Christmas Decorating

I absolutely LOVE Christmas! We decorated the weekend after Thanksgiving so we can enjoy our decorations as long as possible. We haven't done too much to our house since I last posted, but we have added crown moulding to the main rooms. I think it was a much-needed addition!

Our living room/dining room ready for Christmas!

We have a real tree in the living room and a fake tree in the dining room.

Bailey's stocking is front and center, of course:

Bailey's not quite sure of the Christmas tree, especially since it meant his chair got the boot: Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas!

We still exist - I've just completely fallen off the blogging bandwagon. I'm thinking of starting again in January. But for now, Merry Christmas!

Beach Vacation!

Michael and I just got home from a week-long vacation in the Seaside, Florida area with my whole family! We had such a great time - it was so nice to relax and spend time with family. We rented a house for the big group, which included my parents, both of my brothers, my sister-in-law, her mother, baby Gates, Michael, and myself!

Michael and I at the wine bar:

Mom and I:
Gates and me before dinner - I LOVED spending all week with him:
Michael and I at the wine bar again...

My family on Grayton Beach (minus Chris):

Michael and I on the beach:

Gates wasn't so sure of the sand...

Mom and I in Rosemary Beach the last night:

Gates is starting to walk - it's absolutely adorable:

Dad and I at George's in Alys Beach the last night:

Dinner at George's the last night:

One last shot of mom and I:

This trip couldn't have come at a better time! I finished my old job the Friday before we left for the beach and I start a new job at a Public Relations firm tomorrow! Wish me luck!

Our kitchen is finally finished!

We just added the finishing touches to our kitchen...finally! The final additions were window treatments, adding the above-the-range microwave, and crown molding to the cabinets! Here are some pictures (sorry for the poor quality, but I am definitely not a photographer):

I absolutely love how our kitchen turned out! We have done so much - we have painted, put in new granite countertops, replaces the hardware on the cabinets, installed hardwood floors, bought all new appliances, tiled a new backsplash, and the other items mentioned above. I really love cooking in here now - having an updated kitchen to cook in makes such a difference! Please tell me what you think!

New Porch Furniture

We are finally finished with the front exterior of our house! It's taken about 8 months, but we are finally satisfied with how everything looks. We bought some new porch furniture a few weeks ago, which was the final touch.

New chairs and table:

We also got a new address plaque (which has been blurred, of course), and Michael painted our light fixture black:

If it weren't so dang hot, we would probably be spending a lot of time out here!

To recap, since November, we have landscaped the yard, painted the house, added a new porch swing and furniture, and added accessories. I think we're going to relax for a while!

Greek-Style Pork Chops

I'm so sorry that I have been MIA for the past few weeks. Truthfully, I just don't have anything particularly interesting happening in my life right now (which is actually VERY nice not having event after event scheduled)!

I wanted to share with you this delicious recipe from Cooking Light. If you like Greek cuisine, you will LOVE this recipe! And at only 233 calories per serving, you can enjoy this meal guilt-free.

Greek-Style Pork Chops

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar, divided
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 2 teaspoons olive oil, divided
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 4 (4-ounce) boneless center-cut loin pork chops
• 3/4 cup plain fat-free Greek-style yogurt
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill
• 1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
• 1 1/2 cups diced plum tomatoes (about 2 medium)
• 1 cup diced seeded cucumber
• 1/2 cup diced red onion
• Cooking spray

Preparation

1. Combine 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar, oregano, 1 teaspoon olive oil, and garlic in a zip-top plastic bag. Add pork to bag, and seal. Marinate for 20 minutes at room temperature, turning after 10 minutes. Combine remaining 1 tablespoon vinegar, remaining 1 teaspoon oil, yogurt, 1 tablespoon dill, and 1/8 teaspoon salt, stirring well with a whisk. Cover and chill. Combine tomatoes, cucumber, and onion. Sprinkle tomato mixture with 1/8 teaspoon salt; toss to combine.

2. Heat a grill pan over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Remove pork from bag, and discard marinade. Sprinkle both sides of pork evenly with remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt. Add pork to pan, and cook for 4 minutes on each side. Remove pork from pan, and let stand for 2 minutes. Place 3/4 cup tomato mixture on each of 4 plates, and top each serving with 1 pork chop and about 3 tablespoons yogurt mixture. Enjoy!

LET'S GO USA!

Harry Potter OBSESSED

I completely admit it - I'm probably the LAST person to jump on the Harry Potter bandwagon. Even though I am obsessed with reading, I have never gotten into the fantasy genre. Finally, after the persuasion of my mom and friends, I gave in to the craze. And I'm SO glad I did!!

I seriously read all 7 of the Harry Potter books in about 6 weeks. I just could not put them down - especially the last 3 or 4 in the series. J.K. Rowling has to have the most amazing imagination in the entire world. How in the world did she come up with all of the characters and scenarios in these books?!

I must admit...one of the saddest parts of the books, for me, was when Dobby died. The little guy was so annoying, but so sweet to Harry! R.I.P. Dobby!
I cannot WAIT for the Deathly Hallows movie to come out in November! If you have been holding out on reading Harry Potter like I was, seriously...give it a chance! You won't regret it!

A Day at the Lake

One of my family's favorite summertime activities is to spend the day on our boat at the lake. Michael, Bailey, and I met my family at the lake on Saturday and we had so much fun!

Isn't Gates the coolest baby you've ever seen?!Michael and Bailey chillin on the boat:
Bailey swam ALL DAY LONG. He was so tired that night:

Gates really wanted to drive the boat!

Beach Trip!

We had the most amazing long weekend in the Seaside, Florida area last weekend. We spent it here....

And here...

I absolutely LOVE the Fort Walton Beach area. The beaches are gorgeous, the little towns are adorable, and there are so many fun restaurants and shops. We went with our good friends Grace and Will for the long weekend. We rented an adorable condo in the Gulf Place village - so cute!

Michael and I in Gulf Place the first night:

Dinner at Goatfeathers the first night:

The boys in our condo the second night:

Dinner at the Smiling Fish Cafe in Gulf Place:

Grace and me:

The whole group the last night at the Naked Grape Wine Station:

We had SO much fun with them. We are definitely making this an annual trip. Lucky for me I'm heading back to Seaside in August for a whole week with my family!

Alison's Wedding Weekend!

One of my very best friends, Alison, finally tied the knot this weekend in Washington, D.C.! Every event was absolutely amazing. All of the events were located close to Dupont Circle. I LOVED the area. The food, the flowers, the details - she didn't miss one thing! Here are a few of the pictures from the weekend:

The bride popping some champagne Thursday evening in her Presidential Suite :)

Alison looking lovely at her bridesmaid's luncheon on Friday at Poste:
Alison and I at the luncheon:
Michael and I at the rehearsal dinner at the Old Tabard Inn(like my crazy hair?!):

Michael and I at the reception at the Meridian House...it was MAGNIFICIENT!

The gorgeous centerpieces on our table at dinner:

The gorgeous bride taking it easy after dinner!

Furman girls with the groom!

I wish I had more pictures to share. I can't wait to see her photographer's pictures! Enjoy your honeymoon in Bermuda, Matt and Alison!