Month: January 2024

weekend recap.

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Happy Monday, Pals! I hope you guys had a fab weekend, here’s how we spent ours…

Friday : Sister and I had doctors appointments. Hers went great. Thirteen pounds of pure sweetness.. Mine is behind me. While us girls (+ mama & Cason ) went to our appointments the big fellas (+my dad & sister) went on a spot see. They had breakfast & rode up to Helen for a huge cookie from Betty’s. We got back about the same time. Once we picked up the big boys, we came home for nap/quiet time. Once JKM got home we ran by the UPS store and returned some boots then I went in Publix and grabbed a couple of things for Christmas at my parents. We had strep and they had colds when we were originally supposed to celebrate but it was kinda nice to savor the holidays a little longer. We had my mom’s delicious spaghetti, salad & bread for dinner and it was phenom. After opening gifts we sat around for a while watching some old country music videos and then headed home and to bed.

Saturday : We woke up and got ready. Sticking to our goals for this year we packed the boys hot breakfast sandwiches and orange juice for the road. JKM and I made a pot of coffee, packed up the electronics and headed out. Our thought process was if we feed them and they have entertainment we could sneak in a mini date or at least conversation. (( Side note : I think (at least for me) that that has been one of the hardest parts of adjusting to being a family of six is JKM and I hardly ever get a chance to just chat. )) We got gas and then headed to one of our favorite western stores in search of Jonathan some new boots. We were almost there when we learned one of our boys gets carsick. Sweet boy. It only happened once, thankfully. JKM is a rockstar and got everything cleaned up. We made it to the boot store and while we got new clothes on the one that needed them JKM ran in and we followed behind shortly. It was a successful trip! On the way home we stopped by my favorite little farmers market-esque store for some raw milk and supper. I grabbed a beef stroganoff pie because they were out of THE best chicken pot pie. Def not as good as the CPP. Once home the children and I just relaxed and had quiet/nap time while JKM got ready and headed for the woods. We had a nice afternoon, my mom came and picked up the baby boy for a spend the night party. My parents have been taking one boy a weekend for them to have some one on one time since sister was born. Such a blessing. Once Jonathan got home we had dinner, played bingo and then we watched the newest episode of Reacher. After it went off, JKM got the bigs ready for bed and I snuggled sister and we called it a night.

Sunday : JKM and the big boys went to Sunday school. Mama brought Cason home. I cleaned the bathrooms, started laundry and made chicken and dumplings and sourdough for lunch. Mama left before the boys got back home. We had lunch and while sister, Cason and I napped Jonathan, M and B went to his parents house to help them with some things. They got back home, we got up. I fixed us lattes and cleaned the kitchen while everyone kinda just did their own thing. J did his laundry for the week. I bathed sister and we all crashed.

Overall we had a good weekend. I can’t wait until we are all back in church together. Flu/RSV season always freaks me out but it seems to be more intense this year. Not living in fear, just using common sense. I know we will be back to our regularly scheduled Sundays before we know it. ❤

Talk soon,
Hannah

2024 intentions.

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Happy Thursday folks!

Felt so good to hit that publish button yesterday. Can’t wait to do it again today!

Like I was saying yesterday… I am really just so excited for 2024. I always look forward to a new year and fresh slate. This year is no different other than my excitement level is much higher than the past couple of years. Determined to make 2024 just wonderful. Here’s how I plan on doing it…

Before I get into my list, some of these things are nonnegtotaibles (*), others are just things I want to form habits with or maybe just do a little better than I have previously.. Here we GO.

  1. Reading my bible + more intentional prayer time.* Last year my reading plan was one chapter a day. This year I am trying out the Bible Recap (so far, I like). I’m also making a prayer list every morning when I complete my reading and making/taking the time to earnestly pray. I feel like I’m pretty good at praying at random times throughout the day and before meals. Just conversationally, but I want to do better about journaling my prayers. I think it will be really nice to look back on.
  2. Drinking more water & less everything else.* Coffee is something I look to every single day so I don’t plan on changing that (I am switching out sugar for honey/maple syrup). I am however going to stop buying diet drinks/other drinks and only enjoy them when we’re dining out (which will be very rarely, more on that in a minute).
  3. Weight-loss.* I know I am only two months postpartum so I am not rushing this one but I am being more intentional about what I am eating. More nourishing, way way less processed, and making sure I am eating enough and consistently throughout the day. I’ve been known to skip breakfast or lunch and that’s not something I want to continue. Weight loss can sometimes be a secondary effect of these things but for my health (and longevity) it is important that I do lose some weight.
  4. Limiting social media. I deleted my instagram at the end of 2023 and I can’t put into words how much peace it has brought into my life. I don’t have any plans to ever return to Insta but I did create a new Facebook for the sole purpose of having access to Marketplace. I don’t and won’t have the app on my phone. Setting boundaries to prevent mindless scrolling!
  5. Limiting dining out. For many reasons this is a thing this year. 1. its so expensive for our family size. 2. We want to spend money in much cooler ways. 3. We want to save money for much cooler things. 4. I love cooking and just got some very neat new cookbooks that I can’t wait to use. 5. I love Costco & Sam’s and would rather buy in bulk than go out to eat. 😉
  6. Blogging consistently. I absolutely love to write. It’s honestly one of the only outlets I have time for in this season of life. I love looking back at things I’ve written and want to have more things to look back on in the future. I mentioned yesterday how vlogging has always appealed to me but I do not have time to learn all the things that go along with it. Maybe one day, but for now I really want to focus on this little blog here. Right now, I plan to do daily recaps, post recipes we love, new products we have tried and love, as well as thoughts and feelings of life events and of course whatever else pops into my head.
  7. Reading. Since I’ve given up my scrolling habit I will be replacing it with reading. Like writing, I love to read. Mindless books mostly and please don’t put me down for nonfiction, horror or romance. Thank you. I love a good suspenseful thriller though.
  8. DECLUTTER & ORGANIZE.** Without getting too much into it, 2023 was a LOT for me and mine. We survived but this year I truly want to thrive. Girl pregnancy was much harder than boy pregnancy for me. Not to speak in to general of terms but it seems to be the case for most ladies. I couldn’t do much for 9 months + recovery so needless to say I am READY to go. My house didn’t completely go to shambles thanks to my wonderful hubs but I really want to get it back to where I can manage it more smoothly and efficiently. We currently have a dumpster in the yard and have cleaned out a good bit but we still have a ways to go. I don’t dread it though. I seriously feel lighter with every single thing that leaves our house. We are just tossing everything in the dumpster, I am also taking carloads to donate! Onward and upward!

I am sure there are more things but those are the main ones for now. I reserve the right to add to this list though. 😉

Talk soon!

Hannah

WHADDUP, PARTY PEOPLE?

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Bluey anyone?

Hey Friend! So remember that time like a year ago (in a few days) that I consistently blogged for a bit? Yeah. Well… guess who fell back off the wagon? Itsa me. I did. BUT for a really good reason….

Are you ready???

We had a whole nother baby last year! And guess what else? SHES A GIRL! That’s right. After three precious, loving, loud, hilarious, WWE recreating on the daily boys we added a girl to our family! We are almost two full months in and we still can’t believe it.

Here she is…

Maebry Craven joined our family on November 5. Our biggest baby at 9lbs. 14oz. Thank you Lord for modern medicine and a successful fourth c-section. We’ve had a few bumps but we are still standing and not just standing but moving forward daily. One day I will write out her whole birth story because it is a true testimony to how good God has been to me and our (not so) little family. AND all the specific prayers that were answered. We are absolutely smitten with this punkin girl. She is the sweetest and calmest baby. She’s an excellent sleeper (like has been consistently sleeping through the night since three weeks old. What? Never experienced that before) and eater. I will be doing monthly updates going forward. ❤

What have we been up to since I last posted? A lot of the same ole same ole. JKM is still pastoring the sweetest church. We are still homeschooling and doing guitar. Hoping we are about to enter our “thriving not just surviving” era

2023 was a hard but beautiful year and we all welcomed 2024 with open hands. We can’t wait to see what the Lord has in store for us.

My goal for this year is to be more attentive to my family and home. Decluttering/minimalism is still at the forefront of my mind and we are making great strides. There is actually a dumpster in my front yard right now. Sometimes I have zero chill. This is one of those times.

I also want to get back to eating the way that makes me feel the best. Between pregnancy and postpartum the wheels kind of fell off the proverbial nutrition wagon. It’s time to get back to the basics. I’ve tried a lot of things and I definitely believe that limiting sugar, processed food, convenience/fast food, etc. makes me feel the very best. Also, drinking more water is on the agenda. I couldn’t get enough when I was pregnant.. now it’s a struggle. I will be victorious though. I have to be.

Limiting social media + blogging more (and consistently) is also a HUGE intention of mine.

Really looking forward to 2024. Even years tend to be the best years so hoping that trend continues.

We have several camping trips and a beach trip tentatively planned. We all really love and enjoy camping so we are very much excited to get back to it. We didn’t make it to the beach last year, so hopefully we can pull it off this year.

Can’t wait to blog this year. I love looking back on years gone by. I truly wish I could vlog BUT with the consistent noise level in my home I don’t think it’s the best time. All (mostly) happy noises though. Thank you, Lord.

Talk soon!

Hannah