Silliness suits us...

This is what happened with an impromptu photo shoot:

We laughed and laughed at these pictures.

Life is so fun with him.

Morristown and a couple of showers

Today is Saturday and I'm really excited.

We've got two wedding showers in Morristown to attend.  Chris gets out of one, but he's joining me for the other...  For now though, he's at work and will only be coming up after his flag football game.

I hope they win!!

I won't be there though, because I'll be loving on my little family in Morristown.

ALL DAY!

(Darling, go kick some tails at this game today.  I do wish I could be there to cheer you on.)

Macy's heading up there with me... 
She's super excited too.

Seeing the fam is one of the best things in the world.  Especially now that there's an hour drive between us.  I've come to terms with it now (I think) and I treasure the time we get to spend in Morristown.  Especially when Ben is home.  (Where he should be.)

It hit me about two months ago that it would always be a little bit more challenging to see my fam.  Not that an hour is too far, but it's not easy to just pop in, visit, or help out.

I've come to terms with it because of the beautiful people who love and support me.  My husband who always makes the effort and understands.  The many phone conversations my mother and I have - she understands and misses me too.  Beth and I work together and love it.

You should know though - Chris and I love where we live - our house, this town, our family/friends that are in Knoxville...

Knoxville is my home now.  Chris is my family.

And I absolutely love it.

Morristown will always have a special place in my heart and that's where we're headed for today!

Here we come!

PS:  Family in Morristown, there is a house for sale in our neighborhood and one that comes on and off the market...  :)  Think about it.

This is what I walked into after work today...

He's pretty much the best thing since sliced bread.

And I adore him with all of my little heart.

Clever Household Tips

Mrs. Connell got these great tips in an email and sent them our way.  Very handy!!

Take your bananas apart when you get home from the store.  If you leave them connected at the stem, they ripen faster.  [Took our bananas off the stem the last time we grocery shopped!  Here's to keeping bananas longer.  Not that they last that long at our house...  We love bananas!]

Store your opened chunks of cheese in aluminum foil.  It will stay fresh much longer and not mold!

Peppers with 3 bumps on the bottom are sweeter and better for eating.  Peppers with 4 bumps on the bottom are firmer and better for cooking.

Add a teaspoon of water when frying ground beef.  It will help pull the grease away from the meat while cooking.

To really make scrambled eggs or omelets rich add a couple of spoonfuls of sour cream, cream cheese, or heavy cream in and then beat them up.

For a cool brownie treat, make brownies as directed.  Melt Andes mints in double broiler and pour over warm brownies.  Let set for a wonderful minty frosting.

Add garlic immediately to a recipe if you want a light taste of garlic and at the end of the recipe if your want a stronger taste of garlic.

Leftover snickers bars from Halloween make a delicious dessert. Simply chop them up with the food chopper. Peel, core and slice a few apples. Place them in a baking dish and sprinkle the chopped candy bars over the apples. Bake at 350 for 15 minutes.  [Tried this one last night...  ;(  It was a slight bomb, but maybe you'll have more luck!]

Heat up leftover pizza in a nonstick skillet on top of the stove, set heat to med-low and heat till warm.  This keeps the crust crispy.  No soggy micro pizza.

For easy deviled eggs, put cooked egg yolks in a zip lock bag.  Seal, mash till they are all broken up.  Add remainder of ingredients, reseal, keep mashing it up mixing thoroughly, cut the tip of the baggy, squeeze mixture into egg.  Just throw bag away when done easy clean up.

When you buy a container of cake frosting from the store, whip it with your mixer for a few minutes.  You can double it in size.  You get to frost more cake/cupcakes with the same amount. You also eat less sugar and calories per serving.  [Sounds so yummy!]

To warm biscuits, pancakes, or muffins that were refrigerated, place them in a microwave with a cup of water. The increased moisture will keep the food moist and help it reheat faster.

Start putting in your plants, work the nutrients in your soil.  Wet newspapers, put layers around the plants overlapping as you go cover with mulch and forget about weeds.  Weeds will get through some gardening plastic they will not get through wet newspapers.

Use a wet cotton ball or Q-tip to pick up the small shards of broken glass you can't see easily.  

Place a dryer sheet in your pocket.  It will keep the mosquitoes away.  [I've put dryer sheets in my pockets before to keep away the ol' mosquitoes.  My pretty mother, however, is a mosquito magnet...  So, I can't say if it was my mother or the dryer sheets, but it worked for me!]

To keep squirrels from eating your plants, sprinkle your plants with cayenne pepper.  The cayenne pepper doesn't hurt the plant and the squirrels won't come near it.

To get something out of a heat register or under the fridge add an empty paper towel roll or empty gift wrap roll to your vacuum.  It can be bent or flattened to get in narrow openings.

Pin a small safety pin to the seam of your slip and you will not have a clingy skirt or dress.  Same thing works with slacks that cling when wearing panty hose.  Place pin in seam of slacks and ... ta da! ... static is gone.

Before you pour sticky substances into a measuring cup, fill with hot water.  Dump out the hot water, but don't dry cup.  Next, add your ingredient, such as peanut butter, and watch how easily it comes right out.

Hate foggy windshields?  Buy a chalkboard eraser and keep it in the glove box of your car.  When the windows fog, rub with the eraser!  Works better than a cloth!

If you seal an envelope and then realize you forgot to include something inside, just place your sealed envelope in the freezer for an hour or two. Viola!  It unseals easily.

Use your hair conditioner to shave your legs.  It's cheaper than shaving cream and leaves your legs really smooth.  It's also a great way to use up the conditioner you bought but didn't like when you tried it in your hair.  [Tried this one and it works great!  My oldie but a goodie college roommate, Beth, taught me to do this a long time ago.  Now that we're hitched, Chris and I use up shampoo faster than you can say the words "shampoo and conditioner" and somehow there's always conditioner left over.  Perfect for shaving!]

To get rid of pesky fruit flies, take a small glass, fill it 1/2' with Apple Cider Vinegar and 2 drops of dish washing liquid; mix well.  You will find those flies drawn to the cup and gone forever!

Put small piles of cornmeal where you see ants.  They eat it, take it 'home,' can't digest it so it kills them.  It may take a week or so, especially if it rains, but it works and you don't have the worry about pets or small children being harmed!

The best way to keep your dryer working for a very longtime (and to keep your electric bill lower) is to take the filter out and wash it with hot soapy water and an old toothbrush (or other brush) at least every six months.  Dryer sheets cause a film to build up on the mesh that could potentially burn out the heating unit.  By rinsing it, you could even extend the life of your dryer for twice as long!  [Doing this one as soon as I can!]

Here's to happy housekeeping!

{All of the tips above have not been tried by yours truly.  Use at your own risk, but have fun doing it!}

Someone stop the groundhog from seeing his shadow...

SPRING

{A semi-bloom in our front yard}

Birmingham was wonderful for the weekend.

But I'm glad we're home...

Just in time to see everything start blooming.

The trees and flowers are blooming in B'ham, so here's to crossing our fingers

our spring is right around the corner!

Dinner at the Connells!

A wild hair struck us last week.

It was so wild that we had two nights of dinner guests.  In a row.

I don't even claim to cook.  I'm a baker.  But luckily, I married well.  With my husband's help, we provided a little nourishment to some we love.

Saturday night was kid night.  The Adams and the McMinns.  It proved to be a delightful evening (as we knew it would).

Four children under four.  It was more like organized chaos.

Jenny and Addalee

J. man who sat at the table like a champ.  Right beside Chris Danell.

Later, he commented he didn't have a charger like his friend, Grayson, did at the other end of the table.  He's four and is concerned about the charger.  (???)   His mother must be a good interior designer.

Scott, Brooke, and Arden.

Our full table.  Just the way we like it!

We dined on spinach salad (love Brooke), parmesan chicken (Mrs. Connell's delicious recipe), corn, potato casserole (my Mom's tried and true family fav), and a dessert (love Jenny) that was wonderful.  I can't remember the name though - something about a river of chocolate running through it.

Here's Grayson after dinner:

Macy was confined to the bedroom.  We weren't sure how she would handle all the kiddos...

Until Grayson found where she was and kept letting her out.  He likes dogs.  And luckily, Macy likes kids.  Even ones who kept wanting to pet her and chase her in the process.  They were great with her and surprising she was good with them.

We didn't push our luck though and put her back up when no one was watching...

These kids are really so sweet and full of personality!  Chris and I have no toys to speak of (except doggie ones), but these children made their own fun.

Whether it be playing on the staircase...

Giving sweet hugs to each other...

Or using yoga blocks to attack with...

these children are very resourceful!

(Darling, do you know where these were hiding?  I'm still wondering where they found them.)

A few cute cuddles with precious ones were squeezed in...

and good conversations were had.

Well, at least by these two.  They were off duty, enjoying their coffee.

But all of us know better than that.  Moms can't sit anywhere before the children are flocking to them.

PS:  Only parents drink coffee this late.

Like Mother, Like Daughter.

That's Arden's "cheese" face - isn't she just adorable?

The girlies.

The boys didn't get a picture...  Johnny had already turned on the tv because the excitement level had reached maximum allowable.

With the tv on Handy Manny, Grayson squeezed in the chair with Chris.

And all was quiet in the world...

TV may have some super power over children.  And maybe even their Dads.

These people don't over stay their welcome though.  When that clock struck 8:00pm sharp, half of the kids already had their pajamas.  Everyone was out the door by 8:02pm.

Our whirlwind of fun had been and left in two hours flat.

As I shut the door, Chris walked over to the tv.  Without hestitating, he turned it off and declared,

"Let's have a moment of silence."

And we did.  But then I remembered I had to go double up on my birth control.  :)

Over the hill to Grandmother's house...

Dear Grandparents and Aunt Bethie,

Are you excited?!  I'm coming to spend the weekend with you!

Mom didn't have time to give me a bath, but it wouldn't have changed my stinky breath.

Don't let that stop you from *cuddling and snuggling and loving* on me all weekend.

You know I'll be in your face as much as possible, because you're three of my favorite people ever.

Love,

Macy Girl

PS:  Who wants me to sleep with them??

Friday night love

It's guys night out, so we're doing girls night in...

Watching super girly movies, eating popcorn for dinner, and snuggling up with the little fur ball:

Happy Friday!

Have a wonderful, beautiful, hopefully dry, lots of love weekend!

Bulldogs

Go back with me a bit...

The first time I went to Chris' house (which would later be my abode as well) I noticed his bulldog pillows.  Two decorative pillows featuring a single bulldog on each.  One on "his" chair in the living room and the other with a prominent locale on his bed.

I should have known then what I was dealing with. 

Chris' love for the bulldog is deep, has no ties to Georgia, and is just as strong as the day I saw those pillows.  He's already picked out a name for our first ever bulldog.

The dog will be male (because I've been corrected and you don't buy girl bulldogs) and his name, ROCKY.

But, around the same time I learned of the bulldogs, Chris met this little fur baby:

Macy.

My little pride and joy.  The luggage I brought with me to our relationship.  The only living organism I've successfully kept alive for four + years.  I'm pretty proud of her.

Chris claims she tried to bite him the first time they met (Macy pleads the fifth) but they've moved past it.  So far past being enemies that they're best buds.  Or at least Macy thinks so.  She adores him.  Runs past me to get to him when we get home.  Walks over me on the bed to find him. 

Every little girl should have a good Daddy.  Even if she's canine.

Chris always thought his next dog would be a bulldog, but little did he know Macy was already on her way to his house.  So, for now, our little fur ball gets to be Chris' canine companion.

Until he actually gets his bulldog, pictures of them will have to do...  especially awesome puppy pics like these that Cameron sent us:

http://taza-and-husband.blogspot.com/2010/03/bulldog-birthday-party.html

You were absolutely correct, Cam!  Chris loved these pictures.  The only thing that would have made it better would for him to have been right in the middle of all those dogs.

Brad Paisley

Dear Scripps,

I've been a faithful watcher of your HGTV network for longer than I can remember.  When I'm not watching HGTV, the channel is on the Food Network.

Everyone who really knows me knows those are the channels I like most.

I'm faithful and loyal.

So, thank you.  Thank you for recognizing my devotion and for offering your sky box seats to Joseph during the Brad Paisley concert.  He and his fiance asked us to sit with them.

It was a first for me.

I thought the regular sky box seaters would know I was an impostor, but no one said anything.

Thank you also for the is that thick enough glass barrier that prevented me from falling to my death.

I'm sure it's sturdy.  There were other girls who were leaning on it.  I tried not to freak out about that.

You can sorta see it behind us here...  (look above Joseph's elbow...)

It was an incredible view of the concert.  A new perspective for Chris and me.

You even offered us food and beverages which of I had a much desired water and some yummy fruit.  No, thank you though on all the alcohol.  It's just not my thing, but you had enough there to satisfy a Marine unit.

Lindsey and I only left the confines of the box to visit with two pretty friends who were also enjoying the concert...

Jennifer and Allison.

Oh, and this is me and Lindsey - Joseph's fiance.  They're smack dab in the middle of engagement, so we tried to give them some encouragement.  :)

You provided everything we needed, so after our quick chat, we ran right back up to the box seats. 

Let's be honest - they're really plushy.

Thank you again Scripps Network Joseph and Lindsey!  We had a fabulous time with you and our hearing has just about returned.

xoxo,

Julie

Eric Church

Jennifer turns 27 years old!

POA:  Let's celebrate by going to the Eric Church concert.

We'll buy some food and of course refreshments...

and purchase awesome rock concert tees so we can pose with them in the lobby.

We'll have to take lots of pictures in order to...

blend in with the bazillion college age students that are there.

Let's take self-portrait shots

and sit on each other's laps.

We'll look more like we're 21 that way.

Then let's hop in front of the crowd and shoot a picture with the huge Eric Church logo in the background.

I'm sure those will look great.

When the party really gets started and the band gets to playin' -

we'll break out our air guitars...

and bust a move with the best of them.

Those early twenty-somethings won't even know us ol' late twenty-somethings are among them.  :)

Happy Birthday, Jennifer!

So glad we could celebrate with you.  :)

Tennessee vs. Georgia

Dinner with fun friends at Moe's.

[Where they have new whole grain tortillas.  Delicious!!]

Followed by a good ol' home basketball game:

Our game hosts for the evening:

Annie and Matt - the soon to be Mr. and Mrs. Ayers

Thanks guys!!

PS:  Weddings are sooo fun!  :)  We can't wait for yours!  I'm already picking out some fabulous shoes perfect for walking on grass and dancing.

the other fun 1/3rd of our posse

I picked up this handsome man for the game.

What can I say?  He's like the butter to my bread.

Tennessee vs. Georgia

In a display of greatness, Tennessee beat Georgia!  It was an awesome game.  I threw caution to the wind and even stayed out past 10pm.

And prayed that our car would still be where we left it in the "possiblity to be towed" lot. 

[My purse was still in there!]

The beautiful ending to a wonderful night out?  Ol' Blue was just where we left her.