Thrifting for Baby

Twenty twelve is chugging along very nicely- by God's grace this is going to be an amazing year! One of the first major things we do is visit our sweet little niece. She was born back in November but she lives half-way across the state, past the mountain pass. We didn't want to end up getting stuck in the snow on our visit over so our trip was delayed. That is until now. Our winter has been very mild and snow is not a big issue over the pass anymore so we are planning on visiting her within the next few weeks. I already sent a fun care package with tons of goodies (handmade and some purchased) but now that we are coming in person, I want to have another gift for that sweet little girl! And isn't buying baby stuff so much more fun than anything else? Everything is so itty bitty and adorable. I just love it!

This weekend I went thrifting with my Mom and I stumbled upon some adorable onesies (and for just $0.69!) and this awesome toy that brings back so many memories from when I was a young'un. It'll be so much fun to see little baby Avery finally and shower her with love!

'Tis the Season

By golly, Thanksgiving is over and we are now into the Christmas season. How the times does fly! The next few weeks are going to be pretty busy with birthdays, a baby shower and of course Christmas with the family.

Picking out a tree and doing some shopping with Mom and Jerm.

Working on crafts for the shower.

I am looking forward to the start of advent this Sunday and remembering the real reason why we celebrate Christmas - to worship the One who became flesh so we could be saved. Merry Christmas indeed!

Thanksgiving Challenge

Every day we should be a day of thanksgiving, where we offer up praise to the Lord for all that He has done, but Thanksgiving day is a time set apart to sit down with friends and family and really reflect on His abundant love toward us.

While Jeremy and I wrote our blessings on leaves for our thanksgiving wreath, I thought of an idea. Instead of just writing down what we are thankful for (Jesus, food, a home, the bible, etc...) we could turn right around and bless someone else with those very things we are thankful for.

Our list of blessings included: Jesus, God's mercy, role models, family, inspiration, good food, good books, hat, guns (Can you guess which ones came from Jeremy?). So while I find role models to be a huge blessing and inspiration, we can in turn be role models to other people in our lives. In fact, just the other day we were told by a family member that she looked up to us as a couple in the way we demonstrate our love towards each other. That was BIG because I didn't even know or think anyone was watching but it turns out she was. What a surprise and honor!

Or we could take Jeremy's blessing, 'good food', and bless a struggling family with the makings for a turkey dinner this week. There are so many possibilities where we can give back and shower other people with the things we are so grateful for. Any ideas how your family can give back some blessings you've received?

Quality Time

“The happiest moments of my life have been the few which I have passed at home in the bosom of my family.” -Thomas Jefferson

This past weekend I was blessed to take an extra day off to spend a little bit of quality time with Jeremy. During the week and even on the weekends, it seems to get so busy that it doesn't feel like we spend all that much time together. Not this weekend though, because we made an extra effort to make this one different.

Our plan for Friday was to go to a local corn maze. Neither of us had ever been so it seemed like the perfect thing to do. We wrote down the directions and headed out the door. But about 20 minutes into our trip we realized we were lost. After about 40 minutes we headed back home. It was lunch time by then so we had some delicious pho, from one of the friendliest restaurant in town might I add. :) And then it was round two of 'operation: corn maze'. We made it to the farm, ate some honey sticks and took some fun pictures. What gets me is that we finally made it to the corn maze and then paid to get lost in the maze. Sounds silly to you too?!

On Saturday, after a quick trip to the gym and a delicious breakfast at my favorite juice bar we headed for the theater with my Mom in toe to see the movie Courageous. Let me just tell you it was AMAZING! Worth every cent of that very expensive movie ticket receipt! :) There aren't that many good movies out these days so I'd highly recommend going directly to your nearest theater and watching it now!!

And finally on Sunday, we went to church and then we spent the rest of the afternoon cooking together and having quiet time with the Lord. We still had plenty of things on our 'to-do' list but we did them together and it was wonderful. I have the best husband ever! We even have plans for another extended weekend together real soon!

B is for Baby Shower

This weekend we celebrated my brother and sister in law and their baby Avery. She will be here soon so this was the time to shower the soon to be parents with love and baby gifts.

It was a co-ed shower and my brother in law really enjoyed himself as you can tell by these pictures. He was too funny opening up the presents. You'd think he thought they were for him!


Instead of games, guests made onesies for sweet little Avery. It was hard to pull everyone away from the onesie station so I'd say they enjoyed it and I'm sure Avery will look adorable in the sweet little designs!


Mommy and Daddy are very excited to finally meet their little one and it was a joy to share in this special time with them. May God bless their new little family!

Children of God

"Jesus says to receive the kingdom of God — to come to Him — like children, fudgesicle stains and all. The fact that the Father loves, endures with, protects, provides for, instructs, and corrects us reveals that He’s glorious. We, by the grace of God, get to be children of God, the objects of the Father’s love, his glorious inconveniences. That’s what Christianity’s all about."


"We're a family. Church is like a big living room. God is our Father. And you know what happens at the house? The kids show up, they break things, they spill things, they make noise. Praise be to God. That's how it is in my house. That's how it is at this church." -Pastor Mark Driscoll from sermon 'Children are a Glorious Inconvenience'

Test Kitchen

A baby shower is in the works for my sister-in-law who is expecting her first child this fall. The detail I am working on now is the menu. What would be delish to serve to a large group of people, including men, who I happen to know eat a LOT!? I did some searching on the web and found some great looking dishes. So I went to work to make sure these were every bit as yummy as they looked online.

My test subjects were my in-laws who visited last weekend. I told them to be completely impartial and let me know what they thought of the recipes. This salad was yummy AND beautiful. The strawberry vinaigrette was tasty but one of my 'guinea pigs' said that maybe adding a bit of honey or agave nectar would make it even better. I have a mean sweet tooth so how could I say no to that?

I also made a dessert that I think would be so adorable on a pretty little table at the shower. Totally cute and boy are they a cinch to make. Combine strawberry yogurt with whipped cream and fresh cut strawberries. Fill mini graham cracker pie crusts and chill in the fridge or freezer. Top with strawberry garnish and enjoy. SO yummy!



The work was hard and the testing was quite a challenge :) but the results are in and the food was fabulous. Looking forward to my next round of testing and trying out this recipe!

Best. Weekend. Ever.

Just finishing up the best weekend ever. Seattle had the hottest day of the year on Saturday and Jerm and I enjoy it with my Mom booting around town. Today we got to spend Easter with my wonderful in-laws. Favorite moment of the day was singing hymns at their home while my father-in-law played the guitar. It was a very special moment. And of course, we praised our precious Savior and His resurrection all weekend long. Truly blessed! Thank you, Jesus, for your unfailing and merciful love!!