Sunday, October 30, 2011

Back it up a little….

Because my sister so nicely reminded me that I haven’t blogged about her showers or wedding, I figured I better get on it. Who knew it was such an honor to be on my blog?!?! Anyhow…I know I need to do a re-cap, but so much has gone on in the past few months that I feel like I haven’t been able to get anything done at all. Between everyday life, work, graduate school, more showers than I can think of, and three weddings, I think I have earned the right to say that I’m just flat out tired and don’t care to do one darn thing.

Here it goes though…

Way back in September, I hosted a wedding shower for my sister. Of course, I wasn’t the only host. My aunts and cousins were also hostesses, and I am very thankful for their help. It could have never been done without them. I think everything went over nicely, and Ashley got lots of nice gifts to start her new life together with her {now} husband.

Details of Ashley's Shower

While I would have rather had the shower at my house, it just wasn’t possible for this big of a shower. You see, my house is not that large in size, so it can only be equipped for smaller get-togethers. Nevertheless, we set up and lots of people attended and brought some amazing gifts with them!

Ashley's Shower {People Attended}

Ashley's Shower {Gifts}

To Ashley, sorry it has taken me so long! I hope you enjoyed your shower as much as I enjoyed putting it together. Thanks to everyone who helped that day!

Tuesday, October 25, 2011

One More Thing Down!

I have one more thing marked off of the list at the house. The kitchen curtains are finally up, or at least one side of them anyway. Wal-Mart failed me once again by only having two sets of the curtain rings that I wanted. Now, I’m off on a search to other Wal-Marts around the area to find two more sets. For now though, I’ll entertain you with what the curtains are doing for the kitchen.

This next picture is the other side of the room that is curtain-less, but it will give you a better understanding of how six windows in one room can make you bake like you’re in the oven during the summer time. It’s the place to lose some pounds just through sweat!

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The after….

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I can’t wait now to get the other side up! There’s so much to share with you guys, and I’m praying to be able to blog about it this week. Sickness and exhaustion have taken over my body.

I hope you all have a FAB-U-LOUS WEDNESDAY!

Thursday, October 13, 2011

The Big Day: Wedding 2 of 4

On Sunday, despite my want and need for sleep, I forced myself out of bed to shower and prepare myself for the big day. We didn’t have to be at the wedding site until 12 to get ready, so Colby and I ventured out early to see what we could see.

To start off, we traveled on over to Cades Cove. No matter how long we are going to be there, Cades Cove is a must-do item on the to-do list….and it may get done two or three times while we are in the area. This time we limited it to two. If you have never been and want to see beautiful scenery and relax, this is the place for you to go. You will be hooked. We have been going there for years with our families, even before we met.

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It was lovely to see all of the leaves changing colors.

Fall Colors

And to see all of the wildlife {while we interrupted there sleep and breakfast eating}.

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This little guy was out like a light. He had two friends in two other trees though that weren’t quite so tired.

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If you’re ever driving through Cades Cove and cars start backing up or the people are standing around like the picture below, you have come upon what is called a “bear jam”, so you might as well get out and go see for yourself. Traffic will not move quickly. On that note, if you’re in a hurry, just do everyone a favor and don’t go. There’s nothing more annoying that being in front of or behind someone who is in a hurry.

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This is my favorite barn in the whole place….

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By the time we made the loop, it was time to make our way over to drop me off to get dressed and ready for the evening wedding.

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I was in love with my shoes for the wedding. Instead of choosing the dyeables from David’s Bridal, we had the option to find some champagne shoes on our own. These are from Zappos.

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The bride was beautiful as always!

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And because I couldn’t decide which one I liked better, I’ll provide you with this…

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Unfortunately, I don’t have one photo of the wedding since I was in it. Colby had offered to take photos for me, but signs were up stating not to take pictures per the paid photographer. I will just say that the wedding was heartfelt and sweet. I wish you all could have been there!

So, now let’s just move on to the reception where everyone celebrated the marriage together!

The first dance….

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And then came the speeches from the best man and maid of honor…

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And then the fun began…

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And I may get killed for putting these on here, and I will be more than glad to take these down {if I must}. For my sake though, let’s just enjoy what we see and get a good laugh out of it.

Dance Moves

Please draw your eyes to the first picture on the top left and the second picture on the bottom left. HILARIOUS!

It was an awesome wedding, Andrea and Whitney!

Congratulations to Mr. and Mrs. Qualls!

 

Wednesday, October 12, 2011

Driving Brings Out the Worst in a Person

As I previewed in my last post, this past weekend we made the trip to Tennessee to witness our friends, Andrea and Whitney, tie the knot. They have been together since high school, and we always knew that this day would come. I was just happy to be made a part of it. Forgive me in advance for what might be a pretty long post.

We left on Friday afternoon and started making our way but made a pit stop in Birmingham to stay the night with the SIL and BIL.

Colby let me drive us up to Birmingham, and I think Colby will vouch that driving brings out the worst in a person, which became the quote of the weekend. I tend to have a tiny vast amount bit of road rage and may or may not have an opinion about every other driver on the road. In hindsight, that is probably poor judgment since I feel sure they are doing the same thing to me due to my poor driving skills or aggressiveness while behind the wheel. Let’s just say that Colby let me drive on the way back but quickly decided that he would have me take the closest exit to change positions once again. One sigh {ahem!} and I was booted from behind the wheel.

Moving on…

While I don’t have one picture with them, they should know that we thoroughly enjoyed our stay with them and the nice comfortable bed that they provided us with at the Langham Hotel. We can’t wait to come on back for another visit once things settle down for all of us in December. School for Colby, Abby, and myself make for crazy, hectic lives!

On Monday morning, we got an early start and  headed out for the rest of the trip. I always pack food and things to do while traveling {in the passenger seat}.

Two essentials….

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It’s my coffee….a burn-your-eyes-cold-coke. The best!

I was so excited about the changing of colors and all of the fall décor that these amazing people had out in front of the businesses! I was giddy inside! Heaven on Earth for me!

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As we made our way to the cabin, these were literally standing beside the road just as we turned up the final hill to our cabin.

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Once we got to our cabin, I quickly ran in to take pictures because I knew it would never look the same while we were staying there once we strowed all of our belongings throughout the place. How it happens, I’m not sure, but it happens.

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The size of the cabin was perfect for the two of us. A perk was that it had a sauna….pretty awesome. The bad thing about it was that the bed was not the most comfortable in  the world, but that may have something to do with the fact that we’re used to sleeping on a Sleep Number. Big difference from a squeaky, dip in the middle bed.

Just as soon as we settled in, it was time to get ready and head on over to the rehearsal at the location of the wedding, Bluff Mountain Inn. It was a lovely place, and I feel sure that Andrea’s pictures are going to turn out amazing! The rehearsal was the best I’ve ever been to…..quick and simple. It’s how all rehearsals should be!

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I think the best thing about this day was that I actually got a chance to catch up with old friends and got to enjoy them. After rehearsal we enjoyed a dinner and then a show at the Comedy Barn. The laughs that we all had together and continued to have throughout the weekend cannot be forgotten. The kids got to participate in the show, and we all had an amazing time.

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After Saturday, the bride and groom were ready to get the show on the road, and we were just as ready as they were. It was time to get these two married up for a life of more wonderful memories together.

Instead of rambling on even further, I’ll just come back for a follow up post of the rest of the weekend. It was THAT great, and you don’t want to miss Colby’s outrageous dance moves and Wade’s karaoke. It’s priceless!

Can you believe tomorrow is already Thursday?!?! Friday is so close that I can taste it!

Monday, October 10, 2011

A Mini-Vacation Slash Wedding

This past weekend was quite enjoyable as Colby and I headed a little bit north to enjoy some color change and time with friends in a magnificent celebration of the beginning of their life together.

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I’ve been going through the almost one thousand pictures that I took….trying to decide which ones to share with you. I think I’ve finally decided that I’ll keep working and share it all you on another day (this week if time allows). It’s back to my daily routine tomorrow….complete with an extra 3 hour work day and bus duty.

In the mean time, look forward to this….

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and this….

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The dance moves only get better! Hope you all have a fabulous Tuesday!

Sunday, October 2, 2011

I’ve Made It Two Years!

I knew that the date was coming up soon, but I was glad that I decided to look today to see when the exact date was. Two years ago, I posted my first blog post all about fall décor. I didn’t know what I was doing or how long I would keep it up. I especially didn’t know what people would think about it. Over the past two years, I have learned so much about blogging, and I’m still working at it and trying to improve continuously.

This is one of my most favorite hobbies because I love to share my life with such an amazing group of followers! For that matter, I’m just glad to have some people who read it. From time to time, you wonder to yourself if people actually read what you’re writing, but it’s always rewarding to hear someone say something about how much they like it or something that you’ve done and put on the blog.

Thank you all so much! I know that I’m not a daily blogger, and sometimes I’m not even a weekly blogger. I do try though to share something with you that’s been going on. Lately, I have lots to share but not enough time to share it. Hopefully, I’ll be making up for that soon.

In the mean time, I hope you will hop on over to the blog’s new Facebook page. I love to see who is reading. I’m one “like” away from 50, and I’d love to see that number grow.

I hope you all are enjoying this cool weather as much as I am. I broke out the sweaters and boots this weekend, which can always bring a smile to my face.

In the spirit of celebrating two years and the fall season, which has finally rolled in, the rest of the post will be exactly what I wrote two years ago. Enjoy!

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trick or treat

Fall is finally here! More importantly...it's finally October, which means that we can all begin our fall decorations. I have been contemplating on how to decorate Colby's house this year to get in the spirit of the season. I've finally decided that I will be decorating with potted mums and pumpkins. Hopefully, this will spruce up the house a bit. I've been searching the internet for ideas, and I found a few pictures that I thought were great inspiration.

I've decided that I want the decorations to be a bit elegant, rather than scary. I especially didn't want the decorations to be tacky. It seems that sometimes people get a bit out of hand. Here are a few picture that I found that I seemed to be drawn to.

I liked the photo above mostly for its simplicity. I'm on a budget, so this is a great way for me to still decorate the house, add some color to the porch, and be in the spirit of the season. I was particularly drawn to the wreath on the door. It looks like it would be very easy to make if you had many small pumpkins and some black ribbon.

I also liked this photo for the mums and arrangement of pumpkins. It just demonstrates how easy it is to decorate for fall without all of the ghosts and goblins hanging from the front porch. I'm not saying I'm against all of the typical Halloween decorations. It's just not for me. You can get the tips for this idea here.


This is one of my favorites. How pretty this would be by my front door!


This makes me wish I had a fireplace in the house. I'll save this photo for future use!


I am all about monograms. I loved this, and I may give it a try. I just wonder how I'm going to make it look as good as this one. Hmmm...I guess I will use the directions from the Martha Stewart website to figure it out.

Last but not least, an easy way to make decorations. The simple use of a template and some cookie cutters makes it very simply to light up the outdoors when trick-or-treaters come by.

I hope everyone enjoyed my thoughts on fall and Halloween decorations! I can't wait to see everyone else's decorations around town.