wishes do come true.

Well, Christmas was perfect. I got a beautiful sewing machine that I am super excited about using! I will be sewing tulle skirts for my 7 flower girls and hopefully some goodies for my bridesmaids. That is what I have planned for thus far. I also got some fun items for mine and Nathans home. So exciting!

After I woke my family up at 8:00am and we opened all of our presents, we headed over to my older sister's house and had breakfast cooked by my amazing brother in law. We gave our nieces their Christmas presents and then headed home for naps.

My dad took my sisters and I to see Chronicles of Narnia. It was amazing and when we walked outside....wait for it.....IT WAS SNOWING & STICKING!!!!!!!!! It is so beautiful. I LOVE the snow and how peaceful it makes everything. Lindsay and I went outside and made snow angels and enjoyed it for a few moments.

Now we are watching Despicable Me and I'm enjoying a Blue Moon with an orange!



PERFECTION!

Christmas Eve

Well, it is officially Christmas in Grayson, Georgia, but since I am not sleeping I am still considering it Christmas Eve. I wrapped all of my presents this past hour and hung out with my sisters and mom and dad. Lindsay and I opened one present and it was a University of Georgia SNUGGIE! I have been wanting one since Thanksgiving and am now obsessed. I think that I may add a column on the blog that includes an ongoing list of all of the things that you can do with a SNUGGIE!

Since I have been home, I have had a pretty amazing time. Yesterday was pretty awesome/emotional (weird for me)! I went to the alterations place with my little sister and mom to try on my great grandmothers wedding dress for my first "fitting" after some alterations had been made......TOTAL DISASTER! It was no fault of the seamstress, just the fault of my body not wanting to cooperate with a 120 year old wedding dress. The seamstress had done all things that I had asked but I looked as if I was 75 pounds overweight and altering the dress was not going to solve the problem. So, Lindsay texted my older sister, Kristen, "911 dress disaster, meet at mom and dad's house." Kristen met us at my house, and Lindsay ran down to the basement to warn my dad of the emotional breakdown that was about to occur. I went downstairs and cried because the wedding dress that I had been wanting to wear for oh so long was not going to happen and it was exactly 99 days before my wedding. Well, the 5 of us piled into the car and went to David's Bridal to try on dresses!!!!!!!! It was so much fun and I tried on everything under the sun. It was between two totally different dresses and I chose......I can't say because Nathan reads the blog occasionally and this time, all things bride are going to be a total surprise to him! yay!

Well, Santa Clause is coming tonight so I need to count my blessings, remember the real reason for Christmas and head to bed!

a white Christmas

Well, I just arrived in Atlanta last night after 6 full days of snow and family in Buffalo, New York. It was an amazing time. When we arrived there was about 3-4 feet of snow on the ground which is just how I like it. We went skiing at Kissing Bridge on Monday. Thank goodness it is like riding a bike and I remembered how to do it! These past three years I have gone to Buffalo and snowboarded and skied and it has been amazing and I have realized just how much I miss the snow and winter sports. After our skiing adventure this year, I have decided that I need to invest in a good pair of skis, boots, goggles, snow gloves, and some pants! Nate and I will be snow boarding or skiing at least once a year, hopefully more, so I feel it necessary that I have some decent and comfortable skis! Also while we were in Buffalo, we went sledding a couple of times. It is just one of those things that brings out the kid in you (which for me, doesn't take much!) I scream very loudly and flail my arms and yell and cry out of excitement!

On Tuesday, Nate and I went into the city and went ice skating on an outdoor rink under beautiful Christmas lights and next to a Buffalo Sabres Christmas tree! It was perfect....and FREEZING but still fun! We went with several of his friends and had dinner at Pearl Street and then walked over to the game. I was decked out in Sabres gear from head to toe...literally. Nate bought me Buffaol Sabres earrings, I had a t-shirt, and leg warmers! Perfect! It was a total blast and so much fun finally getting to watch a hockey game up North!


On Wednesday before I flew home, Nate and I made a pit stop at an old hill that he used to snowboard at and did a little sledding! It was so fun and it was just us so that made it even more perfect! I wish that Nashville got some more snow so we could enjoy it more!

'tis the season

Well, it is Christmas time in the city, of Nashville that is! I have always LOVED the holidays and buying presents for people. I am utterly impatient when it comes to holding out for the actual holiday to give the presents though; luckily, I have friends and family who allow me to give into my impatience and give them their presents early! Last year for Christmas, I bought Nate hockey skates and gave them to him within 2 hours of the skates being delivered to my house. This year, I purchased an xbox360 at 3:26pm this afternoon and gave it to him at 3:48pm - who knows how long I will be able to wait next year!

Also this year, he and I bought our first Christmas tree together. It is 2 1/2 feet tall and absolutely perfect! We went to Target to purchase a few decorations for the outside of my house and decided to get things that we could save and use next year for our first Christmas as a married couple! (ahhhhhhhhhh) We liked a 6 foot, fake tree equip with lights in Target but they were sold out and didn't know when they would get more. I was a little bummed but was reminded that we did not come to purchase a tree, just a few small decorations. Then, as we were on our way home, we drove my a small tree farm and I noticed a precious tree at the front of the lot. We stopped by and I was instantly in LOVE! It was so full and perfect and REAL! We came home and decorated it immediately with all of the ornaments from my students and ones that I purchased last year on sale after Christmas. It is so cheerful and smells delicious!

Needless to say, this holiday season is off to an amazing start!

This past Wednesday night, Sarah and Daron came over and we celebrated mine and Nate's engagement and Daron's birthday . I cooked a delicious pasta dish and Sarah made strawberry shortcake for dessert. We even got to use parfait dishes that they received as wedding presents! yay! We also opened up the bottle of dessert wine that I brought back from Italy in 2005 and saved to drink as a celebratory drink after I got engaged! It was DELICIOUS! I am so grateful that they live here in Nashville; it is such a blessing living near such amazing friends!

Tonight I had dinner with Kayla, Jill, and Brittany and then Kayla and I headed back to her house to watch Love Actually and drink the rest of my vino I brought back from Italy!



I'm so excited for more Christmas celebrations in the upcoming weeks!

HAPPY CHRISTMAS!

my best friends wedding

Well, this was the weekend we have been waiting for. Sarah and Daron were married in Las Vegas on Sunday, November 14th. It was absolutely stunning. The bride and groom and several of their friends arrived in Las Vegas on Wednesday and the remaining guests arrived on Friday morning. We began the wedding festivities by having her Bachelorette party on Friday night. We toasted champagne and adorned our matching 1920's headbands in the suite and headed down to meet our stretch hummer limo to take us to the Welcome to Las Vegas sign and to dinner.

After dinner at Tao we headed over to the nightclub for first class service! We were total ballers. We ended the night meeting up with the boys at the casino at MGM Grand where we were all staying. On Saturday morning we woke up bright and early and had the wedding rehearsal.
Saturday was filled with football, sight seeing, and the Rehearsal Dinner at Firefly Cafe. The speeches were so amazing and very emotional. I don't think that there was a dry eye in the house. Sarah and Daron are two of the most kind hearted people and we were all so grateful to be there to celebrate with them.

Sunday was wedding day! I work up to Emily's alarm which were wedding bells! All of the bridesmaids snuggled together in bed for a while and then it was time for the bride and MOH to get their hair and makeup done! We all meet in the terrace suite at 1:30 for photos. We all had so much fun hanging out on the balcony looking over the city of Las Vegas taking picture with our best friend/bride! We traveled through the casino to the terrace at MGM for the ceremony. Daron's reaction to Sarah was the sweetest reactions of all and has won the award for best groom's face! His eyes immediately filled with tears and his lips started to quiver when she walked out of the doors. The vows and ceremony were absolutely perfect. After the ceremony, the wedding party took pictures on the Las Vegas strip and then had dinner at Diego in MGM. After dinner, the party continued in the terrace suite on the 27th floor overlooking the beautiful city. We had dancing, a hot tub filled with rose petals, delicious cupcakes. The night ended with a champagne toast and the bride and groom headed upstairs to their bedroom in the suite and then a few short hours later hopped on a plane to Antigua!

my long lost blog

It has been an entire seasons since I have blogged. It has also probably been the most exciting season of my life thus far. So much has happened and will continue to happen. Fall has not failed me yet and I am sure that it will continue to please.

To start, I got engaged. Yes, you have heard correctly. I am engaged to Nathan Andrew Kivett and we will be getting married on April Fool's Day - which, if you know me well, and I am sure most do because not to many people read my blog, it is a perfect date for the two of us! He proposed on a Thursday evening at Centennial Park. I was completely surprised. I showed up to play frisbee with him and eat a turkey sandwich with him after I finished babysitting. It was a regular Thursday afternoon/evening. We threw the frisbee for about 20 minutes and I was beginning to be a little spastic with the frisbee so he decided that we should stop and have a sandwich. We sat down on our blanket, by the tree where we always sit. He told me that he had made me something, I was a little weary at first. Then he said that it was a return address stamp. He told me that he felt bad that he never write me letters back (I mail him a lot of fun notes and send him cards and letters in the mail) so he made me a return address stamp. he took the stamp and placed it in the ink and handed it to me. I took it, looked at the arrows on top to make sure it was right side up, and then stamped it on the envelope that he placed in front of me. I lifted it up and looked at it....it took me a few seconds to realize what was going on. I read it, "will you marry me," hand carved by Nathan Kivett! I looked up and he was on one knee and asked me to marry him! It was unbelievable.

(yes, Nathan carved this himself, just for me!)

Well, I will have to update the rest of the happening this season soon. This is the last week that I will be engaged with my bestie Sarah because she is getting MARRIED in 7 days!

season: summer

Sarah and I decided that we were going to cook an extravagant meal for Nathan and Daron each season. Last Fall we had an amazing feast, which included beef stew, jalapeno cheese biscuits, and homemade individual apple pies (in the shape of an apple of course). Well, to continue our cooking, we decided to make a summer meal that included pasta with fresh farmers market tomatoes, mozzarella cheese, basil, and for some green veggies, we added broccoli. For our cocktail of the night we juiced a watermelon and added some Bacardi Rum. For dessert we had fresh from scratch nectarine cupcakes. They were to die for!!! Fall is coming up in a few short weeks and we are totally excited about our next meal for them!

Tomato, Basil Pasta Recipe:

Ingredients:

Serves 4

• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 3 thinly sliced garlic cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper, plus more for sprinkling
• 1 pound cooked and drained short pasta (such as campanelle)
• 4 medium tomatoes
• 1 pound mozzarella cheese
• Small basil leaves

Directions:

1. Combine olive oil, garlic, salt, and pepper in a large bowl. Toss in cooked and drained pasta. Tear tomatoes and cheese; scatter over pasta. Garnish with basil leaves, and sprinkle with pepper.

Nectarine Cupcakes:

Ingredients:

Makes 1 dozen

• FOR THE CUPCAKES
• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• Salt
• 1/3 cup whole milk
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 2 medium nectarines, peeled, halved, pitted, and finely chopped (1 1/4 cups)
• FOR THE TOPPING
• 1 cup cold heavy cream
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 1 medium nectarine, halved, pitted, and very thinly sliced

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Make the cupcakes: Sift together flour, baking powder, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Stir together milk and vanilla.
2. Beat butter and sugar with a mixer on medium speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. With mixer running, add eggs, 1 at a time. Beat in flour mixture in 3 additions, alternating twice with milk mixture.
3. Line a standard muffin tin with baking cups. Fill each with 1 tablespoon batter, 1 heaping tablespoon chopped nectarines, and an additional 2 tablespoons batter. Bake until edges begin to turn golden, about 25 minutes. Let cool in tin.
4. Make the topping: Whisk together cream, sour cream, and sugar to medium peaks. Top cupcakes with a dollop of cream and nectarine slices.

Arrington Vineyards

I was blessed enough to spend a Friday afternoon with my love at Arrington Vineyards. He didn't have to work that day and school had not yet started for me. We drove out to Arrington Vineyards which is a little bit south of Nashville, with a delicious picnic in tow. We arrived there about 2:00pm and spent about 4 hours together enjoying the first taste of Fall weather. We tasted 4 wines and chose a semi-sweet white wine. It is days like this that make me realize how blessed I am to be with my best friend and also remind me that it isn't money that makes you happy. We both work in a school and have days off at the same time which allows us to enjoy days like this together.

I mean, he is one sexy guy!

skirt making party!!!

A couple of weeks ago, some girls (Brittany, Kayla, Julia, Robin, and myself) met each other at Textile Fabrics. We all chose a few fabrics that we adored...I could have left with a thousand dollars in fabric. This store is absolutely amazing. And since blogs are about not holding anything back, I am excited about having a child (whenever that may come) just so that I can make absolutely adorable clothing for him/her. Now back to skirt making....we all chose some fabrics and came back to our house and made a few skirts, aprons, and even a dress! It was a totally successful day; we all were a little bit frustrated at one point or another, we all learned something...well, a LOT of things about sewing, and made a ton of mistakes, but it was one of the best days...EVER! I was driving home from the fabric store and I could have cried I was so thankful to have these girls as friends. Here are some results:

school pictures

Precious pre-school photos and some of our outdoor classroom - more to come of course!
(just no kid pics - sorry)

first day of school

Today was the first day of school without the parents, just the children and the teachers. It's days like this that make me so grateful that I am a teacher. My partner and I had the most amazing day; she actually cried at one point because our class is so precious. Only one parent came into the room with their child this morning which is a pretty amazing complement as a pre-school teacher that the children feel that comfortable with us after having only met us one time for 30 minutes. The first week of school in a pre-k classroom has a lot of instruction and talking. Some of you may not know that we are teaching them how to stand in a line, which may not seem like a big deal to you all but asking 16 3 1/2 year olds to stand in a line is quite a task. We have to show them how to hold a pencil, sit in a circle. speak in a friendly voice, ask for a turn, all the while teaching them pre-reading skills, number recognition, simple addition and subtraction, and all of the social skills to prepare them for kindergarten. This day was long and many of the kids needed constant reminding and redirection, but several of the children said some things that made me certain that I am doing exactly what I am supposed to be doing with my life.

Precious comment #1:
Student:"Ms. Davies, I remember you."
Me: "Oh, you do. From summer camp?"
Student: "Yes, you were there to help me when I got hurt of the teeter-totter."

Precious comment #2:
Student:"Ms. Davies, I love school, and I love you and Ms. Biter."

Precious comment #3:
Student: "Ms. Davies, I am really excited that I am in the Purple Room with you this year!"

...I can not WAIT until Tuesday for day 2!

nerves are getting the best of me

I have spent the last 9 days at Westminster School for Young Children (which is the new name of the school I work at) getting my classroom ready. I have enjoyed almost every moment of the planning which is good, because that is the tedious part of teaching. I know most of the kids who are going to be in my class from camp this summer....and I have heard some interesting stories about the parents! Needless to say, I have been stressing about a few of them. I don't feel confident or qualified for the job sometimes which is totally irrational. This is pre-school people. I have a Masters in teaching, I have 4 years of teaching experience. I don't know what my problem is....I have been a basket of nerves and of course, everybody can tell because I am horrible at hiding my feelings. One positive aspect about this past week has been planning with my amazing assistant (I do not like calling her that so she will be referred to as my partner!). Her name is Annie; she is a Nashville native; she went to UGA (which is freaking awesome); and she is super organized and NOT ADD so we are really good at accomplishing things! She has an amazing sense of humor, LOVES kids as much as I do, acts like a small child so we get along great, and she is as excited as I am (which is hard to accomplish) to start the year.
This morning was the first meeting with the parents and children. We had 2 sessions this morning, with 4 kids coming to each. I met the most intimidating parent ever this morning...the kind of parent that went to Harvard, asks you about your experience, your training, your qualifications, brags on their child in front of other parents, shows up 25 minutes early for the meeting, and questions your teaching style the first 7 minutes she has entered the room...awesome. However, we made it through, alive and well. I am as excited as ever to have the kids come to school on Friday...WITHOUT THEIR PARENTS (thank goodness.) It is going to be an amazing year and I am getting organized, implementing things that i have learned throughout college courses and many experiences in the classroom, learning a lot about myself, and realizing how important early childhood education really is for children. Teaching is sort of like riding a bike in that sense, it all comes back to you when the time is right, and you remember things that you learned in your first education course when you were a mere freshman in college, and I couldn't be more thankful for that!
Look forward for some absolutely adorable pictures of some youngsters in the coming posts, and pictures of my classroom, of course!
That's all for now, I have to rest up to meet the second round of parents in the morning.

soaking in the last few weeks of summer

this past week i have been able to spend most of my waking hours with bestie burrito sarah wilcox (soon to be flory). we have laid at the pool, had lunch, grilled out, watched movies, and snuggle buggled.

this weekend nathan and i are going home to atlanta. he will be golfing with my dad and brother in law. nathan has been golfing every second that he can. on the bright side, golfing in nashville is pretty inexpensive, about $6 - $11 for 9 holes and about $18 for 18 holes. not so shabby. plus, it gives him a chance to relax and unwind - since it is quite impossible for him to do that with me....good thing i do not like golfing!

yesterday i visited Textile Fabrics and FELL.IN.LOVE. there were so many beautiful prints, my mind was racing with crafty ideas. brittany and i planned a skirt making day. she and i are going to each purchase 1 yard of two different fabrics and come home and sew up some skirts to share! oh the joys of having a roommate! Textile Fabrics inspired me so much that i asked for a sewing machine for Christmas!! hopefully i can learn how to sew a little bit better to make some precious and cheap clothing!

that's all for now -

pool shark!

picture perfect summer

These pictures are from some of the awesome times I had this summer with the most amazing friends EVER!

Bride with her bridesmaids!

Sarah & Daron's Engagement Shower! I had the BEST date there!

best buds!

Kayla, the BEAUTIFUL (and creative) bride!

At the pool with my sleeping baby!

homemade lemon almond ice cream

..i feel like that ice cream flavor is the perfect name to describe my summer, very fresh and fun, and absolutely delicious.

This has been a pretty sensational summer: I graduated with my Master of Arts in Teaching; I have gone on a week long cruise with my family and lover boy; I have laid by the pool for countless hours; I have spent 5 weeks teaching summer camp with the easiest and most well-mannered children in history; I have spent a weekend at home; I celebrated one of my best friend's engagement with an amazing weekend in Birmingham; I spent a whole weekend with my sister and 2 amazing nieces; I was blessed to witness baby Addison's first pool and lake trip; I spent an afternoon at Nashville Shores; I attended the most prefect wedding that was filled with more people who love of the Lord than I have ever been around - it was moving to say the least. This summer still has a few weeks left and I plan to live it up BIG!
I realize that the last time that I have written, I just finished planning Jill's baby shower. Now, Addison Nolan Hickman is 4 MONTHS OLD! I can not believe it.
He is almost too big for the car seat that we purchased for him. He smiles at you, talks to you, and my new favorite is his precious laugh! He is such a joy. Addison doesn't cry, unless it is 91 degrees at a baseball game and it is an hour past his bedtime. He is amazing. I love him!

Here are some more pictures to commemorate the summer!

baby shower complete

This past Saturday was Miss. Jill Hickman's baby shower and it went off without a hitch, bird and birch tree theme and all (pictures coming soon). It was so much fun planning and scheming with Julia Arnold, a new friend I met in the process. I think that we allowed this precious baby shower to consume our lives for about 4 weeks - and we loved every second of it! I felt so blessed to be a part of the hosting and can not WAIT to meet baby Addison Nolan coming in 17 short days.

Today was also a pretty exciting day, I found out that I passed (with flying colors I might add) my LAST PRAXIS test!! Such a relief. Now just to finish all of the homework for my last three classes and then.....drum roll please, GRADUATION! I am so relieved it is just two and a half months away but also a little stressed that I have to complete all of this work in that short amount of time as well. I can get through it though.

I am SO looking forward to this coming weekend - I have 6 wonderful friends coming to visit Sarah and me, all whom I have not seen since before Christmas, very sad when I think that I used to see them every other weekend. I was actually in church this past Sunday and shed a few tears of joy just looking forward to this FRIENDSHIP REUNION as we are calling it! We are having pulled pork sandwiches on Friday night and playing board games. I will also be baking my FIRST large cupcake in my new CUPCAKE pan from sweet Nathan in celebration of Suzy & Sarah's birthday! Saturday we will be having brunch at Marche in East Nashville then hitting up the flea market - hopefully we will score some good finds. One of my goals this year is to become more talented at finding flea market treasures. We will be having a glorious dinner at Whiskey Kitchen in the Gulch and then going downtown to Broadway. Sunday morning we will finish up the weekend at TVC - I am really looking forward to having some friends experience this amazing church!

In all of my spare time I search for precious houses with peaceful rooms that I wish I inhabited! Here are some of my favorites..


It is my DREAM to have a claw foot bathroom and I believe that will be the FIRST renovation that I (and Nathan) make in my first home.

That's all for now - TTFN!

Snow in Nashville!

It is Monday night and the snow is falling. I left class and looked up and all I could see was white, white, and more white. It was so beautiful! I immediately came home to check for school closings. No such luck. However, I had a relaxing night watching the Bachelor and doing a little crafting. This is what I have made thus far:
... a headband with denim flowers. I hope to make one with three black silk flowers like the ones from Anthro so that I do not have to spend $35 on an accessory!

Here are some pictures from the snow weekend that we had 2 weeks ago. It was so relaxing and peaceful staying in and enjoying the white beauty!

This past weekend Brittany, Nate, and I made dinner which consisted of bacon wrapped filets, with twice baked potatoes, grilled asparagus, and HOMEMADE ICE CREAM SANDWICHES (thanks to Martha Stewart)!


So, for now, I sit in my pj's and check the school closings while dreaming of having another snow day tomorrow where I can stay in these pj's and catch up on homework!