Newest little man!

Don and Sara had their newest little man - Luke Matthias Jones - born a month early on Saturday, 5/24. 6lbs 12 oz, he is a peanut. Praising God that he is here and healthy!

Surprise Baby Shower!

Two good friends planned an amazing surprise shower for Sara - a month before she was due - but only days before she actually gave birth! What a special time to celebrate this new little one! R & M did such a great job planning the evening - everything was lovely and all I had to do was get Sara there at the right time and bring the lollipop centerpieces (thank you pinterest!) Here are a few pics from the evening:
(Thanks Roe!)















We got to do these great foot baths with these two items - I'm hoping to order some tonight as gifts, they were lovely!
Arbonne invigorating sea salt scrub and unwind bath salts: 




Thankful for these ladies and for our friendship - even from no kids to lots of kiddos - what a blessing!!

GREEN Smoothie?!?

I cannot believe I jumped on this band wagon. I've always been anti-health nut stuff and this green smoothie craze.....but our local grocery store has a juice bar/smoothie, etc. and I actually tried a sample and LIKED it. WITH KALE IN IT. Yeah so I started changing my mind on all this and walked slowly by the juice bar and memorized the ingredients in some of the smoothies and then bought them and made my own the next day. And I also referenced some blogposts I'd seen about what those ladies throw in their smoothies and so I went for it. AND LIKED IT. seriously this is baffling to me.

I put in kale, dark green romaine, some fresh pineapple & a little of the juice, a whole mango & juice and I little milk just to keep it liquidy and a little creamy.
Welp, will probably do it again tomorrow and maybe this time try banana and pineapple with my greens - woot!

Rimmel

Loving my last Rimmel finds at walgreens!
A pink lipstick and 2 bottles of nail polish (buy one get one half off so I spent $2.25 total on those?!)
It literally dries in 60 seconds - I was amazed. Having kids makes it impossible for me to paint my nails and not mess them up - so this is a lifesaver as far as my nails are concerned! And I could even paint Lucy's since she can't keep her hands still for longer than 60 seconds, yay!

RIMMEL Kate Moss Rosetto #08

 source


RIMMEL 410 I Lilac You
source

Six biblical truths for toddlers

 Another great blog post from Melissa at Your Mom Has a Blog!
Here's the list of 6 - go to her blog for the details. It's a great read for anyone with kids!

1.  The Bible is God’s special book.  

2.  You and I are sinners.  

3.  Jesus died on a cross and came back to life.  

4.  The Bible is one big story. 

5.  Heaven is for real.  

6.  God keeps His promises. 




source

Books on my list!

Need these books ASAP!! Let's be honest - this whole mothering and house wife-ing thing is no joke. I can use all the encouragement, advice and help I can get! All good book suggestions welcome!




Read the bio here
Video intro to book and free study guide here




source & to order




loved fit to burst so want to get her other book - here

Four Cheese & Bacon Mac-n-cheese

LOVE this mac and cheese from Family Circle Magazine - posted this recipe in a random post around 4 years ago? So thought it was time to post again. This is a family favorite around here. Try it - you won't be disappointed!

Ingredients

• 1 box (1 pound) cavatappi
• 6 slices bacon, diced
• 1 tablespoon  unsalted butter
• 3 tablespoons  all-purpose flour
• 2 cups  2 percent milk
• 1/2 teaspoon  onion flakes
• 1/4 teaspoon  salt
• 1/4 teaspoon  pepper
• 1/2 pound  sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
• 1 cup  shredded colby-Jack cheese (4 ounces)
• 1 cup  shredded mozzarella cheese (4 ounces)
• 8 slices Kraft Deli Deluxe American cheese (6 ounces)

Directions

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Coat a 3-quart broiler-safe baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to boiling.

2. Cook cavatappi 8 minutes in boiling water, then drain. Meanwhile, in medium-size saucepan, cook bacon over medium heat until crisp, 6 minutes. Transfer to paper towels. Carefully pour off drippings, returning 2 tablespoons to pan. Add butter.

3. Whisk in flour until smooth. In a thin stream, whisk in milk. Stir in onion flakes, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then reduce heat and simmer 2 minutes. In large bowl, toss together cheddar, colby-Jack and mozzarella.

4. Remove milk mixture from heat; whisk in American cheese and 1-1/4 cups of the cheddar mixture. Toss bacon pieces with remaining shredded cheese.

5. In pasta pot, combine cooked pasta and cheese sauce. Pour half into prepared dish. Sprinkle with a generous cup of the bacon-cheese mixture. Repeat layering.

6. Bake at 350 degrees F for 20 minutes. Increase oven temperature to broil and broil 3 minutes, until top is lightly browned. Cool slightly before serving.

Recipe and photo from Family Circle

Next book to read?

I have been trying to decide on my next book to read and Joe sent me a blogpost with some great Christian woman bio suggestions. I have read some of these, but definitely not all.
Anyone have any good recommendations for bios, fiction and non-fiction??

Go here for the full blog by David Murray on Top 10 biographies of Christian Women

1. Gladys Aylward: The Little Woman by Gladys Aylward.

2. The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom.

3. By Searching: My Journey Through Doubt Into Faith by Isobel Kuhn

4. Mary Slessor of Calabar Pioneer Missionary by W. P. Livingstone

5. A Chance To Die: The Life and Legacy of Amy Carmichael by Elisabeth Elliot.

6. Give Me This Mountain by Helen Roseveare.

7. My Heart In His Hands: Ann Judson of Burma by Sharon James.

8. The Nine Day Queen of England: Lady Jane Grey by Faith Cook

9. A Passion for the Impossible: The Life of Lilias Trotter by Miriam Rockness.

10. Evidence Not Seen: A Woman’s Miraculous Faith in the Jungles of World War II by Darlene Rose.

Check the original post for other suggestions on the honorable mention list too!