Thursday, April 29, 2010

101 Things to Do in 1,001 Days

Yes...that's right.

 I've jumped on the bandwagon.

I made a 101 List.

It's harder than it looks.

I've been following a blog {Justin and Marcie Morris}. I know them personally...not! I feel like I should though. I love reading their blog mainly because of her 101 list. It was the first I have seen, and since then I have seen many more people doing it. Marcie seems incredibly sweet though and a lot of fun to be around.

When I first saw it, I immediately said that it looked fun, but there was NO WAY I would do one.

Well, guess who lied to herself???
Me!

I've been working on this thing all day it seems.
Thinking about my goals for the future. Thinking about things I wanted done around the house. Just thinking....

After all that thinking though....

IT IS COMPLETE!

So, here it is! Introducing my 101 List of Things to Do in 1,001 Days.....

1. Take an overnight trip to the beach with just Colby and myself



2. Have a patio added on to the back of the house


3. Get married


4. Visit Charleston


5. Walk across the stage to graduate


6. Apply for certification in Alabama and Florida


7. Get my name changed on all important documents


8. Finish all thank-you for wedding gifts after the wedding


9. Order all of my china and put it in its places


10. Have a couples' massage done


11. Go to the spa with another couple


12. Host a party at our house


13. Host or help host a wedding shower


14. Organize Colby's closet


15. Empty out the closet in the back bedroom


16. Hire someone to re-do the front bedroom closet and install shelving


17. Buy a DSLR camera


18. Let Aly spend the night with Aunt B and Uncle Colby


19. Take a trip to the Smoky Mountains


20. Go hiking in Smoky Mountains with Colby


21. Have a picnic


22. Get a full-time teaching position


23. Re-read "The Total Money Makeover"


24. Buy an SUV with a substantial down-payment


25. Start an emergency fund


26. Start a Roth IRA


27. Begin the Master's Degree program


28. Take the GRE {instead it was the MAT}


29. Visit Judd and Abby in Birmingham without a purpose


30. Host a party at the Langham Farm


31. Help organize a project at my church


32. Donate canned goods to the food drive


33. Stay overnight at the Langham Farm


34. Go fishing with Colby


35. Update my cell phone


36. Go on a cruise


37. Read a book for fun


38. Complete 100 blog posts


39. Begin and finish a sewing projects


40. Get cute curtains for the kitchen


41. Re-decorate mine and Colby's bedroom


42. Eat our wedding cake for our one year anniversary


43. Make pickled okra


44. Can some sort of jelly


45. Re-do the front flower beds at the house {one down, one to go}


46. Back up our computers on an external hard drive


47. Completely set-up my work space area {it's not really an office}


48. Finish the Love Dare


49. Watch Fire Proof with Colby


50. Have a weekly devotional time with Colby for one month {hopefully to make it a habit}


51. Pay for a meal of someone behind me in a drive thru


52. Re-paint my front door


53. Go tubing down the creek at Adventures Unlimited


54. Go to a concert


55. Learn how to tie a neck-tie


56. Send out Christmas cards with our picture on it


57. Come up with a better name for my blog


58. Buy a king size sleep number mattress


59. Get an upholstered head board


60. Go to a college football game


61. Go to Lake Martin for a day or two


62. Start an herb garden


63. Successfully grow a flower from a seed


64. Hang up something on the wall in at least two rooms


65. Go to Savannah, Georgia


66. Try to drive a boat by myself


67. Give my car a good cleaning inside and out


68. Get a bench with storage to put Colby's boots in


69. Decorate the front porch for the summer


70. Have a football party at our house outside


71. Purchase two new tables to go on the side of mine and Colby's bed


72. Complete one of Darby's projects {either recipe or craft}


73. Help promote Colby's lawn business


74. Cover up that awful breaker box in our middle room


75. Hang ferns on the front porch


76. Take a day trip to the beach with another couple


77. Eat at Olexa's in Mountain Brook again


78. Send a treat to the fire department for no reason at all


79. Get a new garbage can {sounds trivial, but SO needs to be done}


80. Have the shed by our house closed in


81. Get closets for the laundry room


82. Meet the maximum amount for the Roth IRA in a year


83. Surprise a neighbor with a dessert or craft


84. Compile a book on an online website for wedding photos

85. Clean out my entire room at my parents' house


86. Purchase table cloths to donate to my church


87. Support W.S. Neal schools in some way


88. Support T.R. Miller or Brewton schools in some way


89. Fill up 5 sheets of box-tops


90. Participate in a Civitan project in Brewton


91. Make use of the Earth Day services in town


92. Buy at least five Christmas gifts at a small business in Brewton


93. Learn a new recipe


94. Attend a performance sponsored by the Brewton Council of Arts


95. Give "The Total Money Makeover" book to someone


96. Take my niece to the splash pad in Brewton


97. Go to New Orleans


98. Update my IPod to a newer one


99. Complete "The Samaritan's Purse" project


100. Take a girl's day trip to the beach


101. Re-stain the front porch


The date of completion is January 18, 2013.
Wish me luck!

Wednesday, April 28, 2010

The Light at the End of the Tunnel

As most of you know, I've been completing my student teaching this semester, which would conclude all of my course work.

Well, guess what!

I'M DONE!

Don't get me wrong. I loved my kids, but things are getting crazy for me now. I had no idea how hard it would be to balance a wedding and school. Now that school is over, I'm balancing the wedding, work, and searching for a job. Wish me luck!

I did have quite the surprise before I left though. The kids were so sweet! They had snuck around with my supervising teacher's help to sign a card for me, and my supervising teacher the kids had also gotten me a gift {Arthur Court trivet}.




Overall, I was sad to leave the kids, my supervising teacher, and the rest of the staff. Some of my kids were sadder than I thought they would be. One sweet little boy cried because I wasn't coming back. After a heart to heart though, he was a little better.

It was definitely an experience I will never forget. I learned so much from them, and I can't wait to get to apply it {hopefully} sometime in the future.

Thursday, April 22, 2010

Let's Eat!

My future mother-in-law (MIL) and I have been working together to decide on some great, cost-effiecient ideas to use at the rehearsal dinner.

Here's our ideas of inspiration...

Photo From: The Knot

While my colors are green, cream, and brown for the wedding, I wanted to change things up just a little bit for the rehearsal dinner. Plus, it would make it much easier to incorporate various shades of blue, so we could use her blue hydrangeas from her yard.


Photo From: The Knot

The great thing about this is that Dot and I have made grape vine wreaths from the vines behind mine and Colby's future house.
Simple. Easy. DIY.


Photo From: The Knot

We won't be having cloth napkins,  but the ribbon is a nice touch to dress things up a little bit.


BBQ is being served at the rehearsal dinner, so I wanted 1" navy gingham fabric to drape over the floor length white table cloths.

 The Menu:
Shredded Pork with BBQ Sauce
Chicken Strips
Cole Slaw
Potato Salad
Dinner Rolls
Various Flavors of Cheesecake

***I'm leaving out something from the menu. I just know it.

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

Honeymoon Plans

As some of you already know, Colby and I are going to Charleston, SC for our honeymoon. We've actually rented a house though in Kiawah Island, which is close by.

The name of the house we're staying in is Burroughs Hall.

I think a house will be much better for a honeymoon since you have more privacy. Plus, I make quite the mess with my luggage and clothing on vacations, so it will be nice to have a place to spread out my things.

Things I'd Like to Do While We're There:







I have a few more things on my list of things to do. If we get to go to them, great. If not, my feelings won't be hurt too bad. That will just be an excuse to go back.

Can't wait to do some more research about the area and post our plans!

Tuesday, April 20, 2010

Getting Ready for the Honeymoon

On the same weekend as the couples shower, my two best friends hosted my lingerie shower. Here we are below:


The shower was held at Kate's home. She and Spencer worked hard to decorate the front of their home, and it certainly showed. Her flowers and planters were gorgeous! She even  had hanging baskets attached to poles coming up the driveway.

The beautiful decor followed inside...



Erin and Kate also made a extraordinary spread of food.



The cake matched the invitation!



Aren't these just adorable?

After we played a few games that really caused some big laughs, we moved on to the gifts. Here's an idea of some things I received. Everyone knew my style. I know how hard it can be to pick out lingerie for someone else, too. Good job, girls!



Cute as can be!



Flirty, but practical! Love it!



Bought some things for the honeymoon with this VS gift card!



Gotta love the babydoll style!

Thanks girls for all of the fun and gifts! I'm sure Colby will be real appreciative!

Monday, April 19, 2010

Backyard BBQ




On the weekend of April 10th, some very wonderful people hosted a Tools and Gadgets Couples Shower for Colby and myself.

It certainly gave us a chance to unwind, enjoy time with friends, and get some very handy gifts from the people who are so important to us in our lives.

The party was hosted at Ms. Jeanne Scharnitzky's house, which is absolutely gorgeous. Colby does her yard, and I have to say that the house has to be the most beautiful in the spring when all of her flowers are in bloom.

The flowers used around the house for decor included my newest favorite flower, which I will be putting in our yard. It's probably because of its close resemblance to the hydrangea.


Photo from: food & garden

The other hostesses included Brenda Taylor, Brooke Hartin, Tammy Smith, Janice Smith, Deborah Marriott, and Cindy Lloyd. Thank all of you for such a wonderful time!


Left to Right: Brenda Taylor, Tammy Smith, Me, Colby, Jeanne Scharnitzky, and Brooke Hartin

Tons of our friends arrived! I'll just post pictures of some of the guests.








We received some cute and really handy gifts. Here's an idea of the great ideas people gifted us with...






Thanks Mom and Dad for the smoker!

I hope everyone that came had as much of a wonderful time as we did. It was fabulous to see people that we never get as much time to spend with them as we would like to.

Saturday, April 17, 2010

A Sneak Peek II

I figured it was time to share another sneak peek into the wedding with you. I am getting so excited about everything. There's only a few details that I have to confirm about that will make me feel 100 times better. I'm sure I can work something out though.

We plan to get married at...
North Brewton Baptist Church



For those of you who don't know, our reception will be taking place at...

The Hour Glass of Brewton


The Hour Glass was a wonderful shop that I just adored in Brewton. The charm of the building is just sensational. In its day, it was the Luttrell Hardware store. Throughout the store, you can still see signs of the hardware store in the shelving along one side of the wall, as well as the Luttrell Hardware vault. The excitement I feel about having our reception here is in great abundance.

Here's a few more ideas I'm tossing around. Let me know what you think...


Photo from: The Knot


Photo from: The Knot

This type basket can be used to hold these....


Photo from: The Knot

The above picture is a definite only in brown and green accents.

I'm thinking of what to post next. The next one might be a real surprise, unless I decide to hold out on it until the wedding.

Maybe a look into the rehearsal dinner would be nice. I'll get on that right away.

Thursday, April 15, 2010

Progress!

Hip Hip Hooray!

Progress is FINALLY being made at the Langham family cabin!

When I met Colby, this thing was no where close to being a comfortable place to stay, people. A huge hole was in the floor. There were no real walls inside. The porch wasn't even screened in yet. It was a work in progress to say the least.

The cabin has finally came to a point where serious renovations are being made all thanks to contributions from all members and the family and our amazing and creative contractor, Ryan Pitts.

I'm just going to say this right now. If you need someone with creative ideas to renovate a cabin for you, he is the person to call on. His ideas have brought personality to this once dreadful cabin.

If you would like to see the progress this cabin has made, check out my future SIL's blog here, here, and here.

Here's the progress that has been made as of today...



 




There will be more progress photos tomorrow. I took more pictures today, but the camera is in the car. I've settled in for the night and refuse to go get it.

The good news is that this was just as my future inlaws left. More progress was made today after that. Can't wait to post more!

UPDATE:
Mr. Rooster is not doing too well with his newly acquired friends.
Apparently, other roosters are not quite as friendly as him.
Life can be cruel sometimes.
I wish he weren't so old, so he could defend himself.
Hopefully, this will not have a tragic end to it.

Wednesday, April 14, 2010

Cock-A-Doodle-Doo


Rooster- Meet bloggers.

Bloggers- Meet rooster.



Much to mine and Colby's surprise this past week, we've acquired a new friend
{most certainly not by choice either}.

Somehow a random rooster wondered into our yard.
I, for one, am a little bit scared of it.

Roosters can peck you.
Roosters can spur you.
Roosters can fly at your head.
Roosters can hurt you.

Or, at least those are the crazy thoughts going on in my head.
Generally, all of those thoughts are true.
Not with this bird though.

I can say that I'm more scared of it than it was of me.

I could walk right up to it, and he wouldn't do a thing. This posed a problem when I needed to use the waterhose outside. I had to scare him away with the broom at quite a distance. No worries. The broom did not even touch him.

HERE'S THE PROBLEM WITH THIS HERE ROOSTER:
His clock is off. He wakes everyone up around 4 or 5 in the morning.
He POOPED all over the back step stoop. YUCK!

Good thing for Mr. Rooster that I'm a little tender-hearted!
I HAD to find a way to get rid of him without his poor little life ending.
Luckily, I have a friend who I knew might be interested.

I gave him a call.
He told me there was no way we could just catch him easy.
I explained how he was tame, so to speak.

He came over.

TRY ONE:
Catch him with bare hands.
Fails

TRY TWO:
Catch him with bare hands by throwing a towel over him so spurs wouldn't hurt.
Fails

TRY THREE:
Feed Sock-It-To-Me cake to him until he walks into the cage.
SUCCESS!!!!!

Now he'll have a nice home with Spencer's grandfather and fellow chickens.
So long Rooster!



Tuesday, April 6, 2010

A Big Thank You

Yesterday, I completed one of the biggest tasks I have had yet in this wedding.

Invitations.

There is no way a person could understand unless you've sent out nearly 200 invitations yourself for a wedding.

The good news is though that IT IS DONE!

I did not take the traditional approach to invitations though.
I was on a bit of a budget, and there were other things that took priority above the invitations.

I had already planned on printing the invitations myself, and I was looking for a company on etsy that had an invitation I liked.
There were several I liked, but then my future sister-in-law and brother-in-law suggested the best thing ever.


Judd (seen above on the right) offered to design my invitations himself. I didn't doubt his ability for a second. I've seen his work, and it is simply fascinating. He is an incredibly talented person. All I had to do was pick out a design I liked and tell him what I wanted. Then, he compiled it all together to make an incredible invitation.

It didn't stop there though.

All of my thank-you cards, response cards, and programs will also be coordinated with it.

Here's a sample of what it looks like by going to this link. You'll have to look at the first one only. The second one on my computer looks a little messed up on this website. However, if you're interested and would like to see more of his work. I can send you sample files.

Email me to see more.

Note:
His wife will also be doing a blog post on this in the future. I will let you know when she does.

Sunday, April 4, 2010

A Sneak Peek

I cannot tell you how excited I am about our wedding coming up!

WE ARE 48 DAYS AWAY!

All of my planning that I have done since November is finally starting to come together.
So...I figured I would give a sneak peek into what's ahead.

The photos below are a few clues as to what to expect...

Photo from: The Knot


Photo from: The Knot


Photo from: The Knot


Phot from: The Knot

The focus from the above photo is the table runner.





Okay...so that's all you get for now.
Maybe I'll be tempted to reveal a few more details as it gets closer to the date.

Who knows?
I might not be able to wait another day to reveal a detail.

Friday, April 2, 2010

A New Start for the Fab

My future sister-in-law, Abby, has fourteen very good friends. Incidentally as a joke, they began calling themselves the Fab for Fabulous Fourteen, but what is even funnier is that the name stuck. You can see more about them at Abby's blog.


Above is a picture of the FAB from Abby's wedding.
{I hope you don't mind that I conveniently added stole a picture from your blog, Abby}

Well...the good news is that one of the FAB members is having the first baby of the group. When friends of the group have gotten married, they have always had a Monograms and Mimosas shower {which Abby needs to do a post on}.

We were talking the other day about what they would do for a baby shower tradition.
I have previously blogged about a website that I just adore for chic shower ideas.


Here are a few shower ideas that I just loved for a baby shower, and I'm sure I'll be using one of these ideas on Abby one day in the future.

OPTION ONE: BEDTIME STORY



The tables are set up as beds.
Story books and stuffed animals are incorporated into the entire party decor.

In addition to whatever gift the guest would like to bring,
a story book or stuffed animal could be included in each one.

This one just looks flat-out fun!

OPTION TWO: MODERN ALPHABET



I have a few things I love about this:

The decor is bright and very simple.

There are tons of great gifts that include the Alphabet.

For Abby's group of friends, they could continue the monogram theme with the baby.
Who wouldn't want gifts that had your child's initials or name on it?
Maybe it's just a southern thing!

................................................

So...there are many more options to choose from on the website.
You should check it out! I love it!

Note: The previous two pictures are from the Hostess with the Mostess website.

Abby, I hope you don't mind me referencing the FAB!




Thursday, April 1, 2010

Here Comes The Bride

Well...not quite yet!

I had my first bridal shower brunch this past weekend. I was so grateful for all the hostesses did for me, and I was especially grateful to all of those who "showered" us with outstanding gifts.

The hostesses included my Aunt Yvonne Alford; my cousin, Brooke Cain; and her sister, Farrah Gibson. They did a tremendous job with the food and decor.



To give you a sample of the food, pictured below is the cupcakes that were served. It just can't get better than chocolate or white cake with buttercream icing. Can you say, "Yummy!"




I had some excellent helpers that day, too. First of all, my future sister-in-law, Abby, was quite the help. She was in charge of accounting for all of the gifts I received. Lord knows I would  hate for someone to not receive a thank you card. Major No No!



I had a tiny helper, too. She was more in charge of delivering gift certificates to Abby and throwing away the trash. You can see how much she was trying to help Aunt "B" in the picture below.



She was also in charge of the entertainment.



Yes...that is her scary face.
Yes, I am responsible for teaching her that.

I received some very amazing gifts that ranged from Arthur Court pewter ware, fine china, everyday china, and the practical everyday needs.

I have three more showers coming up....

April 10th- Couple's Tools and Gadgets

April 11th- Lingerie Shower (fun, fun!)

April 18th- Church and Family Shower

I can't wait for the rest of the wedding festivities!

As of tomorrow, only 50 days until the wedding! 

Future Posts:
A Peek Into the Wedding
Wedding Invitations
Children's Books