Easter by Pinterest and Southern Living

Happy Easter from Macon,Georgia!!

Mike and I headed over to Wesleyan to enjoy the sunshine today and caught a glimpse of the newest additions to the lake family. Aren't they adorable?!

Then we headed up to see Lou pony for deworming day...he was not very excited about it. And as you can see it was the perfect day for everything nautical...anchor dress, Sperry's and then a mimosa in my adorable anchor glass :)

While Mike and I dearly missed our families today there is one advantage to having a holiday with just the two of us, plenty of practice in the kitchen for when we get to host huge family holidays! Today's menu consisted of turkey with Old Bay (you can take the girl out of Maryland but you can't take the Maryland out of the girl), sweet potato casserole, brown sugar bacon wrapped green beans (thank you Pinterest) and homemade biscuits (thank you Southern Living). Everything was amazing!! So y'all come on over so we can serve our new yummy recipes to someone other than ourselves! Also be sure to check out this month's Southern Living with their spotlight on Macon!

Love y'all

Here is the Lazy Biscuit recipe from Southern Living:

Ingredients: 2 1/2 cups self rising flour

1/2 tsp sugar

1 1/4 cups chilled buttermilk

1/2 cup butter melted

Preheat oven to 475

Whisk together flour and sugar in large bowl.

Stir together buttermilk and melted butter in small bowl. Stir buttermilk mixture into flour mixture until dough pulls away from sides of bowl.

Drop dough onto parchment lined baking sheet with a 2 inch cookie scoop, 1 inch apart.

Bake for 12 minutes or until golden brown

Brush with melted butter (optional)

Makes 14

"If I could I'd do it all the same..."

This week brought some very sad news to my alma mater, Virginia Intermont College. While VI's doors will close on July 1st and remain closed there is not a single Cobra out there who will be able to shut out all of their amazing memories of VI. I may have worked my tush off to graduate in 3 years but there isn't a single thing I would go back and change....except to maybe stay for an extra year! VI gave me the knowledge and confidence to go out and pursue my dreams in the equine industry, as well as the backing of a well known and respected program. Just having the name VI on my resume and transcripts has opened so many doors for me that I still gush about the program anytime I'm asked about my college in an interview. The professors and faculty at VI have been a constant source of advice, support and knowledge for all of their students...even after graduation! I know that anytime I'm in a pickle I can pick up the phone and call anyone of the professors in the equine program and get a good solid answer. I cannot thank Eddie, Sue, Heather, Lisa, Lauren and Kristen enough for all of their support both during my time at VI and since graduating.

 

VI not only shaped me into the horseperson that I am today but into the person that I am in all aspects of life. VI was a place to grow and "find your voice," it was a place that let each of its students pursue their passions and discover new ones, it was a place that let us explore our opinions, change our opinions and voice our opinions. VI certainly taught us how to grow up and protect what you believe. Most importantly VI was home away from home.

Lou pony loved our college years too :)

VI was home away from home and the friends that I made there became my family. The friends I made at VI have become my lifelong friends...and make up most of my bridal party! We've been there for each other through the challenges of college and graduation, through the loss of a classmate and friend, and now through the loss of our alma mater. But no matter what we still have each other and all of our mini reunions at each others' weddings! Please keep all of the amazing faculty, staff and horses in your prayers as they go through this rough transition in VI's history. You can also help support the VI ANRC team through this link ANRC fund. The team has qualified for Nationals and in just 2 days has raised enough money ($5,000) to go! Now the rest of the money raised will go straight to the horses at VI for supplies such as grain, hay and farrier expenses.

Feel free to take a walk down memory lane with me

     

 

  

 

 

I'd say we made it out pretty great! Can't wait for more wedding reunions :)

Love y'all!

April showers bring May flowers

April showers bring May flowers for sure but that doesn't mean that April brings any rest! April has already been a super busy month and we're only one week in! This past week I hit the ground running with prepping the team and horses for the upcoming show weekend. The lesson schedule was packed and the barn was bustling as the girls got ready for horse checks...it was lovely to end out the week with a barn full of clipped and bathed horses though! Spence even got in on the busy schedule this week now that I'm out of my cast we got back to work and he stepped up to the plate this Friday and went in a lesson after some of the school horses decided to play lame when they heard whispers of an upcoming show! The equestrian team also hosted our first ever "Who,What,Wear" fashion event on Thursday with local boutique owners. The event showcased looks for interview/work, a dinner outing with coworkers, a girls' night out and examples of how to dress for your body type. The event was a hit and we are very excited to have the participating boutiques attend our horse show on the 12th to set up shop. Sunshine, ponies and shopping...what more could you want?!

People on campus were slightly stunned to see me in a dress instead of riding pants!

My first weekend back in Macon since the recruiting trip started with a 5:30 am barn trip to bring in the ponies before the hot air balloons took off over campus. Thankfully my wonderful team ladies also got up early so bringing in the horses took all of 10 minutes and then we headed off to IHOP for a team breakfast. We got back to campus just in time to see the last of the balloons lifting off and to see a stray peacock wandering around campus! A work day to prep the barn and riding arena for next weekend's show followed and then I hosted a craft party for the underclassmen on the team...more to follow on this after the seniors get their gifts :)

Today was finally a relaxing day that started with homemade venison sausage and scrambled eggs...yummm. Then Mike and I headed off to Lowe's to stock up on planting stuff to spruce up our front "porch." Fingers crossed that our tomatoes, green beans and jalapenos do well!! I think our lilies also add some nice color to the entrance and make it feel a little more like spring on this rainy Sunday.

Hope y'all had a great weekend and that everyone is starting to enjoy some sunshine!

Love y'all!

Florida wrap up and wedding update

I made it back to good ol' Georgia after a wonderful weekend at The College Prep Invitational in West Palm Beach,Florida. The weekend was so great both from a recruitment standpoint and a networking standpoint. It was wonderful to be able to bounce ideas off of other coaches and see how different equine programs are put together and run. The weekend was exactly what I needed to get refreshed and ready to come back and make the final push to the end of the school year. Its so great to get excited about next year's potential again! I was also super excited to get to reconnect with some of my VI family while in Florida! Eddie, who is now the director of the SCAD equine program, was a great source of motivation and awesome about helping me network with other coaches. I am so thankful to have come out of a program with such helpful professors who continue to want their students to strive for excellence even after graduation.

While things were fairly busy down here with me traveling all over the place for work, Mike and I were lucky enough to get a visit from my mom the week before I left for Florida. It was so great to have her here to help me with all of the little details of the wedding...and to help me satisfy my current shopping cravings!

On Sunday we got to roadtrip over to Savannah with mom to show her the venues for the wedding and soak in some sun and sangria!

Thanks to mom's trip to Georgia I was also able to drop my dress off for alterations!!! I am so insanely in love with my dress and absolutely cannot wait to wear it in October :)

Now that we've made it into April the traveling will calm down a lot but the events at the Wesleyan barn are picking back up as we prep for our upcoming horse show and then wrap up the college year with fun team events including attending the opening day at the polo fields in Atlanta! Mike also goes back to crazy work hours now that the daylight lasts a bit longer which means I get to spend the extra daylight hanging out with Spence man....cast free I might add!

Love y'all!