The Adolphus Hotel

I haven't been blogging much lately. Truthfully its been quite sometime. I had started another blog last summer but for some unknown reason I cannot post pictures. I suppose I could for a price but I think it's absolutely outrageous to pay to download pictures when I can post them here for free. Don't you agree? Everything changes so quickly with updates and technology that I can hardly keep up these days. I am disappointed considering my cute little blog really represented the Southern flavor of my new chapter in life.

However, it is pleasing to see that y'all haven't forgotten my first blog Midnight Macroons. Midnight Macroons has introduced me to a vastly number of friends in blog land. Those I would never had crossed paths with otherwise so I find it appropriate to return to my blogging roots. I hope y'all still follow me as I reopen Midnight Macroons and begin to tell the story of my unique life of a California gal living in Dixie with her Southern husband. I'm obessed with historical architecture.


I get giddy as I find a historical hotel that I can reserve a room and study up the history on. Over Easter/Passover weekend, my husband and I visited Dallas, Texas. I adore Dallas. I always have such a great time there, shopping, dining out, attending sporting events, the arts, etc...etc...etc.. So, this particular weekend we decided to stay at the Adolphus hotel located in the downtown district.

There's so much history between the walls of this hotel. One of the things that impressed me the most about this hotel was the guest list, Queen Elizabeth, Donald Trump, Babe Ruth, Oscar Del La Renta, and the band U2 have all been guests of the Adolphus. Let me start off by telling you the history of this little gem. The Adolphus opened in 1912 by the founder Anheuser-Busch. It was designed by Thomas P. Barnett of Barnett, Haynes & Barnett of St. Louis. It was the first luxurious hotel in all of Dallas. At one point, in the 1920s, it was the tallest building in state of Texas. However, Magnolia Petroleum building (known as the Magnolia hotel) soon dwarfed the Adolphus in 1920s.

During the 1930s, the Adolphus hosted many big band musicians such as Tommy and Jimmy Dorsey, Benny Goodman and the infamous Glenn Miller. Not only did it host to musicians but politicians as well, J. Evetts Haley, President Franklin D. Roosevelt, and President George H. W. Bush.

Other famous guests include Warren G. Harding, British writer Nick Smith resided at the Adolphus when he wrote his novel "Rock Royalty: Diary of a Supermodel." Bob Hope, Jack Benny and many others have stayed here. However, my favorite guests would have to be Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Phillip. They have a fantastic picture of the royal couple hanging in the lobby that I managed to snap a picture of.

The Adolphus is also home to the French Room. One of most beautiful dining experiences you could possibly indulge yourself in while staying in the Big D. As you step into the French Room you honestly believe you're in Europe and not Texas at all. Not only is the room filled with exquisite decor but the French cuisine is delish.

I find that most Americans do not partake in high tea as Europeans do. It's something that I've learned to enjoy and hope to pass down to our children. To sit and enjoy a nice brewed pot of hot tea with someone you love is priceless. The art of conversation is truly disappearing in our society (between cell phone/computers). It's important to make time to chat without disruptions from electronics. If everyone practiced tea time I believe we could be a step closer to world peace.

I hope y'all enjoyed my little post today!

I'm back!!!

I must admit that I'm very displeased with Blogger at the moment. I had this blog for quite sometime and this summer it wasn't allowing me to post. I'd spend time writing and downloading pictures to have it all lost out in space somewhere. Finally I decided to start another blog and now they want to charge me for uploading pictures. Has anyone heard of this? Is this new? Well, I decided to take a chance on this blog and Lord behold it worked. So, I'm back. I personally think it's ridiculous to charge to upload pictures to a blog. However, I'll spare y'all from my soapbox speech.

So much has happened since I posted here last. My husband has nearly completed his first year of law school (thank goodness). I was yearning for summer break when everything would go back to normalcy. However, he came up with a grand idea of taking courses in Germany. Of course I'd have to accompany him, HA! We intend on leasing an apartment in Berlin. I've very excited as this will be my first trip to Germany. I've traveled to Europe before but never Germany. I've heard so many lovely things about it. My great grandparents (both sides) migrated from Germany so I'm eager to research the area where they resided. I did find out that our family roots began in Switzerland and not Germany. Interesting what you find out when researching your family history.

Spring is in full force and I'm loving it. Everything in my neighborhood is lush, green, and blooming like crazy. I'm eager to visit our local nursery and plant some flowers this week. I haven't decided what I'm going to plant along the walkway. Everything looks gorgeous at the moment.

This past week my friend and I decided to venture out and check out the consignment shops around town. We found all sorts of fantastic goodies. I came across these fabulous Fox Hunt scenes. I adore Fox Hunt so I'm really happy about my new purchase. Now I just need to find the perfect wall space for them.

Mississippi Cottage

This is the view from laying on the bed looking out the window. It was so much fun to watch the boats go up and down the Mississippi River at night.

My very favorite room of the house...THE PORCH! I spent all of my evenings lounging on the porch while sipping wine and reading books.

This is the back view of the cottage. I loved the little BBQ. My husband grilled shrimp and I made a fantastic shrimp salad with feta cheese and the works. With a good bottle of red wine and the sunset it was the best.

After we returned from touring all those beautiful plantation homes we would flop into these Adirondack chairs and chat. We'd have our favorite New Orleans jazz bands playing softly over the speakers. Just enough for background music but not loud enough that you couldn't hear the crickets.

When you sat in the rockers on the platform you'd see the bridge that connects Mississippi and Louisiana. The middle of the river was the state line so when we looked over the embankment we were looking at Louisiana.

Our views of the sunset were amazing. We had some of the most gorgeous sunsets. I love this picture.

Here's another view of the Mississippi. You can see that it's still flooded by looking at the trees across the river. They say it'll be coming back down by mid July. Everything across the river is Louisiana. We are on the Mississippi side.

Hope y'all enjoyed my pictures

Me Time

WooHoo! We got that rain we ordered. Yesterday we had a little drizzle but today the thunder clouds rolled across the Delta. Thankfully because my poor yard was looking a little drab. No matter how much you water it never takes the place of a natural rain. I love rainy weather. Makes me want to listen to some good music, light some candles, and relax.

My husband is actually out of town on business. That means I'm flying solo for the next couple of days. Don't get me wrong, I adore my husband and love having him around but sometimes it's nice not to have to cook dinner, coordinate with another schedule, or agree on a television program. If I wanted I could eat a bowl of cereal for dinner. Not that I am but just having the option is nice.

So what am I going to do with all this freedom? I just returned from my work out on the Natchez Trace. And on my way home I called in an order from this new fabulous Meditarrnean restaurant I recently stumbled across. I ordered Hummus and pita bread. I'm pouring a glass of Pinot Noir and I'm going to sit back and enjoy flipping through my latest issues of Southern Lady, Southern Living, and Garden & Guns all while watching "girl" shows. No sports, no news, no action packed movies. Perhaps a little HGTV, Bravo, and the cooking channel. How do you spend your free time?

This is the best Hummus I've ever tasted in my life. The woman is Lebanese and she can make a mean lamp chop. I'm drooling thinking about it.

Does anyone else drink Pinot Noir? I have to share with those who do. If you're not familiar with Sorter Vineyards I highly recommend you try a bottle. I didn't realize how spoiled I was growing up near the California Wine Country and then attending school in the Pacific Northwest. I was use to having wineries in my backyard. Now that I'm older and have moved across country I truly appreciate a good bottle of wine without taking it for granted.

Here's the Soter Vineyard site http://www.sotervineyards.com/ They have an amazing winery located in the Willamette Valley (that's in Oregon for those who aren't familiar with Pac Northwest). Washington and Oregon produce some amazing wines if you are ever out that way. Just thought I'd share a favorite with y'all.

A Hot June Afternoon

It's a hot one y'all. I'm feeling a bit like this little guy in the photo above. Yesterday I ran only three errands and was totally wiped out. I could hear my grandmother's voice come right out my mouth, "This heat has nearly done killed me." How they lived without AC is beyond me. I stepped into a store that had their AC on the fritz (bless the souls who work there). I believe that was the most expedient shopping trip of my entire life. The cashier asked me if I wanted to be on their mailing list and I said, "Not today, ma'am. You'll have to catch me when it's a bit cooler in here." She laughed but I wasn't joking. It was just plain too hot. I saw an elderly man sitting in a chair. I thought he killed over until I saw his hand move.

Alright, so I decided to share my Martha Stewart moment with you. Is Martha Stewart a thing of the past? I don't even receive her magazine anymore. I wonder if it's still out there. Anyone still get her magazine? She was like the MacGyver of craft making. She could take a single stick and make a Thanksgiving centerpiece. Well, not to have got off the subject but I used an old welcome sign I was about to toss into the donation pile and decided to make my own wreath. What do you think? Be honest now. * Look past those filthy windows. I'm ashamed of them but again, it's just too hot to do anything about them at the moment.

This is my attempt at gardening. Well, for now. I couldn't stand leaving my house without any color. Y'all know how much I enjoy gardening. I would love to put a few beds in the front but just haven't found the time. Plus it's been too hot. So, this is my flower pots. Of course, I just had to display my bunnies. I just love bunnies. I have them all over the house. Sort of like the old lady and her cats. Last night we attended the wine mixer at the club house and spotted an adorable baby bunny. He was just the cutest thing. However, one of the neighbor's Husky was drooling as it stuck his little head through the fence. He was wanting a bunny sandwich. Thankfully baby bunny hopped over to the courtyard out of reach of this furry friend.

I snapped a quick photograph of my neighbor's porch while pulling into the garage. Isn't it just lovely? Y'all should see the backyard. It's gorgeous! I think I'll walk over and take some pictures next week. She is one of my favorite people in my neighborhood and I'm just thrilled she lives next door.

I went to the Farmer's Market today and look what I picked up. Sunflowers are one of my favorites. Something about having fresh flowers in the house makes me feel cheerful.

Before I let y'all go I wanted to share my new lamp I picked up at a thrift shop. I found the BEST thrift shop. It's not far from the house. My neighbor told me all about it and it's not even a shop. It's a warehouse! I found all sorts of really cool things. I was in need of a lamp for the living room and I just didn't like anything I saw while I was out shopping. On the way home I passed by the thrift shop and decided to turn around and check it out. It was like a gold mine. I picked this little beauty up for a fraction of what I'd pay in the stores. However, it's not that cheap plastic or glass material. It's made out of metal. I paid a whopping $24.00. Look at the top. The little Chinese charm makes the lamp.

Thank y'all for the lovely compliments regarding my new home. I'll be sure to work on the house this next week so I can share interior pictures as well. Just seems like it's taking forever to put the final touches together. Have a beautiful weekend!

My New Neighborhood

I absolutely L-O-V-E my new home and neighborhood. I just snapped a few pictures a couple of days ago so I could share with my family and friends. The neighborhood was designed by an architect from New Orleans.

My house has a great view of the fountain. In the front yard it's really relaxing to hear the water while gardening or just visiting with neighbors.

I really like the little accents like this potted plant at one corner. As I walk through the neighborhood I'm always spotting things that I didn't see before.

This is the clubhouse pool. The neighborhood is full of retiree's so the pool is always vacant. It's like my own private oasis without the maintenance. You can lounge and since there is about a million fountains it feels a bit like a resort.

This is the back view of the clubhouse. Every other Friday evening the neighbors meet and we have a wine and appetizer mixer. It's really fun and a great way to meet everyone.

This is the front of the clubhouse. It's very Southern style if you ask me. They have converted one of the rooms into a library so you can check out books. On Saturday mornings they have a group that meets for danishes and coffee for a book club. I'm thinking of attending this weekend.

We've been needing some rain. The waterline is really down. Normally the water flows under the bridge and makes for a small waterfall. It's still pretty but I do wish we had some much needed showers. Perhaps I need to do a little rain dance this afternoon.

One thing I truly enjoy about the neighborhood is that I don't have to leave the gated community to walk. There's plenty of walking trails. It's really safe and relaxing.

I have two Magnolia trees in my yard. I love them so much. My husband doesn't like picking up the leaves in the front yard but I think they are worth it. I like to snip some clippings and put them in a vase. Magnolia's are so pretty.

Hope y'all enjoyed the tour.

Fairview Inn

Hi y'all. I'm sorry I haven't been around much but it has been one thing after another around here. I'm still trying to put the final touches on the house. Every time I think I'm close to being finished I find about a million new things I need to do. However, on the bright side I'm closer to being completed than I was yesterday. I'll be posting pictures really soon.

Not to change the subject but has anyone read the book, The Help, by Kathryn Stockett? The story takes place in my new hometown of Jackson, Mississippi. The book was such a big hit that they just completed filming the movie. It hits the theaters this August.

Today my husband took me to the Fairview Inn for my birthday lunch. The Fairview was actually referenced in the book. We had a lovely brunch overlooking the gardens. I managed to snap a few pictures to share with y'all.

The Fairview Inn was built for Cyrus C. Warren. He was the owner of Warren-Goodwin Lumber Company. The house was built by the architectural firm of Spencer and Powers. The Fairview Inn was designed with a Colonial Revival style.


Sorry about the vehicles parked in the front. There was a ladies bridge club that was meeting this afternoon. I'll have to swing by one day and try to get a better picture when it's not so busy.



I love the front porches. Aren't those rockers fabulous!!!



Love the details

In 1913, the property was purchased by Felix Gunter. Mr. Gunter was the President of the Jackson Board of Trade. The property was then sold to W.E. Guild in 1921. W.E. Guild was the Treasure of the Finkbine Lumber Company.

It was the Guilds who remodeled the house and added the English gardens. The property was purchased by a handful of owners until the current owners, Peter and Tamar Sharp, purchased it in 2006.

This is the side garden










Stepping inside the foyer



The book, The Help


Gorgeous antique chandelier









Beautiful study




Look at those lamps






Look what I stumbled across. It's a Civil War chess set.


The Confederacy


I didn't have the opportunity to take pictures of the restaurant itself. There were guests dining at the time. The name of the restaurant is called, Sophia's. It's a fabulous setting and they have fantastic food. They named the restaurant after their daughter.



Look at the awesome Birthday cake


White Chocolate Cream Cake...YUMMY!!!