-:: Smells like cookies ::-

So, today...we're doing our Christmas baking.  Oatmeal Chocolate Chip cookies, homemade brownies,  & a few other goodies.  

 And I just had to share this fantastic find. I credit one of my family members for finding them first, so...Kristen...we are a little happier in this life b/c of you, lol. Just kidding. But really, she found these on Pintrest and we had them at her home.  Our response:  DELICIOUS!!

So, I had to pin the recipe myself.  And then make some...and then make some more... and a vicious cycle has begun ;)

Now to give the true credit...we found them on this blog & so to Dave's Wife, we say "Thank you for sharing with the world!!"

So here's the delicious goodness we're making today:

Source: thediaryofdaveswife.com via Carrie on Pinterest

You got it.  Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Cookies.  
They're wonderful.

And I'm too rushed for time to type out the entire recipe...so click on this link to go find them & make some for yourself.  I'm telling you... you'll be happy you did!

Now...back to the kitchen to bake.  And maybe eat a tsp of cookie dough or two.

anyone know what I just finished??

Yes...Christmas cards!!!  Whew...I am so glad they're finished.  Just in the nick of time...I hope ;) 

[A Very Bokeh Christmas]

Well, it just so happens that the theme for iheartfaces' photo challenge that runs through the rest of the month is....

Holiday Bokeh!!!

And since I just did a post about that a few days ago (you can see it again  here)... I thought I'd post a couple more for the fun of it.


- a few more ornaments from our tree

- our stockings & the reflection of our tree in the window

 - our Bob the Builder tree.  The first photo is me trying to capture the tree as is in our room.  The second one, I threw it out of focus & dropped my shutter speed WAY down to see what I could come up with.  I was happy with that pretty glow :)

- and finally, one more of Bob the Builder all aglow.

The rest of our week will be spent baking, finishing Christmas cards (yes we're those people that send them out at the last minute), and most importantly, celebrating the glorious birth of our Christ.  Without the birth of our King, Christmas cards and trees & gifts have no meaning. Without Him, pictures & family & life in general has no meaning.  From Him, we learn & understand our purpose, the ugliness and devastation of sin, and the beauty of God's vigorous mercy to us.  Praising our Wonderful Creator for the gift of His Son!

May your Christmas be very merry & bright!

PS...I decided to link up with a new bloggy friend as well.  So here's my link up to live, love, travel's:

A super important update!!

Just saw this on Pintrest and I had to post it b/c I wanted everyone in the blogging world to know that my legs look like hers...

Source: fashionista.com via Claudia on Pinterest

Just kidding ;) 

Happy Weekend! 

sweet baby boy

I just had to share this...

Happy Thursday! 

~ a little Christmas bokeh ~

I've been reading a lot about bokeh lately (that pretty little blur that often shows up behind images when you photograph them).  You can see some of my reads here & here.  And truthfully, I was already in love with it before I even realized what it was.  Ever since I began learning that you could manipulate your own settings on a camera, I've been "blowing out" my aperture to get that beautiful blurred out background.  I'm telling you...it's a favorite of mine!  

Since the holidays are here, what better time to shoot with a wide open aperture?  Lights blurry in the background of a photo turn into bright glowing circles & hexagons.  Glitter on ornaments give a beautiful shimmery fuzz.  

So, for my Christmas bokeh, I thought I'd give you a glimpse of a few of the Christmas things in my house.  

 ...our tree. I took these completely out of focus, just to see what I could create.  

 ...anybody else see what's wrong with the two pictures above?  (keep in mind, i took these this morning...)

...ornaments from our table. I absolutely love this color combination of red & purple.

...a few shots from our tree, in focus :) 

 ... i LOVE glitter...

...stars on our mantle...

And last but not least...one of my favorite ornaments on our tree.  A little man & woman (made out of old clothes pins)...who are totally in love <3    

Now you create your own Christmas bokeh! 

gotta love {LOVE}

...and the things we do for love.  

Happy Monday.

Food on the brain

Right now, I am totally in a rut when it comes to food and cooking meals, etc. Does it ever seem like you fix the same things over & over again.  I've been doing some digging to try to get myself out of this comatose state when it comes to cooking & I think Pintrest has helped.  Besides searching the web for my own recipe finds to pin, you can find gazillions of recipes on Pintrest as well.  Recipes that other folks have already pinned...and tried out...


And me being the efficient person that I am, *wink wink*...I'm going to use that to my advantage & get myself out of this cooking rut.  


Soooo....


...wanna see some of what I've found?  These are the newest recipes that are hopefully going to make an appearance at our house within the next week or so :) 


They look AMAZING!!  And of course, they came from Pintrest ;)


1. Mexican Stuffed Shells

Source: thewaytohisheart.wordpress.com via Carrie on Pinterest

Can I say to you, that my husband will absolutely LOVE me for this.  I'm not a ground beef person at all, but he loves it.  And I rarely make anything with ground beef in it b/c of the obvious.  But I think I could tweak a few of the shells for me & we'd have the best of both worlds.  In fact, I might make it tonight to surprise him  ;)  He'll be one happy man! 


2.  Asparagus

Source: apronappeal.blogspot.com via Carrie on Pinterest

This is on my list b/c I think asparagus is wonderful and I think all that melted cheese on top is wonderful, therefore this recipe must be wonderful.  


3.  Moqueca:

Source: testadoprovadoeaprovado.blogspot.com via Carrie on Pinterest

Because we love shrimp, and fish ..and have it probably once a week...and the recipe didn't seem to be too hard to follow.  It's from a blog in Brazil, so I had to convert to English.  We'll see how much luck I have! 


And finally for desert:


4.  Oreo Truffles:

Source: chef-n-training.blogspot.com via Carrie on Pinterest

No explanation needed here.  


I am telling you friends...my husband is becoming so thankful for pintrest, lol!!  

i heart faces || Feet

It's been a few weeks since I entered an i heart faces photo challenge, but when I read the theme for this week, I knew the exact picture I wanted to enter!! Typically, they prefer for you to enter a picture that is recent, but for this theme, "Feet," I HAD to enter this photo I snapped over the summer.  It's from a beach session that I did with this great family from our old church.  After a few hours of snapping away on the seashore, we were all covered in sand.  The little boy, baby girl, and I sat down on a swing at the beach house to swing away while I caught up with their parents.  I happened to look down & see the sand stuck between the baby girl's toes & couldn't resist snapping away.  So, for my entry this week...I give you "feet"...

For more cute entries all about tootsies, hop on over to i heart faces!

Monday matters :)

Morning blogging friends!


I hope your weekend was full of things to enjoy & enough rest to get you ready for another busy week.  It seems like every year around the Christmas holiday, life gets busier & busier.  But I still love it b/c I know that special time of celebrating the Savior is just around the corner.  Time with friends & family, having the house decorated & warm, spending time thinking about how to bless others around us, and most especially the time spent kneeling & worshiping the birth of Christ and who He became for us...all of it just makes the season so special; I can hardly put words to it.


So, to start my week off best, I like to try to do a little thing on Monday mornings called "talking to myself." (And no, I am not crazy...I don't think?!?!)   By this, I mean, I like to try to grab the reigns on my thought life & emotions and remind them of the truths of Scripture.


Truths like:
1. Christ has paid my penalty of sin before God, therefore God has attributed Christ's righteous status to my slate and I no longer stand in God's wrath against sin.
2.  God loves His children and does good toward them.
3.  God's word is a "lamp unto my feet & a light unto my path," illuminating my understanding to what is absolute truth, and teaching me how to view the world & my time here on this earth.
4.  God is and always will be faithful to His word.  So I can put my entire hope & trust in it's truthfulness, and I will not be let down or disappointed in the end!

When, I remind myself of these truths, how my heart begins to soar!!  How can it not, when I'm reminded of such grace bestowed to me...and to anyone who believes.  How can I not want to sing the praises of my good Creator when I realize His compassion towards me, to forgive my sin without me ever realizing the full magnitude of its depths & darkness, and to give me promise of new life & hope & joy & peace.  How great is He!


So, to start my Monday off right, I've told myself these things, and now I'm going to rejoice in the Lord who is so good to the children of man.

I hope this blesses your heart as much as it blessed mine! (Thanks, Dad, for hooking me up with this video a few weeks ago <3)