Give Thanks.

Blayne Macauley November 19, 2021

Hello and Happy Friday,

I’ve been running around tying up loose ends before we head to the beach next week to visit Jimmy’s parents. It will be so nice to get away for a bit. Between work, commissions and a loaded podcast schedule, things have been hectic. I am so looking forward to a break.

In the spirit of Thanksgiving, I want to tell you guys a heartwarming story about my podcast. I started it 6 months ago with my brother-in-law because we both got really into the stock market in 2020. For the last 6 months we’ve done two episodes a week with some of the top traders in the United States. While we’ve learned a ton and had a great time doing it, we had been unable to find a sponsor and the production is expensive. Last week I sent out a tweet saying that if we didn’t find a sponsor soon we’d have to stop the podcast. I was incredibly upset about it. Amazingly, the hosts of the PGIR, the #1 Stock Market podcast, reached out and offered to sponsor us for six months. They believed in what we were doing and wanted us to keep going. I legitimately cried. It was so touching because their podcast is very well done and inspired me to start my own. It was a beautiful, selfless, full circle moment. I am so grateful and excited to pay this forward,

I compiled a list of some of my all time favorite Thanksgiving recipes, including a very famous Pecan Pie by Beacham & Company’s Rachel Farmer. I hope they inspire you as you head into the biggest cooking week of the year!

Grits and Eggs Casserole

Apple Walnut Salad

Squash

Homeade Mashed Potatoes

Deviled Eggs

Green Bean Casserole

Corn Casserole

John Besh’s Brussels Sprouts

Rachel Farmer’s Pecan Pie

Book of the Week

I love this book. It puts so many things into perspective. Its a fantastic holiday present and perfect for this season of Thankfulness.

Hostess Gifts

If you are not hosting Thanksgiving this year and would like to bring a hostess gift, here are some you can order on Amazon and have before the big day! Click the photos to take you to the product.

Travel Photo of the week by Samantha Wittman

“KILLARNEY, IRELAND

Standing close to the shores of Muckross Lake sits a nineteenth-century Victorian mansion. The Muckross House was built for Henry Arthur Herbert and his wife, water-colorist Mary Balfour Herbert, and designed by well-known Scottish architect William Burn. Killarney is a small town in Ireland’s Count Kerry and a must-stop if you’re driving the scenic Ring of Kerry route.”

— Samantha Wittman

I wish you all a wonderful Thanksgiving season and hope you have meaningful time with family and friends.

- Blayne

You Deserve a Break.

Blayne Macauley November 12, 2021

As much as I love the holiday season, I get super stressed. It so much to cram into 6 weeks, and I want to be all the things to all the people and inevitably fall short. In early December 2018, Jimmy had a business trip to the Abaco Islands. I’d never been and decided to tag along. As soon as I stepped on the island I knew it was special and unlike anywhere I’d ever been. There was something incredibly rejuvenating about the island, and I was able to completely unwind and relax in the middle of a hectic holiday season.

Upon leaving the island, I told Jimmy I wanted to return every year during the same weekend. As always, life (and in this case hurricanes) got in the way, and things change. As soon as we are possibly able, I want to get back down to the Abacos and see how the island is doing since the 2019 hurricane that devastated this uniquely lovely place. Love and prayers for the people of the Abacos.

Since I was in a travel mood, this Fodor’s article about the best Hotels in the USA really stood out to me. Here are a few photos from my favorites.

Beacham’s Marketing Director, Samantha Wittman, has a passion for traveling and takes the most inspiring photos. I’m going to post one ever week, and this is the first. Follow her on instagram.

“SALUDA, NC

It’s peak fall foliage time in the south eastern United States. This photo was taken in Saluda , North Carolina, just 30 miles south of Asheville. Famous for its picturesque downtown, fly fishing and waterfalls, not to mention there are mountain views around every corner!”

— Samantha Wittman

House of the Week

This weeks house is listed by Gwynie Dennard of Beacham & Co and is so cute! It’s actually in my old neighborhood, and I’ve always loved it!

Recipe of The Week

This Cornbread Tamale Pie looks super festive and easy to make!

Book of the Week

Santa Fe Modern: Contemporary Design In The High Desert

Stay safe, and I’ll see you all soon!

Blayne

We are all Freddie Freeman.

Blayne Macauley November 5, 2021

Freedie Freeman is Atlanta. When he caught the final out of the 2021 World Series game against the Astros, he ended 26 year losing streak for Atlanta sports fans. Freeman joined the Braves in 2010, and just like the rest of Atlanta, he started each season fresh and full of hope only to come up short year after year… until now.

This week has been a trip down memory lane reliving the glory days of the 90s Braves: Terry Pendleton, Gregg Maddux, Crime Dog Fredd McGriff, David Justice, Sid Bream , and my favorite player of all time, Andruw Jones. I have such vivid memories of Turner Field, hot dogs, foam fingers and cheering on a team I loved.

Over the past few weeks I’ve fallen in love with this team. Ozzie Albies joyful personality, Dansby Swanson’s hometown pride, and Jorge Soler’s golden bat were easy to love, and I can’t wait to watch them next season. Our family went down to the parade this morning, and getting to share this moment of pride for our town and pride for our team with my children is not something I’d even allowed myself to hope for, but it was better than anything I could have imagined.

For now and forever,

GO BRAVES

House of the Week

This weeks home of the week is 229 Rumson Road and is listed by Rachel Farmer and Susan Cross. I chose the house for the beautiful backyard. Don’t you love it?

Book of the Week

When I started this blog years ago I named it “This Photographer’s Life” as a play on Annie Leibovitz’s famous book “A Photographer’s Life.” She is my all time favorite photographer for her ability to capture the quite, stillness, oddness and beauty of humanity.