Another dinner photo 😌

Duck fat fries. Couldn’t set them on the table before little hands started reaching for them. 💛

A hand reaches for a pile of seasoned, cubed potatoes on a paper towel.

What’s for dinner: Homemade red beans & rice with homemade cornbread and homemade ginger-ale-ish lemonade ✔️

A red plate with rice, sausage, beans, and sliced okra is paired with a small cornbread muffin, next to a glass of light-colored beverage.

Made a quick stop for some coffee in Texarkana (Nash), TX. Local Habit. Got The Hive, which is a honey, cinnamon, and vanilla latte. It was really good.

Rowyn learned the word, “twinge,” a couple of weeks ago. She used it correctly at first. But since, she’s had trouble remembering it exactly and come out with “plinge” and “pidge” instead. And it’s just really cute.

Pretty sure I’m gonna be sore from building a snowman today.

A most unusual (and really cold) day in South Louisiana.

A solitary tree stands in a snowy landscape with snow gently falling around it.

I realized this evening that I’ve been dating everything 2024. Pretty sure I had yet to actually write or type 2025 until a couple hours ago.

My babies worked SO hard yesterday getting ready for a really big garage sale at our church. Proud of them.

A child in a camouflage jacket and gloves organized a stack of books for garage sale in a gym with a volleyball net.A child wearing a plaid jacket and green cap is smiling in a large indoor space with tables and various items in the background.A large indoor space is filled with tables displaying various items for sale, resembling a garage sale or flea market.

More trampoline this afternoon. So, I grabbed the school books (upon their request, which I thought was a great one) and met them out there.

A person is holding school textbooks outdoors near a trampoline with children playing on it.

The kids sort of rediscovered the trampoline on Saturday. And, today, they spent nearly 3 hours on it. Not even kind of exaggerating.

I jumped with them a bit, but also did all sorts of other things in the yard because it was such a nice day. Cloudy-ish and ever so slightly chilly.

Truth.

We’ve been on a Painterland Sisters skyr yogurt kick over here. My favorite is Blueberry Lemon. Ro’s is Savannah’s Peach. And B’s is Vanilla.

A hand holds the foil lid of a yogurt container featuring a cow illustration and the text "Simply Yummy," with the opened yogurt and spoon nearby on a wooden surface.

Trampoline time today. It had been a while.

A child wearing sunglasses is mid-jump on a trampoline covered with leaves, set in a wooded outdoor area.A child wearing a cap and jacket joyfully jumps on a leaf-covered trampoline surrounded by trees.

My kids spent a large chunk of the day playing with Jenga blocks. They have 3 sets (games) each. The name brand Jenga game blocks are the best and most inexpensive (especially when you get them 50% off in Nov/Dec) unit blocks I’ve found. Soooooo many ways to use them besides just playing a fun game.

I’ve made cornbread 4 times in the past couple of weeks. Been using ghee instead of oil and YUM.

A glass bowl contains a mixture of dry and wet ingredients being stirred with a metal spoon.

Conversation in the grocery store with Ro this afternoon:

Ro - “What’s beef made from? Cow?”

I said yep.

Her response - “I like cow!”

older gentleman walking by giggles to himself

Some thrifted artwork from recently…

The small bird art in the top left was actually my grandmother’s. My grandpa told me to take a few things when we were at his house for Christmas. I chose this to add to my wall of bird art in our guest bathroom.

The other 3 framed pieces are from a garage sale.

I plan on adding the duck art to my bird gallery wall as well.

I’ll probably put a personal photo in the frame with the light green matte in the top right (but I do love the art in it).

Although I’ve considered starting a gallery wall of flower art (who knows where…), I’m pretty certain I’ll use the lovely matted print of irises at our short term rental property hopefully opening so soon.

The kids went afternoon camping, complete with backpacks full of things to do and snacks. 😊⛺️

A red and gray tent is set up on a grassy area surrounded by trees.

How We Celebrated the New Year with the kids:

Charcuterie, sparkling cider, mixed treats, and a LEGO put together party

Someone is pouring a drink into green glasses lined up on a kitchen counter with snacks in the background.Four LEGO sets, including Star Wars, Friends, Botanicals, and Disney, are displayed on a wooden table.

Gumbo cookoff for lunch today

Three bowls of gumbo are arranged on a table, with one containing a quail and chicken, another with shredded chicken and sausage, and the third featuring smoked sausages.

Made gingerbread cookies (my favorite!) last night

A child wearing a purple shirt is cutting out shapes from rolled-out cookie dough using a cookie cutter.A child is decorating freshly baked gingerbread cookies with white icing on a parchment-lined baking sheet.A child wearing an orange shirt is excitedly eating a cookie at a table with a small orange plate.