happy haunting!

happy halloween! hope your weekend was a great one!

dinner with a bunch of friends (old + new) on friday and had the best time. i think it's a good sign when the resturant closes and you're the last table in the place. great folks! ♥

we worked in the yard on saturday and then ate at burnt fork bbq which was incredible! they have bbq tofu and a very clear menu indicating which sides are vegan and vegetarian. it was incredible!!! thanks matt for the suggestion!

saturday night we pulled together some last minute costume ideas, but j's was the best! he was daniel plainview (played by daniel day lewis) in "there will be blood!" he had the oil can, milkshake, and mustache! sadly not too many people got it but i LOVED it. i had planned to be an asian girl but then had a wardrobe malfunction and ended up being a 1960's hippie/ activist. i wore a flower dress and an army jacket and flowers in my hair. nothing original sadly! as always, i am vowing to not procrastinate next year (fingers crossed).


sunday was very wonderful. we had brunch at sun in my belly and it was great! we split the pimento and fried green tomato sandwich and the hangover biscuit (biscuit with cheese, fried egg, avocado, and siracha - yumm!). we ran to the grocery store and then came home and we sat in the sunshine with townes, worked in the yard, and went on a very long walk.

sign of a successful brunch:






tonight we're finally getting around to carving pumpkins and hopefully getting some trick-or-treaters!

have a great rest of the day and hope you get to leave work early since it's usually the worst traffic day of the year on halloween! scarrrry! xo

the great pumpkin

[how-to via ambrosia creative]

how cute are these tiny polaroid magnets? i would love to turn some of my instagram pictures into perfect magnets for our fridge and my new office (we're about to move floors at work and into new work stations)! this would be a perfect weekend project!

we're supposed to get a cold, rainy front in georgia this weekend (which is not as bad as the snow (!!!) expected in the northeast). we have dinner plans tonight with some wonderful folks. we have a halloween party tomorrow to celebrate a friend's birthday which should be a blast. we're still trying to figure out our costumes - we have some ideas but nothing spectacular (which is what always happens because we procrastinate).

during the rest of the weekend, we are planning on yard work, carving pumpkins, and maybe watching "it's the great pumpkin, charlie brown!" ♥

"each year, the great pumpkin rises out of the pumpkin patch that he thinks is the most sincere. he's gotta pick this one. he's got to. i don't see how a pumpkin patch can be more sincere than this one. you can look around and there's not a sign of hypocrisy. nothing but sincerity as far as the eye can see" - linus

have a great weekend filled with lots of apple cider and pumpkin cupcakes! xo

running on empty

Redbird - Giants of the Forest - Episode One from Amazing Factory Productions Inc. on Vimeo.

i'm feeling a bit blue today. i feel like i must still be adjusting to being home after traveling for work for a few days. the to do list seems long but i can't seem to find the energy to complete any of the tasks. i'm just going to keep on my headphones and do what i can to make it through the day.

at least the next 2 weekends should be fun and relaxing. j says we need to slow it down a bit and i guess he's right. here's to deep breaths and taking everything day by day.

"it is important from time to time to slow down, to go away by yourself, and simply be” - eileen caddy

you're nobody til somebody loves you

happy birthday dad! i hope it's a great year filled with lots of golf and days off of work!

i'm excited about our upcoming trip to the blue ridge mountains and just getting to spend time together. i hope to get to hear more stories of your mom/ my grandma norma that i haven't heard before. this picture of you when you were 7 makes me so happy and grandma looks so classic and beautiful in her sunglasses (thanks for posting this)! i wish we could have known her. ♥

it looks like my wish from last year may come true with an upcoming trip to NYC. fingers crossed.

i love you very much and i'll see you tonight! xo

greener pastures

hello!

we had the most fun this weekend! our dear friends both work for sugarboo designs (read more here) and they were heading up to blairsville, ga for the weekend. they invited us to join them at sugarboo farms! the farm is still a work in progress and won't open until spring 2012, but it is already incredible! it will be an ideal setting for groups with a large communal barn and 15 individual cottages along the creek. there is a large garden and the fresh fruits and vegetables are used to make preserves, salsas, and pepper jams! there is also a chicken coup (chickens to come soon) and horses! we had so much fun cooking large meals (mmm...veggie chili) together, going for walks, seeing all of the animals, and sitting by the fire!












we even went into hayesville, nc to go antique shopping and to the punkin chuckin festival! one group had a pumpkin launcher that sent the pumpkin over 900 feet!



we had the best time and the best company. i can't wait to go back in the spring once it's all done! mountain farm living is quite the life!


p.s. did i mention the sugarboo mascot? sugarboo aka "sugie" is a mini minature pig that acts just like a dog minus all of the incessant hunger! so sweet!



xo

"autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower"

["winter flags" print by youngna park]

i am so happy that it is friday! the weather is getting chilly and it's so nice! townes has been super frisky and really enjoying a break from the heat! it's been a super busy week and i am ready for some r&r with my boys!

this week we booked a flight to NYC for december and we are so excited! j has never been to NYC and he will love how festive the whole city is around xmas. we still have yet to book our hotel (prices are insane during december), but we can't wait to bundle up, explore the city, and catch up with friends!

we have really fun plans this weekend with some great friends. i can't wait to share more about our adventures next week! townes will definitely enjoy himself this weekend!

i hope you have a wonderful weekend and spend lots of time outside! i love all of the falling leaves and acorns! xo

p.s. title quote is by albert camus.

evening hymns

Evening Hymns A Take Away Show Presented By La Blogotheque, NxNE, SxSW and ASTW from La Blogotheque on Vimeo.

in our household, my husband is the one in charge of finding new music. i have always loved finding new music, but it is one of j's favorite things. this is great for me because it makes gift giving easy - iTunes are always a big win.

we've been listening to the band evening hymns for a few years now - their cd "spirit guides" is always on rotation in our home. j was checking for a new album the other day and came across this video with some of their new songs. i can't wait for the new album to come out next year!

in the meantime, i hope you enjoy this video that includes 2 of their new songs and make sure to check out their other stuff - i promise that you will not be disappointed.

p.s. the smoke shot from the beginning of the video is incredible. absolutely incredible!

atlanta flashback

a few months ago, the atlanta journal constitution posted this gallery of photos from atlanta in the 1970's. it was fun to see how much has changed in 40 years in metro atlanta. for any other folks who grew up in atlanta, make sure you check out this slideshow!




[steel company that is now atlantic station]


[briarcliff plaza with the plaza theater]

i won't reveal my source, but apparently the plaza drug shop (where urban outfitter stands today) in the above photo was the go-to place for drugs in the 1970's and therefore, a very popular hangout.

oh if the streets could talk!

"people seem to get nostalgic about a lot of things they weren't so crazy about the first time around" - author unknown

to die for ♥

last week, j and i celebrated our 2 year wedding anniversary by sticking to the traditional gift theme and a trip to chicago! i already shared my embroidered gift to j (see here), but hadn't showed anyone what j got for me.


he had a quilt made from all of my old band tshirts! i was so touched and excited by this gift that i was almost in tears!

a little background, while we were cleaning out every room for our large yard sale earlier this month, i was going through all of my old band tshirts from my highschool and college years. most of the shirts were too small to wear, but i couldn't part with them. the memories and time of my life represented by these shirts would never allow me to get rid of them. so i put them back in our closet to collect dust.



j decided that having the shirts turned into a quilt was the best idea to get use out of the shirts and to stick with the 2nd anniversary theme of cotton.

then, as if this wasn't sweet enough, i found out that it was my best friend in the world, beth, who made it! i knew she had been trying to learn how to quilt but i had no idea what she had been working on! this was her first attempt at a quilt and i couldn't be more proud or lucky! look at the incredible details and stitching!



am i the luckiest in the world? amazing husband - check! awesome best friend - check! quilt that i will cherish for the rest of my life - check!

now i just have to figure out if i want to hang it on a wall or use it (especially now that it's getting colder outside)! i also can't wait to have craft nights to have beth teach me how to quilt! thank you both for everything you are and everything you bring into my life! ♥

some bits of our weekend

here are some pictures from our weekend. i would have had more photos but i came down with a slight cold over the weekend and was resigned to our bed for most of saturday (which was unfortunate because the weather was beautiful outside).


friday night we went out to dinner and bowling with friends and met some new friends too! we had a blast and my face hurt from smiling at the end of the night which is always a good sign.



saturday morning we had banana bread for breakfast on the back porch since it was close to lunch time. we had the burritos and company at lunch. afterwards, i took it easy for the rest of the day and watched too much television.


although i wasn't feeling great, i had to suck it up to drive to blairsville, ga on sunday so we could spend the day with my husband's family. we had the best time and townes was in heaven! the hound was meant for the mountains.






this work week will be awfully busy (it always is this time of year) so i will apologize in advance if i am MIA. tonight (if i am feeling better), we will be finally getting some last items for our yard and to decorate (we still need a pumpkin)! hopefully the bad weather headed our way tonight doesn't frost!

"climb the mountains and get their good tidings. nature's peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees. the winds will blow their own freshness into you... while cares will drop off like autumn leaves" - john muir

i'll see you in my dreams

happy friday ya'll! i've been feeling restless lately and i think picking up the ukelele again will help ease my mind. this video has me inspired (that beach setting wouldn't hurt either) and now i can't wait to get home and play. i really miss learning new chords and songs. i need to get better so i can record some songs!

tonight we're going bowling with some friends - thanks to livingsocial for the great deal! we're going to a new mexican place in town that had me at "fried avocado tacos!" tomorrow we have a lunch date with some wonderful friends and then working some projects needed done around the house. on sunday, we're off to spend the day in the mountains (making a pit stop by a pumpkin patch first - yay) with my husband's side of the family. should be a lot of fun and i know townes will enjoy it!

speaking of townes (and by popular demand), check out our pup being adorable as always. he makes my heart so full!


have a wonderful weekend and i'll announce the giveaway winner later today! i can't wait to share our pictures from our trip to chicago with you guys next week! ♥

house project: new fence!

i guess you're officially a "grown up" when getting a new fence makes you excited. although it took us a long time to get excited to this adjustment, i am finally getting used to our new backyard setting. technically getting a new fence wasn't in our plans (at least no where in the near future) for our home and we miss our original yard sometimes, but we've made the best of the yard considering the circumstances.

this is what our backyard looked like a few months ago. very overgrown but very private:


that is our chain link fence that has been buried gradually over the years and then reinforced with chicken wire to keep things in (i.e., our dog townes) or things out (raccoons and neighbors - just kidding!):


a couple months ago, our neighbor was planning on moving and decided to tear down the trees and bushes (since technically they were really weeds). once his trees and bushes were down, our yard immediately looked bad. shabby and no privacy - see what i mean?


here's the other side of our yard with overgrown thorny bushes that were hard to maintain. we decided that we might as well have the trees and bushes on both sides torn down so that we could plant nice trees and bushes to improve our privacy and landscaping.


the chain link looks pretty bad, huh? we knew we needed to put up a wooden privacy fence and that bushes alone wouldn't cut it. we had a bunch of fencing companies come out and give us quotes. we ended up deciding to go with the basic dog-eared privacy fence and it was time to rip out the old chain link. we decided to tear it out ourselves to save some money.


tearing out the chain link was no easy task. there were areas where the fence was buried over a foot underground and covered with ivy. cutting through chain link will give you lots of blisters too!


the remaining chain link fencing below actually belongs to our neighbor so that part was left, but the rest was connected to our home and belonged to us so we removed everything except the posts since we wouldn't be charged and didn't want to dig up cement.


this is all of the stuff we found buried (or thrown) by the fence as we dug it up. 2 huge pipes and tons of bricks. apparently taking things to the curb was too difficult for the old residents.


our other neighbor decided he wanted us to leave the chain link fence up on his side and since it wasn't our fence, we left it; however, when they came to install the fence, we were informed that by putting the fence with the wood panels facing outward (posts on the inside) we would lose over 2 feet of space on the side of the yard. we made a last minute decision to put the posts facing outwards and although it's not typically the standard, we noticed that most of the people in our neighborhood had done the same. this caused some conflict with our other neighbor, so we ended up adding wood panels on both side of the fence on his side and i think all is well now. for anyone putting up a new fence, make sure you have a lot of open communication with your neighbors and that everyone understands how it will work before the crew is there installing it!

anyways, so here was our fence after it was installed! we really loved it, but it looked so bare and boring so we knew we wanted to landscape with some trees and bushes immediately.




we went to pike's nursery and bought 4 trees (2 purple plums, 1 cherry tree, and 1 japanese maple) and some flowering ivy. we bought a bunch of camelia bushes with various flower colors and styles too. we also bought 25 bags of mulch and 60 bags of top soil! we had a hell of a time getting them home but that's a whole other story. we laid them out where we wanted them and then it was time to plant!




we also had weed barrier laid down on the top soil to prevent tons of weeds growing in the future.


voila! here is our backyard landscaping currently. we still have to buy more mulch and lay down the bed liners and we want to plant some flowers soon to add more color. we also planted some lantanas around the base of our birdhouse which will be so beautiful next year. we even laid down some more grass seed to fill in spots of our grass that died over the summer (don't plant fescue in the south by the way - we'll be replacing it this spring).


i will continue to post more pictures as the yard evolves, but i hope you like what we've done so far.

have you had any huge projects come up that you weren't planning on? did you end up loving the results?