Pretzel Jello Link and Cousins

Aloha!

I've been MIA! My ohana and I had a lovely Hawaiian Thanksgiving. While we greatly missed the rest of our family on the mainland, we did have Andy, Alicia, and baby Sawyer with us (and we still have them!!!).

I hope you are so full of leftover turkey sandwiches and your favorite Thanksgiving dishes! I know I am. The pretzels in my pretzel jello are finally getting soggy, but the salty sweet leftovers still melt in my mouth.

I actually think I like the leftover turkey on my turkey sandwich a few days later better than I do on Thanksgiving day! What about you?

Okay! I only have a handful of minutes!

Alicia snapped this cousin love from the front seat -- well, they're finding their vibe anyway!

Also, click here for a blog post from my dear friend and owner of Pemberly Bake Shoppe, Holly! She keeps up an amazing cooking blog with life stories! She blogged about pretzel jello today! I'm so honored! Enjoy! Her blog posts are always worth the read and her recipes are inspiring and delicious!

LOVE!!!!

11*11*11

Today comes around only once in a 100 years!

Kind of fun!
It's also Veteran's Day and I'm grateful for all who have served and continue to serve our country!
In honor of the numbers aligning, here are 11 current reasons for choosing joy my life.

Numero Ono: My almost 20-month-old rocks at independent play. Sometimes I feel badly that I'm not always engaging her, but I'm oh-so-grateful for the moments she gives me to work or rest. I just snapped this pic of her this morning on my cell phone.

Secondly: My love and I were just in the city that doesn't sleep. And little sleep we did get. It was such a blessing to explore a couple vibrant far-away cities!

Number Three: Our lilikoi are on fire this year! I can't wait for lilikoi pancakes, lilikoi yogurt, lilikoi butter, you get the idea...

Foursies: My hubby makes me coffee every day. I go to sleep excited to wake up and drink a cup (or two or three) of hot coffee!

Cinco: Our mini church (aka: bible study) is pretty much the goofiest and most loving group of people we could meet with weekly! Here are the girls Halloween weekend--pre karaoke as our singer selves!

The Sixth: In just a week-and-a-half, this 13-month-old ham is coming to stay with us! And he's bringing his parents along. We're stoked. :) BTW--Sawyer's dad is in the Air Force and I couldn't be more proud of my brother's heart for our country. Happy Veteran's Day, Andy!

Sevens: Thanks to Timber we have fresh, home-grown papaya a couple times a week! Yum!

Numero Ocho: I've been introduced to Essie nail polish and re-inspired to have pretty nails! The color goes on smoothly and doesn't chip for at least a week! I love it!

{silverlipsbeauty.com}

Niner: My husband rocked my skinny jeans (better than I can) and dressed up as Justin Bieber for Halloween. Oh, I love him! (I was 90s Gwen Steffani).

Tenth: My casa. My hale. I love my home. This is where I find my family. It may be small, but hey...it's easy to clean and I love having all my favorite people smooshed into one room! Cozy!

Eleven: While I love the little things that bring me smiles, I am by far most grateful for God's love! Feeling how deeply I love my daughter, reminds me that I understand just a fraction of how much our Jesus loves us, His children. I'm honored today that God has put a call of service in the hearts of so many. Happy Veteran's Day!

{We Heart It}

Friends and Family, I hope you feel covered by joy today, too! Love on a service member today if you can! Let's keep them all in our prayers!


Strawberry Shortcake: The Wrap

I thought the light-hearted parts of Halloween would be a bit more fun this year now that I have a 1 1/2 year old, but I didn't expect this much silliness and joy!

I've always lived for costumes and celebrations, so naturally this opportunity would be up my alley!

Here's some of the goofiness of my Strawberry Shortcake!

p.s. -- this was an easy DIY costume if ya wanna file it away for a little girl next year.

 Our little astronaut friend, Natalie.

 Hey you, Strawberry Shortcake..over here!

 First stop, our dear neighbors!

Where to next, Strawberry?

 Getting the hang of this... :)

 A kiss from Strawberry! Lucky me!

All tuckered out!

Pre-Halloween Night Lovin'...literally!

Halloween can be a tricky night. While it's silly, light, and sugar-filled for some, for others it's much more serious and possibly darker. I'm not willing to ignore the reality of darkness, but I'm also not compelled to flee from the night. Darkness cannot be where light shines!

I hope you all had a lovely, blessed, light-filled Halloween, harvest weekend--however and wherever you were!

Can you believe it's November already? A month to focus on blessings! Happy being-thankful-month to all of you!

Peace, love, and Jesus,

Katie, Strawberry, and Justin Beiber ;) (more on that later...)