breakdown.

So, I had a little emotional breakdown Wednesday evening.

It all started as I'm making Chris' lunch for Thursday...
I'm grabbing a granola bar out of our snack basket in the pantry (aka the bookcase we fashioned into a pantry)...
Just before I tossed it into the bag I see a hole in the back of it, a good-sized hole...
I start hoping it's a faulty one that was damaged while in the box, so I grab another from the basket...
It has a hole in it too, a smaller one, but a hole...
The next one I grab does too, so now I'm freaking out.

Chris comes to check out what all the uproar is about, probably assuming that I'm over-reacting.
Then he said the word...MOUSE...ahhhhhhhhhhhh!

He starts grabbing stuff off the shelves of the pantry...
I'm still standing in the middle of the kitchen with the heeby-jeebies...

Long story short, Chris packs most of our food in coolers & a Rubbermaid storage box that usually has his sweaters in it (for some reason this is what threw me over the edge)...

Now we have sweaters that belong in an under-the-bed storage box in my clean laundry basket,
our food is in various coolers & boxes,
and worst of all...there's a MOUSE IN MY HOUSE!

I'm crying, I'm fuming, I was so ugly to my sweet husband who was creating a game plan for catching this darn mouse...

Suddenly, I want my house back (my house with no mouse),
I want my current house back in order,
I miss my job (I love my job now, but I still miss my Duke job),
I miss my friends,
and some stinking little mouse is causing me to have this crazy emotional breakdown.

Anyway...our food is still in boxes, Chris' sweaters are still not in their home, and we have traps set all around the house.
And we still haven't caught this darn mouse...Chris keeps coming up with creative ideas so hopefully we'll have him soon.

Luckily, I'm coping better, for now...
I'm still frustrated that the house is in disarray and that there's still a mouse in my house.

I rarely wish death upon living things, but this mouse has got to die...and soon!

tomorrow is September 1st!

It seems crazy to me that tomorrow is the first day of September!
Where is time going these days?
I feel like time is moving faster & faster everyday...

September does mean that fall is not far away!
I am so ready for cooler days & the feel of fall in the air...

Here's to hoping September brings lots of...
cool mornings & evenings,
warm (not hot) afternoons,
fewer mosquitos,
outdoor activities,
check-marks on my to-do list,
fun!

i was there too!

Tonight I was checking out one of my favorite blogs, The Lettered Cottage.
It's inspiring author, Layla, wrote about her weekend venture to the Nashville Flea Market.

I WAS THERE TOO! Oh, how I would have loved to run into Layla Palmer!

Chris & I went to the once-a-month flea market at the fairgrounds Saturday morning.
Since moving here, we've heard many people talk about it so figured we needed to check it out for ourselves.

We had no idea just how big this event is...we were only there for a couple of hours & spent time outdoors & in 5 or 6 partially-enclosed buildings full of all sorts of stuff!

We only bought one thing- a collectable glass Coke bottle from 1980 when UGA won the National Championship.

We didn't have as much time as we would have liked, so next month we're planning on spending more time there!

I'm hooked...

not feeling it...

I just haven't felt like blogging lately...
i'll think "oh, i should blog about that" or "oh, i should upload this picture", but i obviously just haven't.

Chris' grandpa, Pa Tarr, has been sick for almost the past 2 weeks.
We have been in GA for the last 2 weekends spending precious time with him & Chris' family.
We found out this afternoon that Pa Tarr had passed away.
We feel glad in knowing that he died peacefully, but will no doubt miss him dearly.

Loss is never easy...
so thankful for memories to cling to & an assurance that there is more than this life.

Until I feel up to blogging again...

lamp re-do.

Chris' grandmother gave me this lamp this past Christmas.

I love lamps & had been looking for a milk glass lamp.
It wasn't much to look at, but it worked!

Here it is today...

A little cleaning up, some black paint & a red shade goes a long way...

It looks perfect sitting on top of our piano.

I *heart* it!

can you see???

Can you see the pennant flags across the top sides of my blog?

I could see them last week & since downloading updates to my computer I can't see them anymore...hmm...

Just curious.

random Nashville observations...

We've been here in Nashville for almost a month & I know I've said very little about it in general.

Truth is we've been quietly exploring, plundering the library for books weekly, & trying to avoid the heat.

While quietly exploring & taking everything in, we've made some interesting observations...

-every other street is something Pike...it's rather confusing to me

-cut-off jean shorts are quite popular ("jorts" as we like to call them!)

-people wear their hair B-I-G

-there is a candidate running for governor who stated that TN should secede from the United States...excuse me, what?

-our general election is this week, on Thursday...I thought all elections were held on Tuesdays, what in the world???

-when Shoney's restaurants went out of business in other states, they must have tripled their businesses here...there's like a Shoney's on every other corner

-where there's not a Shoney's, there's either a White Castle or a Krystal...TN must like the small, square burgers

-everyone assumes that if you're new in town that you moved to enter the music industry...no friends, we're no song-writers or performers!

More random Nashville observations to come...(i promise pictures of the house soon too. just working on getting everything just right!)

5 years.

Today is our 5 year anniversary...hard to believe that it's been 5 years since our wedding day.

I feel so blessed to have a wonderful husband who loves me so much, teaches me so much, & is absolutely my best friend...

I love you babe!

kinda funny, well not really...

So, Monday evening it was thundering & lightening before it ever started to rain.

After dinner, we went out on the front porch to chill in our new rocking chairs & watch the storm (I love a good storm!).

We had outside for about 5 minutes when we heard a siren sound that went on for several minutes.

Shortly after our next-door neighbor came outside to tell us that it was the city's tornado warning siren. Bet he thought we were a couple of geniuses!

Sort of funny that we sat there not alarmed at all...guess we'll know for next time!

things i'm loving...

checking out cookbooks from our library.

my $3.26 thrift store basket to stash my

sewing stuff.

Etsy...i'm simply addicted.

red & turquoise together with a splash of white.

small vintage mirrors...i'm working on a collection.

having 3 weeks to get settled in before

starting work.

the material i got at Hobby Lobby to make throw

pillows for our bed.

our front porch rocking chairs.

the outdoor toss pillows i got for our rockers on

clearance from Restoration Hardware.

my new 'work bag'...Vera Bradley's

'Meet me in Paris' in turquoise.

the built-in bookcase in our living room.
beadboard wallpaper.

having a Hobby Lobby just 20 minutes away...

dangerous, but i love it.

life is good!

d-e-l-i-c-i-o-u-s

You've got to try what we had for dinner last night...

Greek-style Baked Spinach & Shrimp

12 oz. of spinach w/ stems removed

2 tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil

2 green onions, minced

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 can of diced tomatoes, drained

4 oz. of crumbled feta cheese

3/4 lb. of medium-large shelled & deveined shrimp

salt & pepper to taste

hot steamed rice

Wash the spinach, but do not drain. Place in a large pot & cover & steam for about 5 minutes until completely wilted, stirring occassionally. Drain well by pressing out excess water with a spatula.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Lightly grease a 1.5-quart casserole dish.

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onions & garlic & saute for about 3 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes, salt & pepper and then spinach and half of the feta cheese.

Remove from heat & stir in the shrimp. Transfer to the casserole dish. Crumble the remaining feta on top. (I also added some bread crumbs to the top)

Bake for about 30 minutes, until the shrimp are white & firm.

Serve over hot rice.

Hope you love it as much as we did!

words to live by.

"Be not the slave of your own past.
Plunge into the sublime seas,
dive deep,
and swim far,
so you shall come back with self-respect,
with new power,
with an advanced experience,
that shall explain and overlook the old."

-Ralph Waldo Emerson-

what could be better?

It was 99 degrees today...gross.
We ventured out a bit late this afternoon & evening after it cooled off a bit, but stayed around home for most of the day.

To me, there's nothing better in this summertime heat than fresh fruit.
I'm so enjoying the delicious in-season blueberries & fresh GA peaches!

So, when I stumbled upon this recipe I knew I had to try it...

Blueberry-Peach Freezer Jam

4 cups of blueberries (washed w/ stems removed)

1 cup of peaches, finely chopped

1/4 cup of fresh lemon juice

4 1/2 cups of sugar

3/4 cup of water

1 1.75 oz. package of Sure-Jell Fruit Pectin

Rinse plastic containers with boiling water & then dry completely. (I used 3-16 oz. Ziplock twist & seal containers)

Mash blueberries thoroughly (I pulsed them in my blender). Measure exactly 2 cups of blueberries into a mixing bowl. Peel, & finely chop peaches. Measure 1 cup of peaches & add to bowl with blueberries. Add lemon juice & then sugar. Mix well.

Mix water & Sure-Jell in small saucepan. Heat over high heat until boiling, stirring constantly. Boil for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Immediately add mixture into mixing bowl with fruit. Stir for three minutes until sugar is completely dissolved.

Quickly pour mixture into containers & cover with lids. Leave at room temperature for 24 hours & then place in freezer. Thaw in refrigerator before using.

Can't wait to try it out tomorrow!

settling in...

That about sums up the last 2 weeks for us.

We left our house in Durham with our moving crew Tuesday, July 6th.
Since then we've been unpacking boxes, organizing our new place, & finding our way around town.

I'll be back again soon with more detailed updates, pictures & news from Nashville...

the adventure begins...

Alas, the new adventure begins...

We're picking our giant moving truck up tomorrow morning.
Our lovely helpers will arrive tomorrow at lunch-time.
We'll load all afternoon & evening and most likely pull out early Tuesday morning.

It's hard to believe that we've been here nearly 5 years and that it's time for the start of yet another adventure.

More to come once we get settled in our new place...