chips and pita chips -

The whole spread (I missed pictures of a few things, so imagine seeing the miniature chocolate cupcakes with nutella frosting, cajun spiced pecans, mushroom and onion tartlets, and a cheese ball served with crackers in addition to the pictures above)-

Here's the centerpiece for the table...Brad cut the branches from our backyard, then I spray painted it white and hot glued on the little purple, lilac, and white buds -

David and Allison opening a few gifts -

Banner, which I made out of old scrapbook paper Emily donated to the project, lots of leftover ribbon I had laying around, and vintage buttons that I've had a cabinet for years -

The Catering Team, plus Allison - (Amanda, me, Allison, Emily) -

We had a great time hosting the party and it was a complete success! I'm thankful to everyone who lent a hand, helped prep the food, let us borrow serving pieces, and helped pay for the party. Next up - Amanda, Emily and I are opening a catering business. Okay, maybe not, but it was fun.

Happy ever after, David & Allison. Love y'all.