The Miller High Life

As a graduation gift to himself, Matt recently purchased a Smoker. He had been VERY busy cooking and I am just loving his new gift. What a great idea :)) A gift the entire family (and friends) can enjoy, LOL

The first item he decided to BBQ was a pork shoulder. yummy...


Five days later, his second meal of choice - - RIBS! OMG, OMG!!

One day later, BBQ Chicken!! I've never tasted such a delicious juicy chicken!

I personally can't wait to find out what his next smoke BBQ will be. He's been throwing around words like brisket & short ribs! So, when are y'all coming over for dinner?

Three Day Weekend!

So, what did you do this Labor Day weekend? We hope you got in plenty of relaxing, BBQ cooking & football watching FUN time on!

We pulled out our Hammock, turned on our ipods, opened up our books and started swinging... Yes, Avery is still around---

Swinging with our Four Chi's

Every hour we switched out, now Matt's turn to swing...

We both agree that a family sized Hammock would be lovely. Soon we may just look for one we can all use at the same time.

One more thing... "ROLL TIDE ROLL!!"

This post is a wrap-up of our activities this past week, as we did a "Stay-Cation". We were both off for the week, but we decided rather than go anywhere, we would just enjoy each others' company and do things locally here in Atlanta.

Monday: Julia went scrapbooking during the day at Archivers with her friend Monica. Matt puttered around the house, fooled around on his IPad and watched movies. Julia came home late afternoon and we had a relaxing evening.

Tuesday: We went and took Matt's dad to his chemotherapy appointment. We went to the Avenue shopping center in Cumming while we waited, browsed shops and spent some time at the Starbucks, reading and people-watching. We then went home and cleaned the house a little.

Wednesday: Julia and Matt went to the neighborhood pool in the morning, swam around a bit, got a little sun, and just enjoyed another hot sweltering day in metro Atlanta. That afternoon we went to the Hamilton Mill Starbucks and spent more time relaxing, reading, and people-watching.

Thursday: We went to the High Museum of Art in Downtown Atlanta to see the Salvador Dali exhibit.


Our conclusions regarding Dali are that he was a gifted artist, but a very strange little man. He was quite a personality in his time, to be sure.

Friday: At noon, we went to see the movie THE EXPENDABLES, which features virtually all of the great action heroes from the 1980s through today. It was not great filmmaking, but it was an entertaining movie.


That night, we went to the Gwinnett Arena to attend the 2010 Freedom Concert presented by Sean Hannity. It was a concert featuring the Charlie Daniels Band, Michael W. Smith, and Lynyrd Skynyrd. Charlie Daniels looked really spry after suffering a stroke not too long ago. Michael W Smith did a short solo set. He didn't have his band with him, so the sound was not quite as full as it might have been. Lynyrd Skynyrd blew the roof off the place. Between musical sets, Bill Bennett, Oliver North, and Nathan Deal spoke briefly. Below is a video of Skynyrd performing "Freebird" at the Freedom Concert in New Jersey.


Saturday: We went to the Larenceville Farmers Market in the morning and bought some bread and some fruits and vegetables. Then went to see the new movie EAT PRAY LOVE that she had been wanting to see. It was a nice movie with a good message. The trailer is below:



Sunday: We are going to the Aris-Tea-Crats tea shop this afternoon so that Julia can attend a Stampin' Up crafts class. Matt is bringing his IPad and IPod and will sit off to the side doing his thing.

It has been a great, very relaxing, very enjoyable week.

This summer has kept us busy! I thought I need to post something before time got away from us!

July 4th Matt ran his third Peachtree Road Race! This year it took him one hour and 7 minutes and he improved his time 2.5 minutes faster than the previous year! Congratulations Matt! I am VERY proud of you!! This year the morning weather was much cooler but Matt said the humidity was horrid. Regardless, he improved his time.



A few weekends ago I went on a girls trip to Jekyll Island, GA! I had such a wonderful time and I look forward to going back to show Matt around the island.The island is a tropical paradise! Lush, greenery, rich history, bike trails and lots of wild animals safely roaming. Drift Wood Beach is beautiful! And, a site to see...



Jekyll is also known for it's efforts in the re-population of the sea turtle and it's turtle rescue/ hospital. We took the tour at the hospital and an hour long walk in search of mama turtles and their nests. I learned so much about the sea turtle! Enough to give me a grand appreciation for everything being done to ensure their survival. Here's a picture of a few operations that were going on while we were on our tour. One turtle had his shell split wide open from a boat propeller and the other had swallowed a fisherman's hook.

Yesterday I (Julia) took the day of from work to help my Bestie celebrate her 21st Birthday. Matt came by to say "Hello" and give his Birthday greetings. I had to share this picture Connie took of me and Matt, it's cute (if you'll allow me to say that)

An outdoor, Summer Tea Party
A few Saturday's ago was the perfect day for an outdoor tea party. Thanks to Connie and her Mother Crystal I got to do just that! It was a gorgeous day and the tea was cold and sweet! My new (yellow) hat fit the occasion perfectly!

Julia's new yellow hat


The table was set under a covered pavilion. Decorated with beautiful fresh flowers at each setting.

This one is meant for me...

Poole's Mill Covered Bridge

This post is to let all of you know that Julia and I are now independent distributors of Mona Vie. What, you may ask, is Mona Vie? It is a nutritional juice drink composed of the juice of 19 different fruits, built around the centerpiece of the Acai berry from Brazil. The Acai berry has been in the news a lot lately for its amazing antioxidant properties and phytonutrients and has been classified as a "superfood." A lot of different products now have claims of containing Acai, however they do not contain it in the quantity or potency contained in the Mona Vie beverage. Mona Vie has a patent on a freeze-drying process that allows the berry that is included in the Mona Vie juice to retain 94% of its nutritional and antioxidant properties. For more on clinical studies on Mona Vie and/or key ingredients, click here.



There are a number of different juice blends and associated products available. There is the original Mona Vie juice drink; Mona Vie Active, which also includes liquid glucosamine for joint support; Mona Vie Pulse, which is formulated specifically for good cardiovascular health; Mona Vie Immune, which is formulated to support and boost the immune system. There is also Mona Vie EMV, a healthier alternative to energy drinks on the market such as Red Bull, Monster, or RockStar and EMV-Lite, a lower calorie version of the energy drink alternative. A recent innovation within the Mona Vie product line is a line of gel paks that can be taken with you to places where taking bottles of traditional Mona Vie juice is impractical or impossible.

Mona Vie is also an excellent business opportunity if that is an interest of yours. Unlike most other "network marketing" opportunities, there are ample and true opportunities to make money on the side as an independent distributor.

For a series of multimedia presentations on the Mona Vie product and the opportunity, click here.

Lastly, if any of the information in this post intrigues you and you want to know more, email us at mrmnjewel@bellsouth.net.

Matt & Julia

Gardening

We have been enjoying some beautiful weather here in GA! Matt and I have taken time to dig in the dirt. One of my fave new spots is our new Culinary herb garden:
Our herb garden is still in process...we have plans to add more herbs and a few vegi's but most of the hard work is completed! Thanks to Ed, my Master Gardner Father-in-law! He kindly came over here one afternoon and planned out the perimeter, tilled the ground and laid the edges for us!

Hydrangea
This is not the best picture because this Hydrangea is absolutely beautiful, but I wanted to show it's location. Since Hydrangea need morning sun and afternoon shade we planted this beauty near the corner of our house.

I have wonderful memories of my Granny's Hydrangea plants. Beautiful blooms!!

Several weeks ago, my Father-in-Law's master Garden club had their annual plant sale. I was lucky enough to have Matt over there to pick us up a trunk load. He was able to get quite a few plants: Butterfly bush, Hydrangea, double knock out rose bushes, double orange day lilies & succulent decorative ground cover. All for a VERY reasonable price! I can't wait for their next sale!!

Sprouts
Okay, I can't remember what these little guys are called. But, the story of how we got them is unforgettable.
While driving around town I had noticed these beautiful tree bushes with yellow bell flowers on them. I wasn't sure what they were. However, as luck would have it, I noticed the flower in my father-in-laws neighbors yard! One day, she was out working in her yard and we were pulling in from dinner. I asked her what they were and she offered me 2 of the spikey seed balls!

All fall and winter I kept the huge seeds in my garage and this spring I pulled them out and carefully removed the seeds. Each seed ball had about 50 seeds in them! I soaked them for 24 hours and planted them in these containers. For weeks I have been babying them, taking them in at night, keeping them out of the rain, and making sure they get full sun. A few have started to come up but not many. Even though it is May the weather has not been real warm. I'm hoping that with the warmer weather more will come alive!

Adoption Update...

We were notified by our agency that the Stork Has Landed!! Currently the cut off date is thought to be April 21, 2006

Congratulations to those families who will be receiving their referral!!

Crochet Baby Blanket

In anticipation of our referral and Baby Miller's arrival, I've been enjoying creating baby items!! Currently I am in the process of crocheting a mint green "Ripple" designed blanket. I plan on making it longer than a normal baby blanket so the blanket can be used as Baby Miller gets older & longer :)

I'm having so much fun with it I already have plans to try out a different design for blanket #2! But, until then I will take my time and do my best with this beautiful blanket! Thank you Mrs. Gladys for teaching me how!



Once it is completed I will share another picture with you all! Thank you for visiting our blog! We can't wait to share with you our own trip to China & info on Baby Miller!!

Completed embroidered Monkey Onsey for Baby Miller
check out my cute hand embroidered monkey onsey- I FINALLY finished it today! I'm so proud! I started it more than 6 months ago, got busy doing other things (cards, sb, knitting, etc.) and kinda forgot about it. But, today I set out to finish it- took me 3 hours today to put the finishing touches on it. I can't wait to see Baby Miller in it!

I've been meaning to share these pictures with everyone. These are just a sampling of the photo shoot Matt gave me for my birthday...just to remind you, in case I didn't tell you... For my Birthday this year Matt gave me a MAC cosmetic makeover and after wards a photo shoot!

My Bestie Connie shared the experience with me so we got our pictures taken together and separately. Our friend Monica was the photographer and she took 300+ pictures of us! If you are interested in viewing the mini album I created with more pictures view my crafting website at craftyjulia.blogspot.com (the link is also on the right hand side of this screen under our favorite links list.

Though I have a lot of favorite pictures from the photo shoot, too many to post, here is a sampling of the ones I like best:

Happy Birthday to me, Happy Birthday to me... I HAD a FABULOUS Birthday! Thank you to all my friends and family who helped me celebrate the last year of my 30's! Seems as if I've been celelbrating for over a month prior...now that the day (April 15th) has come and gone, I'm still reeling from all the love I felt from everyone!

In a few days I will post some of my favorite pictures from the bday present photo shoot Matt gave me for my bday. But, until then I'd like to share a picture of Matt and me at The Melting Pot Fondue restaurant. This picture was taken on my Birthday. And, by now Matt and I have a collection of photos taken at the restaurant- our favorite "special night out" spot! And, now we have one more to add to our collection.



Our first date was at this very same restaurant. Somewhere I'll find it (in one of my scrapbooks) And, eventually scan it to share with you. The years have been good to us and we continue to celebrate most special occasions at our favorite haunt. :)

A few weekends ago I got to enjoy another tea luncheon with one of my friends Crystal. We were joking that we felt like we belonged to a group called "Southern Ladies Who Lunch". We were spending the day together working and talking about Baby Gardner (She also creates several lines that are sold on the website.). And, we wanted to wear our winter tea hats before the winter season was over. So we pulled out our wool dress hats and headed to Maysville, Ga to the Burns-Tellford Tea House. Which has quickly become one of my favorite spots to enjoy a hot cuppa.

The food at Burns-Tellford is always delicious and always different! On this day we were delighted by the presentation of our sandwhiches. It appears to be an old (probably no longer in working order) Chocolate fondue fountain (or beveral fountain). They creatively repurposed the beautiful serving piece.
Tea in Maysville is always enjoyable a lot in part because of their recipes. These savory scones were to die for! They were delicious with Fresh Rosemary from their garden
Here I am in my RED Wool Tea Hat. Enjoying the opportunity to dress up. And, with a tea lunch being Ostentatious is the goal :) check out my necklace ~ Strangely I received A LOT of compliments every where we went!

As promised, here is our group photo of our 2010St. Patrick's Day & Birthday Celebration. Even though the night didn't go as we all planned, we had a fabulous evening in the end. And, notice how Matt is doing his own immitation of 'Alice in Wonderland'... "I'm late, I'm late for a very important date."

The Day after SPD we have wiped the sleepy out of our eyes and moved passed the previous evening! Our SPD didn't turn out quite like we had planned but in the end we had an enjoyable night with friends celebrating 2 Birthdays and of course St. Patty's Day!

The original plan was to all meet at the Tilted Kilt to enjoy some festive food and atmosphere. 2 hours later we found ourselves still standing in the lobby waiting on our table for 12. The good news is everyone agreed to change locations. We ended up at the Kani Hibachi house & our evening took a much happier, satisfying turn! Ultimately the evening was tons of fun and we got to celebrate as we planned~ just in a different location. Hopefully we will be able to share our group picture later-- it was not taken with my camera so I am waiting for a copy.

This story begins with a conversation...
Matt said, "What do you want for your Birthday this year, Julia?"
Julia pauses, sighs and responds "Ya know, I really, really, really want a FUN girly day getting my makeup professionally done & then a shopping spree at the MAC counter"
Matt, "don't you already have all the makeup you could ever want OR use?"
Julia, "OMG, Seriously? You asked me what I wanted & I told you want I wanted (not needed)"

Of course, Julia got what she wanted PLUS a whole lot more! Here's how the rest of the story unfolds...Connie agrees to accompany Julia to a 10AM MAC counter appointment. Fun, FUN!!! Here's Julia hiding half her face because "it isn't put on yet". The makeup artist started with my eyes then finished by applying foundation/ concealer. Not my best angle or moment to take a picture. But, it's all about the memories.

Connie, at this point is enjoying the experience. But, the day is young and there's a lot more in store for us!

After our shopping spree we headed to the Nordstroms Bathroom to ooooh and awwweee over our purchases and makeup. We were sitting on the lounge couches with women walking in and out~ probably wondering why we were taking photos in the bathroom!


Off to Starbucks, we need caffeine...more pictures of our makeup in the daylight:


After Starbucks we met Monica & Tricia at the something or another (can't remember the name). Monica, generously offered to take professional pictures of us until we could no longer smile. And, she certainly held to her word & snapped away! At the end of the day she had taken 300+ pictures! And, we all braved the cold, wind, rainy weather! Luckily between the rain, cold, wind, etc the sun would peak out. And, we would race to a spot for pictures until we either got bored or the rain started.

Thank you my dear sweet husband for the most wonderful girly weekend ever! And, my Birthday is still a month away! Isn't he the best?!! YES!!!

The second day to my girly weekend we went to see the movie "Alice in Wonderland" at the Imax 3D! What a beautiful movie & message! I can't wait to see it again!

Again, thank you to my husband, to Connie, to Monica & to Tricia & to Tracey!! Celebrating my birthday with out it even being my Birthday is something everyone should do as often as possible!! Cheers!
PS: More pictures of our girly day to come once I am able to upload some of the pics that Monica took of us. I can't wait!!!

Adoption Update

Yesterday our agency announced they received referrals for families whose dossiers were logged in on April 11, 2006

One week closer to our LID! Congratulations to those families who received their referrals.

Are you on thebabygardner.com email list? If not, go now and sign up! Today the most adorable email came through to my inbox and I'm one of the artist highlighted! Hehhehe...to get any special coupons you have to be on the mailing list! I will put the links at the bottom of this post. But for now, check out the cute images:


The body of the email says: "As promised, we've created two all new party themes with more on the way! This month we're introducing our Bundle of Joy (gender-neutral) Baby Shower Collection and our Garden Party Collection.

But we're not solely focused on party planning. Check out all of our new items including these adorable favorites:

Plan A Vintage Garden Party: From invitations to cupcake toppers to party banners and more -- we've got everything you need to host a fabulous vintage garden party. Our Garden Party Collection is handcrafted and perfect for birthdays or other special occasions.

Be A Super Hero: For pretend play or any day! Our Super Hero Cap is vintage-inspired and designed for every little one who longs to fly.

In Like A Lion: Check out our Vintage Toy Lion Photograph. He's an original print signed and dated by photographer, Christine Edwards. Pair him with our Vintage Toy Elephant Photograph for a great wallscape in the nursery or playroom."


The Baby Gardner
w: www.thebabygardner.com
blog: www.thebabygardner.com/blog
fb: www.facebook.com/pages/The-Baby-Gardner/65816859152

I WANT it all! The Baby Gardner is full of uniquely creative vintage inspired baby items!

Day Four: Costa Maya, Mexico **Our Favorite Port on this cruise vacation**
Excursion: Chacchoben Mayan Ruins
Port picture: Mile long bridge from boat to port (not really, but it has the reputation as the longest port bridge)

Mayan Ruins of the Yucatan: Chacchoben (which is the nearest town.) It is a Maya word meaning "Red corn."

When you know the history of a site, it makes the visit far more interesting. In 1972, Dr. Peter Harrison officially reported the site to the Mexican Government. Chacchoben was settled about 200 BC, so it is quite an old area, but the current buildings date around 700 AD, still very old.

The building behind Matt, in the above picture (behind the tree, LOL)is the tallest building at the site and was unavailable for climbing, although others said a month ago you could still go to the top. The main reasons that ruins are usually blocked from climbing is because they are either dangerous, are deteriorating, or because people have vandalized them.

However, we gave it a go and here we are going back down...holding onto the wall...one step at a time...sloooowwwlllyyyy

Introducing the Baby Shower Line I created for the Babygardner dot com site! Pure vintage cuteness!


This is the last of the lines that I have completed for the site. However, I am currently working on a boy birthday party line that has the cutest little vintage cowboy image. I'm just getting started on it so it maybe a month (or so) before I'm able to share anything with you.

I am so proud to be a part of The Baby Gardner web site! Deanna has the most creative & unique items available. Simply put, I am honored to be one of the artists on her site! If you haven't already checked out her site give a click on this link:

http://www.thebabygardner.com/productpages/showers/joybanner.html

Have a Blessed Day!

Garden Party Line at The Baby Gardner
Another one of my party lines was unveiled at the babygardner dot com! I adore this line. Reminiscent of my love of tea. I can so see hosting a party for Baby Emma with this line! It's so "Julia" :) LOL.


The line highlights the most adorable vintage flower hat girls. And, includes Celebrate Banner, cup cake picks, crepe paper flower corsage & Favor Bags. Each set is purchased separately. Adorable! :)

To view the line upclose visit the store at: http://www.thebabygardner.com/productpages/birthdays/gardenbags.html

Day Three: Belize
Excursion: Altun Ha, Mayan Ruins
Port was a tender, here is a pic of us on our way back to the ship, saying farewell to Belize...chopy water!


Archeologists believe Rockstone Pond, the literal translation for Altun Ha, was first settled somewhere around 250 BC, with construction of the buildings beginning in 100 AD and continuing throughout the Classic period that ended in the 10th century. Some 10,000 Maya lived in and around Altun Ha, which was a significant trading center as evidenced by the large amounts of jade and obsidian excavated here in the early sixties and seventies.

Spanning a 25 square mile area roughly an hour from Belize City, Altun Ha is made up of two central plazas surrounded by towering temples that enclose the palm strewn land. The larger of the two plazas, Plaza A, is the site of a mysterious tomb discovered beneath one of the temples called Temple of the Green Tomb. Jade, jewelry, flints and skins are among the three hundred remnants that were unearthed here.

The Temple of the Masonry Altars is Altun Ha's largest temple and is thought to have been the focal point of the community's religious activities. A single stairway climbs the temple to an altar perched at the peak. Inside, several tombs were discovered that are believed to have kept the bodies of Altun Ha's high priests. One of these digs yielded a priceless piece of history in the form of a 15-centimeter high, jade head of the Maya Sun God, Kinich Ahau.

Though not much else has been excavated, there are also several other areas of interest at the site, notably another temple at the eastern edge that was found to contain artifacts from the great city of Teotihuacan in the Valley of Mexico.

Altun Ha is not the easiest place to reach if you're traveling without a guide.
And, we got totally soaked from the down poor. Our guide informed us it was their "Rainy Season" :)fun times

I am so sorry we have been MIA. But, I have a few items to share with you all. I have been VERY busy, burning the midnight oil creating several different items for sale and the baby gardner dot com site. Last night a few of the items went "live" on the site.
Also, there are several more product lines that I have been busy creating that should go up on the site soon. Once they are up I will share those links and pictures too! :) For now, take a gander at these beauties...

Tussie Mussie:


Turn the Tussie upside down, make some minor adjustments and here you have a vintage inspired Birthday Hat:

Read Deanna's Blog post about Tussie Mussies with this link:
http://thebabygardner.com/blog/2008/08/13/heres-a-tip-add-a-vintage-touch-to-moms-hospital-room-door-on-delivery-day/