Author Archives: we4keenes

I had the chance to have Madi and Ali over for a night-o-fun before Madi goes back to college. They came over for dinner and played a round of Trouble with the kids before JT and Haley went upstairs for the night and the real party started. 🙂 I posted a list of things toContinue reading “Nieces Night”

One night last week, I accidentally cooked rice the same way I cook oatmeal: bring water to a boil, add, turn off heat. I forgot momentarily that rice deviates in one step: bring water to a boil, add, simmer. Needless to say, I went to start the stir fry and realized we were nowhere nearContinue reading “Pajamas, Pancakes, and Princesses”

The day started quietly, with some chores around the house. And then Jim offered to burn all of our old receipts and bank statements, and that turned into a larger bonfire that we first thought. Pretty soon, we were eating mugs of chili and steaming Ma’s bread around the fire together. It was so fun!Continue reading “New Year’s Eve 2015”

We were dragging ourselves out of bed at 9:45 AM today (try not to judge, we’re all on vacation and the kids were so tired from Christmas fun) when it started to snow! We were so excited to see this snow coming down, but it seemed pretty wet and we weren’t sure it would stick.Continue reading “*Snnoooowwww!*”

We started the Christmas season with Haley’s preschool production. I blogged about it earlier, but I forgot to include a photo of the reason we went to the concert to begin with! On to Christmas week… I had worked way more than usual the week before, and then two days at the start of break,Continue reading “Christmas 2015”

Have you ever been to Fort Wayne, Indiana? I hadn’t. It was lovely. I was a little concerned about flying into Indiana in December, but the weather was “unseasonably warm” at 50 degrees, so I got off easy! I drove by the most lawn inflatables I’ve ever seen on the way to the hotel. IContinue reading “Trip to Fort Wayne”

Recently we had the darkest day in Seattle in the 21st century. Really. Good thing Haley had a plan: Monopoly with Mom. We started our game Tuesday morning and played half an hour at a time, after each meal of the day. Then Wednesday we continued the game after lunch and nap. On Saturday, weContinue reading “Dark & Blustery”

Last week I wrapped up the Christmas decorating. It’s been really fun to set up a new house with some new decorations and arrangements. I love having a real brick fireplace for hanging our stockings up! I also love having a porch that we can decorate. I got these awesome stools (two matching) at GoodwillContinue reading “Women of Faith Weekend”

I started off with some cooking… a pumpkin cheesecake, a New York cheesecake with cherry topping, and cranberry sauce. One mini pumpkin cheesecake, yum! On Thanksgiving morning, our neighborhood organized a Turkey Trot/Walk/Run event. It was really fun to get out with 20 or so others and exercise in the brisk fall air. Then backContinue reading “Thanksgiving Weekend”

We started the weekend with a benefit dinner for Stronger Families. Taya Kyle was the keynote speaker, and the organization raised almost $300,000 in that one event. It was fancy and fun! Saturday, JT had his last football game for the season. It was cooollld. We also got his football photos. Isn’t he handsome? MatchingContinue reading “Weekend Photos”