the back door

if you follow my blog, you will have noticed i have seasons where i get unsettled. i have a longing - one that is often hidden deep inside and rarely shared with anyone. i like it kept quietly tucked in my heart and mind. but lately this desire keeps rising to the surface. the desire to slow down, to be present, to be quiet. last week hubby brought the nooma noise dvd for 20x class. we had not previewed it - but boy was it good. there was a bit of noise and talking and then silence. silence for about 7-8 minutes while we read words written in write text on a black screen. simple, pure, silent, penetrating... the past 3 weeks have been a whirlwind around here. we went from being settled here at home to buying a farm outside of town. this is one of those times when i feel like God is totally smiling down on us...and in the midst of this whirl fell thanksgiving. i tried to reflect on this past year. boy has it been good...just a good year, it just seemed like the reflecting was done while

guess what's coming???? i'm super duper excited.... yep...i ordered meself a mixer! a kitchen aid one to be exact!! i'm not one for black friday shopping, but while at the in -laws i noticed a good deal on the basic kitchen aid mixer at sears today. it was marked down to $149. good deal right? atleast, please tell me it is. so i decided i'd make the early morning treck. this sale only lasted until 11 am and ti would be alteast a 50 minute drive there. but then i started looking through kohl's ads....they had the same mixer priced at $199. but this then had an additional 15% off, plus $30 back in kohl's cash. well the 15% alone dropped the price comparable to sears. plus we have $50 kohl's gift card i could use....and I could get all the deals on line today! now, the only bad part is i'm not coming home with it and have to wait on shipping - which was free today if i ordered over $100. so for $100 i got my kitchen aid mixer.....can you hear me sing

last week i was driving home from somewhere when this song came on. i love this song. it just makes me happy. i start to smile and be-bop in no time! of course that isn't hard for me. music is what feeds my soul... but i started thinking...what would i do if i had a million dollars? what would i buy? i'm actually a pretty simple girl. it doesn't take much to make me happy. a $5 vintage ring thrilled me for my 10 year anniversary! see? simple. sure, there are those mornings i wish i could just go buy new clothes, but for the most part, i'm content. however, i did have a few thoughts i'd share with you. ... a kitchen-aid mixer would definitely make that list. especially after yet another insane moment recently shared with my friend the hand mixer. i told hubby this was going to be the year without christmas cookies. he said "okay" but i don't think he heard me right. he loves christmas cookies! then there are these....i LOVE scarves.

....just in case you didn't already know that about me!! this weekend we let our 20x's in on a little family tradition - the charlie brown thanksgiving. i believe i blogged about that last year...so look in my november 08 archives. wow, archives sounds so cool and official, yet it really isn't. hmm.. okay, so anyways, my issues. well, we had them over for dinner and the main course of popcorn, while although a hit, provided many leftover opportunities. i thought about popcorn soup, but that didn't sound too good. i couldn't think of the right kind of veggie to add. then there is popcorn casserole. tempting, yet, still not quite right. i fed some scraps to the dog and sent some in the kiddos lunch bags. but still, an entire roasting pan of popcorn left me puzzled. bag and freeze? pocorn pot pie? ah....caramel corn!! ooey gooey, warm homemade caramel popcorn.... so this afternoon, i made some caramel corn for after school....OH MY WORD!! i love this re

monday evening i was loading the dishwasher (still a bittersweet thing, but i do love it!), hubby was upstairs, mapboy was on the computer and princess was reading. all of a sudden princess let out a very loud scream. i turned to see her perched on the back of our couch. now, i immedietly see myself 5 years old screaming from the back of our green couch because i had just seen a mouse. and since we have recently caught 3 ourselves, i was a bit freaked out. but being the mommy now, i have to be a big girl. so i go in, fully expecting to see a mouse. instead, i am met with a handful of slobbery air head and "i just cracked my new tooth!!!!" oh she surely didn't do that.... i have her open up, new tooth is still intact, but the air heads have magically wiggled the sliver of baby tooth left behind the new tooth. now, this tooth has slowly been disappearing for about 2 years. yes, truly disappearing. much to my delight and her panic, it was finally coming out. ther

so, i've blogged about trying to simplify our life. well, that has me attempting to create a bit of a haven here at home. i wouldn't say i'm doing it all that well, but i'm trying to make a few small changes here and there. one of those changes has been a return to baking! i love to bake - always have, but due to health issues i've cut back. but i've been researching healthier recipes so i'm trying to bake in a healthy way. last week i made pumpkin oatmeal cookies with cinnamon chips. they were yummy!! very yummy!! but i only used 1/2 of my giant can of pumpkin. working on being frugal as well, and not wasteful, i covered the can and stuck it in the fridge. well, today i knew i needed to use that pumpkin up. it was a rare day for me. a lazy morning, a wonderful time of coffee with a friend, and an afternoon home alone. i cranked up the country - i tend to enjoy sassy country music and like to sing and dance along with it! it seemed like the perfect day to tr

so i'm not a big fan of halloween. i know, i'm the party pooper, but i honestly could skip the whole day!! i love fall and harvest and pumpkins and all that stuff...just not the spooky things that come along with it. but hubby loves halloween and he has worked hard to pass that love on down to our kiddos. so one sunday after church (i usually get home a bit later then my family) i walked in to find him and princess making a halloween tree. she worked hard at decorating it. hubby was giddy with the whole process and princess was letting her creative side show. she asked for orange lights...and i guess while hubby was out working he made a stop for some orange lights to add the finishing touch. this tree has been with us for the month...and now i'm thinking of turning it into a gratitude tree...because, well, i actually have grown quite fond of it! here is reggie wayne and hannah montana (well, kind of). each year i make the kids find their own costumes without pur