Some beauty - Some crazy.

It's the weekend! And if you live in Iowa it's 55 degrees, sunny, and pure beauty. I read online somewhere that the state of Iowa leaves will peak within the next week - and the sights to behold are stunning! Our big back yard tree is starting to turn yellow and I love how it slowly sheds them. We could probably have leaves for the next month still. Beautiful!

Currently, my favorite thing is to wake up in the morning, grab my hot coffee and walk onto the deck and breathe. The sun is up later, the air is reeeeeally crisp and everything is just giving that last beautiful sigh before winter. Try it!

Today on the blog I'm happy to share some other things in my life that are beautiful, my kids. We had an opportunity a few weeks back to try a new photographer and her location was just perfect for my girls. It was a field of yellow flowers in the middle of nowhere!  They loved it, we loved it, and it went so smoothly. So I'll share them first!

My super sweet 4 year old.

15 months, 6 and 4. :)

This one here is special to my heart and I'm very glad I was "talked" into it. You see, I wasn't planning on being photographed this year. Thus the mom bun, flip flops and baggedy clothes choice. We had planned on just getting pics of the girls. But our photographer wanted to capture the moment and she was right, of course. This is who we are :) Mom bun and all.

15 month old whippersnapper :)

and my biggest girl -

My precious 6 year old

Aren't they incredible? :)
I can't wait to get some printed and on the walls.

Speaking of walls.

Next up in the beauty department is a little diy/crafty type project I'm working on. I'm going to do an entire post about it once I finish - but here's a sneak peek.

I found my idea on Pinterest and after pricing some of what I loved on Etsy, decided to just make my own. I'm all about paying those workers their due for what they create, but if you can make it yourself... I say go for it! We'll see if mine turns out how I see it in my head. :) Stay tuned. I'm sure you aren't surprised that it involves burlap and paint. At this point that's just how I roll.
I also found a real, vintage, black metal rolling cart on the curb this week and I'm trying to redo that thing. It's a crafty time around here. Maybe I'll throw those two into one post. Or maybe I'll tease you with knowing I have them and never get around to finishing either. Chances are 50/50 right now. :)

And now the crazy:
Our yard. Bless it's heart. We are so thankful for the SPACE we have out there. We inherited one of those Rainbow play places so the kids can play, we have a shed for storage, a large deck, great landscaping and flowers... and two years ago it looked fantastic. ;) Time has worn on and it's showing up back there. The play place has rotted boards (sad day!) and I'm almost convinced we'll have to tear it down after this winters snow. I'm surveying my wood saavy friends to find out. The deck will need re-stained in the spring and a few planks here and there need some new screws. The landscaping is just sad - after 1 summer pregnant, and the next with a newborn it has been neglected a bit and taken over by vines and what not. Though I will tell you that I rescued my rose bush! And our lillies faithfully bloom. Before frost I'll toss my mums into a new spot back there and hopefully we'll have those from here on out, too.

Our plan before the snow comes is to create a fire pit/hang out space in the back yard. Back by our shed we have already gone to work ripping out trees and planning. I even drew up a little firepit blueprint. Here's our progress on the clear out. Keep in mind this entire landscaped area was full of weird scrawny trees. Thanks to our neighbor and his chainsaw we are on our way!

I'd like to rip up all the edging pavers you see in this picture, and turn the entire corner into our space.

So, hopefully, when we finish you will look at the corner of the yard from this angle and see the fire pit area. :) We'll more then likely cut down the massive branch above this space so we don't catch our tree on fire. It looks saggier to me anyway. As you can see I'm still trimming and burning. Have I mentioned how great it is to live in a township that allows back yard burning!? Pyro's unite! I kinda wanted to paint the shed to look like a mini-barn...thankfully my husband put the squash on that. One crazy at a time! My MAIN goal is to try and reuse what we already have and spend little to none. I'm realizing we'll already need things like pea gravel, etc. to keep things safe. Worth it! I'm dreaming of making it pretty and having a great space to come together. I've pinned a few ideas on pinterest - here's what I'm envisioning:

The person who thought of this is a genius!

So there you have it. Some beauty and some crazy. We sure keep things busy around here. :) Wishing you a wonderful fall weekend, friends. Until next time... :)

.:Autumn Afternoons:.

Despite the temp's reaching back into the 70's and even 80's this week... {bleh} We are enjoying a beautiful autumn. Oh how I love it! Neighbors trees have dropped golden leaves in our yard, I was gifted two beautiful RED mums for my front step, and we picked up our first pumpkin! The colors, the smells, the feel of it all never fails to capture my attention.

It's a laid back Saturday here in Iowa and I've been able to really focus in on enjoying my family and our home. These no-where-to-go Saturdays are small treasures to me. Piddling around in the kitchen, making crafts with the kids, extra baby snuggles - it's all wonderful and most days we are so busy it's easy to miss those moments. Even now as my two youngest sleep it's calm and sunny and watching the trees sway and lose their leaves is perfect! Of course the mug of hot cider was a bonus as well :)

Autumn really is the most wonderful time of the year!

Tonight we'll have some Creamy chicken wild rice soup - my first attempt. It's been simmering away in the crock pot since early this morning and the house smells heavenly. I'm sharing the recipe today because it's SUPER easy, pretty inexpensive to make and I'm hoping will be a crowd pleaser as my kids love rice, chicken and veggies.

What you'll need:

1 c. uncooked wild rice (I'm using aldi's rice blends - red, white, basmati and wild)

1lb boneless, skinless chicken breast

1 c chopped onions

3/4 c chopped celery

3/4 c chopped carrots

4-5 cloves minced garlic

2 bay leaves

6 c low sodium chicken broth

2 c water

2 T poultry seasoning** (keep reading down below)

3 T butter

2 T olive oil

1/2 c flour

2 c milk

salt & pepper to taste

 

You aren't supposed to peek, but I can't help it!

Before I include the link to the instructions let me touch on the seasonings. This summer I found this gem in the grocery store and have been using it for so many things. It's awesome in soups, on burgers, ground turkey, etc. So instead of buying poultry seasoning I'm using it. Cavenders! It's salt free, too! 

I found this soup recipe on Little Spice Jar's site. It's super cute and she has some great things there! Go check it out here. Her food photography alone will have you drooling :)

As we get deeper into the autumn season our schedules are full. This year we let our oldest take part in the one day cheer clinic our local high school offers. She practiced one day after school and then the next week she and her little cheer friends performed at the football game. It was cute. My hubby was out of town so it was just me and my three little girls - which, was insane. But we survived and have some cute memories to boot.

These girls are such a gift. Some days they really drive me bonkers but then we have precious new mercies the next day. I'm so thankful for all three of them!

Happy Saturday friends! I hope you have a good one, a calm one, full of warm soup and family and all the wonderful things that make this season so special.

My grandma's soup mugs passed down to me :)

Friday catch up.

First of all... announcement: Jane Evelynn slept, wait for it, 12 hours last night! To be fair I should let you know that I tip-toe in at 10:30 and give her a bottle I somehow managed to pump throughout the day. She stays asleep and just guzzles that down so I lay her back down and we carry on. I also must admit how excellent my stealthy ninja crawl moves are now. If you have never dropped to your knees and crawled out of your babies nursery...well, then you just don't understand. :) I'm considering myself the ninja queen.

It's a friday family day and I kind of want to pull my hair out, or nap, or drink 3 more of these iced mochas. How is it that I look forward to this day allll week and then the day of seems sooo chaotic and nerve frazzling. It's a word, trust me.

My husband treated us to breakfast out at Perkins. And all the momma's say "Amen". So while it was awesome to not have to prepare food and actually get a warm breakfast, it's always loud and slightly crazy to be in public. If I really focus and step back out of myself... it's cute, and once in a lifetime. Breakfast out with my goons really is precious and I know we make people smile - or wag their heads - I've seen both. {grin} Today the girls made up a game called "Scooty checkers" with the jelly packets and coffee creamers. (Side note: Thank you perkins for leaving those on the tables!) They started out so nicely and in just a few minutes the 3 year old was chucking her packets at the 5 year old and loud giggles followed. Then the sleeping 2 month old woke up and breakfast came all at once. I will not go into the number of times one child climbed under the table and visits to the bathroom. But it's real.

Currently, everyone is doing their own thing - and if you have multiple children you might appreciate this. I know I do. My biggest is playing in the toy room while the three year old is making a "craft", and I use that word loosely as she is playing with a glue stick, the lid to said glue stick, 1 piece of paper and a cut up piece of ribbon. Hey, it's a craft to her. Annnnnd she's quiet. As she went to do this "craft" she turned around and said to me -

"I'll do something my best".

Ah I love these little 3 year old sayings.

My husband is asleep at my feet. And you think I'm kidding. I'm not. This man can curl up and pass out just about anywhere. I would share a picture but I'm sure I would get "the look". So I'll just treasure this image myself. Jane is...you guessed it, asleep. I am beyond thankful for that nap loving babe.

Last fall...oh, how I am ready for it again!

As for me... I'm dreaming. Yep. Dreaming. Not that I want the clock to move or that I'm rushing life... because really I'm not. Just, dreaming and thinking of what's to come. In two weeks my girl heads to kindergarten and life will change...again. Then it's practically Thanksgiving. OK, that's a leap but that's how I feel. I am secretly enjoying these cooler summer days while everyone else complains. My fall loving self has already pinned a ton of Autumnal things for this fall on Pinterest. I'm on the hunt for the perfect fall smelling candle. I'm also dreaming about a clean house. A house that organizes itself or at least vacuums itself. I really do clean - sometimes I deep clean, even. And yet all of that goes to pot almost as soon as I move on to the next room. I know it's just a phase and someday I'll have a clean house and empty rooms... but today I'm just dreaming. I'm also dreaming about another iced mocha. Did I already mention that? If you haven't tried Caribous iced mocha...do it.

I miss blogging. I've had so much on my mind and heart recently but there is just no extra time to blog it all down. Maybe that's ok. I'm keeping up with my paper journal and treasuring lots of things there. But I do miss writing (and reading) on the ol' blog - maybe once biggest is at school we'll have more time. Life rolls on - mountains and valleys. I'm thankful for each day and for this family the Lord has given me. Speaking of... back to family day.

Through the lens - My family.

I'm always amazed at the skill of photographers. Every year without fail I have at least one child who refuses to comply with family pictures - even with bribes and let's be honest, threats. This year was no different, though, I was suprised at who the nocompliant one was. Normally my biggest girl gives the biggest stink but this year the naughty award goes to this little pumpkin pie - my August. Without further ado, this years photos.



The plan was to have each girl by themselves posing by our lovely back fence. August needed me in her pictures, however. Looking at them now - I'm thrilled about it. This so sums up our relationship. She needs me and I love still having a tiny one. While we didn't get any smiles I still think she's pretty cute.

And our big girl was a rock star! I'm still smiling just thinking about how much she enjoyed this years pictures! My heart hurts when I realize she turns 5 NEXT MONTH. Where, my child, have the years gone?



And, the love of my life... 8 years, 2 states, multiple apartments and houses, 3 babies (one with Jesus), too many cars, so much fun. My partner in crime and on this adventure. And, we are both in our 30's now. Weird.



My family - wow, am I a blessed woman!



Thank you to Pence Photography for a quick and wonderful mini-shoot this month! We are so thankful for these memories to cherish forever!

A most beautiful day and a cute, little, sinner.

Wow was it beautiful here in Iowa yesterday! We took full advantage of our two free zoo passes and the perfect weather and headed out for a family day adventure. Some of the trees have started to change and the sky was just amazing, as you can see above. I'm LOVING it!

Now that our girls are a little older we really are so enjoying our family day outings. They are funny and we just never know what will happen. :) They really liked seeing all of the zoo animals and we enjoyed being together on the pretty pre-autumn day.

And, in case you need any further proof of total depravity - I give you, Auggie's hand slap video. If you listen carefully you can hear me apologize to the poor mother of the child. I have NEVER seen her do anything like this - she totally blew her cover.

Saturday Catch-Up

Weekends. {sigh} Aren't they such a blessing? We are having a laid back Saturday here and I'm loving every second of it. I have my cup of Snickeroo coffee, the girls are watching "Seven brides for seven brothers" in the other room and I have The Pioneer Woman on the TV in the room I'm sitting in. (note: the family we are staying with has tons of space...we are enjoying speading out) Add to that - I'm working on gathering Christmas ideas on Pinterest. Ah, what a Saturday.

So, what's been new here with us? Well, we had our youth kickoff on Wednesday night complete with Laser Tag and a cookout. We had around 80 some students and leaders! Praising the Lord for a great start to our school year and Fall. Sometime I'll take more - but for now, here's a peek at our newly renovated/painted/decorated youth room. :)

Leaders in Laser Tag training!

For our family day yesterday we took the girls to "The Bass Pro Shop" for some cheap family fun. Now, that might seem a little strange a location... I blame my 4 year old. She LOVES that place. Note that neither Momma nor Daddy are hunters/fishers/etc. She just loves the aquarium, hunting game and FREE fudge samples. So, maybe I have rubbed off on her - I love her hunt for FREE fun. :)

Our splurge of honey roasted cashews :)

Life. It's a gift. Even during these semi-stressful days of waiting for our home to be open for us to move in - We see the hand of God working in our lives. An extra blessing to us this week was to find an envelope with our name on it and inside was a 3x5 index card that read "Go on an anniversary date please", with cash included. Seriously?! Isn't that just the stuff of stories or things we'll tell our grandchildren someday? I'm so thankful for the people around us who love us and show it.

The last report we heard on our home was that we may not be able to get in until the end of Sept. As you can imagine, it's not ideal, but we will wait and trust and keep asking the Lord that His will be done. In the meantime, we are so thankful for family who lets us bunk up with them! There are blessings everywhere if we are willing to see them! 

Happy Saturday wherever you are, thanks for checking in. 

June Happenings.

What? June is over this weekend? Yep. All 30 days of it come to an end on Sunday. True story.

Despite packing and paperwork and general life - we've managed to sneak in some fun, too. :) 

Here's a photo recap of June:

Beach Day @ Raccoon River Beach

More attemps at packing... if Lil' sister will have it. 

Church backyard BBQ 

Fishin' on fathers day

June showers... all.the.time.

And finally...

Lots and lots of time spent at all the great parks in IA! 

Here's to an equally wonderful July & August! 

Cousin Love

We had a special treat this weekend of getting to visit with cousins, aunts, uncles and even some time with Great Grandpa & Grandma.  Some highlights from our breakfast this morning...

Ah, these kiddos. :)

 And some time with their new umbrella and winter hat. Thanks Aunt Shan!

Auggie and Great Grandpa

A big ol' bunch of family! What a blessing.