I am SO super relieved

I am so beyond relieved right now. My husband and I have been on a hunt for something very important of his. Something that will cost $450 to replace if it is ever misplaced or stolen and take 6+ months to process... Yeah... So I definitely ended up misplacing it a couple weeks ago... for the SECOND TIME. I am such an idiot! Ahhhhh! You'd think I'd learn my lesson after the first time of freaking out for a whole day and finally finding it under our 300 lb bookcase after removing every. last. thing off of it.... Apparently I did not. So anyway, we had come to the point where we were about to just accept it after a few days of looking -- more like turning everything upside down and inside out -- and decide to buy another one.

So after I got back from work, I came home to my mom who was here watching Casen because Fico had to go do something. She was holding it in her hand.... O... M... G.... I freaked out, I was shaking I was so happy. Turns out it was in my jacket pocket that was hanging on our coat rack, right by our front door. Why I never checked THAT pocket is beyond me... I am assuming it is because I've only worn that jacket once this entire season. I just never even thought to check that pocket. So THANK YOU SO MUCH MOM for thinking clearly and checking everywhere unlike me... I mean literally we checked absolutely everywhere else in our entire loft, our entire office, our car, and even my parents car?! Which I knew it wouldn't be in there, but it didn't hurt to check... Man I just can't believe it was sitting right in front of us this whole time. I am so relieved... I feel so much better now. 

And thank goodness because I had already planned to cut our Christmas presents down to like NOTHING because of this... Wow... I am just so relieved. That will never happen again. If it does, shame on me... That would be ridiculous. 

Quick Quiche

Had a sick baby munchkin today. He got sick a couple times this afternoon and it made me so sad :( I finally got him to go down after refusing to eat anything all afternoon. Poor thing has to be starving. I am crossing my fingers it was only a quick in-an-out bug and that he will be ok in the morning. I hate seeing him sick. 

Such a happy boy to be feeling so yucky.

Anyway, this afternoon after I got back from work, I decided to make quiche for dinner. [This is a great recipe for leftover ham from Thanksgiving or Christmas.] My dad had given me a little chunk of the Fudge ham my mom cooked a few days ago that was so  

D E L I C I O U S. 

I mean unbelievably. It has to be on my top 3 list of best meat I have ever had. So I decided to throw it in a quiche! Yum right?! So very much so.

This is the link for the website to buy the ham. It is totally farm raised, organic pork by a man named Henry Fudge. And it is super obvious in the flavor. All of the pigs are raised by Amish farmers all over the North Alabama and Tennessee area. It can be shipped all over the country. Check 'em out.

The are having a Holiday Special right now too. Only $67 dollars for an 8-10 lb ham delivered right to your front door! Plus one pound of bacon and one pound of sausage. Yum!

This was literally exactly what I needed on such a crisp night. It was just so warm and comforting. 

Here's my recipe. It's very vague. Not a whole lot of specifics. But you really can't go wrong.

1 1/2 cup milk

1 cup bisquick mix

3 eggs

salt and pepper

onion

bacon 

ham 

cheddar cheese 

swiss cheese

You can pretty much substitute any kind of meat, cheese or vegetable you want. This is just what I had on hand. 

First I cooked a few pieces of bacon. While that was in the works, I mixed the milk, bisquick mix, eggs, salt and pepper, swiss cheese, chopped ham, and chopped onions. I then sprayed my pie plate with cooking spray, and coated the bottom with cheddar cheese. Then I poured the mixture in the pie plate and sprinkled the bacon and some more cheddar cheese on top. 

Pop it in the oven at 400F for 35-40 minutes. I would probably say closer to 40 as mine was ready on the top, but was still somewhat runny on the inside after 35 min. Popped it back in for 5 minutes and it was perfecto!

I will definitely be making this again. It would be so nice for a brunch!

My {no longer} Wish List

So this year, I got a little impatient when it came to waiting for my Christmas presents. I went ahead and bought them all myself and don't even mind that I won't have anything to open Christmas day! Ha. I rarely have a specific "wish" list, but this year I do... well, did. And here it is:

A couple months ago, I came across this watch on Asos. I fell in love. I have been wanting one with a leather band for a while now and this one just so totally encompassed everything I wanted in a watch. That sounds lame, I should explain. I am the type of person that literally never changes their jewelry... ever. Not to sleep, not to shower, not to go out, not to stay in. I wear the same pieces of jewelry day in, day out until I get bored or it breaks or I lose it and wear some other piece for months and months.... Call it laziness, I call it simple. 

In addition to never taking my jewelry off, I feel completely naked without a watch on my wrist. I don't know where or when that started, but I do know that it became an issue when I ran track and cross country in middle school and high school because I always had a big bulky stop watch on my wrist even at formal events, just because I would forget I was even wearing it. Ha! 

That being said, I always have to have a watch on, and ideally it would be one that is very versatile. And that's where this watch sold me. It can be worn with jeans and a tee shirt or a dress for date night. Voila! So, I bought it for myself, and then told Fico that that was my Christmas present. NBD. He was fine with that as we had already agreed to not get each other very much at all this Christmas. So now his job is done. He then went on to try and get me to wait til Christmas to open it and wear it! The audacity! 

I love it and don't think I will regret at all not waiting to open it until Christmas. 

[This one isn't exactly a Christmas present but it is something that I adored and had to have. Plus it was kind of a little splurge so I feel guilty not saying it's a Christmas worthy present to myself.]

So I am a list, planner, and task organizing freak. Seriously. I love notebooks and planners and lists and flags for my lists, you name it, I love it. My day goes nowhere unless I write everything I need to do down and then attempt to cross them all off. If I don't do that, then I end up sitting on my tush a l l day long, and neither I nor my husband enjoy that, ever. 

I have been trying to design my own perfect planner for a couple months now and made a great one and had it spiral bound, the only problem was that it was letter sized [too big] and I needed something that would fit in my purse and I could easily utilize. 

So, my homemade planner worked wonders for me, until I realized I had over-complicated it. There were just too many steps and lists and categories that I had to keep up with, so it quickly became a nuisance rather than a time-saver. I hated that too because I thought I had finally solved my time management issue, especially after putting so much time and thought into it. I guess it was just too much thought. 

So the other day while my husband was out of town I had a lot of time to think about what needed to change in my day to day life. And the answer again was that I did need a planner, but I needed one that was more versatile, and easy to use. That's when I remembered a blog that I had read a while ago where the blogger did a promotion on Staples' arc customizable notebook system. I had really liked the idea then, but it quickly slipped my mind I guess. Then again recently a friend of mine had one, too. So on a whim on that nasty rainy day that I had my epiphany, I did some research on the product and then pretty immediately ran to the store. I was a little impatient with this one too, and didn't even alert my husband. In addition to the notebook, I purchased the "hole" punch so that I could make my own pages and add them to it. 

And here's the beauty of this whole ridiculously long post on a notebook, you can rearrange the pages. They easily pull out and go back wherever you want them in your book. Unlike my spiral bound that I made, I could truly and totally customize this one. So far I absolutely LOVE it. I have been obsessing again over my planner pages -- a lot being reused from my previous planner -- except this time I actually feel myself taking steps forward. Not sitting stagnant trying to figure out what to do next. 

I was kind of fantasizing about buying these boots for a good while before I actually started begging my husband for them. They were $59.50 + tax + shipping and I am just really not the type to spend more than maybe $30 on a pair of shoes -- and that's pushing it [yes I'm a cheap-o, but I like it that way]. I would prefer to buy my shoes at the thrift store any day. So by the time Cyber Monday rolled around I had [almost] totally forgotten about them... Until American Eagle sent me an e-mail... [Ok, ok, I admit it, they got me.] And so I saw that everything on their site was 25% off + free shipping. Soooo that's when the begging commenced. I didn't actually think I would end up getting them, but I knew that if one day I wanted to get them they would be like $20 more than they would be THAT day.  So after after about 5 hours of changing my mind over them again and again, Fico handed me his card. The little people in my head said "it's now or never". And so I got them. That is the story of Christmas present #3.

So that is my Christmas Wish List that is no longer a "wish" list. They are each, in fact, either already in my possession or in the mail, and I am so content! :) 

What's on your Christmas Wish List this year?

Ashley

P.S. I start my new job tomorrow, wish me luck! 

A Very She & Him Christmas

I love Zooey Deschanel as it is, but this album makes me love her even more.

I have listened to it every day since Thanksgiving... ok so maybe I started a few days before, but who's counting?? I love Christmas music! I never seem to get into the holiday spirit enough, but this year I already am.

So excited to decorate our loft this week!

Happy Holidays!!!

Can't believe they're already here. Wow, this year has flown by.

Thanksgiving Fun

This Thanksgiving we went to Birmingham, AL to celebrate with my mom's parents and her brothers family. It was such a nice day all around. From the weather, to the food, to the football, and especially that little fact that Casen slept for close to 4 hours, so I was able to eat my whole plate in one sitting! Until I got up and got another plate! Haha.

After we had all let our food digest, we went and ran around at a high school right down the street from their house.

My sister's lion mane.

Being silly with Beeya.

Run away.

"Yuyu" and Casen.

Playing soccer with Daddy.

Casen and Mimi. 

Mom, doing what she does best. 

So strong!

Pull up competition with Uncle Nana.

Relaxing Weekend Recap

Last weekend was so relaxing. I mean REALLY. Saturday we attempted to garage sale hop, but it became quite clear that garage sale season is truly winding down. *sad face* We literally got NOTHING at the 3 we stopped by. Afterwards we came home and I napped hard. I slept for at least 3 hours. It was so nice! Casen actually stayed asleep that whole time too! Something must have been in the air to make us so sleepy. 

Sunday was just as pleasant. We went to Big Spring Park in downtown Huntsville and played with ducks and fishies and the occasional squirrel.

Our happy little passenger.

"Mommmm, I don't need your help!"

Playing in the leaves. 

Getting sleepy.

Observing the ducks and fishies.

Boys and their sticks....

He was very concentrated on his "fishing".

Daddy helped Casen feed the fishies.

Feeding the ducks. 

They ate right out of your hand!

Naptime was long overdue!

Bits and Pieces: Casen's Room

So of course I haven't blogged in a really long time. I have come to learn that I am horrible at developing habits and maintaining them. I am so scatter brained and random that I have never been able to fall into routine. Don't get me wrong, I am the queen of planners and to do lists. That is partially why I want to keep a blog, to add some repetition to my days. Who knows, it could make all the difference in my schedule!? That being said, I am going to try to get myself in the habit of posting small bite size pieces rather than the full extent of what I want to post on my blog in the future. I'll get there eventually! :) 

Here is a little snippet of Casen's room that is by far my favorite in our little loft.

Random odds and ends that we either had already, bought at the thrift store, or were given.

His favorite sleep buddy, Napoleon Dynamite. Haha.

Wizard of Oz stacking dolls, love these!!

-Ashley-

A Swell Saturday.

My day started out great. Woke up fairly early - which I need to do more often - on a crisp, beautiful Saturday. Our plan was to go to Old Navy for their insane sale they have going on right now. Instead we got distracted on the way and stopped by about 8 garage sales. This was one of our favorite finds of the day. Fico gets on these little kicks sometimes and has been talking about finding plants to deck out our loft. So as we were driving around Five Points looking for some sales, we saw a little girl sitting out by the street at what looked like a lemonade stand [was actually a mini "bake sale" :P]. I thought that was all it was but Fico insisted it was another sale so we turned around and sure enough he was actually right. Lol. It was tucked away beside the house and the lady was selling all sorts of plants that she had harvested over time. Fico was in heaven. We ended up with all but the yellow guy in the picture above. The yellow one - whom we named Bowser - we actually bought a few days ago at Home Depot. Anyway, my husband now has five more little babies. He was so cute planting them in this little pot yesterday.

Earlier that morning I had stopped by Costco to buy some Kirkland baby wipes which are THE best in my opinion. While I was there I had to pick up some fall foliage. I'm a sucker for the flower display at any grocery store. They get me almost every time. Haha. These were just so pretty. Having flowers in my home genuinely makes my day 100% better. I'm serious.

So after attempting to get Casen to take a nap, which he did not do, we went to Hooters to watch the Auburn vs. LSU game - since we don't have cable just Netflix. Casen was surprisingly good for the first half of the game but started getting antsy closer to half time. So we went home and watched the rest of the [depressing] game on the computer while trying to get Casen to nap again. And again he didn't... Not sure what that was all about. After the game we went to some friends Halloween party. Casen was a skeleton. Fico was "a shot in the dark". He wore all black and wore a shot glass around his neck. I was Rosie the Riveter since I had not planned on dressing up at all and that seemed to be the only thing I could throw together. We took 0 pictures. Shame on me. Casen had a blast though playing with the other kids there. It's rare that we have him playing with kids other than when he is at Mother's Day Out. Which I feel bad about. We've just yet to meet anyone in the area that have kids his age. Sad, I know. All in all it was a great Autumn Saturday. I love this time of the year. 

Some of the treasures we got yesterday at the garage sales:

This little guy was $1.50. The background is actually copper. I love him.

Thermos brand thermos and snack bag - 

that I will most definitely be using as a purse. $2

Wooden beaded clutch. $2. Handmade in Korea.

The little girl having the little bake sale gave this to Casen for free. How sweet. 

Now he can be useless like Mommy and Daddy whenever we are on our computers.

Fico pointed this little guy out on our way to lunch! How awesome!? 

He was just chillin. His name is Coco. Here's his facebook!

well, hello blogworld!

so, i am new to this whole blog thing. [well the actual having a blog part, i have been following tons of blogs for quite some time.] i've been meaning to make one forever. i just haven't seemed to make the time for it until right this minute! i am hoping that i can make a habit of fitting it into my schedule every so often and sharing bits and pieces of my so called life with the www.

i have always found myself craving to remember the past through journals, planners and calendars, and retracing my steps on facebook and myspace and xanga?! -_- i tend to live in the past a little too much, but not in a bad way. i just enjoy seeing where i was days, months, and years ago. i enjoy actually being able to see the flow of life in retrospect and being able to notice things now that were completely overlooked then. it's funny how little things can change your entire life and at the time all it seems is just that... little.

so hello blog world! i hope to share many memories with you, and the future me! we'll see where this ride takes us. :)

ashley