Thankful Garland.

Can you believe it'll be November 1st on Tuesday?  I'm so not ready for it. I mean, seriously, where did October go???

I guess the old saying is true-- the older you get the faster time goes. But, if I think time is going fast now, just how fast will it be going when I'm in my fifties and sixties???

I'm getting off point, sorry.

Anyway,  I discovered some really cool Thankful Garland ideas this morning and thought I'd share them.

Simplesong Design

Simply Modern Mom

Simply Vintage Girl

Only Thing Better Than A Good Book...

is a bunch of good books in mint condition found for dirt cheap at my new favorite book store: Half Price Books. Oh, and maybe some fun bookmarks for....wait for it......49 cents a piece.

This store is becoming my new addiction. Could pose some problems for Target and Barnes and Noble. So if you see their sales dropping, be a dear and help them out by putting a few extra items in your cart.

Struggling.

These days I'm struggling.

Struggling with decisions.
Struggling with time.
Struggling with priorities.

I'm trying to find balance. But it's tough.
I'm trying to make new choices, but that's tough too.
I'm trying to go in a new direction, but that's even tougher.

I feel like over the past few years I have lost myself.
I feel like I don't know who I am anymore.
I think I have an idea, but at times I'm just not sure.
Could be age, could be stage of life causing this inner dilemma.
Or it could be lack of time.
Or maybe even exhaustion.

I find myself routinely going to bed between midnight and 1:00 am only to get up between 5:30 and 6:00, just so that I can have a few extra hours in my day to get things done.
I am continually finding myself trying to figure out how to squeeze in any sort of a workout.
Or my school work.
Or cooking.
Or cleaning.
Or just spending time with Marty or the kids without feeling the pressure of everything.
Or time to just sit still and breathe.

Time is going so fast.
Too fast. That may be part of the problem, too.

I just need to trust that I am where I am supposed to be and doing what I am supposed to be doing at this time in my life in spite of routinely feeling exhausted and overwhelmed.

Rest assured, life is good.
It's just the "growing pains" that are not!

Fall Cooking.

I haven't officially started my "fallish" cooking yet.

In fact, I've hardly been cooking at all lately.

Just way too many things going on in life right now.

But these recipes are definitely inspiring me to maybe want to start.

Maybe.

Italian Chicken and Potatoes from here.

 This vegetable soup found here.   
Would totally love to make a big batch of this soup and deliver it to neighbors in an awesome mason jar.

Ranch House Crockpot Pork Chops and Parmesan Mashed Potatoes found here.
I'm thinking a Sunday dinner???

Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup found here. 

Crockpot BBQ Chicken found here.

Popsicle Stick Puzzles.

After seeing these at a link party a couple weeks back, I decided to make some of my own.

I figured not only would they be a great car activity for our upcoming road trip this week, but they'd make a great restaurant activity or an awesome diversion to pull out for when I need five minutes of peace so I can get something done-- like emptying the dishwasher or mopping the floor.

Plus you could totally make them for any holiday, season or celebration.

Or give them as a gift. (I think I am going to make a few more sets for Addison to give to her friends for Halloween)

So, I downloaded the digital kit, uploaded the graphics that I wanted to Target's one-hour photo, treated myself to a package of popsicle sticks, a fresh jar of Mod Podge and a Starbuck's while I waited for the prints to be ready, then proceeded spend my Saturday night making my popsicle stick puzzles-- ten of them to be exact!

Overall, it was a fairly easy project. A bit time consuming maybe, but nothing that a Good Wife or Downsized marathon, a bottle of wine and a bag of Dove chocolate can't cure!

Linking to:
Chef In Training
Today's Creative Blog
A Bowl Full of Lemons

Insta Friday.

Welcome to Insta-Friday Fall Edition!

 

Where we discovered a new to us Apple Orchard less than 10 mile from our house. 

And where they had the hugest, most delicious apples we had ever seen. (this was not one of them) Not to mention really fun things to do-- like a super long hayride, a petting barn, a playground and a huge tire swing. 

We also took our annual trip to the Pumpkin Patch.

Where the fields were literally PACKED with pumpkins! It was awesome. New family rule though: you could choose whatever pumpkin you wanted as long as you could carry it. Best rule I ever made, I swear. 

 

And finally, we enjoyed our new favorite McDonalds treat: Caramel Apple Sundaes. It's so hard to beat $1.49 for a super yummy ice cream treat.

We are totally loving the fall weather we're having this year. It has made doing outdoor fall activities so much fun!

Guest Post By Just One Ministry.

It's not everyday that you get asked to guest post on a blog- even if it is for your big sis! While for grins and giggles, I might talk a big game, in reality I don't toot my own horn all that much - so when being asked to essentially do so, it feels a bit weird.

Jenn wanted me to write about a monthly serving me and a few friends do every month down at a local shelter.  Great, I know what to write about!  However, I'm not sure I know HOW to write about it.

After all, it isn't as if we are doing anything spectacular - it couldn't be, not for our crew!  Great guys, but we couldn't pull of "spectacular" for anything.  We're just a bunch of guys that feel called to help out this way.  We bring food (usually pizza or grill some hot dogs on the spot) and hand out clothes, socks, you name it to any one in need.

Strange to think back, but this month marks the one year anniversary of doing this.  A year ago this month, me and two friends took ten pizzas and a couple cases of water down to our local shelter and started handing them out.  It snowballed from there.

The more people we told, the more people wanted to help.  And help they have!  From money, to a packet of socks, to clothing they no longer wear - we have NEVER gone empty handed, and thanks to other's generous spirit, we've only ever increased in the amount of food (and in turn people) we have been able to serve!

I can't tell you exactly how many people we have served, not because it's soooo many, but because we don't count.  If we help even a handful, it's more than if we didn't go - and that's how we feel about it.

And all are welcome too - we don't judge, we don't ask...if you believe you are in need, then we are there for you.  We've served people in clothes that are rotting off, to people dressed in suits.

While we haven't been able to do this every month, for various reasons, we know that we will continue to do it again, and again...

I guess if anyone can get anything out of my sharing this, is this: anyone can do anything to help.

I'm serious.  We hardly plan these trips down.  We pick a date, pick what we are going to serve, let people know and just show up.  Beyond that - there's nothing much too it.  People tell us that we are "doing God's work" - but I have to remind them, we couldn't do it without support, so in reality WE ALL ARE. And we all are supposed to aren't we?  If we can help, I believe we should - and it can be in any way/shape/form.

Don't think you can?  I promise you, you can.  If you don't know how, ask God - believe me, he will show you!

There's really no excuse (believe me, I've tried to use them all - and they all fail!) NOT to help - and I guarantee you, you WON'T be sorry.  It's true, I have never regretted any form of help I've been able to offer.

It doesn't have to be hard, it doesn't have to be complicated, any help is good help.

I'm not sure what else to say, other than YOU CAN make a difference.  I know, cliche, but it is true.  Big, small, God will use them all - if you are looking for ideas, have an idea you'd like to share, or just want to say hey, you can reach me at: justoneministries@hotmail.com

Or check out my "ministry" at Just One Ministry.

Thanks to Jenn for lending me some blog space!

Peace and Love

Chris

Thanks Chris for posting! And good luck Saturday on your next hand-out! 

 

Doing Good.

The past two weeks at church we've been talking about serving others. 
Then last week, Julie over at Joy's Hope had a great challenge.

Which really got me thinking.

I need to do more good in the world.  We all should.

*Whether it's as simple as mailing a card to someone.
*Serving in a soup kitchen.
*Bringing supplies to an animal shelter.
*Putting together ziploc bags filled with toiletries to hand out to the homeless.
*Babysitting for a friend or neighbor who's maybe going through a tough time.

We should all do more good in the world. The world would be a much better place.

Somewhat Simple did an entire series over the summer on this subject. So swing by her blog for even more ideas of ways to serve others.

Scrap Board Pumpkins.

Made some wooden pumpkins last week out of some scrap wood that I found in the garage. Such a simple project.

Not to mention quick.
And cheap. 
(my favorite kind of project!) 

All I did was have Marty cut the wood to the sizes I wanted, then gave 'em a quick once over with the sander before painting them with some orange craft paint that I had on hand. The whole project took less than two hours and cost less than a dollar. (turns out I didn't have any green ribbon so I had to make a run to Walmart for some cheap ribbon)

Linking to:
Skip To My Lou
Today's Creative Blog
Chef In Training
A Bowl Full Of Lemons
Ginger Snap Crafts

Poppy Seed Chicken.

Don't you love it when you find a new recipe to try and you just happen to have ALL the required ingredients on hand?!?! That happened with this post on this blog last week. And now, thanks to Julie at Freckles and Fun, I have a new recipe to try this week--sah-weet!

Poppy Seed Chicken
4-5 boneless skinless chicken breasts--cooked & cut into pieces
1/2 cup cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup cream of celery soup
1 cup sour cream
18-20 crushed soda crackers
1/2 stick melted butter
2 tsp poppy seeds

Make It!
Mix soups & sour cream together. Once combined, stir in 1 tsp of poppy seeds and chicken. Once it's all combined, put the mixture into a 2 qt casserole dish or a 9x13 pan and set aside. Next, mix melted butter & crushed crackers together and sprinkle over the chicken mixture. Top with remaining teaspoon of poppy seeds and bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

Insta-Friday.

We did a lot this week, yet we didn't do a lot this week it that makes any sense?! I will say we totally enjoyed the warm weather we're still having in Minnesota. Because let's face it, we could easily see our first blizzard next week. It's happened. No joke.

We spent lots of time hanging with friends.

We added two more books to our collection of Target $1.00 classics. Our collection is growing out of control, but it's so hard to say no to books. Especially when they're only a buck a book.

We spent a lot of time outside walking Addison's baby "Baby Esther." While I'm not a doll lover, I am totally loving the fact that Addison is. Meghan never was. And yes, Addie has two different flip flops on. This child rarely wears matching shoes. Not even to church.

Went snake hunting one night. This redbelly snake freaked out when he saw all our feet. Someone should have warned him that as soon as he stopped moving it would be every snake for himself.

I started my next quarter of school. The jury is still out on whether or not it'll be a good quarter. (get it?! jury?? And I'm taking law classes!?) I love being back in school, it just gets REALLY hard, as in super hard, trying to juggle school and family life.

Went on a really long bike ride with Noah and Addison and totally relished that we live in a lake town suburb where you can have the state of the art library on one corner and a farm complete with horses on the other. And all right smack dab in the middle of neighborhoods.

And where you can have a park totally hidden from the general public so you feel like you've escaped the day to day, but can still hear the horses neighing as you play-- and still be less than a mile from home.

After listening to this message at church I felt challenged and inspired, so I mailed off four cards to four friends just because they're so awesome.

Busted my running shoes out again. I hadn't seen them in about 2 1/2 weeks. I missed them.

Survived my second week of Weight Watchers online. Still not sure how I feel about it. Especially because I have yet to see any results other than extreme hunger. And I mean extreme!

Looking forward to having a nice relaxing weekend of church, a fall bike ride, caramel apple sundaes and maybe even the pumpkin patch.......and linking up here. 

Pumpkin Lights.

Typically I don't decorate very cutesy, especially when it comes to seasons and holidays. It's just not my style.

Sadly, this cuteness aversion drives my kids absolutely nuts. I mean, don't I know "that you can get fog machines and coffins and plastic door covers for every holiday or a Santa Claus that waves to people from the roof??"

So last year, after seeing them all around blogland the year before, and deciding that my kids deserve a bit of cuteness in their life, I bought a couple of 99 cent trick-or-treating pumpkins, removed the handle, made a big cut along the back and hung them on our outside light fixtures.

Holy smokes, you would have thought I bought my kids the Santa Claus that waves to people! They were absolutely thrilled that I did something so fun and even more amazed that I thought of something so cool. I'm telling ya, I totally scored the Mom of the Year award here, people.

Anyway, as you can see from the picture, the pumpkins made another appearance at the Schires' household this year and the kids couldn't be happier.

Ah, what the heck, I'll admit it........they don't look half bad!

The only problem??

We live next to a recreational airport and our uber cool pumpkins can be seen like beckoning beacons from the middle of the runway..........


Linking to:
A Little Tipsy
The Idea Room 
The Crafty Blog Stalker 

Quick Coffee Cake.

Ok, so I found a recipe that I want to try on someone's blog a few days ago, but I'll be darned if I remember which blog. I copied down the recipe, I mean of course I did that, right?! But in all my excitement of finding something new to make, I forgot to bookmark which blog it was on so that I could give them credit. 

I'm posting the recipe anyway because it just sounds way too good to keep to myself. But if someone out there knows what blog I found it on, please, please, please holler so that I can give credit where credit is due. Thanks! But in the meantime-- enjoy!

Quick Coffee Cake
1 cup oil
2 eggs beaten
1 tsp vanilla
1 c milk
1 c sugar 3 cups flour 3 tsp. baking powder 1/2 tsp. salt 1 1/2 c brown sugar 2 tsp cinnamon 1 stick margarine melted
Make It! 
In a large mixing bowl. combine oil, eggs, vanilla and milk together. In a medium bowl, blend together sugar, flour, baking powder and salt. Combine egg mixture with flour mixture. Pour half the batter into a 9x13 pan. In a medium bowl, prepare streusel by combining brown sugar and cinnamon. Sprinkle half of streusel  on top of the batter. Top with remaining batter and then sprinkle the remaining streusel on top. Drizzle with melted margarine. Bake, uncovered at 350 for 25-30 minutes. Makes 18-24 servings.

Car Travel Trays.

For what feels like forever, I have been wanting to make Art on the Go Trays. When I saw them here, I instantly thought what an awesome idea for Addison and Noah on car trips! Cute. Easy. Functional. Practical. And cheap. Seriously, it just doesn't get any better than that!

So, because I am just that impatient, I immediately went out and bought all my supplies--spray paint, soup, spray primer, magnets and 98 cent cookie sheets. Only there they sat.... In the plastic Walmart bag..... On top of the freezer in our garage......Completely untouched...... Since the middle of August. Sigh. I know.

But yesterday! Ah, but yesterday Marty and I decided enough was enough and we got busy eating soup. Then we got down to business and primed the cans and the cookie trays. Then because we felt like we were on a roll, we took Addison and Noah on a 900 mile bike ride while the primer dried. When we got home from said 900 mile bike ride, we spray painted those same cans and trays then proceeded to go to my Moms house for Sunday Soiree.

By the time we got back the paint was nice and dry and not to mention texturized from all the bugs that flew onto the wet paint and got stuck. (yeah, I thought that was lovely too) So being the great guys that they are, Marty and Noah sent me off for a quick 4 mile run while they proceeded to glue the magnets onto the bottom of the soup cans and pick the crusty, dead bugs off the cookie sheets. Am I spoiled or what?!

Two months, 45 minutes and 425 calories later...... my travel trays are finished and ready for their maiden voyage in two weeks! Whew.

Linking to:
Get Your Craft On
Not JUST A Housewife
A Bowl Full Of Lemons
Chef In Training 
Clean and Scentsible 
Ginger Snap Crafts 
A Little Tipsy
Digital Scrapbooking Made Easy 
The Idea Room 
House Of Hepworths 
The Crafty Blogstalker 
Skip To My Lou 
30 Handmade Days  
The Shabby Nest
Finding Fabulous

Sunday Soiree: Peach Cobbler.

Every couple of Sunday's we have what we call Sunday Soiree's at my Mom's house. It's a new tradition that we started after my Dad passed away as a way to establish new routines, new memories and stay connected as a family.

While we have a fancy schmancy name for them, basically, all the Soiree's are is is the five of us getting together with my brother and his wife and my mom for food, conversation and maybe even a game or two. (lately it's been Xbox, go figure!)

Today is Sunday Soiree day. My Mom is making chili and even bought two new Xbox games for the occasion, and I.......am making dessert.

Why did I volunteer for dessert? I don't know. Because as I have stated so, so, so many times: I don't bake. But for some reason (maybe my inner Martha is trying to get out?!?!) bringing dessert sounded like a great idea.

Until I fully realized that I would have to actually make a dessert! Talk about panic setting in! I spent a good hour on Saturday stewing about what to make. Seriously. No joke. And then I realized there is one dessert that I can actually make fairly decently: this Peach Cobbler.

Whew! Crisis solved.