The Year Went Downhill Fast....

Well, we had about 3 good days of 2021, and then it all went to crap. DJ tested positive for "the vid" and our house has been on quarantine since then. Thankfully, he is released and able to go back to work today; the girls and I will be escaping on Thursday. 

I was real gung-ho about my goals for the new year, and Gretchen and I set out to walk every day. It was a great way to get in some time together while it lasted. The little girls joined us once, and after DJ got sick- you guessed it- I got sick. I'm hoping we can pick up our walking routine this week. 

Since the girls can't play with our neighbors, Megan made herself a new friend. 

Adalyn wanted to make ice cream sandwiches out of our American Girl cookbook, so we all pitched in to bake. 

Once the cookies were made, I scooped on the ice cream, and Megan and Adalyn put on sprinkles, M&M's, and chocolate chips. 

She was so happy with our ice cream sandwiches! 

On January 5th, we celebrated Adalyn's 1/2 birthday. About 3 years ago, this half birthday thing became a big deal to her, so she made sure we celebrated this year too. 

We also eased our way back in to homeschool lessons once I started to feel better. 

We even broke out of the house to walk to the mail box one afternoon. 

The girls took their baby along for our walk. 

I've been working on a 2nd sourdough starter since after Christmas, and Adalyn helped me stir  it one afternoon. I actually am in the process of baking bread with it, and praying that it turns out okay! Our first starter was a complete fail, even though we had some yummy baked treats from it, the bread part never turned out. 

Megan got her and her baby doll dressed and Gee told her to send a picture, so we did. 

Adalyn has been reading lots more thanks to a new system we've implemented with our homeschool routine. 

And, I've made good use of the time at home, to re-organize, de-clutter, and clean out some spaces in our home that have been driving me bonkers. 

This week looks like a lot of the same; we'll be home doing school work, cleaning, and doing some baking, before getting out in to the real world in just a few days! 

Follow me on Instagram!

Young Living: January Freebies

Happy January! I had 100% meant to publish this post on Monday, but, we got hit with the Vid over the weekend- I'll share more about that later; our recovery, symptoms, etc. But, today, I wanted to share about the freebies you can receive this month from Young Living. 

In order to receive these freebies, you just have to place a qualifying order on your Young Living account. If you don't have an account, you can order a starter bundle here and get one. 

Alright, let's break down these freebies!

When you place a 100 PV order with Young Living, your order ships free! We had been asking Young Living to give us free shipping for a while, and a few months ago, they made it happen! And, since starter bundles are at 100 PV, your starter bundle will ship free too! 

When you place a 190 PV order, you'll receive Mastrante essential oil.

Mix Mastrante with your favorite YL moisturizer to help your skin GLOW! This smell of this oil is very grounding, calming, and relaxing. It’s been called the cousin of peppermint… and so you know that it your belly’s best friend.

You'll also receive a 15 mL Tea Tree essential oil when you place a 190 pv order through Essential Rewards (that's Young Living's loyalty program)

A staple for every home, we can't have enough tea tree in our house. You can do LOTS of great cleaning DIYs with this oil. Put a few drops in your washing machine, garbage can, or diaper pail to remove odors. This is also a great oil for all things skin - for blemish-prone skin, for healthy scalps, etc. Aromatically it cleanses the air and has a refreshing aroma.

And finally, at 190 pv on Essential Rewards, you'll receive Orange essential oil free. 

This is my HAPPY oil!! Seriously, it’s like Sunshine in a bottle. It smells SO good paired with any other oil… and my kids LOVE it. My favorite diffuser combos with Orange are: Orange + Joy in the daytime… Orange + Cedarwood + Dream Catcher at night… and Orange + Northern Lights Black Spruce + Valor in my office! Orange is a great oil to add to DIY sprays and roll-ons… you can never have too much Orange oil around! Add a drop of Orange oil to your Thieves toothpaste and it acts as a natural tooth whitener, too!

Manuka essential oil is free with a 250 pv order. 

Sometimes we need a bit of help to create radiant skin in the wintertime. Enter… Manuka! I don’t know if it’s because the pink bottle is just so darn cute… or if it works so well on the skin… but I just love using this oil. It has very similar properties to tea tree oil, but the aroma is completely different. It’s sort of woodsy and thicker to the touch. Blemish prone skin? Combine Manuka with our Acne Treatment and you’re all set. It’s also wonderful for a healthy scalp - add a couple drops to your shampoo. Diffuse it for a warm, calming aroma!

And finally, when you order 300 pv, you get all of the above free, plus Geranium essential oil.

This floral oil is a must-have for your skin care and detox routine. Add to your moisturizer for radiant, dewy, even-toned skin. Did you know that some folks add geranium to their hot tub instead of chlorine?

Do you dry brush? If so, try putting some Geranium on your skin before you brush!! Also, ladies - your hormones will THANK YOU when you use this! Apply around the inside of the ankles for happy hormones.

Aromatically, the smell of Geranium helps release negative emotions (it's not surprising why you see geranium in many of our Feeling Kit blends). Diffuse it for a happy mood… and feelings of peace and hope! Emotionally, this oil releases negative memories and fears of abandonment to promote self-acceptance and uplift the spirit. Also... check out the interesting research about Geranium and liver/pancreas/bile ducts in your reference guide.

Friends, all of these oils are valued at $150.00. You also receive points back on your order, so if you're earning 25% back on points, and you process a 300 pv order, you have 75 points to spend on free product later!

Whew! That's a lot of freebies, but we're not done yet! 

When you order a starter bundle with me this month, then you'll be entered to win a glass bottle bundle so you can make DIY hair sprays, rollers, diffuser bombs and more! 

And finally, I'm hosting a Lavender buy in for a sweet friend of mine!

The Scheiter family has gone through hell in the last few years. I met Chrissy through blogging and she eventually bought a starter bundle from me, and is on my Young Living team. In the time that I've known her, she's had a stroke, heart surgery, and a bypass. She's a mom to two wonderful children and she has a heart of gold. She is seriously so kind and giving. Her husband, Adam is needing a kidney transplant ASAP, and they have medical bills looming. 

They do not have a Go Fund Me set up, because it takes away money as they collect. Rather, we are selling individual bottles of Lavender essential oil. You can purchase a 15 mL for $40.00 or a 5 mL for $25.00. When we sell all 50 bottles, we'll have raised over $400.00 for the family! You can gift the money via paypal (elainewelte@gmail.com).... please gift to friends/family and include your name/address in the notes. We will immediately place the order and send the money to the Scheiter family. 

And finally, if you purchase a starter bundle this month, the family will receive an extra $25.00. 

So much goodness this month friends!

 

Football Wife life: Valero Alamo Bowl

This year's football season has looked so different from years past, but like always, we pivot and adjust. We really weren't sure what bowl season would look like and if it would even happen this year, but thankfully with adjustments, and amazing bowl committees, our bowl season lived on. 

In typical years, you have to win 6 games to be bowl eligible, but this year we found teams having won only 4 games being invited to bowls. We also saw a bowl games cancelled, bowl locations, moved, and bowl games cancelled with short notice. 

With all of the unknown, we were just so thankful to have the experience this year. 

Texas was selected to play in the Valero Alamo Bowl in San Antonio. It's our 2nd year in a row to attend, and I won't lie- the short 1 1/2 drive is perfection. In typical years, teams go down a few days in advance to participate in bowl activities and practices. This year, Texas treated the bowl as a fairly typical away game. 

DJ and his staff drove down on Monday, and the team drove down Monday as well. 

Once in the hotel, DJ set up the meeting rooms and had a little bit of down time before team meetings. 

I worked on Monday and the girls and I drove down Tuesday afternoon. 

Tuesday morning, DJ got up and went on a run at the riverwalk and snapped this photo. 

Once the girls and I arrived, we sat in the hotel room and hung out with DJ. I know that sounds boring, but I feel like we don't see him too often during bowls and sometimes, you just need some family time. 

When he had to get ready for the game, the girls and I ventured out to the river walk and stopped by the Alamo because Adalyn wanted to see it again. We ate dinner, and then got ready for the game. 

I stole a few pictures that DJ took for this post ;) 

This is a photo of him and his staff that worked the game. He has an amazing video staff here with 3 employees and students. They work so hard and they love what they do, which makes his job so much easier. 

Bevo.

We snapped one quick family photo before kick off. 

Adalyn asked for binoculars for Christmas (thanks Nana!) and took them to the game with her. She had fun looking for DJ on the sidelines and throwing him a "hook 'em" sign. 

Texas players praying in the endzone. 

Kickoff was at 8 pm, so it was right at bedtime for the girls! They were troopers and stayed up well past their bedtime. In the 3rd quarter, we were snapping selfies to keep this girl entertained. 

Texas won the game, and the celebration after the game is always one of my favorite parts (when we win) Last year, we had passes to be on the field after the game, but this year, we weren't allowed on. 

Sort of. Once DJ realized that there were other kids with their dads, he came and grabbed the girls from the stands. I mean, we may have gotten in trouble for it, but those kids celebrating with their dads is one of the sweetest moments and it's worth all of the hard work and missed family time they go through. I was kind of in tears watching them walk out there. 

This was my view of the celebration. 

And this was DJ's. 

One of my favorite moments after any game, is when the girls run and hug their dad's neck. No one can really understand what our girls go through and how much they miss their dad during the season, but I will 100% tell you that even though it's hard, it's worth it. Those little sweet moments are so worth it. I really wouldn't have it any other way. 

The girls brought home the largest balloons they could find and they were able to get their first picture with Bevo this  2020 season. 

DJ's entire staff couldn't work the game, but they were all there. We are so thankful for all of the hard work they put in. 

This moment is everything. 

We didn't get back to the hotel until 1:00 ish am. It was late! The girls went to bed and DJ and I hung out in a room next door with friends celebrating. I did not crawl in to bed until 3:30. We slept until 9, and decided to drive home instead of finding something fun to do. We had talked about hanging out on Wednesday, but decided we would rather go back later in the Spring for a weekend camping trip. 

Of course, no drive in Texas is complete without a stop at Buccee's. 

And by 6:30 pm, this girl was out! 

We are so thankful to the committee at the Valero Alamo Bowl, they go above and beyond to welcome the teams they are hosting

We were spoiled beyond belief with bowl gifts and they even placed drinks and snacks in DJ's hotel room. They put on an amazing event each year. 

And finally, if you want to hear a little more about our football life, what it's like moving, the good and the note so good, you can listen to my interview on More than a Season Podcast here. 

 

2021 Word of the Year

For the past several years, I've chosen a word of the year rather than a resolution. In 2018, my word was "freedom." In 2019, it was "brave", and last year it was "anchor"

This year, my word is Intentional.

I crave to be intentional in my relationships with friends and family. To be intentional in my own self care. To be intentional with my time, and to be intentional with what I share on social media. I want to wake up every day, and be intentional in everything I do. 

"Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus." Philippians 3:13-14

If you need help choosing a word of the year, here are a few of my favorites! 

Last night, we had a tiny celebration at dinner with the girls. 

DJ has said all year "Kick Rocks 2020" so we added that to our letter board. I decorated with stars, hanging banners, and added silver chargers to the table. We feasted on chicken alfredo and toasted with grape juice. 

Yesterday, I recapped our 2020, and realized it wasn't as horrible as I thought it was. We did a ton of traveling with safety measures in place and had so much family time.

I also shared some good things over on my Instagram. 

And took a look back at my Top 9 for 2020. 

Here's to 2021. May it not suck like 2020 did. May we have an abundance of toilet paper, healthy families, and prosperity. May we get rid of masks, have freedom, and be able to hug friends and family. May we live the year without regrets.