a.blossom's story

cutesy charleston, part two.

ashleyd.blossom@gmail.com (Ashley Blossom) — Thu, 22 Sep 2011 16:47:00 +0000

As promised, more of my epic roommate reunion in SC. :)

First, a trip to the famous Angel Oak, aka: craziest tree everrrr.

Anderson sisters love this stuff. :)

Only the best Italian meal of our lives.

So charming, right?

Next up, a trip to the Boone Hall Plantation. Besides being chock-full of history, The Notebook was filmed here, so it's obviously ridiculously dreamy.

Allie's Mom's house in the movie orrrr more importantly the Boone Mansion.

Low country chillin'?

Remember when Ryan Gosling drove down this lane? Breath-taking, right?

Mmmmm, love.

Never a dull moment with these two, even on a plantation tour.

Original Slave Cabins, still standing.

THIS is why I love them. :)

That's all I have of Charming Charleston. Really, any city would be entertaining with this bunch.
Have you kept in touch with your college roommates? Where would you like to explore with friends?

Perhaps we need ideas for future extravanganzas... :)

P.S. Did you notice the changes I made to my pages? Check it out: about, love, love and purpose. Enjoy!

1,955 miles in 6 days.

ashleyd.blossom@gmail.com (Ashley Blossom) — Wed, 21 Sep 2011 18:50:00 +0000

Atlanta to Michigan.

Michigan to Ohio.

Ohio to Michigan.

Michigan to Atlanta.

Atlanta to Charleston.

And Charleston back to sweet home ATL.

First, my mom, lil' sis and I went to my best friend from childhood's wedding in our lil' Ohio hometown. It was such a sweet wedding and she was a beautiful bride. :)

Rachael and I: We used to pretend we were twins.

Kaitlyn (lil' sis) and I


Landis ladies :)

In Charleston, my roommates and I from college (4 of the 6) met up to beach, tour, relax and eat.

They are some of my most favorite people in the world. Here's why....

We obviously do not take life too seriously.

Impromptu dance sessions almost always occur.

We laugh until we cry.

We ALWAYS have the best time.

Sometimes we're divas... ;)

Or sometimes we wear Jason Mraz hats...

But mostly, we're just really great friends. :)

Some of us are sisters...

The rest of us just act like sisters. :)

Other times we're reallllll stinkin' clumsy and then we laugh AGAIN.

And we even beach it up when it's cloudy and rainy.

Five close friends in a cutesy, picturesque beach town. Does it get any better?

No, it does not. Even though it was cloudy and I accidentally kicked a crab (there's blood to prove it), we frolicked up and down the beach like it was the best day ever.
Because, according to us, it was.

Stay tuned, there's much more of gorgey Charleston to come. :)

hometown glory. michigan bound.

ashleyd.blossom@gmail.com (Ashley Blossom) — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 15:45:00 +0000

Oh how he looooves being featured on my blog. ;)

Today, I am flying to Michigan. Home sweet home.

(Insert awesome Adele song.)

Thus, the ridiculously awesome Michigan shirts that Joe and I are sporting. Nerds, for sure.

I'm also Ohio bound for my best friend from childhood's wedding. But I don't have a shirt for that. Sorry, friends.

After this Michigan/Ohio adventure, I'm headed straight to Charleston for an MSU roommate reunion!

Stay tuned for family, friend and hometown awesomeness!!! :)

(Shirts courtesy of: MichiganAwesome.org).

something beautiful.

ashleyd.blossom@gmail.com (Ashley Blossom) — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 22:21:00 +0000

Something beautiful is happening.

Actually, a LOT of somethings beautiful ARE happening (besides that ridiculously gorgeous $4 bouquet from Trader Joe's in the enormous Ball jar).

Tomorrow afternoon begins my two and a half week break. We're talking Wicked, Michigan/Ohio, family, childhood best friends, Charleston, best roomies ever and more.

It's gonna be blog-tastic. Yep, I said it.

love at first pedal.

ashleyd.blossom@gmail.com (Ashley Blossom) — Sat, 10 Sep 2011 20:38:00 +0000

And the kid in me is alive again.

I have a new bike. But it's not just any old bike.
It's an ocean blue bike. And it looks like an antique. (The grandma in me loves this, duh.)
My newest, most favoritest toy is complete with a coffee cup holder and a rack for toting the latest delectable treasures from Trader Joe's.

I will only allow ONE test drive.

Pefect for cafe en la bicicleta.

Blurryness, iphone photo. SORRY!

Now, I feel like THIS all of the time.
:)

Stay tuned for pictures of this beaut complete with a latte and bouquet of flowers. I don't even care how cliché that is.

sweet, sweet flashback. part 1.

ashleyd.blossom@gmail.com (Ashley Blossom) — Sun, 07 Aug 2011 02:36:00 +0000

I am just now realizing that I have not announced to the blog world that I am a fifth grade teacher.

Yes, I made the jump from 5th to kindergarten. Yes, it's a challenge. Yes, I hardly sleep. Yes, I'm drowning in busyness. Despite all that, I love it. I really do.

I am certain that is is exactly what God has for me, RIGHT NOW. :)

And until I actually take photos of my classroom to share, here's a little somethin' to make you smile...

Honeymoon flashback 1: One of our favorite days in Barbados, snorkeling with sea turtles on a sail boat.

See below post for the aftermath...

sweet, sweet flashback. part 2.

ashleyd.blossom@gmail.com (Ashley Blossom) — Sun, 07 Aug 2011 02:14:00 +0000

Honeymoon flashback 2: The aftermath: terrible, terrible burns from said snorkeling. Warning: Do not snorkel in Barbados without SPF 75.

Blogger won't let me post two videos in one post. :(

weekend, come soon.

ashleyd.blossom@gmail.com (Ashley Blossom) — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 00:08:00 +0000

Things I am dying to do this weekend:

go on a date.
bake.
paint my nails.
catch up on phone calls.
watch a movie.
RELAX.

It really is the simple things when you're drowning in busyness.

AND maybe, possibly try to update the blog world on why I have been M.I.A.

I promise I'm alive, it's just that my entire life is in my window-less 5th grade classroom.

Update soon :)

swiffer jamz.

ashleyd.blossom@gmail.com (Ashley Blossom) — Sun, 03 Jul 2011 14:10:00 +0000

The other night as I was frantically preparing for an interview, husband was ever-so-graciously cleaning our lil' apartment before my parents came to visit.

And then the time came for him to sweep the wood floors and he made this comment:

"When I swiffer, I listen to this song. Swiffer Jams. So you're gonna have to like it."

And then he played this song....
and I laughed hysterically as he swept and danced his heart out.

So ridiculous.
Now that's good sweepin' music. ;)

HAPPY FOURTH OF JULY WEEKEND! :)

little red hen.

ashleyd.blossom@gmail.com (Ashley Blossom) — Thu, 30 Jun 2011 13:16:00 +0000

I got it. And I did it.

Friends, I would like to announce the shiny, long awaited arrival of my brand new, sparkling white Kitchen Aid Mixer.

(Insert photo of me hugging the mixer when it was still in the box. This really happened. Pathetic, I know.)

And I made bread with this magical mixer.

History: As a little girl, I spent countless hours, days and weeks on my grandparents farm. My Meme (my grandma), my sister and I spent our days riding horses, arranging wildflowers, picking berries, sewing aprons and....baking. We baked our lil' hearts out with Meme's white Kitchen Aid Mixer. And ever since I can remember, I've wanted a white Kitchen Aid Mixer just like Meme's. And I wanted to make bread...

just like Meme.

Well, I did it. I fired up the mixer and went to town on a relatively easy bread recipe. And although I have a tendency to overdo it with most things in life, I chose a simple recipe. That was my first victory.

And as I waited for the bread to bake, I felt as if I had accomplished a small rite of passage. I was giddy all night about my bread and I could not wait to try it. But I was oh so nervous for the taste. Would it turn out? Would it even come close to Meme's? Honestly, people, I was a Nervous Nelly.

And this is where the Little Red Hen comes in. I work all night and Joe reaps the benefit of my....wait for it, wait for it....

delicious, aromatic, beautiful, homemade bread.

And I served it warm with butter and cinnamon sugar.

Just like Meme.

But I guess I don't mind sharing delicious bread with my husband after all. :)

dry socks, happy hiker.

ashleyd.blossom@gmail.com (Ashley Blossom) — Wed, 29 Jun 2011 19:32:00 +0000

When was the last time you chanced an afternoon-long rainstorm and went hiking?

That's exactly what we did this weekend and it was beyond beautiful. Sweaty, but beautiful. The nature trails lead to the ruins of an old mill and straight to rushing river waves. The water was so inviting that it took everything I had not to jump in. However, Joe and I agreed that a hiker with wet socks is no happy hiker, so we refrained. ;)

The beautiful ruins of an old New Manchester Mill, Sweetwater Creek State Park, GA.

Over the past few days, I've been thinking about the ruins of that old mill. The history behind it is ugly: each brick was made by slave labor and it was doused in gasoline during the Civil War only to become a hiding place for passing soldiers and ammunition.

Aside from the slavery, the flames, the war and the ruin, a passerby sees the ruin and declares it beautiful.

I am in awe that God does not see an ugly past when looking at me. How thankful I am to be considered beautiful, loved and new.

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come:The old has gone, the new is here! 2 Corinthians 5:17

summer came like cinnamon.

ashleyd.blossom@gmail.com (Ashley Blossom) — Fri, 24 Jun 2011 13:48:00 +0000

Since June 21 is my day of birth and happens to be the first day of summer, we celebrated with a picnic.

If you'd also like to have a delightful, celebratory picnic, I'd recommend the following:

1. a ridiculously adorable, photogenic yet useful picnic basket.
2. an easy to fold up and zip up, waterproof picnic blanket. Bright, cheery colors are an added bonus.
(Both of which were a wedding gift from best friends Breezy and Elliot! Thank you again, we use them all the time. :) )
3. cream soda
4. watermelon
and...

5. GAMES. Card games, board games, Scrabble, you name it. Since it was MY birthday, I finally convinced Joe to play a game with me. I love games. And even though our picnic was almost rained out, we still finished up an intense game of cards by lantern light in the apartment. :)

He clearly LOVES having his picture taken. ;)

Can't help but photograph this lil' basket. :)

"Summer came like cinnamon, so sweet."

Lastly, please enjoy this insanely beautiful sunset we drooled over in Piedmont last night at Screen On The Green.
The clouds and sky only got better with each passing minute...

The same hands that created all of this, they creadted you and I. What a beautiful God.

a present for YOU.

ashleyd.blossom@gmail.com (Ashley Blossom) — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 19:07:00 +0000

Well, I guess it is my birthday, but I'm going to share the following "presents" with you:

1.THIS is why I love SpringHill.

2. This cute song and video sucked me right in because:
it's romantic, makes me want to run, he buys her flowers and it made me laugh. SOLD.

I'm celebrating 23 of life tonight with a picnic in the park and my favorite guy. :)

fondue? i do.

ashleyd.blossom@gmail.com (Ashley Blossom) — Mon, 20 Jun 2011 15:52:00 +0000

This weekend was full of all kinds of awesome:

-Homemade black bean burgers. Serve with onion buns and chipotle mayo. You will love.

-Watching Sixteen Candles in Piedmont Park on our new picnic blanket.

-Date night at Dante's Down The Hatch: a charming fondue restaurant made to look like a sea-side Mediterranean village, complete with a Peter Pan-like sailboat in the middle and live jazz music. Oh, how can I forget the crocodile that lives in the pool of water surrounding the antique ship? I cannot, that's for sure.

-A trip to Ikea complete with tons'o newly purchased colored boxes just for organizing.

-Playing rock, paper, scissors to decide whether or not to buy a fondue pot. Buying a fondue pot.

-Farmer's Market grocery shopping. Huge, fresh, glorious Farmer's Market.

& two dinners with old and new friends.

We are blessed. :)

Not to mention, yesterday was Father's Day and I happen to have the best dad (and family) in the entire world! :) Miss them and love them dearly. xo

blog, meet barbados.

ashleyd.blossom@gmail.com (Ashley Blossom) — Thu, 16 Jun 2011 14:08:00 +0000

This, my friends, is beautiful honeymoon location, Barbados. Wish I was there now, drinking from a coconut and lying in the sun with my new hub.

Instead...I'm applying for jobs and working on my portfolio. Ouch.
That hurts more than a southern Caribbean sunburn. Trust me, I know.

Let's hang out again soon, tropical paradise.

Oh hai, ATL.

ashleyd.blossom@gmail.com (Ashley Blossom) — Tue, 14 Jun 2011 21:15:00 +0000

Reasons why I'm falling in love with Virginia Highlands/Midtown, Atlanta:

1. Coffee shops. Tons.
And some are even dog-friendly. This will be important when we someday get our dream pup. :)
(1.5. These coffee shops also serve wine, ales and hipster beer. Delightfully strange.)
2. Flowering trees, as far as the eye can see.
3. People are ridiculously stylish. Hello, Jason Mraz hats.
4. Sunshine all da time.
5. Froyo? Everywhere.
It's an epidemic and I've fallen victim. (Froyo = frozen yogurt, btw).
6. Billions of restuarants(veg-friendly too, I might add).
I don't think we'll possibly be able to try them all.
7. King of Pops.
Amazing creative popsicles. Awesome flavors like chocolate sea salt, tangerine basil & coconut lemongrass. Love.

fresh start.

ashleyd.blossom@gmail.com (Ashley Blossom) — Mon, 13 Jun 2011 20:28:00 +0000

So much newness.
And so many firsts.

A brand new husband, which also means a brand new marriage. Just ten days and counting.
New name.
New apartment.
New city. Oh hai, Atlanta, let's be friends.
New blog? Why, yes, you're reading it.

After months and months of planning, Joe and I were blessed with such an incredible wedding surrounded by family and friends. And to top it off, we honeymooned in BARBADOS. (pictures and video to come).

What now, after all that? Settling into our new apartment together, figuring out what it means to be husband and wife and oh...finding a job.

MISSION: Trust God with all of the newness and enjoy the excitement it brings.
I'm loving this new adventure. :)

Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in you. Show me the way I should go, for to you I entrust my life. -Psalm 143:8