Where North Met South

Topper Shutt at Potomac Rotary Club

2012-01-08T09:44:00.000-05:00

Via Potomac Almanac

As I've mentioned before, Matt is the president this year of the Potomac Rotary Club. Recently they had local meteorologist Topper Shutt from W-USA 9 in to speak at a meeting and the Potomac Almanac did an article on the appearance. Check out the story here.

2011 Holiday Card

2011-12-19T19:00:00.000-05:00

Here is our 2011 holiday card. It's hard to see but the text says:

It's been a great year!
We wish your family a happy holiday season and a wonderful 2012! With Love, Matt, Natalie & Peanut

Pictures Galore Christmas

Create unique Christmas cards with Shutterfly.

View the entire collection of cards.

The pictures clockwise from the top right are:

Anniversary dinner at Commander's Palace in New Orleans
Peanut in her Kentucky Derby dress
One of many Redskins games
Matt in front of Caesar's Palace
Me in a crazy alligator cut out in New Orleans
Peanut sleeping on Matt
Me at Cafe Du Monde in New Orleans (enjoying a frozen cafe au lait)
Matt golfing at his charity golf tournament
Spago in Las Vegas for a friend's wedding reception

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you and yours!

Holiday Hair

2011-12-07T22:00:00.000-05:00

Need ideas for holiday hair? Check out one of my favorite bloggers LoveMaegan! I asked her to do a tutorial post on this great high bun I saw on Sienna Miller so I'm hoping one is in the works (it seems from the comments that I'm not the only one who wants to see it!). She also has great clothing, hair, nails and DIY posts. Check her out!

Jonathan & Josh's Engagement Party

2011-12-07T19:24:00.000-05:00

Jonathan and Josh are getting married!

To celebrate their engagement my Mom and Aunt threw an engagement party in October back home in CT. We really lucked out and had wonderful fall weather, not too cold and just chilly enough. I knew we needed to do some simple centerpieces for the tables out back so I decided to start playing with ideas I had been collecting ever since they announced their engagement. The only problem was trying to incorporate fall items with their wedding colors of teal and gray. Enter spray paint.

I picked up these mini pumpkin & gourd packs at the Dollar Store.

Positioned them in my spray painting shop.

(aka my balcony with drop cloth and an old printer box)

Gave them two coats of primer.

And then finished them off with two coats of color.

While at the Dollar Store I also picked up some pine cones and glitter.

I only needed the blue but I'm fairly certain that I'll be able to find something to put pink and green glitter on. ;)

I lightly sprayed the pine cones with adhesive and gave them a good covering of blue glitter. It is really hard to pick up in the pictures but it gave the pine cones just the right amount of glitz.

Here they are on the tables with some candles and other fall decor.

How great are these carved pumpkins Jonathan and Josh made?!

I would end up cutting my finger off if I tried that.

The newly engaged couple opening their Tiffany champagne flutes from Ed and Chuck.

Grady, Aunt Cappy & Maggie after a long day of party prep.

Me and Courtney

And of course Peanut wore her favorite Halloween party dress.

Congrats Jonathan and Josh! We can't wait for the wedding!

We Are... Now and Forever...

2011-11-11T17:00:00.000-05:00

I've been struggling trying to decide whether or not to write this post.

I feel like now, almost 1 week after the grand jury released its report I am ready to express my feelings. It has been a wild ride of emotions the past 6 days. First and foremost my heart is broken. It is broken for the victims and their families. It is broken for the current Penn State students and football players. It is broken for the town of State College. And you may not agree with this, but it is broken for Joe and Sue Paterno.

I'm not going to state my feelings on whether or not Joe Paterno should have been fired because I don't believe there is a right answer and admittedly my answer is most likely biased. I do believe the University let him down in the way the news was delivered to him. Shame on you Penn State Board of Trustees. Next year when I receive my email asking to vote for the Board of Trustee members I will not delete it. Shame on me for not paying attention before.

I am incredibly upset by the way my connection with Penn State somehow opened me up personally to others' comments and questions. Since the news was still so fresh I responded in the worst way, by getting upset and defensive. I didn't have time to interpret my feelings. I'm still trying.

What I can tell you is what Penn State means to me.

Blue and white is in my family's blood and it was never a question where I wanted to go to college. I credit the independent and successful person I am today to Penn State and specifically the College of Communications. Penn State gave me lifelong memories, friends, mentors, skills, humility, independence, education, opportunity, experience, life lessons... I could go on and on. The person I am today would not be the person you see (or read) before you had I not gone to Penn State. This is the Penn State that I will remember and cherish.

We Penn Staters share a unique bond that outsiders cannot understand (even someone as close to me as my husband doesn't quite get it). When an alum comes across a fellow Penn State alum you have an instant connection. You can speak to them with ease because they get it. The love we have for Penn State is a feeling you can only try to explain to outsiders. That is what makes this week so tough.

Outsiders reporting on our Penn State. Outsiders not understanding why we, the Penn State family, are feeling this crazy wave of emotions instead of just being mad.

We are mad.

But we are more than that. If it were just about being mad I would take that emotion any day because that one I know and can identify. What I'm feeling currently is not that clean cut.

Below are links to 3 great articles that were passed along to me during the week. The writers do a great job of explaining that which I cannot.

Growing Up Penn State by Michael Weinreb

The Culture of Unrest at Penn State by Michael Weinreb

The End of Paterno by Joe Posnanski

I feel like this post is crazy around and doesn't make much sense. Sort of like this whole situation seems to me. Apparently I was much better at expressing my feelings verbally yesterday when I finally opened up to my father (also a Penn Stater). After spewing what I thought were incoherent ramblings of a crazy woman he told me, "I am so proud and impressed at how eloquently you just expressed your feelings."

My response, "It is all thanks to my Penn State education."

Spring 2002

For the glory,

Megan & Justin's Baby Shower Brunch

2011-11-10T21:00:00.000-05:00

I was lucky enough to co-host a baby shower brunch for one of my very best girlfriends in September. We decided to do a simple brunch at a local DC bakery for their college friends and it was wonderful. I'm still thinking about the piles of freshly baked bread, chocolate croissants and cheese, oh the cheese.

We held the party at the Spring Valley location of Le Pain Quotidien in DC. Since we couldn't hang any decor Heidi and I had to be creative with the table and chairs.

Diaper Cake

This was my first attempt at a diaper cake. I found a great tutorial here and actually enjoyed putting it together (surprising since I'm terrified of rubber bands breaking on me... and balloons... remind me to tell you the Double Dare story some other time). Since BP's (the baby's nickname) nursery had a surf theme I just had to incorporate that theme on the cake!

We also used strips of fabric in the colors of BP's nursery to dress up the plain chairs. I think it worked perfectly.

Since BP is a boy we had to have fake mustaches!

The Favors

We got an assortment of cute little "baby" succulents from Home Depot and put them into mini terracotta pots from A.C. Moore. To dress them up a bit we tied a blue ribbon around the top and attached the saying "Take me home and water me in honor of the Pierces' baby!"

Our Table

The Food

(this was just 1/4 of it)

Everyone enjoying the ridiculous amount of food.

Father to Be

Gift Time!

One guess who sent this gift to the party.

Me, Megan & Heidi

This was the first baby shower I've ever hosted and it was so much fun. I'm so glad we were able to celebrate BP together on a beautiful fall Sunday morning. Love you BP!

My Memories Suite Winner!

2011-09-22T07:00:00.000-04:00

The winner of the My Memories Suite giveaway is ...

: La Nena said...

I am so sold on this software! My favorite is the Family Proclamation pack. Thanks for posting!!

Whoa! Early bird gets the worm, it is never usually the first comment! Thanks to everyone who entered!

Don't forget, as a special offer for all of my readers, My Memories Suite is offering a $10 discount off the purchase of the My Memories Suite Scrapbook software and a $10 coupon for the MyMemories.com store (a $20 value!).

If you are interested check it out here and don't forget to use the coupon code: STMMMS51051.

My Memories Suite Review & Giveaway

2011-09-18T15:53:00.001-04:00

I love technology and I love that technology has provided us with electronic storage for our photos. No more need for film, drop offs to the Fotomat or piles of prints laying around in a box in the attic that you promise to someday put into scrapbook albums. Does that day ever come? No.

Ever since the hubs surprised me with my new Mac back on Valentine's Day and I had to transfer all my photos from my iBook to my Mac Book Pro I've been thinking about what to do with my photos.

Side note: If you ever have to transfer your photos from one computer to another and are doing it through iPhoto, every photo will flash across the screen as it is being transferred. It was literally like my whole life flashing before my eyes, a bit overwhelming. Let's face it, some pictures are not scrapbook worthy.

So, much like the "someday I'll put all these prints into a scrap book" mentality that came years before, my electronic memories just sat on my hard drive collecting virtual dust. Until now. I was so excited when I recently received an email from My Memories Suite asking if I would like to review their product. Yes please!

My Memories Suite is a digital scrapbooking software. It is easy to download the software online and start your (digital) scrapbook. Since football season is upon us, I tested out the software on our most recent Redskins home game (vs. the Giants, we won!).

The software is easy to use (it took me literally 5 minutes to make this page and it was my first time using it) and there is no limit to the different types of pages you can create!

Do you have a baby on the way, a wedding to attend or a fabulous vacation on the horizon that you'll want to document? If so this is your lucky day!

As a special offer for all of my readers, My Memories Suite is offering a $10 discount off the purchase of the My Memories Suite Scrapbook software and a $10 coupon for the MyMemories.com store (a $20 value!).

If you are interested check it out here and don't forget to use the coupon code: STMMMS51051.

But that's not all!

(Did I sound like a Ron Popeil late night infomercial from back in the day? I so wanted the Dial-O-Matic and the Popeil Pasta Maker. So what if I didn't cook or could reach the counters, I had to have them!)

The good people at My Memories Suite are offering one of my readers the My Memories Suite for free!

You can enter up to 3 times by doing one or some of the following
(leave separate comments for each entry):

Go to MyMemories.com and choose your favorite digital paper pack or layout. Leave a comment here and let me know your favorite!

Follow Where North Met South (or let me know if you already are).

Tweet about this giveaway (please make sure to leave a link in your comment).

That's it! Please make sure to leave a comment for each thing you do.

The giveaway will end on 8:00 PM on Wednesday, September 21, 2011.

Good luck!

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of My Memories Suite.

I was given My Memories Suite to review but the opinions are all mine.

Contest runs September 18-21, 2011.

A random winner will be selected and will be given 48 hours

to claim their prize before a new winner is chosen.

Redskins vs. Giants 2011

2011-09-12T17:00:00.000-04:00

On September 11, 2011, the 10th anniversary of 9/11, the Redskins had their season opener at home against the Giants. I can't think of two more appropriate teams to play each other on this special day.

Deviled egg footballs

E dropped his steaks!

Now they are grass fed!

(I crack myself up)

The set up

The whole gang

Heading to FedEx

God Bless America

Seats removed for the new party deck. It made me realize just how high off the ground we are. Not loving it.

Other party deck section

Pre-game 9/11 tribute.

Beautiful view of the clouds

Never forget...

Creating a Standing Desk

2011-08-27T08:21:00.002-04:00

Standing desks seem to be all the rage these days (you can read about the positive effects of getting off your butt here) but they can be extremely expensive to purchase one. Matt has been using a faux standing desk for a few weeks (by faux I mean stacking reams of paper on his desk and putting his keyboard on top) and decided he wanted a more permanent solution, on the cheap. Enter Natalie and Lowe's!

We found an inexpensive closet shoe organizer and after comparing measurements decided it was the perfect height to place on top of his desk. Unfortunately the only colors available were white and oak, neither of which were a match for his espresso colored desk.

I applied one coat of my favorite BIN primer and then two coats of paint. A perfect match to his desk!

Here it is in action. The shoe organizer worked out even better than we had hoped because it already has a built in shelf for paper, books, etc.

Oh, my payment for all my hard work was a new tool box! I know I'm getting old when that type of payment excites me but I have had my tools in 3 separate bags for years.

Isn't she pretty? Yes, my toolbox is a she (pay no attention to the masculine name of Stanley on the front).

Refinishing Ikea

2011-07-15T20:49:00.000-04:00

Wow, I started this post months and months (almost a year) ago and I'm finally finishing it now. After I graduated Penn State and decided to move out of my Mom's house to NYC I went to IKEA to purchase some furniture for my studio apartment. I ended up with tons of beech color laminate pieces that are no longer my taste but are still in great condition after almost 10 years. I've read about painting laminate furniture all over blogland and decided to finally give it a go on a pair of side tables I wouldn't mind losing in the test run.

Before

I used BIN primer since Centsational girl sings its praises

(and I listen to everything she has to say).

After one coat of primer.

After two coats of white semi gloss paint.

I was shocked by how well the paint held up on the pieces, no chipping or anything. It's all about the primer and I didn't even have to sand! Since this worked so well I decided to go laminate refinishing crazy... more to come!

Nola!

2011-07-14T19:24:00.012-04:00

Since Matt is now the president of his Rotary club in Potomac, the club graciously offered to send us to the Rotary International conference in New Orleans for 5 days. Neither of us have ever been to Nola so we don't have a base of reference for how it is now as compared to before Katrina but I can tell you that we had an incredibly memorable time and I would love to go back again. The people were warm and welcoming and the food was out of this world.

Here are some pictures from inside the conference center.

Out of all the vendors of course Matt would find the golf related one.

I'm a sucker for cheesy photo opportunities.

Waiting for the shuttle.

Inside the Opening Plenary Session

Bill Gates speaking about Polio.

When we weren't at the conference we were able to explore New Orleans.

Our Hotel

Our hotel was right next door to Mother's so we stopped in for lunch.

Debris & Baked Ham Po' Boys with a side of red beans and rice

The Saturday we arrived was the last day of American Craft Beer Week so Matt did a little research and found The Avenue Pub was doing a finale tasting. This was such an awesome place for craft beers! (Holly & Drew you HAVE to check this place out!)

Hard to see, but they had Rogue Captain Sig's Northwestern Deadliest Ale. Even when in New Orleans I can't get away from work! ;)

Very cool stairwell, did I mention the pub was 3 floors?

Sunday Night we headed to Bourbon Street to have dinner at Bourbon House.

They are known for their oysters and shucked them right in front of you at the bar. They were huge!

Inside the dining room.

Guess what this appetizer is... Crystal Alligator! It tasted just like a fancy General Tso's chicken.

Only on appetizers and already stuffed.

Pan Roasted Pork Brisket

New Roads Pecan Pie

On our walk back to the hotel.

When in Nola, one must visit Cafe Du Monde. The chicory coffee and beignets were delicious and I still picture the six of them I ate over two days when in spin class for inspiration.

Our walk down Decatur Street on the way to Cafe Du Monde Monday morning.

In line to sit down.

YUM!

P.S. Bad idea to wear a black shirt to Cafe Du Monde.

I bought a Frozen Cafe Au Lait for the walk back.

It tasted like the world's best Frappuccino.

The walk back to the hotel.

Did I mention it was super hot and it was only 8:00 AM? Shiny much?

To celebrate our 3rd wedding anniversary from earlier in the week, we decided to have lunch at Commander's Palace in the Garden District. Here's a tip, they have 25 cent martinis with lunch!

Apricot Fizz

Shrimp Appetizer

Steak

Souffle

That night we finally hit up Bourbon Street.

Hand Grenades at the Funky Pirate

Pat O'Brien's courtyard

Random Bourbon Street shots

Tuesday we had lunch at the Gumbo Shop

Although we ate some incredible food in New Orleans, I have to say, Emeril's was the best in my book. This is where we had our last supper.

Matt's Cowboy Steak

My "Mac & Cheese"

Banana Cream Pie

Stuffed like pigs but happy post dinner at Emeril's.

We had a wonderful time in Nola and truly hope to go back again someday to hit up the restaurants we missed this time around. If you like to eat and drink I highly recommend a visit!

Matt vs. Ara - Bowling 2011 Trailer

2011-06-20T20:00:00.001-04:00

I am full of Matt vs. Ara videos this week! Here is the trailer to the Bowling competition!

Matt vs. Ara - Wall Climb 2011 Video

2011-06-18T06:57:00.001-04:00

Be sure to check out the full length version of the Matt vs. Ara Wall Climb 2011 video!

Matt vs. Ara - Wall Climb 2011 Trailer

2011-05-18T07:00:00.006-04:00

Make sure to check out the trailer for Matt vs. Ara's second event, "Wall Climb 2011"! I'm still working on the full video and will be sure to share as soon as it is done.

3 Years...

2011-05-17T07:00:00.001-04:00

... have flown by!

Happy 3rd Anniversary to my wonderful loving (and handsome) husband! I love you!

All photos by our wonderful photographer Julie Dreelin at Beach Productions.

Easter 2011

2011-04-25T20:35:00.002-04:00

Matt and I spent this Easter weekend (as we have many Easter weekends) at my Aunt & Uncle's house outside of Philly. It was a great weekend filled with lots of food, drinks and laughter.

Best looking haul from Target in a long time.

Gram making my favorite, peanut butter banana.

The party is getting started

(note the Jell-O shot in Gram's hand).

The boys on their phones.

Getting ready to dye eggs!

Oh and our family is fond of rainbows. ;)

Grady getting his hands dirty.

Drying...

Have enough drinks over there Matt?

Oops, the bunny had an accident!

Me & Maggie and our Tiny Martinis!

Johnny and Aunt Cappy

Grady reenacting a famous picture of himself.

Never too old for Easter crafts!

Easter morning

Mimosas for all.

Yuengling for Grady.

Uncle Ed's coconut cake.

HAPPY EASTER!

Matt vs. Ara - Mud Run 2011 Video

2011-04-18T06:57:00.002-04:00

Here is the full length Matt vs. Ara Mud Run 2011 video!

Matt vs. Ara - Mud Run 2011 Trailer

2011-04-02T09:23:00.001-04:00

Make sure to check out the trailer for Matt vs. Ara's first event, "Mud Run 2011"! I'm still working on the full video and will be sure to share as soon as it is done.

(Click here for the video link)

Sorry for the lack of posts lately, things have been very busy around here!