Step Back in Time...

I have made it fairly clear to JNS that I do not appreciate public ridicule. It's funny how he feels the same way but he doesn't appreciate public praise either. It's true...he's not trying to be humble or gracious in regard to compliments or kind words, he honestly gets uncomfortable if he is praised in front of others. So, I'm simply avoiding the humility and anxiety he would endure by reading an anniversary post by skipping all the typical praise one might offer their spouse on their special date. Don't think I'm heartless by not mentioning how wonderful he is...cause he is one special guy, but he would die if I proclaimed his greatness in front of anyone else. :) What I do want to share (and what he will be relieved to know that I am sharing) is our awesome trip to Serenbe. Serenbe is a community located just outside of Atlanta that consists of residences, restaurants, shops and guestrooms all on a large 1,000 acre piece of property. The buildings are energy efficient, they have preserved greenspace, and the restaurants serve many foods that are grown on the property. Often when I think of the eco-friendly version of building construction I think of modern, unattractive designs, but Serenbe has created an ideal setting that is not only beautiful, but has preserved history and accommodates community living.

The Guesthouse

We stayed in the Guesthouse. There are several rooms within the Guesthouse and all the rooms share a common area (the only place in the building with a TV - how about that?). The buildings are precious. The Guesthouse is actually a restored 1930's horse barn - the Main House is a restored Farmhouse from the '20s. They serve breakfast (we had a yummy french toast breakfast) and afternoon tea. Then they leave "evening sweets" in your room at night...they put all the right touches on the experience.

Our Guestroom

JNS getting tea in the Main House at "tea time" - So cute!

If you're looking for a great getaway and don't want to travel too far - this is it! The farm and country setting is so relaxing and all the charming details make this an unforgettable treat. (Ryan, if you're reading this post...you will love this place!) Not to mention you truly feel like you are stepping back in time and savoring the little things.

Who Let the Dogs Out?

Last week we had some four-legged guests at the Scott B&B. My friend, Emily, has two pups (Gabby & Cooper) that came to stay with us from Monday-Thursday. It was Mulligan's lucky day - he had two friends to play with ALL day in his very own house! :)

Gabby is two years old - a beautiful King Charles that offers lots of snuggles! She crawled right in my lap soon as I sat on the couch. :) When she wasn't busy getting her cuddle on, she could be found chewing on a bone or stealing a bone out from under Cooper or Mulligan's nose.

Cooper is about six months old - another King Charles...he is all boy. He was a great playmate for Mulligan - they boxed, wrestled, and played tug-o-war most of the time. Look at this precious face.

We had our hands full with three dogs, but it was so much fun for all of us! The Ruthven pups are welcome here anytime. :)

These are a few of my favorite things...

It's been a wonderful Christmas season! We've had a blast celebrating for the last few weeks and I cannot believe that it's already time to start taking down the tree and putting away the decorations. In effort to keep the spirit of this season alive, I wanted to mention some favorite things from this Christmas that made the holiday extra special.

First things first...who doesn't love some Mariah Carey Christmas tunes? Everyone knows her original album is a must have in any Christmas music collection. I was extra excited this year for her release of her 2nd Christmas album, and let me tell you it does not disappoint...another mix of upbeat classics and great new additions!

So even though this picture doesn't do justice...I LOVED our tree this year. We got it at Home Depot and it definitely is our best one yet (you know, in our lengthy history of 3 trees). Nevertheless, this simple fixture in our family room was one of my favorites this Christmas.

A fave every year is the opportunity for fellowship with friends. In addition to the White Christmas Party we hosted a few weeks ago, we went to the Dadakis party that Alex & Cassie (but let's be real, mainly Cassie) ever-so elegantly prepared, had our small group progressive dinner (us girls above - look at Sal's super cute baby bump!), and hit up the Magical Lights show at Lake Lanier with the Hall's. Friends truly are the greatest presents. :)

Of course, a standard favorite is our precious little buddy...Mully! I took about 10 pictures of him in this Santa hat and in every one he is making this face of disgust. Hilarious.

As always, time with our family is such a blessing. Between our visits to extended family functions or bonfires with my in-laws, we spent such quality and treasured time with our parents, siblings, grandparents, cousins, and more! Since there were too many pics to post from these events, look for a post later about Christmas with our family!

Wishing you and your family had a happy, healthy and fun Christmas!

Dreamin' of a White Christmas

This month means so many fun things to me...our anniversary, Christmas, family functions, and lots of hot drinks. :) A tradition we started our first married Christmas was hosting a Christmas party with our friends. The first few years it was just a reason to get together, see friends, eat good food, and be merry. This year we decided to theme it up and go for a big "White Christmas."
All the food and drinks were supposed to be white (or have white in the name), the boys had a white elephant gift exchange and my favorite...everyone was supposed to wear white. I loved that everyone interpreted that in their own way...some wore white sweaters, other wore white robes, meanwhile others just went for the straight up white out (white shirt, pants, shoes - you get the picture) We did manage to get a picture of everyone...even Mully made the picture since he was rocking his white "coat".






For the main course I fixed "White Lasagna" and I must say it's a keeper of a recipe. I found the base recipe here but altered it slightly by adding pesto sauce in the spinach layer. I also made one version without the onion and garlic (my hubby rivals a blood hound with his spot-on detection of anything onion-y). You probably could reduce some of the cheese and make it slightly healthier, but let's be real, that's what makes it so delicious. Anyways - here is a picture of how it turned out - it's a great alternative to the beef/red sauce version if you're looking for a way to spice up your lasagna. Enjoy!




Other favorite moments from the night....the gift exchange, seeing everyone take the theme to heart, and passing out the white ornament party favors (thanks Mom!). Thank you to all who contributed with food/drinks - everything was delicious! The party was so much fun and wouldn't have been the same without all of you there. :)

Gratitude

Over the course of the last week we've celebrated Thanksgiving quite a few times. We shared a meal with John Neal's parents last Saturday before they departed for their week-long trip to Virginia. We gathered at Grandmother & Granddaddy's house on Sunday for the Williams Thanksgiving....and then we feasted one final time on Thursday at Aunt Sheila's with Mama & Papa's side of the family. Each one was perfect in it's own way - but they all shared a similar theme of gratitude. I am so thankful we were all able to get together in one way or another to express grateful hearts for family.

An additional benefit to all of these gatherings, is the spread of yummy food to enjoy. And for someone who loves baking - it's a great reason to spend some QT in the kitchen. Pecan pie screams holiday and I was excited to be in charge of the pies for Thanksgiving dinner. Thanks to Heather & Scott, I have these super cute pastry cutters from Williams-Sonoma that form different little leaf patterns. I prepared the pie and then decorated the crust with the festive leaves for a fun touch!

By John Neal's request, I decided to make some cake balls as well. They basically consisted of crumbled cake mixed with icing, rolled into little balls and dipped in chocolate. I've only made these in the past with Funfetti mix, but I decided to use chocolate cake, chocolate icing and white chocolate this go-round. If you haven't had cake balls before - they're a treat! 1-2 bites of a rich and tasty dessert!

Click below for the recipe http://www.smithfield.com/recipes/recipe/paulas-cake-balls The pictures of the finished product on this website are a lot more professional than my version to the right...but don't be deceived, they taste better than they look.

I'm also thankful for my VERY first Black Friday shopping experience. There are many folks out there that probably thought they would never hear the word thankful and shopping uttered by me in the same sentence, but it really was great. Despite the alarm sounding at an unpleasant hour - the experience was full of numerous good deals, a lot of accomplishments on my Christmas gift checklist and a fun time with my mom. No promises that it will become an annual tradition, but I'm not ruling it out. ;)

A few pics of my turkeys from this weeks festivities....



Hope you and your family had a very Happy Thanksgiving!

Christmas Cards

Have I mentioned I love this time of year? :)

Christmas is a time that generates happiness and encourages quality time with those you love - it's full of family time, decorating for the holidays, baking sweets, Christmas parties, drinking hot chocolate, wrapping gifts, looking at Christmas lights AND getting Christmas cards in the mail. I think if I had to pick one thing I look forward to most it might be receiving and creating family Christmas cards.

My mom used to (and still does) put the cards in a little basket as they arrive in the mail - the basket would hold a variety of photos of newlyweds, growing families with new babies & grandbabies and update letters. I still go to the mailbox with that same excitement - anticipating the collection of cards & pictures from those that mean so much to us.

This year we plan on getting our own card from Shutterfly and I am SO excited. They have such cute designs to choose from that cover a wide variety of tastes and style preferences.

Take a look at this one - so classy and simple. Just the perfect template for a black & white photo...

And this one captures the element of personality for each family member. Multiple photo boxes leave room for each child to have their spot to shine.

And for those who cannot bear the thought of creating a card with all the shopping, cooking and wrapping to be done - wait until the fuss has died down and send a card for the new year!

Check these great card ideas out for yourself and spread the joy and fun of the season to your friends and family this year! www.shutterfly.com/cards-stationary/christmas-cards

Mully Man

It is hard to believe that this past weekend marked the 1 year anniversary from when we went to get Mulligan. I have mixed feelings because part of me feels like we haven't had him long at all, while the other part of me feels like he's always been in our family. :)

We were scheduled to pick him up from the breeder on a Saturday morning right outside of Louisville, KY. I remember actually getting a little nervous as we pulled in the driveway - I had been begging (and I mean the embarrassing, persistent, annoying-style begging) JNS to get a dog since we got married and all of the sudden I had doubt. Could we handle the dog? Would we be good puppy-parents? Would he like us? Those jitters melted soon as I held the little 8 lb. furball that we loaded up and brought home. We finally had our little furkid and I LOVED him.






Mully on his first weekend at home.

Mully now - he lost the red in his ears, but not the pep in his step! He's our little rascal, energetic buddy, enthusiastic carpenter, garbage man and laundry magician. We love our little Mully. :)