back patio | Beneath My Heart

Hopefully the weather is finally starting to warm up in your neck of the woods.

We are warming up a bit here in Kentucky, but soaking wet! I cannot believe all the spring storms we have had this year.

Well, rain or shine, it’s Spring! It’s time to start pretty-ing up your outdoor spaces.

Need some inspiration? Well, here it is!

I am so excited to share with you a great Outdoor Space Makeover today!

Provided by the fabulous Rhoda, from Southern Hospitality.

I met Rhoda two years ago at Blissdom. She is my angel. (You’ll have to read my post at Rhoda’s today to find out why.)

She is the most caring and considerate blogger ever! She is always thinking of others more than herself. I love that about her.

She was my mom’s favorite blog, and I know why. She is super talented, super creative, and oooozing with southern graciousness. I am so excited to share some of her talent with you today.

Rhoda turned her deck from “drab to fab” last year, and you have to see it to believe it!

Rhoda had a deck, I’m sure, like many of yours. It was not an extremely large space, but it was enough of a space to spruce up and make more inviting.

Here is the before picture of her deck…

This wasn’t a space that beckoned Rhoda to come outside, relax, and sip on sweet tea.

She found that great umbrella at a yard sale, and it got her juices flowing to create a more beautiful outdoor space.

Look at it now!

Wow! Isn’t it amazing?! It’s hard to believe it is the same place!

I would want to sit out on this deck every night.

One of the best additions to the deck, was the DIY shutters that Rhoda made.

Yep. She made them. She is truly amazing!

You can find her tutorial of how to make them, HERE.

Rhoda did purchase her wicker furniture (at a great price), but the rest of her accessories are mostly from garage sales or from around her home. I love that!

She proves my theory that it doesn’t have to be expensive to be beautiful!

She got a great deal on this gorgeous rug too. I love the way it defines the space. The colors are perfect.

The little table between the two chairs got a fresh coat of spray paint to make it look like brand new.

Rhoda also tried her hand at sewing and did a great job on these pillows. Don’t you love those colors?!

Let’s take one more look at this beautiful outdoor space.

If you want to see even more photos of this transformation, click HERE, to read Rhoda’s full post.

She also shares the Top 5 Ways to Create a Cozy Porch.

While you are there, be sure to browse around. Rhoda’s blog is full of inspiration!

I am sharing my Back Patio Makeover over at Rhoda’s today too, so come see me!

Have a blessed day!

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Ladies, I am so sorry for not posting sooner!

Besides being unbelievably busy, my laptop went ka-put! I have not been able to access my blog for about a week. I have only been able to check my gmail on my phone. Man…I feel so out of it.

So, I finally twisted my husband’s arm until it completely fell off, and he broke down and bought me a new desktop computer for my office.

I had a desktop computer that I purchased in 1999, which is a trillion years old in computer years. It was soooooo slow. Literally.

It would take over 15 minutes for a page to load on the internet. Not kiddin.

I would click for a page to open, go downstairs and fold the laundry, come back upstairs, and the page still hadn’t loaded.

So when my laptop is down, I am basically computerless.

Maybe it’s a good thing. But it sure didn’t feel like it.

But since I am teaching now and will be bringing home a paycheck in a few weeks, my loving (one-armed) husband gave me the green light to purchase a mini-mac for my office.

One word….LOVE. (and I love my husband too.) :)

Mac’s rock!

I am so excited about what I am going to be able to do with my pictures and videos for my blog now. The possibilities are limitless!

So now that I have a computer working in my office, I am finally able to post pictures of my Willow House Party.

Let’s start with the most important pictures first…THE FOOD!

My sister and niece helped me out with the snacks, and believe me…they were delish!

My niece, Courtney, brought these delicious “cake truffles”. She told me on the phone earlier, “Aunt Traci, these are better than those Oreo Truffles.”

What? How can that be? Have you tried those Oreo Truffles? They are heaven on earth. (recipe HERE)

But when I took a bit of the “cake truffles”, I will have to admit that I agree. They are soooo good!

CAKE TRUFFLES

Ingredients:

1 (18.25 oz) package of cake mix (Courtney used yellow cake mix)

1 (16 oz) container of prepared cake frosting

2 bags semi-sweet chocolate chips

sprinkles

Directions:

1. Bake the cake according to box instructions.

2. Remove cake from oven when done and let cool 30 minutes.

3. Crumble up warm cake mix in a large bowl and add frosting. Mix together with a stand mixer or hand mixer.

4. Cover and chill in refrigerator for 3 hours or overnight.

5. Line your cookie tray with wax paper.

6. Use a melon scraper to scoop out the mixture into balls and place on cookie sheet.

7. Set in freezer for one hour.

8. Melt chocolate chips in microwave or on the stove top (double broiler).

8. Using toothpicks, dip the cake balls into the chocolate and place on cookie tray to harden. Place in refrigerator until time to serve.

9. YUM!

(This is a Paula Deen recipe. Click HERE to view her recipe.)

I made some delicious cheese truffles from a recipe found in my “Best of Philadelphia Cream Cheese” cookboook. I loved having individual bite size cheese balls versus one large one that everyone has to cut into.

Holiday Cheese Truffles

Ingredients:

2 pkg. (8 oz each) of Philadelphia Cream Cheese, softened

1 pkg. (8 0z.) Shredded sharp cheddar cheese

1 tsp. garlic powder

dash ground red pepper, cayenne (I did not use this.)

1/4 cup chopped roasted red peppers

2 green onions, sliced

1 2/3 cups chopped pecans

Crackers of choice ( I used wheat thins.)

Directions:

1. Beat cream cheese, cheddar cheese, garlic powder and ground red pepper with electric mixer until blended. Divide in half. Add roasted red peppers to half and onions to the other half; mix each well until blended.

2. Refrigerate several hours until chilled.

3. Shape into 24 (1-inch) balls. Roll in pecans. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Cyndi made Mom’s “Ooey, Gooey Marshmallow Bars” that she had posted about on her blog. You can find that recipe HERE.

To serve the spinach dip and bread cubes, I just flipped my (former) Southern Living at Home cake stand over. It usually looks like this:

We had the party demonstration outside. My friend Lori, the Willow House consultant, had decorated the display table beautifully for us to enjoy…

See the gorgeous green Berry Bowl in the above picture? I got that with my bonus points! It is a strainer, so I can just wash off my grapes or cherries and stick in right in the fridge. I cannot wait to get it!

So many pretty things…

The weather was absolutely gorgeous that night, mid 70′s!

My beautiful sister, Cyndi, enjoyed sipping her coffee while relaxing in the swing…

And two of my Mom’s sisters were there, Aunt Tassy and Aunt Pat. I don’t know what I would do without these ladies in my life right now.

I hosted a party two years ago, and Mom was there. I really missed not having her with us this time. She would have loved the food and the fellowship. As I cleaned the house and got ready for the party, I reminded myself of Mom in so many ways.

Having my precious aunts there made me feel like Mom was nearby. They look and act just like her! We sat around the patio table and talked about precious memories of Mom as we ate our food.

I was so touched afterwards by the words my friend Lori shared with me. She said she was amazed at the closeness I have with my aunts. She informed me that that was rare and special and that she felt honored to be a part of our family that night.

She’s right. Not many people are as close to their aunts as Cyndi and I are. I am so unbelievably blessed with a family that loves me so much. Mom’s sisters have “stepped in” to Mom’s shoes many times this past year when I was feeling her absence the most.

I am so grateful for the blessing of family!