First Year Wedding Anniversary

My husand and I celebrated our first year anniversary on Sunday. It's crazy to think it's already been a year, but it has :). I had the hardest time trying to come up with gift ideas. Of course, there's the traditional/modern anniversary gifts. Who in the world came up with these gifts? The traditional gifts are odd and the modern gifts are even odder. I mean, seriously? Paper? Thankfully, with a hefty dose of inspiration from Pinterest, I came up with this lovely creation :).

Hooked on Crocheting

I've come to realize hobbies are super important. It's funny how many people don't seem to have any worthwhile pastimes other than playing video games or sleeping. I love using my spare time to work on projects that have meaning to me.

Creative Despite A Lack of Resources

When I left for Afghanistan I made sure to bring along a couple skeins of yarn with me. I knew I wouldn't be able to acquire any while over there and wanted something fulfilling to occupy what little spare time I had to myself. I brought a jumbo size skein of red yarn to make granny squares, as well as a few skeins of green, yellow and white. I later asked my husband to send me some turquoise yarn. 

I've discovered it's amazing how creative you can be despite a lack of resources.

Heart Shaped Rocks

I have a tendency to collect things - books, rocks, sea glass, buttons, recipes, fairy lamps, glassware, geodes ... the list goes on and on. It's a weakness of mine. My Mom and Grandma are the same way. I suppose it runs in the family ;p. 

Goal: Read All the Newbery Award Winners

Source

Earlier this year I made it a goal to read all of the Newbery Award winners. I'm a big fan of children's literature and young adult novels. There’s something timeless about well-written books from these genres.

A Bookworm's Flower Garden

My Glory doily blanket has been giving me quite a bit of issues lately. I've had to undo multiple rows, which can be a little disheartening. So, I decided to take a little break and use up some of my leftover yarn creating these charming bookmarks.

Holiday Cheer

It's crazy to think December is finally here!

I spent the weekend in Memphis, Tenn., for my sister-in-law's Elvis themed wedding. I'd never been to Memphis before, but everyone certainly had a blast. We took a tour of Graceland and the car museum. It's crazy to realize what an impact Elvis had on society.

Dustin and I in front of Graceland after the wedding.

While we were there we tried the infamous grilled peanut butter and banana sandwich. It certainly was yummy! I'm thinking I'd like to try it with some homemade bread. Deliciousness!!

On a side note, I've decided to make most of our Christmas gifts this year. I'll admit, this has resulted in some creative brainstorming. My favorite idea so far is this little beauty.

My oldest sister-in-law loves coffee and monkeys, so I decided to combine the two and make her a coffee cozy. I'm also going to tuck a Starbucks gift card inside the coffee mug since she's a hardcore addict.

The really great part is I already had all the items on hand. So all it took was a little bit of my time :).

I found the pattern here if anyone is interested.