The winner of the Goose Waddle Blanket Set Giveaway has been randomly selected using Rafflecopter! And the winner is:
The winner of the Poppy Rose bib giveaway has been randomly selected using Rafflecopter! And the winner is:
Thank you to everyone who participated in these giveaways. Remember, there’s still time to enter my Konjac Sponge giveaway! And I’ve got lots more fun giveaways coming up really soon! xo
SHOP THE LIST:
Just a few gift ideas for a special lady in your life — inspired by my own Christmas wish list. I’ll be sharing a few more gift guides in the coming days. Next up — a gift guide For Him. And the last guide will be For Baby, of course! Have a lovely weekend. xo
Back in October, our microwave died. It was a week before our Halloween party and I was a little bit panicked thinking that I would need a microwave for party prep. We had intended to replace it, but things got hectic and then the party came and went. No microwave, no problem. The dead microwave remained in its place on the shelf. Weeks came and went. We pretty much forgot about the dead microwave. Then, last week, I had a craving for popcorn. Whatever would we do? I decided to get a bag of “old-fashioned” kernels. I put a little bit of oil in the bottom of a medium pot and then added the kernels in. Put a lid over it and turned the burner on to medium heat. It was so fun to listen to that popcorn popping and eventually pushing the lid right up off of the pot. I put it all in a big bowl, added a little bit of olive oil & salt, et voila! It was the most delicious popcorn ever. That night we decided to say goodbye to our microwave. It had been well over a month since it’d crapped out and we didn’t miss it.
The debate over whether microwaves are dangerous or not has been raging for awhile. There are strong arguments on both sides. Personally, I’ve always felt a little “icky” using the microwave. Perhaps it was all in my head but I didn’t like to stand in front of it when it was on — fearing that micro-waves would penetrate my body. (Too much sci-fi!?) I was also told by our pediatrician, and confirmed with further research, that I shouldn’t microwave breastmilk because it breaks it down and destroys its nutrients. I wonder if microwaves break down any other foods/nutrients.
Ultimately, we didn’t decide to get rid of our microwave for health reasons. It died of natural causes. 
But we don’t plan to replace it anytime soon. The delicious stove-topped popcorn is a bonus.
^^^ My boys waiting patiently for some popcorn goodness ^^^
What do you think? Do you use a microwave?
This week I definitely had one of those “oh-my-goodness-my-baby-is-not-a-tiny-little-baby-anymore” moments. It hit me like a ton of bricks. I don’t remember what we were doing but I was just looking at him & bam. He is so big! I can’t even deal. And then, to top it all off, he started sitting up on his own on December 1st.
^^^ His new silly face ^^^
Seriously? I mean, really! How did I ever get to be so lucky? A dear friend of mine has been visiting for a couple of days. Last night we went out for dinner & a drink — my first night out in a year! — and the conversation came around to motherhood. I started to explain M.’s and my relationship with Roman and the only word that I could use to describe it was obsessed. We are just so in love with this boy. If I had a dime for every time that we sit around staring at him, saying he’s so cute and he’s so smart… I’d be filthy rich. ♥
Ingredients
Directions
Mash chickpeas with a blender or a fork. Add chickpeas to a large bowl. Add onion, spices. Pour in about 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Mix together with spoon. Slowly mix in rice. Adding an egg at this point is optional. It will help with consistency. To keep this dish vegan you can skip the egg and add some extra olive oil. Knead all ingredients in the bowl with hands. Make sure that everything is mixed together and one, even consistency. Use hands to roll mixture into balls. Balls should be about the size of a golf ball. Place balls on a greased baking sheet. Drizzle a bit of olive oil over balls.
Place balls in oven and bake at 450 degrees for 25 minutes or until balls are crisp and slightly browned.
Remove from oven and let cool for 5 minutes before removing from tray. Serve with your choice of side. I paired ours with homemade creamed spinach/kale. It was delicious.
Bon appetit! Click here to have a look at some of my other recipes. xo
This month, we completed the installation of our new wood-burning stove. This is one of our first, and most important, steps toward sustainable living. Wood-burning stoves are one of the most energy efficient and environmentally-friendly ways to heat the home. Wood burners outperform both solar panels and ground source heat pumps. The type of stove that we chose — a double combustion wood burner — enables 90% of smoke and particles to be converted to heat, keeping emissions to a minimum. Additionally, the wood that we use in our stove is all sustainably harvested (by my husband) from fallen/dead trees.
We’ve been using the stove for about a week now and are already appreciating the benefits. Our dog Bella is the stove’s #1 fan. You will find her in front of it all day & night. This is a joy for Roman because he just adores her. Matthew loves the stove, too. Chopping firewood has always been a favourite activity for him. And I love it because it is beautiful to look at, friendly to the environment, and drastically decreases the money we spend on our winter gas bill.
I am really pleased with this addition to our home and grateful for the work that Matthew did to secure the best stove at the best price. There is nothing like cozying up to the fire with my family on a cold winter day.
I started this blog in the summer of 2009 as something to do when I was bored at work. It quickly evolved into a journey, my story, and a little community grew around it. Over the years, the concept has changed. It went from “self-help,” to motivational, to lifestyle, to a mommy blog. I hate to put a label on it though. It is simply an extension of me. It flows from me. Whatever is happening in my life, happens in my blog. Truthfully, I don’t know what my long-term hopes are for this blog. I would like it to keep growing. I’ve made the most beautiful & precious friendships through it. I’ve grown closer to a couple of my family members that read it faithfully. I’ve learned a tremendous deal about myself. I would love for all of this goodness to continue.
I hope that I can keep a good chronicle of Roman’s life here so that he might look back on it someday. I hope that I can provide something of value to my readers, recommendations that make life a little easier, a little sweeter. Mother Teresa said, “Let no one ever come to you without leaving better and happier.” I suppose that is my greatest hope for this space, that people leave it better and happier. That would be the greatest accomplishment that I could want.
Last week I hit 500 posts. Here’s to 500 more. Thanks for being along for the ride, friends.
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A special thank you to everyone that particiapted in my blogging challenge! I’ve had such fun reading all of your posts & comments! Without a doubt, I’ve gotten to know many of you better. I’ve also gotten to know myself a little bit better and the daily prompts have given me lots of food for thought for future posts & features. Blogging every day for 30 days got to be a real “challenge” at times, but I’m glad that I stuck with it.
You can click here to read all of the posts in this series. xo
My Confession: I am breaking a promise to write this post.
I had promised myself and my husband that I would not work today. And by work I mean blogging/photography work. Housewife work is okay, of course, if I stopped cooking, cleaning, caring for baby — you know, the whole world would implode.
I’ve been writing about balance a lot lately — particularly my own lack of balance. As I’ve mentioned, this blog is growing, as is my photography business. They’re growing because I’ve been putting so much time and energy into them. I didn’t realize it until M. pointed it out a few weeks ago, but I have been working 12+ hour days for awhile now. Of course a lot of my day consists of mommy/wife duties, but every spare moment goes into my other work. When you love something as much as I love my blog & my photography, it’s easy to lose yourself in it. You sit down to work on a post or to edit a few photographs and the next thing you know, three hours have gone by and that precious time when baby is asleep and you should be asleep, too, is gone.
I had planned to take today off entirely. I wanted to get my Day 29 challenge post written last night and just stay away. Clearly that didn’t happen and here I am. Do I honor my commitment to my blog? Do I honor my commitment to myself & my family? I know that it’s possible to do both. I have got to put a schedule together. That will be my Christmas present to myself this year: TIME MANAGEMENT. As my mother always used to tell me, I can’t keep burning the candle at both ends.
It will all work out, but for now, this is my confession. I’m an exhausted promise-breaker. *Sniffle, sniffle.*
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If you are participating in my blogging challenge, please leave a link below in the comments so that we can all check it out. You can click here to read all of the posts in this series. xo
I will never forget my most embarrassing moment. It was about five years ago, sometime within the first year that M. and I had started dating. We went to see a concert with two of his brothers and their girlfriends. We had decent seats and just in front and to the left of where we were sitting there was a short flight of stairs. Well, something slick must have spilled on those stairs and in the darkness/madness of the venue, no one was able to clean it up. Over the course of the night, folks kept slipping and falling hard. Luckily there were handrails to grab and most folks broke the fall by grabbing hold or fell flat on their backsides. Lots of people got a good laugh over it, but I cringed every time. I’m not one to laugh at another’s expense. I’m far too empathetic.
You probably know where this story is going… During intermission, we all headed to the restrooms and the concession stand. We were on our way back to our seats. I knew damned well that that slick spot was coming up but it didn’t matter. I must have lost focus for just one moment and it was the wrong moment. I slipped. My feet flew forward, I tried to grab the handrail but I was moving too quickly. Next thing I know I was flat on my ass. 
Matthew helped me up as he tried not to laugh. I could feel a million eyes burning into me. I shook it off, laughed it off, pretended that it didn’t hurt nearly as bad as it actually did. Ugh. I’ll never forget that awful moment! You know how when you first start dating someone, you try to be “so cool,” especially in front of their brothers and their girlfriends! Well, didn’t work so well for me that night. Oh well, at least I can look back on it & laugh.
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If you are participating in my blogging challenge, please leave a link below in the comments so that we can all check it out. You can click here to read all of the posts in this series. xo
This Thanksgiving my heart is bursting with gratitude. I am thankful for my beautiful family. My sweet, sweet Roman James — the light of my life. I am thankful for my husband — the very best Papa that I could ever want for my son. I am thankful for my mother and her limitless generosity. I am thankful for my health & my talents; that I have the freedom & ability to express myself through my photography & my writing. I am thankful for this blog & the incredible community that has grown around it — from the old friends who have been around all along, to the new ones who have found me since Roman was born. I am truly grateful for each & every one of you from the bottom of my heart.
Like I said at the beginning of this post — my heart is bursting with gratitude. I count my blessings every day, but today on this special day of thanks, my cup runneth over. xo