Monday, August 6, 2012

PGA Week

The time that Charleston has ALL been waiting for....The 2012 PGA Tournament held at Kiawah Island Ocean Course starts TODAY!  

Honestly, I can't wait for it to be over. :)  I am working with Mercedes-Benz executives, Nelson Mullins, & EDENS throughout the week getting them to and from the Charleston International Airport as well as Johns Island Executive Airport.  Now where my stress and anxiety come into play is when a little island, such as Johns Island anticipates 30,000 people to attend....which in turn leaves us with GRIDLOCK traffic on the only 2 - two lane roads leading in & out of Kiawah.  Let's put it this way....it should be very interesting & everyone needs to put their "Patient Panties" on this week! 

Luxury Vehicle Snack Basket, Meet & Greet Signs, and PGA Official Passes
So....WISH ME LUCK & Have a great week!


Thursday, August 2, 2012

Southern Ground Music & Food Festival

southern ground charleston, nc

On July 30th, Zac Brown released the Lineup for his upcoming Southern Ground Music & Food Festival that will be coming into town on October 20th and 21st!  

Last year, Grant and I went to this concert and had the most amazing time.  How can you not when you combine, GOOD MUSIC, GOOD FOOD, and GOOD TIMES in your very own backyard.  This year I know it will be bigger and better than last year, but I hope the relaxed and casual atmosphere that they had last year does not get lost in the madness.  


Gotta go catch up on my music knowledge with Pandora!

Purchase your tickets today....as they go up tomorrow (August 3rd) :)
Hope to see you all there!!!

Friday, July 27, 2012

TGIF for SuShI

Today, Absolutely Charleston (aka my office mates) will be visiting O'ku for 
Lunch to Celebrate my Birthday!

I am super excited as we are slightly obsessed with Sushi around here! :)  I will let you know tomorrow how it was....based on the pictures and reviews, it looks AMAZING!  Can't wait.

Check out some of their amazing dishes....

Sushi & Scallop Lunch Bento Box!

Assorted Sushi Rolls

Tempura Lobster Roll

I love living in Charleston where the food is amazing, the beach is down the street, and the buildings tell a story of the past!  

Happy Friday Everyone! :)

Photography....

Today really got me thinking about my love for photography and how SUPER jealous I am of people that have the eye and talent for grabbing an image and making it so much more!  


One of the big things on my bucket list is to #1 get a Quality Photography Camera, #2 take some lessons from the experts on who to shoot a good pictures, and #3 set up a photo session of my favorite dog in the WHOLE wide world Rivers!

Here are some amazing pet photographers that I found right here in Charleston....



I think I might know what I am going to do with  my Birthday $$! :)  Instead of spending it on the house, I think I might do a little something for myself and get some pictures of Rivers playing frisbee on the beach.




My BIRTHDAY Festivities....
Wednesday Night was so much fun and I am so thankful to all my friends who came out to Celebrate my Birthday with me.  We had dinner at Taco Boy (yum, one of my Charleston favorites) before heading over to Theater 99 to watch Laugh for a Lincoln....you can't beat a good two hour laugh for only $5 BUCKS!



Here are the only two pictures that were taken all evening.... 
Emily, Me, Katie, Megan, and Kathryn


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Birthday Cupcakes at Taco Boy!


Happy last 20's birthday before the BIG 30 to me!!

Wednesday, July 25, 2012

Welcome Back Wednesday!

Now that I have come back to reality after a taking a few months off, I feel like we should start off with nothing better than food!  I am inspired by this post from one of my co-workers who brought in the most amazing FIGS yesterday, my favorite local restaurant FIG (which Grant is taking me out to next Tuesday for my Birthday Dinner), and for Grant's grandmother Nana who passed away two weeks ago who loved reading my blog and commenting back on all my food posts.  So this post is for you NANA!  We miss you. :(


At work today I got an email from the Maverick Southern Kitchen Restaurant's and there was a post about FIGS.  Thought I would share this recipe as I would like to try it something this weekend!  Speaking of this weekend, it is my birthday and tonight a bunch of friends are going out with me to celebrate.  I honestly can't wait!  Grant and I have not been out with a lot of these friends since we moved here almost 1 year ago.  SAD, but true.  I guess that is what happens when you are trying to save up for a house as well as other things....you tend to loose touch of reality.  


I am glad to be back into the Blogging Word, but it was a much needed break!
ENJOY & Happy Wednesday :)

According to Science Magazine, nine partially fossilized figs dated between 9400 B.C. and 9200 B.C. were found in the Jordan Valley. The Bible mentions figs, and the Romans and Ancient Greeks ate them. Figs are also one of the highest plant sources of calcium and fiber. This week, High Cotton's Executive Chef Palma shares his recipe using this nutritious, delicious and ancient treat!
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Local Honey Fig, Pecan, Cabbage Slaw with preserved Meyer Lemon Vinaigrette
Serves 4
Ingredients:
Slaw
8 SC honey or brown turkey figs, halved
1 head of SC cabbage, sliced thinly
1c SC pecans, toasted then coarsely crushed
Meyer Lemon Vinaigrette
2 preserved meyer lemons, rinsed, blanched, and minced
3 shallots, minced
2 tbsp SC honey
½ tsp dijon mustard
2 c Olive Oil
¾ c apple cider vinegar
1 tbsp black pepper
Salt to taste 

Directions: Mix the shallots, preserved lemon, mustard, and apple cider vinegar in a bowl and allow to set and macerate for 10 minutes. Add the honey and gently emulsify the oil into the dressing base. Toss the cabbage and pecans together with the vinaigrette and put into the bowl. Separately, gently toss the figs with the vinaigrette, then arrange on top of and around the slaw. Enjoy!

Saturday, April 7, 2012

Brain Fog....

Ummmm....So it is April and I haven't blogged in what feels like forever.   I definitely have what they call a Bloggers Funk.  I get on here to write and nothing wants to come out....So I guess I will have to sum up the last few weeks with just pictures.

March 21st - Our Anniversary at Halls Chophouse. :)  This is a glass of Gloria Ferrer Champagne....We visited this winery last September with the whole family while we were visiting San Francisco

The Cocktail Club - After Dinner drinks for our Anniversary!

March 24th - Charleston Local Oysters, Beer, Boats and Bluegrass...YES PLEASE!

The BEST Oyster Roast in Charleston - HANDS DOWN!
GOAT ISLAND!!!

March 28th - Bohicket Marina - Red's Icehouse with Mom
                             
                            Dad with his crazy high school buddy Vance making Shrimp
and Grits for Breakfast...YUM!


March 31st - Charleston Bridge Run - A little blurry, sorry!  This is the gang....
Mom, Dad, Grant, Ben, Suzanne, Hank, Georgia, Vance, Susie, Sarah, Todd, Diane, Gerry & Rene
I did it!!!  1 hour and 12 minutes.  I made the News Paper for being in the top 9,000 ladies!
I mean...there were 44,000 people that ran it! :)

Isle of Palms - March 29th - April 5th, 2012 - A week of work, relaxation, &
good times with good friends!

March 17th - Where we left off last on the house Updates....
March 22nd - Getting ready for Siding! The house has been wired for
power, lighting, cable, etc, etc... 

April 1st - Rivers helping Grant, Dad, and I put Speaker & Surround Sound Wires throughout the House....Let's just hope the pictures we took
before the drywall are helpful later on!

Update on the House - April 5th!  We have siding :)

April 7th - DRYWALL!  - Our future kitchen and island. :)

April 7th - The Front is almost complete!  Drywall went in today!!

Thank you for catching up over the past few weeks with me.  Hopefully this week I can get some Blogs in!  Tomorrow is EASTER and we plan on going out to the beach for a relaxing day with friends.....Oh what a rough life we live here in Charleston!  

HAPPY EASTER!! :)



Wednesday, March 21, 2012

Wednesday's Weekly Home Decor Obsessions...

curtains
Obsessed with these curtains...For my Bedroom! (West Elm)
I know I have put them up once before, but I need to just suck it up and purchase them!
That is what a night of babysitting will get me. :)  

LOVE!
Teal Shower Curtain - $19.98 (Lowes)

Wine Box Garden-cute
Courtesy of Pinterest : Wine Box Herb Garden! ...
It doesn't help that my husband is a Wine Rep and can get me all the Wine Boxes I want...and All the Wine I can DRINK!  :)

Love these colors
SPRING COLORS....Love this because it makes me Happy! (Pinterest)

breakfast nook
Kitchen Breakfast Nook! A Bright & Happy Place....
I think we could pull this off in our New Kitchen! (Pinterest)

It's also my 2 year Anniversary Today!

March 21st, 2010

Rehearsal Dinner - Bulow Plantation near Johns Island, SC 
   


Wedding Ceremony and Reception - Pepper Plantation

 





Happy Anniversary...I love you Grant!  :)

 




 

Tuesday, March 20, 2012

It's A Grown-Up World....

My To-Do List is never ending....I start one at work, then I start another one when I get home.  I mean, do they ever really end.....or just get worse from here?!?

Yesterday I marked off a BIG item on my To-Do List.....Change the Cabinets & Counter Tops before it's tooo late!  You can ask Grant, Georgia (Our Realtor), or Carroll (Our Home Sales Manager), what my thoughts are about Uba Tuba Counter Tops.  I am just not a fan!  (If you have them, sorry to offend. :)) I don't know what it is about the Green & Black that pop out at me and say...."What are you thinking here?!?", but I am definitely an Ivory, Brown, Baby Blue, Baby Yellow type of person...and not an Uba Tuba type of person.  So, I had to cave and get what I wanted!  I mean, I am the one who is gonna live with it from here on out if I made the wrong decision.....Grant could care less.  He just wants to make sure that I am making the right FINAL decision.  

So, based on the little options that we have for counter tops and cabinets....Black w/ Pink, Black w/ Green, White w/ Black, and Ivory w/ Brown....I should have been able to make this decision from the beginning.  It is just so hard when they make you decide on everything you want right then and there.  I don't like feeling under pressure about BIG decisions like that...I mean that is a lot of money that we are talking about!

So, the Final decision has been made...and the dotted line has been signed, again:
Santa Cecilia

Now the question stands....What color Cabinets do we go with??
My options are: Top Row....# 5 Across - "Milk Chocolate Brown",  or Bottom Row.... #1 Across "Tan" or #6 Across "Redish Brown".  

Let me know your thoughts...I would love to hear your feedback!  


Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Mexican Vegetarian Chile Rellenos & Margarita Cupcakes....Yum!

Last week I made some yumminess that I thought I would share with my readers....
Vegetarian Chile Rellenos and Margarita Cupcakes. 

Chile Rellenos
 4 Poblano Chili Peppers
1 bag on instant rice
2 cups of vegetable broth
1/2 large white onion
1 small can chopped green chili
1 can pinto beans, drained
2 cups mozzarella or your favorite cheese
Toppings Optional: Chopped Tomatoes, Cilantro, Red Onions, Avocado, Sour Cream, Salsa

Boil 2 cups of vegetable broth & 2 cups water in a large pot.  Once it comes to a boil, 
Add 1 - bag of instant rice.  (We used brown rice, but you could use white)....Cook rice per instructions on the box.


Meanwhile turn the oven on boil, and place your poblano peppers onto a sheet pan covered in aluminum foil.  Keep a close eye on them and rotate as needed.  You want them to brown up a little and for the skin to blister. - Approximately 10 minutes.


Dice 1/2 of a large white onion....heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a large skillet.  Add the diced onion, 1 small can of green chiles, & 1 can of pinto beans, drained.  


Once your onions have began to caramelize, remove from heat and add your cooked rice.  Stir the mixture well.  You can also add some pulled rotisserie chicken or cooked ground beef if you would like, but we enjoyed ours without any meat.


Remove the peppers from the oven once they have browned and bubbled....turn your oven down to 400 degrees. Place your peppers into a ziplock bag to sweat, or once they have cooled down, slowly pull the skin off the peppers.  You will also need to deseed and remove the stems from each pepper.  


Lay out each pepper onto an aluminum foil covered sheet pan.  I cut our 2 peppers in half and made 4 open face peppers, but you can cover your peppers back up, if you would like.  Top with mozzarella or your favorite cheese :)...and place back into the oven until the cheese melts.  Approximately 5 minutes


Chop up the toppings of your choice....We cut up fresh tomatoes, red onions, cilantro, and my favorite avocado.  


Wahhhla!  Sorry its a pretty bad picture... but it was YUMMY!!

Now onto dessert....Margarita Cupcakes.  My friend, Ashley, from Georgia-Pacific gave me the recipe for this one, so I have to thank her for this. :)  **You can also sub the margarita mix for champagne and make Pink or Blue Champagne Cupcakes (great idea for a baby shower)!!

Margarita Cupcakes
1 box white cake mix
1 1/4 cups margarita mix
1/2 cup vegetable oil
3 egg whites
5 - 7 drops green (I found a new neon green) food coloring


Bake at 350 for 17 - 22 minutes


Easy Homemade Frosting:
1/2 cup butter, softened
4 cups powdered sugar
1/2 cup margarita mix 
(you might need add a little more if it doesn't come to the "frosting" consistency)
2 tsp vanilla extract
7 - 10 drops green (neon) food coloring

Garnish: Limes, Sugar Crystals, Edible Pearls, Etc.  


A little trick on icing your cupcakes.  Fill a sandwich size ziplock with your homemade icing...make sure to zip it closed tight (my icing had the tendency to ooze out the top).


Cut off a small tip on the bottom corner of your bag to create your own pipping bag.  Then start icing your cupcakes, one by one.  



I topped off each cake with a small slice of a lime to give it the feel of a real margarita.  You could also add a little rock salt on top if you want to get festive.  


Ta Da!  Deliciousness in a little tip cup.  
What is your favorite flavor of cupcake?!?!