far away food.

i love five guys.

it gives me fabulous memories from chicago.

mostly memories with my sisters, babysitting clients, and sweet friends.

we get a lil piece of happiness when we get the chance to go.

we have a new one an hour and a half away from here.

soooooo amazingly good.

i would make a special trip up there just to eat there.

the everlasting supply of peanuts.

[i personally don't like eating them, but i love the idea of having them there. free peanuts!]

[the malt vinegar is the only acceptable addition to the large amount of fries they give you.]

and of course the burger with only the best free toppings.

ah-mazing.

why do i love food so much?

just looking at these pics makes my mouth water...

another trip up to the city maybe?

happy weekend!

we care.

i always ask the kids when they have their birthdays.

and today, it popped into my head that it was Miguel's birthday.

he hadn't even realized it!

so i quickly scrounged up some candles, stabbed a cookie with them and made an impromptu cake.

he loved it.

imagine turning eleven.

and not even realizing that it's your birthday, because no one else remembered it was your birthday.

it breaks my heart.

happy 11th birthday miguel.

cookies fault.

i had a need.

a want.

a desire.

ooh, wow, it sounds so selfish already.

but i did.

i was on a hunt for it.

it'd been on my mind all weekend long.

i searched website after website to find it.

it was those darn cookies fault.

i wanted a cookie jar.

it all began because i baked 4 dozen cookies from scratch.

they came out beautiful, moist, and so delicious.

(thank you betty crocker!:))

AND only the first batch had burnt bottoms.

hurrah! success!

ryan and i each ate a couple for dessert that night.

mmmhmmm...dunked in a cold glass of milk-it was perfect!

but then i had 36 cookies left.

what to do????

so i found my biggest bowl.

and flipped it over the plate of cookies.

the next day, i had a cookie.

it wasn't as beautiful or moist as the night before.

*sigh*

so i did some more milk dunking to moisten it...still good!:)

that evening the kiddos came over.

and they were hungry.

so i offered them some milk and cookies.

boy, did they enjoy it.

they ate all the cookies.

and i think it's part of being a woman to get so much satisfaction of feeding, nurturing, and caring for others.

so i was thrilled that they loved the cookies.

(even the burnt bottom ones!)

they kept saying,

"these are awesome!"

"better than [other] kind of cookies!"

"can i have more cookies and milk please?!"

"mmmmm sooooo good!"

ah, comments like that does a girl's heart good:)

and definitely makes me want to make more cookies.

so i got to thinking.

why not fill a cookie jar full of cookies and treats, and let them reach in whenever they would like a cookie?!

i know my husband would like it.

and the kiddos kept toppling over the big bowl anyways to reach for another cookie.

a cookie jar would be such a treat to have for the kids and my husband!

perfect!

one thing though.

i had no cookie jar.

so i went online searching.

all weekend i looked on websites.

and guess what?!

today, ryan and i took a short trip up to the nearest city where i stopped by my all time favorite store: pier 1 imports!

and there, i picked up my very first,

lovely,

cookie jar!

isn't she darling??

she's big and fat so there's plenty of room to hold lots of cookies.

4 dozen to be exact.

and she's a welcome sight in our kitchen.

i can't wait to introduce her to the kids tomorrow.

maybe i'll even have them help me fill her up with new homemade cookies!

hello!

my camera and i have been clicky happy lately.

i've been trying to study it, and practicing the different light settings on it on certain items in our place.

i've been randomly clicking at things and some of the pics make me laugh.

but i thought i'd use this as an opportunity to introduce you to some of our new friends in our place.

this is our new entertainment center.

nope, it's not red...the red one was really low and just to darn short for the room.

so we got this one, with a really pretty heavy wood.

we're going for quality in our home now;)

no more ikea, because they all drowned instantly in the flood.

the real wood items lasted and were easy to clean up!

[this picture of the tv makes me laugh...we were watching Wizards of Waverly Places and that just happened to be the shot on the tv.]

my bulletin board with all the pictures absorbed too much moisture during the flood, so i had to pitch it.

in it's place ryan and i found this sweet coffee sign. we couldn't resist and we bought it.

i'm thinking a curtain on the window above it, could run along side of the blank parts of the wall and add color and happiness to the sign:).

with all the clicking i was doing, damian decided he needed to try it out too.

he went flash crazy and thought that was the coolest thing.

happy labor day ya'll!

i went on a date.

[one of the very first pictures of ryan and i-2006]

we have always taken one night a week to go out on a date,

just the two of us.

ever since we started dating, we've had this tradition.

through the past 4 1/2 years together, we haven't stopped having these dates.

yesterday, we made an afternoon of it.

one of our favorite activities is throwing a ball around, football, baseball, anything, we love it.

we like being active outside, and playing outside is one of our favorite past times:)

we went on a walk past the theater.

can i tell you a secret?

i'm scared of the inside of this theater at night.

it reminds me of Abraham Lincoln's assasination.

creepy.

we tried out a new restaurant.Mi Azteca...mmmm.

it was VERY colorful in there.

after that, we went by the lake, and walked to Little Storm Lake, where we caught a gorgeous sunset.

and then we came home, and i tried a new recipe for chocolate chip cookies.

it was fabulous!!!

i love my dates with my boy.

we've decided that even when we've got kids, we're gonna keep up with our date night.

it's important to us.

and refreshing:).

and a chance for us to catch up and recuperate from the last week.

and the past 4 1/2 years together, no matter how busy we are, no matter how much is going on,

no matter how many things people ask us to do things for church, or school, or anything outside of it,

we don't schedule anything that day.

we reserve that one day a week to have a date.

and know what else is neat about it?

he is still pursuing me...even after marriage.

sometimes i feel spoiled...in a loved sense.

he hasn't stopped pursuing since the day he asked me out.

i treasure it.

a blur

life has been a blur.

ever since work started, i feel like things are going so fast.

the weather is changing rapidly.

once it starts getting chilly in the day, i immediately freak out.

i don't want winter to come!

this southern blood gal hates the cold weather.

and work has been keeping me busy.

but guess what? amidst all the busyness of life, we're starting to get our life back in order, post-flood.

we lost alot of our storage space, chests and closets that all drowned.

but i figured out ways to make things fit everywhere in the house.

at first i was cramming,

but now i am rolling!:)

and guess what came in this truck??

half of our couch and a new chest of drawers for our bedroom.

i'm starting to enjoy walking into our room now...it's not completely bare:)

and yes, only half of our couch...because they keep ordering the wrong second half of it.

so we just asked if we could at least have the second half.

and the living room is getting more homey each time we make a new purchase.

we don't have pics of our new furniture yet. soon. i promise.

oh! this week, i got a facial.

can you say heavenly?

i was all dazed as i walked our of the aveda parlor.

i was so relaxed.

happy labor day weekend, ya'll!

i'll be back online with more soon.

it's just been kinda a blur of a week.

answered prayer- happy birthday, Ashley!!

"Does anyone have any prayer requests? yes, Kristine?"

"Please ask God that i could have a baby brother or sister."

for five years of my life,

anytime anyone asked me if anyone had any prayer requests or if there was anything i wanted to pray about, i would raise my hand high, and say,

"Please pray that God would give me a baby brother or sister."

anytime anyone would ask me, this was my response.

at Bible studies.

at choir practice.

in church.

family devotions.

sister devotions.

sunday school.

anytime at all.

i started this whole deal when i was three.

i was completely adamant that i needed to have a baby brother or sister.

and i think, i might have prayed specifically a couple months that i'd have twin brothers and sisters.

i'm sure my parents were thrilled that their child was praying for twins.

but i kept praying.

i remember asking God for a baby brother or sister when looking out the car window when we would go on a drive.

when i was 7, mom found out she was pregnant.

i knew, i just knew,

God heard my prayer requests.

when i was 8, i became a big sister.

she was my miracle baby.

the one i prayed for all those years.

and i finally got to have her!!

fifteen years ago, i got my answer to prayer!

and i still think of her as my miracle baby.

the one i prayed for and God gave me.

Happy 15th Birthday, Ashley Grace!!

i wish i could be with you and the family on your birthday.

i love you, little seester!