Gathered thoughts

Galentines Party Planning ❤️

Galentines is a fun way to celebrate Valentines Day with your very best girlfriends❤️

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Here is a fun checklist to help you plan a great party. I also created a fun Galentines Bingo to add some fun to your gettogether that’s perfect for all ages!

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To get your free printable, like this post ,follow us and comment Galentines ❤️

Gathered thoughts, Marriage

Valentines Day Bucket List

Here’s a fun Valentines Bucketlist for you and your ❤️
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What are you most looking forward to this Valentine’s Day?

coffee, pnw, Review

Fika @Farm 12 Valentine’s Treats

Check out this fun cold brew we ordered at @farm12puyallup Fika. The Cupid’s Cold Brew …yumm❤️ It was so good and even had tiny heart sprinkles!

They have a fun Valentine’s Special Menu ,but only for a limited time , so grab a friend and go!!

And check out all these amazing treats!!

DIY, Gift

Free Printable Kids Reward Tickets …great for Valentines and much more

Super cute printable tickets that are perfect gifts for kids of all ages ❤️To get your free printable , follow our blog and message us with a 🎟️ emoji or follow us on instagram /facebook and send us a 🎟️ emoji and we will send you your free printable.

Book, Review

Porcupine Cupid ~ Children’s Book

We are always looking for good books to read for the different seasons and holidays . It’s so hard to find unique ones and so when we found this , I knew I needed to share!
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This is such a cute book! Beautifully illustrated and such a cute story of love ❤️. We will be adding this to our personal collection of Valentine books.

DIY, Gift, Marriage

Valentine Love Tickets ~ Perfect Gift for Valentines

Check out how cute these Valentine love tickets are❤️


They are the perfect gift and guess what? They are free! You just need to follow our blog or follow us on Instagram @redeemingbeautyfamilyadventures ,then like this post and comment ❤️ below and I will send your free printable to you. Super easy and your Valentines gift is already done! Yay!!


They are great to tuck into a card or a box of chocolates ❤️ You can use all of them or just a few.. My favorite is the outdoor adventure one… hmmm .. maybe I’ll print 12 of those and have one for each month? How fun would that be!



How will you use them?

Family activity, Gathered thoughts

Valentines Day Traditions

I originally posted this back in 2021 and we still love these little mailboxes ❤️
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They are one of our favorite Valentine’s traditions. We put little treats or notes leading up to Valentine’s in them . They create excitement in sharing and showing love to each other .
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We are also still loving how these wool balls from @strandcreativeco they add a whimsical touch to our fireplace mantle and look great with our mailboxes💜They are still in great shape and definitely a favorite .
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Do you have any Valentines traditions? Share them below. I’d love to hear!

family adventures, hiking, pnw

Gold Creek Pond Snowshoe

Gold Creek Pond Snowshoe is a perfect beginner Snowshoe ✨

It’s located 1 hour from Seattle, and offers some of the best winter views . Check the trail conditions and snowfall before you head out. I always like to check WTA and AllTrails for recent reviews of the trail so I know more of what to expect.

Details of the Snowshoe
📍Gold Creek Pond
✅ Snow Park Permit required
🥾 Elevation Gain 45ft (we came in at 72ft)
⭐️ Distance 1.2 mile (we came in at 1.9 )
🏔️ Difficulty easy

Stats are based on AllTrails

One of the bridges we crossed

If you are planning to visit Gold Creek Pond, here are a few things you should know before you go:

It’s in Snoqualmie Pass, WA
You will take the Hyak exit
If the road is closed , add 1/2 mile to your distance.
Dog Friendly
Microspikes /Snowshoes are advised
Roads may be icy and may have snow so be prepared with chains in case they are needed.

Frozen Lake

Check out our Snowshoe Adventure at Whitepass if you want to add another Snowshoe to your list this winter

coffee, family adventures, Review

Seattle Starbucks Reserve Roastery ~ Holiday Menu

The Starbucks Reserve in Seattle never disappoints ☕️

We went right before Christmas to try some of the holiday flavors, like the Starbucks Reserve peppermint mocha, which by the way was delicious! The eggnog cookie was a fun treat that had the sprinkled star, the raspberry cornetto was delish , and my husband always looks forward to the Whiskey Cold Brew when we visit.

Check out how they serve the Whiskey Cold brew with the old fashioned ice cube.🧊

Want a tip on to save for parking? Comment coffee below and I’ll send you how we save on parking ❤️

Book, Book Club, Review

2024 Book Club Recap

2024 Book Club Reads ❤️

Wow! What a year we had! As you can tell we read all genres this past year . I definitely came through these with some of my new favorite authors ❤️ So many of them gave such different perspectives into my faith.

Each book was unique and I love that! Just an FYI on how we decide as a book club what to read – Our curator gathers 3 books for our whole club to vote on when we gather once a month to discuss the current book we have read. We then announce the next months book once we have taken a paper vote. Some months , there is a clear winner and others we need a tiebreaker .

Below you will find a few highlights of things I loved about each book or that I found challenging . Think of it as a quick review of each book. ⬇️

⭐️ The Prophetess -Loved how the author brought a full story to Deborah which gave me something to ponder. It was fictional but made me see her in a whole new light.

⭐️ The Italian Ballerina -One of my favorite reads! It gave me a glimpse into WW2 that I had never explored with the Syndrome K sickness and the London ballet stage. Loved all the historical references throughout and the beauty from such heartache.

Check out my full review here ⬇️

⭐️ Yesterday’s Tides – Another one of my favorite picks from 2024. I discovered something I had never heard of , Okracoke Island . I loved how the author combined WW1 to WW2 in such a beautiful way. We also had the opportunity to zoom with the author during our book club which was a fun treat!

Check out my full review here ⬇️

⭐️ The Extraordinary Deaths of Mrs. Kip – Wow! I want to be a Mrs.Kip! Such a great read and left me feeling that it is never to late to share Gods love❤️

⭐️ The Forgotten Life of Eva Gordon – This one started out slow but I was so thankful that I stuck with it. We all need a neighbor like Mabel . I may just one day step into a funeral to celebrate the life of someone I have never met because of her .

⭐️ Drawn in Ash– This one was out of my comfort zone but I’m so glad I read it. It took a bit to understand all that was happening, but gave a glimpse of how things can change when we spend time talking to others instead of going with preconceived ideas. It is based on the story of Esther.

⭐️ The Number of Love – A beautiful story of the secretive Room 40 during WW2 and the power of prayer.

⭐️ Blink of an Eye– Thrilling but left me wanting a better ending . We discovered in book club that there are two editions of this and the first was better in our opinion

⭐️ Daughter of Eden – This fictional story of Adam and Eve gave me so much to ponder ! It gave me lots to think of with how pride and selfishness separated the relationship with God and left me yearning to have what Adam and Eve had before the fall.

⭐️ The Screwtape Letters – This is such a deep book . I have read it several times and each time get something different from it. It really highlights the spiritual warfare that is all around us and from the enemy’s perspective.

⭐️ The Last Exchange -This is such a beautiful unexpected love story . It is thrilling and just when you think it is all predictable. Watch out the turn you never saw coming is right around the corner. One of my favorite quotes of the book is “A life laid down is better than one picked up.

⭐️ We Three Kings -This Christmas Novella follows three generations of the Weise Family as they seek Jesus throughout each one. This was the perfect Christmas Book.

I hope our Book Club list from 2024 helps encourage you to start your own Book Club or gives you some new books to read ❤️ I would love to hear if you already do a Book Club and how yours works or if you would like to hear more about how we do ours send me a message .

And yes our 2025 Book Club has already started! Looking forward to a New Year and some new reads!