Merry Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays from our family to yours.  Thank you for being here another year and following along with our family.  We are so lucky to have you and appreciate all your support and encouragement over the years.

We hope you all have a wonderful holiday with family and friends and we look forward to being back here in the New Year.

Photos by Annabelle Rose Photography

Outfits linked HERE

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Madelyn has become quite a little baker and loves to help me in the kitchen. I found this recipe for Strawberry Cheesecake Cookies, and thought they would be perfect Valentine’s Day treats!  She had a couple of friends over one day, and they had a great time making them together. The recipe was so easy, and it is a perfect way for kids to practice their mixing and measuring skills. The girls loved making these – and they turned out to be so pretty and delicious! 

Strawberry Cheesecake Cookies

INGREDIENTS

• 6 oz cream cheese – room temperature

• 1 large egg – room temperature

• 1 box strawberry cake mix – 15.25 oz

• 1 teaspoon baking powder

• ½ cup vegetable oil

• ¾ cup white chocolate chips – optional

INSTRUCTIONS

• In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, mix cream cheese, egg, cake mix, baking powder, and vegetable oil until combined.

• Fold in white chocolate chips, if using.

• Chill dough in refrigerator for 30 minutes. In the meantime, preheat oven to 350°F and line a large baking sheet with a silicone liner or parchment paper.

• Use a small cookie scoop to place scoops of dough onto the prepared baking sheet 2 inches apart.

• Bake in preheated oven for 12-13 minutes, or until cookies are set and golden brown on the edges.

• Allow cookies to cool on the pan for 10 minutes, then remove to a wire rack to cool completely.

NOTES

Storage and Freezing: These strawberry cheesecake cookies should be stored in the refrigerator in an airtight container or food storage bag to keep them nice and soft. They should stay fresh in the fridge for up to 5 days, or in the freezer for up to two months.

I can’t resist a homemade cookie! Have you made any sweet treats recently?

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I made these Cream Cheese Sausage Balls for a boat day with friends and they were so easy with just 4 ingredients and such a hit with the group.  Finger foods are always so nice to have on a boat and even though they are a “hot” item, they stayed warm in the sunshine and were still good to eat a couple hours into the trip.

CREAM CHEESE SAUSAGE BALLS
via

Cream Cheese Sausage Balls – only 4 ingredients – sausage, cream cheese, Bisquick, and cheddar cheese. They are so easy and so delicious. You an make in advance & freeze for a quick snack later. Great for parties, potlucks, tailgating, breakfast and dinner!

Ingredients:
1 lb hot sausage, uncooked
1 (8-oz) package cream cheese, softened
1¼ cups Bisquick
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 400ºF.
Mix all ingredients until well combined.
Roll into 1-inch balls and place on a rimmed baking sheet.
Bake for 18 – 22 minutes, or until brown.

Notes:
Sausage balls may be frozen uncooked. If baking frozen, add a few minutes to the baking time.

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Are you shopping Black Friday Sales?? I found a few of my favorites from the sales happening today!! Click on any image below to shop! I also included some of my favorite brands below with sales happening.

:: SHOP THE POST ::

Serena & Lily – 25% OFF WITH CODE THANKFUL

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I always get excited for the 4th of July! We usually stay home for the holiday because there is always a pretty fun celebration in Pensacola. We love being on the water, boating, cooking and hanging with friends!

Here are a few of my favorite red white, and blue outfits that are cute for the 4th; but also adorable to wear all summer long.

1.Red High Waisted Bikini – I have jumped on the high waist bandwagon and now I think they are so cute. This one is on sale and a great price.

2.Straw Sun hat – Supercute straw hat for only $12.

3.Navy Striped Tote Bag – great straw tote for summer and I also love this one on sale for $18.

4.Red One Shoulder Top – I love the cut and ruffles of this top.

5.Red Wicker Tote– I have been eyeing this bag and now its on sale but I need it to go on sale even more!

6.Blue Pineapple Shirt Dress– I wore this dress the other day and yall loved it. I think it is so cute and flattering.

7. Blue and White Striped Button Dress – Love these dresses for summer. So many great prints.

8.Red White and Blue Stripped Sweater – I need this!

9.Red Statement Earrings – Statement earrings are my fave.

10.White Acrylic Bag – How cute is this?

11.Ruffle Navy High Waisted Bikini– Amazing price and the cutest ruffle detail.

12.Red Espadrille Wedges – I love a cute espadrille for summer.

:: SHOP THE POST ::

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If you have enjoyed shopping my blog sales in the past, then you need to head over to The Saved Collection website this morning and check out all the clothes that I am selling!

I have had a lot of fun doing my blog sales but they are actually a lot of work!  When I learned about The Saved Collection, I was so excited.  They literally do all the work for me and make it so fun and easy.  You need to follow them on Instagram (@thesavedcollection) for clothing updates, but really just head to their website to quickly see all the clothes and easily shop.

The post Blog Sale with The Saved Collection appeared first on Home of Malones.

Family photos have been so stressful in the past.  Many of our sessions over the last 4 years have been at our house, usually photographed in the babies nursery and I’m running around ragged trying to get everything picked up, cleaned and perfect looking.  It can make for such an exhausting day when you add that with trying to get yourself dressed and ready as well as a couple small kids.  Then you are either acting ridiculous trying to get them to smile and laugh or you are tightly wound telling them to get their act together before I count to 3!!

This time, we decided to go for a beach session.  I was planning on just having the kids photographed hoping that would cut out some of the stress.  Matt was supposed to be out of town for the night and at the last minute his plans were cancelled.  So he met us at the beach and thankfully I had thrown a dress in my car for “just in case.”  Ya’ll, we ended up having the most fun session yet!!

I brought marshmallows to bribe the kids, a speaker to jam out to Trolls, and we had a pretty care-free evening.  Here’s a look at our photos from the shoot…

The kids outfits are Dondolo (green and yellow) and Pixie Lily (blue and white).  They were purchased from Born Children’s Clothing Boutique.

You can find my dress here.

All photos are by the lovely Katie Fox from Annabelle Rose Photography.  She is wonderful with kids and has 3 of her own.  She was actually recently published around the web for this adorably photo she took of her kids and their cousins.  How cute is this???  Here’s the article from Scary Mommy.

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Today I wanted to join in with Erika and Shay for Working it Wednesday.  The topic this month is “how we work on our marriage.”  I loved this idea since February is the month of “love” and I thought it would be fun to read how others dedicate time, energy and thought into their everyday married life.

I’m certainly no expert at this, but one of my goals this year was to be more thoughtful in my marriage and carve out more quality time for my hubby.  Matt and I will have been together for ten years at the end of this year and married for 5.  Add in two wild kids and it’s easy to have less and less attention and energy to give to one another on a daily basis.  So, here are a few things we try to do to keep each other first:

Date Nights

I know this seems so obvious, but it really is something that has to be a priority.  I can’t tell you how often I feel like we hardly get two {uninterrupted} words into each other during a typical week night and it feels so good to have a night with just the two of us out to dinner and catch up.  We are pretty good about having one night a week where we have a babysitter.  Sometimes we go out just the two of us and sometimes we meet friends out for something fun.  Either way, it’s so nice to have some adult time.

Weekend Escapes

This almost goes hand and hand with date nights above, but I think it’s important to take it further.  I love a quick night or weekend getaway if we get the opportunity and I also believe in vacationing alone with your spouse.  We are very lucky to have grandmother’s close by that are amazing babysitters and have allowed us to travel in the past while they keep the kids. It’s so nice to have a few care-free days with hubby to just “date” again.  I think it helps couples reconnect and just have some fun together again without all the stress of every day life.  We try to plan one of these trips once a year.

Verbal Compliments

Let’s be honest.  Even after almost ten years together, it still feels great when hubby tells me I look beautiful before we’re headed out.  I love to get dressed up and go out, but the reality is that doesn’t happy every day.  It feels great to hear little compliments whether it’s about how I look, what a great Mom I’ve been or because I brought the garbage can in for him :). Like wise, it’s important for me to verbally express the same things.  I love it when he cooks breakfasts for us every weekend or takes the kids out for a few hours or unloads the dish washer.  It’s important that I let him know how much I appreciate it.  It’s easy to get complacent or feel like some of these things are just expected, but everyone loves an extra pat on the back from time to time.

Small Love Notes or Gestures

This one is just fun, but can really go along way.  I love to still flirt with my husband from time to time via text messages or drop him a silly or sweet card in the mail that he gets at his office.  They only take a few minutes to write, but can totally surprise him and make his day.  Another one of my favorite things which I don’t do near enough is just dropping little post-it notes messages for him at his bathroom sink, at his car, or on his morning coca-cola.  What better way to start the day with a big smile.  My husband happens to be an amazing card giver…he definitely learned it from his Mom and Dad and I love that about him.   I know that every card comes with lots of thought and way too many minutes in the card aisle.  Don’t cheap out on a good Hallmark card.  No gesture is too big or small.  I love a simple gesture from my spouse.

Lingerie

Yes, I’m totally going there.  Remember ladies, all those gifts you probably received on your bachelorette party??  Put them to good use from time to time.  Trust me, I know it is so easy to put my grandma pajamas on each and every night after wrangling the kids to bed and just being exhausted myself!  But it’s fun to put a little effort in from time to time and surprise the hubby.  Give it a try if you haven’t in awhile…

Mutual Respect

I leave you with this one.  Every relationship requires mutual respect.  I feel we both do this very well and continue to remember this.  We don’t try to control one another and we each accept one another for who we are.   We strive everyday to treat each other the way we would want to be treated.  Mutual respect is important in any relationship you have in life and I think it is one of the most essential.

So, I’m sure I’m missing something.  What do you do to help work on or improve your marriage from time to time??

The post Working It Wednesday | All About Marriage appeared first on Home of Malones.

Happy Monday, Friends.  We’re trying to get back into the swing of things over here.  It was a busy week last week with Thanksgiving.  We traveled to Destin to visit some of my family over the weekend before Thanksgiving and then came home sick as can be with the stomach bug.  We had a rough few days passing the bug around to everyone.  We were scheduled to visit more family in Montgomery on Wednesday before Thanksgiving and hated the thought of bring our stomach bug to more family.  We traveled as planned and managed to pass the bug around some more :(. It was so yucky.  Despite all the sickness, we had a blast with family and the kids were not quite themselves; but they managed a few smiles throughout. We came back home Saturday pretty healthy and we made sure to take out the Christmas decorations and go find ourselves the perfect tree!  Here’s a big photo dump of our week!

40% off this fleece vest today with code MONDAY!

My Favorite Cyber Monday Sales

J.Crew – 40% off EVERYTHING with code MONDAY

Tory Burch– 30% off with code THANKS

Nordstroms –  Extra 20% off selected sale items

Bauble Bar– 35% Off 2+ Items (Code: SAVE35) or 25% Off 1 Item (Code: SAVE25)

Marysia Swimwear–  20% OFF ORDERS OVER $500, 30% OFF ORDERS OVER $750, FREE GROUND SHIPPING, USE CODE “FREESHIP”

Potterybarn Kids– 20% off and free shipping with code Ohwhatfun.  I bought this Advent Calendar.

Petite Plume Sleepwear– 20% off with code blackfriday1

Gap Kids– 50% off EVERYTHING with code CYBMON even JAMMIES! (my fave)

The Beaufort Bonnet Company– 40% off with code: MerryMonday16 and Free Shipping on all orders.

Little English – Enjoy 40% OFF all Fall 2016 apparel with code: Cyber40
*does not apply to crochet layettes/sweaters & quilted luggage*

Ya’ll, this coat is just awesome for winter and 40% off today! The red is almost sold out, but lots of sizes in the classic black.  These boots are sold out, but I love these almost even more because they have the slouch look to them. My Tory Burch bag is on sale for 30% off today too!

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