Bon Anniversaire, Matthew!

Happy 28th birthday to my one and only ginger, Matthew Dale! 

Since Matt is in the throes of his first semester of business school, I wanted to make him a nice home-cooked meal that he could enjoy after a long day at school. Nothing says comfort food like mashed potatoes, green beans, pot roast, homemade bread, and Funfetti cake. 

First up, white cheddar mashed potatoes. I had only made mashed potatoes once before (many years ago), but this recipe seemed pretty simple. I also figured that once you add enough salt, butter, milk, sour cream, and cheese then anything will eventually taste good. The next time I make these (and there will be a next time seeing as I had to buy a 5 pound bag of Yukon gold potatoes) I think will add more cheddar and whisk the potatoes a bit longer to achieve that silky smooth mashed potato texture.

I searched high and low for a pot roast recipe that didn't have too many steps and looked delicious. I finally found a recipe on some random blog, and what stood out to me the most was the spice rub that coated the meat before its grand entrance into the crock pot. The last time we made pot roast, it had zero flavor, which was a direct result of Matt and I having no idea/ability to gauge how much seasoning food needs. I am really hoping that this magical skill, which only mothers/grandmothers/aunts seem to possess, will come to me sooner rather than later. Besides needing to cook for 30 minutes or so longer, the pot roast and the accompanying gravy tasted light years better than our last attempt.

I had initially planned on buying a package of Sister Schubert's rolls at Publix and calling it a day, but then I remembered seeing a recipe for homemade bread that you can make in a Le Creuset French oven, and I figured I'd give it a shot. I mean, how hard could it be? It is only 4 ingredients, and the lady who penned the recipe said that the whole process was so easy that "it's like magic or something." I can do this!

.....I can't do this. Waaahhh! After 16 hours of rising, my dough was soupy and closely resembled plaster of paris. Epic fail. Goodbye homemade bread.

Though the bread making experience was a disaster, the rest of our dinner tasted great and the birthday boy enjoyed a nice hearty meal. 

We closed out the meal with a classic Funfetti cake. Fun fact about the Funfetti cake - I had never made a layered cake before, and typically when I make a cake I always manage to rip off the top layer while icing. This time, however, I successfully assembled and iced a layer cake that did not look like it had been mutilated moments before (#victory). 

After we ate our birthday cake, Matt finally got to open his cards and presents. Since the EPL season just kicked off, I got him a new Arsenal shirt and an Arsenal soccer scarf to wear on Saturdays when he watches his team play. Lucky for us, the through street outside of our building was recently opened back up, giving us a 2 minute, straight shot walk to Fado Irish Pub. Looks like our Saturdays will be filled with EPL in the morning and college football in the afternoon/night. I'm not complaining.  

I also presented him with an envelope containing a surprise activity which turned out to be...tickets to the Atlanta Cheese Festival! We enjoy nothing more than sitting down to a nice cheese and meat plate with crusty bread, fresh fruit, and a cold beverage on the side, so I think this event is right up our alley. Be on the lookout for a future post about our adventures at the ACF...

Even though this was his one-year anniversary present, I wanted to sing the praises of the Smathers & Branson team and the wonderful job that they did on designing Matt's needlepoint "life belt." I had pondered buying Matt a needlepoint belt for a while, but was overwhelmed with all of the choices that fit his personality. When I discovered that S&B made custom belts, I knew this was a perfect fit. I chose 10 items that I wanted featured on the belt, submitted them to S&B, received a mock-up of the design, and in 6 weeks the belt was delivered to my door in a charming little wooden box. The custom belt was not that much more expensive than S&B's regular belts, so if you are looking for a personalized gift then definitely consider designing a life belt! 

Enjoy these last two years, Matthew Dale, your 30s are coming for you! 

Scandal and How to Get Away With Murder Premieres

The majority of my TV repertoire falls into the reality TV category: Dance Moms (don't judge - the closest any of us has ever come to doing a flawless arabesque is mid wipe-out at the bar after one too many G&Ts), Top Chef, Project Runway, House Hunters, etc. I also have a (weird?) fascination with crime shows like 48 Hours and Dateline Mystery. I do not, however, watch a lot of the scripted shows that pull viewers in each week and cause a flurry of social media updates as soon as the credits begin to roll. This is probably due to the fact that I used to work in public accounting and inevitably had to sacrifice shows that I liked due to my terrible work schedule. Sticking to reality shows that I could watch on my own time without really caring if the current week's episode got spoiled (which it never did because no one is posting about the Top Chef contestant who totally effed up his risotto and was told by Padma to pack his knives and go) seemed to better fit my lifestyle. 

Now that I have escaped public accounting and have more time on my hands, I figured it was time to get back into the scripted TV game. Nowadays, if you do not religiously watch House of Cards, Orange is the New Black, Breaking Bad (RIP), or Game of Thrones, then you will have some fierce shade thrown your way and be 12 steps behind your colleagues' lunchtime convos. I say NO MORE! I am attempting to break into this club with Scandal and the new ABC drama, How to Get Away With Murder ("HTGAWM"). Note to the reader - turn back now if you don't want to know what happens in the premieres.

SCANDAL PREMIERE

I cannot claim to be an original "gladiator" who has watched Scandal from Day 1. In fact, I started binge watching Scandal this past April while my husband was away at back-to-back bachelor parties. His absence gave me the perfect opportunity to dig up an old email address that I had yet to use for a free trial month of Netflix and get to work. By the end of the first episode, I was hooked. I loved Cyrus and Abby's sarcastic quips and Mellie's piercing comments that left a lasting sting. Top it off with Olivia's graceful style and the way President Grant looks at her, and any 20-something woman instantly picks up the ability to rationalize some of the completely heinous things that these people have done. 

I have been eagerly awaiting the Season 4 premiere of Scandal with bated breath, hoping beyond hope that this won't be the season where the show starts to lose steam, introduces boring/overused/stupid plot lines, or, even worse, fails to keep my attention anymore. I have seen this dance before and had my heart broken one too many times: Gossip Girl, Gilmore Girls, Glee (do I only watch shows that start with "G"?); I don't want to see this happen to Scandal! Not Scandal! 

First things first. Olivia Pope is known for drinking gigantic glasses of red wine and munching on large, fluffy bowls of popcorn in her impossibly cute Georgetown apartment (she has a grand piano in there, people). Given that Olivia is teeny tiny yet still manages to rule DC fueled by only two items must mean that this is the diet sent from the TV Heavens that I need to jump on board with ASAP. 

To pay proper respect to Ms. Pope, the gaggles of women who gather on Thursday nights for their Scandal fix bust out the red wine and popcorn, preferably drinking their vino out of Olivia's famous oversized wine glass. In real life, though, Kerry Washington does not drink red wine (or any alcohol for that matter) and neither do I. I don't care for popcorn either, so for my solo viewing party (womp womp) I stuck with a Sweetwater 420 and a bowl of lightly salted Snapea Crisps. <<< Try these! They taste like puffy Cheetos without the orange cheese dust. You can even snag them at Whole Foods which instantly makes them chic and healthy. 

Now on to the review...

At the end of Season 4, we left OPA and the Grant Administration in a bit of a mess. Fitz's young son had just been murdered on Olivia's father's order, and her crazy mother Maya was accused of the crime and hidden away. Fitz was re-elected for another four years and also found out about his wife's sexual assault at the hands of his deceased father. We were left with Harrison's life on the line, but as all fans know, Columbus Short is not coming back this season due to legal troubles and thus we can assume that Harrison's life is no more. Quinn and Huck had a really creepy romance going on that I wish would end immediately, and Huck learned that his pre-B-613 family is alive and well. Lastly, we saw Olivia and Jake fly off into the sunset in order to escape the chaos of their lives... 

Instead of giving a synopsis of the episode that you can read on any entertainment website, I am just going to list out my totally subjective thoughts about the Season 4 Premiere: 

1. Loved that Olivia was reading Gone Girl on the beach in the opening scene. I think we would be fast friends. 

2. Harrison's death "revelation" was anticlimactic given that everyone knew it was going to happen. The only time the characters seemed to show true emotion about his death was at his uber depressing funeral. Even though Harrison didn't have the most exciting story lines, it is sad seeing OPA a member down. 

3. Cyrus, stop trying to make the side-buzz haircut happen, it's not going to happen. 

4. Fitz tried to commit suicide after his son's death? 

5. Olivia's mom is dead? Doubt it. That woman is like a cockroach - a nuclear blast couldn't kill her.

6. Mellie had some zingers this episode and it was a tear-jerking moment when she laid down on her son's grave. 

7. Huck still creeps me out. We would not be fast friends.

8. I'm glad that they brought back the "situation that needs fixing" story line reminiscent of the episode construction of Seasons 1 and 2. Hopefully they will use these situations as lead-ins into more involved plots as opposed to individual problems that are confronted, solved, and put aside at the end of each episode. 

9. I'm calling it now - the final scene of the show will be Fitz and Olivia on their farm in Vermont. I just wanted to get that out there.

10. This moment. I can't. 

HTGAWM PREMIERE 

ABC did a great job of hyping up its new Shonda Rhimes-produced show HTGAWM. The promos were suspenseful and packed with energy, in typical Shonda Rhimes fashion. I was even more excited to tune in once I found out that Liza Weil (aka Paris Gellar from Gilmore Girls) was a prominent cast member. Throw in the actor who played Ginny Weasley's pre-Harry Potter boyfriend, Dean Thomas? Sold!

In full disclosure, I had to re-watch the premiere because I fell asleep 20 minutes into my initial viewing, and I now have mixed feelings after concluding my second showing of HTGAWM. First, I am hoping that the show can slow down and develop a little more. I'm not  fan of shows that time-hop all over the place, and this one was (trying to be edgy?) bouncing all over the place from the very first scene. They've already picked which students get to intern at Professor Keating's firm? Law school friends - does this really happen in your 1L year or is it strictly reserved for Legally Blonde and HTGAWM? Professor Keating's husband is dead? I can't imagine that the show will spend its entire life trying to cover up one murder. Only in TV land can someone as important as a husband be killed and everyone seem to forget about it a few months later, so maybe this death is just a small bump in the road. Second, a lot of the characters' lines seemed contrived and a bit predictable. Nothing they said shocked me or made me laugh, as the characters in Scandal are so capable of doing. Third, the guy from Harry Potter has a terrible American accent and I am waiting on pins and needles for him to exclaim, "Neville's got a remembrall!"

I am definitely going to give HTGAWM a few more chances. If you look back at the first episode of any show, it looks and feels totally different than later episodes. Here's to hoping that the producers/directors/actors find a comfortable groove that works for them and for us, and we can all eventually become one happy family. 

Viral Video Vendredi: Mean Tweets

I love that talk-show hosts like Ellen DeGeneres, Jimmy Kimmel, and Jimmy Fallon post all of the funny highlights from their shows on their Youtube pages. If I need a good laugh, I typically go to one of those three pages, sort by the most popular video uploads, sit back, and relax. Just last night I was watching videos on the iPad and laughing it up in the den while my husband read in the bedroom. When I came in to show him one of the videos he said, "Oh good, I was afraid you were out there just laughing to yourself." Why would I be laughing to myself? Stanford Blatch from SATC said it best: "Judgy wudgy was a bear." 

A while back, Jimmy Kimmel started a segment called "Mean Tweets" in which celebrities read one mean tweet apiece written about themselves. I'm not sure if the celebs pick their favorite mean tweets to read on the air, or if the producers/personal assistants troll through Twitter and supply them with the funniest options. Regardless, it is absolutely hilarious watching these famous people's interpretive readings of the tweets, and I find it refreshing that most of them actually LOL mid-read. Below is Mean Tweets #7, which means Mean Tweets #1 - #6 are just around the riverbend for your viewing pleasure! (Also be sure to check out the special editions which include NBA player, NFL players, and musicians). A fair warning to anyone out there who is easily offended, most of the tweets have vulgar language, but it is bleeped out. There are some mean tweeters out there, folks, and we should rise above! Unless of course you are just being a smart ass for the fun of it and simply want to be featured on Jimmy's segment, in which case, keep on tweeting on. 

             

Surprise Trip Tuesday: Charleston

Who loves out of the blue surprises? Me! Unfortunately for my husband, I am the Queen of discovering surprises and blowing it for myself. I was always am that child adult who cannot sit still or let it go(ooooo) once she learns of a surprise coming her way. Well lo and behold, I received an email this morning with the subject "Surprise!" from my sweet, ginger-headed husband detailing our reservation for a fall weekend in Charleston! 

Lovely Southern houses

The Angel Oak Tree

Those who know me best know that roasting on the beach for a week is not my ideal vacation, and I have the awkward sunburn "tans" to prove it. (I know, I know - Charleston is on the water, but we are going over Halloween weekend which is not exactly peak sunbathing weather and thus is perfect for moi). I love visiting new places and exploring what makes them unique, which in Charleston is definitely the old Southern charmers, the massive plantation homes, carriage rides through the city, and of course the AMAZING restaurant scene. Look out, Caitlin, I am about to cross off a few more restaurants from Southern Living's 100 Best Restaurants in the South.

I know a lot of people out there have visited Charleston, so if you have any suggestions on where to go, what to do, or the best places to grab a meal, then please leave me a comment and impart your knowledge!

Cheers, I'm off to start a Charleston Pinterest board.....

W&L Young Alumni Weekend 2014

#wluYAW has come and gone, and the weekend did not disappoint! We took off from Atlanta bright-eyed and bushy tailed on Friday morning. My excitement about returning to Virginia took a nasty turn as soon as we landed in Roanoke and all I saw was RAIN. Sleeting, gray, cold, nasty rain. What?! No! Where are my lovely blue skies and the pleasant fall chill that is tempered with the quick tie of a pashmina?! Not in Virginia, that's where. I immediately began to regret not packing my Barbour, which has replaced the grey Northface of my college days as the official outerwear of students and W&L alumni alike. Kids these days - they are too stylish for their own goods.

Getting close to Lex! The classic exit 188B sign.

We took off for Lexington in our Toyota Yaris and upon arrival checked into the Best Western, "the official hotel for the class of 2009!" In all honesty, the Best Western exceeded my expectations and was clean and odorless, all positive points to take forward for next year's #wluYAW.

We drove back into town and stopped for lunch at Pure Eats, a locally-sourced burger joint that took over the spot formally occupied by the Patisserie. Though I'm sad that I will never be able to order my favorite turkey/smoked gouda/cranberry sandwich again, Pure Eats is a cool little restaurant serving flavorful burgers, crispy homemade fries, specialty donuts, and (ding ding ding!) local craft beers. Matt tried out the Blue Lab Oktoberfest while I sampled the Devil's Backbone pumpkin ale. These two local breweries were sadly not around when we were in school, but we were able to visit Blue Lab a few years ago while in town for a sorority sister's wedding. On our next visit I definitely want to check out Devil's Backbone, which apparently has a lot more space to hang out à la SweetWater Brewery here in Atlanta.

Naturally, our first stop after lunch was your Washington and Lee University Store. We got to see the trifecta of amazing bosses: April, Dave, and KC. We reminisced about funny bookstore memories, caught up on changes to the store, and did a little shopping. It is really too bad that they do not sell this hot item anymore, yours for the 2009/2010 school year price of only $30:

We also snapped a group picture before heading out, which will subsequently be framed, matted, and hung in our home.

Check out these fratty glasses that were included in our #wluYAW swag bags.

Later that evening we attended the President's Society cocktail hour at President Ruscio's/Robert E. Lee's house. We got to meet alumni from other chapters and learn the winners of the chapter of the year awards. How did Atlanta not win in the large chapter category!? Unacceptable! We need to show the DC chapter, with its flocks of W&L graduates each summer (I was one of them many moons ago), who is boss. The campaign to reclaim our title in 2015 is already underway, so consider yourself warned, DC.

That night the school hosted a party on Canaan Green for everyone who had returned for #wluYAW. Let me tell you, the university has really stepped up its game! The party had a swanky wedding reception atmosphere with large white tents, green and pink uplighting, plush lounge areas, fun music, themed food stations, and an open bar (naturally). The food stations ranged from Asian fusion where you assembled your own Chinese take-out carton, to a mashed potato bar with all the fixin's served in pink martini glasses. 

Some of the 2009 Thetas at #wluYAW flying the kite.

We hopped around after the Friday night party but came to find out that there were not any large scale undergraduate parties happening that night, and that the main event was the Saturday night party at Red Square. We did manage to make it out to Windfall for a bit and were herded on to Traveller at the end of the night, quietly requesting to be dropped off at the Best Western as current undergraduates were rattling off the names of their dorms and fraternity/sorority houses (don't mind the old fogies in the back of the bus!). Another point to take forward, especially for people reading this who will attend their five-year reunions in the next couple of years - the shuttle system worked really well for us alumni during the entire weekend. We never had to worry about finding a ride or being unable to get where we needed to be, which is a God-send in a town without cabs or Uber. 

Saturday morning consisted of managing mild hangovers and getting back over to campus for the alumni brunch. Point to take forward - the brunch spread was not fabulous and left me craving something hearty. Catering services, I am four years out of college and struggling with a hangover that is about to rear its ugly head, and while this salmon frittata that you prepared looks lovely, I need cheese grits, bacon, sausage, and pancakes ASAP. They also did not have any coffee which caused a lot of anger amongst the coffee drinkers, and there was no champagne at the bar (but there was red wine if you desired a nice glass of cab sauv at 11:00 am). So note to self, next year I need to come packing to the Saturday brunch.

The class of 2009 at the Saturday morning brunch. 

After brunch we wandered around to various events, enjoying the BEAUTIFUL day that God provided after hearing my sad cries upon touchdown in Roanoke the day before. We strolled past the Theta house, attended the first half of the women's soccer game, hit up the Bloody Mary/mimosa bar at the Mock Con 2016 party, and then headed to the Pi Phi house for cornhole and (more) day drinking - when in Rome, right? 

The school hosted another alumni party on Saturday night, this one centered on Virginia beer and wine, BBQ, and blue grass. This party was more in line with what I experienced as a student, but luckily they held this one up on Canaan Green as opposed to my senior year when it was held on the Colonnade with almost zero lighting. Lighting = upgrade! The band was great, the beer was cold, and the BBQ was better than expected (I am also a BBQ snob, but that can only be blamed on being born and raised in Memphis).

The football game started at 7 pm, which allowed the team to make use of the stadium lights that were installed my senior year (cue the gasps and side eye from everyone with D-1 football teams). The school has also allowed fraternities and other groups to start tailgating on the law school lawn, something that did not exist when I was in school (cue more gasps and more side eyes). Hopefully next year the football game will be during the day so that we don't have to choose between the BBQ event that we paid for and the tailgate events down by the football game. Matt's fraternity has the best chef (he created the blackened chicken penne pasta dish that graces the Southern Inn's menu and that we recreated as the main dish for the Lexington-themed food station at our wedding), and while hanging out at the fraternity house earlier in the day, the smells of Jimmy's fried chicken that he was preparing for the tailgate filled the hallowed halls of Pi Phi and left me salivating at the beer pong table. Plain and simple, next year I need to make it to the football tailgate.

We were able to catch the first half of the football game, which is a major accomplishment for W&L students. My grandfather still laughs about the time they came up with my parents for my freshman year Parent's Weekend and the cheerleaders at the football game held up signs saying "Don't Leave!" I was also able to meet up with the parents of a friend from Memphis whose son is a freshman at W&L and plays on the football team. It was so nice to catch up with them and hear how things were going back at St. Agnes, but I was also very jealous knowing that they and their son had four more years of W&L ahead of them! 

We wandered to the Theta house for the halftime reception, complete with meatballs and coffee drink (though sadly no baked brie in the shape of a kite). Some things never change. We found ourselves on old composites, checked out the rooms on the third floor, and peeked in on the chapter room. It is amazing how everywhere on campus still smells the same: the sorority house, the Commons, the bookstore. You walk into a building and smell those familiar smells, and you almost feel transported like you are right back at school heading to class or going to srat lunch. They really need to figure out a way to bottle smells like that.

The rest of the night consisted of a lot of beer pong and the band party at Red Square. It is funny how the current fraternity guys have completely different rules and formalities that the older guys really did not like/understand. New school vs. old school. East coast vs. west coast. They even had a re-rack called the Obama, which is funny because he was only five months into his first term as President before my husband graduated. 

When it was all said and done, we rode the proverbial struggle bus plane back to Atlanta on Sunday morning, thanking the Lord that it was only a one-hour flight and that we would soon be home to lounge the day away and nurse our aching heads and stomachs. (Note to self - do not let your husband book an 11 am flight that departs 45 miles from the location where you wake up only five hours after having gone to bed. The struggle is real.) I am thankful for Coca-Cola, greasy food, and the luxury of being able to take a three hour nap on a Sunday afternoon, all of which made it possible for me to be here today and write this post. I hope to stave off the multi-day hangover for a few more years, or at least until after we return next fall for my class' 5-year reunion. #wluYAW, see you next September.

Viral Video Vendredi: You Forgot the Blueberries

Happy Friday! I am currently sitting in Hartsfield-Jackson composing a weekly feature I am calling "Viral Video Vendredi," vendredi being French for Friday. I developed a love of all things French during our two-week honeymoon in Paris and Nice. You better believe I watch every single House Hunters International episode set in France (particularly Paris) with ravenous eyes, plotting the steps I have to take to make my home in the City of Lights. My husband thinks that I am kidding when I tell him we are moving to France one day, but he is so terribly mistaken. Don't stand between a woman and her lovely French markets; hot, crusty baguettes; creamy French cheeses; and chilled, bubbly (and legit) champagne. I even turned our home into a Parisian cafe for our first anniversary a few weeks ago, but I'm sure I will cover that fun project in a later post...

For now, I want to focus on the real reason for this post: viral videos are hilarious, make us forget everything that is going on around us for a few glorious minutes, and must be shared with everyone we know. I cannot count the number of times I have started watching Youtube videos late at night only to look up and realize it is wayyyyy past my bedtime. 

My first VVV is an oldie but goodie, and was shown to me a few years ago by my good friend Jessie. I have re-shown this video countless times to family and friends, eagerly anticipating their reaction at the crescendo. If you have a viral video that you would like to share, then please leave a comment below or contact me! 

                                 

Countdown to Young Alumni Weekend

Tomorrow my husband and I are flying to Virginia for his 5-year reunion at Washington and Lee University (from here on out referred to as "W&L")! The thought of celebrating this reunion is probably odd to most people, but that is what makes our university so special. With only about 450 students per grade, the school exudes a small, charming, friendly, and familiar feel to everyone who either strolled down the Colonnade for four years or is merely passing through Lexington on a Civil War Landmarks of America tour. Unlike many of our friends in the South, we do not have Division-1 national championship-vying sports teams that bring us back multiple times per year, and the 8+ hour drive from Atlanta to Virginia is not easy when you have a full-time job and your husband is in a full-time MBA program. Hence, going back to a place that means so much to us and which we do not frequently get to visit (not to mention getting to relive the glory days of college with students who are now my "little" cousins' ages) is very exciting to us and makes for a work week that feels never-ending! In my eager anticipation to get back to Lex-Vegas, I have compiled a list of the top 10 things that I am looking forward to: 

1. The iconic scenery of the rolling Blue Ridge mountains and the golden leaves gracing the trees

2. Cool, crisp Virginia weather

3. Paying a visit to the Washington and Lee University Store where Matt and I met as work studies six years ago, catching up with our old bosses who served as matchmakers, and stocking up on W&L gear (though unfortunately not being able to swipe it home). Side note - I hope today's work studies enjoy playing "Which Sorority Girl Swipes Home the Most Stuff Today" game during their shifts as much as I did.

4. Strolling around Lexington and checking out all of the new stores/restaurants that have popped up since we graduated. 

5. Playing beer pong at the fraternity house with the current students and feeling like I am way too old/questioning why I ever thought Natty Light tasted good.

6. Hopefully paying a visit to my old sorority house. We typically had a reception during half-time of the football games, but since the game is at 7 pm I'm not sure if they will be having one or not. 

7. Spending time with our friends who we do not get to see very often and re-hashing everyone's most embarrassing college stories. Two words: cheesy beard.

8. Visiting the Blue Lab Brewery and trying lots of different Virginia craft beers at Saturday night's Virginia Beer and Wine/BBQ event. My name is Molly and I am a craft-beer snob. My 18-22 year-old self would be so disappointed (see number 5 above). 

9. Eating lunch at either The Southern Inn or the Bistro on Friday as we roll into town.

10. Reminiscing about the best four years of my life and all of the nostalgic flashbacks I'm sure I will have. 

I'll leave you with this video which perfectly captures our university and for anyone with a connection to W&L, will give you happy chills:

                                 

My first post!

Alright ladies and gentleman, this is my first blog (test) post. My objectives for this first post are to see how the font/coloring/spacing looks, test the functionality of the widgets that I installed, and practice my free writing. So....here we go! 

The pictures below are from our August 2013 wedding in Memphis, TN. Honestly, I chose these photos as the subject of my test post because they were readily available on my computer desktop and brought back a host of memories about this amazing reception and the unique, personal details that made it truly us. Instead of having the typical groom's cake, we opted to serve guests a savory midnight-snack centered around our love of Coca-Cola and the Braves, two Atlanta staples. On the menu were mini sliders and hot dogs, hot, buttery popcorn, and custom made cotton candy, all of which were served in antique Coca-Cola crates reminiscent of those used by concession vendors walking up and down the rows at baseball games. Guests washed down these late-night treats with ice-cold Coca-Colas in glass bottles. This concept would not have been possible without our incredibly talented and lovely wedding designer, Brittany Schwaigert of GreyGrey Designs. We had such a beautiful wedding and wish we could do it all again! (I'm sure my parents' bank account disagrees.)

We are at that age where we have many close friends getting married each year. Though our 2014 wedding season has come to an end, we already have four on the books for 2015! These include a coworker and pledge brother of my husband, and two of my close friends from Memphis. My husband has been a groomsmen four times already and will achieve number five with his pledge brother's wedding next May July, but I am very excited to announce that I will be in my first wedding (besides my own - only a bride, never a bridesmaid?) for my dear friend Marion! Let the bachelorette and shower planning begin (I'm looking at you, Pinterest)!