2017 has rolled around and I have a good feeling about this year. I think it's going to be a year of transition and change for me, but having Charlotte has taught me to look through all things in my life with a better perspective.
A recap of our holidays:
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| Khaner and I were kind of behind on Christmas party invites - time gets away with a newborn! But we rallied and had a great time with about 20 of our friends! |
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| As a new mom, I am learning to "arrange" and "assemble" more than cook. It's easier, less hassle, but equally delicious. I think if I was told there was one food I could only eat moving forward, it would be charcuterie plates. |
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| Love flowers from Trader Joes - always in season, delicate and inexpensive! These graced our island over Christmas weekend. |
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| My all-time favorite home decorator Lisa Hilderbrand inspired me with these gorgeous citrus arrangements. Hers were more like topiaries for her client's dining room table, but my blue and white bowl on the island will have to do :) |
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| Christmas Eve dinner prep. I tried Provencal Fish Stew out of Ina Garten's cookbook "Making It Ahead." It came out SO good and I highly recommend it if your family likes seafood. The book is a great resource if you do a lot of entertaining and prefer to spend time with your guests, instead of in the kitchen! |
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| I decided our Christmas party needed some cookies - they were gobbled up so quickly, I made more for the weekend of Chrtistmas! Recipe here: |
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| The Walkers made the trek from Memphis to be with us! |
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| A very excited little girl with all her family in town! |
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| 4 months old! |
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| Christmas Eve dinner table - my mom bought me beautiful high-stem candle holders for Christmas. I adore them and can dress them with white candles all year round or red for the holidays, as I did here. |
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| Host and Hostess before serving Christmas Eve dinner - note my sauv blanc is never too far away :) |
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| My mom was dying for a photo of three generations - she got one! Best we could get on Christmas Day with Charlotte. |
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| Mom and Dad with us |
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| My favorite Christmas present ever. |
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| Carter had to take a break from all his host duties... |
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| Grammie and her Charlotte. |
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| Grandad and Charlotte |
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| My comfort and joy. |
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| From the same Make It Ahead cookbook, I prepared Ina's filets with mustard sauce and mushrooms for a quiet New Year's Eve dinner at home, just the three of us. DIVINE! |
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| We probably should have had a green vegetable as well, but New Year's is for indulging, right? K made his delicious twice baked potatoes |
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| I paired two candle holders I received for Christmas. Love the glass ones from Mom and brass ones from K. They really set the mood in our dining room. |
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| One of the more tame New Years' we've had together. Very parent-friendly! |
