Happy December! I hope you all are having a wonderful weekend! We were greeted with our first snow of the season on December 1st. It was so magical to wake up and see all the white. Augustine and Corinna were outside right after breakfast and probably spent 6 hours outside that day between sledding, making snowballs, and running around. Corinna and I went to see The Nutcracker Ballet this weekend and it was such a special time just the two of us. She had the best time and I’ll always remember how sweet it was sitting with her in my lap the whole time. I surprised her with these glitter shoes which she loved and I packed a little pb&j lunch with carrots and a brownie for the drive. Oh and a cinnamon steamer. I hope it’s a day she always remembers!
WHAT WE ATE
I plan to share the meals I made the previous week, with links if possible, as some inspiration for your own menu planning.
MONDAY- Turkey Noodle Soup– anyone else use up some of their turkey this week? This recipe was good although I didn’t add in the potatoes.
TUESDAY- Crispy Slow Cooker Carnitas- a go-to of ours! From one of our favorite cookbooks from this past year.
WEDNESDAY- Marry Me Chicken over quinoa- the name intrigued me and we all loved it!
THURSDAY- Singapore (Spaghetti Squash) Noodles with Shrimp- from this cookbook. It was a little spicy for the kids so second dinners were had, but the adults loved it!
FRIDAY- Burgers with Sweet Potato Fries- not the most seasonal for the first day of December but we like what we like!
SATURDAY- Carmelized Shallot and Anchovy Bucatini– This pasta is kind of famous and with good reason! We’ve made it countless times and it’s one of Matthew’s favorites.
SUNDAY- Pan-Roasted Chicken with Grapes, Garlic, and Rosemary– Really excited about this one!
I made the Katharine Hepburn brownies for Matthew and they were really good, and easy too! I’m more of a chocolate chip cookie girl but Matthew loves brownies and I don’t make them nearly often enough.
Tomorrow morning, I’m baking up some homemade sourdough English muffins after church. I can’t wait! I want to re-create our favorite breakfast sandwich from Certified which is a sourdough English muffin with an egg, arugula, white cheddar, avocado, tomato, and bacon.
WHAT I WORE
I love wearing my Jenni Kayne sweater this time of year. It’s the coziest one I own and even with leggings I feel somewhat put together. I was joking with Matthew that I’m officially entering cozy season, although I couldn’t help getting dressed up for the Nutcracker with Corinna. I wore an old favorite dress from Shoshanna and a faux fur jacket that kept me very toasty! I also wore the pearl ring from my Grandma which is one of my favorite pieces of jewelry I own.
SALES TO NOTE
There have been so many good sales lately that I’m honestly trying to not go online. I was tempted by Everlane’s huge 30% off sale to buy these ballet flats that have been on my wishlist. They’re classic and the shape looks so much more comfortable than the ones I have. If you’re looking for a great pair of jeans, I love this pair and this pair that are also on sale.
Anthropologie is always a great go-to for pretty and unique gifts. They have an up to 40% off sale going on right now and other are lots of great gift ideas still available!
ON MY MIND
This week was a break from our homeschool but we’re starting back up on Monday morning with our Advent study. It’s going to be so nice to have a slower month of December to enjoy the season. We brought out our Giving Manger on the 1st which is one of our favorite Advent season traditions.
I started watching the Masterpiece Theater miniseries of Little Women, which is so good! I’ve only seen the Winona Ryder version once but that was a long time ago so it’s been so fun to get re-acquainted with the story. I’m thinking of reading the novel this winter too! It’s been too long since I’ve read a classic like that one.
One of the best things we did when we moved into our house was hire Tidy Style Home to come and organize our kitchen and then pantry. They unpacked all our things and found the perfect spot for everything. Almost 3 years later, the system is still working for us. All thanks to Tidy Style Home! I’m so excited because I’m having them come back out to help me tackle my… closet. It needs some major help and I’m hoping they can help me organize it in a way that allows me to wear more of my favorites and also get rid of some things too. The time between the holidays is always my favorite for organizing so it will be nice to get a head start in this particular area.
The weather this week has been so chilly but we had some days with clear blue skies which makes such a difference. We got out for some walks and the sunshine felt so good on our faces! I’m curious to see if our snow from the weekend will melt or if we’ll get more!
We’re currently planning a trip to visit our California family in January so that’s also giving us something to look forward to. We haven’t been back since before Beatrice was born so it will be nice for them to meet her, and also for us to get some sun!!
Have a great week everyone!!
xox
