mickey d's, fall and organization

a look into my week...minus the homework, school and work stuff c:

in the beginning of the week i gave in to a craving of mine...but it just felt like a sausage mc`muffin kind of morning | the end of my inst`tuesday week i swung by walmart for a 'quick grab kitty food' trip before work, but i happen to stumble upon a teacher score...fifty cents a piece c:

i went through, de`cluttered and organized my jewelry...minus the necklaces, they'll be another time c;

after church i spent the afternoon with one of my absolute favorites and her little home inspired me to pull out my fall decorations | i placed this pumpkin on my mantel and the next morning i woke up to overcast skies...slowly but surely our part of california will get the memo we have entered into autumn. 

my challenge to you...organize something in that home of yours, bust out some fall decorations and don't forget to treat yourself to a little mickey d's this upcoming week c:

happy tuesday!

much thanks to miss Taingamala for hosting insta`tuesday

nothing my boy and yankee coupons can't fix

oh it's been one of those days. you know the kind of day that if something could go wrong it goes wrong. to paint a picture for you, i literally ran into a wall about an hour ago...and to make the story even more pathetic, that wall was in my own house. yup, that's my day. after my confrontation with the wall, i lit a candle and poured myself a glass of wine. then the boy called with oh so perfect timing. i vented and he encouraged...what would i do without him? i then made the executive decision to just peak into blog world before i started my readings...and guessy what i found.

thanks to Money Saving Mom i was informed kohl's is having a sale on fall yankee candles, two for $20 plus free shipping plus twenty percent off with these promo codes: SEPTFRIENDS and FREE2SHIP. 

on top of that wonderful'ness i had $10 kohl's cash, so i got a tank top, fall'ish dishtowels and four delicious yankee candles for less than $30. i'm a pretty frugal girl and it usually takes me a lloonngg time to make a decision like this, but the boy told me to go for it...so i did.

can you sense the smile on my face...just thought i should share the news, now back to homework c:

two weeks of life through instagram

and here's the recap...

{two weekends ago was the last time the boy could come home until the end of this month...sad but counting our blessings he has been able to come home at all during this training}

that weekend i was sick :c so i spent much of the time laying on the hammock trying to recoup for the upcoming week | we've been eating outside A LOT and i love it | made roasted tomatoes with shrimp and feta for dinner, it was delish | early sunday morning he was out luster`ing his boots, how do i not take a picture when he leaves everything oh so picture perfect c; | my massive rose in a little mason, made me smile | and i MAY have been back in the hammock while the boy was bqq`ing some dinner sunday evening

{lynnee has had a rough couple weeks}

 pretty sure she caught my cold because last week she has a raspy little meow, sneezing like crazy and would just look at me with sad eyes :c here she is after sneezing in her sleep seven times | she cuddled in bed with me with me as i read, apparently psalm 35 puts her to sleep | and this is her politely refusing some medicine, our ferocious kitty got in her first cat brawl the other night...told you it's been a rough two weeks

{student teaching, school, work, assignments, eat, sleep = the life of little ole' me lately}

wore new shoes on a fifteen hour day and no blisters...success! | living off cookies and a little bit of vino to get through my late night studies | brainstorming ideas for nightstands...and i believe i found a winner c:

...and in a blink those two weeks were gone. onward forward to what this next week brings c: be blessed and don't forget to pause, soak in and take a picture of little things in life <3

as always, thank you thank you Taingamala for bringing us all together c:

double blessings in psalms

last night as i was slipping into my covers 

and getting ready to say good night to the world, i was stopped. not physically stopped, but paused to listen to my heart. i heard a simple phrase, you should read your bible. hmmm...i thought, i usually don't read before bed {because i often fall asleep}, so i continued to wrap myself in my comforter but it just didn't feel right and i heard that soft whisper again. that's when i knew, this must be a God thing. i relinquished my sheets, jumped out bed and grabbed my bible. i began thumbing though the pages with this sweet girl, not really sure what i was looking for. i stumbled upon the book of psalms, david always seems to have good stuff to say so i began reading at psalm thirty`five. much of the next few chapters were beautiful and comforting reads about how big our God is. the verses were highlighted, underlined with squiggles and the occasional heart from my past reads. as i was going through psalm thirty`seven, i immediately had a dear friend come to mind and a tugging on my heart to share these verses with her. and i did just that, i shot her a quick text in case she was sleeping. ready for the God story? she wasn't sleeping, within minutes i received a response. at that moment she was looking up verses about giving fear to God and she had goosebumps that He laid that on my heart to share with her. how incredible is our God? how He goes out of His way to comfort and gently remind us that He is in control. ready for God story number two? then today on my break between student teaching and work, i read this passage again and God unraveled things in my own heart that needed change...double blessing. so glad i had faith in that soft voice and grabbed my bible instead of my pillow last night c:

psalm 37:1-9

do not fret because of those who are evil

or be envious of those who do wrong;

for like the grass they will soon wither, 

like green plants they will soon die away.

trust in the Lord and do good;

dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture.

take delight in the Lord

and He will give you the desires of your heart.

commit your way to the Lord;

trust in Him and He will do this:

He will make your righteous reward shine like the dawn, 

your vindication like the noonday sun. 

be still before the Lord

and wait patiently for him;

do not fret when people succeed in their ways, 

when they carry out their wicked schemes.

refrain from anger and turn from wrath; 

do not fret - it only leads to evil.

for those who are evil will be destroyed,

but those who hope in the Lord will inherit the land. 

psalm 37:23, 24

the Lord makes firm the steps

of those who delight in him;

though they stumble, they will not fall,

for the Lord upholds them with His hand. 

hmmm...how many times did he say, 'do not fret'? and how often am i fretting about everything. at the end of verse eight it says, 'do not fret - it only leads to evil'. the very moment i begin to worry and agonize is the same moment i begin to doubt, question, blame others and/or let it affect my attitude...all of which leads me farther away from God. i especially love and take comfort in these words, 'though they may stumble, they will not fall'  because i am an imperfect person and i stumble and get stuck in routines often. i am so incredibly thankful that God scoops me up and gets me back on my feet every time, every day. 

what to do with a wooden box

last sunday was a church, housework and bbq kind`of day. while the boy was out in the hot sun putting up our hammock, i was enjoying our air conditioner and brainstorming where we should keep the keys. they needed a home, a place they could be easily located and then it came to me.

oh and it makes me so happy c:

i picked up this wooden box at a thrift store about a month ago. at the time i wasn't sure exactly what i would do with but for a dollar, i knew i would figure out a use...and that i did c: the second best part of this project was that everything filling my dollar wooden box was found around my house.

alright, starting from the top. this is twine and old weathered looking clothespins to hang pictures and notes. these are some wedding photo's i already had around the house, so i threw them up there c:

oh yes and how to hang that twine, easy smeezy just a little righty tighty and lefty loosey. i just slightly loosened the screws used to hang the box, wrapped it around and then re`tightened them. 

i bought this wood block R from michaels on crazy clearance early this summer...i believe it cost me like twenty cents. here i used scrapbook paper and transferred the print over to the wood exactly how i did in my DIY picture on wood tutorial just with fun scrapbook print instead of a photograph, find it HERE. i wanted this R to look faded and old {not like i just made it yesterday}, so in the final steps of rubbing off the paper, i rubbed a little harder in random areas and around the edges to give it a worn look. 

i found these hooks at world market last year. they use to hold our favorite coffee mugs in our old apartment, but our house has a tile backsplash so i had to retire them as mug hooks when we moved. luckily i kept them in a safe spot, so when my wooden box idea came i knew exactly where to look. these little hooks are now fulfilling their second life purpose as our key holders.

on the left we have a weekly menu made from a picture frame, find tutorial i posted on picture frame whiteboards right HERE. in that tutorial i made a large one and loved it. but over the year i decided i didn't really need it to be that big...so i downsized and made this one. the picture frame is from the dollar store, spray painted and then scuffed up a bit with sandpaper.  

to your right is a baby jar that use to hold homemade jelly, now it's the home for a transparency marker, a pen and an extra clothespin. oh and behind it are some lemon lookin` sticky notes for future reminders on that twine.

cheers to another thrift store score and knowing where my keys are c:

insta`tuesday and weekend love

has school really started? answer is, yup. first week back was a tad overwhelming, but i survived and as my treat the boy came home for a three day weekend c: with him being back i was able to escape my color`coded schedule and ignore the text books arriving at my doorstep. we took full advantage of these past days getting all that stuff done around the house and taking time to be relax before life picks up again. 

starting out the semester strong with our tradition to swing by the bar after our first week of class. love the girls in my program <3

 we have lynnee's approval of our new rug | finished staining the crates for our future coffee table | boy is home so i tried a new recipe, beer chicken in the crock pot, intriguing yes? find it HERE  | off to visit a baby and his momma c:

a bbq with some dear friends | margaritas with limes from our yard c:

 my little sunday project after church c:

awwwe, after a few trips to home depot we finally got the hammock up and secure. lynnee and the husband are relaxing after the day's labor.

alright time to close the lap top and open those books. thank you for stopping by and extra thanks to miss Taingamala for hosting. happy tuesday c:

beer plus chicken recipe

well school is back in session which means i'm pulling out the beloved crock pot c: i love Love LOVE easy crock pot recipes {don't we all?} they are essential for crazy school times and keep us eating real meals at the table with minimal effort. for this recipe, easy was defined as: having all the ingredients in my cupboard and less than five minutes prep time. and it was delicious. find the source HERE.

CROCK POT BEER CHICKEN

it calls for:

TWO pounds of skinless chicken breast

ONE teaspoon salt

ONE teaspoon garlic powder

ONE tablespoon dried oregano

HALF a teaspoon of black pepper

and last but not least a bottle or can of beer, any kind will do

how to:

place your chicken in the crock, pour in the beer, add your ingredients and cook on HIGH for 4-5 hours or LOW for 6-8 hours. 

simple and amazing, yes. even better is i put my chicken in frozen, covered it with oktoberfest style beer i had on hand, sprinkled the ingredients on top of chicken, just eye`balling it and not paying too close attention to measurements and set it to cook on HIGH for 5 hours {did i just make that recipe even easier?} i then accomplished a few things around the house, worked a couple hour session, came back home to put together some quick pasta plus a salad and my chicken was done c: oh how i love thee crock pot!