gramma's visit

kevin has been in DC this week so my mom came to help out for a few days.

lucky us!!! 

ivy was soo excited when i told her gramma was coming. (of course).

it was such a blessing to have her all to ourselves. 

these rascals are nuts for her. 

she cleaned out the whole garage, got the kids some adorable fall clothes,

 fed them as much as she could, got to see some of our spots,

and turned eli into a little boy overnight :) 

new kicks, new clothes, big boy car seat, and a hair cut. 

ivy hung on her like there was no tomorrow

and we loved having her here. 

she is such a burst of fresh happy air.

i'm so encouraged and inspired after being with her.

it is the worst thing ever watching her leave

(ivy and i cry like babies)

but i'm so thankful for the visit

and of course we'll see her soon! 

thanks for coming gramma!! we love you! 

side note: 

i wanted to grow his hair out

so mom was just giving him a little trim, 

but it didn't turn out as good as last time, so we had to jump in the car 

and take him to the barber. 

it was almost bedtime

so there he is in his jammies. 

mom's trying to distract him with a video of ollie. 

he's like "mom,  i thought we had a deal." 

i'm sorry buddy. 

you're still impossibly cute. 

sweet note:

i tucked eli in, and ivy and i were having a bowl of late night oh's.

(k gets home around midnight).

i asked her: what's your favorite thing you did with gramma?

she said without a pause and with the sweetest face:

hug and kiss her :)

pumpkin waffles

we made these a few days ago when our friend annie came over to make a gingerbread house with ivy! i know everyone is probably done with the pumpkin this year, but i just wanted to jot this down for my record because they were really good and worth remembering!

1 1/2 cups flour (I used whole wheat pastry flour for half)

3 t baking powder

1/2 t baking soda

1 t cinnamon

1 t nutmeg

1 t ground ginger (didn't have this)

a pinch of salt

2 eggs

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 cup pumpkin

1 2/3 cup of milk (can't remember how much i used... just add til desired consistency)

4 T butter, melted and cooled

Heat your waffle maker.

Mix together dry ingredients in a bowl. (flour, powder, soda, salt, spices)

In another bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, sugar, pumpkin and butter.

Gently fold in the flour mixture.

Spray waffle iron and pour your batter in.

Cook until brown and slightly crispy.

Serve with honey and syrup of course!

+these also freeze really well. just keep in a ziploc, and when you're ready to make them, put them straight in the toaster from the freezer. we've been eating them all week!+

pumpkin pie milkshakes

i have lots of pumpkin leftover, so i'm trying to use it all up.

next on my list: pumpkin waffles!

2 c vanilla ice cream

1 c milk

2/3 c pumpkin

1/4 c brown sugar

3/4 t pumpkin pie spice

1/2 t vanilla

blend all together.

top with whipped cream and pumpkin pie spice.

or you can do like my friend lisa and just put leftover pumpkin pie and ice cream in a blender and mix it all together (crust & all)! i tried it with paula deen's pumpkin butter cake and it works!

beef + bean chili

from the neely's. ya know... pat & gina from food network.

we had this at our friends on hallowen and i've been wanting to make it.

soooo last week i did.

i used all beef, and didn't have some of the spices, but it was still really good.

especially with LOTS of fritos and cheese!

oh ya, and i didn't add the bacon. that seemed overboard!

click here for the recipe.

thankful

i'm thankful for butter, pies and babies.

i'm thankful for my cozy, working kitchen

and the french doors i can close to make it my own little space,

and the big window i can open to let the fall breeze blow in.

i'm thankful for the oldies station in our kitchen that never turns off.

i'm thankful my husband will finally let me play christmas music tomorrow!

(thanksgiving is his favorite holiday so there's a strict rule about it).

i'm thankful for holidays,

even if it's just my own little family (and uncle craig!)

i'm thankful for them.

kevin, ivy and eli.

i'm thankful for the role they need, want and expect me to play.

i'm so, so thankful i get to be their wife and mom.

i'm thankful for this season to be on my own,

to grow and stretch,

and just when i think i can't do it,

i do it.

i'm thankful we will one day live close to family and my beautiful nieces.

(right, Lord?)

i'm thankful for a husband who supports me no matter how crazy i am sometimes.

i'm thankful for the awareness of my craziness, meaning i am not really crazy. haha.

i'm thankful for this goofy blog that makes me feel closer to you.

and you and you and you.

i'm thankful for my awesome rain boots that keep me warm

and for my awesome mom who gave them to me.

i'm thankful that my awesome mom loves most to be at home and with her children.

and her children's children.

she is probably sitting down right now,

serving them a fabulous meal,

and thanking the Lord for her family.

i'm thankful my mom is thankful for me,

and can't wait to have us home for christmas.

i'm thankful for christmas.

for turning another year older.

for baking.

for music.

for home.

for togetherness.

for Jesus.

for love.

for grace.

i'm thankful for tomorrow.

for rest.

and for leftovers.

amen.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING FROM OUR TABLE TO YALLS!

happy sunday

turkey + pumpkin chili

i know this sounds kinda strange, but it's actually pretty good! the fact that it's really easy and healthy makes it something worth making if you ask me! i made it in 10 minutes while the kids were napping and now it's ready on the stove. woohoo! perfect weeknight fall dinner.

1 lb ground turkey

1/2 onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic

1 tsp chili powder

1 tsp oregano

1 tsp ground cumin

1 bay leaf

1 1/2 cups chicken stock

1 can cannelini beans

1 can pumpkin (15 ounce)

1 can diced green chilies (4.5 ounce)

1/2 cup of corn

chopped cilantro and chives for garnish

s+p to taste

in a large soup pot, brown the ground turkey. remove to a small bowl. in the same pot, saute the onions and garlic in a little olive oil til soft. add the turkey back in. add the seasonings, stock, pumpkin, beans, green chilies, corn and simmer til heated through. top with cilantro and chives. serve with tortilla chips!

original recipe: HERE

enjoy! thank you erin :)

elephant + peanut

(i think the flash startled eli.. haha)

we drove over to a new friend's house for a big chili party and then headed out for trick-or-treating! ivy loved it and her face lit up with each new candy, then she'd run to the next house. it was really cute to watch. eli on the other hand was pretty mellow. we kept each other warm in the 40 degree weather... seriously, i didn't even need sleeves. kinda weird, since everyone else was in puff jackets and scarves. then we came home and had a glow-in-the-dark necklace party. ivy was fascinated. anyway, good times.

ps. i love that when she had a choice, she picked the pencil. then, after dumping out her bag, she went for the pretzels first. haha who does that??

art class

mrs. jones -ivy named her bat-owl-thing cc :) haha

ps. does anyone know how to upload movies from their iphone to the blog??please help me! i don't know what i'm doing

fall oatmeal cookies

oatmeal cookie + whipped cream + pumpkin pie spice

yum!

(our fave is the quaker oats recipe)

applecrest farm

i took ivy on a road trip yesterday to new hampshire (what?!) to go apple-picking! supposedly that's a big deal here. our church organized the event, so several families met at the farm and enjoyed a beautiful new england day. we picked a bag full of apples, listened to a band, rode a tractor, ate cider donuts, ice cream, apple cider, hot dogs etc..... pet the farm animals, and called it a day. who knew we were an hour away from new hampshire? it was hard leaving eli at home for the whole day, but it was great having ivy all to myself and we had a blast! i have one cute, super sweet, precious girl.

boston common

her little feet couldn't get there fast enough!! the girl. loves. carousels.

and i love her.

wish i had a pic of eli to include but he was in full-on-coma-mode in the bjorn.

morning at the park, lunch at the ritz, and ivy asleep on the train home.

no complaints here people!

happy saturday!