Pre Thanksgiving Dinner

Thanksgiving always comes at the perfect time of year! It's a great opportunity to spend time thinking about everything we are grateful for and to really count the blessings in our life. There are so many things I am thankful for its hard to write them all down or even remember them, but my top 5 things I am grateful for this year are:

Good Health |  Family | The Gospel | Amazing Friends |The Opportunity to Chase My Dreams|

Every year for Thanksgiving my entire extended family travels to St. George and we spend the weekend together going to movies, shooting guns, 4-wheeling, going on hikes, and having a great Thanksgiving feast. 
However, the Sunday before my mom always cooks a Thanksgiving meal with the recipes she learned from her mother and its one of my favorite meals she makes. I had the privilege of decorating the main dining table for this wonderful meal. 

Theme: Simplistic Natural Harvest 

[Because we did dinner family style, I needed space on the table for the food dishes - so I tried to keep the decorations simple. I wanted to evoke fall's abundance so I used pinecones, fall leaves, twigs and burlap to help give it that rustic feel] 

My mom has amazing china & table clothes for just about anything. All the plates, silverware, glasses and napkins were hers. 

I found a great (free) template from TheTomKatStudio for place cards to keep with my simple yet rustic feel.

Coming up with a centerpiece was more of a challenge. I don't particularly love tall centerpieces in intimate settings because I feel like you can't have a conversation with the person across from you. Twigs and Pinecones were the perfect combination and allowed me to add a lot of special details. (also because the craft stores put away their Fall decor with Halloween and only Christmas decorations were out)

My mom makes THE BEST Homemade Apple Pie - which is a recipe that her mother passed down to her. 

I wanted to feature this wonderful pie and so I created a "Pie Display" area in the kitchen. 

These are just a few of the great things we had at dinner - these rolls are also made from scratch and were delicious! My mother is an INCREDIBLE COOK!

Almond Cranberry Salad with Poppy Seed Dressing

Spinach

Chopped Cabbage 

Green Onions

Cranberries

Candied Almonds

Grated Parmesan Cheese

Brianna's Homestyle Poppy Seed Dressing 

It was a delicious homemade meal and I seriously credit it all to my mother! She has always been an amazing cook and one day I will learn to be as great as she is. 

Maybe next year I will make some of the food. 

I am thankful for a great year and the opportunity to celebrate this holiday with loved ones.

xoxo

S

The FALL is my favorite time of the year

I definitely don't consider myself a "fashionista" or your typical fashion blogger, but on the list of my top 5 favorite things, I would put shopping 2nd (right above brunch). 

I wanted to post pictures of some of my favorite outfits from the FALL! Not only is that my favorite time of the year, its also my favorite time to shop! Scarves. Booties. Jackets. 

Because I love shopping so much, I have a lot of clothes [but without a big budget] therefore many of my clothes come from discount stores, Forever 21 - H&M - Nordstrom Rack - TJ Maxx. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE me some Banana Republic, The Limited & full line Nordstrom. 

I had a great time this fall going on hikes, wondering Salt Lake City and going on crazy adventures, I thought I would share some of my favorite memories. 

My impromptu photo-op at some random house in SLC. 

These army green pants are SO comfortable and I'm obsessed with my tan, sandal heels. Simple is always the way to go. 

Pants: Nordstrom Rack | Top: H&M | Shoes: SoleSociety.com |

| Bullet Necklace: Uptown Cheapskate |

This was my first time visiting Elephant Rock - which is a hike in Bountiful, Utah. I am obsessed with the fall colors & it was a gorgeous view! 

I recently discovered how much I love flannel! It adds character and style to any basic outfit.

|Flannel: Forever 21|

These beautiful yellow leaves can be found driving up Alpine Loop in American Fork, Utah. I may have gotten very nauseous on this drive but it was definitely worth it for the view. 

Out of all my Fall outfits - this one is probably my favorite! It is simple, classic and has a little bit of the fall colors. Plus, I am obsessed with these tan boots. 

|Shirt, Paige Jeans, Boots & Scarf : Nordstrom Rack|

I am sad that the fall is over and we are starting to get snow and freezing temperatures. The great thing about the winter is that I can still wear my scarves and boots. 

xoxo,

S

Murder at the Grand Gatsby – Murder Mystery Dinner Party

A few weeks ago my best friend Heather and I threw our 1^st annual Halloween Murder Mystery Party. It was so much fun to get our close friends together, drive an hour up to Midway, UT and host a 20’s themed party in an old, unfamiliar house.

Heather purchased the Murder at the Grand Gatsby game from mymysteryparty.com.  It was an instant download and provided EVERYTHING we needed. From character descriptions and costume ideas, to every clue and menu ideas. This definitely made the party easy to put together and had a great surprise ending!

I kind of put myself in charge of the decorations and food while Heather worked on the logistics! I love planning events and parities, I could do it for the rest of my life.
 
Here are some pictures of the party:

I LOVED putting together this table. The dining room was quite small so we had to rearrange everything to fit 15 chairs. 

[[The center pieces are just spray painted glass vases from the DI and feathers are from Hobby Lobby. We used black cloth napkins to add a little dimension to the table]]

We included a "Make Your Own Mocktail" bar and just used lace fabric as the table cloth. For an added 20's Speakeasy fill we posted "Closed for Violation of National Prohibition Act" signs all over the doors and windows. 

Spray painted Martini glasses with pearls & Great Gatsby deco art name cards really added a special 20's touch. [Don't mind the plastic silverware and plates, we were in a small kitchen at a house we were borrowing, and didn't want to spend the night doing dishes]

I have amazing friends who all offered to help bring appetizers! We had great food and good company. We did lemon rosemary crockpot chicken as the main course. (Heather and I were on a strict diet at the time and could only eat proteins and veggies so we made a meal that we could have as well. The chocolate cake was the most tempting! )

Dinner was hilarious because everyone remained in character (as you can tell)

In order to mix up the night and to add a little more fun. We played a lot of games and activities. My personal favorite was "So You Think You Can Dance" where guests picked a dance style and then had to dance it out. Can you tell what style Becca & Zach got?

Everyone did such a great job with their costumes! I was so impressed and loved that everyone took their character and really went with it!

It was an amazing party with great friends, great mocktails & TWO great murders! We can't wait for the next one!

xoxo, 

S