life lately

st. augustine / boating on lake glenville / with reagan at my swearing in ceremony
6 yr. anniversary dessert / learning croquet in north carolina / reunion with friends in the mountains
celebrating passing the bar in st. augustine / swearing in ceremony with dad / big fires on a cold mountain weekend
sip & see for baby lep / mac loves fall in the mountains / cheering on the gators in the swamp

Happy Halloween!  Are you ready for trick-or-treaters tonight?  I may or may not have consumed 4 bite size snicker bars during the creation of this post...details, details.  

During my blogging hiatus this summer, I realized how much I miss having the highlights of each month documented.  I did a quick recap of the excitement in August, and today I thought I would share the highlights from September AND October.  It's hard to believe that November is upon us (cue the Christmas music!), but it's even harder to believe all of the fun that the past few months have delivered. 

Enjoy your Halloween, and know that I won't judge you for playing your favorite Christmas carols starting tomorrow.  I can already hear "O Holy Night" now...

xo,

DISCLAIMER: I do love Thanksgiving.  I don't want anyone to accuse me of jumping ahead in my holidays, I just happen to really, really love Christmas music.

favorite things: cozy and chic

1 // 2 // 3 // 4 // 5 

Our weekend trip to the mountains has me loving all things warm and cozy.  I think my new favorite thing might be having a "personal blanket" to cuddle up in when I hop into bed.  This gray and white beauty would do the trick and still be chic enough to throw over a couch or chair.  Nothing like being wrapped in coziness before snuggling under an oversized duvet.  I've also decided a fur vest is a new must in my fall and winter wardrobe, and I'm loving this one from C. Wonder.  

Also, I'm excited to be linking up today with an old friend from college, Annie.  (Fun Fact: we share a  maiden name, Annie Adams.  We caused our mutual friends more than a little confusion at first!)  Annie started this link-up with another friend from college, Morgan.  Annie and Morgan both have adorable blogs where they share little tidbits of their lives and pictures of their adorable baby boys.  Head on over to both blogs and link up for the first ever Wednesday Wishlist.  

xo,

chocolate cake + cream cheese icing

This weekend, we had a little mountain get away.  In addition to chasing down some cooler temperatures (yay for boots and sweaters!), we also celebrated my momma's birthday.  Leaves were changing, the air was crisp, fires were abundant, and this cake was DELICIOUS.  Next time you need a simple, homemade cake give this one a try.  The cake itself was moist and light, and the cream cheese icing was the perfect compliment to the chocolate.  Decadent but worth every bite if I do say so myself.  AND, as an added bonus, the entire cake can be made in one bowl.  

Chocolate Cake + Cream Cheese Icing

Original cake recipe from all recipes

Ingredients

Cake:

• 2 C. white sugar
• 1 3/4 C. flour
• 3/4 C. cocoa powder
• 1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1 tsp. salt
• 2 eggs
• 1 C. milk
• 1/2 C. vegetable oil
• 2 tsp. vanilla
• 1 C. boiling water

Icing:

• (1) 8 oz. package cream cheese, softened
• 3 Tbs. butter, softened
• 1 1/2 C. powdered sugar
• 1/8 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. vanilla

Directions:

Cake:

1. Preheat oven to 350.  Grease (2) 9 inch round pans.
2. Combine all dry ingredients in a large bowl.  Add eggs, milk, oil, and vanilla and mix for 2 minutes.
3. Stir in boiling water.  (The batter will be very thin)
4. Bake cakes for 30-35 minutes.
5. Cool 10 minutes in the pan; cool completely on wire racks.
6. Ice with cream cheese icing and serve.

Icing:

1. Beat cream cheese and butter at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy.  Gradually add sugar and salt, beating until blended.  Add vanilla.

Enjoy!

xo,

thought for the week: slow down

original image / quote

How ironic that this lesson is usually only learned retrospect?  How often have I rushed through some part of my day, week, or life (often because I wanted to be on the same time table as someone else) only to find myself reaching for the next thing once I got there?  High school, college, wedding planning, traveling, living in a new city, starting my first job, going to law school, and even my summer of studying all feel like a blur.

Though I wouldn't change my path thus far, I do wish I had taken some time to really enjoy the little things in each stage: mandated lunch breaks with friends around the tree in high school, 

hunkering down under a blanket by the fire the first winter I spent in a state that actually gets snow, having three day weekends for two years running as a law student.  

Now that we have "moved back home," I find myself wanting to rush to the next stage of my journey again.  Remodeling the house, finding the perfect job, having kids, all seem like things that need to be checked off the list...and quickly.  At times it can feel like I am falling behind as I see our friends getting promotions, having babies, or just living their "adult lives."  The reality is that life takes time. Friendships aren't born overnight, houses aren't built in a month, and the perfect job isn't necessarily going to fall into my lap.  As for kids, we all know that is a major life change and decision that shouldn't be made on anyone else's timetable.  

This is a precious stage of life.  Josh and I are surrounded by family and friends, we get to enjoy taking our time as we make our house a home, and we are blessed each day in ways we can't even comprehend.  I don't want to rush through this stage just to get to the next. Time is slipping by, but each day offers a chance to "slow down, hold on, and breath in."  Though not always glamorous or catalytic towards that next stage, I firmly believe that each day deserves to be cherished and enjoyed for all the little blessings it contains.  

How do you ensure you "slow down" enough to enjoy each stage of life? 

xo,

happy friday

original image

Here's to a weekend full of crisp fall weather, relaxing, indulging, and coffee.  

It's been great "re-entering" the blogging world, and I'm thankful for all of the comments and support.        (Thank you especially for the help with paint selection...more to come soon!)

Happy Friday, and I hope the weekend is wonderful!

xo,

road bump in decorating...paint colors

We have hit a bit of a road bump in house land lately, and it is completely my fault!  After spending the summer studying in what will be our dining room, I decided the wallpaper and drapes had to come down.  So, without a true plan in mind, we began scraping.  I won't lie, scraping wallpaper was a little therapeutic.  At times, we wondered why we decided to do it, but in the end, it was only one room and wasn't so bad.  We were lucky in the sense that there was only one layer...my parent's house had almost 100 years of terrible wallpaper when they moved into the house where I grew up.  

So, after scraping and sanding, we had walls that were ready for primer and paint.  I had decided that I wanted green walls in the new dining room.  Sort of an olive, sort of lighter toned, but not too blue and not too much like an ice cream parlor.  (The guy at the paint store loves me and my descriptions.)  With multiple trips to the paint store under my belt, we finally picked our color: 

Benjamin Moore's Georgian Green.  

Then the fun began.  

After deciding on green, I ran across this picture on Sam's blog that made me stop in my tracks.  

I loved the light tone on the wall with the contrast of the darker wood.  Living in Florida, light and airy rooms have a year-round appeal, and the few contrasting pieces really ground a room.  While color and texture are beautiful, sometimes in Florida it can just feel heavy.  So, I made two mock-ups with polyvore's new home design templates and tentatively showed Josh.  

Luckily for me, he preferred the more neutral room too!  Thus, the search for the perfect creamy/white paint has begun.  We are taking any and all suggestions, but here are a few at the top of my list.

These all look much more saturated and gray than in real life!

Any help out there?  Would love to hear about your "go to" neutral paint colors!

xo,

favorite things: "b" edition

1 / 2 / 3 / 4 (on sale!) / 5 (on sale!) 

There is something so classic and rich about black and brown.  Worn separately each color is great, but I think pairing black and brown together makes the most impact.  One of my favorite fall outfits is black skinny pants, a black tunic, and brown accessories.  The trick is finding a warm, cognac brown (like the colors featured above) to brighten up all black.  

For all you Floridians, adding a shot of black or brown can make "dressing for the season" a little easier during these transitional months as well! 

Do you like pairing black and brown together?

xo,