Celebrate!

It's my birthday y'all! It's been a fun last few days kicking off the birthday celebrations with friends and family, and we are continuing them on tonight. I'm a lucky girl. My sweet husband has made me feel very special over the last few days. Always a good thing :) I hope everyone has a fabulous weekend! 

Don't forget to have a drink for me!

XOXO.

{image via, blue for the most important present of all this year!}

It's a start...

Our tree is up! Cue the trumpets! We had several speedbumps along the way, including two different parts of the tree at different times not lighting up that made this years decorating one half of a step from losing my mind. However, I think we are in the clear now and good to go. After the tree debacle I decided to keep my Christmas decorations on a simpler scale and am still working on finishing touches. I hope to be done by next week! 

I'm not quite sure what Dixie is looking at in the tree but I'm sort of scared. I don't think theres a squirrel in there, a la Griswold family Christmas. 

If we come home and the tree is knocked down....

Have a wonderful day y'all!

Bump Update: 23 Weeks

How far along? 23 weeks

Total weight gain/loss: Have not weighed myself after Thanksgiving. No pregnant woman should have to, thats my new rule.

Maternity clothes? Same story here, a little bit of everything with mostly regular clothes mixed in.

Stretch marks? None so far.

Sleep: Not so bad.

Best moment this week: Thanksgiving with family!

Have you told family and friends: Should I delete this question? haha. Any questions you all would like to see me replace it with? Suggestions?

Miss Anything? Really, really missing my tan in this picture. I think that might boost my self esteem! 

Movement: Yes, and I think he was kicking me to stop eating on Thursday. No more room Mom!

Food cravings: More apples! The sweet tooth hasn't been as bad this past week, thank goodness.

Anything making you queasy or sick: Awful indigestion. I feel bad for having to take zantac, tums, etc. but it is SO bad.

Have you started to show yet: Yes :)

Gender: Boy

Labor Signs: No

Belly Button in or out? In

Wedding rings on or off? On

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy for the most part! Although, the last few days I have been thinking about how far I have to go. It seems like SO long. I know we are well over the halfway point but I'm getting anxious!

Looking forward to: My birthday is Friday and getting to celebrate that! Although, I must say it will be the first time in many, many moons that I haven't enjoyed several a beverage on my birthday! I know its all worth it though. Also looking forward to my friend Seldon's engagement party Saturday. My sisters baby is due any time now too! Lots and lots to look forward to.

Other moments from this week...

{Our last football game of the season. Thank goodness, I was getting bored watching everyone drink.  It really has been fun but I'm ready for a break now!}

{Sunday night, Stephen put together baby C's crib. So many thing to comment on here: First of all, Tucker is once again carefully watching what is going on. Second of all, our little man already has a Christmas rug for next year! Third of all, I love this Daddy so much and I was so happy watching him put it together}

xoxo.

Thanksgiving 2012

Most years Stephen and I get to spend Thanksgiving Day split between both of our families. It just so happens to work out that his family eats lunch and mine eats dinner. So that means we end up incredibly stuffed, but we wouldn't trade it for anything.

We started off with the most delicious overnight coffee cake for breakfast that my Mom made. If I'm lucky she will give me the recipe and I can share ;)

And we headed outside to enjoy it on the porch. A little chilly but the fire warmed us right up.

After breakfast we headed out to Stephen's Grandma's farm, where he was in charge of frying the turkey. It was his first time and it turned out ah-mazing.

Us with his sweet, sweet Grandma...

After a delicious lunch {we tried to eat light to save room!} we headed back to my parents house. Here are three of my sweet loves of my life...

And it was time for turkey frying round 2... {my Mom also makes a traditional turkey}...

We have a tradition that once the turkey drops the men enjoy a boot of beer {it's a German thing}. This year it was just these two because my brother and brother-in-law both could not be with us.

And we took a few minutes to snap some family photos....
With my pretty Mom and sister...

My Grandma was able to join us in Raleigh...this woman is 90 years old and still looks acts amazing. Her favorite hobby is playing Words with Friends on her iPad!

Our best shot at taking a photo with all of the dogs...there was a beagle barking in our neighbors yard and they were all preoccupied with that. Dixie is half beagle so we joked it was her uncle barking its head off.

I love these women.

A beautiful meal. My contribution is always sweet potatoes and I made this casserole for the second year in a row. Probably my favorite sweet potato recipe to date and it looks beautiful too. I don't like being left out so I requested sparking grape juice! 

I hope your Thanksgiving was special in every way and you got to spend it with those you love. And of course, I hope you ate plenty of good food because it would not be fair to make me eat this much in one weekend and you not! 

Is anyone else dragging this morning? I think my turkey hangover just set in.

Have a good one y'all! xo.

Thankful

Late wishes for you all to have a Happy Thanksgiving! I have an entirely new blessing to be thankful for this year and I cannot stop thinking about all I have to be thankful for.

Have a wonderful weekend with your family and friends!!

xoxo

Blog Love

Sunday morning I finally had a chance to just sip on hot tea in my pjs and catch up on some internet browsing. Something that I have not done in quite some time.

One of my favorite finds was A Lovely Lark. One of the most charming and refreshing sites I have come across with a ton of cute gift guides and a focus on handmade items that are off the beaten path. I loved this DIY silhouette! 

{diy silhouette}

Spearmint Baby is another ridiculously cute site. You know I am all about baby right now, but they also have other sites including Spearmint Decor, Wedding, Money, Kitchen etc.

 I loved these Salted Caramels from Spearmint Kitchen decked out in Washi Tape. HOW cute for a shower, or even in red and green for Christmas?

{Salted Caramels + Washi Tape}

I love finding new blogs and new ideas. What are your favorites these days? I would love to hear!! Or, if you are new here leave me a link to your blog :)

We are off to Raleigh today for Thanksgiving. I am SO looking forward to a long weekend, especially to celebrate Thanksgiving. Safe travels to everyone!!

xoxo.

Bump Update: 22 Weeks!

bonus picture: Dixie wanted to join in :)

How far along? 22 weeks

Total weight gain/loss: At the doctor I was + 9! That's with my jeans, fur vest etc on so it reads a little different than my scale at home when I'm wearing just a t-shirt and shorts. 

He said that was absolutely perfect!

Maternity clothes? Beginning to freak a little bit about options for the holidays. Amazingly, I am still wearing a few pairs of jeans but I literally hold my breath every day for the time they won't fit! 

Stretch marks? Not any yet!

Sleep: It's been pretty good. Getting up out of bed has seemed like it requires a little more effort than what I am used to. I'm no longer hopping right out of bed in the morning!

Best moment this week: Another good doctor appointment. Having a good doctor appointment is the best. And of course, we got to hear our little man's sweet, strong hearbeat!

Have you told family and friends: Everyone knows!

Miss Anything? I miss my tan! Not that pregnancy has anything to do with that though.

Movement: All the time, especially at night. I'm beginning to feel a difference in movement but I can't tell yet what is a hand, what is a foot etc.

Food cravings: Been eating lot of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, and apples have been tasting really great this week!

Anything making you queasy or sick: Indigestion later in the day. Don't think thats going away.

Have you started to show yet: Let's be real, I have a baby bump! Although people are still telling me they cannot tell. Oh well.

Gender: Baby boy!

Labor Signs: No

Belly Button in or out? In

Wedding rings on or off? On

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy! 

Looking forward to: Thanksgiving break with family! We ordered our crib and dresser and I can't wait til they get in! 

Other moments from the week:

{What I wore to an engagement party Saturday night. Nothing is maternity here.
Jade top + Trina Turk leggings}

 {Dixie snuggling on Sunday morning. I don't think I've ever looked that comfortable in my life!}

{Amazing apple snack. Slice apples thinly and squeeze the juice of one lemon + one orange over the top. Refrigerate for 30 minutes then eat.}

{Getting some use out of an old Alice + Trixie dress. The bump is here y'all!}

xoxo.

Planning Ahead: Meals and Sweet Treats

Welcome back friends! Is everyone ready for a short work week and extended long weekend? I know I am. I love a short work week!

A few weeks ago, I posted on my list of things to do to get ready for December. If you want to read that list and get organized yourself, see here. I'm happy to say I have worked on at least one thing on the list:

"8. Double a couple weeknight dinners and freeze half for busy December days

A must. I will work on planning some menus this weekend."

Last weekend, my Mom and cooked and baked up a storm. We both feel like we should have more to show for the amount of time spent in the kitchen, but we are still ahead of the game.

First up, Teriyaki Chicken:

All you have to do for this meal is chop your onions and add everything else to the bag. One recipe yields two bags/meals. Simply freeze and then cook in the crockpot! That is my kind of dinner, plus you get your veggies already added in.

Of course, we wasted no time and had our first dinner this past week. I love nothing more than an easy dinner at the end of a long day. And not having to stop at the grocery store on your way home. If you like teriyaki chicken you will love this recipe.

Next, we made FOUR coffee cakes. Yes, four. That took a good chunk of time out of our day. However, we had breakfast for the next day, two for my Mom to freeze, and then one for me freeze and take to Stephen's grandmother's on Thanksgiving. I know they will be busy and short on help, and having breakfast taken care of will be nice.

For a similar recipe see here. De-lish I could go for a piece right now.

The last thing I have prepped is cookie dough for the sugary holiday ahead of us. It is so much easier to make your dough ahead of time and freeze it. The day of, you get to enjoy making and decorating your cookies instead of mixing the dough! These are one of the cookies I am planning to make:

You've probably seen them circulating around pinterest, the link is here. The dough is made and I get to enjoy an afternoon of baking sometime soon. Oh, and I may or may not have made a dozen minus the food coloring and sprinkles to give them a test drive. They turned out perfect!

Have you done any meal prep for the Holidays just yet?

I hope you all have a great start to your Thanksgiving Week!

xoxo.

Man's Best Friend {And Woman's}

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It's no secret that I have a serious affection for our four legged friends. After all, I even named my blog after our little puggle, who I call "Miss Dixie" or "Miss Priss". No, I am not Miss Dixie, that is my dog!

Tucker has been very curious lately about all the baby additions to the house. Last week I caught him in the nursery looking around. I swear he knows whats coming!

I hope this post made you feel good for Friday. I had something else planned but when I stumbled upon the first image, I changed my mind.
I can only hope our little boy will be best friends with Tucker and Dixie.

Happy Friday y'all!! xoxox.

Color My Christmas Aqua

vintage doors and wreath

tiffany packages with a zebra pop

traditional works the blue feel

camper christmas

coastal feel in aqua

scattered ornaments and presents

a white and blue Christmas

glam packages 

And of course I loved seeing Chassity's front door decked out for Christmas. See that article here.

With baby on the brain, I thought it would be fun to incorporate some aqua for our Christmas this year. However, I make no promises- we will see how far that gets!

Are you changing things up for Christmas this year?

xoxo.