• Life

    2018 Highlights

    I enjoy reading other’s end of the year posts and well as going back and reading my end of year highlight posts. If you write an end of the year post, please comment below and share your link so I can see your post as well! If you’ve been following me for awhile you know my posts are usually photo heavy, but photos often evoke more memories than words, at least for me. Here’s a run down of the highlights from 2018! [January] The boys and Rob enjoyed a great annual ski trip to Gatlinburg with the Boy Scouts. Here’s…

  • Life

    TBB Asks Christmas Edition

    Today I’m joining along with The Blended Blog (TBB) for some Christmas fun. I always enjoy writing posts like this so I can look back and see how my answers have changed through the years. 1. Candy Canes? Yes, while I’m not a huge candy cane fanatic, I enjoy one here and there. I like to decorate with them too. Santa usually puts some different flavors in our stockings. 2. Christmas Morning early riser or sleep in? You know when the kids were little we had to be early risers, because they were just too anxious to sleep in. The…

  • Life

    December Scripture-A-Week

    Once again I’m late getting this post up. So now that its December, here is your December Scripture-A-Week. I have been so busy the last month that I never got to share with you about why I’m so busy. Instead of continuing to say I’ll share it in another post, I’m just going to share it briefly here. I got a new job… It’s actually in the same department that I’m in, but it’s a promotion. It’s a lot more stress, but a lot more job satisfaction. And right now I’m doing 2 jobs, my old job and my new…

  • Travel

    Naval Academy & National’s Game

    Here’s the next post about our DC trip. So if you remember from the last post, our boys flew in on Thursday night. Friday morning we got up, checked out of the Gaylord, and headed towards Annapolis, MD. We got into Annapolis, parked just outside of the Naval Academy, and made our way through security. We were in contact with Joe, Drew’s best friend (who you may remember from here or here) as he is a midshipmen at the Naval Academy. We seemed to get there just as class was letting out and we were able to meet up with…

  • Dinner - Recipes

    Chicken and Corn Chowder {Crockpot}

    Thanks to all everyone that came over from Amber I Am‘s blog! Her Southwestern Chicken Soup recipe has me ready to hop in the kitchen for sure! Is it cold where you are yet? Last week we finally felt the resemblance of fall weather here! Hallelujah! Although here in Alabama it basically goes from full on summer to full on winter, but regardless I’m happy for the change in temps. With that I’m ready for soups, stews, and chowders. This Chicken and Corn Chowder is one I made several years ago and I just love it and so did my…

  • Life

    November Scripture-A-Week

    So how are y’all? I’m honestly feeling stressed, but instead of worrying I’m trying to pray and read and study scripture. Being disciplined is so hard when life just takes over and you get your priorities out of wack. I love that these scriptures help remind me what is truly important. I hope to share some stuff that’s been going on with me soon, so keep an eye out for that. Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient about it, until it receives…

  • Travel

    SAAM & National Portrait Gallery – D.C.

    My last day of being on my own before Rob was done with his conference and the kids flew into join us, I had decided I wanted to check out the Smithsonian American Art Museum (SAAM) & National Portrait Gallery (NPG). I took the Metro in and after a short walk from the Archives-Navy Memorial-Penn Quarter Station Metro stop, I was there. This museum is massive. Somehow I didn’t get a map when I went in, but I managed to see everything I wanted to see and more. Half of the building the SAAM and the other half is the…

  • Dessert

    Butter Cake Bars

    Recently we celebrated my Father-in-law’s birthday and I wanted to make a cake, but wanted something other than your typical chocolate cake. I hunted around my recipes and found a recipe for butter cake. I had all the ingredients and it didn’t seem complicated so I gave it a shot. With a couple tweaks it was one of the best desserts I’ve ever made. Servings: 15-18 depending on size Prep Time: 10 minutes Cooking Time: 30 minutes Ingredients: 2 cups flour 1 cup sugar 1 tbs. baking powder 1 tsp. salt 1/2 softened cup butter 3 eggs 8 oz. softened…

  • Travel

    Afternoon in Washington, DC

    Here’s another post from our trip to DC. After having lunch with Rob and some folks from the conference back at the Gaylord, I made my way over to the metro station. I decided on using the Anacostia, because it was going to be cheaper and faster than the one closest to National Harbor. However, what I wasn’t aware of was that parking is not where the actual station is that shows up on the map. So after nervously figuring out that situation with some help from the Metro employees, I made my way on to the correct train and…

  • Travel

    Morning in Old Town Alexandria, VA

    Today I’m continuing my posts from our DC Trip. Rob’s first full day at the conference, I decided to do something that wasn’t on my list of must does so that I could get back to the hotel for lunch (since it was included in the guest fee that we paid.) I drove over to Old Town Alexandria, VA. I didn’t have anything specific I wanted to see or do, but you know I just enjoy driving to a place, walking around, taking pictures, and exploring. I’ve always heard that Old Town Alexandria is such a lovely place so I…

  • Life

    October Scripture-A-Week

    I just realized this didn’t get posted on the 15th like its supposed to. September is probably my craziest month of the year and this year is worse. I take team and individual photos for the local travel soccer league and that eats up all my free time in August and September. I’m currently dealing with an issue with one of the companies that prints the Memory Mates. It’s always one thing after another! I’ve also had a lot going on with my job, which I’ll might share with you later. So with just these things, my stress meter is…

  • Life

    2018 Summer Wrap Up

    Jeez, now that September’s almost over, I thought I’d better do my summer wrap up. Before you know it, it will be Christmas. Sheesh! So for us in Alabama, school gets out in late May so that’s where our fun will begin. –MAY– Memorial Day Weekend my 2 nieces stayed with us while their parents traveled to NYC. On that Saturday was their Recital Day! On Sunday, we went over to Lake Martin. We hiked at Smith Mountain and then enjoyed some lake time with our friends. The boys rescued a turtle. Back in March, Drew got in a wreck,…

  • Travel

    Fun Day in National Harbor, MD

    It’s been awhile since I’ve talked about our Boston to Washington Trip. Here’s the last post in case you missed it: Philly to Maryland So Day 4, we woke up in our hotel that we stayed in for the next several days, the National Harbor Gaylord Hotel, which is where Rob’s work conference was being held. He had a meeting that morning and since I didn’t think I’d have enough time to go out and come back and meet him for lunch. I made the decision to just walk around the Gaylord and relax. Inside the atrium area of the…

  • Life

    September Scripture-A-Week

    Hey ya’ll! Hope everyone is having a great week! Here’s your September scripture a week sheet. These can be used to memorize, to post around the house as reminders of God’s love, etc! The follow words resonated with me. I hope they touch your heart like they did mine. Happy Fall, Y’all! Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” ~Hebrews 13:5 I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you. ~Psalm…

  • Travel

    Long Weekend in Louisiana

    Rob’s sister, Shawna, from Nevada was in Baton Rouge recently and since we haven’t seen her in 14 years, we knew we had to go for a visit. Our new favorite place to stop on the way to Baton Rouge is The Boiling Pot. Drew and I got the Shrimp & Grits. I had Gumbo and Broccoli Cheese rice as my sides. Rob and Alex got the Shrimp Po’Boys. Anyway, so when we go to Baton Rouge, we usually stay with Rob’s cousin’s house; the Lindsey’s. Their 2nd oldest son, Cameron, is about the same age as Alex so they…

  • Travel

    Vacationing in the North Carolina Mountains

    Mountains, waterfalls, and serene views were calling our names for 4th of July this year. You may recall that we had an annual 4th of July mountain trip tradition going for a while (2010 2011 2012 2013), but we have done other things the last few years. Saturday We got up early Saturday morning, hit D Square donuts on our way out of town for a little sugar, and then got on the road. Our first planned stop was Tallulah Gorge, but we saw signs for great views at the Tallulah Point Overlook, which is basically a tourist trap. They…

  • Chicken - Dinner - Recipes

    Chicken Pot Pie

    School starts tomorrow, so again on my the hunt for some easy, make ahead comfort foods. Frozen Chicken Pot Pie was one of my favorites growing up. Around my house, I try to avoid frozen meals especially for dinner. These chicken pot pies with ready made pie crust in ramekins are easy to whip together the ahead of time. Servings: 6 Prep Time: 15 minutes Cooking Time: 15 minutes Ingredients: 5 cups of shredded chicken (about 3 chicken breasts) 4 sliced of bacon 2 9” pie crusts 12 oz. mixed frozen vegetables (corn, peas, carrots, green beans) 26 oz. can…

  • Life

    Currently – August 2018

    Here’s the currently post for August. Follow along with Anne for the Currently link up each month. /following/ Here are 2 of my favorite instagrammers that I just love, who inspire me. A post shared by Susan (@susan.grimes) on Jul 17, 2018 at 7:08am PDT A post shared by Melissa Gibson Photography (@melissagibsonphotography) on Jun 2, 2018 at 8:45am PDT /ordering/ With school around the corner…All my money is going to towards, school stuff. Supplies, marching band shoes, instrument lyres, school lunches… /pinning/ I’m always pinning tons of randomness, but as of late I’ve pinned some super cute fall outfits…

  • Travel

    Smith Mountain – Jacksons’ Gap, AL

    Sunday before Memorial Day we went over to Lake Martin (Dadeville, AL). Our usual tradition of camping at the lake with our friends got derailed mainly due to weather. However, Sunday turned out to be a hot sunny day. It’s crazy that as many times as we’ve been to Lake Martin, we had actually never been to Smith Mountain. There’s a .8 mile loop from a parking lot to the fire tower and back. Once you get up to the tower there are some beautiful views even if you don’t go up the tower. After hiking back down, we stopped…