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Outdoors

EXPLORE GEORGIA

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We kept last weekend plan-less because we thought we might have lots of pre-wedding things to do but ended up with just a plan-less weekend and no big tasks at hand. Even though there was plenty of activities happening around Atlanta (Red Bull Soap Box Derby, Porch & Pies party..) we wanted to keep things slow but not boring. So, on Saturday morning we got up early, packed our camping gear and drove up to North Georgia for an overnight stay in the woods.  Once in Cleveland (GA) we decided to first head to Dukes Creek Falls, that was until we took a wrong turn trying to avoid traffic heading to Helen and wound up passing by the Sautee Nacoochee Vineyards and pulled right in!

 

 

 

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The vineyard was adorable! Though small in stature they had a lot to offer; tastings, live music with an outdoor seating area and even wine slushies! I opted for the chardonnay blend-just the right amount of tart and smooth.

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Next we set out to hike Dukes Creek Falls for sights and a relatively easy 1.9 mile round trip hike.

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This is the view from the parking lot!

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The Falls are huge! There are multiple platforms for viewing so you can see all the angles of the waterfall and creek bed. It’s really breathtaking.

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Seriously could not get over the colors! Ooo’d and ahhh’d all weekend long!

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After our beautiful hike, we went to Raven Cliffs Falls to see if there were any spots to camp and while it was pretty packed out, we found a spot near a creek that was perfect.

Couple trips to the car and back and we were set up!

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Which called for wind down beverages; wine for me and beer for Dustin!

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We brought a bundle of firewood and foraged for small pieces. “Better safe than sorry if the area’s been picked over!” -D

We didn’t hike to the falls of Raven Cliffs mostly because we both had sore backs as we’re still recouping from our car accident in May and flare ups are rare for D but, unfortunately frequent for me. I’m working on it though, through PT and massages. Plus we had already seen it together. Next time I’d like to see it again, it’s a longer hike but when you get to end it’s so worth it! Post about that trip, here.

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Dustin grew up in Boy Scouts and finished as an Eagle Scout so he knows the way around a fire and is patient with all my poking and feeding-even when it probably doesn’t need a new log!  Fires are my favorite part of camping!

Ingles really brought it strong with their muffin game, this pumpkin muffin was to die for! Not pictured is the cinnamon apple one we devoured, also bomb, so moist.

After a solid breakfast we set out for home. Then…we saw signs for a wild animal reserve and had to see what that was all about!

When we parked our car we were greeted by a fallow deer named Lucky. As a youngin he was struck by lightning leaving him with lopsided antlers, which added to his cuteness! I shared my banana with him :P

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We got the reserve’s history from the little girl who’s dad runs the place. She said that it started with one animal needing rescue which led to another being handed over then people just started dropping animals off! Some of the animals have been seized by the court and given to the reserve because the owners were treating the animals poorly.  So if you ask, is it sad? Nope! They are being well taken care of and some are living the better half of their lives inside the Chestatee Wildlife walls!

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Across the lot from Lucky were two grizzles, one of which had bad arthritis so it walked with a slow pace and a limp and seemed to love soaking in the little pool.

The coolest experience was attracting a herd of zebra over and feeding the striped beauties! Look at those ears and mohawk!

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After hanging with all the animals we thought, why not continue the festivities and hit up a corn maze! We went to the Tomato House off Cleveland Hwy which had everything you could ever imagine a roadside shop having! Seriously, the place is packed with stuff; candy, knickknacks, every genre of toys and housewares..I could go on, it’s bizarre how much crap (sorry..) is in this place! Anyways, they had a bunch of really cool pumpkins and squash –

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If you’ve been to a corn maze, you’d probably agree how it’s both pretty and creepy at the same time. There was a slight breeze making the tall plants sway back and forth, crinkling against one another. Besides the noise of cars in the distant, it was fairly peaceful.

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Bought this Stetson hat for the honeymoon but wore it all weekend. Love it! Lightweight and very comfortable.  Took some getting used to the rigid bill, figured that out quickly when getting in and out of the car, doink!

Find it here.

While this wasn’t the slowed down weekend we originally expected, it was a freaking awesome adventurous time! Love me some spontaneity!!

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CREEPY RIGHT??? Happy Halloween week!

Oh and it’s also my wedding week! Ahhhh

BEYOND THE BASICS WITH WILLIAMS-SONOMA

 

Atlanta recently welcomed a new Williams-Sonoma located inside the wildly popular Ponce City Market and it’s a first of it’s kind in the South! What makes it unique is the comprehensive home showroom and design center.  It also features a direct pass-through to Chef Jonathan Waxman’s latest dining venture, Brezza Cucina-

A glass wall strategically placed between the restaurant and Williams-Sonoma will offer guests an immersive culinary experience with an exclusive view into the dining room, while simultaneously lending inspiration while they shop. This type floor plan is the first in Williams-Sonoma’s history with an independent business.

21466085656_d1d1e73589_kI’m super thrilled to share my partnering with W+S hoping to inform couples that are planning their registry that you can go beyond the basics and have a new experience with their wedding registry through their unique departments! For example, they have an entire DIY section which includes kits to make your own cheese, alcohol and even bacon! They also carry a ton of gardening supplies for that new home you’ll be settling into, or their convenient above-ground gardens if you’re renting.

With marriage comes combining not only your lives but your activities so why not add some spice with some of these gift ideas versus the pots and pans folks normally have on their registry.  Unless you need updated cookware-then you’re in good hands with W+S!

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Our W+S Beyond the Basics picks:

Waxed canvas camping bag
Poler 2-person Waterproof Camo Tent
Lodge Camping Dutch Oven
Lodge Camping Tripod (for Dutch oven)
Enamelware Dinnerware bowls + mugs
Smart Phone Recharger with Flashlight
Antler Fire Starter
Telescoping Skewers

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We are really happy with this tent for several reasons; the one-pole systems offers an easy non-confrontational setup so you can get in and enjoy the high ceilings that make for perfect hanging out with your beau. It’s also “camouflage” so you can “blend” in and do your thing without, say a bear or wanderer finding you!

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In our new Dutch oven I made an easy version of chicken pot pie, here’s the recipe:

Frozen veg-all
Chicken
Canned biscuits
Chicken broth + condensed soup

Spread veg-all in bottom, top with chicken and then pour in the broth and soup. Top with biscuits and close. Place oven on top of coals and then place coals on top of oven (see above photo). We cooked for 45 minutes which burned the tops so we figure 30 is perfect! Enjoy.

Handling the oven: we used a hammer (the part that pulls out the nails) to lift the lid, seems to be the best option. I’m not sure if the traditional oven mitt will withstand the heat so proceed with caution!

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Right before my marshmallow caught on fire and we went into ‘save the ‘mallow!!” mode! I wasn’t worried about getting burned though since the telescoping skewers make it real safe to cook on open flames.

Pro-tip from my Eagle Scout fiance: “You wanna wait till the fire is more coals than flames, it will give you a more evenly cooked marshmallow and you’ll avoid it catching fire.”

But, we (read: I) weren’t that patient this particular day, ha!

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Free People tee, Gap jeans, Sorel boots and TOMS shades.

This Wood and Faulk bag is not only stylish but very durable with the waxed canvas and leather, it’s sure to withstand all sorts of conditions! Also, Dustin has it in green so now we match and that’s just adorable!

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The flashlight + charging station is a must-bring on all future camping trips! Gotta be able to IG our trip ;)

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My man being all hunky and happy in our new tent which we’ll be taking for a real deal spin first weekend of October!

Lastly, here are some fun happenings going on over at the Ponce City W+S:

Atlantans are invited every Saturday for free technique classes at the modern, twelve-seat cooking island in the center of the store hosted by Williams-Sonoma culinary specialist Jon Lagardere. Younger aspiring cooks are invited to the store every Sunday for free Junior Chef Classes.  Williams-Sonoma has partnered with over 50 artisanal, small-batch food producers throughout the country as part of the company’s commitment to community at the new Ponce City Market location. The assortment will include featured representation of artisans from Atlanta and throughout the South.

Thanks to Williams-Sonoma for allowing us a fun opportunity and an excuse to go on all the camping trips this Fall!

Special thanks to Cristi who shot the photos of us!  Check out her site here.

WEAR 10

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We celebrated Valentines over the course of several days. On Friday we went to Martinis and IMAX at Fernbank were we sipped drinks, danced to a live jazz band and then watched a documentary on the Galápagos Islands.  I had never been to Fernbank and I feel like we picked the perfect night to go since it was perfectly crowded with happy couples having a fancy date night.  Afterwards we went to a friends housewarming party in East Atlanta. It was definitely a busier Friday night than normal which led to a slow Saturday morning which was fine because it was Valentines Day and we had planned to chill anyways.

After a homemade breakfast and the usual house stuff we then went out to the Stone Mountain Hobby Lobby to pick up art we had framed.  It’s funny how living in the city you have to take a small road trip to get to things like Hobby Lobby and even Walmart is a trek from our home. While we were on the road we grabbed some ice cream at a Bruster’s, can you believe I had never been to one?! It was awesome! After that we went to Serenbe Farm which was not close at all but I needed to drop off some wall hangings and weavings at a shop and Dustin being the sweet guy he is agreed to go and drive.  As usual I fell asleep and am basically the worst road trip partner ever, haha!

The shop we were going to is called Green House which is operated by the sweetest gal named Kenya. She saw my stuff on IG and wanted to consign some of my pieces which is great since I had just planned to sell on Esty (or keep them all for myself!) While we were out there we took advantage of the warm sun and snapped these photos of what I was wearing.
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Zoomed in on this image so you can see D in my sunglasses, he’s the best!

Wearing a Tulle jacket, Kate Spade shades, Madewell top, Free People velvet pants and Clarks boots.
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After a day on the road we kept the Valentines evening chill with a date at Ration and Dram which is sorta new and located near our neighborhood (it’s on Arizona, so I think technically Kirkwood).  It was really yummy and very reasonally priced. Even though Friday and Saturday were packed we managed to fit in even more on Sunday. Brunch with a girl friend and a surprise birthday party! Needless to say this week we are laying LOW!

Next post I’m going to share a tour of Green House! It’s packed with amazing vintage finds for both the home and kitchen. Come back and visit in a few days!

ENGAGEMENT PHOTOS

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So, so so so, so so soooo THRILLED to share our engagement shoot photos! We both love how they turned out! It was the perfect day to capture our love out at Arabia Mountain especially with all the Fall leaves. Ben and Colleen tag-teamed the evening and caught all the right moments, using both digital and film. Like I mention in the post about why we picked them, the coloring of their photos is dreamy!  I can’t tell you how hard it was to narrow down the selection to a blogable amount-because I wanted to post all 101! But, I don’t want to crash your computer or Iphone so, these are the ones that stood out to me the most-either because of the lighting, the emotions or because they simply RULE!

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Of course we had to be silly-it’s us! Dustin had this idea to make it look like I was pulling him up on top of a mountain-turned out pretty good right?!
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The first portion of the photos are in the rock quarry side of Arabia Mountain. After getting plenty in that location we moved to the base of the mountain and changed our wardrobe.  For both outfits I wanted to be comfortable and chic while keeping in mind we were in the woods and didn’t want to seem out of place with for example, heels or something way too dressy.  While I normally wouldn’t wear tights out hiking, Dustin assured me it would be fine and I’m happy I did for my dressier look.

Outfit #1 Dress: Free People, Boots: Nine West, Jacket: Target
Outfit #2 Shirt: Target, Jeans: Wildflag, Boots: Sam Edelman
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We can never take ourselves too seriously, which I like about us!

Dustin had brought along his grandfather’s camera he inherited to snap a few black and white film photos. Ben suggested we use it as a “prop” since it’s special to Dustin, which was a great idea since we both enjoy photography (a lot!) 14-arabia-mountain-engagement-shoot213-arabia-mountain-engagement-shoot2Am I marrying a stud or what?!

Thanks Ben and Colleen for giving us EXACTLY what we envisioned (but even better!)

PUMPKIN PATCH

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After last Saturday’s blogger brunch I quickly changed and jumped in the car with Dustin and we headed to Warbington Farms in Cumming, GA for pumpkins, farm activities and kid times.  We met up with his cousin and her family-including her 1 year old twins. Elizabeth dressed them in perfect pumpkin patch apparel -matching plaid shirts and blue jeans!
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Luke kept hugging and holding onto Dustin, it was the cutest! Couldn’t help but snap a photo!!
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What I wore: Free People button down, Zara lace top, H2O jeans, Sam Edelman boots, TOMS shades and Anthro clutch.
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The above and below photos are hilariously adorable!  Luke (above) is taking in the sun and Adam (below) just wanted a taste of the stem-we all got a kick out of both *and quickly jumped in to stop Adam from taking a real bite!

In the next month or so we will officially be their God parents!  We are more than excited to take on the role of mentoring these two boys throughout their lives.  For now it’s mostly keeping them giggling but later we’ll be their when they need advice, a shoulder to lean on or whatever life lesson we can pass on.
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Big brother Will enjoying the tractor, this is his “cheeeeesssseeee” expression!
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There was a petting zoo with rabbits, goats and chickens!  The kids weren’t the only ones excited, I was right in their with them!  Momentarily saved the above rabbit from the overly eager hands of 4 year olds.14974267754_326beebcb9_k
It’s always nice to escape the hustle and bustle of city life and enjoy open fields and fresh air!