Back from the Beach

 

We're back from the beach and have been playing major catch up!  We got home a little over a week ago, and I swear I think this may have been my all time favorite vacation.  Virginia was just such a doll, and I had so much fun with my family.  Pretty much all we did was relax.  (We snuck in a little work when needed, but for the most part we tried to really just relax.)  Virginia fed the ducks, went for bike rides, fished with my dad (or pretended), and fed seagulls on the beach.  She played hard and loved the sand, waves and water.  My parents spoiled us fixing yummy dinners and watching Virginia whenever she needed a little extra entertainment.  We have tons of photos to still go through, but I wanted to share these of my happy girl. 

 

Heath and Andy came home to work a few days, and then headed back down to the beach with their best couple friends and their babies.  Their beach company included two babies under 12 months, so I'm sure they're ready for a little peace and quite after two baby filled vacations!  Hope everyone has enjoyed their summer.  After checking our beach vacation off the list, it really feels like we're creeping into fall!  I'm excited but miss summer already! 

~Mary Keller

Around Here | 4th Weekend

birthday cookies | pretty presents | fresh mushroom pasta | Virginia and her bubble machine | hotdog dinner | Virginia and Benjamin at the neighborhood parade | farmers market pound cake with fresh berries | a bedtime story with "Cookie"

Happy Monday guys, and happy late July 4th!  I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend.  We stayed put this holiday weekend and it was wonderful to have a long weekend at home to relax.

Our weekend plans included having a hot dog cookout (with all the works!) Friday night and a cookout with ribs, grilled corn and tomato pie for the 4th with my parents on Saturday. Basically our weekend included indulging in all of our favorite Americana foods!

MK, my friends, parents and Andy all spoiled me with lots of delicious cookies, cupcakes, cake and a few really special gifts too.  I can already tell, 30 is going to be a good year!

Hope everyone has a good week!

- Heath

Around Here | Memorial Day

Happy Wednesday guys!  One of the best things about a long weekend is the short week that follows!  We're back from the beach and getting caught up.  It was a really good, little vacation guys!  Seriously so much fun!  Truthfully a vacation with 20+ adults, plus kids, can be all chaos and short on fun, but the weekend just perfectly worked out and I think everyone had the best time.  Heath, Andy, J.D., Virginia and I stayed with my cousins from Australia and their families.  We had the BEST time visiting with them and thinking about past memories with our grandparents.  We almost never get to see them, and it was the perfect reunion/farewell party as one of them moves to England in just a few weeks.

We spent our days riding bikes (hello 6am bike rides with Virginia to try to let the rest of the house sleep in!), jumping waves, and playing in the tide pools.  We ate picnic style lunches on the beach, and of course my mom, Andy, dad and my aunt's all fixed delicious family style dinners.  On the last night, Andy and my dad smoked four pork butts for a birthday party feast.  Once we got the kids to bed in the evenings, us cousins stayed up talking and enjoying too many adult beverages.  Just a really relaxing, fun time.

Virginia also became fast friends with two of her second cousins, Ella and Owen!  She was obsessed and would light up at their attention.  (We got some cute pics of them fortunately, but I'm trying to limit how much I show of them since this is a public blog!)

Hope everyone had a wonderful Memorial Day!  I'm think I'm now officially ready to welcome summer.

~Mary Keller

p.s. how cute are children in rash guard swim suits!  My aunt was rocking one on the beach too, and I'm now obsessed!  I'm lame and get cold on the beach, plus I like to cover up, so I'm thinking these may be perfect for me.

Around Here

Friday evening on the porch | grilling and dining al fresco | breakfast at Little Spoon | Spring plant shopping | Virginia's Easter basket | hunting for eggs | celebrating her finds! | pretty table set for Easter brunch (MK's china is perfect for Easter!)

Happy Monday guys!  Our weekend was so wonderful - equal parts action and relaxing in the best way possible!  We stayed in on Friday and grilled steaks and hung out on our back porch.  It was awesome, made me look forward to lots more dining al fresco to come!  We tried a new-to-us spot on Saturday and enjoyed a little brunch date before running errands.  Sunday my parents came to town to celebrate Easter.  We enjoyed a delicious brunch, an Easter egg hunt and a really nice visit with family.  It was such a nice weekend, so sad for it to come to an end!

Hope everyone had a wonderful weekend!

- Heath

Happy Friday

Happy Friday guys! Hope everyone had a nice week. I'm so looking forward to this weekend! My parents are coming into town on Sunday for Easter. We're doing lots of cooking for Easter Brunch and an egg hunt for Virginia too. She's at the best age right now, I love spending time with that sweet girl. And I saw the video from her school egg so I can't wait to see her in action!

A few things that caught our eye to get you weekend started...

ONE: I loved this article "12 Artists You Need to Know" on Glitter Guide this week. Chassity Evans pulled together 12 artists you may not have heard of yet and they're all so talented it's hard to pick a favorite. I can't not mention Laura Naples and Kristen Giorgi though, I just can't get enough of all their work! Remember their gorgeous homes here and here.

TWO: Domaine Home released "7 Young Interior Designers to Watch" this week and this image caught my eye. That light is amazing right?! After MK's post earlier this week I've been noticing lighting more and more and it can make such a big impact on a room.

THREE: I know I'm a broken record with the whole French Five concept, but if you're not tired of hearing about it Everygirl released an article about creating a Capsule Collection that got my attention. I've been doing French Five for almost a year now and I really love it!

FOUR: I am the opposite of a DIYer but I would really really like for someone to make me a hand full of these gorgeous DIY placemats. I'm always on the look out of fun and casual linens to offset the otherwise formal feel of my antique dining room furniture. These would be gorgeous with green in my house!

Hope everyone has a wonderful Easter weekend!

- Heath

Valentine's Date Night

Valentine’s snuck up on me this year - I was just telling Andy I haven’t fully wrapped my head about 2015 and all the sudden it’s mid February. Luckily we keep our Valentine’s dates super simple; we always cook at home and don’t exchange gifts. It got me thinking though how everyone has a different Valentine’s date style.

While Andy and I aren’t really restaurant people, although there’s not much better than a good meal at a cozy restaurant with great service so I completely get the appeal. I’m betting this is the more popular option for Valentines too it seems to be a “restaurant” type holiday.  

I’m sure you can tell by now cooking is our thing. We choose cooking at home for almost any occasion rather than going out. This year we’re making Dinner a Love Story’s short ribs and making a yummy brunch too. I can’t wait! 

I feel like I had friends in college who use to get real down about this holiday, but I hope that’s not the case anymore. It truly is a hallmark holiday that can be celebrated with anyone you love, including friends! I had the best intentions of having the few ladies i work with over for munchies and wine this week as a little V-day celebration and while it’s not happening I think it would be my plan if Andy weren’t in my life. There’s nothing better than a good girl’s night!

My parents and some neighborhood friends have always had a big valentine’s dinner party and I LOVE the concept! They assign each man a different task; wine, candy, flowers, steaks and lobster (their go to surf and turf menu), to keep things simple but cover all the bases. Isn’t that cute?! So much easier for my dad to tackle one thing than conquer all of the above and knowing my dad, he gets the steaks too - the easiest task hah.

I’m betting these are the standards but I’d love to hear what you guys are doing! Do you have a standard or switch it up each year?

- Heath 

images one, flowers and clutch; image two, card and slippers; image three, earrings, lipstick and champagne; image four, wine and chocolate

New Years & Beef Bourguignon

Since this blog is really like our little sister/family journal we snapped a few (iphone) pics that I want to record from New Years if you're interested.  I've mentioned that we didn't really do much for New Years.  Since we traveled for Christmas, J.D. and I really just wanted to stay put and have a quiet night.  I knew I wanted to make something really yummy (always thinking about yummy food!) especially knowing that I had a little more time on my hands with it being the holidays.  Heath ended up sneaking out of work early that night (by early I mean 7) so she and Andy came and joined us. 

I ended up making Ina's Beef Bourguignon and guys I HIGHLY recommend it if you're looking for a not-too-difficult, elegant, feels special make ahead meal.  Beef Bourguignon is basically French beef stew, but something about the bourguignon makes it seem so much more elegant.  Maybe because of the wine??  Not sure, but we all loved it.  It takes a little while to make, but it really is easy - just ask your butcher to cut the piece of meat into chunks for you.  (That will save you the most work.)

My little French menu in case anyone is looking for make ahead dinner party ideas.  (The stew is best if made a day in advance.)

Cocktails with French Gruyere and Parmesan Cheese Straws

Beef Bourguignon with toasted garlic bread

Warm Goat Cheese Salad, plus a cheese plate with blue cheese and brie

I served the stew with just garlic bread, but people also love it over a bed of mashed potatoes or with noodles.  I served the salad and a cheese plate after the Beef Bourguignon, as apparently the French do which is kind of fun.  For dessert, I just picked up cupcakes because I used all my cooking energy on the beef, but instead this Chocolate Mousse could also be done in advance, and it would be so much better and tres French! :)

Hope everyone had a Happy New Year, cheers to 2015!
~Mary Keller

Friday Findings

Happy Friday guys!  So happy we made it!  We have a fun weekend planned. My parents and grandparents are coming to Charlotte tomorrow for brunch celebrate Christmas since we won't be with them on the actual holiday. I really can't wait to see everyone!

And before we start the weekend, a few findings...

ONE - Chassity's cactus wrapped up with holiday lights has to be the cutest gift ever!  Love everything about this! If you're looking for a last minute hostess gift, this would be so cute and any plant from your local nursery would work.

TWO - Have you guys ever had mulled wine? I tried it for the first time last year and loved it! I've been so excited to make some for Christmas. It's the perfect combination of a warm hot toddy and comforting red wine, yum!

THREE - Do you have a go to Christmas breakfast? MK and I were both just talking about how we'd like to come up with something to start a holiday tradition. Breakfast is my favorite so I've taken over this job next week and I currently have flagged this and this.

FOUR - I loved this post by Victoria. I think she makes some really good points. In particular how it's so important to only "follow" and interact with those that truly make you happy, encourage or inspire you. I think the same goes for real life friendships and it's so easy to get lost and dragged down by the "perfection" that you may see around you.

Happy weekend guys, I hope it's a good one for you!
 
- Heath

PS loved this little guide to spice up your hot chocolate game too! (via Emily)

Holiday Traditions

I don't know about you guys but the holidays make me super sentimental!  It brings to mind so many memories.  It really is my favorite time of the year.  The traditions of the holiday season have to be the best part.  Way better than gifts and the rest, traditions really are the best whether they're big or small.  We got together with our book club this past weekend for brunch at Cast Iron Waffles and asked everyone to share their favorite holiday tradition.  So here they are...

"making Christmas cookies with my grandmother and cousins every year (while our parents shopped and wrapped parents :)" - Amanda

"singing Christmas carols in the car driving home from my grandparents' house on Christmas Eve." - Missy

"midnight Mass, drinks/snacks and frantically wrapping presents...plus the new tradition of going shopping on 12/26 to get Christmas decorations for the next year...it's so fun the next Christmas to open up the decorations box and you've forgotten about a lot of the stuff you bought." - Elizabeth

"Christmas morning we still all wait to walk down the stairs together in order of age, oldest to youngest, including dogs." - Kelsey and Sara

"J.D. and I go on a Christmas date every year to a favorite restaurant for wine and charcuterie after a day of shopping for last minute stocking stuffers and small fun gifts." - Mary Keller

"Christmas morning we opened presents from Santa and then baked biscuits with my grandmother as part of Christmas breakfast.  She would let me knead them and knead them to my heart's content and mine were always little hard rocks of dough that everyone kindly gnawed on with good humor....current traditions include drinking mulled wine and singing two Christmas carols to the boys every night before bed." - Meredith  (this is our friend who last year welcomed her second son on Christmas Day.  We love him, but she doesn't want this to become a tradition! :)

"my annual Christmas date with Andy - we shop for an Angel tree child and have homemade Pasta & Provisions pasta at home by the tree...plus, my other Christmas favorite is my grandfather's mini ham sandwiches.  They make a delicious appearance every holiday." - Heath

And we all decided on our favorite least favorite tradition - the toss up between stringing lights and negotiating holiday travel with family. :)

I loved hearing all of these and got a few new ideas that I may just steal in the future too!  We'd also love to hear any of your traditions so feel free to share!  Hope everyone is enjoying this wonderful time of the year.

- Heath and Mary Keller

PS thanks to our sweet friends for agreeing to share (and pose!), love you guys!

Southern Stocking Stuffers | North Carolina Made

Andy and I have never exchanged Christmas gifts so when we got married we started doing stockings.  For us, it's a fun way to exchange gifts but keeps things within reason.  Occasionally each of us throws in something fun, for me a cute coffee mug, for Andy a fancy bourbon but otherwise most of our stuffers come from the grocery store and are super simple and cheap. This year I thought it would be fun to change things a bit and keep Andy's entire stocking locally made. I found all Charlotte and North Carolina made products that I'm so excited about!

We've teamed up with a few other bloggers to bring you all Southern Stocking Stuffers made locally in a handful of Southern states.  I'm sharing details of my locally sourced stocking, plus be sure to check out more ideas from these bloggers below..

Julia of Pawleys Island Posh - Virginia

Natasha of Hello Happiness - Tennessee

Jess of The Love List - Georgia

MK & Heath of Southland Avenue - North Carolina

North Carolina Made -

ONE:  I try to include a small bottle of nice bourbon in Andy's stocking every year.  Mostly because we're frugal and don't buy nice things for ourselves but also because it's fun to try new brands, Lewis Redmond bourbon is currently on the list!  If you're a rum drinker I hear good things about Queen Charlotte and this sweet potato vodka sounds so cool!  And if you're into gin I can personally vouch for Cardinal gin.

TWO: We include an ornament in our stockings each year and this beautiful tree from Caroline's Ceramics would be so pretty! And if you're not doing a stocking her vases are gorgeous!

THREE:  We're big coffee drinkers in our household (more me but still...) so a lot stocking stuffers revolve around this. We can always count on a new brand of beans and maybe even a new mug if we're lucky!  So many different roasters in and around Charlotte but Central, Not Just Coffee and Dilworth are my favorites.

FOUR:  We've talked about White Whale before but no stocking would be complete without the perfect little cocktail mixer. Tiny Tim is the perfect holiday mixer or any of your favorites would be delicious!

FIVE:  Charlotte's beer scene has completely taken off lately!  We haven't been to every local brewery just yet but we sure love tasting our way through them all.  Our current favorite is actually nothing new but I know Andy would love opening this Jam Session on Christmas!

SIX: I love the addition of this leather key fob. Practical but pretty, anyone would be pleased to have this in their stocking and on their keychain! Colsen and Keane were a finalist in the Garden and Gun Made in the South Awards so be sure to check out their other items.

SEVEN: I just recently learned that Moravian cookies were produced in NC.  As a big sweets fan this made me so happy! I remember how fancy the thin Moravian cookies felt when I was little, I made a mental note to pick some up this holiday season after seeing that.  Is there anything more festive than a sleeve of spiced cookies?!

EIGHT: I usually include a bag of dark chocolates in Andy's stocking. It's kind of an ongoing joke because one small bag of individually wrapped dark chocolates will last him almost an entire year in his desk drawer and well that's just crazy to me! I'm thinking this peppermint bark may not last quite as long this year though!

NINE: These earrings obviously won't be in Andy's stocking but if it were reversed I'd certainly love to see them in mine! Geoflora is a local Charlotte based sister duo I just discovered and their stuff is really really cool.

TEN: I'm going to sound like a total nerd here but we have lots of honey in our pantry, like a weird amount! We have truffle honey, NC Mountain honey and so many others. We use them all the time so this local Cloister whipped honey with cinnamon sounds so good!

Any other locally made favorites I should know about and include?  Be sure to visit Julia from Virginia, Jess from Georgia, and Natasha from Tennessee to check out their local stockings and get ideas too!

- Heath

Around Here

Friday night tacos at Bakersfield | Virginia and her Grumpy looking at doggies | old fashioneds by the tree | Christmas dinner date | Panthers game | Roosters | Cappuccino at brunch | sweet girl in her Christmas dress 

Happy Monday guys!  We had such a wonderful weekend.  MK and I had brunch with our book club on Saturday morning and it was so fun and so great to catch up with friends around the holidays. We stayed in on Saturday, cooked a yummy dinner and had old fashioneds while we finished our wrapping.  Andy and I went to the Panthers game on Sunday (yay for a win!) and then snuck in a quick visit with Virginia too.  No weekend is complete without a sweet little kiss from our favorite girl!

Virginia spent the weekend with her Cookie and Grumpy (my parents) in Columbia and went to the zoo and got to play with doggies, her favorite.  She was in heaven!  MK and JD managed to finish all their Christmas shopping and wrapping, went on their annual Christmas date and had a yummy brunch too.  On Sunday, Virginia went to meet Santa but wasn't thrilled - there's always next year :). It really was a really wonderful weekend!

Hope everyone else had a great weekend!

- Heath

PS. 10 days until Christmas, can you believe it?!

Around Here

Pasta & Provisions by the tree | Christmas greens | Virginia admiring the tree | lots of ornaments, ready to be put back on the tree | cappucciono from Not Just Coffee | Local Loaf breakfast sandwich | Virginia all dressed up ready to eat bbq and then meet Santa | lots of pretty Christmas cacti

 

Happy Monday guys!  Did you have a good weekend?  It was a really good weekend around here.  Really relaxing and lots of just hanging out.  J.D. and I spent a little time (re)decorating our tree on Friday night, and it's sparkly and bright now so I'm pleased.  Saturday we went shopping for our Angel Tree child, grabbed a little bbq lunch, and then had big plans to meet Santa except I had my dates wrong and Santa wasn't there.  (I'm avoiding going to the mall at all costs!  We're waiting on Santa to visit a shop right near us.)  Later that day, Heath and Andy came by to watch the SEC Championship and Virginia thought she was in heaven.  Heath surely is her best friend.

 

Heath and Andy also had a weekend of decorating and Angel Tree shopping.  They have a fun little tradition of going shopping for their Angel Tree child + having Pasta & Provisions every year.  Andy actually proposed on the evening of their angel tree shopping + pasta date a few years ago.  So cute!

 

Hope everyone has a good week!  It's going to be busy but everything is so much fun this time of year!!

 

~Mary Keller

 



Friday Findings

Happy Friday guys!  Phew!  This was a long and short week all in one and I'm sure happy it's Friday.  We don't have any plans for the weekend and I have a feeling it may be may favorite weekend in a long time.  We're going to finish decorating our house for the holidays(my favorite!), try to knockout our holiday shopping and finally cook braised short ribs too!  What are you guys up to this weekend?

A few findings to get your weekend started...

ONE: We used big colorful lights on our Christmas tree this year and honestly I am so stuck, I cannot figure out if I like them. I know Andy thinks I'm crazy because it's just a tree but my tree is always my favorite so I'm stumped! I found myself flipping through this little slideshow over lunch this week trying to figure out if I should go back to my simple white lights. Are you guys colorful or white light fans?

TWO: I was so excited when MK sent me this playlist from Sarah at Note to Self. I was just telling Andy I wanted to listen to more holiday tunes so this was perfect timing! We listen to music all the time when we cook so this is the perfect playlist to get us in the holiday spirit.

THREE: I love love love holiday traditions so I really enjoyed reading this post from Taza. Tons of ideas for new and old holiday traditions; dates for two, and lots for the entire family too! I used to love going to see the lights when I was a kid so I decided I'm going to make a point to drive around town one evening and take it all in.

FOUR: This table by Hanna Seabrook on Glitter Guide was for Thanksgiving but it would be equally gorgeous for Christmas, don't you think? Andy and I are hosting Christmas at our home for the first time this year so again perfect timing for MK to send this over. Bookmarking this for later!

Have a good weekend!

- Heath

Holiday Hostess Gifts

We've pulled together a few fun hostess gifts if any of you are traveling over the holidays and want to impress your mother-in-law, or even if you're just going to visit friends for a Christmas party, it's nice to bring a little something.  A few fun (mostly yummy) ideas below...

 

For your fun, cocktail loving friends, a specialty mixer would be fun and less predictable than wine.  (It's so fun how popular cocktails are right now!)  Jack Rudy Aromatic Bitter's is perfect for the bourbon loving host, and Elderflower Tonic is perfect for someone who prefers something a little lighter.  (Aromatic Bitters is also the perfect stocking stuffer for the bourbon loving husband who enjoys Manhattans and Old Fashioneds!!)

I LOVE these Nest candles, and it would be fun to pair them with a cute stack of matches.  The candles look understated and elegant with any hosts' décor.

Have you guys ever tasted Callie's Biscuits?!!  If you're staying with someone for any length of time, it would be nice to surprise them with a batch of these frozen biscuits.  They'd probably be happy to have them to feed the crowd while company is in town, or they can save them for later as a special treat.  These are so good, and they're available in so many flavors - buttermilk, black pepper bacon, cheese and chive, country ham (my grandfather's favorite!) and cinnamon.  mmmm....try to find a local place to pick these up though.  Much less expensive than paying for shipping and paying for two dozen.  Charlotte folks, they have them in the frozen section of Reid's.

Along those same lines as the yummy biscuits, I think anyone would LOVE this Mo's Bacon Chocolate Chip pancake mix by Vosges.  I put this in J.D.'s stocking one year at it was sooo good.  Pair it with a cute bottle of maple syrup, and if you're really nice you could even treat your host by making breakfast for everyone one morning.

Olive oil is the new wine when it comes to hostess gifts I think.  It's easy to bring, portable and you can pick it up at the last minute.  This bottle from Sunday Suppers is beautiful and would wow any host, but you can find beautiful, reasonable options anywhere.  We're partial to Pour Olive around here.

Any other fun ideas?  I've made myself hungry!  If you can't tell, I think that consumables are totally the way to go on hostess gifts.  Also, 9 times out of 10, a bottle of wine or champagne is my go to. :)

~Mary Keller

P.S.  We did a similar post last year and I still love all of these ideas too!  Bourbon Balls are definite crowd pleasers!!

Around Here

Virginia painting her Christmas ornament | flamingos at the zoo | LaRoque children's boutique | Thanksgiving fires | wreaths at the tree lot | family walk around Lake Murray | Virginia picking out the perfect tree | homemade chicken stock 

You guys we had the best Thanksgiving! Sorry for the silence last week, we got completely off track but fully enjoyed our holiday.  MK and Virginia were home in Columbia last week with my parents and did lots of fun things like visiting the zoo and painting Christmas ornaments.  The rest of us joined later last week but still managed to fit in a wonderful Thanksgiving lunch with family, a much needed post meal walk at the lake and cider by the fire!  Virginia surprised us all and took her first steps while we were home.  She even showed off and walked some when the rest of the family, including her great grandparents, came for Thanksgiving. The cutest wobbly steps you've ever seen!

MK and mom found the cutest boutique in Columbia, LaRoque, more to come on that later but Virginia has few adorable outfits coming her way as a result. 

Once we returned to Charlotte we hit our favorite tree lot to find the perfect tree.  It's one of my favorite activities every year! It was warm this year but I still have zero complaints.  Christmas is just the best and I love coming home to a house lit with Christmas lights and the smell of a Frasier fir!  Oh and Andy received an early Christmas gift in the form of a new smoker so we experimented some this weekend and used our leftover chicken bits to make homemade stock.  Lots of delicious smells happening in our home this weekend. 

Hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

- Heath 

Wrap Time

 

So I've been doing a pretty good job staying on top of things this season - cards are just about ordered, Virginia's Christmas jammies are here and I have all of my wrapping paper + ribbons that I'll need.  I have a round up of a few wrapping schemes that I thought I'd share.  I've taken note from Jordon on the way I like to wrap - I typically use really inexpensive wrap for most stuff and then combine it with a few pretty (more expensive pieces) for smaller gifts or gifts for adults.  In our house we're going with the top scheme, traditional reds and greens, but I'm also loving the second more earthy look. 

For inexpensive paper, I picked up a big bulk pack from Walmart, but Rite Aid, Walgreens, Michaels and Target also work.  I typically look for the simplest that they offer - solids, stripes and polka dots.  (Really cheap paper usually doesn't have the most beautiful patterns.)

For classic reds and greens, I love this beautiful paper from Caspari.  I don't need tons of wrap, but if I did, I'd pick up this classic boxwood, cheery red dot, and I'm in LOVE with this red zebra print.  I wish I could find it locally because I can't pay that plus shipping.  too much!  I grabbed a sheet of this nutcracker paper and paper chains wrap for a few special smaller gifts this year.  (Charlotte folks, they have these plus others at Paper Twist.)

For a more natural look, I'd get a huge roll of inexpensive kraft paper at Michaels, and then add in these beautiful options from Rifle Paper.  I'm loving the earthy colors and hand drawn look of these holiday greens, favorite things and holiday plaid wrap.

I've never paid much attention to ribbons and bows, but honestly I think the cheapest paper can look really good with big ribbons and bows.  I took another tip from Jordan and placed a big order at Paper Mart for lots of ribbons.  A 50 yard roll of double faced satin ribbon is a little over $5.00.  That's seriously insane!  I placed a big order for multiple sizes and colors of double faced satin, grosgrain and velvet and I think it will last me for years.  (When J.D. sees how much I ordered, it will have to last me for years! :)

~Mary Keller

Top image with presents | kraft paper wrap | Christmas tree

Holiday schedule

 

Guys this schedule may be a lame but I have to do this kind of stuff to keep me sane around the holidays.  I'm hoping by posting this it will keep me accountable, and if it helps anyone else out too that's a bonus.  Every. Single. Year. I say that I'm going to get ahead and be prepared and have everything "done" by Thanksgiving so that I can actually enjoy the month of December and all of the holiday festivities that go along with it.  Every single year I fail at that.  I imagine fun nights of me sipping wine and hot cocoa addressing holiday notes to my friends.  Instead, it's midnight and I want to sleep and I'm cramming to get my cards out as I've had to pay extra shipping to get them to me on time.  (that's an exaggeration but you get the point.) 

Around Here

Happy Monday everyone!  Hope you all had a nice long 4th of July weekend.  This weekend was really so nice.  We stayed put this year for the 4th and it really was one of my favorite 4ths that I can ever remember.  My parents and Heath and Andy came Friday night for a cookout and we celebrated the 4th of July and Heath and my mom's birthdays! 

We decided on a super traditional, all Americana dinner.  We stuck with the classics and spent the day cooking Andy's uncle's barbeque ribs, fresh corn on the cob, Ina Garten's maple baked beans (they cooked for 8 hours!) and our favorite blue cheese slaw.  For dessert, we were planning on a cobbler but Heath's sweet friends and Andy all sent Heath so many cupcakes for her birthday, we decided to just help her finish her delicious Sunflour bakery cupcakes. 

A really nice holiday.  Virginia had so much fun, and it was the best just having family over all day relaxing and waiting on yummy food.  And the best part was the festivities were all on Friday night so it was the best feeling knowing we still had two days left of the weekend to do nothing.  (Nothing being chores, laundry, taking Virginia on walks, few returns, getting some dinners cooked ahead of time, you know fun stuff. :)

Hope everyone had a great 4th with family and friends, too!

~Mary Keller

Photo Diary | Memorial Day at Litchfield

Hey guys!  We accidentally disappeared for a little while unintentionally!  We went out of town for Memorial Day and it's taken a few days to get back to our norm.  Did you all have a good holiday?  We have a few pictures from Memorial Day if you're interested.  Really, it's just lots of cute pictures of Virginia's first trip to the beach!!

We kicked off our Memorial Day weekend a little early and went to a Knights Game with friends.  It was our first game and we loved it.  We actually rode our bikes with a few neighbors and had the best time.  Friday we headed down to Litchfield beach and just chilled out that night.  Saturday my grandparents and aunt and uncle joined us.  They of course spoiled Virginia with attention and she was in heaven.  Over the long weekend had a really yummy low country boil, per tradition, and not pictured are the best ever hot dogs the guys did on the charcoal grill and Ina's blue cheese slaw.  Overall, just a nice visit that of course flew by too quickly.  My parents were sweet and tried to let me and J.D. relax as much as possible, bathing and feeding Virginia for us.  Virginia giggled away as my dad fed her fresh strawberries and I headed down to meet J.D. on the beach for an evening cocktail.  I was happy and so was she!  Perfect weekend.  Hope you all had a wonderful holiday as well!

~Mary Keller

Happy Good Friday

Happy Good Friday everyone!  I'm so excited the weekend is here!  Before we get into weekend plans, here are a few things that caught our attention this week...

Charlotte folks, we recently discovered a new to us florist in town Nectar.  Their work is beautiful but what I'm really excited about is that they offer floral classes at a somewhat reasonable price point.  One of my resolutions was to take a floral class.  Anyone local want to join me?!

Okay, who wants to find a pot of money and go to Istanbul with me?!!  I've seen so many gorgeous pictures of this city and I'm obsessed.  I'm bookmarking Perpetually Chic's Istanbul City guide for the lucky day in my life that I make it there.  (Positive thinking!)

Anyone who may be trying to decorate or spruce up rooms in their home may want to check out the new website décorBase.  Their concept is really cool.  They've created an easy tool to help you create boards and design rooms visually, and then they offer quite a few resources to shop from as well.

Loving the sound of this new book The Charleston Academy of Domestic Pursuits that we saw on Claire's Instagram feed.  Seems so old fashioned and I love that kind of stuff.

Okay, I hope everyone has a wonderful Easter weekend!  Virginia's getting baptized on Saturday so it will be a special weekend.  Virginia's grandparents and great grandparents are coming in town.  (Although we're really sad because we may have a few people sick and unable to join us.)  We're having everyone for a lunch reception on Saturday and the Christening is Saturday evening.  We'll be sure to take lots of pictures of our sweet girl!  Hope you all have a wonderful Easter and enjoy your weekend too!

~Mary Keller

Images: Nectar .  Perpetually Chic .  decorBase .  Amazon