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The weather outside is //
Looks to be a pretty warm week! I’m going to try to spend as much time outside as I can.
On the breakfast plate this morning // my same old, same old: oatmeal mixed with pumpkin puree and sprinkled with raisins on top.
As I look outside my window // I still see a bit of foliage on the trees, but the rain and wind from the last few weeks have made most of the trees pretty bare. What a change from the last time I wrote one of these posts! It’s still beautiful, but in a different kind of way.
As I look around the house // I see a living room in complete shambles, but hopefully not for long! The dehumidifiers will hopefully be removed by this afternoon and our new couch should be delivered on Thursday. In other living room news, I think I’ve made a decision about painting the stone fireplace, but have to run it by Mark one more time before we pull the trigger. We’re also debating the pros and cons of moving our television to a less prominent location.
On this week’s to-do list //
- take a BIG internet break
- order a few Christmas presents
- begin the last 54-Day Novena for the year
- put flannel sheets on the kids’ beds
- make a donation to the food bank (100LT #90)
- research the Mediterranean Diet to help alleviate some of my blood pressure issues
Thinking about // “de-frumpifying” my wardrobe for the fall/winter. When lockdown first started, I spent waaay too much time in “comfy clothes” AKA sweats/athleticwear and it really started to take a toll on my mental health. Thankfully, I pulled myself out of that funk and made it a point to get dressed everyday. I actually wore dresses for most of the summer and loved feeling put together while still being comfortable. So I’m pondering how to recreate that for the colder months ahead. Dresses seem the easiest way to go, but how can I stay warm? Is there such a thing as comfortable tights? Maybe leggings?
Looking ahead // to the ultimate low-stress Christmas! Taking our own family photos never happened, so I picked a beautiful letterpress card to mail instead. Gifts will be simple with my typical less-but-better approach. We’ll bake and bake and bake some more. Decorating will be staggered throughout the month as is our Advent tradition, but I am excited to add a little cheer to our porch this year. (Yay for debt freedom!) I’ve already preordered a wreath (remember my wreath story from Advent 2018?) and plan to add a few other simple decorations out there too. In a year that has been a complete rollercoaster and full of unknowns, we’re going to celebrate the newborn King big time!
On the menu this week //
Monday: leftovers from the weekend
Tuesday: burgers on the grill and french fries from the freezer
Tuesday: burgers on the grill and french fries from the freezer
Wednesday: Sicilian chicken soup
Thursday: beef stew
Friday: shrimp scampi and garlic bread
Currently reading // I’ve got too many books going all at once and never enough time to read them. The Turn of the Key by Ruth Ware just came off of the holds list at the library. I’m slowly making my way through The Parasitic Mind by Gad Saad. I’m almost halfway through Saint John Paul the Great: His Five Loves by Jason Evert, but I also just received the new book, Inside the Light: Understanding the Message of Fatima by Sr. Angela de Fatima Coelho and I just had to dive in to that one too.
Dresses + Leggings = The Best Combo Ever Invented. Seriously, though!
Do you have any favorite brands for either one? I'm taking notes!
I get a lot of my dresses through Old Navy because I use their credit card to my advantage to basically get all of our clothing for free (I’ll drop the link to the blog post I wrote on it below if you’re curious/interested in learning more).
https://www.toloveandtolearn.com/2019/03/29/how-we-spent-just-60-family-member-on-clothing-last-year-without-buying-all-used-stuff/
I also like Target’s selection, especially because they have a ton of midi styles, which I’m all about so that I don’t have to worry about indecently exposing myself as much while I’m all over the place crawling after my kids, lol 🙂