So much of savoring something is slowing down enough to experience it. We are on the move in the this house much of the time. This weekend I was given a little gift as I paid at the consignment sale. It was a DVD by Lisa Chan called “Be Still”. I decided to sit down yesterday and watch it.  The irony was that as I watched it I had 5 men jack hammering our chimney outside, the boys asking for “just one more” of this or that and Seth teleworking and having his own set of needs. The DVD was about finding times to be quiet and make time for God.

I am working these days on carving out times when the boys are resting or the house is empty (never) to just sit down and be still.  That isn’t always at home, sometimes it’s on the way home from an errand when Owen falls asleep. I am aware that the radio is still going and I am itching to get home to catch up on emails and respond to texts, it’s in the moments where I am trying to grant myself a little time to not care about all of that. To turn off the radio and just be.

Yesterday as I bustled to pick up Jackson from school on a rainy afternoon I walked briskly to avoid getting too soaked. As I walked up the sidewalk I spotted a bright red leave in the midst of the brown sea of dead crunchy leaves. I stopped dead in my tracks and picked it up knowing that Jackson would love my little gift. As I looked down at it I saw this…

can you see the heart shaped hole?!  I picked it up and carried it with me while I waited for Jackson. I asked if he saw what I saw. He did. I told him I thought maybe God had put that little red leaf there with a heart cut out just to make us stop and remember how much He loves us.  Try to be aware today of the things you notice when you slow down a bit. It’s SOOO hard to do. But I am keenly aware that I have been missing so much… in the stillness.   And that so often prevents me from savoring all of the beauty we have been given.

Good Morning! It’s still crisp and Fallish here but I am hearing rumors of snow in Maine already. So not ready for that. Today we get to head over to Maine (from the comfort of our own warm homes and NOT in the snow) to visit my friend Jennifer! Jennifer and I are “blog friends” and have gotten to know each other over the last year or so. When I started this blog and began reading blogs I kind of didn’t understand how bloggers could even really get to know each other. But I honest to goodness count Jennifer as a friend. I could hop on a plane today and spend a weekend with her and have a wonderful time without even thinking it was strange.  She and I have shared thoughts on all boy families, motherhood, job ideas and making a house a home.  I spotted her porch on another blog and clicked over one day and haven’t stopped visiting. You can visit her at her blog The Finest Kind of Life .  Here’s what Jennifer had to say about home…

For years I struggled with the “making a house a home” thing; I longed to be surrounded by beauty, but felt guilty fluffing up my house. Terribly guilty. Shouldn’t I give everything to the poor? The hurting? It’s not as if we are extraordinarily wealthy; we are a family of 5 on a high school teachers income. But we have so much more than so many…so why should I spend it on throw pillows? On fabric? On a rug? Isn’t that going too far?

It’s not going too far. {Whew, right?}

God made us for beauty, and He made us to help one another out. While we should prioritize giving and helping those in need (believe me, that is more important than a throw pillow!), we should also realize that by buying, we are giving.

My family is living in that stage of life where we have to be thrifty. Creative. Make new from old…make do. Paint samples (for actual painting projects, not just for color ideas) and fabric coupons are my best friends. Would I like that $2000, made in America sofa? Yes! Can I afford it? No! Will I be able to afford it someday? Maybe…and if I can, I will buy it in a heartbeat. Because I’m helping to support someone with that purchase. I’m supporting someone’s artistry and God-given talents. I’m keeping people in jobs and helping to fuel their passion with that purchase! My family has started a business, and it is SO exciting to have someone recognize our passion and support it. In return we are able to give to others; through gifts and donations; through purchasing materials for OUR business. Simple economics!

I bought a rug a few weeks ago; it was $100 on Overstock. Right now $100 is a big deal to us. But I had some Discover Card bucks (we do use a credit card, but pay it off monthly so we can use the reward dollars for fun things). I had enough to *almost* cover it, but I hit the “buy” button anyway, and we had to live on peanut butter and jelly for a few days before payday. It probably wasn’t the wisest use of my funds, to be completely honest. Sometimes I take the non-Dave Ramsey route, for sure. But tonight, my husband was sitting on the couch in our living room and commenting on how much he appreciated a clean, well decorated house to come home to. A house that has become “us”. Whose belongings aren’t being paid off on the charge card. {Albeit paid with a few pb & j’s, occasionally} So impulse buy be darned; I have a happy husband! Just remind me not to make a habit out of it, ok?

We’re all at different stages in life, financially. We try to honor God by being wise with our funds, by staying out of debt, by giving as He leads. After that, if we can afford to add a little beauty to our house…I believe He’s all for it!!

this is the porch that made me want to know Jennifer…isn’t it so cute?! The bunting, the hand painted signs, I can just imagine relaxing out there while kiddos nap!

Jennifer recently refinished her dining room. I love the beadboard wallapaper, family photos, chevron fabric!!

I love the monogram over the bed that Jennifer MADE!  Crazy. Thinking this might be added to my wishlist. Jennifer’s shop is 163 Design Company. She and her parents are hand making gorgeous things! A year ago she was dabbling in some sign making and now she owns a company! Very fun stuff!  Another great place to scope out Christmas gifts for family or add to your own wishlist.

Have a great day y’all!

So I have talked here a bit on hospitality and sharing what you have. Sometimes hospitality isn’t about having people into your space but about sending out a bit of what you have! In the midst of the penny pinching and meal planning and planning for our next family celebration we can get um…a tad bit focused on us. I have worked hard to make sure that taking care of others is part of our weekly schedule.  It doesn’t always have to be but it is often in the form of nourishing others!  No matter how bad the economy is I feel like we can all find ways to share what we have with others.

We are off to our nieces and nephew’s baptism this morning so I don’t have lots of time but I thought I would post a little fall treat mix recipe that is 5 mins of work to mix up but is nice to pass on to co-workers and neighbors.  We first had this little snack mix at my friend Annie’s house. So this is in no way anything I made up! It’s easy, peazy but so yummy!

Mix together the following in a big bowl:

salted peanuts

golden raisins

candy corn

reece’s pieces peanut butter candies

almonds

pecans

Use whatever ratios you like. ou can make this mix as healthy as you want. For our batch I did plain almonds and pecans but added the salted peanuts. The salted peanuts added enough salt for flavor but kept the snack on the healthier side. I am all about my kids getting a candy corn or reece’s here or there if they are also getting a handful of nuts too!  And you could also do it more like a chex mix substituting the extra nuts with chex cereal.

Grab a few baggies and some fall color ribbon and fill’em on up. Have them handy for friends or neighbors. Jackson took some to his teachers who had a work afternoon ahead of them. Another bag went to my friend Bonnie who was working long shifts in the ER. They were so thankful for a little treat! Throw the rest in a jar for snacks for your family.

Happy Fall! (I know it’s sneaking away from us and winter is on it’s way, but we will enjoy it while it’s here)

When I was growing up we had a cookie jar. My mom was home during our early school years and I can remember many of our snacks being something homemade.  Until recently we didn’t have a cookie jar. I finally found a big glass jar at a garage sale and it does the job!

About a month ago I started a little tradition with Jackson of baking on Sunday afternoons. We don’t make anything fancy. Normally just something to fill the cookie jar for the week to come. It isn’t really about the cookies or muffins, although they do make good after school snacks and treats for lunch boxes. It’s more about spending time being together in our home away from the distractions. The rest of the week we bustle and keep so busy without really producing much to show for our busyness. On Sundays we go to church and spend the rest of the day relaxing and make it a point not to make big plans. Our Sunday baking is a relaxing activity (minus the egg rolling off on to the floor and things going in far from the recipes directions) that allows me to steal a little one on one time with Jackson who is gone so much of his days now in school.

Last Sunday we made simple peanut butter cookies, oh if you could have seen my boy pressing cookies with the fork…made.his.day. These cookies pictured above are from Gina’s Skinny Taste blog. They were the Pumpkin Spice Oatmeal Pecan Cookies.  I try to look for recipes that will be healthy and also a bit of a treat. I was pleased with these because Owen thought he was getting cookies and I knew he was getting oats, pumpkin, nuts…I think I will try these homemade granola bars next.

I am off to help with the MOPs fall consignment sale. If any of you are local and want to get over to Ashburn today I will be there helping out and would love to see you! It is going to be a madhouse of people scrambling for bargains.  And Seth is at home POTTY TRAINING the O man! The mad house of shoppers doesn’t sound so bad now does it!?    Have a great Saturday, y’all!