Blogger's Ball

1) What was your best part of 2012?
The best part of 2012 was definitely buying my childhood home. We were so blessed to get it at such a good deal in the area it's in. My parents are amazing and I am so glad they made this possible.

2) What was your favorite song/book/movie of 2012?
Favorite song (I am picking 2):

My Grandfather passed away January 30th 2010. He was my go to person, my best friend. This song just felt like it was for him. 

How can you not love Alex Clare? Definitely my most listened too station on Pandora.

Favorite book: 

Gone with the Wind. Shocking, I know. I re-read it this year and fell in love again. I am a little Scarlett-ish at times. I know she is the whiny one we love to hate, but I am a fellow hard headed bitch and I love her. 

Favorite movie:

I love Edgar Allan Poe and the movie was crazy. 

3) What was your biggest accomplishment of 2012?

We managed to change our lives financially. We got on the right track and bought a new house and a new car. Now we are moving towards getting out of credit card debt by June. We want the house paid off in 8 years instead of 30. Thank you Dave Ramsey program. 

4) What are you looking forward to the most in 2013?

I am looking forward to riding a lot more and getting out of debt. I am also looking forward to my best friends wedding in October. 

5) What are your new years resolutions?

- Get out of debt

- Lose weight and get healthy

- Ride more and fix all of my weaknesses

- Go to church more

- try one new recipe a week

- be a better blogger

- be a better southern belle. (class it up, entertain more, be kinder)

Ms. Tobacco Heiress goes to town

So a few months ago we met Ms. Tobacco heiress ( some how my post deleted itself) but she was the elderly southern bell that said her cows were bred better than some of her family. Seriously, this women is a card. The other day she was pulling out of her driveway and stopped to talk to mom. She mentioned she was headed to town and the roads were slick so mama told her to be careful. The 70 something year old looked at mama and said, " Darling, I have got my .38 pistol and my Bible tucked in my purse. I will be okay." That is why you don't mess with a southern belle. We are tough and feisty and we usually have God on our side. Ms. Tobacco heiress is my hero. I hope to be just like her one day.

 

Big Things Poppin'

I am excited for January guys. Very excited. I have a giveaway planned and possibly a swap if I can get a co-host or two. So if you want in on this, email me. Let's work together.

I am also going into the year more organized. Be still my OCD heart. I am so excited. I have a planner for everyday life, one for bills and one for the blog. A more organized me means a more effective sponsor program. It also means that with the new bill planner, the hubs and I will be out of debt by June. That is amazing. We will just owe on the house and car, but no more credit cards.

I also have already started a diet. I decided why wait until the new year. My husband and my horses need me to be healthy now. Plus our riding uniforms are not figure friendly.

White spandex ya'll. Who decided that we would wear white? It gets dirty and we are working with animals and it makes anyone look huge. That is why we are dieting like cray cray. But not crazy enough to give up wine or Bacardi Hurricanes or sweet tea.

Big things are happening ya'll, big things. Join me!

A Simple Christmas

This year the holiday was simple and cozy and perfect. We didn't do anything unusual just dinner and 24 hr Christmas story and quality family time.

My gorgeous sister. She is home again and things are better. I am glad, I missed her annoying ways.

The three of us. We are sisters, but we are all so different.

Me and the hubs! I love this picture, even if he is fake smiling. 

A new camera to film his new baby. 

And speaking of the bundle of joy!

Sweet baby K's first Christmas! 

I hope you all had a wonderful holiday! 

Working on Christmas Eve

That's right. I have some type of cold/bug type thing and I am working. Daddy said it could be a half day. Thank God. I am very pretty today. Tissue and TheraFlu adorn every corner of my desk. And because this is a sick/half day and I am counting on not having any customers I am dressed in yoga pants Whitney style. That girl is a genius. I am sure she wears it cuter but cut me some slack, I look/feel like death. And a customer just showed up. Gotta run! Merry Christmas Eve!!!

Friday Letters- A letter to Carter.

Dear Carter, Thank you. Thank you for being that horse that brings me back to me, even if you are just temporarily in my life. You have brought my confidence up. You have given me a purpose again. You have put me back on the path to my passion. I love you for this. I know you were an investment. One to sell, but little man I want you to know that working with you was an investment in my soul, not financially. I feel so alive on your back, like I can still do this. It's like I am at peace up there just teaching you how to balance physically as you teach me to balance mentally. How did you do this? The horse I thought I would like the least and you suck me in. You make me feel like an equestrian. You make me feel like a trainer. You make me feel alive. Dressage is riding as if two were one and I truly feel that on your back. You have been so brave this month. Coming down from New York to a new barn with a new rider and going straight to work. I am proud of you Carter. I will do my best to make sure the home you land in understands your talent and appreciates you and love you like I do. You are my blessing, even if only for a minute.

An extra Christmas gift (A Giveaway)

Update: We have a winner! Congrats! We will be emailing you shortly.
Today I have a treat for you. A few of the lovely ladies in this blogging community decided to get together and host a giveaway for you! This is the first giveaway ever at The Grace of Southern Charm and I am so very excited!

So here goes....

Betsy at Simply Southern is giving away three different hand creams, OPI nail polish, three nail flies, heel file, and toe separators. The perfect way to relax. 

Alyssa at Ten Feet off Beale is giving away a gorgeous custom embroidery hoop and two months ad space!
The embroidered hoops are gorgeous.

Sarah at Life in a Breakdown is giving away Soap and Glory Tricks of the Shade box. So after you pamper yourself and make your house pretty you can get pretty. Love it.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

A Moment of Silence

Today we take a moment of silence to pray and to remember the victims. 

Children, mothers,brothers, sisters, wives. 

They were all taken senselessly. 

Today we remember them. 

Charlotte Bacon, 6

Rachel D'Avino, 29

Olivia Engel, 6

Dylan Hockley, 6

Dawn Lafferty Hochsprung, 47

Jesse Lewis, 6

Ana Marquez-Greene, 6

Grace McDonnell, 7

Anne Marie Murphy, 52

Emilie Parker, 6

Noah Pozner, 6

Jessica Rekos, 6

Mary Sherlach, 56

Lauren Rousseau, 30

Victoria Soto, 27

Daniel Barden, 7

Josephine Gay, 7

Madeleine Hsu, 6

Catherine Hubbard, 6

Chase Kowalski, 7

James Mattioli, 6

Jack Pinto, 6

Caroline Previdi, 6

Avielle Richman, 6

Benjamin Wheeler, 6

Allison Wyatt, 6.

Pray for Newtown

Today I was going to actually post something after a brief break. I was going to explain where I have been and all the excitement hitting my life. Then something happened... something that made my life and everything in it right now seem so trivial. Our nation was rocked by another selfish killer. This time the killer attacked innocent children. Innocent children that were looking forward to the holidays. Children who were trying to learn and grow. Children who had big dreams. They are gone.

What goes through a monster's head? Why did he have to attack people? Why did the kids have to die?

I pray for the community, the families and friends. I pray for the faculty of Sandy Hook Elementary. I pray for the children who witnessed the horrific events that unfolded today. I pray for the children that lost their lives. I pray that the nation is praying.

I will see you guys Monday.

Deck the Halls...

That is exactly what we did this weekend. If you follow me on instagram (@lilmrsh) you have seen the evidence! If not your about too...

Gorgeous? I think so. 

Christmas is rough. I have been trying to keep myself busy. So far, so good. 

A customer was irritated today,and made it a little tough. I told him I would get the owner for him... he shouts, " you can't the owner is DEAD!" My stomach dropped and I felt sick.  I hate the word "dead". He is no longer with us. He isn't HERE anymore. I just informed the ass Dad was the owner now. Then I sobbed. Uncontrollably at work. In front of 18 guys who just don't know how to handle it when girls cry. 

I am better now. I am sitting here enjoying the Christmas decor and ignoring any negativity that may come my way. I don't need it. No one needs it. Push away the negativity folks and enjoy the season. That's what I plan to do. Remember the reason for the season. Hug your loved ones. Sorry this went from happy to Debbie downer. 

Oh How Pinteresting

I love this link up. You get to see all the randomness that caught my A.D.D eye. There is no rhyme or reason to this one. That seems to be my thing this week.

Source: Tumblr via Angela B on Pinterest

Source: Gypsy Farm Girl via Keeley R

Source: Project Decor via Tracey C. on Pinterest

Source: Tumblr via Donna H

Source: The comfort of cooking via James N

             

Happy Little accidents and lunch in the trees

It was on of those days at work. Remember those guys I work with? The ones that bicker, tattle, complain and whine... well one of those little joys decided to attack me over a mistake that I didn't even make. 

That's right, yelled at me over a mistake that I couldn't help because I didn't do. 

He caught me on a bad day. I told him what I thought. Then I felt like a mean phsyco afterwards. Next time I am just going to look at him and say..... 

Who can argue with happy little accidents? No one. That's who. 

Moving on before my blood pressure goes up again... 

My Bff has moved back to Georgia! Thank God! I have missed her. She is my person.

 We went to lunch Saturday at a local nursery/gift shop. They moved all the small Christmas trees into the cafe and decorated them. So we had lunch in a mini forest! We also drove around looking at different neighborhoods for her to buy a house. We rounded out the night with a cookout, SEC football, wine and a bonfire. It was an awesome girl's day. 

I just noticed this post has no rhyme or reason. Sorry. Just a mumble jumbled update. It's kind of awkward but then again so am I. 

By the way... we still haven't put up a tree. Is any one else slacking in the Christmas department?  

How to tell if your hubby REALLY loves you...

This weekend I would say I really tested Mr.'s love. I mean really tested it. The test...

Step 1
Ask him if he will help you with a "project" even though he is on call this weekend. It's just a small project. When he asks what the project vaguely point to the back yard.

Step 2
Once in the backyard wrangle him to the barn, which you haven't bother to straighten up since you moved in.  Hand him a shovel and ask him to help you level a stall. 6 wheel barrels full of dirt later ask if he would like to take a break.

Step 3
Just when he thinks he is off the hook, hand him a bottle of bleach and ask him to help you bleach all the buckets and mats in the place.

Step 4
Try to look as sexy as possible in sweatpants and a tshirt with hay and poop and shavings all over you while asking if he will now help you set up one more stall and your feed room (if he whistles or smacks your booty he is passing the test).

Step 5
Once you are done, talk about how exhausted and achy you are even though he did most of the work. If he pulls you close (mud, hay and all) and kisses your forehead, he passed.

Being an equestrian is glamorous I tell ya, and I don't know what I would do without the hubs. I would have spent 3 days working in the barn instead of just one! I will say I always feel like a new person after barn work days. There is something so relaxing about getting so gross and working until you hurt. It's like I work out all my issues right there in the barn with the horses and then I get to come inside and stand in the shower and wash it all away. As cheesy as it sounds I feel like a new person afterwards.



Thank God for horses... and my amazing hubs.

It's okay Thursday

It's been on of those days... But it's okay. 

... that at one point today I felt the anxiety and OCD take over. I told everyone to leave me alone for 5 minutes and organized my space. Then I popped a Valerian root pill. 
... That I filled a drawer full of "I'll do it laters..."
... that I was so excited I shrieked to see the company not only on the local news but TMZ as well.  I should really be used to the media by now, but I am not. Even after 25 years. Lame I know.

... that I have put off cleaning all week. I plan on catching up this weekend. 

... that I am so excited that my bestie is home from Washington and we are planning her wedding. I am more excited about planning her's than mine. No pressure with her wedding. lol kidding Emma. Kinda... 

... that every time I hold baby K someone asks if I plan on having one soon. This doesn't mean we have to jump on the band wagon. I have time right?

... that I feel the winter depression setting in. I will not go on a prescription again. I have my husband and my family and my friends and you guys. I will be fine. 

.... that I am obsessed with my new cornbread and honey candle by 1803 Candles . Is there anything more southern than cornbread and honey? 

... that I am so ready for Friday. It doesn't mean I love my crew any less. I have 2 families. 

18 negative nelly's

Lately I have been in a blogging slump. My posts have had very little meaning and it shows by the lack of views and emails. I am sorry guys, I really am. I was sitting here staring at my computer trying to figure out where the hell my writing bug went, when it hit me.... 

I work with 18 "men", I use that term loosely, but day to day I deal with 18 men for 12 hours a day. Thank about that for a minute. How many of you live with one and want to scream? Try 18. 

My family owns a towing company and a police impound lot. I deal with grouchy people with broke down cars, who think that obviously it's my fault that there car left them stranded. I get yelled at frequently. I deal with 911 dispatch and work with them to get the roads clean and criminals put away. It's stressful and dangerous. Then I get to tell these 18 men where to go and what to do. That is the worst part of the job.

The boys bicker and tattle and complain and whine and play just like 5 year olds, all while we are trying to run a business! That is where my mojo has gone. I left it where at my desk, where I broke up the last argument between two boys I mean MEN over who got the better paying call. Oy! 

It's not that I don't love the guys. Some of them are family, most are friends and the others eh... they won't last. We can fight one minute and the next minute as a DUIer or local drug dealer is threatening me because we impounded their car they've got my back. It's a strange feeling to know that the guy I wanted to strangle five minutes ago and who was probably complaining about me to all his buddies, will beat anyone's butt if they try to hurt or hinder me. It's almost like I have 18 brothers. I guess I gotta love them. 

I promise I will get back to being me, but I have just been exhausted. We are all stressed at work. The long hours, stress of accidents and being together 24/7 is starting to wear us down. Especially me, stuck in the middle of the boys and the clients, but I promise better days are coming here on this little blog. 

The easiest mac and cheese

I know you guys cannot wait for me to spill the Thanksgiving fun that occurred at the Hermann/Castleberry households. I am going to keep it very brief, because Saturday AM I thought I had manly muscles and lifted a box that weighed a ton. That resulting in my back muscles pulling. This post is fueled by wine and maybe a 303 pill. This should go swimmingly.

Me and sissy Anna!

So Thursday we woke up and made amazing mac and cheese for my family's dinner. It was seriously the easiest and we made it in the crockpot. I forgot to take pictures but here is the recipe.
16 ounces elbow pasta
1/2 cup melted butter
2 eggs beaten
1 can (12oz) evaporated milk
1 can (10 3/4 oz) condensed cheddar soup
1 cup 2% milk
1/8 teaspoon paprika (I left this out)
*Cook the macaroni and drain it. Put it in the crockpot and pour butter on top. Mix all the other ingredients in a bowl and pour them in the crockpot. Stir it all in and let cook for 4 hours, stirring occasionally. YUM.

We went to my gradmother's house and had lunch there. It was pretty low key. No drama, just people in every corner mapping out Black-Friday strategies. I passed on that fun. We then rushed home and through on rolls for his family dinner. My A.D.D kicked in and video games and youTube cause us to burn the only rolls I had prepared. Oops. I swear I can never smoothly prepare for any of his family get togethers. We ended up going to the store and getting the last brown-n-serve rolls they had. Sorry I suck Hermann family, sorry I suck.

We then went to mom's where our little show horse decided to come down with a case of lamnitis, which could potentially put him out of work forever. It can even kill him. We caught it early and took turns cold hosing his sore legs.

Sissy Sara came home to take care of him because he is her baby and it looks like she may be staying. Thank God. My mom was worrying herself to death. Let's hope she stays home where she belongs. By the end of the night she seemed more like herself. We watched movies and looked at cows ( yes, cows) for the farm up here. Two cattle farms will be interesting. I am excited though. Ranching is what hubs loves to do and dad really seems to want to add another herd. 

All in and all it was a peaceful Thanksgiving. Now to to kick it into gear for Christmas!

The truth about holidays

Thursday is Thanksgiving. Sigh... I have mixed emotions about the holidays. It's warm and cozy and you get to eat good food. You also get to see your family... the whole family. This is where it gets hard. I love my family, but since my grandfather passed it seems like something is missing when we all get together. To me the holidays kind of shine a spotlight on those that are missing. It is so hard and depressing. I am hoping Baby K feels that void a little bit this year. Maybe we can all find happiness in this Thanksgiving.

That's the sad part of dealing with the family...  And then you have cousin "Joe" who is gross and loud and you have to deal with him and his kids and his wife who isn't friendly. There are the snarky in-laws commenting on your cooking (I have something up my sleeve for this relative.). There are the kids screaming and fighting and pitching fits. Oh and did I mention that relative who comments on your new car and house and how it must be nice to get whatever you want? Um, no I work for my stuff, maybe if you would get a job instead of coming up with fake excuses, you would have nice things too.

 

This year my sister threw a wrench into it all and told my parents she wanted to move out Monday AM. My mom is devastated and is not attending Thanksgiving. My sister has no idea what she is giving up. My parents bought her a gorgeous horse, a truck, she is in school. She has the world ahead of her, but some stupid boy is in the picture. If they show up to Thanksgiving it is sure to be awkward. If they don't show up mom will be depressed all weekend. 

So grab a drink and prepare for Thursday. I am sure we will all have stories come Monday.

Side note: My husband just looked at me and said can we look at hairstyles for me. Oh lawd.... what is going on in this family.
By the way I sponsored Grin and Barrett this month. Wow, so much traffic
from there and she is adorable. Check out the page now for the Marriage Chronicles.

Weekend re-cap

I did it! This is the first layout I did all by my lonesome. I am actually finally happy with it. I hope you guys like it too.

Moving on... Today has been crazy stressful. Work is insane because we only are taking Thursday off. Chris wasn't scheduled to be off but dad said it would be okay since we will be so slow. Thank God. Thanksgiving is usually hurried because we are technically on call. I think this will be a nice treat.

Speaking of nice treats... If you follow me on Instagram you might have seen this little beauty.

 

That is right, no more raking for me! I was so excited, then we put it together. After about eh.... 15 30 minutes my arms were killing me. I thought this was supposed to make it easier! It cut the time in half but my arms are aching today. I need to get to the gym or something... yeah, right. Anyways, I did tell hubby this is the one time I will be just excited as he is about power tools. Is a leaf blower a power tool?

Another adventure of the weekend... I tried to paint. By myself. With no painters tape. Let's all take a moment to absorb that.... as you can guess it was a disaster. We started like this:

 

All nice and neat and ready to go! Shortly after that, I had paint in my hair, on my hands, on the floor (it wiped up!), on the trim (also wipe-able) and even on my feet. I had rags with paint on them every where. I still painted one whole wall before giving up though. My final straw? One of the paint brushes fell into the paint tray and I proceeded to roll it with paint. At that moment, I decided painting just isn't my gig. I will stick to bossing around tow trucks and riding horses thank you very much. 

Another dog? Am I crazy?

Dear Starbucks fatass Venti peppermint mocha frap, 
You have no idea how loved and needed. I am hyper beyond words. This is the first peppermint mocha of the day. This has made my Friday.

Dear office, 
I am going to attempt to paint you by myself this weekend. BY MYSELF. I just hope your pretty hardwoods don't end up "Rushing Stream Blue". Heck, I hope I don't end up "Rushing Stream Blue."

Dear Riley and Lacey-Lou, 
So, mommy has that itch. You know that "another dog needs me" itch. I have looked at a few, and I am thinking pit. They need so much help. There are two in particular that I feel drawn too, but it's completely up too you guys. Do you want a brother or sister?

 

 

 Dear weekend, 
I plan on being productive. Don't ruin it. Don't tempt me with your lazy lull, shopping ect. It's not going to happen. I need to paint and clean and blog.

Dear OCD, 
You have been slacking. Normally, I go crazy when things are misplaced or dirty. This week the place has gotten out of hand and you haven't kicked in at all. Is it my new meds or am I just that lazy this week?

Dear menu, 
You rocked this week. Flavor-wise not calorie-wise. chicken philly with ranch bacon fries? Yes please. Salisbury steak and mashed potatoes? Yum... Let's keep up the creativity.

Dear bloggy lovelies, 
So I am thinking about changing it up again. Is it too soon since my last switch up? What do ya'll think? Any pointers or tips? 

PS the blog is a mess. Sorry I am switching it up