Superhero Saturday

Yesterday, my niece Amber (and Tim!) hosted the cutest Superhero party for their two adorable kids, Caleb (4) and Kelly Ann (2). Since their birthdays are separated by only a week, we celebrated both together. What a perfect theme! It was Keely's idea to wear a Superhero t-shirt:

My present to the kids (or maybe Amber?) was the French vanilla cupcakes with buttercream icing. I found these wrappers on Amazon. Pow! Bam! Zap! I didn't think about this at the time, but the kids creatively began wearing them as Superhero bracelets once they finished their treat. I always love a 2-for-1!

All of the snacks fit perfectly with the Superhero theme: Energy Cakes! Wonder Dogs! Hero Sandwiches! Super Vision Sticks! Power Dip!

 

For drinks, you could have Kryptonite punch! or Hero H2O! 

Without a doubt, though, the best part of the party was seeing all of the little ones enjoy their own Superhero cape. It was the perfect party favor! Honestly, I couldn't get them still enough to take pictures. I would have loved a group shot, but I knew it would be a futile attempt. 

Kelly Ann's pink cape combined with a pink Superman t-shirt and pink tu-tu: it doesn't get any cuter than that! It wasn't hard at all to picture Keely running around in that outfit at two. (Oh wait, didn't she wear a tu-tu to the Taylor Swift concert last week? Do you ever grow out of wearing tu-tus?)

Happy birthday, sweet Caleb and Kelly Ann! :D

Alfresco Dining at the Carnton Plantation

Although Steve and I have only lived in Franklin for a short four weeks, we are already in love with this town. Live music while dining is everywhere! Our newest experience came last night. We enjoyed alfresco dining at the beautiful Carnton Plantation, sight of one of the monumental conflicts of the Civil War, the Battle of Franklin. A five course meal was served on vintage china next to the beautiful garden and live oak surrounding the historic home.

The night began with cocktails and appetizers. One appetizer consisted of biscuits topped with apple butter and goat cheese. I would have never thought of that combination, but it was wonderful. Now I'm thinking this is another way to enjoy Mom's homemade apple butter. There's no sense in saving it for breakfast anymore!

The other appetizer was a wonderful twist to traditional barbecue. It was served on sweet potato cornbread cakes, topped with pickles. Yum!

A charming espresso and coffee bar was also available:

Now for the rest of the menu:

First course:  Fire roasted tomato sweet corn bisque with country ham dust

Second course: A salad of baby spinach greens, beets, red onions and cranberries with a maple mustard vinaigrette, spiced pumpkin seeds and crumbled feta

Third course: Barbecue spiced gulf shrimp with white cheddar Anson Mills grits (my favorite!)

Fourth course: Smoked beef brisket, braised collards, turnips puree and pickled root vegetables. (The vegetables were so bad that I had to contain my giggles!)

Fifth course: Jack Daniel's pecan pie, whiskey creme fraiche, Olive & Sinclair chocolate (Steve's favorite course. Not even close.)

Open air. Full moon. Live music. Diverse crowd. Good food. Great conversation. Magnificent landscape. Rich history. What a fun experience!