Fun Filled Evenings

This year I'm making a concerted effort to do something fun and full of holiday cheer until Christmas. I've been using this pinterest idea as my inspiration.



Last night we had a great dinner, baked spaghetti with spaghetti squash, peas and garlic bread. After we cleaned up I made hot chocolate (some prefer whipped cream, others marshmallows), then we pulled out some games. First up was a pretty hilarious game of Guess Who. Not kidding, Tyson guessed his "person" or "animal" everytime and he did so without getting any clues. He doesn't really understand the game, so he'd just look at the sheet of options and throw out a guess, DING DING DING, big winner. Here's my spaghetti faced baby boy:)

We moved on to a pretty competitive game of Hungry, Hungry Hippos, then watched a little bit of "National Lampoons Christmas Vacation" before we realized it's not really an appropriate movie to be on ABC Family (that channel drives me crazy, change your name, you're not family friendly). 

Here's another sneak peak at the projects my mom and I have been working on for the craft fair. These are made with real pine and cedar branches so they smell great! I'm hoping for at least one left-over for my dining room table.

Happy Monday

A little something to make you smile.

We finished decorating yesterday and went on a pretty big cleaning binge. Then spent some time grocery shopping and made a quick trip to the dollar store, which is always interesting. I get great stocking stuffers there. I went because I needed more cinnamon for those darn ornaments and they're two for $1 there, can't beat that!

Eventually this lil' peak a boo is going to be annoying, but right now she's so adorable in there:) I don't get it though. What's the fascination? The warmth??

The Season is Upon Us

Knowing that's it's now December, I woke up with the looming feeling of responsibility to my kids to begin the holiday season in our home. To my glee, Trevor asked to put up the decorations. He's my little elf. Having two Christmas crazed grandmas contributes to Trevor's love of the holidays. I was the same way though. Not sure when it became a chore instead of a joy...

So today Christmas prep is in full force, except, as we speak Trevor is eating cookies because he doesn't want to "foof" the tree.

My other image is of the cinnamon applesauce ornaments that I'm making for the kids to decorate at the jubilee next weekend. They're fun to make and decorate, they also fill the entire home with a wonderful scent!

Our weekend is been pretty quiet. Dad is out of town, which means one thing, "Magic Mike" was rented last night:) I didn't intend to watch it instead of the husker game, but...I made a choice and I think it was the right one based on the score. I do think the sporadic stripping clips of Channing Tatum made up for the pretty "meh" acting and even worse plot line.

I also got to watch "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo" again last night. If you haven't read the book or seen the movie, do both. But, it's just my opinion to stop there and don't bother with book 2 or 3.

Have a wonderful Sunday!!

A little glimpse

Here's a snapshot of what my mom and I have been up to for a few weeks. We're going to have a table at a craft fair next weekend and these little gems will be for sale. We have some other great stuff. I'll post more pics later. Comment or message if you're interested!

November Favs!

Here's a quick list of things I've been loving in the month of November!


My favorite flavor, Dark Chocolate Cherry Cashew. It has 180 calories and if I'm in a rush I'll eat one for breakfast or a mid-morning snack. It tastes like the ultimate indulgence!


I use this mask in the shower. I hadn't been using it that often, but lately I've felt the need about once a week. It drenches my hair in moisture and is so soft after I use it. Here's a quick review:


The friend that helped to create me addiction to coffee and coconut creamer, has passed on another addiction. This creamer is rich and creamy. Heath or Skor is one of my favorite candy bars and the toffee flavor in this creamer tastes like Christmas to me:) Some days it's the other thing that gets me out of bed. 


The picture does not do it justice, but this is the blush (pin up) I've been reaching for most. In reality, it's a dark brown with plums running through it. I apply to the upper part of my cheek bone, then add a bright pink to my apples. 


This has been my go-to foundation for November. I have it in two shades, buff beige and natural beige. It gives the perfect glow. It doesn't have sparkles or anything, just adds the perfect amount of illuminating light. I think it's great for those not so sunny days in November. 


Ah, my favorite guilty pleasure for the month of November. I usually don't get into these until December when I make them myself as gifts, but Menards had them pretty cheap on Black Friday. Even better, they are mini pretzels! The boys and I have been munching on them after dinner. Perfect combo of sweet and salty. 

And the one thing I've been missing most this November:

I love my Bethenny yoga dvd and my body really misses it. It will be my goal in December to pull Bethenny out at least once a week, if not more. The routine just keeps my body from aching, especially when I'm not sleeping well because of my GOUT! 

Ask and You Shall Receive

Someone in our lives is getting this little gem for Christmas. I think they asked as a joke, but I think it'll be great!


Other fun flavors:)

Gout. Ew.

I had a hard time just writing the title of this blog post. "Ew" is exactly what comes to mind when I hear the word "gout". Now that I know a little more about gout because of my own unfortunate flare-up, gout itself isn't really "ew", but the word still is. Kind of like "panty" and "moist" to my friend who cringes when those words are spoken.

So, 1 a.m. I'm awoken by a horrible pain in my big toe. This happened a few months ago also. The last time it happened I got up, clipped my toenail because I was convinced it was growing into my skin and that was causing the pain, took some advil and went to bed. Problem solved. This time there was no toe nail to clip and after actually accessing the pain, I realized it wasn't coming from the toenail area at all. The pain radiates from the base of my toe, between my toes and from the pads of my feet. This time the advil wasn't cutting it, elevation was doing nothing, so I decided to google this "pain from my toe that only happens at night" and my result...gout. My initial reaction, "nope, don't have gout, that's gross."

After two sleepless nights and a doctor's visit, I do have gout. Gout is a little mysterious and if you are dying to know more, google it, but mine is probably caused by a medication I was taking which was blocking the release of my uric acid. Fascinating, huh?!?!

Other than that amazing discovery, the boys also caught a large, wild cat in a trap last night. They had put out some traps, because that's just what they do, and caught a cat. Fun! So, the cat is in a larger cage, in our garage and we're feeding it in hopes that it'll decide to stay around our house and eat our mice. It's big, has creepy eyes and has the loudest "meow" I've ever heard, but I find myself really wanting it to like us:) On another cat note, we made an executive family decision to forego the name we had originally given our kitten "Honey Boo Boo" and officially name it "Kitty" since that's what we call it. Kitty is still attacking our faces and her teeth are very sharp. We'll be removing her claws very soon:) Merry Christmas Kitty!!

Our Thanksgiving was wonderful and the entire week was a great mix of relaxation and productivity!