Christmas Tree, O' Christmas Tree...

Last night Ryan and I had a BLAST decorating our Christmas tree. :) It's not 100% finished yet because there are a few crafts that I would like to do (God-willing...futures posts will come), but it is lovely and home-y. :)

As we put the tree together (we use a faux tree) we played wonderful, old-school Christmas music (I'm talking Frank Sinatra...etc). Loved it! I love when we can goof off and sing and just plain old have fun together.

Once we had done all the tree-stuff that we were planning to do, we attempted to take a couple of pictures with us and with the puppies!! You'll see... :)

How do you decorate your tree? Do you keep it traditional or go for the trends?

A Day of Thanks

Today is a day that American's donate to Thanksgiving and we recognize the many blessings in our lives. I try to be thankful everyday, but in honor of this holiday I will share some of the many things I am thankful for.

In pictures, here are some of the people/things I am thankful for!

Salvation

My Husband! Photo Courtesy of Evan Taylor.

The AMAZING relationship Ryan and I share.

Petey Puppy!

Bailey (the newest addition to our family!!)

I am also thankful for the rest of my family, my friends, quality time spent with others, the roof over my head, the food in my belly, the bed I sleep in, the opportunity to further my education, my health, and love.

What are you thankful for today?

Coffee Date with My Love and A Pop of Coral

Ryan and I planned a little Starbucks date to take advantage of their buy one get one free deal regarding holiday drinks. I LOVE their peppermint mocha! Delicious! :) I greatly enjoy when Ryan and I are able to take some time to sit down and just talk with one another over coffee. It is relaxing and reminds me a lot of when we were dating. Fun!!

What did I wear? Simple. I wore jeans (Kohls), a striped tee (JCrew), a vest for warmth (thrifted--Kenneth Cole), and for a pop of color....a coral "pashmina" (Kohls). Oh yeah, and grey bow flats (thrifted--Jcrew)!

This is my favorite way to tie my scarves..."pretzel-like"!

No vest. I hate how the straight lines of the shirt get distorted!

Errand running days can be made simple with the following equation: jeans + 3/4 tee + scarf (or statement necklace) = fun and casual. :) Sweet and simple!

What are your fall/winter staples?

Special Homemade Dinners

This is not a tutorial or an outfit post, it is simply a post to brag on the husband of the century--mine! Tonight I came home from work to a cooked, well-thought out dinner. Ryan worked 10 long hours today (as he does Monday through Friday every week) so that he could provide for our family, and STILL found the energy and care to plan a special dinner for us! He cooked spaghetti and pasta with sausage. He also prepared garlic bread sticks and a Cesar salad. It was all delicious! He topped it off with a little moscato (sweet wine). Neither of us drink very much; in fact, we rarely have alcohol in the house, but the other night we ate out at Olive Garden and tried a sample of their house wine (which was apparently moscato). It is yummy (light and sweet). Anyway, it was a delicious meal and I felt truly cherished.

I  am so blessed by Ryan. I would have said that he was "the husband of the day" or "the husband of the year" but the fact is...we have been married for almost 2 years and 4 months and he truly strives to show me how special I am every day. He is always sweet, thoughtful, caring, hardworking, loyal, and full of surprises! I can only hope that I respect him and show him the same amount of love that he shows me in every new minute.

Men, take the time to show your wife how much she means to you, not only in the big things (which can be so wonderful) but also in the little things, in the meals, the comments, the looks, the thought behind surprises...in everything. It will make your wife go the extra mile for you every time. It will build her self-confidence and make her a better spouse for you.

Women, take the time to learn what it is to respect your husband. Trust him with you heart. Trust him with the many decisions that he makes on a daily basis. Realize that he loves you and has your best interest at heart.

Never stop doing the little things for one another. Never stop planning time for special homemade dinners.

Day Date: Foliage Drive

October is such a wonderful month for fun fall dates. God has dressed up the world with beautiful foliage and nice, neutral weather. Today, my sweet husband decided to take advantage of that. :) He stocked us up with coffee and snacks, as well as stocked the Jeep's gas and air (in the tires). He then whisked me off onto an adventure. We spent hours (literally) driving through quiet country roads and the curvacious, color littered mountains. It was so fun! I LOVE looking at all the lovely leaves. I also love the peace found in country roads and the majesty in mountains. We toured, talked, commented on the beauty, and stopped at various lookouts to take pictures. :) Here are a few (warning....the pictures were taken with my Iphone and do not do the colors and vibrancy justice!):

I love this little old Bel-Air!

Me and my sweetie :)

I love that you can see the ripples in the mountain.

The handsome man with me again. :)

I simply love this.

Wow.

We had SO much fun. If you have the opportunity, I would highly suggest you mimic our date! It's a blast and a great way to remind yourself of the beauty that God has created for us! :)

As for my outfit...it was simple. I wore light gray cords (GAP), an orange eyelette tee (Arizona), black faux suede boots (they are super old and I have no idea where I bought them...), and a black puffy vest (Kenneth Cole).

Ryan caught me a little off guard...making a funny face and putting my hands in my pockets! :)

Regardless of whether or not you and your love choose to do this particular date, I encourage you to date your spouse! Keep the fun and romance alive. Also, talk with your spouse! Ryan and I are best best best friends and talk with each other about everything. I know that not all spouses are like that with one another, but I encourage you to try. Communication is SO important in marriage and practice makes perfect. :)

Buckeyes

Okay, one more post for tonight! I am waiting for my love to come home. He's been working out of state all day. I know he had a rough day, so I decided to whip up a little surprise for him (he better not see this before he gets his surprise because that would mean he is reading his phone while driving....that's a big no no!) Anyway, he LOVES buckeyes. I haven't made them for a while...probably about a year (at least it seems that way). After work I went to the store and bought a couple of the ingredients I was not sure we would have enough of at home, and then headed home to chocolate-y, peanut buttery goodness! I found the recipe here on AllRecipes.com. They are super simple.

Ingredients

Makes 5 dozen  

• 1 1/2 cups creamy peanut butter
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 4 cups sifted confectioners' sugar
• 6 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 2 tablespoons shortening

Directions

1. Line a baking sheet with waxed paper; set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, mix peanut butter, butter, vanilla, and confectioners' sugar with hands to form a smooth stiff dough. Shape into balls using 2 teaspoons of dough for each ball. Place on prepared pan, and refrigerate.
3. Melt shortening and chocolate together in a metal bowl over a pan of lightly simmering water. Stir occasionally until smooth, and remove from heat.
4. Remove balls from refrigerator. Insert a wooden toothpick into a ball, and dip into melted chocolate. Return to wax paper, chocolate side down, and remove toothpick. Repeat with remaining balls. Refrigerate for 30 minutes to set.

Results???

Chocolate and peanut butter...how can you go wrong?? Yum!! I hope he enjoys them! :)
 

Dating My Husband

Ryan planned a little date-night for us this evening. It was SO much fun! :) This past summer Ryan and I bought some cruiser bicycles. Tonight we hooked them up to the Jeep and went out to some of the local trails for a little relaxing exercise. :) We love going on bike rides! We get all geared up with helmets and everything! We're a couple of big dorks. Safety first! ;) lol Here are a couple of pictures from our ride:

The trails have SUCH beautiful scenery, especially this time of year!

After our ride we stocked up on calories at Outback! Yum!! :)

It is so important to continue having fun and dating your spouse. You need to make sure that your spouse and your relationship receive attention and that you continue to make memories that you can cherish for decades to come. When you begin to take your husband (or wife) for granted your relationship will suffer unnecessarily. Marriage takes a continuous, conscious effort to love, respect, and serve your spouse increasingly in each moment. If you do these things...marriage is easy, and FUN! I want to encourage all of you married folk to take the time during this beautiful season to date your spouse! :) Have fun! Laugh! Smile! Take pictures! Make lasting memories. :)

Weekend Fun!

           Ryan and I had a wonderful weekend. :) Though I had a lot of grad work due Sunday night we still managed to go to the apple orchard (which doubles as a petting zoo) and host a cookout to celebrate the new deck that Ryan built us! :) It was amazing. Ryan grilled some chicken in the smoker and I baked some Pumpkin Brown Butter Cupcakes with Cinnamon Frosting (which I will post about next!). We shared many hours with good friends eating, talking, and hanging out around a bonfire. You simply cannot beat that. :) Here are a few pictures I took at the orchard/zoo! :)

Going to an apple orchard is just one of those things that I want to go to every autumn. I love it! :) There are other things on my fall bucket list that I will post about as I complete them.

What fun things make your fall bucket list? :)

Marry the One Who Makes You Laugh

There is a quote rolling around Pinterest recently. I will admit...I pinned it. I pin everything (jk). I do pin a lot though. I just love the ease of seeing something I know I will want to do later (or at the very least look at again later) and putting it in a place where I will be able to easily find it and recognize it by picture.

Anyway, back to this quote...It was said/written/who knows what--by Joanne Woodward. She said, "Sexiness wears thin after a while and beauty fades, but to be married to a man who makes you laugh every day, ah, now that's a real treat." It is so true. That is not to say that I don't find my husband extremely sexy (because believe me...I do ;) lol) but it is to say that you should not marry someone for their looks. You need to click with someone, to be able to be your true self around them, to grow with them, to trust them, to have fun with them, to laugh with them, to love them unconditionally. Today I had a good dose of the laughter that Ryan brings to my life. What can I say, he's a funny guy. :) He makes me laugh...and you will see just a little bit of it in one of the pictures for my outfit of the day. ...The picture where my eyes are so squinty that I could probably barely see at that moment. Yeah...that's what he does to me. :) That is the kind of joy that my love brings to my life. I am blessed. :) :)

Anyway, enjoy my outfit of the day (or don't! lol). I wore a floral dress (Angie), black leggins (Target?), fuchsia tank (Loft), rosette flat sandals (NY&Co.), brown belt (no name...TJ Maxx). :)

 Now, I have never layered this belt (or any belt) over this dress. I never thought to layer a brown belt over the dress because, well...quite frankly it doesn't match. BUT life isn't always about matching and neither is fashion. I actually quite like this together. It gives the outfit a little more oomph.

 This is my "I'm laughing so hard that I can't see but I'm trying not to show it because I'm taking pictures for my blog!" face. :) Also, in this picture I get to show you something else I love...pockets! I ADORE when dresses and skirts have pockets! :)

Do you like dresses and skirts with pockets?? I think they are so fun! :)