Hottie Holidays

Last nights hottie holidays was one of the best yet. 6 close friends enjoying jokes, fine wine, homemade lasagna, a hottie holiday cake, champage cocktails, tablescapes, and more wine..... Here are some pics of the night....

My other other half.....

....has returned..... I can feel complete again!! ....at least until January 20th.....

December to remember

Tonight is the 5th annual Hottie Holidays event! It is actually marking 6 years of hottie events. The first event was Hottie Extravaganza in December. The next year and every year since I have hosted hottie holidays for my very closest friends. Here are a few pictures of the past.... Enjoy

Hottie Holidays 2006

Hottie Holidays 2007

Hottie Holidays 2008

Hottie Holidays 2009 (we forgot the group shot!!)

Loving....

LOVING this song lately. She is such a beautiful singer. Its refreshing to see people who can sing actually singing. So many people sing over a track or just dance a lot.....

Cookies!

So yesterday I spent the day with my mom and grandma in my moms kitchen making Christmas cookies. We do this every Christmas. Having three generations baking in one kitchen tends to result in a few tense moments, lots of laughs, debates about who is singing the Christmas song playing (Bing Crosby? Dean Martin?) and the frosting of almost 200 cookies.... We had fun though. The only casualty was batch 1 of fudge but hey maybe we discovered a new recipe? um probably not. Gma at 89 still has me dying laughing the entire time and even though we had to frost what seemed like 2000 cutouts we made it through it.

Here are a few pics of our afternoon...

Making fudge

It takes three people to make fudge, oh and three people to mess up making the fudge

Cut outs

Busy frosting away

Our set up.... red= pink , green = mint

My favorite cookie of all time.... could eat millions of these

I shoot people

Found this necklace on Etsy.com .... I love it!

You can check it out and the other items she makes...
here

You think youve had a rough day?

Once you go black you never go back....

So while I'm still working on our office makeover... (while doing about 2034983204983 other things lol) I wanted to give you all a hint of the fabulousness.... Did you know Black has become one of the hottest colors/trends for interior design. You must be very brave but it will pay off.... We painted our base cabinets in our kitchen black (the uppers are white, walls are light blue, and floor is black/white check) and it was beautiful! Next came the door in the kitchen to the garage... fabulous. Add in some contemporary black accessories and bam. So now a black accent wall has come into our lives..... photos to come soon. For now , just enjoy some nice black eye candy....

11th day of Christmas

Day 11: New Year Resolutions Well this upcoming year I really want to focus 100% of my "extra" time on my business. Upgrading my camera, advertising, doing lots of photo shoots and becoming a better photographer. I love what I create with graphics but I believe to really build my business I need to marry graphics with portrait photography. This will hopefully produce more frequent work (for both portraits and graphics) and bring a higher level of income. As some of you know, I will be a full time nanny until mid August next year. By that point I will either have to take on something new or be to a point with Fresh that can support me financially.  I also want to become better at handling our married financial dealings. Hopefully both Dutch's and my careers will continue to grow and we can become serious about saving, working towards certain goals, and managing ourselves organized. We manage ourselves pretty well right now but as with this economy there really isn't a budget, you end up being focused on paying the bills and trying to prevent being in the red. Any suggestions on how you and your spouse have handled money? We all know money is the #1 marriage stresser for most couples and I want to really avoid that. Is there a computer program you use to manage everything? Quickin? Mircrosoft Money?

10th day of Christmas

Day 10: Favorite Christmas Songs/Carols I love almost all Christmas music. I love when it FINALLY comes on the radio but hate that it is abruptly stopped by Christmas evening.....boo One of my favorites is Christmas in Dixie as I always remember listening to this with my mom growing up. They hardly ever play it on the radio (even here in the south) so that maybe makes it more special. Also love holy night , O come O come Emanuel, and Angles we have heard on high. I am creeped out by the Christmas shoes song just as much as my SIL Kathryn

9th day of Christmas

Day 9: Favorite Holiday recipe

Since apparently Dutch thinks this is my "go to recipe" (in full disclosure Ive only made it twice) Ill share it will all of you. My friend Sarah actually made this for a last hurrah girls get together before her precious baby Anna was born. So she gets all the credit : )

Pumpkin Fluff

1 (16 ounce) container frozen whipped topping, thawed

1 (5 ounce) package instant vanilla pudding mix

1 (15 ounce) can solid pack pumpkin

1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

Directions

1. In a large bowl, mix together instant vanilla pudding mix, pumpkin and pumpkin pie spice. Fold in the thawed frozen whipped topping. Chill in the refrigerator until serving.

This makes 32 servings so its great for a party. I suggest halving the recipe for a more manageable portion. Serve with apple wedges and graham cracker sticks..... YUMMO

8th day of Christmas

Day 8: Least favorite thing about the Holidays
- That it goes by so fast

- The mall/roads/walmart/grocery store/etc are PACKED with crazies

- Its cold

- Dutch or I having to work and not being able to spend some of our holidays with his part of our family.

BUT luckily I have so many favorite things about the holidays to make up for it. : )

7th day of Christmas

Day 7: Holiday Craft/DIY 

This is a DIY/Craft that I have been dying to do! I will probably attempt after Christmas when I can get lots of shatterproof ornaments on sale at hobby lobby or something..... I have lots of DIY decor ideas but that will come in a few days when I get to show everyone my holiday decor this year : ) Cant wait! For now, check out this tutorial....

http://www.eddieross.com/eddie_ross/2008/12/no-wire-hangers-well-maybe-just-one.html

6the day of Christmas

Day 6: Gift ideas (what do YOU want? 

We all have family/friends reading our blogs...so let them know!) 

 

Ok, I think I am almost caught up....

 

There are lots of things I would love this year but my fantasy is a new DSLR camera. I have outgrown my Olympus (its for sale.....$400 obo) which is an amazing camera and is my baby. However to grow my business and take my family portrait skills to the next level I have to upgrade (this is very common with photographers as you advance your skills. Cameras also hold there value so its common to sell to newer photographers) Also, cannon cameras will allow me to upgrade through their cameras and mix and match lens which is a huge advantage. For portrait photography there is a specific lens that works best and combined with this camera..... lets just say it will be awesome. Hopefully I will be able to sell my Olympus in the next few months in order to afford this new lady..... Check her out....

 

here

 

5th day of Christmas

So Im a little behind.... oh well... it will add some suspense.

Day 5: Favorite Holiday Movie/TV Show Special

 

My favorite movie isnt very festive but it always comes on tv around Christmas....

 

Here's a few hints....

Climb every mountain.....

Nothing comes from nothing.... nothing every could.....so somewhere in my youth, or childhood....I must have done something good

Dancing the Landler..... hands down my favorite part of the movie....

I started my Holiday movie watching early this year by watching all 3+ hours of it a few Fridays ago while Dutch was at work. Yes I live a very glamours lifestyle.

 

4th Day of Christmas

Day 4: Tips/Tricks to a Budget Friendly holiday season
Tip 1- If shopping for yourself and a big sale is coming up (black Friday etc) go before the sale (if you have free time??) and try on the things you like. That way, when you go to the store the day of the sale you can grab what you want in the size that works and go. No waiting in huge lines for a dressing room. Tip 2 - Make a list. I am list crazy. Some of my lists say to make a list for something else. That way I know what I got for each person and who is missing. That way I focus on one item instead of wander the store buying lots of random stuff. Tip 3- Set your budget (to correspond to the list) well before you shop. Helps keep you under check.  Tip 4- For close friends gift small ornaments or have a get together to celebrate each other. Tip 5 - Sign up for email lists for restaurants or stores that you know you will go to. They will send "thank yous" for signing up. New York and Company sends you a 20% off your purchase coupon. Chili's will send you a free app or free dessert coupon. Score! I have an old email address I use for this so if I do get junk mail from it later its not clogging up my main email address.

The 3rd day of Christmas

Day 3 - Meaningful/Memorable Gift(s)

So I have had amazing gifts through the years from my family in friends. I truly love giving gifts which is a gift in itself. But hands down, my most meaningful/memorable gift was when I was 8 (3rd grade) and FINALLY got what I always wanted......

A west highland white terrier we named Mattie. I was in love..... sadly she left us in 2005. She will be forever missed..... : (

2nd day of Christmas

Day 2: Black Friday/General Shopping Tips & Tricks  Here's my black Friday shopping trick...
Do not go.... Unless there is a specific item that you need that you know is a great deal. General browsing is not suggested. If you are anything like me, You are already a bargain shopper, cut coupons, join email lists for coupons and have kept your eye out for deals the last few months. I have already finished half my shopping this year : )
My general shopping theories would include...  1. I never pay full price unless it is already a really great deal or a must have (i.e the camel fall boots I got this year. I did do lots of comparison shopping though) 2.Go to the mall alone (at least I do) I usually have a mission and the mall mapped out to where I need to go. Im not into lollygagging or just randomly letting your life slip away as you walk through a mall. I also hate when someone comes with you who doesn't want to go into the store you want. They usually hover the entire time and comment on your selections. Oh and if you want to go into the dressing room.....ugh... lol at least that is my experience. (I do however shop with my BFF as she is the same way) 3. If you are wasting your life away at the mall do not walk slow with a triple wide stroller and your entire extended family. I may run you down. lol
4. Give people a list when possible. Its not a strict request but most of the time the gift giver (who I love to be) likes knowing what you want or wants to avoid buying you something you already have or wont use. 

Katy Perry - Firework

So is it just me or is the "firework" part of this video a little creepy.... How many kids are going to say wow this is cool, lets reenact this..... and then they blow off their arm..... Hmmm. Not appropriate.

12 days of Christmas

So I saw this on my SIL Kathryns blog which you can find HERE and thought I would try it out.

Day 1 is Christmas/Holiday traditions

Christmas is my favorite time of year (other than HBF (Hottie Beach Fest) and My Birthday (day of terror lol) I love getting a fresh tree and decorating it. I also love decorating the house with garlands, wreaths, candles, and most of all the tablescape. From bowls of berries, greenery, tall candles and ornaments hung from the Chandelier, I love creating the table for the holidays.

Every year I host a dinner party for my closest friends to celebrate the friendships of that year. It is called Hottie Holidays. Its usually a combination of a cocktail hour, and heavy apps or a full blown dinner. I love making my famous champagne punch and getting all dolled up. Festive attire is always required. lol.

Growing up my family and I went to church on Christmas Eve. We always wore our best holiday outfits and took a family photo by the fireplace together, a tradition we try to continue. Now with spouses, step sisters/brothers and bf/gfs it makes for a tight fit with is aways fun. Christmas morning we had a huge breakfast after opening up all the presents (in order of age). Breakfast usually was polish sausage, sara lee coffee cake (yummmo) and scrambled eggs. Then we spent the morning modeling our new clothes (or maybe that was just me) and checking out all our new stuff. Now that we are older and married everyone has to be in 100 places at once which takes a little of a balancing act but we make it work. 

Makover madness

Its makeover madness at the Morgan household lately. 1/2 decorated for Christmas (the first half that is acceptable before thanksgiving) with the 2nd 1/2 coming next weekend (tree, garlands etc)

I'm putting my design skills to good work and working on updating our office. In the excitement of everything I forgot to take a good "before" photo so I just took a good "busy prepping for painting/moving crap around the room" photo.

Check back for the final design!

Change is coming.....

Just a few teasers on some much needed change..... Enjoy!