A fresh page...

So what do you think???
Well I am in LOVE with the new design that Penny Lane Designs has come up with! It is a Prefab Design that I fell in love with!
The yellow and gray- perfect! and EXACTLY what I was looking for!

If you are in need of a face life- for your blog of course- then hop on over to her site! It is wonderful!

So did everyone have a wonderful weekend? I DID!

Saturday started with a shopping trip to the fabric store with my mom! We went to Forsyth Fabric and Lewis & Sheron Fabrics over off of Howell Mill (from those of you familiar with Atlanta!) We got a TON of samples for the house. I have some wonderful ideas... now to put them into motion!

Speaking of ideas into motion... We did a little work around the house!

Starting with a little makeover on some chairs...

Before:


After:


These are obviously our dining room chairs... I just love the formal print. JM's mom had this left over from a project! So it was FREE! (Of course JM's mom did the chairs... I was a little scared with the Air Compressor attached to a staple gun! So I cannot take the credit!) I will learn though...

AND Can you believe that we have a TON I mean a TON of this left...

(That is JM under all of that fabric! It was twice as long as the living room! We have a ton left- I see drapes next!)

After me and my mom went to the fabric store we tried out a new restaurant that we had heard RAVE reviews about... Flip Burger Boutique. It was amazing. One of the best burgers in Atlanta.
Here are a few shots from lunch Saturday!

(My Burger- Bacon and American Cheese)

(Mom's burger- Blue Cheese and pickled shallots)

(Handcut fries and Vodka battered Onion Rings- taste better than beer batter)

(Nutella Milkshake with Toasted marshmallows!- that was AMAZING!)


Now that was NOT part of my OR my mother's diet plan... but damn it was good!
If you are in the Midtown area you must check it out! There will be a line- but it is oh-so-worth it!

Next up... The Craft Room!

I DID take pictures... but of course you will have to come back to read more on that later! I don't have the "Before" pictures with me now... and what fun would that be to only see it finished!

I hope that everyone had a great weekend... We sure did!

xoxo
PS. I might actually be getting the hang of this blogging thing... See that? there are links in this post!

Happy Monday! (and you know I never say that!)

Friday Fun...

So I have not been around much lately because well... we don't have that much going on.

So here is some of the randomness that makes up our lives.

I have been eating this almost everyday this week for lunch... and it is AMAZING.

(Shot with iPhone 4 camera- pretty sweet huh?)

A veggie sandwich on a bagel.
But... it is SO MUCH MORE than that- AND keeps me full until dinner!
Here it is....

The cast of characters:
Sesame Bagel- toasted of course.
Onion and Chive Cream Cheese
Tomatoes (I can only find "Campari" tomatoes right now and they are amazing!)
Cucumber
Red Onion
Bean Sprouts
Spinach Leaves
Avocado

Directions
Toast Bagel and slice all of the veggies (except the bean sprouts and spinach)
Once bagel is done spread on cream cheese and let is melt a little (this is key to making it that much better!)
Then layer on veggies however you like. I found that it was easiest to put on tomatoes on first and stick them in the cream cheese really good so they stay put!
(Yes I do love how formal those instructions were- NOT!)
*** You can omit anything that you want- or add turkey too and it will be just as great!

(Shot with Hipstamatic camera for iPhone 4)

So that has been my obsession this week.

AND I have been looking at fabric for window treatments that JM's Momma is making for us! She is AWESOME! and if you are in the Atlanta area and are in need of some custom window treatments, then contact me!

Here is what I love...


Obviously I will not have a blue trim on them, but a gray-ish tan color on the trim...
I think that they are wonderful! These will go in the kitchen bay window (So there will be 3 of them) and we are also going to start building a bench in that window as well... Pictures to come my friends.

I have a ton of plans for this house... but of course we have to take it one room at a time.

Now I just need some graph paper to draw it all out! Or a design notebook to keep all of my ideas for our "Home Projects", fabric samples, and of course the many pictures that I am getting inspiration from.

Also in breaking news... this weekend I hope to get my craft room organized. Right now it is another Guest Room, but soon it will be a place where I can do nothing but create. I am also picking up my sewing machine and table from my parents...time to reteach myself how to sew! I hope that it has the instruction manual still!

I hope that you all have a happy Friday and a wonderful weekend!

XOXO- Mrs. McCracken

and I am back!

WOW! I have been MIA lately.

Well... WE GOT THE CAR from my last post! I absolutely love it! I feels so much more like driving a car then an SUV. JM loves it too!


So this weekend we went to Birmingham, AL to visit our dear friends Dave and Jill. We had such a great time! We were also SO GLAD to get out of our house! and I even got to watch a movie on the way there!(Twilight of course!) It was so nice to sit in the back and watch a movie while JM drove! (don't worry he got his turn on the way home to watch a documentary)


Last week, we were stuck at home (so was everyone else in Atlanta) for 3 days... and by day 2 we were ready to get out.

BUT a few good things can come from being at home and bored for so long.
We cleaned out the master closet!
We got the house back in order and clean.
We also went through the entire linen closet an refolded everything and have 5 trash bags now to donate!

Staying home was great, but I think that we were both ready to be back at work (and those words never fly out of my mouth!)

While we were home I didn't feel like even looking at a computer screen- I should have posted something while I had the time- OR I should have gotten my camera's software uploaded onto the computer....
Oh well. I did get 50+ Thank You notes done in ONE DAY! So this weekend I have to finish the rest and get them all mailed out!

ON to important news...
AS you may know JM and I love to cook or try new places. SO whenever we go out of town we like to try local restaurants... nothing chain because we can get that at home!
While in B'Ham we went to a place for brunch on Saturday (Help me JM- I cannot remember the name) and they had a BLOODY MARY BAR!
We each ordered one... and they bring you a glass of vodka on the rocks... Half full of course.
Then you go over to the side of the bar and they have a few different mixes to choose from and all of the fixings to go with them!
(OF course I had to have one...)
Mine was Whiskey Willy's with horseradish, tons of black pepper, a few pickled Okra, and a lime. No salt on the rim!
Was the best drink on a Saturday morning...


and now I am finding myself wanting one this morning... I mean shouldn't every office have a Bloody Mary Bar? No?... Oh well. Happy Monday.


xoxo-Mrs. McCracken

Happy.

So the start of the new year has been wonderful.

We have been eating better at the McCracken house, going to the gym, and today...


Yup... Make-up. At my desk. Hey- at least I got it on!
I even look cute today and have straight hair!

I have done all of that because tonight... tonight we are celebrating!
It my dear friend Jamie's Birthday on Friday! That means a girls night, and I cannot wait. It is long over due and I need it so much.
So dinner and drinks tonight in Woodstock. I cannot wait!


Then this weekend... it is going to be HUGE. Well maybe. Hopefully.

Friday night I am cleaning out my car. It needs it. BAD.

This is Blue or the "Flexus" as JM says... I never gave her a name, but she has taken me down many paths in my life and been an awesome car.

Saturday...
Blue is getting replaced!
We hope! I love the car we have found, and according to JM, I am already in the car and off the lot! So we have to drive it, make sure that we love it, ya know all that jazz. BUT we have been talking with the dealership (JM's Best Man (Sam) works there, and has offered us a WONDERFUL deal, one that you do not refuse) and the car is perfect and EXACTLY what I was looking for!

Here she is... Meet the Lincoln MKX.


You can't say that she isn't pretty!


I am so excited to go and see it, drive it, and beg JM to let me have this one... I will even offer to drive on our next trip and let him sit in the back and watch a movie! That's right... there is a DVD player in the back! There is even heat and A/C seats! Really excited about that!
My Dad also has a Lincoln MKZ (the Sedan) and he loves it! Esp. the A/C Seats in the summer! Who ever thought to put A/C in a seat is a GENIUS!

We will see, I will keep you posted on the car... and take a ton of pictures if we leave with it.

This weekend we are also starting Project #1. Organizing the master closet- I can promise pictures to come on that. It is a disaster and I cannot believe that we have let it get this way. JM's areas are clean, mine not so much. Then again I do use all 4 of the closets in the house, so it is time for me to condense, get it all together and get back to being organized.

So 2011, I am ready for you. We are going to organize, clean, and start this already growing list of projects that will be completed this year. There are so so many projects that we want to do around the house... and I promise to do posts on all of them!

So watch out here we come!

I hope that everyone is having a wonderful Thursday!

~Mrs. McCracken

I resolute...

Now it is time for NEW YEARS RESOLUTIONS... What is mine you ask?

I have a few...

1. Plan meals for us and cook much more. We have fallen into a routine where we do not think about dinner- we just say- "oh we dont have anything- OK I will stop and grab something on the way home." Now this place where we "stop and grab something" is not a health food store not even a grocery store. It is junk fast food. Pretty sick-nasty. I want to be able to make a few things in advance and be able to put them together and be able to have hot and fresh- most importantly healthier meals on the table once we get home as well.
(Doesn't seem too hard now does it?) Add to this… Lose weight by eating healthier. And put the gym membership to good use… going to the gym AT LEAST 4 times a week. Hell if I do not go straight from work- then I can find any excuse in the world as to why I should no leave the house after I am already home...

2. I want to start to dress nicer. At work, I can wear whatever I want. That means if I feel like wearing yoga pants and a t-shirt then I can (today I have on jeans, a t-shirt and a cardigan with my Uggs of course!) OR I can wear 6 inch heels and a skirt- that never happens. Let’s just say that I have fallen into a pit of despair... Jeans, yoga pants, or leggings, and whatever is clean on top. Lets just say that these feet have not seen a pair of the many Stuart Weitzman’s that are collecting dust in the closet either. I would like to come home and have JM say- "Oh wow you look beautiful today." (He says it now, but I would like to dress much better if not just for him at least for myself)

So we will have to see what 2011 will bring… I am hopeful that it brings much more than dressing nicer, losing a few lbs, and even cooking more…

And of course to add to my list…

3. I need to blog more, and get better at it. I mean I have a badass computer at home that gets barely any love, and a kick ass camera that I need to use and get the software installed on my computer pronto! I need to get better at blogging, photography, and documenting our lives. I need to share more… share what I am feeling, thinking, and seeing… There is just so much that I want to say sometimes. But I never know what kind of reaction I could get….

For instance… (and since I am in a sharing mood) I want a family in 2011… as in a family of 3.
Before I met JM, I never wanted kids. I wanted to move to NYC and never look back… Well life changes. I fell in madly in love with a man who lives in the suburbs of Atlanta, and damn I fell hard. Head over heels hard. Since then I knew that I wanted a family once we got married. Seriously that is what love can do to someone. Hell, it made me want a baby- like yesterday. (Don’t worry, JM knows all of this!) But we still do have a honeymoon to go to in April… and I want to be able to have a great time, in a bikini (hence the #1 goal on this list) and be able to drink and eat what I want… But my dream would be to get pregnant on that trip, even though it is not likely as things do take time…

See bet a few of you might not have known that about me? (Hell I cannot believe how great it just felt to type that….)

A goal of mine is to be more candid and open on this blog. Not for all 27 of you followers, but for myself. I need it. I need to be able to write and know that it is out there… I put it out there so that maybe my dreams and thoughts can be put into actions…

One day, I am going to want to re-read all of this so that I will be able to remember. Remember every chapter of our lives. What I was thinking, feeling, etc.

But this year… it is full of new things for us, a new adventure around every corner, and I can smell it... a good year is in store for us... Another good chapter in the book of “Us”.

What are your resolutions for 2011? They can be anything… I mean the sky is the limit right? I want to know…

Tell me what it is you plan to do with your wild and precious life?

Happy New Year…
Xoxo~ Mrs. McCracken