Missy in Pink

The Big Apple

2011-09-27T19:32:00.005-04:00

Eeep...has it really been almost two months since I blogged! Lots has happened since then, including a wonderful trip to Seaside with my family, but I'm going to start with a trip I took to NYC with my mom a week ago!

Mom and I both love NYC and both enjoy doing the same things while there - seeing a show, eating and drinking, and a little shopping. We were there for three nights - it never seems long enough!

We started our trip with lunch at the National, which was wonderful:

Next, we decided to walk uptown and go in some stores on Madison Avenue...but we had to stop midway for a glass of wine, of course!

This is the adorable terrace outside the Tory Burch store on Madison Avenue - so cute!

Mom and I at lunch on Friday at the Island on the Upper East Side:

Of course Mom had to do some shopping at the Lilly store:

Enjoying some yogurt on the steps to the MET:

Taking a stroll through Central Park:

We saw a show Friday night and had a quick and tasty dinner at a Thai restaurant in the Theater District:

The show was AMAZING!

Saturday we spent the day downtown. Lunch was at Freeman's, a neat place in the Bowery:

We had an afternoon drink at a cute Italian wine bar in Soho:

And another afternoon drink, this time with cheesecake:

Saturday night, we had dinner at Perilla in Greenwich Village. It's Harold from Top Chef's restaurant and it was phenomenal!

Sunday, before we left, we had tasty brunch at Maialino, which is the Gramercy Park Hotel:

Last pic of the trip!

As you can see, we definitely wined and dined our way through the city, which is exactly what we both wanted from our trip. It was such a fun getaway. Next up - our beach trip!

Decorating the Study

2011-07-29T17:59:00.013-04:00

The study is coming along slowly. I thought I'd share an update with how it's looking these days. We haven't done anything special to the room except for painting (the color is Sherwin Williams Techno Gray if you're interested) and adding crown moulding.

Michael's parents gave us this beautiful antique piano when we got married. I LOVE it. We had the bench recovered, but that's about it.

Obviously, my favorite colors are neutrals and soft greys, greens and blues :) And a tad bit of contemporary fabrics!
We got a desk for cheap at Target for now. It does the job until we find something we like better.

That's about it! It has beautiful French doors that open up to the study from the living room, but I could not get a good picture of those. One day we'd like to get a nice club chair for reading, but we're making do for now. Have a great weekend!

Jekyll Island Weekend

2011-07-24T18:25:00.022-04:00

Is anyone still here? If so, I'm thinking about coming back to blogging on a regular basis. Hopefully I can come up with enough interesting posts!

Over Memorial Day weekend, Michael and I took an anniversary trip to one of my favorite places in the world - Jekyll Island, Georgia. We always stay at the Jekyll Island Club Hotel, which is one of my favorite hotels - everything is so peaceful and relaxing. The hotel and property has so much history and natural beauty. We didn't use our cars once over the long weekend, which was perfect.

{image from Jekyll Island Club website}

During the day, we rode bikes all over the island, relaxed by the pool, and took a few naps. I'm looking kinda gross here...sorry!Reading at the pool!Each night, we ate at a different delicious restaurant on the property. I'm missing that Dungeness crab right about now!Sorry for the poor quality - we took this with the timer:The most beautiful backdrop:My favorite meal was probably at the Crane Cottage. So yummy: We had such a great time on our little getaway. Thank you Michael for surprising me with this amazing trip! Be back soon with updates on our home decor. Have a great evening!

Bathroom Reveal!

2011-04-25T18:31:00.011-04:00

Our bathroom is finally finished! It has actually been complete for about a month and half, but I've been waiting for my window treatment to share pictures. We gutted the entire bathroom, but we did keep the vanity/countertops that we had purchased right when moved in, so everything else is new. Goodbye, disgusting linoleum floors! Without further ado...

Another view:I looooove our monogrammed shower curtain. We were also able to keep half of the original built-ins, which was a huge plus:Our little shower nook for all of our bathroom products: One of my favorite parts - the showerhead and faucet!

I love having a bathtub SO much. I'm definitely someone who enjoys a good bubble bath. I think the new bathroom goes well with the Craftsman style of our house, so we're very pleased. Let me know your thoughts!

Yummy Mushroom Pasta

2011-03-21T12:37:00.009-04:00

I have been craving some sort of mushroom pasta lately, so I found a recipe on Cooking Light. Oh my goodness - this is one of our favorite recipes now. I thought I would share this deliciousness since it's so yummy and healthy!

Farfalle with Creamy Mushroom Sauce

Ingredients
1 pound uncooked farfalle (bow tie pasta)
1 tablespoon butter
12 ounces presliced exotic mushroom blend
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/3 cup finely chopped shallots
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 1/2 teaspoons salt, divided
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup dry white wine
2/3 cup whipping cream
1/2 cup (2 ounces) grated fresh Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
Minced fresh parsley (optional)

Preparation
Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat; drain. Melt the butter in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the mushrooms, onion, shallots, garlic, 1 teaspoon salt, and pepper; cook 12 minutes or until liquid evaporates and mushrooms are tender, stirring occasionally. Add wine; cook 2 minutes or until liquid evaporates, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat. Add the cooked pasta, whipping cream, cheese, and 2 tablespoons parsley, tossing gently to coat. Stir in remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt. Garnish with minced fresh parsley, if desired. Serve immediately.

{Recipe and image from Cooking Light}

Tara's Wedding!

2011-03-16T16:36:00.008-04:00

I spent an amazing weekend in Greenville, this past weekend, for one of my very best friend's wedding! Tara and I were college roommates at Furman and it was SO fun to go back to Greenville for her wedding! Picture overload ahead...

We got a sneak peek at all the flowers on Thursday night...they were breathtaking!

Tara and I at her bridesmaid's luncheon. The weather was beautiful all weekend:

The rehearsal dinner. AMAZING:

Kaci, Tara and I after the brunch the morning of her wedding!

The most stunning bride! Her flowers were absolutely gorgeous...

Our bride on the trolley ride to the ceremony: Bridesmaids before the wedding. How flattering were our bridesmaids' dresses?!

Furman girls at the reception:

My parents attended, which was so much fun:

Apparently I did not take one picture with my husband at the wedding. Ooops. He was there, I promise! Proof below:
I'm so jealous of Tara's honeymoon right now. I want another one!

The Current State of our Bathroom

2011-02-08T19:02:00.009-05:00

And this is actually progress! We are finally renovating our master bathroom and I could not be more excited.

We are pretty much gutting the entire thing, except we are keeping our vanity because we bought that new last year. We had this awful pre-fab shower stall (and that was our only shower/tub), so that was ripped out (would have liked to have taken the sledge hammer to that) and a bathtub has been installed. Praise God! I can't wait to have my bubble baths back.

Plumbing and electrical are basically finished and drywalling should be done tomorrow. Hopefully tiling will start Thursday!

Michael and I are SO tired of showering at the gym, so I'm hoping we only have a week or so left. I'll post pictures as soon as it's finished. Have a great week!

Pantry Redo!

2011-01-16T19:14:00.007-05:00

Michael and I finally got around to tackling our pantry this weekend. It's a great space, but it was pretty bad on the inside. There were wire shelves (WHY does anyone install these?), nasty scratched up white walls, etc. We took down the old shelves, patched the holes, sanded, painted, and finally, built and installed shelves. Here are some pictures, if you're interested:

Before (ick!):

Once we took out all of the shelves and started painting:
Painting fun:

The backings Michael installed for the shelves:

AFTER! The color looks terrible here, but it's a lovely light blueish grey:

And with all of our stuff organized:

I love it! And I especially love that everything doesn't fall over like it always did on those wire shelves. What do you think?

Beautiful Kate Spade

2011-01-13T16:07:00.018-05:00

I am obsessed with Kate Spade's clothing line. It's absolutely gorgeous. Why do they have to be so dang expensive! I love how her pieces are feminine and stylish, but not too trendy. Here are some of my current favorites:

Striped Piper Skirt:

Houndstooth Lola Dress

Hallie Pant Be Dazzled Josie Dress{all images borrowed from www.katespade.com}

Christmas Decorating

2010-12-19T16:23:00.008-05:00

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!

2010-12-17T14:26:00.001-05:00

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!

2010-08-16T16:47:00.008-04:00

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!

2010-07-29T17:50:00.003-04:00

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

2010-07-27T19:07:00.003-04:00

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

2010-07-08T14:07:00.007-04:00

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!

2010-06-26T09:42:00.001-04:00

Harry Potter OBSESSED

2010-06-23T20:45:00.004-04:00

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

2010-06-07T10:16:00.002-04:00

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!

2010-06-02T17:55:00.005-04:00

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!

2010-05-25T17:40:00.003-04:00

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!

Vote for our Backyard!

2010-05-11T17:23:00.003-04:00

Please take a minute and vote for us! Michael heard about a local contest on the radio yesterday to have your backyard completely redone and landscaped. Needless to say, our backyard is a complete disaster! We have done quite a bit of work on the front of our house and the inside, but the backyard has remained untouched...probably because we have NO idea where to start!

You can vote for us by clicking here (you go to the bottom and rate the picture...preferably with 5 stars :)

Here is the picture we uploaded...with Bailey in the picture, of course! Thanks so much!

Updated Exterior House Pictures

2010-05-06T20:20:00.006-04:00

We have done quite a bit of work on the exterior of our house. I think it's time I finally share some pictures!

BEFORE: This is the picture of our house from the MLS listing. To be honest, I did not even want to LOOK at this house after I saw this picture. Luckily, Michael convinced me:

AFTER: We painted all of the red a classic grey (I'm much more into neutral colors).We have done quite a bit of landscaping, as well:
We also got a new porch swing!
Some pretty pots of Geraniums for the front steps:
A closer view of the house:

We still need a bit more porch furniture for the right side of the porch, but we are making slow and steady progress. The only thing we aren't quite sure about is the color of the door. Do you think we should paint it an accent color to make it pop? Please tell me what you think!

New York Recap

2010-04-29T09:55:00.006-04:00

I was in NYC last weekend for one of my best friend's Bachelorette weekend! Alison is getting married in May and she was one of my bridesmaids. We were roommates in college our freshman year and our senior year, so we have been friends for quite a while now!

Alison, me, and Kaci on our way to a Broadway show:

We saw Promises, Promises, with Kristin Chenowith. It was like Mad Men on Broadway...amazing!
Alison's finance's sister, Allie, myself, and Alison at brunch at Jane in Soho on Saturday:

Dinner at Public in Soho! Yummy dinner and great atmosphere.

It was a great weekend and I think Alison's ready to walk down the aisle in 3 short weeks!

New York, New York!

2010-04-23T09:28:00.002-04:00

I'm headed to NYC for the weekend! Have a great weekend!

Birthday Flowers

2010-04-20T18:11:00.004-04:00

My birthday was last Thursday and I received two BEAUTIFUL flower arrangements. Fresh flowers are definitely one of my favorite indulgences; I always have to have one bouquet of fresh flowers somewhere in my house.

My best friend Alyssa sent me this beautiful hydrangea arrangement all the way from California!

My parents gave me this adorable arrangement:
My birthday was wonderful - very low key, since I had to work almost all weekend. My parents were able to visit on Saturday night, so we went to a nice dinner at a delicious Italian restaurant. My cute hubby gave me an amazing gift - he had our deck pressure washed and is almost finished staining it! I can't wait to share pictures with you. Have a great day!

Cutest baby ever.

2010-04-12T21:23:00.004-04:00

I can't stop looking at this adorable picture! My nephew is the cutest little guy!

Baked Lemon Pasta

2010-04-12T10:31:00.008-04:00

Last night I cooked Pioneer Woman's Baked Lemon Pasta and it was delicious! I wanted to share this fresh, tasty dish with you, especially since it was so easy to cook. It was a perfect spring dish!

Baked Lemon Pasta

1 pound thin spaghetti
4 tablespoons salted butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 whole lemon, juiced and zested
2 cups sour cream
1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt
Plenty of grated Parmesan Cheese
Flat-leaf parsley, chopped
Extra lemon juice

Preheat over to 375 degrees. Cook pasta until al dente.

In a skillet, melt butter with olive oil over low heat. When butter is melted, add minced garlic. Squeeze lemon juice into pan. Turn off heat. Add sour cream and stir mixture together. Add lemon zest and salt. Pour mixture over drained spaghetti and mix together, then pour into an oven safe dish.

Baked, covered, for 15 minutes. Then remove foil and bake for an additional 7 to 10 minutes.

When you remove from over, squeeze a little more lemon juice over the top. Top generously with Parmesan cheese, then chopped parsley. Give it a final squeeze of lemon juice at the end.

Serve with crusty French bread and a simple green salad.

*Image and recipe from the Pioneer Woman

Happy Easter!

2010-04-05T18:56:00.003-04:00

Happy Easter and Happy Spring! Spring is my absolute favorite season and I could not be more ready for the warm weather. We have been busy planting new flowers and plants around our yard, which has made the arrival of Spring even more exciting - I love coming home to see what has bloomed each day!

We spent Easter morning and lunch with my family, then we drove back home and cooked an Easter dinner for Michael's family. It was great! Here are a few pictures:

Michael cooking the Easter lamb on the grill!

Our little dinner set-up :)
One of our flower beds:

This was a surprise...the previous owners of the house had planted some pretty tulip buds:

Finally, we recently got a new plantation shutter for our powder room. I love it!

Unfortunately, I now want plantation shutters everywhere in the house.

Do you like? Have a great week and enjoy the beautiful weather!

Reality TV ADDICT!

2010-03-26T11:48:00.005-04:00

Hi, my name is Missy and I am a Reality TV ADDICT! Seriously though...lately I have been noticing I seem to watch entirely too much reality TV. I have no problem admitting that I love it. Here are my favorites:

Dancing with the Stars...SO cheesy, but SO fabulous:

The Rachel Zoe Project. I die.

The Real Housewives of New York. The ridiculous drama is addicting.

LOVE the Bachelor. My all time favorite seasons have to be Jesse Palmer, Travis Stork, and Jillian Harris!

But my FAVORITE of all is Survivor. I have secretly always wanted to be on this show. I probably would be the first one voted off though!

Anyone else not afraid to admit that they have a Reality TV obsession!?

Updated House Pictures!

2010-03-23T17:14:00.003-04:00

We have had quite a bit of work going on in our house lately. It's finally time to update with some new pictures! We still have quite a bit of work to do, but we are enjoying the process and the results.

Most of the work we have done so far has been in the kitchen. We painted, put in new granite countertops, put in a new subway tile backsplash (thanks Chris!), put down new hardwood floors, bought all new stainless steel appliances, and added new hardware to the cabinets. Here are some pictures:

Another view:

I found this lovely piece of furniture for our teeny sunroom at this great store in town - and for super cheap! I love having a place to store all of my kitchen linens. The view when you walk in:
There are also some before pictures way back in my blog somewhere...probably in December? We still have several things to do before we are finished. We need to rip out the ugly, old vent and replace it with an above-the-range microwave. I also found some subtle window treatments I love for the big windows over the sink. Lastly, I'm contemplating putting beadboard on the sides of the lower cabinets that are exposed. Please tell me what you think and if you have any suggestions!

Beautiful Bungalow

2010-03-16T15:43:00.012-04:00

One of my random, favorite activities is to browse houses on Rate My Space. I found this adorable cottage the other day and I just had to share.

Front of the house. I love the paint colors and perfectly maintained yard:

Beautiful, light, and airy living room:
Relaxing master bedroom:

Adorable kitchen with all sorts of interesting details:

I LOVE this guest room. It's so relaxing...it'd feel like staying in a hotel!

~All images from HGTV's Rate my Space~

Spring, where are you!?

2010-03-15T21:00:00.006-04:00

I am SO ready for Spring! I love everything about this season: the colors, the holidays (Easter and my birthday :), the weather, the flowers...I could go on and on. I did a little pre-Spring shopping today and it just made me even more anxious for Easter so that I can start wearing my white and Springy clothes! Here's what I picked up...

White toothpick ankle jeans from J. Crew:

J. Crew Flouncy Flowers Scoopneck tee:

Wind Wheel Posts from Anthropologie:

A New Look!

2010-03-12T14:46:00.004-05:00

Hello, hello! It's been a while...I've actually been waiting to blog until my lovely, new blog design was ready! Do you love it? I am in LOVE. I was definitely overdue for a change! It was designed by the lovely ladies at Designer Blogs. I highly recommend them; they were absolutely wonderful.

On another note, you should all be very jealous because I am seeing this beautiful man sing on Sunday night....

That's right, ladies! I have the pleasure of seeing Michael Buble in Atlanta with my mom, my sister-in law, and her mom (I might need to add that this is the third time I have seen him...is that bad?). I can't wait! Have a great weekend!

A Visitor

2010-02-14T13:25:00.006-05:00

We have been dog sitting our friends' dog all weekend. She's a little yellow lab puppy named Charlotte, and she is so cute!

Bailey and Charlotte waiting for us at the door:

Charlotte found a cozy spot when I was changing the sheets...
Look how tiny she is in Bailey's bed!

And lastly, my lovely Valentine's Day flowers from Michael. I love them!

Happy Valentine's Day!

ATTENTION!

2010-02-13T17:03:00.007-05:00

My sister-in-law, Michelle, has started a blog about their family! I am SO excited - I can see pictures of my adorable nephew all the time!

How Sweet It Is - Check it out!

LOVES Trina Turk

2010-02-04T12:06:00.004-05:00

I am already obsessing over new Spring clothes. Not good, considering it snowed last weekend.

Trina Turk has long been a favorite designer of mine. Look at these beautiful items for this Spring:

Honono Dress:

Noi 2 Skirt:

Marigo Skirt:
Bernie Cuffed Short:

Feel free to purchase any of these items on my behalf!

Recent Reading

2010-02-03T10:37:00.007-05:00

As I've mentioned before, I am an avid reader and I absolutely LOVE reading. Not only do I enjoy reading, I think that it substantially increases my vocabulary and improves my writing. I'm a very fast reader; I usually average a book every two weeks. Thus, I am constantly on the look-out for new books to read! Here are a few of my recent favorites:

South of Broad by Pat Conroy (probably my favorite author):

The Help by Kathryn Stockett:Firefly Lane by Kristin Hannah:

Next up in my queue is The Other Queen by Philippa Gregory:

Gregory wrote The Other Boleyn Girl, which got me hooked on her series about the Tudor Monarchy. I am a history junkie, so these books have kept me occupied for a while!

Do you have any good book recommendations? Please share!

Snow Day!

2010-01-29T15:08:00.002-05:00

I love working at a college - you get random snow days! My office closed at noon today because of snow, so now I'm all cozy in my house for the day.

Here's our back porch right now:

The view out of our kitchen window...so pretty!

What I've been doing on my snow day...making Valentine's cupcakes!
Have a great weekend!

Early Spring Shopping

2010-01-26T13:09:00.011-05:00

I had the day off yesterday, so what's a girl to do? Go shopping, of course! Here's what I picked

up...

Tory Burch Tanya Shirt (50% off no less!)

This cute little Target top...brown with white polka dots and ruffles!
J. Brand Skinny Capris (also 50% off!)
Can you tell I'm SO ready for Spring already? Too bad it's only January :(

Wonderful Weekend in Atlanta

2010-01-13T09:54:00.003-05:00

Last weekend I was in Atlanta for two wonderful events - my friend Candace's Baby Shower and my nephew's Baptism!

My sister-in-law and I threw Candace (Mrs. Southern Belle) a baby shower on Saturday. It was so much fun to plan and to visit with everyone. We had a cowboy theme because little baby Keating will most definitely be a cowboy! Candace is due in early February, so not too long now!

Cute banner made for Baby Keating:

Diaper Cake:
Action shot of the shower:

Myself, Candace, and Michelle:

Sunday morning was Gates' baptism! He was so adorable. Gates wore the Christening gown that numerous people in my family have worn (including myself)!

The cute family at the church:

Chris, Michelle, and Gates:

Siblings with Gates:

Michael, Gates, and I at the brunch after the Baptism:

I love that little guy so much! Have a great week!

Kitchen Update!

2010-01-06T08:31:00.005-05:00

I have finally taken some pictures of our updated kitchen to share. So far, we have painted the walls a greige, added new granite countertops, and added a white subway tile backsplash.

Keep in mind that we still have to put hardwoods down in the kitchen, get all new appliances, and of course, add some decorative details (please ignore my horrible photography skills, as well).

View when you walk in:

Close up:

Another view:
Close up of the subway tile backsplash (which my awesome brother did ALL by himself!):

So, what do you think? It's far from done, but we are making progress!

2010 House Projects

2010-01-05T13:22:00.002-05:00

Since, I am so excited about the upcoming house projects we have for this year, I thought I would share!

Living room: Add crown molding; get new area rug
Dining Room: Add chair rail molding and crown molding
Kitchen: New kitchen appliances; new hardwood floors; window treatments
Guest Bedroom: Paint the bedroom
Master Bathroom: Tile floor and shower
Back Porch: Power wash and stain deck
Front Porch and Lawn: Buy front porch furniture; paint exterior; landscape front yard

Wow...it actually seems like quite a lot all written down! Hopefully Michael and I can do a lot of that ourselves to save some money. Any tips and/or suggestions are much appreciated.

And I PROMISE to take some picture tonight of all of our updates to the house...including our new granite countertops and subway tile backsplash!

Happy New Year!

2010-01-01T13:32:00.005-05:00

I hope you had a wonderful New Years! Michael and I rang in the new year with my brother, his wife and baby, a few friends, and a yummy dinner. It was wonderful! I have been quite the bad blogger lately, but I promise to start posting more regularly. I have lots of pictures of our updated house to share, but for now, I'll share a couple of my Christmas presents!

iPhone (AMAZING):

A beautiful long coat from J.Crew:

But my favorite gift is the new countertops we had installed a few weeks ago. I absolutely LOVE them! I'll be sharing picture soon, not to worry. Have a great New Year's Day!

Early Christmas Presents!

2009-12-18T09:14:00.003-05:00

Michael surprised me with an early Christmas present - a beautiful ivory pea coat from J.Crew! Since it has been SO cold here, it was perfect timing. I sort of have a coat obsession, so naturally I loved this gift!

J. Crew Wool Harbor Pea Coat

But my REAL Christmas present is being installed today - new granite countertops in our kitchen! I am so excited - I can't wait to get home and see how they turn out. I'll be sure to post pictures :)

On another note, today is my last day of work until January 4th. It's ok to be jealous :) Merry Christmas!

Junior League!

2009-12-10T09:26:00.005-05:00

I had my first Junior League meeting last night! It was so fun. I'm really glad my friends, Grace and Susan, wanted to do it! I highly recommend JL to anyone, especially if you are new to a city (like me). It's a great way to meet people and get involved in your community. Looking forward to all the fun things ahead!

Happy Wednesday!

2009-12-09T09:11:00.007-05:00

Just wanted to share a few pictures of the cutest baby in the world.

My adorable nephew, Gates!

Just one of the guys...hanging with my brothers and Michael:
I love this little guy!

Updated house pictures!

2009-12-08T15:46:00.003-05:00

So we are finally unpacked in our new house! We also had tons of rooms painted over the last week. We even updated the master bathroom some! Without further ado, here are some pictures...

Living Room - we painted the fireplace,mantle, and hearth (it was this horrendous painted red...)

View from the Living Room into the Dining Room. We still need to replace that ugly brass chandelier:
Another view of the newly painted fireplace:

Powder Room - we painted this room a light grey with some hints of green. It used to be this extremely bright sea foam green:

Kitchen - this was painted yellow (NOT my favorite). We painted it a greige (grey + beige):

Another view of the kitchen:

The sun room - this was also painted the yellow:

We removed this massive, outdated ceiling fan from the kitchen ceiling and replaced it with the flush mount light fixture:The hallway to the bedrooms. This was painted BRIGHT red:

And finally...the bathroom! We put in a new vanity, counter tops, and all new fixtures. Eventually we'd like to tile the floors, but that will have to wait.

You can see the before pictures in the post below. Next up on the list are new kitchen counter tops! Hooray! Also, do you like our Christmas decorations? If you can't tell, I LOVE colored lights!

Our new house: Before pictures...

2009-11-30T12:48:00.005-05:00

Well, we are FINALLY moved and unpacked in our new home. So far, we absolutely LOVE it. This house is so much larger than our rental home, which is really nice. It's 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms. Of course, there are MANY things that I want to do to the house to make it more my style...so here are some before pictures. We have painters coming this week, which I am so excited about, since red and yellow are not my favorite colors inside a home :)

Exterior - we plan on painting all of the red!

Living Room - we will be painting the fireplace white this week:
Dining Room - the horrendous window treatments are now gone and hopefully the chandelier will be gone soon as well:

The front room, which will probably be an office:

Kitchen - yellow will be gone this week!

Sun room - not our furniture...

Bathroom #1 - we love the built-ins:

There are 2 more bedrooms and another bathroom, but I don't have pictures for some reason. Luckily for us, most of the changes we want to make are mostly cosmetic. After we paint, we plan on re-vamping the kitchen a bit. I'll be sure to keep you posted with pictures and updates. Hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

What I DON'T want for Christmas...

2009-11-17T09:16:00.006-05:00

I absolutely LOVE Christmas. Everything about it! But before I get into the things that I am most excited about, let me share with you a few Christmas items that are just not my style (to put it nicely)...

These creepy Santa dolls. I mean these things are seriously expensive too!

The Chipmunks Christmas music...like nails on a chalkboard:

Creepy Christmas Caroler Dolls:

Yard blow-ups. Seriously? And my least favorite of all...the Christmas Village:
I think this is because I despise clutter so much. I seriously can't stand these! This is just my own humble, personal opinion. Any that you would like to share?

Where I've been...

2009-11-16T09:08:00.003-05:00

I'm so sorry to have been such a bad blogger for the past 2 weeks, but Michael and I were busy buying a house!!!

We close on Friday and I can hardly wait to get started with decorating and renovating! The house is a 1920s bungalow about 2 streets over from our current rental house. We love the area and the house has so much potential! The house is in great shape, but needs some cosmetic changes. I'll be sure to update the blog with before and afters, of course. Have a great week!

Scary Movie!

2009-10-23T13:42:00.003-04:00

I am ALL about seasonal activities. During October, I LOVE going to apple orchards, pumpkin patches, haunted houses, and seeing a good scary movie! Normally, I'm not really too huge on scary movies. I saw Paranormal Activity last night and I actually liked it! It was very realistic and it definitely got me a little scared (and in the mood for Halloween)!

What Halloween activities do you have planned?

The BEST Pumpkin Bread Recipe

2009-10-22T11:42:00.004-04:00

You might have noticed that I might like pumpkin. And by "might like pumpkin", I mean I am obsessed with it! I had some leftover pumpkin from making my Pumpkin Cheesecake the other night, so I decided to make some quick Pumpkin Bread. It turned out fabulous! Here's the recipe:

Pumpkin Bread

1 cup pumpkin
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 1/3 cup white sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups and 1 Tablespoon all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Pre-head over to 350 degrees. Grease bread pan. In a large bowl, mix together pumpkin, oil, sugar, and eggs. Stir until well-blended. Add flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Beat until smooth. Stir in walnuts. Bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour. Enjoy!

Dreaming of a White Kitchen

2009-10-21T09:07:00.003-04:00

I could spend hours looking at pictures of these beautiful white kitchens. Unfortunately, Michael and I are still looking for that perfect house (for us) to buy, so my dream of having a beautiful white kitchen will have to wait for a while. In the meantime, here are a few of my favorites that I have saved just in case :)

LOVE LOVE this one. I love the bead board, the contrast of the island, and the huge hood:

Love the subway tile here. So classic and fresh. I also love all the hardware:
This is just beautiful. These marble counter tops, the arched hood, the windows...LOVE:

This one is just so big. Love the huge island...love the simplicity of the cabinetry...love the beautiful, dark hardwoods:

I could move right into to any of these houses...

New clothes...

2009-10-20T09:10:00.006-04:00

I finally broke down and bought yet another pair of Tory Burch Revas. Since I love wearing flats so much, these are perfect for me. I LOVE them in the gold!

Tory Burch Reva in Gold:

The Splendid Jersey Cardigan in Navy:

This is seriously the most comfy, soft cardigan EVER. You must get one immediately. I still need some new Fall work clothes. Any suggestions?

Supper Club

2009-10-19T13:57:00.004-04:00

One of my favorite things lately has been our little supper club that we have started with two other couples. It's so fun! Every 2-3 weeks another couple cooks dinner for everyone at their house. Last night was our 2nd time! Here is what was on the menu last night...

Appetizer: Cranberry Delight Cream Cheese Dip, Spiced Pecans

Entree: Chargrilled Pork Tenderloin, Spinach with Pine Nuts, and Biscuit Poppers

Dessert: Pumpkin Cheesecake

(This is actually not what my cheesecake looked like, but we can pretend, right?!)

New boots

2009-10-15T10:38:00.003-04:00

I've been wanting these boots for Fall for a while. So when I found them on sale on Piperlime, I knew they had to be mine!

Steve Madden Cybul Boots in Cognac

Do you like?

Cutest Pumpkin Ever!

2009-10-11T16:51:00.007-04:00

We met my family last night in the North Georgia mountains for a Halloween dinner at my Aunt's house. It was so fun to see my family, especially my new little nephew! I couldn't wait to hold him!

Later in the evening, his parents put him in his little pumpkin suit...it was so cute!

I miss little Gates already!

Nutty Pumpkin Muffins

2009-10-10T10:38:00.002-04:00

I am still alive! I have had the busiest and craziest last two weeks with work, so I haven't had ANY time for blogging. So sorry for the hiatus and I will be back to my regular blogging starting now :)

I thought I'd share this delicious recipe with you all. My mom visited me 2 weeks ago and I made these for a breakfast treat. They were super easy to make and we both loved them! They're traditional pumpkin muffins, but with some nuts added (which makes everything better in my opinion).

Nutty Pumpkin Muffins

- 2 eggs, beaten

- 1.5 cups sugar

- 1 cup canned or cooked pumpkin

- 1/2 cup vegetable oil

- 1/3 cup water

- 1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour

- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

- 1 teaspoon baking soda

- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

- 1/2 teaspoon salt

- 3/4 cups chopped walnuts

In a large bowl mix eggs, sugar, pumpkin, oil, and water. Combine flour, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Stir into pumpkin mixture; mix well. Fold in nuts. Fill greased or paper-lined muffin cups three-fourths full. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until muffins are done. Cool on wire rack. Enjoy!

A little shopping...

2009-09-24T20:13:00.003-04:00

While Michael was visiting with friends in Greenville on Saturday, I was busy shopping at a few of my old favorite stores! I had so much fun - the only thing that would have made it better is if my Mom had been there to shop with me. Here's a few of the things I picked up:

Lilly Pulitzer Soni Printed Turtleneck

Vineyard Vines 5 Pocket Corduroy Skirt in Navy

J. Crew Shimmering Stone Necklace

The always classic Jackie Cardigan in Navy:

J. Crew Single Wrap Skinny Belt in Fresh Melon

I am so ready to bust out my Fall clothes...too bad it's still about 80 degrees here everyday!

I'm an Aunt!

2009-09-23T10:00:00.003-04:00

My precious nephew, Gates, was born on Monday night at 11:15pm! I am SO excited! As soon as my mom called me to tell me that Michelle was in labor, I immediately jumped in the car and drove to Atlanta...and he was already born by the time I arrived at the hospital!

Chris, Michelle, and Gates!

7.0lbs...such a cute little bundle:
I love this picture...I just want to hold him all day:

Congratulations Chris and Michelle, and welcome baby Gates!

Heading to Greenville for the Weekend!

2009-09-17T21:58:00.005-04:00

I am so excited...Michael and I are going to Greenville for the weekend for his cousin's wedding. Greenville is the city where I eventually want to live permanently! I LOVE this city. The size is great, the restaurants are delicious, and the shopping is lovely. Greenville is the city where we went to college, so we have always loved it and hope to move there eventually.

We will be staying here...

Visiting Furman University, our Alma mater...

And of course, there will be quite a bit of eating and shopping at my favorite places! Have a great weekend!

Nobody Puts Baby in the Corner

2009-09-15T19:00:00.003-04:00

I normally do not care about celebrity deaths, but I am SO sad about Patrick Swayze passing away yesterday. Dirty Dancing is my absolute FAVORITE movie. I mean, the title of this post is probably the best movie quote of all time :) He just seemed like such a nice guy. He'd been married to the same woman for 34 years and he just seemed like a class act. I will be watching Dirty Dancing in honor of Patrick very soon.

Also, I'm so sorry I have been such a terrible blogger lately. I really am having a hard time coming up with ideas...I guess my life is just really boring lately! I'll be back soon with some good posts. Have a great Tuesday!

Amazing weekend!

2009-09-07T11:16:00.003-04:00

I had a wonderful weekend...unfortunately, I have to work today :( But the amazing-ness of my weekend makes up for that. I had one of those great weekends where I had NO plans...just relaxation. Here's what it included:

Dinner with some friends at our favorite Mexican restaurant Friday
Sleeping in both days
College football (GA Tech and Florida won!)
Michael surprised me by taking me to an amazingly delicious dinner at Meeting Place Saturday night
Brunch with Michael's parents at Bluewater yesterday
LOTS of napping!

Hope you're enjoying your Labor Day Weekend!

New dress

2009-09-04T19:37:00.006-04:00

Since I have two weddings coming up this month, I spent today looking around for a new dress to wear. Unfortunately, the shopping in Chattanooga absolutely sucks...(sorry Michael). There are about 3 cute stores and I looked at all of them. People, there isn't even a J. Crew here.

Anyways, I went online shopping and bought this pretty Trina Turk dress:

You like?

Fall Clothes

2009-09-01T09:11:00.015-04:00

I can't stop looking at new fall clothes online. It's not even cool here yet...still in the 80's every day, but I really want to wear my fall clothes! Here are a few items I'm wanting for the fall...

Anthropologie Irenic Necklace Milly Roll Neck Stretch Wool Dress

Banana Republic Graphic Print Sheath Dress

J. Crew Superskinny Pearlized Patent Belt J. Crew Anton Sweater

Ready for Fall!

2009-08-27T17:06:00.009-04:00

Fall is definitely one of my favorite seasons...I just love the crisp weather, yummy food, cute clothes, and college football! Here is what I'm looking forward to this fall....

Pumpkins and Mums on my porch:

Apple season:

Pumpkin-spiced candles:

Georgia Tech Football!
Apple cider:

I'm so ready for the cool weather to arrive already! What are your favorite things about fall?

I love magazines...

2009-08-22T09:10:00.005-04:00

I realized the other day that lately I really love magazines. I've always loved to read, but it's funny how my interest in magazines has shifted over the years. I pretty much only read home decorating/cooking/organizing magazines now, whereas I used to read Glamour, InStyle, etc. I don't even really like those anymore! It's so funny how your tastes change. Here are my current favorite magazines:

Southern Living (my absolute favorite!)

Real Simple

Martha Stewart Living

My old favorite, but now discontinued, Domino (I was so sad!)

And of course I still like my celebrity trash mags (don't judge).

What are your favorites?

I Have a Good Husband

2009-08-19T20:43:00.003-04:00

Monday night was my first big event for my new job. I have spent the last few weeks planning this event and I'm glad to say that all my hard work paid off! Michael came to the event, which was a banquet dinner, but left early while I stayed until everything was clean. I came home to this sweet surprise!

Flowers and wine...my favorites!

He knows me so well. Love you honey!

Michelle's Baby Shower!

2009-08-18T16:40:00.004-04:00

Mrs. Southern Belle, another friend, and I hosted a baby shower for my sister-in-law, Michelle, on Saturday! It was so fun to plan and we had tons of people show up. Michelle is due in mid-September, so she's getting pretty close! I can't wait to be an aunt! Here are some details from the shower...

Adorable banner that our friend made:

The 3 hostesses:

Mom and I:

Pretty flowers and champagne flutes:

Dessert table:
Favors!

Michelle got a ton of gifts for Baby Gates!
The diaper cake I made:

Unfortunately, I did not get one single picture with Michelle. We had a wonderful time and cannot wait to meet Baby Gates!

Living Room Pictures

2009-08-13T19:42:00.005-04:00

I have FINALLY uploaded pictures from our living room! Keep in mind that our house is a rental, so there is only so much we can do. But I love it now! We've added drapes, a rug, accessories, and art work for the walls. Here are a few pictures:

Well, what do you think?

New Fall Lilly Items!

2009-08-10T11:06:00.004-04:00

I LOVEEE all of the Lilly Pulitzer stationery and accessories line. When I saw these two items, I knew I had to have them!

Lilly Pulitzer Thermal Travel Mug

Lilly Pulitzer Pocket Agenda
I already carried my coffee to work in my mug this morning. At such a great price point, it's hard not to buy everything!

Family Fun

2009-08-08T17:20:00.007-04:00

My parents and little brother came to visit us yesterday - it was so fun having them in town! We went to dinner at one of my favorite restaurants, Taco Mamacita. Delicious margaritas! After dinner we had drinks on this really cool old steamboat hotel that's docked here.

This morning, I made these delicious pastries for breakfast - the amazing recipe can be found from the awesome blog, Bake at 350! They were so easy and tasted basically the same as a cheese danish.

Cream Cheese Triangles
We took the dogs for a walk after breakfast, then my Mom and I looked in a few stores. We all ate lunch at the Boathouse, a delicious restaurant right on the river. I had the most amazing salmon salad. Here are a few pics:

I LOVE weekends!

TGIF!

2009-08-07T10:18:00.003-04:00

Yay! It's finally the weekend! I have a fun weekend planned - my parents and little brother are coming to visit today and spend the night at our house. I love having guests, so I'm really excited! Here are my weekend activities:

Drinks and appetizers on our front porch this evening
Dinner at Taco Mamacita (one my FAVORITE Mexican restaurants)
Delicious breakfast prepared by moi for tomorrow morning
Walk with the dogs tomorrow morning
Lunch downtown with the family Saturday
Church on Sunday
Grocery shopping

I'll post pictures after this weekend. Have a great one!

Alison's Pasta Salad

2009-08-04T20:31:00.005-04:00

Alison, my good friend and bridesmaid, sent me a delicious recipe of her favorite pasta salad! I cooked it for Michael tonight, along with Nordstrom Cafe's tomato soup (they sell it by the jar in the cafe). It turned out great, so I thought I'd share the recipe for this tasty pasta salad!

Alison's Pasta Salad and Nordstrom Tomato Soup

Alison's Pasta Salad:

1 box Orzo, cooked (immediately run cold water over pasta after cooked)
1/4 red onion finely chopped
1 zucchini, cut and sauteed
1 container grape tomatoes, cut into quarters
1 or 2 cloves garlic, minced and cooked
1 container feta cheese
Parsley (to taste or color)
lemon juice from 1/2 lemon
olive oil, salt, and pepper to taste

Mix everything together and refrigerate. Bonus: I have a yummy lunch to take to work with me tomorrow!

Weekend Recap!

2009-08-02T20:42:00.003-04:00

I had a wonderful weekend! Friday night, we went out to dinner at one of my favorite steakhouses, Hennen's, with 2 other couples (including my friend Grace and her who husband, who just moved to Chattanooga - yay!)

Saturday, Michael and I went to Nashville for the day/night. It was part of my birthday gift to him. We had so much fun! It was so nice to just spend the weekend alone. We had sushi at a yummy restaurant downtown for lunch and then we got cupcakes for dessert at Gigi's Cupcakes...SO delicious! The cupcakes were SO cute too. I had the cutest Wedding Cake cupcake. I want another one! We went to dinner last night at Sambuca, which was amazing. We had a great table and watched live jazz music all through dinner.

Today was spent grocery shopping for the week, working out, playing tennis, and relaxing. It was such a great weekend! Unfortunately, I forgot my camera, so no picture recap. Have a great week!

New Home Decor

2009-07-29T21:00:00.015-04:00

I am so excited about all the new home accessories that we have ordered! After these items are all in place, I will finally share some updated pictures of our home. For now, here are a few of the new home decor items that we should be receiving soon!

Living Room:

Dash and Albert area rug:

Ivory Linen Drapes:
Family Established sign for the living room (different name and different colors than pictured):

Also, I had all of my wedding related invitations (save the dates, showers, bridesmaids luncheon, rehearsal dinner, etc.) framed into a large custom frame. It's finally ready, so I cannot WAIT to pick this up and hang it on our wall.

Guest Room:

Green Damask Accent Pillows for the guest bed:We are also waiting on a custom bedskirt to arrive. We actually have window treatments already for the guest room, but just need to find the time to hang them.

I hope everything turns out well. I will post pictures soon!

Balsamic Apple and Spinach Salad

2009-07-28T20:34:00.003-04:00

This is one of my favorite salad recipes! Michael's brother's girlfriend made it for a dinner party a couple weeks ago and I immediately had to have this recipe.

Balsamic Apple and Spinach Salad

Dressing:

1 cup vegetable oil or olive oil
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon ground dry mustard
1/2 teaspoon salt

Combine the oil, sugar, vinegar, paprika, dry mustard, and salt in a bowl and mix until smooth.

Salad:

2 Granny Smith apples, chopped
1 (10-oz) pkg fresh spinach
1/4 cup chopped red onion
1 cup crumbled feta cheese
1 cup toasted pecans

Spread spinach on salad plates and top with apples, onion, feta cheese, and pecans. Add dressing to taste.

I HIGHLY recommend this recipe. It is so easy and is guaranteed to impress your dinner guests!

Bachelorette Finale!!

2009-07-27T19:18:00.003-04:00

I am not ashamed to admit that I love the Bachelorette! Jillian was by far my favorite from last season, so I've loved watching her be the new bachelorette. She better pick Kiptyn tonight! Ed is just so weird...his short green shorts and his Euro style tank top...no thanks. Kiptyn has been one of my favs since the beginning...he seems so genuine and actually normal!

Also, it looks like Reid comes back...not a huge fan of him. He didn't seem to be as into her as she was into him. We shall see...who do you want Jillian to pick?

I love Etsy!

2009-07-26T18:37:00.005-04:00

I absolutely LOVE Etsy!! I buy tons of stationery accessories on Etsy, as well as gifts and other random home decor items. Here is my most recent purchase:

Family Established Signs by Etsy Seller Bosheree08:

I bought these calling cards right before I got married, since I had a new email address and street address.

Virginia Calling Cards by Etsy Seller Peony Paperie:

I'm contemplating these accent pillows for my guest bedroom. Green damask pillows by Etsy seller Marie Cosy Cushions

Any favorite Etsy shops you'd like to recommend?

Flower Arrangements!

2009-07-23T21:17:00.004-04:00

I am the FIRST to say that I am not a huge fan of fake flowers...obviously, I prefer fresh, but that I also want to have flowers all over my home. I found this amazing floral designer, Sophie Dahy Designs, that makes these beautiful arrangements. I ordered this pretty hydrangea arrangement for my desk at work. Nothing brightens up your work space like some pretty flowers!

A few of my other favorite arrangements:

I can't wait to get my flowers on my new desk!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MICHAEL!

2009-07-22T22:36:00.003-04:00

Happy Happy Birthday to my wonderful hubby, Michael!

He turned the big 25 today. I love you honey and I love being your wife!

Mary Kay Andrews

2009-07-21T17:30:00.007-04:00

Mary Kay Andrews is one of my all-time favorite authors. I absolutely love all of her books! They all take place in Georgia (where I'm from), are extremely Southern, and incorporate loads of home renovating and decorating. They are perfect beach reads and I usually finish them in a couple days. Her newest book just came out and I'm in the midst of finishing it...it's AMAZING! It's called The Fixer Upper and centers around a displaced Washington Lobbyist renovating a enormous, old house in a small town outside of Atlanta. I highly recommend this book!

Here are a few of my favorite Mary Kay Andrews books:

If you haven't read any of these books, I suggest you pick up The Fixer Upper immediately!

Oh shopping, how I've missed you!

2009-07-20T19:11:00.000-04:00

My mom and I hit up the Nordstrom Semi-Annual Sale for some new work clothes (and to celebrate my new job)! I haven't shopped for clothes since before the wedding; it was so amazing to shop again! Here's what I picked up:

BCBG Shadow Blocks Matte Jersey Dress

Juicy Couture Heritage Aviator Sunglasses

Banana Republic Helen Buckle Metallic Peep-toe Flats

I also purchased a cute geometric work top from Banana and a casual blue dress from Nordstrom Juniors, but I can't find either online. I start work on Wednesday, so I'm busy spending today and tomorrow running errands and doing chores. Wish me luck at my new job!

Michelle's First Baby Shower!

2009-07-19T17:10:00.008-04:00

Michelle, my brother's wife, had her first baby shower over the weekend! We had so much fun; it was an absolutely beautiful shower. The shower was held at one of my favorite Atlanta restaurants, Anis Bistro! It was fairly small, mostly immediate family. The food was absolutely delicious - I had the most amazing Salmon Salad with a nice glass of Chardonnay. Every detail was so perfect!

Michelle with her little basketball baby bump...can you believe she's over 7 months pregnant?!

Michelle and me:

Michelle and my Mom:

All the pretty presents:

Michelle and me again:

Michelle and her best friend, Whitney:

Cute little onesie!

Another cute smockinged onesie:

Her cute baby book:

Beautiful monogrammed hemstitched pillow:

Adorable cupcake favors:

Cute decorated boxes for the cupcakes...each box had a different animal!

Mrs. Southern Belle and I are throwing Michelle another baby shower in August...I'm so excited to host one for her!

Employed!

2009-07-15T20:22:00.004-04:00

Yay! I am officially NO longer a stay at home wife! I was offered a great position today, after a loooong series of interviews. I start work next Wednesday. Michael surprised me with these beautiful flowers when he got home from work. I am SO excited to get started at my new job!

Apple Crisp

2009-07-14T23:04:00.003-04:00

Tomorrow is Michael's Dad's birthday, so we all went over to his brother's apartment tonight for an early birthday dinner! I was in charge of dessert for the dinner, so I went with an old dessert standby...Apple Crisp! Since it was so easy and everyone loved it, I thought I'd share the recipe!

Apple Crisp

4 cups peeled and chopped cooking apples (I use golden delicious apples)
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup water
1/3 cup butter
1 cup sugar
3/4 cup flour

Place mixture of apples, cinnamon, salt, and water in a buttered pie baking dish. Mix remaining ingredients until crumbly and spread over apples. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 to 50 minutes. Serve warm with vanilla bean ice cream. Enjoy!

Poor Bailey!

2009-07-13T18:03:00.003-04:00

Our poor little puppy got bitten by a spider last week! We took him to the animal hospital pretty quickly, so he's fine, but he can't stop licking his wound. The vet put this cone on his head today...he looks so pitiful! I must say, if I didn't feel so bad for him, I would think it looked pretty funny:

Bailey and Michael:
Hopefully he will only need it a couple of days...poor guy!

Giveaway Winner!

2009-07-13T14:43:00.006-04:00

The winner of the Living Rooms Direct giveaway for these ADORABLE, preppy, and classy tumblers is....

JULES at Chic and Pink!

Congratulations, Jules! Please send me an email with your name and address to missyinpinkblog@gmail.com. Thanks for everyone who entered!

Rugs

2009-07-12T17:56:00.004-04:00

I am obsessed with area rugs. I definitely think they MAKE a room. However, Michael and I STILL do not have an area rug for our living room or our dining room. Our house is all hardwoods, so we definitely need a good one and soon. What do you think of these guys?

Pottery Barn Bridget Rug

Dash and Albert Plain Tin Wool Micro Hooked Rug

Target Pale Topaz Antique Rug (this one would be for our dining room)

Obviously, I lean towards a more contemporary look. I cannot stand oriental rugs! I want something that looks really fresh and clean, rather then an antique, if that makes sense. Please share with me where you got your area rugs and what you think of these options!

No more wisdom tooth!

2009-07-09T12:26:00.004-04:00

That's right, I no longer have my wisdom tooth! I only had one to begin with and I had it removed this morning. I'll be laying on the couch with some movies the rest of the afternoon! I've never had any dental work, I've never even had a cavity, so this was my first dental surgery experience. I'm here to tell you that wisdom teeth removal was easy as pie!

Have a great Thursday!

Giveaway!

2009-07-08T10:59:00.010-04:00

I have something very exciting for my blog readers today - my very first GIVEAWAY!

Living Rooms Direct is an amazing site for modern and unique furniture and accessories. They have beautiful living room furniture with contemporary designs. I personally love their nonNeutral collection, which is where I found the item I'd like to giveaway to you, dear readers!

notNeutral Ribbon Highball Set

These glasses are so stylish, preppy, and unique - they are just my style. I absolutely love them! Here's what you have to do to entered to win:

Comment on this post. That's it! Giveaway runs through Monday, July 13th at noon. Good luck!

4th of July Recap

2009-07-07T21:59:00.005-04:00

We had an amazing 4th of July weekend! Michael and I spent the weekend with my family in Atlanta, and we had a wonderful time catching up with our family and friends. Here is a recap in pictures (these first two pictures are NOT from the 4th!):

Michael's Mom brought us the amazing basket of fresh produce and bread from the local farmer's market!

Alyssa came to visit us last week! We had a good time at the Chattanooga Lookouts game:Michael and I at my family's annual 4th of July cookout:

Alyssa and I:

Michelle (looking so cute at 7 months pregnant) and Mrs. Southern Belle playing corn hole:

The yummy spread of food:

Festive cookies!

Hope you had a wonderful 4th of July. I have a fun giveaway coming tomorrow, so keep your eyes open!

I Love Target!

2009-07-06T20:01:00.006-04:00

I absolutely LOVE Target! I took home these adorable finds today at Target...all so cheap!

Mossimo Black Mixed Fabric Dress - $24.99
Merona Printed Caftan - $26.99
Merona Pencil Skirt - Bittersweet Crosshatch - $24.99
Trust me, they are all WAY cuter in person. I can't wait to wear these little beauties!

Recipe for the perfect 4th of July weekend!

2009-07-03T11:33:00.004-04:00

Adorable patriotic bathing suit:

Southern Caviar...mmmmm:Sweetwater 420...my beer of choice:

Flag cookies!And of course, no celebration would be complete without fireworks!My weekend will consist of pool time today, our family's annual 4th of July party tomorrow, and the lake on Sunday! Have a great 4th!

Love.

2009-06-29T18:47:00.002-04:00

This dress was MADE for me. Why can't they have it in my size?! :( I'm just hoping that it's restocked soon! You can't beat this price, that's for sure.

Mod Cloth Grass is Greener Dress - $49

New Recipes!

2009-06-24T15:10:00.006-04:00

Since I am currently a stay-at-home-wife (hopefully not for too much longer!), I have PLENTY of time to cook new recipes for my husband and myself. I am cooking almost every single day, so I'm trying to mix it up a little bit.

Monday night, Michael slow-cooked BBQ ribs in our crock pot all day. They were so delicious; the meat practically fell right off the bone. For an appetizer, I made fresh mango salsa! I got the recipe from Good Things Catered, one of my favorite recipe blogs. I forgot to take a picture, so I've borrowed the one from her blog:

Mango Salsa (image from Good Things Catered):

This recipe was so easy...you can find the exact details on her blog, but it's basically two fresh mangoes, half of a red bell pepper, half of a red onion, a jalapeno pepper, and lime juice. Dice everything and mix it together...Michael loved it!

Last night, I made Three Cheese Manicotti! It was so yummy and I am not even that huge on red sauce. Actually, I hardly like red sauce at all. But this is so light on the sauce (and heavy on the cheese)! I found the basic recipe on All Recipes (amazing site), but I adjusted it a little. I changed the order, cook times, and I added spinach. Here is my recipe:

Three Cheese Manicotti:

1 package manicotti shells
4 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
2 cups ricotta cheese (my favorite!)
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 T. minced fresh garlic
1 egg
2 T. dried basil
1 package frozen spinach
1 jar pasta sauce

1. Pre-heat over to 350 degrees. Soak manicotti shells in salted, warm (not boiling!) water for 15 minutes.

2. In a bowl, mix together 3 cups mozzarella cheese, ricotta cheese, 1/2 cup Parm cheese, garlic, egg, basil, and spinach. Stuff manicotti shells with cheese mixture.

3. Coat the bottom of a lightly greased baking dish with half of the jar of pasta sauce. Place the stuffed manicotti shells on top of the sauce. Cover shells with remaining sauce and remaining mozzarella cheese.

4. Bake for 20 minutes; sprinkle with remaining Parmesan cheese, and continue baking for 10 minutes, until cheese is melted and bubbly.

Here is a picture of our dinner...Michael loved this one too. I think it would have been a little too boring without the spinach. We had plenty of leftovers for lunch today:

Tonight, I'm cooking Balsamic-Glazed Salmon Fillets, green beans sauteed with pine nuts, and baked potatoes. I'll let you know how it turns out!

Front Porch: Before and After

2009-06-23T17:09:00.005-04:00

Our front porch is one of our favorite places in our house. It's so perfect for relaxing, reading, or having a glass of wine! We live in a really cool area, so there is a lot of people-watching also :) Since, we just are renting, there is only so much we wanted to do to our house. We did a few things though that completely change the curb appeal of our house.

Before:

After:
We added some pretty wrought-iron porch furniture, as well as a wreath (Restoration Hardware outlet!), and a doormat. I also hung some beautiful ferns and planted some colorful begonias in the flower bed.

Another view of the front:

One last view:

It's starting to get a little too hot out there, but we still enjoy it in the evenings. Michael has even planted a little vegetable garden on the side. We absolutely love our front porch!

Wedding in Pensacola!

2009-06-22T16:57:00.005-04:00

My friend Kaitlin got married over the weekend in Pensacola, Florida...it was so beautiful! Michael stayed home, so I went with my friend Tara, which was so much fun! Their wedding reception was at the beautiful Pensacola Country Club, which directly overlooked the water. The food was delicious and the flowers were beautiful...we had a blast!

Tara and I outside at the reception:

Pretty flowers:

The gorgeous cake:

Tara and I again:

The beautiful bride and I:Me, Julie, and Tara:

I had so much fun spending the weekend with my college girlfriends...I'm sad it's over!

Yummy Dinners

2009-06-18T11:04:00.006-04:00

Michael and I do a LOT of cooking now that we're married. We both love cooking and it's definitely cheaper than going out to dinner. We have had so much fun trying new recipes every night!

Tuesday was our "1 month" anniversary...cheesy, yes. But we wanted to eat the top layer of our wedding cake at 1 month rather than 1 year, because 1 year just sketches me out. Anyways, we cooked a big dinner Tuesday night, drank champagne, ate wedding cake, and watched our DVD from our wedding. It was so nice!

Michael cooked pan-seared steaks and I made couscous with fresh tomatoes, garlic, feta cheese and parsley. We also steamed some broccoli, but that wasn't quite as exciting:

Last night was Michael's mom's birthday, so we had his whole family over for our first dinner party! I cooked all day long...it was so fun! I cooked stuffed mushrooms for our appetizer, which is always a hit. For the main course, we had fresh salad, chicken piccata, mashed potatoes, grilled asparagus, and biscuit poppers. I made a Key Lime pie for dessert! I think everyone liked the meal...I hope they did at least, since I cooked everything from scratch!

Dinner on the table!

And I just had to include a picture of Bailey!

We have so much leftovers! Have a great day!

Honeymoon Recap!

2009-06-17T14:04:00.008-04:00

I completely forgot to post pictures from our honeymoon, which was absolutely AMAZING! We spent a week at the Royal Plantation Ochos Rios in Jamaica. The Royal Plantation is a small boutique hotel, but also all-inclusive, so we were completely pampered all week. It was the perfect honeymoon!

The resort was really small, but very upscale. Every meal was at least 3 courses and dinner was usually 7 courses...I think I gained 5 lbs in one week! Our suite was amazing and huge. Our balcony was right over the ocean, so we had an amazing view.

Michael and I on our flight early Sunday morning:

We were greeted with champagne while we waited for our hotel transfer:
Lunch at the beach cafe...the coconut shrimp was AMAZING!

View from the beach cafe:

Our beautiful suite:

First day on the beach. The beach was amazing! We had beach butler service, which was perfect. They started everyday by serving Mangosas and fresh fruit...we had so many drinks on the beach!

Miami Vice...delicious!

Champagne before dinner:

Dinner at La Terrace, the more casual of the 2 dinner restaurants:

Our yummy dessert:

We went zip-lining through the canopy one day...it was so much fun. I highly recommend it!

An action shot of me zip-lining:
Picture in our room (with a timer):

Red vino!

View from La Terrace:

Dinner at Le Papillion, the upscale French restaurant:

Beach on the last day...notice the Lilly bathing suit :)

Michael enjoying the beach:Dinner on the last night...so sad:

Room service breakfast the last morning:

I would HIGHLY recommend the Royal Plantation for anyone looking for a quiet, relaxing honeymoon. We had so many extras included, like snorkeling, glass-bottom boat tour, kayaking, high tea in the afternoons, turn-down service...I could go on and on. Michael and I had such a good time just relaxing, reading, laying on the beach, and eating yummy food. I want to go back!