Freckle Eye Fancy

This post was written on November 27. Enough time has passed since we lost Carter that I have stopped counting weeks. Once we passed 39 weeks, it didn't seem to matter much anymore. I just knew that time kept going. Today, November 27, I know that it has been 52 and a few weeks. I'm not sure how many, and I'm not going to count.  This morning, as I was getting ready, I was thinking about what our life was like one year ago today, just one month after losing our sweet boy. We had spent the weekend in Boise for Thanksgiving, and I remember crying a lot on the drive home. It had been so hard to be away from home, but it was also so hard to go back. Our house still felt too quiet. I think at that point, we were both already over the holidays, and knowing that we still had to get through Christmas was wearing us both down. But I also remember posting a picture of the three of us and being so proud to be Carter's mom. I remember thinking, if I loved him that much without h...

I have been so bad at blogging lately.  I didn't intend for all those curated posts to go out back to back to back but they definitely did, and that's because I have been so lazy! I feel like, for a minute, I kind of lost the direction I wanted this blog to go, and it has been really hard to figure out what to do with it. I'm still trying to figure it out. So for now, I'm just going to go back to writing about whatever I want to write about, good or bad, and just keep figuring it out along the way. Thanksgiving weekend was soooo nice! We drove up to Logan Thursday morning to spend the day with Brandon's family, but first stopped to see his extended family. Because we have a new little nephew on that side, we just did Thanksgiving with immediate family, but it was so good to see everyone else beforehand! After lunch/dinner that afternoon, we went to a park and launched rockets. The guys were having so much fun with it, until one got lost and it was too dark to f...

Images via Target 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 Brandon says our Christmas decorations are "eclectic." And to that I say bah humbug. Shopping in themed sections of holiday decor is for boring people (unless you are one of those people, then hats off to you because not all of us can be so well put together). Seriously though, is there a limit to the number of Christmas decorations one person should own? Every year I see things that are unlike anything else we own, and I literally can't stop thinking about them until they are at our house. In my personal opinion, the Christmas season is all too short. What good is snow and crummy weather without joy and merriness in the air? Anyway, I'll save you the rest of my love for the Christmas season. Don't forget, Target is offering free shipping through December 23rd! Order your decor online and have it shipped straight to you, because we all know holiday shopping is stressful anyway...

A new study has been published recently that essentially says that if a pregnant women falls asleep on her back in the third trimester, the risk of delivering a stillborn baby doubles. The study also says "What we don’t want is for moms to wake up and see their on their back and think, 'I’ve done something terrible to my baby.'" But I don't think the researchers that published this study understand the implications of their "outcome."  It's a very nice thought that the researcher doesn't want pregnant moms to feel guilty when they wake up on their back, but what about those of us who have already lost the baby? I guarantee that the last thing on a naive 32 week pregnant mother's mind is "oh crap, my joyful experience is ruined because I slept on my back." Most pregnant women don't even think about the possibility of stillbirth. I know I didn't. I've learned, by my unfortunate deep dive into the loss community, that st...

You guys, this CuddleCot project has been killing me lately. Remember when I posted that the donor at Riverton Hospital had fallen through, so we were going to be able to donate our CuddleCot to them? Well the hospital got their wires crossed, and the donation had not  actually fallen through. The labor and delivery manager said that when she got the call that the donation was scheduled for October 26, she thought it was ours, since she had been told the other person wasn't going to work out. So we found out on Carter's birthday that someone had donated a CudldleCot the day before, the same day we had wanted to make our donation. Riverton said they would gladly accept another CuddleCot, but Brandon and I would rather each hospital have one before we start doubling up. Our next choice was Logan Regional Hospital, since Carter is buried in Logan, but I have called those people two or three times in the last three weeks and have yet to hear back from anyone. So I think we'r...

Okay so maybe they aren't exactly world  famous, but my pumpkin chocolate chip cookies are pretty popular among the few crowds we run in. Even my mom, who swears she doesn't like pumpkin, requests these cookies every single year. They are my favorite cookies to make and also to eat, which makes things convenient. They are soft and moist and really, just so freaking good. Anyway. Enough chit chat. The recipe is below! DIRECTIONS Heat the oven to 350 Degrees F. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper. Using a mixer, beat butter until smooth. Add in white and brown sugars, and mix until mixture is light and fluffy. Beat in eggs 1 at a time, then mix in vanilla and pumpkin puree. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves. Slowly beat dry mixture into the batter. Stir in the chocolate chips. Scoop dough onto cookie sheets and bake for 12-13 minutes. Let cookies rest for a few minutes before moving them to wire rack...

</div> Images via Target Like most everyone else in the country, I rushed to Target as quickly as I could after the release of the Hearth & Hand Collection. Brandon and I started watching Fixer Upper a while ago, and seriously it was like Joanna Gaines spoke to my soul. Suddenly I understood the kind of home decor I had constantly been striving to perfect. We're still working on it, of course, but this new collection introduced so many new pieces that will be perfect in our home. I told Brandon that the first time we went to look at it, we couldn't take any money, otherwise I would spend it all. I'll post some pictures as we get our pieces all situated, but until then, here are a few of my favorites! I had to scale it down and not post my favorite holiday pieces, but rest assured that those will be coming soon! Click the pictures above to shop my favorites. This post contains affiliate links. SEE MORE LIKE THIS <div class=" summ...

Images via Target 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 If I could, I would spend all my money on holiday decorations. When the fall and Christmas decorations come out I basically have to stop going to stores altogether, otherwise I'll buy everything. As you probably can tell from previous posts and mine and Brandon's adventures lately, we are really digging fall. All I want is to curl up with that orange blanket up there, throw some cookies on the platter, and drink hot chocolate until the cooler weather passes. Supposedly it's warm outside today, but it's also cloudy, which means I'm in full-on comfy mode. If you need me sometime between now and the end of the holiday season, you can find me on the couch in my sweats. Or in the holiday decoration aisle. Check there first. PS. Target is offering free shipping from now through December 23rd, so get on it! Happy shopping! This post contains affiliate links. <div class=" summary-...

The Saturday after Carter's birthday, we spent a quick (very quick) 24 hours in California. We flew out of Salt Lake at 6:30 that morning, landed at 7:20 in Long Beach, and were at Disneyland and in the park by the time they opened at 8:00. I was still a little sick, so we almost weren't sure if we were going to go, but I am so glad we did!! The first thing we rode was Haunted Mansion, since it was closed when we were there in September. Neither of us had ever been to the park during Halloween, so it was super fun to see Haunted Mansion all redone as Nightmare Before Christmas! We took it as easy as we were able to, but you know how it goes. Once you get to Disney, you are just so excited and want to do everything! We spent five hours in Disneyland before hopping over to California Adventure, hung out in Radiator Screams (so cute!) and did all the other fun things on that side. We played carnival games on the boardwalk, and actually won at all but one of them! We got...

Images via Target 1 | 2 | 3 |  4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9   Our trip to Vermont and Connecticut has me really feeling fall right now, and I honestly can't wait for the weather to cool off even more! I've been sitting here all morning trying to figure out how we can swing another vacation before the end of the year, and all the places I want to go would require me to buy (at least) one new pair of boots. For the sake of warmth, of course. Not because I have a shoe-buying problem (cough cough). What are you favorite winter destinations that really make it feel like the holidays? I have the travel bug and I'm ready to go somewhere cold!! This post contains affiliate links.

TOP | JACKET ( SIMILAR ) | JEANS ( SIMILAR ) | BOOTIES  | B'S BOOTS Our final day of vacation was so perfect. We headed straight to the beach first thing in the morning, and it was seriously such good weather! It was only an hour drive from our hotel, so it was probably 10:30 or 11:00 when we got there. The sun was shiny, it was warm, and there was hardly anybody there! We walked on the sand, flew the drone some more, and checked out the lighthouse that was there! There was an old wooden carousel that I was really excited to see, but unfortunately it was closed for the season, and it was locked up. But it was still so fun! We hung out there for about an hour, until we decided we needed to keep moving in order to make it to our next destination on time. We got to Essex a little early, and stopped for lunch at a quaint little bakery/cafe on the edge of town. After, we drove to the railroad station, and rode the Essex Steam Train!! It is an old train that...