Happy Halloween!

This past weekend Coco and I decided we needed to add a little fall color to our front door in anticipation of the trick or treaters we hope to see on Saturday. We stopped by a great garden shop in town, Sweet Peas, and found these great pumpkins and set them up on our front stoop. I love pumpkins and in my opinion, the uglier the better. Don't you just love the one resting on top with all of its bumps?

The best part? These ugly little punkins can greet our guests right on through Thanksgiving!

Coco and I are looking forward to Saturday. This is the first year since we have been in our house (we have been here 4 and 1/2 years) that we will be home on Halloween. We are usually hanging out with friends elsewhere but this year we decided to do the hosting. Hosting might be a generous word - we plan on setting up chairs on the front lawn with our friends and eating and drinking our way through All Hallow's Eve while greeting the creatively dressed children in our neighborhood and passing out our favorite candy. What are your plans?

Drama Queen.

Sunday afternoon Coco and I took Lucy for a walk around the neighborhood. A few of Lucy's friends were out so we stopped to play for awhile. We watched Lucy tear around the front yard of our neighbor's house being chased by two boxers, Goose and Bower. After about 30 minutes we walked a very tired Lucy home.

Apparently her jaunt was a bit too much because later that night we found that one of her paws was bleeding. It appears she cut it during her play session. We cleaned it out, used some liquid bandaid and wrapped a self adhering bandage to her paw. As soon as the bandage went on, she started milking it. She didn't even act like anything was wrong before her paw was wrapped up (the bandage just helped keep the little bit of blood off of the furniture). Coco and I almost fell on the floor laughing because she wouldn't walk on her paw - she scooted around like a tripod! She got this pitiful look and found her bed. I couldn't resist, this was too good not to take a few pictures. This is priceless...she is such a drama queen..wonder where she gets it from?

Doesn't she look pitiful?

Poor baby

Oh, and before you think we are cruel parents - she really is fine. She is back to her old self...drama queen and all.

Target Tuesday

Birmingham just got a new Super Target and I have been itching to check it out (Note: we have other ST's but this one is NEW - so fresh and so clean clean). Supposedly it is the biggest Target in the U.S. After my first visit, this could be right. Ashley invited me to go with her Saturday morning to see how fabulous it might be. Fabulous it was. Yes, I was the freak taking pictures of random items throughout the store, items not necessarily for sale. I have no shame. And Ashley was a good sport. After we stopped in at Starbucks for a Pumpkin Spice Latte we were off to wander aimlessly through the aisles. I think we were there for at least 2 hours. A few pictures that captured our fun...

Yep, I took a picture of the buggies (no squeaks!). Yes, buggies. I live in the South - deal with it.

$8 earrings - lurve it.

Um, I don't think I can pull off these rain boots, but aren't they cute for less than $30?

I loved this jacket - but I picked up the wrong size and had trouble getting out of it!

Doesn't Ashley look adorable - with her baby bump?!

Christmas time! Their decor is out in all its red and green glory. I loved these kissing balls.

Don't you need some furry friends?

Isn't this Mercury Glass Candle Holder for $30 beautiful!

I can think of no better way to spend my Saturday morning (thanks Ash!). By the way, I am on the hunt for some fabulous leggings. And nope, I didn't find any at Target - I looked, trust me. Yes, I am taking the plunge. I cannot find a pair in my size that I like (I want the cotton kind with NO sheen). Any suggestions from my fellow leggin' sportin' bloggers?

Orange you glad?

The color orange is everywhere this fall. I was a bit skeptical at first but the more fabulous photos I see, the more I am warming up to the color. It is the perfect fall color and there are so many shades of orange you can easily find one that will work in your home. Check out the inspiration I found below from BHG.com.

If you aren't ready to make a big commitment to the color, how about dressing your table with these great orange inspired items from Anthropologie?

Or maybe you are ready to make a small wardrobe commitment (also courtesy of anthropologie.com)?

Have you capitalized on the color orange in any way? Do share!

A Surprise Visit!

I walked into my house Monday evening after work and my wonderful parents were standing in my kitchen! For many of you that may not sound like a surprise but the sheer fact that they live 9.5 hours away in Lakeland, Florida made their presence a sweet surprising treat! After tears and squeals from me, Coco revealed their secretive little plan. My parents dear friends own a business that brings them to Birmingham on occasion (it helps too that their two sons live here as well). They are fortunate to use a private plane for business and needed to be in Birmingham for dinner Monday night. They were so sweet to invite my parents Monday morning to come along (and my parents were so great to drop everything at the last minute to come visit for a few hours)! My mom called Coco to orchestrate the surprise and Coco made dinner reservations at one of our favorite Italian restaurants, GianMarco's. We spent the evening talking, laughing, drinking and eating. It made my week, er, month! We don't get to see them near enough and it was so much fun to have a night together.

It was so nice to hug their necks and talk face to face. Thank you Mom and Dad for coming! And thank you "Air Harrell" for bringing them to us! I can't wait to do it again! Have I mentioned I LOVE surprises like that?

Wordless Wednesday

Poor Bailey

Giving dogs a bath can be quite the experience. Coco and I have it easy with our Lucy - she is good to just hop in the bath tub and wait on us to get our scrub on. Okay, so "us" may not be the most accurate use of words here. I can't tell you the last time I bathed Lou Belle, Coco is so good to me (and Lucy).

Isn't she too cute? Patiently waiting in the tub on her Dad.

MC's pooch, Bailey, is another story. Bailey is not so keen on the bath idea. Maybe because he has so much hair you have to use a super soaker to get him clean. Last time MC was in town, I had the privilege of being dragged asked to go to the pet store to bathe Bailey. Um, right. It is a good thing you can lock yourself into the bathing area otherwise Bailey would have torn through the store just to get away from us.

Bailey looks thrilled doesn't he? I think his whole body was shaking at this point. Aren't our "aprons" fabulous? They need a monogram. :)

I got to chase Bailey around the room to attempt to get him dry. MC took this action shot to commemorate the experience (thanks a bunch). Getting this dog dry is impossible - hours later he was still damp. How do I know? He planted himself in my lap and wouldn't move. He loves his Aunt Kiki and I love the little ball of fur.

Any excuse to hang out with my sister. Don't worry - we capped off our bathing experience with pedicures. Hey, we need our pampering too, right?

Roll Tide!

Coco and I went to Alabama's homecoming football game in Tuscaloosa on Saturday night. Our friends, Brooke and William, were so nice to invite us! We had a great time even with the chilly weather. I think the temp during the game dipped between 40 and 45 degrees. The Tide rolled over South Carolina in a 20-6 win. I had never been to an Alabama game, let alone an SEC game and it was so much fun to root for a team with at least 90,000 other screaming fans. Brooke has become quite the veteran at these games and we scouted out a good shaker before we went in. I was convinced my arm was going to be sore from so vigorously "cheering" with my shaker...apparently I don't know my own strength. :)

Kiki and Coco

Our stadium entrance - it is a HUGE place!

Brooke and Kiks

The only picture I could get of William - he is an intense fan :)

And thankfully Georgia Tech beat Virginia Tech (Go Jackets!) so Coco was a happy camper all the way around! Thank you Finneys for having us come along!

Baby Shower Bonanza Part 2

I mentioned here that there are many fabulous women in my life expecting little bundles of joy. This past weekend I had the opportunity to help host a baby shower for my friend, Jordan. Her and her husband are expecting a baby boy in December so it was time to shower them with gifts! We had a great time visiting (and eating) and watching Jordan open all of the precious baby items. We can't wait to meet Price Andrew!

Oh! And MC came into town for the occasion - so much fun to spend time with my sister! And Kate and Ethan stopped by for a bit - what a trooper!

Mommy and Me

A diaper cake for Jordan (and Price)

Leah - the hostess with the mostess! Her house is beautiful!

MC and Little Ethan - two of my favorite people!

Jordan had LOTS of presents to unwrap

Such beautiful things

Um, so Kiki was a little preoccupied...

We had a great time and just two more months before Price makes his debut!

***For Baby Shower Bonanza Part 1, click here.

Blogs and Coffee

You may have noticed the fabulous framed poster, "I love you, blogs and coffee", proudly displayed in our home "office". My sweet sister, MC, sent this little happy to me a few weeks ago. Isn't she wonderful? It is perfect, I love it. It was purchased from the very talented MadeByGirl. MadeByGirl shares her fabulous creativity through her Etsy shop, her blog and her website. Check her out! I am now on the hunt for a fab frame I can spray paint white (you know my infatuation with spray paint :)) to make my own poster look chic! Don't you just luuurve it??

Photo courtesy of MadeByGirl's Etsy shop

A place to blog

We've made a few changes at the house in the last few months and found the need to repurpose some of our furniture. I have mentioned many times that we live in an itty bitty house so there are not too many places we can fit in new furniture without getting rid of or repurposing something old. I was determined to keep this armoire and convert it to our "office", but faced a challenge of what to do with the gaping hole in the back (long story - let's just say that once upon a time this baby housed a HUGE TV and desperate times called for desperate measures). After a quick trip to Hobby Lobby and Hancock Fabrics I came home with some mounting board, thumb tacks and fabric (found in the remnant section). I collected some accessories from Ikea and Target and MC shared her mad vinyl skills to "pimp" our home office. I am not done with the organization or inspiration, but I am thrilled with the look and functionality so far!

Excuse the golf clubs - they maintain an indoor place of honor when not in use. :)

Don't look at these pictures too closely - they provide us a bit of humor...and humility. Pictures of Coco and me when we first started dating - we look like babies!

We love our wireless printer - we survived for years without a printer at all and now I don't know what I would do without it!

Anyone have any creative places for their own home office?