A Sick Day and Some Niblets.

{REAL}

I woke up with the beginnings of a cold sore (do you get those? awful.), and the headache and almost-like-a-fever symptoms that usually come with it. Oh, and outside looked like this...

{PRETTY}

Pretty, yes. But I'd rather just stay in bed all cozy and warm...

And since I didn't have any immediate things to do at work, I decided to take a sick day.

And really, I just wanted an excuse to lay on the couch all day and watch Gilmore Girls. So I did.


I actually napped for a lot of the day (while the stupid cold sore manifested itself in all it's nasty glory... yuck), until Zeke came home to keep me company.


He made me this...

{HAPPY}

It had three peppermints in it. Yum. Talk about happy!



And we watched this...

{FUNNY}

Yes. There is a "show" on Netflix (the Wii streaming kind, anyway) called "Fireplace for Your Home." You can choose a fireplace with festive yuletide music, or without music. And there's a fish tank one, too! Who knew?

Definitely a worthwhile sick day.

And now for something completely different...

Some Niblets

Around the blog lately...

I've been getting lots of comments/e-mails about my post about posting baby bump pictures on Facebook. Thank you all for your warm wishes and prayers- it means a lot.

We're still working through my series on singleness and dating from a Christian perspective. Somehow, what was planned to be a four-week series exploded... it's a huge topic, so I suppose I should have know that would happen...

Around the blog formerly...

I've been seeing lots of hits on my Budget Bride series recently! Looks like the wedding planning has begun!

And around this time a year ago, I used a carpet shampooer and thought deep thoughts about it. This year, I have a new vacuum cleaner- one with a clear canister, and the same philosophy still applies.

Around the web this week....

I'm notorious for apologizing for "the mess" when people come over... it drives Zeke crazy... so I loved this post.

And if you haven't seen/heard about Kim Kardashian's picture on the interwebs, don't go looking for it- I'll give you the Cliff Notes: Kim Kardashian posed mostly nude for a magazine cover, showing off her bottom and obviously Photoshopped waist. Now go read this awesome response - it's worth it.

This cold weather is reminding me that it won't be long until Advent, then Christmas... and I haven't thought of any co-worker gifts for this year! Last year I made cute little felt ornaments... they're somewhere in this post here...  And I think I'd like to do something similar. Any ideas?

And apparently I'm not the only one under the weather--- see more illness inspired PHFR over at

  Like Mother, Like Daughter!

My Entryway- A PHFR

This post brought to you by a mid-week slump! You're excited, I can tell. 

{Pretty}

There's just something so pretty about being greeted by a clean entryway first  thing in the morning. Ah. Feels like peace.

{Happy}

Zeke has this pair of moccasins that just make me so happy (more so when he's wearing them, but you catch my drift). He looks like a cute little boy in them... and he doesn't look like a little guy very often!

{Funny}

Hiding amidst the pile of Zeke-shoes are these...

 ... scuba flippers. I'm not really sure.

{Real}

Just in case the clean-entryway picture made you feel fits of jealousy, here's some reality to set you straight. 

When we moved in to Peace (our house), I put up this curtain that's entirely too long for the window. I told myself that I'd go ahead and actually cut and sew the curtain to fit someday... it's been almost two years and my quick fold-and-hand-stitch job is still holding on well.

Linking up today with Like Mother, Like Daughter!

This Week Has Been...

... well, let's just say that I could have used a little more of this:

Here's hoping that you and yours find a little precious peace this weekend!

{phfr} Random Tomatoes and A Bicycle Built for Two

{Pretty}

Last weekend, I had the privilege to go to a Women's Retreat through my church. It's just another of the ways that being involved in a church has truly helped me find community. And also, I mean, look at those views! 

{Happy}

I didn't get a picture, unfortunately, but I did get a chance to ride on a tandem bike (a bicycle built for two!) a couple of times this week. It was so much fun! Someone donated it to Camp... I hope that we'll have lots of people use it. Or maybe I'll just use it. I have a new favorite way to ride a bicycle.

 {Funny}

We stopped at the gas station for a regular old fill up the other day, and got these with the price of gas. 

I love living in a small town.

{Real}

Motor oil all over my husband. 

Well, I guess this one's another "work shirt..."

And upon seeing this picture, I'm realizing that I should cut Zeke's hair... 

Have a happy Thursday! (And how did it get to be Thursday already, anyway?)

Linked up with Like Mother Like Daughter

How We Do Essential Oils and Sore Man Blend {Works for Me Wednesday}

Essential oils have been somewhat of a "big thing" for the past year or so. Or maybe it's been longer than a year and I'm completely out of the loop. No matter the case, after the interwebs and real-life friends started buzzing about the benefits of essential oils, I was intrigued.

First, I like smells. I attach memories to smells, and very strongly so.

Second, using essential oils in place of general painkillers or whatever was a big draw. My maintenance guy husband comes home with lots of aches and pains most days, and being able to reduce the meds while still having some relief sounded pretty great.

So I looked into it some more, and realized that the popular name brand essential oils simply don't fit into our budget.

And so I started looking into other options, and found that there are plenty of not-as-fancy-not-as-organic-not-as-effective essential oils on the market- and for lots cheaper.

Now, I'm not saying that those big name-brand popular essential oils are a rip off. Not at all! I know (from experiencing them compared to my cheapo oils) that the more expensive ones do tend to be of higher quality, no question. But for the way I'm using them? I don't think the higher quality is necessary.

Here's how we use essential oils in our household.

The first, and most popular way (especially from Zeke's perspective!): as massage oils.

Like I said before (and lots of other times), Zeke has a physically demanding job, and he gets sore muscles often. Even more often than I have to mend his clothing. If you can believe that.

Zeke likes to have his feet rubbed before bed, and usually his shoulders, sometimes his forearms... you get the idea. So we use Sore Man Blend (well, that's what we call it, anyway), and he says it helps... although that could also just be the massages.

I mix up Sore Man blend (as well as a version of Thieves oil blend, and a relax blend) in little glass bottles with a dropper built in- like these so that I don't have to mess around with making the blends every time we use them.


I also put some lavender in my unscented lotion- and when I'm having trouble falling asleep or feel stressed, a little lotion helps to calm my mind and body.

We also use essential oils in cleaning products. I use plain white vinegar and water for my general cleaning spray, unless I have some orange-peel infused vinegar around. I like to add some essential oils to my cleaning spray to give it a nicer smell.

And I've found that mixing up some lavender in the cleaning spray helps to calm those all-the-extended-family-is-arriving-for-Thanksgiving-in-one-hour-and-the-house-is-a-disaster nerves. 

And that's about all.

See, we don't use our essential oils for very much, and we don't take them internally. Maybe someday we'll be more dedicated EO users, but for now, these few uses are enough and frankly, I don't think spending a huge amount of money on oils is necessary for us right now.

It works for us!

<><><><><><><><><><><>

"Sore Man" Blend

A Hunky Husband Favorite

2 drops Ginger
1 drop Black Pepper (I typically omit this one)
3 drops Lavender
2 drops Fennel
3 drops Peppermint
2 drops Eucalyptus
1 oz carrier oil (I use almond oil, typically)

Apply topically as a massage oil (not to be ingested!)


Linked up with Works For Me Wednesday.

Rethink Date Night: Dinner and A Movie is a Lame Date and Fifteen Things to Do Instead

If I could give one piece of advice to couples- whether they're dating or engaged or married- on how to encourage deeper connections with one another, it would be this:

Rethink Date Night. 

We have several married friends who have made it a priority in their marriages to spend time dating one another. That's a great thing to do, for sure! But here's the thing... when I ask what they're planning on doing, the answer always seems the same- "Dinner and a Movie."

The same thing is true for my sister and her boyfriend of three years- they're going out on a Friday night? What are they doing? You guessed it! "Dinner and a Movie."

Now, I don't think there's anything wrong with going out for the good old D&M combo, but it's not really the best way to grow as a couple. There's no real experience to it.

If Zeke and I go out for dinner and a movie, a year from now, I may remember parts of the movie (unless I fell asleep during it... which is pretty likely...) or maybe some of our dinner conversation, but it won't be a date I'll clearly remember. I most likely won't learn anything about myself or about my husband.

It comes down to this- why do we do date nights? Are we just checking it off our to-do lists, or does date night actually have a purpose? For us, that purpose is to connect and grow as a couple. Watching a movie together doesn't really help us to do that. In short, dinner and a movie is really kind of lame.

Why not try something a little more... adventurous? Have an experience, not just a date.


1) Go for a walk or a bike ride or attempt to roller blade together (carefully.)

2) Drive out to a lake and go fishing (or kayaking or canoeing).

3) Learn something together- like a language or kickboxing or how to reupholster or ballroom dancing or flower arranging or fencing!

4) Go check out garage sales or thrift stores- cheap and interesting

5) Plan a road trip- figure out places you'd like to stop along the way, the things you'd like to see. Then actually do it!

6) Cook together, or try something completely new in the kitchen (The other day, Zeke bought a jerky shooter online... we broke out the dehydrator and learned how to make jerky!)

7) Do one of those guided painting classes

8) Make a list of places around your town that you'd like to visit (ours includes a Frisbee golf course and a tiny museum dedicated to... trains, I think?)

9) Visit a random town (we went on a weekend trip to Milwaukee)


10) Go swimming- even if it's winter. Go to the gym, or check out local hotels- lots of them will let you use the pool for cheap

11) Check out open house listings around your area and go dream about your future while checking out other people's houses

12) Play cards or get a group of friends together to play games

13) Go camping- even for just one night- and make s'mores. Because s'mores are always good. Or heck, just make s'mores in your backyard.

14) Have a stay-cation- check in to a hotel nearby (or just turn your house into a "hotel," or just don't worry about laundry and housework for a weekend) and spend a weekend pretending to be tourists

15) Farmers Markets! Get some sunshine, do a little walking, and pick up some sugar snap peas.



Of course, sometimes you're just gonna want to do dinner and a movie. And that's okay- we just need to remember to make some memories, too!



Linked up with Marriage Monday, MMandM, Titus 2 Tuesday, Wise Woman, and Wedded Wednesday.