beginning of year two.

It has been just shy of one year since I began this blogging adventure and goodness, I have learned so much!   In case you haven't read my previous post, I've spent the past several days on a nice little blogging hiatus. Two words for you: MUCH NEEDED.   The last month or so, I've been going blogging bananas.   I've spent way too much time on the computer, reading blog after blog. I've been worrying about the fact that I haven't gained many followers (Absolutely silly, I know! That's not what this is even supposed to be about...for me, anyway), stewing over what to blog about, and just generally feeling "blah" about the whole darn thing.   I don't want that. That wasn't my intent when I began this journey to document my life.   With the beginning of a new year, I'm looking forward to setting a few boundaries, if you will.   Here they are: (in hopes that I'll be held accountable to these!)   + put my devotional time above all else (maybe this will be the year that I can wake up earlier than J so I can get it done first thing in the AM instead of frantically squeezing it in during naptime?...remember, I did say maybe)   + be more organized with blogging (make an on-going list of post ideas/topics, edit pictures on a more regular basis, etc.)   + set a time limit for blogging  (writing posts, commenting & reading other blogs, etc.)   + be intentional with the friendships formed through blogging (I've already met quite a few wonderful, encouraging friends through this big adventure and I'd love to maintain and continue to grow those friendships)   I want this space of mine to be a source of encouragement. I want to be in community with other bloggers. I want to document my journey through life as a way to look back and remember both the highs and the lows. ...but most importantly, I want the Lord to use me where He sees fit.   Thank you to all of the wonderful readers for being a constant source of support and encouragement. I am forever grateful.   Year 2013? Let's do this.  

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if the world ends tomorrow...

...we'll have enjoyed our snowed in family day the day before.   *seriously, though, I need Friday to be over with  so this "end of the world" talk can be gone.  I mean, even advertisers are milking this for all it's worth.  NO, I will not be buying a car today  since I won't have to pay for it if the world ends tomorrow sheesh!*   aaaanyway, on to better things, like the fact that we woke up to this today...  (well, actually, we woke up to the husband's phone ringing obnoxiously at 5:20 am to inform him that school had been cancelled)  

    

 this morning has consisted of:

the smell and sound of hazelnut coffee brewing.   

  the three of us in our pajamas.  

  cinnamon rolls baking in the oven.  

  wind whipping the snow around outside.  

  it's going to be a great day!   to everyone else who is dealing with winter storm Draco,  be careful out there!

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memories.

  the past few days have been drastically colder than the mild weather we had been experiencing in the midwest.   i suppose this is what December is actually supposed to feel like though, huh?   anyway, i was trying to remind myself of warmer times as i was out in the elements today, and a certain (more recent) memory popped into my head.   the above photo was taken this past spring. right before we moved, actually.   my sister and i were on an early evening run at a nearby park. the weather was warm, but not too hot. there was a slight breeze in the air, and not a cloud in the sky. (pretty much perfection, in my book)   my sister and i both had or ipods playing, so not much was being said. we simply ran next to eachother, enjoying the company and familiarity.   as our run came to an end, the sun was beginning to hide behind the trees off in the sunset. there was a lake nearby with a dock leading out over the water. i turned to my sister and said, "do you want to go sit out on the dock while we cool down?" [pictured above]   what was going to be a "quick cool down" turned into a 30 minute conversation, sister to sister. we talked, we sat, we admired the beauty of our surroundings... it's a memory that's forever etched in my heart.   Pin It Now!

give a little more love this christmas.

John Lewis makes the best Christmas TV adverts.
 (if you haven't heard of him before, watch the videos from years past[after watching this one!])
 
the one this year made me cry.

so sweet.

 

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tour.

Christmas decorating happened this past weekend at our house.

This year, it was a bigger deal than usual.

(for me, anyway)

I was still struggling with feeling settled here...

missing our old house and the comfort it provided.  

Let me say this-

Sunday night after the decorations were up 

and the house was all clean after hosting Thanksgiving,

I fell in love with our new house. 

I love the cozy feel.

I love that our little 102 year old home is even more beautiful

with a little help from the Christmas decorations.

I want to leave them up year round.

Anyway,

enough of my blabbering...I'll let the pictures do the talking.

J was pretty excited to play with his very own Nativity set...

..and flip through some new reading material.

 And let's not forget,

a few of my favorite ornaments that get hung on our tree 

year after year.

...and although this is not decoration related, 

I still wanted to share this sweet photo I captured 

during our Thanksgiving celebration with family. 

Uncle Mark is pretty much the best.

[linking up here and here.] 

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iced pumpkin cookies.

2 years ago, I knew nothing about this delicious little treat.

That all changed one day when my friend, Hannah, brought in a bag of these cookies before our day of teaching began (she clearly knew I needed some fuel for the brain to get through the school day).

My life hasn't been the same since (thanks, Hannah!)

While shopping at the grocery store yesterday, I passed by the canned pumpkins adorning the shelf.  
They were practically begging me to take them home...so I happily obliged.  

...and then a cookie baking session commenced.

Ingredients: 

COOKIES: 

2 1/2 C all-purpose flour          1 C canned pumpkin puree

1 tsp baking powder                1 egg

1 tsp baking soda                  1 tsp vanilla extract

2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground nutmeg              ICING:

1/2 tsp ground cloves              2 C confectioners' sugar

1/2 tsp salt                       3 tbsp milk

1/2 C butter, softened             1 tbsp melted butter

1 1/2 C white sugar                1 tsp vanilla extract

  

DIRECTIONS: 

1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Combine (I used a fork to mix) flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, ground cloves, and salt; set aside. 

2) In a separate bowl, cream together the 1/2 cup of butter and white sugar. 

3) Add pumpkin, egg, and 1 tsp vanilla to butter mixture, and beat until creamy.  

4) Mix in dry ingredients (I continued to use my beater) then drop on cookie sheet (approximately a tablespoon size) and flatten slightly. 

5) Bake cookies for 15 minutes.  Try not to eat the entire batch of cookies while waiting for them to cool.  The delicious aroma will make you want to eat them all right then and there...but the best part is yet to come, so wait!

 

6) Once cookies are cooled, put together the icing: combine confectioners' sugar, milk, 1 tbsp melted butter, and 1 tsp vanilla.  Add milk as needed, to achieve drizzling consistency (I used approximately 5 tbsp total).  Then drizzle over cookies (get creative if you want...I clearly couldn't wait any longer).

 

7) Admire your hard work for .5 seconds...then dig in!
 

 

  

Recipe adapted from here

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a weekday outing.

Last Thursday my mom came into town for the day.

I wanted to take her to a sweet little cafe in another town about 30 minutes away...Michael, James and I went a few weeks back and it. is. delish.

After James' morning nap, we hopped in the car and headed down.  

The drive was picturesque- lots of beautiful farmland (which equaled several combines hard at work), colorful trees, and a cloudless, sunny day.  

PERFECT!

The cafe was just as good as it was a few weeks back.

I ordered a bowl of homemade Chicken Noodle Soup with a Diet Pepsi. 

James had a grilled cheese sandwich with a side of applesauce and a banana (as evidenced below).

Side note - just recently, James has decided that he's Mr. Independent and doesn't need his food cut up into bite sized pieces anymore.  Look at him shove the entire banana eat the banana like a big boy!

Mom ordered the Trio Salad (a scoop of Chicken Salad, a scoop of Tuna Salad, and a small bowl of greens with fruit and nuts on top) with an iced tea.

We also wanted to try out the (homemade) Cinnamon Roll....and we each wanted to try a (homemade) dessert.

Can you say food coma?  It was worth it, though, to have a taste of everything.

After we finished, we decided to take a walk around main street.  We popped into a few shops and then decided to head back.

On the way back, mom had suggested making a quick stop at a barn we had passed on the way out.  She wanted to see if they had any white pumpkins (we were on a hunt for these)!  

Since James' nap time was quickly approaching, it was decided that I would get out of the car and check out the pumpkin situation while my mom stayed back in the car with James.

Upon immediately pulling in, we both knew we all needed to get out and explore this place.  

I'm SO glad we did.

The outside was full of a selection of pumpkins, gourds, and the like.  

I had a hay day trying to pick out which pumpkins I wanted (let's be honest, I could've left with however many would've fit into the car!)

There were also several family friendly activities:

a design-your-pumpkin station with paint, hot glue guns, and decorations to adorn your pumpkin

a corn maze

a grassy area for kids to explore

several different games & such to keep the little ones busy

animals to look at (not to mention the sweet little kittens that I wanted to leave with...)

...and then we stepped inside the barn.  OYE!

The inside of the barn was two stories FILLED with gifts and seasonal/home decor.  

My mom and I both wanted to move right in and call it home.

To top it all off, they had quite a selection of homemade fudge.  

If I wasn't so full from our gargantuan lunch, I would've tried a piece...or four.

I'm definitely taking James back for another adventure at "the barn".

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