the monday update

just a little note to say i won't be blogging this week.
as a lot of you know, we've had a tragic death in our family and i really just don't have the energy or desire to blog.
we will also be out of town most the week. mckinlee and i leave for the 5th grade camp on wednesday, come back on friday and leave again to go to waco for danielle's baby shower!
hopefully, next monday will be a plethora of pictures and good memories.
have a good week and give those you love an extra hug.

fabulous friday finds

it's friday! yippee! although every day this week has felt like a friday since we've been out of school all week--no complaints here.
today my finds are one of my favorite things--purses!
i'm still having trouble putting pictures on my blog--so these are what would load! (all photos came from their respective websites or from a search for that website.)



1. target
faux croc tote~these come in a variety of colors and i actually got the black one and have
been loving it. it holds a lot of stuff!
2. forever 21
this cute tote is apparently in a lot of controversy since it replicates too closely the dior one. but i'm pretty sure someone can tell the difference between $20 and $1900!

3. vera bradley-carnaby-pleated tote
i just loved this one! and i'm not really into some vera bradley, but i saw a lady at a coffee shop carrying this and irl it is very fallish and oh so cute! (i may be sporting this one soon!)

4. another cute vera bradley. i think the fabric is puccini. not quite as fallish, but still cute.
5. fossil
usually not into such graphic patterns, but really liking these colors together.
6. another fossil
i've seen this one irl and it's really cute. would be cute for fall or spring/summer.
7. kathy van zeeland
i like some of her things. this one has the style i like (i have a leopard one similar to this) and i'm really liking these gray/taupe colors.
8. another kathy
don't know that i really like the heart/crown thing going on, but cute nonetheless.
9. coach
this is probably my favorite out of the bunch. i'm really into gray this year and this style and that chain i just LOVE!
10. another cute coach. really loving the metallic trim and all those little tags!
11. a cute little thing from anthropologie. would never buy a purse this small, but i just love all the embroidery on it and the different fabrics.
well...that was fun. kind of like going shopping!
which is your favorite??

thankful thursday

"gratefulness is the key to a happy life that we hold in our hands, because if we are not grateful, then no matter how much we have we will not be happy--because we will always want to have something else or something more."
~david steindl-rast~

i found this quote on a blog about gratitude and thought it was so nice.
here are a few things i am grateful for on this beautiful thursday morning:

1. cozy socks for when my feet are cold

2. a sparkling clean sink that got that way because my wonderful husband did the dishes...again.


3. baskets of laundry to fold because it means we have enough clothes to wear.



4. a sweet girl who will make brownies for me anytime i ask her.
what are you thankful for?

wordless wednesday

thoughtful tuesday

my thoughts on this lovely tuesday morning are on organization and why it seems as if i haven't got any! well, that's not totally true because in some ways and in some parts of my house i am very organized, but in others...not so much.
it's funny because i love to watch organizational tv shows, read articles on organization and buy organization products, but i just never seem to pull it all together (that could be said about most areas of my life, but that's another thoughtful tuesday!)
i was reading an article the other day in a good housekeeping magazine called "i went on a clutter diet." (don't you just love that?) this lady agreed to go on this "diet" for several weeks to organize her life and get rid of clutter in her house. it was based on the book the clutter diet by lorie marrero. she said something that gave me a lightbulb moment. these are her words:

i think creative people often have a difficult time with making decisions because they can envision so many possibilities. it's hard to toss out an old sock when you look at it and see a dust mitt, a puppet or a dozen other things.

that is so me! not that i am uber-creative, but it is very hard for me to get rid of various items because i can think of so many things that i could do with it...later. later being the key word...procrastination is a huge problem for me. (case in point...the above picture. a basket in my scrapbook room filled with things i "am going to" alter, repaint, repurpose, save to use for a gift, use to hold scrapbook supplies, etc. i have had that basket of stuff for years.) i don't know if i'm afraid i won't do it just right or if i'm waiting for the "perfect" circumstances to finish something. i really don't know. but there was another interesting thought in this article that really brings my procrastination and disorganization all together.

if you ever hear yourself saying, "for now," you have just delayed a decision or action. that delay is the root of all disorganization.

wow--how many times do i say that a day? i don't know why i am this way (genetics, anyone?) but i need to seriously work on it.
i'll do that...
tomorrow :)

the monday update

good morning! it's monday and we don't have any school this week~~i'm so glad! i've got so much to do this week: we have our circuit overseer visit all week, i've got to finish up everything for danielle's baby shower and i've got to get everything ready for camp that mckinlee and i are going to next week. (me outdoors all day long.....just what i've always wanted!)

here's what our week has been like.
wednesday was our stamp club. we haven't made this cute little book yet--this was just an example. but i thought it would be cute on a shelf or with pictures on the back and sent as a card.

here is an example board with the new circle circus set. i have this set and just love it--so i needed some ideas of what to do with it.
we didn't make this either, but our stampin' up lady is going to have a class for it. this pin was so pretty and she just used fabric scraps and the die cut flower to make this. i just loved it!
we did these two little projects: a card with a glitter window and a cute little tag that you could put a candy cane or other sweet treat in.
thursday was "eat lunch with dad or someone you love day." since chris was in san antonio all week, i went to eat with mckinlee. these are two of her sweet little friends.
and here we are.
friday morning i had to go back up to school for good morning riddle. she had entered the reflections contest with photography entry and was being honored for that. here she is with two of her "pals". an older student sort of mentors younger ones (they all look the same age to me, but the other 2 are only in second grade, i think!)
i have been on such a yogurt-fruit-salad kick. a friend of mine got me hooked on greek yogurt and i love it! it's low in fat and has a ton of protein in it. i buy it plain and drizzle agave nectar all over it, top it with honey-almond granola and all different kinds of fruit. i just love black grapes--they're so big and juicy. i put those, blueberries, clementines and pomegranate over the yogurt and granola. yum!


chris got back home friday and since it was cold and drizzly, i decided to make soup. (it doesn't take a lot for me to decide to make soup--i could live on it!) i found a recipe online and kind of altered it to make creamy chicken tortilla soup. *recipe is at bottom of post*


it was SO good!

chris had stopped in waco to stay with his mom and dad and dee had sent mckinlee a new game. yatzee free for all. we decided to try it out last night and we had so much fun! mckinlee's smiling because she's winning!

chris gave the talk today as a fill-in and then we got taken to spaghetti warehouse for hospitality dinner. i didn't get any pictures, but it was delicious and now i'm so full i can hardly move!
hope you all had a good weekend and have a fun week ahead!
i've got to think of something "thoughtful" for tomorrow~~stay tuned!

*amazing chicken tortilla soup*
2 t. olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves
1 medium jalapeno
1/2 med. green pepper (i left this out)
4 chicken breasts or 8 tenders
2 c. frozen corn
1/2 c. dry white wine or water
2 t. cumin
1 t. chili powder
1/4 t. cayenne pepper
56 oz. chicken broth
28 oz. diced tomatoes
16 oz. tomato sauce (i left this out, because i wanted it creamy and not tomato-y)
i added:
1 can pureed cannolini beans
and at the very end: some half & half and mont. jack cheese

saute onion, garlic, jalapenos in olive oil until soft.
add everything else (raw chicken included) and boil.
after 15 minutes, remove chicken and shred using 2 forks.
return chicken and simmer 45 minutes or longer.

just a note: i used a whole jalapeno, the cayenne pepper and i used a whole can of rotel tomatoes. we like really spicy things, but this was so spicy i had to put a huge potato in to absorb all the spice! so maybe leave out the jalapeno and cayenne until the end. the pureed beans and the half & half really make it creamy, but if you don't want a creamy soup--leave those out.

fabulous friday finds

good friday morning to you!
this is my first installment of "fabulous friday finds." today's focus is on sweaters~~because i love them. and here are some of the prettiest ones: (well, that and the ones that would actually download. heehee.)

blue henley sweater from gap:
(doesn't that look cozy?)

beige cropped-sleeve cardigan also from gap:
(i love that style!)

bright coral ruffled cardigan from jcrew:
(scrumptious, i tell you!)
and finally...the plaza cardigan from anthropologie:
(be.still.my.heart.)
i had such a problem getting these pictures to post. that's why there's so few. i'll try to get the hang of it before next friday!
have a good weekend~~

thankful thursday

"everyone must take time to sit and watch the leaves turn." ~~elizabeth lawrence

so on thankful thursdays, i am going to list at least one reason that i am thankful for something. today it happens to be the beauty of the leaves changing colors and the gorgeous colors of fall.
what are you thankful for?

wordless wednesday

thoughtful tuesday

"the secret of happiness, you see, is not found in seeking more, but in developing the capacity to enjoy less."
~~socrates

i read this quote on one of my new favorite blogs: mnmlist.com. you can read the whole post here. (now i am by no means a minimalist, but i just love this whole thought. his blog is basically about stuff and how it has come to overwhelm us.)

lately, i have really been thinking about buying less and just using what i have or repurposing things around the house. (don't get me wrong. the thought of buying something still gives me a little thrill and i will still be posting my fabulous friday finds, but i am just trying to find joy and good feelings in other simpler ways.) and not just related to buying less things, but eating out less, watching less tv, wasting less time on the internet, eating less sweets, etc. basically doing less, but training myself to enjoy more.

i was thinking about when we were in mexico this summer and how they would serve our meals. they would bring out these "tiny", in texas terms, entrees and desserts. but do you know we would leave full and content because we really don't need or appreciate as much the "super-sized-portions" that we have come to expect. we would linger over our dinner, relishing and enjoying every bite instead of cramming it down our throats and running to do something else. eating less...but enjoying it more.

i love how the post i mentioned above ended. he said, "when you focus on enjoying less, you focus on full enjoyment. you learn to be content with little...the only limit to your happiness, then, is how much you can learn to enjoy less."

we could all stand to do that...enjoying more with less.

the monday update

it's a new week. hope your weekend was good.
i love having this blog. but sometimes i simply don't know what to post. i know it's really like an online diary (and obviously i live a rather boring life. heehee!) but i often go several days without posting anything and i just hate that. i also HATE coming up with a title for my post. isn't that so stupid? so...i have come up with a "blog schedule," if you will. it has taken care of my indecision about what to post and the title. it will be as follows:

monday--the monday update
tuesday--thoughtful tuesday
wednesday--wordless wednesday
thursday--thankful thursday
friday--fabulous friday finds

(i know these are miniscule problems in the grand scheme of things, but i'm trying to be as organized as i can lately. :)

so~on with the monday update (which, as the name implies, will update you on the exciting, or lack thereof, days that have passed since friday.)

friday started off with mckinlee walking to school for the first time by herself. she's decided she wants to do that on mornings that are not her safety patrol mornings and not raining. she was so excited and there are so many kids that walk to and from school that i felt ok letting her do that.

that afternoon, after school, i waited for her down the street. she was very upset. she wanted to walk home completely by herself, but i just had to get a picture of the first walk home. so this is my darling child as she stormed past me. heehee!

friday morning also included my first mri to check on my crazy neck. unfortunately, i didn't get a picture of me in the tube. i should have taken my camera in because the girl was so sweet. it wasn't near as bad as i had thought. the hardest part was not being able to clear my throat for so long! as it turned out, the mri ended up showing nothing! i am glad there's not something terribly wrong with my neck. but i sure wished it would have shown something definite that the chiropractor could correct.
friday night was michele's big winter jewelry show. and i must say, it was the prettiest one ever! so many beautiful vintage looking pieces. it looked like you stepped into anthropologie. there's a ton of pictures since mom and danielle didn't get to come. (i wanted to be sure you got to see everything!)
these are precious little gift bags.
she had also made gorgeous picture frames.




a close up of the amazing garlands that were strung everywhere.



these pins are all the rage right now. aren't they beautiful?
this necklace was one of my favorites.
look at these darling bottles.
there were also cards she had made displayed everywhere that you could buy.
isn't that the cutest way to dress up a pair of gloves?
i was very good and only bought an eternity scarf with a pin and a bracelet. and some earrings for mckinlee. i could have spent a month's budget there. everything i saw was beautiful!

saturday night we went to dinner at these guy's house. sammy, maria and bianca. they are so sweet and we had the best food and wine!
mckinlee and bianca. mck had such a fun time with this sweet girl!
chris and i.
this couple is from our congregation too. rachel and alton
we were watching sammy and maria's pictures from colorado. when bianca would hear the music from the slide show and see herself, she would get so excited and start dancing around. too cute!
look at these precious legs. i wanted to eat them with a spoon!
and finally, this is how i spent my day sunday. with my heating pad for cramps, ice pack for my head, heat pack for my face and mckinlee's snuggie to keep me warm. i felt horrible all. day.long. finally when it started storming, my head and face stopped hurting and now the cramps are better too. (sorry if that's more than you wanted to know about me this monday morning.)
have a good monday and come back tomorrow for my first installment of "thoughtful tuesdays." (guess i better start "thinking" of something!)