House of Hydrangeas

Hi friends! Sorry for the lack of posts as of late.  I've had a lot of things on my plate and a lot of things I'm prepping for just around the corner. Many of you may not know, but my husband Jon has been in Afghanistan for the past several months.  And I'm happy to announce that he will be finally arriving home a week from this Saturday!  And a week after that, we are going on a nice relaxing vacation to Napa Valley!  I'll give you more details on where we're staying in an upcoming post, but I can say it truly looks like it'll be heaven on earth...and that it was recently named "The Best Taste of Wine Country" in the summer travel issue of Martha Stewart Living. As if that wasn't enough excitement, the Olympics are also right around the corner!  Will you be watching the opening ceremonies?  I know I will, and I can't to see the show.  According to the news, milllions of people will be tuning in as well.  Sounds like a great reason to t...

It appears I've been slacking on the Five Things Friday posts as of late.  Well maybe slacking is going a little nice on myself.  Has it really been since October since I last wrote one?!  Tisk. Tisk.  Let's see if I can get it together today.  Here's the better late than never part 2... 1. Death by Oreo Cupcakes.  I originally planned to make these before Jon was scheduled to be back home tomorrow.  But then I decided it would be a better idea to save them for next week.  That way if we have any leftovers, I can just bring them home with me to Alabama when I visit next weekend instead of us gorging on them here all by ourselves... Because I have a feeling I'm going to want to every. single. one of them. 2.  I can't wait to host my first dinner party at our new home.  And looking at images like this one from a fun wine party isn't helping.  Tulips and twin in wine vases...yes, please. 3.  Speaking of parties, look ...

I hope all of you had a very Merry Christmas! It went by in a flash for us! Perhaps it's because there is so much else going on...with a new baby in the family and a wedding coming up, there's a lot on the mind. And for me, a lot of shower ideas floating around in this head of mine. Here is my latest compilation of a shower idea (baby or wedding). If I have a baby girl one day, my one shower request will be to steer clear of a lot of pink. I've always been a purple girl ever since I was little.  I've also always been a big lover of breakfast food.  Both of those loves yielded this shower idea board.  I think it's simple, sweet and full of ageless charm.  I hope you like it too! I'll be bringing you a real-life party I helped on very soon (as soon as I narrow down which pictures to use!)  Have a blessed Monday!

Or at least it's a small blogging world.  A while back I was searching for baby shower and kid party inspiration and found the blog Mrs. A in The Cove  written by an Australian named Leanne.  It is filled with wonderful party designs and craft ideas. One of the things I fell in love with on Leanne's site were these adorable glass bottles she used at her parties.   After swooning over these bottles in so many of her entries, I asked her if she knew where I could find some in the U.S.  It turns out these bottles are from fruit nectar drinks made my Santa Vittoria, and unfortunately are not sold in the States.   Knowing I couldn't get them here, Leanne messaged me telling me she would soon be selling them herself and asked if I would I like her to get a quote with shipping.  I of course said "Yes!" and thought to myself "I'm communicating with someone in Australia!  How crazy is that!?"   She was so sweet to look up two different shipping l...