Fall into Fall ???

Sitting by the pool drinking my morning cup of tea and it is positively glorious!!  The temperature is way down, there's a beautiful breeze and you can actually smell the rain coming our way. I'd say the weather is starting to transition to Fall and I'm excited to see what Fall in Texas is all about!  I actually dreamt of Fall decorations last night (which I can explain!). Fall is my favorite time of year and Fall up North is gorgeous and Fall in Birmingham was always fun and fantastic. Coach loved putting his TV on the back deck, having a fire in the pit and watching some SEC football.

Last night Cosmo and I went to the Rangers vs Mariners game and had a great time!  He's  been to that stadium many times before (honestly, where hasn't he been) but it was my first Rangers game. One of his vendors dropped off the tickets and we had great seats 25 rows up off the 3rd baseline. The stadium is nice but I really think Camden Yards is my favorite place to see a baseball game. The O's are coming to town next weekend so maybe we'll catch part of that series.

We couldn't figure out why the Rangers mascot, which is a horse, was running around wearing a tartan kilt and a set of golf clubs. And then Jordan Speith threw the ceremonial pitch. 

On our way to the stadium last night we passed this great little nursery by our house. On the way there I noticed they had some Fall/Halloween decorations up but couldn't get a good look. On the way home it was dark and the decorations were lit up and looked super cute so that's why I think I dreamed of fall decor!!  I love the layout and look of this house and think my Fall things are going to look great in this house! 

A little Fall Fun

KJ had a great Halloween and trick or treated with a couple of girls from the neighborhood despite the light rain.  We had a ton of kids at the house which was pretty fun and I had just enough candy.  My favorite costume of the night was Troy Polamalu.  One of the boys KJ goes to school with wore a Steeler's jersey and had a huge wig on.  Too funny!  She didn't have school on Friday so we got to sleep in for a bit.  We met Cosmo for lunch and did a little shopping in the afternoon.  KJ picked out a Michael Kors bag and it will be put away for a Christmas present.  She also bought two cute dresses and a couple of shirts. 

Saturday KJ was invited to the movies and shopping with a girl from her Math class so Cosmo and I took advantage of the free time and had a date day.  The weather was absolutely gorgeous, mid-60's with plenty of sunshine.  We had a GREAT lunch at the DC Boathouse in Georgetown
http://dcboathouserestaurant.com/ and walked around the campus for a while.  We found the football stadium and caught a bit of the game vs. Lafayette.  Nice stadium, very small (nothing like Bryant-Denney!) but nice nonetheless.  Can't wait to see some lax games there!  I was so mad at myself . . . I lugged my camera around all day but it didn't have a memory card in it but did get a couple of good pics with my phone.  I luv, luv, luv Georgetown.  I've told Cosmo repeatedly that I'd give my right arm to live there. 

Coming Along Nicely

Finally feeling like we've settled in and finally got around to taking some photos of our bedroom and KJ's room.  Our room is gigantic, almost a little too big. 

 

Here's a photo of KJ's room.  A little smaller than her room in B'ham and she didn't want to loft her bed so the desk part is in one of the guest rooms.  She said she's been sleeping better than she ever has but I think a large part of that is because we're upstairs with her.  She positively hated being the only one upstairs in the old house.  If T was out of town or at a sleep-over, KJ refused to sleep upstairs alone and would spend most nights on the couch.  And it got worse when T went off to college.  Even at a young age, I'm talking 2 and 3 years old, we'd find her asleep everywhere but her own bed.  She'd get out of her toddler bed and try to get in bed with T, we'd find her on the floor in T's bedroom and then T got smart and started to shut her door at night.  We'd find KJ curled up like a ball right outside T's door.  It was so pathetic!  Then KJ realized she could come downstairs to the master bedroom and she'd try to get in bed with us or we'd find her on the floor in our room with her favorite blankie.  

 

Started some of my Fall and Halloween decorating but I've got more I want to do.  It's raided the last couple of days so I haven't done anything outside.  I did, however, manage to get my table started. 

 

The water goblets are a new addition this year.  My mom picked them up for me at a garage sale.  

 

The sparkly pumpkins are in the living room and I have a few other things to go with them.  A purple sparkly skull for one. 



 

 

Just a Bill

Ed & Gins are coming for a quick visit this weekend.  The weather is supposed to be pretty good (unseasonable warm, in the high 80's) and I would have loved to go into DC but with the shut down and now with today's incident on Capital Hill (I always think of "I'm Just a Bill" from Schoolhouse Rock every time someone says "Capital Hill), that's not going to happen.  Maybe we'll go into Baltimore or Annapolis (I haven't been back to Annapolis since we left the first time!). 

There is a local Octoberfest on Saturday so we might be able to hit that depending on what time they get here.  I haven't done any of my Fall / Halloween decorating yet so maybe my mom can help me with that.  There's also a nice orchard nearby that is supposed to have a great pumpkin festival (as opposed to a Great Pumpkin festival a la The Peanuts).   http://www.butlersorchard.com/

I've had a touch of insomnia the last couple of days and end up watching mindless garbage on TV.  If I read, I can read all night and that's worse.  Mindless TV makes me drowsy and I end up falling asleep on the couch.  The last couple of nights I've watched a show called Life Below Zero on the National Geographic channel.  http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/channel/life-below-zero/  This show is CRAZY!  I totally get folks wanting to living off the grid, etc. but I'm not a big red meat eater and don't think that I could survive.  Instead of seal meat or bear meat, I'd be craving a salad. 

HY, DR !!!

Welp, the game didn't turn out the way Ole Miss fans would have liked but we still managed to have a good time Saturday night.  I was hoping the Rebs would put up at least a touch down.  Oh!  And did I mention that Coach Freeze tweeted some birthday wishes to me???  How cool is that??!!

The weather was gorgeous this weekend and we had all the windows open and my dining room looked great!  Cosmo and I had on some Rebel gear, KJ, however, was a little "confused" -- she had on an Ole Miss jersey but she wore an Alabama hairbow and an Alabama button.  One of our former Hoover neighbors came over and brought a delish cheesecake and The Godfather and his wife (they had never seen KJ!) brought some great cookies.  I made T's favorite chilli cheese dip and pulled pork sandwiches. 

I haven't talked to T but she texted a couple of times throughout the weekend.  They got to T-town Friday night and she was able to catch up with friends this weekend.  She texted an amazing panoramic pic from her seat in Bryant-Denny and she's already back in Oxford for Rush practice. 

 

And here's a couple pics of the kitchen area and the family room.  I forgot to take photos of the bedrooms yesterday and haven't made my bed yet today so that's just going to have to wait!  And the formal living room is now full of my Halloween and Thanksgiving boxes just waiting to be opened.  I'll probably do my fall decorating this week! 

 

Foyer

Breakfast Nook

Family Room from Kitchen

Breakfast Nook



Fall

"Every leaf speaks bliss to me, fluttering from the autumn tree."  ~  Emily Bronte

 

A little nippy this morning as KJ headed off to school.  She wanted to wear the red and blue cardigan I bought for Ole Miss games but I told her that's not gonna happen.  The kid has a closet full of clothes and accessories yet raids my closet every chance she gets. 

 

No secret Fall is my favorite season.  Besides cooler temperatures, sweaters, boots, fall decorating and all that great stuff, I love all the great new Fall shoes and movies!  Last night I TiVo'd "Blacklist" with James Spader.  There's been a lot of hype about the show, I just hope it's as good as critics say.  "Modern Family" is back and the second season of " Nashville" premieres tomorrow night.  At the theaters, I'd like to see "Don John" with Joseph Gordon Levitt http://donjonmovie.tumblr.com/ (he sure has grown up since his "3rd Rock from the Sun" days and who doesn't love a guy who sings "Good Vibrations" in the car???) and I'd also like to see "Runner Runner" with Justin Timberlake and Ben Affleck  http://www.runnerrunnermovie.com/?gclid=CIbwupaH5LkCFbF9Ogod6AoAJQ.  In November, "The Wolf of Wall Street" comes out as well as "The Book Thief" and "Catching Fire." 

Speaking of Fall, I did get some of my Fall decorating done this past weekend.  I found most of my tailgating items and have decorated for the Ole Miss vs. Alabama game this weekend:  I've got my entry-way ready and my dining room table is almost complete.  Here's the link to last year's table:  http://cos4.blogspot.com/2012/09/table-update.html  We've got friends and family coming over Saturday night to watch the game so I really need to finish! 

Yesterday I did my mantel.  I kept it very, very simple.  I found a beautiful, sparkly , glittery leaf garland and accented with sequined pumpkins and mercury gourds and acorns.  My inspiration:

 

The end result:

 

 

 

 

 



It's OK Thursday

It's OK . . .

 

...to intensely dislike Taylor Swift and her music.

...to find Taylor Swift's relationship with the Kennedy kid incredibly creepy.

...that my girl has been away at college for a week already!  Seriously.  It's OK.  She's loving every minute of it!

...to have slowly started to decorate for Fall.

...to love all this rain we've had.  Luv it!  Luv it!  Luv it!

...to be excited that our Ole Miss football tickets came in the mail!  Hotty Toddy! 

...that I hated the last book I read ("Seating Arrangements").  I'm now on to Emily Giffin's "Where We Belong."

...that Prince Harry had a good time in Vegas!  Go Harry!  Go Harry!



On to the Next Holiday !!!

A friend of mine on Twitter was this past weekend complaining because she can't start her Christmas decorating because this year is her turn to host her large family Thanksgiving. Slow down girlfriend! Take each holiday as it comes and enjoy each one! And by all means, Don't skip over Thanksgiving!!! It's the best holiday of the year!!!

Halloween is over so now it's time to finish up my Thanksgiving decor. I like to do it in stages as many of my Halloween decorations carry over to fall and Thanksgiving . . . the browns, the orangs, the rust colors; the pumpkins (not jack-o-lanterns), sunflowers, scarecrows, etc. All of my scary decorations are down and now I need to fill everything in with turkeys and pilgrims.

I love searching the internet to get inspiration from various websites and different decorators (amatuer as well as professional). I love to see how over the top some people go with their decor and how simple some folks keep it. I think I'm somewhere in the middle. Certainly not spartan, but definately not to the extreme either.

I like looking for those little touches, such as the personalized pear placesetting below:


And, as always, thee are lots and lots of candles in mason jars all over my house!

Fall Decor

Anyone who regularly reads my blog knows I luv, luv, luv this time of year! I love getting cozy and having candlelight EVERYWHERE. I luv the smells of autumn, the textures, the weather. I think this is the most perfect time of the year.

This weekend we did some of our outdoor decorating (hay bale, corn stalks, pumpkins, garden flag, etc.). I've got my autumnal dining room table complete and the kitchen is decorated for fall (pumpkins & scarecrows on the baker's rack) and Bucs football season (lots of black & orange & white -- polka dot plates, checked cloth napkins, serving dishes shaped like footballs). I have a little Alabama tableau in the foyer (lots of houndstooth and photos of the family from various Alabama games in Tide frames and a couple of Bear Bryant quotes on distressed wood and, of course, a Bear Bryant hat). The family room has scary Halloween decorations. The scary stuff will come down after Halloween and Thanksgiving will go in it's place.

One of my favorite blogs, The Tablescaper, always posts GORGEOUS photos and I love getting some inspiration from her (I'm assuming it's a female!). http://thetablescaper.blogspot.com/. We have very similar tastes in dishes and table decor and I like using what I have on hand and putting my own spin on it.