2014 Resolution Recap

Do you make a New Year's Resolution List? I do! It is fun to look back at your list and see all of the things you accomplished and to recognize the items you need to keep working on. I am sharing my resolution list from this past year! 

New Year’s Resolutions

2014!

  

©  start a devotion group and read the bible more-tried to get a bible study going so that one is staying on the list for next year. I am however in a few bible studies thru church so I feel fulfilled. God is happy as long as we always try.  The bible app has been really helpful to keep reading God's word anywhere at anytime. 

©  become a more beautiful person on the inside

©  respect Kyle and be the best wife ever

©  learn how to quilt/make one or more- below is a pic of my first ever quilt. I made it using the fabric from my wedding. It turned out great! I made a baby quilt and now am working on another one for our living room. 

©  start a workout journal to get focused- I had some good months and some bad months this year. It's definitely a balance with all things on life! 

©  send thank you and birthday cards more consistently

©  keep better record of mail , bills and files better

©  make one new food item a week—soup per week--nope!! Found a cole good soup recipes tho 

©  host a house or dinner party- Kyle and I held a Chopped Party and it was very successful. 

©  drink less diet coke/soda and more water - went 10 days in a row without diet coke! Still working on quitting- keeping this one on the list for 2015

©  start taking vitamins- I bought a bottle of multivitamins in January AND still have a pretty full bottle 

©  stop tanning—look younger- I have been a full year without tanning! I might be white but I look younger already 

©  read books more often-Audiobooks count right? 

Enjoy the last day of 2014! See you next year!
Loryn Lichty

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas! We are travelled to Pierre to visit my family and spend time together celebrating the real reason for the season-Jesus' birth. This year my mom and I made the cutest gift baskets using mom's  Longaberger Basket collection. I have never made a gift basket before but  I am convinced it is the best thing ever invented. We have several feasts planned- donuts, enchiladas and Zuppaa. Plus we will have sweets in between Christmas destinations. We opened gifts this morni and the puppies were pure entertainment. Daddy took us for a sled ride pulling us on his razor and that was a complete blast. Praying that you and your family are enjoying the day!

Cinnamon Cupcakes with Cinnamon Buttercream

These Cupcakes were delicious! They are perfect for your next Christmas Party and really easy to make. Just mix up a white cake mix and add cinnamon. Really. That Simple! 

Christmas Cookies

Have you ever been apart of a Christmas Cookie Exchange? I participated in my first one this year and it is such a great idea! The steps behind the Christmas Cookie Exchange are simple:

1. Ask your friends to participate (and everyone will want to!)
2.  Decide the number of cookies you will make to share i.e. we had 5 people so we made 2 dozen each of 2 different kinds of cookies--that way each person got to take home 6 of each variety
3.  Get together and exchange! Each person will go home with a variety of cookies on their tray to have at their next Christmas Party. 

It's a great idea for next year, so don't forget to add it to your Christmas List that I know you have started for next year with all of the things you didn't get done for this year's holiday. 

These are the cookies I made--French Almond Macaroons and M&M Cookies

This is the tray full of cookies I came home with! As you can see, the Cookie Exchange is not just limited to cookies! 

DIY Christmas Decor-Angels

Angels are a big part of the Christmas Story. They announced Jesus birth and they praise his name. The bible doesn't describe angels and cute little things but the opposite! However, at church this year, we made "Cute Wall Hanging Angels" as a Christmas Craft. All of the pieces were pre-cut so any craft level could put the angel together. They turned out really well. You can see from the pictures below the Angel progression. I thought the coolest part of this craft was that we painted the Angels and then dipped out pieces in wood stain and wiped it off to give the wood a weathered old feeling. I never would have thought of that!

Kitten Mittens

I bought this pattern from the quilt store (sorry I can't share due to copy right reasons!) and made a few pairs of "Kitten Mittens" for my sister-in-law and mother-in-law, who are both cat people. I used a fleece that was covered with Kitten print and added a bow to the end to embellish them a little. The pattern was fairly simple to follow, however making a left and a right mitten took a little practice. I am not going to lie to you, I have 3 rights in my craft room all sewn up without a pair to match it to! They are Purrrrrrrr-fect gifts for this Christmas!

DIY Ornaments

We finally had a girls night craft night combo! We made homemade ornaments using ragged cream cotton fabrics, foam balls, jute and corsage pins make these beautiful tree ornaments. The inspiration came right off Pinterest of course! Make sure you have a hot glue gun and some patience and you will be wrapping your way into a new tree display next year! You can try making these with cheaper balls from the dollar store or add embellishments like buttons as well.

It's Christmas Time!!

One week until Christmas! The Lichty house has been busy preparing for Christmas and I've finally had sometime to post  on the blog! Kyle and I have a 4 foot artificial tree that we have been putting up for years nit definitely does the trick but it is pretty dinky and makes the pile of presents for family and friends look huge  we had to rearrange out furniture to find a fitting spot to display our Christmas decorations and we really like the furniture's new locations. I have these pretty red bulbs and red snowflakes from IKEA hanging from the tree along with special ornaments from Kyle's childhood. We got our stockings from Pottery Barn last year and this year we added a stocking for Mozz. I think he can already tell it is his Stocking because we have already hidden a toy in there for him. 

 I can't wait to be a Christmas card family. But for now, I proudly display other families up on our card display. I made the JOY wood sign out of wood slices from our wedding, red floss and nails and strung jute back and forth to hang the postcards on. Look and my beautiful family at the bottom! Those Schuetzle's!!

Happy birthday Mom!

Happy birthday to my best friend! Love you Mom! 

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving! I pray that you are able to spend today with family or friends and take the time to remember all of your blessings and give thanks to God for all He has provided. Challenge yourself this weekend to write a list of all that you are thankful for and all the special blessings that have happened in 2014. Bonus points if in the next week, you write a note of thanks to a friend to show how much they mean to you!

Enjoy your day, relax, laugh, love and remember that your body is made to handle a Thanksgiving Day binge-so eat and eat and eat!

Sweet Potato Casserole

This Sweet Potato Casserole was a new side dish presented at the Schuetzle Thanksgiving this year. I was skeptical, but since my dad requested this specifically, like tore the page out of the Country Living Magazine and handed it to me, I couldn't disappoint him. I didn't add the maple syrup because one, I didn't have that ingredient in my pantry and two, there is no way I could stand that much sweetness in a potato dish; however, I am sure it is lovely. The meringue topping was so fun to make and it did taste wonderful. This Sweet Potato dish got rave reviews at the dinner table and I think I will have to make it year after year! 

Sweet Potato Casserole: Recipe from Country Living Magazine found here

Homemade Whip Cream

Are you responsible for bringing the traditional Pumpkin Pie this year for Thanksgiving? If so, don't succumb to store bought whipped topping, rather whip up some of your own Homemade Whip Cream. This recipe couldn't be simpler and it will impress your family and friends of your dessert skills. Not only can you use this whip cream for this Holiday Season's pies, but you can also use it to add a little extra sweetness to your morning cup of coffee. Enjoy!

Pumpkin Pie

Look at my Mom's Perfect Pumpkin Pie! This is my absolute favorite dessert of the season. I could eat it pretty much any time of the year. I wanted to share my Mom's perfect pie she made the other weekend for a pre-Thanksgiving meal. Usually, with pumpkin pies, you get a split down the middle, but this one turned out picture-worthy! 

I don't have an outstanding pumpkin pie recipe to share, as I have always just used the recipe on the back of the Libby's Pumpkin can. However, I do adjust the spices to my taste. I do not have the patience to wait for a pumpkin to roast to use real pumpkin in my desserts and honestly, I have never been able to tell them apart anyways--but I do usually eat pumpkin pie so fast I am not sure if I would be able to tell a difference.

Make sure to top your pumpkin pie with a fresh dollop (or several dollops) of whip cream. They don't have the saying, "you want some pie with your whip cream" for nothing! Happy Thanksgiving Week!

Morning Coffee of Choice

So, I don't mean to boast, but my Husband is amazing. He is fantastic about fixing me up a latte every morning before work. When he first started doing this, I would dump the latte out on the way into work because it was so bitter, but over the year, he has gotten GOOD! It helps we have found some great latte mixes to add flavoring. I love Trader Joes Mocha mix and of course I am a sucker for Starbucks PSL Via Latte mix. Always add a dollop of Homemade Whip Cream and if you are lucky, a little latte heart to boot.  What gets you going in the morning?

Trip to Connecticut

Before the weather took a turn for the worse, I had a work trip scheduled to visit a supplier out in Connecticut. I have never been up in the North Eastern part of the United States. I was so pleased to schedule the trip right in the heart of Fall so that I could experience the Autumn colors. My dad instilled in me the love for this type of beauty and I know it has always been his dream to go to the East Coast and experience this wonder. Even though my dad couldn't visit Connecticut with me, I hope to one day travel with him, my mom and my husband and enjoy these painted hues again.

The visit took place in Milford, which happens to be right on the Atlantic Ocean Coast. You can see the hazy outline of Long Island from the beach there. I loved seeing the signs as I was driving on the interstates that said NY City 90 miles. NYC is on my life bucket list of places to visit, and I was please to know I was so close and it is possible to get there one day. I also was a mere 3 hours from Boston and a hop, skip and jump from elite vacation spots like The Hamptons and Nantucket. 

I also took a little walk about on Yale's campus. I had to experience the prestige of an Ivy League school. It was so beautiful and this is dorky, but reminded me of Hogwarts from Harry Potter. It was interesting to find out that they randomly place you in special colleges and that is your identity for your duration at school. 

Another cool experience, was Dunkin Donuts. That coffee chain was everywhere! And their donuts were decent. Nothing compares to Pierre's Donut Shop, but it was tasty none-the-less. Also, a great pick me up after a day of meetings and trip to the beach. 

The trip was so fun and I can't wait to go back for more pleasure rather than just business. 

DIY Onsies

My best friend,Tiara, had a baby!!! I am now officially Auntie LoLo! I wanted to give her a special gift and knew just the thing. DIY top stitched onsies. Since she was waiting to be surprised by the gender, I had to be make the onsies gender neutral... no tutus or tractors allowed. Instead, I used primary colors and Berenstain Bears printed fabric.

I purchased a 5 pack of 0-3 month onsies from Target. I pre-washed the onsies and the fabric that I was planning on using for the pieces. I used some scraps I had but also cut a few pieces from my bridesmaid dress that I wore as the Maid of Honor in Tiara's wedding. Pre-washing is important, especially if you are using more than one blend of fabric. That way all shrinkage takes place prior to completing your stitching.

Create a template for the designs you want to cut out on your fabric. Mine had hearts and state outlines of Minnesota and South Dakota. Pin your template pieces to your fabric and cut out. Then arrange your fabric shapes onto the front of the onsies. Use a whip stitch with colorful embroidery floss to attach your fabric pieces to the onsie. Make sure to have enough pins to keep your fabric pieces in place or else it makes it difficult to stitch. If you have a loom that would be ideal.

Love you Tiara! Can't wait to see the little one in these outfits! So much love was put in them!

This one is my favorite! It is South Dakota, in green dress satin with a heart over Rapid City, where Tiara is from (and where her and her husband met).

Minnesota to represent where the couple live

Hardrocker colored hearts!

Fitness Friday-Morning Workouts

Rise and shine!! It's time to wake up and work out! Studies show that working out in the morning is the best time to sweat. I know it's hard to get up and get out the door especially when it's cold and dark. But for me, it's even worse to go to the gym right after work hungry or eat dinner and think I'm going to go back out on the cold to workout. Here's some tips from Women's Health to help you get up early and move too! 

WAKE UP MOZZY!

AM Workout Selfie

New Smyrna Beach

One of my best friends,Ashlee, and I met 5 years ago during an internship at the Pierre Chamber of Commerce. Our offices were right next door to each other and we had so much fun going on walks, tanning and hanging out at Tia's (her Aunt's) historical Norbeck House home. Ashlee is originally from Florida and now she lives in North Carolina. We always make it a point to stay in touch and keep up with each other's family and friend's lives. Her family is like the Kardashian clan with three sisters and a younger brother and a house full of drama (I love it). My family is fun and fast so she fits right in.

The last time we saw each other was over a year ago at my wedding where Ashlee was one of my bridesmaids. So we scheduled a trip to sunny Florida to spend a weekend at the beach relaxing and catching up in the sunny rays right on the Atlantic Ocean. We booked a room thru the site AirBnB, where hosts post open rooms, apartments or whole houses for short time renting to those travelers who would prefer to not stay in a stuffy hotel. I was a little skeptical. But we found a house in New Smyrna Beach (The House on Crawford) that suited our needs perfect. It was only a few blocks from the beach and near NSB's downtown area called Flager.

Since Ashlee grew up in South Florida and went to school less than an hour from NSB, it was a perfect location to meet up and enjoy. We rode the house's beach cruises primarily to all of our destinations. The beach was literally a block from the house and we spent all day Saturday and Sunday getting bronzed. It was amazing. We also pampered ourselves with a mani/pedi at a local spa and caught some town gossip. Sunday morning, we got up early to see the sunrise over the Atlantic and it was one of the prettiest things I have ever seen. We also indulged in delicious food and sweets and had a great weekend. I hope we can try to do these girls trips every year because they are definitely worth it! Miss Florida and Ashlee already.