Magnolia Mamas

Wednesday, November 10, 2021

Store to Door: Furniture & Home Decor Options with Casabella {plus a Giveaway!}

Anyone else having trouble finding furniture, lamps and home decor consistently in stores? Or with availability to be delivered in less than a year? We know these are crazy times we live in now (and total first world problems), but sometimes a girl just wants some bar stools and a coffee table. To bring home, like today.

Even though renovation projects have wrapped up in our homes, we've struggled to find a store with product available any time soon. That's when we decided to turn our focus to local shops and smaller businesses.

Best. Decision. Ever.

MEET CASABELLA

Established in the heart of East Cobb for the past 19 years, Casabella is a 12,000sq home decor lover's dream. Even better? They have a TON of furniture, lamps, home decor and accessories in stock and ready to go!

The owner Cathy was enough nice enough to let us peruse her back stock room, and see that she is pandemic prepped for all her fellow interior design and decor friends. Because the Casabella storage rooms and warehouse spaces are stocked floor to ceiling full of so many gorgeous furniture pieces. We almost called our husbands to bring Uhauls right then and there.

From designer pieces to affordable trendy items - Casabella carries a little bit of everything to cater to all types of home decor styles.

Let's take a moment to sneak a peek at just some of the swoon worthy items available in stock...

Furniture, lamps, and home decor aren't the only things gracing the floors of Casabella though. A large part of that gorgeous showroom is filled with gifts, clothing, local handmade items, and more!

Psst - even delicious cocktail options!! See below for evidence.

While we might have shopped slightly under the influence of the magical concoction called the "Good Times Slushie", we were all business when it came to picked out the perfect pieces for our homes.

If we had any questions though, we love that there is a design team on site and for house calls to help with any interior design needs you might have. We were told to just come back with photos of our spaces and measurements if possible, and they would be more than happy to help.

From store to door, that almost 20 years of design expertise shows in every step of the Casabella experience.

YOU'RE INVITED!

November 12-14th marks the weekend of Casabella's annual Holiday Open House. Trust us when we say this is an event you won't want to miss! Like 10% off furniture and everything else in the store kind of don't want to miss.

That's right - your eyes aren't deceiving you. Furniture, lamps, and decor at a discounted rate that you can take home the same day.

You can thank us from the soft cushiony haven of your new couch.

HOME SWEET HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS GIVEAWAY!

We love Casabella so much, we couldn't' resist grabbing a little gift for one of you. One lucky person will win the following...

- 1 Lumbar "Thankful" pillow

- 1 set of Plaid MudPie Napkins

- 1 Tree cutting board/charcuterie board

- 1 Holiday scented hand soap

To Enter:

1: Leave a comment stating what room you are most excited about decorating for the holidays.

2: Enter on Instagram ON THIS POST.

Good luck everyone!

Come spend the day with us on:

Monday, November 8, 2021

Five Tips To Make Holiday Entertaining Go Smoothly

Thank you BabbleBoxx for sponsoring this post. All thoughts and opinions are my own!

Do you do any entertaining for the holidays? Maybe you host family for Thanksgiving or have friends over for a Christmas party? No matter what the occasion, holiday entertaining for family or friends can be overwhelming if you aren't prepared.

We recently received a BabbleBoxx that was full of all sorts of entertaining goodies to help us prepare for holiday entertaining. Today we're sharing a round up of five ways to make holiday entertaining go smoothly.

1. You know nothing gets the party started like some holiday cheer! Having a variety of wines already opened and out for guests to enjoy and pass around will allow your guests to feel more at home and you to be able to enjoy their company without feeling the need to cater to their every need. Our favorite lately has been Rodney Strong Wines from Sonoma County. Having both a red and a white options available for guests is always a good idea. We went with the Cabernet Sauvignon and the Chardonnay as crowd pleasers!

2. Easy appetizers and snacks on hand prior to a meal is key! Everyone wants to have something to munch on and we love yummy nuts as an easy no-prep option. You might just need a game day snack or you might want to make an appetizer board before a meal. These Frank's Red Hot Almonds are a must! They are made with Frank's Original Hot Sauce and California Almonds so there are no artificial colors or flavors. They take boring almonds and turn them up a notch with the perfect blend of flavor and heat!

3. Whether you are cooking an entire meal or just prepping a few side dishes, when it comes to having guests we like things to be as streamlined as possible. I don't know about y'all, but if a recipe calls for too many ingredients I tend to shy away from it. The easier the better and we've found the ultimate cooking hack! Dorot Gardens are pre-portioned herbs, garlic, and onions ready to be added to any dish with no peeling or chopping. Their products are harvested fresh and flash frozen within 90 minutes to ensure freshness. Crushed Garlic, Crushed Ginger, Chopped Basil, and Chopped Parsley are just a few of the pre-portioned options they offer.

4. Everyone loves the favorite sitcom Friends, and this new book combines a cookbook with entertaining tips for Thanksgiving and the holidays. Friendsgiving: The Official Guide to Hosting, Roasting and Celebrating with Friends by Shoshana Stopek not only shares recipes, but also entertaining tips and activities. This would make a fun gift for any of your friends who love to entertain or for yourself to help with preparations for hosting!

5. Ending the night with something sweet is a must! These Dewey's Cookie Thins are baked in a southern hometown bakery in Winston-Salem, NC. They are made with real ingredients, no artificial flavors and no preservatives. The Sugar and Ginger Spice cookie thins are perfect for serving, but the adorable tubes are perfect for adding a bow to and sending home with your guests as a little gift. You can shop HERE and use code: DEWEYS10 to get 10% off site-wide November 10-December 10.

What are some of your holiday entertaining tips and tricks? Share them with us in the comments!

Wednesday, November 3, 2021

Book Club: October 2021

How is it already November? We feel like we blinked and October passed us by, but we aren't complaining. We are super excited about all things holiday and can't wait for some fun Christmas reads.

But first, we're sharing the books we read during the month of October!

And bare with us because we are exchanging the cocktails for extra caffeine today for our book chat. Why? Because our baseball team won the World Series last night. GO BRAVES!!!

It's been a lot of well worth it late nights these last few weeks. Now we can go back to staying up way too late as a result of our reading habits. :)

WHAT WE READ...

CARRIE BETH

The first book for me last month was Close Enough To Touch by Colleen Oakley. I loved the last title by Oakley that I read so though I would give this one a try. It was about a young woman who was allergic to the human touch. She literally could die if someone touched her so she had been somewhat of a hermit for years until she was forced to come face-to-face with the world outside her home. In stepping out of her comfort zone she found friends, co-workers, and love. This story follows her journey to overcome fear and open herself up the possibility of a somewhat normal life.

I had high hopes for The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Dave. I feel like most of the Reese's Book Club picks and didn't hate this one, but just felt like it was really rushed. It follows a woman and her step-daughter as they look for clues and tips about her husband after he mysteriously disappears. They dig into his past to find answers all while strengthening the mother/step-daughter relationship. They have to make some tough decisions about their future and while I think this plot had potential I just didn't love it. As a reader I had a ton of questions that didn't ever get answered and just wanted more.

It's been a long time since I read a Nicolas Sparks book so I was excited for The Wish. A well-known travel photographer, Maggie, finds herself at home over Christmas dealing with her cancer diagnosis and the fact that she has little time left in her life. She begins to tell a story to her young assistant of a Christmas long ago, her one true love, and life changing year of her life as a teenager as she felt with teenage pregnancy and adoption. I was eager to hear Maggie tell the rest of her story, but also felt the middle of this story dragged on quite a bit. However, the ending threw me for quite a loop and I loved the realization that occurred towards the end of the story!

JEN

I kept things spooky for October, and did a lot of pulling from our Best Books of Fall reading list. I was in the mood for mystery, suspense, and keep you up at night thrillers.

Doesn't this cover just scream Halloween? The Ex Hex is like a really fun Halloween story - for adults! When a book starts with the sentence, "Never mix vodka with witch craft.", you know you are in for good time. It was a laugh out loud rom-com of magical proportions, and constantly made me smile. The story is set in a small town in Georgia (yay for the home state shout out!), and features witchy college professor Vivienne Jones. When her ex strolls back into town after almost a decade both her heart and her magic begin to go haywire. A far-fetched tale of magic filled disaster fills the chapters, but it was from start to finish a super cute story. In the end it was a quick and easy romance read that totally put me in the mood - the Halloween mood.

Next up was a book I'd been looking forward to all year - As Good As Dead, the third book in the A Good Girl's Guide to Murder series. This was SO GOOD! It was like two different stories in one, and wrapped up a lot of loose ends from the series while also bringing the story and characters full circle. I was completely blown away as certain details came to light, and the last three seconds of the book - gah!

This book was the outlier in terms of how the plot unfolds from the previous two books in the series. I love the true crime/podcast feel to the first two, and while there are hints of it here, As Good As Dead concentrates more on the characters and their "where are they now" from the first two books.

Read it. Enjoy it. And pray Holly Jackson delivers us another amazing series soon!

What happens when you fall hard for someone you meet on a dating app, and then just as things get serious, you’re ghosted?

Last Girl Ghosted is a dark and twisty take on ghosting. Girl and guy meet, fall in love, profess their love, and the next day one of them is gone. All traces have been deleted, numbers disconnected and without a single trace, moved homes overnight. Both parties have secret pasts, and somewhere along the wild goose chase you realize maybe some things (or people) that are lost shouldn’t be found. This story was both edge of your seat suspense and unique.

The end threw me just a bit because it took a drastically different turn when it came to the overall message and plot of the story. If you like suspense thrillers without all the gore - snag this one.

As a mom I can't even imagine what it would feel like to have your child kidnapped. It's a fear all parents have, and in Little Secrets, one that the comes to life. Marin and her husband seemingly have the perfect life and family - celebrity status, money, and a gorgeous home. In one small moment it all comes crashing down around them. Even more than a year later, Marin refuses to give up the search for her lost son. As little secrets begin to unravel about the people around her, she's willing to do anything to keep her little family together.

I jumped back and forth with who I thought the kidnapper was, and in the end was shocked at how the story came full circle. There's a huge twist in the novel at about 80% of the way through, and it's a good one.

This was a fast paced read with a lot of suspense and build-up to the big reveal. Even though the subject was on the darker side, Hillier does a great job of keeping the subject matter on the tamer side while getting the point and fears across. This is one of my favorite suspense novels I've read this year.

WHAT'S UP NEXT...

CARRIE BETH

Although I liked the books I read this past month I didn't love them.

I've been longing for a book that makes me feel all the feels. Big emotions, crying, laughing, and everything in between. Not sure if I'll find it in Float Plan by Trish Doller, but willing to give it a try!

JEN

I'm going to do a deep dive into all things holidays - including my reading. I already have a large "to read" pile ready to go, but going to kick it off with the always fun and fantastic - Mary Kay Andrews. Her holiday novel The Santa Suit is already out, and it sounds like a great way to get in the holiday spirit.

WHAT BOOK ARE YOU MOST LOOKING FORWARD TO THIS MONTH? HAVE ANY ADDITIONAL SUGGESTIONS THAT WE NEED TO ADD TO OUR LIST? SHARE WITH US!

BOOK CLUB 2021

BEST BOOKS OF SUMMER 2021

MUST LISTEN AUDIO BOOKS

BEST BOOKS OF FALL 2021

Follow along with us on Goodreads!

HAPPY READING!