The Bright Eyed Brunette

Ya'll...I want it to be fall so bad! Unfortunately, it is still over 100 degrees outside. We are literally melting over here. Better set out those fall candles so it can at least smell like fall! According to my house, we have officially entered fall. There are pumpkins on the mantel, warm colors are making their way back into the rooms, and I'm fully prepared for cozy evenings. According to the thermometer? Absolutely not. But I've decided I don't need Mother Nature's permission to start entering fall. Let's face it, if I waited for actual sweater weather around here, I might be decorating for Christmas before I ever got to wear one! So, the pumpkins are coming out anyway! I've been adding rusts, oranges, browns, and deeper greens. A few pumpkins here, some fall leaves there, and a cozy throw tossed on the couch. Now am I actually using that throw? No. It is 100 degrees. That thing is strictly decorative at this point. But I am enjoying looking at it! And t...

 Apparently, I have been out of high school for 30 years. I don't really know who approved this, but I have questions. Because 1996 doesn't not feel like it was thirty years ago. Twenty? Maybe. Fifteen if we're being generous. But thirty? Absolutely not.                                                                                                                                            And yet, here we are. The Class of 1996 has officially reached that point where we can say things like, "Back when I was in high school..." and actually be talking about three decades ago. That's slightly disturbing. We really did grow up in a differen...

 "The joy of the Lord is your strength." Nehemiah 8:10 I've heard that verse for as long as I can remember. It's one of those verses we put on coffee mugs and wall signs. We quote it when someone is going through a hard time. We sing songs about it in church.  But lately, I've been thinking about what it actually means. Because if I'm being truthful, there are days when I don't feel particularly joyful. There are days when I'm tired. Days when I'm frustrated with people. Days when something is weighing heavily on my mind. Days when I'm worried about my family, disappointed by circumstances, or simply worn down by everyday life. But the Scripture doesn't say, "The joy of the Lord is your strength...when everything is going well."          It simply says: The joy of the Lord is your strength. Maybe we've confused joy with happiness. Happiness tends to depend on what is happening around us.    A good day makes us happy.      ...

 Happy Monday friends! We are coming off of an awesome weekend here on the homestead. We celebrated our favorite little girls' birthday on Saturday. Of course it was Barbie themed! Makena did a great job on the banner. A bounce house and Barbie themed...Yes please! Obviously, this was her pose of the day! Wrenley and her bestie, John Robert I love this little smile! I love her! Two pretty girls On Sunday, Trey got to preach a Sunday Morning service at our church. He was pretty nervous but did amazing and had improved since his last sermon. I am proud of him. He is definitely not ready to be a pastor but already has another engagement set up on the 27th of September. He even did a good job of dressing himself today! This was also our 5th Sunday, so we had potluck with singing after that. It was such a sweet time to come together as a church family. During our singing we had all of the men get up and sing (Trey played the guitar) and then we had all of the ladies get up and sing (my ...

Getting older is a funny thing. When you're younger, you think 40 sounds old. Then you get 40 and you realize you were clearly very confused. And somewhere along the way, birthdays start coming around a whole lot faster than they used to.  There are definitely things about aging that I could do without. The random aches and pains, needing reading glasses to see a menu, and realizing that staying up too late and requires a recovery period all come to mind. But there are also some really good things about getting older.  You know yourself better. You care a little less about what everybody else thinks. You start figuring out what-- and who -- is actually worth your time. And hopefully, you begin to realize that aging well isn't really about trying to stay young. It's about taking care of this life you have right now. So instead of talking about wrinkle creams, gray hairs, or trying to turn back the clock, I thought I'd share four ways we can age well-- body, mind, heart, ...

 Well guys, I'm back with another easy crock pot recipe! When I tell you I am a crock pot girly, I'm not lying! My family loves a good seafood boil, but so often, time just doesn't allow for it. Thankfully I saw this recipe on TikTok! Now let's get to the ingredients! Ingredients 1 lb. Andouille Sausage (cut into 1 in. squares) 1 1/2 lbs. Small Red Skinned Potatoes (cut in half) 3 ears Corn on the Cob, shucked and cut into smaller pieces (I cut into thirds) 1 Tbs. minced garlic 2 Tbs. Old Bay Seasoning 1 Lemon (cut in half) 4 c. Chicken Broth 2 lbs. Raw Shrimp (peeled and deveined with tails on) 4 Tbs. Butter (melted) Parsley Leaves (chopped) Instructions Step 1: Add potatoes (cut in half) and corn on the cob (cut in thirds) into the crock pot. Step 2: Add sausage and minced garlic on top of the potatoes and corn and then sprinkle the Old Bay       Seasoning. Step 3: Squeeze the juice of 1 lemon over everything, then place the lemon halves into the crock pot. ...