It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas

"Everywhere you go.  Take a look at the Five and Ten, glistening once again, with candy canes and silver lanes aglow..."

Do they still have Five and Ten stores?  Ours closed several years ago.  Hmm...anyway.  It's definitely beginning to look like Christmas at my house and I loooove it!  It's my favorite time of year, y'all.  

Hubby and I put up the tree the week before Thanksgiving.  I really tried to wait until after Thanksgiving.  Really, I did.  But I just couldn't. I love decorating!  And, did I mention I love Christmas?

Have you guys got your Christmas tree up yet?  Do you put it up before Thanksgiving, or wait until after?

Have a blessed weekend!

Babies & Books & Catching Up

So, after that realllllly long blogging break I took, I think I want to start writing again.  It just seems that life is so busy, I don't have time to keep up like I would like to.  I'm too busy living to WRITE about life, it seems.  But, like all things, if something is important, you'll make time for it.  So, I'm gonna try again.  We shall see how long it lasts.

Now...where to start?  I got a new nephew in September!  My baby sisters last baby (or, at least she says it's her last..ha!).  We call him Z and he is the sweetest little guy on the planet!  I love him so much!

Just a few hours old

Baby Z...3 weeks old

Isn't he just the most precious little guy ever?  He definitely melts his auntie's heart!

My sweet mama had hip replacement surgery about a month after Z was born.  She's recovering quite nicely and went back to work today.  God is so good and I am thankful for the healing He's done and is still doing.

I made my very first batch of homemade elderberry syrup in October.  So far, it's doing the trick (aside from a minor cold last week).  And it's easy to make and super inexpensive!  Check out the recipe for yourself here.

I've been reading this book, and let me tell you, it's a real eye-opener!  I would definitely recommend it to mama's who have kiddos with food allergies.  I had no idea how many hidden toxins are in our food that have caused the rise of the food allergy epidemic.  The book is written by the founder of AllergyKids and it's full of practical suggestions to help clean up your family's diet without a bunch of scientific lingo that no one can understand.  Check it out if you are interested in weaning your family off of dangerous chemicals without the suggestions to raise your own goats, make your own cheese and spend hours grinding wheat that are found in most books of this kind.  :)

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving with our family last week.  I took no pictures.  Sigh.  But it was a very blessed day.  We ate, talked, laughed, ate, visited, put up the Christmas tree, ate...well, you get the idea.  It was great to be able to get together with family that we don't see often.  God's good, y'all.

If you're still reading and hanging in there with me, kudos to you!  And thanks!  I do appreciate it.  On a final note for today, my sweet boss and one of my very best friends has been on maternity leave for the last 12 weeks.  She came back to work today (thank You, Jesus!).  Last week, she gave me this incredible gift for taking over her job duties while she was out.  

Vintage Pyrex primary color refrigerator dishes.  Oh.my.word!  That girl is amazing!

Y'all have a great week, friends!  

The Days Are Long, But The Years Are Short

Tomorrow is my birthday.

The big 3-1.

Man, time sure does fly, doesn't it?  

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The years are short...never has a truer statement been spoken (or written).  It seems like 31 years have flown by.  God has truly blessed me.

Today, on the eve of my birthday, I want to thank Him for so many good things in my life...

• Salvation:  Without the blood that Jesus shed to cover my sins and the promise of a home with Him in heaven someday, my life would mean nothing.  I can never thank Him enough.
• Grace:  I couldn't face the big life events OR the day-to-day happenings without God's abundant grace.
• Hubby:  God sure did bless me when He sent me that sweet man of mine.  I don't tell him often enough how thankful I am for him and for everything he does for our family.  So, honey, if you are reading this, I love you and I thank God for putting us together.  You are amazing!
• Family:  I have the best.  God gave me wonderful Christian parents who took me to church and taught me about Jesus. They gave me the best sister I could ask for, who gave me the most precious nieces and nephews in the whole world!  I am so thankful for all of them!
• Church:  God has blessed me with a wonderful church family at a place that worships Him in spirit and truth.  Doesn't get any better than that!
• Career:  Although my desire is to be a stay-at-home wife/mom someday, God has seen fit at this time in my life to provide me with a career that I enjoy and co-workers that are like family.  I am blessed to have a job that I love.
• All the little things:  There are so many more things that I am blessed with and thankful for.  God is so good to me!

Tomorrow, I will turn 31.  I am going to go to work, and then spend the evening with Hubby (who has a special dinner planned for me, which I am super excited about!!)

I hope you all have a blessed week!

Playing Catch-Up (Complete With Picture Overload)

Hey there, friends!

Welcome to "How To Neglect Your Blog 101."  Ha!  Just kidding!


Gosh, I can't believe it's been so long since I've written.  I started this blog so I would have a way to look back on our experiences and memories, but that's kinda gonna be impossible if I NEVER write anything!  


Must.do.better!


Hope you are having a wonderful summer.  It is hot, hot, HOT here in the Bluegrass state!  But, we're finally getting some rain!  Praise God for His provisions!


Hubby and I took a vacation to the beautiful Smoky Mountains two weeks ago.  We had so much fun and it was nice to get away for a few days.  Now, I must share a few pictures, because you just can't mention vacation in a blog post and not include pictures!  Right?


This is the view of the Great Smoky Mountains from Cades Cove.  It's breathtaking.

We stayed in a charming little cabin up in the mountains.  It was so peaceful and relaxing.

We got a visit from this little guy one night.  He was such fun to watch, but we had a mess of trash strewn all over the next morning!

One of my favorite attractions was the "Ripley's Aquarium of the Smokies."  This picture of one of the sharks kinda creeps me out, just a little.

Doesn't this cute black bear seem to be posing for the camera?  What a ham!

In other news, Hubby and I have been busy just enjoying the activities of summer.


We celebrated my youngest nephew, E's 4th birthday in June and my oldest nephew, Lil Man's 6th birthday in July.  I can't believe how fast they are growing up.  It's a little bittersweet for this auntie.  Seems like they should still be little bitty boys.

Lil Man

Sweet E

We've also been doing some canning and preserving.  I put up 24 quart bags of corn last week and we'll be canning green beans this week.  Good winter eating, friends!

Hubby and I went antique mall hoppin' yesterday and I came home with this little goody.  This is the very first time I have EVER seen a 9x12 vintage Pyrex dish.  I love great vintage finds!

And last, but not least, in case you ever wondered, it is virtually impossible to take a picture of 4 children where they are all looking at the camera.


Take 16.  Photo fail.  Sigh.

They are still cuties, even if they won't cooperate for a picture!


Have a great week, y'all!

Slumber Party

Ahh, sweet summertime!  The kiddies are out of school, the air is warm (ok, HOT), the days are long....well, you get the picture.


Anyway.


Since the kids are out of school for summer break now, sweet Miss M spent the night with me and Hubby last weekend.  


SLUMBER PARTY!!


We had such a good time with our precious girl.  We played a little ball in the backyard and boy, was it HOT that day!

Yeah, I'm not very athletic so me attempting to hit a ball was quite amusing.


Here's Miss M and Hubby enjoying a popsicle...my favorite summer treat!

Isn't she the most adorable little sweetheart?

Next, we had some craft time.  Miss M actually came up with this fun idea to make a bird feeder from a water bottle!  Creative, yes?

Every little girl needs a flower from her uncle.  Makes the day perfect!  I love this picture of M.  She looks so happy!

And, after all of that exciting adventure, she was out like a light!  

Those slumber parties sure are some good times!  I think Hubby and I enjoyed it as much as Miss M did.  

Now, time for some relaxation and a long holiday weekend.  I think we are going to do some thrift store shopping, garage sale adventuring and grilling with the fam.  

What are your plans for this Memorial Day weekend?

We've Got Some Catching Up To Do

OK, so I'm really not good at keeping up with this blog thing.  Life gets so busy...where does the time go, anyway?


So much to catch up on since it's been, let's see...FOREVER since I've written anything!  


Since I last posted, my darling Hubby's father suffered a stroke.  He's making remarkable progress, but has a long way to go.  We would definitely appreciate your prayers for him.  Hubby and I went to Ohio to visit with him the weekend before Mother's Day.  We had a wonderful time with him, my mother-in-law, Hubby's baby sister and his older sister and her family.


While we were in Ohio, we also visited Hubby's cousin's greenhouse and nursery, where we got this HUGE hanging basket for my mom for Mother's Day.

And, since we're on the subject of Mother's Day...I hope all of my sweet mama friends had a fantastic day!  You all have the hardest, yet most rewarding job out there and you deserve a day to relax and be pampered.  Hubby and I spent the day with my parents and my sister and her family.  We had a great time!  My mom is one of the most amazing women I've ever met.  I love her so much!

Me, Mom & Sis

Here's a picture of my orange tiger lilies in full bloom, for no reason other than they're so pretty and I love looking at them.

And on a final note, I made homemade bread for the first time this weekend, sans bread maker!!  It was a long process but the bread turned out amazing!

Waiting for the dough to rise

After punching down and kneading for the second time

Divided into two loaves

The finished product!

The bread was delish!  You can find the recipe here.  It's a little sweeter than I had anticipated...more like a Hawaiian bread.  I think next time, I will cut down the sugar to 1/4 cup to make it taste more like a regular white bread.  Either way, it's yummy!

Enjoy your week, friends.  Be blessed!

Near and Dear

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Lupus is an auto-immune disease that can damage any part of the body, from the skin to the joints to organs.  It is a disease of flares and remissions and can range from mild to life-threatening.  It is not contagious.  It is not cancer.  And it is actually a much more common disease than most people think.

It is also a disease that is very near and dear to me, as my beautiful sister was diagnosed with lupus a few years ago.  Here she is with my sweet nieces and nephews.  Precious, yes?

So, for that reason (among others), lupus awareness is important to me.  Great progress has been made in diagnosis and treatment over the last several years, due to increased awareness.  Knowing what lupus is and how to recognize symptoms leads to earlier diagnosis and better treatment options.  It also helps to fund research to determine a cause and cure for this disease.  Please take a few minutes to read more about Lupus Awareness Month here.

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In other news, Hubby and I are slowly but surely getting some flowers planted.  One of my favorite things about spring time is getting to buy and plant new flowers and see everything come alive with blooms and pretty colors.

I love these pretty pink Dahlia's.

And these pretty pink flowers, too.

I bought this really cool silicone cross cake pan from Avon a few months ago and had never used it.  So, I decided to bake some yummy brownies in it.  They turned out really cute.  And delicious!

   

If you love it, you can buy your very own here.

Anndddd...that's about all we've been up to lately.  Here's one last (and pretty hilarious) photo for you guys.  

It's sweet Jasper kitty in the middle of a yawn, looking a lot like he's about to swallow my face!

Y'all have a good week!