Family Fun Weekend

Hey friends!  can you believe it's Christmas week?  I haven't quite caught up to the date yet but I got some stuff knocked out this weekend.  My MIL comes in town Wednesday, we are hosting Christmas Eve dinner and then a full day of Christmas fun.  

For the five little kiddos, we opted to treat them to Disney World for the night for Mickey's Very Merry Christmas.  It was great!  We went Thursday night and they had the time of their life.

They finally crashed at 10:30 before we headed back.  Luckily, the next day at school they had a pretty relaxed day planned so Auntie wasn't in trouble for keeping them out late.  If you ever have the chance to attend this event, I highly recommend it.  I am not typically the big theme park junkie but this is an exception.  It's really a great way to see Disney without the hot Florida heat and gigantic crowds.  

Friday after work, we went to Port Canaveral for their annual boat parade.  Boats decorate with lights and pass thru where all the restaurants are along the water.  My sis has a pontoon boat so we all loaded up and cruised thru.  It was chilly Friday night and a little windy but we had a great time.

Sunday we had a family luncheon at my sister's house.  The kids were all dressed but they talked the parents into letting them swim after we ate.  You couldn't pay me to hop in the chilly water but they lasted about 20 minutes before their lips were chattering and they hopped out.  

I was busy busy wrapping gifts last night.  Unfortunately, it's going to be warm here this week so we'll miss a little of the extra touch the chill brings but will have a great week, nonetheless. 

Hope you have a super week!  Merry Christmas. 

Kids Christmas Crafts

Hey friends...it's Friday! My annual Christmas Eve dinner is right around the corner and I have been online looking for ways to keep all the kiddos occupied.  Last year we did this snow globe project and they loved it.  We also had this fun hot cocoa bar and they went bonkers after dinner digging in.

This year, I wanted to skip the hot glue guns and look for something a touch more kid-friendly so they could hang without direct supervision.  Anything with paint is definitely out.  Thank goodness for Pinterest.  :) Here are some of what I have found so far.....

Weekend of Christmas Parties

Hey friends!  After a crazy few weeks, I found a few minutes to hop online.  I had a party Thursday night, Friday night, and Saturday night.  Sadly, I only got a couple pics from Saturday at our company party.  

Meanwhile, my soccer team was in a tournament while I was out of town and we WON!  They were so excited.  I hated to miss it but cheered them along from the text messages I got from our parents keeping me updated.

I got back home Sunday and crashed.  My suitcase is in the laundry room and all I managed to unpack were my cosmetics.  I am off and running this week and was just chatting my husband last night about Christmas.  We are committed to getting in the spirit this week and enjoy these last few weeks of the holiday season.  

Hope you are off to a super week! xoxo

Recipe: Slow Cooker Creamy Chicken & Rice

Get ready...this is easy and delicious.  FOUR ingredients.  Yep, yep!

Ready?  Here goes: < This recipe serves two >

1 block of cream cheese - softened/thawed so it can be mixed with other ingredients
1 packet of dry Italian dressing seasoning
1 can of Cream of Chicken soup
2-3 Chicken breasts (I used what you see below since I don't like to handle the chicken raw)
2-4 servings of rice

Add everything except chicken.  Mix well.  If your cream cheese isn't sofe enough, put slow cooker on low for 15-20 minutes and then mix everything together.

Add chicken on top.  Cook high 4-6 hours or low 6-8 hours

Prepare rice just before serving.  We used white rice.  You can flavor your rice to your taste.

My first hunting trip

Oh my.....this girl went country for a couple days last week.  We had a work outing to Camilla, Georgia for a 2-day visit to Rio Piedra Plantation.  It was a five hour drive for me and we had 15 of my colleagues on the trip.
I have never been hunting and never held a gun.  I really planned to keep this visit totally social, sleep in on Friday morning, and enjoy the lodge BUT...I was informed they had paid for me to hunt and I was expected to participate.  Oh dang......here goes nothing.
I went to Bass Pro to buy my first pair of camo pants and my first pair of cowgirl boots.  There were NO women's pants and the mens were too big so I got a pair of ill-fitting boys pants.
There are no official pictures of me in my gear but I sent my husband a picture after my first hunt to prove I really did it.

The lodge is BEAUTIFUL, peaceful, serene, all things you would expect.  I actually learned to shoot a gun at a skeet area and did pretty good for my first time.  That gun was heavy.  My arms were trembling after the second day.

I don't see myself doing it again but it was a good experience.  Here are some pics from the journey....

 

Hope you are off to a great week.....we are finally getting a cool front this weekend.  

Cheers to sweater weather!

Dining Room Inspiration

I have been working to do some room-by-room freshening up and am currently working in our dining room.  I updated the buffet I inherited and had my husband refinish the top of our table to a dark walnut.  I am working on a fall tablescape now.  Pinterest is my go-to for lots of quick ideas.  Here are some of my recent pins.....

This is so simple but I love it.  

If I were bold enough to choose colors, this would be a gorgeous choice.  Classic and cool

I love the casual feel and the lighting stole my heart in this kitchen/dining room

This is soooo classic and gorgeous.  Not realistic for me but maybe someday

The lighting, texture of the chairs and weathered table top were my faves here

Weekend Rewind

Someone please slow down time.  Days are flying by like minutes.  Do you feel the same way?  

Friday, I snuck out of work early and headed to the beach for a first grade field trip with my nieces. They were so proud to have Aunt Liz on the trip and I was glad I made time for them.  We walked in some nature trails and learned about trees and insects before walking onto the beach and getting shells. 

 

The official weekend consisted of playing two soccer games, racing and watching the US Women's National Team play in Orlando versus Brazil.  Here are some photos I snapped along the way....