Our 2011

In January our beautiful new kitchen started to go in.

There are still more projects to do in this space, but it is already so nice to have and enjoy!

Most of the first 6 months of the year we were in kitchen and house mode in high gear. In August we got to go on our yearly camping trip to the Adirondacks together. We so look forward to this trip, the only problem is that we turn into these crazy outdoorsy people and do ridiculous things that we probably shouldn't be doing. ;)

 

 I can't wait to go next summer, we already have reservations for a fun new spot to try! :)

In October we celebrated our 6th anniversary in Arlington VT. It was so nice to get away together, especially since my hubby had been working so much overtime. He was all mine!! :)

In November we had some nice photos taken of us. We went with my brother and sister in law to  have photos taken for our grandparents. Lindsay at http://www.snapshotsofhappiness.blogspot.com.took the photos for us, Thank You Lindsay! :)

The Holidays for us this year were a little more low key.  Everyone in my family seemed to be sick at one point and my parents were in the midst of a large move. They have an antique and next to new shop and they had to move their store after 26 years in business, to say it was a big job is an understatement!! So we didn't buy big gifts for each other and run around the mall like crazy people, but you know what? It was better that way! Jesus is the reason for the season and for all that matters in life. More and more of my family are becoming saved and that is the greatest gift!

Happy New Year!! I hope that this is a blessed year for each and every one of you!!

Christmas At Our House

Maybe its a little strange, but I don't like to decorate for Christmas until it is actually December. I really love Thanksgiving and I just like to have my harvest decorations out for as long as possible. I am also very OCD about cleaning and my house has to be spotless before any Christmas items are to be put out. I told you I was strange! :) Anyway, Christmas is now in full swing here at our little farmhouse.

Our Tree

This year for our tree I used apples, snowflakes, angels, and gold&cream berry garland for my decorating scheme. I like to change things a little every year. Next year I really want to have a large bow on top of the tree with the ribbon coming down throughout the tree. I would also like to make some red ticking stripe bulbs to go on the tree with ropes to hang them from. Of course another pinterest idea! :) I really like the tree this year, I think it is my favorite so far!!
 
Kitchen and Dining Room

I am obsessed with lighting candles right now and pretty much having that be all the light there is. My hubby says he can't see anything! :) A funny story about this candle, I actually won it the other night at a white elephant gift exchange. I stole it away from my pastor and he has already teased me about it several times by telling me he needs it because his house smells like onions. Something tells me he's not done yet either!! :)

This was an idea that I found on pinterest. They are mason jars filled with water and cranberries floating on top. I used tea light candles instead of floating candles and they work just fine, but I imagine the floating candles would last quite a bit longer. On pinterest they also had some boxwood floating in the water, which would be nice to add as well. I know this picture isn't the best, but they really do look so beautiful when they are lit!

 This is our chandelier with just some apples and garland strung throughout.

This is the centerpiece for our table. That is actually a wreath that I normally hang on our front porch, and I thought it would look nice wrapped around a hurricane and candle. The other candle holders actually have berries and real pine branches from a tree in our yard. They are floating in water and then the tea lights are in a separate part above them. Again this looks so beautiful in real life, but was so hard for me to capture in pictures.

Hope everyone is having a blessed holiday season!

What I Wore Wednesday

My hubby and I had a photo shoot this week with my brother in law and sister in law. The pictures are for a Christmas present for our grandparents. I tried on a lot of outfits beforehand, actually not choosing any of the exact outfits I tried on, but at least I have church outfits picked out for quite a while. :) Here's a sample of the looks I put together.

This one was actually my favorite, but I didn't end up wearing it. It's actually my Easter dress, so I thought it was strange to wear in November, but know I kinda wish I had worn it, oh well! :)

Dress (JC Penney) Sweater (NY & Company) Necklace (American Eagle) Earrings (BR outlet) Boots (Bakers)

Top (J. Crew outlet) Skirt (BR outlet) Belt (Forever 21) Jewelery (same as above)

Sweater (BR outlet) skirt (BR outlet) Belt, Boots, Earrings (same)

 Sweater (Macys?) Skirt (Forever 21)

In the end I wore this off white sweater with the denim skirt, brown boots and belt. As you can see the boots were definitely being worn. :)

Anniversary Weekend

Last weekend my hubby and I went for a weekend away in Vermont to celebrate our anniversary. It was so good to get away, we really needed it. Dan had been extremely busy with work, helping flood victims in our area, fixing things at church, and helping others with projects at their houses. During that time I had been sick a lot and spent a lot of time home by myself. So I know it's a little selfish, but I just wanted to get away with my hubby for a few days, to a place where no one else could steal him. :)

This was a covered bridge outside of Manchester VT

 

 

The Whitney House Inn Arlington, Vermont. The amazing B&B where we stayed. 

This was our room. It was so cozy and extremely clean. Hubby wasn't too sure about the Raggedy Ann doll on the bed though. :)

Our innkeepers we the sweetest retired couple. They made fires for us in the living room each night, made us snacks, and had sparkling cider waiting for us when we returned from our anniversary dinner. They also bring you up a welcome tray at 7 each morning with juice, coffee or tea, and either muffins or bread just out of the oven. Then between 8 and 9 you head down to a gourmet breakfast cooked by the husband Kerry. We really got along with them so well, and we were sad to leave them. I should also mention that they were absolutely hilarious with their Long Island accents. :)

So yes we had a VERY good time! Just the hubs and me! :)

Feelin Cozy

We finally put up our chandelier in the dining room this weekend. It makes such a difference and really makes the room feel like a room. My husband said the house feels so cozy now, hence the title of this post! :) Having all sorts of fall candles burning throughout the house also added to the cozy factor, as well as when he came in from working and said that the house smells like fall. What woman doesn't want to hear that? :)

I wanted to take some pics with it lit up at nighttime, but they seem a little harsh, especially with no curtains yet.

I picked out a very simple traditional style, because I want to be able to add shades or wrap garland through it for different seasons. I had added some teardrop crystals to my old chandelier, that I kinda wish I had kept now, but hopefully I can find some more.

He are some decorating pieces that i have been playing around with. I picked up the red gerber daisies at the grocery store last week. I had the same ones in my girl's bouquets when we got married, and since our anniversary is coming up, it felt fun to have them. :) Also I have been having a little too much fun putting flowers in my milk bottles inside my old vintage tool box. I promise I will move on to other things! I also just bought these candle holders at Michael's and now I need to find someone with an old oak tree, so that I can fill them with acorns. The K is actually to add to our fall wreath, I have been seeing wreaths with letters on them all over pinterest. I'm just waiting for hubby to paint it a nice oil rubbed bronze for me.

Another fun thing is that we finally have our light for over our sink! Which is so nice to have any also adds to the cozy factor. :) I just put some Indian corn and gourds together on the window sill, and added some cute pumpkins with bible verses on them, that a prayer partner had given me several years ago.

Hope you are all having a lovely day!!

What I Wore Wednesday

Top (Banana Republic) Cami (Forever 21) Trouser Jeans (BR outlet) Jewelery (American Eagle)

I love this necklace and I can't believe I found it at American Eagle. I bought this last winter with another  beaded necklace, they were buy get one half off. They were a lot more reasonable than the ones in J.Crew that I kept drooling over. :)

lol..........here's a close up of my shoes. They are zebra print flats from the Gap. I am obsessed with Gap flats right now. They are cute, comfy, and pretty affordable if you get them on a good sale. I was having trouble getting my shoes into the shot, it would help if I could find my tripod. Oh well, I'm getting a little better, right? :)

Well it's a beautiful sunny day here, after many days of rain, so I better head out there! I hope you are having a beautiful day wherever you are today!! :)

Linking up with:


http://thepleatedpoppy.com/blog/

What I Wore Wednesday

I have wanted to do one of these post for a few weeks now, but I was nervous to. I wore a cute outfit to church last Sunday and I had my husband take a picture of me just in case I wanted to do a post about it. The problem is that most of the what I wore posts that I see, the girls look like models with a professional photographer who took their photo. So you can see how it would be intimidating. So I am going to overcome my fear and post my one photo I have from my point and shoot camera, with red eyes and all. :) Also please excuse the painting supplies you see in the bottom left corner, that is just how it is when you are trying to redo your 200 year old house and live in it at the same time!

Shirt (Inc Macy's-I have to confess that it must be 7 years old, but I still love it and feel good in it)

Skirt (Gap) Tights (Gap) 

Shoes (Steve Madden)

Earrings (NY & Company)

God I am Thankful for...............

This weekend I was at a women's conference at a local church led by Kathy Troccoli. She had  2 other guest speakers come and speak and something one of them said really resonated with me. She talked about a young woman named Kara, only 32, who had cancer and only had a short time to live. She had gone through the chemo, radiation and all forms of treatment, but the cancer had spread throughout her whole body and she wasn't going to make it. She was married, had 2 young boys and had a beautiful heart for Jesus even in the midst of her suffering.  Kara said she was THANKFUL FOR THE CANCER! She was thankful because of how close it had brought her to God. She was thankful because her family members were becoming saved by watching her joy and love for God in such a difficult time. Even her funeral was a witness and brought family members to God.

This really resonated with my because I often say that I am THANKFUL FOR THE LYME DISEASE! Now my suffering is nothing compared to Kara and her suffering, but I do believe it is a part of God's plan to mold me into who he needs me to be. I don't think that the life I had planned out for myself years ago was really meant for me. God's plan is better, but its not always easier. It is hard to be chronically sick and for people not to understand, to not work like everyone else and to kinda feel like you are on the sidelines in life watching everyone else run about. I have struggled with this lately because I was expecting God to have a big revelation for me after going through this. A special job for me or a special assignment in life, but so far I am still waiting. It is so hard to wait and to be content with the right now. But in all reality I do have a great life, with a great man who loves me very much. He is never disappointed in me for not working, and his only real requirement for me is to be happy and have a smile on my face when he comes in the door. :) I think God is trying to teach me to be still and find contentment in Him and not compare myself to what the world's standards for contentment are. So even though it is hard to be sick, it has brought me closer to God, closer to my family and a simpler life where I am spared a lot of stress from the world.

So what are you THANKFUL for? Do you have a hardship in life that you are blessed to have gone through?

Date Night (Postponed)

Last night my hubby and I were supposed to have a date night, but he had to work late. I was so looking forward to it, but he is so incredibly busy at work right now. He actually came home from work last Thursday and asked if I would like to go out to dinner with him that night. Well I had just gone to a late lunch with my Dad and was absolutely stuffed. Now I am a real good little eater, so if I had to say no to my hubby asking me out on a date,  then I was indeed completely stuffed. I haven't been feeling super great overall, and it was just the pick me up I needed, so I made him promise that we would go this week. Well he has been traveling 1.5 hours to work and then back again all week and he is going to be working late again tonight. So this week is not gonna work. I just have to laugh, because I read several blog this morning about other ladies who had date nights with their hubbies this week!

I am so thankful for my hard working hubby! It was sweet of him to offer to take me out when he has been working so much and has been so tired! However, I am still gonna hold him to that date!! :)

Love you Honey!!

Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Bars

I made this awesome dessert the other day for a wedding reception. The women's ministry of our church always offers a cookies and punch reception for the bride and groom immediately following the ceremony. I remember the ladies of the church putting this nice reception on for us, and now I get to be one of those ladies. :) I thought about taking pictures as I went, but I was making it for a wedding and I felt a little more stressed than normal to make sure everything was just right.

I originally found this recipe on Pinterest:

It was originally featured on:









These bars are so good! There were a lot of cookies left over from the wedding and people enjoyed them after the church service today. I had several people asking for the recipe. If you go to the blog above, the recipe is listed under desserts. It is from a while back so you just have to scroll back a page or two. She has so many wonderful recipes on her blog to look through. I love the chicken pot pie recipe she posted today!

Ok so I have never linked to someone's page before, so I am completely sure I made some mistakes. Just figuring out how to put these 2 buttons on my post has most definitely given me a headache.  If you have any advice to share with the newbie, please do! :)

Spiced Oatmeal Cookies

Tonight I made some cookies for my brother who lives in Arizona. They live about 5-6,000 feet above sea level, so things don't bake the same as here, and he asked if I would send him some. I make these cookies for church a lot and people really seem to like them. They are thin, crispy on the outside, and chewy in the middle. That's the perfect cookie in my book! :) I got the recipe from a book called "Old-Fashioned Cookies:Favorite Cookie recipes that Bring Back Warm Memories of Childhood." A woman from church bought this for me when I got married and it really has some great recipes. I also should add that I LOVE cookies they are my biggest weakness and a whole book devoted to them is awesome!

Here is a photo of the book (Sorry that there is some glare!)

Here is a sample of the ingredients needed.

                                                   Spiced Oatmeal Cookies

1 cup sugar
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 cup shortening
2 eggs (not sure why I put one egg in the photo, you definitely need 2)
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 3/4 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1 1/2 cups oats
1 cup chopped pecans (I use raisins instead)

1.) Preheat oven to 350 degrees

2.) In mixing bowl, cream both sugars sugars, shortening and eggs and beat well. Add remaining ingredients and mix. 

3.) Roll dough in 1 inch balls and place on ungreased baking sheet. Bake 10-12 minutes.

This time I used parchment paper and rotated the pans halfway through cooking, which seemed to work well. I just did a thin chocolate chip recipe last week that required you to cook them this way and so I tried it with this recipe.

I usually let them cool on cooling racks for quite a while. I should also add that I tend to under cook them slighty, so that they stay chewy.

Waiting to be sent off to AZ! (Don't worry that's not all of them) It makes 3 dozen.

Well this isn't a blog about working on our house, but I actually have a kitchen and I am enjoying it! :)










 

Our Kitchen (Still in Progress)

This is a view of our kitchen looking in from the dining room.

View from our future mud room looking into the dining room.

This is the beautiful place where I get to cook now. Goodbye coleman stove!!

My gorgeous farmhouse sink that I have always wanted! I mean you must have a farmhouse sink in a farmhouse! :)

This is our dining room. Eventually there will be roman shades on all of the windows and a chandelier over the table.

Here are some decorative accents that I have added, but that I am still tweaking! :)

 
This is an old tool box with milk bottles in it, that I found at my parents store. They just happen to own an antique/next to new shop. :)

Shelves over top our breakfast bar, again decorated with many items from a certain store.

I love using clear canisters, but they are always running low with all the baking I am doing now. I think I may look for some larger ones.

Well that's how far we have come so far. We still have some finish work, more lighting and a pantry to complete. I'll keep you posted!