Date Night with Mr. Smith...

... was a success!  And, just for you budget buddies out there, was less than $50! 

We headed to see this movie first:

And I recommend it.  So cute and a little bit more complex that we had first thought. 

After the movie we headed to Satterfield's, a Birmingham treasure, for dessert. 

It's right behind the Summit, so it was perfect for a quick little jaunt after the movie.

Mr. Smith enjoyed the Beignets with Sauteed Apples and Homemade Vanilla Bean Ice Cream, while I scarfed down the Double Chocolate Sourdough Bread Pudding with Kahlua Caramel and Sweetened Cream.

More details about the Homecoming game to come! 

P.S.  This guy was a little chilly this morning, so I practiced my swaddling with him. 



October Girls Night Out...

...was last night and lots of tears were shed.  From sheer laughter, that is.  I don't know why we all torture ourselves over the re-telling of college stories.... specifically those of a Spring Break theme.  I swear my sides still hurt from laughing so hard.  Overall theme?  "What were we thinking???"  Exactly. 

But I love those memories (most of them), and I love those gals.  I think Mrs. Wallace summed it up best when she said something along the lines of it's hard to get embarrassed about your own "stories" when you know every gal sitting there has one just like it.  Or something like that.  I'm paraphrasing.  But it's true!  To be able to sit there and take a trip down memory lane with these girls (which was almost 10 whole years ago, as Mrs. Rowlen pointed out), is something to be cherished.

We tried out Chuy's, a new TexMex restaurant at The Summit.  Verrrrrrry nice.  Verrrrrrrrrry yummy.  Verrrrrrrrrrrrry cold on their balcony.  I had the heater on full blast on the way home, which was around 8:30pm.  Did I mention we're getting older? 

Mr. Smith is taking me on a Date Night tonight, that he planned all by himself.  I know we're seeing "Life As We Know It" but that's about it.  I can't wait!  Sometimes we forget to actually take a night for just the two of us, so I'm pretty pumped at the opportunity.  Tomorrow we head down to T-Town for the Alabama Homecoming Game.  After last week's "Day of Darkness" which I have not and will not talk about, here's hoping for a better showing from my beloved Tide. 

Quick Roundtrip for a T-Town Wedding!

This weekend, amidst the Southern Women's Show marathon, Mr. Smith and I made a quick roundtrip to T-Town to celebrate our friends Ben and Ellison's wedding. 

It was just like the wedding reception in Father of the Bride: outside, white tent, white lights, beautiful weather, beautiful bride = just lovely!

 Doesn't Mrs. Carroll look so trendy in her dress?  Love it. 

Got to catch up and bust a few moves with these ladies...

Carrolls and Smiths.... Best Friends Forever. 

The lovely bride, Mrs. Uzzell.



Southern Women's Show

I've resurfaced after a long four days here...

But while I was there, I got to meet lots of fascinating people who stopped by our booth.

I also got to see a favorite of mine: Giuliana Rancic.

I liked her before, but now I might love her.

SO funny.  SO down-to-earth.  SO willing to share funny stories about celebrities.

 I also bore witness to a rather disturbing phenomenon:  The Annual Firefighters Fashion Show.  It's a fundraiser for the American Cancer Society where some of our area firefighters come out and strut their stuff. 

And by strut their stuff, I mean bust-a-move and take off their shirts. 

By disturbing, I don't mean the firefighters.  (Well, there's was one disturbing creeper who wouldn't leave the stage....)

I mean the women in attendance.  I've never such actions from grown women.  It seemed the motto was the older you were, the wilder you could act. 

My co-worker Jamie and I couldn't tear our eyes away. 

From the actions of the women, not the firefighters. 

WOWZERS. 

Here's a pic snapped with my phone at the "grande finale", where they all come out with their firefighter garb on.  What I want you to look at is the flock of women running up to the stage, eager to stuff their dollar bills in their pants. 

And yes, that's a young child (maybe 7-years-old?) on the right in a purple t-shirt.  You can never start too young for important life lessons right?  Jeez Louise.



Happy Birthday Cooper!

Last night we celebrated Cooper the Pooper's 1st Birthday with a little party.  We started off the night with some homemade potato soup in bread bowls and a salad.  Delicious!

Then... it was Party Time.  Coop Dawg racked up big time with a couple of new bones, tennis balls, and a not-annoying-at-all squeaky hamburger toy from Sister and Husband.

Everything coordinated so well with matching (human) cupcakes, doggie print napkins, and doggie print birthday hats. 

Don't judge me - it was cute, okay?

Even Cooper liked his hat.  For about 15 seconds. 

We also served Cooper a birthday cake made especially for him. It was so easy to make!

Mix together 2 cups flour, 1 teaspoon baking soda, 1 teaspoon vanilla, 1/3 cup honey, 1/4 cup peanut butter, 1 cup chopped/sliced carrots, 1 egg.

Put it all in a 8" round pan.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

For the icing, I used plain yogurt.

He loved it!

Chomp that Gators... 31-6!

Ah, another blissful weekend of football victory at the Capstone. 

31-6.... It does a soul good.

Spending a glorious Saturday in Tuscaloosa never ceases to amaze me, particularly with tailgating.  I'd like to share some pretty basic - common sense really - rules for tailgating on our Quad.  Visitors take heed.

1.  Clothing - please wear it.  No one wants to see your personal regions, ok?  Especially if it's barely clothed in the opposing teams colors.  I don't think I've ever seen so many spandex dresses (one size too small, if I may add) in all my life.

2.  Walking - this is America, Europe.  Please walk on the right side of the sidewalk.  And while we're at it, please do not stop on the sidewalk.  It's a moving pathway.  Keep it flowing. 

3.  Back to clothing, and this speaks for Alabama fans.  A pal and I talked about this on Saturday.  (Mrs. Baker, actually!).  What's up with some of the "Gameday Outfits" gals are wearing?  If it's red and houndstooth, you just wear it?  Even if it doesn't match or fit appropriately?  Just because all the colors and patterns are there, it doesn't mean you have to wear it.  Mrs. Baker can explain this better.  I may suggest her to add a blurb on her blob about it at a later date. 

Enjoyed seeing some of my favorite ladies this weekend:

Spending time with Sister.

And my Mrs. Shepherd! 

Kudos to photographer Mr. Smith for capturing his silhouette as the picture-taker.

No clue why no snapshots of Mrs. Baker and myself.  After all the effort she made to find us on the Quad! 

Happy Fall, Y'all!

Wow.  It's October 1st today.  Where has the time gone?  We are eagerly looking forward to the cooler weather, and today feels glorious outside.  It's finally feeling like football season!  (Or hunting season, as Mr. Smith would say.) 

We're starting October having reached two important financial goals, which you know excited my little nerd heart.  As of today, October 1st, ladies and gentlemen.... the Smith's are credit card debt free.  Yep, each of our credit cards has a zero balance, including our Sam's Club Card.  (We don't really have store cards, just one main credit card each & the Sam's Club card...)

We also reachd our Savings account goal recently, which was a joyous occasion.

It really doesn't take a whole lot to please me, now that I'm thinking about it. 

Next stop?  Paying off my car loan.  Hoping to do that by the year's end or shortly thereafter.  I would love to start 2011 completely debt-free (which the exception of our student loans).  Fingers crossed!

October is going to be a busy month for us!  Of course there's our beloved Crimson Tide's schedule (priorities people!), but we're celebrating Cooper's first birthday next week with a little party.  Yes, roll your eyes, go ahead.  I'm planning on making him a doggie-friendly birthday cake, so we'll see how that goes.  Mr. Smith also purchased him a brand new doggie bed as his birthday present. 

The Soon-to-be-Searson's will be the actual Now-We-are-Wedded-Searson's, which we are really looking forward to celebrating at the end of the month!  These two are very special friends, and we can't wait to initiate them into newlywed bliss.  I also can't wait to slip on my cute bridesmaid dress that Miss Wolfe picked out from J Crew!

Here's hoping everyone has a fabulous Fall weekend!  We will be in T-Town cheering on our #1 Team (not just in our hearts... in the country, you know) to defeat the Florida Gators.  After last week's Arkansas nail-biter, I'm already a nervous wreck. 

Roll Tide Folks!