Tag Archives: southern

Texas Pete Bloody Mary

When I worked at the Boys and Girls Club, the older kids liked to scare the little ones with the story of Bloody Mary. Have you heard it? As legend goes, Bloody Mary appears if they spun around three times in front of a mirror while chanting her name. (You can read more of the legend here.) It was kind of terrifying and I’m an adult. I will never forget the morning my favorite little kid ran out of the bathroom with tears in his eyes, so afraid that “Bloody Muddy” was going to get him. There were so many time-outs that day.

This drink goes out to that little guy, wherever he is. I hope he’s out terrifying the big kids with some gut wrenching tales.

Ingredients:

8 oz. Bloody Mary Mix (I cheated a bit on this one and went with a Trader Joe’s mix. You could also use tomato juice and Worcestershire sauce).
1 shot of vodka
15! shakes of Texas Pete (less if you like a less spicy drink)
1 dash of onion powder
1 dash of garlic powder
Splash of canned olive juice
Garnish with fresh, cracked black pepper and olives

Also, can we talk about how serving in a jar saves on clean up. AND. AND. AND. You can make these before a party and have them ready to go! Have you ever had a Texas Pete Bloody Mary? Let me know in the comments!

love,
melanie

Bed and Breakfast

Can you see me?!
Old fireplaces are so gorgeous. The tile alone has me dreaming of owning a historic home.

This weekend my parents came to visit. It was my mom’s birthday, so it was extra special. My parents stayed at a local bed and breakfast, The Packhouse Inn— both Ronald Reagan and Dolly Parton stayed there! My dad complained about how cold the house was, but it was a truly beautiful home.

On Sunday morning, we were able to eat breakfast with my parents and tour the home. I adore old houses. I’d love to own an old home, one day. New houses just don’t seem to have the details of old homes.

What did you all do this weekend?

love,
melanie

New Orleans Honeymoon

One of my favorite parts of the graveyards in New Orleans were the painted tombs. Colorful in life, colorful in death, right?! Standing beside Voodoo Priestess, Marie Laveau‘s (disputed) tomb.

For our honeymoon, George and I decided to forgo the traditional, all-inclusive beach trip for a darker, and dare I say, more exciting vacation to New Orleans. And we didn’t regret a minute of it. The food was amazing, the history was rich and the beer was flowing!

As you can tell from the pictures, we visited several graveyards and we brought along cheapo, disposable cameras. I kind of love the way the pictures turned out. They are a little creepy, over-saturated, and look much older than digital photos. We also forgot to charge the digital camera– happy mistake! I brought the disposable cameras on our ghost tour too, but none of the pictures turned out. I think a ghost ruined the rest of our film!

If you are thinking about doing something a little off the beaten path for your honeymoon, I would highly recommend it. Get out there and see something new!

Did you go anywhere “different” for your honeymoon? Are you planning to go somewhere “different?” Let me know in the comments.

love,
melanie

Easy Wedding Favors: Printed Brown Bags

During the wedding planning process, DIY projects were not high on my list. I did manage to carve out some time to do a few easy and inexpensive crafts though. And I plan on sharing a few of them with you! I was super pleased with the way my wedding favors turned out. So, I’m sharing the how-to on those first!

For this project all you need is a little photoshop know-how, paper bags and a printer. (I would recommend a top-loading printer. Although it is possible to do with a bottom-loading printer. I have just found the top loading printers work better with the bags.)

First, we designed our logo in Photoshop. We used the image of George and myself on our wedding invites too. Your design doesn’t have to be anything as elaborate as ours, a monogram would look nice too. If you don’t have Photoshop skills, you could even create your design in Word and then change your printer settings to the size of the bag.

Next, we changed the dimensions of the image in Photoshop to the dimensions of the paper bag and did a couple of test prints. After printing each bag, we added a can of RC Cola and a Moon Pie. In the South, an RC Cola and a Moon Pie is known as a working man’s lunch and both George and I have fond memories of eating Moon Pies and drinking RC Colas as kids.

Finally, we punched two holes in the top of the bag, looped a ribbon through and tied a bow. Quick, easy and cheap! Done!

**A helpful hint is to buy more bags than you need and be patient! If the bag has any kind of small tear or inconsistency, the printer may eat it. Just keep calm and carry on!**

Questions? Leave ’em in the comments!
love,
melanie

Love Adventure

Last weekend, George and I went on a motorcycle ride to the Great Dismal Swamp. Although the swamp isn’t far from our house, it was quite the adventure. Prior to the trip, I had only rode on George’s bike at about 45 mph. I’m not afraid to admit that at 70 mph, I was holding on for dear life. George is terribly ticklish and he said I had to stop holding him in a death grip because he might die from laughter. I managed to get a few snapshots on the bike after I got my courage up.