About caroline

Currently doing life with my husband, Greg and 4 kids - Gunnar (11), Tygar (9), Stone (6) and Eden (4) in our little corner of the world.

15 Years of Marriage

Happy Anniversary Greg!

15 Years of Marriage has taught me

how to pray.

how to rely on Him more.

how to be aware of the needs of each other.

over and over that marriage is intended to make us holy not happy {read this book!}

Greg can live without Mt Dew & I can live without coffee but we don’t like to for very long.

God clearly intended us to be parents.

it doesn’t matter where you live, just find some people to do life with and you’ll be ok.

to let Greg cook the meat, when I touch it, it immediately dries up.

being intimate is a form of worship.

painful experiences can produce amazing fruit.

disagreements will occur, but the majority of the time it’s rooted in selfishness.

the friends & family that witnessed our vows matter & they should & will check up on us.

as my dear friend Lara would say, “Nag God, not your husband {or wife}”.

date nights are just as important, if not more, than when we were dating.

to embrace change.

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Instaglimpse

Welcome to another glimpse into our week:

On our way out the door from getting my gym membership {did you feel the Earth stop moving for a second?} we were greeted with some lovely snowflakes! They were perfect for catching on our tongues! We had to stop and take a picture of the ones that landed in our hair!

Sunday afternoon we took a walk to the park. The kids have been begging to go to this park a few blocks away since we moved back. They call it the “train park” because it has a miniature train that you can climb on and play in. It was around 35 degrees but the sun was out so we obliged. We were, of course, the only people there, but they had a blast.

Valentine’s Day is not a huge deal at our house. We do let the kids make valentines for their friends if they want. Greg and I believe the love should be shared all year long, not just on Valentines Day. {You can read more of his thoughts here.} Anyway, this is a picture of my favorite cereal these days, Quaker Whole Hearts, that I just happened to be eating on the 14th. Yummy. Have you had them?

Even though we do not make a big deal about Valentine’s Day, it is a big deal when a friend spontaneously sends you chocolate in the mail! This was SO GOOD! Thank you Kristin!

I bought a 10 pack of canvases with grand ideas of finding creative ways of displaying photocopies of family pictures. So far, it hasn’t turned out exactly how I thought it would in my head. So, the experimenting will continue! And who doesn’t love an opportunity to play around with Mod Podge?

A few weeks ago, Greg found this dresser on Craigslist and bought it for $35. The previous owner told us it was made in the late 1800s. We’re not completely sure about that, but it is old. It smells old. Also, the dovetail drawer joints are handcarved. Greg tediously sanded, stained and distressed this old dresser and turned it into a lovely piece of furniture for our living room. He drilled a hole in the back and it sits under our wall-mounted tv and hides all the lovely electrical cords. It was a gift of labor & love.

Last night, Greg and I celebrated our 15th wedding anniversary at one of our favorite restaurants in the area, Meson Sabika. 15 years on the 22nd. What an adventure!

How was your week?

life rearranged

Not Really a Stranger


Last week I posted this picture on Instagram. I’m participating in a daily photo challenge for the month of February and the challenge for that particular day was to take a picture of a stranger.

I decided to take a picture of a picture from my collection of vintage photographs. Whenever I go to an antique store or an estate sale, there are two things I look for – miniature glass bottles & family pictures.

The photograph above is the one I chose for this challenge.

Clearly it’s a family photograph. But what’s up with the handgun, fella? Really, your handgun was that important that you wanted it in your family photo.

Well, it turns out that I’m related to the fella in this photograph. I forgot that my parents gave me this picture for my collection.

The man is my great-grandfather, D.D. Mahaffey. That’s his second wife. I know what you’re thinking, but his first wife died of milksick {a sickness caused by drinking the milk of cows feeding on poisonous plants – I had to google that!}.

Now, let’s see if you can see any family resemblance. The picture on the left is my brother {don’t be mad at me brother!}

I see a similar shape of the face, and the deep set eyes. Now all that my brother is missing is the handgun…

I know, I’m a dork! But I’ve learned a lesson ~ don’t post pictures without doing a little bit of research ahead of time.

Library Shelf

Have you read this book? My friend Katie let me borrow this book last fall. I know, that was months ago but I just found the notes that I wrote down stuck in another book I’m reading. It is an inspiring memoir of one lady pursuing her dream of attending Le Cordon Bleu in Paris.

Here are a few of my favorite quotes from the book:

“How many tears did I cry because I didn’t know what I wanted? ‘The sharper your knife,’ as Chef Savard had said, ‘the less you cry.’ For me, it also means to cut those things that get in the way of your passion and of living your life the way it’s meant to be lived.”

“Every woman should get herself two things: a good husband & a good set of knives. Bad husbands aren’t worth the trouble, and cheap knives aren’t worth the purchase.”

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