Peaches for Me

Mattyx Anthony Nicely

Ashley Corl — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 01:37:54 +0000

He’s finally here! My friend, Andrea had her baby yesterday! Mattyx Anthony Nicely was born at 1:54 pm, 8 lbs. 20z., 20 inches long and a full head of blonde hair!! He’s one of the most adorable babies I’ve ever seen & It’s impossible to not fall in love with him the moment you have him in your arms. I’m so proud of Andrea and dad, Matt. They’re going to be great parents! : )

In the hospital on the 9th... waiting for Mattyx to come!

so adorable : )

Andrea & Aunty Neily!

12/11/10

YAY MATTYX!!

Father & son : )

Snuggling up to mama : )

lil munchkin : )

Aunt Neily & the little guy!!

I'm a proud aunty!! I love him so much!

Aunt Kelly loves him too!

One day old... Don't I have an adorable nephew?!!

Congratulations, Andrea & Matt. I’m so proud & beyond happy for the both of you!

My Christmas Bests

Ashley Corl — Tue, 07 Dec 2010 03:03:17 +0000

Between Marquette’s insane snowfall the past few days & the holiday cards that have started to trickle in, it’s safe to say I’ve slipped past my usual excitement around this time of year & into full-on Christmas fever. I love it! Today I received a card from my cousin, Dana, in New York. I would love to be there visiting right now!

What I would give to see Central Park in the winter!

I’ve compiled a list of my favorite Christmas movies and songs to share. They may not be the same as what you like… but then again, they might. : )

Movies

6. How The Grinch Stole Christmas The old cartoon, that is, because Dr. Seuss is absolutely amazing!

5. The Polar Express It’s such a charming story & the author of the book, Chris Van Allsburg, is from Grand Rapids!

4. The Family Stone If you love your mom, watch this movie.

3. The Holiday This movie is just perfect. It’s a huge favorite of mine to watch with my dear friend, Robbie. Berry kiss!!

2. Elf I don’t think I’ve ever quoted another Christmas movie more than this one : )

1. White Christmas This is the B-E-S-T Christmas movie ever! I watch it on Christmas Eve every year & finds its way deeper into my heart every time I watch it. If you like old movies (it was made in 1954), musicals, comedies, dancing… It’s all of those things!

Music

6. Christmas Time Is Here Oh Charlie Brown : )

5. I’ll Be Home for Christmas I love this song so much more now that I live so far away from home. And good luck finding someone better to sing it than Frank!

4. I’ve Got My Love To Keep Me Warm sung by Ella Fitzgerald & Louis Armstrong. Billie Holiday does a great job singing this song too. I can’t decide which one I like more.

3. A Marshmallow World It’s just plain cute : )

2. Baby It’s Cold Outside This is such a close second to my favorite! Zooey Deschanel sings such a beautiful version of it as well!

1. White Christmas There is only one person I want to hear sing this song & it’s the same person who stars in the movie: Bing Crosby. His voice is amazing & the timelessness of it makes it my number one!!

Nothing better!

Date Night!

Ashley Corl — Sun, 21 Nov 2010 19:41:56 +0000

I’m so excited for today. I finally get to see Harry Potter & The Deathly Hallows tonight! Even better, my boyfriend & I both have the [rare] evening off together, so he’s coming with me : ) I love our date nights!

Finally!!

A lot of people like to criticize this book/movie series so if you’re not a Harry Potter fan, don’t scoff. If you’re not an HP fan but you are a Twilight fan, seriously shut up. I love Twilight just as much as any other female member of our species but Harry Potter, I have to say, is just better. Get past your issues with wizards & wands. The challenges these characters encounter will always outshine Bella’s heartache & insecurities over not being good enough for Edward. I’ve probably pissed quite a few people off now… Sorry! Just remember I do love Twilight too.

Now that I’ve gotten that out- I love that the holiday season means a lot of new releases. I’m begging you, though, don’t see Skyline… Worst. Movie. Ever. Other new movies that look awesome?

I have less than two hours until Derrick gets here & I can’t wait for our evening to begin : ) Have a happy Sunday!

Too Much White

Ashley Corl — Sat, 20 Nov 2010 20:49:15 +0000

Okay, no one can give me crap for listening to Christmas music anymore. Here is the vision I was met with when I woke up this morning & looked outside my window:

Seeing this, I immediately want a large blanket & a hot cup of coffee

I can't say I'm happy about this.

Welp, I guess winter is here! I haven’t been able to keep myself from listening to the Swingin’ Christmas station on Pandora, even though a lot of people have told me to wait until after Thanksgiving haha. No one can’t stop me from doing it now, though! Seeing the snow gets me even more excited for the holidays. It’s less than 5 days until Derrick & I are on the road to Grand Rapids for Thanksgiving! The anticipation is killing me : )

I LOVE Bing Crosby!!

Book Nook

Ashley Corl — Tue, 16 Nov 2010 02:29:50 +0000

It’s common knowledge among my closer friends that I don’t mind putting a fair amount of my earnings into decorating my living space. That’s why I’m so proud of myself for what I accomplished yesterday evening: I created a little reading nook in my living room without spending any money & by using only what objects I already had in the room! Trust me, it’s not much. When you live in as small of a space as I do, however, these little changes make a huge difference.

Yes, I'm still a college student so yes, that is a blanket I've converted into a makeshift slipcover for the stool. Someday I'll have a bigger paycheck & bigger budget so I can design my home like you see them on HGTV!

Did I mention it’ll be my nice little hookah corner too? I realize the littlest things make me happy but… I love it! Now I just wish I had a dog (FRENCH BULLDOG, to be exact!) to nestle in next to me while I utilize my new space. : )

Oh BOY!

Ashley Corl — Tue, 09 Nov 2010 03:09:10 +0000

It was this past spring when I found out that one of my best friends, Andrea, is pregnant! From that moment on, I knew I wanted to take on the responsibility of planning her baby shower. I spent months looking at decorations, thinking about themes & bookmarking a zillion webpages that contained ideas I wanted to incorporate (I now have a party planning tab on safari just so I could keep it all organized!).

We found out in July that she’s having a BOY! Mattyx Anthony Nicely is due to come into this world on December 18th & I really hope he comes on his due date- I hear the 18th is a good day for awesome people to be born. ; ) Once I found out the gender, I was able to hone in on color schemes & I was hooked. My apartment was converted into a short-term decoration warehouse & I don’t think anything or anyone could convince me I was going overboard with my planning! We held the baby shower October 3rd at the Marquette Commons & it was a success! I was a happy host but more importantly, I think we finished with a happy mama & happy baby. : )

A Phil's 550 onesie!

Baby Uggs to match mama's

Candy Bar!

Yumm! Homemade chocolate-covered pretzels : )

sweet...

... tooth.

Andrea with her mom & sisters : )

Andrea & Matt (dad!) & his mom

You can see them in the bottom right corner of the photo of Andrea with her mom & sisters, but I made a TON of these paper poms I found at the Martha Stewart Weddings website. Technical difficulties made it so they didn’t hang from the ceiling like intended, unfortunately, but they’re adorable & affordable. Since you can make them in any tissue paper color imaginable, I’d recommend them for any kind of party! You can also purchase them pre-made from Etsy because they are very time-consuming to make on your own. Woooo I can’t wait to be an auntie!

“A new baby is like the beginning of all things- wonder, hope, a dream of possibilities.” – Eda J. Le Shan

Lab Rats

Ashley Corl — Thu, 25 Mar 2010 19:17:00 +0000

For the most part, I love being an art student. At times when I don’t like it, I have Cara Gould to both keep me company and keep me entertained. For our graphics class right now, we have to redesign the packaging for a kind of food we don’t like. That’s besides the point. At this moment, Cara and I are stuck in the matting room, waiting for food to be delivered and finishing up on our templates. Thank goodness we have Macbooks, otherwise it’d be too obvious if we used a camera to take pictures of ourselves : )

bored 1

bored 2

so cool

'what if someone walked past the matting room and saw us right now?'

'If this is going into the blog, we might as well smile for one.'

Mitten State!

Ashley Corl — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 19:46:00 +0000

WOO HOO!! As I was walking to meet my friend, Cara, for coffee today, I stopped by my mailbox like I do everyday to check for post and what was waiting for me?! My Mitten State t-shirt!! Of course I got mine to represent Grand Rapids. A portion of the sale of my shirt goes to charity so I’ve done a good deed for the day. : ) I’m so excited to wear it tonight!

another t-shirt post haha- yeahhhhhh GR!

But seriously… I’m German.

Ashley Corl — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 21:23:04 +0000

As you all know, yesterday was St. Patrick’s Day. Let me start by saying the I hope everyone had an amazing day, stayed safe & got sufficiently (if not belligerently) drunk! (Sorry, mom.) My morning started out in true Irish fashion with corned beef hash for breakfast.

Unless I’m being lame and working through the entire day, I usually try to make a t-shirt or something to wear for the celebration. I made one for this year too but I was smart this time & didn’t put a date on it (which I usually do. i.e. St.Patty’s 2009) so I can probably wear it again next year : )

the front of my shirt...

... and the back. Sorry again, mom.

I’m not really sure what’s more Irish than potatoes, so I thought I’d share my mom’s cheesy potatoes recipe!

Cheesy Potatoes

Ingredients:

32 oz. hash browns (frozen)

1 can cream of chicken soup

1 can cheddar cheese soup

1 stick butter or margarine

1 onion, diced

1 cup sour cream

potato chips

Directions: Break apart frozen hash browns in a large bowl (can be shredded or cubed). Add soups, butter, onion and sour cream. Place in a greased baking dish. Crush a few potato chips for a crispy top. Bake at 400°F for 1 hour. Enjoy!!

PAT!

Ashley Corl — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 17:52:32 +0000

I have such an awesome & thoughtful best friend. Yesterday, while I was at work, Michelle came into the restaurant with her boyfriend, Matt, and presented me with one of the greatest Goodwill finds imaginable. She found an awesome coffee cup with a bicycle etched into it! I’m guessing the previous owner’s name was Pat, since it’s personalized with that name, but to me, just that made it even more humorous : ) I brewed a pot of coffee at work just so I could drink out of it haha. Wherever you are & whoever you are, Pat, thank you for giving up your coffee cup.

Also something really cool- I just ordered my Grand Rapids t-shirt from The Mitten State, which is a sweet site that was recommended to me by a friend. They sell t-shirts showing the location of your hometown on a hand (sorry, MI residents only!). So far they have GR, Ann Arbor, East Lansing & Detroit but from the looks of it, they’ll be making more for other cities in addition to taking custom orders! The coolest part about the shirts is that a portion of the sales from each one goes to a local charity! It’s a pretty new business (plus it’s local & for a good cause so show your support) so here’s their blog- Mitten State Blog. Order a t-shirt if you can!

the greatest coffee cup i could ever ask for!

current song on my itunes:

Oooookay, off to work on my huge graphics project due tomorrow. Looks like no bowling for me tonight :-/