March Sponsors

     I absolutely cannot believe that it is the last day of March!  I feel like this whole year (…all three months of it) has just flown by – and that’s a little scary because I have a lot to do this year.  Before I leap headlong into April, I wanted to introduce you to the final batch of March sponsors.  They’ve been hanging out on my right side bar all month, and I hope you’ve visited them.
Lisa at Sew Gloried
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     Hello!  My name is Lisa and I am the author of the Sew Gloried blog.  I had dabbled in the blog world before with a blog of some attempted poetry.  Why I started a poetry blog is sort of beyond me since I don't enjoy writing essays, reports...poetry.  But I do enjoy doing and I'd much rather write about things that I've done or am doing for the purpose of hoping to be an encouragement to the creative mind of those who read :)
Links
Facebook     Twitter     Pinterest

Torie at Lattes and Love
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     Hi, there! I'm Torie, a writer, dreamer, lover, and caffeine addict with faith and a love for the simple things, the little joys. You'll find a bit of everything on here from tales of my adventures with the boyfriend to my adventures in everything else.
Links
Facebook     Twitter     Pinterest

Britt at The Magnolia Pair
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     Hey y'all ! I'm Britt, and I blog over at The Magnolia Pair! With my husband in medical school I have a lot of free time, so thanks to my new found love of blogging, I enjoy to write about cooking, fashion, photography, and our puppy! I am very laissez faire and enjoy a good belly laugh over watching my favorite youtube videos. Come on over and say hello!
Links
Facebook     Twitter     Pinterest     Bloglovin
 
Melanie at Keeping Up with the Cantelmos
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     Hi, I’m Melanie.  When I’m not being a wife or mommy – I write, dream, create, and encourage.  Here I share my life, memories, dreams, and passions.  Thank you for stopping by.  I hope I can bless and encourage you today.
Links
Facebook     Twitter     Pinterest     Instagram     Blogfrog     Bloglovin

     Well…there you have it – my final March post.  I still can’t believe it.  I’ll be back tomorrow with new sponsors and a new post.  Happy April!

March Sponsors

     I have been so blessed to have met such great friends through blogging.  This month I started accepting sponsor space for the first time, and it has been so fun.  I know I’m a little late in doing this, but for the next few days I’ll be featuring the sweet ladies who have so graciously swapped buttons with me this month!

Lisa at Momma’s Me Time
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     Hey there! I'm Lisa, the Momma behind Momma's Me Time. I created my blog as a way to grant me a little alone time. Because as we all know, life can get a little busy as a wife and a Momma. My blog gives me time to embrace the hobbies I love most, including crafts, fitness, and photography. it also allows me to share bits of my life as a stay at home mom of an adorable 3 year old boy, my views on faith, and our journey through life. I hope you will come by and share life's journey with us!
Links
Twitter     Facebook     Blog


Megan at The Remodeled Life
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     Hi!  I'm Megan from The Remodeled Life.  I'm a stay at home mom to a rambunctious 16 month old boy and a Youth Pastor's wife.  My husband and I love youth ministry and it's something that I am just as invested in as he is.  My little blog is all about our old house that we are slowly remodeling on a budget, some crafty things that come my way and what it's like to follow God through ministry.  Stop by and say hello!  I'd love to meet you!!
Links
Twitter     Facebook     Blog     Pinterest
  

Sarah at The Hinton Hook-Up
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     Hi! My name is Sara and I blog over at The Hinton Hook-Up. I'm a newlywed from South Texas working in media sales and marketing. This blog is my little brew of life and lessons learned as a newlywed, young business professional, and woman of faith. I love to write about fitness, cooking, fashion, travel, and of course, my two furbabies, Brooklyn and Bentley! Please stop by my blog and say hello anytime!
Links
Twitter     Facebook    Blog     Pinterest     Bloglovin     Instagram
  

Kerrie at The Williams’ Post 
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     Hey there! I'm Kerrie and I blog at The Williams' Post: life on a mission.  My blog is all about me and my husband and how we strive to life our lives for Jesus, with a few hobbies mixed in for good measure! I've recently opened an online story to raise money for our mission trip to India, I'd love for you to stop by for a visit!
Links
Blog     Store
  

Embrace Your Life
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     Cassie, Digger, Skye, Sarah & Kimberly are the writers of Embrace your life. We believe in embracing life & inspiring/encouraging other's along the way. We hope you find some inspiration, encouragement & peace while reading EYL.
Links
Twitter     Facebook     Blog     Bloglovin

 
     …and that’s only round one!  I’ll be posting about the rest of my sponsors tomorrow, and on April 1st, I will have an all new crop of sponsors.  I hope you check out all of these sweet ladies – I have loved reading their blogs and getting to know them better this month.
     I am so glad that I was able to work with these ladies this month, and I can’t wait to see what they come up with for April.

Allyson

Weekend Weather

    I’m aware that this probably sounds like the most boring post ever…but I promise it won’t be all about the weather.  Keith (the fiancé) and I went home this weekend for a little break from school and to visit with my sister, brother-in-law and niece.  We had so much fun, and I think we did just about everything on my to-do list
     We didn’t have anything to do on Friday (because neither of us have classes, and we were already home), so we just bummed around town all day.  Because it was so so nice outside, we drove out to Cypress Grove which is just a little nature park and walking trail on the way out of town.  Even though it was really polleny, it was still beautiful – and that’s really something coming from me…I am not a nature girl.

Cypress Grove 6
If this picture is not so great, I apologize – I left my camera at home, so you get cell phone pictures!

     I have tons of pictures of the birds that they house here…but birds sort of creep me out, so I won’t be sharing those.

Cypress Grove 10
The cypress knees – hence the name.

     Is it silly that I think cypress trees are really neat?  I mean, they grow in the water, and they don’t rot!  Plus cypress knees just look kind of cool when you dig them up.
     So there you go…not the most literarily satisfying post, but it was relaxing, and I enjoyed myself. 
     I hope your weekend was fabulous!

 Allyson

French Toast Casserole & I Know and I Don’t–No. 8

     The weekend is not quite over yet, but I wanted to go ahead and share the French toast casserole recipe with you.  Yum. Yum. Yum.
     You make the recipe the night before and let it sit overnight in the refrigerator, so it would be so easy to pop in the oven if you have company or just want a big breakfast without all the early morning work.

You will need:
1/4 c. butter melted
3/4 c. c. packed light brown sugar (we used dark)
1 loaf French bread (cut into 1 1/2 in. slices)
8 eggs, lightly beaten
1 c. whole milk
1 tbsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 c. pecans (chopped)
1/8 tsp. salt
(optional) maple syrup and/or powdered sugar for topping

1.  In a small bowl combine brown sugar and melted butter and pour on the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish.
2.  Arrange slices of bread in the baking dish overlapping if necessary.
3.  Combine milk, eggs, vanilla, salt, and cinnamon in a bowl and pour evenly over bread slices.
4.  Sprinkle chopped pecans over bread slices.
5.  Wrap tightly with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for 4 – 12 hours. 
6.  In the morning, take the casserole out of the fridge for at least ten minutes as your preheat the oven.
7.  Bake casserole for 30 – 35 minutes.  If top starts browning too quickly, place a foil loosely over the top of the casserole for the last ten minutes or so.  You want to cook it long enough to make sure the bottom part is cooked, but don’t dry it out completely.
8.  Remove casserole from oven and let it cool slightly before serving.  Serve with a dusting of powdered sugar and a drizzle of maple syrup.

French Toast Casserole
Sorry for the not so great cell phone picture – I forgot to bring my camera home!

So so so good!  Y’all are going to have to make it very soon!

Onto the 8th (WOW) I Know and I Don’t!

I know I shouldn’t overanalyze (and that I’ve probably said this already).
I don’t know why I do it aaalllllllll the time.

I know
I forget a lot.
I don’t know how Keith forgot to pack shirts for this weekend…

I know
I need a spring/summer purse.
I don’t know where else to look!

I know
patience is a virtue.
I don’t know how people can do it.

I know
prayer is powerful.
I don’t know why I don’t write that across my forehead every morning.
 
Allyson

Weekend Plans

    I have to confess…my weekend started yesterday (as it does every week)!  I’m still going to post another I Know and I Don’t (probably tomorrow…) so that we’re back on track plus we’re going to make French toast casserole…so I’ll post about that too!
    This weekend everybody is going to be home, and I could not be more excited.  We have about a million things to do, but they’re all going to be so fun!
        1.  Dyeing Easter eggs with Della.
        2.  Shopping for Easter dresses.
        3.  Going to see the Hunger Games (a sort of “double date” with Keith – the fiancé, Natalie – the sister, and Cory – the brother-in-law).
        4.  Making French toast casserole.
        5.  Laundry…not so fun, but terribly necessary.
        6.  Church.
    I love weekends at home!  For some reason they are so much more restful than weekends at school, and it is one of my favorite things in the world to spend time with my whole family.
    I hope that all of your weekends are wonderful!  Also, just in case you haven’t seen, there is a new page on the right sidebar with information about advertising (which will now be done on a monthly basis).  

Happy Weekending!
Allyson