Where did the month go?

December is tomorrow.

What?!!

Yeah, I know, right!? So where did the year go? Sometime I'll have to do a recap of each month but I've got limited time on the computer so it'll just be quick.

I've finished painting my living room, dining room, kitchen and breakfast nook. I knew I should have taken pictures when my house was the cleanest it has been in way too long, and now it's messy. I did manage a couple pics of the breakfast nook and the back of the bookcase. But I'd like to get a few more of the rest of the house. I'll do my darndest to get it photo worthy today.

We had Thanksgiving with Bryan's folks on the actual day. It was fun. Mom and I brought crafts to work on which meant lots of girl time with the only three girls in the fam that are over the age of 2. A just ran around with the uncles and took a nap while us girls decorated sugar cookies. And of course I didn't take a picture of the whole lot of finished ones. Brent created a loot load. He was going to town.

My very chocolatey Cookies. They were yummy.

The most creative. Take note of the dismembered Santa done by Bruce,

the naked Santa done by Alyssa, and the Tree at Night by yours truly.

I tried my hand at making purple icing but failed miserably. It turned out black.

So Brent went nuts making Death Creations.

However, the most really awesome Santa is mine. Can you see the skull?

My Snowman Family (awwwww)

Bruce's Blue Man Group

(and of course I didn't take any pictures of his "Art inspired" cookies.)

Then we moved on to the ribbon trees that I brought. I didn't get a chance to take pictures of those. 2/3 of the way through we get a call from our friend Keith saying Em is having abdominal pains and is going to the ER. He asked us to take J for a bit and we offered to keep him over night. So we had to leave. Priorities but I'll take a photo of my tree later on.

Then we went down to my grandparents for Thanksgiving weekend. It was crazy. We ended up playing a game that my sister and her hubby suggested. It was too much fun. It had 5 games in one. My team won- Go Team!!

Too much pie and loads of turkey later, we headed home on Sunday.

We'll head back down to the farm for New Years. Then we'll celebrate a b-day, Christmas, and New Year's all in one shot. I'm excited for it all!! Now, I need to finish Christmas shopping...

25 Things I'm Thankful For.

Thanksgiving sometimes seems to get overlooked being so close to Christmas. And with all the hubbub of finding the right gift, only-so-many-more-days-to-buy-buy-buy, and Black Friday being right after the day of Thanks, the Turkey day seems to get glossed over or becomes a second thought.

So, because of Thanksgiving Day, I thought I'd take a moment to count my blessings, if you will.

1. My husband. He is wonderful. He's human and knows he has faults, but he tries his darndest and works hard at trying to be like Christ each day. He is also good because he knows I have faults and loves me in spite of them.

2. My baby girl. Who's not so much a baby anymore seeing as how she is 2 and 2 months. She's so smart, and kind, loving, compassionate and polite. She's a wonderful kid and I am blessed as a mom to have her as mine.

3. My extended family. They are amazing and I'd have lost my way a long time ago if it wasn't for their love and direction.

4. My in-laws. They've taken me in as their own, love me, care for me, and I'm proud to have them as my second mom and my dad.

5. My dearest friends. They may as well be family.

6. My church family. They are loving, gracious, supportive, generous and encouraging. It's lovely to see a church body really strive to be like Christ. We fail continuously and everyday but it's wonderful to know that we are trying.

7. The roof over my head. It may not be much, but it's sweet, cozy and home.

8. The clothes on my back. I don't have many and lately, it's by choice. Freedom right there.

9. The food in my belly. We are never in want or in need. He blesses us each day with our daily bread.

10. The car we drive. We only have one and sometimes we could use another but we have what we need.

11. My hubby's job. We are blessed with a job he loves, people he really enjoys working with, and being able to work from home. Not to mention, I don't have to work because of it which brings me to...

12. Being able to stay at home with my girl. And not having to miss a single moment with her.

13. Our stinky dog and snooty cat. Hubby loves the dog, the cat loves me. We all win. I think.

14. A warm comfy bed to curl up in at night. It may not be as big as we'd like but it holds us both (and the cat) and all is well.

15. Art. I love it. It feeds my soul and makes me happy.

16. Snow. I know, I know. People will think I'm crazy for this one, but I love it and I can't help it.

17. Sleep. It renews me, energizes me, and there is nothing like waking up to the sound of rain, the sun shining on your face, or to a fresh blanket of snow.

18. Photography. Yes I know this is considered art, but there is something separately special about it. Snapping photos and never knowing if you really got a good one until you get the chance to look them over. Then you're surprised at how many good ones you really ended up with.

19. Age. With age, usually comes wisdom. That is if you're willing to learn.

20. Stories. Stories bring up memories and vice versa. There's nothing like talking about some old memories that capture you and drag you into the story.

21. My grandparents farm. Although I was heartbroken when they moved from their last house, I have grown to love the farm. It has acreage of grass that waves in the setting sun, wondrous smells, and some of my favorite people. It's a place that warms to heart and feels like I've come home.

22. Dancing. Such freedom in dancing.

23. Music. Sometimes you just don't know how to express yourself until you've heard just the right song. It can bring you to tears, make you laugh, bring you to your knees, and make you stop and think.

24. Laughter. There is just nothing like laughing until you cry. Or cackle.

25. Last, but certainly not least, my Jesus. I'm thankful that he loves me and I don't have any years without his love and support. I'm thankful he's always held me in his arms whether I wanted him to or not. I'm thankful for my faith and hope in Him.

Shoes!

I love shoes.

They rock my world.

No matter what size clothes I wear, how I'm feeling that day, whatever- Shoes always fit and they always make me feel good. And they make me happy.

On Saturday, we went shoe shopping for Bryan. We had done so a few days before but Bryan was undecided after a couple of stores (Kohl's and Famous Footwear) as well as we needed to return home to our kiddo before my sister had to leave for work. So, we went back out... with our kiddo. We hit almost every shoe store in the mall and ended up returning back to the sister store of Famous Footwear where we found him some shoes.

He ended up getting a pair of running shoes, pumas, look nothing like he would ever buy on his own. But, if you knew how he dressed himself before we started dating and now, well, let's just say I've had an influence on him. A good one, mind you, but one nonetheless.

I was also on the hunt for some new sneakers. Mine had given up. I think I've walked and exercised and loved them to death over the last three years. They've been good to me. But it was time for some new ones to love to death.

So, in every store that Bryan looked, I looked for myself after finding him every option to possibly try on that I thought he would like. I had no luck either. I had a couple considerations but then finally found some shoes that were the girl version of the pair he finally chosen. However, they had a purple stripe but were a shade of gray that Bryan thought looked dirty. So I didn't get them.

Hey, he asked for my opinion and took it, so I did the same.

I was bummed, but, whatevs. I'd find something. So after buying him some new shoes, we headed home so A could nap.

I headed back out on my own back to Kohl's where I found some shoes I thought I'd give another shot. They were "eh" and I wasn't in love, but I bought them and took them home. Turned out I really didn't like them. They were cute but they were tight and leather.

I didn't want to have to worry about breaking a pair of shoes in. Especially not after Bryan kept gushing about his new shoes that felt like slippers and were a perfect fit from the get go. Jealous!

I kept thinking how I liked the girly version of Bryan's shoes. Then I remembered that I did try on another pair at the first FFW that were white with pink. So today I returned my leathery, harder-than-crap, didn't-want-to-have-to-break-them-in shoes and went back to the first FFW. I found those white with pink pumas and I bought them. I think they're just great. However, they run a bit small, but that's all right. They had my "extra" size.

So, here, I thought I would share a few of my favorite shoes:

On the left are my new shoes!! On the right are not my "just loved to death" sneakers but these are my beloved Adidas that I've had since about 8th grade. That's right folks, 12 years. But they are still so comfy, don't smell, look a little warn, yes, but, they're my go-to shoes.

Thank you, my Adidas.

My favorite high heels. Fav Or Rite. Love. On the left are my sequined gold shoes. I debated a bit when I was trying them on because I didn't know if I'd have anything to go with them. Turns out they go with a lot. And I love them. I do have to take special care of them, though, so the sequins don't get ruined.

In the middle are my beloved black shoes. They are pinstripe, sophisticated, and gorgeous dahling.

And on the right are my brown pin-ups as I like to call them. Or my 1940's inspired, because of the way the fabric covers the entire shoe. I've had all three shoes for more than three years. Love, love, love my shoes.

And lastly, my biker boots. These make me feel tough, rough and like I could go jump out on my bike (as though I had one {someday!}) and go for a ride. These are my don't-mess-with-me boots. My sweetie got them for me last year for my birthday and I still think they're awesome.

So, to recap: I don't choose my shoes lightly, I love them til there is no more loving to give them without a hole through their sole, and I'll wear them forever.

Have I mentioned I love flip-flops too?

My exciting Saturday (of last week)

Last Saturday was excellent.

First, I got to go to Book Club for the first time ever. It was very cool. Not only did I get to sit around with a bunch of lovely, godly women, but I got to talk with them about a very cool book. We read (before hand) and discussed Friendship for Grownups by Lisa Welchel.

This book touched my heart and helped me to realize the areas I needed to grow in to develop loving friendships. She had wonderful first hand, personal experience that I was able to relate to. And those ladies know how to talk! In a good way too! They were wonderful to listen to, and stated 95% of my own thoughts. I loved being able to sit back and soak in such wonderfulness these ladies radiated.

Then we ate salad.

It was yummy. We had a salad bar which everyone brought a topping and a dressing then created their own from everything that was brought. It was so good. I'm going to try to recreate it a bit this week because it was just that good.

Then:

My aunt Kimmy, organizer and simplifier extraordinaire, had come up to visit us on Friday night, along with my grama and my sister Sarah. I had invited Kimmy to come and do a Simplicity Seminar for the ladies in my church. Unfortunately, if was a very busy Saturday so not a lot of people were able to show up.

However- It was still most excellent. Kimmy has thee most awesome ideas of simplifying your life. Not to mention organizing as well as saving money in the process.

She gave us many ideas for each room and things within that room. She also talked a lot about purging anything you don't love or need. Insert FlyLady into my life once again. Not that she ever left, I think we just needed a reintroduction.

The ladies that came seem to be so blessed from what Kimmy had to say. They asked questions, gave thoughts, and discussed things to help get themselves clutter free. It was awesome.

I seem to always take something away from her whenever she comes up or I get to see her on one of our family visits. I love her.

She is like my big sister. Yeah, we're 16 years apart but in my family, my aunt Kimmy and her hubby are my close family. People don't seem to understand just how close we are, and truthfully, I never really understood just how they couldn't understand. That is until I met Bryan and got close to his family.

In their family, it's Parents and Siblings. No aunts and uncles. Not really even grandparents. Makes me sad for them. It's like I have a really, really big family. And I love it. And so very grateful for it.

Tomorrow I'll post some pictures, but let me tell you, I've cleared out my closet, given away unloved things that I've been holding onto because they were given to us as wedding presents, and pitched and tossed like a pro.

I only buy exactly what I need knowing just right where I'm going to put it. I am getting clutter free. So this entire week I have done all my FlyLady each and every day. I even bought a mop to replace my swiffer mop and did a full blown job on the kitchen and the bathroom.

Now, if you know me, cleaning the bathroom gives me the heebie jeebies. Hair, bodily fluids, soap scum.. I shudder. But I did it. I, me, did it. And now they both look so very nice.

My kitchen still has a bit to go because of the repainting but it's almost there. I just need to take care of the breakfast nook, sand, paint, and clear off and clean, then I'm done. Huzzah.

The Start of a Catch-up

Being with an internet connection is beyond frustrating. Not only was the connection on our phone slow because we had to be on 3G but Bryan had to work out at the church.

So it was just me and the kiddo.

That's not easy when I'm used to occasional help from the works-from-home hubby. I really enjoy a "vacation" to the store for some alone time while A naps. Bryan can still work without the distraction of a 2 year old, thanks to the convenient baby confiner of a crib. And I can run errands without having to map out the quickest route before the inevitable meltdown.

I am very blessed. And very thankful.

I did feel bad for Bryan, though, he enjoys being at home and so it was frustrating for him. Finally, they were able to fix it by Wednesday. Something had chewed through the wires and water got in. Simple as that.

So, we're back up and running. And I can finally edit my photos. Hopefully by tomorrow.

Bryan will be leaving again on Sunday, again for NC, again for a week. We're not excited but you gotta do what your boss tells ya to do. And, so, it's a good experience, builds up his resume, blah blah blah ;)

So now I will leave you with my top 10 favorites:

1. My favorite book is This Present Darkness

2. My favorite dessert is hot oatmeal chocolate chip cookies with a scoop of vanilla

3. My favorite flower is peonies

4. My favorite season is late Autumn/early Winter

5. My favorite hobby is photography

6. My favorite colors are blue, green, blue green... and white.

7. My favorite number is 7

8. My favorite verse in the Bible is Hebrews 11:1

9. My favorite animal is the polar bear

10. My favorite place to be is at The Farm