let us give thanks

I wish it didn’t take an annual holiday to consider things that we should be thankful for each and every day, every hour and every minute, but once a year is better than never, I suppose. My friend, Anisa, recently posted her list and inspired me to do the same.

Things my serious self is thankful for:

God’s unending grace – I am a walking, talking, mistake-making mess.
My dear family – I know everyone thinks their family is the best, and that’s the way it should be. I just love mine.
The Twins – Even though they make us absolutely crazy sometimes, they can be so sweet. Plus, who would I buy clothes for if I didn’t have them?
My husband – I’m so fortunate to have Kell. Without him, I would always forget my cell phone or burn down the house because I left the curling iron on. Not to mention he’s really cute.
A warm home – Every time I feel cold at night, my thoughts immediately go to those less fortunate who aren’t spending these winter evenings in a house with four walls and a roof.
My friends – Good friends are truly special gifts. What more can you say?
A good job – In a time when so many are without one, I’m so thankful to have mine.

Things my silly self is thankful for:

Facebook
Text Messaging
Curling Irons
Half-camis and half-shirts
iTunes
Cute outfits
McDonald’s ice cream cones
Clorox wipes
Boots
InStyle magazine

Happy Thanksgiving to you all.

Gobble gobble!

happy doggone birthday

In honor of the twins' 2nd birthday (yes, we know the date), here are some pictures of our little monsters...

The day they moved in.

Fierce.

Aw.

Haley's favorite picture.

Happy Birthday, Olive and Charlie!

it's alright, 'cause I'm...

If you loved Saved by the Bell like I did (and still do), you'll love this great quiz from one of my favorite websites. I got a 9 out of 15 - can you beat that?

Embarrassingly enough, Kell only missed 2.

i've been tagged...

My girl, Katy, tagged me as one of her most Kreativ Bloggers! Thanks, Katy bug, but I don’t strike myself as interesting. I’ll try not to let you down. My instructions are as follows: list 6 interesting things about myself and tag 6 others to do the same.

1. I have a secret desire to be a singer. Sometimes I pretend to be making a music video in my car or home, and I often think about what I would wear onstage at one of my “gigs.” I want to be one of those great local singers with street cred that people look forward to hearing in piano bars or singing the National Anthem at a baseball game. I would also be ok with being a back-up singer for like Dave Matthews or John Mayer or Damien Rice or Justin Timberlake or James Taylor.

2. I carried around a Japanese canvas tote bag instead of a purse for over a month. Why? Well, since you asked, 1) I wanted a new fall purse and couldn’t afford it, 2) it was my carry-on bag from my last international trip, and I was too lazy to change it out, 3) it had lots of handy compartments and zippers (gotta love those Japanese) and 4) I liked telling people who asked about it that I got it in Tokyo. I just this weekend got a new purse from Libby Story, and my tote bag is now used for all the twins’ clothes.

3. I love British men. Minus the ones that look like Prince Charles or have Austin Powers teeth. What is it about the English accent that makes everything sound so smart and sophisticated? One of my Brit babe friends told me a story this summer about Spam (yes the faux meat) and vomit (he actually said “wretch!” Even cuter!), and I was still swooning (MK, I bet you know exactly who I’m talking about). And you all know how I feel about vomit talk. I still love Kell despite his NOT being British. Sorry for all those parentheses.

4. I really like to cook. I’m not great at it, but I’m not terrible either. Working in the Viking family for nearly 3 years taught me an appreciation for all things culinary, and I’m now fully content to watch the Food Network for 12-14 hours a day if Kell allows. I tend to hoard recipes with every intention of making them, but they end up just sitting in my over-stuffed recipe box until I think about them again. One of these days I’m going to have a recipe-testing party at my house.

5. When I put my makeup on in the mornings, I wipe the brushes on the t-shirt I slept in or the robe or pj pants I happen to be wearing. I know this sounds strange, but it’s makeup. It comes out. Plus, why dirty up a towel when I’ll be washing the t-shirt later anyway. And you can always tell the shirts I’ve slept in more than once because they usually have more than one color eyeshadow slathered on the shoulder. MK has also witnessed this phenomenon.

6. I am a HUGE hotel snob. I really only like to stay in hotels that have robes and bellmen – another taste I acquired working for Viking. I mean, when you spend 8+ hours a day working at one of the finest hotels in the South, you get accustomed to certain things. I make no apologies.

I hope you enjoyed this egocentric look into my life. I tag yaya, Claire, MK, KK, Jen Coug and Haley!

In writing this post, I realized it has been ages since I shared a Delicious Dish. Here’s one that I love and that I’m making for Thanksgiving this year. Sorry to ruin the surprise for any of the Luckett Lodgers. This recipe came from an issue of Mississippi Magazine though I can’t remember which one, and I think it’s from a restaurant somewhere in the state.

Honey Hush Pie (8 servings)

1 unbaked pie shell
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
½ cup margarine or butter
1 tablespoon white vinegar
½ cup chocolate chips
½ cup coconut
½ cup pecans, chopped (I used halved)

Preheat oven at 300 degrees. Mix sugar, eggs, margarine or butter and vinegar with mixer until well blended. Pour into unbaked pie shell. Add chocolate chips, coconut and pecans. Bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour.

***Kell hates pecans, so I’ve made it without, and it’s good, too. And if you’re not a fan of coconut, you can’t really taste it anyway. Outstanding served warm with vanilla ice cream.

home girl

I can do many things, believe it or not.

I can drive, say my ABCs backwards (thanks to yaya who taught me that trick), read, write the occasional phrase and even say a few things in Japanese. Yes, there are things I can do, and a few that I’m pretty good at, if I do say so myself. However, I am not a Jill of all Trades, shall we say.

I cannot decorate.

Don’t misunderstand me – I said I can’t decorate. I know stuff that’s cute from stuff that’s really tacky. I know what I like and what I don’t like, and I’ve even picked up just a few things from my mom and grandmother. But when it comes to gathering all these cute things and dispersing them over the course of a few rooms, I am at a total loss. I guess you could say I know just enough to know that I don’t know what I’m doing. And as my mom says, decorating mistakes are expensive.

How does one walk that fine line of cool and creative, even some DIY vs. cheap and looks-like-I-made-it-in-Bible-School? How do I decide what to do first? Where can I skimp and where should I splurge? I recently met with an interior designer, and she pulled swatch after swatch of fabric, tassels and bits of furniture from her wonderland of resources. And I’ll say I really like what she picked out – I really did. But how do I make sure a little of “me” shines through?

All that to ask you, my friends, for your tips, tricks, websites and shortcuts that I can use to make our new house our home. Is there anything that YOU learned the hard way from which you can save me? What’s that one great piece of advice? Or what’s your favorite thing you’ve ever done to your home? I need your help!

Don’t make me beg…

it's beginning to look a lot like you-know-what!

Hobby Lobby looks like the North Pole threw up inside. That can only mean one thing - the most wonderful time of the year is fastly approaching. Here's a fun Christmas Q and A, courtesy of yaya.

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? I am usually anti-gift bag unless a) absolutely necessary due to lack of prep time or shape/size of item or b) they are super cute.

2. Real tree or Artificial? This subject actually spawns some inner turmoil for me. I love the idea and aroma of a real tree, not to mention the fact that you just throw it away when the time comes. However, it is hard to beat the convenience of an artificial tree.

3. When do you put up the tree? Again determined by real or artificial tree. The longer you wait to put up a real tree, the longer the smell lasts. My parents used to have an artificial tree, and we (or should I say I) put it up the day after Thanksgiving.

4. When do you take the tree down? The day after Christmas. I think the tree actually loses some of its luster late afternoon on Christmas Day. And I like to throw away the lights with the tree. They are too cheap to fool with.

5. Do you like eggnog? No. sick. No one should be drinking anything with “egg” in the title.

6. Favorite gift received as a child? Not sure, really. I bet that hurts Santa’s feelings. I guess my American Girl doll. I bet Harris’s fave gift was the Moon Shoes.

7. Hardest person to buy for? Kell I guess.

8. Easiest person to buy for? The twins.

9. Do you have a nativity scene? Yes, we got a lovely Fontanini one for a wedding gift. It’s one of my most favorite things.

10. Mail or email Christmas cards? Mail for sure. Email is just wrong. And if anyone needs Christmas Cards, call Kell – he’s selling them through the Phoenix Club (sorry for the shameless plug).

11. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? I better not say.

12. Favorite Christmas Movie? Christmas Vacation probably. Kell started watching it this year in July, I think.

13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? I bought my first Christmas gift in October this year. I’m almost finished.

14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? I don’t think so, but I’m sure I have for birthday or other happies.

15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? Puppy chow. I agree, yaya.

16. Lights on the tree? Yes. You could land a 747 with all the lights I put on the tree. And as I mentioned in #4, I like to throw them out with the tree.

17. Favorite Christmas song? Secular: Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas. No contest. Religious: Carol of the Bells (not really religious, but you sing it in church. That counts.) Again, no contest. I also like O Come O Come Immanuel.

18. Travel at Christmas or stay home? As of now, we travel, alternating Smith and Karatassos homes.

19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer's? Yes. I have plates with each one frolicking on them. And I believe the plural form of “reindeer” is “reindeer.” Even if that is not the case, an apostrophe is not necessary as the noun is not possessive, nor is it a contraction for “Reindeer is.” Forgive me; sometimes my proofreading side rears its ugly head.

20. Angel on the tree top or a star? A star, but I am not opposed to an angel.

21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning? Both.

22. Most annoying thing about this time of the year? I agree with yaya – when people substitute “Holiday” for Christmas. Ridiculous. You don’t see a menorah being called Holiday Candlesticks do you? Oh, and the Dirty Santa game. Seriously people, that is just mean. Don’t steal my presents.

23. Favorite ornament theme or color? No. I do have some favorite ornaments, though. The pickle, the wedding cake one that Kell gave me when he asked me to marry him (gag if you must, but I thought it was sweet and I love it) and the Eskimo one at my parents’ house. I also love the framed 5th grade picture of a certain friend of ours that hung on yaya’s tree. Sorry, had to mention it.

24. Favorite for Christmas dinner? We have breakfast for dinner on Christmas Eve, and I love it. Gave me the worst heartburn of my life one year, though.

25. What do you want for Christmas this year? A TV armoire, curtains, a china cabinet, dining room table and chairs, new couch, rug, artwork, new knobs for the kitchen cabinets, 2 ottomans, furniture for the foyer, world peace and a headboard. That should about do it. For now.

HO HO HO!

it's about time...

We finally did it! Homeowners are we! We were so scared to jinx ourselves that we didn't tell anybody about it. So, for those of you that feel out of the loop, you're in good company.

After months of searching and weeks of waiting, we pulled the trigger and signed are lives away. Is it wrong to be excited about decades of debt?

Anywho, we closed on Halloween, and Kell's parents were waiting, brush in hand, to help us paint (thanks, guys!). When that was finished, Haley came to help pack (thank you, too!) even though she was miffed at my lack of progress in that department. 4 days and 3 bottles of deep cleaner later, we turned in our apartment keys and are finally home! If Kell and I don’t kill each other over unpacking boxes, setting up bed frames or how many huggies to keep, maybe we’ll have you over to show off our crib. Y’all come see us now, ya hear!

(NOT our house)

PS - I'm thinking about starting the Twilight books. Should I, or am I still not over Harry Potter being over?