God, Guns & Country - A Tennessee Wedding

There's nothing in the world like good friends.  Many people have come in and out of my life but true friends... the ones that you can always count on... the ones that you would do anything for... those kind of friends are hard to come by.  Thankfully, the Lord has blessed me with a few of these friends.  Let me introduce you to a couple of them....

I met Jared's family when I was 10 years old (15 years ago).  During that time, Jared and I didn't speak much.  I was actually good friends with his sister and we were merely acquaintances at best.  Five years later, I started my first job at Chick-Fil-A where Jared was hired shortly after.  As we worked alongside each other, a friendship grew.  He became my best friend.  We went to homecoming together, cried on each others shoulders (don't tell him I told you!), sought relationship advice from each other, you know... all the stuff that best friends do.  He was like a brother to me.  To this day, my mom still refers to him as her son...

A couple of years later, we started to get to know the new girl at Chick-Fil-A... Whitney.  I can't say that we hit it off right away as our first impressions of each other weren't the best (lol... silly young girls) but over time, I got to know her and realized she was a friend worth having.  It was easy to by myself around her... she was honest and genuine.  With Whitney, what you saw was what you got and I loved that about her.  There was nothing fake about Whit and she cherished loyalty as I did. Once we became friends, I could almost always be found at her house.  There were late night drives with windows down and music blaring, mud fights during rain storms, Dance Dance Revolution until 6 am, all sorts of fun craziness... 

As high school came to a close, we had our tight circle of friends that did everything together.  A few months after graduation, Jared informed us that he had enlisted in the Marine Corps.  Talk about a mixture of emotions!  How could my heart be filled with so much pride and sadness at the same time? After that, there were a lot of changes... people moved away and our times of hanging out were few and far between.  I eventually found my forever, settled down and got married to the greatest man and friend I could ever dream of having... 

Around the same time that I got married, Jared and Whitney started dating.  We all kept in touch and spent time together when time allowed.  This past June (5 years later) Jared finally popped the question and she said YES!!!  It was only a matter of days before they were hanging out at our house and I was asked to be a bridesmaid in their Tennessee wedding. I was so excited... not only was I going to be a part of my best friends' most important day, but I was going to be at their home in Tennessee during the fall to see the leaves change (a first for me)!

So, last Tuesday, Cliff and I packed up the car and headed up for a 5-day trip in the beautiful Smokey Mountains.  It was such a joy to be there to help out and use my gifts of organization to ease the stressed-out bride's nerves.  Caffeine and I became great friends as there was VERY little sleep involved.  But we had a BLAST!!!  

Their beautiful country wedding was held on Friday, November 11, 2011 (11-11-11) with 5 former Marines (as well as others who served in the U.S. military) in attendance as they honored our country's veterans.  It was a magical day and I was so blessed to be a part of it...

Jared and Whitney... I love you both so much!  Thank you for being my "forever friends!" May the years ahead fill your lives with love and happiness. Thank you for allowing me to be a part of your special day! :)

With Love, 

Danielle Renae

Time has been flying by so fast and my growing, blue-eyed boy has been keeping Mommy super busy (and always entertained).  So here's what's been happening in our happy little world (brace yourself for photo overload!)...

October was the start of my most favorite season... cool air, pumpkin foods and drinks, football games, plenty of fun festivities, and the anticipation that comes with knowing Christmas is right around the corner, never ceases to bring me joy.  We kicked things off with what is becoming a beloved tradition... visiting Sweetfields Farm with great friends for a fun day out with the kids.

There was so much to keep the kids entertained!!!  We had pumpkin races...

Climbed over and through hay bales...

Rode barrel "bulls"...

Ran through the hay maze...

 Fed (and kissed) all sorts of furry friends...

Explored the corn maze...

Enjoyed a picnic lunch...

Searched for the perfect pumpkin...

And spent lots of time just being silly!

The fun continued with play dates at the park...

Carving our perfect pumpkin (That Elijah picked out all by himself!)...

Attending Harvest Night at church (Isn't my fireman the cutest?!?)...

Trick-or-Treating with Mimi and Papa's good company...

And getting hyped up with sugar (Mommy is enjoying all the CHOCOLATE!!!)

Last night was by far the most exciting.  After spending 4 YEARS trying to convince my husband that having a furball around the house would be a great thing, he FINALLY caved!!!  We surprised Elijah by adopting the sweetest dog.  It took Sadie no time at all to become a part of the family...

This life is so sweet... Thanking the Lord for all the special blessings in my life!

Love,
Danielle Renae

Sew In Love!

I have made several ragtime quilts in the past, but have never been kind enough to share them with you. (Sorry for that!)  So, I figured today I would share with you my most recent project... a baby ragtime quilt, requested by my lovely friend, Janine, for her newborn photoshoots.  I am sew in love!!!! (And apparently, extremely cheesy.)

Once I finish a project, I usually find that the excitement is over and I don't want to do it over again.  The joy for me is in creating and hashing out new ideas.  But I love picking out fabrics and the way the fabric feels in my hands as I feed it through the machine.  Not to mention the satisfaction I feel once it's done and I can see all the little pieces fit so perfectly together.  Making these quilts is quickly becoming my favorite pastime and is something I enjoy doing over and over and over again.  

With Love, 

Danielle Renae

My Sunshine During The Rain

I know I already blogged once today (for the first time in forever!) but I just couldn't resist sharing photos of my growing boy enjoying this afternoon's rain shower...

Sweet Elijah... your excitement and love for life make my world such a happy place!

Love,
Danielle Renae

A Little Crafting And A Little Ministering

Over a year ago, my husband Cliff and I started attending what is now our beloved home church, Calvary Chapel Palm Harbor.  Shortly after we began attending, I was introduced to a ministry there called HopeAlive2010 that ministered to the people of Swaziland, Africa.  The more I learned about what they were doing and what God was doing through them, the more I felt a burden on my heart and a desire to be involved.  Since that time over a year ago, my husband and I have been so blessed by the opportunities that the Lord has given us to be involved.  The proud wife in me, can't help but brag on my husband.... check out their new website, created by my talented hunk: HopeAlive268.com! ANYWAY... on to the point.  This past weekend, one of those opportunities arose as our church put together a sew day, inviting ladies to come enjoy some fellowship as we sewed pillowcase dresses for girls and shorts for boys.  These items will be taken to Swaziland next month and given to the Siteki orphans we support. The crafter in me fell in love.  My excitement lead to a silly little dance (yes, there were witnesses) as I held in my hands the first dress I ever made... 

I couldn't stop at just one.  I took some material home and got to work...

Aaaaand, here's the last one step-by-step...

Once the dresses were finished, I was in need of another project involving my lovely sewing machine.  Check back tomorrow to see what I'm finishing today! :)

With Love, 

Danielle Renae

My Version of a Raspberry Almond Torte

This week I made what was by far, my best (and favorite) cake.  I've had a few people ask me for the recipe, so I thought it was about time I visit ol' Blogland (I know, I'm long overdue) and share it with all of you.  So here it is.  My version of a raspberry almond torte...

Doesn't it look delicious?  Mmmm....

I threw this together mixing two different recipes (Pillsbury's Raspberry & Toasted Almond Torte recipe which I could not find online but it was on the side of the box of cake mix and Bakerella's Simple Sprite Cake) and making it my own.

Here's what you'll need:

Cake
1 pkg white cake mix
4 eggs
3/4 cup vegetable oil
1 pkg vanilla pudding mix
8 oz can of Sprite
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
1/2 cup slivered almonds, chopped, toasted

Frosting
1 can vanilla frosting
1/2 cup frozen whipped topping, thawed
1/2 teaspoon almond extract

Topping
2/3 cup black raspberry preserves

Garnish
2 tablespoons slivered almonds, toasted

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Grease and flour two 9-inch cake pans
3. Mix cake ingredients on low until combined, then increase speed to medium and mix for about 2 minutes.
4. Pour batter into pans and bake for 28-32 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.
5. Cool 15 minutes; remove from pans.  Cool completely.
6. In a large bowl, gently stir frosting ingredients until well blended. Set aside.
7. To assemble cake, place one layer on the serving plate.  Spread 1/3 cup of frosting then 1/3 cup of raspberry preserves.  Top with remaining cake layer.  Spread frosting over the entire cake.  Use remaining raspberry preserves to cover the top in a circle (I left about an inch of icing along the sides).  Garnish the outsides of the circle with toasted almonds.  Store in refrigerator.
8. Enjoy!