• Be My Valentine: Scrapbook Highlights

    Do you like to scrapbook?  You don’t need to be current with your scrapbooking to do this Valentine’s Day gift (I am way behind on my scrapbooking too).  Show your spouse and family you love them on Valentine’s Day by doing a Scrapbook highlighting the big events over the past year.  You can do scrapbook at home with your materials or one online at Snapfish or any other great photo place.  Think back over this past year and pick one or two big events for each month or two. Here is some ideas of what to include to get you started, even if you do the Holidays you’ll have plenty of special memories.

    • January – Happy New Year
    • February – Happy Valentine’s Day
    • March – Springing into Spring
    • April – Easter
    • May – Mother’s Day
    • June – Father’s Day
    • July – Independence Day
    • August – Back to School
    • September – First Day of Fall
    • October – Halloween
    • November – Thanksgiving
    • December – Christmas
    • Birthdays
    • Fresh Start
    • Weddings
    • Anniversaries
    • Special Trips
    • Vacations
    • And so much more!!!

    Create you book of highlights with the scrapbook material you have or do it online.  It will be a fun gift as you reflect back on the memories you made together!

    Photo by shimelle

  • A Vacation to Remember

    We watched this beautiful sunset as we left South Carolina!

    Everyone needs a little time away.  Seriously, life gets busy and schedules quickly become overloaded.  It is important to take some time to relax, enjoy life and create memories.  Every vacation is different some are restful while others are jammed packed with activities.  Chose the vacation that suites your family.  Try to plan a vacation with your family at some point this year even if it is only a long weekend away with your spouse, family, or extended family.  You will cherish the memories you make for a lifetime.

    My husband and I recently went on a cruise with my parents, my siblings and their spouses.  It was wonderful to escape for a week and have fun together.  The kids had a blast staying with friends while we were away and had a little vacation of their own away from Mom and Dad.  The neat part about a cruise is once you arrive on the boat all your meals are provided, the hospitality is amazing and your room is cleaned multiple times a day.  You truly are spoiled!!!  My husband and I had a blast spending time with family, meeting new people, exploring the ship and islands.  We always had plenty of activities, food, and entertainment.  We were rocked to sleep every night as the ship went from island to island and every morning we woke up to a beautiful sunrise over the ocean. We could have continued cruising through the awesome islands, however, we were starting to miss the kids and figured we should get back to the regular routine.

    Over the next few days I will be sharing pieces of our recent adventure with you.  Some posts will be just for fun while others include helpful tips when traveling and cruising.  It was an enjoyable trip and we hope everyone gets an opportunity to go on a cruise at some point.  Go ahead start planning out your next family adventure!

    A Vacation To Remember series is a reflection on our recent trip and ways we relaxed.  Life is short and we were thrilled to have the opportunity to build memories with family and explore of of the most amazing places during our time away.  Go with a good attitude and looking for fun and it will be an awesome trip jammed packed with positive memories.  It is refreshing having some time away from the regular routine.  Make it a once in a lifetime opportunity to meet new people and learn.  You just might see or try something new that takes your breath away!

  • My Parents Are Coming!

    Mom & Dad's picture from our 2010 Cruise adventure together!

    I am very excited to have my parents come out for the Holidays this year.  The majority of my family lives in the Midwest (Kansas, Colorado, Nebraska, and Missouri areas).  We were not able to make it out there this year for the Christmas season so they are coming to see us along with my youngest brother Josh.  The girls are very excited to see Grandpa Russell, Grandma Penny and Uncle Josh. We will be celebrating Christmas and enjoying family time during their few days in South Carolina.  Thankful to have parents who love us and enjoy spending time with our family.

    Somehow I managed to wait until the last moment to finish cleaning and organizing for visitors.  I have some major projects completed but they are flying into Atlanta today and will be arriving early afternoon yet I still have cleaning to do….hm….  I will still be posting on the blog but they may a little shorter during the time that our family is staying at our house.  If anyone is bored today you can help me power clean! =)  Hope you have enjoyed time with your family as well over the Holiday season!

  • Crafts: Painting Christmas Ornaments

    Karlie and Brina's hand painted ornaments!

    We went to early service one Sunday with the family.  Love getting up early going to church and coming home to a relaxing time with our family.  On the way home we stopped by to get a newspaper at Walgreens.  As a super special treat Jake went to Dunkin Donuts, the girls were so excited to get donuts.  They picked out some yummy sprinkle ones and we headed home.  We had a relaxing time sitting around the table eating donuts, talking and laughing.

    After finishing up the donuts the girls wanted to do a craft.  We pulled out some ceramic ornaments, striped the girls down to their underwear and let them paint.  They had a BLAST!  We had to give them a bath after painting but it was well worth a bath in the middle of the day.  Jake watched the girls and started the crockpot for our potluck at church that night while I took a quick nap.  Sundays are a wonderful day with the family.  Not every Sunday is as peaceful and relaxing, however, we treasure the ones that are that way.  It is fun creating memories.  Hopefully they will look back at the ornaments and remember the sweet time we had together.

    Brina painting her tree!

    Karlie being silly!
    Brina checking out her ornaments....
    Karlie painting....
    Karlie's decorated ornaments!
    Brina's decorated ornaments!

  • Merry Christmas!

    Wishing you a very Merry Christmas!  I am looking forward to a wonderful day with my sweet family.  Jake doesn’t have to work today and the girls are excited about celebrating the Holiday.  Each Christmas is slightly different since we occasionally travel during Holiday season.  This year we will be having a relaxing breakfast with the family, open the stockings, then read the Christmas story and take our time enjoying the day together.  It is important to us to discuss with the girls why we celebrate Christmas so they can have a greater appreciation for this special day.  May today be full of great memories, laughter, and precious time with your family.

    Merry Christmas!

  • Family Recipe: Great Grandma Albrecht’s Corn Bake

    I have so many wonderful memories of my Great Grandma Albrecht.  Thankful for the opportunity to learn from her.  She was beautiful, a great cook, crafty, and full of spunk.  At my bridal shower she brought her Corn Bake as one of her favorite recipes.  Even after age 90 she was still baking!  When she arrived with the Corn Bake and recipe in hand we were curious about the blue dots in it.  In her hurry to get ready and cook she accidentally put a box of blueberry muffin mix into the Corn Bake instead of the Corn Mix.  She waved her hand and just laughed.  It was interesting, but still tasted good.  This is just one of many memories of Great Grandma Albrecht that make me smile.

    Corn Bake

    • 1 small Onion (optional)
    • 1 small pepper (optional)
    • 1/2 cup of melted Butter
    • 1 can Whole Kernel Corn
    • 1 can Cream Corn
    • 1 (8 oz) box Corn Muffin Mix (or Blueberry Muffin Mix if you want to venture out a little more)
    • 3 Eggs
    • 1 cup Sour Cream
    • 1 cup Shredded Cheddar Cheese

    Saute onion and pepper in the butter.  Mix in corn, muffin mix, eggs, sour cream and cheese.  Put in a casserole dish and bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.

  • The Kids Christmas Tree

    When Jake and I were first married we didn’t have a Christmas Tree so his Mom gave us a small one that she had and wasn’t using anymore.  We used that little Christmas tree for several years!  It was easy to put up and take down.  Plus, a lot of the Holidays we were traveling to visit family so a real tree didn’t work well for us.  We were in an apartment at the time and the tree was perfect.  When Jake’s Mom moved to Seattle she gave us their family tree.  It has been nice being able to decorate a full tree for the Holidays, especially now that we have kids, even though it is more work we have a grand time.

    Since we no longer use the smaller tree as our main one we have let the girls adopt that tree to put up in their bedroom.  We put the tree up on a small folding table and they do all the decorating.  The ornaments on their tree are wooden or plastic so if they should fall off they will not break.  It has been a lot of fun seeing them decorate and re-decorate their cute little tree.  Every year they have gotten better at spreading out the ornaments and decorating. They love falling asleep with the Christmas lights glowing on their tree.  It has been a fun Holiday tradition we started three years ago that has really been a hit for the girls.

    Do your kids decorate their rooms?  What do they do to get their rooms ready for the Holiday season?

  • Christmas Ornament Tradition

    Every year we give each of the girls a new ornament to hang on the Christmas tree.  When it is time to decorate for Christmas they have a lot of fun  pulling out the ornaments with their names on it and talking about the memories from that year.  Once they leave home and are out on their own they will receive all of their ornaments that they had accumulated throughout the years to put on their tree in their new home.

    Every year the ornament is unique.  We write the child’s name and the year on the ornament.  Any homemade ornaments they make at home,  school, church or at another event we put their name on it so they can add it to their collection of ornaments.  Sometimes on craft nights we put together fun items to hang around the house and share with family and friends.  The girls enjoy seeing ornaments that Mommy made as a little girl too.  They giggle at the ornaments I put together and love knowing that they will have their ornaments on the tree as well.

    Our tree doesn’t have to be perfectly color coordinated.  We have had branches with 6 ornaments on it and others that have several bulbs of the same color right next to each other.  It is not necessarily “how” it looks but that it is an expression of fun times together as a family.  Having the kids help decorate the tree that is full of memorable ornaments is more important to me then the perfect tree.  They have been known to rearrange the ornaments almost daily some years.  In our house decorating the tree is a fun time of listening to Christmas music, reminiscing, and decorating together as a family.

    Do you have a fun family tradition when it comes to decorating your family Christmas tree?

  • Giving Thanks

    I am blessed!  There are so many things in my life to be thankful for today and everyday.  Life may not always go as planned but I do have a lot of blessings in my life.

    I am thankful for…

    • My husband who is my best friend, loves me, makes me laugh, encourages me, cheers me on, lifts me up when I have fallen,  takes care of me and our girls and so much more.  Love him to pieces!!!
    • Our kids bring a lot of laughter and joy to my life.   Each one brings their own dynamics to the family and I am proud of my girls.
    • Fun Memories with my family and friends.  I have blessed with a lot of amazing memories, events, and great times with the people in my laugh.
    • Family is an important part of my life both my immediate and extended family members.  Thankful to have so many family members that love us, pray with us, and are an active part of our lives.
    • Friends who have been with me through the joyous parts of my life as well as some tough times while being an encouragement, blessing and prayer partner. I am thankful for those true blue friends in my life.
    • A Home to live in and provide shelter for my family and a place to host fun events with family, friends, and neighbors.
    • Our Pets have been a blessing in my life, whether it is relaxing on the couch with my hubby watching the fish or taking a walk with Skipper.  They all have left a mark on my heart for which I am thankful.
    • Neighbors because they have become part of my life and provide opportunities for us to help, pray, and encourage others.
    • Food we have never had to go starve or go without a meal.  My husband is an amazing cook and I love it when he cooks for the family.
    • Clothes we have always had plenty of clothes to wear.
    • Hugs & Kisses are a true treasure.  A hug from my girls or friend and a kiss from my husband are a blessing.
    • Snuggles provide the quiet time with my family I enjoy very much, whether it is reading, watching a movie or just sitting on the couch and talking I am thankful for these precious moments.
    • And Most Important God’s Involvement in my life, He has shown me a lot of love, grace, and mercy in the past 30 plus years for which I am very thankful.

    Thanksgiving is a great time to look at all the blessings in our lives.   Let us try to remember all the good things in our lives everyday.  Life is more enjoyable when we have a positive outlook.

    HAPPY THANKSGIVING!