in summary...

i'm looking at the date of my last post and the lapse of time does not connect. because it seems like that was practically yesterday.
and, it's not exactly surprising that it's been as long as it has since i'm one of the worst bloggers around {in case you are wondering, this honorary status applies to more than just blogging...let's talk facebook, email, etc.}.
so here i am, a week out from thanksgiving. and, here's what i've been up to...

i spent last week getting my butt kicked fighting a cold. not fun. especially, not when you're in charge of two little kids and can't hug and kiss them like crazy because you're so darn nervous about getting them sick too. my daughter is phasing out her naps, but i made her take them every day last week and basically passed out to try to recoup before the afternoon and evening stretch. it would be nice if i could get a flu shot, but those are annoyingly scarce. i'm sure by the time i can get one, it'll pretty much be pointless to do so.

said cold killed my ability to do my faithful morning treadmill runs. well. more like massively put a crimp in my ability to pull off a 4-mile run with relative ease. i've spent this week pitifully trying to work back to where i was, but it has proven difficult. i'm hoping that this week will be better.

i'm always on pie-duty for the family turkey-bird dinner. i planned the pies...now i have to make them. it'll involve some daily prep to make it less of a project. one of my friends asked me to help her bake up one of my pumpkin streusel pies for her family, so we need to figure out when that's going to happen next week. on the roster, though, for next thursday: caramel apple pie with crumb topping, streusel pumpkin pie, toffee pecan pie. all homemade with homemade crust. yum.

i was able to finish another scrapbook page earlier this week. it felt fabulous to get it done. now on to the next one. since i have a hard time blocking off time to be able to just sit and push around papers and be creative, i do it in stages...mostly when i'm making trips to the basement to put things away or clean...or work out. i'll walk by my desk, rearrange and pull out things...it some how slowly comes together. i'd like more time to actually sit and work on these things. i'm getting ready to order some more pictures - a whole other project in itself whenever i do it. because i don't just order pictures to scrap with...i order updated pictures for the frames and collages around the house, for my husband's office, for family members...considerable thought and time go into this purchasing process.

work has been good. getting ready to head into the holiday season...which is where the insanity of people in the world of retail-shopping is magnified ten-fold. i now get to wear a walkie-talkie while i'm on the sales floor. interesting. even more interesting trying to get the ear bud to stay in my ear and a challenge even more so to try to move my head as i normally would...but i know i end up looking like i have some sort of crazy-neck problem. i'm silently hoping i don't get too many grinches this year, but they are always out there and you just kind of have to grin-and-bear-it {while silently cursing to yourself and vowing to reward your good efforts with a nightcap later on}.

miss playing around with photography practice. want to get back into it, but getting side-tracked by a lot of things in general. hopefully we'll be planting shubbery tomorrow after we completely tore out all the landscaping around our house over the summer. {i vaguely remember when weekends didn't involve housework and waking up before 7 a.m. this is a very distant memory, lol}.

also just started my next bookclub book, To Kill A Mockingbird. love this book. loved it in high school. couldn't believe some of the ladies in bookclub never read it. so, i had to put it on the "to read" list and here we finally are. within the first few pages, i was reminded why i love this book. i'm having the girls compile a list of books they would like to read - we're getting ready to pick out a few months worth of books {a task we immensely enjoy}.

and, can i just say again...wow...a week out from thanksgiving. i've been bad lately with this inability to keep track of my days...and this kind of proves it. i'm even more shocked that next month is december. christmas. the shopping and preparation that still needs to be done. and shortly after that my son turns 2 and birthday festivities to plan. a new year. new resolutions. {i find that being able to keep my sanity relatively in tact to be a good, solid aspiration for the upcoming new year, but i digress...}.

so, no wonder it feels like only days since i've last updated the old blog...

confessions of a candy corn addict.

if lent were in september, i would be giving up candy corn.

i'm horribly addicted.

and, of course, i was in target last week and picked up a bag of brach's autumn mix {which is regular candy corn, chocolate candy corn and candy pumpkins thrown in for good measure}. what i really wanted to was the candy corn and chocolate candy corn combo - i could honestly do without the candy pumpkins - it's too much. of course, on the drive home i found myself eating it. put the bag away when i got home. later i pulled it out and took out a few pieces. it's horrible. potato chips and french fries i can part with after having a few. for some reason, i can't do that with candy corn. {or cheetos for that matter, but i would diverge if i started talking about cheetos....mmm...}.

that's my thought for today. i'm working a little on changing my blog over to a new format, so if you visit, bear with me. there's a lot of stuff i've been "meaning to do" and i do it when i can. i'm just now trying to do it in earnest.

but, really quickly before i go, i had an awesome anniversary weekend. i hope to post more on that next time and share some photos as well.

happy fall!

5 years.

just wanted to stop by very quickly and post a happy anniversary to my hubby. it was actually yesterday. and, i had the best of intentions in scanning a wedding photo and posting it to the blog. but, the scan came out so poorly that i quickly ditched the effort {was also under the gun to do that and a bit of housework before getting the kids up from naptime}.

it's been 5 years. i know it's not a long time, but it's a milestone just the same. we've had a lot of ups and downs in that time, but we have been greatly blessed in so many ways. i am thankful for that.

...and the winner is...

well, we picked a faucet. moen's lindley. so far, i love it {i can't speak for my husband - the only think he said is that it's going to take a little getting used to, but i don't necessarily think that's a negative comment}. it's got a higher arch than we're used to, but i kind of like that industrial look {and, in the kitchen that's OK since it's the center of activity in our house and we're constantly cooking or baking something}.

again, in the world of faucets, i can't get too terribly excited {especially when it involves an unplanned expense}. but, this actually made me smile a little when i saw the finished product.

you know what stinks, though? when your 20-month old decides he doesn't want to nap and you still have to get through your daughter's dance class with a non-napping, crazy kid in tow...

...i'm just saying...

it's going to prove an interesting afternoon and evening as my son turns borderline hyper-manic with having had no rest today. no sugar added. =P

the little things...

so, yes, a half hour of my afternoon during naptime went towards fun cyber-shopping for new kitchen faucets. my husband and i unwhittingly discovered a leak underneath the sink about a month or so ago...could not find the source...and were convinced we had fixed it. that is, until the other day, we discovered what we kept underneath the kitchen sink was soaking through and through. yeah, not so much fixed. the plumber came out, checked it and recommended we replace the faucet entirely. not that anytime is a "good" time to replace kitchen hardware {unless you've got money to burn and are having fun renovating}, but we've had on and off discussions about replacing the faucet. it's white...the sink is white...it's a pain in the butt to keep clean and it always seems to be in need of a good bleaching. the problem is the sink is seemlessly attached to the counter, made of corian...and though we would love a stainless sink...that isn't happening anytime soon as it's not a priority. we still had issues with the white faucet - again, gets so dirty - and we've said how having a stainless faucet would be a nice alternative. so, although it stinks having to replace it now, it's at least a cosmetic "improvement".


on an "up" note, as i was mulling all of this over while changing the bed linens before, i got to use one of my favorite "little things" that makes me happy...



have you ever tried restoration hardware's sheet spray? i would've never thought twice about buying the stuff until a co-worker gave me a bottle of the sweet orange scented spray for bed linens. love it. i am thinking about buying the shore scent just to keep that smell around in the colder weather. it's the best feeling in the world - when my head hits the pillow at night, breathing in the scent of nice, clean sheets - that have a comforting fragrance to them - is just one of the best feelings to temper the sheer exhaustion of the day. in case you're really sensitive to smell, i don't find the sheet spray to be overpowering. trust me - i usually wretch at the slightest whiff of bad perfume {in fact, i don't really wear perfume anymore...i just like clean scents...}.

laundry is calling...

the heck with it.

i was going to do a little blurb about peaches, how much i've been enjoying them this summer and the rockin' things we've done with them in the kitchen...but, it's been one of those days with the kids and i'm shopping for kitchen faucets right now since ours is nearly kaput. =P

i'm delighted that lowes has apparently over 2400 faucets i can view online {not}. hmmm...scratch those search results...more like 500 kitchen faucets i can view {my bad}. hahaha...here's something new...anyone ever heard of a "biscuit" metal finish? yeah, me neither...
let's see...further narrowed it down to 54 results since i need a 2-hole faucet {faucet openening & soap dispenser opening}...

{isn't this just what you want to be reading...? me...shopping for faucets...}.

seriously, though...hope you're having a great afternoon...

damn fine cherry cobbler

i've been on a baking frenzy.

every weekend this summer, i've tried to bake things using seasonal produce...and, loving the results.

made this excellent cherry cobbler over the weekend and was very happy with the end product. sad to say that it's all been consumed due to me and my husband {the kiddos are a bit wary of baked fruit desserts}. {btw - isn't the picture on the recipe link the cutest? i originally posted that picture on my blog, but changed it to the one i actually took for this post...not as delish looking, but...you get the point that the subject revolves around cherries...lol...}.

i've been able to make peach and cherry pies this season...as well as some delicious blueberry crumb bars. it's just what i do...pull out a new recipe to bake, hoping it'll be a keeper. my goal is to take the "keeper" recipes and assemble a small binder, organized by specific seasonal items, so when, say, cherries, are in season, i won't have to randomly thumb through old magazines and cookbooks to drum up something to satisfy...

but, i'm pretty sure this is going to be a winter project. i'm a little maxed out on projects and things that need to be done. however, i am looking forward to delving into my recipe box {or stack} and making some sense of it all. next week, peach cobbler...!