I keep opening all these tabs on my computer with articles like

• How to Simplify Christmas
• Christmas Traditions
• Simplifying Christmas Traditions 
• What You Really Need this Christmas
• What You Don't Need this Christmas
• How to Simplify Your Kids' Christmas
• Clutter-Free Gifts for this Christmas
• Creating a Meaningful Christmas

And in the process I'm cluttering up my computer screen, my mind, my feeling of having more on that blasted To Do list; I've gotta read all these articles now and implement them into our lives - quickly, like last month!  And figure out what to do when some of the different articles by different authors contradict each other.  Gah!  Hello, stress!

And, for the love of Martha Steweart, WHAT do people mean when they say, "Are you ready for Christmas?"

Clearly I will NEVER be ready!

And then I got to thinking...

What if I stop trying to do all these things that other people keep telling me I have to do?

(And most of these people are people who I don't even know in real life!)

Oh, the freedom.
Oh, the release.

Letting go of somebody else's expectations.

Letting go of my own expectations.

My daughter is four.  She doesn't have any expectations honestly!  This is the first year she's shown interest in anticipation of Christmas.  She doesn't care how many different goodies we bake (or if we bake any!).  She doesn't care about the number of gifts she gets or what kind of gifts she gets (although, she would probably enjoy it more if it's more than just clothes.  Even I remember not getting too excited about clothes at Christmas time!).  She doesn't care about making sure we have traditions.  She barely knows about Santa, let alone an Elf on the Shelf (thank goodness, because I am NOT about to do that thing!).

What if, instead of planning what events we fill our family's schedule with for Christmas Eve, we instead spent time with our each other and off our screens?

What if we made memories as a family, instead of being jealous of others' families posted on Instagram?

What if we looked at our loved ones' faces, rather than at Facebook?

What if we just relax and be, instead of plan and do?

If I say the focus of Christmas is celebrating Christ's coming to earth, do I show I believe it by what I do?  Or am I making our culture's traditions and expectations the priority of this season?

You can add this blog post to your own To Do list - another article telling you what to do or not do this Christmas.  Or you can be encouraged by it and contemplate your own priorities and expectations and choose to focus on what really matters.

Believe or not, Josh is already back to work, and the local kids are already back in school.

This summer break was the shortest ever - 8 weeks.  We are so grateful, though, for that perk of his occupation!!

About the beginning of June or so, I wrote up a little list of things I wanted to get done this summer.  How'd we do?

• Purge (still doing)
• Organize (this is really slow going, but I'm working on it)
• Decorate (work in progress, but mostly comes after the organizing; also, this is really hard to measure/assess)
• Hang pics/gallery wall (nope)
• Paint front door (I've narrowed it down to 3 colors, and really 1 I think, but it's not the same one that hubby wants, so for now we just have 3 red paint swatches taped to our front door, can you say ghetto?)

• Grill pizzas (still gotta do this)
• Dentist appointments for all 3 of us (appointments made and scheduled for this week!  It will be C's first dentist experience!  She's excited; I hope I don't make her nervous.)
• Wonderland Theater (Josh and I got to see "Paper Towns" as a Thursday matinee - when all you can eat popcorn is free, woot woot!)
• Buy a new vacuum
• Buy a dirt devil/dustbuster
• Host a yard sale (done!  times 2!)

• Go on a couples trip (Josh & I celebrated our 5th anniversary with a trip to Michigan - Saginaw, Birch Run, Traverse City)

• Go on a family trip (sorry, kid.)
• Camp in our backyard
• Use our firepit
• Make smores
• Teach C how to wipe her bottom independently (a good thing to know how to do especially considering she starts pre-school in a month!)
• Get estimates for windows (ugh.  I feel like I need to get my house organized first.)
• Stain the back deck (ahem)
• Go to the beach (we went when Josh's Las Vegas family was in town; then Catherine & I went again with her cousins and aunt)

Sadly, there was no big family road trip this summer.  But maybe we can do some little trips on the weekends.  I know things will be different with Catherine now having her own school schedule to consider, so we'll just have to be diligent to use the time we have!

Josh is on Spring Break.

We spent yesterday at his folks, today at my folks along with my brother and his family.  Catherine got to do an Easter egg hunt with her cousins at my parents' church.

 

 
Tomorrow is breakfast and Easter service at our church.  Josh will help make the breakfast with other men at the church.

After church we are hosting "Easter Breakfast" - for lunch.  I will throw together a fruit salad.  We'll have an egg casserole, and the traditional Slovenian dishes from my husband's side of the family:  a sweet bread called poteca:

Our first loaf of poteca, so long ago

And a platter with cold hard boiled eggs, ham, kielbasa and horseradish.  Unique, huh?  As far as I know it doesn't have a name, so we just call it "Easter breakfast."

My first introduction to his extended family was Easter up North six years ago I believe (I'm not too good with dates and numbers and particulars).  I was asked if I wanted horseradish on my serving of "Easter breakfast".  I said, "Sure" and there was an immediate uproar of joyous acceptance into the family.

Our first Easter together

There will be horseradish tomorrow.

I went to a really awesome Women's Retreat last week.  And it's got me thinking a lot about the expectations of being a "good mom" or a "perfect wife" or a "Proverbs 31 woman".

• own a big house
• invite people over often
• clean that big house
• make meals
• make healthy meals
• organic, gluten free, GMO free meals
• no fast food
• meal plan
• make freezer meals
• make meals for others
• bake coookies
• keep a full cookie jar
• have clear kitchen counters
• have granite countertops
• serve in the church
• nursery duty Sunday
• nursery duty Wednesday
• attend Bible study
• host Bible study
• attend small group
• host small group
• have daily devotions
• have daily family devotions
• have daily devotions with husband
• have a happy marriage
• have lots of sex
• have lots of children
• sacrificially give up sleep
• sew
• own a minivan
• drive other people's kids around
• take the neighborhood to church
• take the church to the neighborhood
• serve the less fortunate
• make memories for child(ren)
• have craft time with child
• give up coffee
• go to bed early
• get up early
• exercise
• daily laundry
• mop
• wear an apron
• wear makeup
• wear heels
• have nice matching furniture that isn't second-hand or stained
• have a queen or king sized bed
• . . .

It keeps going and going.
It's enough to make me crumble.
And weep.
And give up.

Because [clearly] I can't do it all.

The question I keep coming back to is "Where do these expectations come from?"

God never called me to be Super Woman.  He's the One I say I live for and care about.  Then why am I stressing about doing all these other things that He's never called me to do?

One point our speaker made at the retreat is that God's not calling me to do, do, do.  He's calling me to be.

To be His daughter.  To be in His presence.

Look at the Bible passage about Mary and Martha in Luke 10:38-42.
Oh, this story has always made me squirm.

Because, like Martha, I'm a doer.  I think of all the work that needs to be done.  And I try to do it.  And then I get ticked off when others aren't doing their fair share.

In this passage, Martha is feeling the same way.  And Jesus totally calls her out on it, and says she can stop trying to do it all.  He never asked her to do it all.  In fact He doesn't want her to do it all.  He wants her to just be.  To sit at His feet and to be with Him.

Oh, Lord, can I do that?  Is it possible to overlook the messy house and the overflowing baskets of laundry and the over-scheduled calendar to focus on what You have truly called me to do??



My friend Lisa-Jo just wrote about NOT Doing It All.  Her honesty was much appreciated and needed.  The part that impacted me the most was kind of some behind-the-scenes information.  The "story behind the photo" if you will.

A couple days prior she had posted a photo of her sweet kiddos all lined up in a row, sitting nicely on the couch, all happy and well fed with bowls of food in their laps.  It was cute.  Of course.


Then I found out the story behind the photo:  Lisa-Jo had just gotten home from traveling out of town for a few days to a conference where she was a speaker.  Though she was delighted to be home and with her kids again, she was also exhausted.  She got Chinese take-out, put it in bowls, lined them up on the couch with dinner and Netflix while she napped.

Can I get a "Hallelujah" for a nap?
Can I get a "Hallelujah" for such honesty?
Can I get a "Hallelujah" for takeout and tv for those moments when we just can't do it all and we need to be real and ok with that?

Another friend's husband recently posted "Judging by my facebook feed, if you haven't taken your kids to an apple orchard or a pumpkin patch yet this fall, you're a horrible parent."  Though obviously tongue-in-cheek, it puts into explicit words what we may be feeling tinges of when we compare our lives to those showing up in our newsfeed.

I can't allow others' snippets of life and snapshots momentarily on display to decide the expectations of my day-to-day reality.

Lord, help me to know what YOU expect of me.  May I strive for only the things that bring glory to you.

1. I believe... in forgiveness and second chances.
2. The first concert I attended was... Johnny Cash.
3. It's important to have... friends.
4. I would love to go... back to Portland (Maine).
5. If I had more time... I'd get my home organized, but I'd need more energy too.
6. I like to... sleep.  (In case you didn't catch that whole VerySleepyGirl name of this blog)
7. Some of my proudest achievements are... student teaching overseas, moving to the west coast, and moving back home to the Midwest.
8. When I was a teenager... I made my parents' lives miserable.
9. Someday I would love to... get our upstairs bathroom painted.
10. My favorite thing to bake is... crepes currently.  Or would that be considered cooking?  I don't know.  Do you bake crepes or cook crepes?
11. What you don't know about me is... how badly I'm trying to figure out what to do with my life.
12. I once had a part-time job... babysitting at age 10.  I was so not mature enough for that!
13. I am currently working... for free.
14. My favorite celebrity meeting was... Mario Lopez!!
15. I like to drink... coffee every morning.
16. My favorite movie idol is... Julie Andrews.  "The hills are alive!!!!!"
17. My favorite flowers are... colorful and bright and vibrant and long-lasting!
18. I like to snack on... sweet and salty combos.
19. My favorite TV show is... currently Fixer Upper on HGTV.  I really don't want much TV, and we don't get HGTV, so...
20. I met my husband... officially in let's see here... um, working backwards, we were married in 2010, so... um, let's see, engaged in 2009, so 2008 I guess.  Is that right, sweetie?  (I'm not good with numbers/dates/facts)
21. I would love to have dinner with... a bunch of old friends at a backyard barbeque.  Oh, that may come true here shortly...
22. My favorite color is... blue in varying shades - mostly aqua and navy.
23. I enjoy... sleeping writing.
24. I attended... Christian schools almost entirely.
25. I am a huge fan of... Candace Cameron.
26. I collect... colanders.  For decoration.  Or as Catherine would say, "For pretend."
27. I appeared... as an extra in a movie.
28. I also collect... travel size toiletries from hotels.  Ha!
29. My favorite fruit is... fruit pizza!  No, seriously, I love lots of different fruits - honeydew, blueberries, kiwi, strawberries, grapes, bananas, peaches, etc.  But I also do love a good fruit pizza!
30. My go-to beauty product is... Burt's Bees lip balm.  That's as close as I get to "beauty products."
31. In 2009 I... went to Arkansas, Nevada, California, and Texas.
32. I recently... went through South Dakota, North Dakota, Montana, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington for the first time.
33. I am inspired by... Pinterest.
34. I wear glasses... every day since 8th grade.
35. In 1997 I... went to New York City with my high school classmates.
36. I work out... used to work out at Curves and later a gym.
37. I'm a terrible... cook.
38. What I love about America is... how much there is to experience.
39. My secret snack... is anything after Catherine is asleep.
40. I adore... rain when I don't have to go out in it.
41. It's been a really long time since... I got my hair cut.  I was seriously contemplating pigtails the other day.
42. I'm so thankful for... a dishwasher in our kitchen.  Especially after seven years without!  Good things come to those who wait.
43. I don't want to... own a red car.  Too much attention from police.
44. I once forgot... how to spell "world."  This was last week.
45. I have... a great guy (my husband - just to clarify in case you were thinking Mario Lopez).
46. I wish I had... disposable income.
47. I don't know how to... play chess.  I once started reading a book on how to play chess.  I don't think I made it past the first page.
48. Yesterday I... ate a yummy Asian sesame chicken salad.
49. Tomorrow I... will get up and drink coffee.  The rest is uncertain.
50. I wonder... when I'll tire of chevron.  I also wonder if anyone actually read ALL 50 of these random facts.

Currently reading...

• articles on how to survive a road trip with back pain

Currently eating...

• Smoked sausage roll from Rise 'n Roll

Currently drinking...

• Kiwi Strawberry Snapple - old school!

Currently missing...

•  Auntie Barb & Cousin Monique

Currently watching...

• nothing on tv, but we did just receive a mammoth antennae that will allow us to actually get local channels

Currently rearranging...

• kitchen, front room, and living room - mentally

Currently stressing...

• planning packing for the road trip

Currently baking...

• nothing; four very ripe bananas ended up in the freezer after I talked about making banana bread for days

Currently lamenting...

• the extremely short lifespan of our kiddie pool

Currently enjoying...

• www.thesaurus.com

Currently harvesting...

• spinach, lettuce, strawberries, raspberries, basil

 Currently attempting...

• to figure out multiple annoying technological problems affecting me simultaneously (computer won't charge; phone won't send pictures to email or facebook)

Currently anticipating...

• being with Roomie Sarah

 Currently singing...

• How Can I Keep From Singing

Currently dreaming...

• about space (not of the outer variety) and working at my former job (recurring dream)

Currently creating...

• margin

Valentine's Day, 2014:

I did NOT . . .

• decorate the house with red balloons while the family slept
• make pink heart shaped pancakes with sprinkles
• make heart shaped sandwiches
• make heart shaped pizza
• make heart shaped brownies
• make homemade Valentines cards
• buy Valentines cards
• buy Valentines gifts
• shower

Instead I . . .

• got a special treat with Little Girl - Rise n Roll donuts from the local gas station
• talked to her about who loves her
• thanked Jesus for His love
• danced, sang, and ran around with my daughter
• let her nap in mommy & daddy's bed
• fell asleep next to her and slept right through her getting up, going downstairs, and getting into a bag of pretzel m & m's
• woke up in a panic to discover her downstairs entertaining my in-laws who had arrived to babysit for the evening  (GULP!!!)
• hid out upstairs mortified until hubby got home from work
• cried most of the way to dinner
• was encouraged by my husband, calmed down, laughed, and enjoyed a wonderful dinner and an entire hour meandering around Target - ok, maybe the free wine samples at dinner helped too!

That's just the reality of my day.  We see so much of the Super Mom portrayed out there on the Interwebs, but that's not always the reality.  We Instagram the perfect pictures, not the mistakes.  I didn't want Catherine's chocolate covered face and shirt photo documented for all eternity (or until my hard drive crashes); I just wanted to wipe it up as quickly as possible as if it never happened.  We share our awesome moments but of course not our failures.  So when we inevitably fail, we feel it.  We feel it bad.  I told Josh I was feeling like a zero on a scale of 1 to 10.  Not only did my in-laws have to let themselves in to my house (fail) and find their granddaughter by herself (fail), in need of a diaper change (fail) and covered in melted red and green candy coating (fail), but they also saw an unkempt house (fail) and an unkempt daughter-in-law (fail).

I felt like a big pile of failures.

But not making heart shaped pancakes doesn't mean I'm a failure.  Not making heart shaped pancakes doesn't mean I don't love my child.  I can show love to my husband and daughter without heart shaped pancakes.

My love isn't measured in heart shaped pancakes.

Heart shaped pancakes are fleeting.


I know making heart shaped pancakes might be a fun memory making activity for your family, but I hope my love for my daughter can be felt with meaningful conversations and time spent together. 

Do I have anything against heart shaped pancakes or those who make them?  Absolutely not.  I love pancakes, and I'd gladly eat heart shaped ones.  Maybe someday I'll even try making them.  But I'm not going to let myself feel mom guilt for not measuring up to somebody else's ways of showing love to their family.

I really didn't plan on sharing all about today's failures; in fact, it's quite embarrassing.  But I need reminders that it's okay to have those tough days with the failing moments and the non-heart-shaped donuts.  And maybe, just maybe, you need that reminder as badly as I do.

It started with bananas.

As a followup to yesterday's post about needing one ingredient and wondering if I'd end up with more...

As we were going to the store I decided it would just be easiest to get the one thing I needed (beer, oddly enough) and not shop for more things.  Toting a toddler around in snow and cold is a challenge, so I thought the less I have to carry with me the better.

So, beer:  We don't drink it, but I was needing it to bake beer bread for tonight. Someone had told me awhile ago that Kroger sells individual bottles.  Perfect!

Well, trying to find them was another story.  First employee I found was clueless.  The second said they have them in the summer.

Oh.  Ok.

So, I ended up with a six pack.

And on the way there, I saw bananas and thought, "Bananas are good to have.  I can get a bunch of bananas."

After the bananas, the floodgates opened up.

I decided I should get yogurt (on sale) for Catherine.  She loves yogurt, and lately she's always eating mine.

Grands biscuits were on sale, and I've had Monkey Bread on my mind.  Knowing we have a long weekend with Josh off work Monday I knew I'd be tempted to celebrate with brunch out.  Instead, I decided, I'd make a special brunch at home.

On the way to the dairy aisle, I found mini quiche.  On clearance.  "That'd be great to add to brunch for some protein."  I thought and added it to the cart.

Next I found cookie dough on clearance.  $1 for cookie dough, hello!!  "These will be great for when I need something sweet!"  I limited myself to two.

Next to it were coffee creamers on clearance.  Perfect!  I periodically take flavored creamers to the Moms Group/Bible Study I go to, and I noticed we were out last week.


"Oh, and milk is on sale.  I should probably get Catherine more milk."

"Oh, and this big bag of frozen french fries is only a dollar?!  Awesome!  They'll be great for when I'm craving fast food."

. . .

Everything except the beer and bananas were on sale or clearance.  I spent $24.40 and never even thought about eggnog.

P.S.  The beer bread turned out well.

Being on a spending freeze has definitely gotten me doing more in the kitchen, and it's been really fun!  Especially since my husband is willing to do the cleanup!  Bless his heart!  Oh, and did I mention that on top of everything else, our dishwasher broke?!?

Catherine LOVES to help bake.  In the past I would just let her watch from her highchair pulled up to whatever I was doing.  But now she is helping with lots of stirring, and she can't get enough of it.  Her latest phrase repeated over and over is "Gotta stir it up!"  She even has to stir the food on her plate at every meal now.

In the last few days I have made Mounds Bar Brownies (so rich!), Smores Bars (just made it up as I went along - used a sugar cookie dough as a crust and added chocolate chips, marshmallow creme and marshmallows), and Peach Slowcooker Oatmeal.

Tonight we made our own version of Red Lobster's Cheddar Bay Biscuits.  Those are one of the best things in the world (can I get an amen?); in fact they are the reason I go to Red Lobster!  I'm not a huge fish eater and usually get chicken there, ha!

Anyways, I started with this base recipe from the Top Secret Restaurant Recipes book.  (Warning: on my computer some annoying video started automatically playing at this site, and I couldn't find it anywhere to pause it, so I ended up just muting my whole computer.  Automatic videos or music is a HUGE internet pet peeve of mine, but that's another blog post.)

Then I researched a few other recipes, reviews, and comments online and ended up with this:


Cheddar Bay Biscuits:

2 1/2 cups Bisquick baking mix (I used Aldi brand)
1/2 stick cold butter
3/4 cup whole milk
1 cup+ shredded cheddar cheese (I actually grated it myself from a block of extra sharp)
garlic powder
Old Bay seasoning
dried parsley flakes
(sorry, I don't measure seasonings)

Cut the butter into the Bisquick mix with a large fork and knife.  Keep going til you end up with pea sized(ish) butter clumps.  Add the rest of ingredients and stir.

I used a small ice cream scoop and plopped onto cookie sheets and baked at 400 degrees for 12ish minutes (not sure here because I had to pull them out early because our oven was smoking.  Ha, turns out my sneaky daughter had turned up the oven to 490, yikes!).

While they're baking, melt in the microwave 2 tablespoons butter (I used margarine).  Dump in a bunch of garlic powder (Catherine just went to town here), more parsley flakes, and a pinch of salt.

Brush on top of hot biscuits (or somehow transfer with a spoon if you're like me and don't think you have a brush) and bake for another couple minutes.

Enjoy!  They are just as addicting as the real thing!

I say I like to bake.  But why is it I keep procrastinating when I am required to bake something?

Tonight is a neighborhood cookie exchange.  This was somehow MY idea; I'm still trying to figure that one out.  I've never participated in a cookie exchange before so we'll see how it flies.

Last night I pulled out three potential recipes.  Today I browsed through the pantry and realized I can eliminate one of the three.  We're not going to the grocery store before baking, so we're stuck with whatever ingredients we have on hand.

Hmmm, I'm thinking we're gonna go with Fluffer Nutter Oatmeal Cookies because they look better than the other option.  They don't really scream "Christmas Cookie", do they?...

I'll be doing lots more baking in a couple days for the 2nd Annual Ladies Christmas Baking Day.  Here are pictures from last year's baking day with my daughter, mother-in-law, mom, niece, and sister-in-law:









Little Girl has changed SO much in a year!  Can't wait to see how she and her cousin get into it this year!

I am a mother.

I am a

• diaper changing,
• boo boo kissing,
• animal cracker eating,
• hug giving,
• cold coffee nuking,
• laundry washing,
• daddy skyping,
• toy tripping,
• Christmas tree ornament wrangling,
• grey roots up-touching,
• apron wearing,
• hubby kissing,
• muffin baking,
• sometimes dinner making,
• often takeout grabbing,
• quickly praying,
• Pinterest pinning,
• ABC's singing,
• highchair wiping,
• dishwasher loading,
• little girl rocking,
• hesitantly entertaining,
• sippy cup giving,
• list making,
• well balanced meal skipping,
• toddler chasing,
• nap needing

mama.

And I couldn't be happier.

I write that because sometimes I need to remind myself.

This is my calling right now.  This is my reality.


 I was recently pursued for a job.  A great job.  Outside of the home.

I was immediately sold.  So many good things about it.  I really thought it was meant to be.

But something just didn't feel right in this mama's heart.

I thought and prayed much.

And I realized the great commitment it would be.  And what that would mean to my other calling.  My current calling.  Mother.

I cannot express how hard it was to pass on this opportunity.  I just knew I couldn't add it to my current load.  Maybe some other time in the future.  Or in some other, smaller way.

But right now my plate is full.

Overflowing.

In a good way.

Things I Like Right Now

• chevron
• grey & yellow
• burlap
• pumpkin
• candles
• fall
• actually being chilly
• nap time
• muffins
• cookbooks
• coffee mugs
• having a dishwasher
• sitting on the front porch
• baby Halloween costumes
• consignment shops/thrift stores
• weekends
• family cuddle time
• pinterest
• craigslist deals
• catch-all baskets
• pumpkin recipes

I'm calling these treats Rhubarb Bars because it's fun to say.  Go ahead, try it.  Rhubarb Bars.

Told ya so!

I have loved anything with rhubarb since I was a little kid living in Minnesota (that was a L O N G time ago!!) where we used to grow it in our garden.  But this is the first time I've actually done anything with it (other than eat it).

I got the recipe from a co-worker who got the recipe from a friend who works at a fabulous local restaurant with a well known bakery.  They aren't particularly attractive looking, but they taste soooo good!  I may have eaten an entire row the evening I made them.  Shhhh...

Since some friends asked for the recipe I thought I'd post it here.  Enjoy!

Rhubarb Bars

2 c flour
3/4 c powdered sugar
1 c butter

4 eggs
2 c sugar
1/2 c flour
1/2 tsp salt
4 c rhubarb diced

Grease cookie sheet (Texas sheet/jelly roll pan) and press mixture of first three ingredients onto pan.  Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.  While baking, prepare filling of five remaining ingredients.  Pour filling on hot crust and bake 40-45 minutes until light brown.

I made them in a 9 x 13 pan, but it may require adjusting the baking time.  You can also substitute some strawberries for the rhubarb.  Other notes:  I used margarine instead of butter (I always do), and the crust was still great.  And I didn't use the full amount of sugar called for.  I rarely do.

Do you have a favorite rhubarb recipe you'd like to share with me?

Christmas decorating, Christmas shopping, Christmas cards, Christmas baking, Christmas tree, Christmas stockings... Sad that thinking of so many Christmas related things causes extreme stress in my life.

Every year I tell myself it will be different.

Even this year with a severe scale back of gift giving (hallelujah), I'm still feeling overwhelmed.

It makes me sad to think of not having a Christmas tree this year. But I'm overwhelmed by the mere pondering of, "Should we buy an artificial tree?" If it wasn't a $200 investment, maybe it wouldn't be as overwhelming. Do we get a real one? Do we buy a fake one if we'll be getting a real one next year? Realistically, is anyone even gonna have the time and energy to put up any dang tree this year?!

We have stockings for Josh & I. But, of course, none for baby. Do we get her one that doesn't go with ours? Do we get 3 new coordinating ones? What about for future Christmases with potential future children and their stockings?

I want to get an ornament for our daughter. My parents got ornaments for my brother and I every Christmas. In fact, they still do. I'd like to do the same for our girl. How many stores do I have to traipse out to to find the perfect ornament for her? Because last I knew, I don't really go out to stores - or anywhere - anymore.

I know without a doubt I'm not doing any baking. I can't even muster up the energy to make myself a sandwich these days.

I've done Christmas cards and a Christmas letter for the last several years. I really want to do one this year, but I'm feeling overwhelmed (there's that word again) by the thought of it all. We sent 51 letters/cards/pictures last year. Half of the recipients see and hear it all on facebook. Do the other half even care to get such things? And then there's the Baby Announcement...

Can I stop yet?

What a beautiful day!! It was warm (80!!!) with a nice breeze - hello, spring!
We slept in (my body is gonna have a rude awakening tomorrow at 5:40 AM after enjoying spring break sleeping in til 9) and enjoyed a great service at Living Stones Church.
We had lunch at TGI Friday's, and it was sooooo good!! I had been craving ketchup (I'm pregnant), so I heartily enjoyed a burger and fries with ketchup.
Then my mom and I went to a great vintage and handmade craft bizarre. We didn't buy anything but enjoyed looking around at cute stuff and visiting with people. Then we enjoyed Blizzards at DQ (perfect for this weather) and chatting.
Josh and I have been watching The Office. He opened the windows in the living room, and it feels - and smells - great in here. He made me a yummy dinner - a sandwich and a mango, and I enjoyed a raisin oatmeal spice cookie he made this afternoon.
I plan and hope to go to bed early to help with the early awakening tomorrow.
Spring Break has been great!

I like to be the hostess with the mostess. Unfortunately my apartment living room is small and isn't always conducive to having a lot of people over. But what I can still enjoy is creating a dish that tastes good, looks good, and has a unique element to it - whether it be the garnishes or the partyware - and then take that dish to somebody else's house!

Take that passion along with my passion for Notre Dame football, and I'm ready to serve up some fun!

We gathered at my parents' house for a recent game; check out what I did!

Happy 29th Birthday to my Sweetie!!!

I feel like Josh does so much for me year round that I wanted to make sure to do all I can to honor him on his special day!

I showed up at his work and surprised him with lunch (his fave salad from Panera), a bright colorful balloon bouquet, and plenty of homemade pumpkin cookies for him and his co-workers.

Then tonight I took him to Red Robin where we enjoyed fabulous food, a free birthday burger for him, and a yummy hot fudge sundae from our amazing waitress!

We then went to the mall and went to his favorite stores and then spent some time talking at Starbucks where he enjoyed his new favorite drink, a skinny cinnamon dolce latte.

He received some ND football themed gifts including 2 tickets to this week's game against Boston College. Go Irish! I had so much fun putting the gift together, knowing how much he would appreciate it.

Happy Birthday, my love! Looking forward to sharing many more birthdays with you!

- I am looking forward to seeing Josh. Tonight is his first concert of the year. I like being able to go to all his concerts and be there for him. Afterwards we're planning on trying Dunkin's pumpkin coffee. UPDATE: Apparently it's a pumpkin latte. Hmmm, not sure if I can consume that much milk. We'll have to see.

- I am looking forward to this weekend's big game!! I absolutely loathe USC, so I really really really want to win. I got my wish to win against a team that beat USC! So hopefully we can pull out the W with this game too. I'll be honest though: I'm hopeful and doubtful at the same time. Make sense? Sidenote: I can't believe how much tickets are going for for this game. I never pay more than face value (and even that is rough), so it's a shock to look at prices people are charging and paying to attend (see previous link)!

- Lately, I'm just really unsure about what to write about here.

- I've been giving a great deal of thought to money lately. It pains me to spend money for anything beyond basic needs. Sometimes, though, I can't resist. Like this beautiful decorative mug/container that I found during First Fridays in downtown Goshen this month. It was a good price at a cute local shop, and it goes superbly in my bathroom, where I had been wanting more decorative pieces to match the new color scheme. I am, however, still waiting for the bathroom accessories to go on sale at Target! Seriously, what is the deal?!?

- Also on my mind lately: autumnal baking (for example, pumpkin cookies, pumpkin bread, apple crisp, etc.) and home decorating. These are areas I would love to actually step forward in action, but it seems so rare that I am actually a) at home or b) at home with energy.

- I feel like I've been searching for passion for years. Maybe that answers my question from yesterday. To summarize, I am searching for something, but I don't know what. Maybe I am searching for my life's passion. This topic is a bit of a touchy subject for me currently, so I think I'll just leave it at that. Anyways, my great friend and college roomie Becky frequently reviews books on her blog. She recently reviewed Find Your Strongest Life: What the happiest and most successful women do differently by Marcus Buckingham. And after doing so, she was kind enough so send the book to me! It couldn't have come at a better time. I have been warned to take it with a grain of salt, but I am eager to delve into it. Reading - again, something I wish I had more time for. Sounds like Donald Miller's book Searching for God Knows What may also be a good soul searcher for me right now.

Well, I am off to the concert! Leave some comment love if you feel so inclined!

A couple few months ago I found some Wilton silicone heart shaped muffin pans on clearance at Meijer. I snatched them up and then hid them in the amazing built-in storage I have in my office/guest bedroom.

The other day I had a day off - what a blessing! I saw a matinee showing of "Julie & Julia". I absolutely love matinees by myself! I did laundry and work around the home and made sure to have time to do some baking.

I made heart shaped blueberry muffins for my honey. Next time I would add a tablespoon of applesauce to the recipe, but nothing beats heart shaped muffins! Of course I saved some for myself too. They made a great grab and go breakfast!

• get oil changed on Lulu
• visit Super Target, get necessities, check on bathroom accessories
  
• respond to Renee
• call back Jac
• do laundry
• change sheets
• wash dishes
• eat up blueberry zucchini bread - before it goes bad
• figure out weekend plans
• figure out plans for oct. 10-11 weekend
• figure out plans for nov. 21-22 weekend in texas, find airplane tickets
• visit david's bridal, order dress (calm down, it's a bridesmaid dress i'm ordering)
• post pictures from the weekend in des moines
• blog about weekend in des moines
• blog with pictures about new coach purse
• mentally prepare for dave ramsey's FPU class
• plan birthday or graduation party for josh
• dinner with josh's uncle
• catch up on sleep
• watch "bride wars"
• clear off kitchen table
• answer endless questions at work about upcoming yard sale and house tours
• make more tour tickets
• return phone calls
• get prescription refills
• transition from falling asleep on the couch to falling asleep in my own bed
• apologize to todd & kelli for a blog they were not anticipating.

Sorry, T & K. I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed right now.