It's beginning to look at lot like Christmas!

I can't believe that Christmas is in 20 days! This is my absolute favorite time of year! Here are some pictures of the last two weeks!

The tree is up and Ethan put the star on top!

The tree is done!

Keith and Kristen Getty came to Southern for a Christmas concert. It was fabulous! Honestly, it was one of the most worshipful events I have been to. Celebrating the birth of our Savior with hundreds of fellow believers was truly a blessing!

If you have never heard the Getty's music stop right now and go look them up on iTunes!

It's kind of small but this is a picture of Southerns chapel! 

The most exciting thing that has happened over the past few days is that baby Levi was born this past Saturday! Our great friends Brian and Ashley welcomed him into the world at 1:38pm! Levi is healthy and so beautiful! If I don't get to see him every few days I start having withdrawals! We are so excited for Brian and Ashley! Their friendship has been priceless to Ethan and I are now the fantastic 4 is the fab 5!

Sweet baby Levi! 

Surprise visit home for Thanksgiving!

Ethan and I drove home to surprise our families for Thanksgiving! It was so much fun to see all of their reactions and it was so good to be at home! I didn't take a lot pictures but here are a few!

4 generations!

Dede, Nana, Mom, and myself

Sitting with Ethan's great-grandma!

Thad, Shannon, Mama Doris, Ethan and myself 

Cousin Rebekah!

Shopping with Abby!

Hanging out with Apryl!

Cousin Jennifer, myself, Apryl and Abby!

The Rollins & Mom's visit to Louisville- November 2012

The Rollins clan and my Mom made the long drive from Florida to Kentucky last weekend and I could not have been more excited about their visit! It is always nice to have family here with us so they can see where we live, work, go to church, and go to school. I am so thankful for their willingness to be in the car for hours just to see us! The kids are getting so big and changing so fast. They are so sweet and we loved our bonding time with them. We had a great visit and were sad to see them go. Thankfully we only have 6 weeks until we go home for Christmas! Here are some pictures from their visit!

                                                                                                                                                                           

Ashley's Baby Shower-October 2012

I had the privilege of hosting Ashley's baby shower last month! The theme was "Ahoy It's A Boy!". Ashley and her husband Brian have become really great friends and Ethan and I am so thankful for their friendship! Their baby boy is due on Christmas day and Ethan and I are hoping that he comes before we head home for our Christmas vacation....crossing our fingers :) Here are a few pictures from Ashley's shower!

The food table

Drink table

Mommy-to-be and I!

Mums...Apples...Changing leaves

October has come and gone and we are approaching much colder weather here. October was a beautiful month with lovely crisp weather and beautifully colored leaves. Here are a few pictures to re-cap our month!

Ethan and I went to our favorite farm and bought the yummiest apples around! I enjoyed making an apple pie!

 Southern is gorgeous this time of year! The mums around this fountain were my favorite!

I enjoyed studying before my class out on the patio at Southern!

Koinonia is a ministry that Southern has for women. This month we had a craft night! It was a blast!

Ashley and I with our crafts!

 The beautiful leaves!

Most of the leaves have fallen and this morning I had to scrape ice off my car. No fun. However, with the colder weather we are looking forward to Christmas and our vacation home! 

That's all for now folks.

It's whats for dinner......

Herb Crusted Pork Chops

Recipe adapted from Cooking Light

4 boneless pork chops, fat trimmed

2 Tbsp Dijon mustard

1/2 cup whole wheat Panko breadcrumbs

1 Tbsp fresh thyme, chopped

1 Tbsp fresh parsley, minced(I didn't have an parsley so I just left this out)

1/8 tsp. salt

1/8 tsp. ground black pepper

1 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.  Rub mustard evenly over pork chops.  Combine panko, thyme, parsley, salt and pepper in a large bowl and dredge pork chops in panko mixture.

Heat a large ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat.  Add oil to pan and swirl to coat.  Add pork chops, saute for 2 minutes or until golden brown.  Turn pork over and place skillet in oven for about 8 minutes or until pork reaches 145 degrees in the center. 

From the blog of http://www.eat-yourself-skinny.com

Garlic Oven Fries

INGREDIENTS

• 4 medium red potatoes (2 1/2 to 3 inch), each cut in 8 wedges
• 2 teaspoons olive or vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon dried basil leaves
• 1 teaspoon garlic salt

DIRECTIONS

1. Heat oven to 500°F. Spray a metal pan with cooking spray. In medium bowl, toss potatoes with oil to coat. Sprinkle with basil and garlic salt. Arrange in single layer in baking pan.

2. Bake uncovered 15 to 18 minutes, stirring once, until potatoes are tender but crisp on outside.

**Red potatoes have a slightly waxy texture and retain their shape better when cooked than russet potatoes do.

This recipe is from my friend Carlee's blog! http://carleejoy.blogspot.com

Happy Fall from the Crowders!

Hello October

Time if flying by. Can you believe that Christmas is just 12 weeks away? This excites me! 

Ethan and I have successfully made it to fall break at Southern. Ethan is working extremely hard right now and he is probably at the hardest part of the semester. He is taking 4 classes and one of them is Greek. This is tough and I am so proud of how hard he is pushing himself. He stays up late and wakes up early working on homework and writing papers. He is very diligent. He is enjoying his classes(well maybe not greek...haha) and he likes all of his professors. At this point in the semesters things are busy so we make it a point to have date nights and I also enjoy studying with him at the library.

 I am really enjoying my SWI class. It is pushing me and challenging me in my walk with Christ and I have been the opportunity to sit under the leadership of Maria Moore. Her husband is Russell Moore and he is the President of The School of Theology at Southern. I have loved spending time with her and the other 7 girls in my small group. 

We are excited because we are getting some visitors in about 6 weeks. Some of my family will be driving up to spend a long weekend with us! I am counting down the days :)

We have begun making our plans for Christmas. We are thrilled that we get to go home and see all of our family. There is nothing like being home for Christmas!

Prayer request: Ethan is looking for a new job. There has been some issues with flexibility at his current job and that simply does not work with his school schedule and his need to take as many classes as possible in order to finish in a timely manor. Please pray with us as we are trying to trust in the Lord and his timing. He is in control. He is faithful. He is always good and gracious.

The weather is beginning to cool down here and I have had my fall decorations out for a few weeks now!

I have been asking Ethan for a pumpkin for weeks now and the other night he came home with these little guys. I love them!

 Our house is currently filled with the wonderful smell of Apple Cider. Thank you Yankee Candle.

Our God has been so faithful to Ethan and I. He never ceases to amazing me and His Gospel continues to mold my heart. I am thankful that as the seasons change I see His purpose for the different seasons in our life. He is our creator and He knows what is best for us. He is the glorious Christ!