The Full Irish Breakfast

Have I ever mentioned how much I loooooovvvveeee mail??? I think I like mail more than the average person.

For instance, I come home everyday on my lunch break just to see if we got any "good" mail. When i can't make it home on my lunch break, I get super eager on my drive home from work because I'm sooo excited to check the mail. 

"Good" mail consist of invitations, cards from old/new friends, magazines, and unexpected packages.

So I was BEYOND excited when I came home from brunch a couple weeks ago and found a package from Ireland in my mail basket!!!

The family in Ireland sent me us a few St. Patrick's Day decorations for our home (Recap: Brian's dad is from Ireland and all of his family still lives there, we even had the opportunity to meet them all on our honeymoon)

Thank You SOOOOO much Aunt Brenda and the Irish Fam!!!! You definitely made my month!!!

During my dining room postings, I was informed by the in-laws that the family in Ireland were reading my blog ;)

And now that I'm "irish by marriage", I wanted to celebrate St. Patrick's Day by serving a full Irish breakfast for dinner - which became my favorite meal on our trip once I realized that a full Irish breakfast consisted of baked beans, MY FAVORITE.

We actually had to celebrate our St. Paddy's day on the 16th because I'm going to a wedding on the 17th.

A Full Irish Breakfast consist of:
-Bacon (bangers)
-Sausage (rashers)
-Black & White Pudding (I opted out of this one)
-Eggs
-Tomatoes
-Mushrooms
-Baked Beans!!!

And every meal in Ireland was served with Irish Brown Bread (I found that recipe here)

Our Feast:

I EVEN made a SPECIAL dessert!!! Irish Coffee Brownie Cupcakes (recipe here)

I may or may not have had 3 2 of these today.

The only thing missing was a pint of Guiness...however I had my fair share of Guiness this weekend celebrating St. Patrick's Day downtown Lexington.

THANKS AGAIN TO OUR FAMILY IN IRELAND FOR THINKING OF US THIS ST. PATRICK'S DAY!!!!!!!!!!!! Which reminds me...I still owe you guys some wedding pictures!

HAPPY ST. PATRICK'S DAY!!!
Love, Joy D.

Happy FAT Tuesday!!

Mardi Gras Parade

laissez les bon tempe roulle

For those fortunate enough to be further down South, I hope your day is full of these....



Beads...in the appropriate way



And your belly is full with these....

Crawfish

Crawfish is what I miss THE MOST about being further South...Nothing is better than a crawfish boil with some very cold beer.  I NEVER miss a chance to get some crawfish when I'm in a location where it's a lil more accessible. (WARNING: OLD PICTURE COMING UP)

I've also used my baby brothers birthday today as an excuse to purchase one of these for his birthday cake:

King Cake

Brian has his fingers crossed that he gets the piece with the baby in it...

HAPPY FAT TUESDAY!!!!

Cheers to Friendships New and Old

I know, I know.  I've gotten tons of remarks that I haven't been crafting or blogging very much.  Whoopsie.

Really what I've been up to is cleaning, reading, trying to figure out twitter, and meetin' and greein' with a new friend :)  Actually, it's a friend I met through blogging, even better. 

Being from Lexington, I feel like I get in a friend slump sometimes where I can't meet new people.  A slump where your group of friends has already been labeled for the past X amount of years then when you try to meet other people...well your already labeled to another group.  Make sense?? (This is my favorite blog post from Marquis dePinkus on friendship)

But I've NEVER played the rules of this game. I have always loved making new friends and keeping up with old friends.  Hubby learned this REAL fast when he started accompanying me as a guest to weddings.  We average about 8 weddings a year.  The first year we dated, I had 10 to go to-  see he learned very fast.  And thanks to texting, facebook, twitter, and blogging, it's so much easier to keep up with old friends and make new friends.  Thank you social networking!  

Anywho, I'm so excited about the new friendship that I've made.  So instead of getting home from work and crafting or writing a new blog post, the new friend and I have gone out to get ice cream...3 times.  So can you really blame me for being sidetracked??

And since lent begins this week....a time where you work on your own personal relationship with the big man upstairs....I'm also going to concentrate on friendships.  New and old.  I've got 2 friends off the top of my head that I truly miss and I'm texting them asap to see if they'd like to get together sooner than  later.  I'm also opening up my stationery cabinet and sending old friends cards just so they know I'm thinking about them.  And as for my new friend, I actually might cook and invite her over for dinner since her hubby is away. 

Do you have friends you haven't talked to in awhile?? Well I think I should challenge YOU to touch base with someone you haven't talked to in a lil while, ask someone new to go on a walk or get some coffee (in our case dessert) and friends in your life right now...well everyone loves an unexpected sweet note or message. 

Cheers to friendships...new and old.
Joy D.

Happy Birthday Dr. Seuss!!

And a VERY happy birthday to YOU Dr. Seuss!

I have ALL of my Dr.Seuss books saved for my little ones to someday read and enjoy. 

Here is my favorite:

"I meant what I said and I said what I meant, an elephant's faithful 100%"

Happy Wednesday,
Joy D.

Flea Market Madness

I took a special trip to Nashville this weekend to visit my good friend Ivey (I wrote about her here, the way we met is prob one of my favorite stories ever).  A girl couldn't ask for a better hostess!! I was greeted at the driveway with a glass of red wine (with ice in it of course). She spoils me rotten. 

It just so happened that the Nashville flea market was going on during my visit.  How convenient!  Ivey had never been before so we thought we'd make an experience of it.  We had NO clue what to expect or what we were getting ourselves into.  

The insane line for parking should have probably been our first clue that the flea market was a lil bigger deal than we thought it was going to be. 

When we first walked in, we saw what you'd see at any ordinary flea market...

Tons and Tons of Socks

Shoes 

Lots and lots of shoes 

Knives 

Tons of fake sunglasses 

But this was no ordinary flea market....it was a GIGANTIC flea market.  With booths indoors and outdoors...as far as the eye can see.  And the further we explored the market...the better the treasures! 

Here are some of my faves that we saw

We saw lots of shabby chic old bed frames

LOVED THESE 

The one and only Colonel Sanders

Ivey checking everything out

Isn't this neat?? They had sooooo many awesome old magazines and newspapers

One of the MANY outdoor spots with lots and lots of junk treasures

I loved these old hat pins.  I have something similar to this in my office. 

This would look great in my front hallway where it would welcome guest as they come in.  

Lots of scones 

I wish I had a place for one of these 

I thought the mermaids were...ehhh...interesting to say the least. 

And who wouldn't want this guy in their home?!? 

We thought these would be cool to put magazines in

Of course when I no longer have the initials "JFG"...

Ivey REALLY wanted to purchase this lil guy, luckily her good friend talked her out of it...J/J. 

Scary, right?? 

It took everything in my power NOT to purchase any blue plates...even though I have the perfect spot for them.  I know there are other blue plates in the sea.  

Of course, the flea market brought out Tennessee's finest.  If you don't like to look for good deals at flea markets, at least go for the people watching.  It's safe to say that Ivey was a bit overdressed with her fancy Tory Burch flats...

Ivey bought a huge urn from this guy.  She told him it was for one of her plants.  He immediately asked if it was for a marijuana plant.  Yeah buddy.  Does anyone else notice his Spiderman shirt?? 

And I scored a pair of antique staffordshire spaniel figurines.  I was gonna pay $32 for them but Ivey talked the guy down to $30.  What would I have done without her?? 

They are gonna go on my bookshelf in my office.   I'd show you the bookshelf, but I'm not ready to reveal it yet.  

Here are a couple of things I've learned from frequently visiting estate sales, antique shops, flea markets, etc...

1.  ALWAYS BRING HAND SANITIZER. 

2.  Bring cash.  It's a pain writing a check for $3.00 and for some reason, I never bring cash!

3.  If your going with a friend, wear bright colors so it's easier to find one another. 

4. Good.Walking.Shoes.Period. 

5.  Use the restroom and eat before you go. 

6.  Dealers are more willing to make a good deal at the END of the LAST day....it's just one less thing they have to pack. 

7.  And at least attempt to negotiate a price with them...it's the name of the game.  I was too nervous to negotiate for my dog figurines.  I was about to cash out when Ivey asked the guy if $32 was the best that they could do. 

The Nashville Flea Market takes place on the last weekend of each month.  But our spiderman friend told us the biggest months are April and October.  It's hard to imagine that there will be 10 times as many vendors in April and October as we saw this weekend.  

BIG THANK YOU TO IVEY FOR HAVING ME THIS WEEKEND.  I've gotten so spoiled only having her live 3 hours away now.  I love it.  I was down most of the day today because I already missed her but fortunately she just became a 'FOLLOWER' and that cheered me right back up.  

However, she has said that she won't leave a comment...she's too shy.  I bet she'll give in soon enough...(insert evil laugh). 

Keeneland Shout Out

For all you Keeneland lovers,
I saw this today on the Southern Living website, click below to read the article. 

Wish You Were Here: Keeneland and Georgetown Celebrate the famed Kentucky track’s 75th anniversary, then hoof it on over to a charming nearby town for arts and eats.
 

Hubby and I are ALWAYS wanting to go to nearby towns and try out new restaurants, bed and breakfasts or Inns.  We went to Georgetown for the first time a few weeks ago (I was on a Craigslist hunch - but it was a disappointment) and it had the cutest main street with tons of historic ole houses that were screaming my name.  We'll have to add this place in Georgetown to our "after tax season to-do list". 

W.W.C.D.

Lately, I've been finding myself falling in love all over again with Charlotte...

Thanks to E!, I've watched Sex and the City almost everyday. 

I know I've mentioned before, but I'm not the most fashionable person you've ever met. 

So sometimes when I'm out shopping and I can' t decide on a certain item, I usually ask myself this question:

"What Would Charlotte Do"

It's a spin off of the W.W.J.D. bracelets

Remember these?? They were pretty hip in middle school (circa middle 90's). It was a friendly reminder "What Would Jesus Do" -  I MAY or MAY NOT have had 3 of them... But unfortunately I did not wear them for the "spiritual" aspect but rather "it's the cool thing to do" aspect.

So when I'm in a bind and can't decide, I think "W.W.C.D.??"

This technique is good for other things too, not just fashion. 

For instance, when I'm upset and I have a bad word that's just sitting on the tip of my tongue.  I think W.W.C.D.  and it saves me from having a potty mouth.  Or purchasing gifts, would Charlotte give just a plain gift?? Oh no, she goes above and beyond!! Should I go walking today?? Charlotte would (but in her case, she'd go running).

And I love that she has brown hair - sometimes I think my brown hair holds me back from super cute outfits. But she definitely pulls everything off with 110% CLASS.

Thanks Charlotte for being such a great role model!! And thanks E! for letting me fall in love all over again!

Happy Tuesday!
Joy D.