Friends Like These

I have some great friends, folks. I honestly don't know what I would do without them.

I'm pretty sure I wouldn't be spending weeknights at Chuck E. Cheese's celebrating the cutest 3 year old on the planet's birthday!

And I wouldn't have spent a fun day road-tripping to Atlanta (where I may or may not have purchased too many kitchen gadgets at Ikea).

And if you're looking for talent, I have some of the most talented friends you will find. The two ladies on the right are about the craftiest I know.

Roxanne, another good friend and co-worker is extremely gifted when it comes to whipping up something sweet in the kitchen. I just found out last night that she has her own website, Roxie Cakes, and had to mention it!

You can check out (and purchase) her sweet treats here.

Happy Wednesday!

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Is It Thanksgiving Yet?

Everyone has their favorite holiday. Most people when asked would say Christmas is their favorite. I love Christmas for all of the obvious reasons, but I am one of those people who finds the Christmas holiday stressful. Todd and I have such a busy Christmas break that I have in years past created a spreadsheet to remind me where we needed to be when. One year we visited 9 homes in 3 days. It doesn't get much more stressful than that. Add on shopping and the horrible feeling of not knowing what to buy friends and family, it can be overwhelming. The true meaning of Christmas can easily be overshadowed by the busyness.

Thanksgiving, however, is different. No gifts to be bought, no parties to plan, just quality time spent with family over wonderful meals. People actually stop to think about what they are thankful for, and in some ways, this holiday can be as special as Christmas because on Thanksgiving we are reminded that above all else, we should be thankful for a Savior who died to set us free.

My favorite part of Thanksgiving is sitting at the dinner table while each person shares what they are thankful for. It's a great way to sum up the past year and give praise to God for his many blessings. Like a couple of years ago when my dad had a major health scare; after a successful surgery, he was back to normal. Not one of us forgot to give thanks for that. This year we will be thankful that Todd's mom beat breast cancer and in a down economy, we still have our homes and jobs we love. The list goes on and on.

Thanksgiving is also my favorite holiday to host and decorate for. This year we will be going to Missouri, but last year we hosted dinner at our home and had the best time. I dug up some pictures to share.

I would have been completely fine not hosting this year until I saw the Thanksgiving issue of the Pottery Barn catalog. Have you seen it? It will make you want to host Thanksgiving dinner in your house every month of the year. I love the wineglass placeholders and the framed menu. I'll have to save those ideas for 2010!

Because Thanksgiving is my favorite, I can guarantee this won't be the last time I write about it this month. Hope you don't mind!

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Hometown Halloween

What a difference an impromptu trip to Missouri can make! Todd and I had a great time in Ozark, even if it was a quick visit.

We were too busy laughing, eating and visiting for me to snap many pictures. It was really nice to see our family. I don't get homesick all that often. After 4+ years living away, I'm pretty used to it, but every now and then I get the urge to go home and I don't want to be that person who ignores those urges. Life is too short to let a 7 hour car ride get in the way!

On Saturday we had a wonderful brunch with Todd's family. His grandparents couldn't stop cracking jokes. If you have met my husband, you know that he's good for a laugh. Multiply that about 5 times and you have met his family. It's non-stop!

After brunch we spent the day with my family. My little (I say little, she's 13. That's still little, right?) sister and I baked our first apple pie. I'm not one to brag on myself, but we can make a mean apple pie! Thanks to Martha Stewart for the leaf idea. This might be an annual tradition.

That night we went to the Follow You tour. It's not very often that my family gets a glimpse into my work life. Two of the artists I work with were on tour in my hometown, so we went by to meet the guys and catch a bit of the show. We picked a great night to see the concert. Everyone was dressed up for Halloween as the Goonies. It was a neat experience introducing Todd's parents to the artists I work with.

Pictured: Brandon Heath, Leeland & Francesca Battistelli

Sunday morning we went to James River. The sermon was so fitting. Pastor John spoke about the favor of God and walking in His blessing. I think about this past weekend and how loved we are by our family and I can confidently say there is nothing better than being covered in God's rich favor and blessings. The tagline of one of the blogs I follow is "living a dream we don't deserve." That pretty much sums up the way I feel.

We had one more meal with my family before hitting the road. My heart was full when we left and I'm so thankful we made the trip.

Hope everyone had a Happy Halloween!

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Follow the Leader

To be honest, I'm not the most creative person. I am definitely a left-brain thinker. Give me a big idea and I'll break it down into small parts to make it easier to accomplish. I am a list maker and my checkbook is always balanced to the penny. I sound like fun, huh?

Because of my lack of creativity, I tend to follow the creative ideas of others. Surely I'm not the only one like this. It's people like me who keep companies like Pottery Barn and J. Crew in business. Show me a great look in a catalog and I'm sold. Except that I often take the general idea and try to replicate it at a lower cost. That takes creativity, right?

Maybe not.

Below are a few things/ideas/people I have been following lately:


1. I was over at my friend Allison's for dinner recently and she showed me the cutest dishes she picked up at the dollar store. Yes, the dollar store!! She had four in green. I am now the proud owner of four in blue. I can't wait to make individual servings of mac & cheese or pizookie.

2. I get nearly all of my recipes from other people. You will rarely find me "throwing something together." I made what I thought was a really good recipe from The Pioneer Woman. Todd didn't seem to think so. I have learned he's not such a fan of squash (I think it's the texture). But thanks to PW, I bought and baked my very first acorn squash!

Photo from The Pioneer Woman

3. I'm currently working on our guest bedroom. I'm hoping to be done by the end of the year. While I've been pretty good at coming up with the look myself, I needed some help on one of the bare walls. I decided to fill it with picture frames in a pattern similar to what I found in Lonny.




I'm aware that I need to use the right side of my brain more. I tell myself that I use every ounce of my creativity daily. I'm required to be creative at work, and let me tell you, it can be tough. The right side of my brain is filled with music and ideas about music, but visually I often look to others for inspiration.


So now I'm curious. Where do you get your ideas? Who do you go to when you need help getting your creative juices flowing?

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Lazy Autumn Day

Delicious autumn!
My very soul is wedded to it, and if I were a bird
I would fly about the earth seeking the
successive autumns.
-George Eliot

I can't think of anything better than a lazy, cozy Saturday at home on a fall day. My day has been filled with the best parts of autumn:

Waking up to warm pumpkin bread (made the night before) and a hot cup of hazlenut coffee.

Flipping through the latest Pottery Barn catalog, making note of my favorites for my Christmas wish list.




Enjoying a yummy lunch with my husband - creamy tomato soup and grilled cheese paninis.

The only thing that would make this day better? A long nap while my favorite guy watches football.

Ahh....

I love fall.

Hope you're all enjoying a lovely autumn day!

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