Our Thanksgiving.

So I woke up and realized my parents are no longer in my house and I had to go to work ... Boo! As I really do miss them here I know they are probably happy back in the south were us Jordan's are meant to be... 

This thanks giving had so much yummy food and I thought we would have to black friday shop for a second fridge but we made do with what we had... thankfully. 

Here are some shots from my phone from last week. 

 Awesome pie from Emery's in New Egypt, NJ 

 I'm thankful to be able to provide all of this for my family.

 I'm thankful for my husband, TJ.

 I'm thankful I have wonderful parents who have stuck through everything for 26 years.

 More FOOD!!! 

 I'm thankful my parents were able to meet Eve.

 It is safe to say Dad LOVED Eve and they had a blast, just look at her face. 

 Before we dropped them off at the Airport we were able to have lunch together. One last time. 

 I miss her so much! 

 So happy, we go to go to the mall and act silly together. She makes shopping fun! 

Thanks again to everyone who reads my blog. I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving. Sorry I wrote about it twice it was just so nice to see my parents. I adore them.

And I adore all of you for your support! 

Holiday House Tour

Welcome to the Holiday House Tour! Remember this is base housing so we are not trying to paint our house at all. But decorating is another story!  

 The nativity is from Hobby Lobby and the hurricane glasses are from Home goods.

 The Joy marquee lights are from Target, they are for windows but we wanted them on the stairs. 

 The tree is from the BX. The lights are classic lights from target. Everything else is from Hobby Lobby and Michaels. 

 For wrapping options we chose a craft paper and green twine and chevron ribbon from amazon. 

We spotted two ornaments at the mall and grabbed them to put on our keepsake tree (not pictured).

I hope you enjoyed this and are have a great Christmas season thus far! 

Holiday Review

Happy belated Thanksgiving. I took some time off to spend time with my parents who I absolutely adore and I am so thankful they came to spend time with us. They leave today so I know there will be tears ahead. 

On a lighter note, Thanksgiving was a huge HIT with tons of yummy food! We got to spend some quality time together and I'm so happy for that. I have missed them terribly!

We didn't do any crazy Black Friday shopping but thats a plus in my book and I'm okay with that we went to Chili's for lunch and it totally hit the spot! 

Until tomorrow I'm going to keep spending time with the most important people in my life. 

1 Week! : Weekend post

With now one more week until my parents get here I have so much to do and more school work on top of it! 

So let's go over my then our boring weekend. 

Saturday: 

1. Cleaned - which means I was on my hands and knees cleaning base boards, doing laundry and acting like I was Cinderella. Still waiting on the bibbity boppity boo...

2. I waited to here that the hubs got home safe - 17 hours later! 

3. Loved on miss Eve! 

4. Did some super pre thanksgiving shopping so I currently have a huge bird in our little freezer... Can we cook him already?!?!

Sunday:

1. TJ came home! I was asleep and he called me and scared me out of my skin. 

2. I slept in past 8:00! 10:00am to be exact! 

3. We proceeded to the following. 

Donuts:

IKEA!!!!

And then assembling the purchases from ikea! 

Which all leaders to this....

House tour preview (currently adding final touches but seriously here is the preview):

Happy week before thanksgiving! I need a few days off and a cocktail! 

This post is also in honor of Zoey. A family member of 13 years. I hope you and Sadie are playing in Heaven.

Saturday Oh' Saturday

Crazy how this time last weekend we were taking anniversary pictures and getting ready to eat fried turkey (which was amazing). Now Im sitting at home waiting to find out if TJ will make it home today. This week has been crazy with all the holidays and memorable moments just around the corner, I'm starting to get restless. 

REALLY REALLY RESTLESS! 

But enough of that I'm finishing up the holiday house tour post and will get that up soon! 

Last night Eve was on a hole different level of bad. I came home she shredded up her kennel pad - was running-RUNNING on the sofa! SO I turned to my awesome father in law and he helped she is doing much better now. In fact we are about to go on a run. :) 

I hope you all are having a great weekend and are at home with your men. Those who are still not home I'm always praying for them, it may not be by name but god knows who I'm talking about! 

Leave comments if you need support or have questions! I'm always here! 

Until next time I'll leave you with a few shots from our one year anniversary photos! (I took them we did not hire a photographer) 

Have a great weekend! 

Jersey Girls Don't Pump Gas

And it would seem neither does this Texas girl... at least when I'm in the state of New Jersey.

In the state of New Jersey you don't pump your own gas, it is supposed to create more jobs for the economy. Well Monday night on my way home from work I went to fill up my car at the East costs version of a Buccee's (You Texan's know what's up when it comes to a Buccee's) its called a Wawa. I stopped by and met the nicest young man since I've moved up here who politely filled Fancy The Ford Focus up. I thanked him before I pulled away and he proceeded to tell me I was the nicest person he had met. My response to him was, "I'm from Texas and we greet every one with southern hospitality"!

This may not be the nicest state in the USA and Texas may not qualify either (Houston Drivers I'm talking to you!) but I will always try to show the the sweet southern hospitalty that I know to the NJ natives!

Happy Wednesday!

Flurries & Favorites!

So today I woke up, got dressed and grabbed my last cinnamon roll from Weikle's that my mom over nighted to us last week and headed for the door and realized flurries were everywhere!

So today is the first snow here in New Jersey and its pretty exciting! It's also two weeks until I get to see my parents so that means the Thanksgiving feast is just around the corner as well!

In honor of all of this excitement I figured I would just put some of my winter favorites on the blog!

1. This is a favorite for my hair when it gets cold, my hair gets dry. I can use the Joico Split End Mender every day and a couple days out of the week I pair it up with the shampoo and conditioner. All of it smells great so that's a bonus!

2. I'm not one to use moistureizer every day but during the fall and winter I will, so I turn to the Oil control Mattifier SPF 15 by Murad it works like a charm and keeps my T zone from being shiny!

3. Now this is my favorite fall/ winter nail color. It is my go to pretty much any time I do my nails this time of year. OPI Here today Aragon Tomorrow.

4. Since it is time to bundle up at least in my neck of the woods, not so much for my Texas people. I went to J. Crew, as always, and here is the Hat, although I got it in grey so it matches the scarf it seems it is not out of stock, but more options are here and here.

5. The very warm waffle infiity scarf can be found here.

6. I fell in love with this coat in the matter of seconds and its warm but not to heavy and its long and oh so blue!! The coat can be found here.

I hope you are all staying warm and enjoying the beginning of the holiday season! 

Happy Veterans Day!

As an Air Force wife, I just want to start this blog post by saying a HUGE THANK YOU to all who have served and are still serving our country. My family has been blessed with many who have served and this post it all for them!

Thank you to my Granpa, who served in the Navy.

Thank you to my Papaw in law who served in the Army. May you rest in peace.

Thank you to my Father in law who served in the Army. Also thank you for raising such a wonderful son.

Thank you to my Brother who served in the Navy.

Thank you to my Husband who is doing his duty right now as I write this. I love you and am so proud of you everyday. I still remembering you telling me this is what you would be doing on our first date.

Thank you again to everyone else and thank you to the spouses for standing by their side and being just as strong. I know it is hard. I've been there. We must remain strong and know that we are the ones waiting at home who give them hope when they are far away and we are the ones that let them know everything will be okay.

 

Remember to thank a veteran and to have a great week! 

Thanksgiving Menu - Part 1

19 days people! 19 days until I get to see my Mom and Dad! I can't wait!

It is now the time to post a recipe!

Turkey- 

This is what my mom sent me: 

"No recipe needed.  We rub the turkey skin down with butter and then salt and pepper that baby.  We put it in the roaster at 270 and let it cook overnight.  It will be so good in the morning it will make you gobble or cry, one of the other."

Well there you have it - The Turkey.

So Thankful for them spending the money and taking the time to come visit. I can't wait for them to meet Eve and get to spend time in our home :) Alsovery thankful that they were the motivation to put the guest room together. 

XOXO - Ashlee  

Our Weekend in Pictures (Late)

What day is it?! It's a day for a really late Weekend post!

Our weekend was a pretty low key between the wisdom teeth and Halloween decorations coming down. I got TJ out of the house on Friday night, we went to Panera Bread for soup. I got tomato and he got chicken noodle but I switched because he liked mine better (Ah, the things we do for love).

We walked around Barnes and Noble after and we found some pretty awesome books one we gave it to our friends Philip. (How to Tell If Your Cat is Plotting to Kill You. By: Matthew Inman) I  must say it was rather hysterical! We also found these which a coworker of TJ's told us to read the 2 novels by Chris Kyle (they can be found here & here) and I came across a historical book about McGuire (where we are stationed) and thought that would be a nice keepsake for us to show our children.

Saturday, TJ was still stir crazy and wanted to go to Target. I can't say no to that, but who really can?! So we went... but we went to the one a little farther out because I wanted to hit up Homegoods and it was a great trip I got 3 new hurricane glasses and boy do they look good! We also picked up the console table for the living room at target the table search was ended when I finally decided on doing a long book self. I will be posting a "formal" house tour soon but for now this is what we purchased.

(Insert bad iPhone photo here)

And on a final note as I not-so-patiently wait for my parents arrival.. I put up our Christmas tree. Before you judge I at least waited until November 3rd, to put it up.

And for the heck of it here is one of Eve. 

Have a great Wednesday! 

Military Blogs & Other Blogs I Follow

Happy November 1st! As a new blogger I feel like I should explain why I started this to begin with.. It's not only because I want to connect with others and other MILSOs it is because I want to leave something for others to enjoy. It is also an easy way to stay connected with my family members in Florida and Texas.

I read other bloggers blogs all the time (usually on my lunch break at work) and they are really the ones who have inspired me to express my voice. I have found blogs that are local to my home town and some that aren't but I still love a good chuckle and they always deliver! I have even found that reading some blogs have helped me become more confident about future happening such as babies and military life. And these are the lovely ladies that have helped me out...

Best Baby Blogs:

www.Littlebabygarvin.blogspot.com

She is very real and has a lot of fun action on her blog! She is a great mom and I love her style. She has been at it for some time I just hope to get the same traffic she does! (Fingers Crossed)

Favorite Texas Blog/Milso Blog:

www.anchorsaweighblog.com

My Daily read during the week I always look forward to her posts, they are fellow Aggies and I can't help but to love a fellow Aggie's blog.

Another Milso Blog I enjoy is.. www.Breeannahope.com

She doesn't post a lot because from reading she is preparing to move over seas to be with her husband (Boy, do I know that feeling) but her blog is very easy breezy and it's always nice to know you aren't the only one doing the long distance thing, deployment or not.

Since I myself am still new to the blog world I don't always know what to say half the time I ramble and delete. But I enjoy the following blogs and I hope you find some enjoyment in them too!

Be sure to subscribe to my blog (rather it be email or via Gmail) and theirs as well!

Or maybe start one of your own.. Happy Blogging!



Happy Halloween!

It is here.. the day where I can take down all the pumpkins and purple and orange lights and begin my festive end of year holiday displays.

Until that moment comes tonight is the night we get to see all the kiddos from base housing come to our door in their Halloween finest! Unfortunately, TJ got his wisdom teeth taken out Tuesday so he will be resting on the sofa tonight and we will be watching my favorite movie The Nightmare Before Christmas!

Untill then.. Here are some Halloween Favorites

(She loves being dressed up... Yeah right!)

Here is my costume from last year, Miss Holly Golightly! 

Have a safe and Happy Halloween Everyone!

Chalkboard Tutorial

When we moved into our house a few months ago I wanted to do a huge chalkboard for the kitchen and put two sconces up on either side and do a weekly menu on it ... lets just say that did not happen and this is what I ended up doing to the wall instead.

Kitchen sign - Hobby Lobby - I found it in store but here on online options.

Sconces - West Elm
Sconce Lens - West Elm
Sconce Cord - West Elm

The Edison light bulbs I found at Lowes.

I must say I fell head over heals for it in the end but still wanted the chalkboard so here the tutorial.

While walking aroung in the lumber department in Lowes I found the chalkboard board but of course I bought the one next to it with no chalkboard paint on it and bought the rustoleum paint and painted it myself. I painted the board with about 3 layers.

I wanted to do an all white frame to make everything POP! So I was planning to do it with crown moulding from Home Depot. That didn't work because GOD HIMSELF sent us to Hobby Lobby where we found a frame that perfectly fit the 2ft by 4ft chalkboard! The down side it was black... but we painted it white put staples in the back to hold it in place and TA-DA!! We had ourself a chalk board .. we have yet to hang it but here it is (See Below). We plan to hang it with a wire hanger which you can also find at Hobby Lobby.

Weekend Recipe

This past weekend went by so quickly, I'm a tad depressed about it.

TJ and I got up early and fixed my tires on my car and got my hair done went home and cleaned and then got ready to go photograph a 50th birthday party!

I did however have some time make chicken and vegetable soup (in a Crockpot) which was the Bomb.com so here is the recipe:

Ingredients:

5 Chicken breasts (Skinless and trim the fat)

1/2 Bag of baby carrots or 3-4 cleaned carrots

1 bunch of green onions

~ 2 cups of chopped celery

1/2-3/4 cup of chopped tomatoes - I used small ones that start with a C not really sure of the name.

1 sweet onion chopped

2 cans of cream of chicken

4-6 cups of water

1 box or 1/2 box of Ditalini pasta ( it is really cute and good for little mouths but you can use whatever pasta you would like.

I cooked it in a crock pot for about 5-7 hours just long enough for the chicken to fully cook. You'll then take the breasts and shred them then add the shredded chicken breasts into the soup. Then add the noodles and just keep an eye on them until they are the texture you like. TJ likes them softer so they cooked for about 30 minutes.

The recipe is a little half assed but it was amazing none the less.

 

Xoxo- A.B.



Say Boo. Give Thanks. Be Merry

As we being to put on our costumes and do some trick-or-treating I can't help but feel and excitement for what is to come. Although I hung up my costume many years ago, I absolutely love handing out candy to the little ones that come to our door.

I said before my parents are coming up to visit us during Thanksgiving so I have been busy getting the guest room ready (Check) and the rest of the house prepared (Almost Check). I moved our desk upstairs in preparation for the CHRISTMAS TREE! Which TJ and I decided will be put up every year prior to Thanksgiving and that will be our tradition.

Now it is time to plan the first official Brown Thanksgiving day menu! For me this is a breeze because my favorite things are baking and cooking!

I wanted to share our holiday menu, so here is the Line up for the Thanksgiving feast! I will be posting the recipes throughout the weeks to come!

Down. Down. Down...

Sorry I haven't posted in a few days it seems the ol' Mac Book Pro wants to throw a fit and not work for me lately and this goes for my homework too not just blogging. I'm really not the happiest camper but life goes on right? I will probably be investing in a Windows computer just for back up for things like my home work and blogging! So if any of you have any suggestions let me know!


I'll be posting my recipe and the chalkboard tutorial very soon and some holiday decor inspirations!

XOXO Ashlee.

Holiday Gift Ideas for Men

We have 2 more weeks until Halloween and 40 more days until my parents come to visit! So that means I have 3 more weeks of resisting putting up the christmas tree! I'm so excited I could burst!

As I wait not so patiently for Christmas and our Anniversary... I have completed my holiday shopping for my perfectly picky husband. While wrapping up my shopping, I thought I'd make a list of gift ideas list so here are my favorite gift picks for men. (and TJ if you are reading I didn't get any of the following for

you... Sorry honey :) )

1. Lowes - Power tools every man can use a power tool or some type of toom at some point in their life, even if you are the handy man in the house. :)

2. West Elm - Shoe shine box this is awesome because it comes with the polish and the brushes for the fancy man in your life.

3. J. Crew - It's getting colder and a nice pair of socks are always a great gift or stocking stuffer. The bonus is they are festive!

4. West Elm - This is a useful gift for the men in your life who travel, it is a full set that is in a nice case for easy trimming on the go.

5. J. Crew - A nice watch is always a great gift! My husband collect watches he has a weird love for them, which is okay because I love J. Crew Pencil skirts. Luckily we live close to an outlet mall and not a regular mall.

* A bonus for this gift you can put the new watch in a watch box and it is a two for one! .. Less wrapping!

I hope this is helpful for the upcoming holidays!

What a Wonderful Weekend!

This weekend takes the cake because it is the first weekend in about two months I was able to spend with TJ. It was amazing. We didn't do date night or go out, we stayed in and fixed the house up. :)

I bought a bed frame and new comforter set for the guest bed room and we (I) decorated that this weekend, while TJ Cleaned out the guest bedroom and hopefully soon to be nursery.

We spent the weekend resisting putting up the Christmas tree and doing DIY's. I finished the chalkboard and will be posting that soon! :)

We revamped a few items we had and when I say we TJ did those while I cleaned. We will be finishing the cleaning of the second bedroom but we are over the moon that we were together this weekend.

I hope you all have a wonderful week!