I think Christmas shopping is one of the most fun things ever so here are a million more ideas than I need in one year!

Blue Floral Dress | Pink Collar Sweater | Yellow Coat | These are our very favorite pajamas and bunny slippers| Locket Necklace, which you can print a couple photos in wallet size to fit in | The softest mini bunny and these loveys that both my girls sleep with every night | Hunter Boots are pricey but hold up SO well and go with everything! Christmas is a great time to grab them, just be sure to read the sizing. You can also often find them on Facebook Marketplace (that’s where I’ve gotten them!)

A couple sweet favorite books, Little Library , Little Adventures, Madeline, Pasta Pasta Lotsa Pasta, and Bunny’s Book Club is my personal favorite, it is *SO* sweet!! And Our Daily Bread for preschoolers is a great starter devotional for 3 year olds!

I usually throw a pack of bows in the girls stockings, I love these, these, these and these

I am obsessed with this hat on Kit and we love these socks which you can normally get on sale.

For toys most little girls love all things baby. I cannot recommend these soft baby dolls enough. Ginny has one and it is Kit’s main gift this year. Also they have the cutest names! A diaper bag and baby carrier make for great gifts as well! Maileg mice are my favorite thing to give Ginny because they are our favorite thing to play with together. Because they are pricier we do one each Christmas and Easter and are building her collection slowly. This is her main gift this year and I already know she will be so happy! They are so darling and offer hours of imaginative play. Tweed is my favorite place to buy them but their website does have free shipping as well! Picasso Tiles (like magnetiles but cheaper) are always a win and we love love playing with this mixer.

For the stocking you can never have enough snack cups and water bottles!

This was my biggest request when I asked on Instagram what you wanted to see – sooo many messages saying “My Mother in Law/Mom/Aunt who has everything!”. Now if we are talking about Moms or Mother in Laws, let’s be real, the number one thing they want is pictures of the grandkids! A couple options for this – A beautiful gold or silver frame with a few printed pics (I leave extras prints in the gift box so they can pick which one they want), a Nixplay is a digital frame that you can continue to upload photos to throughout the year, my mom loves when one of us uploads something and it pops up while she’s drinking her morning coffee! Or if you’ve got a little time on your hands and want a project, a yearly photo book can’t be beat! This one in particular is beautiful quality (coming from a photographer!).

This market tote would be beautiful with a bottle of wine and these cordless lamps are perfect for the lady who loves to host (think outdoor dinner party!). I am convinced everyone should have airpods. A beautiful home/coffee table book is always a good option, I love this one and this one but you could pick something based on their hobbies.

You could do a Ballerina Farm box of baked goods or if they are a coffee/tea drinker there is no bougier of a gift than an Ember mug! Pottery Barn robes are so luxurious, both the plush and waffle ones look amazing! This Lands End tote is great for everything, I have the large with long straps and love it! If they are beach gals a fun treat would be a Business and Pleasure umbrella or beach bag! If they hate winter a heated blanket can help, I bought this for my mom a few years ago and always grab it when I’m at her house!

When in doubt you cannot go wrong with a pedicure gift card (you can include tip) or a gift card to a nice restaurant, Butcher’s Union is my favorite. Headed into long winter nights a Discovery + or Instacart subscription also make great gifts!

For the gal pals or favorite things party! I usually try to keep girlfriends gifts a little less expensive but still want them to know they are thought of. In my opinion this all comes down to delivery! You could put a gift together for less than $10 but tie it up with an oversized silk ribbon and their favorite candy or a spring of greenery and dried orange slice! Make it beautiful rather than expensive! Here are a few ideas

Thrift or buy a teacup! I looove drinking my morning coffee out of a teacup! This one is so cute and this one is on amazon but stop in an antique store and see what you can find! If you want to go one step further pair it with a bag of Town Criers Coffee (the best!). If you’ve ever had these socks you know they are anything but boring, you’ll never want to wear another pair again! Love these little bow stud earrings and this little croissant pouch…so cute.

I talk about this Juno skin all the time on Instagram, the best makeup remover and this Dae Hair wand can’t be beat for flyaways! This lipgloss is my favorite and individually they are closer to $30 but they have gift sets that you can split up to give to multiple friends!

Lastly, a little more heartfelt, I got this journal as a gift and love it, this instagram walks through it, and this book is filled with liturgies (prayers and readings) for different ordinary moments (changing diapers, drinking coffee, setting up the Christmas tree, etc). I received it as a gift and now it is my favorite gift to give!

And now for the men, a few of these are my ideas but most of these are Dan’s! Starting with an Ember mug, there isn’t a coffee drinker who wouldn’t love this and recommend pairing it with a bag of Town Criers Coffee. Everyone needs Airpods…everyone. And if you need a bigger gift Dan and his dad love the Apple Watch. If he works in an office he may enjoy a digital picture frame (you can upload pictures from any phone and they pop up in the frame).

Scratch Eraser Kit, Dan has used this to get some pretty impressive scratches out of my car… not that I have ever scratched my car…We have two of these garage lights in our garage and they are great, they were the first thing Dan mentioned when I asked for gift guide ideas. Milwaukee M12 impact driver, Dan says this is the best, most versatile drill he has used and a great platform and price point for starting out with other tool options to build onto it. Dan says this Microbit Driver is so handy, everyone should have one, and a great stocking stuffer.

If he doesn’t have bluetooth in his vehicle Dan highly recommends this bluetooth to radio converter. I picked out these socks that you can have a child or pets face put on, Dan was on the fence about them. We both love our percussion massager and these chukkah boots are a great versatile staple!

The post 2024 Christmas Gift Guides appeared first on Bungalows & Olives.

Everyone wants to wake up to warm cinnamon rolls on Christmas morning right? Well I’m about to make your life a whole lot easier. Cinnamon rolls freeze SO well, there is no need to wake up at the crack of dawn to make them on Christmas morning or stay up late prepping on Christmas Eve. Here’s the trick – freeze them before the second rise.

Make your favorite cinnamon roll recipe – mine is this one from Ambitious Kitchen – mix the dough, roll them out, do the cinnamon and sugar, roll them up, pop them in the pan *then* cover the pan with a layer of plastic wrap and a layer of tin foil and stick them in the freezer.

On Christmas Eve right before bed take them out of the freezer and remove the tin foil layer. Leave them on your counter under the plastic wrap to thaw and rise overnight, then bake and frost in the morning. I have done this many times and it always turns out perfect! I also *highly* recommend drizzling them with heavy cream before baking, just trust me! This year I even made the frosting and froze it. I’ll keep you updated on how that turns out.

This also makes a great gift! I made a couple extra pans and made a little instruction sheet on Canva which you can save below! Wrap it up with a bow and you can make someones day!

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If there is one thing I took seriously this pregnancy it is freezer meal prepping! I started planning ahead early and at 32 weeks pregnant I had 30 frozen dinners ready! As someone who had her last baby at 32 weeks, I can’t say the peace of mind this brought me! The beauty is that I did this with what I would consider pretty minimal effort. If you’re wondering how, what and when, keep reading!

My strategies

Start Early: I knew I wanted more than just a couple options. I don’t want to think about food for at least the first month. Knowing I felt the worst in my third trimester last pregnancy, I decided to start as early as I could without risking the food expiring in the freezer before I had the baby. I started around 22 weeks and am so glad I did! I didn’t necessarily have a goal number of meals to prep, but in 10 weeks I was able to stash 30 meals.

Double dinner: This is how I made the bulk of the meals. I would simply double (or even triple dinner) and throw all the leftovers in the freezer. I often do this even when not pregnant and cannot recommend it enough. There is almost nothing better than having a warm home cooked meal ready to warm up on a night that you don’t feel like cooking dinner. Having a freezer full of meals also means I am able to bring food to a friend quickly when they are in need, and often saves us money because we are repurposing our leftovers instead of letting them go to waste in the fridge. While making my meal plan I would just make sure one or two of the meals each week was something we could freeze, and it was as easy as that! No reason to get your kitchen dirty more than once. 

Swap with a friend: 8 of my meals came from friends through swaps. I happen to have a *lot* of pregnant friends right now and 2 of them swapped meals with me. With one girlfriend we each made 4 dinners (x2, one for each of us) on our own time and swapped (I think we both used the “double dinner” method) and with the other girlfriend we got together in my kitchen one afternoon and each made 2 meals that we doubled (so we each went home with 4 meals). If you know someone else who is expecting, absolutely swap with each other! It adds in variety and again, not a lot of extra work. I have their meals included to give you ideas even if I don’t have an exact recipe. 

Keep a list: I can’t stress this enough! Keep a list on the outside of your freezer or on your phone and every single time you add something, add it to the list with the number of servings. This way you always know what you have on hand, can add easily, and can make sure nothing gets forgotten when the time comes to eat your way through the stash. 

The Tools 

Having the right supplies on hand is crucial. If you are doing a large volume you will run out of tupperware so fast! I chose to go with disposable options because it will mean fewer dishes postpartum, and gives me the freedom to give away some meals to those other pregnant friends.

Aluminum Pans In our family (myself, husband and 2 year old) the 8×8 pan is the perfect amount for one night of dinners and the following day’s lunch. If your family is bigger I would go with the 9×9 pan or even consider larger. 

Deli Containers – For soups/stews/sides I used these and love them! These are dishwasher safe and reusable which is great, but again I don’t mind giving them away if needed. 

Labels – label everything as SOON as you make it on the top and side (facing out when you are looking in the freezer). You may think you will remember whats in the pan (especially tempting if you end up using clear containers) but trust me, you won’t. For the aluminum pans I wrote in sharpie, for the soup containers I’ve been using these labels that peel off super easily so you can reuse the container. 

A freezer – I will confess, we did end up buying an upright freezer for our garage. This had been our plan for a while so we saved up and got one on a good Black Friday deal. We will use it for meat storage and to preserve things from our garden when our postpartum season is over so it was wroth it to us either way.

Dinner recipes

The Fun part! These are all recipes that are part of my normal arsenal, so I can vouch for all of them being delicious. They just happen to freeze well! 

Baked Ziti (3) – I used this recipe from The Modern Proper. 

Shepherds Pie – I loosely followed this recipe from Savory Nothings but used instant mashed potatoes. 

Turkey Meatballs & Creamy Orzo – This recipe from Half Baked Harvest is amazing! I did it stovetop instead of crockpot style. 

Aussie Meat Pies – We LOVE this recipe. It’s time consuming but so worth it and they actually freeze really well! I froze them all on a sheet pan and then transferred them to a baggie. We reheat a couple at a time in the air fryer. 

Beef & Bean Enchiladas – For this I cooked ground beef with onion and taco seasoning. Put a little bit of canned red enchilada sauce in the bottom of a pan, spread tortillas with refried beans, topped with beef and cheese, rolled up and put them in the pan, then topped the whole pan with more enchilada sauce and shredded cheese. 

Beef Stroganoff (2) – This recipe from Natasha’s Kitchen is simple and delicious. She recommends freezing it in baggies without noodles so that’s what I did. We will thaw it and reheat in a saucepan and make a box of noodles fresh to go with it. 

Sourdough Skillet – This is something we make several times a month with whatever meat/veggies we have on hand. I’m pretty sure I did ground venison, potatoes, frozen carrots, peas, and green beans. 

Beef Stew (3) – I don’t follow a recipe for my beef stew so it turns out a little different every time but it’s usually chuck roast that I’ve cooked in the crockpot (either leftovers from a pot roast, or made just for soup), potatoes, carrots, onion, homemade beef broth, Worcestershire sauce, a little bit of soy sauce, a tiny bit of red wine vinegar and I let it simmer for a good long time. I also love adding orzo! 

Aussie Beef Stew – I froze the leftover filling from the meat pies in a soup cup and will add a box of beef broth when we reheat to turn it into a stew. 

Chicken Noodle Soup – Again not something I follow a recipe for. Just shredded chicken, carrots, onion, chicken broth and noodles! 

Taco Soup (2) This recipe is 1lb ground beef cooked with onion, (3) cans mexi style chili beans, 1 can of corn, tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, and diced green chilis, 1 package of taco seasoning, 1 package of ranch dressing, 1 1/2 cups water. Add it all to a crockpot and let it simmer all day. Highly recommend eating it with corn chips, cheese and sour cream!

Chicken Mushroom Bean Soup (2) – I started with this Modern Proper recipe as a base but then added white beans and shredded chicken. 

Mexican Broth Soup (2) – This recipe from Real Food Whole Life is simple, light, and delicious! 

Thanksgiving Box (2) – I put all of our Thanksgiving leftovers in 2 pans and I am quite looking forward to eating them!

Pizza Casserole – This was from my friend swap so I don’t have an exact recipe.

Chicken Alfredo – This was from my friend swap so I don’t have an exact recipe.

Chili – This was from my friend swap so I don’t have an exact recipe.

Lasagna (2) – This was from my friend swap so I don’t have an exact recipe.

Cottage Pie – This was from my friend swap so I don’t have an exact recipe.

Ham & Noodle Bake – This was from my friend swap so I don’t have an exact recipe.

Breakfast/Other

As you can see I put most of my effort towards dinner/entrees because I find those the hardest to put together and if you make enough you get lunch for the next day. For breakfasts we usually stick to scrambled eggs, yogurt, and other simple things like that. That said, here are a few more things I stashed to make life easier. 

Rolls – I always keep a bag of these hamburger buns because they work as sandwich buns, hamburger buns, or dinner rolls! Also delicious in the morning with a little butter and jam. I just microwave them for about 30 seconds, or leave them on the counter for 10 mins and they thaw out beautifully.  

Croissants – If you attempt this recipe brace yourself for 3 days of work. However, they are delicious. I make them once every couple months and always double it to freeze the extras. I am planning to save these for if I hit a particularly low point in postpartum and want an emotional boost . She has a youtube video walking through how to bake them (which I recommend watching at least 3 times – ha!) and she explains the best way to freeze/thaw them.

Cinnamon Rolls – This recipe is truly amazing. Another one that I double and freeze every time I make it because who doesn’t want to pull out a fresh batch of cinnamon rolls on a random Saturday morning? I freeze them as soon as I’ve rolled them up. Then to thaw/bake I put them (frozen) on the kitchen counter (still covered with plastic wrap) overnight and bake them as soon as I wake up in the morning. In my experience they thaw and rise perfectly overnight. 

Sourdough Bagels – I usually have a bag of these sourdough bagels in my freezer as well. I slice them about 90% of the way through before freezing so that they are easy to break apart. When I want one I microwave it for about 30 seconds, pop it apart and throw it in the toaster. 

Sourdough English Muffins – I did the same with a batch of these sourdough english muffins. 

Pasta/Pizza Sauce – The fruits of this past summer’s tomato harvest and we are still working through it. However, if you don’t have a canned/frozen garden stash I’d definitely recommend stocking up on a few store bought cans because they can provide you a quick meal (even if it does involve a little cooking). 

Cookie Dough – the last few times I’ve made cookies I’ve doubled the dough, rolled them into balls, frozen them on a cookie sheet and then put them in a baggie. Perfect for when you want to bake a couple in the evening without all the work!

Favorite Store Bought Options

If you aren’t a mega meal prepper, no sweat! Costco and Trader Joes both have amazing frozen options! Some of my favorites are…

Costco

• Chicken Tiki masala
• Three Cheese Tortellini (with jarred pesto!)
• Chicken tenders/mozzarella sticks/pizza
• Shrimp
• Kodiak Cake Protein Waffles

Trader Joes

• Orange chicken
• Pot stickers
• Sweet Potato Gnocchi 
• Stuffed Gnocchi (put this in their boxed tomato soup and it’s amazing!)  
• Party Meatballs 
• Fish Sticks

There you have it! We are already struggling to resist breaking into the stash, but I really am trying to save it for once baby is here. If you are pregnant you might feel overwhelmed by looking at this list but don’t! Get the right supplies for freezing things in your house and just start with doubling one or two dinners a week. You’ll have a pile of prepped meals in no time! And if you aren’t having a baby I’d still totally recommend doubling dinner once a week and freezing it! Then each week you can pull a homemade meal from the freezer on a night you aren’t feeling like cooking! A beautiful freezer food circle of life!

The post How I prepped over 30 Postpartum Freezer Meals + Recipes appeared first on Bungalows & Olives.

Ahh, the feel of a new year and a fresh new planner! Is there anything better? I am probably a little too obsessed with finding the *exact right tool* for each job, particularly when it comes to paper goods. I’ve tried everything from Day Designer, Simplified, Appointed Co, and every variation sold in a Target aisle and this year I may have landed on the best planner yet. I’ve been eyeing Golden Coils for a while and when I started playing with layouts on their website I was sold sold sold. They ran a pre-Black Friday sale and I jumped on it.

Golden Coils are completely customizable. Their site has page options and you get to choose exactly what goes in your planner and how it is set up. I appreciate that their pages and covers have a very simple, minimal aesthetic because a colorful planner feels overwhelming for me once I start writing in it. What I am really excited about is that I was able to put in pages for lists I have been keeping in separate notebooks for years. I’ve had a cleaning calendar taped to the inside of my kitchen cupboard, an Asana board for my blog and Instagram posts, a note in my phone for meal planning, a Google Sheet for budget, and there is *always* a scrap piece of paper by me for to-do lists in ADDITION to my actual paper planner. I was able to consolidate all of those things into one handy book that will go with me everywhere. Add it to the Big Mama Cup and EOS chapstick – the growing pile of things that never leave my side. For me, this ain’t just a calendar ya’ll. This is a compass to my entire life. Ha!

Here’s my design.

Cover & Start of Year

I chose the linen cover “Sea Glass”. I put my own contact information in the cover page but chose not to use their “contacts” option to save pages. One thing I wish I had done differently is setting the calendar view to start on Sunday instead of Monday, but not a big deal! I’ll get used to it. I stuck to the standard “US Holidays” calendar and didn’t add any of my own, mostly so that I could get the order placed before their sale ended, but I would definitely consider taking the time to add family birthdays and anniversaries the future.

Year At a Glance (x2) (calendaring) – I had a very specific idea for these. I have wanted to keep a little journal of things I want to remember about Ginny as she grows but it’s just something I never get around to. I wrote Ginny’s name at the top of one of these pages and will write the new baby’s name (once we know it!) on the second one and my hope is to jot down a few memories or new things they’ve learned each month.

Habit Tracker (x2) (health) – I *love* data a little too much and so I keep a spreadsheet of how often I work out, just for my own personal accountability. If that stresses you out, don’t do it! But for me, it is a helpful reminder and I love the satisfaction of glancing back at the month. I will be using one of these pages for fitness and I haven’t decided on what other habits I want to track. Possibly time spent outside or practicing piano.

Monthly Pages

Each month automatically includes a monthly calendar view, which I love! Then these are the pages that I added, they come after the monthly view, before the weekly view and repeat monthly. These are what I’m most excited about!

Home Care (lifestyle) – I will be throwing away the checklist hiding in my kitchen cupboard! I can write out what I want to clean/care for/declutter/organize each month.

Social Media Planner 2 (projects) – I will use this to keep track of blog and Instagram posts and jot ideas down as they come.

Blank (standard) – I LOVE having a blank page (no lines!!) to write out my to-do lists. Because I’m balancing a few different areas (home, food, church commitments, KGP, blog/Instagram, kids, and occasional freelance projects) I like to make smaller categorized lists so this is what I’ll use this page for. Then I’ll grab items from this and move them to the weekly page for whatever week they need to be checked off. Having this at the start of every month is perfect!

Budget (lifestyle) – We have always used Google Sheets to manage our budget but the past few months I started keeping a scrap paper in my planner to write out each transaction. Something about pen to paper makes things stick in my head, feel more real, and keeps sticking to the budget top of mind.

Weekly Pages

I chose the “Sections 1” from the category “Weekly – Single Page” – I went back and forth between several layout options for the weekly pages and this is the one I landed on. I liked the blocks for scheduling, the checklists for to-do’s and the option to add our meal plan to the spread.

End of Year

Grid (x3) (standard) – I had a few pages that I could use left so I chose to throw in a few grid pages, because I love grid paper! Who knows what I’ll use it for but I’m sure they will be scribbled with notes by the end of the year!

Pocket Back – I was pleasantly surprised to find a pocket in the back of it as well! I didn’t know this was included! Yay!

If you haven’t checked out Golden Coil, go play around on the website! It’s so fun and the possibilities are endless!

The post The Inside of my 2024 Golden Coil Planner appeared first on Bungalows & Olives.

I hope you all had a fantastic Thanksgiving and are enjoying the weekend! Anyone else love a little online shopping? I’ve browsed the sales so that you don’t have to, here are some things I think are worth checking out! I’m personally not doing a lot of purchasing this weekend, but I still love the hunt! I’m not a fan of impulse buying but if I can take advantage of a sale to snag a staple piece, or shop ahead for the following season at a discount I’m going to! Happy Shopping!

The post Cyber Monday Sale Roundup appeared first on Bungalows & Olives.

Happy Saturday! It is chilly and cozy and wonderful around here. Halloween is Tuesday and that means if enough leaves fall, I could be listening to Christmas music by the end of next week! Bring it on! Here is what was on my mind this week!

NEW NIGHTSTANDS (pictured above)

We’ve had tiny nightstands (about 15inx15in) since our newlywed apartment days and have wanted to switch them out for a long while. They fit perfectly in our tiny apartment, but the lamp took up the whole surface area not leaving much room for your phone, book, water, etc. It’s not something I wanted to spend a lot of money on but have hoped to replace them before the baby comes. Dealing with bottles and diapers and not having anywhere to set them during the night with Ginny was not my favorite thing. I started scouting FB Marketplace when Ginny was just a few weeks old (it may have actually even been before I had her…) and at long last, this week we found a set of two solid oak small dressers, the perfect dimensions, for a insane deal. An older gentleman had restored them and we spent a good while chatting with him in his workshop. My friend Meredith always says that the key to building your home is just having patience. Often overspending comes when we just aren’t willing to wait it out and this little instance has me totally agreeing! Every night when I roll over and set my water or medical supplies down I grin and am so thankful for small things that make a big difference.

WHAT I WORE

Everything recent is linked, if it’s not linked I’ve probably had it for years.

// dress: Loft // shoes: Old Navy //

// Maternity dress borrowed from my sister, I don’t recognize the brand // Sweater & Shoes: Madewell //

// Sweater & Jeans (which are not maternity but low rise and totally unbuttoned lol): Madewell // button up: J. Crew mens // Shoes: Gap //

// Maternity Shirt: Amazon // Pants: TJ Maxx // Shoes: Gap //

// Sweater: This is my favorite sweater from Aerie, I bought this one a few years back but they still make it and it’s amazing! // Maternity Leggings: Target // Ankle boots: ASOS //

// Maternity Shirt: borrowed from my sister // Jeans: Madewell Maternity purchased on Mercari // Shoes: Old Navy //

SOUP RECIPE

We were busy most evenings this week or eating leftovers/sandwiches/frozen foods so I really only made on meal and it was kind of a pot roast stew inspired by this video . I put half of a sirloin tip roast in the crockpot with salt, pepper, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, about a cup of beef broth and a dash of Worcestershire sauce in the crockpot and let that cook all day. Then in the evening I sautéed onion, carrots and potatoes together, added in the beef along with its juices, 64oz of homemade beef both, soy sauce, rice wine vinegar and some more Worcestershire sauce. It was really really yummy! Ate it will sourdough and butter…what more could you ask for?

SONG OF THE WEEK

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My dear friend Kelly sent me this song this week and I truly can’t get enough of it. The lyrics of the song say it all so just give it a listen!

The post Weekly Recap V. 3 appeared first on Bungalows & Olives.

Alrighty folks, after this post we are all caught up on what I’ve read so far in 2023. I have a couple more on the docket currently and then I *think* I just may read through the Harry Potter series before I have this baby! I haven’t gone through the whole series in a few years and is there anything better? I think it will be just the ticket to keep me cozy and occupied between now and February!

Home Cooking 4/5 – What can I say, I love a food book! I could have read her writing about food for another 200 pages! Do I want to try any of her recipes? Probably not (feels like 80’s cooking from a can at it’s finest!)! Do I still want to have dinner with her? 100%.

The Authenticity Project 5/5 – I loved so many things about this book! My sister recommended it and it was a delight! Heartfelt but still light and a really unique concept!

In Five Years 5/5 – Two five star books in a row had me feeling like I was on a roll!! Now hang with me, this book is not everyone’s cup of tea. Nothing makes me love a book more than not being able to predict where it’s going! I think that’s what really made me devour this book. I read it in just a couple hours one Sunday afternoon and couldn’t hardly have a conversation with Dan until I finished it. While there were things that felt like a *stretch* and moments where I wanted to grab the main character and shake her, it for sure takes the cake for “book I couldn’t put down”.

Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow 3.5/5 – This book was a saga alright! I think it’s easy to love something that spans such a long period of time and has such excellent character development. That said, I found it kind of annoying and didn’t love it as much as a lot of people.

The Gospel Comes with a House Key 3.5/5 – This is a book absolutely worth reading. It will really stretch your views of hospitality and I loved her emphasis on building community with people who may be different than you. That said, I felt it was a little pushy in a “this is how every week of your life needs to look” sort of way, and I don’t necessarily think that is feasible for everyone. It did definitely encourage me to take hospitality one step further and think about how I can be serving my community (family, church, neighbors, etc) better!

Finlay Donovan Is Killing It 3.5/5 – This book is quirky and absolutely unrealistic in every way and I think that’s what I loved about it. It was funny and aggravating and lovable and everything in between. I don’t think I liked it *quite* enough to read the sequel (so many other books I want to read!) but I still really enjoyed it!

Pineapple Street 3/5 – I don’t think I really felt good or bad things about this book. It was just…a book! I always secretly love a story about an upper class New York family, and this was that!

So what have you been reading? I’m always looking for recommendations to pile up in my library holds list!

The post Recent Reads V.8 appeared first on Bungalows & Olives.

Happy Saturday! We are off to another rainy start, it’s been a very rainy October but that’s fine by me! This month is *flying* by which only mean’s we are one month closer to baby!

WHAT I WORE

Sweater: H&M // Skirt given to me by Meredith but Madewell // Shoes: J Crew // Necklace: Made By Mary // Hair tutorial here //

// Sweater: Old Navy // Jeans: Gap, these are my last pair of “regular” jeans that are holding on for dear life this pregnancy! They are a couple sizes up from my normal (which I have for days my stomach is more distended) and a lower rise- during pregnancy I’m very thankful for them! // Shoes: Free People // Headband: Ronni Blake //

// Shirt: Amazon – I finally bit the bullet and bought a 3 pack of long sleeve maternity shirts. They are rouched and all and ya know what… I’m so glad I did! Going into winter I know I’ll get so much wear out of them for layering and it’s nice to have options that I don’t have to worry about being long enough to cover my growing bump. // Sweater: H&M // Leggings: Target – loving this pair of maternity leggings! // Shoes: Target //

// Shirt: J. Crew Factory, Mens section // Jeans: Madewell Maternity, purchased second hand on Mercari // Shoes: Old Navy //

MEAL PLAN

This week I lowered my expectations and kept things simple! I’ve been pretty tired towards the end of the day so sticking with quick easy recipes/frozen meals has been a win!

Costco Chicken Tikki Masala – I haven’t ever had anything like this but we all loved it! It is in their refrigerated section. Served it with rice.

Pot Roast & Sourdough Rolls – We hosted our small group for dinner this night (12 adults + kids) so to keep it simple I started two crockpots of roast in the morning. In my opinion it’s the safest bet for hosting because you do most of the work in the morning and, who doesn’t love pot roast?

Burgers & French Fries, Homemade hamburger buns – Dan threw a few burgers on the grill when he got home from work and I stuck some frozen french fries in the air fryer. I make a batch of these burger buns every once in a while (they are SO good!) and they freeze really well. They thaw in about 10-30 seconds in the microwave, or 10 minutes sitting on the counter and it’s nice to always have them on hand.

Costco Tortelloni & Trader Joe’s Pesto – This was another new find at Costco for me and it was DELISH! I made a small handful one night when it was just Ginny and I and topped it with a scoop of Trader Joe’s Pesto. It tasted so good I made i again the next day for lunch. This will probably be in our regular rotation moving forward!

CURRENTLY READING / LISTENING TO

This week I’ve been reading By Bread Alone, which my Sister in Law sent me and Built to Move and I started listening to the audiobook of Praying Like Monks, Living Like Fools and am loving all of them so far!

CLEANING OFF MY PHONE

Every few months I try to clear off all the photos on my phone. My phone is almost 5 years old and sill works like gem…until this week! It started freezing, shutting off randomly and not sending texts through. I realized that it’s been over 6 months since I last cleared it off so I dedicated the weekend and first half of the week to getting it done. Sure enough, my phone was working great by the end of it! This is the strategy I use and here is your reminder to do it before it becomes a problem!

Wishing you a restful weekend!

The post Weekly Recap V.2 appeared first on Bungalows & Olives.

I haven’t shared what I’ve been reading at all in 2023 so let’s catch up! In prior years I have read a *lot* of non fiction – anything I could learn from!! Since becoming a mom I feel like my brain can’t handle any more information so my preference has changed to almost exclusively fiction! I love reading in the evening to wind down and I want a storyline I’m sucked into! I’m going to go in order of what I’ve read this year and will post the other half next week! Keep in mind that these are just my thoughts. Everyone’s has different opinions on books, and that’s a good thing! The first half of 2023 I was kind of on a bad streak of books, most of them are listed below. BUT I also found my favorite book of the year! Next week I’ll be sharing some more that I’ve loved!

The Dutch House 2/5 – I almost feel embarrassed to rate this so low! Someone tell me what I’m missing here! I think this is very beloved to a lot of people so maybe I’m just not smart enough for it?!? ha! I could barely get through it. It feels a little like reading Wendell Berry- if you read it slowly and savor it you enjoy it- if you’re looking for something fast paced you won’t. Except I do like Wendell Berry….so I don’t know but this book just didn’t do it for me.

The Plot 1.5/5 – I kept reading because everyone talks about the *plot twist*. Wow, it was a twist alright, but it just didn’t redeem how much I disliked the book as a whole. Honestly a little disturbing.

The Wrong Kind of Woman 1/5 – Not my cup of tea.

*as you can see, I started the year off on a bad streak, but don’t worry, things look up shortly!*

Love Without Boarders – I find it hard to rate a book that’s just someones life story so that’s why there isn’t a rating. I love following Angela Braniff so I loved hearing her whole back story.

The Maid 3.5/5 – A lovable murder mystery! I’m not sure how else to put it! Didn’t rock my world, but I did enjoy it. The main character had my heart!

Mexican Gothic 3.5/5 – This was cute! Just the right amount of spooky for my taste!

Lessons In Chemistry 5/5 – Best book I’ve read all year! I could not have loved this book more and I didn’t want it to end! I waited a *long* time to get it from the library and it did not disappoint one bit! Six-Thirty!! I mean, come on. This is a book I will 100% re-read.

A Praying Life 4/5 – This was my second time reading this and it is a really helpful, practical guide to prayer!

The Two Lives of Lydia Bird 4/5 – This book was both cute and heartfelt. I felt like it was really unique and I was so curious where the story would go. I would definitely recommend this one!

The Mother In Law 5/5 – I love anything by Sally Hepworth! I’m always sucked in from the second I pick it up! This and The Good Sister are probably my top two of her books! They are almost thrillers, but more like a mystery with unpredictable relationship dynamics. In her books you always feel like you really get into the mind of the characters.

On the Rooftop 3/5 – I loved this in the beginning but felt like it fizzled out as the book went on and the ending fell flat in my mind. Overall I did love the character development and sister relationships and felt like the story was really engaging.

The Match 3/5 – Dan read this and recommended it to me. It is a sequel and I didn’t read the first (terrible of me, I know!) It wasn’t my favorite, but I did really enjoy it! I might just have to read the first!

We are What We Eat 2.5/5 – I had really high hopes for this book but found it to be a let down. I love reading about health/nutrition/slow cooking, but this felt like a 200+ page rant about how the system is flawed in America. After reading the book I felt no closer to knowing how to make better food decisions in my own life.

Live Wire – Like the Angela Braniff Book, if you like Kelly Ripa you will LOVE this book. I grew up watching Regis and Kelly with my mom and so I found it hilarious! I switched to the audiobook about 50 pages in and totally recommend that! Hearing it in her voice is just too good!

The post Recent Reads V. 7 appeared first on Bungalows & Olives.

Fall has officially arrived and I am embracing it for all it’s worth! While I will miss the sunshine, we are coming up on *my* time of year. I love the fall, and then it leads into the Holidays which I can’t get enough of. The day after Halloween you will find me listening to Christmas music unashamedly. This year is especially exciting because after the Holidays we will be in the home stretch towards baby time so I know it will make the second half of this pregnancy fly by! The first half already has!

I wanted to find a way to sum up on the blog all the things I quickly share throughout the week on Instagram, enter: Weekly Recaps! As often as I’m able I’d love to throw up these posts with a collection of things I’ve shared, things I’m loving, or things on my mind at the end of the week. Let’s dive in!
MEAL PLAN

Sheet Pan Tacos // We are currently obsessed with this recipe and making it almost every week. I’ve been doing ground beef with taco seasoning, canned corn, cheese and salsa, then topping with sour cream and more salsa.

Freezer Chili // This was a random Pinterest recipe I made and froze a while back and to be honest, we didn’t like it at all. I’m officially beginning the hunt for the right freezer chili recipe. Will report back.

Discard Pizza // a weeknight favorite! SO quick and easy! We topped with sauce we had in the freezer (from our garden tomatoes this summer), mozzarella, tomatoes and pepperoni.

We went to a wedding on Friday night which was such a treat!

PODCAST TO SHARE

I have listened to a few podcast I’ve loved recently so I couldn’t resist doing a whole blog post with links! Read it here!

BOOKS I’M READING

You Set My Spirit Free // A dear friend gave me this devotional and it is, simply put, blowing my mind. It has added such richness to my time with the Lord each morning and even though each devotional is only a page or two I’m left marinating on it all day. Highly recommend so far!

Finlay Donovan Is Killing It // I just finished this one and found i funny and odd and quirky and annoying and lovable all at the same time! Haven’t decided how many stars I’d give it yet, or if I’d read the sequel.

HACKS I’M LOVING

Toy Rotation Bags // This week I saw Monica Kegley post about her toy rotation system on Instagram and I tell you I’ve never swiped up faster. I’ve tried toy rotating before but throwing all of the pieces loose in a Tupperware just means I forget about them in the basement, I’m never going to go down there and just grab a handful of random things. She linked these little zipper bags with labels so each toy is sorted and separated out inside the big Tupperware. I sorted out all of Ginny’s toys into these bags and plan to swap a couple out every few weeks. Already our house is 5x cleaner and Ginny seems less overwhelmed and actually plays with the fewer toys in front of her. I’m all about keeping toys minimal (at least in this stage) because really Ginny’s favorite activities involve following me around the house, emptying the cupboards, and sitting on the counter with me while I cook. Oh and BOOKS, can’t get enough of those. So far loving this system.

Utilizing our freezer // I’ve been doing this for a couple years but have had a couple conversations with girlfriends about it this week so it’s been on my mind. I love using the freezer and utilize it as much as possible. I’d say once or twice a week I make more of a meal than we will need and freeze the leftovers. Then usually one meal during the week and one meal on the weekend we pull from our freezer. We also keep all of our meat in the freezer, buying a large quantity of whatever is on sale and then pulling out what we need week to week to keep meals interesting (rather than buying chicken one week and eating it every night or feeling like we need to buy 3+ types of meat every single week) and it usually means we can stretch it further (ground beef broken up into baggies of 1lb or even 1/2lb, only using one or two chicken breasts, etc). When it’s all frozen it’s easier to only take what you need. Bread products freeze great too. I love making little mini muffins for Ginny and grabbing a couple out on a morning we need a quick breakfast. Basically…I love my freezer. Naptime Kitchen has a lot of great freezer tips if you don’t know where to start.

That’s all for today folks! Wishing you a happy start to the week!

The post Weekly Recap V. 1 appeared first on Bungalows & Olives.