QUOTE of the DAY

for some reason the oscars were very emotional for me last night. i cried at almost every award. JEFF BRIDGES & SANDRA BULLOCK both won for best actor and best actress, delivering very emotional acceptance speeches. jeff bridges has been a long time coming man. this was his fifth nomination and first win. i bawled when he thanked his parents and his beautiful wife of thirty years. THE HURT LOCKER swept the oscars... the quote of the day comes from one of the fabulous actors from that movie.

"When you make art, you can stand up and hug another man, a grown man, to say I love you."

-Anthony Mackie on the Today Show, when asked about hugging his macho male co-stars after winning all those awards.

i agree, anthony.

its (almost) spring!!

and i am super excited about it!! i am ready for sunshine, flowers, and for longer and warmer days. richard and i have been busy bees getting our yard ready. last year the stuff i planted was last minute seeds... i had sunflowers starting to bloom mid-october. one of the joys of living in the south, our "indian summers" are not uncommon to last way beyond labor day. this year we started early and are starting from scratch. one thing i am experimenting with this year are bulbs, i have never planted them before. we bought sarah bernhardt peonies and seattle dahlias, and although they aren't in the ground yet, i have been reading up on how to take care of them since i am a "bulb beginner". wish me luck! we also got a bunch of seeds, including ones to take my herb garden to the next level. last year we grew basil, chives, and parsley. the parsley didn't do well, i think the seeds were bad... but the chives and basil flourished and within a month we had eaten all of it! i guess i didn't plant enough! i am hoping this time around we will have basil to last through the summer. eHow has a great gardening section with tips for even the most novice gardeners. they are easy to follow and very knowledgeable. check em out here.

we made the trip to get all of these supplies last sunday. we spent most of the day in greenville at michaels, lowes, and new river pottery searching for the perfect flowers, tools and garden accessories to make our labor worth the fruit. at new river pottery i found the most beautiful grapevine wreath for our door, but it was $30. richard and i were both convinced we could find a better one (even though i loved this one) at a lower price. so after having lunch at ruby tuesdays and our stop at lowes, i made richard run me back to new river. guess what? in that small time frame (maybe an hour and a half) my wreath was gone. and i was pissed. thus lesson number one... if you see something you must have and you have enough money for it, buy it! i pouted all the way home, or at least halfway home to oak city. then i started brainstorming. i had already bought a plain grapevine wreath from michaels (on sale for $3) so i just needed to find some fun stuff to decorate it with. the next day i hit up winton's family dollar where i found some not-so-ugly fake flowers and these butterflies that appeared to be made of pantyhose material. they were on a stake, i imagine to stick in your garden. i grabbed a bright yellow one and was on my way.

after about an hour, some hot glue hands, and a scuffle with my bow maker (the infamous BOWDABRA) i had a pretty cute new wreath. and it cost next to nothing to make! lets count... $3 for the wreath, $1 for the flowers, $1 for the butterfly, zero dollars for the ribbon i already had, and figuring less than $1 for glue, wire and sales tax comes to a grand total of slightly over FIVE DOLLARS! wow. i love saving money. lesson number two... if you see something you love and you can make the thing yourself cheaper, make it! so tell me what you think about my "cheap" wreath!

i love it. i also love the fact i am off the next two days, even though its going to be spring cleaning and yard work probably the whole time. lets hope this warm weather lasts a while. & more to come on our flower and gardening adventures this week!

an installment of wedding bliss

however stressful it may sound or even seem sometimes, i can't say enough about the fun i am having planning our wedding! i find stuff everyday that i love or that inspires me. there is so much great stuff out there that it can be overwhelming. i would love to pass on any tips i learn and share some of the sweet stuff i come across.

i am going for an elegant vintage feel for our wedding. one element that i had already decided to incorporate were going to be feathers. i was shopping etsy for wedding veils, stumbled upon Jujubee Designs, and i fell in bliss with their feather bouquets! while i will probably not have an actual feather bouquet (my heart is set on a solid white bouquet of peonies... perhaps) i think this one will make an awesome accessory for an eccentric bride like myself!


i am also loving birdcage veils like this one, and it is one accessory this bride probably will be rocking down the aisle! so classy. actually, i love all of the wedding stuff from Londonxox's shop.

once every other month

seems to be my blog posting pattern. and its the same old excuse. time is not on my side. love, however, seems to be. i got engaged to my boyfriend of eight years on december 27. the proposal was very romantic and everything i have always dreamed of. its amazing how you feel when your partner makes that promise to you. i always knew richard and i would spend our lives together, but having proof on my left ring finger really puts things in perspective. i feel a little stronger knowing that its a reality to have this person to lean on, to grow with, and to love for the rest of both our lives. i can't wait to make the ultimate promise to each other before God.

with a little help from mom, i am also planning my entire wedding by myself. it is my dream to become a highly sought-after event planner, plus being the crazy control-freak that i am, i'm ecstatic to be able to do what i want. on a very small, practically non-existent, recession budget of course! i would love to share my economical yet fabulous wedding ideas and inspirations with the world. maybe i can turn this blog into mandy's candy & fabulous weddings. ha!

i am not the only bride-to-be around either! a very dear friend of mine will tie her own knot this may! all of the girls are super excited to be planning and throwing parties for her. its such a fun time and i can't wait to share in j & c's beautiful spring wedding very soon!

on a side note, another justified excuse for my blogging slackness is my start of another blog, one for the restaurant i work at, Catherine's. after moving home this summer i was super lucky and got my old job back! its a great place to work and i missed it when i was in greenville. so glad to be back. the blog is under construction, but please check it out by following this link.

http://catherines1770.blogspot.com/

on a crafting note, i got lots of scrapbooking/card making stuff for christmas. i have done a little scrapbooking in the past but never really got into making cards or anything like that. its so much fun! and super-special to give someone something that comes straight from your heart. i have made victoria an adorable shower card with adyson's name on it, and also a collection of recipes & memories for my bestest friend ever, aislinn, after her great-grandmother passed away recently. do i run the risk of sounding selfish when i say that those kind of gifts are the best in the world to give? sometimes a small labor of love speaks volumes to the ones dear in our hearts.

on a baking note (something i will always find time for), some goodies i have been experimenting with are more flavors of marshmallows (which have been hit-&-miss... lemon wasn't great) and these cake pops from bakerella.

the recipe is a variation of a cake ball recipe, found here.

i had made cake balls before and they were great, but i made them too big. they sort of looked like snowballs. this time i got lollipops sticks from michaels and made devils food cake balls dipped in chocolate for valentine's day. they were fabulous.

although my track record states that i won't be back with a post until april, i hope that isn't the case. until then...

whew!

Between work, finishing up my first semester back in school, and the usual hustle and bustle of the holiday season I am almost ready for my Christmas nap! Of course I have been making and baking like crazy. Recession Christmas this year means most of the people I love will be getting baked goods. I have even had a few orders from people this season! So exciting! If anyone is interested in purchasing any of my delicious confections please let me know. I will be baking right up until Christmas Eve. My goodies make a sweet gift for a special person or will brighten up your holiday table!

Just a few of the scrumptious delights going out...

Dark or Milk Chocolate Fudge
Peppermint Fudge
Peanut Butter Fudge

Marshmallows from scratch... A variety of flavors including peppermint, apple cider, and traditional vanilla. Enjoy plain or dipped in a variety of chocolate gnache or candy coatings.

Homemade S'mores... Variety of flavors and variety of coatings.

Homemade Cookies and Cookie Bars... A variety of flavors including orange white chocolate, old-fashioned pecan lace cookies, and the best chocolate chip cookies EVER.

Homemade Cakes & Pies... Variety of flavors including my special Dark Chocolate Raspberry Cake with Chocolate Gnache.

All goodies are made from scratch with premium ingredients. Contact me for pricing or special orders.