dear first home.

The time has come.

Time to start packing boxes & emptying drawers...taking down pictures & mirrors & memories. The frames I made G hang above our dresser. He spent hours perfecting them. Straightening & fixing their edges, a tweak here, a nail there. Until they were perfect. Because he loves me. Because he loves you.

I will remember your fireplace. The one that takes real logs, not gas ones. And the Christmas I invited all of my girlfriends over for dinner & presents. We sat underneath your warm glow & listened to the crackle, crackle, pop of the flames. I will remember the snow falling softly all around us & how I'd never felt cozier.

I will miss your warmth. Your soft carpet. The carpet we chose for you. I remember laying on it when it was first delivered. I will remember the smell of the fresh paint and the sound of the hammer against the wall. I will remember how hard my G worked to make you ours.

I will miss your grand windows. The ones made up with charm & character. I spent hours looking out them, down Beverly street. Or laying underneath them, lost in a book. I remember the first time I met you, home, how much I loved those windows.

I will remember moving into you for the first time. Married not even a year. I will remember unpacking boxes & never being more excited. Helping G assemble Ikea furniture & hang what little art we had. I will remember how it felt to buy a home, the excitement & the rush and I will remember how truly blessed we felt to be able to do so.

I will remember the nights we played scrabble in the basement together. The hours I spent in the kitchen. The kitchen where I learned to bake and tried to cook. Frosted my first cake & made my first homemade macaroni & cheese (it was awful, by the way).

The kitchen where I made G my favorite meals and they became our favorite meals.

I will remember our first anniversary here. Where we ate our wedding cake at midnight & toasted to the future. I will remember all the times we scribbled messages to each other on the stainless steel cabinets. Leaving a note for the other to find, when our schedules overlapped & a note was all we had time for.

I will remember you fondly because you helped shape us into a family. Because we grew inside these walls. Because you taught me responsibility & sacrifice. Because owning a home taught us valuable lessons, ones that we will never forget. Because despite everything, you made me feel safe.

You will always be our first home. There will never be another. And I doubt we will ever live in such a charming house again. One where apples fall in autumn, and roses bloom in the backyard. With sunlight through the windows and arched ceilings and doors. A breakfast nook & a laundry shoot. All the details that so many homes miss these days. I will miss all of your details.

Our visit with you was short. Shorter than we'd hoped it would be. But they say you never forget your first home, and quite honestly, I don't see how I ever could.

I love you, first home. Thanks for the memories.

because jacky b. stole my moment.

This is the spider-web pumpkin cheesecake I made for Halloween day.

In case you can't tell, I am pretty proud of these suckers (I made 3).
The web was hard (well, harder than I thought it would be), and most importantly, the cheesecake was yummy.

I even made a homemade cream cheese/whipped cream topping.

Without a recipe (gasp)!

These cheesecakes never really got the love they deserved.
My sweet Jacky B accidentally stepped on the last one (lid on) before we made it to the Halloween festivities that evening.

Completely ruined the web.
We didn't speak for at least 5 minutes.

And considering I am the worst dessert decorator alive
(true story, because I have no patience),
I thought these beauties deserve a chance to shine.

So, thanks for looking at them.

Oh, and PS..These cheesecakes will be making a re-appearance in a few weeks (as they did last year) for thanksgiving (minus the spider-webs, of course). In case you want to copy, you can find the recipe here. But don't forget to whip up a cream-cheesy/whip creamy type topping, as it is the cherry on top.
Many compliments await you if you do.
That is all.

winter.

is never kind to my skin.

or my hair, for that matter.

this stuff
is single-handedly saving my life right now.

i lather up each night before bed
and my skin stays moist and soft for the next 24 hrs.

plus, it's cheap
and still works better than the expensive stuff.

if i am going to have to brave the cold
i refuse to have dry, itchy skin while doing so

i hate you, winter.

birthday girl.

i love you, jana b.

Today is a special day, because it is my beautiful Mother's birthday, and I can't let the day pass without telling her how much she means to me.

My Mom is amazing. She is the kind of person who makes everyone feel loved & accepted. She is caring, she is warm & kind. She is hilarious & goofy & silly, which I love. She is creative & beautiful. She knows how to throw a party, put together a fabulous dinner, sew a dress & she does it all with flair. My Mom is a good listener & a devoted friend. I am lucky because she is my best friend. We share the same face, the same brown eyes, the same passions. And I love it when anyone tells me I am like her.

My mother has taught me so many things. I owe so much of who I am to her. She taught me to be accepting, to make the best of every situation, to laugh at myself, to strive to make other's feel good, to give compliments, to smile & be happy, to make a big deal out of every occasion, to love my husband, to be good to my brothers, to be a good friend.

Mom, thank you for being who you are. Happy Birthday.

this is halloween. this is halloween!

I just uploaded over 350 pictures to my computer. I am a little bit nuts when it comes to photos, wouldn't you say? Among them, were pictures from our Halloween festivities last night. We had a blast this year. We went trick-or-treating with little Makayla, who was darling, of course & then stopped by to see our other loves, Lauren & Mya & hang out with Bryan & Kiersti for a while.
All in all it was a great night.

Here are some photos of our Halloween adventures & the littles we saw along the way...

Lo looking out the window at Jack & Daisy. Please notice Jack's Halloween scarf.

Mya, the ladybug. Holy cow that baby is darling.

And our little M as Abby.



I thought this one was funny.
I was making pumpkin cheesecake for Halloween & the pups were dying for a lick!

The weekend has been great, so far. Today was M's Nemo Party, which was a blast & then we headed to the Real game where we had the best box seats.
I can't believe Halloween is already over. It's a little sad.
Maybe next year, I will have a little trick-or-treater of my own! (hahaha)

and yes.

at work. the day i cut THE BANGS.

i did cut bangs.
after an awesome dance party in the living room with g.
at 1 in the morning.
2 friday nights ago.

i walked into the bathroom & saw scissors.
so i picked them up.
and cut bangs.
all by myself (well, g helped a little bit).

they weren't so bad.
i even wore them to church.

later, christy fixed them for me.

because g said

they were very crooked.

not sure how they look on me yet.
the verdict is still out.

thanks for noticing.
i love you.

pumpkins!

from her...
and him.
pumpkin carvers: the u helmet-ry, happy halloween-jess, evil clown-greg, cat- jon & scott
we hope it's a spooky one!

devil's potion.

Yesterday after work, I stopped in to the grocery store to grab a bottle of eye makeup remover. I had run out that morning & sad as it is, I can't live without the stuff. The mascara I use is as waterproof as can be & I literally cannot get it off my face without some sort of remover. Not wanting to come to work the next day looking like a dead person, I hurried & made the stop. Normally, I use Neutrogena eye makeup remover (I know, I know, you care so much. I promise I have a point) but this time, the store didn't carry any. Not wanting to make another trip, I grabbed this bottle of Covergirl Clean makeup remover & didn't think twice about it.

This morning, I went through my regular routine, but when I went to put this new potion under my eyes to remove last nights remnants, I was horrified at what it did to my face! As soon as I applied it, my eyes swelled up like balloons and my face lit on fire (not even kidding, flames). Horrified that the stuff was burning my flesh off, I quickly doused my face with cold water in an attempt to save myself. Nothing. I rubbed my face in a towel. Nothing. I quickly ran upstairs to retrieve the fire extinguisher....

Joking. What I really did was sit in bathroom for at least 5 minutes with a washcloth over my face and hoped for the flames to burn out. But alas, they never did.

I am spending the majority of today with huge red bags under my eyes & smoking flesh. I write this post only to warn you about the effects of this devil's potion. Don't use the stuff unless it's Halloween & your goal is to look like a zombie. I look like one today, but unfortunately Halloween is still a week away.

the past two days.

number of times Jacky B. has barfed on our bed: 2

number of times Jacky B. has barfed on his bed: 2

number of times Jacky B. has barfed on our carpet: 3

number of times Jacky B. has barfed in our tub: 1

number of times he had done other things that you seriously don't want to know about: 3

hours of sleep G & I got Monday night: 3

hours of sleep G & I got last night: 4

loads of laundry we've done at 3 in the morning: 2

number of hours Jack has cried & whined with discomfort: 48

number of times I wished I could stay home with him & rub his sick little belly all day: 8 million

get well soon, my little J.

I love you.