Sunday, February 26, 2012

Chicken, Pickin' and Oysters

I wish I could say I made up this catchy title, but if we're being honest, I did not. It was on the invite for Lindsey & Seth's first engagement shower! The PERFECT shower, might I add. All the hosts went above and beyond and the set up looked like it was straight out of a Southern Living magazine.  So rustic and inviting. Whenever I have a wedding...one day....far, far, away..... I would love for the rehearsal or the reception to have this kind of feel. All the hosts did an awesome job.




First of all, meet the happy couple,  Lindsey and Seth. Lindsey and I have been friends since middle school/highschool and we've been roommates 3 times....living together a total of about 4 years if you put it all together. Together, we've been through the first night away from our families off at college in the smelly dorms, break -ups, break -in's, first days of teaching, etc. What am I going to do when she moves out??? I don't want to think about it yet! And I've known Seth for as long as he and Lindsey have been together- about 10 years. Wow. They make a pretty good looking couple don't they? 

How neat is this set up? When the guests walk in, this was where we set our gifts and there were "Lindsey's Favorite" and "Seth's Favorite" appetizers along with their favorite engagement picture. Lindsey's favorite: Tomato Mozzarella Skewers with Pesto Dipping Sauce. Seth's Favorite: Meatballs. I LOVED how they labeled everything with letter stamps. Notice the brown table place cards. The cocktail napkins were also stamped "L & S." Some napkins were stamped with chickens to go along with the theme. How crafty. (We'll get to the chicken part in a minute)

I guess now would be a good time to introduce the chickens. Check out that mac daddy of a chicken coop. It fit in quite well with the rest of the decor.  If I didn't rock the condo life, I would have chickens in a second.  Can't go wrong with burlap either. Such lovely table scapes!
Yeah...just a stage in the backyard....no big deal. Come on- how great is that?? We had our own personal concert by Stewart & Jim Marshall. Nothing like a little old school Stewart & Winfield tunes- played live!

My favorite station. Forget the booze...give me Smores!! I didn't get a picture of the fire- dang it.
Whitney is another old friend. I'm glad occassions like this bring us back together!

And thanks to this little station I was up until 2:00 am, wired. I'm normally not a coffee drinker but it smelled too delicious to pass up. And they had cute cups.

This was such a nice engagement shower. Amy, Clayborne, Kathy and all others involved get an A++. There were so many other details....wish I could've captured them all. And the food- amazing. All of it.


A fun night had by all!

-Caroline

Monday, February 20, 2012

Southern Women's Show II

Well, I've made it full circle on my blog. Last year at this time, the Southern Women's Show was my first post (well, my first REAL post besides the intro). Hard to believe its been a year since I started this blog. Writing it has brought me more "happiness" than I ever expected.

Here's a peak at all the girly finds I indulged in on Sunday at the Southern Women's show with my favorite Southern woman, Cathlin.

This catchy camera case. It caught my eye and I decided that I needed it. Maybe it will encourage me to start using my real camera instead of the one on my phone out of pure convenience. Selling point #2, its reversible. Depending on how I'm feeling, I can be navy and white ...or I can go with red and white stripes. Its nice to have options. Today I was feeling the navy.

Here is my leather/hammered metal cross bracelet. The rustic look reeled me in.


Headband and earrings. You know I have to wear everything I bought all at once. The bracelet was on earlier....took it off for it's artsy photo shoot draped over the corner of the picture frame.  I couldn't get a good angle anywhere else.



Very excited about my Lime Coriander Olive Oil and Fig Balsamic Vinegar. Salads and pastas await you!

This Re-Wined candle is my favorite purchase of all. The guys who make them are based out of Charleston. They take cheap, empty champagne bottles from restaurants and re- purpose them by cutting them in half and filling them with wine scented soy candles. This one is the Pino Noir....just listen to the description and you can almost smell it. ~ "Fresh notes of fig & cranberry are rooted by the rustic aromas of leather & violet, all blossoming within the bouquet of musky earth tones" ~ Mmmmmm.



A few cleaning products never hurt. You would've been sold too if you watched the sales guy's demo. I got to be the guinea pig and effortlessly wipe crayon away from the tile floor with this magic mop! I HAD to buy it after that. I'll be sure to let you know how it works in real life. Was it real crayola that I wiped up? We shall see!

A shopping trip wouldn't be complete if I didn't buy a soap. I can't get enough of bar soaps. So, here we have: LoveMilkHoney.




Cath & I stopped off at the bar before we left the show. The...oxygen bar that is. Bah- ha! Here I am breathing in fresh clean (pina colada scented) oxygen! And sniffing eucalyptus essential oils out of my palms. We also got a back and head massage as we breathed. Cathlin refused a photo opp, but she was there too, with oxygen stuck up her nose as well.


Who's in for next year??

Caroline





Thursday, February 16, 2012

Gratefulness

Here it is already the 16th of February and I've yet to post anything this month. For shame! February is one of those weird in between months. The newness of the new year has worn off, the yoga classes are thinning out again as all the new years resolutions die off, we're getting cabin fever and ready for the warm sun and green grass. I talk like Savannah has such a harsh winter...ha! Short sleeves and flip flops have been the norm since January of this year. We don't know what to do if it drops below 50 around here.

In other news, there is a book I want to read called One Thousand Gifts. If you've read it, let me know your thoughts. Its about living fully, right where you are. From the book comes an idea called: Joy Dare,  probably closely related to The Love Dare for those of you who are familiar with the book. Or the movie based on the book, Fire Proof. (Cheesy? Yes....but an uplifting movie. If you can get past Kirk Cameron's acting.) Anyway, I decided it might be fun to use the Joy Dare as a bit of a theme if you will. Each day of the month comes with a different "dare." Not a dare like: eat a spoonful of mayo without gagging, but a dare like: What are 3 things about yourself that you are grateful for?


And.....Go!

1) As the ladies at Crystal Nail say, "You have strong nail"  Singular. So, I have good nails. You'd like them to if you wanted a back scratch. They're pretty much impossible to break and they have a nice shape if I take care of them. I didn't realize that was such a good thing until I got older and everyone else I knew was paying 30 bucks for the fake ones.

2) Singledom. I'm not saying I want it to be this way forever, but at this point in my life, its a gift. For example: I don't have to consider a man's meat & potatoes palate when I am on my strange vegan crazes. I don't have to listen to football on TV. The list goes on....

3) No allergies. I'm serious. I feel really sorry for the people who get stuffy and headachey and sneezy with the pollen. Or people who get red and puffy with hives from seafood. My life would be less enjoyable if my cat made me wheeze. What if I had sensitive skin and couldn't wash with smelly-good soaps?

These are just a few things for which I am grateful. Care to share yours??

More Joy Dares to come!

Caroline

"There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though  everything is a miracle." -Albert Einstein