When my husband and I were first married, I was thrilled to have my first grown-up home in which to to decorate, organize, and set up housekeeping. But one thing I noticed pretty early on was that there was a particular drawer in our kitchen which seemed to collect junk. It frustrated me until I finally determined that we would NOT have a junk drawer in our kitchen. I took measures to keep each kitchen drawer organized and free of nick-nacks, doo-dads, papers, and mail. A place for everything, and everything in its place! And you know what? It worked! Well, so I thought. I proudly believed I’d accomplished that goal until I one day opened a drawer in our bedroom dresser to find....JUNK! ... Read more

Hello, dear friends! Sunday’s a coming, and I’ve got an easy Sunday lunch recipe for you. It’s Chicken Tetrazzini Casserole, and it’s cheesy, creamy, and a happy thing to come home to after church! Chicken Tetrazzini Casserole  Ingredients:  1 (16 oz) box spaghetti  1/2 cup chicken broth  4 cups cooked chicken, chopped or shredded  1 (10 3/4 oz) can cream of mushroom soup 1 (10 3/4 oz) can cream of chicken soup  1 (10 3/4 oz) can cream of celery soup  1 (8 oz) container sour cream  1 (6 oz) jar or can sliced mushrooms, drained  1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese  1 tsp pepper  1/2 tsp salt  2 cups shredded cheddar cheese  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Cook the spaghetti according to ... Read more

As you might already know, Sunday is “Pie Day” at our house! I love making and eating pies. Some Sundays I make an old favorite, and other Sundays I try a new recipe. I recently tried this Peanut Butter Fudge Pie recipe I’d torn from a Jif Peanut Butter advertisement in a magazine. Who knows how long it had been sitting in my files waiting to be made. I’m so glad I finally gave it a try because it was amazing!! Jif calls this pie the “Jif Decadent Peanut Butter Pie”. But since it has fudge sauce in it, and peanut butter and chocolate has got to be one of the greatest marriages ever, I’m calling it “Peanut Butter Fudge Pie”!! The fudge is too good to leave out of the name. This tasty pie ... Read more

Good Thursday morning, friends! Summer activities are now in full swing, and so is my summer cooking. I love seeing all the salad recipes coming through my Instagram and blog feeds. So, for what it’s worth, I thought I’d throw one of my favorites out there. I’ve always loved broccoli! When I was expecting my first baby, I ate a bowl of raw broccoli ever afternoon. Seriously. And because of my love for broccoli, I’ve always enjoyed a good broccoli salad. If I see it offered at a restaurant, I order it! My mom always made a delicious  broccoli salad, and so does my friend Michelle! There was a time that husband and kids did to not share in my respect for broccoli. They liked cooked broccoli ... Read more

I love Winnie-the-Pooh. I love his friends too. That silly old bear and all his friends from the Hundred Acre Woods have given our family some sweet memories. A couple of weekends ago, I took my little guy to see a fantastic production of Winnie-the-Pooh. It was the most adorable thing to watch! We giggled the whole time. I was so happy to see him still enjoying those silly Pooh characters so much. And honestly, my older girls would have enjoyed it just as much, but I was taking them to another playhouse that night to see Pride and Prejudice (also outstanding!), so it was just my handsome little date and me for the Pooh matinee. Since seeing the play, I’ve been reminiscing over all the ... Read more

Two things I enjoy shopping for are gifts and home decor. But it’s important that I shop wisely and find good deals so those expenses aren’t a burden on the family budget. I’m always eager to hear from other women about any good deals they’ve found, so today I’d like to share a few good bargains that I’ve scored lately. 1) Outdoor Festival Blankets- I found these festival blankets at Five Below for, you guessed it, five dollars! They are thinner than the heavier duty ones that can go on wet grass, but they’ll still be great for all those summer concerts and picnics. I used the blue ones as gifts for Incredi-Boy’s soccer coaches (they’re both women) since the uniforms were blue this year, ... Read more

Around here, Friday is the day to "fluff the nest", which is just a much cuter way of saying "clean the house". Am I right? So my Friday posts are all about tidying up and getting the house fresh and in order for the weekend. Some weeks my nest-fluffing comes more easily than others. I need motivation each Friday. ***  One incentive I’ve come to rely on each week in getting through my cleaning time is the use of podcast. I listen to a few different podcast programs during the week while excercising and getting ready in the morning. By Friday, there are a few left over that I didn’t get to, so I use my cleaning time to catch up. With a little podcast prompting, I can convince myself to ... Read more

SCRIBERE EST COGITARE (translation: Writing is thinking) One of the numerous aspects of homeschooling that my children and I have enjoyed together has been the inclusion of a little Latin in our learning. Over the years we have become familiar with several Latin sayings, each of us having our own favorite. My personal favorite Latin saying is SCRIBERE EST COGITARE, and it means “Writing is thinking”. I love that! The practice of writing calls for our minds to process our thoughts through words--living, moving, swirling words! Taking information we have absorbed through reading, listening, and experiencing, and organizing into words what we believe from that information. Writing partners the ... Read more