Drunken Monkey Bread

I was really excited to get home tonight and get dinner going. I made homemade Sloppy Joes. I've been using this recipe for quite some time now and it always proves to be delicious!

Super Sloppy Joes

Afterwards, I got G fed and put to bed. I managed to get one more skirt made, dishes done and my walk on the treadmill accomplished. I'm determined to get back in the saddle and get some exercise in the evenings after G is asleep. Regardless if  I'm exhausted, I know I have to do this. While I was walking on the treadmill, watching Haunted Highway, it dawned on me that we are having a Birthday Breakfast for one of my co-workers in the morning...and I had not made anything! Now, at 8:45pm I could flip out, cry, sigh...whatever. But never fear...I've always got something I can whip up.

Tonight I went to a tried and true recipe that I've loved since my transplant in the South. I decided to branch out and add a little this and that with the end result being...Drunken Monkey Bread. Tada!

After preheating your oven to 350, bust out 3 cans of buttermilk biscuits. Do not use the flaky ones...you'll be sorry! Cut them into quarters. In a gallon bag, mix 1c sugar and 2 tbsp. of cinnamon. Toss the biscuits into the bag, zip and shake what your momma gave you! This should coat them nicely and they won't stick together.

Evenly spread these gems into a bunt pan. In a microwave safe bowl toss in two sticks of butter and a 1/2c brown sugar. Heat for 1 minute and stir. Heat for another 30-60 seconds until it is melted yummy goodness. Stir well. Now...are you ready for it?! Break out the bourbon! Add 1-2 tbsps. to the melted butter mixture. Also add 1 tbsp. of maple flavoring. Mix well and pour the golden mixture over your sugary nuggets of love. Pat down with a spoon so that every piece has been kissed by the butter mixture.

Bake approximately 35 minutes. Remove from the oven and let it set for about 15 minutes. Place your serving platter over the bottom of the bunt pan. Gently turn both over. The bread should slide easily onto the platter. Let it set for a few more minutes (if you can stand it) and then serve. Enjoy!

Christmas Pajama Party!

Oh the weather outside is frightful...so we have started out the work day with a two hour delay...just what I needed so I could link up with Darci, Ashley and others for a Christmas Pajama Party!

 

(Something is wrong with my camera...the flash is not working like it should...hmmm...troubleshooting is on my list of things to do...)

 

 

We broke out the Christmas Pajamas! It's hard to believe that in just a couple weeks G will be celebrating her first official Christmas! We celebrated her first "unofficial" Christmas last year.

 

She was our Jellybean last Christmas...

 

These pajamas were a gift from a dear friend of mine for one of G's baby showers. I'm so glad they fit!

 



Snow Day #1

Thanks to the dangerous, iced covered roads, schools across Central Virginia were closed today. While I hate losing the Teacher Work Days that are used to make up for the snow days, I love to have an extra day home with my family. Depending on which station/website you look at and choose to believe, it's possible we may get more of a wintry mix/snow this evening...looking out our front windows you can see the snow just pouring over the mountains. I don't know if it will make its way across or not, but either way, it's a beautiful sight.

That vast gray sky is a huge cloud of wintry precipitation so thick that we can no longer see the mountains.

Today was particularly nice because my husband was also off. We both got to spend some time together and with G, which, due to work schedules, is not as often as we'd like.



Sporting her "Snow Day" attire

He has had to miss out on so much lately with the long hours at the fire department. I just adore seeing him catch up on daddy-daughter time.

An afternoon cat nap

We also spent today doing a little house work and catching up on some Christmas crafts that will be featured in this week's Five on Friday post. I was able to make a few ornaments, get in some "art work" and make a couple of skirts (that I hope will fit the little ones I've made them for).

 I was also able to begin some major work on our Budget Binder that will serve as a tool for our financial over haul in 2014. We've done really well thus far in our marriage, but we know we could be doing better. I'm excited and anxious at the same time. We'll have to really discipline ourselves and remain sources of encouragement and accountability for one another as we begin this journey. We did get excited as we started looking at what we could accomplish in just one year if we work our plan. One of our biggest hindrances is my student loans. Between my undergrad and Master's degrees, I have accumulated a good bit of debt. I can't wait to really begin putting a dent in it. God continues to provide and only through His provision have we been able to do the things we've done. He also expects us to handle His provisions with care and sensibility. I know without a doubt we'll be blessed through this. I hope to post more on it later.

While reviewing what I would need for our binder, I ran across Living Well Spending Less. I've read a few of her blogs in the past but this time on her site I discovered that she has a wonderful list of free printables for tons of DIY home projects (i.e. budgets, cleaning, etc.). The type A in me quickly fell in love.

Feeling rather rested and inspired, I'm looking forward to this evening's dinner. I'm trying a new recipe...Lemon Parmesan Pasta. I'll have to let you know how it goes...

I just love unexpected days off. How do/would you spend yours?

Fire and Ice

While the end of this week has been much warmer than normal, rumor had it that we would encounter some nasty winter weather this weekend. Yesterday was filled with multiple odds and ends. The hubby, G and I began the day with Breakfast with Santa (pic coming soon) and then we headed to town. I mailed off Christmas gifts and then we visited several stores to complete our Christmas shopping. I did do a lot of shopping online this year...which was nice, but some deals you just have to show up for.

We know that G doesn't really NEED anything an she's too young to indicate what she would want, so we picked up some clothes and a couple small items. However, my husband, being a true kid at heart, insisted she have at least one big something...so, he is now on the hunt for the best deal on the Fisher-Price Laugh and Learn Crawl Around Car.

Has anyone seen them used or better yet, own one? It has received many great reviews. I'm sure she'll love playing with it at some point...and if nothing else, she'll have a big cardboard box to roll around in.

After Christmas shopping, we grabbed lunch and then went grocery shopping. We had this trip planned since last week and normally Saturday afternoons are pretty chill at our local shopping center. However, with the impending winter weather, both the gas stations and stores were over run. We decided to get our shopping done anyway (all the while praying our power would not go out after making our purchases). With our monthly shopping trip completed, we came home to unload groceries.

Afterwards, we stacked the remainder of the wood that C had split the other day. With the weather man predicting between 1/2 inch and 1 inch of ice, we wanted to ensure the house would stay warm no matter what the storm would bring. We've had a strong, warm fire going since and true to the meteorologist's word, we had a slight dusting of snow and it has been sleet and ice since. The road looks awful and our porches are super slick. C just left a little bit ago to respond to a pretty bad accident.

Since we have no place to go...I'll be working on trying to get the house put together for our upcoming Christmas festivities. Enjoy what is left of the weekend!

Five on Friday: A Little Christmas Flair

Hooray for Friday! I'm linking up with my friend Ashley and others to bring you this week's Five on Friday. Christmas festivities are in full swing...with many more to come. This is one of my favorite times of the year so I thought I'd share a few things from the homestead.

 

 

[one]

My husband and I had a hard time making up Christmas lists this year. We have all that we need and we have been blessed with so many things in 2013 that our wants were very few. We have also been trying to prep ourselves for our upcoming financial makeover in 2014. We looked around the house and decided to go in together and make one large purchase for the home. We were graciously given some used furniture when we got married. We decided it was time to retire the hand-me-downs and invest in furniture that was more our style.

 

On our way to the store, G, who has been sick on and off the last two weeks, got super sick in the back of the truck. My hubby drove us quickly home. G and I remained at home while he went to purchase the furniture. This was a big step for my Type A personality (a.k.a. control freak). He picked out the furniture based on some things we had discussed and...I think he did a wonderful job! Comfortable, functional and an appropriate color. Kudos to my hubby!

 

[two]

This past weekend G was in her first parade. It was so much fun! She loved looking out the window at everyone from the height of the fire truck. I loved to hear the sweet comments as we drove by. Not only did she get to have her first ride in a fire truck, but she got to pet a goat! She was not sure at first, but then quickly warmed up to him.

 

 

[three]

I have begun slowly putting up the Christmas decorations. Normally EVERYTHING is put up the weekend after Thanksgiving. Between a sick baby and other events, I just didn't have time. So...I've been pulling out a few things each night after G has gone to bed. Some decorations will probably not make it up this year...which is okay. Less to take down later.

I did manage to make our "goody bags". I was going to make our own stockings but the pattern did not produce what I had hoped...so, in an effort to improvise, I sewed a "goody bag" for each of us. This will become a new tradition for our family. We've always done stockings, these bags will just replace them. Another thing I love about them is that as we (hopefully) have more kids, I can purchase fabric that represents things they love or their personalities.

 

[four]

Another tradition we've decided to begin this year is the "12 Books of Christmas". Beginning on the 12th, we'll read one Christmas themed book a night to G. She'll get to unwrap it and we'll add it to her collection. I know, if you are doing the math in your head, this the number of books will run out before Christmas...have no fear! We have a standing tradition that on Christmas Eve we begin reading the account of Christ's birth and finish it on Christmas morning. We do have this in a child-friendly version this year. I'm so excited!!!! As we witnessed at Papa's birthday party, G is all about ripping off some wrapping paper.

 

[five]

Our beautiful little girl is 33 weeks today! We still can't get over how quickly time is passing. In just a few weeks she will have been on this earth for just as long as I carried her in my womb. I am still wonderstruck daily by her and the miracle that she is for us.

 

 

I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend. Ours will be filled with Breakfast with Santa, errands, Christmas dinner at church and other things that make this time of year special. 

Five on Friday: All Things Thanksgiving

In savoring every moment of this wonderful season of thanks, I am joining with several other wonderful ladies for this week's Five on Friday.

 

 

Join me in all things Thanksgiving!

 

[one]

 

This week holds a lot of special family events. The first celebration we had was on Tuesday. We celebrated my father-in-law's birthday. G was all about helping Papa open his presents and read his birthday cards.

 

[two]

To add further celebration, my daughter's first tooth decided it would make it's way to the surface. I can't believe she has a tooth!!! I tried to capture a photo but I soon discovered it was not worth the battle. Yay for baby teeth!

 

[three]

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays. We had a lovely spread with all of the fixings. To make it a little more special this year, we celebrated it as my daughter's first Thanksgiving. We are so blessed to have this red-headed bundle of joy in our lives. She makes my heart so full. I also attempted one of my bucket list items...a pecan pie. I used this Caramel Pecan Pie recipe and added a 1/4c of chocolate chips...YUM!

 

 

[four]

I'm not one to wake up at 2am to hit the Black Friday deals, but I will venture forth once the sun is up. My sister-in-law and I made our way to town and scored some really great deals. We now have about 90% of our Christmas shopping complete. I also enjoyed some fabulous deals from the comfort of my home. I just love that I can place orders in my pajamas.

 

 

[five]

My tree topper and ribbon from last year have gone MIA. So...I thought I'd put my Pinterest scanning and pinning to good use. Thanks to this tutorial, I made my very own tree topper. I'm pretty proud of my first ever bow!

 

The remainder of this weekend will be spent soaking up some giggles with G and decorating the house for Christmas...rumor has it G may be in her first parade soon...

 

God bless and make it a point to give thanks all year long.

Living Well

"I don't really want more time; I just want enough time. Time to breathe deep and time to see real and time to laugh long, time to give You glory and rest deep and sing joy and just enough time in a day not to feel hounded, pressed, driven, or wild to get it all done-I just want time to do my one life well."

 

(from One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp)

 

Time to do my one life well. I feel as though time passes through my hands like water and I keep grasping, only to be left with droplets as reminders that my hands once held it. I watch my little girl grow before my eyes. Each day brings new wonder and new discoveries. Her fascination with life continues and it's as if I can see her soaking up the world around her.

 

For so long we dreamed of her existence. We prayed daily for God to fill my womb with the gift of life. As time passed and what we thought was "wait" turned into our perception of "no", we began embracing the idea that maybe God had something else for us. I remember the moment my tears of longing and sorrow turned into tears of joy. For so long we prayed.

 

Now that she is here, I desperately long keep her little. Small. Dependent. And yet I look forward to her first words. Her first day of school. Coloring books and crayons. Sleepovers. And yet I'm reminded that from the time her first breath was taken in this world, my responsibility to grow her, to educate her, to help mold her into a woman for Christ has begun. I am left asking myself, "how can I teach her to live this one life well?"

 

The first thing that comes to mind is prayer. I continually pray for a fortress of protection around her body and soul. I pray for her future friends and boyfriends (eek!). I pray for her future husband. I continually pray for the Lord to already begin preparing her heart for salvation. I pray for wisdom for her daddy and I. I pray that we will seek His will in her raising and that we will provide solid examples of what it means to love, fear and count all things joy in the Lord.

 

The next thing that comes to mind is to live by example. How can I teach her to savor God's goodness when I drink from a half empty cup? How can I encourage her to seek after the heart of God in all things when I sulk in self-pity and anxiety. Tonight, in this quiet house, I am left staring at my demons, these things that cast a shadow over what once was a ray of beautiful, radiant light. My journey to reignite joy, to live in His grace and to count every God-breathed moment with thanks has opened doors that I had hoped to have lost the key. Facing my hurts, my fears and facing them with God instead of my mortal tunnel vision is an everyday act of intention. It. Is. Necessary. I see God moving, however slow, through this process with me. All of this will make me a better mother, a better wife and a more vibrant example of what Christ can do with a life.

 

The last thing that comes to mind tonight is His Word. God uses scripture to pierce our hearts and enlighten our minds and souls. Truth is life. It is light in darkness. It is foundational to Christ-centered living. It brings comfort. It brings peace. It brings restoration. In order to live this one life well, we have to know how we are called to live it. God provides explicit instructions. We are to live intentionally.

 

Aim to live this one life well. Change is constant and so are the hours in a day. It's how we approach them both that makes all the difference.

 

These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.

John 15:11