Neighborly love!

We have the absolute sweetest neighbors, Cory and Julie, and we have so enjoyed having them next door over the last year. They moved in the week after Sadie was born. So it took us a couple of months before we were functioning well enough to go introduce ourselves! ha! But we have quickly become friends, and they are really the nicest people you will meet...salt of the earth! Oh, and Julie is an OB/GYN nurse practitioner. So I bombarded her with post partum questions and questions about mastitis last summer. She was so patient with me and didn't judge (at least I don't think she did! :)) We are just so fortunate to have them next door!

They are expecting their first baby at the end of August....a lucky little baby boy, Owen. I was honored to get to host a baby shower for Julie this past Saturday. Here are a few pics of the decorations and the sweet, cute pregnant mama! Owen's room is decorated in bright green and navy blue. So I tried to stick with the same colors, and used a few "O"s for Owen here and there (because his mom loves monograms).

The two tables.....

Favors....


Present opening spot....

The food (blueberry parfaits, sausage balls, eggs, cheese muffins, gorilla bread--a Paula Dean overhaul of monkey bread, lemon poppy seed muffins, donut holes, and green grapes)...


and, last but certainly not least, sweet Mama Julie....

Here are recipes for a few of the foods....

Sausage Balls

(these are a classic...at least in mine and Daniel's families, but poor Julie had never had them)

1 lb pork sausage

3 cups Bisquick

1 lb sharp cheddar

1/4 tsp black pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Mix all ingredients together. Form 1 inch balls. Place balls on greased jelly roll pan and bake for 18 minutes, turning balls halfway through.

Gorilla Bread

(from The Lady & Sons, Too cookbook)

1/2 c sugar

3 tsp cinnamon

1/2 c butter

1 c packed brown sugar

one 8-ounce package cream cheese

two 12-ounce cans refrigerated biscuits (10-count)

1 1/2 c coarsely chopped walnuts

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a bundt pan with nonstick cooking spray. Mix the sugar and cinnamon. In a saucepan, melt butter and brown sugar over low heat, stirring well; set aside. Cut the cream cheese into 20 equal cubes. Press the biscuits out with your fingers and sprinkle sugar each with 1/2 tsp of cinnamon sugar. Place a cube of cream cheese in the center of each biscuit, wrapping and sealing the dough around the cream cheese. Sprinkle 1/2 c of the nuts into the bottom of the bundt pan. Place half of the prepared biscuits in the pan. Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar, pour half of the melted butter mixture over the biscuits, and sprinkle on 1/2 c nuts. Layer the remaining biscuits on top, sprinkle with the remaining cinnamon sugar, pour the remaining butter mixture over the biscuits, and sprinkle with the remaining 1/2 c nuts. Bake for 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool for 5 minutes. Place a plate on top and invert.

Cheese Muffins

(from The Lady & Sons, Too cookbook)

1 1/2 c all-purpose flour

1 T sugar

2 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

3 cups coarsely grated Cheddar cheese

1 egg

1 c milk

1/4 c melted butter

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Stir the cheese into the dry ingredients until all the particles of cheese are coated with flour. Beat the egg with the milk and stir this into the flour mixture until just blended, then add the butter. Bake the batter in greased muffin tins for 20 minutes.