At Home and Out and About

I hope y'all have had a fabulous weekend.  It's still hot here in South Florida, so I'm really struggling with "What to Wear"!  I can't help myself...to me, October means turtlenecks and vests and loafers and all those cute autumn clothes.  So even though it's still 85 degrees here in South Florida, I'm gonna wear October clothes!

Earlier in the week we had dinner at a marina.  We dined outside and it was nice and breezy near the water...I think I could have worn a turtleneck!

"Here's What I Wore"  The khaki skirt is from Target, the pink gingham blouse is by Izod, the green vest is by Lilly.  I carried my pink monogrammed Land's End tote {like I owned a yacht} and wore my pink Revas.

I really didn't get out much during the week...spent most of the time cleaning out the boxes in my garage.  Our neighborhood is hosting a garage sale soon and I'm getting rid of a lot of stuff.  I MUST downsize the loot out there.  It's a bit messy as I went through every single box!

This is "my side of the garage...I've never parked my car in there!

I have also begun to take over husband's side of the garage.  Poor thing, he can hardly get his little car in his space now days.

I wish I could show y'all the "after" photos, but until the get rid of the stuff, it's still crowded.  Neat.  But crowded.

In the evenings..."Merlot Hour" helped after my hard days of labor.

If y'all remember, last week I prepared the chicken spaghetti casseroles and sent over an extra one to my friend Lane.  Well, she returned my dish...in the Southern style.  In the South, when someone gives a gift of food, it is considered proper Southern etiquette to reciprocate with a treat when you return the empty dish.  Lord have mercy, she returned my dish with Cuban French Toast.  It was about 9 o'clock at night when her husband delivered this delicacy to us.  I just had to taste some of it.  Decadent I tell y'all!  I need to stay in the gym much longer after this.

I love this Cuban sweet, for sure!

It is important that you practice thank-you etiquette.  Last week I was speaking to my friend Miss Kara who lives in Mississippi.  Kara had just had major surgery and she mentioned that the ladies from her church were bringing over supper.  With everything else she had on her mind, she said "I must remember to place a treat in the empty dishes when I return them!"  Bless you Miss Kara...you are so Southern!

Today it was another 85 degree day, so I wore this Austin Reed blazer, blouse, and skirt to church.  Thank goodness they keep the sanctuary real chilly...so I was comfortable.  After a quick lunch at Panera, I'm home preparing a meal and treats for a supper party.

Just so y'all know, my skirt is ivory NOT white!  Y'all know I'd never wear white after Labor Day.  'Course, I do think I'm the only female in Florida who follows this rule.  Lord have mercy.

Autumn Friendship Gifts

I've been busy in the kitchen...preparing my "Autumn Friendship Gifts."  I started giving out "Friendship Gifts" about 4 years ago.  I think it's a very gracious idea to give a little treat to those who visit my home.  I also give them as a 'happy treat' or just a little 'thank-you'.

 In the South, when someone gives you a gift of food, it is considered proper Southern etiquette to reciprocate with a treat when you return the empty dish.  So this morning, I returned an empty plate to my friend's daughter Miss Leslie.   As one of her birthday day gifts, she chose to buy some Paula Deen books and began to learn to bake desserts.  We were the recipients of her first treats...delicious carrot cake and pecan pie.  So I returned her plate this morning...complete with a thank-you note and a "Friendship Gift Treat."

This the party mix I chose...it's so delish at this time of year...very easy and also inexpensive.  My husband loves it...'cuz it's his Mama's recipe!

My "Friendship Gifts" are ready to!

This year I added a cute little monogrammed gift tag.  You can get your own digital monogram on Etsy at Love Monograms.  She has a lot of cute fonts, designs, and colors.  They are the perfect adornment to any gift.  My Monogram Mania continues y'all!

~Pursue and practice hospitality.
               Romans 12 : 13

Recipe for Mary Gibson's Party Mix:
2 cups corn chex
2 cups wheat chex
2 cups rice chex
1 1/2 cup nuts
2 cups pretzels
1/3 cup melted butter
2 tblsp. Worcestershire Sauce
Garlic salt to taste

Preheat oven to 250 degrees.  Mix dry ingredients.  Blend melted butter and Worcestershire Sauce and pour over mixture.  Stir all in 13 x 9 x 2 pan.  Add garlic salt and mix well.  Bake 1 hour and stir every 15 minutes.

Practicing What I Preach.

Recently, I was contacted by one of my readers who thought I might be interested in a project being promoted by The Bert Show (an Atlanta radio show). The Bert Show is trying to get 400,00 hand-written thank-you letters so that each member of our armed forces deployed outside the United States will receive a letter of gratitude on Thanksgiving Day.

As my reader mentioned, I am always reminding y'all of the importance of writing thank-you notes, and this is the perfect opportunity to give y'all some practical homework.

Each letter should be heartfelt, handwritten, original, and free of any political statements. Remember that the purpose of the letter is to express gratitude for service to our Country.

All letters must be on 8 1/2" x 11" paper or smaller. DO NOT USE glue, tape, staples, cardboard, glitter, or otherwise attach anything to the paper. DO NOT send cards or photographs. Feel free to include your mailing and email address...you may get a response. DO NOT send any donations:)

For more information, you can go to The Bert Show website here.
Submit your handwritten, individual letter in a standard business-size envelope and mail to:

The Bert Show's Big Thank You
780 Johnson Ferry Road, NE

5th Floor
Atlanta, GA 30342
"Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it."
William Arthur Ward

I hope that each of you will take up the challenge and Practice What I Preach! I'll close with this fabulous video...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=reDiz5nkxK8

GIVEAWAY TO CELEBRATE NAT'L ETIQUETTE WEEK 2011

PLEASE NOTE: Due to the shutdown of Blogger for a couple of days this week, I have extended the deadline to enter this giveaway to Sunday night at midnight, EST, May 15, 2011.

Yes, there is National Etiquette Week y'all! It was established by Sandra Morisset in 1997 and is observed May 9-13th. This is a time to recognize civility and good manners...and it all begins with you! During this week, I hope that y'all examine and improve your etiquette skills. Here's a list of Miss Janice's top five etiquette faux pas:

~Failure to R.s.v.p....will surely get your name taken off Miss Janice's party list!
~Not sending a thank-you note...how very ungrateful!
~Talking while chewing your food...so disgusting!
~Using a toothpick in public...Miss Janice absolutely cannot stand this!
~Forgetting to say "Please, Thank You, Yes Ma'am/Sir, or Excuse Me"...a sure sign to others that you have no manners!

Every year since I began this blog, I have hosted a 'Very Proper Giveaway' in celebration of National Etiquette Week.

The winner will receive their choice of either a set of monogrammed foldover notecards or flat correspondence cards, from 2PreppyGirls. Proper thank-you notes/cards are must-haves for your stationery wardrobe ladies:) To be perfectly correct, thank-you notes should be written on 'monogrammed notes' or 'correspondence cards.'

The foldover monogrammed notecards from 2 Preppy Girls are appropriate to write thank-you notes. {They may also be used to extend a formal invitation or to send a short message to a friend}. Write on page 3 of the notecard. The proper monogram for this style of card would be your first, married, and maiden name initial, in that order. If you are single, use your first, last, and middle name initial, in that order. You will be choosing from these 2 Preppy Girls foldover monogrammed notedcards here.

The correspondence card may also be used for thank-yous, informal invitations, and short notes. They are flat, heavy cards, with a name or a monogram. Write only on the front of the card. You might want to choose from one of these 2 Preppy Girls' correspondences cards here.

In addition to the thank you notes/cards, the winner will also receive a copy of etiquette expert Letitia Baldrige's book, "New Manners for New Times." This is Miss Janice's go-to etiquette reference book. Ms. Baldrige covers everything you need to know about etiquette.


Ms. Baldrige is recognized universally as the country's leading authority on business and social etiquette. She was the White House Secretary for Jacqueline Kennedy and since that time has published more than twenty books. Here's a photo of Letitia Baldrige at a White House State function in the 60's. Can you even imagine having such a wonderful job???



In the photo below, the First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy is arriving at the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C. Ms. Baldrige is seen emerging from the limo. November 3, 1961. I adore this photograph!




Here, you see Miss Janice with Ms. Baldrige at the Southern Lady Event in Destin, Florida several years ago. I begged the editor of Tea Time magazine to schedule a sit-down for me with Ms. Baldrige. I was honored to meet her and receive her wealth of information regarding my role as etiquette consultant in today's world.

Here are the rules of the giveaway y'all:

~To receive one entry, you must leave a comment and tell me what you are going to do during the upcoming week to promote civility!
~To receive two entries, please let me know if you are a follower of my blog (an old proper friend or a new proper friend)!
~To receive three entries, you must post about my giveaway on Twitter or Facebook...just let me know!

This giveaway will close on Friday, May 13th at midnight E.S.T. I will announce the winner on Saturday, May 14th. Good luck y'all!!!

Remember to Say "Thank You"

I'm just home from the gym and resting a bit...sipping a cup of Formosa Nut Oolong tea, purchased from Teavana. This tea is a Chinese & Taiwanese tea and a has a sweet, fruity, and nutty flavor infused from apples, pistachios, almonds, and candied violet flowers. What a wonerful tea to enjoy as I begin to enjoy the autumn season! They say there's a cold front on the way to South Florida--but it is 90 degrees today, maybe it'll be here tomorrow!

I am rereading for 14,005th time, The Art of Thank You, by Connie Leas. I am a "thank-you person" and this book has many meaningful ways to say thank you. It explains why we write thank-you notes, when to send a thank-you note, what stationery to use for thank-you notes, and how to compose a thank-you note. You will also learn how to teach young children to write thank-you notes.

Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it.
William Arthur Ward

MERCI BEAUCOUP LADIES!

I simply must stop to say thank you to two special ladies...Jennifer at JenniferDTrent and Kristen at GroveGals. Don't you just love it when you've been away and come home to gift packages...just for you!

Well, I entered Jennifer's "Tootsies Giveaway" she hosted in celebration of her 100th post and I won! I'm soooo excited to start using my gifts...from Earth Therapeutics--Clean & Cool Foot Wipes, Tea Tree Oil & Foot Repair Balm, and the Soothing Gel Soles. I actually do my own pedicures y'all--I'm not into sticking my feet inside public-foot buckets--so these products are a luxury for my tootsies!

Thank you so much Jennifer. I have enjoyed visiting your blog and especially enjoy our chats on Twitter. Y'all visit her blog and also stop in over at Twitterville...she's at Twitter.com/SLpreppy.

I also want to thank Kristen at GroveGals for sending me this tres preppy swap package! Hopsy recently hosted a "Prep for Fall Swap," and yes, Miss Janice decided to enter another swap. My longtime blog readers may remember I had a "bad swap experience" awhile back, but SouthernandPreppy recently brought me right out of that funk when I swapped with her! So, now I'm back in the swap game! Here's Kristen's gifts to me...wrapped so preppy!

Here's my loot...Pink towels, monogrammed in green--too cute! To the right is a darling and useful pink thermal mug. Look at the cute Lilly notecards. Essie nail polish--in the Lovie Dovie preppy pink color...adore that! A cute pink dotted paper clip and green & white zippered bag. She topped it all off with some kiss-a-licious Pink Buttercream lip gloss, by Jaqua.

I adore all my preppy fall loot Kristen.

Y'all should also visit Kristen at GroveGals or over at Twitterville...Twitter.com/GroveGalk.

Thanks again to both of you for adding a little sunshine to my life on Blogger and Twitter.