The New Digs....

It has been a crazy last couple of months, and I can't believe Christmas is only 9 days away!  To tell you the truth, I haven't even started my Christmas shopping yet.... Don't even want to think about that!  We have had SO much going on, and I feel that my Christmas spirit is so much different this year!  I really have found through all that has been going on with my dad, that FAMILY is the most important "present" to have for the holidays!  I look forward to spending this Christmas with my wonderful family. 

If you haven't heard yet, Justin and I bought a new home in Farmington, AR.  We have been quite consumed with all that comes with buying a new place.  We are planning on moving the week after Christmas!  We're so excited, and feel blessed to have it as our new home!  Here's some pics...  Our doors are always open, and we hope you'll stop by!

                                                 It's finally ours!!!

                                                      Entry Way

                                                   Living Room

                                                      Kitchen

                                               Love the tile backsplash

                                                       Dining Room

                                                 The Pantry..... Love it!

                                                  The Front

Hope you and yours have a very happy holiday!  I am thankful for all the memories of 2011 and looking forward to all that 2012 has in store!

Anniversaries, Birthdays, Halloween, OH MY!

I don't know about you, but I blinked and it is already Novemeber!!!  I can't believe how fast October went by!  We have had a really busy month!  We celebrated our first anniversary, my 31st birthday (yes, I'm old), and one of my most favorite holidays, Halloween!!!

Our anniversary was October 16th and we spent the weekend in Mountain Home with our families.  My dad has still been pretty sick, so we really didn't want to be anywhere else, but there.  It allowed us to spend some quality time with each other, and others we love so much!  When we got home, we were able to exchange our first anniversary gifts!  We actually both did our research on first anniversary gifts, and the traditional gift is paper.  What do you do with that???  Come to find out we both got a little creative!

Justin made me a paper "flower bouquet".  The vase was used at out rehearsal dinner

 I got Justin this wood sign painted for our yard.  Paper is made from wood!!!


Justin did further research and the more modern anniversary gift is a clock.  The following pics are of our new "mini" granfather clock.  I have always wanted one!

                                            The back is engraved

Next, was my birthday!  We decided to spend the weekend in Branson, we both needed a little get-a-way.  It also was a chance to celebrate our anniversary!  We really didn't do anything that big, but we ate some good treats and did a little shopping.  My mom and sister also met us on Saturday for lunch, so I got to celebrate with all my favorite people!

                                      My birthday dinner at Joe's Crab Shack

                                        My smores dessert! Yumm-o!

The trees were so beautiful in Branson.  I absolutely love fall!  Here is a scenic pic....

We also celebrated Halloween last night.  We didn't do much, but pass out candy!  But, I love to see all the little kiddos in their costumes.  We did manage to get out some fall decorations! 

We also have some BIG news!  We are soon going to have a new address!!! More info. to follow!Hope you and yours had a wonderful October..... Soon it will be Thanksgiving, then Christmas?!?  I guess as you get older time goes faster! 

Wedding Pics

While I'm at it, just wanted to share some of my favorite wedding photos.  I can't believe we have almost been married a year.  Time flies......

An update....

Gosh, I am the worst blogger in the world!  My friend Sara would say she is, but Sara, I have you beat! Blogging is so hard to keep up with, but I have decided it will be such a good diversion from the every day stuff! 
Since we met last I have started back to work (one of the reasons why I haven't been a good Blogger).  WOW, has this been so hard for me this year!  I just can't seem to get back to the swing of working again, but it is getting better.  I am still teaching 4th grade literacy at Lincoln Elementary.  I realize every day how fortunate I am to have a job that I enjoy (most days) and also get to work with some pretty amazing gals.
We are also in full football mode again!  This makes Justin so very excited!  We have not yet tailgated this season (which is sooo odd for us), but between the HOT weather and family circumstances we haven't been able to get one together.  BUT, we did have a pretty cool "at home" tailgate a couple of weeks ago, here are some pics:

                                     Red Velvet Razorback- Yumm-o!!!

                                         The girls ready for the BIG game!!!

We have also been trying to get my dad up and running the past couple of months, and I am happy to say he is on the mend.  For those of you that may not know, he was diagnosed with rectal cancer last February/March.  He is cancer free, but under went an operation and had to have a colostomy bag for about 6 months.  He was able to have this procedure reversed last Friday (Thank the Lord) and is healing nicely. He still has a road ahead, but we can see the light at the end of the tunnel.  Thank you for your thoughts and prayers and keep em' coming!  :)

                              Dad and I on our wedding day- October 2010

The Countdowns!

The Goforth household is all a buzz with some countdowns!
First countdown is Back to School, it is offically down to 2 1/2 days!  I can't say that I am counting down with pure excitement, but I am ready to get back to the swing of things!  It's a cruel trick that they play on teachers- work 9-10 months and off for 2.  Just when you are getting the hang of being a lady of leisure (this is how my fam and J like to refer to my time off) you have to go back to the "real world."  Although it is hard, I am really looking forward to having a great school year!
The second countdown is the first home Razorback game, this countdown is offically down to 22 days!  Now this countdown is really important to the J-man!  In preparing for the first kick he has been watching old games that he has saved on DVR, reading the message boards, and making preparations for tailgates & away games!!!  He is sooooo excited and I am too!  His love for the game and the Razorbacks is contagious.  And, it is always fun getting together with family and friends for a fun-filled tailgate!  Here are a couple of pics from our tailgates last year!  J's slogan:  "Go Big or Go Home," and he don't play when it comes to the HOGS!

I also got a couple of crafty Hog projects made (not by me)......  A lady I know, Amber Johnson did both of these.  She does all sorts of crafty projects!  You can check out her page on Facebook, A Doodles!

                                                A new sign for my classroom

                                                And some painted Tom's!

I think we're ready for Back to School and the Hogs!  Woo Pig Sooie!



Crabs, Ducks, and White Water!!!

This past weekend, Justin and I took a little mini-vacay to Branson!  We LOVE to travel, but over the past year we went to Hawaii, New Orleans, and Vegas, so we decided that a BIG trip was just out of the picture!  So, we made a long weekend trip to Branson!  We had a lot of fun!  I've decided that no matter where we go, being somewhere with Justin is GOOD TIMES!  The main reason we wanted to go to Branson is to visit White Water!  We went to "night water," actually, becasue it was SOOOO HOT!!! We both had not been since we were younger and had a BLAST!!!
While in town we also went on a duck tour!  Talk about hilarious.... they give you a "duck quacker" when you climb aboard.... talk about fun!  Justin and I had a hay day with these!  We "quacked" at anything standing still or moving for that matter!  I think we were more annoying with those things than the children on board. 

                                               Our "quackers"

                                            It was a tad windy!!! :)

Also, while we were in Branson, we GOT CRABS!!!  I know, I know.... don't judge!  We are now lovingly known as.....

I can't believe that summer is almost over!!! School starts in 3 weeks!!! Aaaahhhh!!!!!  Hope all of you have had a wonderful summer!!!

From new to old....

I wanted to share my latest art project.  A few months ago I bought this basket shelf for a little extra storage in the kitchen.

I have been meaning to finish it or paint it for quite some time, and finally over the weekend I completed the project.  I wanted it to look "old" and "weathered".  Justin asked, why I wanted something new to look old?  But, anyway, he helped me find the materials I needed to achieve the look! I am happy with the way it turned out!!!  Take a look........

                                              

A Family Tradition

I am not talking about the lyrics to the famous Hank Williams Jr. song (altough it is a great song)!  I am talking about the tradition of great cooks in my family!  My mom, aunts, sisters, and now I married into a  family of great cooks!  I am not saying that I am not a good cook, I can cook and bake, but not to the standard of the above mentioned.  My family tree is quite diverse, part Slovenian (dad), other part German (mom), so you can imagine the fabulous recipes that have been handed down over the generations!  Some of my favorites are kolache (pastry cookie filled w/ jam), strudel (my sis makes this as a part time business), and my MOST FAVORITE: CREPES!!!!  Crepes are a paper thin pancake that can be filled with almost anything you can dream of, or, just syrup!!!  Crepes are a family breakfast tradition!  Everyone in my family makes them, even a small cafe' in Vegas, that Justin and I just LOVE when we visit!  Last weekend my mom made a batch for Justin and I when we were home,  and they were soooo fab!  J and I decided to make them for breakfast this morning.... they sound easy....but they are NOT!  The key is to have a great spatula, small frying pan, and the dough has to almost be runny!  Our first couple of tries were not lovely, but once we got the hang of it, we ended up having a delicious brunch for two!

                                The first attempt of turning the crepe......

                                                  Looking better

                                                 Finished Product!

I like to fill my crepes with chopped pecans or walnuts, roll up, and drizzle with syrup!  Some other good fillings are cottage cheese and cream cheese mixed, top with fresh berries!!! YUM!
So, I have mastered 1 out of 3 of my favorite traditional family recipes!  I have a long way to go still....
Here is the crepe recipe, if you would like to give it a whirl, you won't be sorry!

1 c. flour         1 1/2 c. milk
2 eggs             1 tbsp. oil
3 tbsp. sugar

Whisk ingredients together till all incoporated! 
Enjoy!

The Big Reveal.....

With all of the other things we had going on, Justin and I were also trying to complete our home renovation projects!  As I mentioned in a previous post,  we were planning on ripping out the carpet in our dining room and putting up a tile backsplash in the kitchen.  I am happy to report that all projects are now complete!  We are so pleased with the results, and we're thanking our stars, that we did not take on these projects ourselves!  Whew! 
And now, for some before and after shots..........

                                                      Dining Room Before


                                                      Dining Room After

Kitchen Before

 

 



                                                  Kitchen After

And there you have it!  I think we are done with BIG projects for a while!  I have a few smaller projects that I would like to accomplish before summers end, unless HGTV inspires me with something else!!! I know Justin would say, "NEXT"!