An Anniversary Surprise

Blog teaser...

Ben surprised me with a trip to Atlanta for our anniversary. He even collaborated with my boss to get Monday off work for me. I was so excited when he gave me the news over dinner at McCormick and Schmick.

After dinner we drove up to the spot where Ben proposed nearly 2 and half years ago. So pretty! It is across the street from a house/castle! I told Ben that one day we have to buy that house so we can just point over our yard and say - we got engaged there. Sounds like a good plan to me!

Stay tuned for an extensive blog on our trip with all the details...

Favorite Things

1. Frozen Cokes. This is a summertime favorite of mine. You know what I am talking about, right? They are like slurpies or slushies, only instead of being like blue-raspberry they are just plain ol' Coca-Cola. Mmmmmm.
   
   
2. Restaurant Eugene. Martha recommended it in her Senior Trip blog but it bears mentioning again. We ate our anniversary meal here and I can't wait to go back to ATL to get another helping of their Fried Green Tomatoes with Crab Salad on top.




3. Baby Oil. Call me cheap, but I have been using baby oil to remove my eye make-up for years. I can't bring my self to pay $7 for a tiny little bottle of eye make-up remover when I can get a huge container of baby oil for like a dollar. It works great too!




4. Crossword Puzzles. Some of you may find it weird to know that this weekend was the first time I have ever worked a crossword puzzle. I got the Sunday paper (for the coupons, of course) and decided to give it a try. My husband is a wealth of knowledge and useless facts, so I basically used him for all my answers but it was still a good way to kill time while driving back from Atlanta.
   
   
5. Beluga Whales. I will blog about my weekend love affair with the Beluga Whales at the Georgia Aquarium soon, but it must be said that, if I could have pulled it off, I honestly think I would have tried to whale-nap one of them. Seriously precious.



6. Getting feedback from my readers. It is so nice when someone says, "Hey, I read what your wrote about Aldi. Where is that?" or "I loved that diaper cake on your blog. How did you make that?" Blogging is a bit of a creative outlet for me. I love creating, designing and organizing things. So when I actually share a little bit on here of what is on my mind it is nice to know that you find it interesting/useful too!
   
   
7. Celebrity Family Fued. I was a huge fan of Family Feud growing up. I still get excited when I find it on GSN (the Game Show Network) but Celebrity Family Feud is brilliant! It comes on NBC on Tuesday nights at 7 PM CST. This week features the American Gladiators and the cast from THE OFFICE! Set your tivo/DVR's now!
   
   
8. HGTV's Design Star. I hate when I get hooked on shows like this, but there is no denying it...they have reeled me in for the rest of the season.
   
   
9. Mexican Train Dominoes. I was introduced to this game at SawGrass this year. It is loads of fun. I will definitely be packing it with me for all my family trips to Ohio from now on.


10. Grocery Mama - the blog. It's like she took the words right out of my mouth!

New Office

I got a new office at work! I am so excited. This office was previously unused so I had free reign with decorating it. It is a much larger space than I was used to but I do miss working across from Martina!

Before:
View from door with Ugly Blue Wall

After:

Old File Cabinets
New File Cabinets, desk and painting.

Old Bookcases

New Bookcases
Two of my favorite things in my office include:
My new painting. It is a of a tree-lined road that, as all of my loyal readers know, is one of "My Favorite Things".
I am also in love with these paisley curtains.
It took a few weeks to get everything just the way I wanted it, but since I spend the majority of my days in this space it was worth it to make it feel warm and comfortable!

Ben and Jamie Grizzle

Today marks the one year anniversary of the day I married my best friend. Besides becoming a Christian, it is the best decision I have ever made. I thank God everyday for the amazing blessing that is my husband.

Here is a brief synopsis of how we met, dated and decided to become Mr. & Mrs:
Ben and I met after attending the same church and Bible study for nearly a year and a half. On a mission trip to the Navajo and Apache Indian reservations in July 2005 we became great friends. It didn't take long to realize our friendship was very special and we decided the give the romantic thing a try. A mere 10 months later, on May 25, 2005, Ben proposed on a hillside over looking the city. After I said, "YES!" he surprised me with a small celebration with my closest friends. We set the date for 07.07.07 and couldn't wait for the big day to arrive!

Ben is the perfect match for me. I can't imagine spending my life with a more wonderful man.
I love you, honey!

Making a Diaper Cake

Supplies:
Diapers (I think bought 2 packs of like 56 or something like that. I used a whole pack and about 6 out of the second pack. Keep leftovers to give to new Momma.)
Curling Ribbon
Hot Glue & Hot Glue Gun
Decorative Ribbon
Dress-maker Pins
Flowers for Topper
Cake Stand

1. Buy WHITE diapers. This is not as easy as it sounds. While all diapers tend to have some kind of decoration at the waste band, you can pretty easily hide it. But finding a diaper without clouds or Sesame Street characters on the butt is a little harder to do.

2. Roll diapers starting at waste band and tie with curling ribbon.


3. Stack diapers around each other in concentric circles to form an even circle. Tie bunch of diapers together with a long string of curling ribbon.

4. Wrap decorative ribbon around each tier to hide curling ribbon and pin into place with dress-maker pins.
5. Hot glue bow over place where ends of ribbon meet.

6. Top with flowers. I bought silk hydrangeas at Michael's, cut the long stems off and stuck into the top of the cake. I plucked the leaves off of the stems and saved them to layer between each tier of the cake.


7. Sit back and enjoy the ooooh's and awwww's of people at the shower.

Independence Day

Happy 232nd B-day, America!



I hope all of you have a great holiday weekend, full of fun, family and fireworks!

Martina's Shower

Martina's Shower was a success! She and Colton received a ton of great gifts and I think everyone had a great time. Thanks to everyone that helped (Emily Jones, Martha Hovater, Ashley Cosby, Bethany Faucett, Rachel Woodward, Lisa Kaufhold, Whitney Hardy, Maghan Craig, and Cortney McKinney)!

7/10 of the hostesses.
From R to L: Cortney, Martha, Maghan, Martina, Rachel, Me, Emily and Ashley. (We missed you Lisa, Bethany and Whitney!)

Yummy, Yummy Chocolate Petit Fours from Edgars.

Martina's Sister, Carmen, surprised her with her bedding set!

My first attempt at a diaper cake.
It turned out just how I wanted,
thanks to lots of help from my hubby.

Maghan's fruit kabobs...so cute and so tasty!

The countdown has officially begun. Colton is scheduled to arrive just seven more weeks! I can't wait to finally meet him!