Happy Holidays!

This Christmas was a little bittersweet for me.  It was X and my first Christmas as a married couple, but it also marked the first Christmas without my mom.  We skipped our usual Christmas Eve church attendance and limited the celebration to Christmas day.  We started at my dad's house with lunch, then making the family rounds in Fredericksburg, eating lots of goodies along the way, and ended a full day celebrating Christmas at my dad's house.  But, before we headed home, we made an obligatory stop in Johnson City to see the incredible light display that PEC puts up every year.

It kind of surprises me that no matter how many times we pass by this scene, it never ceases to amaze me.

Hope your holidays were filled with family, food, and just that hint of magic that makes Christmas what it is!

Happy Holidays!

Gorgeous Jewelry

If you haven't stopped by BlushInk! recently, you should hop over there right. now.  Why?  Because Kelly is hosting a fabulous giveaway that includes the likes of this:

Excuse me while I drool over this gorgeous combination of pearls and brass.  Even better?  It's named "Edward".  Want more Twilight goodness?

Emmett

Jasper

Clearly, I need to stop obsessing over Twilight.

I think my favorite of their pieces is the Charles neckalce:

To enter the giveaway, go here to find out more details.  And be sure to visit Edmoure Ralph's shop to choose your favorite goody.

**all photos courtesy of Edmoure Ralph

Gorgeous Jewelry

Marilyn's Fabric

I came across this fabric swatch on Sew Mama Sew! that reminded me of my mom in more ways than one.

source

I'm tempted to buy a yard or two, although I'm not sure what I would sew from it.  It may end up simply living in my sewing cabinet with the rest of my fabric stash....

Marilyn's Fabric

The Pioneer Woman Comes to Austin!

I spent most of my Thursday evening, this past week, waiting to get a much coveted signature from this lovely lady.  Ree (a.k.a. the Pioneer Woman) is one of my favorite bloggers (and not just because she too is a basset hound owner).  She is amazingly talented at not only writing, but also at photography, cooking, teaching, decorating, and the list could go on and on.  If you haven't heard of her yet, I highly recommend reading her blog to find out more- I promise you'll get sucked in!

I arrived to Book People at around 5:30.  I am so in love with this book store- the atmosphere is quaint and they have a huge selection of books.  (As a side note:  the staff of Book People were incredibly organized and helpful at this particular event.  This was actually the first book signing I have ever attended and was happy that it ran as smoothly as it did!)

I was determined to stay focused on my mission (meaning I dismissed my longing to frolic next door to Anthroplogie) and proceeded to the third floor to get my wrist band.  By the time I had arrived, they had already gone through three wrist band colors.  There were a lot of people in attendance:

Finally the woman of the hour(s) answered a few questions before heading back upstairs to sign more cookbooks.

In between waiting and frequenting the cafe downstairs, I managed to get Marlboro Man's signature and snag a quick picture.

The time actually passed by really quickly and before I knew it I was here.

And then here.

It was soooo worth the wait.

The Pioneer Woman Comes to Austin!