Every party must have...

Old Time Pottery in Florence, Ky is closing. The place for some great buys and also some great junk will be closing its doors on June 30. I went out yesterday with my mom and found some cheap glass plates for entertaining and also some chargers to match my china.

For some reason, I always feel like a better host when I have glass plates and cups during my parties. I love to entertain but it can be very costly if you're not careful. I bit the bullet and bought clear glass dinner plates and cocktail plates. They have a cute little design on them that I really liked. It was costly up front, but I will be very happy that I can just throw them in the dishwasher party after party.

Is there any must have for you before you have a party?

For me,

1. I must have flowers. How pretty is this arrangement with dark peonies and hydrangeas (reminds me of my wedding bouquet)? I think it is also neat when you are able to build your own bouquet. I sometimes go to Findlay Market and buy flowers and then put them together in a great bouquet. The possibilities are endless!

2. I like to have a WIDE array of drinks. I am not a beer drinker and I know many people are not liquor drinkers; so I always try to account for everyone. I usually have a white and red wine, 2 different types of beer, and a specialty drink (like a martini or slush). Even if beer is all that is drunk, I still feel good that I covered my bases.....and the next day I have a few things to sip on (hopefully it's warm and I can sit on my deck).

3. Meat-less Options for Food. Whether you have vegetarian friends or not, sometimes people just prefer it. I have noticed once I started entertaining that most snacks I munch on at a party are meatless. If you want to take this one step further, go no dairy either, but I usually just stick with no meat snacks (I like cheese WAY too much)!

Here are a few from the Food Network:

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/hot-spinach-artichoke-dip-recipe/index.html

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/bobby-flay/grilled-french-bread-pizza-with-mushroom-pesto-and-fontina-cheese-recipe/index.html

4. This is a new one of mine. I recently was given a dock for my Ipod and before that I never had music at my parties. Although I put it on low, it changes the whole mood. The silences that happen at the beginning when only a few people have arrived are filled with good music. I will never have another party without it playing. I usually play the Michael Buble or John Legend channel on Pandora! It makes everyone happy!

I am so glad that I LOVE to entertain. It truly makes me happy. I hope one day I am in a position to have sit down dinner parties (my dream). For now, cocktail parties and picnics are filling up my calendar happily.

Much Love.

Fighting the Urge

Matt and I have had no heat or air on in our house for 3 months. Can you believe this? At first, I woke up with ice crystals on my eyelashes and nose and now I am waking up soaking wet with sweat.

I cannot complain about our bills, though. They have been NOTHING and this is definitely something I can get used too. I wonder how much longer we can survive this without totally going insane.

Matt has it easy because he is on the far right side of the bed.....all to himself. I wouldn't have it any other way, but I have a personal space heater attached to me all throughout the night. She cannot stay still unless she is on top of my foot or her head is on my pillow. I love it in the winter, but now that it is hot, I am dying!!!

UrbanAthalon

I think I am in over my head right now. This past weekend I was forced decided to particpate in the UrbanAthalon on October 16, 2010 in Chicago. For those that do not know me, I am the complete other end of the spectrum from a runner or obstacle do-er. Why did I agree to this? The UrbanAthalon is a 9 mile course; however each 1.5 miles you run, you must complete an obstacle course before you continue to run. Here are the obstacle courses:

OBSTACLE COURSE 1: NAVY PIER

You must go through tires (military style) and then walk across concrete barriers. Repeat.

OBSTACLE COURSE 2: DuSABLE HARBOR

You must go UNDER blue police barricades and OVER yellow traffic barricades.

OBSTACLE COURSE 3: SOLDIER FIELD

You must climb over 5 rows of cars and get up and over the marine hurdles and crawl under the cargo net.

OBSTACLE COURSE 4: McCORMICK PLACE

You must go across a HUGE monkey bar.

OBSTACLE COURSE 5: SOLDIER FIELD STAIR CLIMB

You must climb the stairs at Soldier Field.

OBSTACLE COURSE 6: UPPER HUTCHINSON FIELD

You must club across cabs and then climb up and over a bus. Repeat. Then climb up a HUGE wall.

I don't know about you, but just looking at the pictures gives me an anxiety attack. Thankfully, they do offer a relay option. I will be on a team of 3 running 3 miles and doing 2 obstacle courses. Still, that is a huge deal to me.

I am doing it for Matt. I want to show him that I can be healthy and active. That is all he wants for me. I might die trying, though. We are going to begin training this week and continue over the summer and through the fall. I am going to try to sign up for a 5k this summer.

If anyone has any advice on training or running, I would greatly appreciate it.

Much Love.

The quote that says it all.

"I was complaining about not having dumbbells at home when my girlfriend said,
'Too bad you can't lift yourself... you know, because you're a dumbbell,' and
went into hysterics. It was totally corny, but I couldn't help laughing at her
laughing at her own joke. I love how much she amuses herself." - Jim, 34,
Philadelphia

That quote explains my marriage completely. Matt says things like that all the time...usually he cannot get them out because he is already laughing so hard at himself. Sometimes, I try to act mad but I just walk in the other room laughing my butt off. I just don't want to blow his head up too much.

Much Love.

My little Lani

On Wednesday, my niece Lani, graduated from Pre-School. What an accomplishment! hehe. They dress them up in Tshirt graduation gowns and paper caps and gave thema diploma and class ring (Ring Pop). It was so cute. They sang songs to their parents and performed the ABC's with sign language. I looked around the room and laughed when I saw tears in the mom's eyes and the proud dad's video taping every move their child made. What an adjustment your life is once you have kids. What seems so silly to me now, will become the most important thing once I have children.

Matt and I talk about having children all the time. We want to make sure God is in their lives at all times.

Matt loves kids and I know he is going to be an incredible father. You can tell when a man is going to be a good dad by the way they interact with kids. My nieces LOVE him and can't get enough of him. It warms my heart every time I see him playing with them. We are not ready to start trying yet because of so many new things going on in our life (school, house, etc.) but we will not be waiting too much longer. Until then, we will live vicariously through our newest nephew, Benjamin.

Much Love.

Stop to smell the flowers

On my way to my School Law class last night, I walked past a house on campus that had the edge of their yard lined with peony bushes. My most favorite flower. It brings me back to my wedding day and my beautiful bouquet. (Thanks Kevin- Ford Ellington!) When I look at them, I feel so happy. They are so fluffy soft and their fragrance is amazing. Springtime will always bring Peonies and will also remind me of my wedding day.

Much Love.

Test

I'm testing this. I am hoping it will post straight to my blog from my phone.

Mobile Blogging

I am trying to set up Mobile Blogging so that I can send it straight from my phone. This is all so new for me.

When will it end?

Matt and I knew in buying an old house meant sometimes unexpected expenses. We did not realize it would be constant. We found this house in Fort Mitchell in October and we have enjoyed every second of making it our own. It has been so fun putting our special touches on different projects that we have done. So far, we have put overhead lights in our living room, mounted our TV above our fireplace, and added some landscaping (herb garden and azalea bushes). We bought a grill for the back deck and a new couch and chair. Recently, our dryer went out and it was a huge expense, so our living room decorating has been postponed. It looks so bare. Just a couch and chair. We need a rug, coffee table, side tables, lamps, and something for that back wall. Our couches are a slate gray color and I am torn over whether or not I like the paint color on the walls. I think I want something alittle more neutral. I would love to go antique shopping for some really funky accessories for the wall. My friend Cassie put an awesome piece on her wall made from an old window. It looked incredible. I wish I was that creative.

Much Love.

Started my Master's...

Well, I decided to go back to school for Educational Administration. I would love to be a middle school principal (god help those kids!). My first class is School Law with John Concannon. The only thing I heard about him is that he is Captain Punctual and you must be on time. Class started at 6:00 and he arrived at 6:45. He thought the class began at 7:00. That was comical. He felt so bad that he is bringing pizza on Thursday for us! After being in just one class (6:00-9:45) I am so thankful that I did not go to Law School. The constant memorization is not for me.
I am, of course, the youngest in the class and I actually take pride in that. I am really excited about going to Xavier. I think that their Edu Admin program is fantastic.

So new for me.

I recently read a college friend's blog and it made me want to jump on this bandwagon. If not for anything but being able to record things in my life. As I sat at my computer and set up the blog, I realized that I do not have a really exciting life. I am not going through anything traumatic or emotional that people can connect with; I just have a simple life with my amazing Husband and super cute Great Dane! So, I guess I will write about that simple life.

Matt and I were married May 30, 2009 (coming up on the big 1 year anniversary!) My wedding day was a fairy tale to me for many reasons. I knew that my life was finally complete with Matt as my husband. I also had an amazing celebration with the most important people in my life sharing every moment with Matt and I. I will share things about my wedding frequently because I think about that day almost every day!

In October (yes 5 months after we were married) we bought our house! It is everything we wanted; old, in the area we wanted, great neighbors, amazing kitchen. The only reason we were able to buy this house is because of the 5 months we lived with my Mom and were able to save. Thank you, Mom!

It is now May and we are really looking forward to being in the house over the summer. We have an amazing deck where Matt and Mabel love to hang out. Here is a blurry picture of them!

I am excited about finishing the school year. The 7th graders are getting wild and I don't blame them. I am ready for summer too! I will be teaching the same thing next year (Math-2 classes; Pre-Algebra-1 class; Language Arts-1 class) in 7th grade. It is definitely a tough year but it is the year where you are able to see the most growth (or lack thereof). It has been an adventure!

Well, this has been fun writing my very first post. I have no idea if anyone will ever read this but I am going to enjoy writing it!

Much Love.