Brotherly Love

Such an exciting weekend at the lake. Wish I had more pictures to share, but got caught up socializing! Jay's brother, Josh, came in for the weekend to hang out with his fraternity brothers on the lake. We got to spend some time with him on Friday night and then for lunch on Sunday. So great seeing him! It's great having some brothers now! My parents had their monthly supper club at the lake house this weekend, ended up with 14 people staying in a 4 bedroom house, interesting to say the least. Then we all went and hung out at the dock and swam most of the day on Saturday. It was alot of fun! It was nice not having to do any house hunting this weekend. Not that we didn't want to, but there wasn't much we hadn't already seen in the areas we liked. Please continue to pray that something opens up for us. I, for one, am getting fairly impatient with this whole ordeal. I keep saying that I'm going to buy the next one I walk into, pray it's a good one! I know there is alot of the market right now, and you can get a lot of home for your money right now, I just want us to make a good investment. It is truly alot weighing on my shoulders. I am the type to take on the blame if we make a wrong decision with this, and not sure I can really handle that right now.

Anyways, on a lighter note, we took Josh to a BBQ restaurant on Friday night. You just can't get good BBQ in Boston. (there was a restaurant up north that put lettuce, tomato, pickle, and mayo on a BBQ sandwich one time...WRONG!) It just so happens to be this little shack of a place by the lake, but they really have the best pork in this area. We lucked out, they were having a karaoke night, and we were so entertained by the talent at this place. I lived in Alabama and hadn't seen this much redneck in my life!

The boys mildly stuck out like sore thumbs at that place. They were both decked out in Stanley Cup Champs gear from head to toe. Most people in that place haven't seen a hockey game in their life, and most people in the south don't like Yankees. But as Josh put it, we hate the Yankees too! Go Sox!!

Random Thought

I went to the nail salon yesterday to get a mani and a pedi. I have only gotten one since I got married a couple months ago and thought my nails needed some serious attention. I was pretty sad since the lady who has been doing my nails since I was 18 decided to move to Athens...without calling me first!! Sheesh! So I had to use someone new, and I don't really like change. But, the girl did talk me into getting a gel manicure. I think that's what you call it. The polish that stays on for a couple of weeks. I LOVE it! I know this has been the trend lately, and most of my bridesmaids did this before my wedding. I am just behind the times here I guess. However, I am now an advocate for this and think everyone should get these. I don't get manicures very often, but might start appreciating my nails more often because of these. By the way, my mom will get mad if I don't mention that it was her idea! Thanks Mom! You're right as usual!

PS...loving this shade of orange/strawberry - ish color that is popular this year! So glad summer is finally here!

3rd Times a Charm

Jay and I spent another day looking through homes last weekend. After the first two outings I was a bit nervous. We decided this time to look inside the city and at a couple in Dunwoody. We were really focusing on Brookhaven and Ashford Park. We weren't sure what to expect since you definitely can't get as much home for your money downtown, but were pleasantly surprised when we finally pulled into the area. We LOVED Ashford Park. The green space they have there, all of the fun restaurants and wine bars and coffee shops everywhere. Hopefully we are going to see a couple of other things this week and then start getting serious about what we want in that area. Here is what we saw....

This house was terrifying! We walked in and it smelled like smoke, the floor boards were rotting and we thought we might end up going through them into the basement. There wasn't any electric going to the home, which is normal if the bank owns it, but someone was living in this house! EWW! He had never taken the trash out. We were definitely open to a fixer-upper, but this house would divorce us! Too bad too, the neighborhood was great.

We liked this house because of the back porch and yard and definitely the living space, but the bedrooms were set up kind of funky. The expanded too many times and nothing made since in there. Besides that, the owner was rude and asked us to wait to see it when we were on time for our appointment. He said he had a couple things to do. Don't let us do you any favors bud!

This was a great house. Plenty of space, gorgeous yard, and right across the street from a park. But, everyone in the neighborhood was wicked old and ready to move into a retirement home. Not exactly the trendy young neighborhood we were looking for!

This was one of my favorites!! It needed a little bit of help, just cosmetic things really, but the backyard was an amazing space and we just loved the feel of the house. Taking the rents back to look at this one.

This was mine and Jay's favorite of everything we saw. They had already done all of the work on the inside of the home. They had a great set up and the house just flowed perfectly. They did a great job on the backyard and had an awesome entertaining area. We are hoping since it has been on the market a while that they will lower the price some and we can go from there. We shall see!!

We saw a couple of things in Dunwoody too, but nothing worth mentioning since they were homes in track neighborhoods and not exactly investment material. Keep the prayers coming, we hope to find something by fall!

Happy Father's Day

I wanted to make something fun for Father's Day. Jay and I got a present for my dad and everything, but every girl knows something edible is what your Dad will remember most. I decided to try out a new cupcake recipe I found online through Martha Stewart. I'm not a huge Martha fan...but that girl can make some cupcakes. I decided to go with a vanilla cupcake and cream cheese icing. This was only because Martha's Buttercream frosting is a major fail! Very complicated and tastes horrible. I will post both recipes down below in case you are feeling creative this week!

I decided to go with the muffin pan that makes a little bit bigger cupcake than normal. I think they are easier to and more fun to decorate this way!

I decorated them two different ways. The first way was made to look like the beach. I colored them a light brown and added brown sugar to the top to make it look like sand.

I the other cupcakes I made the icing a teal blue and added blue sprinkles to make them shiny. Then added Swedish Fish (which you can only find at Target anymore...ask Jay we looked at 3 places ; )

I added the umbrellas to the beach cupcakes to give them more of a beach feel! I absolutely love these!

All of the decorated cupcakes together on the counter! Don't you just feel beachy??

Recipes:

Vanilla Cupcakes (makes 3 dozen):  From Martha Stewart
4 1/2 c. flour
2 1/4 tsp baking powder
1 1/4 tsp salt
1 cup and 2 tbsp unsalted butter (room temp)
2 1/4 c sugar
6 large eggs
1 tbsp vanilla
1 1/4 c milk

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two standard muffin tins with paper liners. Whisk together flour, baking powder and salt.
2. In a seperate bowl, beat butter and sugar on medium-high until pale and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Mix the egss, one at a time, scraping down sides of bowl as needed, until well blended. Mix in vanilla.
3. Add flour mixture in 3 batches, alternating with milk in 2 batches, beating until combined after each. Divide batter evenly among tins. Bake, rotating tins halfway through, until tops spring back when lightly touched, about 20 minutes. Let cool and decorate!

Cream Cheese Frosting (Grandma's Recipe)
2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
1/2 c butter, softened
2 c sifted confectioner's sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract

In a medium bowl, cream together the cream cheese and butter until creamy. Mix in the vailla, then gradually stir in the confectioner's sugar. Store in fridge after use.


Happy Decorating!!

Lord Stanley - Welcome Back to Boston!!

Being the big Bruins fans that we are, we were obviously watching the game last night. For those of you who don't follow hockey, or could really care less, last night was game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals against the Canucks. Pretty intense!! We have been watching the playoffs since we were on our honeymoon, and very emotionally invested. We made a fun meal, had beers, and hung out. It could have only been more fun if we were in Boston, maybe next year!

When I saw Sparks sitting right next to the Miller Lite at Kroger I had to bring it home. Beene and I drank this all the time in college, and it just felt right! Brings back memories!

Had to make a man meal for Jay...so I made buffalo chicken nachos. Took Tostito chips and lined the pan, covered them with a thin layer of mozzarella cheese, added cut up buffalo chicken tenders, added tomatos because they were in the house, and then dumped cheese on top. The buffalo chicken tenders already have a kick but if you drizzle Texas Pete Hot Sauce on top after the cheese it melts in to some of the chips and will really clear your sinuses! Really good!!

Haley was intensely watching Jay as he was intensely watching the game...and she may have been drooling as he ate as well.

After her begging Jay gave her a bite...this is why our kids will divide and conquer right there!

Location, Location, Location

After our depressing house hunt a couple of weeks ago Jay and I sat down with my parents and spoke to his parents and decided a new direction may be in order. We are now thinking of looking for a fixer-upper in Brookhaven, Ashford Park or parts of Chamblee. We are excited about possibly finding something and turning it into a home that is uniquely ours. It has potential to be our next fun project. Please keep praying that on our hunt this weekend we find some places that have potential, are in good neighborhoods, and just all around feel right. Our hope is to be in something by football season this year, with the intent on being able to enjoy the fall with our friends in our new home. There is alot for sale inside Atlanta, and even more on the market that needs a little bit of work. We will keep you updated on our hunt.

Cinderella Proves That a Pair of Shoes Can Change Your Life

Ok, I'll admit that that is mildly dramatic. But I will only admit to mildly! I was shopping yesterday at Neiman Marcus Last Call before I met Sarah for a movie. By the way, Bridesmaids is hysterical!! Anyway, back to the point. I was killing time at the mall and decided to check out the shoe section...bad idea! I found these gorgeous Manolo Blahniks that looked like they were made for me.

There isn't an Auburn fan on Earth that wouldn't want these shoes. I mean Manolo is my favorite, and I have always wanted a pair. However, I didn't buy them because I enjoy being married to my wonderful husband and thought these might not help the cause. But, you will gladly all know that I am now taking donations for these shoes...remember their on sale ; )

Stamp of Approval

Exciting news today! We were pre-approved for a home loan!!! This does one of a couple things for us, it allows us to see realistically what we can afford, it gives us an estimate of what our mortgage payments will look like, and it allows us some negotiating room when putting an offer on the house. It lets the owner and the listing agent see that we are legit buyers and allows us to get a better deal since they don't have to take it off the market while waiting for someone to get approved. Thank you for all of your prayers, and keep them coming...we are going to need them!!

Bargain Hunting

Just had to share this amazing bargain. I was at Kroger yesterday and all of the Ronzoni Garden Delight, Smart Taste, and Whole Wheat pasta was on sale for 10 for $10. I just happened to have quite a few $1 off 1 coupons, as well as some $1 off of 2. I had a $5 Kroger gift card in my wallet that I got for saving so much on Cheerios last month, ask Jay if he still enjoys them...HA! I ended up getting 14 boxes of Ronzoni pasta for....drum roll please....$1 even!! Check it out if you live near Kroger. The coupons are on Ronzoni.com.

If There is No Place Like Home, Then Why Can't We Find One?

We finally, officially, started our house hunt last Saturday. We couldn't have been more excited to start seeing the insides of the homes we had been looking at online for so long. It was a rough start, and a pretty rough end to the weekend. It was definitely overwhelming and quite a bit disappointing. We are looking for a house in a great neighborhood, somewhere that is pretty young. Something with a yard, and preferably a basement. Those were our only perameters starting the weekend. We couldn't have been any more confused after seeing 20 homes all over Gwinnett county last weekend.

We started at this house, and it was one of my favorites from the pictures. We got to the house and the lockbox wasn't letting Kay in. She called the listing agent and he told her he had three offers and didn't care if anyone else saw the place. Of course this place is in foreclosure so every single one of those offers could blow up...but whatever makes him happy. Stop 1: FAIL!

We pulled up to this house not exactly sure what to think. It's a small lot and didn't look like a lot of house, but we were trying to be optimistic. Kay said she left a message with the listing agent the night before, but wasn't sure if she got it because the voicemail greeting wasn't spoken in English...it was some sort of Chinese possibly. When we got to the house there was no lock box so she tried the listing agent again. She told her who she was and that we were trying to see it, the listing agent screamed, "FORECLOSURE" into the phone and hung up on Kay....strike 2!

I was most excited about this house, and was convinced we were going to end up buying it after the weekend was said and done. We were thinking lucky number 3. We ended up finding out that there was $20,000 worth of repairs that needed to be done to the outside before we could move in, even though the price did not reflect that. Every room needed new paint inside and new carpet throughout the house, and still the price was high. The builder that built it went out of business and is known for horrible work all over the US...not who you want to buy from.

We showed up to this house next and there wasn't a sign in the yard. Kay had spoken to the owner the night before and set up a time to show it. We went up to the door, noticing there were cars in the driveway, to see if it was still ok to show it. We ended up waking the owner up by ringing the doorbell...it was 2 pm people!! He told us he had decided that morning not to see anymore and had trashed the sign...without telling his realtor.

Let's just say retention pond as the backyard...and there were 5 like them that we saw.

I loved this house, and still do. The bank is loosing so much money by putting it up for short sale that they just can't negotiate on the price. I think that it will end up in foreclosure because it's still pretty high and then we might be able to re-visit. However, we ended up looking at 8 foreclosures in this neighborhood that were all horrible. One house people were still living in in sleeping bags even though the bank had turned off the electric and water. Let's just say it smelled that way and leave it at that.

It's really unfortunate what is going on in this housing market. It seems like most of the inventory isn't moving because of the amount of work that needs to be done to the homes. The ones that actually are good deals are selling within days and most of the rest are sitting empty for months in foreclosure. They are marketing these to first-time homebuyers, and we just don't want to take the risk on an investment in a neighborhood where almost everything is in short sale or foreclosure, and from the looks of things everything else is not too far behind it. Pretty depressing if you ask me. But with prayer I know we will find the right home...it's a patience game I think.