I was so excited to start this blog back in the spring. The idea struck me in the winter of last year- I love cooking, entertaining and celebrating so much and I thought it would be such great fun to share the little things that I do to make events extra special, no matter how small. I got a few posts written and shared and then my new found blogging hobby came to a screeching halt in June- but for a great reason!

I have dreamed of owning my own home for several years. When I graduated from undergrad, I lived with my parents for four years, saving up instead of spending on apartment rent (thanks mom and dad!) so one day I could purchase a real, grown up house of my own. On June 29th this past summer I walked into a sweet little red brick house with black and white trim (literally what rolled off my tongue every time someone asked what I was “looking for” I swear!) and fell in love. It felt like falling down from the top of a roller coaster and landing securely at the bottom of the dip, glad you went though the whole crazy ride, but also glad that it’s over.

Searching was so much harder than I thought. I got ahold of an amazing realtor and had so much help and support from my parents and family, but there were several houses that I found and “loved” on a Tuesday that would be gone by Wednesday morning.

The day I found my house I had been to see a few…not so great places with my realtor and I was feeling so sad and discouraged. I had a pretty strict budget and was wondering if I couldn’t really afford what I dreamed of. I went home in a terrible mood and as I was pouting on the couch my dear dad peeked his head over the upstairs ledge:

“Did you see the one I just sent you?” (We had gotten into the habit of sending each other potential listings about fifteen times a day.)

“No. I’m not looking at any more houses today.”

“Just look, just one more.”

And it was the one.

I made an appointment to see the house with my realtor the next morning at eleven AM, but I was absolutely convinced that it would sell in the night- after all it had happened to me twice already!

I couldn’t sleep all night and apparently neither could my parents because we all woke up at around 6:30 in the morning, sitting on the couch waiting to go, not really talking.

My realtor called me at 8:30 and I thought;

“Well, it must be gone.”

But instead I heard;

“Can you come now? Like, right now?”

So my parents and I jumped into the car, drove the fifteen minutes from their house to mine (huge selling point for all parties) walked in through the gorgeous forrest green door with the antique brass knocker and I absolutely knew.

If searching for my house was crazy the process of buying it was even more insane! There were tons of bumps in the road, but sitting here at my kitchen table, looking out the window at the lake(!) across the street, they have more than faded away.

New house, new season…

In my own little corner, in my own little chair…

I hope we sit on this couch together a million more times- maybe less sweaty…

The night I moved in it was over 90 degrees and pouring rain. We had champagne to cool off.

The best moving crew around!

And so I didn’t post anything all summer. One because I hardly shared the details of my home-buying process with anyone (always convinced something terrible would happen and I would lose the house) and two because from searching for a house to closing, to moving it has been ALL CONSUMING.

This week I have gotten to observe my first real change in seasons in my new home from summer into fall and it has been so magical and beautiful. I had my grandparents over for my first real dinner party of my own, all by myself. I had trick or treaters! I raked my yard and replaced exterior light bulbs. I moped the floors and lit candles and poured fancy booze into all of the beautiful decanters I was gifted when I moved in.

The entire process was so much more challenging than I ever anticipated, but worth it. I mean, come on- I stare at a lake while I do dishes.

I am absolutely thrilled and beyond grateful to have accomplished such a big dream of mine. I had so much help from everyone I love, and I’m so exited to get “carryed away” thanking them by sharing my home with them every chance that I get!

And maybe blogging about it all. 🙂

In my family, we have this absolutely wonderful, yet crazy time of year from March until June when it seems like we have an excuse to celebrate something nearly every weekend. It starts at the end of March with my younger brother’s birthday, then we celebrate my sister and dad in April, my birthday comes in early May right before (and sometimes on) Mother’s Day, my older brother comes in June right before Father’s Day and my parent’s wedding anniversary at the end of the month- phew! We have lots of special traditions and celebrations that we get to enjoy during this time of year and it’s always such a great time of year for us- and it always means a TON of parties and entertaning for a few months.

This year, I’ve discovered that one of the best ways to throw a super causal and really fun get together is to keep it simple and stick with a charcuterie spread! My parents threw a surprise get together for me when I graduated in April (another celebration and yes, I was 100% surprised!) and as neither of them loves to cook like I do, they simply assembled a giant, and gorgeous charcuterie board across their entire kitchen island and this has been our go-to all season long. My older brother loved it so much, he requested that we re-create it for his birthday celebration a few weeks later.

We went to our favorite grocery store and simply selected meats, cheeses, fruits, nuts, chips, crackers and some sweet items that looked interesting and paired well together and arranged them across the counter. For our “boards” we used leftover flooring tiles that weren’t used in my parents bathroom a few years ago- seriously! We also have a few green slate tiles left over from the kitchen floor that also totally work. It gives the same look and feel as one of those huge wooden cutting boards, but we didn’t have one so we improvised!

When arranging a great charcuterie board, you want to make sure you get a good variety of items; something salty, spicy, creamy, crunchy- hit all those flavor notes! Add something fresh and green to the spread (I used basil leaves arranged alongside bright orange clementines) to make it extra pretty.

What makes this fun is instead of spending days preparing a sit-down meal, all you have to do is assemble, and people can wander around and chat while they eat as much or as little as they want of all of the offerings. It’s a very fun and casual feel and saves tons of dishes! We also had some cocktail plates and napkins that went with our color scheme so people could stack up a plate and move to chat with other guests.

We’ve thrown a “charcuterie party” at least three times this season and I can’t say if we’ll ever stop- it really does make for the perfect laid-back summer get-tother when it’s too hot to cook and you’d rather spend time with your family and friends than your dishwasher. It’s foolproof. Give it a try!