Lately at Home

With school plays, babysitting, multiple illnesses, buying/selling cars, meetings, etc., we've been able to seek and find lovely bits of relaxation.

Family up for a visit, coffee and apple pear crisp, birthday candles.

A 40th anniversary party attended and our own anniversary celebrated.

The last snowfalls of the season, seeking warmth inside, and naps all around.

{this moment} - anniversary

inspired by soulemama

Happy Holidays

Such a busy time of year. Shopping, baking, birthdays, holiday cards, wrapping. It's hard not to get carried away. This year we cut out Christmas cards, and made only one type of cookie. And it's just fine. We've still managed to do a lot and keep it a bit more relaxed.

We made these awesome homemade marshmallows and hot chocolate on a stick to give to teachers, decorated cut-out cookies, made a miniature snowman, visited a Christmas tree farm, saw Santa and a reindeer, drank hot cider, practiced our Christmas carols, watched Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and Charlie Brown Christmas, sat by the fire, and trimmed the tree.

The awesome gingerbread house my son decorated at school. Some of the candies and frosting have gone 'missing', but still sporting the fantastic licorice chimney.

Playing 'breakfast bar'.

We've had some downtime consisting of play, snowball fights, some naps, and working on homemade Christmas projects that are pretty exciting.

We still have our family gingerbread house to make, perhaps some more marshmallows on the horizon, and a few more gifts to wrap. Besides that we just plan on enjoying some delicious meals and spending quality time with family. I can't wait.

Happy Holidays to all!

Halloween

Halloween was

Trick or treating and lots of sweets.

Pumpkins and playing.

Seeing the cutest little creatures running about.

A crisp fall day and blankets.

Getting together with the neighbors, snacks and cider.

A hayride through the woods.

Getting Spooky

Eerie morning light.

Blood red pears.

Patch of white pumpkins.

The birds.

Getting ready for jack-o-lanterns.

It's shaping up to be a perfectly spooky weekend.

Week in Review

Nearing the end of our garden harvest.

Making delicious roasted vegetables from it.

Missing my husband and oldest children as they had a spectacular camping expedition.

But am excited they had so much fun.

Celebrating my husband's birthday. I love him so.

Enjoying our favorite coconut cream pie. Lots of sticky little fingers.

My Birthday

This year was the first year I had started to feel older, but for my birthday I felt anything but that. It was the kind of weekend where we had some things planned, but mostly it all just fell into place on it's own. Any worries were left behind, and we were simply enjoying the moment.

Visiting old friends' new home, wine and champangne tastings, Counting Crows and Augustana concert in the park, some sausage and jerky from an unusual butcher shop, a delicious picnic.

My new 'vintage' bicycle from my husband. I never said anything to him, and I don't know how he picked something out of my daydreams. (it even has a bell, I love it!)

Al fresco dining with friends at the gazebo, Thai food and ice cream cake and miniature cupcakes from the bakery (the BEST strawberry cream cake I've ever had), flower bouquets from our garden, discovering a crabapple tree with the sweetest little apples, children playing outside and enjoying hay rides. Oh if every weekend were like this!

4th of July

We had such a wonderful time over the 4th of July. Our long weekend was full of all the things required for a proper celebration.

Sparklers and campfires spent roasting giant marshmellows.

Fireworks over the lake and time spent with family.

Singing Happy Birthday to America and time spent with neighbors.

Boating and flags.

Madras and playing catch.

Bunting and rocking chairs.

Swimming and catching minnows.

Sailing and blue skies.

And just enjoying a lot of time spent together.

Father's Day

We had a wonderful weekend despite a long power outage. Breakfast with friends, swimming in the lake, gardening, Chinese food, candlelight. He really is a super dad.

Birthday Party for Two

We had a combination birthday party for my son and daughter since their birthdays are about a week apart. It can be hard thinking of a party theme to incorporate boys and girls, along with an age gap. After discussing with my daughter, we decided on an "under the sea" adventure with crabs and mermaids.


Oh what fun we had!

Invitations and goodie bag stickers by whoosinvited. She was so wonderful and combined some of her designs to fit my crab/mermaid theme. I loved them. The cake had a faux-fondant buttercream, with rock candy and fondant decorations. I'll have to practice some more with that buttercream base. Very delicious though.

Bouquets of wild daisies in vintage Ball jars. Fish fruit snacks, little squirt guns and a couple sidewalk chalks for thank you treats.

Paper and ribbon banner with some 'under the sea' animals and free aqua and melon polka dot paper courtesy of Creature Comforts.

Lemonade and slip-n-slide, perfect combination for a hot day.

Sunshine pinata and water play. We had a water balloon toss scheduled, along with crabwalk races but we never even got to them, everyone was having too much other fun.

Striped paper straws, mermaid and crab cupcakes, and fishbowl jello. This is my favorite buttercream recipe to use.

I bought a few yard of a soft, shimmery tulle at the thrift shop for one dollar, and used it to decorate the buffet table.

My little sweetpea dappled in frosting, and the poms strung from the porch. Enough to make anyone smile.