Our Job as Parents

Washi Cups

I love these washi tape decorated cups.

Fun way to personalize clear cups to match your party theme.

 

Chocolate Chip Pecan Pie Bars

 I'd add chocolate chips to almost any dessert.

Pecan pie and chocolate chips seem to make perfect sense to me.

So this recipe from Chocolate, Chocolate and More hit the spot.

It was really easy to make and I followed the recipe in the link above.

Enjoy!!

Favorite Baby Sunscreen??

Do you have a favorite baby sunscreen to recommend??

I was gifted some when Olive was tiny,

but I've never purchased any for her.

I found myself wandering through the sunscreen section 

and I felt clueless as to which one was THE BEST.  

I'd LOVE to hear your personal favorites.

Pretty Please.

Happy Friday!!

These past few weeks of summer have FLOWN by...

between the moving, unpacking and getting settled into our new home, it's hard to believe that we are wrapping up the month of July.  I wanted to slow down for a minute to document the best parts of my week.

1. The first room we unpacked and set up first was our

FAMILY ROOM

I LOVE how it's coming together and

It was so nice to have some liveable space to hang out in.

 

2. Our new neighbors have made us feel very welcome.

They've stopped by to introduce themselves, invite me to lunch, brought over treats and we found fresh flowers on our doorstep one morning.

Southern hospitality is alive and well in Mississippi!!

3. Our dining room is a work in progress but I'm head over heels for our new rug!!  I still need to style the bookshelves, put away boxes and find some curtains, but for now I'll focus on the great rug.

 

4. This picture makes me so happy.  After 6 days in our house, I'm beyond thrilled to report that the cats have come out of hiding and seem to be almost back to normal and Olive has figured out her routine.  Everyone seems happy and settled in our new home!!  Oh and the big windows with a view of our secret garden of a backyard don't hurt either.

 

5. We have been trying new, local restaurants in Jackson and we are really enjoying finding favorite spots.  This week's favorite was Two Sister's Kitchen.

I got to try friend okra, grits, collard greens, succotash and more!

Hope you have a wonderful weekend!!

Thanks for stopping by my blog.

Linking up with Oh Hey Friday!
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10 Years Later

10 years ago we were

going to the chapel to get married.

7.24.04

We've been on so many adventures together.

It seems like just yesterday we said I do,

but I guess time flies when you marry your best friend.

We've lived in 4 states: Indiana, Utah, Arkansas & Mississippi

We've owned 7 different cars.

We have road tripped all over the country.

We have been on 2 cruises.

We have gotten 2 masters and a PhD between us.

We supported each others dreams.

We have adopted 2 cats from Utah.
We had a baby.

We've made lots of friends.

We had our car stolen.

We both spent many days teaching -

elementary for me and college for him.

We've spent many hours watching football together.

He taught me the ins and outs of football.

She taught him to appreciate sweets.

We have visited National Parks.

We've played slots in Vegas.

We have read a lot of books.

We've become aunts and uncles several times over.

We've celebrated weddings, birthdays and anniversaries.

We've learned to compromise and communicate.

We still enjoy pillow talk.

We enjoy being together. 

We bought a house.

We are each others cheerleaders.

Can't wait to see what's in store for our next 10 years together!!

3 Questions that are GUARANTEED to Improve Your Marriage

3

little

questions

that

are GUARANTEED

to improve your marriage.

Who wouldn't want that??

I've been married for almost 10 years {how is that even possible?!?!} and I am proud to say that my husband and I work hard to have a good marriage.  We make time for each other, we talk to each other, we enjoy being together and we celebrate with each other.  It's tough to do those things now that we're parents, but I know it's worth it.

We've moved 5 times, lived in 4 different cities, had a variety of jobs, gone to grad school, adopted 2 cats and had a baby girl.  Lots of exciting things, lots of day to day life and a few tough times in between.  We are better off because of this adventure we call LIFE.

Without further adieu,

Here are the 3 little questions that will make a BIG difference in your marriage:

1. What can I do to help you?

 This always makes me feel loved and helps me to remember that we are a TEAM in life.  I'm not great at asking for help so I really appreciate this one.  It's guaranteed to put on a smile on my face and makes me feel like any task is doable.

2. How can I pray for / encourage you?

It's always nice to know that someone has your back and is praying for you.

3. What's your day like tomorrow?

We always end up talking about our work/home current events that we could use some encouragement to take on and work through important things.  It helps us to map out our time and gives us an idea of what is planned for the day.  Plus, we always feel like we know what is going on in each others lives because we communicate.

These questions will start great dialogue, encourage conversation and help you to feel close to your spouse.  I'm sure there are more questions that I could add, but these are the ones we use consistently.  Find the questions that work best for you or tailor these to meet your needs and your marriage will benefit!

Be Courageous

DIY Delicious Donuts

I have a mini donut pan and I'm always pinning donut recipes to try.  I've made pumpkin, chocolate and vanilla and this recipe is definitely my favorite.  Here's the recipe I used from

Sally's Baking Addiction

Here's my interpretation of her recipe in pictures :)

 Olive had never eaten a donut so I thought it would be fun to let her in on this yummy treat.  She kept wanting to poke it but seemed to enjoy it.

 Do you ever make homemade donuts??

I'd love to try your recipe.

Leave me your recipe or a link to your favorite recipe in the comments.