I had a wonderfully snowy day! I spent the entire day in my warm and cozy home with my sweet husband! Blinds opened. Candles burning. House cleaned. It really was perfect. We are not usually very good at just staying home, and it was actually nice that nature MADE us stay in! We have about 15 inches of snow on the ground!!! The little things (like getting to spend the entire day in my pajamas, starting a new book, being trapped with my husband) made this day so great! We missed seeing our family today, but we are very glad that everyone is home and safe.

This year I really want to focus on enjoying every moment. I tend to stress out about small things, and I don't want to do that anymore. I want to relax and enjoy all of the excitement that this year has to offer. I am very good at filling my schedule with TONS of tasks and activities. This year I am hoping to focus on doing the things I really love. Read a great book. Take a nap. Go on a hike. Learn something new. I am going to make 2014 count with more snuggling with my sweet nephews and niece, spending time with my husband, and experiencing new things with our friends...and enjoying every minute of it! Enjoy 2014!

It is time to deck the halls, wrap the gifts, and let it snow! December is here, and we are in the Christmas spirit. This month is going to be the busiest of the year! There is shopping to be done, family to be seen, and lots of holiday activities to enjoy! I am so excited.



 November was a GREAT month! We celebrated the birthdays of some pretty special ladies, AND we welcomed my adorable nephew into the family! He is an absolute doll...I would seriously spend every hour of the day cuddling him if I could! Thanksgiving was busy, but amazing...as always! Plus we had our First Annual Deck the Halls Christmas Extravaganza...I will be posting about that very soon!

-Britt

Who is ready for the holidays?! This girl is! I am really in the holiday spirit, and have been putting together a list of fun activities that I want to do this year. I AM SO EXCITED!



 We are kicking off my list of holiday excitement with The First Annual Deck the Halls Christmas Extravaganza! Doesn't it sound exciting!? On the Saturday after Thanksgiving, we are going to spend the whole day decking the halls walls (we don't have any halls in our house) and drinking hot chocolate. This is an idea that my cousin Val and I came up with, and the boys are pretty stinkin' excited about it (don't let them tell you otherwise)! We are going to start the day at our house! While Dane and Josh put up the outdoor lights, Val and I are going to decorate the inside and make lunch. Once we are done with our house, we will move on to theirs! Doesn't it sound awesome?! I imagine that the day will also include Elf playing on a loop! I will be sure to document this day, and share all of the fun details with you.

Can you tell that I am excited about Christmas decorations! I really don't like to put stuff up before Thanksgiving, but it takes a lot of self control to keep myself from doing it! I am glad that my neighbors are not followers of the rule...I am happy to just gaze out the windows at their lights! I am ready for the day that the whole neighborhood will be sparkling with Christmas lights. I am hoping that Dane and I can drive around town, look at the lights, and listen to Christmas music! Who wants to join us?

Can you imagine the ZOO decorated for Christmas?! I have wanted to go to Wild Lights at the St. Louis Zoo for several years...this year I AM GOING! I am probably imagining it as something much more spectacular than it actually is, but I don't care. I love the zoo when it is 110º out...and I am sure I will love it just as much when it is only 30º and transformed into a winter wonderland!

All of my other free time will probably be spent with family...and shopping! What kind of awesome things do you have planned for the season?

Happy November!!! October was a great month! I am still all excited about all of the celebrations we got to partake in! Weddings, birthdays, anniversaries...oh my! We had so much fun spending time with our family and friends throughout the month.

I officially broke out my scarf collection. It is totally acceptable to wear scarfs everyday of the week, right? You can find my new favorite scarf here!

I also decided it was time to start buying a few Christmas decorations! I am obsessed with this garland from West Elm. I figured I could use the white garland all year round!

Speaking of decorations, it wouldn't have been October without some "spooky" chalkboards! Our house was covered!

 

Enough about October...lets move on to all of the excitement of November. I have been listening to Christmas music all week! I will be making a list of all of my favorite tunes very soon! I haven't gotten out any decorations (and I won't until after Thanksgiving), but I am very tempted to change all of my scents over to Christmas Cottage and Sparkling Spruce. November has already proven to be a fabulous month! Last weekend we celebrated a baby shower for my sweet nephew! He isn't here yet, but I already love him so much! There are also some big birthdays to celebrate this month, AND Thanksgiving! This is my favorite time of year! Do you have big plans for November?

Today is our anniversary! I don't know how it is possible that we have been married for TWO whole years, but it really has been a great two years! I can still remember anxiously waiting for him to pick me up for our first date...we were kids then! Now, over seven years later, here we are! It hasn't always been easy. There are times when we disagree, but at the end of each day we are thankful to have one another.





I am so lucky to have Dane. AND...I am certain that he is the only man who would put up with my crazy DIY ideas, my desire to cover everything we own in chalkboard paint, and my random dancing.

Two years down...forever to go! :)

 Photos by Kevin Zimarik Photography.

Wow, I cannot believe that I have turned another year older! Where does the time go?! I spent the weekend celebrating 25 with my friends and family. Celebrations kicked off on Thursday with birthday pancakes! (The pancakes were actually in celebration of my friends birthday!) What can I say...I like to celebrate!



Friday night I got to spend time with my sweet little niece, Kinleigh, and adorable nephews! I am a very lucky auntie!



 Saturday was a fun filled day with Lauren! We started the day with a trip to a local fall festival...imagine pumpkins, crafts, and the sweet smell of kettle corn! I left the festival with some yummy scents to burn around my house! Seriously...don't come over unless you like the smell of pumpkin!



 After the fall festival, we went to the Wooden Nickel Winery! We had a great time tasting different wines and chatting about life. We have both decided that 25 is going to be an awesome year!





 The rest of the day involved a DIY project, a photo shoot, an air hockey match, New Girl, and a slumber party!

Sunday, Dane and I went to church and then had lunch with his family. Later, we went and did some shooting, and had supper with my family. A whole day with my husband is my favorite way to celebrate! (Plus, Sunday was Dane's half birthday...another thing to celebrate!) If you want something to celebrate let me know...I search those out like it's my job!

Last night, we wrapped up the celebrating with supper at Buffalo Wild Wings and frozen yogurt! I basically had the best birthday ever...bring on 25!

Sorry it took me so long to get this post up! I have been busy, busy, busy enjoying my favorite month of the year! However, it is going to be hard for September to top August! What a great end to summer! There was vacation, a new (very adorable) nephew, news that we are going to have a niece, and lots of other wonderful reasons to celebrate! I got to spend lots of time with family and great friends, AND I did a little work on our house! (Adding curtains counts as work, right?)



What does September have in store? I have already had a pretty busy month, but the weeks to come are going to be great! I am looking forward to several senior sessions, a fun filled girls' night, lots of hot apple cider, and some birthday celebrations! I am feeling very blessed! I hope you all have a wonderful month.

My sweet, little blog just turned 2! I have had such a great time sharing DIY projects, favorite products, and many random thoughts with all of you! It is hard to believe that 2 years have passed. I cannot wait to see what fun posts I will be writing in the future! Happy Birthday, blog! Feel free to celebrate with some pancakes!



(These were actually Dane's birthday pancakes...I try to be a sweet wife!)

August is here!!! I am soooo excited about this month, and there are so many reasons why!!!

 I don't want to get ahead of myself...before I go on about how awesome August is going to be, I need to tell you all about July. We kicked off the month celebrating the 4th of July at the lake, I took a trip to Chicago with some pretty awesome ladies, and we enjoyed several family gatherings throughout the month! I also found out that my little brother and his girlfriend are going to be having a little boy! I am so happy for them! It will be fun to have a little one running around. SO many babies! :) Be still my baby loving heart!



 Okay, now about August! First of all, I get to celebrate the birthday of my lovely momma! I won't tell you how old she is going to be, but I will tell you that she is NOT two years older than my dad (even if he likes to think that)! This is the first year in a long time that I will actually get to see her on her birthday! She is usually off vacationing, and doing something awesome...LUCKY! This year they went on vacation early, so I think that a celebration will be in order...I better put striped straws and streamers on my shopping list!

 Also in August, I am going to be an aunt...again!!!!! I cannot wait to meet and snuggle baby L on August 28! I am counting down the days!

 PLUS...Dane and I are going on vacation! This trip has been on my mind and my bags have been packed for MONTHS! We are going on a house boat with 5 other couples, and basically it is going to be awesome! You can check out our houseboat here. I know, it is pretty awesome! ;)

Hope you have a great August!

I miss the days of long family road trips. Growing up and getting married means you don't always get to go along on the family vacations! (I am hoping that we get to sneak away on a few!) My family recently went to California for vacation. Luckily, I was able to live vicariously through my sister's instagram feed! It felt like she was teasing me I was with them! Anyway...I thought I would share some of the pictures from their adventure.











 Brooke got this cute shirt! I am not usually a fan of souvenir shirts, but I loved this one. Layton got one that said, "Keep Calm and Play Dead" (which is not actually recommended if you encounter a bear...wow, I learn a lot when they go on vacation!)

 They had a great time (even if they had to drive 50+ hours!), but we are glad to have them back! They even brought us back some yummy treats! Bear Poop, anyone?

-Britt

 1. Started off my week with some awesome workouts! I have to get back into a routine, and make time for the gym everyday! This is going to be priority numero uno next week!

2. My mornings are always so much better when I get up early and get work done. I was able to spend some time at the local coffee shop TWICE this week! Talk about productive!

3. New business cards finally came in this week!!! I cannot even express how excited I am about this! I LOVE THEM! Who wants to do business?! ;)

 4. I have been busy preparing for my trip to Chicago all week. Tomorrow is the big day...but I honestly don't know if I am more excited about that, or the fact that it is Embrace Your Geekness Day! You know I will be celebrating that!

5. More time in the morning is always great! I love when I can sit down and enjoy breakfast, watch the news, or read. It is a great start to the day...don't you think?!

Hope you all had a great week! I am linking up with Lauren for H54F today!

-Britt

I hope that everyone had a wonderful and relaxing weekend! I sure did! Dane and I went out to the lake on Saturday afternoon and spent a couple of hours in the sun.

Then we headed to town for a cookout at my aunts and movie night at the drive in. We uses to go there all the time when we were dating, but this was our first trip as a married couple...needless to say, I was pretty excited! It was pretty cold, and the last movie didn't get over until 1:30, but we had a great time!

Sunday we went to church and spent the rest of the day with family. I always love lazy Sundays with the fam...it was perfect!

This week I will be getting LOTS of editing done and packing for Chicago! Let's just say I am excited! I am also planning a couple simple DIY projects and I have a fun recipe to share!

With it being Father's Day weekend, I thought it would be fun to share another story from my creative writing class. You can see the other story I shared here. We were asked to write a description of someone we know, and I decided to write about my dad. 

My dad is strong and can be intimidating at first glance. He is very tall and broadly built. He is a farmer, so he spends many hours each day working in the fields or on equipment. Traces of his hard work appear on his strong hands. There are scars and scrapes from the demanding manual activities that he does each day. I don’t think he is afraid of anything. My dad is kind and generous. He would risk his life to save anyone. He has taken special care of calves that have been born shivering in the cold snow, and he as nursed to health kittens and goldfish because he knew we would be devastated if anything happened to them. He is always looking out for his children. He wants to give us a great life and to keep us close. He is dad, the man who stayed up late with us when we were sick, the man who walked me down the aisle, and the man that will someday be the grandfather to my children. 

My dad may just be the best ever...just sayin'. Anyway, Happy Father's Day to all of the fathers and father figures out there! I hope you all have a wonderful weekend! 

I LOVE long weekends! My holiday weekend kicked off around noon on Saturday. We usually spend Memorial Day weekend at the lake with my family, and this year was no exception. However, IT WAS FREEZING...unlike usual! Everyone was bundled up and sitting as close to the fire as humanly possible. We had a blast (as always), but it was nice to come home to our nice warm bed! 

Sunday morning Dane and I went to church with some friends for their beautiful daughter's baptism. Dane was asked to be her sponsor, which he was thrilled to do! Little Macie did such a great job! 

Then it was back out to the lake for some more family fun, some much needed napping...and you know I didn't make two trips to the lake without enjoying a s'more! It was delicious and VERY messy! (So messy that I had marshmallow in my hair...but we don't judge at the lake!)

The weather was much nicer on Sunday...perfect for a bags tournament and grilling out. After some fun in the sun cloudy, great outdoors, Dane and I went to town for a movie date! (Basically we tried to pack as much fun into this weekend as possible!) Monday, I relaxed at home and did some DIY in the garden (blog post coming tomorrow), but it was last night that I was super excited about! Cookout with our great friends (and family), Josh and Val AND The Bachelorette season premiere! Val and I were pumped...probably way more than the guys! It was great, but we were there WAY to late (like usual). 

It was a wonderful weekend filled with fun, family, and remembrance of those who have fought for our freedom. I hope you all had a fun and safe Memorial Day weekend! 

Monday night was not a night that I would like to live over. Dane and I were visiting my parents, and probably should have left long before we did. Anyway...as we were getting ready to leave (I seriously had my purse on my shoulder and was getting ready to walk out the door) the wind started to pick up. The tree outside the dining room was blowing so hard that I thought it was going to blow away. I had never seen anything like it. 

The wind suddenly got very loud, and my mom made us take shelter...about the same time the power went out. As we were piling in our hiding place we could hear cracking. For a moment I was sure that a tree was going to crash through the roof. As quickly as it started the wind seemed to slow down and get quiet. When we felt safe we decided to take a look outside. What we saw brought tears to my eyes. It was difficult to see anything in the dark, but when the lightning flashed we could tell that there were only about two trees left standing in the back yard. It was a scary image. However, I was SO grateful that trees were the only thing we lost, and I am incredibly thankful that my family and our neighbors were not harmed.

There were not one, not two, but SEVEN trees that came down in the storm. One of the trees completely crushed the wooden play gym that was in the backyard, but I am just thankful that it didn't fall on the house instead. There was some damage to neighboring homes and yards, but there were no injuries. 

My heart aches for those impacted by the tornados in Oklahoma. I cannot imagine experiencing something so devastating. Please remember to say a prayer for them tonight. 

Woohoo! My friendship bread turned 10 days old yesterday! If you have ever made friendship bread before you know what that means...time to bake! If you haven't heard of friendship bread (don't feel bad...I hadn't until 10 days ago) I will tell you a bit about it! Someone gives you a starter. My aunt gave me one on Easter (you can read more about that here). The starter comes with some instructions that you have to follow for the next 10 days. Most days you just have to mush the bag around to keep the ingredients mixed up. On day 5 you have to add a few things to the bag, and keep mushing. On day 10 you get to add some more ingredients, divide some of the mixture into 4 bags to give to your friends and family! The rest of the mixture is added to and baked into some very yummy bread! A slice of bread seems like the perfect way to celebrate my 100th blog post! Yes, you read that right...this is blog post number 100! Yippee! 

I managed to make it through the whole nurturing and feeding process, but how did it taste? That was the real question! Dane LOVED it, and I sure am glad. I don't think I would have ever lived down ruining the friendship bread that he had been dreaming about for the last 10 days! AND...I have already given away my 4 starters! Friendships are great, and so is friendship bread! 

Dane and I had a little visitor this weekend. Hank came to stay the night on Friday, and man did we have a blast! He is so entertaining, and SO smart. Everything he said had us cracking up. We try to plan lots of fun activities when he is over. This time was no exception...we went to Josh and Val's for supper and a Mario Cart battle, made M&M pancakes for breakfast, went to Rural King to check out the chicks (and rabbits!) and get treats for the horses, made a trip to the farm to see the cows and horses, took a few rides on the Gator, AND jumped on the trampoline! Phew...I am worn out just typing all of that! We also managed to squeeze in some creative chalk time! Aunt Britt enjoyed that, but I think Hank just thought I was crazy! Dane's proud moment was teaching him to say, "Don't call me mister...the whole world calls me Hank!" (I really think he would say it in his sleep now!) Sorry, Dustin and Coletta! 

After a weekend of adventures with Uncle Dane and Aunt Britt he was pretty tired...AND we were pretty tired too! Entertaining a five year old is pretty exhausting...BUT it is totally fun! Can't wait to have him stay again! 

Look at this beauty! I am going to be giving this desk a little TLC, and I can't wait to reveal the finished project. Originally I was thinking this would make a great desk, but I really like it on the front porch. Where will it end up...we will just have to see!