Five Whole Years!

I couldn't be more honored to share that Ben and I got to celebrate five years together earlier this month! Rather than from our first date, we technically celebrate our dating "anniversary" on the day that we first said "I love you!"

I ended up buying a card this year, which I believe is a first because I usually love to DIY everything! I was sure to still letter the envelope myself!

I got Ben a nice watch that he was looking at as a wedding accessories. He got me MANY small items, most of which will be displayed and used on our wedding day!

One particularly special gift that Ben got me was a prompted journal to help document our love story! We paged through it together on the couch and got a sense of the scale of our commitment to each other... it was so special!

We got to spend some nice, quality time together at a restaurant that we had never been to before called House of Cards. It's located in downtown Nashville, hidden beneath the Johnny Cash museum, and is set up like a hidden old-time magician's club. Our entrance into the restaurant really set the tone for the night: a descending stairwell lined with stones, leading into a red curtain-lined hallway. Dark mood-lighting, a mysterious air about the place: the atmosphere and ambiance were absolutely top notch!

There was a formal dress code, so everyone was dressed up and fancy. There were two running magic tables throughout the night: sleight of hand card tricks and things like that. They had a photographer roaming around that took your photo and printed it out for you before the end of the night.

The food was yummy, but the scene and entertainment were extraordinary. We were surprised to find out at the end of the night that we ALSO got to go to a more formal magic show in a small theater in the restaurant. The magician was funny and very impressive.

After the show, we sat at the bar and ate dessert, before wandering around and discovering an outdoor terrace. We really felt transported to a different world, and it made our anniversary so special!

I'm so grateful to have this special guy in my life! Truly, he is the best, and I can't wait to marry him this summer! Here's to five years and many, many more!

Happy Easter 2018!

This Easter was a very fun, special, and relaxed occasion indeed!

Even though the weather here in Nashville has still been chilly, Ben and I have been trying hard to make it feel like spring inside of our little home! We've already had a few different flower centerpieces this season: tulips...

Ben took this picture!

...and chrysanthemums!

In preparation for the holiday weekend, I pulled out an old holiday recipe card and baked some Spritz cookies!

We visited Ben's family and got to spend a relaxing weekend together. It was full of leisure activities: playing the guitar, going to the library and even hitting a few golf balls off a mountain for fun...

We stayed up late watching a movie and eating dinner in front of the TV. On Easter itself, we woke up slowly to the sound of the sunrise church service happening outside (Ben's family graciously hosts the service on Easter morning)!

We had festive coffee, got ready for the day...

...and went to brunch downtown. We got to walk by the river and hang out with Ben's sister during the afternoon.

In the evening, we grabbed a quick bite to eat (as well as a sweet treat) and headed home!

It was so nice to get to be fully present and spend time with people I love: a lovely recharge for the busy weeks and months ahead.

Fiance-Valentines for the Last Time!

Happy Post-Valentine's Day!! I'm so excited to share some of the details of this very sweet holiday!

First off, Ben and I both realized about a week beforehand that we were working all day and all evening on Valentine's Day. SO we decided to spread out the celebrations over three days!

The day before the official holiday, I made a bunch of heart-shaped spritz cookies, using the cookie press that I got for Christmas for the very first time!

I wrote out a (sassy) card for Ben...

(all in good fun)

...fancy-ed up the envelope...

...and wrapped each gift in a unique way.

We exchanged gifts that evening. Ben got me some beautiful earrings: an everyday pair and a special occasion pair as well! I got Ben a pair of shoes and made him a hand-crafted vow book with brainstorming pages and enough paper for a few drafts! I'll share some photos in a new post soon!

On Valentine's day itself, I busied myself with a few lettering projects since I had the morning off. I spruced up my coffee...

...and made the fish tank merry!

I also packaged up some of the spritz cookies for my students and fellow dancers that I would see throughout day.

After a long day of working, Ben and I were able to have a relaxed evening in. Ben surprised me with a bottle of Prosecco (plus sparkling grape juice) and our favorite pizza upon arriving. I even found the SWEETEST card he has ever written to me on my bedside table later that night!

We cozied up and watched TV together... a very low key evening indeed.

The day AFTER V-Day, we finally got to go out to eat and "officially" celebrate! We went to a restaurant in Green Hills that we had never been to before. The food was delicious, and each dish had so many complex components and unique flavors: several flavor-saturated sauces and meticulously-crafted sides. It was a great way to finish off our Valentines celebrations!

It's hard to believe that a year from now we will be celebrating as husband and wife... Continually grateful for my man, and looking forward to the summer!

Here’s to 2018!

I absolutely can’t pass up sharing my special New Year’s celebrations (even though, I realize, it is a little belated)!

First off, feeling especially domestic from the holidays and from a book that I recently bought (“All in Good Taste” from Kate Spade), I decided to spend some time reorganizing and sprucing up the house! With many new Christmas goodies, this was not a difficult task!

I tackled our bookshelf first. I displayed all of our wedding planning things, cookbooks, new recipe box, and some special serveware, both old and new!

I also made a cute little display in the bathroom with several gifts and cosmetic products arranged just so.

I won’t bore you with my other mini-projects, but all of this domestically-motivated inspiration was brought to a head when my future-maid-of-honor asked me to host a pre-NYE-party-party / birthday-get-together for her! I was thrilled and got straight to work!

Because of the short notice I decided to throw together a few simple snacks and sips. We had champagne, a hot cocoa bar, and stovetop popcorn! A little bit shabby chic (the new Kate Spade book surely inspired me!).

(popcorn aftermath) 

For me, party planning includes lettering, of course. I made sure to label all of the mugs for the hot cocoa station...

And “champagne glasses” (aka cute jars because I didn’t have nearly enough champagne glasses for the occasion)!

I made some festive signs and displays....

(the pearls are my favorite detail) 

...put out our most festive, black and gold decor...

...and set the mood with lots of candles!

I even made a little Hot Toddy gift package for the lady of the evening! It was fun to put together the instructions and gather all the supplies: a flask of bourbon, a lemon, a bunch of black and chai teas, a petite jar of honey, and some spicy garnishes (cinnamon stick, whole cloves, allspice berries, and candied ginger).

I wore my most garish gold sequined skirt (an old hand-me-down from a friend), lit all the candles, and got ready for the guests!

We ended up having a great time. It was just the right setting to spend time and laugh together! Our fish were very hospitable, and everyone seemed to have a good time before heading off to the more involved parties.

I was so happy to be able to host everyone! Afterwards I was feeling a bit under the weather, so I stayed home with Ben and we did our own private countdown at midnight. I got a little teary as we listened to a classical rendition of “Auld Lang Syne” and watched fireworks out the front door.

2018 is a big year for us. Many exciting things ahead and I’m so glad to have some great people by my side for it all!

A Christmas Post in Mid-January? Better Late than Never!

I’ve been out of town for a lot of January, so I figured I’d FINALLY make a Christmas post! Back to wedding planning soon... not to worry!

I really dived into making the house festive this year! I tried to use the things we have and make really minimal purchases to try to get the spirit of the season in our home!

First up, I styled our mantle. I found an old red and green ribbon that I twisted and curved around our regular items. I also bought some red and green fairly lights to make the whole thing a little more dreamy! I made sure our festive candles were on display and topped everything off with a few bows! We set the mood in our little living room by setting our accent lights to red and our fish lights to a festive green!

Speaking of bows... I went a little crazy with the bows! Each houseplant got a bow, plus jars, and even kitchen appliances!

I even put together a bow-embellished hot cocoa station for easy access on cold winter evenings! It was a delicious, cozy treat!

Also in the kitchen, we broke out some fancy Christmas towels and red and green oven mitts!

I put up all of the Christmas cards that we received this year on the fridge, and strung up a bunch of old ones above our kitchen table.

Something that was to special to lay out on the table was this festive table runner that my grandmother quilted by hand! Not wanting to risk ruining it with a single clumsy-moment spill, I hung it up and put it prominently on display in our living room.

One favorite detail I like to put out is the traditional fish-themed Christmas book that I made for Ben a few years ago: “‘Twas the Night Before Fishmas.” It’s exactly as cheesy as it sounds. I recently inherited this little precious moments angel that I put by this festive tin (full of ornament hooks) and eventually paired both with a scented wax melter that I got during a dirty Santa exchange!

Next, the Nutcracker station! I’ve had this little French nutcracker for a few years now and decided to get a bowl full of shelled walnuts, a tradition I’ve noticed several times at Ben’s family’s home. I’ve stationed both of these next to a dried bouquet that Ben got for me to celebrate our “one month since we said ‘I love you.’” Love keeping these little memories in my everyday space and consciousness!

I even got little stockings for our fishes! They are basically our kids.

We had recently lined our bedroom ceiling with lights, and decided to hang up some ornaments to make it feel especially Christmas-y!

And FINALLY, the tree! We found this cute little sprig and loved it at once!

We wrapped it in ribbon, some more fairly lights, and a couple special ornaments (the first of what’s bound to be an extensive collection). We topped it off with our ridiculous penguin friend, who never fails to make us laugh!

I put together a pretty bomb Christmas playlist (almost 100 tunes) and listened to it incessantly!

A special Christmas present was getting to spend some time with my dad during the holiday season! He came to Nashville for a weekend and we enjoyed catching up and spending some quality time together.

I made the extremely-dad-friendly sausage pinwheels that Ben’s dad always makes for us when we visit. Needless to say, my dad loved them.

We enjoyed going on a whiskey distillery tour together, went to The Frist Center for Visual Arts and saw the two exhibitions there, and had a very relaxed dinner at a local brewery and restaurant.

The next day, we trekked out to the beautiful Opryland Hotel and walked around for HOURS looking at the Christmas decorations, chatting, sipping, and eating. It was a great time, and I’ve never been able to make it out there during the holiday season, so it was really a treat! Overall we had a really wonderful weekend together, catching up, chatting about wedding plans, and watching some fun and hilarious movies together!

In preparation for the big day, I lettered and made a fun “To/From” stamp...

...and made sure to incorporate lettering every chance I could when gift wrapping.

After a long month of getting festive Ben and I were able to spend sometime at Ben’s family’s home for Christmas Day!

We had a great time relaxing together by the fire and spending time with loved ones. I received the traditional handmade stocking from Ben’s mother; if someone is officially joining the family they are gifted with this special tradition. I absolutely love mine, and was tricked into discovering it unexpectedly. Grateful to have this special memory recorded for years to come!

There were endless cookies and snacks and a really delicious array of menu items for our fancy Christmas Eve dinner! Ben and I accompanied his parents to the midnight candlelight service and got to see Ben’s mom perform a solo near the end! It was a very special evening.

Christmas Day was relaxed and joyful. Instead of busying myself with all of the cooking, setting up, and arranging that usually comes with Christmas time, I really took some time this year to rest, recuperate, and spend quality time with Ben and his family. I had a long Skype date with my family and got to talk to my grandparents over FaceTime as well! I continued my family’s tradition of watching “It’s a Wonderful Life,” as well.

Overall it was a really lovely holiday and I’m grateful for every special moment and memory!

Happy Thanksgiving 2017!

This year, Ben and I weren't able to make it to either of our families' homes for Thanksgiving. Ben actually ended up having to work the day of Thanksgiving itself, so we celebrated the day after in our sweet little home!

I braved the grocery store early in the week and managed to be in and out within the hour. Our little kitchen was well-stocked!

Even though it was just the two of us, that didn't stop us from cooking up a storm! I was able to get LOTS of prep work done while Ben was at work on Thursday. ALL of the chopping, grating, and portioning was complete by the time he arrived home that evening.

First up, breakfast! I made the traditional holiday sausage pinwheels that we have every year on Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Served with jam and French press coffee, these little rolls are a great way to start off any celebration!

Next, I got the beverages brewing. I made some mulled wine for myself as well as some spiced apple cider for Ben. They were kept cozily warm throughout the day in a duo-powered crockpot station. I felt very pro-FESH!

The day before I'd prepared both a tart cranberry sauce and a rich gravy, so two items were already out of the way!

We queued up some fun Thanksgiving tunes and got to cooking!

Ben brined and stuffed the turkey with aromatics and spices and we put our little bird in the oven very early in the morning.

Our dinner menu in full consisted of...
- A turkey, of course, brined and roasted
- Garlic parmesan mashed potatoes
- Gravy
- Homemade Cranberry Sauce
- Sautéed corn with bacon, onion, jalepeno, and a touch of cream
- Roasted Brussels sprouts
- Apple "Crippler" (crisp + cobbler) with vanilla ice cream

We made everything from scratch, but with all of the chopping and portioning already done it was really easy to toss everything together. I felt like I was able to manage prepping all of the dishes simultaneously, even in our tiny, not-so-well-equipped kitchen! In the end, we had quite the spread prepared!

Ben did a great job of styling the dinner table...

And we enjoyed a delicious meal together!

After several hours of resting and digesting, we also enjoyed dessert: the Apple "Crippler" recipe I got from one of Ben's sisters.

Even though we weren't able to make it home for the holiday, it ended up being a really fun, relaxing, and special day! Cheers to the first of many Thanksgivings together!