things i love thursday

I haven't done one of these in awhile, and it just seemed like it was time. I truly want to post more, but there isn't always a lot to say. There are always plenty of blessings to count though, and I need to do that more often than I do.

Evenings.

I've always liked the day's end - especially in the summer. It's still warm enough to meander outside barefoot, still light enough to sit on the porch and see who you're talking to, and with the dishes drying in the rack and the to-do list cleared, it's finally a time to truly relax. I appreciate the evenings even more since getting married, because with Brandon heading out at 5:30am our time together in the morning is very short and sleepy!

4th of July.

I don't know if I've ever mentioned it on here, but the 4th of July is right up there with my favorite holidays - Thanksgiving, Christmas, and July 4th. This year it fell on a Wednesday and our church had hotdogs and watermelon and a really nice fireworks show. We celebrated with my family the Saturday before and everyone was able to make in to my parents' house for a big cookout! It's just such a nice, pressure-free holiday and I love it!

You can tell Douglas wasn't the biggest fan of the fireworks ;)

Babysitting.

We got to keep Lena Rae and Dougy at our house for a few evenings in July and it was a lot of fun. They aren't a bit shy (they were for a little while right after the wedding) and we really enjoyed our time with them. Between the two of us we have 3 nieces and 4 nephews so we're getting lots of aunt and uncle practice! One of the evenings we had Lena Rae and Dougy my aunt brought her little girl Sophie to play and that was just extra fun - she and Lena Rae are the best of friends!

Uncle Brandon scoring all kinds of points reading books when he was already hoarse from working in the heat :)

We can walk to the river from our house so we took them for an after supper "adventure".

Dougy, Lena Rae, & Sophie

Heirlooms.

My grandma lets each of her granddaughters pick out one of her crystal bowls when they get married or to a certain age, and I finally picked mine out a few weeks ago! The first thing I put in it was a bright pretty salad.

I also have this pitcher that belonged to my great-grandmother who I'm named after. I absolutely LOVE this one!

Engagements.

My little sister, y'all. Amie's boyfriend (now fiance) Isaac proposed last Saturday night and it's still a little weird to me! I'm so excited for them, but now I kind of know how my big brothers felt when I got married. They don't have a wedding date yet, but already this year there are 5 weddings of people at Cornerstone, so if they decide on 2018 they'll make number 6!

He was texting me about rings Saturday morning - I had no idea it would all happen in one day!

I could go on and on about this summer because it's been a full one, but we've got fun plans this weekend so I'll just save all of that for another post next week. I hope you all have a lovely day - just one more work day to go then we've made it to the weekend!!

2. appreciative

Y'all. I love Fridays. Like, seriously love Fridays. I think one of the things I miss most about being a kid - or even a teenager - were those endless days in summer when I would wake up, and after falling back asleep and waking up again, get out of bed and think "Hm, wonder what I'll do today?" Now it's more like I roll out of bed at the first alarm because I can't trust myself to go back to sleep, and think, "Hm, wonder how I'm going to get all this done today?" And I know, I know - it'll only get worse the older I get.

But Fridays. Y'all, Fridays! I still have to get up early, but somehow it's easier on Fridays because the sooner I get to work, the sooner I can come home, and as soon as I do, it's "Weekend Chores in Fast Time." Which means: do my laundry, vacuum, dust, and mop my room, clean my bathroom and shower, wash my makeup brushes, tidy my bookshelves, take out my trash, tidy my drawers, and then during the in-between stage of clothes drying and clothes folding/ironing, I plan what I'll do next. (Yes, I do all this weekly because I'm just that way.)

Today, I think I'll bake cupcakes if we have the ingredients and do a small re-purging of my closet. I like to do this every few weeks after the "main purge" because I still keep a few things I'm just not sure about yet. Re-purging is done with a better idea of what I need or use, and keeps my life (and closet) in a more simplified state. I'd also like to wrap up a couple gifts I'm taking with me on a quick trip next week, and order something with my $20 ThredUp credit!

And all this means I have Saturday morning to sleep in, wake up, and think "Hm, wonder what I'll do today?" Because I did all the "need to"'s the day before! I just love Friday because when I'm done, I'm really done, and somehow the anticipation of Friday afternoon and Saturday is almost better than the actual day. I don't know. Wow, this introduction got rambly. Happy Friday!

This makes me so happy. I love pulling all this stuff out of my closet and then giving it away, donating it (the Yard Sale had already ended when I did this), or just plain trashing it. And now I can buy more stuff and do it and again in the spring! This is what I call the Main Purge. The purge I'll do today will have a small stack of things I don't wear anymore. This picture is all the junk that had gotten shoved to the back of my closet during the hectic weeks of summer.

These donuts are everything. As if Friday wasn't already good enough, we've got a whole bunch of these sitting around and they're dwindling quickly. They're dipped in butter and coated in cinnamon sugar. 'nuff said.

I love being an aunt so much. I tend to have more pictures of Lena Rae because she's a girl and she's always ready for the camera, but a sweet lady snapped this picture during our church picnic back in September and I love it. I love that Jace is in the background because he was willing to go down the slide slowly to help his little sister and stop halfway down when she wanted off. He's nearly seven and he'd prefer going down it 100 mph on his head, but for Lena Rae, he'll do pretty much whatever she wants.

Have a wonderful weekend and everyone stay warm! What are you appreciative for today?

seven | seventeen | two thousand fifteen

 Hello, Douglas Mac.

We've been waiting for you. Did you know you're five days late?

You weigh 10 pounds and 2 ounces. You're 22 inches long. 

I hope you don't mind all of the staring, you're just so sweet and cute. And big.

Your big sister thinks you belong to her. You kind of do, but we all feel that way so welcome to our family.

We will try to get you to call me Aunt Kelley, but Jackson told me it's really hard to remember the "aunt". That's ok.

We believe the more the merrier, so you have made us very happy.

Week's End Review

Wow, what a week! Jacob and Christine took a trip to Cancun, so we had all four kids for 5 days. We had a lot of fun - between morning time when Lena's super happy, to trips to the park and zoo, to Stephen and Tara's birthday celebration (which was at their now furnished house) to trips on Bro. Dale's motorcycle! :)

Tara's birthday was Sunday and Stephen's was Saturday, so we got together at their house on Tuesday. Jacob and Christine were flying out very early Wednesday morning, so we took the kids home with us and they stayed the night at Stephen and Tara's since they live much closer to the airport. All of the kids absolutely love their dog, Tucker!

Wednesday and Friday were park days, and on Thursday we loaded them all up and went to the Nashville zoo. It was a lot of fun for three boys, interesting for nosy little Lena, and tiring for all of us. We had a good day, though!

They were all so good, and it was fun having someone to take on bike rides at the park and share slushies with. :)

RENOVATION/ADDITION UPDATE:

There were three extra helpers on the job site this week!

tear out the back porch
dig footer

pour footer

lay block

build floor & walls

build roof & put shingles on

take out counters, island, & cabinets

take out wall separating the old from the new

build new pantry walls
electrical started
ceiling dry walled
walls insulated 
all of the drywall hung
outside concrete pad poured
walls painted
old flooring removed
new flooring purchased

Week's End Review

All I have to say is, better late than never, right?

1. On our way to a Missions Conference Monday night, we stopped and ate supper. I grabbed a cotton candy to go, and the first half was good. After awhile, it just feels like you're eating straight up sugar...which I guess you are!

2. It was prayer letter week, and since school's started back all of my normal helpers were busy. I felt a little buried in paper, labels, and envelopes!

3. August - March is what I call Birthday Season for our family. All 12 of our birthdays fall somewhere in these months, with the exception of none in November. I decided to go ahead and buy my gifts for the remaining 5 people who have birthdays before Christmas! I also bought myself a few things for my bathroom. Who doesn't love new towels?

4. Amie sent me this picture of a her and a group up there at Verity in the coffee shop.

RENOVATION/ADDITION UPDATE:

tear out the back porch
dig footer

pour footer

lay block

build floor & walls

build roof & put shingles on

take out counters, island, & cabinets

take out wall separating the old from the new

build new pantry walls
electrical started
ceiling dry walled
walls insulated 
all of the drywall hung
outside concrete pad poured

Week's End Review

Let's just take a minute and look at this beautiful little squishy face, shall we? Yes, I do believe it was a good week.

This was one of those weeks where I felt like I saw my family all the time, and yet not at all, you know what I'm saying? Sunday - Wednesday was our Labor Day Meeting at church. It was so good, but I sadly don't have any pictures. I needed to make room in my purse for my Bible, and guess what I took out? My camera. Oh, well. Some memories are better when they've been "snapped" in your mind, anyway!

Although the meeting ended only a half a week ago, it feels like much longer. It's been very busy around here - living in a house under construction and trying to keep it clean plus helping Amie get ready for her two week trip to Indiana had us all running everywhere all the time. One night this week Jacob came over to tear out a coat closet and brought the family. We got to spend some time with them, and that's always nice. :)

I'm on a pumpkin craze right now! I made these pumpkin cinnamon rolls with cream cheese frosting Friday morning and they. were. so. good. If you're interested in the recipe, let me know! I'll be making them again, especially as we get close to the holidays.

This morning for breakfast I had a cream cheese filled pumpkin muffin with my English Breakfast Tea. Another wonderful recipe that's a keeper! This recipe made 24 muffins, and with all the construction going on, we've been cooking in a small convection oven that will only bake 6 muffins at a time, so I will not be making these again until after our new kitchen is complete!

Fun Fact: I stayed up until after 11:00pm on a Saturday night making these. Is that an old maid qualification or something? I feel like it is. ;)

RENOVATION/ADDITION UPDATE:

We have light!

tear out the back porch
dig footer

pour footer

lay block

build floor & walls

build roof & put shingles on

take out counters, island, & cabinets

take out wall separating the old from the new

build new pantry walls
electrical started
ceiling dry walled
walls insulated

Week's End Review

Saturday, Faith and  I drove 3 hours to visit Hannah and her beautiful baby Amelia. Another of our friends, Kaitlyn, was already up there, and we went and got pedicures. We also went to a coffee shop and just hung out and visited. It was a really fun day!

Earlier this week I got our church's monthly newsletter ready to be mailed. It's not a fun event or anything, but it was part of my week! And now you can see what the cover of our September newsletter looks like, and how many of them I fold manually. ;)

Other things the week included are...

• Jace, Jackson, and Tanner came over and we swam twice. I got soggy water-logged brain.

• Lena loves to do pat-a-cake, and she's good at it, too!

• I finished "For Such a Time" by Kate Breslin. You know those books that, even thought they're fiction, kind of change your mindset about certain things? Yeah, this was one of those books. It made me go "hmmm".

• I went to a going-away party for one of my friends who is moving to Washington D.C. for an internship this semester. Pretty cool, huh?

RENOVATION/ADDITION UPDATE:

tear out the back porch
dig footer

pour footer

lay block

build floor & walls

build roof & put shingles on

take out counters, island, & cabinets

take out wall separating the old from the new

build new pantry wall (not pictured)

Week End Review | #3

As you know, we dealt with a great loss this past week. Yesterday was the funeral, and it was one of the best that I've ever been to. It was a scorcher all afternoon, so by the time we got home from the cemetery, we were hot, tired, and emotionally spent. Since it's been such a solemn, yet very busy week, I don't have very many pictures to share with you. I didn't take any at the memorial service yesterday, although I would have loved to because of how classy and patriotic it was. A beautiful way to say goodbye to a man who gave so much to his country, family, church, and missionaries. Please pray for the family and church family as we learn that life does go on, but there is a legacy to uphold.

Some of these pictures are simply snapchats I saved at the last minute, and pretty much all of them were taken on my iPad. I hope you enjoy them anyway! :)

When you're little, shouldn't you end at least a few summer days sun drenched and water logged?

 

Am I the only one that thinks breakfast food is pretty? Regardless, I think it is, and I take pictures of mine. ;)

We are officially moved into our new kitchen, aka the laundry/sewing room, for the next few weeks!

RENOVATION/ADDITION UPDATE:

tear out the back porch
dig footer

pour footer

lay block

build floor & walls

build roof & put shingles on

take out counters, island, & cabinets

Week End Review

I thought I would try out a new series on here and see how it goes! Every weekend (either Friday, Saturday, or Sunday) I'll post pictures I've taken during the week. It seemed like good timing since all of our summer activities are over and we've started renovating our kitchen. It will help me keep track of the progress and keep everyone else updated! We'll see how it goes! :)

Sunday, August 3, one of my best friends had her first baby - little Amelia Kate! Because of the whole living in different states thing I haven't been able to meet her yet, but I can't wait to!! Just look at that adorable little girl!

As for the rest of the week...

laundry and breaking beans on a quiet afternoon

My mom did all the canning, not me!

Gnawing on an apple core feels good on teething gums!

I did, did you? :)

RENOVATION/ADDITION BEGINS:

tear out the back porch
dig footer 
(I don't even know what's next!)

See you next week, dear readers! Happy August!