braving the backyard! guest blogger :: shanna scott

If you have been following us any, you know that Shanna is a very good friend of ours, that just so happens to be handy with the camera too. She came over to take pictures of frames (for our etsy shop). While Arre helped her organize and pick frames to photograph, I wrangled 4 little girls inside. Annabelle (who is always very sweet and well behaved) and my 3. Afterwards we ordered sushi and had the guys pick it up. A couple of days later shanna sent this e-mail...she said I could post it :)
Since Kristen was (very) busy keeping 4 girls b/t the ages of 4 months and 4 years, and Arre was feverishly (literally b/c of the heat/humidity and impending thunderheads that were building) organizing the frames to be photographed, my camera lens caught a bit more detail than you two were aware of...

In case you weren't aware, my photography skills have developed to the point ; ) where I apparently now need an entourage of assistants (aka aggravations). Accompanying me on this shoot were one curious cat and 2 creepy crawlers.

The first creepy crawler was a really large prehistoric looking bug. I have no idea what type of bug it was, but I'm not a fan of it. I saw some other dead ones around the yard, but decided to spare y'all photos of that.

The cat. Curiousity (almost made me) kill(ed) the cat. Just kidding. I wouldn't do that but this cat, not unlike most others, was a pain in the rear. Sorry if y'all like cats. I lived w/ a really really devious little cat in college. It would purposefully (yes, purposefully - i know it!) pass gas while it was right next to me (in my face to be exact!), knock things over in my room and go back and do it again right after I picked them up, and hide under my bed and pounce/scratch my feet as I walked by. Since then, I'm really just not a fan of felines. Anyway, this cat was clearly jealous that the Stewart and James handcrafted frames were the star of the shoot instead of itself. It tried several strategies to sabotage the shoot.

It chewed my toes and the wooden peg for the frames several times. It purposefully knocked over a couple of the props that the frames were leaning up against. It was running through my legs as I was walking and almost tripped me several times. It tried to get in numerous photos. All of this is well documented.

Kristen, are you sure that you haven't been feeding this cat? Hmm...I seem to remember one friendly feline that took a liking to y'all's house on Hilltop where soon after you began feeding it and soon after that it gave birth next to your driveway.

Anyway, the cat is fired.

My final assistant was a very strange, albino looking furry bug. Yes, the bug was furry. White fur. You can see it in the photo.

Perhaps it is a chameleon bug b/c it was trying to disguise itself on a white frame. Who knows? Maybe an entymologist would. I've never seen a bug like this before. Well, I had to move on w/ the job so I flicked the bug off of the frame.. No worries, Kristen. The bug was not harmed. However, when it landed it sort of skidded across the black step and left a white trail - due to it's weird white fur, I assume.

In spite of the heat/humidity and rain clouds, the cat and bugs, and the issue of having to choose sushi rolls without a menu (Yeah, that's why 2 of the rolls tasted like cat food. Kristen could've fed those 2 to the cat.. Must get a to-go menu.) and 4 little ladies under 4, I'd say it was a success and the frames will sell like hot cakes on y'all's etsy.com store! :)

kristen again: here are some photos from mj's point of view while photo shoot was going on and then a sneak peek of what's to come on etsy. Hopefully it won't take me too long to get these photos up on etsy so you can buy, but with 3 little munchkins running around (well one, laying around)... it takes me a while! So i will be back on here (the blog) to let you know when they are up!! first...a couple of photos by MJ ...
annabelle & molly

mills

and now for the etsy photos! (by shanna)











well.. you get the idea! Please check back for info on these frames being posted. If you already see one you have to have and want more info, then just leave me a comment and we'll arrange it :)
post by kristen & shanna

You can’t judge a book (or cafe) by it’s cover (or decor) guest blogger :: shanna scott

By now, y’all know Shanna – she needs little introduction but here are a few posts by and about her and her little girl.  She is really (really) pregnant with baby #2, so we are even more grateful to her for filling in our lack of posts lately.  Thank you Shanna!
Here’s a photo of her taking pictures at a baby shower this past weekend (post to come on that shower soon!)
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Hey, I'm guest blogging for the 2nd time. This is Shanna. Hope everyone is having a wonderful spring (FINALLY!) day.  Here's my story...
Much like you can't judge a book by its cover, you can't judge a cafe by its decor. Yesterday, I heard of a new lunch spot in Albany. I was told that the food was so good, like Lola's in Thomasville, a place I used to frequent for lunch when I was working in Thomasville for the day. I was told that the atmosphere was a little nightclubish and this person also told me that when she walked in, she was hesitant to eat there and almost left but stuck it out and loved the food!
So, I went w/ some friends. And had I not been told by a trusted source, the former owner of said Lola's, which served delicious and fresh and interesting salads, soups, sandwiches, desserts, etc. then I would've never set foot in this place to eat a meal. It is a nightclub. Oh, I've eaten a restaurants that turned into bars at night in Athens - like East West, Last Resort, Harry Bissets, etc. But, those are restaurants that people come to for drinks after dinner hour. And they still look like restaurants.
But, did I ever eat food from Gus'? Oh no. Not a chance. By my junior or senior year there was a hole in the floor in the bathroom that people peed in b/c the toilet (apparently) stopped working and they took the toilet out and did not patch the hole. And who needs a toilet after 4 or 5 cheap liquor drinks? Not sorority girls in Athens, ladies that they are. All that is needed at that point is a hole in the floor or a tree or a dark street. But, Gus' graciously did still supply the toilet paper, even though there was no toilet. Thank you.
So, now after all that are you ready to talk about food? : )
Fear not - this place is clean. And the food is really great, but the decor and name will totally throw you off and I just had to forewarn you so that you will actually enter through the doors and sit down. A couple that was just walking in almost left as we were leaving because they were thrown off by the name and atmosphere. We told them to stay and eat!
It's called Karma Cafe and it is located next to the Crate and House of China 2 in the old San Jose's building. One would think they would serve some sort of Indian food with lots of curry by the name, but it's really great American lunch food. Also, the color scheme is black and maroon (not my fav. - haven't seen much of that color scheme in Country Living lately) which is hardly something you would associate w/ a fabulous lunch of a bacon, lettuce, and fried green tomato sandwich served on texas toast with aioli and delicious homemade macaroni and cheese as the side. We debated for a while on the spicy pimento cheese sandwich served w/ fried green tomato or bacon, but went w/ instead went with the chicken salad sandwich served w/ fresh tomato and lettuce on a buttery croissant and a side salad with homemade strawberry vinaigrette. The black bean spread w/ warm pita slices was a tasty appetizer and Annabelle loved it. Oh, and the french onion soup was delicious. They do have lighter salads and sandwiches also but we were into the heavier foods yesterday. The sides are great and there are so many great ones to choose from...broccoli salad...yum!
As an added bonus, our kind server overheard that it was Angie Elliott's birthday and she brought us a warm, rich, and decadent chocolate brownie served a la mode with gooey chocolate sauce - on the house no less! This 8.5 month pregnant mama sincerely thanks you for that, kind server.
The menu is plentiful and well-rounded and has so much to choose from that we had a hard time deciding what to order, coupled along w/ the daily specials. Karma Cafe caters and also has late night snacks for the clubbers. They've only been open as a cafe for about 3 weeks and haven't done any advertising yet, as they are trying to get all their staffing worked out. But, the chef was rockin' yesterday and our server was excellent. Don't take my word for it - you must try it for yourself and see. We need to support a place w/ such good and interesting food. Oh, and the prices are reasonable, as well.
It's all just another lesson that we all know so well but just can't seem to really get - you just cannot judge someone, something, or someplace on looks alone. You've got to find out what's on the inside.
Shanna

How Cute Is...

Shanna?!

Remember Shanna (or her house or daughter for that matter!)? Well, she has a new house and is still an enthusiastic supporter of stewart & james.

Here are a few shots of her keeping room - decked out in s&j

and occupied by her cutie patooties

thanks for sharing Shanna! we love you!

xx

mother’s day

“There’s a time when you have to explain to your children why they’re born and it’s a marvelous thing if you know the reason”  --Hazel Scot

i know the reasons but don’t want to forget so I'm taking notes (for the rest of my life) …

There is something so sweet about the day you meet your child... and the days that follow.  Ask anyone that knows me: when i talk about the day each of my children were born my eyes well up, and i want to do it all over again. I feel so blessed and happy to have these little people in my life and I don’t want to forget a moment of it.  So, here is my elephant list (because an elephant never forgets)

sweet baby breath

 

chubby armed hugs



sweet voices telling me I'm their best friend



oh those squeezable rolls



carefree twirls



kisses on the lips (and these precious cheeks)

 
photo by sarah bennett

baby dances (head bobbing, swaying, hands on knees bouncing)

kid hair..sweet light, care free, bouncy curls



tiny little hands



being taught patience from the greatest teachers on earth


photo by sarah bennett

pure innocence


photo by shanna scott

mending a hurt heart over something simple



from the gut laughs….

toothless smiles

innocent precious faces


photo by shanna scott

peaceful sleepers



this list could go on and on but for now…i think it’s a good start :)

happy mother’s day moms- hug your little (or big ones!) today!

how cute is

Shanna?!

Annabelle gets it honest.

Her Mom's warm (!) den is accented with Stewart and James frames

featuring none other than A.B.'s cute face!

(only our photographer friend would send us this last picture ;) we love you!

we, make that 'i', sort of dropped the ball last week and our blog went Friday Feature-less. Kristen IS the one who had the baby - but I was almost equally preoccupied with the little bundle of joy! Thus, this week's double feature!



photos courtesy of Shanna Scott

post by arre

this week in pictures

Life has been fun and hectic and exciting and just a small itty bit stressful lately.  We are so close to being out of school we are just pretending like we already are (besides actually attending). 

 

The picture above makes me laugh…the girls spend so much time on our bed and Mills rarely stops moving these days.  We also had a friend over that we love!  If you have kids and don’t have a tent like this – it is a must-have Santa gift!  (i do realize it’s just May) Easy to move around and you can take it anywhere.  I would tell you where to get it but ours was passed on from someone else so I’m not sure!  Please leave a comment if you know!

 

and away from home…

In case you are 1 of the 2 people in this world that aren’t on facebook, you may have not heard…but our frames were on The Nate Berkus Show. (i know there is at least one person in the world that’s not on facebook because it’s our friend shanna..and you may be the other one, but that’s it – i’m certain)

 

And how lucky am I to have a partner that throws a viewing party (for 2) like this.  Doughnuts are not pictured but were an important part to the excitement! 

Also on my camera this week:

 

This is the entryway to Kay Fuller Interiors (arre borrowed my camera – she works there) If you don’t know us, you may not know that our Mother-in-law is a talented decorator and has a store here in town.  I just loved this picture arre took so wanted to throw it out there!  Like Kay Fuller Interior’s on facebook and if you are local – go see the store!  She has some really great finds!

And lastly – I snapped this picture of Mills this morning.  I was talking to Molly about how I was going to work again today and Mills listened and froze her face like this staring at me (long enough for me to grab the camera).  I am not sure if it’s terror or confusion.

Thanks to our Nate Berkus appearance we’ve been a bit busier and I think she’s wondering if I am ever coming back or if she gets to eat ice cream sandwiches for breakfast every morning (like this morning).  

Have a wonderful weekend friends!

A fairy tea party

a few weeks ago Molly and her friend Presley turned 4 and we had a fairy tea party in their honor!  The rain teased us all day but finally as the party got closer, the sun peeked out a few times so kids were free to play outside.  Here are a few fun shots from the day.

previous fairy tea party posts

decorations    *      invitaions      *       food & favors

 

the birthday girls

 

menu:

thumbprint cookies

pretzels dipped in white chocolate and sprinkles

cupcakes (from the box – made early and froze until morning of party)

tea (pink lemonade)

and for the adults: cheese dip in a Hawaiian bread bowl served cold (you’ve seen this before!)

• 4 c shredded cheese
• 16 oz. sour cream
• 8 oz. cream cheese
• 3 or 4 green onions chopped
• 2 tomatoes diced

scoop out the hawaiian bread bowl, mix together ingredients, put into bread bowl and serve with fritos or pita chips

  

 

 

 

 

last 3 photos by shanna scott