My Beautiful Days

Have you ever been in a position where something in your life is just 'off', or even wrong, and you want so desperately to fix it but yet you can't seem to move your foot to take that first step? Or is that just me?! I haven't updated my blog in ages.  Part of that is because I really have been busy, part is because I haven't had the motivation to do so, and part of it is because I've been afraid to be truly transparent with you.  You see, right now in my life I am struggling.  I am fighting an internal battle that I don't fully understand, which makes it difficult to express and explain to all of you. My heart and my soul are screaming, desiring, begging me to indulge in a deeper relationship with my Creator.  Longing to go back to the woman I once was.  The woman who first sought after God, and everything else fell into place surrounding that. The problem and the very thing stopping me from getting there is me.   Me and every factor living under t...

A few weeks ago I wrote this post  in which I shared that we had recently remodeled our kitchen.  I was feeling a bit hesitant in posting about it due to some negative feedback I had received from a random reader when posting about our home addition a couple of years ago.  After I had written the post a few weeks ago, however, I received so much wonderful feedback from you that I decided to go ahead and open the window of my blog up and share our renovation. In keeping up with something that I started WAY too long ago and haven't kept up with it at ALL, I am including this as part of my "A Peek Into My Home"series. I do have to give a few shout-outs to the people who helped Monte and me make this renovation a possibility!  A big thank-you to Stacy Klone from KitchenWerks  for helping us to look at our space and figure out what would be best for the functionality of our home and for introducing us to the people who helped make it all a reality!!  We are ...

Today, my daughter is interviewing me about Summer Beauty Tips! Enjoy! For more tips on staying beautiful all summer long, visit Getting Ready with Kendall and Kylie Jenner and the Venus page . For a chance to win a $50 Visa Gift Card, answer this question in comments: "What's the best beauty tip you have shared with your daughter to prepare her for the summer or share your funniest beauty mishap!” Rules: No duplicate comments. You may receive (2) total entries by selecting from the following entry methods: a) Leave a comment in response to the sweepstakes prompt on this post b) Tweet about this promotion and leave the URL to that tweet in a comment on this post c) Blog about this promotion and leave the URL to that post in a comment on this post d) For those with no Twitter or blog, read the official rules to learn about an alternate form of entry. This giveaway is open to US Residents age 18 or older. Winners will be selected via random draw, and will be ...

It has been SO long since I've participated in Five Question Friday, but since I'm hoping to be posting more regularly, I figured this is a good way to keep me going!  As you likely know, FQF is usually hosted by Mama M , but since she's enjoying some time away right now, you can hop over to Kate's blog and join the party there! 1. What do you call them- flip flops, sandals, thongs, or slippers? Flip Flops. Picture courtesy of Google Images. I love Flip Flops!  No question about it. In fact, it drives me crazy when people (especially my mom, bless her heart!) refers to them as thongs.  In my mind, thongs are underwear, not something you wear on your feet!  Sandals are usually bigger, often involving straps that go around your feet or ankles.  Slippers are soft and fuzzy and are worn around the house. 2. Are you a "my kids can do no wrong" kind of mom or a "Johnny punched you? Well what did you do to him first?!" kind of mom?  Definit...

There's this guy I know who I really want to introduce to you.  I've known him for probably five or six years now.  His name is Ryan and he's loads of fun! Ryan (on the left) with our friends Tony and Pete. I met him and his fantastic wife when I dated her brother (for the record, while I was dating him I used to always say that, if it didn't work out and I was dating him just to be introduced to his amazing family, then it was worth it.  That statement holds true to this day!). Katie and Ryan He works in Youth Ministry - I actually worked with him for just over a year and would have continued to do so, but then I fell in love, got married and moved too far away to continue to work with that specific group.   Our group of leaders at Castaway Club (a camp).  I am the blonde in the center - Ryan is directly above me. Ryan preaching at Bethel College. One of my favorite things about Ryan is the fact that he's pretty dedicated to healthy ...

Yesterday was an amazingly productive day.  Colin and I went to Costco and Toys 'R' Us (he earned a reward, and his choice was a little Star Wars Lego set).  Monte and our friend Chris tiled our backsplash in the kitchen.  I took all of the kids swimming at the park near our home.  We had a fun dinner on the patio and Monte and I spent the evening (after the little kids were in bed) playing Texas Hold 'em while sitting at our new kitchen table and admiring the new backsplash.  It was an awesome day. As Monte and I sat playing poker, he asked me if I would be blogging about the backsplash - putting up pictures of our kitchen remodel, now almost fully complete.  My answer: I really don't know.  You see, while I do fully understand that this is my  blog and that I am fully able to talk about whatever I so choose, I am still hesitant to mention it.  The reason?  Well, a couple of years ago when Monte and I decided to put an addition on our...

One of my favorite things about summer is the fact that we have so many birthdays to celebrate!  June is Ellis's, July is Monte's and August is Iain's (among other cousins, aunts, uncles and grandparents, too!).  When a birthday comes around, the birthday king/queen gets to decide what we have for dinner that night as well as what kind of cake they like. It never fails that Iain requests the same dinner each year, as it's one that has been a favorite of my kids' since the first time I made it.  We have made this dinner for friends, we make it when people have babies/surgeries or just need some help - it's delicious for parents and kids alike!  Since we love it so much, I decided it was time to share it with all of you. Recipe courtesy of the "Southern Living at Home" Magazine, January 2011 issue. Baked Smokin' Macaroni and Cheese Makes 8 total servings. Hands on time: 25 minutes - Total time: 1 hour 1 lb. uncooked cellentani (corkscr...

It's no secret that we've been gone from the blogging world for awhile now.  Life just gets to be too busy to keep up, especially during the summer!  So, instead of trying to catch you up on everything I've missed telling, I'm going to sum it all up in pictures and minimal words ... We cleaned out some of our cabinets to prepare for our kitchen upgrade ...  Ethan has had some fits ...  I planted our vegetable garden ... Ethan played with sidewalk chalk and got it all over his face ... We've taken baths ...  Ethan has run around the house in just his diaper (and LOVED it) ...  Ellis has played soccer (and has done amazingly great this season) ... Colin graduated from Kindergarten and refused to smile for the camera ... We took a family (minus Ethan) vacation ... We visited Wall Drug in South Dakota and posed for pictures with fake cowboys ... We hiked through the Black Hills ... We visited Mou...

Sometimes I find that the biggest joys come from the simple things, like when Ethan and I spent time being couch potatoes together (I've been having issues with the camera on my phone, which is what I took these with, so just make sure to check out the cuteness of my baby and not the poor quality of the photo!!) ... My little flirty boy ... Completely distracted ... I can't get enough of his gorgeous smile! Should I pose, mom? Just like this, mom?  Cute like this?  Cheese!! Distracted by the world outside our windows.  Searching for his "button"!  :) *SiGh!*  It's official - I'm in love!!!