Sweet November

Hello! November is almost over...  what an amazing month. I've turned 26, enjoyed Thanksgiving, and started decorating for Christmas. I've certainly taken advantage of a few days off from work and enjoyed these days with friends and family. I hope you have too!

CURRENTLY LOVING:

1. The Holidays! It really is the most wonderful time of the year. Christmas is just around the corner and we've just wrapped up Thanksgiving, which is always one of my favorite days. Food, family, football... you can't go wrong. I think I'm still full. We had a wonderful day! Went to the in-laws house first then to my parents house. What a blessing it is to have our entire family in the same town. My precious dog Charlie is below. I think he's the perfect accessory to the dining room, do you agree?

                        

Oh how I love Christmas. In a few short weeks it will be here. Putting our lights up today and sending out Christmas cards this week!

 Here's our humble little Christmas tree :)

2. Thanksgiving Pumpkin Soup. This soup is so delicious and pretty easy to make. The picture doesn't do it justice, but it's the only one I had when I made it for hubby & me last month. Both my mother-in-law and mom served this soup at Thanksgiving this year in demitasse cups, like the one below. Love it!

1 stick butter                                                4 cups canned pumpkin puree

1 cup chopped onion                                   8 cups chicken stock (Swanson's)      
2 garlic gloves                                             2 bay leafs
2 pinches of sugar                                       2 pinches nutmeg
2/3 tsp curry                                                1 tsp salt

4 cups light cream (whipping cream)          1/2 tsp pepper

Melt butter, add onion and garlic, saute until transparent. Add pumpkin puree, stock and stir to mix well. Add all the rest EXCEPT whipping cream. Bring to a boil, lower heat and simmer for 30 min. Remove from heat. Add cream, heat and warm soup - careful not to curdle. If soup is too thin, add 1/4 cup water and flour or cornstarch to thicken. Serve immediately. Serves 12. Enjoy!

                  

3. Friends. They've been playing Friends re-runs every day, and I have to tell you...as many times as I've seen almost every episode, I still laugh.  This show is SO funny to me. I've posted a clip to make you laugh, it's Monica and Ross doing their "routine."

Here's the clip:

Monica and Ross dancing

4. The WARM Place. I love my job. For those that don't know I work for The WARM Place, A Grief Support Center for Children who have lost a loved one. I'm in charge of Special Events and fundraising. We have a great special event coming up! It's called A Phone Call from Santa. Basically, for two nights (Dec 13 and Dec 14) we have volunteer guys make calls to kids all over the US and pretend to be Santa Claus. Parents fill out a form on our website www.thewarmplace.org and give The WARM Place $20 per form.... all the money raised goes to WARM Place, which helps grieving children get the services they need, free of charge for them. It's an amazing place to work and I'm so blessed. If you know any guys that want to play Santa or if you know any parents that want their children to receive calls this Christmas from "Santa," please visit our website!

5. Thankfulness. Today's devo from "Jesus Calling" by Sarah Young:

Let thankfulness rule in your heart. As you thank Me for blessings in your life, a marvelous thing happens. It is as if scales fall off your eyes, enabling you to see more and more of My glorious riches. With your eyes thus opened, you can help yourself to whatever you need from My treasure house. Each time you receive one of My golden gifts, let your thankfulness sing our praises to My Name. "Hallelujahs" are the language of heaven, and they can become the language of your heart. Enjoy abundant life by overflowing with praise and thankfulness.

What an amazing thought: to be thankful each and every day. I hope you've enjoyed this post and remember to be thankful for the blessings in your life and the One who gives you those beautiful blessings.

xoxo

Brittany

October

Fall is here! Tomorrow is October. I absolutely love this month!

CURRENTLY LOVING:


1.  Boots. I want these.

2. Dirty Martini's with Bluecheese-stuffed Olives. I am not usually a martini-drinking kind of girl. I'm usually just fine with my Malbec red wine (Becker Vineyards is my favorite.) But, once I tried this amazing drink, I fell in love. 

 3. Giuliana and Bill. Does anyone else watch their show? They are such a lovable couple! I love their quirkiness and look forward to their show each week :) The show is every Monday night. This is definitely my guilty reality tv show, but I can't help it! I settle down on my couch each Monday with my glass of wine and Giuliana & Bill on the tv.

 4. Want to know my favorite wedding gift we received?? This is it.... Breville Keurig Coffee Maker from Williams-Sonoma. It gives me that one cup of coffee in the morning that I need to start my day! I press the button and ta - da!

5. TRUST. This week I have been learning a lot about trust. It's amazing how we forget that God has the perfect plan for our future. Too often we rely on ourselves and not Him. Once I started trusting in God and remembering that He is in control AT ALL TIMES and has the best plan for my life, I started noticing I was more relaxed, friendlier to those around me, and just happier in general. Meredith Andrews sings an amazing song called "You're Not Alone." I've loved this song for years! This week it kept playing over and over in my head and it was as if God was telling me.... "Don't worry about your future... I've got a plan and have never left your side." I love this - What a wonderful God!

The chorus says, "You're not alone, for I am here. Let me wipe away your every fear. My love, I've never left your side, I have seen you through the darkest night. And I'm the one who's loved you all your life." Here's the video. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do! Have a blessed weekend! XOXO

A New Week

Happy Tuesday! Did you enjoy your weekend? Mine was good and I even discovered some new loves. Here they are, enjoy! XOXO

CURRENTLY LOVING:


1. Apricot Lane Boutique. This new lovely is only a few weeks old and sits right by Barnes & Noble in University Park Village in FW. They were SO friendly and helpful that I just had to share with you. I bought a beautiful top at a very reasonable price!

2. Archer Farms "A Handful of Everything" trail mix. This mix is so delightfully good! It has sweetened fruit (dried apricots), yogurt-covered peanuts, chocolate chips, raisins, almonds, cashews & coconut. It's the perfect 3 o'clock snack.

3. Grilled White Wings. My husband loves to grill. We received a Don Strange Cookbook as a wedding gift and decided to try this recipe. We're so glad we did. You've gotta try it! It's basically small pieces of chicken breast with slices of jalapeño and Monterey jack cheese, wrapped in a ribbon of Apple Smoked Bacon, marinated in white wine and spices. It's so easy. Just grill and enjoy!

4. Tory Burch. Oh Tory.... I just love your style. Tory Burch will have her first Fashion Show today.  Love it. The collection is said to be inspired by Deauville, the prestigious seaside resort town in France. Sounds wonderful to me! I could not be more excited to see what she has in store for us. I always admire her simple, wearable designs, and her inspiration is always very apparent.

 

5. Seven Days in Utopia. GO SEE THIS FILM. It's extremely inspiring.... it really makes you think about life.

The film asks questions that we all must face in our lifetime: "What does your life stand for? What do you have inside that will last, even when your casket is lowered into the earth? What controls your life?"
Here's a quote from the movie: Let me let you in on a little secret. Life in the end will be measured by significance. Significance will be defined by your character, relationships, values, virtues and faith.

I highly recommend this movie. It truly makes you think about life, faith, and love.

6. Jesus Calling Devo by Sarah Young.

Receive My peace. It is My continual gift to you. The best way to receive this gift is to sit quietly in My Presence, trusting Me in every area of your life. Quietness and trust accomplish far more than you can imagine: not only in you, but also on earth and in heaven. When you trust Me in a given area, you release that problem or person into My care.

Spending time alone with Me can be a difficult discipline, because it goes against the activity addiction of this age. You may appear to be doing nothing, but actually you are participating in battles going on within spiritual realms. You are waging war - not with the weapons of the world, but with heavenly weapons, which have divine power to demolish strongholds. Living close to Me is a sure defense against evil.

Have a wonderful week!
XOXO,
Brittany

Little September Loves

Oh September, how I love you. September means nice fall weather, football games, and much more that I love!

CURRENTLY LOVING:

1. Leopard Print Pumps from Banana. Just picked these up last weekend and fell in love!

2. The Pioneer Woman. She does it ALL. She lives on a ranch and blogs about her kids, husband, dogs, cooking and photography. The best part about her blog is that she is just so witty that I can't stop reading - I laugh at almost every post AND get a great recipe or cooking tip out of it! I made her Peach-Whiskey Barbecue recipe the other day and it was so good! I like her blog because she shows you step-by-step pictures of how to make certain things and her recipes are so tasty! http://thepioneerwoman.com/

3. I may or may not be obsessed with Style Me Pretty. For those that don't know, its a wedding blog that showcases real weddings. It is such a beautiful blog, I have to read it daily. Although I have been married for 6 months now, I still have weddings on my mind! Here's the link, have fun! http://www.stylemepretty.com/

4. The Help. Ok, this movie was one of the best movies I have ever seen. It was truly wonderful and inspiring. I haven't read the book yet, but now I want to. Go see it, you won't regret it!

5. Fort Worth Fav: Lamberts. I just had to tell you all about my favorite restaurant in Fort Worth. This is truly a love. It's a "ranch cuisine in a big city setting." Something about their green chile grits keeps me coming back.

6. Jesus Calling by Sarah Young. This book is so amazing. Every day, there is a new devo that is deep and thought-provoking. I love reading them daily. Here is today's devo:

"Walk with Me along paths of trust. The most direct route between point A and point B on your life-journey is the path of unwavering trust in Me. When your faith falters, you choose a trail that meanders and takes you well out of your way. You will get to point B eventually, but you will have lost precious time and energy. As soon as you realize you have wandered from your trust-path, look to Me and whisper, "I trust You, Jesus." This affirmation will help you get back on track. Trust in Me with all your heart, and I will make your paths straight.

Well, that's it for today! I hope you enjoyed today's little loves!

Brittany Bradshaw

Hello!

Hello and welcome to my new blog: Currently Loving. I have been thinking about starting this for a while now and decided to just go with it! I will be posting on life's little loves; whether that be a devotional I am loving, a new & inspiring recipe, a Fort Worth favorite spot, a sassy new outfit or any thing/place/event I am currently loving.... I hope that you enjoy. :)

I know life can get so busy and we all get caught up in work, schedules, etc. So, my hope is that when you read my blog, it will inspire you to look around your world and start loving more. Sometimes people and things will surprise you and completely make your day in a way that you didn't even know they could!

I am new to the blog world, so things might be a little messy at first but I will try to inspire and entertain you! Thanks for reading!

Brittany Bradshaw