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Friday, December 2, 2011

It's been a while ...







 I apologize that it has been so long since the last time I did a blog post! We have been very busy and I don't know where the time has gone! It is hard to believe it is December already. Below are a few pictures from the month of November! 

I traveled to Atlanta to go to the GA/Auburn game with my parents, Lauren and Mark! We had a great time tailgating and the game was a blast! I am so excited we won! 


 At the start of the 3rd quarter, I got a call from Lauren and Ryals and met them down 
by the hedges to say hello! We had a great view and took a few quick pics before the security guard made us move! So glad I got to see them for a minute!


Here's a pic of me and Mom packed into our seats - there were so many people! Also, I had to take a picture with my dad  - we took the same picture from their seats back in 2008 when he and I went to the game together!

The Tuesday night after the GA/Auburn game, the church were my family attends hosted our Annual Ladies Christmas Event. Our speaker for the night was Gena Knox, and I am so glad my friends were able to join us and hear her speak! We love her cookbooks, so of course we jumped at the chance to see her in person! 


A week after the football game and Ladies Event, Johnathan and I traveled back to Atlanta for Thanksgiving! I was terrible about taking pictures that weekend, but here are two from PoppieT's house on Thanksgiving Day!  


Monday, November 7, 2011

GA/FL Weekend - continued!

Friday evening of the Georgia-Florida weekend, we took Lauren and Mark to one of our favorite restaurants on the island - Sal's pizza! It is a little dive that only has 11 tables, which normally means they are really busy, but it is worth the wait! We stuffed ourselves with garlic bread, margarita and supreme pizza, and then to finish the meal, an amazing piece of cheesecake with fresh blueberry topping! All I can say is it was goodness in my belly! 

 Saturday morning we left to head to Jacksonville around 9 am. Last year when we went to the game we found this great tailgating spot, and thankfully we found it again this year! Its within walking distance of the stadium and has a nice grass lot to set up the tent and chairs. Other than it being unusually cold for most of the day (hence me being wrapped in a blanket in the picture below) the tailgate was a lot of fun! Our friends Dustin and Stacy joined us at the game, and we had a great time!
 Here's a pic towards the end of the game. Even though we were leading, it wasn't by much, but clearly the Florida fans had given up - look at the difference in the fans still in the stadium!
 Woo hoo! Georgia wins 24-20. Now onto the Auburn game this weekend, and then hopefully the SEC Championship! 

Tuesday, November 1, 2011

Batman and Spiderman

Before all of the trick-or-treating began, our nephews stopped by our house last night to show off their costumes! They love superheroes, so they sported their favorite outfits! T.G. was Batman and Jack was Spiderman. They had a lot of fun outside climbing on the boat and up a tree - they really got into character!



 T.G., I mean, Batman, liked to get really close to the camera!


I had to get a picture with the cute boys! 

Jack climbing in the tree in our front yard - he really looks like Spiderman! 


Friday, October 28, 2011

Georgia/Florida Weekend Begins!


Even though we aren't in college anymore, we began our activities for the Georgia-Florida weekend on Thursday evening! We had perfect weather to take the boat to the Rah Bar on Jekyll Island. Here are a few pictures from the boat!
Ryals and Lauren

Kelsey and John

Me and Johnathan
 The sunset last night was absolutely gorgeous! The pictures don't do it justice.


We enjoyed the live music at the Rah Bar!

Monday, October 17, 2011

{Recipes} - Warm Artichoke and Green Onion Dip

Hello Friends!  I hope everyone had a fabulous weekend! I am loving the beautiful weather we have had the past few days, and I can't wait til the weekend gets here when we might actually get some Fall weather down here! 

So, I can't believe I haven't shared this with you before, but this recipe is definitely my go to recipe for parties and get togethers. It comes from the Bride and Groom cookbook from Williams Sonoma, which also has other great recipe ideas too.  This is so quick and easy, and seriously every time I make it, I get a request for the recipe!   A lot of the ingredients you may already have on hand, but if not, its not expensive to make!


Ingredients:
2 (14 oz.) cans water-packed artichoke hearts, well drained, chopped
1 1/2 cups mayonnaise
1 1/2 cups finely grated high-quality Parmesan cheese
1/3 cup, plus 2 tablespoons sliced green onion
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1 1/2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme OR 3/4 teaspoons dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more as needed
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper, plus more as needed


1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Combine artichoke hearts, mayonnaise, 1 cup of the cheese, 1/3 cup of green onion, the garlic, thyme, kosher salt and pepper in a large mixing bowl.  Mix and adjust the salt and pepper to taste.
3. Transfer mixture to 8-inch square glass baking dish and sprinkle the remaining 1/2 cup cheese overtop.
4. Cover and bake until heated through, 10 to 15 minutes.
5. Increase the heat to broil and cook until the top is bubbly and golden brown, another 2 to 3 minutes.
6. Remove from the oven and garnish with the remaining green onion just before serving.
7. Enjoy with warm bagel or pita chips, French bread slices or crackers!

Do-Ahead: The dip can be assembled one day ahead but not cooked.  Cover and refrigerate until ready to bake.



Friday, October 14, 2011

Darius Rucker Concert

On Wednesday night we went with a group of our friends to the Darius Rucker concert! It was a lot of fun, especially because the concert took place at the Lodge on Sea Island! This week they are hosting the McGladrey Golf Tournament, so he came and made a special appearance!

The concert was a blast, even though it poured down rain! It was still so much fun and everyone just embraced the weather and had fun even though we were soaking wet! Darius played a lot of his new songs (we are on a first name basis), but he broke out some old Hootie and the Blowfish, too!  Here are a few pictures from the night:


After the rain and soaking wet, but still having a great time!

My dear friends Ashley and Brooks!


Thursday, October 13, 2011

Fall Girl's Weekend

This past weekend all of my girlfriends and I got together for our annual girl's weekend! We traveled to Gainesville, GA to Maggie and Dave's house for the weekend. We had so much fun ziplining, decorating pumpkins, eating way too much food, and catching up with one another! Here are a few pics from our time together ~

 All of us in our ziplining gear

On top of the course (oh hello cool helmets!)

 Our annual impromptu posed picture!

 Dinner at Sidebar 120 - very good Mexican restaurant!

 Renee - is that a parrot holding an ashtray? 

Oh, and I had to share this picture. Over the weekend my family's dog, Cody, was really sick, but I am glad to report that he is back in good health and doing well! How cute is he?!

Monday, October 3, 2011

Football, Soccer and a Bike Ride

Hello friends! I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend! I was excited that I finally had a weekend at home since we have been traveling almost every weekend in September. 

On Friday night, we went with our nephews to the Glynn Academy Football game! Jack (on the left) sported his new high school hat and sunglasses - he kept asking everyone if he looked like he was in high school! T.G. and his friend had so much fun and laughed the whole time!

 Saturday morning we headed to Jekyll Island to see Jack play in his soccer game. He has been dominating the past few weeks, so we had to go support him! He scored three goals - go Jack!

Saturday evening we were back to the football field to see my school, Frederica Academy, play its first ever home football game! There were close to 1000 people in attendance, and everyone was so excited! We ended up winning 24-0 - Go Knights!



On Sunday, we got up early and went to church, then went to eat breakfast at Palmer's in the Village. They had the best blueberry oatmeal pancakes I had ever eaten! After that, we went home with the intention to get a lot of things done around the house, but it was just too pretty outside to be stuck inside! We hopped on our bikes and went on a bike ride around the island for about 2 hours. It was so nice. 

Sorry for the random picture below, but its the only one I snapped yesterday. One nice thing about riding your bikes is that you really have time to check things out rather than being in the car. I saw this house for sale and I absolutely love the style of stacked stone and shingles. It is for sale, but I know its out of our price range considering the other side faces the beach! Maybe one day ... 

I can't wait til this weekend when I'll be with my best friends for our annual Fall Girls Weekend! 

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Highlands, NC

Last weekend we traveled to Highlands, NC for a vacation with my family! I was so excited to get away for a few days, and now looking back, I wish we had stayed longer! We could not have asked for better weather to welcome Fall - the temperature was between 55-70 each day and the sun was out the whole time! 

The house where we stayed is an old mill house converted to a residence and rental property. It was absolutely amazing, set right next to a river and waterfall. 

On Friday morning, I went with all of the boys on a hike to Glen Falls. Here is the first opening we came to - hello beautiful mountains!
 On the "hike" (these leisure pictures do not depict the 3 mile round trip we did to get to the falls!)
 From the top ...
and then from the bottom! 


On Friday evening, we went to dinner at "On the Veranda." We sat on the porch overlooking a beautiful lake. After dinner, we went to Kilwin's to get ice cream. I love that place. I had dreams of their ice cream from out last trip and I could not wait to get back! (Don't judge, I have a sweet tooth!) 

On Saturday morning, I headed downtown with my Mom and Grandmother to hit the shops! Here are some pictures from Dutchmann's and The Nest - I loved their decorations for Fall, and of course I had to snap some pictures to get ideas for painting furniture!

 Here are some pics of a super cute garden shop called Oakleaf. I love the rustic outdoor look to this shop. We all picked up some bittersweet to decorate our homes for fall!

 On Saturday evening, we went to dinner at Wild Thyme. Its a quaint little restaurant downtown, but they had an amazing selection of wine (see all of the bottles in the background?) The food that night was amazing. Everyone cleaned their plates! 
Even though we were full, we made room for Kilwin's ice cream again. I got Macinac Island Fudge mixed with Fresh Strawberry ... mmm ... heaven in a cup! 

On Sunday morning, we got up early and went for a canoe ride on the lake by our house. 
 I think this picture gives a good explanation of why the lake is called Mirror Lake! I loved seeing some of the leaves already changing colors. 

 A few family pics before we leave! There's Johnathan ...
Oh wait, it's Mom ...

 Oh, and I couldn't forget the local wildlife! All of these little guys were around our house. Good thing I didn't get a picture of the snakes we saw on our hike to the waterfall! 

We had the best trip and I cannot wait to go back next year!

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