Our Cozy NYE Party

As I sit and gather pictures for this post my house is still full of glitter and balloons are still floating. We had the best time ringing in the new year with some sweet friends!

If  you follow me on Instagram you saw my story about not having much a decor meter. I either go full out and have a whole styled decor situation or I do nothing. Not great at the middle ground.  I decided to keep my crazy down to a normal level and do a festive drink station and only a couple other sparkly accents.  I love how our little champagne bar turned out!  

 I wanted to keep the vibe celebratory but super comfy and simple.  We had each family wear their comfiest pjs and bring a little something to eat.  I put together some sparkly cupcakes and a charcuterie board along with a handful of pizzas and sipped on Chandon.  

The kids started the night with a round of Twister while us adults got into my pile of games.  I have been really wanting to start hosting game nights so this was the perfect excuse to bust out the games.  Us girls broke open What the Meme and the boys joined us for Telestrations, Left Right Center and Cards of Humanity.  I had never played Telestrations but it quickly became my favorite!  My tummy muscles hurt today from laughing so hard.  

We were hoping to pop our poppers and do an early East Coast ball drop to keep it an early night.  We quickly ditched the idea of turing in early and kept the fun going until 11:30.  I had a handful of poppers for the kids and some super big crackers for us adults.  Our house was quickly full of glitter!  I have to say it doesn't bother me one bit!  

Cheers to you and a sparkly 2018!  I can't wait to share new content, videos and travel with you this year! 

2018 Goal setting gathering

It's a sparkling fresh new year and time for new goals and dreams!  One of my best friends is a major promoter of vision boards.  I make pretty thorough goals for myself throughout the year but never have made a vision board.  We thought how fun would it be to do our vision boards together and have a couple more of our favorite ladies play too.  It became a thing!  Goal Gathering!  I like a name for get togethers!  

We kept our gathering small and intimate with just 4 of us.  I put together a Charcuterie board with yummy snacks and we sipped on mini Chandon splits.  

A couple of the girls have done intense courses on goal planning for their businesses and helped create a format for both our big goal lists and our vision boards.  We broke down the goals into categories.  

Here is how it looked: 

Family: to encompass anything family or relationship related.  This would include family camping trips, quality time with each child, date nights or getaways with your hubby, lunch dates with parents, special notes and coffee dates with friends, etc. 

Spiritual: faith based goals like incorporating a daily devotional into your morning routine, attending a women's bible study, making Sunday's a priority to attend church, read faith based books, etc. 

Physical: this could be the obvious like getting back to the gym or cleaning up your eating.  This category could also be things like bleaching your teeth regularly,trying that new haircut you have been eyeing, doing weekly at home masks or practicing yoga daily.  

Educational: this category could be business related or personal development related.  I am going to take an official photography class to learn more about my camera.  You could make it a goal to go back to school, attend conferences in your field or reading educational books like biographies or biz books. 

Business /Work: this category can include your work goals for promotion or even little goals like keeping your office drawers organized regularly.  

Material things: this is a bigger category.  This would include the material things or projects you are aiming to gain or finish in the year. This category can also include getting debt free or adding to your savings. Some of my material goals this year are to add built ins and a powder room to the house.  I also want to create my garden this year.   

Then you get to my favorite part!  The vision board making!  I am super visual person and really get inspired by beauty.  We chose our most powerful goals for the year and found inspiring images for each from Pinterest.  We all found the most inspiration from pins we have already gathered on our boards. We then  used Canva.com  templates to upload our images and create our beautiful vision boards.  

I hope you are more than inspired throughout the year to attain your goals and dreams!  I am a huge goal setter and believe in 1, 5, 10 year goals!  I'd love to see your vision boards too!  If you create one add it to Instagram and tag me in it! Cheers to a gorgeous 2018!

Best New Years Champagne

I love Champagne and can't wait to ring in the new year with my favorite people!  In order to pop only the best bubbly correctly, I asked my adorable sorority little sis and champagne professional ( no really!! it's her career! ) Alissa to help me guide you through the best champagne for your 2018 celebration.  She rounded up the best champs priced from lowest to highest, gave us the scoop on each selection, food pairing and party tips for how to make sure you are prepared to be the perfect hostess!   Don't miss the best champs fun facts at the end!  My favorite part! 

Domaine Chandon Brut Classic

California Sparkling

$15-$20

A great choice if someone is a fan of buying local.  This amazing winery was opened by Moet & Chandon in Yountville, CA in the mid 70's.  They create their sparkling in exactly the same fashion as it's French Cousins and have a very playful side.  Their we bite features cocktail recipes as well as entertaining tips and tricks.  They even release special limited edition holiday bottles and this year the bottles were designed by the incredibly talented Rebecca Minkoff

Etoile by Domaine Chandon

California Sparkling

$20- $25

Etoile, French for Star, is the Prestige offering from Domaine Chandon.  A hugely food friendly sparkling and presented in an exquisite bottle with long neck and simple gold writing.  this is an awesome, esoteric offering and one that is splendidly priced for gifting.

Moet & Chandon Brut Imperial NV

Champagne

Epernay, France

$30- $40

Veuve Clicquot "Yellow Label" Brut

Champagne 

Reims, France

$40- $55

Champagne Ruinart, Blanc de Blancs

Champagne

Reims, France

$65-$85

Dom Perignon, Blanc Vintage 2009

Champagne

Epernay, France

$149- $199

Krug

Champagne

Reims, France

$179- $200

When selecting your Champagne for this holiday season, it is definitely a good idea to look around for the best price available.  Champagne and sparkling are an affordable luxury and if you are going to splurge a little ….. now is the time to do so.  From Big box chains, to your local grocery store, to independent wine and spirits shops, and yes even online only stores…. everyone is offering their best foot forward when it comes to pricing and availability this time of year.  Some helpful hints and tips:  Above is a list of some of the world's most loved bubbles.  Including the oldest Champagne house, as well as the very first Sparkling Winery from Napa and of course Champagne Royalty …. KRUG and the beloved Dom Perignon.  

When looking for Champagne for your holiday gathering it is a good idea to keep a few things in mind when shopping around on price.  

1) Number of people in attendance- each 750ml bottle of Champagne will provide approximately 5-6 glasses.  If you are having a small party of 2 or a large gathering of 100 there is a Champagne for you and a size to match.  Sizes include individual "mini" bottles in 187ml (Moet & Chandon and Domaine Chandon) "Half Bottles" 375ml (Moet & Chandon, Veuve Clicquot, Ruinart, KRUG) or Large formats such as the "Magnum" 1.5L or the equivalent to 2 regular 750ml bottles(Domaine Chandon, Moet & Chandon, Veuve Clicquot, Ruinart Blanc de Blancs, Dom Perignon, and KRUG)..  

2)Who is your audience and what is on the menu?: will your guests be simply toasting to the New Year or do you have a home filled with wine aficionado's?  Champagne LOVES food so if your group falls into the later category…. your menu will be a huge help in your selection.  If you are having lighter fare such as Turkey, Fish, Vegetarian or Vegan…. a brut or Blancs de Blancs will be the true companion to your spread.  Should your menu include items such as red meat, lamb, pork, or items with hearty sauces…. then Rose will truly be the perfect choice to wow your guests whether they be Sommelier's or first time Champagne Sippers.

3) Have FUN! Champagne is a beautiful way to not just celebrate the holidays but the everyday and the people you are with.  It is truly unique in that it can be carried from welcome, to appetizers.  Main dishes, desserts and of course ringing in the New Year.

Fun Facts:

1. there are approximately 49 million bubbles in a 750ml bottle of Champagne
2. Marilyn Monroe is believed to have taken a both in over 350 bottles of Champagne
3. There are approximately 100 calories in a single serving of Champagne
4. The velocity at which the cork leaves the bottle can garner speed of up to 100 mph