Friday Five: Lasts

Babs does these and the promts always seem so easy and low-pressure.

1. At a gathering of your usual social group, who’s almost certain to show up last? Probably me. With my work girlfriends I'm always the one who has to check the email real quick or go in the bathroom. Rarely do we have a hard stop and start time with our lunches - which is a blessing.
2. Of chores that must be done this weekend, which will you probably complete last, and why? Putting away the laundry. I generally get it clean but it takes forever to get it all put away. On top of that, its time to transition Ty out of his current wardrobe which is never fun. It'll take weeks to get the clothes all sorted and situated.
3. Some TV remote controls have a “last” button. If you were to turn your TV on now and hit the “last” button on the remote, which channel would you be taken to? ESPN/NFL network or some other sports channel. Hubs, not me (but you already knew that).
4. Your task is to try one scoop of ice cream per day until every one of thirty-one flavors is consumed. Which do you save for last? Oooh, either a cookies-n-cream or something with caramel mixed in.
5. When did you last have an awful meal in a restaurant? Hmm, I honestly can't remember. Maybe I've blocked out the experience?

Thanks to Friday 5 for the prompts and for bringing me back to the blog.

xo, Patti

About our 2012 card...

I'm sure you're surprised to see me back again today (that makes two of us), but I wanted to share a little more about this year's holiday card before I totally forgot.

[photographer]
For starters, all the images were snapped by the lovely Rachel Melton. Yes, she's the same lady that does all of Ty's pro photos. In fact, at the end of the session, Ty hugged her - so cute. I guess he figured our session was like catching up with an old friend (...who moonlights as the paparazzi - lol). We feel the same way.

[location]
As far as location, we took a gamble on a location neither of us had ever been to - Cascade Springs Nature Preserve. My main reason for choosing it was that it was close. Like a 15-20 minute drive. What I didn't anticipate was how lovely and fall-y the park would be. And that there would be several cute nature-y spots for us to snap pics. Okay, obviously I didn't have any expectations - I figured a park is a park, and a close park is even better. This one totally exceeded expectations, and we were in and out in a jiff.

[wardrobe]
I've been trying to step it up a bit sartorially (I don't want to totally let myself go), so I put some extra effort into figuring out wardrobe. J's outfit required the least amount of thought. New jeans, a cardi, loafers, done. Ty's outfit came together pretty organically. Picked up the old man sweater at ON while shopping with Naima, the pants - a gift from his aunt, that coat - a clearance (!) buy at BabiesRUs. None of the items were purchased with the intention of wearing them together. It just happened that way. But my outfit? I recruited some help from a childhood stylist friend. I wanted to look like I belonged but look a little different (since I'm the only girl). The fact that J likes me in pink is a bonus. I loved the way the clothes turned out. We don't match, we coordinate.

[card design]
Normally I pick a design off Etsy (usually <$16) and print them myself at Walgreens. While not a ton of work, this year I opted to buy the printed cards (rather than just the design) instead. Best decision ever. I learned about Brightside Prints thru one of my favorite shelter blogs The House of Smiths, and used the promo code for their readers to save 10%. The only thing I had to do was purchase my design, send the images, work with the designer on customization (they'll change whatever - I added text to the front and back), and approve the proofs. Plus, it was actually a really good value considering I got front AND back images for less than it would cost for my favorite Etsy designer to do my cards and prints. But the best part was the time. I got our image disc from Rachel on 11/23 and placed my order that same day. I had my cards in hand on 11/29. Awesomesauce.

So yeah, I think thats all I wanted to say about that. Oh, and that despite having the cards in hand, it was still a full week (or more) before I got them in the mail. Blame the 4-week sickness.

xo, Patti

Happy Holidays from the Smiths!

Popping in briefly to share our holiday card this year.

[front]

[back]

Saying its my most favorite one so far is a total understatement. This thing brings happiness and joy to my face every time I lay eyes on it.

Wishing you and yours a happy, healthy, and merry holiday season!

xo, Patti

[photo credits: Rachel Melton | card design: Brightside Prints]

Our Fall Mantle + sometimes you just need to create something

I can credit several things for this newly fall-ified mantle:

1. I've been working from home a lot (think: 75% of the time) which gives me a lot of time to scrutinize whats up there. Its got good bones but sometimes I wanna jazz it up a bit.

2. I've been feeling kind of blah about thanksgiving because I'm not not 100% in charge and my favorite BIL is deployed and we're serving a traditional (yet totally uninspiring meal) next week.

So to combat the blahs and satisfy my strange need to bring a little fall to the livingroom, I took a couple of hours the other day to....bring a little fall to the living room. ::giggles::

Naturally, I love it.

I'm finding that crafting creating things really does wonders for my attitude. Its like my own personal mood elevator. Whenever I look over there (as I'm doing right now), I smile a little. And then when I remember that this seasonal update cost me exactly $0, I smile a little wider.

Best kind of project.

xo, Patti

Morning Thoughts

1. It has been an amazing drink week for me. I got a Coke with Lime yesterday (my ABSOLUTE FAVORITE SODA) and a Pumpkin Spice Latte (my ABSOLUTE FAVORITE COFFEE DRINK) this morning. Sigh. I love fall.

2. A thorough understanding and internalization of the Serenity Prayer is essential for driving in Atlanta.

3. I get sad when I hear people say their bachelor's degree in Psychology is useless. What they learned us more applicable than they realize.

4. Instagram is much more enjoyable now that I've trimmed some of the text-as-pics fat.

5. Did y'all know I got a sew in once? About 6 summers ago. Took me almost a year to talk my stylist into doing it. Ended up being more work than my actual hair. Lasted 6 weeks, tops.

6. Ponte knit. Changing my wardrobe one piece at a time.

7. What's going on with daytime talk shows? Never mind I'm working during the day, but I'm not interested in watching any of them. And when did Steve Harvey become a relationship expert?!

8. I'm having way more fun working on Ty's thank you notes than I previously thought possible.

xo, Patti

Tyler is One

On August 8th Ty turned one. Since his actual birthday fell on a Wednesday, we waited until Saturday (August 11th) to host the party (oh and I hired Rachel to capture it all on film).


Naturally, the invite set the tone for the whole party. I've known since...well, since he was about 6 months old that I wanted to go with a multicolored theme. So I talked with Sara (she's the one who did Ty's birth announcement and our holiday card) about putting together something for Ty's 1st.

I put together a small welcome table in the entryway. When guests arrived, there was a table with a sign-in sheet (I thought it would be a cute keepsake), some favors, and a framed photo of the birthday boy. For the favors, I boxed up some Hershey's kisses (BOGO one week at Publix) in these cute clear boxes and designed a sticker label for them. Simple and cute. I set up a big bin behind the table to collect gifts. I'm always so overwhelmed with everyone's generosity when it comes to Ty and as usual, he got some really awesome gifts.



I kept the decorations really simple. Just balloons in lots of different colors. I figured Ty would enjoy the balloons and for the most part he did. He didn't like when they got in his way. Or when they touched him. But he definitely was interested in them, and mostly observed them from a safe distance (lol).

As you can see, he spent most of the party eating. And hanging out with our family and friends. I was slightly concerned that he would would be anxious about all the people, but he seemed to really enjoy all the attention extra plates to eat of off.

Admittedly, I went a little overboard with the food. The main attraction on the food table was the beef burger (slider) bar and guests could mix and match toppings and condiments til their hearts desire. They could choose from lettuce, tomatoes, cheese (swiss, cheddar, pepperjack), mushrooms, onions, guacamole, pico de gallo, bacon, balsamic bacon jam, honey mustard, chipotle mayo, ketchup, regular mayo, barbeque sauce and Dijon mustard.

In addition to the bar, I also served fruit kabobs, potato salad, baked beans, mac and cheese bites, yogurt parfaits, sweet tea, lemonade and funfetti smash cake and cupcakes. All of the food was lovingly made by me, my mom, my MIL and my SIL. And it was all delicious. I used some clearance wrapping paper to make a table runner and layered that over my regular white table cloth. I also kept the plates, cups, and napkins white. Between the food, the paper straws and that balloon garland there was plenty of color. Can I just pause to talk about how much I love that balloon garland? It was super easy to put together and is still on the wall 3 weeks later. I'm thinking of moving it across the way to my office just because it makes me smile.

One of the main reasons I hired a photographer is because I wanted to be able to actually enjoy the party. I especially enjoyed catching up with some of my girlfriends. Its so rare that we all get together like this and I was glad I had a chance to visit (at least a little bit) with everyone. Oh, and if you've ever wondered what it's like when Naima and I get together, here you go.

Towards the end of the party, we stripped Ty down to a cloth diaper and put him in his high chair for cake. I think the cake confused him a bit initially. There's no way I'd normally let him just touch a cake, but I'd put it right on his tray. After a bit of encouragement - and some help from J - he dove right in. He ended up eating about a quarter of the cake. I expcedted him to eat a bit more but I think he consumed too much other food during the party. Oh and shoutout to my SIL Nakia for handing the post-cake cleanup.

Tyler in his recliner - a gift from his grandparents

All in all, it was an amazing day in celebration of our amazing little guy. Many thanks to everyone who pitched in and sent birthday wishes, cards, tweets and good vibes our way. I still cant believe he's already a year old.

[Source list: invites - Less Ordinary Designs; favor tags - DIY; sign in sheet - DIY; favor boxes - Pink Lemonade Party Shop; oversized balloon - Bargain Balloons; regular balloons - Target, Party City, Hobby Lobby; balloon garland - DIY; Striped paper - Target; mini mason jars - AceHardware; parfait glasses - Pier1; cupcake stand - DIY; drink dispenser - HomeGoods; paper straws - Pink Lemonade Party Shop;  birthday boy's outfit - Children's Place; all photos courtesy of Rachel Melton Photography]

xo, Patti

Tyler Walks

He Falls Down...But He Gets Up (Tyler walking) from Hello Patti! on Vimeo.

So...Tyler is walking.

Thankfully it doesn't look like we'll need to order that "will walk for food" onesie afterall.

(Yes, yes I know I essentially took the summer off. But I'm already drafting some posts (in my mind at least) that I know you'll enjoy. You're welcome.)

xo, Patti