30 Before 30 : #6 Have a Shaving Whipped Cream Fight

Back in mid-November, my dad's side of the family had a reunion in Jacksonville, FL. As we all get older and busier, it gets harder and harder to get all of the aunts, uncles and grandkids together, so it was lovely to have almost everyone in one place, even just for a few days. We did the typical family reunion stuff: ate too much, watched the Gamecocks whoop up on the Gators (a victory made even sweeter by the fact that we got to watch it with the Gator side of the family!), and had a little friendly family competition (wiffle ball). And, of course, the obligatory family photo shoot.


It was right about the time that we finished the 'grandparents with grandkids' pictures that I noticed some incredibly suspicious behavior going on. The adults (I say that as if I am not nearly 30 years old - apparently I still think of myself as a 'kid' when it comes to the family hierarchy!) were all huddled behind a big tree in the yard. No sooner where the words, 'What are you guys up to over there?' out of my mouth than they all attacked me with two dozen cans of whipped cream.






It turns out that these two had been plotting all day to help me achieve #6 on my 30 Before 30 list. And the rest of the family was all too eager to join in the fun.



It was an awesome surprise! And a wonderful memory that we'll all talk about for years to come. In the last few weeks, the list has definitely become less about accomplishing goals and more about making forever memories with the ones I love.

Sisters are one of God's best ideas

I was very blessed to have my mom, dad and my sister Amy come stay with us for Thanksgiving. They drove all night on Tuesday to surprise me at 6am on Wednesday morning, which gave us a whole extra day together!

We cooked....


And ate....

And molested a turkey....


And cuddled with puppies.....


And shopped....

And played games (I won!)....

And watched movies....

And cuddled some more with puppies....


And threw cupcakes all over the floor....


Okay, so maybe that last one wasn't on purpose, and maybe Amy didn't find it too funny, but how can you not laugh when someone drops a dozen half baked cupcakes on the floor? What else are sisters for?

Happy Anniversary, My Love

I Love You

by Roy Croft

I Love You,
Not only for what you are,
but for what I am when I am with you,
not only for what you have made of yourself,
but for what you are making of me.
I love you for the part of me that you bring out.
I love you for putting your hand into my overflowing heart
and passing over all the foolish, weak things that can't help,
dimly seeing there, and for drawing out into the light all the
beautiful belongings that no one else had looked quite far enough to find.
I love you because you are helping me to make of the dreams of my life
not a thought but a reality,
Out of the works of my every day not a reproach but a song...
Yes, a Love song.

Seven years ago today....

Food + Friends + Flickr = Fantastic Fun

If you follow me on Twitter then you already know that I got to meet the lovely Ally from Cute on the Cheap when I was in Louisville a few weeks ago. She and her sweet husband, Al, took my friend Jamie and I to Ramsi's Cafe on the World, home of what is possibly the best brunch buffet on the planet. If you're ever in Louisville, you must go. It's insane.

Anyway, I finally got our pictures from the weekend. This one's for you, Ally!


And just because she's wonderful and fantastic and let me drag her all around Louisville for a weekend and took all the pictures because I was too lazy to bring my camera, this is my girl Jamie. Sup, playa?


You can see more pictures of our Louisville weekend (and Carrie Underwood!) on Flickr.

Happy Mother's Day

to the best whole world Mom a girl could ask for. I hope that some day I will share the same kind of relationship with my (future) daughters that you share with yours. Thank you for always being there to listen, support, pray and celebrate. I love you!

May I give thanks

Do you ever just feel out of sorts? Not mad or upset or sad - just not 'right'? I don't know how to describe any better. Just out of sorts.

That's been me the last few weeks. There's nothing particularly wrong, no one big thing I can point to and say, 'That's what's making me feel bad'. I've just not felt like myself.

And that's not okay with, well, myself.

Because I sure do have a lot to be thankful for! Who am I to sit around feeling sorry for myself, when God has blessed me immeasurably above all I could ask or imagine? Just because those blessings aren't in the form I particularly asked for doesn't excuse my ungratefulness. I've been acting like a 5-year-old, who upon opening all her beautiful gifts on Christmas morning, looks around, stamps her foot and says grumpily, 'But I didn't get the dollhouse I asked for!'. In fact, I'm surprised He hasn't reached down and spanked me for my poor attitude lately.

Thankfully for me, and my behind, His mercies are new every morning and I can start this month with a brand new slate. Determined to be thankful for all that I do have, instead of focusing on the things that I don't have.

Today I am thankful for....days that on the surface seem trying but are really just God's way of showing you how many people love and care for you.

What are you thankful for today?

Leading Lady

I love this time of year. The lovely Spring weather and extra hours of sunlight brings the entire neighborhood back to life. I love running into our neighbors nearly every night as they go by - walking, running, playing, jogging, riding.

I've been itching for a bicycle of my own so I could get out there on the days that I really don't feel like running. Running = necessary evil. Riding = Ton o' fun and a lot less sweating.

My birthday served as the perfect excuse to fulfill my wish! Meet Penelope:


Isn't she beautiful?!

Nate thinks I'm crazy for naming my bicycle - and I didn't even really plan to - but she just kind of spoke to me. I fell in love the minute I spotted her lovely orange frame! And somewhere between pulling her off the rack and wheeling her to the cash register, she christened herself Penelope and who was I to argue?

Welcome to my world, Penelope. I think you and I are going to be very good friends!

Play On

Guess where I'm going tonight?!

To see Carrie Underwood!

And I can't wait! There are very few artists who make CD's that I want to listen to all the way through, over and over. Carrie is one of them! Her CD's are in constant rotation in my car and nearly half the songs in my ipod's 25 Most Played are hers. I can't wait to see her rock in concert tonight!

Happy early birthday to me!

Russian Neighbor Roulette

I was planning to do the requisite 'Things I'm Thankful For' Thanksgiving post. You know, the one where I tell you I'm thankful for God, my husband, my family, my friends, my health, my boring job in a crappy economy, my house, my dogs, Starbucks, chocolate and Steve Madden shoes.

Yawn. Bored yet?

Yeah, so I was planning to do that post until Nate came home from a run this afternoon and found this on our roof.


Know what I'm thankful for this year? Neighbors who start silly Orange Traffic Cone Wars. Who throw fabulous Halloween costume parties and teach the Southerners to play Euchre (and then let them win!). Who take in your mail while you're on vacation and will check your house for dead bodies when they don't see you for more than three days straight. Who share with you the holy grail of dessert recipes and give you plastic forks on move-in day when you have no idea what box the silverware is packed in.

We kind of hit the jackpot in the Neighbor Department.

A very Biltmore weekend

Last week we took a long weekend to visit Biltmore House in Asheville, NC with Nate's parents. Visiting Biltmore at Christmas has been on my list of Things To Do Before I Die for at least a decade. Despite living within four hours of it since I was 10 years old, I'd never managed to get there any time of the year, let alone Christmas. Biltmore House is, of course, not on Nate's list of Things to Die Before He Dies, or even after he dies for that matter. In fact, to hear him tell it, visiting such a boring place might just be the death of him.

Well, I'm happy to report that I have now been to a Biltmore Christmas and that Nate did indeed survive his trip there, too. Many thanks to the in-laws for the invitation that finally, finally got me there!!


It totally blows my mind that they designed and built this castle back in the 1800's - basically with a pencil and string. I mean, that's crazy!



We ate dinner at The Stable restaurant. The original stables have been converted into a restaurant - all those stalls along the wall are actually booths. How cool, is that?


The trees out front were stunning. The pictures really don't do the place justice. The big tree is orange/amber lights and opaque white lights - it looks like spun gold. Which is why I spent three hours yesterday hunting for orange and opaque Christmas lights for one of our trees!


Friday night we did dinner and the Candlelight House tour. No pictures in the house - boo. If you are ever near Asheville, you need to make sure you go. It is just amazing. On Saturday we went back and toured the greenhouses, the grounds and the winery. Free wine tasting? Don't mind if I do!


The leaves were past their peak, so it wasn't quite the same as autumn in Tennessee, but it was awfully good to be in the South!!


Guess who didn't want to have his picture taken?


Got him anyway! For all the pictures from our weekend, check us out on Flickr.

Queen for a Day Week

Guess who is my local Starbucks' customer of the week?!

That would be Yours Truly.

Know what that means? Free coffee for me ALL WEEK LONG!

That's right. Not just a free cup of coffee once. The drink of my choice EVERY SINGLE DAY THIS WEEK.

And they cheer whenever I walk in the door.

I could get used to this.

If girls had wet dreams....

...this would be mine. 96 cupcakes, 7 cans of frosting and the perfect excuse to indulge myself.

OMGodiva

Guess what ridiculously yummy chocolatier now has a customer loyalty reward program?


After dinner last night, I cajoled Nate into letting me pop into the Godiva store at the nearby mall. I'm rarely in that part of town so a stop at my favorite chocolate store is a super special treat.

I picked out half a dozen truffles (vanilla, raspberry, key lime, cacao and 2 cappuccino's, for those who are curious) and was ready to go on my blissfully happy way, when the heavens opened and a choir of angels raised a joyful 'Hallelujah'.

Um, well, okay. Maybe that didn't actually happen, but it might as well have.

Godiva now has a Customer Loyalty Program! And it's seriously the best one I've ever seen!

Free chocolate of your choice every. single. month. Just for coming in. No purchase minimum, no coupon required. Just show up with your Loyalty Card and TADA! Free chocolate.

And if that's not enough, if you spend $10 on any visit, you get another free gift. Hello?! Who can go to Godiva and spend less than $10? Not this gal! Monthly truffles, here I come!

I'm seeing a lot more visits to that part of town in my future....

Nostalgia

It's silly and kind of pathetic to admit but six years post-college, I still get a little nostalgic every fall as the kiddies move into dorms, twitter about class schedules, who's rooming with whom and who broke up or made up over the summer. It's worse than ever this year, as my baby sister embarks on her freshman year at a big ol' Southern university not too far from my own alma mater. I was so sad not to be there for move-in day but I made up for it by boring her to death imparting hours of sage wisdom on making the most out of her college experience: Take lots of pictures, say yes to new experiences, befriend someone you'd never talk to in high school, take advantage of every 'skip' the professor gives you.

Of course, being the sappy girl that I am, I dragged out all my college scrapbooks and fondly relived those four years multiple times over the last week with visions of a sweet memory post in my head. But I quickly realized there are FAR too many memories to ever fit into a single post. Heck, I could start a whole new blog and post about college adventures for a year straight and not run out. And I was struck anew with an appreciation for those four years of my life. I love my grown-up life for sure, but I think I will always be just a little bit sad every fall, remembering the people, experiences and adventures that made me the adult that I am today. And now I'm okay with that.

If you need me, I'll be the couch with a glass of wine and a pile of scrapbooks, making a list for my baby sis.

Signed, Sealed, Delivered

We've got some exciting news here at Casa Carrington.

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I've been busting to share the news since I got the offer a week ago, but I had to tell the boss at my part-time gig first. It's officially official - offer is signed, sealed and delivered to my brand new company.

Six months after I found out I was losing my job, four months since I've actually been unemployed, hundreds of resumes, dozens of cover letter revisions, one ridiculously lame job fair and only two interviews, I am finally back in the full-time game. And you want to hear the funny part? I didn't even apply for the job!

That's right, they found me. Called me out of the blue to ask if I was interested in a job. Everyone keeps asking how they got my resume, but to be honest, I really don't care. I like to think God just dropped this job from the sky straight into my lap. And let's just say, He made it worth the wait.

I honestly didn't realize just how much I was missing my old job until I got into the interview and started talking 'business' again. It was like a little piece of me came alive inside. I walked out of that interview (2.5 hours, ya'll!) happier than I've been in months - I felt all lit up inside!

The job is in Purchasing but in a totally different industry than I was in before. It's a little daunting to think about learning a whole new industry, but I love a good challenge and this one will definitely be a doozy. They were actually very interested in me because I come from a different industry - the VP told me he expects me to 'shake things up' in a big way. How's that for a little motivation right out of the gate?

So now I'm wrapping up my last few days at the part-time job, plotting how to get the most out of my last few days as a Lady of Leisure and preparing to start a whole new adventure. One that I hope will be worth the wait.

All the small stuff

Right before we went on vacation, I found out that I actually one a blog giveaway. I never win those things. So I was super stoked to win the giveaway at All the Small Stuff - especially since I won a Coach wristlet! Hello? Who doesn't love a new Coach bag?

Imagine my surprise when I got home and saw this entire box of goodies sitting on my doorstep? She even sent something for my furbabies! How sweet is she?

There is some seriously good stuff in here - Burt's Bees, OPI and my first ever Lilly - but I think this one is my favorite.


What can I say? It's all the small stuff that makes me happy!

Yesterday was our six year wedding anniversary. Crazy stuff, right? I shake my head in amazement every time I think about it. No way am I old enough to have been married that long already! Our wedding day seems like yesterday and forever ago all at the same time.

A long time ago I promised you guys our engagement story, so here it is. Be warned: It's kinda long. (But well worth the read!)

It was November of our senior year in college. We were having a winter semi-formal for the first time in many years and I was on the planning committee. The Monday before the dance, I got a letter in my mailbox from a secret society (like a sorority or fraternity, except co-ed and well, secret). I thought this was a little odd, being that I was not a member of one and you generally joined long before your senior year. But I was an active leader on campus so maybe it had to do with my society or some other group I was part of. Anyway, of course, I mentioned my invitation to Nate. A darned if he hadn't gotten one too! Convenient, right?

The night of the dance came and everything went off without a hitch. Great turn out, good DJ, decorations were awesome, fun time had by all. As it's approaching midnight and time for us to leave, Nate is getting more and more antsy to go. But I am a hostess of this shindig, so I have to make sure I've done my part, right? I am running around doing a million little things while he continues to hurry me along. Then a great slow song comes on and I want to dance. Then I want to change my clothes before we go. When we finally leave, we are over 20 minutes late.

On the way there, I am crabbing at him because he wouldn't let me change my clothes. Hello?! It is 28 degrees outside and I am wearing a sequin top and open toed shoes under my winter coat. So not weather appropriate (but super cute, of course!). But he argued that he didn't have anything to change into, the invitation didn't say we could change, we don't have time, just stay dressed like you are.

The invitation directed us to take a little walk through the woods near campus. As we climb out of the car, my camera falls out of my pocket and Nate nearly has a heart attack. What are you doing with a camera? Why did you bring that? Did someone tell you to bring your camera? He totally thought I was on to him. But I bring my camera everywhere with me, so I just kind of looked at him like, 'Dude, what's your deal?' and kept walking.

Nate was in charge of bringing the flashlight for our little woodland adventure, so as we entered the woods, I asked him to turn it on. Click. Nothing. Dead. No batteries. Seriously? That was your only job and you didn't check the batteries? First you don't let me change my clothes and now I have to venture through the woods IN HEELS, IN THE DARK.

We forge ahead, flashlight-less, and Nate grabs my hand and points out the full moon and how romantic this walk is without a flashlight. Uh-huh. Right. I'm too busy watching my feet to look at any stupid moon. Poor guy, I was not making this easy!

We get to a little ditch with a piece of plywood laying over it. Nate starts to walk across it and I'm like, 'Don't walk on that! You don't know how long it's been there. You could fall and break your ankle and then I'll have to carry you out of here!'. Of course, not knowing that he'd put it there just that day so that I didn't have to jump the ditch in my heels. Which I totally did anyway.

We passed a little boy scout hut and turned down a side path and even in the dark you could kind of feel that you had entered a little clearing. The woods fell away and the path opened up on both sides. Then suddenly thousands of Christmas lights were twinkling all around us in the bushes and trees. Yes, literally, thousands (2500 to be exact!). It was like a wonderland.

And I still totally thought it was the secret society thing.

That is, until I saw the rose petals on the ground and the table with a spotlight and what looked suspiciously like a ring box. Who felt like a total heel then? This clearly took days of work and planning and I had been *ahem* difficult, to say the least, since the minute we left the dance. I was lucky he hadn't walked me to a different clearing and left me there instead!

So we walked hand in hand down the little aisle of rose petals and he got down on one knee and asked me to marry him. I was so busy reminding myself to remember what he said (for the scrapbook later, duh!) that I completely missed the first two sentences! But I got the gist of it!

The whole thing was without a doubt the most romantic thing he has ever done for me. It took days to string up all the lights, then they blew a fuse, had to hi-jack electricity from the boy scout hut, and he was covered in poison ivy to boot! Poor guy. But it was worth every minute of it for the memories we have and the joy I get in telling the story over and over again. I love it!

Ode to Summer

I love....

....waking up to sunshine in the morning.

....the sound of lawn mowers and the smell of freshly cut grass.

....driving with windows down and sunroof open.

....painted toes in pretty sandals.

....corn on the grill.

....chatting with neighbors in the driveway.

....warm sun on bare skin.

....watermelon-seed spitting contests with my best guy.

....the magical firefly show that goes on in our backyard every night.

...falling asleep to the sound of a summer thunderstorm.

Countdown: ON

I have the world's greatest friends. - http://tinyurl.com/ndw44q

Only 16 days left until Cheerwine.

Tuesdays at the Table

I nearly died of excitement when I got my hands on this recipe Sunday night. As in literally, I gasped so loudly, the driver nearly ran off the road!

A little background - When we live in Tennessee, we had the most amazing neighbors, Clint and Gwen. They loved us, loved our furbabies and ran a mean grill. One night for dessert we had this dish Clint's mom had made; they called 'orange stuff'. OMG. It was divine. I ate. I raved. I ate some more.

From then on, any time Clint's mom made orange stuff, he'd divide it up and send me home with some. If I heard there was orange stuff to be had, I lit up like a Christmas tree and made a mad dash for their fridge. Eventually, Clint's mom got wise to my game, and started doubling the recipe - making me my very own container of orange stuff.

When we moved to the mid-west, I tried in vain several times to make it myself. It didn't look hard, I knew the basic ingredients, but I never hit on the right combination. In fact, I couldn't even get close. No orange stuff for me for over two years....

....until Sunday! We went bowling with the neighbors (long story short - I got beat by a five-year-old - twice!). On the way home, they start talking about having some orange fluff when they get home. Orange fluff? Could it be......

Curiosity piqued, I asked what was in it. 'Oh, oranges, pineapple, cool whip....oh, and cottage cheese.' And that was when I knew! (And gasped so loud, they all thought I was having a heart attack).

ORANGE STUFF!!!!!

I found my holy grail! Ten minutes later, I was inhaling that orangey goodness with one hand, while copying down the recipe with the other. I can't wait to make a big fat bowl of my very own this weekend.

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ORANGE STUFF

Ingredients:
24 ounce container of small curd cottage cheese
12 ounce container of Cool Whip, thawed
6 ounce package of orange Jello
2 - 11 ounce cans of mandarin oranges, drained (22 ounces total)
20 ounce can of pineapple chunks, drained
Optional ingredient: mini-marshmallows

Instructions:
1. In a large bowl, combine Jello powder and Cool Whip well.
2. Mix in the cottage cheese.
3. Stir in the pineapples and oranges.
4. Stir in marshmallows, if desired.
5. Chill overnight.

Serves about 10. Or serves Sara two helpings per day for a week.

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I know it sounds kind of gross when you read it, but trust me - you'll love it. To make it healthier, you can substitute low-fat cottage cheese and low-fat Cool Whip. Enjoy!