Home Refresh

I'm not sure about you, but after the holiday decorations came down, I'm ready for a clean slate. I like to pack away the clutter and frills and get back to basics. 

This year was just like the others, and we took down the Christmas decorations as soon as we got back from the Alamo Bowl, and I spent two days getting our house put back together. 

In our dining room, I switched the table around, it ran the length of the room and now it runs the width, and I'm so happy with it.

My table runner is hearth and hand (similar here). The dough bowl was my grandmother's (but, I found a similar one here), and I have faux pears inside. Our salt & pepper shakes are also from hearth and hand. 

My grandmother's old sewing stand is our little sideboard. I have an antique pitcher with eucalyptus stems. (which was my grandmother's), a small vase, a picture of the girls and I baking during Thanksgiving one year, a cute little wood house, and a candlestick. 

After I finished in the dining room, I freshened up our living room too. 

Our table has a little Bible verse sign, and underneath, I did a tray filled with lemon accessories that were my grandmother's, a few bowls, another photo, and an oil diffuser.

I thought I'd share my little tiered tray too :) This tray just makes me happy. I bought it from Magnolia in Waco several years ago, and it's still one of my favorite things. In keeping with the "crisp" feeling for the New Year, I placed lots of neutral accessories on it. 

And finally, I changed around our entry way. The secretary use to be under the signs, but I shifted it to the wall, and hung up hooks to hang coats or bags on. We also have a place for all of our shoes to go- mostly because our floors show all the dirt and dust! 

Sigh. A fresh crisp start in January just makes me so happy. 

Do you declutter your home in the New Year? Do you love having a fresh slate in your home?

Alamo Bowl.... The Game

DJ informed me last week that I never blogged about the Alamo game after I blogged about our bowl trip. #whoops

So, I'm back today and sharing about the actual game- you know, the reason we were there. 

We rode the buses from the hotel with the team, so we arrived about two hours early. Once inside, we found DJ and he came up to join us for a family picture. We had somehow gone the entire football season without getting a family picture, so we had to make up for it. 

And then just one of he and I. 

The girls had fun playing with friends and in the stands while we waited for the game to start. 

DJ's mom, aunt, nephew, and sister in law all came in for the game. We were so excited they made the trip! 

In true Adalyn fashion, she was there for it. 

This girl loves Texas football. 

We were just a few rows behind Bevo. 

And most of the action during the game was right on our endzone, which made our seats perfect. 

After 4 quarters, we headed on to the field for the victory celebration, but before greeting DJ, we had to greet Bevo. 

And finally, the clock ran down, and we were able to run on the field for big hugs and celebrations! 

This is always my favorite part of the game.

Champions. 

At the end of the game, we had the trophy presentation and MVP awards presented. 

And then it rained confetti and balloons on us. 

At this point, my heart always goes out to the losing team, because we've been there too, and even when victory is so sweet, it's also so bittersweet, because you know the heartbreak the other team is experiencing, and in that moment, you know how bad it sucks. 

This girl was determined to bring home all the balloons. 

Instead, we opted for some super cute photos. 

And of course, a photo laying in all of the confetti. 

We eventually made our way off the field, but Addy spotted a megaphone, so we sneaked in one last picture. 

Once we made it back to our hotel, we had strawberries and a note congratulating us on the win. DJ and I immediately devoured these! 

It was New Year's Eve, but we decided not to venture out, so we rang in the New Year in our hotel room with family. 

It was a pretty fun kick off to 2020. 

Life Lately

Well friends, last week kicked my hiney. DJ has still been putting in long hours at the office, and we thought last week would be better.... and it was, but he's still super busy moving offices and meeting rooms and getting things set up for our new coaching staff.  I worked 5 days last week and the girls activities are ramping up big time. January usually feels like it drags on, but this year, it is flying by for us. 

Here's a peek at life lately. 

This girl and I have been getting in lots of cuddles, and we're making huge progress on her not sucking her thumb- even though she is here ;) 

We've had lots of birthday parties for friends! 

And we've enjoyed going to all of them. 

We even celebrated her own half birthday on January 5th. 

DJ and I have been looking into getting a camper for our family, but after finding one that was perfect, we realized that it was still too heavy for our car and we would have to go even smaller, which wouldn't be comfortable for a family of 5. Sigh. It's been a pretty hard blow because we had some big camper plans. 

But thankfully, we still have each other. 

Gretchen received a madeleine pan for Christmas and baked us some a few weekends ago....

While Megan and Adalyn opened up a "puppy sitting" service. 

And of course with the start of the New Year, means new goals, so I'm having this girl go run with me to give me some company and so we can have some girl time together. 

3rd grade math homework has ramped up, and we're now learning all the ways for multiplication. While she's memorizing her multiplication facts, all of the techniques have been confusing. 

Just two girls hanging out waiting on a big sister. 

Adalyn asked to take her unicorn blanket with her when we took Megan to gymnastics, and I totally obliged, because who wouldn't want a cozy blanket, but also, it's hilarious. 

She asked me to put her hair up after her shower and she looked like such a big girl :( 

And speaking of big girls, this one turns 12 this weekend, and I'm not emotionally prepared for it. 

Three Things

It's been a while since I've shared a "three things" post, so I thought I'd share one again. It's just a fun little update about what's been going on with each of us. 

Adalyn

1. Adalyn is doing great in 1st grade! Homework is still a battle, but she's exhausted at the end of the day and just wants to play. I have noticed that her reading seems to be improving and she's learning more and more sight words. 

2. She still loves gymnastics and has told us she wants to be a cheerleader. 

3. We are working (again) on getting her to stop sucking her thumb. So far, she's been doing really well during the day! 

Gretchen

1. She is thriving in middle school. She just auditioned for the spring play and had a call back, so we are crossing our fingers. 

2. She still loves to read and is reading all of the time.... but she also loves playing with her legos. She's also making straight A's in school. 

3. She'll be 12 this month and we're planning a "throw back" birthday party for her and having a sleepover with her friends. 

Megan

1. This year Megan will be on Showteam Gold in gymnastics. After this year, she should progress on to team and start competing. She's loving gymnastics and even if she never competes, it gives her so much confidence!

2. She loves the DogMan series and we're working our way through another Little House book. Her reading has come a long way. She also loves her teacher and talks about him all the time, but she won't necessarily talk to him at school! 

3. She's so funny! This past weekend she was pretending she was an "old lady" and had all of us cracking up! I tried to take a picture but she wouldn't let me, and I totally respect her privacy with that. I'm sure I had tears in my eyes from laughing so hard! 

DJ and me

1. DJ's work schedule last week was nuts. In fact, it was a very hard week since he put in very long days and I wasn't fully expecting how long the days would be. Thankfully, he should be back to a normal-ish schedule this week and we can look forward to having him home more.

2. I'm still working part time and loving my job. I absolutely love the people I work with and love the kids. I'm also digging in and working harder in my Young Living business and have some big goals for 2020.

3. Vacation??? DJ turns 40 this year and we'll be married 15 years in December so we are looking in to a vacation just the two of us. We still aren't 100% sure, but thanks to a travel agent, we have an idea, and now we just have to really figure out the logistics. 

So, that's a little bit about what's been going on with each of us! 

If you're hear and a part of our little word, let me say thank you for continuing to read and support us, and of course, we'd love for you to follow along on Instagram too! 

Happy Tuesday friends! 

January Young Living Order

I love subscription boxes! They're so much fun and I love getting new products to try without actually having to go out and read labels and think about what I'm buying. 

Young Living has a monthly subscription box that is 100% customizable by me, every single month- so I get to choose what I'm ordering, what I'm spending, and when it ships. This month, I processed my monthly order earlier than usual because we were running low or out of a few of our monthly necessities. 

Here's everything I ordered in my monthly box!

Each month, I order Ningxia Red..... it's a powerhouse antioxidant drink made with wolfberries and essential oils. Last month I ordered two bottles and it was gone so fast! When the girls have liberty to pour their own cup, they pour a ton and you only need 2 oz a day to reap the benefits! So, I went ahead and bought the pouches, so it will last us longer ;) The girls can take these in their lunch, have one for an afternoon drink or I can open it and pour it in my cup of water that I take with me each day. 

Zyng is Young Living's energy drink. It's only 30 calories for the can and it doesn't have any yucky ingredients or horrible side effects that most energy drinks have. I don't drink any soda or coffee and only save Zyng for a day that I need an extra pep in my step. 

Thieves Household Cleaner is a plant based, toxin free cleaner. It's highly concentrated, so you only use one capful in a spray bottle and fill it with water. We clean our entire house with this stuff! I love that it doesn't give me a headache like most other cleaners and it's safe for my kids to use.  

Endoflex is an essential oil that helps support your endocrine system. I put a roller on top and roll this over my thyroid and kidneys. It's great for regulating a woman's emotions and it's amazing for skin! 

Frankincense is another essential oil that's wonderful for skin. I ordered this so I can make a skin serum roller to use each night. It's also wonderful to diffuse at night or when you're doing yoga or meditating. 

Savvy Minerals is Young Living's makeup line! I've used it for several years and really like it! It's easy to apply and it doesn't have any unsafe ingredients. 

I ordered the foundation in warm 2, multitasker which I use as an eyebrow filler and as an eyeliner, and a bronzer. 

 Now, let's talk about FREEBIES!!!! 

Young Living spoils us with free products! The more we spend, the more free products we receive.  This month I received peppermint essential oil, which I love diffusing on days that I need an energy boost, but it's also great for your digestive and respiratory systems. Roman Chamomile is wonderful for sleep and achy muscles. Cinnamon Bark is wonderful to diffuse with other oils such as nutmeg or thieves, but you can actually use this one in your coffee or hot cocoa, or even while baking!

Clary Sage is wonderful for a woman's hormones and I can't wait to try this one! 

On top of all those freebies, I get points to use for more free products! See, I told you Young Living spoils us!!! This month, I ordered shampoo and bath gel for the girls, as well as MightyPro, which is a powder probiotic that seriously tastes like a pixie stick- so yummy! I ordered orange because I love diffusing this one, and it's great for your skin, or even on wool dryer balls. Sleepyize to diffuse in the girls bedrooms at night- we've noticed a big change in their sleeping habits with this oil! And, Northern Lights Black Spruce which is hands down my favorite oil to diffuse! I've gone through a bottle of these a month since October! And, all of this was free too! 

If you're a Young Living member and you want to order their monthly subscription box, just log in and go to Essential Rewards; you can set everything up there. If you're not a member, you can join here and click on Premium Starter Kit (we prefer the Dessert Mist diffuser) and click the Essential Rewards box. This will make your starter kit your first month's order, and you'll receive the free peppermint essential oil and 10 points to spend on a product later on! Once you grab your starter kit, send me an email and I'll send you a fun welcome gift pack full of freebies!