Christmas at our house.

It's officially Christmas week.

Are y'all ready?

We are here!

I am happy to report that all of our gifts are wrapped and placed under our tree with love and big red bows. All we need to do now is get to noon on Christmas eve, shove the pups in the car and head towards Williamsburg for a mega family Christmas at my parents.

Reid and I feel so fortunate that we are able to spend Christmas with both sides of our family. My parents are hosting Reid's family for Christmas for the second time. His sister and her boyfriend are flying in from Dallas and his parents are driving in from South Carolina on Wednesday and staying for the weekend.  I cannot tell you how happy it makes me that my inlaws actually love my parents and feel right at home in my childhood home. It is not that often that you can have all of your immediate family under one roof and enjoying it.
#BestPresentOfAll.

The only downside to all this love and getting along is that our little house gets locked up and left for the main event. So before we pack up all the pretty presents and tote them to Williamsburg, enjoy a little sneak peek of Christmas at the Danielsons.

We have only had one casualty thanks to Miss Tuggy..... 

maybe we will have to take a trip back to Maine when the weather gets warmer for a replacement. 

xoxo,

CAD

don't miss one minute of fun ~ follow along!

{gfc} :: {bloglovin} :: {instagram} :: {pinterest}

Christmas Card Reveal.

So, let's be real for a moment.

I have let December slip away.

I had all these amazing post ideas, great collaborations and so many festive things to share.

But, I blinked and it was Christmas already.

How did that happen?

#BadBloggerMoment

Anyway, what I can do, at the very least, is throw this post together and reveal my most favorite Christmas card to date for our clan.

And can I please just gush about Tiny Prints for a minute?
Tiny Prints was amazing to work with, I will be a repeat customer for years and years to come. I had such a hard time choosing the writing for our card since my space was so limited. Tiny Print's design review service fixed my problem immediately and just moved the wording up to fit right above the fence line. Pretty great!

I am itching to show you my Christmas decor, tree and new festive pillows but I shall save that for next week.

Love y'all and have a grand weekend!

xoxo,

CAD

ps.... Tiny Prints did not give me free cards in exchange for this post.... this post came from my love of their fast and professional service! 


don't miss one minute of fun ~ follow along!

{gfc} :: {bloglovin} :: {instagram} :: {pinterest}

a Pot Luck Classic: Cranberry-Apple Bake.

I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend.

 Mine was filled with work, cooking, cleaning and great friends.

My 3 best friends from college and I always plan a Christmas dinner between our four families. The four of us gals have been with each other through it all and our families have grown so much throughout the years. First with husbands, then babies (or in our case dogs) and finding time to all be under one roof requires 4 different calendars, a bottle of wine and at least a month's advance notice. 

This year we decided on a pot luck dinner and gift exchange for both the girls and the boys. 

The boys were thrilled....hah.

I don't know about you but normally I dread a pot luck. 

I never know what to make, I end up trying something new and it normally sucks.

Well not this time. 

I reached into my very small bag of tricks and came out with this wonderful little diddy. 

I am thrilled to share with you today one of my family's favorite holiday recipes. 

It could not be any easier or any more delicious and I promise you it will be a hit at any holiday pot luck party. You will want to eat it for dinner, dessert with ice-cream and for breakfast. Yes, it is that delish! I look for any excuse this time of year to make this dish and this was just the occasion! 

Cranberry-Apple Bake:

What you will need: 

3cups peeled, chopped apples (Granny Smith do well, about 2-3 apples )

2 cups fresh cranberries

2 Tablespoons of all-purpose flour

1cup of sugar

3 ( 1 5/8 oz) packages instant oatmeal with cinnamon and spices OR 1 cup of instant oats with 1 tablespoon of sugar, 1 tablespoon of cinnamon and a dash of nutmeg.

3/4 cup chopped pecans

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1/2 cup butter or margarine, melted

Here's what you do: 

Combine chopped apples, cranberries, and 2 Tablespoons flour, tossing to coat. Add1 cup sugar and mix well. Place in a 2 qt casserole. 

Combine oatmeal mixture, chopped pecans, 1/2 cup of flour and brown sugar; add butter and stir well. 

Spoon mixture over fruit mixture. 

Bake uncovered at 350* for 45 minutes. 

This can be refrigerated overnight. 

Makes @ 10 servings

And boy is it delish! 

This recipe has been at every single Thanksgiving or family holiday for as long as I can remember. 

I hope you love it as much as I do! 

Now for just a couple photos of my amazing friends and their little ladies.

||bow||

Since all my besties' little ladies got a shout on the blog, I had to give mine one too....This was Tuggy all afternoon yesterday. 

What a lazy bum. 

See you amazing ladies tomorrow!

xoxo,

CAD

don't miss one minute of fun ~ follow along!

{gfc} :: {bloglovin} :: {instagram} :: {pinterest}

4 things

 So I am taking a break from our regally scheduled program of wedding recap extravaganza to bring you this little diddy of a post.

I have a super busy day today.... and just could not bring myself to finish the ceremony post.
Don't worry though, we will finish that up next week!

So, in the meantime, please enjoy some more info about yours truly.

Four names that people call me, other than my real name:

Care

C-Line

CayCay

CAD

Four jobs I have had: 

I worked retail in a toy store in Colonial Williamsburg all thorough high school and college.

Office Temp for a Commercial Contractor one summer in college when my parents made me get a job and stop sleeping in till 3pm every day.

Management Trainee right out of college in Charlottesville. 

Lighting Manager for Richmond, Midlothian and Fredericksburg and my current, amazing post.

Four movies I’ve watched more than once: 

La Bomba, totally a fav of mine when I was like 10.

Mannequin, another fav from my childhood. 

Nutty Professor, I think I can literally quote the entire thing. 

Cruel Intentions, who doesn't love this movie?

Four books I’d recommend: 

The Aviators Wife

The Potato Pie and Guernsey Literary Society

The Art of Racing in the Rain

The Last Lecture - highly recommend! 

Four places I have lived: 

Williamsburg, VA

Charlottesville, VA

Charlotte, NC

Richmond, VA

Four places I have been: 

Turks and Caicos 

Italy

Maine

New England

Four places I’d rather be right now: 

The beach, specifically Turks and Caicos. 

At home baking cookies and blasting Christmas music.

Williamsburg, because it is just so pretty this time of year down town.

The Mountains, curled up in a little log cabin reading a great book. 

Four things I don’t eat: 

Plain chicken breasts, they freak me out.
Onions - yuck.

Raw or really any type of garlic - double yuck.
Cooked apples.... I am just not a fan.

Four of my favorite foods: 

Stroganoff.

A giant steak, roasted potatoes and Brussel sprouts. Yum.

Lemon yogurt.

Indian food.

Four TV shows that I watch: 

Scandel

The Mindy Project

Big Bang Theory

The Voice

Four things I am looking forward to this year: 

Finishing all the little odds and ends around our house.

Planning a family vacation.

Convincing Reid to let us remodel our master bath.

Spending tons of time with family and friends.

Four things I’m always saying:

"I'm cold"

"You are a clown"

"Oh hey love!" 

 Reid, can you do me a favor while you are up?"

Who wants to play along?

See you clowns tomorrow! 

xoxo,

CAD

don't miss one minute of fun ~ follow along!

{gfc} :: {bloglovin} :: {instagram} :: {pinterest}

The First Look.

Our first look was my favorite moment of the day.

Everything about it was magical.
The setting sun. The slightly crisp air. The lovely moment of quiet.
And the love, so much love,
 allowed this event to happen and just stand still for a moment in time.

I did not cry.
I laughed and giggled and smiled my way though the whole thing.
Reid was so serious and I was a goofball.
It was so us.

Here's what I remember.

I remember walking down the long hall at church with Lindsay, my wedding planner, and being left alone at the front doors.
I remember standing there wondering why I was not nervous and thinking it was weird to be calm at a time like this.
 I remember Lindsay telling me it was time to open the doors and go see Reid.
I remember thinking I should try to sneak up on Reid from behind.
 I remember thinking I should have said "Boo", because that is something I would def do.
 I remember being so happy, and lord was I giggling.
 I remember Reid being so handsome and nervous to touch me in fear of messing up my makeup.
I remember how his hazel green eyes looked in the setting sun.
I remember thinking I was one lucky girl.
I remember we started walking down the street.
I remember thinking we were taking a long time but really didn't care.
  I remember Lindsay almost having a heart attack because we were running so late.
I remember rushing back to our respected rooms and immediately being adorned with my veil.
I remember being deemed fit to walk down the aisle by my matron of honor and Lindsay and then scooted out the door to meet my sweet daddy.
I remember thinking how blessed we were to have this time together, to just set the right tone for the rest of our day and the rest of our lives.
I remember thinking I loved this man.
I remember it like it was yesterday,
and suspect I always will.

There I was, all ready to meet my daddy and walk down the aisle to Reid. 

I feel blessed to share this deeply personal moment with you and wish you all the love and happiness I felt this day, everyday.

Now that we are all primped and smitten with each other, let's get hitched.
That's tomorrow loves!
See ya then.

xoxo,

CAD

*Photography all courtesy of the amazing Eva over at PhotoLadyLove* 

don't miss one minute of fun ~ follow along!

{gfc} :: {bloglovin} :: {instagram} :: {pinterest}

The Primping.

Thanks so much for all the well wishes yesterday on our anniversary!
Reid and I had a sweet dinner for two at The Magpie. It was amazing and I ate every single bite.
I am mad I did not leave leftovers for today.
darn it.

I am over the moon excited to share with you all the details of our wedding. Even though it was two years ago, I am still in love with every single part of the day and writing these blog posts have brought the biggest, cheesiest smiles to my face.

When Reid and I first started planning our wedding, I got over the fact real quick that this day was just about us. I am the only girl and it was to be a family affair.
Period.
 And I was cool with that.
I had sorta been down that road before.

But there were definite things that were non negotiable for me.

1. I wanted to get ready in my childhood room and sleep in my bed one last time as a semi single person, so the wedding had to be in Williamsburg.
2. I wanted a band. A fun, dance all night long one with hats and crazy outfits.
3. I wanted a BIG dress.
4. No Christmas, I wanted warm, wintery, wine and white.
5. I was hiring a planner no matter what, I needed a Switzerland.
6. And most importantly, I wanted everyone to have a grand time.

I am overly grateful to my parents that I was able to get my wish list and so much more. They gave us the most amazing wedding that was filled with love and so much laughter. I also owe the entire day to my fabulous wedding planner Lindsay, but more to come on her later.

So, let's kick things off with all the a behind the scenes look at what it took to get Reid and I ready for our big day. My fav details included Sampson's bow tie, yes even a dog needs a special something on the big day. My surprise orange shoes in honor of Clemson for Reid. Our love letters we wrote to each other. Being at my childhood home while my talented team primped and fussed over me. The fact that I forgot something blue, so my bridesmaids brushed on blue eyeshadow to the underskirt on my dress. The little girl's flower crowns and monogramed dresses. Having my most favorite people by my side all day and air brush makeup.
Praise Jesus for that.

*Photography all courtesy of the amazing Eva over at PhotoLadyLove* 

It is so strange to see Reid's ring finger without his wedding band above. Seeing that on his left hand will always be one of my favorite sites. 

Come back tomorrow for the First Look. 

It had to be my favorite part of the entire day.

xoxo,

CAD

Ps.....

brownie points if you can spot another blogger's hubby above....hint he is the master of bow ties. 

don't miss one minute of fun ~ follow along!

{gfc} :: {bloglovin} :: {instagram} :: {pinterest}