True Story Tuesday - The Hills Are Alive With the Sound of Crying

I love The Sound of Music. From the first notes of the opening credits, I was hooked. My reverie was shattered during my first viewing, though, when my dad nonchalantly came in the room as the von Trapps were hiding from the Nazis in the abbey. "You know they get caught and sent to a concentration camp, right?" he asked innocently. Agog and aghast, I turned to him with tears in my eyes, "Really?!" I asked hoping I'd misheard. "Yep," he answered. "And Gretl doesn't make it out." I could hardly stand to watch the rest of the film. I was heartbroken and devastated.

I breathed a hefty sigh of relief as the family traipsed across the Alps in the closing scenes; however, I don't think I've seen the movie since where I haven't had a skipped heartbeat and baited breath watching Captain von Trapp face off with Rolfe and plead for their safety. "This is it. This is the time they get caught," I subconsciously say to myself. I am pleased to announce, though, that in 27 viewings of the classic, they've reached freedom each and every time. Thanks a lot, Dad.

Back to Life

Getting readjusted to the real world after five days of this:

Back with a full recap of our St. Thomas excursion soon!

Surprises Abounded

This weekend was the beau's birthday. I wanted to make sure he felt as special as possible, so I planned the ultimate surprise weekend. He had no idea what to expect, and I tried to keep in the dark as much as possible. It was a smashing success, and my only regret is that we didn't take enough pictures. The holiday weekend went something like this:

FRIDAY:
- Told the beau to dress up.- Picked him up at 6:30
- Took him for some appetizers and a drink at one of my favorite Charlotte establishments, Savor Cafe.
- Kept him guessing with false clues as we pulled into Ovens Auditorium to see Wicked. I had heard great things about the show, but nothing could have prepared me for how amazing it actually was. I want to go see it again like right now.
SATURDAY:
- Told the beau to pack a heavy coat, scarf, bathing suit, towel, boots and a spoon, and I would be at his apartment at 7:30.
- Made our way to Crowder Mountain State Park for a full morning of hiking, at which point he realized that his bag of advised gear was simply a ruse.
- It took us about an hour to hike up the "strenuous" path. When we started it was damp, gray and cloudy, but by the time we reached the top, the weather was gorgeous, and the views were breathtaking.
- We completed a devotion at the summit and worked our way back down.
- We refueled with lunch at Zaxby's (we truly never get tired of it), then went our separate ways, so he could rest, and I could say goodbye to B's grandmother who passed away last week. It was a bittersweet celebration for a truly wonderful woman.


- Saturday night I had him dress up once again, and we jammed to Mika as we headed up to the Lake Norman Cottage for a wine tasting and dinner. If you live in or around Charlotte, you must try out this place. For $20 a person we enjoyed perfect weather by the marina, five wines, two appetizers, an entree and dessert. We both loved it. We finished the evening by the lake with a stroll along the marina and wonderful conversation with our feet in the water.
- We reluctantly headed toward home (once our wine buzz died down, of course) where we went and saw Robin Hood. Actually, I didn't see any of it since I quickly nodded off to sleep in the theater. Whoops! The beau loved it, though.

SUNDAY:
- I spent Sunday morning working at church, which is always so rejuvenating for my spirit.
- After church I finished the cheesecake whose tragic tale is detailed in the last post, enjoyed a pre-beach (St. Thomas tomorrow!) pedicure with my mom and Sis and did some present wrapping since Sunday was his actual birthday.
- By the time the beau arrived at my condo Sunday afternoon he was dubious about anything I told him. I had told him so many lies, he didn't know if what I said we were doing was actually what we were doing. We went to church together, which is rarity since I work most of the services, and then we went to dinner.
- The original plan was to dine at Soul Gastro Lounge and go dancing afterward, but word of both plans reached the beau before the appointed time, so I did some quick thinking to adapt the evening.
- Instead we headed to NoDa and tried the Crepe Cellar with some friends. I'm not crazy about crepes, but this restaurant changed my mind. Everything we had was delicious, and we literally rolled out of there.
- While the original plan had been dancing, I think the combination of spoiled surprised and full bellies deterred the desire, so instead, the beau and I called it a night, and headed back to my house for birthday cheesecake (we managed to find one empty corner in our tummies) and an MTV True Life marathon. I felt bad that the night had ended so underwhelmingly, but he assured me that it was perfect.

MONDAY:
- The plan for yesterday involved the pool and margaritas, but Mother Nature had other plans.
- We experienced near-torrential rain here yesterday, so the beau and I made the best of it and puttered around World Market, Hobby Lobby and Old Time Pottery, where we both scored some great finds.
- We spent some time crashing on the couch, that quickly turned to snoozing with the weather beating down outside.
- By late afternoon it was time for our final birthday weekend stop... a cookout in the Birthday Beau's honor at my parents' house.

The weekend was perfect, and seeing the smile on the beau's face just made it all worth it! Now if only I could get my bag for St. Thomas to zip, we'd really be in business!

Rule #38 - Bottoms Up

After spending over an hour creating the perfect cheesecake filling... peanut butter cup... to die for.... at midnight for your beau's birthday, it is crucial that you check each and every step before proceeding. Not only would it be wise to actually make the crust (crushed Oreo cookies and honey roasted peanuts), it would be equally intelligent to make sure your springform pan has a bottom on it before you start pouring your heavenly creation. Failure to do so may result in a stick, gloopy mess, tears, and a happy dog who helped clean up.

Confession

I just don't get all the Sex and the City hype. Believe it or not, I have never seen so much as part of an episode of the revered SATC. And truthfully, I don't really plan on it.

There. I said it.

Inspired

For the last year I've lived with a truly wonderful girl. We dwell in an adorable condo that I've lived in for a year and a half. The time has come for my roommate and I to part ways, and she'll be moving out in the next three weeks. While I'll miss her company, I am ecstatic to turn her bedroom into a sewing/workroom for myself. I have been overflowing with design ideas all day for the room, and I've decided on a pink and gray paint scheme with pale, ballet pink and soft, dove gray in some combination. The blog Good Bones Great Pieces has a helpful feature called Color Theory where they choose six of the best paints in a chosen color. Their choices under pink and gray were both divine, and I'll have a hard time choosing.

Next I'll get a fun rug like this green houndstooth I found on Overstock for a great price to soften the old hardwoods in the room (original from the '30s when my building was built). Then I hope to add a feminine light fixture like this chandelier to give the room even more pizazz. I'll also paint my wicker desk with a metallic bronze for some pop, add my West Elm white lacquered Parson's desk, a mirror and some inspiration boards, and we'll be in business. Ooooh, how I can hardly wait!

Swimwear Swoon

Next Wednesday my family is headed to St. Thomas to spend five days in paradise. We're staying in a gorgeous villa on Cowpet Bay, and the views from the balcony seem breathtaking. We went to the Florida Keys last year, and we were definitely underwhelmed, but we're confident that St. Thomas will blow us away in the same vein of Turks & Caicos, where we spent almost a week two years ago.In honor of the Caribbean getaway, I ordered this suit from Victoria's Secret. I'm always skeptical of their fit, and I was scared the underwire would make it look too much like a bra, but it arrived this weekend, and I am pleasantly surprised. I LOVE this suit, and the print is just to die for.

Furry Friday

I think Sadie enjoyed me pulling her ears into a ponytail yesterday. Poor, sweet girl puts up with so much.

Answered Prayers

It's no secret that I'm a diet soda junkie. While I've cut back juuuuust a smidge, My taste buds still long for the carbonation and aspartame to dance across them. Not just any diet soda will do, however. No, no, it must be flavored, and typically the more flavor chemicals involved, the better. When Pepsi introduced Pepsi Jazz I was hooked immediately. The Black Cherry French Vanilla became a staple in my diet (yes, entire diet). When they discontinued it, my soul, heart and spirit were crushed. To date, nothing has been able to take its place.
During a quick jaunt to Target this afternoon to purchase a Diet Dr. Pepper, a flash of red in a nearby cooler caught my attention. Intrigued I went to examine and discovered Cherry Vanilla Pepsi. I was almost tempted to take a caloric hit and try this new gem when I saw beside it the diet version. Before I counted my prayers answered, though, I kept my reality in check knowing that it may taste differently than the heavenly Jazz version. Not to worry, my dear friends... it is EXACTLY the same. I may or may not have cried tears of joy now that my life is once again complete.

WoMANly

I'm really loving the menswear trend popping up everywhere this season. When I was in New York this weekend I stopped into a shoe store in Soho and fell heads over heels (pun intended) in love with this pair of oxfords from Miz Mooz. Unfortunately, I felt that the $90 price tag just wasn't really reasonable for a fairly trendy piece. With a heavy heart (and despite the pleas from the salesgirl to help her make commission) I left them on the shelf. I spent the rest of the weekend kicking myself (pun intended) for passing them up.Until I found these puppies on ModCloth. While I probably love the Miz Mooz pair a smidge more, the $50 difference in price easily covered the affinity gap. I can wait to get these on my tootsies!