Where Have We Been?!?! :)

It has been nearly two months since my last post...and there is no excuse for my absence, so I am not going to try and list the reasons we have been M.I.A...Whit's Birthday, Christmas, New Years, Work, Sister's Wedding Plans, Car Issues, Traveling ...Let's just pick up where we left off and start again in this New Year!!

What we've been up to...

Whit's Birthday! :)

On December 16th, we celebrated Whit's 28th birthday by going to hear one of our favorite local bands at one of our favorite local venues! We spent his birthday with some great friends at The Station Inn listening to 18 South...we had a blast!

And Betsy and I even got to meet the one and only Aidan Shaw (a.k.a. John Corbett)...

It feels like we spent all of college watching Carrie and Aidan so we were excited to meet him!

Christmas! :)

The Christmas tree we decorated the first week of December warmed our house for the entire Christmas season! I loved coming home every night and seeing the glow of our tree there to greet me. I think Christmas trees are an automatic source of beauty in a house and if I could, I'd have one up all year long! Lollie especially enjoyed the tree...it seemed like everyday we would come home and Lollie would have added another ornament to her "special" collection. By the end of Christmas, the bottom half of our little tree was undecorated. Needless to say, Lollie thoroughly enjoyed her first Christmas!

This year, Whit and I hosted Christmas at our little house on the ridge for my side of the family. Since we knew we would be having so many delicious dinners during the holidays, we decided to have a brunch. It turned out to be such a wonderful morning full of laughter and warm, hearty breakfast treats that everyone seemed to enjoy...

This was our table for the Christmas Brunch...

Our yummy menu...Ham & Rolls, Sausage Balls, Fresh Fruit,

Breakfast Casserole and Grits! :) 

Lollie was exhausted after all of the fun and presents, so she took a nap in her Christmas sweater...

This is the Donnelly Christmas Eve Gift Exchange...

half of the room anyway...

believe it or not, there are many more of us :)

This is always a wonderful time! :) 

The Gorhams and their "Nashville" grandchildren 

on Christmas Day...so sweet :)

New Years Eve!! :) 

We spent New Years Eve a few houses down the street at the Currans. They hosted a game night and it was a blast!!

Betsy's beautiful table full of delicious food!

Part of the group at midnight ringing in 2012!!!! 

Love them all! :)

Cute boys :)

Pretty Stephanie and Allison with their New Years crowns!! :)

Who knew that the very next day 

sweet Avery Kate would be on her way :) :) 

(More to come about Avery Kate - she deserves her own post :)

We had a wonderful ending to 2011 and have had a great beginning to 2012!

I cannot wait to see what this new year has in store for us! :)

Stay tuned...I promise not to stay gone for too long this time!

50 and Fabulous! :)

Wow! It has been a busy week at the Gorham House! Last week, my mom turned the big 5-0 and we hosted a party in her honor at our house. You know I always love throwing a great party, and Whit and I, along with Whitney, Keith and Will - had a great time planning the perfect September Sunday afternoon soiree for my Mom.

Poppyseed Ham and Rolls :) 

Lemon Orzo Salad - Courtesy of my sister-in-law,
Ashley Gorham Thompson 

Mini BLT's  

Our French Country inspired bar - we brought the inside out! 

We had pictures of Mom throughout the party - this was one of my favorites :) 

The Girls!  

I came up with the idea of us trying to lift Will up...it got a little crazy :)  

...and Will wasn't too happy... 

All of Mom's "People" 

The Birthday Girl!

Mom blowing out her trick candles :) 

Will reading Mom a poem and presenting her with the special memory book
from all of her friends and family :)

Will and Mom :)

It was a beautiful celebration for a wonderful Mom. She truly is 50 and Fabulous if I've ever seen it! :)

Now...tomorrow is a very exciting day...the First Day of Fall!! :) In honor of the first official day of my favorite season...I have gotten a little carried away and chosen an Autumn inspired background for the blog. And I just love it! :)

This time last year, Whit and I were getting ready for our wedding weekend. I cannot believe it has already been a year! We are looking forward to celebrating our first year of marriage on Sunday! :) Time flies when you are having fun...Happy Fall!

An End-Of-Summer Cookout... :)

This past Saturday, we invited a few friends over for a little evening cookout. It was such a fun way to spend time together sitting on the deck enjoying this beautiful end-of-summer weather. We always love to entertain and this was especially fun because it was a small group which made it very easy and low key! :)

Our little table!

We received the bamboo chargers as a wedding gift
and we absolutely LOVE them!!

Our napkins!
They are all from one of my favorite stores in Nashville, COLOR! :)

Sweet Whit surprised me with these beautiful flowers the night
before our cookout and they ended up being the perfect centerpiece! :)

Food buffet!!

We decided to make sliders instead of regular sized hamburgers.
They ended up being the perfect portion for everyone
and kind of a cute touch!

Yummy! :)

Our salad!
Got to get our greens in! :)



For dessert, Kaneil made the most delicious
Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars!!
They were amazing!!!

We also had a yummy Buffalo Chicken Dip that Anna made, but it was enjoyed so quickly we didn't get to take a picture! :)

This cookout was such a wonderful night with great friends, great food and the beginning of a great Titans football season! :)