Olly's Back!

Friday night our local town celebrated it's 1st Annual Holiday Merchant open house, which is basically where all the little shops that normally close at 3 - 4 stayed open until 8, with smores, hot cocoa, decorations and Santa to promote shopping locally. Cadence had a blast and even got to meet the big man with the snow white beard!

The hubs has absolutely no clue what snapchat is and doesn't really understand it, so we played around with my snapchat this weekend and did some emoji fun (yeah, we're nerds!). It was hysterical and so many people screenshotted this image of us!

Olly, our elf, decided to come a little early this year and "zipped" right on in this morning on a candy cane! Cadence was surprised! He even left us a note!

I went shopping this weekend to prepare my Thanksgiving baking, and cleaned out my fridge in the process, there is nothing like a clean fridge!

Baked/Sea Salt Brussel Sprouts

Strawberry/Cream Trifle

Chocolate Cream Pie

Pumpkin Bread

Come on Thanksgiving...

Cadence and I also did a Christmas craft this weekend. Original inspiration derived from a FaceBook post by SantaClausWrites.com, and we actually did NAIL IT!

I'm so ready for the Holidays!



Friday Five



one...Today marks the 50th anniversary since President John F. Kennedy was shot. My mom was in love with that man and said that she cried and cried when she found out about it. One thing you may not know about me is I love conspiracy theories, urban legends, old wives tales, all that jazz...

There are so many conspiracy theories that not only surround JFKs murder, but JFK in general. Example: the tunnels built underneath the White House so he could sneak in Marilyn Monroe, is it true? Who really did kill Kennedy? I could go on and on all day about this stuff, I'm telling you I love this shit, alas, here are 5 FACTS that you might not know about President Kennedy's assassination.

1 - Lee Harvey Oswald was not arrested for killing JFK, he did not get arrested until 45 minutes later for killing a police officer. Obviously he denied both murders, and then got shot himself 2 days later.

2 - In 1963 killing the President was not a federal crime, it did not become a federal crime until 1965.

3 -  The JFK assassination was the longest uninterrupted news event on television until the coverage of the September 11 attacks in 2001. Basically this was the story, obviously, so every single radio and TV station did nothing but broadcast this, which means those Real Housewives would not have been airing, now that is scary!

4 - Federal Judge, Sara Hughes administered the oath to President Lyndon B. Johnson, swearing him in as President in Air Force One, the only woman to ever swear in a President, still to this day.

5 - Eight months prior to killing JFK, Lee Harvey Oswald tried to kill an outspoken, resigned, army general that was a huge JFK critic. Oswald did not succeed in killing him, but I find it suspicious that he was going to kill someone who was against JFK, just to kill JFK himself...weird!

information gathered here

two...Olly, our elf, arrives the Friday after Thanksgiving. This has become a huge thing for our family, because not only does Cadence enjoy it, but so do the husband and I. We will both take turns hiding him that way it's a surprise for us as well. This was an idea I came up with last year and by far my most favorite thus far.

three...I think these nails are just about as precious as they come for the Christmas holiday!

I have so many pictures pinned to my mani/pedi board, do you follow me, if not start, I love me some Pinterest - click!

four...I have a love/hate relationship with candy crush. I used to play it all the time, then got bored with it, now am back to playing it again and have been stuck on level 181 for days. Why do I torture myself with this crap?

five...I am so happy that today is Friday, but I cannot lie, I will be happy to see next week get here to start off the Thanksgiving festivities! My aunt is coming up from Florida along with her sons, my cousins who I haven't seen in years.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Pay it Forward

Paying it Forward is a term that has been around for quite some time now. It's simply a good deed that someone has done for you, passing that same generosity along to someone else.

I love this idea, especially around the Holidays. We are so blessed with daily things that we take for granted. Even something as simple as a toothbrush and toothpaste.

I don't want to start a linkup, however I do want to do a Pay It Forward for all us bloggers.

It's as simple as this:

The first person to comment on this post, I will contact them and get their mailing address, and send them a little something special via USPS. The same day they comment below, they are to do a blog post stating the same thing and 'pay it foward' to someone else.

Please keep in mind it does not have to be something expensive or lavish, just a little something special to let them know that you're keeping them in their thoughts and prayers this holiday season!

So go...

P.S. If you're not planning on Paying It Forward do not be the first to comment, I will check :)



A Few of My Favorite Things

Let's face it, I could devote a minimum of 20 blog posts on my favorite things, but here are some currently on my mind:



1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5

1 - The Home T - they have t-shirts with your home state and little sayings inside. For South Carolina you can choose Y'all or Home. I'm loving the Home saying...many a celeb has been caught wearing them, but I have been a fan of The Home T prior to all their celeb buzz. If you follow

 Kristin Cavallari on Instagram, she recently posted a pic of her new baby bump while wearing a Home T of her state Illinois.

2 - Erin Condren Gold Edition Pink Life Planner - I'm sure each and every one of you reading this has heard or has an Erin Condren item, most probably a life planner. This has been on my list for quite some time. I can't allow myself to spend $75 on a planner, however, the hubs is more than welcome to take notes from this blog post and add this to my Christmas list!

3 & 4 - You can buy both of these beauties right now at Target. For a limited time they are having a buy one, get one 50% off on select furniture, the above two pieces included. We are in need of a statement chair and ottoman for our master décor, and these would look perfect with the black/white theme we have going.

5 - Also from Target the Philip Lim 3:1 Satchel in Taupe...there are no words for this, each girl should have this on their favorite things list! In love...

P.S. I have some fun Christmas posts planned for when December gets here...if only I had that planner to write them all down! I also wanted to let each of you know I'm taking a blog break for the Holidays. Thursday - Saturday for Thanksgiving and the entire Christmas week...aren't you ready?!



Five on Friday

One...my new sweater I purchased last night from Sears. I've been keeping an eye out for the perfect elbow patch sweater at an even prettier cost and Sears did the trick last night!

I love neutral colors (blacks, greys, whites, nudes) but a pop of pink, or in this case, dark pink, makes this sweater stand out beautifully and with a sale price of $15.00 I was sold. (the bathroom pic does NOT do this sweater justice!) Buy HERE

Two...I'm loving these candid shots of our little gal having fun!

Three...my current polish 'It's All About the Glam' by Nicole/OPI.

I realize there are evident painting mistakes, but if you think my right hand nail painting job is bad, you should see my left!

Four...I'm loving that as of today all of my Christmas shopping for Cadence and the hubs will be finished. That's right people, finished! Only a few gifts left to buy for other family members!

Five...it's Friday and my dad is healing fantastic. God is Good always in all ways!



A Day for Thanks

First I want to start off by thanking so many of you who contacted me and commented on yesterday's post regarding my dad. He is doing absolutely fantastic and healing wonderfully. I ask that you continue the prayers - thanks so much again!

*****

I had planned on doing this post closer to Thanksgiving, but with this past weeks recent events I figured there was no better time than the present.

Kendra Thornton contacted me a month ago in regards to doing a Thanksgiving collaboration. She does not yet have a blog, but wanted to put into writing her thoughts on what Thanksgiving means to her. Here is what Kendra had to say...

It’s a Thornton Thanksgiving from Chicago!

I love it when the leaves start to fall in the autumn and the temperature drops. Although it means that winter is coming, it also means that the holidays are just around the corner. The holiday season is the most special time of the year for me. My favorite holiday is Thanksgiving. The thing I like the most about this holiday is the sentiment behind it. I love the fact that Thanksgiving is all about showing gratitude and giving back. It is one of the most loving of all the holidays. At the Thornton house here in Chicago, we are excited to have all of our relatives coming this Thanksgiving.

I have taken to Pinterest to gather some food ideas for this year’s Thanksgiving feast. My kids are old enough now to want to help out. However, I need to keep things fairly simple to keep the mess from becoming unmanageable when they “help.” I have been looking for some recipes that will be easy to make for the kids to help out with.

In my opinion, I don’t think it’s really Thanksgiving without a traditional turkey dinner. That means that at our house we must have turkey, cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes with gravy and stuffing. I enjoy these classic Thanksgiving dishes. My personal favorite is gravy-soaked mashed potatoes.

However, I also enjoy embracing new foods to bring to the Thanksgiving table. This year, I took inspiration from an article that I read on Gogobot about the dishes that luxury hotels prepare for their holiday guests on Thanksgiving. I thought that a number of them would be within my cooking skills, and so I decided to try my hand at some of these exotic dishes this year.

One of the dishes from the piece that I am most excited about is served at the Waldorf Astoria in Orlando. It is a sumptuous pumpkin soup that has lobster added. I am planning to make it one of the opening dishes of the Thanksgiving meal. I can’t imagine a better way to start off the meal than by serving this perfectly decadent soup this Thanksgiving. I sure hope it turns out well. If I do prepare it right, I know my guests are going to absolutely love it. It is a dish that will warm the heart and the soul, setting the right tone for this important holiday meal.

I am so grateful for the many blessings that I am fortunate enough to have in my life. To give thanks for all of our many blessings at Thanksgiving, we have a tradition here at the Thornton house. Before we begin eating our Thanksgiving dinner, everyone at the table takes turns saying at least one thing they are thankful for this year. It is one of my favorite Thanksgiving traditions, and I hope that you will think about adding our tradition to your Thanksgiving this year. Have a great Thanksgiving surrounded by your family. Enjoy eating all of the delicious foods and creating some wonderful memories!

Written By: Kendra Thornton

You can keep up with Kendra on Twitter

*****

I think that Kendra did a lovely job posting about what is important to her on Thanksgiving, spending time with family in whatever way you can. With my dad's recent health scare, life has truly been put into perspective for me, on how much we take it for granted and how quickly it can be taken away. Thank the good Lord he was not ready for my dad.

While sitting in the hospital we were discussing the upcoming holiday and started prepping our menu. I am beyond ready to wake up Thanksgiving morning, turn on the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, and listen to the commentary and music while baking my Chocolate Cream Pie, Baked Brussel Sprouts, Strawberry Trifle, and Pumpkin Bread.

My aunt, along with her two children (my cousins) are coming up from Florida...bring on the turkey, the family time and the memories we will forever make!

xo





A Very Shocking Weekend!

I have contemplated sharing this on my blog due to it being a personal family matter, but I realized how much of a blessing the good Lord has given my family and I wanted to share his blessings to our family, with you, because it truly is remarkable.

The weekend started like any other, busy! Friday night the husband surprised me by taking me and Cadence to Charleston to the opening night of James Island Holiday Festival of Lights. If you live in South Carolina, than you already know what this is, but if not, it's an amazing light display all about Christmas. You stay warm and cozy in your car while you drive around the park and look at the hundreds of lights they have on display. There is also a place to park where you can look at their annual Sand Castle themed towards Christmas, Gingerbread Houses, Marshmallow Pits to roast marshmallows, you can even meet Santa or visit two Christmas gift shops. They also have this cute little train that goes around the park, but make sure you bundle up!

We surprised Cadence by not telling her until we got there, she couldn't stand the wait!

This was her face as soon as she saw where we were!

Afterwards we ate at one of our favorite Charleston restaurants, California Dreaming, which is located directly on the Charleston Harbor. The view is amazing, the pictures sure do not do it justice!

The view from our dining table.

Trying to dodge the camera!

After the husbands wonderful Holiday filled surprise it got Cadence and I in the Christmas spirit, so while the hubs went hunting on Saturday, she and I decided to decorate the entire house!

Annually we choose (as a family) an ornament to add to our tree. We call it our special ornament and we get three. One for myself, the husband, and Cadence. This year we chose this fat little snowman!

Cadence has her very own tree in her room and we let her choose one ornament to add onto it each year as well. She wanted a "candy land" themed tree, so each year she chooses an "edible" ornament.

This was last years ornament

and this was the one she chose this year

She saw this donut and wanted it as well, since it was only $1 and she showed her big brown puppy dog eyes, we caved and let her get that as well.

Finished Trees:

Once the hubs got finished hunting, I got ready (snapped a silly pic w/the big rollers) and we went and got some breakfast.

The above picture does not do my hair justice after using these rollers. They truly give me so much body it's unbelievable! I use them daily.

Sunday morning is when I got the shocking news. My dad who has had some awful upper back and shoulder pain, started having terrible chest pains. You'd have to know my dad to realize that the fact that he went to the ER is a testament to how much pain he must have been in, because the man is terrified of hospitals/doctors/etc.

I told my mom, who rushed him there, to keep us posted as to what it was. Two hours later I got the call that they were admitting him to a room and were in the process of running the normal tests they do when a person complains of chest pains. I immediately got in my car and headed over.

It was then we were told that my father had a mild heart attack due to blockages in his arteries. The reason for his months of back and shoulder pain had all along been associated with his heart. They did a procedure where they go in through the upper leg and if there are only a few blockages to the heart, they can remove them with a stint. The doctor came out and told us they stopped counting the blockages at 8. We broke down because this meant he had to have open heart surgery.

This all happened on Sunday evening, his surgery was Monday at 4. After hours and hours of waiting, the doctor came out at 8pm and said that he did fantastic, but how he was still alive and was able to walk into the Emergency Room on Sunday is a miracle because all four of his main arteries to his heart were completely blocked off. My dad had to have a quadruple bypass.

After several prayers and thoughts sent his way, and thanks to the good Lord above, my dad is doing fantastic! He's in a lot of pain, but the surgery could not have gone any better.

I ask that you keep my dad in your prayers for a speedy recovery!