Dirty Martini Party!

Last weekend I hosted a Dirty Martini Party. It's a new take on a Dirty Santa Party - with martini glasses! Everyone brought a funky martini glass wrapped up for swapping (and stealing). I made three different martini concoctions: Bubble Gum Martinis, Lemon Cake Martinis, and Chocolate Martinis. Each guest brought either a dessert or an appetizer. IT WAS SO MUCH FUN!!

The glasses were all really awesome. Aunt Janice had the most original - the Redneck Martini Glass. It was basically a mason jar on a stem! Mindy stole for it and since she was the last to draw, she got to keep it. Here's a shot of all the glasses:


The martinis were super-delicious. Except for the Lemon Cake martini. It was gross with a capital G! Here's a shot of the bartender mixing them up while sporting an awesome fastenator, as well as a shot of the Bubble Gum Martini. (P.S. I think Dad was secretly disappointed he had a tee time that didn't coincide with the party and he couldn't be the bartender!)



Everyone had tons of fun - even the "old" aunts! I am sure they don't like that they are now the old aunts, but if it makes them feel any better, my friends loved them and didn't want them to leave!


Mom was the DD - hope she was ok to drive! :)


A good time was had by all.


Not sure what my next party will be, but I have so much darn liquor left over I might need to host a poker night and serve the martinis again. All that is, except the Lemon Cake Martinis. Anyone in the market for Limoncello liquor...cause I got tons!

Bubble Gum Martini:
1 oz Three Olives Bubble Gum Vodka
2 oz Lemonade

Run lemon slice over edge of glass and dip in sugar. Mix vodka and lemonade in shaker over ice. Pour. Garnish with a pink gumball.


Chocolate Martini:
2 oz Trader Vick's Chocolate Liquor
2 oz Creme de Cacao
1 oz Half and Half
2 oz Freezing Three Olives Chocolate Vodka
White Chocolate Shavings

Combine the chocolate liquor, Creme de Cacao, and chocolate vodka into a cocktail shaker half full of cracked ice.
Shake for one full minute. Add the half-and-half to the shaker and gently swirl (circular motion). Pour. Top each martini with shaved chocolate.

Mom and Dad - finally redeem themselves from buying the Dining Room furniture!

We all know that I am a HUGE New Kids on the Block fan (go Joe!). When I was 12, I begged my mom to send me on the New Kids on the Block cruise (to the tune of probably 3,000 dollars or so). Naturally they said no. But my mom said it was because we didn't have the money. The next week (really, the very next week) she went out and bought a whole new dining room suite. I was so mad! In fact, I harbored this grudge for a long time. Like, forever.

Skip ahead 22 years...New Kids reunite and there is an opportunity to meet the boys!! This time, mom and dad pulled through in a major way! Dad surprised Mindy and I with VIP tickets to the concert - which included a meet and greet with them! It was completely surreal and one of the most amazing experiences of my life. I just wish I had planned better how I was going to react and what I was going to say.

Before it was out turn to go in, Mindy says, "Now Steph, you cannot cry and you cannot say you love them." Well hell. I didn't think I was going to cry, but now she had me worried. And if I can't say I love them, what am I going to say?! See below to see my remarkable interaction with the guys so you can really understand the memorable impression I left.

To Danny: "Thank you for having us." (This is code for I think I am meeting my grandmother's friend and I am such a polite southern girl). From Danny, no response.

To Donnie: "You single-handedly got me through junior high." (Not even true! So stupid!) From Donnie: "No, you got you through."

To Jonathan: Nothing. (Clearly the first two exchanges had left me speechless.) From Jonathan: Nothing.

To Joe: "Always my favorite. Y'all are gonna rock it tonight." (This doesn't need any interpretation. It's just plain dumb!) From Joe: HE PUT HIS ARM AROUND ME AND KEPT IT THERE FOR LIKE 20 SECONDS! We basically go married. Even if he was talking a whole lot about the hype of the show.

To Jordan: "Y'all look a lot skinnier in person than you do on tv." (Like I watch them on TV! Who says that??)

So overall, I am really happy they meet hundreds of girls at every show. They won't remember me. You know what it means, though? Dad and mom will have to send me again so I can be better prepared and redeem myself!

THANKS MOM AND DAD FOR THE CHANCE OF A LIFETIME! IT WAS A DREAM COME TRUE!!

Mindy and Steph - Twins?!

Ever since Mindy moved back home and started working at HCA, we have been getting so many comments about how we look exactly alike. Not one, not a couple, but like 1 incident a week. Seriously!

The first week she was here, some woman I did not know saw me in the cafeteria and said, "There is a girl on the second floor who could be your sister!" My response: "She probably is!" All of the people I work closely with immediately started talking about how we looked exactly alike and had the same mannerisms.

Next incident - the cleaning lady at work (who is so sweet and seriously knows all 450 people in our building by name) said, "Stephanie, there is this new girl who looks just like you!"

A couple weeks in, the COO approached Mindy and said, "I couldn't put my finger on why you looked so familiar to me. Then I saw your name and I realized - it's because Stephanie's your sister and you look just like her!"

Once a total stranger approached her cube and said, "I saw you in the cafeteria this morning and I was so confused because you had brown hair when I thought you had blonde. I see you do have blonde hair, so clearly your double works here!"

Mindy and I were out shopping recently, and at the checkout lane, the sales clerk asked us if we were twins!

Mindy went to a Sounds game with her friend this Saturday and a woman from work (whom she didn't know) recognized her and said, "You're Stephanie, right?"

And it goes on and on. All the time random people we don't know stop us. It is truly bizarre! Mindy's friend from New Orleans said that if he closed his eyes while I was telling a story, he would swear it was Mindy.

I think it's so odd since we've never gotten this in our lives, we are 8 years apart in age, and I don't think we look anything alike! Don't get me wrong, I think it's a compliment - but boy do I feel bad for Mindy! :)

Happy Spring!

I am so ready for spring this year. More so than usual. We had a few days of nice weather, but back to cold for Nashville this week. Maybe when it's pretty and warmer I will be motivated to update my darn blog! :)

Interim at St. Cecilia

So what exactly are they teaching the girls these days at SCA? Zumba, Manners, and Cake Decorating!

Jordan's Cake:


Morgan's Cake:

Jordan Turns 16!

And celebrates with 16 presents for 16 years! Actually she got 17 presents since she got her belly button pierced. I really had no problem with her getting her belly button pierced, but I wanted to do it at a reputable, clean location. So I went online and did something I normally scoff at - I read all the reviews about all the tattoo parlors in our area. I chose the location that had the most positive reviews and appeared to be clean. But it was located in a seedy part of town. I figured that was because all tattoo parlors were located in shady areas!

When we were ready to go, my mom and dad were a little worried about us two girls going there alone, so we decided to make it a family affair. Mom, Mindy, Dad, Jordan and I set off. I had made an appointment, but when I got there, a sign was on the door that they would be back in 45 minutes. No time was listed as to when they had left, so who knows how long they had been gone. Apart from the empty beer cans and cigarette packs in the drive, and the fact that it was clearly a residence, not a place of business, I was willing to wait - after all, it got the best reviews! But the family wasn't, and this time, I'm glad it didn't work out.

I ended up taking Jordan to a location in Midtown - a much more respectable location. The family didn't accompany us this time, which was a good thing because this was a way cool place. We would have looked like total nerds! The guys in the shop were fabulous, and there were awards all over the walls, so I felt pretty good about it. Jordan was a trooper, even though I know that it hurts like hell!

Lesson learned: When deciding on venues based on reviews, remember the audience giving the reviews. After all, what do a bunch of tatted up / pierced up people know about the kind of establishment I was looking for?!

Reason 5,372 Why You Should Never Procreate

I work with two young, fun single girls who are obsessed with finding men, settling down, and starting a family. It's become the office joke now that I can give them at least one reason every day why they should never procreate. And I must say, they are pretty convincing! Here's just a few most recent reasons.

Yesterday, on MY birthday, Jordan forgot and didn't even wish me a happy birthday. She made up for it, though, when she thoughtfully brought home THREE ferrets. [Yes, I marched her right back out of the house to the pet store to return them.]

About a month ago, we had a houseful of kids. As usual, they were playing "grab ass" (my dad's favorite term for kids horsing around) when one of the boys decided to light the gas fireplace. Without opening the flu. Turning the gas to full steam while he looked for a match. The explosion was so loud, I seriously couldn't fathom what had just happened. When the girls started screaming and the smoke detector started going off, I knew it was worse than that thing I couldn't imagine! I ran downstairs in my nightie - who had time for a robe?! - to discover I still had a house. One of the boys smartly turned off the gas, but I didn't know that and with my adrenaline rush I thought I was turning it off (later discovering I had actually turned it on again!). I seriously thought I was going to have to take the boy to the hospital, but when I looked at him, he had only singed his hair (body, head, and facial) and it just looked like he had a bad sunburn. Then I noticed the gas smell, and realized I turned it on and it had been running for like 10 minutes! Nothing like a little carbon monoxide poisoning to end the evening! [I told my work girls that this reason was good for a whole week at least!]

For my birthday, Morgan and Carson wanted to take me out to dinner to Red Robin. Isn't that sweet? They invited Jordan and Nicky. It was supposed to be a surprise, but they couldn't keep it secret. Which was ok...until the bill came and they realized taking everyone out to dinner was a little more expensive then they could afford. Happy $60.00 birthday dinner to me. (If I was going to give myself a $60.00 birthday present, it most definitely wouldn't have been dinner - it'd have been a new pair of shoes!) And because I didn't want a whole meal to myself, I didn't even get the burger I wanted because I had to share with everyone else!

Those are just a few of the most recent reasons I've given the girls at work why they should never procreate. What I don't tell them, though, are all the reasons you should procreate (which somehow outweigh those reasons that you shouldn't). Like...

Singing along to the radio in the car with the girls

Our dinner-table conversations

The notes they write me when they are apologizing for something

The sheer fun we have in our house of 3 girls

Sharing makeup/clothes/shoes with much hipper persons than I

Decorating the house for holidays

Celebrating when they make the honor roll

And the list goes on! I guess when it's all said and done - YOU SHOULD PROCREATE!!