by Blue-Eyed Bride on November 29, 2007
The Cocks didn’t really get going the way we wanted them to on Saturday night. I know that I hyped up the Clemson game a lot a few blogs ago, but I have to report that the Fighting Gamecocks did not lead the way. We had the lead for a few minutes in the 4th quarter of the game, but ended up losing by two points after a last second Clemson field goal. Oh well. Football season is over and I have mixed feelings. I love the excitement, the competition, the social scene, and seeing the Gamecocks win, but after six losses, football season has taken a toll on me. Now I’ll get back to focusing on the wedding and making sure I have everything in order.
Until recently, wedding planning has been a breeze. My job has gotten a little more hectic in the last few weeks and I’ve had less and less time to work on wedding stuff, so I’m worrying more and more that I’m forgetting something. I can’t believe that May 3 is almost five months away!
I’ve saved the best for last! Todd and I got to go down onto the field before kickoff to watch the players warm up. Williams-Brice feels huge from down there and I’m so glad that we got to go down there together. Here we are (pay no attention to the matching fleece jackets).
Before the game, we ran into former Arkansas Governor, Mike Huckabee (who has recently been endorsed by Ric Flair and Chuck Norris). I wasn’t able to get a great picture, but maybe next year we can say that I stood a few feet from the President of the United States. Or maybe not. We’ll see.
Don’t you think that Mrs. Mike Huckabee looks scared of me?
by Blue-Eyed Bride on November 26, 2007
After Oprah’s perfectly placed around Thanksgiving episode where she named her favorite things and gave one of each thing to every audience member, I’ve decided to name my favorite things (and people, places, and dogs) and what I’m thankful for in 2007 and forever:
- My beautiful, wonderful, funny family (mom, dad, and Walker) because they always answering the phone when I call
- Todd for being witty, charming, and unbearably goodlooking (and asking me to marry him)
- My dearest friends- old, new, near, and far!
- RC, PC, and Nana for welcoming me into their family
- Beaux and Boudreaux for being the most beautiful Golden Retrievers in the world
- My new dustbuster. It picks up where Boudreaux leaves off.
- My job, my health, the roof over my head, my freedom.
- The Cotton Country cookbook for its tried and true recipes
- TV on DVD
- Lost, Project Runway, and American Idol for the countless hours of mindless entertainment
- Aveda Smooth Infusion shampoo and conditioner because it always keeps my hair in check
- SEC Football– for a great first 6 weeks and for putting an end to the misery we’ve been in for the past 6 weeks.
- The Original Pancake House because they let us in no matter how we look!
- Not Yo Mama’s Banana Pudding
- The One who died for you and me and is the Reason for the most wonderful time of the year!
I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving and you’re all looking forward to a very Merry Christmas!
by Blue-Eyed Bride on November 20, 2007
That’s right. It’s almost Thanksgiving and that means that I have to watch Home Alone at least 20 times before Christmas arrives. I can’t complain, though. I love the movie and Todd does, too. Home Alone was actually the subject of one of our first conversations and it still comes up quite a lot. So… I’ll ask you once, “You guys give up yet? Or are you thirsty for more?”
If you’re thirsty for more keep reading…
This is a really big week in the state of South Carolina. Not only is it the kickoff to the most wonderful time of the year with Thanksgiving holidays, but Saturday at 7:00 is the kickoff to the highly anticipated Carolina/Clemson game. The game will be played in Columbia this year and Todd and I are going to get out in the perfect football weather and pray that the Gamecocks get us another win (after 4 consecutive losses). Ouch. I don’t pay a lot of attention to Clemson football except that I hope that they lose and cheer wildly when they do lose. I’ve heard people say that the Gamecocks don’t stand a chance, but I’m still hopeful. I’m also very excited about the game because I arranged for Todd and me to go onto the field before kick off! Around 6:15 look at the sidelines to see if you can see us. I’ll be the one that ducks every time a ball flies into the air. I’m so afraid of getting knocked in the head. The last time I went onto the field was Carolina/Clemson 2003 when Catherine and I took our campus tours for graduate school. I’ll admit that the Gamecocks didn’t win that game, either. That was my first experience at Williams-Brice and it was a great one. I love the sound of the Cock crowing and I love the chills that rush down my spine when they play that sound during the pre game festivities!
I’m not going to Dallas to be with my family this year for Thanksgiving. This will be the first holiday that I’ve spent away from my parents. I’m a little sad about it, but I know that Todd’s family will make the day very special. Todd’s mom’s family is coming in town and there will be a lot of love in the house. I’m very excited about cooking two of my FAVORITE holiday dishes to bring with me to dinner. I’ve never made either of these things before, but my mom sent me the recipes and I hope that I can make these things almost as well as she does. It’s just not Thanksgiving without the broccoli, cheese, and rice casserole and her sweet potato casserole. Wish me luck.
Walker isn’t going to Dallas for Thanksgiving, either. He’ll be spending Thanksgiving/his quarter break in Vermont with his girlfriend and her family. Poor thing.
My parents will have their best friends and their kids in town, so they won’t be alone. They’ll have a great time exploring Dallas with a Cowboys game and a trip to the JFK museum at the book depository.
Todd and I attended our first of two black tie events for this holiday season. We went to the Festival of Trees Gala on Friday night with his mom and dad. Here are a couple of pictures from that outing.
I pray that all of you have a wonderful Thanksgiving full of love, family, friends, and laughter!
by Blue-Eyed Bride on November 16, 2007
If you’re looking for some great, new music, listen to this! I love Alison Kraus and this CD actually has a little bit of a different sound. A coworker received this as a birthday gift and shared it with me. I can’t stop listening to it.
Alison Kraus and Robert Plant
by Blue-Eyed Bride on November 14, 2007
We almost have good news! Todd got an offer on his house yesterday! We don’t have a contract yet and we’re still in negotiations, but I’m very hopeful that this will be it. God is so good to us and I almost feel guilty for even being worried. But I guess that’s just what I do– I’m overly realistic (not pessimistic!) and Todd is overly optimistic! While he may have been worried, he never showed any signs of worry and was always confident that it would all work out.
Todd gave me a Brian Andreas “Story People” book for my birthday and marked the entry that reminded him most of us. I wasn’t sure whether to be flattered, touched, or offended, but this is the one that he marked:
“I can imagine it working out perfectly, I said. I can’t she said & I said no wonder you’re so stressed”
Hilarious! But it really does represent the contrast between Todd’s outlook and my outlook.
The potential buyer would want to close on the house on January 3. This is great because we close on the house on Enoree on December 28. It really couldn’t be more perfect– but it is definitely proof and reaffirming that God’s plan is perfect.
by Blue-Eyed Bride on November 12, 2007
Another year has passed and I celebrated my 25th birthday on Sunday, November 11. The great thing about having a birthday during football season is that you can spread the celebration out over the whole weekend. Last year Todd and I drove down to Gainesville to watch the Gamecocks play the Florida Gators on my birthday. We had a great time and the Gamecocks almost became the reason that the Gators didn’t play for the National Championship game. Unfortunately, our Cocks lost and we were disappointed, to say the least.
November 11, 2006
This year, we had a great time tailgating and getting ready to watch an exciting game. The weather finally feels like “football weather” and we were forced to get all bundled up to stay warm. Todd’s team hosted a tailgate again and we spent the day hanging out with friends. We had a great day!
Even with my birthday and the great fellowship going for us, the Gamecocks still didn’t pull out a win. I’m not even going to post the score. I’m just going to show you the obvious similarities of our moods on November 11, 2006 and November 10, 2007. Sad.
November 10, 2007
Fortunately, I still had one day left to celebrate. Todd and I joined his parents, their friends, Glen and Cathy Ragsdale, and Todd’s grandmother at DiPrato’s for a fantastic brunch. It was good to be with family on my birthday since I wasn’t able to see my own parents and brother. We took Boudreaux down to the River Walk and enjoyed the wonderful weather.
our ‘coon dog
For dinner, we went to Garibaldi’s with Matt and Katie Bogan and spent a long time getting wedding advice and discussing the disappointing football season that we’ve just endured. Todd made sure I had a great birthday and I couldn’t be more thankful. This was my first birthday that I didn’t spend with my college friends in over 5 years and he made sure that it was very special. It was a great day!
by Blue-Eyed Bride on November 7, 2007
I keep up with the news and pop culture as best as I can. Recently, it seems like all I hear about is the writer’s strike. Late night talk shows will start showing re-runs this weekend and soon a lot of shows will start having to do the same thing. I don’t really care much about that because my favorite shows are American Idol and Lost. American Idol obviously doesn’t need much scripting and Lost will not come back to TV until December. I’ve heard that Lost has already taped 8 shows and has scripts for 6 more shows that haven’t been taped. I’m hoping that by the time those 14 shows have aired this strike will be over and we Losties won’t have to suffer through more re-runs.
Please, writers, give us the answers we’ve been waiting for for three years!
by Blue-Eyed Bride on November 6, 2007
On Saturday morning, November 3, Todd and I were standing in line at Starbuck’s and almost simultaneously said to each other, “It’s November 3. Six months to go!” We’re so excited and can’t believe how close it’s getting.
We’ll close on the house on December 28, I’ll move in and start decorating, and then the countdown will start. Once 2008 arrives, I know the days are just going to fly by and I’m going to be wishing I had more time to get everything done. My biggest concern is that our big golf tournament, the Garnet Jacket Classic, is the weekend before the wedding. From January-May 3 I’m going to be juggling the tournament and the wedding– and y’all know I’m going to want to work on the wedding more than the tournament.
Keep us in your prayers as we prepare our hearts and minds for the big day and, most importantly, our life together!
I haven’t shared all of our engagement pictures yet.
Click on the link below:
The password is “erin.”
Some of them are obviously not print-worthy and please keep in mind that it was a very hot day in Louisiana. I am just going to give Kelly a shout out, though. She is the most amazing photographer. She’s located in Ruston, Louisiana and I’ve known her since I was a little girl. After college, she really started doing some amazing things with wedding photographer and I’ve just known that she had to do our pictures. We took our engagement pictures in July, I’ll go back to Louisiana for my bridal pictures in the Spring, and then Kelly is coming here for the wedding in May. Go to
http://www.kellymoorephotography.com/ for more of her amazing photography!
Kelly was about 8 months pregnant the day we took our pictures and she was such a stud! She was lying on the ground to get some of the shots. Her little girl, Posey, was born about a month ago and she’s absolutely gorgeous!
Anyway… enjoy the pictures!
by Blue-Eyed Bride on November 5, 2007
(I just want to make sure that everyone knows that the title to this blog is from the lyrics of part of an SNL sketch with Justin Timberlake. I don’t typically refer to Finley Park as Homelessville.)
Anyway… Todd and I had a great weekend! The Gamecocks were on the road at Arkansas and we had plans to watch the game on Saturday night with our friends. I was planning to make a cake and ice it with this amazing icing that my Aunt Johnette makes. The South Carolina temperatures have finally reached the tolerable point where we can stand to be outside for long periods of time. We decided to take Boudreaux to Finley Park to throw the (golf) ball around and let the rascal get some of his energy out. We like to use a golf ball because Boudreaux plays with it like a cat would play with a toy. He tosses it back and forth between his paws and really enjoys the challenge of catching that tiny ball.
Here are a few pictures from our fun outing! 
boudreaux checking out the water at Finley Park
Todd is great with the self portraits
the whole family!
And I just want to brag on our very smart dog, Boudreaux. He was very thirsty and tired after his romp with the golf ball, so we took him to the water fountain and he knew exactly what to do!
After talking about the fantastic icing recipe from my Aunt Johnette, I feel a responsibility to share it with everyone. It’s so easy! Enjoy!
You can use this with any chocolate cake.
8 oz cream cheese, softened
1 cup powdered sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
12 oz Cool Whip
OPTIONAL ADDITIONS:
1/2 cup chopped nuts
2 plain milk chocolate bars (1.55 oz size), chopped
Beat the cream cheese (with a mixer) until it is light. Beat in the sugars. Stir in a bit of Cool Whip and then gently add the remaining Cool Whip.
Optional: Stir in 1/2 cup chopped nuts and 2 plain milk chocolate bars (1.55 oz size), chopped.
Best mixed ahead of time so the granulated sugar can dissolve. Holds well in the refrigerator. Makes more than enough for 2 layers, probably enough for three. Personally, I like just one layer that’s extra thick!
