Excited to announce our FIVE Southern Living winners. I’ll list the commenter’s number followed by their name : )
#30 Julie Catherine Smith
#49 Erin
#56 Katharina
#73 Carole Tannehill
#4 Teresa S.
. . . .
I really enjoyed reading EVERY single comment, as did Lindsay. Of the five who were randomly chosen, Carole (#73) had such touching words that moved me to tears. Carole shared in her comment:
“My favorite Christmas carol is Silent Night. I used to sing this to my little granddaughter when she went to bed. She always wanted to be sung to and her mom, my daughter, knew a million songs, I had to rely on Christmas carols. Marissa left us when she was 2 yrs. old. 10 years ago. It’s taken me that long to listen to Silent Night without crying.” - Carole
Carole, thank you for sharing a part of your heart and reminding us the importance of expressing love every moment that we have together. In sweet Marissa’s honor, I have a special something coming your way along with our gift.
We each have such a unique story to share. Each and every life so rich in memories, traditions, and togetherness. Thank you to Southern Living for being a part of ALL of our stories. I like to think of each of us as a light…and that we shine a little brighter when we share a glimpse of our heart.
Love to all.
Seleta
I‘m Seleta, a city girl living the beach life with my husband, fabulous four offspring, happy horses and frisky fur babies. A former TV personality turned Designer, I love to share the sparkly side of life. Read more 
big things happening…
For the last six weeks I’ve been working on a very big project…our first annual Nutcracker Ballet in Seaside!
poster design by Laura Granberry
Remember this post introducing you to Rose Barile, my former Ballet teacher? She is bringing 25 of her Alpharetta Dance Theatre ballerinas to our town to perform our first annual Nutcracker. As I mentioned before, Rose has choreographed and directed the Nutcracker with her own company, Alpharetta Dance Theatre, for 16 years. Not to mention she was the Sugar Plum Fairy during her years as Prima Ballerina for the Atlanta Ballet.
This incredible event is made possible by Seaside co-founder and friend, Daryl Davis. Daryl has been a huge supporter of our dance program at Seaside Neighborhood School and is now hosting our first annual Nutcracker ballet. SO EXCITING!!! Daryl is truly a visionary, so having her support this event has been a dream come true.
HOW THE NUTCRACKER HAPPENED…
After Rose’s recent visit teaching at our school, we realized that her training and mentorship was a great fit for our dance program…we were all ready for her to come back for another visit. She generously offered to train our Seaside Neighborhood School dancers more. After a few creative ideas and an invitation from Daryl Davis, next thing we knew, the Nutcracker at Seaside was in the works.
Time was ticking. So we arranged for Rose to fly down for one BIG rehearsal to teach our girls a role she choreographed just for them…the Angels. With holidays approaching, the only time we could rehearse was two nights on the weekend before Thanksgiving. Dedication! Rose teaching our SNS ballerinas…
All of us on rehearsal night…
It was an exciting and action packed weekend. We were like little Nutcracker elves working away in the night!
Meanwhile, Rose tirelessly rehearsed her own dancers of Alpharetta Dance Theatre in preparation for our Seaside Nutcracker. And while they were rehearsing in Atlanta, I was busy rehearsing our dancers here.
You can read the story about our Nutcracker in a lovely article from The Walton Sun over here.
As you might imagine, my life has been a tad crazy. Lots of 15 hour days and much to accomplish before our big performance.
Tomorrow I have to be up by 4:00am to bring four of my Seaside Neighborhood School ballerinas to join this lovely lady on her morning show at WJHG, our local NBC affiliate. Something tells me there’s not enough concealer in the world to cover my under eye circles at that hour. Tune in to their morning program tomorrow. I think we are supposed to be on around 5:40am….
The Nutcracker at Seaside
Saturday, December 8th at 5:00pm
Seaside Amphitheater
If you’re local, please come see the show! If you’re not, but can make a quickie roadtrip, come on! The show is FREE; our gift to the community thanks to the generosity of Daryl Davis. Bring some comfy chairs and a blanket to the show. We’re going to get you in the Christmas spirit…Seaside style : )