it's a...

...girl

Holly and Marcus found out yesterday they are going to have a sweet baby girl!! Congratulations! I've been saying that I needed to know very soon so I can start buying gifts. So now it's official and let the shopping begin! As well as the decorating, the showers, the monogramming....

Oh, I'm so in love with that little girl already~

a storm called fay

Well this typical Florida late summer weekend does not exactly compare to the ones my sophomore year of college when weekend after weekend of the first month of school a not so friendly hurricane came blowing our way. And weekend after weekend we freely escaped to Birmingham as we called the school hotline nonstop to see if classes were canceled for the next day and we could extend our summer just a little longer. And to give you a little laugh, we even made a set of really cool burned mixed CDs so originally named Hurricane Season 2005. We were living the life. So as Fay came our way late last week, after much indecisiveness on where she wanted to go, I was forced with a serious problem…a little something called a j-o-b. It totally put a damper on being able to flee the storm at a moment’s notice and at the moment of my choice.

However, the magic words came through my boss’s mouth late Thursday afternoon...I would like to work from home tomorrow. Two things immediately popped into my head 1. WOO-HOO and 2. I get to sleep in! And then the reality hit that “working from home” meant that I would actually have to bring home work. I managed to get a few things done on Friday…you know errands for clients and important phone calls… but the one thing I should have been working on is still sitting on my dining room table and it’s Sunday night. I know, way to procrastinate. So you might be wondering why I’m blogging at 12:00am and not working. Well I’m trying to figure that one out myself. I am really good at talking and thinking about the things I should be doing but putting it into action is a whole other story! Let’s just say my coffee timer is set for reeeeal early tomorrow morning. Speaking of which, I should be sleeping…

Amidst the oncoming tropical storm, I was faced with another serious issue. How in the world would Holly and I get to Tampa on Saturday for our matinee stage performance of Mamma Mia? You see where my priorities are. (And for the record I did bring plants and flags in from outside to prepare for the wind…all in the name of putting off the work I was supposed to be doing on Friday!) Holly and I ended up leaving Tallahassee before 7am on Saturday morning after we felt safe enough to attempt the drive to Ocala. Thank you to the dedicated Starbucks employees who woke up at the BCofD in a tropical storm to serve us delicious lattes to help with our safe travels. I’ll spare you the details :) but a few hours later we arrived safely in Ocala just in time to hop in the burb with mom and dad and drive to Tampa.

We saw Mamma Mia with Pamela and Mimi. What a show! It was fabulous and we were all singing throughout the entire show. Albeit you can’t beat the beautiful Grecian scenery from the big screen the stage show was a lot more humorous. The little antics from the Broadway actors made the show. We all loved it and even dad gave it two thumbs up! After the show we had an early dinner at Roy’s. It serves Hawaiian fusion food and I was in heaven. It was delicious and scored high in my categories of flavorful and colorful food. We had the best bread pudding for dessert. It was even worthy of it’s own photograph. Oooohh it was good. It was so wonderful to enjoy such marvy company at dinner. From the pictures you can see we had a good time. Our bellies and mouths ached not only from the amount of yummy food we ate but more so from the non-stop laughing. There were even a few tears shed over some funny one-liners.

As Holly and I made our way back to Tallahassee through more rain earlier this evening we made one quick stop in Gainesville to visit cousin Lacy Lauren who starts her first day at UF tomorrow. I am just so thrilled and relieved that I am not starting school tomorrow. But I’m not ready to admit that I’d not rather have my college schedule back (see first paragraph). Good luck to Lacy and Michael who both start school tomorrow. And yes, it’s official, Michael has moved to college. We are all handling it surprisingly well which was how Michael himself put it. I might start to cry if I continue writing on this subject…

Therefore, my Olympic wrap up: Tonight I caught the ending montage and closing ceremony credits. cool. Two weeks of nonstop late-night watching and I’m welcomed back to Tallahassee with no cable. A big thank you to Comcast who has always been there when we need them….not! It looks like I might just have to invest in the DVD set they advertise on TV.

I hope you had a wonderful weekend whether you weathered the storm (entire state of Florida!) or you had beautiful blue skies and sunshine and enjoyed the dwindling days of another great summer.


I want an endless summer, I always do.

enjoying our edamame

our fabulous and rare pomegranate and lychee martinis



the to-die-for gauva bread pudding

are orchids edible?

me, holly and pamela

at prom...again

reenacting a pregnancy portrait that hangs in the

Tallahassee Mall...Pamela was a little timid

congratulations but...

It looks like you are wearing a dance costume!? At least that what I thought when I first saw this image on my internet homepage at work. I started laughing out loud! I didn't even realize those were all his gold medals because my first thought was that this cover was some kind of spoof. haha. And then when I went to copy the image for my blog I found this one...


...much better Michael. Now I clearly see you are showing off your medals and not getting ready to perform in the ballet La Bayadere or in the Broadway number One night in Bangkok.

s'il vous plait...

For all five people who read my blog, a dear friend has urged me to encourage fellow citizens to vote for the coveted position of Charlotte's next Mr. Real Estate. This is not a scam. Please do the following:


1. click on the sign above.
2. click on the Mr. Real Estate Agent
3. select agent #4 on the first row-
Michael Wilfong, Keller Williams Realty
4. vote him a 10 like crazy until this Friday!!
5. there is no limit to your voting and no better
feeling than to exercise your right to vote.

meghan and em enjoying the new flavor of tcby

pamela and I with our gelato

@ chez pierre

sister thought something was so funny!

at prom

taste of tallahassee

I had the most fabulous weekend with some of my nearest and dearest! Meghan and Pamela came for the weekend and we had an itinerary and we were sticking to it. Weekend-O-Fun was created by yours and it was made partially as a joke with the main goal being how many times we could go to TCBY for truly the country's best yogurt. We also got to spend a lot of time with our former supper club members Emily, Nance, and sister. Our plans of visiting the gardens literally drizzled away from the rain but we tried to make up for our one fun event planned by experiencing our own taste of Tallahassee. And I mean we tasted! I'm pretty sure that all we did the entire weekend was talk and laugh, eat and watch the Olympics. It was a blast! As much as it was a taste of Tallahassee we did pretty well at eating foods from across the globe. We had sushi at our favorite downtown place Jasmines, Coldstone and TCBY can count as our American food, creamy gelato from Luna, French cuisine from Chez Pierre...just to name a few! I could name more but then you might try to figure out how many meals/snacks we actually had. Enjoy the pictures from this weekend...they speak volumes.

Their visit also happened to be the weekend of ADPi's friends and family day where the members show their upcoming recruitment skit and video. Boy do I not miss those days of spirit week and rush. I've thought several times today how happy I am to be sitting in an office in jeans not prancing down flights of stairs in stilettos. But we all enjoyed visiting with old friends yesterday and reminiscing together of the fun times we once had. I'm happy to have met so many amazing friends through my sorority and it's weekends like the past that remind me to thank God for the people I've met who touch my life in ways they'll never know.

house guests

5:30 can not get here fast enough! This weekend I am having two very special house guests...Pamela and Meghan. They are two of my dearest friends that I met in college. We have a jam packed weekend of fun that includes eating at posh restaurants, visiting Maclay Gardens, and seeing how many trips to TCBY we can squeeze in. Tonight we're kicking off the weekend-o-fun with dinner at our favorite sushi place Jasmine's and then off to see the Oscar buzzed Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants II, haha.

I've been in a mad dash this past week to get my house looking presentable. Tasks included trying to paint furniture through 3 out of 5 days of thunderstorms and shifting around boxes that have not been unpacked...mainly because boxes of stuff need to go in said furniture--that has not been painted!!! I had a brilliant idea to finish painting my raspberry pink writing desk last night in 100% humidity. Let's just say when I woke up this morning to bring it inside...it was still wet! I just love Florida summers.

Meanwhile, as I've been "unpacking" I've also been glued to the Olympics! Aren't they awesome? Besides the obvious reasons to love watching the Olympics (ie. Phelps and women's gymnastics), I've so enjoyed seeing the architecture of all the venues. I recently heard of an acquaintance, and also fellow graduate of FSU's interior design program, that had the opportunity to study in Beijing with her masters of architecture program during the Olympic construction. She even sat in on lectures given by the architects of the Bird's Nest and the Cube. That's the kind of stuff that thrills me. One thing is for sure--I will be watching as Phelps ties the record for gold medals. Go USA!!

Did I mention I loved birthdays...

This weekend we celebrated in style Holly's birthday (I will refrain from typing in her age)! Let me begin, in 1981....oops...mom and dad gave birth to their firstborn. She was so advanced even at a young age, she reminded me as she read to me aloud from her baby book that mom recorded lots of details (which mom told us over the weekend that when she grew up her mom handed her a blank baby book with a bag of pictures...I guess that's what happens to the last child!). Mom even recorded that she thought Holly's long, lean fingers looked like "piano fingers" Good thing for mom that this child succeeded at being a pianist. Anywho, that is all besides the point. Let's get to the good stuff...how we celebrated...

Sister and I went to Ocala for the weekend to spend quality birthday time with the fam. Marcus opted to stay in Tallahassee because on Saturday a. he did not want to go antiquing with the girls or b. help dad and Michael move furniture to Jacksonville. Marcus was smart and stayed home. As mentioned above Holly, mom, and I spent Saturday afternoon in one of our favorite quaint Florida towns, Mt. Dora. I love going to Mt. Dora; it's full of nostalgia. During our high school days, along with Heather, we would spend many a Saturdays be-bopping from one good antique store to the next with a must have meal at the Goblin's Market. However, even though Mt. Dora still has it's charm in the middle of lakes and orange groves, the stores were sparse. The glory days of Mt. Dora are sadly over in my eyes but alas the Goblin's Market still rules and boy did we do it up right there. We each had a delicious meal. I sipped on slightly sweet pomegranate iced tea with lime and a yummy grilled portobello wrap. Mom had a open-faced Tuscan burger (I even thought it sounded good minus the burger part!) and Holly had an overdose of crab. Crab cake salad and crab bisque--a GB must have!

Saturday night when the girls and boys were back together we had a delicious meal at Ocala's newest and finest steakhouse Mark's on the downtown square. Let me say this for the millionth time, I love to go to a good steakhouse. Not for the steak....duh...but because they always have the best seafood and chicken. So of course I had the Santa Fe Grouper.....yum, yum, yum :)

When we got home Holly opened gifts and we ate homemade lemon pound cake made by Kat all while watching the Olympics...go figure.

The rest of the weekend was full of other monumental events as well. On Friday night, we attended an 08.08.08 wedding of some dear church friends. The groom I have known since we were toddlers. Joey and Tamra looked so happy and in love. This is what I love about weddings.

I write about this next scenerio with mixed emotions. Dad and Michael moved a load of furniture to Michael's, my not so little brother, college apartment. There are so many things to point out here...I can't believe he's old enough to be going off to college. His moving experience is so different than his sister's. It wasn't until the night before that we got a confirmation that he would start moving on Saturday. But he came back...which only means he'll leave again. I know this is hard on mom and dad but they'll get through it. Heck, they don't see much of him now as it is. It's hard on me too. But rest assured he will adjust quite nicely to a new surrounding--make friends fast, live up the city life (and the beach!), and have fun! Now, if we can just be assured that he'll wake up and go to class ;) Good luck to our Michael as you become as Osprey. Swooop.

So as this post has turned totally away from birthdays, below is the celebration in pictures. I just want to sing another Happy Birthday at the top of my lungs (but in harmony of course) to my sister and my best friend. Love you sister.

lemon pound cake with oriental umbrellas in honor of the olympics in beijing

the kids: michael's gf alex, michael, mc, and the birthday girl

First Finest Forever

THIS is what I have been doing the last two months. It all started with one raised hand (mine!) then graudaully evolved into one save-the-date card, 225 sheets, 450 cuts on a paper cutter, retyping 675 address labels, and hand applying the same number of $.26 stamps (but at least they were attractive stamps--they had colorful fruit on them. I would have gone half mad if I had to apply 675 stamps with state flags on them!) Oh, and not to mention paying for both the printing and the postage (to which I was reimbursed for half, the other half my donation).

You ask what in the world are these for?? The Iota Chapter of Alpha Delta Pi will be turning 100 years old in January 2009 and we're planning a big shindig. And I so gladly volunteered to design and oversee all of the invitations and mail-outs...like I need anything more on my plate. Good thing I like my sorority :) I happily mailed them last Friday and it felt like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders.

And even though I lost even more of my eyesight typing all those labels, I was and am still happy to do it! I think the registration mail-outs will be easier...so keep your fingers crossed.

Wedding Flower Weekend

This weekend revolved around wedding flowers. Luckily, it just so happens that I love both flowers and weddings! Bella Flora had a large wedding on Saturday so we began work on Thursday and ended around 5:00 yesterday. A couple of years ago Kelly and her husband Berry built the flower shop in their back yard. It's a great space to make a mess and create beautiful arrangements. It's a place I love to be. Kelly's sister Kasey has been helping us with the last couple of weddings and we've even convinced Holly that she too would have fun if she helped. Let's just say we have a fun time and as the hours roll into the night we can't stop laughing!

Unfortunately this weekend's bride chose a questionable color scheme and decor...but her flowers were beautiful :) That's one of Kelly's strong points in flower design. She will do what the bride wants (of course!) but she does it with a natural, artistic twist that will make the most bizzare idea (peacock feathers...that wedding deserves its own post...) into a gorgeous piece of art.

As for the rest of the weekend...I was wiped out! After being on my feet all day yesterday, Holly and I treated ourselves to pedicures & manicures and then dinner at one of our favorite italian cafes Bella Bella where we dined al fresco and enjoyed the lingering summer daylight hours. Today was furiture painting day! Albeit I started at 5:30 this evening, I still managed to make some progress. I have dresser and desk that are in need of some new color. I keep telling myself that my house will look more put together once those pieces are in their correct places. Then I can accessorize and finally pull my little home together. Hopefully, that dream will come true this week....hopefully.

baby liam sleeping in a room full of flowers...what a life!

the bride's bouquet. do you see the fragrant sweet peas~my favorite!

the bridesmaids' bouquets

yes, those are pale green carnations...the new modern favorite. this was the flower girl kissing ball.

the fresh hydrangea wreaths for the church doors. I was in heaven making these!

the reception at Las Robles

the buffet arrangement

the reception entrance