Halloween 2008

I can't believe October is gone...it flew by!!

Me and my sis took my nephews to GSFest tonight. It's a huge carnival put on by one of the local churches. It was jammed packed and offered a lot, but I think we will hit something a little smaller next year. We were in long lines most of the time and didn't really get to ride or eat anything. :( For those that did actually get to the front of the lines, I'm sure it was a blast and it was a great outreach to the community, so I commend all of those at GSFB for putting this on.

Me & Pryce

Me & Joy

After GSFest, we met up with Cary & Sara for some din, so that we could see this cute little piece of candy corn. :) He looked so precious in his costume. My sis-in-law made it herself! She can do anything...so talented! I'm always amazed when people actually sew things themselves because I can barely sew on a button. I would love to know how though!

Me & Jackson

That was my evening! Now I'm home with my hubby (who is exhausted & drifting off to sleep beside me). Guess I'll finish my peppermint tea and get some sleep!

Goodnight!

Love to all,
Jill

A little bit of everything...

We had a fun, busy weekend! This little guy showed up on our doorstep early Saturday morning. His parents went house-hunting so we got to spend the day together. :)

Alex worked until noon, so Jackson and I ran some errands...first being the coffee shop and then we headed to Sam's. We went down the toy aisle...he saw Elmo and just lit up. We stood on that aisle for quite a while, just playing with all of the toys.

After Sam's we went to Garden Ridge for a bit and then Alex took us to brunch at Mimi's. He loves him some Uncle Al. :)


My parents came through LR after church, so some of the fam came over to visit. They got a chance to love on their grandbabies. Kandace had her picture taken a lot since she is the newest member of the fam. :)

Granny and Kandace...

She was cheesin' for the camera. :)

Puckering up for a kiss...how cute is this face!?

We had one of my faves for dinner last night...fried chicken, yummy!

I made coffee and cookies for dessert...

And then my sweet husband made us a fire (it is finally cool enough to use the fireplace...yay!)

We turned our phones off, sat by the fire, and just enjoyed each other as well as the books we were each reading...it was a very peaceful evening. I finished this one last night...if you haven't read it, I highly recommend that you do. Awesome book!

Well, that was our Saturday, Sunday, Monday! :)

I hope you're having a wonderful week, so far...

Love to all,
Jill

Peanut Butter Yumminess!

My sister and I were just talking about how this time of year makes us want to cook & bake constantly. I have made these twice this week...once for homegroup, the other just to surprise my hubby!

These really don't count as baking in my book because you actually use pre-made ingredients, but they are on my top 10 cookie list because you can have them made in 10 mins! That and they have a reese's peanut butter cup in the middle...how can you not love that!? Try them...I promise you'll love 'em!

Ingredients:
1 pkg of Pillsbury Peanut Butter Cookie Dough
1 pkg of Reese's Peanut Butter Cups

Directions:
Roll cookie dough into balls and place in mini muffin pan.
Bake according to package instructions.
As soon as you remove them from the oven, place a peanut butter cup into the center of each one.

I usually place them in the fridge for just a couple of mins. It helps them set quickly which makes it easier to remove them from the muffin tin.

And here's what you get! Enjoy!



Have a great weekend!

Love to all,
Jill

A fun giveaway!

I've been trying to catch up on my blog reading since getting back from my parents yesterday. I dropped by my friend, Faith's blog and she is celebrating her 100th post with a fun giveaway! Drop by her blog and enter to win one of these!

I've seen these in stores and have almost bought one...they are so cute and could be used for so many things. Make sure you stop by Faith's blog before Sunday!

Happy Thursday!

Love to all,

Jill

Weekend at Wildwood...

I got up bright and early, Saturday morning, to make breakfast and coffee for Alex. This was the first weekend in a month that he didn't have to work and I was very happy about that. Out of bed at 7:15am on a Saturday...this is unheard of for me but I wanted to show my hubby some love! :)

I found a new recipe on this site that I wanted to try and they turned out so yummy! One of Alex's and my new favorites, actually. They are called Applesauce Puffs. They have the potential to be healthy but after I dipped them in butter and cinnamon sugar, all of that pontential went out the window. They were so easy and delicious that I thought I would share the recipe, incase you would like to try them as well!


Applesauce Puffs

2 cups Biscuit Mix
1/2 cup sugar
1 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup applesauce
1/4 cup milk
1 egg, beaten
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 tablespoons melted butter
Heat oven to 400°. Grease muffin tins.
Mix 1/4 cup sugar and 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon and reserve.
Combine Biscuit Mix and 1/4 cup sugar and 1 teaspoon cinnamon in a bowl.
Add applesauce, milk, egg and oil. Beat well.
Fill greased muffin tins 2/3 full. Bake for 10 minutes.
Remove muffins and dip in melted butter, then in sugar and cinnamon mixture. Yields 24 mini muffins.

Don't they look yummy!??

Saturday afternoon, we headed out to Wildwood. I LOVE it out there. I have taken my nephews and nieces to many plays and concerts out there and enjoy supporting them whenever possible. This weekend is the Wildwood Park for the Arts Harvest Festival, so we went for a little bit and enjoyed all they had to offer. Here are a few pics from the afternoon.

On beautiful Wildwood Lake

The lady asked if we were on a first date...awwww :)

They had a scarecrow contest and hung them all throughout the woods


This was the fiddling contest on the lawn...
we enjoyed the children that got up to play, very impressive!


Alex hates corn, so I had to devour this roasted corn all by myself...ah shucks! hehe

We had a very relaxing weekend...if only the HOGS would have won, that would have been the icing on the cake! :)

I'm going to see my Mom tomorrow...I'm looking forward to that. She wants to do a little shopping in Jonesboro and of course, her and Daddy always take me to eat at my favorite place up there...Sandbar Grille! I can't wait!!

Love to all,
Jill

Autumn Decor...

*Edited to add dining room pics...somehow they disappeared from my post*

I've been saying for WEEKS that I was going to post pics of my autumn decor and I'm finally getting around to it. Just a little tour of part of my home...as of right now, I do not place fall items in our bedroom or my guest rooms (other than a fall candle) but one day I will get my act together and do that! :)

Front entry

Excuse the glare...I couldn't get rid of it.

My Mom gave me this cute screen...

I fill the buckets with items that best suit the season.

I came out to find this cute couple, standing in my flower bed one morning!

Thanks to the Sanders across the street...I love them! :)

Dining Room

Dining Room Table

The Mantel
This is the first time I have ever put a mirror over my mantel...
not exactly what I wanted but I couldn't find a piece of art that I really liked.

Glass pumpkins

I usually have these sitting alone wrapped in fall leaves...
but decided to stack them this year and make a wire pumpkin topiary.
I think it turned out cute!


Buffet

Kitchen Table
Tabletop Candelabra holding one of my faves...candy corn!




The Kitchen
I didn't add much...just this sign and my pumpkin tureen


Guest bath
The color of my walls in this bath really work with this season.
I love color! :)

I always have a scented soap/lotion in the guest bath that goes w/the season.
Alex asked last night "if we could get rid of it and get a more manly smell."
I told him, no. :)

Well, that's the tour! Making our house feel like a home for Alex and myself and even more importantly, our guests, is really important to me. It's something that I truly enjoy. Thanks to all of you who posted pics of your fall decor as well. I always enjoy looking at the pictures and a lot of times, it gives me wonderful inspiration for my own home, so thank you!

Enjoy your weekend!

Love to all,
Jill

Follow-up and a nice surprise...

I had my follow-up appointment with Dr. B this week. The clinic was SO busy but I ended up being happy about that BECAUSE....I was sitting in the waiting room and this cute couple came walking out, she came up to me and asked if I was Jill and I immediately knew that she was Wendy! She found my blog quite some time ago and we've been talking over email. She is the first person that I have 'met' through my blog that actually goes to my clinic but we hadn't actually met in person. I didn't know what she looked like because she doesn't have a blog but after we started talking on a regular basis, I found myself wondering if every woman that walked through the clinic door was her. I was so happy that she recognized me and said hello. She was the cutest, sweetest thing and I hope we run into each other again, very soon. It was such a treat meeting you and your husband, Wendy...it made my day!

Now for the follow-up...Dr. B wants me to go back on Lupron Depot (ugh) for 3 months. If you don't know what this is, it's the hardcore Lupron that makes you feel as though you're going through menopause. The last time I was on it, it was for 6 months and I had every side effect that you could have, so I'm not really looking forward to it. I do however want to do whatever Dr. B feels will better my chances of achieving pregnancy. After the 3 months on Lupron Depot, I will start back on all of my fertility meds (he's up'ing all doses of those) and he is also adding acupunture to this cycle. At some point in all of this, I'm supposed to have another HSG to make sure my right tube isn't now infected or blocked and that there are no uterine adhesions.

I'm in good spirits about it all for now. Might be a different story, once I start the Lupron D. :) I do know that my doc is as determined as ever to help me achieve a healthy pregnancy...he called me after 8pm the other night, just going over my chart again, wanting to discuss some other tests he'd like to run. I'm encouraged by him and his staff which makes this a lot easier for me.

Just wanted to give an update on what our next steps would be!

Love to all,
Jill

Goodtimes with Girlfriends...

My book party was last night...it was a lot of fun! I hope all of my girlfriends had a good time as well. I know we all walked away with some really great books. :)

Just a few pics to share from the evening...

A few of the cute books!

Some of the girls...

Granny Smith Apples w/Caramel Dip,

Iced Sugar Cookies (shaped like pumpkins),
and Spiced Pecans

Pumpkin Chicken Salad, Cheeseball w/crackers,

and Orange Infused Water

Thanks to all of my girlfriends for coming! And thank you to my sister for helping me with the yummy food...it was SO GOOD!!

Love to all,
Jill

Book Party!

Tomorrow night is my book party and I'm really looking forward to it. I was at children's market a month or so ago and found these really cool books...they are by Usborne Books. If you don't already know...I love children's books! I buy for my nieces and nephews but I also started buying books years ago for my future child. I have quite the library ready for him/her, so I hope he/she loves these books as much as I do! Anywho, I'm really looking forward to the party. Most of the girls I've invited have kiddos or grandkiddos and I'm certain they will get some Christmas shopping done tomorrow night. I know I will!

For all of my friends who can't make it...check it out online...they will deliver to your doorstep! :) The link is-----> www.ubah.com/HOS124421
They have so many that I want to add to my future kiddos library!

Just curious...what is your favorite children's book? Mine is "Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs." My Mom used to read this to me when I was little. I have a copy and can't wait to read it to my child someday. :) By they way, Mom, I hear they are making it into a movie...supposed to come out January 2010!


Love to all,
Jill

Our Weekend...

We had a very busy weekend. After receiving 'the phone call' on friday afternoon, we decided it would be good to get out of the house for a bit. Alex took me to get my pumpkins and mums for the front porch. I found some really pretty ones. I'll post pics of all of my fall stuff later this week. We stopped by Fresh Market afterwards and stumbled across our new, favorite dessert. Have you ever had these?

Oh my gosh...we're addicted! They are called Whippets and they are delicious! They have a cookie crust, whipped marshmallow center and then dipped in dark chocolate. We ate the entire box!! What can we say...we had a bad day.

Friday evening, we had dinner at Faded Rose and then came home and crashed. We were mentally and physically exhausted. Alex worked until noon on Saturday and then we headed to my brother, Chris' birthday party. Here are a few pics from the party...

Me and my big bro

Birthday candles...

He requests that Mom make the same cake every year, Butter Pecan...his fave!

Birthday boy w/his girls

Opening presents

Kandace took a break from the party to take a little cat-nap

Everyone enjoying Cary's smoked ribs & chicken...yummy!

Jackson enjoying his corn-on-the-cob

Me w/my niece...she is such the cuddle-bug

Today, we of course went to church...we had the best service. Have I mentioned that I love my church!? Afterwards, my sister, Joy and I had signed up for a cooking class at Williams-Sonoma. They offer these every weekend and teach you different techniques and recipes. This week was a cookie decorating class...couple of pics below. I didn't think to take a pic of our cookies before we ate them. Oops! :)

It was a jammed-packed weekend and lots of fun. I hope you all had a wonderful weekend as well!

Love to all,
Jill