Update

Jay is finally finished this past week with all his Atlanta training! It is very nice having Jay home. We had a wonderful but very busy Labor Day Weekend. On Saturday we went to the State Game. Here a few picture from tailgating before!

Davis and Emilee with their Aunt Emily! She loves seeing her little Bulldogs dressed in Maroon and White!!

Tailgating with Lane and Mary Brook.

Saturday night after having a wonderful day in Starkville we headed to Memphis, stayed that night at my parents house and headed to Ole Miss vs Memphis game on Sunday. At the end of the game I got a text saying that one of my best friends Stephanie was in labor. God was totally making my life easy for me ( b/c I was planning to come back to memphis on Friday for her induction date but he saved me a trip ). So I hurried to the hospital with my mom and we spent the evening their with Stephanie and her family. It was so much fun. Stephanie didnt find out what she was having which of course drove me nuts over the past 9 months so I had to be there to know if she had a boy or girl. ( I would have been there regardless but it did make the night more exciting ). At around 10:30 Drew came out with a video camera and said "It's A GIRL!!!! Margaret Claire Glass! Here is a picture of everyone awaiting the big announcement!

The excitement of steph's Mom! I love it!

This is about 45 minutes after she gave birth ( she looks like she is ready to go to dinner. She looked awesome ).

Margaret Claire! She is Beautiful!

Aww I love this picture. One day I will tell this precious girl that I was their the day she was born and how much I prayed for her!

After we left the hospital at about 11:30 Mom and I headed to my family's lakehouse at Pickwick to meet up with the rest of the family ( which was the original plan after the game ). On Monday we all went out on the boat and jet ski. That night we drove to Corinth to have dinner with Mary Brook and PK and we headed back to reality on Tuesday morning. What a great weekend!

Smitten Birthday

In honor of Smitten's first birthday, we are having a 1st birthday party SALE!

Come shop all day tomorrow, Thursday, August 20th, and receive 15% off your entire purchase. And since you can't have a party without cake, come enjoy some of that too!

Thank you for your support over the past year. It has been a great 1st year. We appreciate your business so much.

Smitten Gift Boutique
207 W. Jackson St. Ste E
Ridgeland, MS 39157
601-856-1655
www.smittengifts.blogspot.com

M-F 10 am to 6 pm
Sat 10 am to 5 pm

Low Fat Chocolate Cake!

This weekend my cousin's wife taught me a new cooking tip for baking a low fat cake. She told me to add a diet coke to a chocolate cake mix and a diet sprite to a yellow or white cake ( instead of the oil, butter, eggs, etc..). So tonight I gave it a try and it works. It was delicious. I googled it and if you are doing weight watchers it is 3 points a slice. Who would of thought diet coke and a cake mix??? I am never making a real cake again! It was that good. Try it!

Diet Coke Chocolate Cake
- 1 can of diet coke
- chocolate cake mix
- light/fat free cool whip
- less than a cup of the mini chocolate chips

Mix a diet coke with cake mix and baked as directed on box. Top with a thin layer of cool whip and sprinkled a few mini chocolate chips on top. Enjoy!

* If anyone else has some lowfat cooking tips, I would love to know them. The Hassells are going to start eating a little better.

Bride dies on honeymoon.......

After my sophomore year of college, I moved to Birmingham for the summer and did an internship with Saks, Inc.  I worked in the Mens, Children's, and Intimate Apparel division with all men and one girl who was over the Children's and Intimate Apparel, Tina Thomas.  She was only a few years older than me and we ate lunch together all the time that summer.  She was getting married that October and was planning her wedding.  I remember looking at bridesmaids dresses with her online and hearing her talk about this awesome honeymoon she was planning.  She was getting licensed to scuba dive because they were going to Australia for 2 weeks.  Her fiance was a big time scuba diver.  I didn't attend her wedding that October but went back to visit my friends 2 weeks after her wedding.  I asked if she was back from her honeymoon yet and they said, "Oh you haven't heard?  She died on her honeymoon.  They don't know what happened." I was shocked.   After that I went back once more and asked, "Did they ever know what happened to Tina?"  They said, "They think her husband killed her." I still remember the feeling of when they told me that.  That was like 5 years ago.  I never knew what happened to my sweet friend that summer who was so nice to me.  I never asked again because her sister worked there too.  It wasn't until last year one night when Jay and I were watching TV and her story randomly came on Fox news (then she was on the front cover of People magazine, Today show, internet) that I ever found out what happened to her.  This morning I was watching the Today show and the story appeared again.  After 5 years her husband pleaded guilty to manslaughter and accepted a sentence that will keep him in jail for ONLY a year.  So sad that in a year he will be free man after taking Tina's life.  This whole thing is the craziest thing I have ever heard.

Here is the link to the whole story off the Today Show.  In the picture you can see her at the bottom of the ocean as the instructor tries to rescue her and her husband is swimming to the top.

http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/31120879/#storyContinued

oops......

Having a store and working in it daily I encounter so many people each and everyday. One of my favorite aspects of my job is that I get to meet and talk to so many people. In most cases if you are in my store I love striking up conversations with individuals while helping them with their purchases or greeting them with a warm and friendly Hello. The only problem is that my friendliness and desire to make conversation has gotten me in trouble. I have made so many uh-oh's. Here are some of the terrible things I have said. If I said these to any of you it was never my intentions to be ugly or hurt your feelings. It is usually me not taking notices before I speak. We have really big counters and it is so dark in our store and its hard to see people's faces when they come in ( one time when Rebecca came to work through the front I said "Hey How are you? Can I help you find anything?" Rebecca said "Umm its me.")
Anyways so here are the top 5 uh oh's.

1. As I was helping a lady pick out clothes and a monogram for her twins I asked " So when are your twins due?" She said " They were born last week". I know pretty bad.

2. Two older ladies were in the baby sections both had grey hair, glasses, same size and shape. I said " Are yall sister's?" One lady responded "Are you serious. We are 20 years apart. She is my niece." Let's just say the other lady never responded ( they really looked alike, I really almost asked if they were twins. At least sister could be 20 years apart right?? )

3. I welcome this girl I know to the store with a big bubbly "Hey Carrie!" "She said its Claire". Opps. Then as she was leaving I said "Bye Carrie" "She said it's Claire". Opps again. I have also forgotten a million peoples names when they are in the store ( in my defense I have tons of conversations a day with new people so I always am forgetting names and faces). I am so sorry I have a really bad memory. It is really horrible.

4. This man was trying getting this necklace for his wife and I was trying it on for him to see to length and what it looked like on. I had a jacket on over my shirt so I pulled it opened and put it on then when I looked down at the necklace I noticed shirt was sooo low and my Bra was showing by about 2 inches. All I knew to say was "excuse me" and pull it up. PS - the man went to my church. ( if you know me I am the most modest person you will meet this was very embarassing for me I turned bright red).

5. I also said to this girl I know "I heard you were Pregnant". She said "No I am not pregnant" and of course I dug myself into the biggest hole. She had been in the baby section and when we were having this conversation she really was behind the counter and I really thought I had heard that ( apparently I got some wrong info and from now on I never never ask ).


Stay tuned I sure there will be tons more because my husband reminds me daily I have no filter.

A year ago....

A year ago Jay and I were headed to Gulfport for a medical convention that Jay had with Astrazeneca. We had just check in and my parents called and they had just gotten a call from the doctors saying that the lump in my mom's breast was cancer. My parents were so unprepared and shocked by the news (they didn't even ask any questions regarding size, stage, treatments, etc ). I can not even describe the emotions I had especially those first few weeks. I knew very little at the time about Breast Cancer. I now have learned so much and most importantly learned how far they have come in the success with treatments and research. In the weeks to follow we learned they had caught it early but that she would have to undergo Chemo and radiation. As I reflect on the past year God is so good and took care of us. He has answered so many prayers and has really taught me the power of prayer. Mom is a fighter. She was so brave and strong. She didn't let cancer put her life on hold. She attended State Football games ( which if you know anything about my family, we don't miss games), she was able to come to Smitten when we opened, attend wedding and events, work, meet Deanna Farve ( a breast cancer survivor ), and walk as a Breast Cancer Survivor in the Race for the Cure ( Team Christie!) Thursday I wore pink in honor of my precious mom. I am sooo proud of her. I love you MOM and look forward to some many wonderful years to come.

Team Christie! Race for the Cure. Mom in pink hat & sporting her new beautiful wig!

Family picture 3 days before mom started chemo.

Mom and Deanna Farve ( mom in her cute wig )

No More Chemo/ Birthday Party for mom!

Our deck and screened in porch is completed and we have loved using it this holiday weekend. We had a few friends over last night to test it out. Here are a few pictures of our new addition.



under construction.

The screened in porch.

Our cute new bench. I found it at an antique store. The bench was made from a 1930's baby crib. My sweet sister-in-law is making us cushions so we can enjoy it on the porch.

My handy husband made this table for our porch. My friend jennings gave me the idea to use the window pane I had in the garage as a table! Thanks Jennings!