Empty Nesting Tuesday~ Igniting Old Passions~Races

 *Good day, BEAUTIFUL FRIENDS. On Tuesdays, I will be sharing how I am Empty Nesting. Since this is new to me and it has been a rough season of getting accustomed to, I want to document things I did to cope and grow my best in this NEW SEASON! I hope to inspire other new empty nesters, prepare those heading that way, and inspire those who have been in this season a long time.* 

Happy Tuesday!!! It has been a good day today. I started my day with my quiet time and then headed out for a nice, BEAUTIFUL, almost felt like a fall morning!! There is hope on the horizon. 🍂 I saw a leaf fall off a tree and ran to catch it!! Is it not just a sprinkle of heaven for me.... Hope a New Season is ahead!

I brought it hope to press!! THIS IS A NEW PASSION of mine!! I got a new pressing kit to press flowers and such. I can't wait to press this and frame it!!

Here are some other images I got today on my walk!!!

Look at that HUGE LEAF!!! It really was a perfect morning walk. Cool, crisp, and refreshing. Walking IS A PASSION that I have always had and also did when I had a NEST full of kiddos. But of course, life would get busy and while I did make it a priority at times, there were many times it was shelved to do things for the family. 

Walking has become a MAJOR PART of filling my days during this season of EMPTY NESTING. It helps me mentally, spiritually, and physically. 

When I was in my late 20s, one of my passions was speed walking in 5 Ks that had a good cause. I decided this summer to do one a month. I had such a wonderful time, and it really kept me motivated in the summer when I wanted to hole up inside my little nest when temperatures were super HOT and when I felt lonely! Having something to keep me accountable to stay fit and be committed to participating in was just what I needed this summer.  I met new people! Kept moving! And seen some incredible views.            

In other news.....one of the luxuries of Empty Nesting....even though I miss our kiddos so much....IS MORE AVAILABLE time. I can afford and take more time for self-care. I am not selfishly saying this. I am very low maintenance, but it is nice to get some things done for yourself every now and then.

Today, I went to get my hair deep conditioned at a salon and shined. I have VERY LONG hair. My hair is inches past my bottom. So, taking good care of it is important. I go twice a year. 

It was so refreshing, I am ready for the cooler months ahead, which can make my hair brittle!!!  Here is a "selfie" of the finished product!!!

One area I have struggled with as an Empty Nest Homemaker is scheduling and balancing my days. I was always (still am) a very routine person and thrive that way. I always had a cleaning system, meal plan, and calendars I lived by when the kids were home. I homeschooled, so our days were planned out to the dot, of course, with flexibility. But I knew when things needed to be done and I had certain days, like in the old-fashioned days, that were themed. I had a weekly cleaning day, baking day, shopping and errand day, library day, yard day, project day, and so on. 

I do not know why, but little by little those schedules changed just like, ONE SEASON TO THE NEXT. I find myself at times feeling aimless. So, I have been thinking about this lately and trying to create a plan that helps me with this. 

ANY TIPS?? I do write out my to-dos daily. I think maybe one thing is that my house does not take long to clean anymore as it did with kids underfoot. No more schooling that my days are structured around or afternoon activities.  Sometimes I can feel like my purpose is gone. WHICH I KNOW IS A LIE! But it is a real emotion and thought I have. I want to document this to help others and to look back and know how I felt during this season. 

Anyhoooo.... I am off to warm up that yummy soup from yesterday!!! Isn't soup better the next day?! Do you agree?! 

Please, share your empty nesting tips and encouragement for myself and others BELOW if you are an empty nester!!! Have a super day!

Linking up with My Slices of Life Talk About It Tuesdays!

With Love, 

Chrissy T

Sunday & Monday~ It's a New Day! It's New Week!!

Welcome beautiful friends!! Grab a warm or cold drink & join me as I share the past two days!!! I hope this finds YOU well. Today is a NEW DAY!!! We have been blessed with a NEW WEEK. So, goodbye yesterday and hello....today!

Sunday started as always, as a pastor's wife and worship leader, I head out the door pretty early for music practice and then serve where needed. My husband preached out of Lamentations 3:23-24 and my HOPE was refreshed. I am so thankful the Lord gives us a new day every single day that He chooses to keep us alive on this earth. Great is His Faithfulness. 

I normally cook on Sunday after church or fix something earlier that morning for us to come home and enjoy BUT it was just my husband and I, so we decided to treat ourselves to Italian. Our church is literally next door to the place. So, we walked over and it was so wonderful. I got a new dish, it was so good. It was chicken piccata. It was so light and fantastic. 

I napped a little and then started working on my last summer puzzle. I bought two over the summer that I wanted to do for the summer. I love it. DO YOU LIKE PUZZLES? They have so many brain benefits!!!

We started a tradition of baking cookies on Sunday evening. We don't eat but one time all day, so this is a nice little treat. I did chocolate chip this week. The week before I did snickerdoodle.

I also have been enjoying this little Baking Newspaper subscription that I get delivered to our home. It is all about baking filled with recipes, tips, jokes, and old traditional newspaper puzzles. 

Today (Monday) I woke up and said out loud...."Today is a NEW Day!!!" It really helped my mindset for the day. After my quiet time I headed out for my morning walk. It was such NICE morning!!! It has been so bad HOT here; it was a treat to have a cooler morning. 

I had to pick our oldest from the airport this morning. He had a wedding on the east coast; then I had errands. We are preparing for our vacation coming up!!! I am so excited. So, lots of preparing happening. We will be gone 10 days!! 

I like to do lighter and healthier meals on Monday to balance out the weekend splurges we do. It was cooler and I had all the ingredients on hand, so Vegetable Beef Soup was on the menu! I add Lipton Onion Soup packs and it makes it soooo very flavorful!! I grabbed some sourdough from Aldi while I was out because it would be too late when I got home to make my own. It turned out delish!!!

~Menu for this Week~

Monday- Veggie Beef Soup and Sourdough Bread

Tuesday- Veggie Beef Soup and White Cheddar Grill Sourdough Sandwiches

Wednesday- Airfryer Honey Garlic Chicken Tenderloins, Mashed Potatoes, Veggies

Thursday- Baked Potato Bar with all the helpings

Friday- Greek Chicken Kabobs, Pita and hummus, olives, cucumbers

Saturday- 3 Ingredient Pizza Dough Personal Pizza

Sunday- Family Day~ Taco Ring Pizza & Cupcakes

What is on your MENU? How was your Sunday and Monday??

Thanks for popping by to visit my little corner on the web,

Chrissy T

Word of the Week~ PUSH #WotW

This week I am joining a new link up called Word of the Week (#WotW) for the FIRST time. I have a huge love for words!! I often do word of the year and month! So, when I came across this from another blogger, I knew I had to jump in!

My word of the week ~ PUSH

This week started out like always, but I just felt kind of under the weather. I am not sick. I think it's the blasted heat of 100 plus temperatures we have in my state. I am having a little flare up in my body (health things) so I have to play a find balance of PUSH and rest. 

                                                                Image- Courtesy of Pinterest 

I PUSHED through days I truly didn't want to get out of bed. But I did!! I had things that had to be done. Even if it felt like I was walking through syrup or quicksand. I had volunteer work Tuesday. I was glad I pushed myself to go and not cancel. I had a wonderful time and it actually helped me feel a little better getting out of the house. Wednesday was a volunteer luncheon that I forced myself to go to BUT was so glad I did. I learned so much and was treated to lunch. Later that night I had to teach youth a class at church. 

                                                      Trying to psych myself to get up and PUSH!

Thursday was filled with a doctor appointment and errands. Oh...this day was tough but I MADE it. I also hosted a Ladies Summer Book Club meeting. It was our final meet up for the book we finished together. I had to bake and all that. To help me get through this day I created a haven of cozy at home while I baked and prepared. This helped me a lot. To be honest, I almost cancelled because I really just didn't want to do it BUT again I PUSHED myself. I was so glad I did because we had a wonderful time. My soul was refreshed. 

                                                     Wanting to crawl back in bed after I made! 😏

I chose to be slower paced Friday, but things still had to be done. Bills, bookkeeping for our church, and a dinner date with one of our sons and husband. I survived. Haha!

This week was hard, but I kept moving and PUSHING forward. I am thankful. It is okay also to be still. I am a HUGE fan of stillness and slow living. I practice some form daily of slow and stillness. Then there are times you truly have to pull your big boots on and PUSH. This was one of those weeks. 

Go check out Anne from Raisie Bay and join in on the #WotW fun!!!

Creating Cozy~ Crescent Roll Cheesecake

Happy Friday! I had to do a 6-month checkup yesterday. I received some good news, but there are also some areas I need to improve. While I was there, I decided to work on a habit I have been trying to practice, which is using my time wisely and being less on my phone when I am waiting for things.

I am finishing up a book for my summer Christian Lady Book Club that I am hosting, and tonight is our final summer meet up. I will do a review on it soon! It was super good! It really ministered to my heart.    

Ohhhhhh........ Check out my bookmark! I started diamond painting this year. I love it. I made this bookmark in July. My mom has gotten me hooked. I have already created some beautiful things. She thought I might like it to help with my EMPTY NESTING. HAHA!!! Well, she was right. 

                                                      

 Do you like Magazines??? 

One of my favorite things I have been loving this past year is magazines.  They are almost a thing of the past BUT I'm aiming to keep them alive. HAHA! I have so many fond memories of my mom and granny having them on their coffee tables and stuffed in little reading baskets. My mom will fill a little basket for me when I come to visit. It means so much.  Here are a couple of my favorite current reads.

I love Bella Grace, Willow & Sage, Tea Time and Victoria.  AND yes, I like some of the older cheesy ones like Woman's World or First (something like that 😉) because these are the ones my mom had, and I remember always flipping through them.

                      

CREATING COZY

I was aiming for a cozy day after my appointments and errands. I love to listen to soft relaxing instrumental music. It was cooler today and so I decided to bake a dessert for my ladies book club meeting. There is nothing like soft music or jazz playing while I bake and cook! 

Do you like to listen to music, podcasts, or audio books when you are doing things?? I sometimes like just the QUIET, but usually when I bake and especially if I am craving cozy, then soft music it is!

You will read a lot about the love and creating of COZY and HYGGE Moments on this blog!!!  It is really a love language of mine. 😉 I have created my own love language and COZY is it!!!!!!!!

Doesn't this picture speak COZY?? I love COZY things. I think any time of year can be COZY. Even in the summer season. A lot of people think of fall and winter when they hear cozy. But COZY to me is a lifestyle. You can create it at any time, place, and season. Oh.....I just love the idea of COZY! 

  

Crescent Roll Cheesecake

2 cans of crescent rolls

2 room temp blocks of cream cheese

1 cup sugar

2 tsp vanilla

1/4 cup melted butter

cinnamon and sugar mixed to sprinkle on top

Preheat oven to 350* 

Spray a 9 by 13 pan with cooking spray

Press one of the cans of crescent rolls flat on the bottom of the pan 

Combine the sugar, cream cheese, vanilla and beat until creamy and fluffy. I used a KitchenAid mixer but any mixer will work

Spread this mixture on top of the crescent rolls and then layer the other can of crescent roll on top of that gently. Take the melted butter and gently brush the top with the butter and then sprinkle the cinnamon and sugar mixture on top. Bake 25-30 minutes. 

Let it cook for 30 minutes and serve up!

*I cannot take credit for creating this recipe. I have been making it for YEARS. I believe the first time I made it was in 2010 for an event. There are tons of recipes similar or identical floating around. I just know it by heart. 

I highly recommend adding strawberries to the top or mini chocolate chips to the cheese mixture to give it a little fun. 

I hope you all have wonderful weekend ahead!!

Blessings, 

Chrissy T

Wordless Wednesday ~ 1

No words needed....

Pop over to Comedy Plus and participate in Wordless Wednesday!

Blessings, 

Chrissy T

Empty Nester Adventures~ Renewing My Passion for Outdoors

Welcome!!!! **Yesterday, was the first post that I have made in a long time here in this little space. Lots of changes have taken place in my life. Please go check that post out to catch up.** 

NOBODY prepared me for this season in my life. Well, better said, I DID NOT PREPARE myself after years of homeschooling, homemaking, and investing as my number one career and ministry for this Empty Nest Season. It has been a pickle to navigate. I truly believe and know based on many of my peers that I am not alone. 

When I entered this season, I decided to refresh some passions that I have always had and hobbies I tried to have in the midst of motherhood, homeschooling, and homemaking but my time was always limited. AND NOW TIME is definitely more readily available.

I am still "busy" in a since as a Pastor's wife. I still keep the home and love homemaking. I still try to be readily available to our young adult children as they need. I volunteer for a non-profit agency. So, I do have "things" going on. But to be honest, I enjoy HOME. I enjoy SLOW LIVING. I enjoy STILL moments. But I also enjoy fellowship, outdoors, and cozy "hygge" type activities. I aim for a balance. If it was up to me, I would stay at home or in a forest on a trail all the time.

                                                  

                                     My solo retreat in January 2025 at a tree house in the woods.

With all that being said....I want to go BACK. LIKE JANUARY 2025 BACK! I want to add this here in my little space for memories and also share how my journey of navigating the Empty Nest has been. 

I have always been a fan of solo prayer retreats or small getaways to reset mentally and spiritually once a year if I can. I often did this as a homeschool mom to plan and refresh. I always benefited from this. So did my family. 

One of my passions I always had was hiking, nature walks and study and enjoying outdoors. As a family we often spent time on trails and nature walks, but as the kids got older the time became more limited, and those things got put on the back burner. 

Empty Nest loneliness hit me hard this past winter. After the holidays it was my first winter that I seemed all alone. It was lonely and it was weird. It was quiet. Yet...lots of noise was in my mind. I felt like I had no idea who I was, what to do next, and even questioned if I did right as a parent. It was a unique time. I know my identity is in Christ, but I still struggled with this new season. Up to this point I had been on several hiking trips and hiked up to 160 miles in 2024. Not all at once. I traveled out of the country and went to major bucket list hikes and places. Empty Nesting has benefits. *Smiles*  BUT there was still a strange silence and weird feeling once I would return home. 

I found a little treehouse, packed up my journal, Bible, books, snacks and hit the road to pray and seek the Lord's direction and grow in peace for my yearly solo retreat. This did wonders for my soul.  It had trails on the property I could enjoy. The treehouse spoke COZY in every area. I also visited a neat arboretum close by. Nature has a way to still your heart. Block out the distracting noise and makes me feel connected to the Lord in such a peaceful way. 

Hiking has become a regular part of my life now as an empty nester. I have learned so much on my hikes that often relate to my everyday life and spiritual walk. From perseverance, endurance, peace, being still, trust, learning to follow directions, and so much more. 

I hope you enjoyed your visit!!! I wanted to share a little look into what I have been doing this past year as I have navigated this One Season to the Next.....

If you are an empty nester.... what are some of your hobbies, passions, or interests that helped you during that new transition? If you are about to enter that season or on the threshold what are your thoughts?

Blessings,

Chrissy T

Wow.... Seasons Come and Go

 Hello to anyone that comes across this blog!! It has been a LONG TIME. Since I have posted. To be honest, so much has happened in my life that I could have a post every single day for the rest of 2025 and still couldn't articulate and share how my life has flipped, flopped, twisted and turned. It has been good, bad, terrible, hard, wonderful, adventurous, rocky, even downright awful, then also joy filled and faith building. 

I am now pretty much an empty nester. What that means is all of our children are now young adults and flew the nest at some point. Our oldest son has cancer and moved back home this June while we navigate that. He is 25. He rents a space from us and works a full-time job. He lives his own adult life but resides here while he manages his health.

We have 3 children which we homeschooled and had a wonderful time raising. Although, for one of our teens those teen years was extremely difficult. Christian homes and homeschooling doesn't always safeguard a perfect family. I wished it did but it did not for us. I want to be honest. Part of the twists and turns and one reason I stopped blogging. 

I originally started blogging in 2003-2004 when the blog world was POPPING. I held out until 2013 and took a long break and tried to get back into to it on and off after that, but I just couldn't because of the seasons in my life were always twisting and changing. 

In 2022, I launched a new name and blog. One Season to the Next...not realizing that name would TRULY be so significant in days, months, and years to come. 

Isn't it life? Our lives really are like the seasons that this world has. Seasons ebb and flow and can bring such wonderful things but also hard things. Each season in life is the same way. 

I am now at home with no children under foot. No more homeschool manuals and activities to run to. It is quiet. Quite nice and Quite hard and lonely too. It is mostly QUIET! It is a new season....

I miss writing and sharing my life. I have tried other platforms and never feel as fulfilled as I did when I blogged. I miss all those I use to blog with and catching up with their lives. I think FB, youtube, and instagram has taken the place of blogging as a whole maybe. But I want to cling to the good ole days. I don't know if I will come back to blogging. I may. But I wanted to really post for some reason. Maybe nobody will read this. Maybe someone will. Maybe that one comment is all I need to come back or remind me not to. 

This was cathartic either way. Coming to my old blog has made me nostalgic. Sigh. 

If any of my readers are still out there....I hope you are well!!!!

Sincere Blessings,

Chrissy T