My current obsessions ...

1. My new Bible.

Just love it! This is the one Andy got me for Christmas. Such a sweet/thoughtful gift.

2. Cheese Appetizer.

 Andy and I have recently liked trying new types of cheese! And this is a really cute way to display them. I like doing this for company :)

3. Our new "Important Stuff" organizer.

 Since we moved in Andy and I have just crammed all of our important stuff (House title, warranty, pest control paper ... you name it) in one drawer. We finally decided it was time to organize it all! So we got this handy dandy paper organizer.

4. Having people over!

I LOVE when people come see our new home. Come on over!

5. Being a Notary.

It makes me feel important!

6. Having a kitchen.

 It is soooo nice to have a sink and a dishwasher. I never realized how much I use them!

7. Cousin Henley.

This is Calli and Brett's new puppy. We just love her. She is sweet as can be.

8. Downton Abbey.

Such a great show. I always get stuck talking like I am from England after I watch it.

9. Our Garage.

I love having a garage. No more ice on my windshield. YAY!

10. Emergen-C

I saved the best for last. This stuff is amazing. If you are feeling sick at all and take a packet of this it will cure you! ... You mix it with water and it kinda tastes funny. But once you get past the taste and see how well it works you will love it!

101 days

I ate lunch with my parents today and died laughing as we remembered a funny story. So naturally I thought I would share.

Picture this ....

I am 5 years old. I have been in school 101 days and my teacher decides we are going to have a 101 day party. Everyone has to bring 101 somethings. I loved cookies (still do) and so mom and I decided to make a cookie cake with 101 M&M's on it. I was PUMPED! I carefully counted and placed all of the M&M's to spell out 101. I'm not going to lie ... it was awesome. Dad always drove us to school on his way to work. On this particular morning he helped me load all of my stuff into the car. He carried my prized cookie cake and I got my backpack. We drive to school. Sing the usual zippity do da and M-i-c-k-e-y M-o-u-s-e and dad prays for Calli and me. Then we arrive at school. I hop out with my backpack and look up to dad. I say "Daddy where is my cookie cake?" His jaw drops as he realizes he put it on top of the car and never got it down. (Side note: We later found it in our neighborhood). He walked in with me to my class to tell my teacher what happened.
Mom always picked us up form school .... On this day I hop in the car and mom says "I'm sorry about your 101 cake. I know you were really excited about it. Were you upset?" And I say "No. But daddy was. He cried in front of my teacher and all the way back to the car."
Yall my sweet father was so upset that he cried when he told Mrs. Hammel that he drove off with the cake on the car!
So the next day I took in another cake that mom and I baked. We were out of M&M's and mom convinced me to use raisins (YUCK). Nobody wanted to eat my cake.
Moral of the story. My dad is a sweetheart. Don't put things on top of the car. If use raisins on a cake nobody will eat it.

"Celebrate the Temporary"

My oh so loved small group started back last night. I just LOVE the group of girls I get to spend time with and our dear leader Lauren. Lauren is very wise. She always gives so much insight into whatever we are studying. One week a couple years ago we had the opportunity as a group to meet her parents. She loves her parents dearly ... you can tell just by the way she talks about them. After meeting them I understood why. They are just the sweetest God-loving people I have ever met. During small group last night I shared how I am having trouble living in the here and now. I am such a planner, yet there is sooooo much unknown in my life right now that I can't seem to make long term plans (go figure). Lauren shared with us something her daddy always says. "Celebrate the Temporary." This small saying really resignated with me. I have not been able to get it out of my head since she said it! I know it is simple, but it really speaks into where I am right now.

I want to celebrate being married without kids.

I want to celebrate being in Knoxville.

I want to celebrate having a great job, even though I really just want to be a mom.

I want to celebrate Andy being a manager.

I want to celebrate Today. I want to celebrate what I am doing right now in this very moment.

I want to "Celebrate the Temporary."

For all the pasta lovers out there

Andy LOVES pasta! So I am always looking for a good pasta dish that is a pinch more complicated than just plain spaghetti. I found a recipe online and then just changed it around to make it our own. If you like pasta ... try it! It is delicious.

Penne Pasta Bake

1 Can Tomatoes

1 Green Pepper

Chicken, Cooked

Penne Pasta, Cooked

4 Cups Spinach, Saute

1 Jar Marinara Sauce (I like Boves)

2 Cups shredded mozzarella

1/4 bread crumbs

Preheat oven to 400.

Cook Chicken and pasta. Set aside.

Saute Spinach and set aside.

In a medium skillet saute Green pepper (in olive oil). Add 1 can tomatoes. Add a shake of dried onion and garlic. Simmer 5-10 min.

Add Cooked Pasta, Jar of Marinara, Chicken and Spinach.

Pour mixture into baking dish.

Sprinkle with cheese and bread crumbs.

Bake 20 min or until cheese is melted.

"My Pleasure"

I can't tell you how many times I have heard the words "My Pleasure" over the past 8 months. Andy has said these two words at home and work since he started his career with Chick-fil-a. He has learned a lot about service, and how to better serve the customer. One thing that the Homberg Chick-fil-A is going to start doing is Backstage Tours. I had the privilege of going on the first backstage tour. Aka I was Andy's Guinea Pig.  Here is my sweet husband ... the tour guide himself ...

It was really fun! I learned about the history of Chick-fil-A, and was able to see the back of the kitchen and how everything is run on a daily basis. I have never realized how much work goes into one chicken sandwhich. One thing I noticed (that didn't really surprise me) was how clean everything in the back was! All the food was fresh, and carefully prepared. They have special gloves and color codes for handling raw chicken, and they change gloves and wash hands ALLL the time. We ended the tour at the front counter and everyone got FREE ICE CREAM! I think it is safe to say I was pleased with my experience.

ALMOST FINISHED!!!

We had our counter tops put in yesterday! Now all we lack is the sink and dishwasher and we will be FINISHED with our kitchen! I can't wait to cook again. Yes Chick-fil-a is great ... but not 4 nights a week for dinner (No i am not kidding). I have already made a mental list of the meals I want to make first. Yipppeeeeeee

Snapshot of my weekend

Friday Night. UT basketball game with the hubs + Troutman clan. I'm sad that we couldn't pull out a win but still a great game!

Saturday. My day was full of being productive. I cleaned and ran errands just about allll day. But it was good to get caught up on a lot of things that I needed to get done. Saturday night I sat at Chick-fil-a with this crew for oh 3 hours. Thats normal right? Here we are snap chatting each other while sitting right beside one another. Again ... normal right?

My sweet Friend Becca came over to see our new home! She gave us these beauties to warm our home :) Thanks Bex. You have such a sweet heart.

And Sunday we drove for 6 hours to be in Nashville for 4 hours. Oh my. Long day. But a very fun day. We spent the day with Andy's dads side of the fam. We ate yummy Bbq ... threw football ... watched football. Eventful day.  

Colbie came with us! She did great in the car. Only had to stop once the whole time. She loves to go bye bye with Mommy and Daddy!

Colbie is really excited because she gets to meet her cousin (Henley Drummey) this Friday! They are going to be big buds.

Happy Monday!