Christmas Pups: Thinking Out Loud (Monday Edition) #126

Happy Monday! So normally I share a thinking out loud post on Thursday, but with Christmas on Wednesday I wanted to have more time to spend with husband and pups. The past few weeks have been rough for a lot of reasons probably the top reason being lack of sleep. Zeke is still keeping us up at night- any tips on how to get a puppy to sleep through the night are welcome. Anyway before I blab too much let's jump into this weeks thinking out loud!

1. Zeke graduated from puppy obedience class a little over a week ago and now we're debating if we should sign him up for a more advanced class. He's come a long way on his commands but he still has a long way to go. No matter what we try he's still not sleeping through the night. We thought it might be because he had to go potty, but he's hardly going. We're exhausted and really just don't know what to do. 

2. Last weekend we went to my company Christmas party. I love the company I work for, thankfully, and the party was unreal. Dozens of very expensive items were raffled off, sadly we didn't win anything. It was nice to get out and away from the pups for a bit. We rarely have time for just the two of us anymore between work and the pups. We relaxed, chatted with friends, and stayed out way past our bedtime. Despite being tired the next day we had a great time. 

3. One of the best parts of my job is the ability to give back to the community. Our charity partner, Chariots4Hope, held their last class of the year which also happened to be the graduation class for four of the women. These women have come such a long way in the past six months and watching them grow has been so exciting. The company I work for decided to surprise the women with Christmas presents for their families. We had spent an entire day shopping and wrapping presents for the families, but seeing their faces made it all worthwhile. 

4. With Christmas right around the corner Ginger and Zeke are gearing up for the big day. Neither of them has had a Christmas before so we're really excited to spoil them. Even my parents have mailed them presents, so rest assured these pups will be spoiled rotten and hopefully exhausted on Christmas so we can (finally) get some sleep. 

5. I saw this meme the other day that cracked me up because it's so true. I'm always showing people pictures of our pups whether they ask or not. Sorry our dogs are cute and I'm a proud parents. It's really no different than showing me pictures of your kids that I didn't ask to see. 

Have a great week and a very Merry Christmas! 

Christmas Cards & a New Ride: Thinking Out Loud #125

Happy December! Holy moly where is 2019 going?! I keep waiting for life to slow down a little bit so we can catch our breath but recently it seems to be speeding up and flying by a million miles an hour. We're looking forward to mid-December when our calendars clear out a bit. This will be our first married Christmas so we plan on savoring every last second of it. Before I babble away, let's jump into this weeks thinking out loud!

1. Merry (almost) Christmas! I LOVE our Christmas cards this year. We used a mix of wedding and Christmas photos and I love that we got to include our pups. I printed them with Shutterfly because they're made right here in the U.S.A. so it supports American jobs. My family has always been very conscious of purchasing products made in America for Christmas (and all year) and that's a tradition Brent and I will continue to do. 

2. We hosted our very first Thanksgiving! The turkey turned out great (thanks to my mom for all the tips!), the side dishes were wonderful, and we were joined by awesome friends. Not being able to be with family for the holidays is really hard, but it's a lot easier when you have great friends who are like family. 

3. I convinced Brent to let us get a bigger Christmas tree. Target had them on clearance (onto the next holiday I guess) so we nabbed it for a little over $30! It was a steal and while I'm still firmly on team real tree this was an easier alternative, especially with two dogs who love to knock the tree around. It's honestly a miracle that it hasn't been knocked over yet. 

4. A new ride was added to the family. We finally traded in my 10 year old car, which I loved and miss, for a new car. Thanks to my awesome coworkers and friends we got a 2019 Lincoln MKC. It's beautiful and I'm still attempting to figure out how to work all the technology. The downside is car payments for several years and we have to pay taxes on the car in a month. We'll happily accept donations for taxes because taxes on cars in NE are ABSURD. Let alone I think it's criminal you have to pay taxes every year on your car when you renew you registration. 

5. Oh Ginger. Our sweet pup is finally adjusting to having a baby brother running around like a nut. While she may not like him all the time and sometimes they fight she is super protective of him and sometimes they even cuddle. She'll always be our baby girl and the sweetest pup ever. Zeke has sort of taught her how to play with toys, mostly they take them away from one another but it's an improvement over not touching toys at all. While Ginger and Zeke do drive us crazy some (or a lot) of the time they are very sweet and perfect for our little family. Rescue dogs are the best!

Have a wonderful Thursday and a great weekend!

Christmas Photos & Pupdate Thinking Out Loud #124

Happy Thursday! Can you believe it's already the middle of November?! Where have the last two months gone? Life with two dogs has been VERY busy, but we are loving it. We have been spending more time at home with the pups which has been wonderful. The start of fall was so busy so we are soaking up every second of quiet we can before the holiday craziness begins. Anyway, let's jump into this weeks thinking out loud!

1. I wanted to have some photos taken for our Christmas card, so I enlisted the help of my coworkers wives. She does photography on the side, her prices are insanely reasonable, and her work is beautiful. We took some photos with our pups then she snagged some with just the two of us. OH MY GOODNESS! The photos came out so beautiful and not even five hours after we took photos she had them back to us- we got over 500 photos! I already ordered our Christmas cards and we have gotten a few photos printed and hung in our apartment because they're too beautiful not to share! If anyone is looking for a photographer in the NE/MO/IA area Designs by Samantha Jo did our photos and we will definitely be using her for future photos! I'll share our Christmas card photo closer to Christmas 🎅

2. Brent and I celebrated five months of marriage on November 8th. Most people wouldn't celebrate the little milestones, but we're not most people and it keeps things fun. We didn't do anything fancy and we actually celebrated with a chill night at home the day before because we were babysitting for a friend on the 8th. We try to be intentional about spending time with one another because it's very easy to get caught up in the hecticness of life and not spend quality time together. 

3. Christmas is my absolute FAVORITE time of year. It's such a happy and joyful season and every year I get way too excited about it. Growing up my family always got a real tree and put it up the first weekend in December. We can't have a real tree where we live now, so we have a mini fake tree and this past weekend we put it up. I realize it's not even Thanksgiving yet, but something about coming home to a Christmas tree and festive home is very relaxing. This will be Ginger and Zeke's first Christmas so we are pretty excited for that as well. 

4. We've officially had Zeke for over a month now. Some days it feels like a year other times it feels like we just brought him home. It's definitely been an adjustment for everyone. Seeing as he just turned five months old, we still have to take him out potty several times a night. Thankfully he has stopped screaming like a banshee at night (we were waiting for our neighbors to call the cops because it sounded like something was dying). He's had a tough month with kennel cough the first week and a half we brought him home and recently he contracted a parasite that had him super sick. Thankfully he's better now which we hope he stays that way because #vetbills. Ginger and Zeke are getting along better and arguing over toys and wrestling one another just like normal siblings.

   
5. The pups recently celebrated their first Halloween. I was a little too excited to dress them up. Ginger was a lion, we got the costume from Amazon and sadly it was delivered missing the tail, and Zeke was a monkey. Ginger had no problems in her costume but Zeke was not a fan. 

6. The sunrises and sunsets have been absolutely stunning recently. I never imagined liking living in Nebraska and while I hate the snow and cold, the other part of the year isn't terrible (except when it's an inferno in the summer 🔥) While I hate how early it gets dark now, the beautiful sunrises and sunsets make up for it. 


If you have any suggestions of places to check out for affordable Christmas decor please let me know- I've already hit up Home Goods and didn't find anything. I hope you have a great Thursday and a terrific weekend! 

When do you decorate for Christmas?

What is your favorite holiday tradition and why?

KC and a New Pup: Thinking Out Loud #123

Happy Thursday! It's been a hot minute since I've done a post but life has been a little hectic. Between work, traveling, and a new family member we've hardly had a minute to breathe. October has thankfully slowed down for us and we are savoring every single day we get without plans because every day in September we had something going. Anyway, let's jump into this weeks thinking out loud. 

1. We added a new furry family member! We had always wanted a second pup so Ginger had a buddy while we were gone at work, but we said we wanted to wait until we had our own backyard so they could have space to run. Despite saying we would wait we looked online at pups, we went to shelter a ton even though we were "just looking," and lo and behold I came across Zeke. The little fella was a bundle of cuddles and energy and we knew right away he was meant to be our pup. Zeke is a 4-month-old mutt (we have no clue what he is) who loves toys, cuddling, and falling asleep on our chests. Ginger is still trying to figure out if she likes her baby brother or not. I know it will take time and they will soon be inseparable.

2. Occasionally we can get fancied up. My work helped sponsor a gala for a charity I've become incredibly passionate about called Chariots4Hope which is based in Omaha and Lincoln. It would take me way too long to explain about them so if you want to know more about them click here. I had to take photos and videos for work, but I also got to enjoy the night. I feel incredibly blessed to work for a company that values community over their bottom line.  

3. Before we got Zeke, Brent, Ginger, and I travelled down to Kansas City, MO to see the Jonas Brothers in concert. We decided to make a weekend trip of it (which was a mild disaster but that's another story). The concert was AMAZING!! They were even better than they were at their last concert I went to 10 years ago 🤯We sang, dance, and it was just a blast! 

4. The past month has held some major disappointments for us. Something that was a "sure thing" was ripped away from me and I was left stunned, confused, and very hurt. I started reading It's Not Supposed To Be This Way by Lysa Terkurst and it's like the book was written for me. The words spoke to my heart and gave voice to the hurt and disappointment we have been working through. I cannot recommend this book enough! 

5. It's finally starting to feel like fall around here. I think the 90 degree temps are finally gone <insert happy dance>. The mornings have been cooler and it tastes like fall is in the air. The leaves don't change until late here but I found this beautiful red one and it was too pretty to pass up. One of the things I do miss about living in Michigan is the fall colors. Fall in Michigan is unbelievable! Not to mention I miss going to the cider mill, but we did find a really good cider place in Lincoln.

6. It's in the heart of downtown near 17th and N in Lincoln. This tucked away bar is a GEM 💎 I walked inside and was stunned. It's bright, airy, and so relaxing. Jazz was playing softly out of the speakers, the owner served us and she was FANTASTIC! We did a flight of ciders and they give you a flight ticket that you get punched as you try the different ciders. They were all really good but our favorite was the Milestone Road cider. It tasted like good ole apple cider. Everything from the service to the cider to the atmosphere was top notch so if you're ever in Lincoln, NE definitely check it out! 

I will stop rambling on now, but have a terrific Thursday and an even better weekend 🥳 

NE Heat & A Shook Pup: Thinking Out Loud #122

Happy Thursday! This week has been FLYING by! We are looking forward to the weekend because it's been a hectic week. This month is super busy for us with traveling, friends moving, charity events, and a million other things. Literally every weekend this month we have something going on. We're savoring all the quiet moments as they're far and few between and we are both very much home bodies. Anyway, let's jump into this weeks thinking out loud! 

1. THIS is how we've felt all week 😂 Ginger likes to lay on her back and her paws on the air and wag her tag telling us to pet her, but every once in awhile she has this shook look on her face 🐶 It kills us because it just embodies how we feel about Monday. Anyone else feel like this after the weekend 🙋‍♀️ 

2. Running. Sigh. It's been a love/hate relationship for me over the past year. Since I got hurt about two years ago there's been a lot of pain for me while I run so I stopped for a long time then moved to a slow trot, like turtle pace 🐢 This week I've been ramping up my efforts and running outside. But holy smokes it is still HOT outside 🔥Nebraska in the summer is not a runners friend. Case in point...

3. My husband is super supportive as you can tell 😂 I love the challenge of running outside but it's been so hot it's been horrible to do. The past few days have been over 100 with heat index, so not a chance I've been running outside. The treadmill is super boring to me but I didn't want heat stroke so I've been hitting it every day. Otherwise my husband would be scrapping me off the pavement. 

4. I cannot handle this dog 😂 She laid like this for over an hour sandwiched between the hubs and I on our bed while we read. She's such a drama queen, but when she lays like this all I can think of is a yogi pup.

5. We are heading to Kansas City in a few weeks so if you've been send us recommendations! Where should we go? What should we do? Where should we eat? We went for a few days last year for a Taylor Swift concert, but we'd love to try out some new places. We have a super cute AirBnB and Ginger is coming with us, so bonus if you can give us a few dog friendly places!

6. This quote has been on my mind since I stumbled across it earlier this week. The world has such a skewed perception of what beauty is. Beauty is about so much more than people. Beauty is in every single thing. Look around you at the magnificent sights, the sounds, the tastes, the people, the animals. EVERYTHING IS BEAUTIFUL. In Ecclesiastes 3:11 it says, "He has made everything beautiful in its time." I pray those words speak light and love into your life. No matter what anyone says you are beautiful and you are loved.

Have a wonderful Thursday and a terrific weekend 🎉 🎉

Labor Day Recap & Sleepless in NE: Thinking Out Loud 121

Happy Thursday! It seems like coming off a holiday weekend the week just seems to drag by, it's either that or the fact I haven't slept more than an hour (or two MAX) in months is finally wearing on me. Nonetheless, we got out of Lincoln on Saturday and headed to a farm outside Omaha for their sunflower festival. Before I get into all of that, let's jump in this weeks thinking out loud! 

1. A little family farm about an hour and a half from us held a sunflower festival over Labor Day weekend. I love sunflower so we left bright and early Saturday morning- mostly to get out of town because the Huskers had their first game and no one wants to be in Lincoln then if you don't like the Huskers. We got to the farm only to be rained on some and totally covered in mud, but the sunflowers were beautiful 🌻 If we are still in NE next year we will definitely be going back! 

2. Of course Ginger got her trip to the dog park per usual. Thankfully it's started cooling down (although temporarily) and after the holiday weekend we were some of the only ones at the dog park. Ginger had the entire stream to herself and spent probably 10-15 minutes just laying in the water. Our dog is a little weird, trust me I am well aware.

3. Three batches of fudgey dark chocolate brownies have been made in the past five days. Prior to changing jobs I hardly ever had time to bake so having time to do that now is really nice 👍 If you would like the recipe you can nab it here.

4. My wonderful, sweet, slightly behind on the times husband just figured out snapchat filters. He got so excited when he figured them out that I have been indicated with snapchats because he's playing with the filters. He got upset when his favorite filter went away- I had to explain that filters change.

5. Have I mentioned Ginger is spoiled? I thought so. Just look at her. Spoiled rotten but so freaking cute 🐶 

6. As I've mentioned I literally have not been sleeping. Insomnia is part of lupus, but in the past few months it's gotten a zillion times worse. I've been getting at most an hour or two of sleep a night for months on end. I've tried every over the counter sleep aid in existence, tea, sleepy time yoga, and all the other suggestions that have come my way. When I told my rheumatologist about it she said she didn't believe it that it was that bad (what kind of doctor says that to a patient?!) and that if I wanted something stronger than over the counter I better find myself another doctor (I repeat WHAT DOCTOR TELLS A PATIENT THAT?!). So, in the mean time if you have any suggestions please drop them in the comments. I am desperate and so exhausted. 

7. This has been majorly resonating with me this week. People are so quick to judge before they even know what is going on. We are all guilty of it, but there's been a few in the past weeks that have been very hurtful to myself and I think the thing that astounded me the most was those who were judging were supposed to be friends and knew absolutely nothing about the situation. Lesson being, be slow to judge (frankly don't judge at all) and instead of extending judgement extend grace. We could all use a little more grace in this world. 

Have a great Thursday and a terrific weekend 🎉 

Fudgey Dark Chocolate Brownies

Brownies are sort of my thing. Whenever we get invited somewhere and we're asked to bring something there's a 99.9% chance I will be asked to bring brownies. Over the years I've made countless different brownie recipes, but right now these fudgey dark chocolate brownies seem to be a fan favorite. 

I made them over Labor Day weekend for some friends who came over for a pool party and they quickly evaporated. It's a quick and easy recipe to make and guaranteed to be a hit at your next gathering!

Fudgey Dark Chocolate Brownies

• 1/2 cup all purpose flour (gluten free all purpose flour also works)
• 1/2 cup Hershey's special dark cocoa powder
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup butter, melted (dairy free butter also works)
• 1 Tablespoon canola oil
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 eggs
• OPTIONAL (but not really) handful of dark chocolate chips
• FOR SUPER FUDGEY BROWNIES take roughly 1/3 cup chocolate chips, melt them, and stir it into batter

Preheat oven to 350F degrees and coat an 8x8 pan with nonstick spray.

Combine melted butter and sugar.

Once butter and sugar are combined add in eggs, vanilla, and canola oil. Whisk until turns lighter in color. 

Add in salt, flour, and cocoa powder and stir until combine. Do not over stir the batter.

Spread batter in pan and bake at 350F degrees for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the brownies comes out clean. In my oven it's about 23 minutes.

Give brownies time to cool and then cut- or for super gooey brownies cut while still warm and devour. 

If you make them snap a picture and tag me on instagram! 

Healthy Chicken Alfredo (Gluten and Dairy Free)

Does anyone else ever get stuck in a dinner rut? You're making the same thing every week and want to try something new but don't know what?! That was us. Coming up with something healthy and different every night can be hard. Thankfully my hubs isn't a picky eater, but he did have his doubts about healthy chicken alfredo, he bought a jar of alfredo sauce on his way home from work, but it turned out great and he's already been requested it be added to our rotation of meals. 

From start to finish I'd say this recipe took me about half an hour. There was definite multi-tasking involved with cooking the noodles, chicken, and sauce all at once, but it wasn't bad. I cooked the chicken on our indoor George Foreman grill and everything else was on the stovetop. You're going to get nervous about the sauce not thickening up. IT.TAKES.TIME. I promise it will thicken, be patient. We got four meals out of this, so be prepared for leftovers 😊 

Healthy Chicken Alfredo

• 16 oz. gluten free fettuccine noodles
• 2 Tablespoons dairy free butter (we use coconut oil based, but regular butter works)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons minced dried garlic, you can also use freshly minced garlic
• 1/4 cup gluten free flour
• 2 cups Almond milk (we used unsweetened vanilla but non flavored works too)
• 2 cups low sodium chicken broth
• 1/2 cup dairy free parmesan cheese (regular parm works too)
• 1/2 black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• pinch of salt
• 1 package frozen broccoli, cooked (we threw ours in the microwave to cook)
• 1 pound of chicken breasts, cooked and diced

In a pot start cooking noodles according to package instructions, once done set aside.

While the noodles are cooking start the sauce. 

Set a pan to medium heat, place butter in it until it melts. Add in garlic and stir until fragrant. 

Whisk in flour- this will get very chunky and clumpy but don't worry.

Next, add almond milk and chicken broth in. Whisk for 1-2 minutes to combine. Cook over medium heat until the sauce thickens- this will take some time so be patient (I'd say it says 10-12 minutes). 

Once the sauce starts to thicken add in salt, pepper, nutmeg and whisk before adding in parmesan cheese. Give the parmesan cheese plenty of time to melt- if you're using dairy free parmesan it will take a bit longer for this to happen. 

Once the sauce is thickened and the parmesan cheese has melted add in broccoli and chicken. Stir to combine then serve it up! 

If you make this recipe share and tag me on instagram! Happy cooking!

Healthy Pasta and Keeping Quiet: Thinking Out Loud #120

Happy Thursday and Happy August! Thank you so much for all the sweet emails, comments, and messages about our wedding post, I've loved reading them all! We just got our wedding video and we've watched it about a million times already 😊There's been a lot happening these past two weeks, but things are finally calming down, and now my parents are in town for a long weekend, so I'm sure we'll be hitting up a few fun spots in Lincoln! Anyway before I start blabbing away here is this weeks thinking out loud! 

1. After a week of violence and hate my heart has been so heavy with hurt and grief. I cannot begin to understand the tragedy that two communities in the U.S. are facing. As a reporter it's imperative to remain bias, but in these situations it's hard. We're human after all. Yesterday morning I woke to the most stunning sunrise and double rainbow I have ever seen. It looked like the sky was on fire. I sat there in awe, soaking it in and the truth of God's promise. He will never leave us nor forsake us. Not in good times, not in times of tragedy. 

2. Those who know me know that sleeping is a massive struggle for me. It sounds ridiculous, but insomnia is a huge part of lupus. Many nights I'm lucky to snag a few hours of sleep, and usually it's pretty broken sleep. The past few weeks have been really rough and there's been a lot of nights I haven't slept at all. My hubs is a saint and will lay awake with me for hours doing anything and everything trying to get me to sleep. Monday night into Tuesday was a night of no sleep. I was so exhausted, it was a rough day at work, but I came home to the sweetest surprise from my hubs. Bubbl'r is my FAVORITE drink (caffeine but no caffeine crash 🙌) and I'm a sucker for sour patch kids. I wish every girl could know that there is a man out there who will genuinely care for YOU. He'll surprise you with flowers and junk food on rough days and lay awake with you at night when you can't sleep. Don't ever settle for less. 

3. Since we got married our weekends have slowed down a LOT! It's been wonderful to have time to just hang out together without having to do something for the wedding. It's given me a chance to be a tourist in our city too because it's the first time I've had weekends off that we're able to go explore. While walking around the Haymarket last weekend we found 402 Creamery. It's a locally owned ice cream shop that makes handmade small batches of ice cream. The best part is the have gluten and dairy free ice cream 🍦 The staff was super friendly, the ice cream was delicious, it's a must if you stop in Lincoln!

4. The biggest victory for this week has been making a not so healthy food healthy and the husband LOVED it! I made Alfredo sauce with almond milk and chicken broth (and a few other things) and it was so good. I have a post with the recipe that I will share tomorrow! The hubs asked to have it again next week so I'll take that as a victory!

5. Maybe I'm a little biased but I happen to think my hubby is the best 😊 I was gifted one of those letter boards and now he leaves me the sweetest messages on it. We've also left some funny and some not so PG messages on it but it's been a fun way to surprise one another when we get home. It also goes perfectly in the guest bathroom so now it looks like I have one room of the house decorated, it just so happens to be the bathroom 😂

6. Anyone else working on keeping their pie hole closed more often? 🙋‍♀️ Lordy knows I sure do need to keep mine closed more often. Half the time something comes out before I have time to think about it. I've been keeping this verse on my phone this week as a reminder to keep my trap shut. 

Ginger is demanding pets and food so I'll leave it at that, have a great weekend 🎉