Jet set to Tejas!

{Photo from jayteacat on flickr.com}

Today I'm off to the great Lone Star state visiting Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch {Mark and family}. I'll be enjoying a nice week-long vacay in Houston and Austin with a short stop at a super awesome potential employer {cross your fingers TIGHT}.

In the meantime, browse through these pics from previous trips to el rancho and the capital city!

Be back in a week! Sayonara!!

A child is born.

{Photo from KevinOQ on flickr.com}

Christmas Eve candlelight service blew me away.

All around me sat families who had been struck with heart-wrenching pain, loss, and grief. Families I knew. Families who in the valley of death were looking to the cross and SINGING. Despite life's worst sorrows, they were worshipping and celebrating Christ, the Prince of Peace and Wonderful Counselor. Each one of them, even the most feeble, lit their candle signifying Christ's light in our lives and in the world, the only light that gives them hope. Now THAT is mind-boggling faith that shook me to the core. 

"Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,

and they shall call his name Immanuel

(which means GOD WITH US)."

-Matthew 1:23

Peppermint bark.

You are about to witness the easiest and yummiest recipe.

Dark Chocolate Peppermint Bark

+ 12 oz. semi-sweet chocolate chips

+ 1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract

+ 5-10 regular sized candy canes, crushed

1. Melt chocolate chips over low/medium heat in a double boiler. Once melted, add peppermint extract and stir.

2. Pour the melted chocolate out onto a cookie sheet covered in wax paper. Spread out with a spatula or wooden spoon. Sprinkle the peppermint candy chunks onto the chocolate and gently press them in with your hands.

3. Place in freezer for 5 minutes or until hardened. Break into pieces and serve on a pretty platter. If you aren't going to eat these scrumptious treats right away, store them in the fridge to keep them from melting!

 {I used these chocolate morsels, and they were absolutely delish.}

Enjoy the sugar high and Merry Christmas Eve!!

Merry Christmas Darling.

Since my brother and I were wee little tots, we insisted on opening just one tiny present on Christmas Eve. So now it's tradition! This afternoon, my brother surprised me with this baby:

It's a pro recording mic called the YETI. Sweet.

Feeling a tad inspired, I started messing around with it.

Welcome to my makeshift recording studio...

{Which reminds me...I haven't shown you my newly redecorated room at home. I'll get to that soon.}

Check out my first recording on a pro mic!

"Merry Christmas Darling"

{Recorded December 2010}

Still not in the Christmas spirit?

These videos should do the trick!!

Busy as a bee.

Golly! I feel like I haven't stopped to breath in a week!

These past few days have been filled with lots of fun, laughter, and prayers for patience.

Here's a little run down of what all I've gotten myself into:

1. Christmas cards.

Last Monday, Mom had foot surgery, so I've been dubbed keeper of all things Christmas.

See, she had the same surgery around Christmastime four years ago and attempted to address envelopes on painkillers. BAD IDEA. Shame on me for laughing at her expense, but it was quite a sight to see! This time around, we took all precautionary measures to ensure that Christmas cards would go out in a timely and fashionable manner. Take a look at what I {with the help of snapfish.com} came up with!

{All above photos from our summer trip to Costa Rica.}

{We included a traditional pic for family!}

2. Added finishing touches to the tree.

When I was 16, Mom began giving me Waterford crystal ornaments each year to begin my very own ornament collection. It's a special and sentimental gift I look forward to every Christmas!

{And Daddy came to the rescue when I couldn't reach the top to hang the star!}

3. Enjoyed Markie in Memphis.

The boyfriend made a trip to hang out with me and the fam for a few days, and we had a grand ole time! We saw good friends, played games, cooked, made fires, and took corny pictures (duh).

4. MTV Made: DJ roadie.

Bro hurt his wrist in a bike wreck and needed some manual labor assistance for his DJ gig downtown. My puny muscles weren't much help, but I made myself useful and took pictures!

 {WAYYY cool huh? Check out his video here.}

 {After a night at Silky's on Beale, it started snowing! I'm not talking snow flurries, I mean big-fat-stick-your-tongue-out kinda snowflakes. We did a little dance.}

{Taken from inside the historic Cadre building downtown.}

5. Babysat the smartest child in the world.

Meet Miller. He is two-and-a-half and uses big words like "particularly" and "anticipated." He can recite most of the states on a map of the U.S. He says cute things like, "That's driving me nuts!" and "Hold on, let me get my Blackberry." And he is SWEETER than sugar.

{Mark and I played firefighters, and Miller played the damsel in distress. Luckily we had a magic parachute that shot water at the fire to put it out.}

6. Dominated a puzzle.

I don't know what it is about puzzles, but I get sucked in. I just can't let it go until it's solved...which is a problem when you don't have all the pieces. We think Toby the pup may have mistaken a few pieces for table scraps. Ruh-roh.

7. Discovered lemon drop martinis.

{I may have promised that I wouldn't post this pic of you on my blog. But I can't seem to remember. It's just too cute!}

{Some serious elbow grease went into that freshly-squeezed lemon juice.}

Et voila!

Lemon Drop Martini

1.5 oz Citron Absolut

0.5 oz Grand Marnier

0.75 oz freshly-squeezed lemon juice

1 teaspoon superfine suger

Combine in martini shaker with cubed ice and serve in martini glasses with sugar rims!

8. Figured out what to do with this.

Just looking at this picture makes my hands sweat. We have about 60 VHS tapes with precious childhood memories that are disintegrating as time passes, and they need to be copied to DVDs so we can watch them forever! My family bought a VHS-DVD copier last year, and I spent hours on end converting the videos only to find that THEY DON'T WORK. Grrrr...so I threw my hands up, waved the white flag, and called Wolf Camera. I'll gladly let the pros handle this one.

9. Date with Daddy.

Dad took me to the Grizzlies game downtown, and we were MVPs of the game! We got the players to sign a basketball and high-fived all the starters as they came onto the court. Super cool.

{Me (5'4") with Hamed Haddadi (7'2"). WHOA.}

10. Shopped like the bestest Santa ever.

Since Mama can't walk (much less drive), I am Santa and all of his elves this Christmas. All presents were thoughtfully chosen and wrapped with love. There are some exciting surprises all bundled up under the tree, and only I know what they all are! HO-HO-HO!!

11. Oh yeah, and I chopped my hair off.

{Goodbye 6 inches. I don't really miss you. Yet.}

Check back tomorrow for a sweet treat!

And the winner is...

Chelsea Jewell!

{Check out Chelsea's blog where she and her husband Seth share stories of their journey together as newlyweds!}

Congratulations sweet girl on your new pair of Stella & Dot earrings!

Thanks to every single last one of you for participating in the giveaway.

Your feedback was encouraging and helpful, and I am so grateful for all of my endearing followers!

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas.

This year, my Dad brought home the most colossal Christmas tree.

I'm telling you, it is MASSIVE.

And the smell is the very bestest part.

Getting the tree inside the house is an affair in and of itself, but the labor and millions of scattered pine needles are worth all the special memories we have decorating our fabulous fir. Every year, Dad brings home a new electronic ornament - some sing, some dance, and some just look pretty. Our quirky ornaments and our crystal icicles make this OUR Christmas tree.

{Speaking of quirky, decorating a Christmas tree with my family must be accompanied by Jimmy Buffet Christmas and the Chieftains.}

 {Delta love.}

This year is the Christmas train's debut. You must understand that this is no ordinary train. THIS train has legit sound effects and puffs smoke O's {like the caterpillar in Alice in Wonderland}! And unlike The Little Engine That Could, Mr. Christmas Train has no problem picking up speed. He zooms so fast that I back away in fear of my safety. I think he makes a festive addition to this Christmas season!

{Welcome to my favorite place in the world. Enjoy.}

Have you entered the GIVEAWAY yet?

Thank you to all twelve lovies who entered so far! I sincerely appreciate your feedback!

To those of you who haven't commented yet, what do you have to lose?

Take a sec to comment on my previous post to have a shot at winning a stunning pair of earrings!

Stella & Dot GIVEAWAY!

Because I love all of you sweethearts oh so much, I decided I should give you a Christmas present!!

If I had a few G's lying around, I'd buy a little happy for each and every one of you!

But I don't. {Dad, can I have a moola tree for Christmas?}

SOOO...just one very lucky person will be receiving a special Christmas present from me!

In the generous Christmas spirit, Jayne Fisher, our sweet {and utterly gorgeous} house mom, donated these Stella & Dot Garden Party Chandelier Earrings to Sweet Pea. Jayne has many talents - Stella & Dot stylist, Tri Delta house mom, cookie-baker, picture-taker, therapist, nurse, and friend. She's just the bee's knees, y'all. Click here to see her Stella & Dot page and buy some pretty things for that special friend who is impossible to shop for. OR add some pretty things to your Christmas wish list!

But these beauties are FREE and up for grabs!

So how can you WIN the giveaway?

Just write a comment on this post giving feedback about Sweet Pea! Tell me what you like about my blog and what you'd like to see more of in the future. Any other suggestions/opinions are welcome too. {Please and thank you!} Please include your name and email at the end of your comment.

{I will do a random drawing of names at www.random.org to ensure that it's fair and square. Just in case you were wondering, no I'm not entering it myself. Neither is my mama.}

THIS GIVEAWAY LASTS ONE WEEK! I will do the drawing on Thursday, December 16th at noon and post the winner on Friday, December 17th. I will email the winner, get your shipping address, and ship it in time to arrive for Christmas. On your mark, get set, GO!

One two three.

Three things to add to your to-do list today.

1. Buy this.

The most wonderful little candle in the whole wide world.

"The aroma of a sparkling holiday season is created by blending pomegranate, mandarin orange, pine, cloves and cinnamon with a hint of vanilla and amber." -NEST

2. Read this.

3. Do this.

Subscribe to Sweet Pea via email please. :)

Enter your email address:


{Delivered by FeedBurner.}