Ever need a pick me up? Yeah. I do to. It's been one of those weeks. Well, really the last couple of weeks to be precise. When I have a moment of down time, I like to explore on Pinterest to gain inspiration and at times, need some words to live by.  Maybe just need some good 'ol fashion advice or sometimes find some Ah-Ha moments! Take a look at these recent finds from Pinterest.

1. Family. 

There is nothing better time worth spent then being with family around the holidays. Mom, Dad, brother/sister, cousins, aunts, uncles, in-laws, and grandparents. I love how we used to do the secret Santa on Christmas Eve, talking away with catching up on our lives and what we've been up to.  Oh and to also catch up on the latest gossip on people from your small town.  Does your family do that to?


2. Friends

There has been a lot of holiday parties around here. There have been great company of some friends and then making some new ones.



3. The smell of a Christmas tree.

Needless to say more?!
Wait a minute,... I have a fake one this year...

So my allergies are not so forgiving this season .. but I still love to smell them.



4. The smell of burning Yankee Candles. 

Ah! The scent of Christmas Eve was the one scent I grew up on. If you ain't smelled one, ya gotta.



5. Memories of Christmas Eve on Scotts Lane.

It was grandpa and grandmas Daugherty's house. It was an absolute beautiful mid-century modern houme on a beautiful piece of land. And Christmas Eve made that house was so magical. Open floor plan, cozy family room with the fire place roaring, HUGE Christmas tree all over looking the great wall of windows to the winter wonderland woods. It was one of the most beautiful settings you'll have ever seen.



6. Christmas Eve.

I remember growing up coming home from our family festivities of the evening, lighting candles, our family room lite by our glowing tree, and my dad reading to me T'was the Night Before Christmas.



7. Christmas Mornings.

The smell of cinnamon rolls, and breakfast casserole baking in the oven just before we would open presents. And not to forget drinking a cup of coffee with some Baileys.



8. If your lucky, a snowy evening on Christmas Eve. 

Have you ever experienced a perfect snow fall on the eve of Christmas? If you haven't, you should add it to your life's bucket list. It's magical, beautiful, and kind of serene.  And when you step out into it, it's so erringly quiet, even when your in the middle of town. You can even hear the snow sprinkle on the clinging leaves with some of the trees.



9. Christmas Movies

Miracle on 34th Street, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, Christmas Carol

You know... the classics.



10. Christmas Music

The hymns, Tony Bennet, Frank Sinatra.

So darn wonderful.


Hope you all are having a wonderful Christmas week!

Today makes the 6th anniversary with this guy. A lot has changed for us over the years. A bit of good and bad, but I'm so glad that he was here to share it with, to hold my hand when things got tough... Here's is a look bad at us over the years.

Well babe, here's to the 6 years we've been together and many, many more to come. I love you way more now than I did last year, last month, last week, yesterday....Heck, 5 minutes ago... Your still my favorite boyfriend, ever. 

Yesterday, after church, I've convinced my husband earlier in the week to go and pick some apples at a local orchard.   It was surprising to learn that he has never done this before. Throughout our marriage, I've manage to expose himself to many things that he has never tried or has never done before. And honestly, I find it very entertaining. He puts a good effort into trying things I introduce him to just because he knows I love it. It's one of the many reason why I love him so.

 This is such an unflattering picture of me! Anyways, moving on...

After the orchard, I decided to try something new for myself. For a while, I've been really wanting to make my own applesauce to just eat as is, and adding it some baking goodies that I plan on making later this week. When fall comes, I really get in the mood for drinking tea, to reading more, cozy up to my blanket and baking.  I'll have to let you know how my homemade applesauce turned out. So far, my home smells A-mazing. How was your weekend? Do you do some apple picking?

Thanks for visiting!

Catie

This week has been a busy one yet, really rewarding.  For the first time in my young career, I saw my interior renders come to life on a project. To me, there is no greater award to see something you've help create come to life. If you haven't been keeping up with my on my Instagram, I traveled to Phoenix, Arizona to job train on installing and to shadow on project manage. Honestly, I'm not sure how my principal does it. By the end of my short 2-day trip, I was throughly exhausted.

Here are my top 5 for the week.

1. My husband and I on Sunday, went to an orchard to purchase cider. Guys, this was a big deal for me. You know why? Because when I left my home state of Michigan, I feared that I will never again taste raw, made on site, fresh apple cider ever again.  Well on that Sunday, I was wrong. And my husband, never tasted it either. He loved it - I loved it!

2. Flying down to Arizona for work, I got to do the touristy thing. Well, for a few minutes, in the air anyway. I've always wanted to see the Grand Canyon. Well, I did. :)

3. I've said it earlier, and I'll say it again. What a reward it was to finally see this project almost completed and to see my interior renders come to life for the first time. That was awesome.

4. I'm probably going to sound silly, but I thought it was cool to see palm trees and cactuses. More so impressed to see cactuses since it was my first time ever to see any at that size. Sheltered, I know.

5. Over all, I learned a lot from this trip. Met a lot of people to help make this project possible. In a way, I felt like I was back in college. Did I mention I really love what I do?

How was your week?

Sheesh all I feel that I talk about these days are how far behind I am, work this, work that... Are you getting sick of it as well as I am?

I'm trying to get back in the game of things but (here I go again!) I am so busying with work. Still! I've honestly been working weekends and doing 10 - 12 hour work days. Bare with me, okay? I sure miss doing posts, and sharing my interests with you. Every now and then when I'm working I get side tracked with inspiration to do fun posts on my blog. Get ready for them.

So again, I was hoping that I would be back to regular 8 hour days by now. That still won't happen just yet. And honestly, I don't know how long this will keep up. Crossing my fingers that it'll be til the end of this week.

For now, I put together a little August side tape to listen to. It is music that calms me and helps me get through the long
hours. Or just taking a moment to be in the house alone and listen. I hope you enjoy it!

Visit here to listen to the August playlist:


Thanks for baring with me for the last couple of weeks.

For this weeks of my series of getting healthy, I'll be sharing with you my typical workout. It does vary really. Sometimes I play a game with myself on the cardio machines. But I always, always at least get in 40 -60 minutes in for the day. Always. The first cardio machine I head to would be the treadmill. You can find what I do here for my treadmill work outs. I do try to run on the treadmill for up to an hour but I tend to get bored. I'll either head for the elliptical or the stationary bike to finish the rest of the my goal time.

The gym I attend is Planet Fitness, and they have a great circuit training section. It includes stair stepping for adding cardio, and weight machines. I love the circuit training. Cardio and weight training for a half hour. It really seems to go a lot faster then you think. When it comes to time, I always at least do 30 minutes of hard cardio and then their circuit training.

On my long days, 45-90 minutes of cardio, and weight training. You should concentrate on a certain group of muscles like legs, arms, abs, you get the picture. What ever machines are there around you,  target the muscles you want to work on, and do 3 sets of 8/10.  I hope this helps you get an idea of what your wanting to do at the gym. Happy working out!

Thanks for visiting!

*But sure to consult with your doctor before doing any exercise program. I'm not a professional trainer in any way, this is all by my opinion and what I find works well for me.* 

Another Friday has yet again approached us. It has been a fast and busy week for me. Oh - but very good! Unfortunately, I don't have many pictures to show for it. I wish I did. Seen so many beautiful sights this week.

So here's a look at my favorite moments for the week.

1. On Sunday, I had a great workout. Then right after, my husband and I did an impromptu date night. Sort of. We went for a walk along the Greenbelt for a few miles.  It was fun see the rafters floating down the river, taking a tour inside the nature center, enjoying the sites, etc,.. Then, we heard lightning and then it started sprinkling on us. Needless to say, it was such a great evening.

2.  Tuesday evening,  was time well spent with some of my family. One from Alaska, another all the way from the Michigan. We all sat down outside of the Cottonwood Grill, drinking wine, eating, and just catching up. I'm a big family gal, and I just love being with them.

3. Saturday night was the Snake River Stampede rodeo. That, my friend, has to be one of the best entertaining rodeos I've ever been to. I think it is better than the PBR! My favorite would be the bronc riders, and I'd say the steer wrestlers. I think my husband should become a steer wrestler... just saying.  On another note - how cute is this mutton busting?!

4. Wednesday, was an evening event for work. Just for educational purposes. But, I did see one of favorite friends that I haven't seen in a few weeks. Plus, I bought myself a kimono ( my new obsession). So comfy!

5. I'm so excited to say that they're going to be a lot of great things happening at my career. We got word about a certain thing that we've been working on for months. But I can't say what it is just yet - stay tuned.

How was your week?