My favorite Clinton

Clinton Kelly from TLC's What Not To Wear was at Macy's the other night giving tips and a fashion show and promoting his new book. I have been loving this show the past few months and thought it'd be fun to see him LIVE so I headed over to check him out. He was just as funny and full of good info. Too bad I couldn't stay longer to get a photo with him, hehe.

Sand Fall

It was time for a road trip south to the Gulf. Unfortunately Steve had to work over the weekend so he stayed back but Kandis talked me into coming down to Panama City Beach with the them and the Howell's. We went in partial celebration of Brian's 30th birthday. With 6 hours at the beach all day Saturday it was the best way to start the Fall - sun, sand, and tans.
Us girls stayed all day at the beach while the guys played 18 holes for part of the day.
Kenedee had a slight obsession with the birds all day, chasing and feeding them.
I think we both love the beach.
My awesome twin bed room (I felt like I was twelve in here) but a flat screen made up the difference; building sandcastles with the kids; dinner at Sharky's
Sunset from our room, awww this is where it's at.
Our crew (minus Steve :( )
Happy Birthday 30 Brian. Thanks for the invite!

you're gay if you rollerblade?

We always make jokes about this. Kandis and me were supposed to meet up for our weekly rollerblade session this morning but since her mishap last week where she ate it on her butt she decided to postpone for one more week. I just happened to see this on a friend of a friends blog today and totally laughed. Classic. Yes, our husbands have rollerblades. Doesn't everybody?

cincinnati round 2

We met up with Steve's high school friends in Cincinnati over the weekend for golf and football. We had many good eats and good laughs and had fun hanging out. I LOVED eating Graeter's ice cream, a for sure highlight.

brunch munch

If anyone is in need of some good brunch recipes make these. We had a Primary Teacher Inservice Meeting a week ago which we brought brunch for and I tried out some new recipes. My friend Sarah made a Brunch Braid using crescent dough, scrambled eggs, and toppings - delicious and some blueberry muffins. So I wanted to get creative with some options for a meat, a fruit, and a veggie instead of more bread and egg items. I ended up making this yummy Pear, Pancetta, and Arugala Salad; Chicken and Sage Sausages; and Fruit Salad with Cannoli Cream. They were all great and I would recommend if you have brunch coming up on your calendar or to just make for fun. Good additions for your arsenal.

trading camping for museums

For the third time in a row, the Clark Family (excluding us) bailed on the camping weekend because they were scared it was going to rain. I was definitely disappointed but to make up for the family time we took a trip to the Fernbank Museum for some Georiga history, dinosaurs, planetarium, and IMAX. The little boys thought it was a very exciting day (minus the naps they didn't get) and us adults had a good time as well. Dinosaur bones are my fave.

the love of the game

I want to know if all you golf lovers love golf as much as this guy. Steve's work was having a fundraising golf tournament a few weeks back and he was invited to play in it. He was pretty excited and to prep for such a thing he tenderly washed and dried each club until his bag was set for play. I have never seen him do this but he tells me you have to clean your clubs often. He definitely takes care of his stuff. Go Steve!

heirlooms in my stomach

This is my favorite snack these days, well partially a meal or side dish. These are my Tomato Stackers and I could seriously eat them everyday but I don't. Just get a few different colors of Heirloom Tomatoes, some Fresh Mozzarella, Fresh Basil, EVOO (extra virgin olive oil), Balsamic Vinegar, Salt and Pepper.

Slice your tomatoes and your mozz and start stacking. I put a tomato, S&P the tomato, add a cheese slice, then a basil leaf, drizzle some EVOO and a little vinegar, then repeat two more times.

Doesn't this look like the most delicious and beautiful treat? Well...it is.

we heart JM

The end of August we went to the John Mayer Concert here and it was great. This was our second time seeing him live and we just love him. He jams out on the guitar all through the concert, I have never seen such a talented guitarist. Go John Mayer!


My Favorite song of his lately:

rainy days

We were having some serious bouts of rain for a few days and I was getting a little bored one day so I found this list online and I had already done half of them. Check!I documented my happenings.

Ten Ways to Enjoy a Rainy Day:
#1: Take Pictures √
#2: Movie Marathon
#3: Catch Up on Reading √
#4: Recycle Old Magazines √
#5: Cook Your Favorite Comfort Food
#6: Bake a Cake √ (made cupcake pops)
#7: Play a Board Game
#8: Take a Nap
#9: Work on a Craft
#10: Go Shopping √ (rainboots $10)

10 Commandments of Facebook

Hilarious commentary on how to use Facebook.
CLICK HERE

what's your deco style?

Check out this cool decorating tool at mydeco.com.
By answering a series of questions you can find our your decorating style.
Mine is Funky Modern
Your modern and lively sense of style is perfect for today's easy living, and just about suits any budget. Chances are that some of your favourite things were picked up at a car boot sale, in a market while on holiday, or handed down through the family. At the same time, you might have saved (or be saving) for the perfect Eames chair or Mies sofa, a classic that never goes out of style and something you will take with you from one home to the next.

is there a man in there?

CAN YOU FIND THE MAN IN THE COFFEE BEANS?
My friend Jewelz sent this to me and couldn't find the man, she thought it was a joke and asked if I could see the man.
› If you find him in less than 3 seconds your right brain is more developed than most people.
› If you find him between 3 seconds and a minute your brain is normal.
› If you find him between 1 minute and 3 minutes you need to eat more protein.
› And if it takes you longer than 3 minutes you need to do more games like these and exercise your brain!

Love it, my right brain is NORMAL, phew.

go world

I have to give a shout out for great Olympics in Beijing. We were watching them every night and loving it. I am still wondering how they put together that giant show for the opening/closing ceremonies. I don't think I have ever been as into the Olympics as I was this year. Go World!

miss kenedee is 2

Miss Kenedee is turning 2 today! She is pulling some serious faces these days. She is playing with her present from us (above) after we had a fabulous party last night at...CHUCK-E-CHEESE. And yes, she did love it. Thanks Barlows for the good times playing games with the little lady. I think Steve especially enjoyed himself, note the carousel - kenedee made him get on.

mr. clark's b-day

Our nephew Clark turned 4 on Wednesday and had a 'Mickah Mowse' birthday party with family and friends. AND he didn't even cry this year for the b-day song! It was all smiles while opening presents. . I think the kids loved all the prizes and favors.

guest for few days

So I saw this friendly spider crawling around my mirror last week and I didn't think anything of it. I came out to my car Sunday morning and saw this wonder. It was such a beautiful web! Apparently the spider had been hanging out behind my mirror living for days and decided to set up camp. Not for long though, I rid him of car loving dreams later that afternoon.

the reveal party

Steve's sister Kasey is pregnant with baby #3. She's had two boys in a row and so there was big excitement building for baby #3 to be a girl. They decided that they would bring a blue duck and a pink duck to their ultrasound appt today and have the nurse put whichever color duck in a box for the baby's gender in secret and they were going to open it tonight at a party with family and friends. We both wore pink!
Steve's mom made two cheesecakes, one with blue topping and one with pink and each guest was supposed to take the piece that they thought was the baby's gender.
Steve's mom Pip and Kasey
The final tally 15 girl votes and 6 boy votes.
After we ate they opened the box and found...THE PINK DUCK! The room cheered with excitement, Kasey started crying, the parental inlaws were getting misty, the babies were crying cause it was so loud - chaos I tell you. But I am so happy it was a girl and excited for the Kelley's to welcome Baby Tate in 4 months. YAH for GIRLS!