1 :: Gray Days Be-Gone – Well the weather has officially switched. The sunshine is hibernating for the season and has been replaced with gray skies, high winds, and rain. Ugh. While this helps with my editing environment, it has a tendency to make me hole up in my Rapunzel tower. You know what this means? Tis the season to visit friends. I vow to get out once a week to spread some sunshine to those I know here. Yesterday we had the excitement of going to my nephew’s 2 year old birthday party at Kinder Spiel & Spass Fabrik in Kaiserslautern. It is the largest indoor/outdoor play park for kids within a 100 km radius. This place puts any play park in the states to shame. I definitely wish I was 7 years old again. The most hilarious part was upon entering the facility, the owner asked us where our children were. We had to explain that we didn’t have any. This got us a very stern look from the owner and I wondered if we were even allowed in without kids. If you have small children and haven’t gone to this playground, you need to go immediately! Ever the German venue, you can purchase a beer and indulge while watching your kids from afar. So if you want your kids to go to bed early, let them get their energy out at Kinder Speil.
2 :: Awe-inspiring Kindness – So this past week for Halloween, the KMC vendors hosted a giveaway. What could you win from Kirsten Ashley Photograph? Why a free mini-session and $10 print credit! A huge congratulations goes to out to Nikki Hinojosa for winning the giveaway! I expected to contact her and set up her Meet & Greet like I usually would…. imagine my surprise when she informs me that due to her husband being deployed she asked if she could gift her free session to a friend! I was floored. Nikki, you have such big heart full of selfless love. I feel like there are so few people in the world today who would do what you have done. It’s these acts of random kindness that restore my faith in people today. Doesn’t it make you {yes you reading this right now!} want to go out there and do something nice for a random stranger to pay it forward? Because that’s definitely how I feel.
3 :: Comfort Food = Happy Tummy – It’s that time of year again folks. Thanksgiving is creeping up slowly which means I’m stockpiling canned french green beans, cream of mushroom soup and dried cranberries. That being said I indulged in comfort foods this week. Click on a photo to take you to the recipe and be sure to follow my Yummay! board on Pinterest. 1) Coconut Chicken Curry Stew 2) Bourbon Sweet Potato Bisque with Brown Butter Cinnamon Sugar Croutons 3) Smoky Bacon & Corn Chowder 4) “Grown-Up’s” Mac n’ Cheese with Three Cheeses and Crispy Prosciutto 5) Chewy Oatmeal Coconut Brown Sugar Cookies
4 :: Warm as Toast – There is this incredible dichotomy in my life in regards to shoes. Most of you are aware that I’m a barefoot girl through and through. This begs the question “Then how is it that you are so obsessed with shoes?”. To me shoes are a visual art that you can wear. Plain and simple. And let me tell you there are some pretty fantastic artists out there. This time of year, however, brings about a shoe practicality that I cannot ignore {especially living in Germany}. Shoes keep my feet warm. I am famous for my popsicle toes here in this house and D goes to great lengths to keep my feet warm. I thought it’d be fun to give a shout out to the best houseshoes this week. Germans LOVE house shoes. They are even required for your child when they start kindergarten here. They wear slippers inside and regular shoes outside. Genius! So here are my picks for this week. Click on an image to shop online! 1) Fitzwell – Gail Ballerina Moccasin – $35.99 SALE 2) Acorn – Sheepskin Moxie Boot – $125.99 SALE 3) Haflinger Moccasin – $98.99 SALE 4) Ugg – Andi – $90.00 5) Ugg – DAKOTA 78 – $100.00 6) Ugg – ALENA – $120.00
5 :: The Schneider Family Mini – Here is a one shot sneak peek of the Schneider Mini Session from last week! I adore these kids so much. It is amazing to see how much they’ve grown. The dino park was such a beautiful setting for this session! Thanks Russ & Michelle for letting me share these special moments.
Thanks for coming back this week! It’s my hope that MIAM brightens the beginning of your week so you can power through to the end!
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