We FINALLY closed escrow on our new home!!!! Just two whole months after originally scheduled, but who’s counting? I just wanted to check in with you guys and let you know I haven’t forgotten about you.  We are just up to our ears in boxes and, with a little Savannah who has recently learned to [...]

Whew.  You all blow me away. I can’t begin to explain just how much your comments, emails and messages meant to me over the past week.  I feel so supported by you and I really, really appreciate it. *Oh, in case you have absolutely no idea what I’m talking about, you can check out my [...]

So…I’m at a crossroads in my life and I’d like to share it with you. First off, I have decided to go back to school.  For nursing. No, not for culinary school.  Not for Psychology. Not for photography. Not even close, really.  Nursing. Dustin and I have been talking a lot lately about our family, [...]

I’ve been meaning to share this amazing Homemade Ranch Dressing with you guys for a while. I absolutely love this Ranch.  Well, to be fair, I just love Ranch.  A lot.  I know: shocking, right? But, do you know who doesn’t like Ranch?  (Or, should I say didn’t?) Dustin. I know: shocking, right? I mean…the [...]

My parents just visited us for a few days from California. It was really nice to see them and for Jordan and Savannah to spend time with their grandparents. While they were here, we visited the capitol building in downtown Austin. Man, oh man, was it impressive! I thought I’d share some of our pics [...]

Okay, I know it’s January and you’re probably sick of holiday candy… At least, I thought I was until Dustin brought up peppermint bark. Making your own bark candy, like toffee, is super, super easy. Let’s look at the ingredients, shall we? Dark chocolate.  White Chocolate.  Crushed Peppermint. I mean, c’mon, right? Plus, this peppermint [...]

I said in my recent post on How To Make Pumpkin Puree that I’d share my Pumpkin Spice Muffin recipe, so here it is! Especially this time of year, I love a good pumpkin muffin. For me, there’s something very special about the combination of pumpkin, cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice.  (Um…and a latte at [...]

So 2011 has come and gone. Um…what?? A recap on our holiday: This was Savannah’s first Christmas and the first year where Jordan actually understood what was going on.  Dustin and I had way too much fun buying gifts for Jordan.  The girl is just so easy to shop for because she loves everything. Her [...]

Hi guys! I wanted to share some very helpful information my mother-in-law, Jody, gave me a while ago about decoding meat and dairy product labels. I don’t know about you, but I get confused easily sometimes.  I mean…with food labels.  I mean…what? Exactly. Anyways, Jody found this very helpful list at the Environmental Working Group‘s [...]

Ever tried making your own pumpkin puree? Homemade pumpkin puree is really quite simple to do and is absolutely delicious in… pumpkin spice muffins (post coming soon!) pumpkin bread pumpkin pancakes pumpkin cookies pumpkin cheesecake pumpkin soup pumpkin frozen yogurt pumpkin butter and oh so many other tasty treats. Pumpkin!!  Sorry, I got a little [...]