One evening last week, the mothers and daughters from our small group got together to celebrate the upcoming arrival of the baby of our friend Rivers. This family has been such a blessing to our group so we ladies wanted to celebrate with Rivers and her two sweet girls. We planned a meal of salads, followed by a few desserts: Italian cream cake, raspberry white chocolate almond bars, brownies, and coffee. This Italian cream cake is my most requested cake by my family or when I'm asked to bring a dessert to a special occasion. It suits any holiday or celebration any time of the year! It's unique from most other Italian cream cakes in that it doesn't call for pecans or coconut, so ... Read more
Red Velvet Pound Cake with Cream Cheese Filling
Valentine’s Day is quickly approaching so I thought today would be a good time to share a lovely red recipe. Red Velvet Pound Cake combines two Southern classics--red velvet cake and pound cake--into one sweetheart of a dessert! I shared this recipe several years ago on my old blogsite, but I think it is definitely worth repeating. And I can’t remember exactly where this recipe originally came from, but I’m guessing Paula Deen...maybe. Red Velvet Pound Cake Cake ingredients: 1 1/2 cups unsalted butter, softened 3 cups sugar 5 large eggs 1 tsp. distilled white vinegar 1 tsp. vanilla extract 3 cups all-purpose flour 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder 1/2 ... Read more
An Alabama White Christmas
In Alabama, we rarely have snow, but we do have the white sands of our beautiful beaches! Our family headed to Gulf Shores, Alabama a couple of days after Christmas for a 50th birthday getaway for my husband. We could not have asked for a more gorgeous week to be there! We've always preferred to travel in off-seasons, no matter where we go, when crowds and rates are at their lowest. Even for a winter beach trip, there is plenty to do to make it an enjoyable vacation. We had no agenda, but just went from one leisurely activity to the next. Walking on the beach is a must for any season. My girls and my son did swim in the ocean one day, and had a great time, but my husband, my ... Read more
Easy Crudité and Charcuterie Boards for New Year’s Snacking
Anyone else getting tired of eating? I think one of the best and worst things about the holidays is the food! We love it, until it's too much. After Christmas we're ready for some healthier eats, but there's still New Year's to go. Crudité and Charcuterie boards are a healthier option that still looks and feels all fancy-schmancy for New Year’s! A Crudités Board is typically veggies and dips only. I’ve been adding just a little fruit and nuts to ours lately, but the emphasis is still very much on the veggies.Veggies can include just about any you like and are usually served raw, but for the firmer veggies such as green beans, asparagus, carrots, snap peas, etc., I blanch them in ... Read more
Family Nativity Dinner
For about the last ten years, our family has kept an annual tradition of a Nativity Dinner in December. Some years it's just us, some years we invite friends, and some years we use the menu for our small group Christmas party. Since we were home for Christmas Eve this year, we planned our Nativity Dinner for that night, with just us, and it was so special! I arranged my tablescape earlier in the month to stay set up through all of the holidays, New Year's included. My table arrangement is similar to last year's New Year's table, but with a few tweaks. And I kept with the same Christmas Biltmore inspiration I used in the den. This was such a fun and colorful table to put together, ... Read more
Let Us Adore Him!
In the hustle and bustle of the day, let us not forget to treasure the gift of our Savior, Jesus Christ, with joy and adoration! Merry Christmas! ... Read more
Casual Christmas: A Different Kind of Year
Merry Christmas Eve! It might surprise you to learn that as much as I enjoy planning for special occasions, it takes me a few tries to get my Christmas game on. I very much enjoy having festive Christmas decorations around my home, but it's the process of unpacking them and arranging them that I just don't always love. This year took me even longer than usual to get in the groove. But then the girls and I went on our Biltmore trip and that's where I found my holiday spark and plenty of inspiration! I'm pretty sentimental when it comes to holidays and almost always stick with a very Christmasy red and green color scheme and all our traditional decorations. And we love it! However, ... Read more
Christmas at Biltmore
The first week in December, my girls and I had the pleasure of taking a trip with friends (Missy and her daughter) to The Biltmore Estate--a getaway originally planned for last spring which got postponed due to the pandemic. My sister-in-law and niece were planning to join us as well, but, sadly, had to back out at the last minute due to illness. We missed them greatly! I'd like to share some images from our trip, starting today with photos of the house, and following up with two more posts on the gardens and the dining (yes, food is always a big part of the travel experience!). When I've blogged about Biltmore in the past (on my old blog), I always included some history on the rooms and ... Read more