we're still here...are you?

Well, after more than six months, I finally feel settled enough to start this blog up again. I know the most interesting times to blog are the times when you're most busy, but with graduating from college, getting married, getting a dog and moving to a new house - other things kept taking priority over writing a post. 

An amazing blog entry should be in order after such a long hiatus, but I would have to write a novel to catch you up on everything. Instead, I (with Jonathan's help) have revamped the look and feel of "a girl named grace." When I say help I mean I sat there while he figured out how to redesign it, and I think he made it look pretty great!

This is our cozy house, and that's Ella peering out from her favorite spot. We're in Athens for another year, and we love it. So if you stick with me, I promise to keep posting (really this time!) and share the comings and goings of our little Franklin family. 

smitten with things for the kitchen

This past weekend, my sweet roommates threw me a kitchen shower!

They ordered adorable invitations, bought hydrangeas to match my ring and baked dangerously delicious sweets. You can't imagine how much time I've put into making every last one of Kaiti's strawberry buttercream blondies disappear.

The shower was extra special, because my sister came from Atlanta, Olivia was in town from Nashville and three of my best friends from high school were there. I opened so many thoughtful gifts, including an Anthropologie tablecloth from my roommates ;)

But the most special present was a gift from my mom. She bought me a cookbook that she received at her kitchen shower and marked she and my dad's favorite meals from their first year of marriage. She also sent a stack of my grandmother's recipes. Jackie was the most incredible Southern cook, and she wrote out all of her recipes for my mom years ago.

I felt so special, and all of this is starting to feel more real now that Jonathan and I have stuff for our little house. Thank you to everyone who came and helped stock our kitchen! Now I just need to learn how to cook...

promises i can't keep

Okay, I've learned my lesson. Never again will I vow to post every day, because it's been my blogging downfall. So with no promises about days or times or pictures or posts, I'm going try my very hardest to keep this up again.

February was as grey and bleak as I though it would be, but you know what I realized? I fell into such a wintery rut that I stopped doing things I love, like running and writing just for fun. Now that it's March and 80 degrees, I'm starting to feel like myself again, and in the spirit of spring I decided to try Ike and Jane's cheery new location.

It felt like a secret study spot smack in the middle of downtown. I don't think many people know about it yet, but a little peace and quiet with my biscuit sandwich was fine by me ;)

I hope you're having a sunny March morning!

the best sister in the world

p.s.... It's my little sister's 18th birthday today!!!

Kate is not only my sister, but also my best friend in the whole world. We bring out the silliest most ridiculous sides of each other, often so silly that we don't expose other people to it. We do think Kristin Wiig would be friends with us if we let her in on it though.

Kate is so wise and empathetic and asks all the right questions when I'm upset or something more serious comes up. She's also blunt, in the best way, and that's one of my favorite things about her. She'll tell me when I need to stop being so emotional, but she'll also cuddle up and watch Pride and Prejudice with me ten minutes later.

She's one of the best things about my life, and I wish I could squeeze her and hug her and be with her tonight!

very sick valentine's week

Well, when you get a puppy, the stomach bug and an 850 page book assignment things get a little hectic. I'm not complaining, that's just my excuse for abandoning this little blog for so long. But after a refreshing weekend in Atlanta, I'm happy and able to eat real food and in love with our little puppy no matter how much she pees and bites ;)

The stomach bug on Valentine's Day was sort of a bummer since Jonathan and I planned to make sushi, but we have an extra special romantic celebration coming up in June so I think I can settle for white bread from Panera and an early bed time on V-day. I hope your Valentine's Day was far more exciting, and that you're staying healthy in this cold rainy month!

let them eat cake

Yesterday was Charles Dickens' birthday, and to celebrate my teacher brought...

....a Charles Dickens cake!

How wonderful is that? That an esteemed, well-published professor cares so much about his class of undergrads.

I just have to take a moment and say how much I love being an English major and how much I will miss it next year. I know I can always be a reader, but it just won't be the same. Right now we're reading Bleak House, and while it's enthralling on my own, it's even better in a class full of Dickens students.

I hope you're having a cozy morning on this gray day! If you have a few spare days (weeks?) you should pick up Bleak House. I'm only 250 pages in, but I'm sure all 850 pages will be worth the while.

look who we picked out today...

Jonathan (we after June) is getting a puppy!

We drove to Habersham, Ga, to pick one out today, and this is who we chose.

She's tiny, and sweet and perfect and we named her Ella.

She won't move to Athens for good til next Saturday, so for now we just look at this picture every few minutes.

Happy weekend!

skirting the issue

So, what are your thoughts on long skirts?

I bought a maxi dress a few years ago and never wore it, because I always found something more flattering in my closet. Since that shopping mishap I've steered clear of long shapeless items. But a few weeks ago I started thinking that long skirts might be different.

They have a waist. You can rock them in heels or flats. And they look rather chic in both of these pictures.While I was still mulling over my decision to make the long leap, Dynamite lured me inside with a 50 percent off sign. I found a full length skirt for $9! Now I can test it out without over-spending at Anthro , and if I hate it I can just cut off the bottom ;)

What about you? Would you go long?

love a little

Happy February!

In years past February has been my least favorite month. It's usually bleak and chilly, and Valentine's Day is just one small beacon of light in 28 cold days.

But this year, since it's 52 degrees on February 1st! I'm determined to love the month ahead. Perhaps the fact that I'm rather smiley and smitten lately has added to the warm weather affect ;)

Here are a few things to love about February...

My mom's annual heart-shapped meat loaf

My little sister's birthday

Cozying up with hot coffee and a good book (I'm about to start Bleak House)

Settling into a semester routine

Finding out if Jonathan and I get the little house we want

An excuse for a date and eating lots of sweets

What are you looking forward to in February?

wedding crashers

On Friday night we went to Blue Sky as usual, but we were missing Sarah Beth...

(She was at her sister's rehearsal dinner.)

...so we thought up a sneaky plan...

and texted subtle wedding-crashing hints.

But there was no need for crashing, because her gracious parents and sister invited all of us to the wedding! After a big I-Hop breakfast and an afternoon of pancake hibernation, we dressed up in our wedding best and drove out to Gainesville.

Morgan looked beautiful in Grace Kelly inspired lace sleeves, Trey looked dashing in Georgia red suspenders, and we quickly kicked off shoes and loosened ties to dance til the band went home. We even started a dance train ;)

I hope you had a wonderful weekend with a few surprises too!

smitten for sugar

A little more frequently than I care to admit I find myself in a lengthy conversation about desserts...

The current flavors at Yoforia, the sensation upon biting into a Jittery Joe's cookie, the number of times I've gotten Grit cake to-go that week - you get the idea. I have a HUGE sweet tooth (as do many of my friends who chat cake with me), but not just any sweet will do. As a seasoned Athens sweets eater, I've pared it down to a few key favorites...

1. Grasshopper, Lemon Poppyseed or Carmel Brown Sugar cake from The Grit

2. Ginger Molasses cookies from Jittery Joe's

3. Oatmeal Cranberry Orange cookies from Earthfare

4. A Sausage and Syrup or donut from Ike and Jane's

5. Pumpkin Spice Yoforia with Graham Cracker crumbs

Those are my five greatest weaknesses. Some people will tell you Last Resort cakes are the best, but they're not. I tried a slice, to be fair, last week, and I'll always be a Grit cake girl.

choosing your china

Before we got engaged, Jonathan and I always said we wanted our wedding to be exactly that - our wedding. So while there are certain traditions I love, like not seeing each other before the ceremony, we've made no effort to follow customs or norms.

Instead of picking out china, we decided to register for R. Wood Pottery . It fits our style, it's from Athens and I'm sure I'll use it year round. Plus we didn't have to settle on one pattern - we get to mix and match!

On the subject of breaking wedding rules, the NY Times published an article last week on unconventional wedding dresses. I'm not sure if I'm bold enough to wear a colored one, but I did get mine from Claire Pettibone (who's mentioned in the article!) and her gowns aren't your standard satin and lace.

a little black and white for a change

I know, I've definitely failed at the post every day resolution, but to catch you up, here are few photos from the past week or so....

The highlights were...

Michael's last show with his band, The Less , at the 40 Watt, date nights to Blue Sky , a quick trip to Atlanta where I ate at Coast with my mom and sister and gorged on sweets with my brothers and dad, a lazy Sunday study afternoon at Walkers, and a little bit of school work and wedding planning thrown in here and there.

I hope you've had a wonderful week!

lost and found

Okay not to harp too much on shoes, but I'd just like to say... I've survived for almost 2 weeks without my boots! Although, I'd love to borrow this pair while I wait ;) The man at Marvin's couldn't locate them when I went to pick them up today, but hopefully that means someone in the back is workin' hard on them.

I, however, found two things today - my debit card and my spare car key. There are many things I aspire to inherit from my father ... patience, reasonableness, humility... but one thing I know I got was a tendency to lose things, and that's putting it very mildly. I lose things always, all the time, every week. Usually important things too. But today I found a long lost key under my seat while looking for my debit card, and I found my card while searching under chairs at Redeemer. 

I hope you had a few pleasant surprises today as well!

tip toes

Lately I've been toying with the question of flats verses wedges for my wedding...

I like the way people stand in heels - taller, straighter, more ladylike I suppose... but I always kick my heels off for dancing, and at my wedding there better be a lot of dancing. So I guess the real question is poised and pretty or dress hemmed at dancing height?

What do you think? Do you want to be on your tip-toes or donning fancy flats at your wedding?

double vision

I'm sitting at Jittery Joe's across from a Victor Garber look-alike. Every time I start focusing on the creative writing pieces before me, he catches my eye and it throws me for a moment. 

I don't have a long-harbored crush on Victor Garber, but I do have a history with him. Back in high school, my family and I were obsessed with Alias. I think I've seen every season at least three times. If you need a new TV show - rent it. Watch it. It's wonderfully addicting. Also, I walked past Victor Garber on the tiny sidewalk outside my New York apartment this summer. He was on his way back from a run, and just as nonchalant as this coffee-shop double... which may explain my incessant double-takes ;)

Have you ever spotted a famous person?

romance and the roaring 20's

Jonathan and I are already planning our wedding, and I'd call it more rustic-vintage or outdoor-eclectic or something along those lines. It fits us perfectly, but if I weren't getting married in a field, I think a big, fancy 1920's inspired wedding would be really fun...

 ...Think cocktails, cigars, dancing, costume jewelry, Marion Cotillard in Midnight in Paris.
The thing about planning a wedding (and caving to Pinterest) is that you see too many great ideas to act on. My wedding will be more low-key and probably less expensive, but someone should throw one like this someday!

a little bluegrass brightens my day

Okay, I know, I missed a day already... but maybe I'll blog twice today to make up for it ;) If I'd been more on top of things yesterday, I would have posted these lovely photos from Wednesday night.

Jonathan and I went on a little double date to the Melting Point with SB and Jake. They're two of our very best friends/roommates so it was great! And it was made even better by the angelic-ly twangy voice of Sarah Jarosz. Apparently she's the next Alison Krauss, and I can see why. She reminded me more of a young Gillian Welch, but both comparisons seem fitting.

I hope you're having a wonderful Friday despite 30-degree weather!