Last night was a restless night of sleep. As much as I wanted to go into a deep sleep, I kept waking up, tossing and turning, wondering what the next morning would hold. Would we see our little baby on the ultrasound, healthy and heart beating? Or would I be sent to surgery immediately after and spending the rest of the day recovering on the couch, piecing together a broken heart? I want to be clear that whatever the outcome … Read More
Classic Apple Pie with Ultra-Flaky Pie Crust
Update: We went in for another scan on Thursday before the long weekend and got some strange news. Things on our ultrasound looked very normal, pretty much a 180-degree change from our scan on Monday. The doctor and the ultrasound tech didn’t know what to make of it all, so I’m chalking it up to God. Sound good? We’ve been told to still expect miscarriage, but that we now have a legit reason to hope. So we’ve been playing a … Read More
When We’re Weary
First, thank you all so much for your prayers and support. Although things don’t look good, knowing we are being lifted up in prayer by so many people, including friends we’ve never met in person, absolutely humbles me. Sometimes thinking about it brings me to tears and I feel so undeserving of those prayers. Would I respond in kind if I were on the other side? I hope that I do when given the opportunity. My tendency is to tie things … Read More
Let’s Talk About Miscarriage (Round 3)
I’m posting a picture of me with my cute puppy because, hey, It’s more uplifting than a picture of my hospital bracelet. 🙂 Those of you who follow me on Instagram have probably already seen my update that it appears I am miscarrying yet another baby. This time, I was tempted to keep our sad news close and quiet, but I’ve been so blessed to share this journey with you all, and it seems wrong to stop sharing now. If … Read More
4th of July Sour Cream Cupcakes
Lately I’ve been trying to see my husband’s golf hobby as a blessing in disguise. Sure, he’s gone for a large chunk of each weekend, but that means I have plenty of time to spend on the things I love to do, like blogging, getting together with girlfriends for a walk or coffee, and laying outside in the sunshine while reading magazines. I think sometimes I’m too quick to underestimate the importance of having individual interests and hobbies in a marriage. … Read More
Hair How-To: Messy Top-Knot
The top-knot is one of my absolute favorite hairstyles. I hope so much that it never goes out of style, because once you master the method it’s incredibly easy to do and works great with second (or third) day hair. It’s one of the things I was most excited about when my hair finally started getting longer! Plus, unlike a regular ponytail, it’s really polished looking. I think one of the biggest misconceptions is that you need really long … Read More
Gluten-Free Healthy Oatmeal Peanut Butter Cookies
Lately I’ve really become captivated by the idea of simplicity and minimalism. It started with building a capsule wardrobe (more on that soon) and after I finished, I looked at my closet, so empty and uncluttered and scaled down to what I truly loved to wear and something started to click. In the past few weeks I’ve been digging and sorting through the junk drawer in our kitchen (does everyone have one of those?) and our pantry filled with kitchen … Read More
Vegan Thai Chopped Salad
Last month I developed a Thai Chicken and Kale Chopped Salad recipe for the Tasteseekers Kitchen blog at work that I’ve since made a handful of times. Big, colorful salads are one of my favorite things to make for lunch and dinner, especially when the salad is substantial enough to keep you full and satisfied hours later. This past weekend Joe helped one of his friends paint his house. It was a two-day ordeal that involved quite a few hours … Read More
The Marital Compromises We Make
Next month Joe and I will celebrate three years of marriage. I’m tempted to say that I can’t believe it, but that’s only partly true. It’s so strange how these past three years feel long and short all at once. I feel like it was just yesterday that we got married on that beautiful summer morning in July, but it also feels like we’ve been married for a lifetime. We’ve experienced so much life in the past three years that … Read More
Low Sugar Banana Bundt Cake
Last night I flew into NYC for work for a couple days. As I flew into the city, I got a little nostalgic thinking about all the memories that I’ve made in this place. My first trip to New York was when I was a freshman in college and my dad took our whole family here over Christmas and New Year’s. I remember how overwhelmed and shocked I was as we flew in, seeing the density of the buildings in such … Read More
A Peek Inside My Fridge
I guess I’m a little bit of a snoopy person, or as I would prefer to think about it, I’m just naturally curious. I’m endlessly fascinated with what people eat for breakfast, what they buy at the grocery store and what the inside of their fridge looks like. There aren’t many things that truly gross me out, but one of the things that gets me every time is a fridge that is bursting to the seams with food. I’m sorry … Read More
My Favorite Healthy Items to Buy at Costco
Every 3 weeks or so I make a trip to Costco to stock up on a select few products that we go through in larger quantities. Since there are only two of us, it’s important that we choose wisely what we buy at Costco. That means it either needs to 1) have a long shelf life or 2) be able to be frozen and thawed. This doesn’t include fresh produce, which I still purchase from time to time. If you’ve … Read More