4th of July 2024

I can't believe I haven't blogged the 4th of July, everyone's favorite holiday! We had a jam-packed 4th this year and hit basically the entire state. Not really but we did have a blast. 

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Cutest little house, take 2

If you've been around for any length of time, you know one of my very favorite projects was the girls little playhouse, you can check it out here. My "COVID" project. Sadly, that sweet little house got blown away in the tornado. So here we are.. with a new, modern little house for the girls. Complete with a new street number to reflect our new address. 

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Kate is 7!!

Kate turned SEVEN! And she's so fun and easy to celebrate. Our sweet little girl is so precious and kind. It's always fun to see her be in the spotlight! 

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20 year reunion

I had my TWENTY year class reunion last month in El Dorado. It was a great time catching up with lifelong friends! I enjoyed taking the girls for a little fun in town too. So much packed into about 24 hours! 

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Shrimp Ceviche Verde

Another grand slam! LOVED this one! So light and fresh. I feel like most of Rick's recipes are this way. And yes, it's mexican but doesn't feel like it at the same time. If you haven't bought his cookbook, MEXICAN EVERYDAY, you really need it. 

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Emily’s 1st Field Trip

Emily finally had her first field trip! She was suppose to go to the pumpkin patch last year but LRSD stopped allowing PreK kids on buses a couple weeks before! So happy she got to go this year and that I was able to join! 

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Snapper with Toasty Garlic Mojo

This was simply delightful. It was light and fresh and really perfect. We talk about it often. And it was really so easy! I say that, Brian was the chef on this one. I just got the amazing benefit of a wonderful dish. 

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Josh’s hibachi birthday!

Back in August, we went to Benihana for Josh's birthday and everyone had a blast. I got pictures of all of the kids but none of the birthday boy. 

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Butter-Stewed Radishes

This is one of those things that just happened and it was the most pleasant side dish in the world. And my love for radishes just exploded and I want these again and again and again and again. 

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Fall Soccer 2024

Soccer was a hit this year! We finally all ended up at the same location.. even on the same team! The girls had a blast and played so well. They improved all year and we're looking forward to the spring! 

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Recipe: Amazing Ramen

This is not a good picture, I'll admit. But I need you to trust me when I say this, this recipe will knock your socks off. And it's so easy and so flavorful. And because I think it's fun, it will cost you less then $1/per serving! I don't need your judgement, this is our new go-to. Just try it! 

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Weekend at Lake Degray

Last-minute random trips to the lake are the very most fun! We went down in early August and had the best time. 

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Orzo al Limone with Crispy Parmesan Chicken

I shocked I haven't made this again. I absolutely loved this one. The lemon in the orzo and then the crispy chicken on top was such a perfect combo! I don't remember it being that difficult and I made it on a weeknight. YUM! 

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Recipe: Panang Curry

We tried a new curry and absolutely love it! Emily eats it up so fast. It's in the constant rotation around here. We cook it with salmon and chicken and it's honestly fantastic with both! Served with wok-fried green beans, perfect weeknight dinner! 

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Garlicky Chicken with Anchovies

This recipe was so delish that I've decided I'm going to make it again tonight. It was so neat how the anchovies just dissolve. The recipe said that but it was still awesome. And the flavor of this dish is really excellent. It's super easy. You won't regret trying this! 

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Johnston Holland Roastery

So we have a new hobby.. I say new, we've been doing this since the spring. When we went to NOLA earlier this year, Brian and Christian bought a coffee roasting thing. Since we're now right around the corner from each other, it works out great. And it's a fun little weekend activity. Just think about all the money we are saving by buying all this stuff so we can roast our own green beans..... HA. 

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Back 2 School - Fall 2024

The girls went back to school last month and everyone loves being at the same school! Emmy is having a harder adjustment to the uniform policy and the whole no naps things! Makes for very tired evenings and earlier bedtimes! 

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BVT: Dining Room

This room came together the quickest and easiest in our home. There is still so much I can do-- mainly to the walls. But for now, it works. I honestly didn't think we would use this room very much but now that we have so many family members in town, we use it pretty often. And when friends come to stay, it's nice to have the kitchen table for the kids (or the patio!) and then dining room for the adults. 

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Beach Trip 2024

We had such a fun trip to the beach this summer. We flew again, which the girls thought was so fun! Except the day we came home-- was the crowdstrike nightmare! We made it home by some miracle. Lots of fun was had all around and we loved seeing the girls spend so much time playing with cousins and our family! 

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NOLA Trip 2024

We took a fun little long weekend trip to NOLA again this year. Has been one of our favorite things. Almost canceled this year because Molly and Christian moved to Little Rock! Luckily the dates worked out and we actually got spend their last weekend in town with them. SO much fun going on a farewell tour with some of NOLAs biggest foodies. 

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Last Day of School 2024

Happy last day of school!! I didn't get a picture of the girls together but did get individual ones and I'm going to include the side-by-sides at the bottom of this post. 

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Recipe: Crispy Quesadillas with Salsa + Crema

This recipe quickly became a staple in our dinner rotation. It's so delicious and every person craves it. Well maybe Kate doesn't. But the salsa and the crema are wonderful-- don't skip them. And they are fantastic leftover the next day. 

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Lake Weekend with the Sparks Family

We had such a fun lake weekend with the Sparks family in July. They just recently moved back to Arkansas and the girls have the very best time playing together. We already scheduled the next weekend hang! 

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Favorite Spot in Our Home: Screened in Patio

I don't even know where to start on this patio. It's my favorite spot in the house. It's seriously the main reason we bought this house. We spend so much time here and it's such a beautiful serotonin hit for us. We finally, FINALLY got it exactly where we want it and I just really look forward to coffee on the weekends out here. And naps-- my new favorite. 

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Memorial Day 2024

We had a lovely little memorial day at DeGray Lake! The weather was perfect. The water felt so nice and the girls absolutely loved it! Can't wait for a summer packed with lake trips! 

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Last Day at TSS

I did something that I've never really done. I changed jobs! I mean I've moved jobs but not really. I started with the state about 12 years ago and my department merged to another and then my boss took a new job and I went with her but I was on maternity leave so I've never really left. Until the end of May, I took a new opportunity at the Arkansas Department of Agriculture. 

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Crispy Prosciutto, Broccoli and Risotto

So I accidently let a home chef box ship a month or so ago. They set my preferences and all were vegetarian dishes. I took the one pictured above and made a couple small edits-- best one was including crispy prosciutto. It was delish and I'm confident we'll make this one again on our own! 

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Justin Timberlake in Atlanta

Took a super quick trip to Atlanta last month to see Justin Timberlake in concert-- pre DWI. Now you can find tickets for like $25 dollars. YAY. But had fun hanging with these friends who I never get to see anymore! 

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Father’s Day 2024

Happy Father's Day to our favorite daddy! We had lots of fun celebrating the man who loves us so well! We went to Purple Cow with my family the day before and I snapped some sweet and silly pictures of the girls with Brian :) 

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Happy Little Avocado Vase

This is how you know you've officially become and old lady. I love this thing and it brings me so much happiness and the people who visit our house. I swear it has quite the following! I got this vase for Christmas from Brian and it's seriously taken since almost Christmas to get roots and leaves. We actually moved it this week to a pot with dirt and it's doing terrible. So I just want to remember it this way, haha! 

Here's THE LINK. Try it yourself!! 

Emily Turned FIVE!!

Our Emmy girl or should I say Emmy baby turned FIVE in May! It's getting to be a stretch to call her my baby. She's growing up and sometimes I really can't believe she's starting kindergarten this year! She did inform me recently that she WILL not be a big kid, she's going to stop getting older at six. Maybe we can just keep her little forever! 

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Emily's 5th Birthday Party!

We had Emily's birthday party last month and she had so much fun! And we loved celebrating our girl with all her friends. She wanted an american girl doll birthday party but I finally talked her into Barbie instead. Which was much easier! I swear she ran the entire time and had the very best day! 

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In My Bunco Era: Taylor Themed Bunco Night

I don't even know how I'm going to summarize how fun "In My Bunco Era" was. It was a blast and I seriously had so much fun planning this bunco night! Love that the group photo has the "lavender haze" lights in the background! Perfect! 

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Kate's 1st Year of Dance

Kate just completed her first year of dance lessons and very first recital! She loved the recital, not so much the dance classes every single week. And don't even talk to her about doing jazz again! Hahah. But seriously, we loved watching her shine. She got on the stage with all the confidence in the world and did such a great job!! And now her and Emmy put on little shows for us in the evenings. It's incredibly sweet. 

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Recipe: Mushroom Bourguignon

Hello fantastic recipe! I was a little apprehensive of this one because it's all mushrooms and I like mushroom, don't love mushrooms but was open to trying this. SO glad that I did! I am so glad we made this, it was really fantastic! And we really loved the polenta. It's definitely going to be in the rotation at our house. And was so easy to make! 

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Bowling with the Caldwell Family

We had such a fun time bowling with the Caldwell family last month! I always love getting these kiddos together. It's so fun to see some of our best friends and all of our kids become little friends. Gosh, so many memories and we're just carrying it on with them too!! 

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Recipe: Asparagus with leeks = YUM

OKAY new recipe time. And I really, really love this one. We've made it like ten times already and we just found it about a month ago. It's delish and super easy! You should really try it. And don't skimp on that mustard sauce. It's divine. 

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Trip to Wye Mountain

Year number two at the Wye Mountain Daffodil festival. The weather was 100x better this year but y'all.. you couldn't pick them! Which is what we loved so much about this place!! We made the best of it, took some pretty pics then went back to town and chowed down on Mexican food! 

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TOTAL Solar Eclipse 2024

I feel like we have heard about this eclipse for like 4 years and now after witnessing total darkness, I have to say.. it was pretty awesome. And I will remember this image above for like, ever. Brian and the girls did this for a solid hour before it really started to happen. And Kate would yell, "it's happening!!" over and over and over again. The excitement was so hilarious. And the fact that school let out for this is still pretty wild. 

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Halls Moved to Little Rock!

Speaking of people moving to Little Rock... the Halls moved a couple months ago too! We are all now within like .03 miles of each other. How fun is that?!

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Weekend Fun with the Middlekauffs

What a fun weekend!! Ya'll.. we're had so many family members move to town, it's been amazing. Molly and Christian moved a few weeks before they closed on their house and ended up staying with us one weekend. It was so fun to spend time together with all the Middlekauffs! 

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Easter 2024

This year Easter fell on March 31st. And if you follow this blog or know us, you probably know that's also the one-year anniversary of the Little Rock tornado. I had been dreading this day for months, not really quite sure how I would feel so what I should feel. Or if I should just try so hard to ignore the day all together. I went with the latter-- until our church showed a one-year slide show recapping the work they had done. Thanks, GUYS!!!! Kidding.. kind of. As the day came to a close, I turned my thoughts to gratitude and remembering the significance of the day, the actual day, not the one we had the year prior. And I found a lot of hope in the promise of brighter days and never ending support. 

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My birthday

I had a birthday! And it was so lovely and fun. Thankful for these friends who hosted such a fun night out! I'm so thankful for their love and friendship. 

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Cocktail: Aperol Spritz

I'm sure you've all seen and heard about the delish cocktail that is an aperol spritz. I'm probably like two years behind on this but the picture was just too pretty not to share. And with the blood orange, beautiful! If you don't know, it's 2 parts aperol, 3 parts prosecco and 1 part club soda. Garnish with an orange and enjoy! XOXO

 

Spring Soccer 2024

And that's a wrap on the spring soccer season! I think I'm more of a fall girl. The weather was too crazy!! Tons of rain cancellations, playing in the rain, rescheduling games, and we also got to experience a double rainbow! The season was actually still really wonderful. Kate grew a lot in the game and both girls had so much fun! Daddy returned as an assistant coach and so many of the girls games were on different days so we got to spend more time attending each others games. See you in the fall! 

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Holidays in the Heights

I somehow missed this one too! This is one of our fun little holiday events in our neighborhood that the girls just love! They will wait in line alll day to see Anna and Elsa and then meet Santa Claus! It's the sweetest! 

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Fall Weekend in NWA

I guess I blew right past this draft while posting earlier this year. Love this fun fall weekend and don't want to miss it having a spot in my life scrapbook here. 

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Girls NEW Room!!

Welcome to the girls new room! And seriously I need to revisit my photography. I'm remembering how terrible I really am at this! I had a lot of run building this new room for them. We had just redone their room before the tornado, I hadn't even had time to photograph and blog. They had just moved in together and got a bunk bed! We ended up buying a different one this time and I just really love both of them! 

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Fall Family Pictures 2024

Last year we had our family pictures at our house. And I love them so much! For so many reasons. When we lost our home last year, I wanted a painting done of it to keep forever. I didn't have a single picture of the way it was. I immediately wanted to have photos taken in our new space that has become so special to us. I was so happy that our favorite photographer agreed! I also thought it would be so perfect for a cute, "new home for the holidays," or "decking new halls" card. Turns out..  I didn't do either! But I will love and cherish these photos forever! 

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King Cake

Made my first King Cake-- for no other reason than I wanted to try it. It was good. I definitely had some feedback for myself for next year. It still tasted yum and was really simple. And next time I'll plan better and have a baby. I had to steal a little Encanto man from the girls :) 

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