(I have had this post sitting in drafts for over a week, and was just waiting to include pictures before I posted. Needless to say, I was so proud of myself for getting one done in a timely manner! Flash forward to now... Still no pictures, still not posted. So I guess I'll just add on... ::sigh::)

It's hard to believe it's already a solid week into December. I say this every month, but seriously - I can't believe it's December!! We brought in the month of cheer with plenty of.... well, cheer.

The first committee meeting of Taste of the Nation Atlanta 2014 was held on Thursday (Dec 5), and we took the opportunity to send off our fearless leader with treats (including champagne in a can - why wasn't I aware of this amazing invention?). We will definitely miss Allison - she has been amazing on so many levels!

Turns out I have a handful of personal hours to use before the end of the year, so I decided to cash them in and take off Friday (Dec 6) and the next Friday (Dec 13). Of course, I still spent the morning working, but with minimal distractions (which is always productive). That evening, we celebrated Dominica and Erik's new digs in Woodstock. The apartment is so cute, and we christened it with lots (and lots) of celebratory drinks.

Funny/Typical story of the evening... Alysa was in a meeting earlier in the day and her foot fell asleep. When she stood up to leave she fell right over and sprained her ankle really bad. And when she was tired in high school, she would always come up to us and say "Hold my leg." Apparently it helped her not be tired (?). Anyway, we all found it hilarious that she really needed us to hold her leg on Friday. (As soon as I typed that out, I realized how dumb that story is. Whatever, keeping it anyway!)

Adam worked that Saturday, so I spent the morning lounging on the couch and running some holiday errands. I should have planned better, because my mom, dad and Mitch (along with 7 of his Auburn buddies) were in town for the SEC Championship down at the Georgia Dome. The group of them headed down to tailgate before the game, and I wish I had joined. I mean, mostly I just wish I was there to witness mom breaking and entering...

On Saturday night, we decided to check out a bar that's right up the street from our house - 120 Tavern. Oh my gosh, it was so fun! They had an amazing southern rock band, and us girls instantly became groupies. (Not really, but we did jump on stage when they invited us... duh.)

These pictures really make me laugh.... kudos to Adam and Evan for putting up with us!

Yep, that's me playing the drums.

With Thanksgiving so late this year, I felt like we were way behind on decorating for Christmas. However, I refuse to bring out any Christmas decorations until after Thanksgiving, and that's something I will not budge on. So Sunday (Dec 8) it was off to Pike Nursery to pick out this year's tree.

This year they had some massive trees... for a cool $200. They make Adam look like shorty!

We picked our tree pretty quick compared to years past. I always like to weigh all my options before committing. Maybe it's because we found the perfect tree so quick this year, and maybe it had something to do with the weather being disgusting - but we were in and out pretty fast!

To be festive while we were decorating the tree, I decided to bake cookies. (And by bake, I mean I bought the "Break and Bake" version that took me all of 30 seconds to prepare.) Either way, they were yummy and made our house smell cheerful!

(Drum roll, please.) I give you... the 2013 Baker Christmas tree! Look how adorable Ruthie is. She must know Santa is watching.

I feel like that was a climactic way to end this blog post, but our weekend fun didn't actually end there. My parents invited us to go see Craig Shoemaker at the Punchline Comedy Club, and since neither one of us had been to a comedy club we were down for the adventure. OH.MY.GOSH. I literally have never laughed so hard in my life. I really thought I was going to throw up at one point because I couldn't catch my breath.

He somehow spotted me in the audience and coined me the baby of the group. Calling me out as "88" (the year I was born) the whole evening. Nice audience interaction there, Craig. Needless to say, I had to grab him for a photo op after. If you ever get a chance, check him out. Adam and I have decided we're going to a comedy club every weekend now. We had such a great time!! Who doesn't love a good laugh sesh?

(And so begins the add on...)

Friday night we were happy to help Caitlin celebrate her graduation from Kennesaw State University. Hooty hoo - congrats!

Did I mention one of my BFFs, Madi, moved a mile down the road? Literally a mile. Saturday night, she and Evan joined Adam and I for another night of holiday festivities. We started the evening playing cards at our house, and quickly decided Mulligan's was a must.

Mulligan's is really trying to become more of a "neighborhood bar" than a "politically incorrect biker bar" and they're doing a pretty good job! They now serve complimentary bar snacks (yes, I will take another handful from your Costco tub of cheese balls) and the owner does her best to say hello to everyone. Honestly, Friday was the most crowded I have ever seen it! I'm kind of sad because it's our bar (obviously), but I'm glad business is kicking up for them.

Word got out that I had never been to the Marietta Diner, so that was a must post-bar. GREAT idea, except when my phone fell out of my rain jacket and the screen shattered. This is my third broken screen in less than a year! Shouldn't I get a free replacement by now? Whatever.

The big story of the weekend was the epic cake Adam made Debbie for her birthday dinner on Sunday night. It took us a good part of both Saturday and Sunday to create our masterpiece, but it was definitely a masterpiece. The monster that was the Salted Caramel Six-Layer Chocolate Cake was most definitely a labor of love, but I was so proud of myself I almost cried when it was done!

We even had to make our own caramel! And by we, I obviously mean Adam. In typical Adam fashion, he got it perfect on the first try without even using a candy thermometer. He's like a kitchen whisperer.

I handled the actual cake and the frosting - all from scratch, baby!

Anna gave me this cute candle one year and I keep forgetting about it, until Sunday! It was a sparkler, and the cutest thing ever. Dave got some pretty awesome pictures of us all freaking out when it started "sparkling".

The birthday girl with the final product! There are not many isn't anyone else I would put so much effort into a cake for - and I was so happy it turned out! (I put a lot of pressure on myself... and Adam.) Voila!

(I mean.... YES.)

Updates Since Italy

Our trip to Italy landed right in the middle of my event season, so it's a sick joke to say that I was able to ease back into the work flow. I'm currently in Miami prepping for our Taste of the Nation South Florida tomorrow! However, I have been able to catch up with friends and family since our return from Heaven Italy.

My mom and I met up with Dominica and her mom for wine night on Wednesday, followed by dinner at  Shilling's and then some post-dinner drinks at our new stomping ground, the politically incorrect Mulligan's. (I don't know what my mom's deal with talking during pictures is...but it really cramps my style.)

Actually, while we were in Italy my parents were on an Alaskan cruise! This is my favorite picture my mom brought home. She also made a photo book and dedicated a whole page to Carson Kressley getting some sun, but didn't include one picture of my dad's salmon fishing excursion. Typical. 

Mitchell's 20th birthday was the day after we got back from Italy, and my parents didn't even arrive home until late that night. To celebrate, we went to Antico pizza for lunch that next Friday and then to the Braves game!

Lindsay's family was also at the game, so we met up with them to watch Rachel run the bases - too cute!

Yep, that's my family!

On Saturday, Mitchell had a little birthday celebration so Adam and I just had to partake.

The Roushes came over and brought their photo book of Italy - they were just there in May - so we spent a good amount of time crying about how bad we want to go back.

I observed a Cooking Matters class, and was so excited to see these kids enthusiastic about cooking healthy and delicious food. They were so into it!

Wife of the year RIGHT HERE. Adam started a new job (that will get a post of its own!), so I decided to surprise him with a yummy dinner. It wasn't nearly as flavorful as I had hoped, but I'm still proud of myself. I even lit the grill on my own.

Now that Mitchell's birthday is over, time to move on to ME. We kicked off my birthday celebrations with dinner at the Bakers last Friday. The meal was exactly what I wanted and check out THIS bad boy! Debbie made me a chocolate/peanut butter cake and holy cow was it good!

How cute is this wine cork shadowbox that Kelsey made me? I love it! And I also love my new necklace and nail polishes from Meagan and Nathan. I am spoiled!

For my birthday present from Adam, I wanted to get rid of our huge coffee table and get side tables (oh, the joys of maturing). After attempting to go to the new outlets (we accidentally went on opening day - BAD idea), we headed over to Target and found these gems! Now I just need some pillows to tie in all my crazy colors. 

But my favorite part about being home from Italy? This little diva that we missed a whole bunch!

more ME... and other useless information

This is getting serious. My blog titles are on the fast track to being named "Week of July 30 - August 5." How do people think of witty titles on the reg? More power to you!

Anyway, since both sets of parents were busy on my birthday (can you believe that? On my birthday?!), we postponed my birthday dinners until this past week.

First up, dinner with my parents at Little Alley Steak. WOW, the food was so amazing. It's pricey, but worth the splurge if you have the means. Let me make it clear that Adam and I certainly do not have the means, hence the fact I made my parents take us. :)

My parents also spoiled me with this fabulous Hobo briefcase! I've been using my mom's since I got the new job, but was so excited to finally have one of my own! (Thanks to this picture, I can now see that my disgustingly beat-up yellow flats do not photograph well.)

After dinner, we headed over to my parents' house to wait for one of my very good friends, Christine. She was flying in from NYC, but was leaving first thing in the morning for a wedding in Nashville - so we only had a short window of time to see her. Of course, her plane got delayed and that window ended up being from midnight-2am. Dominica came over and we bothered Mitchell's friends to pass the time, and then we finally got to see our Christine!

Saturday was a lazy, rainy day that Ruthie and I both enjoyed napping through after walking up to get breakfast at Hoboken with that handsome hubs of mine.

That night was another round of ME at the Bakers. We had delicious tacos and she made a Ding Dong cake! It's basically made of Ding Dongs and whipped cream - and so worth every calorie.

Once again, I was so spoiled! Turns out my fabulous MIL (one of the two people I know that actually read this... HI DEBBIE!), has been turning to my blog and Facebook posts for present ideas. Come Christmas time, this blog will strictly be a wish list.

Anyway, Debbie and Dave got me this gorgeous monogram necklace - LOVE!!!

Kelsey got me this B-E-A-Utiful necklace, and Meagan & Nathan bought me a book (Water for Elephants) and my favorite Skinnygirl cocktail! What a wonderful, wonderful birthday!

Side note: I also got these bracelets from Dominica and Natalie (respectively), and some earrings from Alysa. I guess this was the birthday of jewelry - which I am not mad about!

This is such a terrible picture, and doesn't do the bracelet any justice!

Yesterday the weather was beautiful, so after an awesome morning of church and brunch, we spent the afternoon at the pool where I got to start my birthday book - so far so good!

Have I mentioned how much I love hanging out with Adam? I guess it's pretty convenient that I like him almost as much as I love him. Seriously, I don't think any couple has as much fun as we do. And then you throw Ruthie in the mix? We are just the happiest campers, ever! Actually, I think Ruthie and Adam would be content without me in the picture, but they're not getting rid of me. :)

Ok - final random blurb. I tried this new thing called Stitch Fix. Basically, you sign up and about a week later they send you an in-depth fashiony questionnaire. (All these fashion sites try to make it "Invite Only" and so exclusive, but really  I think it's their way of justifying the fact that they take their sweet time getting back to you initially.) Moving on! After I filled out the fun questionnaire, I paid $20 and in a week they sent me a box of 5 items based on what I filled out. If I decided to keep anything, the $20 went toward my purchase, and if I decided to keep all 5 items the $20 goes toward it and you get 25% off! I decided that I just had to keep one item, since it will probably be the last time I actually do it. It was super fun, but I find much better deals at TJ Maxx! If you'd like to try it (it's fun - just do it once!), then here's the link. I have to admit, if you use that link and actually do it, I get a credit. If you don't want to help a sister out, just go to their homepage - you won't hurt my feelings (only because I won't know you STABBED me in the back!). Totally kidding...kind of. Here's the loot I got! I only kept the fun dress on the far right.

Well, that's my week wrap up! Maybe next week it won't be all about me... but maybe it will. :)