{oh hey friday | oldies but goodies}

Every year I put together a video on iMovie of the years happenings. 

It is an assortment of pictures, videos and music...

and it is awesome. 

I just started working on this years, and have been looking through the thousands of pictures I have.

I found a few good ones that I thought I'd share with you all...

1 || Let's just start with this one:

Here's Beckam at the beginning of this year. A wee little 8 month old chub.

I mean... come on! 

Those fat little feet and rolls galore make me think I might want another baby...

 for just one hot second.

2 || And then... while we are on the subject of rapid growth in children, let's check out this kid:

Still a two year old at the time.

And still napping, hence the dazed look and hand print embedded into his cheek.

Also, let's note the Giant's jersey... he knew early on they were going to be winning the WS.

3 || This one, must have been staged:

Or this was the one and only time that they actually both enjoyed playing with each other. 

Someone, please tell me that they will actually like sharing toys one day!?

4 || My farmer. He doesn't get enough pictures taken of him.

I did catch this one of him this summer at his parents house though:

Impressive, right?

Please note my precious niece in the bottom left hand corner.

I'm pretty sure she thinks she's about to die.  Poor girl. It's her daddy that needs to be more concerned... he's about to get belly flopped in the head.

5 || You know who gets less pictures taken of them than my farmer? Me.

So much for my once upon a time dream to be a fashion blogger.

Now, back to that video I'm making...

I'm always up for good song suggestions to play along with the video.

Leave some in the comments if you have any!

But first, get your link on... 

If you are new to Oh hey, Friday, and would like to join in... it's simple!

1 | Write up a little post about five things. Anythings.  

2 | Head back over here and enter your link at the bottom of this post.

3 | And pretty please don't forget to link back to our blogs and/or add the oh hey, friday! button (found just below) by copying the HTML into the HTML section of your post so that others can link up as well! That's it. 

<a border="0" href="http://denimandplaid.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c151/karlib83/FALLohheyfridaybebas_zpsea6f18fd.png"/></a> Have a great weekend friends! 

{life lately... via pictures}

I am gearing up for our annual harvest party that will be this weekend.

This includes making lots and lots of chili.

Making lots of cake-pops.

And making lots of lists.

{If you'd like to check out the last harvest parties, you can see them here, here and here.}

I'm a little nervous about how things are actually going to turn out.

If you looked back at the above links, you'll notice I kinda went all out the last couple of years.

This year... not so much.

I mean, I'm not even doing stripey straws. gasp.

And forget any sort of paid entertainment... turns out farmers and their friends just like to sit around, eat chili and talk. 

I'm on board.

Party planning mode this year also means that I do pretty much everything that has nothing to do with the party. See for yourself:

In summary... it looks as though I watch Beckam climb every object he sees, and then when he eventually naps Brody and I work like dogs outside and make silly faces.

Not too shabby.

{ps. no babies were harmed in the capturing of these pictures. 

pps. my dining room doesn't usually look like that... it will be finished... soonish.

ppps. when my hubby came home last night, he said that the house looked like a wreck. he then got to eat wheat thins for dinner.}

{oh hey, friday | a look into my everyday}

Life on the farm this time of year is crazy.

Not so much wild-crazy. More hectic-crazy.

Let me just give you a little glimpse into our all day, errday.

{ps. I just googled errday [nerd] and this is someones definition in urban dictionary: 

"a way of saying 'everyday' yet in a cooler country slang accent, typically used by cool people in random conversation." lol. Just so ya know. I'm officially cool.}

1. Early bird gets the... cranky mommy.

Brody decided that 4:45 am was a swell time to wake up yesterday.

I guess he's taking after his father, who was heading out the door at that time.

I tried to bribe him, I tried to trick him, I tried my stern mommy voice... that kid wouldn't go back to sleep.

SO, I packed a ziploc full of nutritious breakfast aka animal crackers.

{Don't judge. I was supposed to be in bed.}

And I took the boys for an early morning tractor ride with daddy.

One bonus. I saw a sunrise double rainbow as we drove in to the field.

You don't see these things when you are laying in bed. Imagine that.

As cool as it was, I'm hoping to not see one tomorrow. Or the next day.

I really like my pillow.

2. Once in a great while, I get a "me day."

This sounds great right?

Manicure? Shopping? Not so much.

I mean, I spent my "me day" this week doing six straight hours of book work in the farm office.

Don't feel too bad for me. Notice that box of Samoas on the desktop?

On any other random week I can usually be found spending that time mowing the lawn. 

This time of year I should be out raking the millions of leaves on our grass... but instead I am waiting as long as possible, and praying for extreme wind gusts to blow it all into the field across the street. Fingers crossed.

3. Quality time. 

Brody tends to be SO much better behaved when he can get a little one on one time.

Everyday {or errday, if you will} while Beckam naps, we play.

This kid is bossy. 

And he has a certain idea of how things should be done or played with.

I usually go along with it, for the wild imagination ride.

Because, just look at how happy he is.

4. Speaking of happy.

This kid.

{pardon my high pitched crazy mommy voice}

His goals for the day usually include a high quantity of food intake, playing as much as possible outside, and trying to pick up our cats by their tails.

And I... usually try to make that happen for him.

5. Blogity blog.

It's fair to say that I spend a significant amount of time on this blog everyday after the boys go to bed.

I dig it. 

You know what dig most about it?

You. 

For reals. I love my readers. Like a lot. 

SO much in fact, that I want to give you stuff. 

Like money, and discounts.

Since it is still October, my promo code {OCTOBER} works to get 30% off any ad space. 

Click here to cash in on that.

And if you are more into plain ol' free money... this is for you:

Liz | Jess | Tawnya

Penny | A Mommy App | Ali

Amy | Karissa | Jaelan

a Rafflecopter giveaway

And now, last but certainly not least... it's time to link up!

If you are new to Oh hey, Friday, and would like to join in... it's simple!

1 | Write up a little post about five things. Anythings.  

2 | Head back over here and enter your link at the bottom of this post.

3 | And pretty please don't forget to link back to our blogs and/or add the oh hey, friday! button (found just below) by copying the HTML into the HTML section of your post so that others can link up as well! That's it. 

<a border="0" href="http://denimandplaid.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c151/karlib83/FALLohheyfridaybebas_zpsea6f18fd.png"/></a> Have a great weekend friends! 

{this girl speaks my language}

Smart, hilarious and gorgeous.
These are the first three things that pop into my head when thinking of Amanda from
The Laurel Gazette.

I mean, girlfriend has got it going on. 

If you have never ran across her blog before, today is the day.

Feel free to go and follow her right now.

OR you can read this q&a first...

and then go and follow her. 

It's worth your while.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

What motivated you to start blogging? 

 I was working full time in politics, going to law school at night, and cleaning up after my husband (then-boyfriend) in my free time. Basically, I just needed an outlet. Weirdly enough, blogging has helped me channel the frustration and stress of my day-to-day life into sarcasm and (hopefully) wit, even though writing posts can be stressful in and of itself…Anyway, it’s not a perfect science but once I started, I couldn’t stop. 

 Your blogs name is The Laurel Gazette. Why did you choose that name? 

 A good question, considering my name isn’t Laurel - that throws people off a lot. Back when I was in grade school, I started a weekly gossip newspaper called The Laurel Gazette. The girlfriends who’d encouraged me to write the original were the same ones encouraging me to start a blog, so it seemed fitting to give it the same name. That’s pretty much all there is to it!

 

When you're not blogging, what other things do you like to do? 

 Hmm. This is the hardest question --- that can’t be a good sign. When I’m not blogging, I’m generally doing things I have to do (work and school) or traveling, but I also like to (in no particular order) read legal non-fiction and trashy magazines, get a little drunk, shop online, and eat salt bagels. None of which makes me even remotely interesting, unfortunately.

   

 Share some of your favorite posts with us and tell us why they're your fav. 

 I never read my old posts – I pretty much tell myself I hate them as soon as I hit “publish”. The ones I end up liking best are the ones that got a strong reaction, because it's cool to write things that get other people thinking or relating. Case in point with my post about cruises. I worried I'd sound like a snob but it turns out a lot of people feel the same way. Some of the old posts, like this one, crack me up. I had no idea what I was doing back then, which makes me wonder what I'll feel like a few years down the road when I go back and read the posts I'm writing now. Then there's the post I wrote called "On Building a Bridge and Getting Over It", in which I gave myself advice that is actually still relevant to me.

 Give us something that has made you laugh recently. 

Everything they're writing at ManRepeller is hilariously clever, but I really loved this post about being "basic."

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

And now you may commence un-creepily stalking her:

blog | bloglovin' | twitter | instagram | pinterest

She's the best.

{$125 up for grabs!}

Not much is more exciting than group giveaway day.

 $125 up for grabs?

YES!

I am thrilled to introduce you all to some great blogs,

which are all worth following...

regardless of the opportunity to win some huge moola.  

Check out each site below and then get entered to win.

Liz | Jess | Tawnya

Penny | A Mommy App | Ali

Amy | Karissa | Jaelan

And should you want to join in on next months group giveaway, click HERE to check out your options.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

{see through pants and smelly boobs - a fun q&a}

You know when you run across a new blog that you absolutely adore?

And then you proceed to read it from the beginning because you are mad that you didn't follow it sooner?

Weeeeell, that is what happened with me and Jessica from House of Hupfs.

This gal has got it going on....

she's beautiful. 

she has a handsome hubby. 

an adorable baby. 

she can cook, craft, and decorate like no other. 

What I'm trying to tell you, is that she is your new best friend. 

Why don't you enjoy a fun little q&a with her, and then go and follow her blog yourself.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Firstly - let's start out with your lovely blog. What inspired you to begin your blog, and has that changed since you started?

I started House of Hupfs shortly after I got pregnant with my son, Truett. It started as a way for me to document my weekly progress and such, and then kind of evolved from that. I love to craft, bake, and decorate so I slowly started incorporating those elements as well. 

Most embarrassing story. GO.

Oh geez, well this one probably isn't the most embarassing, but it is certainly top 5. It happened when I was in beauty school. I was running late to school one morning and since I had been only living on my own for a few months, totally neglected to do my laundry. I grabbed what I thought was a pair of leggings and a top that I thought was going to cover my butt. Well, I showed up to school only to realize that my 'leggings' were in fact tights and my top was definitely not covering my butt. I walked around wearing two coloring aprons that day trying to hide my bright pink underwear that you could clearly see through my tights. 

Girlfriend, you are so crafty!! Tell me about some of your fav DIY's?

Some of my favorite projects are actually in True's room (which still needs to be shared on the blog...). I made him a really cool sign above his crib with his name on it, as well as some other random things. Another fave would have to be my shoe closet, this girl loves her some shoes. And then of course, my seasonal decor. I love decorating for the seasons and along with it some random crafts and DIY projects that I like to share!

Looks like you nabbed a mighty fine man. Tell me more about your journey.

Oh why, thank you! I think he's pretty great too. Vince and I met Freshman year of high school in Algebra class. He sat near me and would always forget a pencil. He would steal one of mine almost every single class. It wasn't til Sophomore year he stole my heart and the rest is history! We got married in June 2012 on the beaches of Puerto Vallarta, Mexico and welcomed our son in May 2014. 

What has been your favorite event to date?

Definitely the birth of my son. I was able to have a natural waterbirth and it was such a cool experience and by far my favorite. 

Truett is such a doll!!! And seems so well behaved. So... tell me about the grossest thing you've had to do as a parent?

Thank you! He's a pretty great kid. I was a nanny for a few years before having him so I feel like I was pretty prepared for the gross factor. I can handle poop and pee and all that jazz pretty well. But when True was a few weeks old, I was bouncing him to sleep after a feeding and he puked all over me. No biggie right? Except I didn't realize he had gotten it all down my shirt and inside my bra until about two hours later. I kept smelling something gnarly and felt a little sticky. Low and behold, it was my boobs.. covered in baby puke! So gross.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 

There you have it. 

Isn't she a doll!?

Go show her some love:

blog | bloglovin | twitter | facebook | instagram 

{oh hey, friday | five things to do with your kids... when you are sick}

You know what's worse than wiping yours kids snotty noses all day? 

Having to wipe your own snotty nose at the same time.

Today I am going to share five things to do with yours kids... when you are sick. 

But first, some biz-nass:

If you are new to Oh hey, Friday, and would like to join in... it's simple!

1 | Write up a little post about five things. Anythings.  

2 | Head back over here and enter your link at the bottom of this post.

3 | And pretty please don't forget to link back to our blogs and/or add the oh hey, friday! button (found just below) by copying the HTML into the HTML section of your post so that others can link up as well! That's it. 

<a border="0" href="http://denimandplaid.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c151/karlib83/FALLohheyfridaybebas_zpsea6f18fd.png"/></a>

Alrighty.

So... imagine with me...

You are sick. Congested. Need a nap. Two young children hanging from your legs. Sometimes both of them crying simultaneously. 

Typical.

Here are just a few ways that I found to occupy their time this week so I wasn't needed quite as much.

1|| Park them in front of the sink with some dirty dishes. 

{Don't forget to remove any knives.}

This kept my little loves busy for the better part of an hour.

They "cleaned" all of my dishes and made a small pond on the floor.

Success.

2 || Kick them outside. 

We had some 60 mph wind gusts this week. Surprise surprise. #idahome

But when the wind stopped you better believe I kicked their booties outside. 

They got to practice the art of teamwork. 

And sharing.

Neither of which, by the looks of it, will ever EVER be mastered.

{the pictures are deceiving}

And Beckam learned how not to fall off when big brother pushes way too fast.

Then, they sat back to back and dug with tractors in the dirt for an eternity.

Hallelujah.

3 || Pick a watermelon. 

The bigger the better.

This doesn't sound great. 

Until you split it open and let them at it like wild animals.

Dinner? Check.

No cooking for you, sick momma!

4 || Give one a cardboard box made into a spaceship and the other a Superman shirt with a cape and call it a day. 

You may as well go and snuggle up on the couch and watch some Couples Therapy. 

They'll be busy for a little while.

5 || When all else fails, you go and take tractor rides with your farmer.
Oh, you don't have a farmer? 

Sucks to be you.

Kidding. Kind of.

This is my life saver.

I kid you not, one day this week I nearly fell asleep crammed in to a small tractor cab with all three of my boys. 

Desperate times. 

The good news?

We made it through the week.

And I am feeling much better.

I win. 

Also, I got a new fall jacket. And a stupid face.

Double win.

Feel free to use any/all of these techniques next time you get sick. 

Let me know how it goes.

{apple crisp | stuffed baked apples}

I have the yummiest recipe to share with you all today!

It is perfect for fall... easy to make... and delish.

Plus, the individual servings are pretty cute.

If only you could smell these pictures!

I made these with Brody yesterday.

He is quite the helper these days.

He did eat a fair share of the apples I cut, but there were plenty anyways.

You're going to want to make these.

You are sure to impress your loved ones!

Ingredients:

8 apples {I used fuji}

4 tablespoons butter

1/3 cup brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

crumble topping

1/2 cup flour

1/4 cup oats

1/3 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

4 tablespoons butter {chilled and cut into cubes}

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

First, prepare the crumb topping. In a medium bowl whisk together flour, oats, brown sugar, sugar, salt and cinnamon. Cut in the butter with a fork... or your hands, until mixture is crumbly. Set aside.

Peel and chop 4 of the apples. Add chopped apples, butter, brown sugar and cinnamon to a sauce pan and sauté over medium heat for 8-10 minutes or until apples are tender. Remove from heat.

Chop the tops off of the remaining 4 apples and use a spoon to scoop out the insides. {no need to keep the insides of the apples}

Place apples in a muffin tin to keep them upright while baking.

 Fill scoped-out apples with the apple filling from the sauce pan.

Top with a generous amount of crumble topping.

Bake for 10-15 minutes until crumble topping is crispy.

 They are best eaten warm.

And with some caramel sauce.

 Throw on some vanilla ice cream and you are in business!

Boom.