What's Hap-"Pinning" Wednesday {#21}

Happy hump day, and Christmas Eve eve!

Since we're so close to Christmas I thought I'd share with you some of my favorite ornaments on our Christmas tree for today's what's hap-"pinning" post!

I don't have any of the ornaments from when I grew up, yet, so I can't share those with you, but my sisters-in-law asked everyone at one of my bridal showers to bring an ornament to the shower so we could add them to our tree during our first married Christmas, which was last year.

It's always fun pulling these out and remembering who gave them to us, and the special time from my bridal shower, and our first Christmas as a married couple.

These are my top five favorite ornaments:

This one has a special place in my heart because MG and I got engaged in Philly, and the top of our wedding cake had this LOVE symbol on it (in silver), so it's a fun reminder of those two things. I always like putting it in the top center of the tree.

This one, my MIL's friend gave to us, and it's our wedding invitation in ribbons. I'd seen this online a bunch before we got married and loved the idea, but kinda forgot about it until I got this awesome gift last year for our first married Christmas.

This one came from my two sisters-in-law. Being an only child, I've always wondered what it was like to have siblings, specifically sisters, and marrying into this family I truly found out what it is to have sisters in my life. I talk to them weekly and confide in them like sisters. This one definitely has a very special place in my heart.

This one is special because it represents MG's and I first house together and celebrating our first Christmas together in our new house last year. This place will forever be our first home together.

This one I love just because it's so pretty and dainty and I feel like she's a little magical angel watching over us. Looking at it always makes me smile:

Now it's your turn to link up below and share with Jessi and I what's hap-"pinning" with you!

{Recipe Files}: Crockpot Cheeseburger Soup

I promised this recipe to you guys a couple of weeks ago and then the holidays happened and I kinda forgot. But today I'm sharing this super easy and really tasty cheeseburger soup recipe that I saw on Champagne and Suitcases

What You Need:

~1.5 bags of shredded hash browns

~1 small onion, diced

~1 stalk celery, chopped

~3/4 C. shredded carrots

~1 tsp dried basil

~1 tsp dried parsley

~3 C chicken broth (I used low sodium)

~1 pound ground turkey (or beef)--you can use more if desired

~4 Tbsp butter

~1/4 C flour

~1.5 Cup half and half or heavy cream

~1 tsp salt

~1 tsp garlic powder

~1/2 tsp pepper

~1/4 C sour cream

~2 Cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese

What You Do:

1. In a 6 qt crock pot, add hash browns, onion, celery, carrots, basil, parsley and chicken broth. Stir and cook on LOW for 7-8 hours or HIGH 3-4.

*I used a crock pot liner for this and it made clean up soooo much easier!

2. 30 minutes before serving, brown the ground beef until no longer pink. Drain and transfer into the crock pot.

3. Using the same pan (wipe it out), add butter and stir until it melts. Add flour in and stir until it clumps up, then whisk in half and half (or heavy cream) until it thickens. Then add in salt, pepper and sour cream.

4. Add the cream mixture to the crock pot with the ground beef and then add the shredded cheese. Stir to combine and let it melt together for another 15-30 minutes. 

5. Serve it up and top with any extras you'd like! I added bacon bits to mine :)

Admittedly this isn't the healthiest meal ever, but it sure is tasty and very hearty!

Perfect for those colder months...you know, if it ever actually gets colder this Winter :)

Weekending Highlights

Happy Monday, friends! Did you get a lot done during the last shopping weekend before Christmas?

Ours was a good mix of fun, relaxation and being productive.

My weekend highlights included:

~Early release from work on Friday to start Winter Break

~Drove straight from work to get a massage which was heavenly and the perfect way to kick off my break (and my massage therapist even went over my hour massage by 10 minutes--whoop!)

~Friday night at home where I made chicken pesto stuffed peppers for dinner. They were so tasty!

~Movie night with the fireplace going--so cozy!

look at how cute the blanket ladder is!!

~Early to bed and slept for 9 hours--obviously it was needed

~Ran errands Saturday morning: ordered new storm doors for the house (our Christmas present from MG's parents), post office which was insanity, and out shopping for MG's parents gift. Plus, a quick stop at Old Navy to return something, but got we both got sucked into their 50% off sale. Oops.

~Finally wore the KS necklace from my recent Rocksbox

~Our friends who live down the street from us had a Pre-Christmas dinner at their house (a "friendsmas") complete with a 14 pound turkey and all the yummy sides that go along with a turkey dinner! Not to mention, her place was decorated so fabulously!

~Got a girls photo, and celebrated our friend's birthday a day early with some cheesecake

~Woke up on Sunday with a horrible migraine until my excedrin kicked in (thank goodness for Excedrin Migraine!!)

~Met up with Christy in Old Town for a super yummy brunch blate at Virtue and then walked around the streets, and did some browsing through the shops along the way

~Rested up the rest of the afternoon to fully recover from how the morning started: got caught up on 90 Day Fiance (such a weird show, but I can't stop watching), watched some football, did some reading, and got in plenty of Cooper snuggles

~Watched tv and saw the end of the Miss Universe pageant....uhh..did you guys see the epic mistake Steve Harvey made by announcing the wrong winner, and then having the runner up get crowned and then taking it away from her? Yikes! So awkward!

Today I'm getting some presents wrapped and hanging out enjoying my first official day of Winter Break!

And to start your week off right, check out this parody of Adele's "Hello"...about all of the cravings for the yummy but bad foods :)

Linking up today with Biana and Meghan for Weekending!

Friday Faves

Happy Friday and a big old TGIF since today is the last day of school and it's an early release day. Praise! 

If you're reading this in the morning, I'm likely wearing my pajamas at work (it's pajama day today) and in a "mandatory fun" (literally that's what my principals called it) snowman making activity with my coworkers. Yes, this is real life. At least I'll be comfy! :)

Friday Favorites // Friday Favorites // Oh Hey Friday// 5 on Friday

Anyway, let's talk about some favorites, shall we??

{1} Loft Purchases

During their 40% off sale, I picked up this gorgeous swing dress from Loft (I'd actually bought it the previous weekend at full price and will be returning that one to the store). I love that it looks good with or without the belt tie on it. 

And I got this amazingly soft, white sweater that is subtle-ly longer in the back than in the front. I put this on and did not want to take it off!

Biana, you knew I couldn't stay away for TOO long...lol

{2} Our Fireplace

I know I talked about this on Monday, but we got a new mirror for above the fireplace in our basement this weekend. We got it hung up and I'm even more in love with it than I was when we first got it. Every time I'm down there, it feels like the space is just complete. We still need to add some pops of color on the mantle, but I like this starting place.

{3} Our Christmas cards (and the response about them)

I shared our Christmas card the other day with you guys and got so many compliments on them, from you all, and from our friends and family who have gotten them in the mail. Apparently the multiple pictures idea was a big hit! 

I've really loved getting everyone's cards over the past couple of weeks, and getting to look at them on our Christmas card tree display every time I come home from work!

{4} Favorite Blog Post

After a particularly trying day at work on Thursday, Christy told me to read Taylor's blog post from back in April, called Your Most Embarrassing Confessions. Her post, and the ensuing stories of mortification that people posted in the comments had me laughing so hard I think my coworker next to my office heard me laughing.
One of my most favorite admissions of embarrassment (other than Taylor's):
When I was younger (maybe 6 or 7) I was sick, running a fever and had an upset stomach and it was awful. Now, my dad, when he is sick, he sleep talks, sleep walks, does a lot of strange things in his sleep from the fever. Apparently, I inherited this trait because in the middle of the night, I woke up with some "tummy troubles" and being all feverish and confused (because I was 6 or 7 and it was dark) I went in my closet instead of my bathroom. I woke up with a hazy memory of going to the bathroom and a strange smell coming from my closet. I opened the door, and that's when I saw it: diarrhea all over my barbies. I had mistaken the big tupperware box they were stored in for a toilet.

It was a very traumatic experience. I'm not sure I ever told my mom, just gave my barbies a bath with tears streaming down my eyes and when mom came in, I just told her they were having a pool day.

Go read the rest. You will be in tears.

{5} Funnies

When you're driving to work and see this staring at you in your rearview mirror (this is actually a true photo from my morning commute on Wednesday):

Your reaction after seeing said scary person in your rearview mirror (and having him honk at you when the light changed because you were taking his picture):

{via}

The pressure you feel when picking your work Secret Santa:

{via}

How teachers feel after the last kid leaves for Winter Break:

{via}

Hope you have a great Friday and a productive last weekend before Christmas!!

2015 Year in Review: {April, May, June}

As we're approaching another week closer to the end of 2015, I've got another recap post of April, May and June!

{April}

~MG and I returned from our anniversary trip to Punta Cana and I recapped our amazing time there {here, and here}

~Had a blate with Christy and Holly--getting to meet Holly for the first time was awesome! Can't wait until she visits again!

~Celebrated our anniversary weekend with a super delicious dinner in DC after meeting up for the blate

~Made a delicious and easy recipe: sun-dried tomato and roasted asparagus pesto penne

~Talked about April 15- "That Sucks Day"

~Celebrated my friend and coworker's baby shower

~Got my first Rocksbox and did a review

~Spent a weekend in Philly with MG's family--got to see all the family, pick out our guest bathroom cabinet and countertop, and meet the neighbor's little baby kitten

{May}

~Had a double blate with Christy and her husband, The Pilot--our husbands totally hit it off and were insta-friends

~Bought a spiralizer and discovered the magic of zoodles!

~Got our zero gravity chairs and enjoyed a ton of time in them on our deck...and with wine

~Did an ABCs of Me post

~Redid the entire basement, including painting that entire room ourselves, and getting trim, carpet, and flooring installed; the change was amazing. Go here to see the dramatic before and afters. Bye bye mauve, 1980's carpet!

{June}

~Started re-doing the guest bathroom and getting rid of the linoleum and hideous orange paint

~MG's parents came to visit

~Got addicted to the show Bloodline--if you haven't watched it, do it!

~Painted the bathroom--bye bye orange!

~Did a post on Things to Do in Virginia

~Wrote some funny Bachelorette recaps

~Got new furniture for the basement, including a power reclining sofa (oh so comfy!)

~Went to the Mount Vernon beer festival at the Mt Vernon estate with friends

~Had the last day of school/work for the summer!

~Got my first romper and fell in love with it

~Had my first pool day of the season

~Got our new huge tv for the basement and put together the console table

Looking back, a lot happened, and this may be picture overload (and it could have been worse--I pared it down a lot!) The summer months are some of my favorites, which will be in my next post: 
~July, August, September~

What's Hap-"Pinning" Wednesday {#20}

Happy Wednesday! Half-way through the week and only 2 more days to go! You can do this!

Before that, let's talk about what's hap-"pinning" lately. You can share about anything you want to, and then link up with Jessi and I!

If you hadn't noticed, I'm a little obsessed with ponchos lately. I only have one that I got from the Loft outlet early in Fall, but since then I've been seeing them pop up everywhere and I'm smitten!

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How adorable are they?? So cute but also put together!

I also have been loving seeing how people wrap their presents. I can wrap presents (and significant better than MG-that poor guy does his best tho haha), but nothing like these gems:

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I love them, but Lord knows I will likely never have time in my lifetime to accomplish any of them. I can dream tho, can't I?
I thought this one was pretty cute, too:

{via}

And lastly, how fun would any of these t-shirts be to get as a funny gift, or for two siblings like the last ones:

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That's what's been hap-"pinning" around these parts, now it's your turn to link up with Jessi and I to share what's hap-"pinning" with you!