the baby's tree

this afternoon elle louise and i decorated her little tree. she was very helpful during the decorating process, but to my suprise, has left the ornaments alone since putting them on. last year (on december 13th) i had my first baby shower and the hostesses asked that everyone bring a special ornament for elle. i put most of those ornaments on her tree this year. the very breakables, sweet baby's first christmas, and a couple with her name went on our big tree. which i love.


i tweeted this picture earlier, so sorry for the redundancy if you follow me on twitter.

elle was excited to show daddy her tree. she does this deep-throat gasping noise (for lack of a better description) when she gets excited. that's the noise she made when showing daddy her tree. and, she also raises her hand as if to point to the tree. she loves pretty things. i think we did good on the tree today.



i am ALMOST done with all my christmas decorating...a few things left.
-make stockings (suprised? by now, i'm sure you're not.)
-hang stockings
-fill stockings (my favorite)
-make burlap wreaths
-hang lighted garland around front door
-convince aaron that we should buy lights for our bushes (gonna take a lot of convincing. need prayers!)
-make paper garland for big tree
-and, maybe a few other projects here and there. i really want to do something with cranberries!

hooray!

i sold my boots! i sold my boots! i sold my boots!

i am so excited and can't wait to get myself a new pair. probably the clarks but maybe something different. i looked around a little bit today and there are so many boots out there that i really like. even found a pair on the $99 sale rack at dillards that are super cute (but, may be a bit more trendy than i want).

oh yeah, and we had a wonderful thanksgiving. i took ZERO pictures. i think i was too tired to even mess with it. there's always next year.



i stole this picture from my cousin's facebook page. this is all the women on my mom's side of the family thanksgiving day. L to R: mimi, elizabeth, aunt sherry, rachel, emily kate, elle louise, mom, me and aunt kelley. i just love my family!

i am still full!

i can't help but be thankful...

these pictures tell such a story. it is close to impossible to get an almost 10-month old, 2 2-year olds and a 4-year old to pose for pictures. quite hysterical actually!

happy thanksgiving! hope your day is filled with lots of yummy food, family togetherness, and blessings galore!

i am so thankful for this year and the blessings we have received. of course, i'm so thankful for my sweet, sweet daughter elle louise. she is precious and perfect and more than i could have ever asked for. the ultimate blessing. also so thankful for dear family and friends. and, thankful for my husband, who works hard and is a wonderful daddy. my heart is so full...

...and, so is my tummy. we had thanksgiving dinner with my dad's side of the family last night and i ate and ate and ate. and, i will eat lots more today!

tasty tuesday {rocky road fudge}

so...i didn't actually MAKE the fudge this weekend like i said i was going to. but, i did buy all the ingredients at the store yesterday and am going to make it for thanksgiving day. i haven't made this since thanksgiving 2008, but i found my recipe in my recipe box (along with a ton of other good recipes that i haven't even tried). it slipped my mind how EASY this fudge is to make. instead of making it yesterday, i just decided to find a picture and give you the recipe. so, you could make it for thanksgiving. i promise, it will be a favorite among family and friends.


photo courtesy of google images

rocky road fudge
good housekeeping magazine (circa 2005)

ingredients:
1-12 oz bag semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup butterscotch chips
1 cup CRUNCHY peanut butter (my SIL makes this with creamy pb and its just as good)
1 tbs butter
1 10 1/2 oz bag minituare marshmallows

directions:
1. grease 8x8 or 9x9 square baking dish and line with plastic wrap.
2. in saucepan, combine chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, peanut butter, and butter.
3. cook over medium heat 2-3 minutes or just until ingredients are melted, stirring constantly.
4. remove from heat and stir marshmallows into fudge mixture.
5. pour into lined pan and spread evenly.
6. cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 3 hours. (if i am super prepared i will let this refrigerate over night. it makes cutting it up super easy!)
7. invert fudge onto cutting board; remove plastic wrap. turn fudge top side up. cut fudge into 36 pieces. (i never get 36 pieces out of it, i think i cut the pieces too big. i usually get a couple dozen. maybe a little more)
8. if not served immediately, store in refrigerator!

SERIOUSLY, so easy! make it this thanksgiving. you will NOT be disappointed.

happy making and enjoy all the recipes at the blog hop!

favorite "boutiques"

friday night elle and i went to the nwa boutique show with my mother-in-law and sister-in-laws (or is it sisters-in-law?) and had a great time. there were a TON of women there, and i was one of the crazy few that brought my baby AND my stroller. i ended up wearing elle in the bjorn because she was so tired and we used my stroller as our shopping cart. since i did have elle, i wasn't really able to SHOP to the capacity i wanted too (ha!), so saturday morning i went back to the show. i met my cousin there at 9:00 am and got lots of good gifts. most of the places that i bought stuff from have shops online, so i thought i would share with you my favorites!


gleeful peacock. awesome, original handmade jewelry. i was really impressed with this girls talent. and she was super sweet! i bought a couple of her necklaces for christmas gifts. i can't tell you to who they are going to because i don't want to ruin the suprise for them! and, i gave aaron her card and told him i wanted a locket or a pocket watch for mother's day (or my birthday!)!


white washed comfort. LOVED their stuff. so sweet! i bought a couple of their tea towels. they used a lot of amy butler fabric and i LOVE amy butler! perfect gift for the person you want to give "a little something" to!


heather hill clothing also had a booth set up so i got elle another felt flower clippie and another felt flower headband. i just love her stuff!


nesting by jennifer walker. such cute personalized gifts! i got someone special recipe cards to go along with the tea towel from white washed comfort.

i am so thankful that aaron could watch elle saturday morning so i could go back to the show and get some christmas shopping checked off my list. i still have lots remaining but i feel like i've got a good amount under my belt.

i had every intention of sewing our stockings this weekend, but aaron ended up having to work from home all weekend, so he couldn't help out with elle much and she is into everything. so, my new plan is to get them sewn on friday. we. shall. see.

hope everyone has a great week! its almost thanksgiving (and hopefully a long weekend for everyone). boy, do i have a lot to be thankful for this year!

for sale: frye campus boots

who wants to buy them? they are awesome boots. i got them circa 2006 and have worn them a dozen times. they are a bit big for me. and, since they are too big they are just awkward to walk in. and, i just discovered today (as i was snapping these pictures) that they are labeled two different sizes. the box and the left boot are labeled size 8 and the left boot is labeled size 8 1/2. this is the first time i have ever noticed this! we measured the soles and the right boot measures about a 1/4 inch bigger. very odd.















i paid somewhere around $300 for them. i want $150 for them.

i want these boots:

clark's orinocco jazz. saw them in eureka springs and just REALLY want them! they aren't super trendy, but that's what i like. boots that will stand the test of time. and you can look at these and just tell that the more worn they are the better! and, since i have gently used frye's in my closet i thought i would sell them and use that money to buy these!

i wanted to give my loyal readers first dibs on the frye's. i looked on ebay and they sell for around $150 (some sell for more, some for less), but i assure you my boots are LIKE BRAND NEW and well taken care of! if i don't sell them by the end of november, i will be putting them on ebay.\

if you are interested, please e-mail me at kbhigh2u@gmail.com

10 random thoughts for today

1-i was so thrilled to find my desk not piled up 3 feet high when i walked in this morning. still hoping the day goes by super fast.

2-not usually a big fan of gymboree, but their holiday collection is super cute. elle doesn't need a blessed thing, but its still fun to shop around.



3-i'm getting my haircut tomorrow at 12:30. super nervous. i have not had my hair cut in ONE YEAR, people. this is epic! honestly, i want to chop it all off, but i would terribly miss my ponytail. so, the plan is to keep the length and add some swoopy bangs and lots of layers. i have a friend that assures me that layers are the way to go. we shall see.

4-recently have fallen deeply in love with NUTELLA. love eating it on pepperidge farm cinnamon raisin bread (and buttermilk biscuits. shh, don't tell!)!



5-started decorating for Christmas yesterday. drank coffee out of a Christmas mug this morning and am on my 3rd bag of candy cane kisses. LOVE Christmas.

6-i really want these stockings to hang from our chimney with care:



but aaron thinks they are a bit pricey ($19/stockingso instead i'm just going to make these:



i've got tons of burlap (like 4 yards) because i was going to make a headboard for the guest room, but changed my mind. so, in turn, i will make these stockings. i'm going to make mine with a linen posey flower, aaron's with linen-covered buttons and elle's with a linen name tag. maybe with a hand-embroidered name. i will share pics when i'm done. hope to tackle those this weekend!

and aaron is going to make this box for the mantle for us to hang the stockings from:



saw this at gordman's and thought it was super cute. we, of course, are going to leave off the cheesiness that is "stockings were hung" and holly. i'm excited about this project. now, if only aaron can do it this weekend too (along with our yard). any ideas what to put in the box? i'm thinking evergreen of some sort. or, maybe poinsettas.

7-so super excited about Thanksgiving this year. our first Thanksgiving with our little turkey! i lucked out and am making sweet potato casserole for two of the three places we go. how easy is that? i'm also going to make the chocolate chip pumpkin cake and rocky road fudge. i'll make the fudge this weekend so i can share on tasty tuesday! it is so yummy. if you like peanuts, peanut butter, marshmallows, and fudge...these will quickly become one of your favorite candies! i make them every year to take to aaron's family Thanksgiving because his aunt pat LOVES them. and, she reminds me of my granny so i love her! actually, i love all his aunts because they are like having a bunch of extra cheek-pinching granny's around. they are the sweetest ladies in the world!

8-totally digging my new Kings of Leon cd...its da bomb! fo reals yo!



9-we have family pictures with the fabulous lauren ames on saturday! guess what? i haven't even picked out what we are going to wear. i put an outfit on the other night and asked aaron what he thought and i think his words were "its kind of dramatic". so...i have to pick out our coordinating (but not-too-matchy-matchy) outfits, wax my eyebrows, and paint my fingernails between now and saturday 3:30.

10-have you watched The Talk? i like it. i really like it. aaron calls it television for simple-minded people. well, i am among the simple-minded that enjoy Dr. Oz, Regis & Kelly, The Doctors, Ellen, the occasional Oprah, and now The Talk. to name a few.



happy thursday! one day closer to the weekend.

wsww {what elle wore + a birthday party}

i did a little better this week getting some pictures of elle weezy's outfits!


at hayden's bday party on saturday

top: children's place
cardi: old navy
jeggings: children's place
bow: gifted
socks: i think target


i'm not really sure what we did this day. probably, just ran errands.

top and bottoms: carters
shoes: target
bow: local department store


elle wore this to the mall last week.

dress: old navy
jean jacket: baby gap
leggings: carters (love their leggings, btw. they fit like leggings should)
converse: journey's kids (i splurged on these. but am so glad i did, because she wears them pretty much everyday)
bow: heather hill clothing

i love heather hill's stuff. i can't afford her dresses, but hopefully one day when elle isn't growing out of clothes so fast i'll be able to get her one. but, i do LOVE her clips and headbands. i go to all the local craft fairs just so i can get more. i'm obsessed. friday night, my mil, sils, and i are going to the nwa boutique show. heather hill will be there and i will be getting more clips and headbands!

a week ago, today, my cousin hayden turned TWO! not really sure where the last two years went, but they went somewhere fast. saturday morning we went to his birthday party at boingo bouce. perfect party for a very energetic 2-year old!


blowing out candles!


beautiful iced faces


ak going down the BIG slide


elle didn't know what to think about the place. sensory overload. she did think daddy in one of the bouncers was pretty funny!


my cousin taking elle down the slide. she kind of liked it! (aaron had the camera on a weird setting)


great big sister!


flushed cheeks from hard playing!

today i'm taking care of my feverish baby girl. i had BIG plans today, but i've put them on hold. we are going to just hole up for the day and get better! i took elle to the doctor last thursday (she weighs 18 lbs, 13 oz!!) because her nose was running lots of green snot (tmi?) and i thought she might have an ear infection. he told me that she just had a viral infection because her ears and throat were clear. last thursday she didn't have fever. monday afternoon she started running fever and still is today. my diagnosis is that her body is fighting off the infection. if she's still running fever tomorrow, i will make a doctor's appointment.

CMA awards

i am so excited about the CMA awards tonight. not sure why because i don't even really care for country music? its good every once in a while, but i don't listen on a daily basis. this morning on GMA, dierks bentley sang a little tune called fiddlin' around and elle danced to it and clapped the entire song. it was the cutest thing i've ever witnessed my child do (cutest thing ever...might be bit of stretch). she does cute stuff daily, but this was very cute!

here's a video i found on you tube:



so, i'm kind of excited to see if dierks performs this song. i'm also excited to see taylor swift (love her, and not just because she has the same name as my niece) and gwyneth paltrow's country music debut (what?). also, just excited to watch brad paisley host. i really like his down-to-earth personality and i love how much he loves his wife and his boys. its refreshing to see such a famous person get all choked up when talking about his family. he's really funny too!

are you gonna watch the awards?

oh yes, i am still going to be doing the WSWW posts but i was really bad about taking any pictures last week. my cousin and i had a garage sale at my house last saturday and that pretty much took up all my time. garage sales are HARD work. why do we ever have them? oh yeah, to make $140 that you can just go blow and not feel guilty about doing so. although, it is honestly sickening to think of the amount of money you paid for the stuff you only make $140 on. oh well, that's life i suppose.

here are some cute pics of elle from the last week...



is it friday yet? i am counting the hours and minutes to friday. its been a long couple of weeks!