I'm 30, y'all!

Ahhh... what a weekend! The party was totally great. It was just the best! We had a great turnout - about 35 people, which is exactly what I was shooting for. And now I've officially got 30 whole years under my belt. We had yummy BBQ catered from one of my favorite local places. They have a yummy vinegar-based sauce and that's why I love them so much. I'm not like a huge huge BBQ person, but in the fall with football season, it just works. And this place is really yummy. Anyway, so we had dinner outside on the deck under our UGA tent (and no, I'm not talking about the game - ridiculous!!!).



I didn't get a pic with the food out there gosh-darn-it (I took this shot today). It was really cute. I had my glass plates and cutie polka-dot napkins set up all cute. And there were tablecloths, I promise. I was too busy partying to get a shot of it all I guess! But you can see my cutie floating polka dots here. I don't think you can see it well in that photo, but they all say "30."

The cake was as tasty as it was freakin' cute. We took a ridiculous amount of pictures of it so we'd always remember how fabulous it was before we devoured it. On the cake table (our dining room table), we had all my cutie cookies laying out as well as some fresh flowers and confetti. We also hung ornaments from the ceiling with fishing wire. They turned out super cute. I got some fun little Christmas ornaments from Hobby Lobby for super cheap that don't look Christmassy (is that a word?) at all. Some glittery black balls (more floating polka dots!), a few "crystals," and these cutie shoe ornaments in red! Hanging them was a bit of a challenge and I'm sure we'll have to touch up the ceiling paint a little bit when we pull out the little pins, but it was totally cute. Sometimes things look more fabulous in my head then in reality, but this idea came through - I was happy. It was really hard to get a good photo of them - to capture the "look" of it anyway, but maybe you'll get the idea...




Cutting into that cake was a little sad! Such a work of art. I consider myself pretty darn crafty, but decorating cakes is not one of my talents. Not that I bake cakes all the time, but the few times that I have... well, yeah... they look like shit. Taste good, but not cute. So I really admire this particular talent - it truly amazes me. And the fact that it tasted fabulous was the icing on the cake (oh I just kill myself!).



I got lots of fun gifts from all my wonderful, wonderful friends. Lots of giftcards - and I promise I'm gonna use them. I've mentioned before how I'm really bad about forgetting I have them. I'm one of those who contributes heavily to the millions of dollars made off of unused giftcards. But no worries - as a responsible 30-year old woman, I will make good use of all of them! (Did I mention I let a $100 Spa Sydell gift certificate expire last month after holding onto it for a year? I'm horrible!!!) But amid the giftcards and many bottles of wine, stood the best gift of all... my new KitchenAid artisan mixer! I've wanted one forever. We registered for one five years ago when we were getting married, but obviously didn't get it. Well I finally got one and I am sure we're going to be best friends. I was so excited to use it that I went to the grocery this afternoon and bought potatoes so I could make mashed potatoes. Oh they were so so yummy. I just whipped up regular old baking potatoes (I couldn't find the yukon or whatever ones they say are best for mashed potatoes), sour cream, prepared horseradish, and salt & pepper... omg SO yummy! Didn't even add any butter - so really it wasn't that bad for you at all! At least that's what I'm telling myself. Yeah the sour cream was real, but there wasn't much of it per serving (unless you clean out the whole bowl). I just had to take a pic of my very first mix in motion...


I'm in love! And I think I'm gonna love my 30's. I'm just super excited about the decade ahead of me and what all it will bring. Lots of big life changes ahead... and really I feel like I'm at such a great place in life right now. I mean sure I could list off some complaints for ya right now... we're still so tight as crap on money because we still haven't sold our stinkin' townhouse back down in the city... we've got hospital bills coming out our asses and who knows yet if any of it did any good... I have a nursery just waiting to be decorated and somedays it seems like maybe we'll never get to (it also looks fabulous in my head, by the way)... BUT how can I complain? We are so very blessed. We missed a Sunday at church a couple of weeks back and my friend Pam told me I had to watch the sermon online since I missed it. She said I just had to watch this one - a tear jerker (or torrential down-pour, right Pammy?!) It had a lot to do with suffering and finding comfort but the one thing Louie (the speaker) said that has stuck with me everyday since watching it is that "there is never a time when God is not in control of your life." Wow. So true... he know's what he's doing. When you really let that sink in - it's one of the most comforting things to hear. So anyway, geez - didn't mean to get all deep on you there, but the point is I'm just really excited about the years ahead and what God has in store - so bring it on! Thirty, flirty, and thriving! :-)