Slices of Life

Alec has been having a great time re-reading several of his favorite books and series these past couple of months.  He has started keeping a running list of what books come next in each series so he knows which ones to look for on each trip to the library.  Evan asked to go to Barnes and Noble for his birthday and picked out a few graphic novels-- reading all three of them while we were on vacation! 1.  Nevermoor; The Trials of Morrigan Crow -- Morrigan is supposed to die at midnight on her eleventh birthday but is whisked away at the last minute to Nevermoor where Morrigan has to pass a series of tests or face returning home and dying. 2.  Warriors, The New Prophesy book 2:Moonrise- - in the second book of the second series, the cats are travelling home after their journey to save the clans where they meet a band of wild cats with their own prophesy to fill. 3.  Wings of Fire Book 12 -- Cricket has never fit in with the other HiveWings and now she's in hiding for stealing the Book

I have been buying some new fall clothes (mostly through Amazon) and I have so many new favorites!  Here's what I've been priming this month: I am absolutely loving this flowy top with the wide bell sleeves .  While it is quite thin and won't last me through much of fall we've been having some mild temperatures that make this shirt just perfect for this time of year! I also ordered this cute little runched side tunic with three brown buttons.  I have a few other shirts by the same company and they are so comfy.  I purposefully ordered one size smaller so it would fit more like a shirt and less like a tunic. This shirt has cute little shirring around the neck and a little tiny keyhole in the back. It's flowy without being baggy and made of very soft cotton.  (I talked about the boots last month on my Amazon Prime Purchases post) I think one of my very favorites is this cashmere sweater that is under $30.  The fitted sleeves, wide neck and band around the bottom ma

Happy Fall! I am so excited to be joining up with a great group of bloggers today to bring you a link party for all things fall! Share your crafts, diy projects, decor, recipes, and activities!  We're looking forward to seeing fall, Halloween, and Thanksgiving ideas! There are 11 talented bloggers co-hosting this party! That means lots of ideas & exposure for your posts! Meet the Hosts! Across the Blvd | Purple Hues & Me | This Autoimmune Life Stone Cottage Adventures | Two Chicks & a Mom Our Unschooling Journey | Domestic Deadline Sew Crafty Crochet | Comfort Spring | Cookies, Coffee, & Crafts I am sharing some wonderful fall date ideas with you all today.  Fall is my favorite time of year and there is nothing my husband and I enjoy more than getting outside and enjoying all the weather has to offer. To kick off the party, all of the hosts are sharing a fall post today. You'll find their posts in the first link up below. You're sure

Since I seemed to have thrown quite a few readers off with my Fall Date Night (outfit!) Ideas post I thought I'd start working on an actual fall date ideas post.  I just knew it was the perfect post to kick off our Happy Fall Party!   I hope you'll join us in linking up all your wonderful fall, Halloween, and Thanksgiving posts. Here are just a few ideas to get you started on planning the perfect fall date: 1.  Visiting an apple orchard together-- whether you're picking apples, going on a hay ride, tasting some freshly made treats or just walking around the orchard holding hands it can make a great date night! 2.  Work your way through a corn maze together. 3.  Cuddle up under a blanket and watch a scary movie. 4.  Go on a hike; fall is the perfect time to hike. 5.  Take a drive to see all the fall foliage. 6.  Build a fire and roast s'mores. 7.  Try making a new recipe together. 8.  Head to a pumpkin patch, pick out the perfect pumpkin, and

We had a great week finishing up our vacation and settling back into "real" life.  We had beautiful weather and snuck in a few hikes.  We began gearing up to start school and I tried to get us all back to a somewhat normal schedule. After a delicious (and free!) breakfast Friday morning we loaded in the car and headed out of Mitchell, South Dakota heading to Omaha, Nebraska.  We hoped to reach Omaha by lunchtime(ish) and head right to the Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium.  We did have to find an alternate route there as a few major roads were closed due to the flooding of the Missouri River but we found our way and wow! What a zoo (and aquarium)!  We explored for several hours in the heat and still didn't manage to see it all before closing, but we did see most of it and had such a great time checking out all the animals.  We settled into our hotel and then headed out to Olive Garden, at the boys' request, for dinner. We were up bright and early on Saturday and headed t

Though the calendar tells me the first official day of fall was Monday, we are having surprisingly warm temperatures still.  It's so hard to fully embrace fall when it's been in the 80's all week but I sure am trying!  We went to the orchard and got candy apples, we've been hiking, and I even bought my favorite Pumpkin Spice Frosted Mini Wheats cereal. Welcome to Encouraging Hearts & Home! The Encouraging Hearts & Home Bloggers Join your Encouraging Hearts & Home Co-Hosts  each week for encouragement and support for your heart & your home . We hope to provide a space that builds each other up and lends a helping hand along the way. With all the negativity in the world, let's shine a positive light! ***Each week, our co-hosts will each choose our favorite links, along with the most clicked link, and pin them to our Encouraging Hearts & Home Pinterest board.   Most Viewed From Last Week's Party: Becoming Fluent in the Language of Labeling by