Philadelphia Flower Show

This was the first year that I've ever been to the Philadelphia Flower Show and I got to go with my friend, Ann.  

This is the oldest flower show in the country--  It started in 1829 !

I can't believe that I've never made it until now!

The theme this year was "Brilliant Britain"...(it seemed an appropriate theme since I've been so Downton Abbey obsessed as of late)...

yellow flowers in a yellow submarine...

interesting cuttings in vessels...

Espalier tree...oh my!

We were thinking of Susan here...

 interesting way to grow herbs...

I've been obsessing with miniature gardens!..

imagine this for a wedding!...

 window box inspiration...

what dog (or girl) wouldn't want to live in this succulent covered house?!...

We left with lots of inspiration and a strong desire for the planting season to begin...

This trip will definitely become a yearly tradition!

Let's begin...

Ok, so I had visions of returning to my blog (after not writing in it for 2 years) 

with an exciting and titilating post...

you know, the kind of photo/journal entry that would really stand out...

But alas, tis not to be the case...

This is real life baby, and what's on my mind right now is--

THIS...

Also known as ...the dreadful sock basket...the very bane of my existance!

I know there's big problems in the world, but just the sight of this picture of mis-matched socks is giving me the shivers.  How does this happen?  Where are their partners?  What's a girl to do?

I'm tempted to just throw them all out and start from scratch.  

*sigh*

It's good to be back...

Reilly's 10th birthday

We celebrated Reilly's 10th birthday with a family party this year...

She got to pick out her favorite dinner (steak on the grill, twice baked potatoes and jr. league salad)

We invited the Day's over to join in on the festivities...

(usually my mom comes to help celebrate Reilly's and my birthday but she fell and broke her arm and the bone under her eye so she wasn't able to come)

I guess wishes do come true...Reilly got her first pair of UGGS...

(The only way I could justify buying them for her is that I didn't spend a lot on her party)

Reilly is officially DOUBLE DIGITS!

Christmas 2012

The Christmas season has been rather hectic for me over the past few years since I am busy the few weeks before Christmas working for Black-eyed Susan decorating people's urns...

Fortunately, this year, the weather cooperated and I wasn't stuck having to pour boiling water in the soil to thaw it for the greens to go in...

Here is an example of one of the finished products...(it happens to be mine!)

I managed to make time to do my own, but never got around to taking a picture until New Year's Eve...

(I must remember to get that tacky time stamp off of my camera!)

This year, we invited Rhiannon Hopkins (one of my activity day girls) over for our traditional cookie decorating night...

Intense concentration is needed when making the "perfect?!" cookie...

I always love to see how much Brian gets into this whole cookie decorating process...

After playing out in the snow, Emalee, Reilly and Bella warm their feet by the fire...

The much anticipated Christmas morning!

Everyone is in their usual spots...

You can't see it, but there is a lot of squeeling and motion going on here....

This year, the gift "theme" was new room accessories...(bedding, wall hangings, pillows, etc...)

I don't know who was more excited, them or me!  I had a ball shopping for everything!

Jake feigning excitement over room decorations...what guy wouldn't be thrilled? (ahem)

After gift opening, it was time for our traditional Christmas breakfast... breakfast casserole, orange julius, and monkey bread...

followed by endless Christmas Story watching and a blissful nap!

Thanksgiving 2012

My favorite part of any dinner party is ALWAYS table decorations!

I plan and ponder weeks before and have the table set and ready at least the day before my event.

This year was no exception...

I decided to guild an assortment of pumpkins and gourds and incorporate a few cloches in the mix to add a bit of drama...

My mom and Seth, Ken and Lynne and Brian's cousins, The Garcias joined us for dinner...

Sadly, I forgot to capture the PEOPLE sitting at the table!  What the?! 

In my defense, I was so busy with food prep and hosting that I just forgot...

Note to self--Have someone else in charge of action photos next year!

Every year, my mom comes a few days before Thanksgiving and stays for the week after...

Since we don't spend Christmas together, this is the time that we fit in all of our Christmas traditions in (shopping, baking cookies, decorating, etc.)

Here she is helping Ellie with her famous sugar cookies!  They are AMAZING!  Never had better!

Sadly, I'm all thumbs when it comes to rolling out dough or crusts of any sort, so she picks up where I lack in this department.

She and Reilly always get together for a piano duet at some point during her stay...

My mom's visit officially kicks off the Christmas season!

Halloween 2012

Brian isn't usually on the pumpkin carving team, so it was nice to have him in the mix this year...

He was put in charge of my least liked October task...picking the seeds out of the pumpkin guts...

Sophie and Bella Restrepo joined us on our quest to beg for candy...

the chick magnet!...

One last group shot before Jake met up with Brady and the rest of us were on our way!