Our cozy round patio fire pit {with new chairs!}

I'm so excited to share our finished fire pit area with you! We made some changes big and small recently and now it's ready for nights around the fire! 

We had a backyard patio installed last year and have been updating it since. I gave you a tour of the patio earlier this summer and then later we installed cafe lights over the entire patio as well. (See that tutorial if you don't have trees to attach your lights to!)

Last year I bought clearanced plastic Adirondack chairs to go around the fire pit: 

We started with six and after a few storms were down to four. The plastic was fine for what we paid, but we were always planning on something more substantial long term. 

SO many of you mentioned your love of POLYWOOD when I talked about our plan to upgrade. I looked into them (and with your recommendations), I was sold. The fact that they are an Indiana company and all products are made in the USA sealed the deal!

I was so grateful to work with them to finish up our fire pit area...we could NOT be more thrilled with these chairs!:

We chose the Vineyard Curveback Adirondack chairs in mahogany and they are perfection. They are crazy comfortable and roomy. This option also sits up a bit higher so they are much easier to get in and out of. That is huge detail for us! 

They arrived more than half way assembled -- once I got in a groove it only took about 15 minutes each to get them fully together. These chairs are SOLID and heavy enough that they don't move in high winds: 

The lovely curved back was just the traditional look I wanted. 

Our favorite thing about these is the comfort -- and that they are so solid and don't move around. When we sat in the plastic ones they would scooch around every time we moved. 

We are SO thrilled with how this spot has turned out!:

We had a few evergreens planted this fall, and this is just the start of our plans for trees and plants. Having this big backyard to work with is so much fun and intimidating! We're taking it slow so we don't make any expensive mistakes. 

These chairs (and all of the items POLYWOOD offers) are made of recycled materials -- they use landfill and ocean-bound plastics to make their products. They recycle an average of 400,000 plastic milk jugs every DAY to make this beautiful outdoor furniture!:

They are also made to hold up in any weather -- so no need to put them away for the winter. This is HUGE for us. We may purchase covers for them eventually, but they aren't necessary. They won't fade in the hot sun either, which is important for us because this spot gets all of the elements. 

Last week I added another layer of bricks to the fire pit so that it's a bit more substantial -- the little extra height feels like a big difference! Plus now it's the perfect height to prop up our feet:

See how we built that fire pit safely and the little detail our contractors added to the patio in this spot. 

One of my favorite details of these chairs is the width of the armrests -- plenty of room for a wine glass or a snack! ;) 

The furniture has the look and weight of wood, but without the upkeep. 

I did my research about POLYWOOD and their product and was honored to work with them. We are so pleased with this product and I couldn't wait to tell you about them. 

Our fire pit area is so cozy and comfortable now -- we have the comfy seating, warm fire and lights for ambience. What more could we need?: 

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These are definitely an investment -- but we after hearing from so many of you and doing my own research online, I found SO many happy customers who all say they are 100 percent worth it. We've had ours for six weeks now and completely agree. 

Plus, they have a TWENTY year warranty. This covers splintering, cracking, peeling and more. It's hard to find that kind of warranty on anything these days!

I already have a list of fun projects for our patio for next year, but for now we will be enjoying this beautiful space: 

You can find those adorable fall pillow covers here. They were a birthday gift from my sister. :) 

P.S. Make sure you visit the actual POLYWOOD site when shopping -- there are many lookalikes out there that don't offer the same quality or warranty. 

I worked with POLYWOOD in exchange for some free product. If you are looking four outdoor furniture I can't recommend this brand enough. 

See more of our home here. To shop items in our home, click here! Never miss a post by signing up to get posts via email. 

Simple and delicious pumpkin bread recipe

Because I'm fully in the fall spirit, I was on the search for a good pumpkin bread recipe a few weeks ago. I found this super easy one online and of course had to share it with you. You know if I'm sharing a recipe it's SUPER delicious and really easy. :)

I made some slight adjustments to this recipe to fit our tastes better. I think it would be SO good with raisins too, so I added those (and some others) as an option as well. The ingredients are pretty basic and easy to find! 

This post may contain affiliate links for your convenience. 

See my policies and disclosure page for more information.

Here are the ingredients (grouped by how you mix them): 

1 1/2 cup flour

1 tsp salt

1 cup sugar

1 tsp baking soda

1 cup pumpkin puree

1/2 cup olive oil (canola or vegetable are fine)

2 eggs, beaten

1/4 cup water

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp nutmeg

1/2 tsp allspice

Optional: 

1/2 tsp apple pie spice

1/2 cup walnuts

1/2 cup raisins

1/2 cup chocolate chips

And the steps for preparation: 

    1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 

    2.  You will need two bowls for this recipe. Sift the first four ingredients together in one bowl.

    3.  In separate bowl combine the pumpkin, olive oil, eggs, water, spices and walnuts or other optional additions:

           

     4.  Mix the two bowls together. Don't mix too much. Mine ends up not quite as thick as oatmeal (pictured above). 

     5.  Pour into sprayed 9x5x3 loaf pan and back for 50 to 60 minutes. Or make muffins -- the mix makes 12 and they are perfect out of the oven in 25 minutes. You'll know when they are done when you put a toothpick into the bread and it comes out clean. 

I use this muffin tin and it's perfect for this pumpkin bread!: