A Joke

I know I've been out (as my mother says) "out of commish" for the last week but its been a really busy one and I've barely been on the internet much less been able to write anything. But I had to write this story, before I forget to, for posterity's sake.

What does this....

...have to do with this?


So this past Sunday, we got up a bit late, I had to rush through my shower and instead of blowing my hair dry (or not, as is usually the case) I put in a set of Japanese hair sticks and ran out the door. When we got to church, I went to take Bram out of the car and he started waving his arms and pointing at my head. I signed "what?" to him and asked what he was pointing at. He kept pointing at my head and finally he signed "bunny"!

We laughed and laughed! To him my hairsticks looked like bunny ears! It was his first joke. So cute.

It's back!

It's that time of year again. The days are shorter, the nights are colder, our drinks are pumkpin-ier. Is that a real word? I don't know but in my house it is!

Anyway.... I love the Pumpkin Spice Mocha at Starbuck's. Yes, you heard me right. NOT the Latte' but the Mocha. It's like a decadent creamy pumpkin pie with a chocolate crust. Or Pumpkin Cheesecake with a chocolate espresso sauce drizzled over top. Or heaven in a cup, if you really want to know how I feel about it.

Sooo.... Starbuck's has the delicious, wonderful, nectar of the gods beverages for the very affordable price of...$6.00 a cup. WHAT!?!?!!!! (yes, it the Grande)

That is not in my budget, not even a little bit. So I've been scouring the internet for an alternative I can make at home. So far I've found a few delicious Latte's but still no pumpkin mochas. I guess I could put some chocolate in my homemade latte if I have to.

Here are a few of the yummy Latte' recipes I've found.

Made it in the blender for frothy goodness!
The Kitchn- DIY Pumpkin Spice Latte'

Make it with a homemade vanilla syrup!
Smith Bites- Starbuck's Pumpkin Spice Latte'



The best part of making your cup of loveliness at home? You can stay home a do this....

(did you notice, they're making a list of their dreams...hmmm...)

Ahh... who are we kidding. We'll actually be doing this...

Have a great day!

Happy Anniversary Babe!

In our house, we celebrate many things and many "holidays". Today is one such day!

It's the 4th anniversary of the day Chad asked me to be his wife!!!!
(this is not our wedding. It's another celebration!)

It was a lovely day, full of unexpected surprises (I knew it was going to happen, so there were many other weird surprises instead!)and interrupting foreign tourists.

When it actually happened, it was so funny and obvious what was going on that afterwards we realized he never actually said " will you marry me?" and I never said "yes"! Some how we communicated our intentions anyway and it was wonderful.

Sweetie, I'm so glad you asked me to share your life. There has never been a day or moment in the past four years that I've regretted it or even wondered if I made the right choice. The only thing I've wondered was what it would have been like to marry you sooner! I love everything about you including (but not limited to)- your curly hair, attached ear lobes, and brown eyes. Without you I would never have learned so many things about the world of science, history, the Navy and love.
(this is Chad with Nicola Tesla)

I love you wonderful, handsome, hubby! Here's to our forever!

Grocery Shopping and Menu Planning for Dummies (Like me!) Pt.1

So being a competitive grocery shopper is a big deal on the Internet, if you haven't noticed. It seems like every where I turn is some new way to cut your grocery bill by "(enter obscene number of $$$)". But most of the help found on the front page of Yahoo isn't really helpful to the family who's trying to REALLY cut their grocery bills. People who are not doing it because its a fun hobby in a time of economic crisis but because they have no other option in their current financial situation.

So I headed over to the blogging world.

There are thousand upon thousands of blogs out there advocating extreme couponing, playing the "drugstore game", and becoming an tightwad of Olympic proportions. Not that there's anything wrong with those money saving measures but...they're not for me. Especially, if I need to practice them on a longer term basis, like the duration of Law School.

If you are at all inclined to research those methods of saving money, you need to consider a few things first-

1) What is your personality?
Are you very competitive? Are you motivated by a feeling of victory when you get a deal others might feel guilty about getting? (I'm not saying you are doing something wrong but some people feel guilty for various reasons in that situation. I am one of them.) Do you like the idea of cooking more than scouting for coupons? Are you a homebody? Are you easily overwhelmed or confused? Does the grocery store stress you out?

2) What is your Husband's personality?
Does he think this would be a huge waste of your time? Even after showing him how great the deals are? Does he disagree with stockpiling items you might not need in order to get a deal you do need? Does he like home cooked food or convenience foods? Is he willing to join in a grab deals when you can't make it out? Is he willing to learn the ropes too?

3)What stage is your family in right now?
Can you afford the time to learn the ropes of competitive shopping? Can you afford the inevitable mistakes you will make? Do you have to much on your plate already, be it that you're in the toddler stage or the driving your teens all over creation stage? Do you live in the city/suburbs or in the country? Do you know how to cook or do use a lot of convenience foods? Will this be a short term adjustment or will you have to practice it long term? Do you a car available for you?

All these things are very important to consider when choosing how you will attack your grocery bill. After struggling with trying to be like those amazing extreme shoppers, I've finally made peace with where we are right now. And surprisingly, our target budget and bills are comparable to the extreme shoppers without the hassle!

So I'm going to try and explain in the next few weeks/posts how I do it. Hopefully, it will be helpful to you.

Red, White and Fall

This autumn my fireplace mantle has taken a less than "fall-ish" feel. But I'm okay with that.
This summer I decorated my mantle for the 4th of July and not long after that my oldest, younger brother (does that make any sense? For some reason it does to me!) finally fullfilled a dream to join the Army and left for bootcamp. I decided to leave it up for him until he came back.





How amazing is it that there are still young men who dream of serving their country by voluntarily joining during a time of war. I'm so proud of my kid brother.

The mantle has been the perfect reminder of the sacrifice many families are making this fall so we can have the freedom to celebrate the upcoming holidays in our own homes.


Lord of the Rings has nothing to do with 4th of July, BootCamp or the American Flag. My brother Jordan is a big geek and loves it sooo much. He'd read the books and play LOTR Risk all day if we let him. (We don't. We avoid it at all cost) It reminds me of him so much.


I love you kid brother! Thank you for making such a sacrifice for all the people you know and all those you don't know by defending your country. I can't wait to see you at Graduation!

I've linked up to The Nester's Mantle Party. Check out the other great ladies linked up there too! Later this week I should have all my other Fall decorating done so come back and see me then!