Currently September

We're finally feeling settled (for now). Our goal to have the house on the market October 1 was a bust, but we're super close! Life has just been a lot more than we bargained for lately.

View from our front porch

I know I'll look back on these "currently" posts one day and be reminded of how far we've come.

So...hello October. Currently I am...

Thinking About: How we'll celebrate our 8th anniversary at the end of this month.

Working On: Getting over a sinus infection. No fun.

Learning: How to balance a new school year with big demands and finding time to be completely available for my family...I've kind of given up on "me time".

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Watching: FOOTBALL!

Listening to: Casting Crowns' Thrive cd. My daughter calls it her 'Jesus music' and we play it every time we get in the Jeep.

Trying: To carve out a little "me time".

Loving: Some new experiences I've been having. I have begun teaching some courses at our city's newest art studio. The Makery is an amazing place that offers a lot of unique classes. In fact, I'll be doing some cupcake decorating courses this month! If you are local, please join us!

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Countdown to Halloween Link-up: Finale

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I blinked and October is gone! I'm glad, that despite the weeks of sickness we've had, that we finally got in some good fall fun before it was all over.

Here are the remaining highlights of our October...

Buckeye Brownies

I was wanting a yummy fall snack that didn't involve pumpkin. I am a fan but it was time for a little something different. Thanks to Kristyn at lil'luna, I now have a new favorite. These brownies are not meant to make your waistline smile, but they will make you happy. I do suggest that you have multiple people to share these with (or not). I bet you can't eat just one!



Trunk or Treat

The church down the road from our house holds a Trunk or Treat each year. It's wonderful to see our friends and watch G play with her buddies.

CBC's Fall Festival

Our church throws a fall festival every year. It is a wonderful way to outreach to our community. G decided she wanted to be Rapunzel, which was fine since N had outgrown his football outfit (she was originally going to be a cheerleader) that I bought him two months ago. It was way too short decide buying it much larger than what I thought I might need. We has a wonderful time with our church family and others in the community. G loaded up on candy...which we will all enjoy lol.

N's face cracks me up as he gets some snuggles from our pastor

Reminiscing

On October 20th, our friends adopted their son. He is perfect in every way and we are so excited to get some snuggle time with him soon!

October 24th marked 3 years since my grandpa's passing. It's always so bittersweet. I am so thankful that he is with Jesus and no longer suffering. However, I know he would adore his great-grandchildren and my heart wishes that he had been able to meet them.

October 25th marked 7 years of marriage.

On October 31st, 2014, we found out that we were expecting baby #2. It was truly a miracle that we will forever be grateful for.

Linking up for Countdown to Halloween Link-up

Currently : October

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I love fall and October is generally my favorite month. Everything about it is wonderful!  This October however has been particularly difficult.

Thinking About: I used to sleep. I don't mean a few hours at a time...I mean all night. Since N's birth, those days of restful, restorative sleep are but a distant memory. This October has been full of sickness in our family. This has greatly contributed to many sleepless nights. For instance, we've experienced the following:
-My diagnosis of octal migraines (yes, my eyes have migraines)
-Teething
-Fevers
-Strep
-Common cold (which is miserable for the babes)

Working On: November's meal menu. I love breaking out the crock pot this time of year.

Learning: It's an ongoing process when it comes to learning how to accept things that are beyond my control. I want to learn how to really slow down and embrace the now instead of constantly feeling like I need to be prepping for the next thing.

Watching: The leaves are turning. It's peak season here and everything is gorgeous. How quickly time flies.

Listening to: G console her baby brother. They both have colds and when he coughs she does what she can to comfort him.

Trying: I'm really trying to get some order back in our home. Between myself and the kids being sick, I've been trying to disinfect but haven't done well to keep things organized.

Loving: I'm loving all the little things. Life goes by far too quickly and every moment we have is a gift.

Countdown to Halloween Link-up : Week 4

We're finally all on the mend. N appears to still be teething and G may be getting a cold but overall, this is the healthiest we've all been for the last 3 weeks. We finally got in some good fall fun.

On Saturday G and I met up with our friends to participate in our local pregnancy center's costume 5k. Not only was it awesome fun, but what a wonderful cause. The money we raised will go towards helping those facing pregnancy learn about options that will promote the health and life of their unborn child. We had a blast!

On Sunday we celebrated our 7th wedding anniversary by going out to eat after church. We opted to try a restaurant that catered our friend's wedding. We were not disappointed.

We got in a fall craft and later that evening we went to a local church's Trunk or Treat. My computer is on the fritz so I'll have to post those pictures later. We have a few more things coming up this week that I'm looking forward to and will share next week. Until then I'll leave you with a swert little pic of sweet N enjoying the fall weather. Happy fall!

Linking up with the Countdown to Halloween Link-up

5 Reasons Why October is My Favorite

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Oh October,  I love you.

Why?

1. On October 25, 2008 I married my best friend. He truly is the love of my life and I look forward to many years to come.

2. In October 2012 we announced the miracle of our first pregnancy.

3. On October 31, 2014, we were blessed with another prayed for miracle. We learned that we were expecting baby #2.

4. It's the time of year when fall festivals are in full swing, the air is crisp and sweater season truly begins...

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5. My newest reason to love October is that on the 20th of this month (yes, just this week!) our dear friends brought their new son home to his forever home. This adoption has been long prayed for and they have been truly blessed. I can't wait to meet him soon! You can read about his homecoming here.

Linking up for Five on Friday 

Countdown to Halloween Link-up: Week 2

This past week was all about survival.
Survive my first week back to work...barely
Survive what may be my babe teething
Surviving on next to no sleep
Surviving multiple setbacks

But hey! It's fall and here in Central Virginia the leaves are turning, the air is crisp and the nights are cool. What hasn't been about survival has been about family time and fun. Our church was having a fundraiser by selling pumpkins so we grabbed a couple. This worked out wonderfully since our annual pumpkin patch trip was rained out.

We did manage to attend my hubby's 10 year high school reunion. It was a lot of fun!

With the fall comes back to school and our church celebrated teachers with little goody bags. So sweet!

I also have my mind set to make these Melt in Your Mouth Pumpkin Cookies this week with G.

Hopefully this week will go a little more smoothly and I'll be able to get in some more Fall fun.

Linking up for the Countdown to Halloween

Countdown to Halloween link-up Week 1

While we don't do much in the way of celebrating Halloween,  we do a lot to celebrate the blessings of the Fall season. This past weekend was supposed to consist of a great consignment sale, pumpkin picking and one of our local orchard ' s apple butter festival. However, thanks to 3 days of rain, all outside activities were postponed. I did get some awesome deals at the consignment sale. Yippee!

I've been trying to savor the last bits of my maternity leave since I go back to work today. The struggle is real. To keep my toddler (and my mind) occupied, we did a couple little fall activities that we picked up from our library...not to mention lots of play dough and snuggling.

She completed a sorting activity and then a leaf activity. This was her first time using a glue stick...she is now slightly obsessed.

Join the link-up 

Slow Cooker Beef Stew

Enjoying the cool fall evening 

I. Love. Fall. It is my favorite season for hundreds of reasons. One of the biggies is that the cool weather just begs to be paired with warm, comfy, stick to your bones recipes. One of my favorites is stew. Stew is a pretty generic term considering how versatile it is. In honor of the first day of fall, I thought I'd share a tasty stew recipe that not only makes yummy leftovers, but also freezes well.

My daughter has been helping me a lot in the kitchen lately and yesterday she helped me throw together this yummy stew. Now you can use whatever type of meat you prefer but I typically use beef or venison. I opted for certain veggies but of course you can use whatever you'd like.

Slow Cooker Stew 

Ingredients:
1lb ground venison
3 potatoes, cubed
1 c frozen corn
1 c frozen lima beans
1 c baby carrots
1tsp onion powder
2 cloves minced garlic
2 bay leaves
1 tsp Oregano
1/2 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 tbsp sugar
1 15oz  can low sodium beef broth
1/4 c Worcestershire sauce
2 tbsp cornstarch
1c water

Directions:

Spray the slow cooker with nonstick spray.  Next, place your venison on the bottom, breaking it up slightly. (If using ground beef, you'll want to precook it and drain the fat.) Layer on the veggies and then top with the seasonings. Pour over the Worcestershire sauce and beef broth.

Cook on low for 6-8 hours or until the potatoes and carrots are tender. About 15 minutes before you're ready to eat, mix the corn starch and water and stir into the stew. This will thicken it. Pair with your favorite corn bread and enjoy!

Linking up with Waiting on Wednesday
and Mommy Moments

The Countdown is Coming to an End

I've been linking up with Tickled Pink this October for the Countdown to Halloween. I've loved it! I've gotten great ideas and I've been able to share the sweet things that have been going on around here.

I'm sad to see this month end, but it was definitely filled with some wonderful things. This past week was no exception.

[Pumpkin Carving]
G was old enough to "help" us carve her pumpkin this year. I saw this adorable pumpkin and had to do it. I free-handed the outlines and my hubby and I took turns carving. G loved the pumpkin guts. We all had a sense of excitement when it was finally finished and lit.

[Secret Pal]
We have Secret Pals at work. It's a lot of fun. At the beginning of the year we randomly pick a person to give little gifts to throughout the year. My SP rocked my gift for Halloween. I played into my person's love of fruit by putting together a cute little "pumpkin" basket based on this adorable idea.

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[Fall Festival]
Our church puts on a fall festival every year as an alternative and/or additional activity to trick or treating each year. There are bounce houses, games, candy, and so much fun. It's an amazing ministry. Last year G was so little. I had to carry her everywhere.

G with her Aunt Mary and Uncle Colton...such a cute little caterpillar

G chillin' with our pastor

This year she was Little Miss Independent.

Playing games like a big girl

A girl and her balloon

[Annual Orchard Trip]
For the last several years our family joins our dear friends for a trip to a nearby apple orchard. We typically enjoy a hayride, the pumpkin patch, apples, cider donuts, etc. We also typically go earlier in October but due to the excessive rain, we held off. We decided next time we'd take our chances. We arrived at the top of the mountain to find bitter winds and cold temperatures. It was as if winter had come early. Bundled up, we browsed the market, scoped out the pumpkin patch and then of course delighted ourselves with hot cider and fresh cider donuts. Afterwards we took the bus to Fuji (apples that is) and did a short walk through the trees. Thankfully the impending rain held off and we were able to leave just short of numb. It's always a treat to be with our friends. We love them dearly and look forward to this tradition every year.

The bus to Fuji

Enjoying the pumpkin patch

The apple stare down

Our traditional family picture

[Sausage Dip]
I was introduced to this recipe by a dear friend of mine several years ago. In fact, I remember the first time I had it. We had gone to visit them at their first home and they treated us to this delicious dip and chips. I ended up making it the other night for a football game...it's been so long! I'll definitely be making it again soon.

(I wish I had a pic but it was gone before I thought about taking one...trust me,

if you make it, you'll forget about taking a picture too.)

Sausage Dip

Ingredients:

1lb Sage sausage (I use Jimmy Dean)

1 8oz package of fat free cream cheese

1 can rotel

Directions:

Brown and drain the sausage.

Mix it together in a baking dish and microwave until it is bubbling (5-7 minutes)

You can mix it in a bowl and then transfer to a microwave safe container...

Serve with tortilla chips.

Linking up with Green Fashionista for Tasty Tuesday.