AU Fan Day

(Pretend Eye of the Tiger is playing in the background) Our time at Auburn University Fan Day in August is being posted as a sign of things to come. That is right, Auburn plays its first game against Louisiana Tech on Saturday, September 5th, at 6pm CST.

Judd and I both attended Auburn University in Auburn, Alabama. It is where we met and fell in love. It is also where we lived for the first 2 years of our marriage. When our years in undergrad and grad school are combined, Judd lived in Auburn for 7 years and I lived there for 5. Auburn feels like home to us and it holds a special place in our hearts.

When we were newlyweds, we lived in a rental home on South College Street (across the street from the Arboretum parking lot for all of you fellow tigers). It was a great location. We could walk to class and the stadium. When we decided to move to Philadelphia, PA after grad. school graduation the house went up for sale. Judd's parents bought the house and have made it a tailgate home. We are so glad they did. That house is so special to us because it was our first home and because it is in our favorite place on earth. Long story short, we go back to Auburn for EVERY home game. We love to tailgate with our Auburn friends and family. We're looking forward to some AU tigers football! WAR EAGLE!

Judd's Daddy (Terry), Abby, and Judd walking through the Arboretum towards the stadium

Judd's Mom (Dot), Abby, Judd, and Terry inside Jordan Hare Stadium

May I Have All Of It Please?

I received my regularly scheduled spam emails today, except this time Restoration Hardware was telling me about their new fall collection. I had to take a look. I love that store. In fact, Brenna, my brother-in-law's girlfriend and I are going to scout out the RH Clearance Center in Destin, FL next time we are down that way. Oooh I can't wait for it.

I checked out the fall rooms and fell in love with some of the home office pieces. My husband and I have an entire room that is empty in our new house. Well, when I say empty I mean it actually has a 100 lb. black lab along with his giant dog bed and bowls squatting in it for now. Sorry Cole, you're gonna get the boot to the back yard when mommy gets some furniture.

We are hoping to use this space as a home office/guest bedroom. As previously mentioned, Judd is a landscape architect. He regularly has blue prints, plans, or something he is working on strewn about our house. We want to find a drafting table or studio type desk for this space for him (and me) to use. I really loved some of the things I was seeing on the RH website today. See Below.

While browsing I also found these lovely living rooms. I seem to be drawn to these light colored upholstery fabrics. Why do I love them so? I know they are not the most practical fabrics. I think I do want my custom slipcovers in something similar though. Scotchgard here I come.

I like this room because of the map of Paris in the background. Judd and I try to purchase a map at every place we travel to together. So far we have Lisbon, Portugal, St. Lucia, Charleston, SC, Philadelphia, PA, etc. I would love to find a big one like this. Or maybe he could just find one he likes or one we already have, blow it up, and print it at work on the fancy printers. Free sounds better don't you think?

Also, I thought these bedrooms were pretty. Our current bedding Hotel Collection from Macy's is similar to this. We could make a custom headboard like this one and maybe achieve a similar look for less.

I also thought this was pretty. Perhaps for one of the guest rooms.

And last but not least, a beautiful library space. I love those wing back chairs and the lantern in the middle. Also, a lovely dining room. Yeah, I'll take the whole lot.

For All of You Momma's Out There

A friend of mine who is also a new mother had this link as her status on Gmail chat today. I was curious and clicked. Boy, am I glad I did. It made me smile. These are some of the cutest baby Halloween costumes I have ever seen. They were almost enough to make me want a baby to put in them. Almost. Gotta get this last degree first. Give me about 4 years. Ha.

I just thought all of you mommy's would like to have a look see. Check it out. See below.

Click here for: Baby Halloween Costumes

Thank you goes a long way

As I have mentioned in other posts, my brother, SSG Bryan Tull, is currently serving in Iraq. I was reading his units blog today and saw this post from a fellow soldier in his unit. You can read the complete post here. I just thought this would be a great time to remind everyone to thank a service member any time you see one. Regardless of your thoughts on the war or politics, our soldiers are devoting their time and lives for our country without hesitation. Some even make the ultimate sacrifice. Just remember...thank you goes a long way.

Four Seasons: Great Customer Service

In a previous post I mentioned that I am looking for two slip covered swivel/glider chairs for our living room. I also said in that post that I made a spreadsheet of all of the styles and brands I liked to use as a guide when shopping. I was getting frustrated because the store near my home that carries these brands is small and only has a few pieces on the floor at a time. I want to go somewhere that has most or all of the styles available for me to "test drive" at one time in order to compare them. I emailed Four Seasons about where to go for this and they were so quick to respond and make a suggestion. (See Below) I give Four Seasons a thumbs up for customer service.

Abbygail Langham to Four Seasons:

I have been pricing and eyeing four seasons for a while now. I have found one dealer near my home in Birmingham, AL (Harmony Landing, Homewood, AL). I love their store but they are a small shop and only a carry a few pieces at a time. I would like to be able to test several pieces at once to compare. Is there anywhere else in Birmingham, AL or in Atlanta that has a bigger selection? I have pretty much decided I want a four seasons sofa and two swivel/glider chairs. I am just still unsure of which style to purchase. I have narrowed down my choices a little by looking on-line. I am also considering Lee and Rowe Furnishings. I made a spreadsheet with the styles I would like to "test drive." See attachment. My husband and I are tall so it is important that we find something that fits us both well. Please let me know if there is a place to shop with a bigger selection. Traveling to Atlanta would not be a problem if that would be the best option.

Thanks, Abby

Four Seasons to me:

Thank you for inquiring about Four Seasons. Your best bet is to visit Outrageous Interiors online. They have 4 locations around the Atlanta area. You can probably call each store and find out what is on their floor. My rep informed me that they should have a collection called Bertha on the floor. It is our deepest and tallest sofa, perfect for tall people. Their website is http://www.outrageousinteriors.com/ .

Thanks! Four Seasons

I believe in Auburn and love it!

I just thought I would write a quick post to get everyone excited for some Auburn University football! The kick off countdown is at 18 days!!! Our tigers will play their first game against Louisiana Tech on September 5th at 6pm CST. My husband just sent me this really neat schedule so I will share with you too. We are already starting to plan our first tailgate of the season. WAR EAGLE!!!

AU 2009 Football Schedule Graphic made by Brad Williams.

Sherwin Williams Color Visualizer

The other day I was playing around with some coordinating colors for my mother-in-law's home while on-line. Last time I was there we painted her ceilings white and then painted her dining room, living room, kitchen, and den walls SW 6120 Believable Buff. We also chose SW 7012 Creamy for her kitchen cabinets. I can't wait to paint the kitchen. I know it is going to be a drastic change from what is currently there.

While looking at paint colors, I came across this really great color visualizer from Sherwin Williams. It allows to you choose colors you like and apply them to scenes of a living room, kitchen, etc. I think this is a handy tool. I just thought I would share what I found.

Click Here for the Sherwin Williams Color Visualizer

(PS-No the picture above is not an example of the colors used in my mother-in-law's house.)

Farewell Southern Accents

As most of you have probably already heard, Southern Accents will be stopping publication. This is devastating news as far as the interior of my home is concerned. This is my favorite magazine. I always look forward to every issue because of its truly classic and southern style. See quote from their website below.

"As many of you may have heard by now, Southern Accents is closing and the September-October issue will be our last. For the past 32 years, it has been our great privilege to work with so many talented, creative people to showcase beautiful houses and gardens, and to be a champion of the gracious lifestyle of this wonderful region we call home. We deeply appreciate the loyalty and support that our readers–both of the magazine and our blog–have shown us. You are the reason it has been such a joy to be a part of this industry and we appreciate you more than we can say."

One Semester Down and Twelve To Go!

No, I did not graduate yet. Ha. That photo is from my Master of Public Administration graduation. I have officially completed my first semester in the PhD program. I am exhausted and hopefully slightly more knowledgeable. I just finished Microcomputer Applications to Statistical Analysis and Introduction to Qualitative Research. I enjoyed my classes. It did, however, take me a while to find a balance between working full time, going to school, and maintaining a home and marriage. Thankfully my husband has been very supportive.

When we were working on our Master's degrees simultaneously his program was the one that required 18 and 20 hour days in studio. I used to pack picnic dinners and take them to him in the architecture building so he could eat and finish his projects. I remember baking and decorating Christmas cookies by myself late at night and taking them to his cohort around midnight. Everyone was still there. Because Judd has experienced such an intense program I think he is more understanding than most about my going back to school.

He has helped cook dinner, do laundry, clean the house, and has provided the emotional support I needed to make it through this first semester. I am grateful for him and I am grateful to have this semester finished.

I registered for my fall classes. I will be taking Organizational Leadership & Decision Making I, Theory/Practice of Supervisory Leadership, and Doctoral Seminar I and II. I know it will be a full fall. I can't wait to mark another semester off of my list.

Perfect Chair...Are you out there?

In a previous post I mentioned that I want two swivel/glider club type chairs for our living room. I am saving for this big purchase. To be honest this is the first major furniture purchase Judd and I will make. We have been really blessed by my grandmother when it comes to furniture. She has lovingly sent pieces to our home over the last 4 years. I love what she has given us and haven't really needed anything new until now. Don't worry, I am still keeping all of my grandmother's treasures.

I have become rather obsessed with this whole chair thing. The ones I have been eyeing are rather pricey in my book. Remember, Judd and I are following the Dave Ramsey Financial Peace plan so anything we buy will be paid for in cash. Yeah, we'll be saving for a while. You might not see these chairs in our living room for a few months. Thus, I don't want to take this purchase lightly. My type "A" personally has really shown through on this one. I was getting confused and frustrated when looking in stores this past weekend with my mother-in-law. (We were looking for her, but I was on the lookout for chairs while we browsed).

The nerd in me has officially shined through. I made a spreadsheet in Microsoft Excel based on the 3 major brands I have been researching--Four Seasons, Rowe, and Lee Industries. At the top of the spreadsheet I included my must have list. See below.

Must Have:
tall enough back (I am 5'9'' and Judd is 6' even)
slipcover
swivel
glide
washable fabric

The spreadsheet has 5 columns: Style Name/Number, Description (i.e. camel back, wing back, etc), Features (i.e. slipcover, swivel, glider), Outside dimensions, and Inside dimensions. Ok, I know I sound OCD at this point, but I am not an interior architect by any means so I need a cheat sheet when I am shopping. Please don't judge me. Ha.



I have looked at each brand's entire chair collection. I have only included the ones on my list that I like that have most of the features I am looking for. I hope having narrowed this down will be helpful when speaking with the sales associates.



So far my style options are:

Four Seasons

Four Seasons-
Amber
Claire
Ella
Libby
Libby XL
Sarah
Sarah XL
Shelby

Rowe

Rowe-
Sophie
Napa

Lee
Lee Industries-

1180-01

1432-01

2450-01

3752-01

3794-01

Now, I just need my talented hubby to draw our living room to scale and make me some paper cut-outs to scale of the chair dimensions. This way I can try each one out to see which is the best fit. Then I think it will be time to test drive them in the store. Once we find the chair we like, we will pick out the custom slipcover fabric. Have any of you bought furniture recently? What steps did you take to make your decision? I think I might be going about this a little too obsessively, but it is in my nature. I get paid to research and make spreadsheets of my data everyday at UAB. I guess it just comes naturally. I want these chairs to last for many years. I am hoping that when the fabric eventually wears out or we tire of it, I can just order a new slipcover and keep the frame. I am thinking practicality and longevity folks.

Any thoughts or suggestions?