Post-Holidays and Baked Scallops

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas! Ours was great! This time of year is especially busy for us (but then again, who's December isn't busy?) with the gift-buying, wrapping, cooking, and family get-togethers. In years past, Austin and I have spent Christmas' separately (no fun!) because it was easier...and especially since we each have so much family to visit. This year, our goal was to squeeze in both families all in the two short days-whew! And if it hadn't been for the undriveable roads on Christmas night, we would have made it!

As a re-cap, we celebrated on the 18th with the mother-in-law's (MIL's) family (gracias Aunt Joan for my Banana Republic gift card!) and then on Christmas Eve Eve we celebrated with the father-in-laws (FIL) family! Thanks to Kent and Bettra for moving their usual Christmas Eve get-together to the night before. We had so much fun - ate a wonderful prime rib dinner, participated in the white elephant gift exchange and played games. FYI, Dirty Minds is very dirty! Better get your mind outta the gutter before you play this game! On Christmas Eve (and after trying to get over my slight hangover), Austin and I ate dinner and exchanged gifts with my grandmother, step dad and mom in Jefferson. On Christmas Day, we did Christmas with my Dad's family in Jefferson. Unfortunately, we weren't able to make our fifth and final Christmas gathering at Austin's Aunt Joan's. The roads were too bad to make it up to Jasper - so my Christmas night was spent curled up in front of the fire watching a Lifetime movie.

Now that Christmas is over, I hope everyone has been able to re-coop - at least until New Year's Eve! :) I've done some after-Christmas shopping with mom, slept in late and watched several Lifetime movies (I'd say at least five...it's kind of an addiction) since I've been off of work. I've been to see The Fighter (great movie!) with Austin, Soloman and Becky and How Do You Know? with SIL Lindsey and neighbor-friend Lisa. That movie was OK - cute, but wouldn't go see it again. I did receive the MJ (just exit out of this blog if you don't know what that stands for) This Is It DVD in my stocking. Santa must know how much I love MJ. :) That about sums up my Christmas "break."

Now that I'm back in a routine (had to go back to work today)...here is a BAKED SCALLOP recipe that Austin and I made tonight! So good!

I hope everyone has a safe and eventful New Year's Eve! Here's to 2011!

Baked Scallops

Ingredients:
1 lb. scallops
1/2 cup melted butter
20 low sodium ritz crackers
black pepper
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 cup white wine
lemon juice (to taste)

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease baking dish. Wash and dry scallops and set aside.
In a separate bowl, mix melted butter, white wine and lemon juice. Dip scallops into this mix. Combine ritz crackers, black pepper and garlic powder into a bowl, then place scallops into this mix. Set onto baking dish, bake for 15-20 minutes and then enjoy!

Crock Pot Recipe: Ham & Bean Soup

I was looking for something to do with all my leftover ham from a family Christmas this past Saturday - and something other than ham sandwiches! Here is the recipe, partly taken from a recipe on the Internet :) and partly from just Austin and myself.

Ham & Bean Soup 

Ingredients:
Bag of Great Northern beans
Leftover ham (cut into small pieces)
1 cup finely chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon dried leaf thyme
4-5 cups chicken broth (depending on the size of your crock pot)
Salt & pepper (to taste)
Garlic powder (to taste)
Nature's seasoning (to taste)

Preparation:
Cook the beans, cut the ham into small pieces and dice the onion. Place the beans, ham, onion, and chicken broth in the crock pot. Add garlic, dried leaf thyme, salt & pepper, garlic powder and nature's seasoning. Cook on low through out the day and it will be ready when you walk in the door from work!

Click here to receive $7 off an eight-pound or larger ham from the fabulous HoneyBaked Ham.

Enjoy!

Is he frozen?!

The title of my blog post came from Ella. Austin and I stayed over at Brittney & Jason's last night because we didn't want to make the hike home in the awful weather - and it had already taken me two and a half hours to get to their house! Anyway, chatty Cathy - er Ella - came to get in the bed with us this morning. She was just chatting away! She called Austin's name a few times, with no response from Austin, so she asked if he was frozen. I couldn't help but laugh.

Bibb Necklace, $79 (was $198)

Last night, Britt still had her Stella & Dot jewelry party! Obviously, the turn out wasn't as great as it would have been if the weather would have cooperated, but there were still 5 of us! I thought I'd share my favorite Stella & Dot piece with everyone - it's a bibb necklace. The original price was $198 and Britt is selling hers for $79!! This is a great price - I wish I hadn't paid full price for mine! I wear mine with white shirts, black shirts, turtle necks, black and white tank tops in the summer - it goes with so much...especially if you wear a lot of black. Let me know if you'd like to buy this - I'll have Britt mail it to you. After all, she's gotta make room for the spring line that will be here soon!

I also thought I'd share a martini recipe that Brittney made last night. Even though I'm more of a red wine drinker, I thought these were great - especially for holiday parties!!!



Holiday Martini
Vodka
Peppermint schnapps
Cream de cocoa
Heavy cream

Pour one shot of each of the above in a shaker, shake and pour into a martini glass. Garnish with a mini candy cane, drink and enjoy! :)

Happy Holidays!!!


                                                                   

Baby, It's Cold Outside!

Two posts in one week! I can't believe it! It's still freeeeeezing outside, I just don't know how I'll survive through January and February - spring cannot get here soon enough!! I thought I'd update everyone on the recent shower I helped to host for Mrs. Chelsey Parks Potts. :) The shower was Saturday, December 11, at the beautiful home of Eve Jennings. That's where mine and Austin's fiesta shower was held...and my engagement pictures were taken...and likely will be the spot where we host a shower for Ashley Fellers & Sam Sliger! I'm getting really excited about all the festivities for Sam and Ashley. Somebody else better get engaged soon because I get really sad when we don't have a zillion wedding festivities going on. It's true...after Britt and Brooke were both married in June 2009, I had to have something to look forward to. And then thankfully Allison got engaged! She and Bart were married on April 3, 2010 and Ash & Sam will get married on May 21, 2011, in Madison, Ga. Check out their wedding Web site, www.ashleyandsam.com.

Back to the baby shower...Eve's house was all decorated for Christmas, it was beautiful! I'm not sure where she stores all her Christmas decorations when it's not Christmas. Seriously, she had more decorations than I've ever seen in one house - it was so pretty. Chelsey (and Kyle) received so many great little girl gifts - clothes, things for Kathryn's room, and more clothes! My favorite gifts were those HAND MADE by Kristie Carlson. True talent. I wish I was that creative. It was great to see all the girls and catch up - I don't make it to Gainesville that often - but when I do make it, I feel like it's always for a shower. :)

Hostesses with Chelsey!

After the shower, I was able to catch up with Chelsey and hear more about the baby, life on the farm with Kyle and unfortunately, her brother-n-law Kory that was recently diagnosed with leukemia (AML). It was so sad to hear all about Kory's diagnosis but very uplifting to hear how positive Kory and his family are through this process. Kory is 23 years old and is currently in Texas receiving chemotherapy. He will eventually have to have a bone marrow transplant, which hopefully Kyle will be able to be a donor. For more information on Kory, visit http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/korypotts.

That's all for today! I am going to a Stella & Dot jewelry party tonight! More to come later...as I have some Christmas shopping to do! Have a wonderful rest of the week.

Officially a BLEVINS!



At the Houndstooth Grill

It's snowing!!! I'm sitting here finally posting something on my blog...Austin's watching football (no surprise there), and it's snowing! I'm not really a fan of the cold, but if it's going to be cold at least let there be snow.

Katie & Austin

To update everyone since my last blog post, Austin and I did get married on the 20th and thankfully, no hurricanes. :) Everything went perfect - we started off the weekend at the Houndstooth Grill in Braselton, then on Saturday the guys played golf at Chateau and the girls went to SalonPure for hair, make up and mimosa's! We had a small ceremony before the reception with about 60 people, including our parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins and a few friends. Austin and I exchanged vows inside the foyer of a renovated house. It was beautiful! Everything was decorated for Christmas, the violinist played Christmas music and we served chapagne and appetizers for the guests. Who says you can't plan a wedding in a week and a half, right?

Cigar Bar!

After the ceremony, the reception was held in the ballroom behind the renovated house, which was also decorated for Christmas. Thanks to all of our wonderful vendors, everything was lovely. Our food was catered by Cornbread and Cavier, the band was Playback out of Augusta, Ga., the flowers were by Renee Souther and Susan Hopkins and the photography was done by Kaylan Campanale. Austin and I danced to You Look Wonderful Tonight by Eric Clapton...which I let Austin decide! I let him choose the first song as well as our vows. We had a wonderful wedding weekend and an absolute blast at the reception and we hope that everyone else did too! Thank you to our family and friends - we love you!

My favorite time of year!

For those of you that don't already know, fall is officially my favorite season. I love the cooler weather, the changing leaves, tall boots, and the holidays - especially Thanksgiving! And yes, I said tall boots. Aside from getting married (in 3 days!), I have quite a bit going on in November and December...the start-up of Supper Club (more to come later), my Willow House party on December 4 and a baby shower to help host on December 11. I'm thrilled about the future arrival of Kathryn Paige Potts...and of course so excited for her lovely parents, Kyle & Chelsey Potts (most definitely more to come later!).

Also, I'm a member of the American Marketing Association (AMA) Young Professionals Committee and we are hosting our Jingle! Jingle! Mingle! 2010 Holiday Mixer on December 4. Cost is $15 for members and $30 for non-members. That price includes two free drink tickets. To register, go to www.ama-atlanta.com. 

I don't have much more to report on other than I've been going to hot yoga on a pretty regular basis! By regular basis, I mean I just went three whole days IN A ROW! Hot yoga is intense, very challenging...and well worth the 90-minute work out (I only think this way after the 90-minute workout). For those that have never tried hot yoga before, I highly recommend. The room is literally 105+ degrees. Just think about the calories you'd burn. :) Before my initial visit in September, I had only done one previous yoga class so I still consider myself a hot yoga new-bee. If you are near my neck of the woods, check out Hot Ember Yoga, located in downtown Woodstock. Very nice studio!

That's about it for now! I'm excited about my Girl's Night this evening with Penny Abell, Brittany Blevins Smith, Lindsey Blevins Lark & Betsy Blevins! We are headed to Downtown Kitchen & hopefully they'll have their filet, sundried tomato & goat cheese special (melt-in-your-mouth deliciousness!).

8 More Days as a LITTLE

Well, hello! And thank you for reading my brand new blog, The Blevins Life. Even though I'm not officially a "Blevins" yet, I will be in 8 days! And actually, I should already be a "Blevins"...as Austin and I were supposed to get married in St. Lucia on November 4. We weren't able to fly out on October 31 because Hurricane Tomas hit the island the night before, causing quite a bit of damage. It was the first time in 30 years that a hurricane had directly hit the island. So, advice for anyone planning a destination wedding in the Caribbean: make sure you purchase traveler's insurance (which we did!) and try to avoid hurricane season altogether. :)

For almost a day and a half, Austin and I (mainly Austin) were on the phone with Delta, Sandals and our travel agent. No one could really give us any information. Phone lines on the island were down and no one knew the extent of the damage yet. We were put on stand-by for the next day's flight and after that flight was canceled too, we decided to get our money back and head to Miami. After all, our bags were packed (with summer clothes) and we were ready to go somewhere - even if it couldn't be St. Lucia. Plus, Gretchen was probably ready for us to go somewhere, too! Thankfully, she let us stay at her apartment while we tried to figure out details with Sandals...and Delta...and our travel agent. :) We ended up having a great time in Miami, ate fabulous food and enjoyed a relaxing week on the beach and by the pool! Clayton and Jenny Rhoads - who were also supposed to go to St. Lucia - were thankfully able to join us in Miami!

Fortunately, Austin and I were not already in St. Lucia when Hurricane Tomas hit! And our NEW wedding date is now November 20, which actually works out perfect because that is the date of our actual reception. We are currently finalizing plans for our very last-minute ceremony and we can't wait to see all of our family and friends in a week!!!!