incognito

My stomach was in knots on Halloween for a couple of reasons.  As I was pulling out my crazy red wig I couldn't help but miss my old hood.  It was this unexpected icky pit feeling that just zinged me out of nowhere.  In Minnesota they just did it up big.  One of our neighbors pulled out all the stops and had a huge party every year.  It was so fun to see the costumes, and dress up incognito for one night.


We walked the streets with our stand in "family".  We'd peer into all the houses...letting the kids run wild and free.  We'd bundle up with long underwear, gloves, scarves...hats over our ears.  The weather was unpredictable and we could be battling wind, rain...snow.  It was adventurous and memorable.   We loved it...every minute.

This is not to say Halloween wasn't fun here.  We still dressed up.  We still made the rounds with new friends.  It just made me miss the old...

And then there was the text I got that afternoon from my big chick asking if she could trick or treat with her bestie, in her hood, without us:0  We let her go.  We didn't want to...but we did.  And it didn't help that she borrowed a wedding dress from the neighbors, and looked like a sweet innocent bride!  Be still my mother's heart.   

 

It just didn't feel the same without her.  Part of us was missing.  I'm not ready for that just yet.  Next year it will be different.  Next year the friend will come with us...ha! 

 

 

So that was part of my Halloween stomach ache...and then there was the text I forgot to send out to ask a neighbor girl to join us in trick or treating.  I felt so bad when I ran into her and her mom later making the rounds.  The last thing I wanted to do was leave someone out...make them feel not included or special.  Grrrrrr. 

 

 

The fact is I screw up sometimes.  I have a bad memory.  BAD!  And as much as I want to remember every little thing, I drop the ball sometimes.  Then I punish myself later.  So goes the perpetual cycle of motherhood. 

This was me as a wannabe punk rockin' Jesus Freak (in color the wig is red..and I had a fake nose ring in earlier) and my honey was a crazy mountain man...or something like that;)  The jacket is his dad's Army coat.  He wears it for sentimental reasons. 


Anyway I instagramed this pic and people thought this was us when we first started dating!!!  Someone even said his hair was probably what drew me to him;)  I about DIED laughing.  DIED!  I'll have to hunt down an early picture of us.  We were 16.  SIXTEEN!  Good times...good times...  Have a great weekend friends.

Be a blessing.

843.  making new traditions
844.  Heath bars
845.  house hunting with a friend
856.  cracker barrel with my sugar sistas
857.  brandee's baby is coming!

pitter patter

My honey loves football.  Normally I do not, but uh how can I say this without sounding like a teenage groupie?  I think I'm in love with Tim Tebow.  He makes my heart pitter patter.  There I said it;)  Do you know him?  He's been the starting quarterback for the Denver Broncos for the last few weeks and there is always controversy swirling around this guy. 



He's a devout, very vocal Christian...bold in his faith.  He inspires me.  He talks about the Lord in his press conferences and his faith is THE most important thing in his life.  You can tell.  Apparently he was raised by missionaries and was home schooled and well...let's just say they did a great job.  Whoever lands this guy as a husband is one lucky gal.  Wowza!  Even my honey is crushing on him so it's all good;)  Go Broncos!

Today was cookie day.  My friend Brandee invited me to be a part of her yearly tradition.  Apparently I can make a mean toffee pretzel peanut butter cookie;)

We were tucked into her log cabin deep in the woods. Christmas music was pouring out of her cd player and we were all singing along.  Yummy cookie scents were wafting in the air...it was right out of Hans Christian Anderson storybook.  She lives waaaay out in the BOONIES.  Every time I saw her she would warn me "you'll see" when referring to her house.  And she was right.  It was a straight up log cabin in the middle of nowhere. 

She invited a few of her special friends and we baked all day long.  We each brought three cookie recipes and then at the end of the day we divied it all up.  I came home with a box full of cookies.  Great teacher/bus driver/neighbor gifts:)  Just not my trainer.  She chewed my butt when I mentioned cookie day.  Said I was poisoning my loved ones.  Geesh!  I know, but let's sugar coat it a bit shall we;)  It is Christmas after all.

This is Clementine.  She was our "helper" for the day.  She's such a sweetheart.  Seriously she is, but can I just say that I'm SO glad my girls are the ages they are!!  It's so nice to not have to corral them.  Remember those days when you did nothing but distract and do damage control??   That's one nice thing about getting older;)

Okay so these are the things that have made my heart pitter patter lately...Tim Tebow and too many pieces of peanut butter bark;)  Don't ya just love how I can tie those two things together??   HA!  Now for the give-away winners.  I seriously wish I could buy each and every one of you the Jesus Calling book.  It's really made devotions easy and meaningful for me, so even if you don't win just go buy a copy.  Okay??  Pinkie promise me:)   It's that good. 

Congrats to Miss Jess and Dandy!!

Have a blessed day.

308.  laughing until i cried today

309.  a much needed day off

310.  peanut butter bark

311.  sugarfree peppermint mocha creamer

312.  a new workout...to burn off those calories

Happy Birthday Jesus!

Merry Christmas Eve everyone!!  For us the festivities began today.  We are home this year...alone.  We kind of prefer it this way.  We'll have our big dinner tonight...complete with Christmas punch and candlelight.  Then we'll go to church for our candlelit service.  Tomorrow will be gifts and play and lots of nothing.  Just the way it should be:)

This was our snowy morning:)  Kind of cozy and dark.

We made our annual donut run in our jammies:)

Enjoyed all the sweetness the doughy sugary stuff could offer. 

Now it's on to embracing our littles.

Cuddling in... 

and celebrating all this holiday means.  Happy Birthday Jesus!!!  Merry Christmas everyone.  Hope you enjoy every second.  I'll be back on the 29th to announce the home painting winner.  See you then:)

Have a blessed day.

And they're gone!

My folks just left.  As much as I was ready...it still hurts.  Physically painfully...deep in the gut hurts.  So I'm going to keep busy today.  I gave the dog a bath.  Going to the gym later...clean.  Distraction is good.


Oh and thanks for the prayers for my eye.  Much better today.  Still hurts a bit, but it's looking better.

As I went through all the pictures of this week, it really became clear to me that I keep this blog entirely for ME.  I have no idea why in the world anyone else would really bother to read about my every day life.  I don't take fancy pictures.  There is no novel being birthed here.  It's just me, me, me and those that matter to me.  So if you are reading along thank you for all the kind comments about my parents and for taking the time to check in with my life.  It really does make me so happy.  Now back to ME...HA!!!!



Remember how I told you we took my dad everywhere.  Seriously we shopped and browsed and painted our way through every little town in Minnesota this week.  It was intense.  And my dad came along and enjoyed the journey with us.  So on our last day together I found a store that he loved and mom and I waited and waited and shopped and wished we had an endless supply of money.

  

We went to Gander Mountain.  It's a huge outdoor sporting good store...think fishing lures, camping supplies, guns etc...  He was in heaven.  Unfortunately everything in there costs a small fortune, so most of the time it was just dreaming of this or that, but we had fun anyway.  So here is my wish list.  Super lightweight Marmot jacket...price tag $165.00...holy cow!

Really cute boy hat.  Have I ever told you I have a THING for hats??  I can't believe I walked out without this one.  Isn't it cute??

Merrill super warm slide on shoes.  LOVE them..but said no!  I had to be good.  Seriously we shopped everyday.  That can get expensive.

Isn't she a hoot?  Love my momma!

And all our other little trips this week.  We picked out pumpkins and mums, hit every antique store possible...ate out at all our favorite spots.  It was a good week. 

We ended this morning with our family tradition.  We supped at the Lord's table and gave thanks for all He's done for us.   It's one of my very favorite memories that we share.   Thought I'd share it with you.  Hope you all have a great weekend.  It's going to be a beautiful one here:)

Have a blessed day.

Jimmy John's

Recently Jimmy John's had a customer appreciation day.  This is a big deal to us because my Honey is Jimmy John's number one customer hand's down.  They were giving subs out for $1.00.  Yeehaw!!!  We didn't even care that we had to park a half mile away or that we had to stand outside in nippy weather.  It was all good.  Anything for Jimmy John's right;)

About 2 years ago Honey traded in McDonald's Big Macs for cleaner eating and adopted Jimmy John's as his staple.  I bet he eats there at least 3 times a week.  He has that ability to eat the same thing over and over and over.  I on the other hand am Jimmy Johned OUT.  I could go a lifetime without another sandwich from there.  That's what happens if I eat too much of the same thing.  I feel that way with Subway too.  We have eaten there so much that it makes me a little sick to think about.  Why can't there be some other healthy fast food type options.  If you know of any please share!

Okay so now he's peeved...taking pictures while he's eating makes him mad.  Oh but isn't he cute when he's mad...ha:)  I was sorta camera happy that day.  Speaking of mad that's how I feel when I eat inside Jimmy John's.  I leave a little hearing impaired from the blaring music.  Am I getting old or what?   Do you have a restaurant that you NEVER get sick of??

Have a blessed day.

Toothfairy...yay or nay?

Little Chick has had a tooth hanging on by a thread for what seems like forever. Those front teeth can be tough, so we've just been waiting.





She really wanted Big Chick to pull it out for her. But she wanted me there too... for support:) I'm really surprised she trusted her sis so much. I love that.






Every time Big Chick would get close she'd get scared and pull away. So finally momma had to come to the rescue...

Tears were shed, but we got it! She's really scared of blood.

She was so proud. In the car later she told me she knew the tooth fairy was real. She didn't know how it got in her room, but she knew it was true. I just said "Really!"

We have always been very forthright with our kids regarding Santa and the Easter bunny. We were both raised that way and because of our faith we just didn't go there with the make believe stuff. I know that is probably shocking to a lot of you;)

Because the tooth fairy isn't tied to our religious beliefs it's been easier to stay mysterious. So I've never denied that it's real, but never said it was either. There is this little part of me that has fun watching her believe in something so silly and childlike. It's a thrill playing the tooth fairy. I get excited slowly cracking the door open to her room; tiptoeing across the floor; trying really hard not to wake her up as I slip my hand under her pillow:) Not sure when she'll stop believing, and unless she asks I think I'll stay quiet on this one for a while;)

I'm curious how you handle childhood fables??

Have a blessed day.

Our new tradition

We just got back home last night. It was an exhausting week, filled with lots of good and some stressful events. I can't wait to share it all with you. Feeling a little overwhelmed with laundry, unpacking and a dirty house right now, but I just had to get started with a little catch up first. My parents computer is really slow...no offense mom, but it is:) So while I was gone I did zippo blogging. So I'm feeling really behind. I missed all of you. I have no idea what you have been up to... I'm hoping great things:)

We celebrated our Christmas on the Saturday before. We decided to make a run to the store to get doughnuts first thing. So here are the Chicks...bright eyed and bushy tailed at the crack of dawn:) Here we are...

Not so bright eyed:) Lookin' a little rough!

In our jammies...going for a doughnut run!

We completely stole this fabulous idea from my friend Shannan. We love doughnuts and NEVER eat them...so from now on this is our new tradition.

Oh we had another box too...yummy!

Had to sing Happy Birthday to JESUS!!

Then

we opened gifts and just enjoyed each other:)

The girls and their Snugglies!

The next morning we took off for Illinois. We had some snow to contend with, but nothing major. I was trying really hard to get a good picture of Honey and I, but taking pics while driving is not a good idea. I kept looking at the road worried we were going to crash the car. Never did get a good one:)

Now I'm off to help Honey take down the Christmas tree! Can't stand Christmas decorations after it's over. How long do you keep your stuff up??

Have a blessed day.