Begin Again and Again and Again...

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving! We traditionally take a family pic every year. This year was no different. However, for some reason we could not all seem to take a good pic at the same time! :) I made pumpkin pie with a homemade crust for the first time ever! I am not a fan of pumpkin pie. I love pumpkin bread, pumpkin bars, pumpkin spice custard ;), pumpkin smoothie... but not pumpkin pie! I think they turned out great though! I hit some of the Black Friday sales and was home by 830 yesterday! :) Awesomeness! I finally got around to sewing a new cover for my camera strap. The old one was kind of grubby and not my best sewing ever. Old vs. New I love how my new cover turned out! I'm thinking of making one to giveaway... I love fabric, but I'm a lazy seamstress, so if a project is quick and easy like the strap cover, I'm all over it! I've b...

Hopefully this picture conveys to you how I feel. I am so thankful for this life and what it has brought to me! I want to throw my arms wide open and shout to the tops of the trees "Thank You!" I am so thankful for my family and friends. I am thankful to be free, happy, healthy. I am thankful that I have a body I can move. I am thankful for this wonderful blogging community where on days I am not feeling so gregarious and grateful, I can be myself. Without judgement. I hope you are all spending the day with those you love and cherish. If you are not able to do so, my thoughts are with you as well. Have a blessed day! Trish * A little keeping it real segment here. I try everyday to be grateful for my wonderful life and most days I succeed. However, a. my life is not all sunshine and roses and b. please don't mistake me for a pollyanna , because I'm actually a glass is half empty kind of girl. Just had to say that for the sake of full disclosure! :)

Cheesy Cream of Broccoli Soup anyone? I love soup. I eat it pretty much everyday in the winter. But it's kind of a pain to make decent, easy homemade soup. Enter my new love: Yes, I finally sucked it up and bought a Vitamix. It. Makes. Soup. No stove required. How awesome is that? It also makes sorbet. No freezer necessary! Smoothies, bread crumbs, cheeseburgers even. Love it! I've joined a Christmas Card swap here . I'm very excited! I love Christmas and Christmas Cards!! You still have time to join! :) I am about half way finished with my Christmas shopping. Yeah, I'm one of those people. I love giving gifts and I stress about it, so I've found the sooner I can get it done, the sooner I can enjoy the holidays! Sat at a basketball tourney all day today. Worth every minute! My daughter's team took first place and they each received a t-shirt that said "champs" on it! Super cool to see how excited she was! I'm so proud. They played very well a...

If you go here , you could win the above quilt or the one below, from the lovely Chelsea! I love my fluffy comforters, but there is just something about a quilt... Quilts remind me of my childhood. My Grams was a seamstress and she sewed the most wonderful quilts! She loved to sew crazy quilts and I loved to snuggle under them! Stay warm people! :) Trish

Go here ( actually don't, it will increase my odds ) Check out this giveaway ! Jen rocks!

My daughters were in a play called Twinderella this weekend with the local youth players' group. They are are the far left and far right in the above picture. Kenzie was one of the Evil Stepsisters and Katie played a Duchess and the Cruel Stepfather. It was a lot of fun! The girls have put in many hours of rehearsal, in addition to practicing their lines at home. I'm very proud of my girls as usual! Needless to say we are all exhausted. There were four shows!! I did get a run in yesterday between shows and a quick walk today. BUT... my friend is a master baker and makes these killer cupcakes, and well, you know the rest of the story :) I hope you are all having a great weekend! :) Trish

"What if we decided life was beautiful -just the way it is?" I read this post today and it really helped put things in perspective for me. I have been feeling a little sorry for myself lately. My house is a mess - piles of books everywhere, walls need new paint, new carpet, hate my kitchen sink, not too thrilled with my body, my hair, my wrinkles. My heel hurts. My knee hurts. I want to work part time. I want to run run run! Blah Blah Blah!!! GET OVER YOURSELF ALREADY!!! My family is happy and healthy. Sure I could use more money. Who couldn't? Sure I'd like to be a thin, fit, hottie. I'm working on it. Can't run cause it hurts too much? Walk! Clean your house. Or don't - either way. You've earned those wrinkles - oh and remember that you always "forget" sunscreen? I spend so much time focused on what I don't have, or what I can't have, or do, that I miss some of life's most beautiful moments. I'm going to try to start kee...

Not the most flattering picture ever, but I did complete my World Run Day run! The Good: ~ I was out there running ~ I was not too hot ~ I still have both lungs ~ I did not get frostbite ~ I had great energy today The Bad: ~ OMG who lives in Wisconsin and does not own winter running clothes? ~ The answer to above is ME! ~ It was sooo cold out ~ Apparently, I am not quite recovered from my chest cold as evidenced by all of the coughing I did ~ Lost track of # of laps, so I have no clue exactly how far I ran! The Ugly: ~ I have been coughing all day again. ~ My stinkin heel is killing me!! UGH! Now on to the solicitation portion of my post :) As you most likely are aware, Thanksgiving is just around the corner. I love Thanksgiving. Great Holiday. Family, Football and Food. Yes!! So, what's the problem then? Well, Mike's family has this cute little tradition of giving each adult female a little gift. It can be holiday related or not. And not too expensive. More of a "I...

I'm so in. How cool! Run your distance. Run alone or in a group. Run for someone. Run for Charity. Run for yourself. Just run! I'm taking my kidlets on my normal route. They'll smoke me. :) Go here to register. Trish