It's almost here...

today is christmas eve... eve. Today my mother-in-law brought over our stockings and set them up under the tree... then covered them with a blanket. Do you have any idea how hard it is to not look under that blanket? Especially because right now my husband is asleep and I'm the only one here... I could... no.. I couldn't.... or could I? I guess my best bet is to go to sleep too. The sooner I'm asleep the sooner I can wake up and the closer it will be to Christmas morning! Eeeek!!!!

(Abbie, notice your gifts under the tree?... notice how you are amazing in every way?)

I'm really looking forward to Christmas (duh)! Especially because that means I'll be off work for a whole week! Tomorrow at 2pm I'll be done and won't go back until next Friday! I can't wait to get some down time, work has been super busy, which is really good... but really exhausting. I hope these next couple days will be amazing for everyone! I'm looking forward to sleeping by the Christmas tree tomorrow night. Traditions are so great. It's a little hard for me making traditions, this is mine and Nathan's second Christmas as a married couple (which is crazy in and of itself) and I feel a little sad not participating in family traditions with my parents. Like making homemade marshmallows with my mom and delivering them to all our friends... Things just change... they are all good changes, without a doubt, but I feel all nostalgic inside... Christmas makes me want to be a kid again and wake up hearing my brother sing, "You gotta get up, you gotta get up, you gotta get up! It's Christmas morning!"

Tomorrow I'll be making cinnamon rolls all day. That's another tradition we do around here... it's a delicious one! What are some family Christmas traditions you do around your home?

Merry Christmas, friends!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Today I am thankful for...

My friend Rae, who inspired me to make a thankful list.

My husband, who is working a graveyard shift right now in preparation for Black Friday at Target.

My family, that will be all together over one roof for dinner tomorrow.

This website

Creme Brulee


A Job.

A the ability to do what I love.

This Man. And his voice.

Looking back.

Nathan and I celebrated our first wedding anniversary this past Sunday. It was wonderful. Our weekend started out with Stumptown Coffee at the Bipartisan Cafe and a drive to the beach. Cape Lookout is truly breathtaking. Someday we will camp there, without a doubt. The hike was fun, we booked it! We passed so many people hiking, I felt really good about myself. Working out has really improved my hiking skills, who would have thought?! 5 miles was long, but so doable!

After our hike we drove south to Pacific City where we had a fabulous lunch at The Pelican Brewery. Nathan enjoyed his beer while I enjoyed my... water.

The evening was beautiful, amazing sunset! On the beach outside our hotel was a really great tide pool, which was something I really wanted to explore! I am completely blown away by sea life. I could spend hours looking at all the incredible animals and plants.

Here is a collaboration of photos of Nathan and my first year together as a married couple. This year has been so much more than I ever could have imagined. I love my husband, I love the home we live in, and I love how the Lord has provided for us through and through.

Mother's Day

This mothers day was a big success. Nathan and I honored our mothers by making them a wonderful breakfast - waffles from scratch with homemade whipped cream and fresh strawberries along with a mushroom, tomato and basil egg scramble! YUM!

After breakfast we hopped in the car and drove to Aloha to the Barefoot Quilt Festival. It was a little hard to find, but once we made it to the Jenkins Estate it was worth it! The Estate was beautiful, so much history within the home. I told Nathan I wish we knew about this place when we were looking for places to get married, not that our wedding was not perfect, it was just that pretty!

The quilts were really great, the theme was "Then and Now - Twenty Years of Quilts" Each artist had a quilt from twenty years ago next to a quilt they made this year. My favorite was the water color quilts...

I also really loved the fabric stretched over canvas to create a different kind of look...
After the quilt festival we drove to Elk Rock at The Bishops Close, Portland's best kept secret. The gardens are beautiful! It was so relaxing and definitely will become a regular place to visit on sunny days. Here are some pictures I took while exploring...






It was a perfect day. We are so blessed to have our parents in our lives that support us and care about us. It was fun spoiling our moms with a homemade breakfast and flowers.

Mother's Day has always been a fond memory for me, this was the first year I was not home with my mom so I had to make it special in a different way. Growing up, we would get up early before mom and make her breakfast in bed and bring it to her while singing,

Happy Mother's Day to you,
Happy Mother's Day to you,
Happy Mother's Day dear Mommy....
Happy Mother's Day to you!

I'm looking forward to the day that song will be sung to me by my little ones... until then, I will celebrate my mom - she is a wonderful mother and friend. I appreciate her so much and I don't know what I would do without her. Even within these past few months I feel like our relationship has grown to another level. I pray my children think of me the same way I think of my mom, she is beautiful inside and out, in every way.

I am honored to say this year I have taken in another mother as well! Getting married has its perks in so many ways, I have twice the family I had before! Carol has been such a blessing to me and I look forward to the future we'll share together. She is the only woman that loves my husband as much as I do and that means the world to me.

Mother's Day might be one of my favorite holidays, and I'm not even a mom! :)

Here's a shout out to our moms! We love you SO MUCH!!

Valentine's Day STRIKE!

This year for Valentine's Day my darling husband and I decided to lay low. I started off the day with making eggs benedict, yum! Shortly after breakfast we watched our wedding video, it really took me back to that wonderful day, all the people, the laughter. No surprise I cried as I watched the love of my life say his vows he wrote for me. Oh gosh, I love that man.

The day was sunny but slightly brisk, the clouds overhead were threatening, but could never overthrow the power of the warm sun. We walked with our coffees in hand up to Mt. Tabor. We however, were not the only ones there on this fateful holiday, we were not alone. As we trekked up the hill we heard sounds of crashing and yelling. Unsure of what awaited us at the top of the mountain, we continued walking, conversing about little things. Once we had reached the top we were shocked, but pleased, at what our eyes were seeing. Human Bowling. Yes it is true, these eccentric portlanders get on their little bikes and petal as fast as they can into traffic cones, hoping they can get a strike. The crowd grew as more and more wondered what the peculiar ruckus was up north. This made my day, knowing people throw themselves into traffic cones on Valentine's Day, the holiday when single people would rather die than recognize they are single.

No one seemed to be getting hurt, it was a pretty safe sport considering the circumstances. Lucky for these "bowling balls" the cones are forgiving and soften the blow. Most walk away with some mud on their hinies and the sting of victory over the cones they recently dominated. Portland has hit an all time high for me at this point, I love it. I love that I could observe such a fantastic sport. I plan on attending next year, with a better camera.