Friday Favorites!

I always read Erika, Andrea and Narci's Friday Favorites but I've never linked up. However, the kids are still sleeping, we have a lazy morning, and my work is almost done for the week - so why not?

1. Girl's Trip to Fredericksburg :: Y'all. I am still on a total high from a trip to Fredericksburg with my 2 BFF's. We've literally tried to plan this for years but someone was always pregnant, nursing, in the hospital, taking care of a kid in the hospital, the list goes on and on. Finally the stars aligned and we had the best.weekend.ever. Seriously. Late dinner Friday with wine (of course), then we shopped and hit up the wineries all day Saturday, followed by another delicious dinner. We were in no rush to get back so we laid around in our PJ's on Sunday morning for a couple of hours, had a late breakfast and then finally departed. The trip was so good for my soul. And as well as I thought I knew my girls, spending 48 hours together allowed us to get to know each other even better. It's a God-given friendship and we are already planning for our trip next November!

2. Boots and Vest weather :: Houston NEVER gets this cold, this early in the season. But since I've had vests, scarves, and new boots taunting me in the closet ever since Nordy's anniversary sale, I couldn't be happier that it's cold. Matt now knows my new uniform is a combination of those items plus leggings. Heaven! If you haven't gotten your hands on these JCrew Factory puffer vests, you really should. They have still have the tweed one, plus they've added some other colors from the last time I checked the site. Dang it. {P.S. The tweed is not on sale, but the other colors are marked down significantly. Jump on it! They are the perfect weight to keep you warm but not sweat your booty off indoors} Oh, and we can't leave out the blardigan - best.sweater.blanket.ever. I don't know why it took me a year to purchase this but it is a dream. I know Chelsea over at The Perfect Catch totally is nodding her head in agreement, right Chels? We share a deep love of all things scarf, vest, and Pinterest Told Me To approved :)

3. Boot socks :: I finally got my hands on some adorable boot socks. I love the added flair. I went with a more classic lace pair like this {although I bought mine in Fredericksburg} So cute!

4. Christmas Shopping :: Matt and I are bound and determined to finish Christmas shopping by December 1st. This would be a huge accomplishment considering I was THAT mom at the toy store last year on Christmas Eve. I want to sit back and enjoy this season. The twins are super excited and at 4 1/2 they are at the perfect age to really "get" it. Cannot.wait. Santa has already scooped up a few things and we're making a dent in the rest of our family/friend list. Yay! And again I could not be more thankful for Amazon prime :)

5. Advent Devotional Calendar :: And we can't forget the true reason of the season. One of my fellow Houston Moms Blog contributors, Becky, created this wonderful Sacred Christmas Advent Calendar. It arrived this week in the mail and I was so excited to share it with Matt. We plan on doing it together in the evenings for a little quiet time versus playing on facebook or the iPad. Thanks, Becky! I highly recommend the calendar especially after seeing it in person - but hurry, only about 7 more days to get it before Advent begins. You can order it here and for $20.00, I think it's a BARGAIN.

Happy Friday, everyone! Or as it is known in my house, "Sushi Friday!"

(Please note :: I did not receive any compensation for the links above. They are just products I own and love!)

Closing the Door :: The Mourning of No More Children

I'm over at Houston Moms Blog talking about the myriad of emotions that comes with closing the door to having more kiddos. It was probably one of my most transparent and honest posts to date --- and thus I was extremely nervous to put all of that out there. But people could not have been more kind with their comments and so many people related to those emotions. What a relief and a big "whew"! It's always great to know you aren't alone in the crazy :) Here's a little excerpt::

My child-bearing years are over.

It has taken me months to begin to process this realization. Longer than that to even write about it. If I ramble, forgive.

We.are.done.

Right before the twins turned three, the blanket of exhaustion fog began to lift, and I saw we could actually do life – like go places {happily}, do normal things like hit up the grocery, and be on our own for extended periods of time. And in that moment, it also brought the question of “Well, one more?”

And I thought through that. Like all the time. And came to the conclusion that these two sweet ones were enough for me.

Click here to read more....

Thank y'all for reading!!! It means so much.