Oh me, oh my wedding!

I'm baaaaaack!!!

2010-05-05T12:49:00.000-07:00

Check me out over on my new blog at http://upatreewithoutaladder.blogspot.com
I will never desert you again like that! NEVER.

This blog will self-destruct in 5,4,3,2,1....*

Can you guys keep a secret?

2009-11-05T13:09:00.001-08:00

Okay...good!
Well, I know it seems I've dissappeared from the blogosphere, but I haven't entirely...
I've been working pretty hard on a brand spankin' new blog.
You know, since I'm all growns up and a married woman and all. ;)

I promise to be back here soon with my new blog address.
I hope you'll still care.

Until then I'm sending you all lots of LOVE!

M.E.D

BOO!

2009-10-31T10:00:00.000-07:00

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

We're Baaack!

2009-10-29T09:46:00.000-07:00

Okay so we may have already been home from the honeymoon for 2 full days now, but this gal had to get the house in order before I even thought of sitting on my tushy to blog.

Sooo, the honeymoon....
Thanks to an issue with my passport we had to change plans at the last minute to travel to the US Virgin Islands instead of Mexico.

We ended up at the Wyndham Sugar Bay in St. Thomas which we lovingly dubbed the Shithole. :)

Regardless of where we were it was so very nice to be with my new husband in a sunny place with absolutely nothing to do but be together.
No, I wasn't sad to say goodbye to our wax paper sheets or Ilma, the world's unhappiest bartender, BUT I was sad to say goodbye to entire days spent with Mr. P.
It was pure bliss.

We decided this trip was only our pre-honeymoon and hopefully come our one year anniversary we'll be poolside and carefree again, but this time in good ol' Mexico (say it like your supposed to and that rhymes).

For now I'm back to baking and reading your blogs.
I'm ever so excited to catch myself up.

Then I promise to catch you all up on the past three fun filled weeks.

Much Love!

Emie Diaz-Llaneza

Call me Houdini...

2009-10-20T14:37:00.000-07:00

because that was some disappearing act!

Okay, that was my attempt at a lame joke to lighten the mood.

I'm so sorry I completely disappeared off the face of the earth aka got wrapped and absorbed by final wedding plans.

3 things I'd like you to know:

1. I am now officially Margaret Emily Diaz-Llaneza

2. Our wedding was better than I ever could have imagined.

3. I promise in the next week or so to catch you up on everything-pictures included!

Oh and we without a doubt have the best friends and family imaginable.
Thanks a million times over to those of you who were there with us. You are the reason this weekend will always stand out in our minds as one of the best of our lives.

My dear blog friends who I haven't had the pleasure of meeting in person, I look forward to sharing the details of this amazing time with you.

I'm not quite certain the direction this blog will go (although it hasn't really been a wedding blog for somewhile), but I'll figure it out as I go.

Because one things for sure, okay maybe this makes 5 now, I've freaking missed you!

Heading on our honeymoon tomorrow, to St. Thomas now (yeah, that's a story you'll hear about soon), but I plan to be poolside and filling you in soon.

All my love,

Emie Diaz-Llaneza

this weekend

2009-10-08T19:28:00.001-07:00

One of my lovely friends (and a bridesmaid in my wedding) is getting married this Saturday.

Tomorrow morning after picking up our marriage license (in South Carolina) I'll be on my way to Jekyll Island, GA with sistah and Chels.
Our fiance's don't have the day off so they'll be driving down later in the day.

I can't for the 5 hour trip with two of my favorite ladies!

I can't wait to check into our room that is certain to be darling.

I can't wait to pig out at tomorrow's lowcountry boil.

I can't wait to explore the grounds of this beautiful resort.

But most importantly I can't wait to celebrate the marriage of Missy and Matthew.

Hope you all have a weekend full of love.
xo

Today was a good day.

2009-10-07T15:05:00.000-07:00

Early this afternoon fiance and I set out to obtain our marriage license.
On arrival I said in a cheery tone, "we are here to get our marriage certificate".
Only to learn that you have to be married in the state of North Carolina to obtain one in the state of North Carolina.
No biggie, tomorrow we'll cross state lines to get our South Carolina marriage certificate.

Then I dropped off all 150 baby cakes with Missy's fiance Matthew.
Matthew then gave me a gift that my sweet, sweet friend Missy purchased for me.

Isn't this the cutest lil' sign you've ever seen!?
I swear Missy is one of the most thoughtful gals you could ever know and I'm unbelievably lucky to have her as my friend.
This weekend we'll be attending her wedding at Jekyll Island and I truly can't wait for the celebration.

After that exchange I treated my sweetie to lunch. We hit up Ru San's for the lunchtime sushi buffet.
Nothing better my friends.

We then found Mr. P some snazzy shoes to wear with his snazzy suit.
Man, he's going to look so handsome!

Then he dropped me off at my sisters salon where I had my hair colored and highlighted.
It looks so very pretty.
*thank you to my very beautiful, talented sister! xo

Now I'm home watching Nie Nie on Oprah with happy tears in my eyes.
She's so incredibly inspiring.

Oh and I should tell you real quick that we have a new Rehearsal Dinner venue.
We'll have cocktails in this adorable courtyard at Charleston Place Hotel...

followed by dinner in their Palmetto Room.
Crisis averted.

Now if you'll excuse me I need to go prepare myself for tonight's dance lessons.
hehe
See you tomorrow sweet friends.

weddings, they are stressful

2009-10-06T18:35:00.000-07:00

This wedding is driving me crazy, but you can bet your behinds I'm going to enjoy every freaking second of it! Especially thanks to the blood (okay, maybe just a paper cut, but still), sweat and tears that have gone into it.

My head is about to explode thinking of all the things (mostly e-mails to send and details to nail down) that I still need to do.

I spent the last two days doing nothing but making baby cakes (and maybe sneaking in a few chapters of New Moon in between batches).
Here's what 150 baby cakes look like:

I've been so consumed with wedding stuff that I even forgot our son Tucker's 2nd birthday.
Pepe remembered a few days after his actual birthday and my heart broke thinking of what a bad mother I've been lately.
So today I made him a little cake for a belated birthday celebration.
He ate so much that now he's lettin' 'em rip beside me on the couch.

Oh, I should also fill you all in on the most recent news...
So remember our original wedding venue closed?
Well it did.
Our new venue, Magnolia Plantaion, was the only place we could find with availability on the same weekend, however they only had Sunday open.
Well this meant we had to move our Rehearsal Dinner from Friday to Saturday night.
No big deal, right?
Well it is when the lady we were working with changes jobs and forgets to make note of the change before she leaves.
So we found this news out today and are now without a Rehearsal Dinner venue at the moment.
I could only laugh when I heard this news.
My sweetie came home with our favorite chicken tacos to soften the blow when he delivered the news to me.
Mexican food always makes things better.

Well I'm heading to the shower, then the bed.
I'm exhausted!

I'll end on a happy note-
Tomorrow we get our marriage certificate. :)

annoyed

2009-10-05T11:51:00.000-07:00

I promise to return later this evening with a weekend update (because I just know the suspense is killing you).

In the meantime please allow me to rant for a few moments about something that's been weighing heavily on my mind for a few days.

Right now on my counter top sits two stacks of reply cards, the 'yes pile' & the 'no pile'.
The 'no pile' is getting to be pretty high.
I'm okay with this because we were prepared for it.
With the wedding being a destination wedding of sorts for about 95% of our guests and with the economic times we didn't kid ourselves and think everyone could attend.
I mean people have lives, they have families and jobs they can't leave behind.

Do you know what does upset me though?
The family members who aren't attending.
The family members who didn't even bother to say "listen, I wish I could make, but I can't because....".
Instead they just simply aren't coming.
Now I'm not going to pretend my family is all as close as I'd like us to be and I accept my side of the blame for that.
BUT is it so crazy of me to expect something happy and joyous like a wedding to bring people together?
I don't think so.

I can't imagine missing a wedding of one of my family members.
I really can't.

So yes, yes my feelings were hurt.
But I'm ready to move on and be happy with the wonderful friends and family (lots of them) who are making the trip to be with us on our wedding day.

So a BIG, BIG THANK YOU to those of you are pushing the pause button on your own lives to celebrate with us.
It means more than you can probably know.

Okay, I'm feeling much better now.

Back to baking baby cakes.
See you soon my sweets.

I'm here!

2009-10-02T15:21:00.000-07:00

Today:

I had my favorite vanilla bean cupcake.

Got a mani with sister and this time they gave us a little back massage.
It was very needed.
*I should tell you that while prancing around in my wedding shoes about an hour ago I tripped on the stairs and ruined a nail to avoid falling on my face.
It was awesome!

I picked up New Moon and cannot wait to do nothing but read all day Sunday.

We went to Michael's so I could pick up all the baby cake supplies needed to make favors for Missy's, one of my best gal's, wedding.
I also picked up the supplies needed to complete this little project:

Adorable, right?
My bridal dinner (that my lovely mother is hosting) will take place in the back yard of the home we are renting in Charleston.
We plan to hang a few of these from the trees as well as mason jar lanterns.

I also had my second alteration appointment for my wedding gown.
I truly love my dress more each time that I try it on.
It also looks amazing with the pretty little shoes I picked out.
I'll show you those later.

Oh and I got the photos of the simple, yet adorable tags that will be used on our welcome bags.

They make me smile. :)

Now fiance and I are going to get in a quick workout before a Mentalist marathon.

Happy weekend my sweets.

Oh Twilight

2009-10-01T18:44:00.000-07:00

One guess as to why I didn't post all day.
Here's a hint, read yesterday's post. ;)

Yes, I spent 8 hours on the couch yet again.
I only got up twice, once to skip to the mail box (I LOVE receiving response cards) and the second time to fix some lunch.

At exactly 5:30pm I finished the book.
Now I'm anxious for my next trip to Barnes and Noble which without a doubt will take place tomorrow.
Sister and I have a date planned...Starbucks and New Moon for me, Breaking Dawn for her.
Are you confused?
Well then go out and get the first Twilight book, you'll thank me-I swear!

Now I'm going to try and catch up on my favorite blogs before Bella and Edward enter my life again.

See you tomorrow my sweets.
I promise to come up for air and post.

twilight and presents

2009-09-30T11:59:00.000-07:00

Do you want to know what I've been doing all morning and most of the afternoon thus far?
I've been sitting on the couch reading page after page of Twilight.
Yes, I've fallen prey to this addicting saga.
My sister started reading them last week and has since become enamored with Edward and his love for Bella.
I decided to finally decide for myself what all the fuss is about (even though I was embarrassed to buy the book at Barnes and Noble) and the world isn't lying...
this is a good, wait I mean a GREAT, read.

Anyways a few minutes ago our doorbell rang.
I opened the door to find a package from our best buddies, Brian and Jill Diemar.
I opened the package to find a gift bag to me from Jill that said it "was for me to wear while getting ready on our big day". :)

It's perfect and I love it!

There was also this recipe binder with a photo of the four of us on the cover.

I've needed something like this in my life for years now.
I have a drawer full of recipes that would agree with me.

Lastly there was a meat pounder.

You see we had the pleasure of hosting the Diemars at our humble abode recently and while they were staying with us I prepared us a dinner.
I was pounding the chicken breasts (so they'd cook evenly) with a drinking glass.

*Diemars, it's true friends like you who would remember this and send us a meat pounder as a thank you "for the hospitality".
Love you guys!

Okay, now if you'll excuse I'm going to try and pry myself away from the couch (and this book) and finally into the shower.

accessories

2009-09-28T14:08:00.000-07:00

Today while out and about with my sister we stopped by the Jewel Box.
I was looking for gifts but walked out with my wedding jewelry.

Wanna know how much I spent?
You do! I know it.

$12! Yep TWELVE DOLLARS.
Well I did have a $5 coupon.
It doesn't even sound right to say coupon and jewelry in the same sentence.
I'm 80% proud and 20% ashamed.
Ha!

I also received my lovely hair flowers in the mail from Chelsea of Oh My Deer Handmades.
They are darling and I couldn't love them more.

It's coming together folks. It's all coming together.

Weekend Update

2009-09-28T09:11:00.000-07:00

Friday:
Had yummy barbecue chicken and my sister's left over twice baked potatoes (thanks sis!).

Then Mr. P and I drug ourselves to the gym.

After the gym my lovely fiance took me to Cookout so that I could get a Huge Diet Coke.
They have rabbit turd ice as Mr. P calls it and that makes for the best fountain drink.

Then I ran myself a bubble bath.

Then it was time for some cuddling in bed while watching Season 1 of The Mentalist.
Simon Baker anyone? Man that guy is the second sexiest man alive! ;)

Saturday:
Woke up, snuggled with the dog.

Went to Toast Cafe and had turkey sausage, eggs and pumpkin walnut pancakes.

Headed back to the gym.

Came home and got in dressed in our best Hokie attire.

Headed to our friends house for some football fun.
*Thank Heather and Al for being such lovely hosts.

Watched our Hokies defeat Miami in an incredible win!

Sunday:

Laid on the couch.

Ate 3 yellow cupcakes with chocolate buttercream.

Laid on the couch.

Watched lots of tv!

Ate lots of chinese takeout!
Lots!

Watched some more tv.

Went to bed!

Ah! My perfect kinda weekend. :)
xo

I love Friday's!

2009-09-25T10:18:00.000-07:00

My sister treated me to a pedicure today complete with hot stones.
It was incredible and very much needed.
She told me yesterday that I "need some relaxation".
Isn't she the sweetest?
*Thanks again sis!

I also whipped up a batch of yellow cupcakes with vanilla buttercream icing for her future father in laws 70th birthday this weekend.
Didn't they turn out cute?

Now I'm catching up on some Project Runway and waiting anxiously for my fiance to arrive home and our weekend to begin.

Our plans you wonder?
Tonight Mr. P is going to help me put together a list for our dj...you know a list of 'must hear' and 'DO NOT PLAY' (It's a big N O to the macarena or any other song that has choreographed dance moves!).

Tomorrow we are meeting up with our good buddies the Oakleys to watch our Hokies defeat Miami and their Georgia bulldogs defeat Arizona St.

Then on Sunday, since the low is 58, I'm going to try and convince Mr. P to take me to the corn maze! :P
*Babe, you hear that? It's going to be cool Sunday night. Can we??? PLEASE!!!

Happy weekend folks!

P.S.-That banana bread I told you I was making yesterday turned out to be the best banana bread I've ever eaten!
Olivia, I think you'd really like it. :)

Tomatillo Chicken Stew

2009-09-24T14:51:00.000-07:00

For those of you who don't know, my lovely fiance was born in Mexico.
It's thanks to him that I now love cooking with tomatillos, lime, cilantro and jalapenos.

When I saw this recipe on Simply Recipes a couple of days ago I knew I had to make it.

Even though yesterday ended up being a hot, muggy day I still made a big batch of this stew and it was very delicious my friends.

Elise suggests serving over rice and that's exactly what I did.
I prefer Basmati rice because it's nice and sticky.
I also love to add fresh lime juice and cilantro to my rice (Qdoba anyone?).

I highly suggest checking out Simply Recipes.
Elise hasn't steered me wrong once.
In fact I'm baking her banana bread recipe at this very moment.

busy, busy day

2009-09-22T13:50:00.000-07:00

Today was a very productive day in terms of the upcoming wedding.

Let's see...

I hoped on the bus this morning and headed downtown to meet my sister.

She accompanied me to my first alteration appointment.
Luckily I need very few alterations.

Then Mr. P swooped me up and we headed to Diamond's Direct to order our wedding bands.
Hooray!

Then we headed to Paper Source to pick up some envelopes so we could send off the 15 invitations going to Mexico (still waiting on the calligrapher to finish up before the others go out).

Then we met with P's parents for a lovely lunch.

Afterwards we stopped by their house to pick up our invitations (his mother rescued them from our doorstop this weekend since we were in VA!) and also to see the adorable flowergirl dress she made for Pepe's niece Lauren.

Isn't the dress incredible?
Man I wish I had her sewing skills!

Anyways, I'm a very happy little lady on this cloudy Tuesday.
We are checking things off the to-do list left and right and it feels good.
Real good. :)

I and Love and You

2009-09-22T13:42:00.000-07:00

My buddy Matt e-mailed me this afternoon to let me know that NPR was featuring a first listen of the new Avett Brothers album that's to be released next Tuesday, September 29th.

I couldn't wait to get on my laptop and give it a listen.
I'm already hooked!

I love, LOVE the Avett Brothers. I'm not eloquent enough to truly express how much I love them, so I won't try.
If you haven't heard their music give it a try.
It makes you feel and that's the best kind of music.

Here's a song off the new album that I've already fallen for:

Wanna hear the entire album?
Click here.

Kiss for Calligraphy

2009-09-21T17:55:00.000-07:00

Kate is the lovely owner of the Etsy shop Kiss for Calligraphy.

I can't rave enough about Kate!
I contacted her about making some custom stickers for me and she's gone above and beyond to make these stickers perfect.

I told Kate that I wanted these stickers for our cookie buffet favor table.
I wanted them to say "kiss, swak and mwah" so that guests can seal their favor bags with a 'kiss'.
Get it?

Kate searched and searched for the perfect stickers because I wanted them to be on a roll.
She finally found the stickers, cut them into two separate rolls for me, dotted them with adorable teal dots and took it upon herself to buy vintage spools for us to put the stickers on.
Love her!

Here are a couple of photos...

You'll have to wait until later to see the completed project.

Also our invites will FINALLY be in the mail this week.
I don't have the words to convey what a relief this is going to be.

Here's a sneak peek at the invites...

Warning: This Post Could Bore You

2009-09-21T12:03:00.001-07:00

I've finally done it!
I decided on the songs for our wedding ceremony!
HALLELUJAH!

I learned in the past two hours as I sat on youtube and playlist.com that I actually really like Bach.
Huh? Who would have thought it?

Our lovely, beautiful grandmothers will be seated to a classical guitar version of this beauty:

Our wonderful and gorgeous mothers will be seated as this song is played:

Then we'll switch things up a bid with some modern day tunes.

The bridal party will be walking down the aisle to this pretty Coldplay song:

Me, I'll be walking down the aisle to meet my handsome groom as this song plays:

Lastly we'll take our walk back down the aisle as husband and wife to this celebratory tune:

Phew! One more thing marked off my list, 12 more to go.
27 days to go.

Weekend Update

2009-09-21T11:04:00.000-07:00

We WON!
The Hokies that is.
Did anyone see the ending of the game?
It was incredible!

We were losing to the cornhuskers 15 (5 freaking field goals) to 10.
We drove 88 yards to score a touchdown with 21 seconds on the clock.

At this point in the game we were already in a crowded bar which errupted in celebration.
Hugs and high fives were aplenty.

Here's a few photos from the day...

Carly, promoting peace!

*At this point I was apparently very upset that the Hokies were losing.

*Last two photos taken from hokiesports.com

Hope everyone had as happy a weekend as we did.
xo

Today, Tomorrow

2009-09-18T15:24:00.000-07:00

Friday's are often spent with my sister (it's her day off) and I love it.
Today we lunched on tacos, test drove a Volvo SUV (for her, not me!), hit up Petco, Old Navy (what? i'm in love with this store), and no day is complete folks without a visit to Target!

Afterwards we came back to my house to do a makeup trial for the wedding.
In case you all didn't know my lovely, gorgeous sister is a make-up artist and has a company with her equally talented fried Tatum, aptly named Simply Chic Hair & Make-Up.

Let me gift you lovely followers with a little before/after action.

Woah! The photo of me with NO make-up is brutal huh?
I think my sister didn't a MARVELOUS job, although I still have to get used to seeing myself in make-up (I wear absolutely none about 6 of the 7 days of the week).

*Thank you sister, you are AMAZING!

Now the Mr. is treating me and the Barzees to a lovely dinner at one of my favorite restaurants, 131 Main.
*Thank you my sweet.

Then tomorrow we pack up the car and head to Blacksburg, VA for the VT/Nebraska game!
GO HOKIES!

I'm really excited for this weekend, especially since my sister and her fiance are also attending the game.
I'll try to be responsible and take plenty of photos.

Happy Weekend to all.
I love you folks.
I really do.

Snazzy

2009-09-17T11:40:00.000-07:00

Our beloved canine, Mr. Tucker Putnam Diaz-Llaneza, will unfortunately not be a part of the ceremony, but that doesn't mean he can't be look fly while he roams the house as the girls and I get ready for the big day.
This pup is such an important part of our lives I had to insist he be there with me in the days leading up to the ceremony.
Luckily my mama san has offered to take him back home with her while we are on our honeymoon.
*Thanks Mama!

I ordered my handsome man, whose head rests next to this computer right now, his very own tie. One that looks very similar to the tie the groomsmen will be sporting.

Want a tie for your four legged man?
Come on, I know you do!
Check out Dogties on Etsy, right here.

*This lovely little pup featured is not our son, he's the handsome model featured on this Etsy shop.

Bachelorette Party Weekend

2009-09-16T16:24:00.001-07:00

Missy aka soon to be Mrs. Johnson and Sistah at the taco night pre-bash.

My Chele Belle and I

Bling from left to right: Missy's, Chels', Mine, Sistah's

Caroline, Missy, Chels, Me, Sistah & the lovely host Miss Laura at the bride to be's lingerie shower.

Missy in the underwear she plans to wear on her wedding night. ;)

Elizabeth, Chels, Me & Caroline out on the town.

AND NOW LADIES AND GENTLEMAN I PRESENT WHAT NOT TO DO IN A PICUTRE:

1. WHEN YOU AREN'T SURE WHERE TO PLACE YOUR HAND CHOOSE ANYWHERE EXCEPT YOUR SISTER'S 'PRIVATE' AREAS.
2. DO NOT USE YOUR ARM TO HOLD YOUR CLUTCH UP. IF YOU DO IT WILL RESULT IN YOUR ARM LOOKING LIKE IT BELONGS TO A 400 LB WOMAN.
3. DO NOT MAKE A SEXY FACE, YOU WILL ONLY END UP LOOKING LIKE YOU ARE TRYING TO BE SEXY!

Rain, Fall and thensome

2009-09-16T12:49:00.001-07:00

It's supposed to rain here in good ol' Charlotte, North Carolina all week and shockingly I'm excited.
When the sun is shining it makes Fall seem so far away.
And folks, like many of you, I'm beyond ready for Fall to be here.

I ordered my first latte of the season on Monday and man did it feel good to be browsing the aisles of Target with caffeiney goodness in hand.
If we weren't getting married in a month and severely over budget I would have snatched up every pumpkin, witch, and black and orange candy package in site.
I mean that, I really would have.

But this year I'll have to settle for a mum!
oh and a wedding.
A wedding, that in case you didn't know, I'm very excited about it.
Even though lately the thought of our wedding stresses* me out, I know deep down somewhere I'm still really excited.

*In case you were wondering, I'm 1 million percent certain I wanna marry my P, I just don't know what freaking songs we want to hear from 7-8pm!
AGH!

2009-09-15T09:25:00.000-07:00

My mom told me this morning that "i'm not a good blogger anymore".
ha! It made me laugh a little.
She's right.
Mom's always are!

I had the most perfect jam packed weekend and I had every intention of sharing the details with you yesterday.
HOWEVER, my fiance was coming home from Vegas (his bachelor party) and I had to pick him up from the airport at 6.
I spent the whole afternoon tidying the house, making his favorite soup, making a meatloaf and mashed potatoes in case the soup wasn't enough, and attempting to make the mini cobblers once again only to end up with the same freaking mess.

Anyways, my fiance is safely home and away at work.
I really, really didn't want him to leave this morning, but if he hadn't I'm certain I wouldn't be here talking to you.
There's always a silver lining folks.

This weekend I attended a lingerie shower for my friend Missy, a pre-bachelorette party mexican fiesta, a bridal shower in my honor, Missy's bachelorette party uptown, I cleaned my closet (first time in over a year), spent LOTS of time with my sister and squeezed in a little time with my friend and bridesmaid Lauren who was visiting from DC.

I don't have pictures from the weekend yet, but when I do I promise to share some from the festivities.

*On a side note we are now about a month out from the Wedding.
I get emotional as I type that.
I'm so excited about the time we get to spend with our closest family and friends and most importantly I can't wait for Pepe to be my husband.
I think about it a lot lately.
I love my life with Mr. P and every year only gets better.
I'm excited about all that lies ahead of us.*

*I LOVE YOU P!*

Oh me, Oh my is so right!

2009-09-11T15:54:00.000-07:00

It probably sounds crazy to say that I've been so busy that I haven't had a chance to post (you know because I'm unemployed and all), but I truly have!

I've been working on a special baking project (I promise to tell you about it later).

This morning I dropped my fiance off at the airport (he's Vegas bound for his bachelor party).
Can I just tell you that this morning he handed me the sweetest card with two little monkies sitting in a tree.
Inside were a bunch of scratch off lotto tickets.
He also got me a six pack of bacardi mojitos (don't poke fun! they are good).
The message in the card said now you can gamble and booze like me.
I can't lie...it may have made me almost shed a tear.

Then sister and I ran errands all of Charlotte. Really, we did.

Now we are headed out to the first festivity of my great friend (and bridesmaid) Missy's Bachelorette Party weekend.

Tonight: Taco's & Sangria=HEAVEN

Tomorrow: Pool Party/Lingerie Shower followed quickly by a shower being thrown in my honor, then a cookout with my friend Lauren who's visiting from DC, then we are throwing down in Uptown Charlotte for Missy's "official" bachlorette party.

Phew, I'm tired just typing that!

Okay, out the door I go.
I just didn't want to leave my few followers hangin'.

Have a great weekend and I'll see you Monday if I'm still standing.
xo

Madison Belle

2009-09-09T10:02:00.000-07:00

My mother purchased me some lovely vintage milk jars from Madison Belle last week.
*You should really check out their site!

They arrived today and I LOVE them!
I honestly have sat and stared at them for the past half hour.

For the wedding these beauties will sit on our 'cookie buffet' table as vases.
Remember me telling you about this?
I just think it's a cute play on the whole 'cookies and milk' thing.

After the wedding I plan to use these on my desk to hold fresh flowers.

*thank you mama san!

Note: the pretty little mason jar in these photos is my mama's, but it was too pretty not to photograph.

FYI

2009-09-08T08:25:00.000-07:00

Joanna over at A Cup of Jo has a series going featuring other bloggers and their "secrets to a happy marriage/relationship".

It's been really inspiring to read everyone's advice.

I definitely suggest going here and checking it out.

*One of my favorites so far is from Anna Bond of Rifle Designs, she says:

"Love your other how they need to be loved, not how you need to be." A friend told me this simple mantra, saying that it had transformed his parents' marriage. It has stuck with me ever since. It makes so much sense and yet is so easy to forget because I think by nature we tend to be pretty selfish. Love is selfless, though, and what truly makes me happy is when my husband is happy. So, a key to a good marriage is trying your best to focus on what your significant other needs you to be to him, instead of what you want him to be to you."

Weekend Update

2009-09-08T06:20:00.000-07:00

Well let's start with the negative, our Hokies lost.
Boo hoo! :(

Okay now let's try to move on...

Aside from watching football for 10+ hours on Saturday our Labor Day Weekend was pretty uneventful.

Mr. P is convinced we would have been more productive had our beloved Hokies won.
He's probably right.

Now on this Tuesday morning I find myself boiling eggs and feeling guilty about the 1000s of calories I consumed this weekend.
Let's see...fish tacos, shrimp salsa, 2 red barons pizza (I ate the majority of both), brownies, banana bread, pancakes.
Are you sick yet?
I should be.
With only 40+ days until the wedding it's back to egg sandwiches for me.

Speaking of the wedding, I made this lovely to do list that actually makes me feel less stressed about all there is to do.
I'm really excited to mark things off.

In case anyone cares I'll keep you updated on my progress.

Hope you all had a most wonderful 3-day weekend.
I really do.

The Weekend

2009-09-04T12:51:00.000-07:00

Today Sister and I marked the beginning of the Holiday Weekend by spending the afternoon at the pool.

I think it's safe to say it was the last I'll be seeing of the glorious swimming pool until our honeymoon.
Which fortunately for me is only 44 days away.
Crazy!

Mr. P gets home from work in a little over an hour and then the start of our 3 day weekend officially begins. YAY!

After a quick trip to the gym we plan to pick up some clams and shrimp to make this yummy recipe once again.

Tomorrow is a much anticipated day in this househould.
It's the first official day of college football and the anticipation is killing us.
Our Hokies play Alabama at 8 tomorrow night!
Root for us.
Or don't.
Hopefully we'll win regardless.

Not sure what the rest of the weekend holds for us and I like that.
Definitely lots of football, hopefully lots of cuddling, and plenty of good food.

Happy Labor Day folks!
See ya' in a few days.

adventures in cobblerland

2009-09-03T10:01:00.000-07:00

Do you all read Pioneer Woman's blog?
If not you definitely should.
I could spend hours browsing her recipes.
A few days ago I spotted her recipe for individual raspberry cobblers.
With Summer on it's way out of town I reveled in the opportunity to use up some scrumptious summer berries.

Yesterday I took out my muffin pans, preheated the oven and began to line my counter with all the necessary ingredients.
That's when I realized I was out of sugar (really emily? how'd you let this happen?).
Off went the oven and back in the cupboard went my pans and supplies.

Last night on our way home from a run with our buddies the Barzees, I asked Mr. P if I could stop at the store to get sugar and he happily obliged.

This morning I began round II only to realize I was also out of butter!
AGHHHH!
So sister and I hopped in the car and headed to the store.

I grabbed butter, some fresh milk and headed to self checkout.
I decided to carry my groceries out without a bag (no need to be wasteful), plopped myself back in the car and laid my purchases on my lap... only to realize I'd grabbed unsalted butter.
Back in the store I went.

Finally home and finally with all the necessary ingredients I tied an apron on and set to work.

I was so excited to FINALLY be baking that I neglected to spray my muffin pans even though the recipe says to "heavily spray them".

So now I'm stuck with this mess...

And a Tupperware container filled with what I could salvage from the disaster.

Maybe this is the man above's way of telling me too lay off the baking?
hmmm???

Life is Good

2009-09-02T18:31:00.001-07:00

You all know the story of this brand, right?

It's pretty remarkable actually.
Two brothers, back in 1989, thought "hey, life is good"! One brother drew up and printed the now notorious logo onto some t-shirts and, as their website says, "a star was born".

No word yet on whether the follow-up to this successful endeavor, LIFE IS BETTER, is in the works.
There's no doubt in my mind that life is, well better!
I mean come on peeps, just think about the increase in their bank accounts. ;)

What got me thinking about this?

Well I'm sitting in our comfy bed (freshly laundered sheets no less)
in a pretty little home
with my furry friend curled next to me
who will more likely than not steal my side of the bed tonight
only to result in me sleeping closer to my handsome fiance

Yes, Jacobs brothers, life is good!

Oh and tomorrow is the beginning of college football season.

Life is real, real good!

success

2009-09-02T07:45:00.000-07:00

Last night's dinner was, in the words of my fiance's ancestors, MUY BUENO! ;)

In all seriousness, allow me to humbly state that it might have been one of my best.
I even manned the grill completely on my own while Mr. P was at the hair salon.
*sorry my love, that funny yet completely true detail was just too good to leave out.

Truthfully all credit really needs to be given to the masterminds behind these scrumptious recipes.
The chicken had a glaze that was somewhat sweet but still had a little bite to it.

The arugula corn salad with bacon was my favorite part of the meal.
Probably because it consisted of three of my favorite ingredients: corn, bacon and cumin.

I also must mention that I finally succeeded at grilling corn.
A feat I've tried to master for 2 years folks!
Once it caught on fire and once it was so undercooked I was left wondering if the grill was actually working.
Well yesterday I resisted the urge to take the corn in it's completely blackened husks off the grill after only 10 minutes and allowed them to cook for about 25 minutes.
The end result...perfectly sweet and smoky corn!

Wanna try these recipes?

Check them out here and here!

snickerdoodle

2009-09-01T12:38:00.000-07:00

I get anxious if I haven't baked in a few days.
Thus the reason I spend hours weekly browsing food blogs looking for recipes for which I have all ingredients handy.

Two days ago I discovered Simply Recipes and have been hooked since.
In fact, yesterday I based my grocery shopping around some of her recipes that I wanted to try.
For dinner tonight, grilled chicken and arugula corn salad with bacon.
Is it 6:00 o'clock yet?

About an hour ago I was browsing her cookie recipes.
I'm always on the lookout for yummy cookies considering we are having a 'cookie buffet' at our wedding.
I read Elise's recipe for Snickerdoodle cookies and was sold once I realized how easy it was (and that I'd get to use my new stand-mixer)!

Let me tell you my sweets, these are amazing!

Try them.
You can thank me afterwards. :)

sister, target and babies...fun stuff!

2009-09-01T10:08:00.000-07:00

Sister came by this morning.
She works most weekdays now so it's always a nice surprise when we get to hang for a bit.
Normally if the sun is shining we'd seize the opportunity to lie by the pool for hours upon end.
However, for the past two days you can feel Fall on it's way in and sun bathing just didn't feel right.

So we did the next best thing.
We went to Target.
You know, to stock up on essentials like butter, ketchup, horseradish. ;)

While there I finally picked up a journal.
I've been meaning to buy one for quite some time.
You see I often daydream about the day Mr. P and I will have babies.
To say that I'm excited to be a mother would be an understatement.
I used to be all awkward around babies, sometimes I'm sure I still am.
BUT I know once we have OUR babies, it will just feel right.
It may sound silly to some but I just really think I was meant to be a mommy.
You know like some people are really talented on the violin or an amazing ballerina?
Well I think I'm going to be an amazing mommy.

Before it's time to birth our youngsters there are lots of exciting things to look forward to.
Like getting married and being newlyweds for a bit. :)

In the meantime I thought it might be nice to begin a journal of sorts.
I'll begin each entry 'dear future baby'.
Hopefully one day our children will want to read this journal.
You know, so they can have a glimpse of the way mom and dad were back before they were 'mom' and 'dad'.

I just finished my first entry and I feel unbelievably happy and at peace.

Happy September friends.
xo

Weekend Update

2009-08-31T12:05:00.000-07:00

I was incredibly 'MIA' last week and I apologize.

I like to think my excuse is that I had two 'legit' baby cake orders (YAY!).
But that's not true.
There was however lots going on.
Let me fill you in...

Thursday
Was our second Fantasy Football Draft.
We joined some friends at a hole in the wall bar (those are always the best kind) for wings, beer and football mania.
It was fun and I definitely like my second team (The Tainted Meat Brigade) better than the first team I drafted (Rodgers Dodgers-Aaron Rodgers is my QB!)

Friday
Mr. P and I watched lots of tv, ate a yummy feast of Turkey Burgers and Shrimp Salsa, and went to bed early because we had a big day ahead of us.

Saturday
Woke up really early to drive two hours to Stoneville, NC for what was supposed to be a day of tubing on the Dan River.
NEVER, I repeat NEVER do business with the Dan River Campground.
They didn't have our reservation correct and were short 2 tubing rafts for our group.
Our friends went out to a local Wal-Mart to try and find 2 rafts and arrived back at 11:57am.
The bus left at a few minutes earlier and refused to wait even though the reservation was for 12:00.
It was quite bizarre really.
They also told us there was no public access to the river.
Thankfully a nice gas station employee informed us that there was in fact public access nearby.
We ended up spending a hour or two on a small beach, so the day wasn't a complete wash.

That evening myself, Mr.P, Mr. Barzee, my sister, and future brother-in-law all attended the Edwin McCain show at the new Fillmore.
The show was great, the Fillmore rocks, and it was all in all a fabulous night!

Sunday
Spent way too much time on the couch and ate way too much food!

Today
Applied for passport.
YAY honeymoon!
Now I'm chillin' with my lovely fiance at his office.
I feel pretty cool sitting at desk. ;)
It kinda makes me miss having a "real" job.

Oh and just to prove I really did make LOTS of baby cakes last week here's a couple photos for your viewing pleasure.

s'mores for all my friends

2009-08-26T07:12:00.000-07:00

I now spend a large part of my days trying to knock out last minute wedding projects.

One in particular I've been working on for the past few days was our s'mores packets.

Yep, that's right!
We've decided that the two fire pits at our venue will be utilized later in the evening for roasting s'mores.

I was back and forth on whether or not this was a good idea.
Then I went home for a visit and we had s'mores.
It was probably only the second time I've ever had them...let me tell you, THEY ARE AMAZING!
So amazing that I find myself at home wanting to roast them over the stove or a small candle outside.

I'm determined to make the set-up cute so that people aren't standing around in their cocktail attire wondering when the wedding turned into a camping trip.

I want to have individual bags set up with all the s'mores essentials (small hershey bar, marshmallow, graham cracker) so that if a guest wants to participate they just grab a cute little bag, a stick (that my parents have been collecting) and they go to town.

Since we are trying to do everything possible to keep our budget in check I didn't want to have hang tags printed.

So instead for 10 cents a pop I just ordered these kraft tags from Shop for Less.

Then I spent hours searching for a s'more stamp.
My search finally ended with Etsy, no surprise!
This lovely shop owner is customizing the stamp for me so that underneath the s'more man it reads 'enjoy'.

I think these are going to turn out to be just darling.
Don't you?

2009-08-25T06:24:00.000-07:00

I'm often hesitant to post decor I've ordered for our reception because for those of you who read the blog and will actually be at the wedding, I want most things to be a surprise.

Well this morning I received an e-mail from Julene, who makes amazing Paper Cuts, with an attachment of the finished piece I commissioned.
I adore it so much I can't resist sharing it with you all.

Not quite sure if any of you remember, but awhile back we (remember my poll?) decided to display a Paper Cut at our 'cookie buffet' favor table that reads 'We Go Together Like Milk and Cookies".

Well take a look at the final product...

Julene is one very talented lady.
I'm in awe!

Check out Julene's blog to see more of her amazing work.

Weekend Update

2009-08-24T11:16:00.001-07:00

This past weekend was pretty incredible.

allow me to list a few highlights:

chicken tacos
making baby cakes while watching the cmt top 20 countdown (best way to make baby cakes)
couples wedding shower
breakfast at Toast
trying my gown on for sistah
five guys burger and fries (one of the best meals EVER!)

Best part of the weekend though had to be the shindig at the Ched's.
Miss Chelsea had a graduation party for her fiance, Ted, because he recently graduated with his MBA!
The party was decorated in green and yellow, UNCC's colors.
Like my baby cakes?

Here's a few more photos from the evening...

Hope you folks had a happy little weekend as well.

i'm out

2009-08-20T15:39:00.000-07:00

Today has felt like the beginning of the weekend for me.
I think because it's been such a wonderful day.

I spent the afternoon with my pup by my side while I finished some not so fun wedding tasks i.e. wrote the program, thank you notes, passport application.

The later half of the afternoon was spent in the kitchen.
I don't think it comes as a shock to anyone that this always makes me happy.

Tomorrow the fiance and I are having a date night of sorts.
I baked a banana cream pie for the occasion.

I was inspired by the lovely Seven Spoons blog.
If you don't already check it out often, you should.
Seriously!

Then I threw together some frozen banana treats.
This was unbelievably easy and they are pretty tasty.
I topped a few with cut up sugar free reese cups.

Then I made our dinner...Chicken Salad Piccata.

Mr. P said he really liked it and that always makes me happy. :)

Tomorrow I'm spending the day with sister.
We have a few errands to run, a little sunshine to catch and then we are going to try on my dress for the first time. I"M SO EXCITED FOR THIS! It's been so long since I last tried on the beauty I've almost forgotten what she looks like on.
Sister will also be trying on her bridesmaid dress for the first time as well bridal gowns for upcoming wedding (date still tbd!).
I'm so anxious I probably won't be able to sleep tonight.

After a fun-filled day Mr. P and I plan to get in a quick workout, eat chicken tacos and then have a little dance lesson.
P ordered us a beginners dance dvd quite awhile back and I'm thrilled to finally put it to use.

We wanna practice some moves before we take an actual class.
The plan is for us to kill it on the dance floor during our "first dance".

Saturday is another jam-packed day...
Missy (bridesmaid) and Matthew's couples' shower followed by Teddy's graduation party.

Sunday is our fantasy football draft.

It's VERY safe to say I'll be smiling from ear to ear from now until Monday.

So please excuse me for sneaking out early.
See you in a few days.
xo

Weekend Update-It's a Wrap

2009-08-20T08:21:00.000-07:00

Yesterday slipped away from me my friends.
I had every intention of finishing the bachelorette party recaps, but before I knew it the day was over.

So let's resume.
Shall we?

First let me attempt to make your hearts melt...

So I try to spend a few hours a day at my desk upstairs.
It makes the work I do on the computer seem more legit.
Know what I mean?
Probably not.
Anyhow, Tucker, our dog, loves when I spend time up here because it's kind of his territory.
This morning he exhausted himself chasing his ball around.
He then disappeared for a bit and came back up the stairs hauling Pokie.
Pokie is a stuffed bear from Old Navy that Mr. P bought him months ago.
We actually told the cashier at checkout we expected it "to maybe last a day".
You see with all his other stuffed animals he's ripped out the eyes and every ounce of stuffing.
He's a sicko.
Not with Pokie.
Pokie is missing his eyes but other than that he's in tact.
Pokie is quite large and the same color as Tuck so it's possible our sweet dog thinks he's found his long lost brother.
He cuddles with him nightly.
Today after hauling him up the stairs he laid him directly beside me, wrapped his paws around him and together they dozed off.
It was one of the cutest things I've ever seen.
If my phone wasn't moweed (a term coined in our hometown that means wack!) I'd have taken a picture.
Hope you were able to use your imagination to picture the cuteness.

Okay back to business.

Where were we?

Ah yes, we left off with the Farmer's Market.

After the Farmer's Market Em and Missy surprised me with an apron exactly like the ones they had purchased at a little store that morning.
I wanted this apron very badly but am on a tight budget and decided against it.
Little did I know my clever friends had snuck one in for me while ordering their own.
I say ordering because these beauties are monogrammed with our initials.
I love it dearly and can't wait to wear it while I make Banana Cream pie later today.

Want a closer look?

Afterwards the ladies and I were determined to get some sun.
We didn't think the beach was a good idea since there was a good chance of thunderstorms so we settled for the pool.
This picture is proof that Mr. Sunshine made an appearance...see the squinting eyes?

After a full afternoon it was time to relax and leisurely get ready for the evening.

This process actually consisted of a couple haircuts performed by my talented sister.

After everyone was dressed in their Saturday best it was time for a 'Naughty or Nice' gift party the girls put together.

Let's just say I got a little of both and LOVED each and everyone one of my presents.
Can you see my tonsils?

Then it was time to head out to dinner at the Little Dipper, an amazing fondue restaurant.

Dinner was absolutely perfect!
We sat on the deck where we were serenaded with some tunes and enjoyed an amazing feast.

We followed up dinner with a little more dancing at Level 5.

The evening for me ended after demolishing 2 pizzas.
Yes, just 3 of us finished off two pizzas (we had 2 ladies in bed and another 3 at a bar across the street).
Unreal.
And gross (the pizza that is)!

We couldn't leave Wilmington without stopping by Flaming Amy's Burrito Barn.
If you know anything about me you know I'm a sucker for some Tex Mex.
The Burrito Barn did not disappoint.

We then headed back to Charlotte with our tummies full and lots of memories made.

*Thank you ladies for one of the best weekends I've ever had!
Love you!

me again

2009-08-18T08:26:00.000-07:00

Do you all remember the song Falling Slowly by Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova?
It was featured in a small indie movie titled Once and they actually won a grammy for it.

Here, let's refresh your memories...

I love their voices.
They are so passionate.

The other day I read that they performed some songs off of their new cd for NPR's Tiny Desk Concert Series.
It's about 30 minutes long, but I loved every minute of it.
So much so that I just rewatched it and felt I should share it with you all.

Even if you only have time or care to watch a bit I think you should.
The very first song is incredible.

Oh and they now go by the group name the The Swell Season.

Click here and ENJOY!

Weekend Update Part 2

2009-08-18T07:34:00.000-07:00

After getting all dolled up we took the hotel shuttle about a block before we saw lots of people lining one of the streets.

Our shuttle driver informed us they were watching an AC/DC cover band and of course we couldn't pass up the opportunity to see a band cover a group that more than likely none of us are a fan of. ;)

I'm so happy we stopped though because we got beautiful photos like these.

*Em Barzee has coined this one Two Emie's and a Sunset.

*Em & Sistah

*Em and new Sistah (official in 2 months!)

After hanging out by the water for a bit we made our way to Front Street Brewery for a tasty dinner.

Sistah and I pigged out on FRIES, CHICKEN FINGERS and ONION STRINGS.
So gross yet so scrumptious.

On our way out of the brewery (because who likes a place who doesn't allow R&B?)...

We ran into Mr. Constrictor, Boa for short.

It wasn't until the next morning I really started thinking about how odd it was that a large snake graced the streets of Wilmington and how brave my friends are.

Lastly it was time to burn off some of the 3,000+ calories consumed at dinner.

What better way to do that than by getting our boogie on?

I also learned something important during this evening (or maybe after seeing the photos)...
Playing Low (the apple bottom jeans song) during the wedding reception may not be a smart move.
Why?
Because it leads to me breaking out moves like this one...

Not good.

Up next...Farmer's Market, Pool & a little Naughty or Nice shindig.

2 months people

2009-08-18T07:02:00.000-07:00

I imagine right around this time in exactly 2 months I'll be eating a krispy kreme donut and sipping a mimosa while one of my lovely bridesmaids is having their hair and make-up all donez up.

It's pretty scary, pretty crazy, but most of all very exciting.

I'm to the point now that I care very little about the decoration, what people think of the invites (once they finally go out) or what shoes I end up wearing.
Mostly now I just think of how fun the weekend is going to be, how amazing it's going to feel having all our friends and family with us to celebrate and how wonderful it's going to be to finally marry Mr. P!
I also can't wait to leave on our honeymoon and have nothing to do with my new husband by my side, in the sunshine, for 7 full days.
I get all jittery and teary eyed just thinking about it.

2 months!
*Love you bunny!

Weekend Update to resume very soon.

Weekend Update

2009-08-17T10:26:00.000-07:00

I arrived home yesterday from one of the best weekends I've ever had.
The weekend was full of great conversations, lots of laughter, lots of boogying, lots of yummy food and the best of friends.
I'll never ever forget it.

It was such a good time that I'm going to be breaking this recap up into a few different posts.

Enjoy the photos my darlings. :)

What are a group of gals (most already in their swimsuits) supposed to do when when they show up to the beach and it's pouring the rain and the hotel isn't ready?

Hit up a bar for some yummy food and a afternoon brewsky of course.

Afterwards we headed back to the hotel only to learn that it still wasn't ready.

So we set up shop in the hotel parking lot, poured ourselves a drink, found some covered seating and played a fun bridesmaid game.

Another congrats to Em Barzee for being the winner (it was a pretty close competition)!

After finally being able to check into the room we decided it was time to play 'asshole' (a card game).

Not quite sure why we are so sad in this photo. I think because it was raining, but in actuality we were a very happy group of gals at this moment in time, promise.

Here's a photo of the president and the asshole. Guess who is who. ;)

How awesome are these dixie cups you can write on?

I thought before we left that the rain would have the potential to damper my spirits, but this wasn't the case at all.
Probably because I was surrounded by my favorite gals.
We made the most of the afternoon and it's probably safe to say I had more fun than I would have, had we been able to enjoy the beach.

Up next, our first night out on the town...

today

2009-08-13T06:55:00.000-07:00

is going to be a great day!

It's pre-bachelorette party day and my sister and I have lots of fun errands planned.
I love very much when she is off of work!

The Itinerary:

Dollar Tree
Lunch
Barnes and Noble
Drop off Baby Cakes at salon
Have my ring cleaned
Pick up sistah's ring from being re-sized
Mall
Target

By then it should be time for Mr. P to come home. He's bringing with him chicken tacos from Taxco. They're unbeliavable.

Have a happy day my dear blog readers.
Hopefully I'll meet you hear once more before I take off for Wilmington tomorrow.
xo

better

2009-08-12T13:36:00.000-07:00

My afternoon started off like this...
Spent thirty minutes trying to get an actual person on the phone at the North Carolina Employment Office to check the status of my first payment (i've alredy been waiting about 2 1/2 weeks).
A lady finally comes to the line who sounded like she woke up on the very wrong side of her bed.
Said lady proceeds to tell me that while YES my first payment has finally been processed it will now be 7-10 business days for it to arrive pre-loaded on a Visa Debit Card.
This would have been good news if I wasn't expecting to receive this payment two days ago.

I then maybe shed a tear or two out of frustration.

But then I spoke to my mother and that always makes me feel better.

Then my step-father stopped by on his way back to VA from working in SC.
He brought with him a bench he made me for my birthday.
I adore it.
It now sits happily on our front porch and holds our Hokie Gnome and a pot containing a plant I've been trying desperately to resuscitate.

Then I spent a few hours baking baby cakes for Tater Tot's (Carly's co-worker and business partner) little boy's birthday this weekend.

I baked them in blue for the boys and pink for the girls.

I love that after this task I now only have an hour before my Mr. P gets home.

Speaking of Mr. P I heard my new favorite song today while tuned into CMT.
It's called "Only You Can Love me this Way" by Keith Urban.
The lyrics made me cry, but unlike today's earlier cry it was a happy one.

'We can roll with the punches
We can stroll hand in hand
And when I say it's forver
You understand

That you're always in my heart
You're always on my mind
But when it all becomes too much
You're never far behind'

Oh and one last "speaking of"...
Don't you all just love the Hokie shirt Mr. P bought for me?
He also bought one for my sister which I think has now become a tradition. :)

Okay I'm all smiles now.
Tucker and I are going to go sit on the couch and look for a certain someone's car pull in the driveway.
See you tomorrow.

brett dennen

2009-08-11T08:19:00.000-07:00

Avett Brothers played a concert in Charlotte this weekend that I unfortunately missed.
I did however see photos which sparked my interest about the red haired fella who opened the show.

I learned his name is Brett Dennen and he's already released his third album.

I'm not sure how this musical wonder has gone unnoticed by me for the past couple of years, but I won't fret on things I can't change.

Instead, I'll probably spend the rest of the day browsing the internet while listening this playlist I've created of my favorite songs so far.
Ain't Gonna Lose You is amazing btw!

Enjoy, if you can and want to.

it's finally here!

2009-08-11T07:42:00.001-07:00

This weekend me and 7 of my favorite ladies aka my bridesmaids (minus one Leigh Teague who has a very good reason for missing) embark on my bachelorette party to Wilmington, NC.

Hopefully the weather will cooperate and we will spend the days lounging on the beach or by the pool, drink in hand.

During the evening my hope is for some good food, good music, lots of laughs and of course some good boogy woogy'n.

Oh and of course I've already scoped out the nearest cupcake shop which happens to be in walking distance from our hotel and get this, they offer breakfast cupcakes in such yummy flavors as blueberry and banana walnut with cream cheese frosting.
Oh and the Wilmington Farmer's Market takes place right outside the doors of our hotel on Saturday morning.
For some reason I truly LOVE farmer's markets.
This one has lots of vendors and live music, my fingers are crossed for some bluegrass.

Anyways, most importantly I'm over the moon excited about spending the whole weekend with these handful of ladies who mean so very, very much to me.

I've promised myself (which is also a promise to you) to keep my camera in hand or very nearby the entire trip...I want to come home with LOTS of pictures.

the weekend

2009-08-07T14:25:00.001-07:00

I actually love the weekends more now than I did when I was an employee.
I think that's because I don't have to spend 9 hours a day by myself (which I now do most days).
Weekends mean that Mr. P, Tucker and I get to sleep in together (which usually means 8:30 am at the latest).
I wish I could explain to you what a little cuddle bug Mr. Tucker is in the morning, but you'd have to see it to believe it.

Weekends are a break from endless hours of Food Network and usually a chance to do something fun with some of my favorite people.

I'm really looking forward to spending the day at Lake Norman tomorrow and doing nothing with Mr. P on Sunday.
We've always said we love doing nothing together and I think that's important. ;)

I hope you all have a most lovely August weekend.

In about 30 minutes when my fiance gets home I know I'm going to be one very happy, happy girl.

xo

an actual wedding related post

2009-08-06T12:14:00.000-07:00

It occurred to me this morning that I haven't been blogging too much about the wedding lately.
I think it's because when I think about everything (mostly small details) that need to be completed in the next 9 weeks I get a yucky feeling in my stomach.
Regardless, I've decided to do a better job of documenting the plans, the details, the small diy projects still left to complete, the excitement and the stress of the next two months.

Today's actually an excellent day to do so.

Why?

Because I spent the afternoon at my sister's salon and after having my hair colored, highlighted and cut we had some time left over for a quick wedding day hair trial.

Exciting huh?

Here's how I looked after my sister had worked her magic...

She's a talented pretty little thing, my sister.
*sissy, thanks again for making me feel beautiful and for giving me a lovely mani as my hair processed.

Then Tatum, Carly's business partner in their wedding hair & makeup company Simply Chic, got to work on my up do.

Remember this photo I put on my blog months ago?

Well we pulled it up on my sister's blackberry and Tatertot (as I lovingly call her) was able to make my hair look like this in 20 minutes.

I adore it!
It's organic, it doesn't look overdone and most importantly it felt like me.

It's going to look even better day of when we have more time and a couple adorable flowers adorn my head made by the ever so talented Chelsea of Oh My Deer Handmades.

Thoughts, suggestions, compliments? :)
I'll talk them all!

goodbye, hello

2009-08-04T10:33:00.001-07:00

there are a little less than 2 months left of Summer.
does this make you sad?
it does me.
Summer will always be my favorite.

i love corn on the cob, watermelon, cookouts, flip flops, sun dresses, pools, lakes, free suntans, extra freckles, thunderstorms, flower blooms and green grass.

Summer you can however take with you the mosquito's and the hundreds of itchy bites I've suffered this year.
would you mind leaving the fireflies though?

also on your way out would you mind telling Fall to be good to us?
oh and to please bring with it new episodes of The Office and college football for my fiance?
thanks!

in the meantime i promise to enjoy you to the best of my ability every day i have left with you.

all my love,

emie

a classic

2009-08-03T12:06:00.000-07:00

I gave in to temptation today.

My shiny Kitchen Aid Mixer (I can't believe I actually own one) has been sitting on my counter for about two weeks now.
I've been dying to make something.
I've spent hours online searching for the perfect recipe to christen my new favorite kitchen appliance.

Finally today, inspired by the cupcake I devoured yesterday, I decided to keep it simple.
I baked a two layer vanilla cake with chocolate buttercream.

It didn't turn out quite perfect, but I promise it tastes very yummy!

Here's a few photos I took...

*sorry for the crappy photo! Glass on a sunny, sunny day is just not fun to photograph!

Also I thought it might be nice of me to share a few tips I've picked up after watching Food Network for about 6 hours a day.

1. Really make sure to butter and flour the whole pan.
About a month ago I spent all afternoon trying to bake a cake only to not be able to get them out of the pans. FRUSTRATING!

2. When cooling your cakes it's imperative to let them cool on wire racks.
This way air is distributed evenly.

4. Use a serrated knife to cut off the tops of your cakes. This way they are nice and even and easier to frost.

5. Want to make sure your cake is really moist?
Poke a few holes in it, I use a straw...

Boil 2 cups of water with 1 cup of sugar for 3 minutes, let cool, and pour in a nifty little spray bottle.

YES I did think it was okay to place my plastic spray bottle in the dishwasher that uses scalding hot water.
Now my bottle looks like this:

6. Do you hate icing cakes?
Well then I'm almost certain you haven't been introduced to the offset spatula.
I purchased my first one months ago and my baking life hasn't been the same since.

Okay, that's all I've got for ya'.
Hopefully you've learned something and I didn't just waste your time. :P

Weekend Update

2009-08-03T08:11:00.000-07:00

We had the best family vacation!
It could be said that I throw the word 'perfect' around with too much ease, but I promise, this weekend was perfect.

We arrived in town Friday afternoon, picked up Tucker's permit for the beach, checked into our hotel, picked up Melvin's (I ate more food than any one person ever should), sat by the pool for a bit, watched I Love You Man (funny movie!) and went to bed pretty early so we'd be ready for a full day of fun on Saturday.

We started the morning off on the beach.

It was incredible.
So many people where there with their dogs running in and out of the ocean, chasing tennis balls, frolicking in the sand, it would have warmed your heart.

After working up a bit of a sweat, we headed to the Charleston Farmer's Market.
I've being hearing about these made to order omelets one of the vendors offers for quite some time.
THEY DID NOT DISAPPOINT!
We sat by a lovely fountain and enjoyed our breakfast.

We then picked up a giant treat for Tucker from the Three Dog's Bakery and headed back to the hotel.

It was now time for our kayaking adventure.
My one goal was for us to see a dolphin.
We saw two.
One was about 20 feet from us.
It was so very, very cool.
We rented a tandem kayak and Mr. P did about 98% of the arm work so that I could sit back and take in the scenery.

Once we had our fill of kayak fun we grabbed a frosty beverage and lite lunch.

Then we headed to Isle of Palms for a little beach action.
I've never seen a beach so freakin' crowded!
We lasted all of about 30 minutes (a windy beach is no fun when you don't have chairs) on the sand before we headed to the Acme Cantina for a few drinks, a giant burrito and some very tasty wings.

We then headed back to the hotel to pick up our son for one last beach outing.

Our trip ended yesterday afternoon after a meeting with Jerri, our planner, a quick bite at Moe's, and of course I couldn't leave town with a trip to Cupcake.

Hope you all had a lovely weekend.
xo

here we go...

2009-07-31T05:44:00.000-07:00

With only 79 days left until our wedding Mr. P and I are taking our last weekend trip to our favorite town where we are holding our wedding, Charleston, SC.

This trip is our first family trip as we are bringing along our 4 legged son, Mr. Tucker.
He doesn't know it yet, but he has such a fun weekend in store for him.

Tonight we'll probably just pick up some bbq from Melvin's(em, chels, you remember this yummy place, right?), cuddle, and watch a movie in our pet friendly hotel room.

We found out that Tuck can frolic off of his leash between the hours of 5am-10am on Sullivan's Island beach so that's where we'll be early Saturday morning.
We are so excited to see him run into the ocean!

Mr.P and I are renting kayaks Saturday afternoon after our early morning beach trip.
Hopefully we'll spot a few dolphins, apparently it's very possible.
Then we plan to spend a few more hours on the beach before heading out to one of the dog friendly restaurant/bar patios in the area.

It's going to be a memorable weekend no doubt.
I'm going to take lots of photos and hopefully a few videos as well.

Happy weekend to you all.
I mean it! I truly hope you have a very happy weekend!
xo

Stir Crazy

2009-07-30T13:50:00.000-07:00

A few hours ago our tv started acting screwy.
Most of the channels are skipping, including Food Network.
So what's a bored little gal to do?
I thought about trying to get back into soap opera's like I was in college, but that could potentially mean that I might enjoy being unemployed and we don't want/need that now do we?!

So first I flipped through a cookbook my mother gave me for Christmas 4 years ago.
I thought about baking a cake, but then realized how waistful (hehe, get it?) that would be considering we are leaving for Charleston tomorrow.

Then I spotted our four legged son laying at the top of the stairs staring at me.
For some reason he likes to lay up there and pout all day until Mr. P comes home.
I swear this dog is only truly happy when the whole family is together, which I can surely appreciate.

I knew if I wanted my pup's attention I'd have to join him on the floor and that's exactly what I did.

We spooned for awhile.
I laid there smelling my dogs tuna breath and looking at my desk piled high with wedding crafts I'd either never started or are only half finished.
The guilt got to me and I set to work for a third time trying to come up with a decent looking drink stirrer for our signature cocktails (the actual drink still to be determined).

Here's what I came up with....

Thoughts?
You know I like when you all are honest with me.
Thanks.

Trip Home, Part 2 of 2: Around the Garden

2009-07-30T11:23:00.000-07:00

Trip Home, Part 2: Around the Garden

2009-07-30T09:35:00.000-07:00

*this adorable sign is hung right above a little goldfish pond.

Trip Home, Part 1: The Cooking

2009-07-29T12:07:00.000-07:00

Sister cutting up lots of strawberries...enough for 16 loaves of Strawberry Bread

Homemade Italian Bread
Best I've EVER had! So good you don't even want to put butter on it.

Peanut Butter & Jelly Muffins

Yummy Honey Oat Bread

walking like a one man army

2009-07-29T10:12:00.000-07:00

I've spent the last 3 hours trying to finalize our guest list.
My oh my is this a daunting task.
One I should have finalized weeks ago.

Anyhow, I took a break to browse some of my favorite wedding blogs and came across this beauty on Style Me Pretty.

I bet you shed a tear or two.
My favorite part is when the bride is walking to meet her groom for their "first look".
Enjoy, okay?

I'll have photos uploaded from my trip home shortly.
Until then...

Ashley & Jamie's Same Day Edit from Anguilla from Julie Hill on Vimeo.

I'm baaaack!

2009-07-29T05:53:00.000-07:00

My sister and I arrived home last night sometime after 11pm.

Look what I saw when I walked in the house...

Not only did he pick the two different colored flowers out on his own, he feed them and displayed them beautifully.

I was already so happy to see my boys but seeing this may have added a 1/2 inch or so to my smile. :D

The last few days have been absolutely wonderful!
I took home the laptop with every intention of blogging during my visit, but I wasn't able to establish an internet connection.

Nevertheless, I took lots of photos I'll be sharing with you over the next day or so.

Stay tuned...

Soooo yeah....

2009-07-24T15:38:00.000-07:00

I've been a horrible blogger lately.
I'm not sure what my problem is either.
Hopefully I'll figure it out soon.

Part of the reason is that I now spend most of my days at home watching food network and reading blog after blog after blog.
This leaves little time for picture taking, day dreaming, wedding planning, etc.

I promise next week to lay off the Paula Deen and make my best effort at being interesting.
You just bear me with me, mmmkay?

I laid by the pool all day with my sister today.
It was bliss!
We even got to watch some skank-a-lank photo shoot.
Very entertaining.
Don't you just love people watching?

Tomorrow after breakfast and a run with miss Em Barzee, I'm hoping Pepe and I will have round 2 of a pool side sunshine fest.

Then tomorrow evening we are finally going to see Harry Potter!
I cannot FREAKIN' wait!!!

Sunday morning sister and I are heading back home to V-A.
It's for lovers ya' know?

We get to stay through Tuesday which means we'll get to see our Mama San in action at the Farmer's Market.
Carly and I will be manning the panini machine.
I'll take lots o' photos.

Hope everyone has fun plans for the next few days.

I'll see you soon...don't worry, I'll be a much better blog version of myself.
xo

What do you think the reception was like?

2009-07-22T12:21:00.000-07:00

OH MY

2009-07-22T11:53:00.001-07:00

Have you seen this preview yet?

It's going to be ridiculously good.
I love any movie that takes you to a magical make believe place.

Don't you?

Weekend Update

2009-07-21T09:42:00.000-07:00

This past weekend Mr.P's mother and sister hosted a wonderful "bbq" themed couple's shower.
It was absolutely amazing...the setting, the food and most importantly the wonderful family and friends in attendance.

Here's a few pictures from the party...

My grandmother and mother who traveled 8 hours in less than 24 hours to attend the party...

My lovely, soon to be, in-laws...

My handsome fiance and his nephew (our ring bearer) the ever adorable, Matthew...

James (aka future brother-in-law), Bryan (new daddy to be) & Jason

The beautiful Abby & Chad...

everyone's ready to watch some gift opening...

Okay it's time for gift opening...

Yep! I received the mixer of all mixer's (among many other wonderful gifts), the Kitchen Aid Stand mixer, thanks to the Barzees, The Ched's, The Teagues and The Braimee's.
This may have caused me to shed a tear or two...

*I'd been so very excited for this party because I knew it was going to be a blast, but it turned out to be even better than I had imagined.
A HUGE thanks to everyone who attended.

Hope everyone had a happy weekend (and a happy Monday since this is a day late)!
xo

Today

2009-07-17T20:37:00.000-07:00

Today is almost over.
You should know that means I've had a VERY happy, fun-filled day today.
That's what it would take for me to neglect my beloved blog.

Sister came over early this morning.
I made us a plate of breakfast goodies.
Then our afternoon consisted of shopping, ice cream, a visit with Mr. P, Cookout, sunbathing, shopping, mani's & pedi's...good ol' qt time with my best friend.

The evening was capped off with a cookout at the Barzees.

I absolutely adore time spent with my favorite people.
I'm certain I'll never take these wonderful individuals in my life for granted.

Speaking of wonderful individuals....
8 years ago today Mr. P and I stood in his second Terrace View apartment at Virginia Tech.
I'd met him 7 months earlier.
I spent those 7 months trying to be the coolest college freshman I knew how to be.
On that July evening back in 2001 I was on my way out to an apartment party.
Man did I use to think those were cool.
Mr. P turns to me and says "you going to tell people you have a boyfriend if asked?"
"No, because I don't have a boyfriend" I coyly replied.
Then with one quick response, "would you like me to be your boyfriend?", began our 8 year history.
One of the best days of my life.
Needless to say, I really didn't want to go to that party anymore.

Tomorrow Mr. P and I have a couple's shower to attend.
I'm excited. I'm nervous.
But I'm really happy that it's the one year anniversary of the day my Mr. P proposed.

Happy Weekend friends.
xo

a formula

2009-07-15T10:30:00.000-07:00

New Jenny Lewis tunes

+

A sunny day and a smiling dog

+

A good book and my antique quilt gifted to me by mama san

=

Good Morning

2009-07-14T06:55:00.000-07:00

A good night's sleep sure does a body good.

Sister is on her way to our house.
The plan is for her to teach me to drive a clutch!
I'm nervous.
Let's hope she has more patience with me than she did back in high school. ;)

Then it's sandwiches in the sunshine.

I'm proud to say I've already sent in my resume to be considered for 3 different positions this morning.
Keep your fingers crossed for me please.
To thank you I'd like to leave you with this pretty little musical number.
Enjoy!

Weekend Update

2009-07-13T08:42:00.000-07:00

After last week to say that I was excited for our weekend at the beach would be a severe understatement.
On Friday afternoon Mr. P and I headed to Figure Eight Island to meet up with our friends Chandler, Matthew and John.

SIDE NOTE:
Pepe met Matthew and John when he was about 8 years old and had first moved to the US from Mexico.
They are two of his first friends and definitely two of his very best friends.
I adore these guys! I'm thrilled they are a part of our lives as well as a part of the wedding.
*Chandler is Matthew's girlfriend of almost 3 years.
She's beautiful, smart, incredibly sweet and one of my best friends.
After this weekend it's official she's also a part of the wedding (even though in my mind she had been all along).

John's parents own a breathtakingly beautiful home right on the island.
Let me tell you this place is it's own little paradise.
Picture beautiful homes, a stunning marsh, a quite beach, soft sand, dog's running around with their owners...I loved everything about this place.

We rolled into town and met up with our friends at K38 Baja Grill.
This place was amazing.
Let me tell ya', this gal loves her some tex mex and this was tex mex at it's best.
The salsa was to die for.
Mr. P even contemplated bringing some home and trying to freeze it.
Instead I promised to try and recreate it this week.

We tucked ourselves into bed somewhat early, around midnight, because Saturday morning John, P, and I had a 5k race to run.

Side note:
This race coincidentally started at the hotel we'll be staying at for my bachelorette party next month.
After seeing it I'm even more excited to head back and explore downtown Wilmington with my favorite girls.

This was one of my favorite races to date.
The course was nice, the temperature was surprisingly perfect and since we opted out of the 10k and went with the 5k, it wasn't brutally hard like the last couple.

After the race we picked up breakfast for everyone at Whitey's Diner.
We filled our bellies, changed into our swimsuits, and spent 5 relaxing hours on the beach.

The rest of the evening was filled with good food, yummy drinks, great friends, and laughter.
Lots and lots of laughter.

We spent Sunday afternoon back on the beach before taking off for home late last night.

This was certainly the kind of weekend to make you forget all your worries.
I hope we make this trip a new tradition.

Here's a few photos from the weekend:

*Chandler owns an amazing boutique with her friend Gina.
Gina Chandler is located in Raleigh, NC so if you are ever in the area stop by!
You'll thank me later.

sooo...

2009-07-09T12:24:00.000-07:00

last night Mr.P took us on a shopping spree of sorts.
Remember about a week ago when I told you we found a heck of a deal on suits for Pepe and his groomsmen?
Well we found this great deal at Kohl's.
Apparently Kohl's runs a special from time to time where you get "kohl bucks" for spending money with them online...
Basically we had free money to spend last night and it was AWESOME.
Do you remember that game show 'Shop Til' You Drop'?
At the end of this game show winning contestants got to run around the "mall" and choose the gifts they wanted.
Well this felt like what I always imagined it felt like to win that game.

Mr. P let me my favorite perfume, fluffy Laura Ashley bath towels and new Kitchen Aid utensils and mixing bowls.
In fact I just spent my afternoon using my new mixing bowls and the mini muffin pan my mother so graciously gave me on my last trip home to make mini cupcakes.

Aren't they adorable?

In addition to baking today I was able to spend the afternoon with my sister.
She picked me up, we ran a few errands, and she treated me to lunch at Panera.
Oh so yummy.

So yeah, yesterday started out as an extremely yucky day, but because I'm surrounded by such wonderful and supportive people I've almost forgotten that I'm unemployed. ;)

I also would like to share with you all a message my mother sent me this morning.
I thought it was so wonderful and well said that I asked her if I could share it with you all.
Here it goes:

"This morning I was walking the dogs and the sun had just come out and my thoughts were of you.
I thought about life and change and what a blessing it is.
Change allows us to rediscover ourselves, to connect with our true selves and to grow and expand.
With that thought I was reminded that our jobs don't define us, neither do the things we have, but rather who we are and how we live our lives.
Most importantly it is how well we love and I must tell you my sweet Emily,
you are love and all that love should be.
You should celebrate this opportunity that has been handed to you to embrace all that is open to you.
You have such a beautiful heart, share it with the world."

*Thank you mama san, I'll never forget these words!*

AND THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO has called and e-mailed with well wishes.
I appreciate them more than I can accurately express.
xo

Oh boy

2009-07-08T13:52:00.000-07:00

Welp, I've been let go at my job.
If you read my blog you probably know that I detested my job.
Am I bummed?
A little.
It's never fun to lose anything, especially your source of income.
Will I be okay?
Absolutely.

I have an extremely supportive fiance.
An amazing family.
A great group of friends.
and a 4 legged son to keep me company as I surf the web for a new job. (Is "surfing the web" so 80's?)

I feel like such a blah blogger lately.
Hopefully a little time at home (and a weekend at the beach) will inspire me and I'll be an even happier gal with a sunnier outlook in the next few days.

Thanks for bearing with me.
xo

Weekend Update- well, sorta

2009-07-07T06:13:00.000-07:00

Dear blog friends,

I'm so very sorry I had no weekend update yesterday.
I spent my afternoon prepping my workplace for a bug bombing last night (fun stuff) and running errands with my sistah!
Who I must mention is ENGAGED! CONGRATS lil' sis!
*I'm so excited to have your wedding to help plan once mine is over and I'm going through withdrawal symptoms. ;)

Okay, back to what I was saying...
I saw such lovely Fourth of July recaps yesterday.
Didn't you?
Now it feels as if Fourth of July happened like a week ago.
Do you know what I mean?
So I'm going to spare you a lengthy recap.

So here, in a nutshell, was my weekend:

Good friends, karaoke to a jacked up version of Dixieland Delight, grilled chicken, grilled shrimp, good friends, Baskin Robbins, 5 mins. of the Grudge 3, lake party, hamburgers, hotdogs, fireworks, sparklers, GREAT friends!

Yep, that about sums it up.

Now, one more side note if you'll allow me:

I discovered This Young House yesterday through Style Me Pretty.
It's amazing!
It's full of DIY design tips and there are also pictures of one of the cutest backyard weddings I've ever seen!
Check it out, you'll be happy you did.

Happy Fourth of July

2009-07-03T07:47:00.000-07:00

I'm stuck at work right now.
What's getting me through this day is thoughts of our cookout tonight, our lake day tomorrow morning followed by another huge cookout on Saturday evening all with great friends.

I hope you all have fun weekend plans that include hot dogs, hamburgers, fireworks and friends.

A huge THANK YOU to our armed forces here and overseas who devote their lives to keeping us safe and free.

I found a wonderful site this morning called Baking Gals.
I just joined my first group.
We work together to send baked goods to military overseas.
I'm incredibly excited to be a part of something so wonderful.
Want to join as well?
Go here.

Again, Happy Fourth of July.
See you on Monday my lovelies.

The red, the white, the blue + my menu for you!

2009-07-02T12:34:00.000-07:00

This weekend we have friends coming in town from DC and it's of course Fourth of July...
two very good reasons to spend and hour or two in the kitchen.

On the Menu:

Grilled Corn-and-Red Potato Salad
I found this recipe in my Rachel Ray Magazine, my sis-in-law (only 3 more months until this title is official) got me a subscription for Christmas and it just may be my favorite present ever.

Honey-Chipotle Baked Beans courtesy of Cooking Light, one of my favorite recipe resources.

I think these are going to be the perfect blend of sweet and spicy. Yum, yum, yum!

Ginger-soy-lime marinated shrimp, I've made this recipe before and they're incredible...but then again so is anything that Mr. Bobby Flay comes up with.

Grilled Vegetables with an herb balsamic vinaigrette, this recipe comes from one of my idols, Mrs. Giada De Laurentiss.

Last, but certainly not least, I'll be making VaNIENIElla Cupcakes.
I received this recipe from the lovely Brooke of Conversations with a Cupcake after donating to the Nie Recovery fund last week.

Friends, food and fireworks.
It's going to be a good one.

Are you ready?

2009-07-01T08:34:00.000-07:00

For my next wedding related poll?

For those of you who haven't seen it or probably don't remember it, here's my wedding dress, the back looks like this.

Did you click on the link?

Okay good. Now I trust you to help me make this decision.

The sash on my dress is removable.
(YES, I realize Mr. P now knows there is a sash on my dress. Am I freaking out? NOPE!)
I adore this sash and I plan to wear it during the ceremony.

During the reception I'd like to switch things up a bit...you know, switch up the sash for something a little more fun.

Here's my top contenders:

This lovely piece by the incredibly talented Myra of Twigs and Honey.
*Stunning, right?

Then there is this pretty little lady designed by ban.do.
*I love the gray, especially since my fiance is going to be decked out in this lovely color.

Lastly, and probably the most simple, is this beauty designed by 5eizen.
*The bridesmaid dresses are this lovely shade of teal.

Please help me decide.
Should I choose one of these, should I wear the sash the dress comes with, or should I wear no sash at all?

If you'd be so kind as to leave your opinion here or scroll up a bit to the poll at the top right of this page.
Thanks in advance my dear blog readers.

Gray is my favorite color. (Bonus points: what song is that lyric from?)

2009-06-30T12:20:00.000-07:00

Way back when, or in simpler terms about 6 months ago, Mr. P decided he was going to wear a gray suit on our big day.
I love him for this decision (among other reasons).

I think Tec definitely helped to influence this.

I mean how amazing does this wedding party look?!

Since Mr. P's decision I've seen gray suits popping up in weddings all over the blog world.

Some of my favorites:

*all courtesy of Once Wed.

We found a heck of a deal on the perfect "modern fit" gray suit last week.
Mr. P ordered 12!
8 groomsmen, 2 ushers, 1 groom and 1 brother (mine).
They arrive tomorrow.
Can't wait to see my handsome fiance in his duds.

The lowdown...

2009-06-30T10:13:00.000-07:00

A few happenings: past, present and future...

I received the rough draft of our wedding invitations in my inbox this weekend.
I LOVE them.
I had high hopes for these invites, but the lovely Kate at Oh So Suite has already surpassed my highest of hopes.
I would kinda like to show them to you, but I'm not.
I'm going to keep it a surprise until they are complete and in the mail.

*I will tease you a bit by informing you that they involve kraft paper, twine, letterpress and a darling custom map.
Sounds exciting, right?

I baked a chocolate peanut butter cakes last night for my last round of Baby Cakes, for a grand total of 110.
*two shipments going out today.

Sistah and I are going to visit some family tonight.
Family = Perma-grin

Some of our best buddies from VA are coming in town on Thursday.
Can't wait for the holiday weekend.
It's shaping up to be a good one.

Weekend Update

2009-06-29T11:18:00.000-07:00

Confession: I didn't take one single photo this weekend.
Not one.
Bad blogger, BAD!

Here, in the written word, is what went down:

Baked 70+ Baby Cakes.

Ran 6.4 miles in 1 hour 7 minutes.

Ate 3 eggs, 3 pancakes, 2 sausage links, 2 slices of bacon and 1 slice of ham immediately after said run.

Spent 4 hours at the pool with 4 awesome friends.

Saw lots of friends at a gathering for our newly engaged buds.

Slept 11 hours last night.

So that, in a nutshell, was my weekend.

Lots going on this week...soooo, if you'll still have me, I promise lots of photos.

Hope your weekend was a happy one and that your Monday is too.

Happy Weekend to You

2009-06-26T09:03:00.000-07:00

Missing work on Monday really made this week fly by.
4 more hours in this wretched office and it will officially be the weekend.

I baked 3 cakes last night and made one big batch of Baby Cakes.
I tried a new flavor, blueberry lemon, and it's quite scrumptious.
Tonight I still have red velvet, vanilla and chocolate peanut butter to make.
When I'm done I'll have at least 100 Baby Cakes.

Tonight's plan:
BAKE FROM 6PM to 9:30PM
Asleep by 10PM

Tomorrow Mr. P and I will be waking up at 5:30am to drive to Greensboro, NC for the 10k Freedom Run.
I'm not going to lie...I kinda sorta dread it.
Or maybe it's fairer to say I'm nervous.
After the MacFest 10k I realized that I kinda despise running in temperatures upward of 70 degress.
Fortunately this course seems to be partially shaded and they have 2 spray stations.
Wish me luck dear friends.

*1/3 of "Team Awesome"

After the race we're going to have breakfast at Tex and Shirley's (one of Mr.P's favorites) and then head home to Charlotte where the plan is to lay by the pool all day with Carlz, Em Barzee and Abbie.
Thoughts of our post-race plans will probably be what actually gets me through the race.
"Come on baby girl(how I refer to myself when running), you can do it! In 20 minutes you'll be eating biscuits and gravy"!

Okay, I'm kind of kidding.
Deep down I'm happy about all these races.
I think it's safe to say we'll definitely be in good shape come October 18th.

114 days

Have a happy weekend.
My hope for both yours and mine is that it's filled with sunshine, laughter and good friends.
See you Monday.

Michael

2009-06-26T07:06:00.000-07:00

When I was 11 years old I saw Michael Jackson perform 'Heal the World' at the Super Bowl.

I was smitten.
Thus began my 2 year obsession.

On one of my trips to the public library I checked out every book they had on Michael's life.
Here's the part where I admit to a crime:
I CUT OUT EVERY PICTURE that these books contained.
I found a big brown scrap book somewhere in our house and made it my mission to fill the book with his photos.

On August 29th (his birthday) of 1993 I had Michael a birthday party in my bedroom.
I hung his photos all around my walls.
I turned on his cd and I climbed up on a wooden toy chest.
I spent the afternoon dancing and singing his songs in celebration.

Do you look at me differently now?
I really hope not.

In the next year or so there was A LOT of negative tabloid stories about my hero.
When my mother would take me grocery shopping I'd turn every magazine over that wrote anything negative about my idol on their covers.

I will only remember Michael for the amazing artist he was.
RIP Michael Joseph Jackson.

yikes!

2009-06-25T11:03:00.000-07:00

I bought this swimsuit today.

It's dreadful, isn't it?

I'm typically someone who hates to have a brand name or logo plastered across my clothing, but in this case I couldn't resist the $24.99 sale price.

Fiance and I are going to start swimming at our gym's pool.
I'm pretty excited.

I often get bored on the treadmill and the elliptical.
Reading a magazine or trying to watch tv at the same time gives me a headache.
I think this swimming endeavor will be a nice change of pace and hopefully a bit of a stress reliever.

Why might I be stressed you ask?
I have at least 6 dozen Baby Cakes in 5 different flavors to make in the next two days.
When I say days, I really mean between the hours of 6pm and 11pm (that's about as late as I function).
It's going to be a bit of a challenge, but I'm ready.
Bring it Baby Cakes, BRING IT!

House Tour

2009-06-24T12:01:00.000-07:00

I wanted to share with you some photos I snapped around Mama San's & Gordon Bleu's home over the weekend.
Just in case you can't tell from the photos my mother loves birds, flowers and antiques.

A small portion of the fresh herbs my mother grows...look at that basil.

SUCCESS

2009-06-24T09:30:00.000-07:00

My mother sold out of all her baked goods in under half an hour at last night's Farmer's Market.
Pretty incredible. Don't you think?

Here's a few photos from our baking extravaganza...

Don't you love her darling labels that I ordered for her off of Etsy.

Mama San let's her Honey Wheat Loaves rise for quite awhile in large bowls.

Finished Product

To die for blueberry muffins

My adorable step-father Gordon, who I often refer to as Gordon Bleu, makes these darling birdhouses.
He sold 5 last night.
I know the remaining ones won't last long.
Want one for yourself?
Let me know.

You Don't Know Me

2009-06-24T06:44:00.001-07:00

Mr. P introduced me to this song yesterday.
I adore it.
I think you will too.

This isn't the actual video.
Embeded has been disabled on it, but you can check it out here if you'd like.
It's kinda funny.
Oh and I must mention that Regina Spektor's new album Far came out yesterday.
Have a listen.

Weekend Update

2009-06-23T13:12:00.000-07:00

Hi friends.
My camera is dead which means I was unable to upload pictures.

I decided I'd keep this Weekend Update short and sweet, because that's exactly what my weekend was.

Between Saturday and Sunday I was able to watch my brother play 4 baseball games.
He's amazing.
So grown up now.
It freaks me out a little to be honest.

I stocked up on goodies from Michael's.
I expect to make over 100 Baby Cakes this week.
Wish me luck.

We saw The Proposal.
For those of you who saw it, how hilarious was the "chanting" scene in the woods?
Best part of the movie if you ask me!

We ate A LOT of food.

And of course yesterday we spent the day baking.
*pictures to come later

I'd give a lot to live closer to my mother so that we can spend many weekends doing the same thing.

The bond between my sister, mother and I is indescribable.
I don't really know how to explain in words how I feel when we are all together.
I get a knot in my throat just thinking of how to express it.
They are two people I feel completely myself around, completely at peace with.
I hope you know what I mean.
I hope that you feel this way with your families.
The older I get the more I realize how important family is.

*Mama, good luck on your first day at the Farmer's Market.
I'll be dumbfounded if you don't completely sell all of your goodies.

I'm baaack!

2009-06-22T18:06:00.000-07:00

Hi dear friends!
Sorry for such a late post.
I just arrived home after a WONDERFUL, I'm talking picture perfect weekend, spent with my family.
My mother, sister and I baked all afternoon.

*How adorable is my mother's set up?

She's going to be the best vendor at tomorrow's Farmer's Market.
There is no doubt in my mind.
Oh, and I apologize for the grainy picture...it's from the camera phone, I'm just too lazy to upload any photos this evening.

I'll be back tomorrow morning with a Weekend Update.

Hope everyone had a very happy weekend and a lovely Father's Day.
I'm going to cuddle with Mr.P now.
I've missed him terribly.

Heavenly Day

2009-06-19T12:17:00.001-07:00

In approximately 3 hours my Sistah and I will embark on the 4 hour trek home to Norton, VA.
I'm antsy.
Incredibly antsy to break up out of this joint referred to as "my office" (it's more like a closet).

On the Agenda for this long weekend:

Back to back days of a baseball tournament my awesome lil' bro is playing in.

Farmer's Market on Saturday morning.

Shopping for crafts and baked goods at Michael's.

Eating a big, yummy dinner of Tilapia, Corn Cakes, Green Beans and mama san's homemade honey wheat bread on Saturday evening (Father's Day Dinner).

Baking breads, muffins, and pound cakes that my lovely mother will be selling at our local Farmer's Market on Tuesday evening.

Wine and Jenga on the back porch.

Taking the pups to the mountains.

That's one perfect weekend if you ask me. :)

Although I am going to really miss my Mr. P!
*As I've said before, 3 nights is just too long to be away from you!

I did make my love a large roast and an apple crumble for dessert.
This way I know he's well fed while I'm gone.

I also baked these Father's Day golf themed cupcakes on a whim.

They turned out pretty cute.

Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!
Hug your daddy's.
xo
Allow me to leave you with a song my mother and I adore.

You're smiling now, aren't you?
Good!

Part Deux

2009-06-19T07:00:00.000-07:00

When I woke up this morning I went straight to my computer to check the final results of Etsy Wedding's Geezees Custom Canvas Giveaway.

Etsy Wedding was one of the very first blogs I started reading after getting engaged.
You all know I have a slight addiction to Etsy and this blog always features really great finds.
I adore this blog and that's putting it mildly.

Last week I saw they were having a contest for an amazing canvas print from Geezees Custom Canvas Art.

Remember my tree photo idea?

Well these beautiful canvas photographs with word art are going to be just PERFECT.
I'm over the moon with joy and can't wait to display ours at the reception.

A BIG thank you to anyone who may have voted for me, to Etsy Wedding for holding this amazing contest, and to GeeZees for this wonderful prize.

1 of 2

2009-06-19T06:08:00.000-07:00

I have double the amount of exciting news to share this morning.

Let's start off with the contest Wedding For Two is hosting.
They are in the midst of their bridal shower week and today is the start of their first giveaway.
I'm sure you're dying to know what the prize is! Right?

It's 3 dozen Baby Cakes in your choice of shape, flavor, colors and of course sprinkles.

If you don't have a Bridal Shower in the works don't fret, these lovelies are appropriate for a variety of events including weekend veg out sessions.

You have until midnight this Saturday to enter.
Check out all the details and enter here.
I'd also like to encourage you to check out the Wedding for Two blog...it's chock full of helpful information.
I should know, I've read every post. :)

ANNOUNCEMENT

2009-06-18T10:51:00.000-07:00

Please allow me to interrupt my regularly scheduled posting for a bit of an announcement.

***If I promised you samples of my baby cakes, don't fret, they'll be on their way the first of next week.
I'm heading to the craft store this weekend to pick up lots of new baking items i.e. candy melts, sprinkles, candy molds.

Also, anyone who's interested in purchasing my baby cakes for an upcoming event please feel free to e-mail me at emiejanes@yahoo.com.
Keep in mind these can be made in any flavor, think red velvet, vanilla, carrot, chocolate and in any color your heart my desire.***
Yum, Yum!
I promise, they're muy delicioso!

See you tomorrow kind readers.

Give me S'more

2009-06-17T12:51:00.000-07:00

Our reception venue has these great fire pits that we certainly want to utilize on the big day.

We could just use them as warmth, our wedding is in October and the evening could be a bit chilly.
OR we could use them to roast marshmallows.
Typing that sentence just made me really excited.
Who doesn't love S'mores?
If you said no I probably don't want to be your friend.

I'm absolutely kidding about that last comment, but I do think your crazy.

Anyways...
I saw these adorable little S'mores packets on Miss Pickles Press (she's a genius) site last night.

I know I said I wasn't going to take on another DIY project, but this one would be really easy and cheap.
Love that.

Soooo, my question to you dear friends is if this is a project I should take on or not?

Keep in mind in lieu of a cake we are opting for various flavors of cupcakes AND we are setting up a homemade cookie buffet for guests to fill up on as favors.

Would the S'mores bar be a sweets overload?

Please vote in my current poll.
Thank you kind darlings.

treasure

2009-06-17T07:12:00.000-07:00

Today while visiting one of my favorite places, Style Me Pretty, I met Two Brunettes who introduced me to Eternity.

*Definitely purchasing this pretty little lady to wear in 123 days.

I also learned of a Simple Song that brought me Seven Spoons.

Oh and I certainly can't forget the Vanilla Sugar I inhaled this past hour.

So much beauty and inspiration in the blog world.
It often leaves me feeling a little overwhelmed, a lot inspired and VERY hungry.

Can't wait to bake this delicious little jewel...

It will look lovely in my new domed cake plate.

Want one of your own? Purchase here.

Where I'm From

2009-06-16T12:31:00.000-07:00

I grew up in Norton, VA.
A town that was established in 1894 and in 1954 became a city.
With a population of 3,904 we are in fact the smallest city in Virginia by population.
We're a coal mining area.
In fact my father is a coal miner and he has been for as long as I can remember.

I'm going to be honest with you...
When I was 18 I could not wait to leave.
When I finally left, was I sad?
Absolutely!
But only because I missed my family.

For years I felt very negatively about my hometown.
The older I get the more I'm starting to appreciate where I came from.
I view the simplicity in a beautiful way instead of the mind-numbing way I once saw it as a teenager.
People are for the most part very friendly.
Southern food...well there's nothing like it.
And the mountains, they're breathtaking.

I'm going home this weekend with my sister and our beloved canines.
To say that I'm excited would be a severe understatement.
I can't wait to have my mother's homemade bread, I can't wait to watch my younger brother play baseball, I can't wait to walk through my mom's garden, I can't wait to go to the Farmer's Market in Tennessee, and most importantly, I can't wait to be with my family!
There is no greater feeling!

Weekend Update

2009-06-15T07:14:00.000-07:00

Well we had another amazing weekend.
This comes as no surprise...
when you are in great company of course your going to have a great time!

Friday after work Mr. P and I headed straight to Birkdale Village for dinner and a movie with the Barzees.
2 things:
1. The Hangover really was as good as everyone said it was.
2. Don't ever eat a Philly steak sub the night before a 10k.

Okay, moving on...

Saturday morning we were all packed up and into one car by 6:45am.

At 9:00am we began the hardest 10k I've done to date.
1 hilly course + 80 degree + 80% humidity + no real shade + no breeze= 1 hour and 10 minute finish time for this little lady.
Looking forward to redeeming myself in 2 weeks at the Freedom Run.

After cooling down as much as possible we headed to Em's old stomping grounds of Elon University.
We got to have lunch at Sidetracks Grill, where Em waited tables at in College.

We stuffed our faces, checked into the hotel and the ladies spent the next 3 hours at the pool.

After a perfect afternoon we showered up and were ready for a night on the town in Chapel Hill.
Our evening began in the hotel bar where we were able to meet up with our great friends Matthew and Chandler for a drink.
*Can't wait to spend a whole weekend with you two next month.*

Then it was time for Teddy's birthday dinner at the Carolina Brewery.
Best black bean quesidillas ever btw.

Then we headed to Top of the Hill, a great rooftop restaurant/bar where Teddy and Chelsea will be having their Rehearsal Dinner.

From there it was off to Goodfellas, a cozy little basement bar.

and then Players so we could shake our bum bums.
We ladies love to dance!
So much so that once we arrived back to the hotel Mrs. Em Barzee got the clock radio dance party going.
Fun stuff my friends. Very fun stuff.

I spent much of yesterday stuffing my face.
Really, I did.
Sausage, egg & cheese biscuit for breakfast, bacon cheddar burger and fries for lunch, chicken burrito for dinner.
Ridiculous.

The sore tummy and fatigue I suffer from this morning are well worth the fun that was had.
Hope you lovelies had a wonderful weekend as well.
xo

important

2009-06-12T08:05:00.001-07:00

I read a lot of blogs, the list is ever growing.
Some are wedding related, some are tails of motherhood, some are food blogs and some are simply life stories written by beautiful females.

I'm inspired on a daily basis...
to go home and try a new recipe, to take on a do it yourself project, to appreciate life good or bad, big or small, to love, to laugh, to care.

Today I was catching up on Conversations With A Cupcake (don't you love that name?) and I found myself reading about Abby and a group of young girls with big hearts.
Such a sweet story that's a reminder of all that's good in this world.

I hope someday I can teach our future daughter and/or son how important it is to care about others, to show compassion and to be empathetic.
I think my mother did a pretty great job with me.
Thank you for that mama san.

Okay, I'm signing off for real this time.
I just felt the need to share that.
XO

today, tonight and tomorrow

2009-06-12T06:52:00.000-07:00

Today...
I'm bummed that I already finished my one diet coke can I have during the work day.

But HAPPY I get to have lunch with my aunt Tammy.
She's awesome and I don't get to see her near enough (even though she lives about 30 minutes from me).

Tonight...
I'm bummed that our son won't be sleeping with us (he's at overnight doggy camp).

I'm happy that I get to go see The Hangover with Mr. P and The Barzees.

Tomorrow...

I'm bummed that I'm not as well prepared for The Macfest 10k we are running.

I'm VERY happy that after it's over we get to spend the whole day and night in Chapel Hill, NC with the Cheds and the Barzees.

I'd say the good definitely outweighs the bad, huh?
Hope everyone has happy weekend plans.
See you on the flip.

Emie Jane's

2009-06-11T07:30:00.000-07:00

I made a batch of baby cakes last night.
I wanted to take photos to send to my friend and bridesmaid, Missy.
I'm going to be making lots of these for her to use at favors at her own wedding (the weekend before mine).

Mr.P, I know you'd beg to differ, but I need a better camera.
Maybe a fancy one with a neck strap.
Take a mental note boy and girls...Christmas is only 6 months away.

Anyhow, after a few more late night baking/photo sessions I should have my Etsy shop up and running.
In the meantime if you'd like to try my baby cakes let me know and I'll send you a batch.
Really, I will.
What's the catch?
There is none.

Yeah, there is...
You have to tell all your friends how yummy and cute they are.
They're a great idea for birthday parties, wedding favors, a get well soon treat, a hey how you doin' treat, or if you'd simply like to pig out on them one weekend.
Let me know.
xo's!

A storybook kind of love

2009-06-10T14:03:00.000-07:00

True love, beautiful and inspiring.

*if you don't already read Nie's blog, you should!
You really, really should!

Better

2009-06-10T08:16:00.000-07:00

After a rough start to the week I'm feeling back to my happy little self today.

Plenty of reasons to keep a smile on my face...

It's humpday which means only 2 more work days left.

I received this invite in the mail...

It's to a couples shower thrown in our honor, by my future mother and sister in law, that will hopefully be attended by some of our local friends. :)
Can't wait for this!

I also received this box full of our personalized cupcake flags...

I adore them even more than I expected, which is always nice.
She did such a great job that I've already contacted her about another little project.
It's a secret though.

Look at this gorgeous picture of one of the same trolley's Mr. P and I rented for our big day...

This photo was taken at a beautiful plantation in Charleston, SC.
*More of this wedding can be found here.

I've also been listening to 'True Companion' by Marc Cohn all morning.
Take a little listen...

Don't those lyrics bring tears to your eyes? Happy tears though, right?
So pretty.

Lastly I made a couple new friends when watering our plants on Monday.

Isn't she lovely?
She's made a wonderful little home for her and her 3 children (I think there's 3, they like to hide) in one of our planters.
I go visit her a few times a day.
I wish she could tell me if there's anything she needs.
I think I might be a little sad when she leaves.

Until then I'm smiling ear to ear.