Fall Festivities

Mum Mountain

2008-11-01T10:40:00.000-07:00

I've posted these photos on my Thanksgiving blog too...

http://www.traditionalturkey.blogspot.com/

I took these this morning on my way home from having breakfast with my sisters-in-law.

The 70's are baaack

2008-10-29T20:06:00.000-07:00

That's my Bryan dressed in his Halloween costume - love the Afro and chest hair!

The Last of the Photos

2008-10-27T18:43:00.001-07:00

And More...

2008-10-27T18:31:00.001-07:00

And More fun

2008-10-27T18:26:00.000-07:00

More Pumpkin Palooza Fun

2008-10-27T18:20:00.000-07:00

Technical Difficulties

2008-10-27T12:50:00.000-07:00

I'm having problems uploading photos. I'll try to post more later.
The day was absolutely perfect! Sunny and 65 degrees. Everyone had a blast!!

Pumpkin Palloza

2008-10-27T10:35:00.000-07:00

Beautiful Fall Day

2008-10-20T12:49:00.000-07:00

Bob left for archery hunting early this am, he'll be gone almost the entire week. I took today and tomorrow off to clean and have some time for myself. Today I washed and hung out about 5 loads of laundry, including curtains. Don't they look great on the line? I just couldn't resist taking a photo!!

Inside Halloween Decorations

2008-10-13T18:55:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the duplicate photos I can't deletethem without starting over . If your here looking for the tour, scroll down to see addtional photos from our front porch.

The Cake

2008-10-13T18:48:00.001-07:00

It's kind of a dark photo, but this is Bryan's birthday cake. It's so moist and delicious! He requested peanut butter icing. I posted a copy of the recipe on my other blog. Just double the recipe and bake in a bundt pan. http://traditionalturkey.blogspot.com/

The Overalls

2008-10-13T18:31:00.000-07:00

Can't believe that my baby is 20yrs old!

Sunday's Solitude

2008-10-05T16:13:00.000-07:00

What a beautiful fall day. The weather was perfect for:

Hanging sheets on the clothesline to dry
Making Stuffed Cabbage
Making Chili
Making German Potato Salad
Making Chocolate Chip Cookies
Spending time outside enjoying the sunshine
Reading a book
Watching the Eagles/taking a nap

I had a great day today, not too much pain. I had terrible pain on Tuesday. It radiated from under my ribs up to my collar bone. I immediately went to the Dr. and he diagnosed me with pleurisy. It's an inflammation of the lining of the lungs. It can be caused by a virus...and the only thing they give to treat it is Naproxen (an anti-inflammatory). It was pretty painful, every time I took a breath. But as I said, today was much better. I should be completely better in about another 10 days.

Have a great week, I'm off to update my other blogs...

Bryan's Birthday

2008-10-03T20:05:00.000-07:00

Our next festive event will be Bryan's Birthday, he'll be 20 on October 12th.

It's hard to believe just how fast time goes, but I'm sure that you all know the older we are the faster it goes. He's asked me to make a homemade chocolate cake with peanut butter icing. I barely got the words out of my mouth "What kind of cake do you" and he told me what he wanted. It's not a surprise, I think that's he's only asked for 2 other cakes in his entire life - Chocolate Chip Pound Cake and Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese icing.

I'm not sure if he wants to go out for dinner to celebrate or have me cook something special.

We're getting him Carhart bibbed overalls. Sounds exciting hunh? But that's what he asked for.

The mums I bought on my birthday are in full bloom on the back porch, and just starting to bloom on the front porch. I love seeing the fall colors come to life!

Pumpkin Palooza

2008-10-03T19:57:00.000-07:00

Well we've coordinated our schedules and have chosen October 26 for our annual Pumpkin Palooza.

We'll do it in the afternoon, so that if it's nice out, we can make the pumpkin mess outside.

The Menu:

Tomato Pie

Hot Dogs & Sauerkraut

Chili

Vegi's and Warm Pizza Dip

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Dirt Cups with gummy worms

Cider and Water

I need to make the award ribbons and buy a few inexpensive prizes. I'll be sure and post photos.

New Recipe

2008-09-29T16:58:00.000-07:00

(1) Can of Pumpkin Pie Mix plus one box of Angel Food Cake Mix.

That's it, no water, nothing else.

Mix, bake as on the box.

Enjoy!

From My Front Porch Lookin' In

2008-09-24T15:56:00.000-07:00

I'm going photo crazy... I can't help myself. I took these of the front porch yesterday.

Happy Fall Y'all

2008-09-22T16:41:00.000-07:00

And just because I finally figured out how to get the photos from the computer to my blog... I've added my Birthday flowers and the lap quilt that my Mum bought me.

My Darling Girls

2008-09-22T16:38:00.000-07:00

I did it!

2008-09-22T16:07:00.000-07:00

The photo on my header Fall Festivities is of my kitchen counter!!! And the one above is of the apples from the orchard.

The Sauce

2008-09-22T15:54:00.000-07:00

Can't you just smell the Cinnamon?

The House Smells Terrific

2008-09-21T15:57:00.000-07:00

Well, the day was perfect for making applesauce. It was so cool and crisp this morning.

We went to Ringing Hill Orchard and bought a bushel basket of McIntosh Apples and a gallon of cider. After the orchard we went to a local farm stand where I caved in and bought a few pumpkins. I just couldn't help myself...

3 Baby Boos

2 blue pumpkins that I have stacked on top of each other on the front steps

I also bought the girls some Jack-B-Littles and a few bumpy gourds

Let's hope they don't get mushy.

We ended up making (2) Jewish Apple Cakes and 4 quarts of Applesauce.

Then, I made (2) roast chickens, mashed potatoes & gravy, sweet peas, brussel sprouts, broccoli salad and cranberry sauce for dinner. I love it when the weather turns cooler, as I said before my thoughts go to comfort foods and baking.

I'm one step closer with showing you photos... I have the photos on my computer, however I just need to figure out how to post them:)

It's Coming

2008-09-19T05:39:00.000-07:00

Applesauce Sunday is this weekend! I'm picking up Alison and Nicole at 7:30. We'll head to breakfast, then to the orchard. I also want to stop at a nearby farm stand. They have the most beautiful sunflowers!

Our plans are to make the sauce and (3) Jewish Apple Cakes, then do a bit of scrapbooking. I'll take some photos and then have Bryan help me load. I have several that I would like to share already from other days, etc.

By the way it was down in the 40's last night - good snuggle weather.

Birthday Girl

2008-09-11T19:05:00.000-07:00

What a beautiful Fall day. This year my birthday fell on a Sunday. Bob took me to Lambertville, NJ to the Golden Nugget Flea Market. Has anyone ever been there? Very high-end antiques, beautiful paintings, jewelry, furniture, but nothing in my price range. Except... a beautiful bouquet of fresh flowers from an organic farm. They still look wonderful! I took a picture of them with my NEW DIGITAL CAMERA (yes, he did hear all of the hints that I dropped). However, I need to have Bryan show me how to download them to the computer. Bob, the boys and their girls took me out for dinner too. We had such a great time!

Monday, my Mum and I went on our shopping trip to Lancaster. We had a terrific day, a lot of laughing, a little crying, but it was great to be together. She bought me a lap quilt made by a local Amish woman (I have a photo of that too). The quilt is coming in handy as the temps at night have been in the 50's. I bought 4 beautiful mums for $13. They are huge. I have 2 in my fern box on the front porch and 2 on the back porch. Yeah fall is finally here. There were fields of bright orange pumpkins everywhere. The local farm stands were overflowing with watermelons, tomatoes, peaches, cucumbers, pumpkins and mums. I resisted the urge to buy pumpkins. I'm afraid that they will rot before our Pumpkin Palooza.

The Canadian Geese are gathering on the creek. Every morning you can hear them honking - just another sign that fall is here.

And so we wait...

Hannah is Knockin at the door!

2008-09-06T05:12:00.000-07:00

Well, DH is trying to out run the rain. He and his friend are out fishing and hoping that the rain holds out until noon. Keep you fingers crossed.

This week we were back to the hazy hot and humid weather of the low 90's. However, Hannah is supposed to bring in a cold-front. I sure hope so...

I'm just put a pork loin in the oven to make into BBQ. I'll take this to my parent's house this afternoon. They were taking care of my Uncle since last October, and he passed away this morning. They are going to have a ton of company, so I immediately think "feed the masses".

L

September is Looming

2008-08-20T16:28:00.000-07:00

It's hard to believe that next weekend is Labor Day, but I'm definitely ready for a 3 day weekend. I think that we'll do a small picnic one of the days, do some antiquing one of the days and play it by ear the other day. I will probably do some fall decorating next weekend too.

I actually have (2) 3 day weekends in a row...the next Sunday is my b-day so I get the following Monday off from work - yeah! My Mum and I are planning a shopping trip to Lancaster, PA. We do it every year, it's about 1hr west of here. It's great, we stop at roadside stands for fresh produce - cabbage, tomatoes, other fall veggies. I even buy a mum or two even though it's always way to early. But, I can't resist and they look great on the porch in my fern basket!

We always stop at Eldreth Pottery and I get one or two pieces pf the blue pottery to add to my collection. I usually get a Santa, and this year I'm thinking that I'll get a pumpkin too. It's such a great day and I love spending time with my Mum. One year she couldn't get off work, so my Dad came with me. Just imagine a 60+ year old man going from store to store, stopping to buy produce, etc. He's the best! I took him to the Creamery for lunch (Strasburg, PA). They make homemade waffle cones in the front of the shop and have the best hand dipped ice cream. He was in heaven!!!

September also signals Fall cleaning...

*Windows and curtains need to be washed
*Rugs to be cleaned
*Walls to be washed
*Blankets and Comforters to be washed and hung outside to dry

You name it, it needs to be cleaned. I love to have the windows open and we get a lot of dirt from the road that builds up over the summer. I know it sounds odd, but I prefer Fall cleaning over Spring (although I do both). But the Fall invigorates me!!

Speaking of all this cleaning and washing...the dishes are calling my name...

Time Flies

2008-08-15T14:13:00.000-07:00

Oh my, where did the summer go? Not that I'm complaining... I do love summer's festivities - Fourth of July, picnics, swimming, vacations at the beach, lazy days spent reading outside, etc.

But now I'm ready for the cool weather, football games, the fall leaves, and mums! The kids go back to school next week, which makes Fall seem even closer. We've been having some cooler nights lately with temp.'s in the 60's, so the air conditioners been getting a break.

I've been organizing our family reunion 9/13. Last year we decided it was time to start this tradition again. Years ago (when my Gram was alive), we used to have a huge reunion. This reunion is descendants from my Grandparents and was a huge success last year with over 50 people attending. It should be fun again this year, although it has been a lot of work.

We've set the date for Applesauce Sunday (9/21), now to think of a couple other fun things to do that day too!

Too much to do so little time...

Cool Weather

2008-05-18T15:18:00.000-07:00

We're having some cool weather this weekend, making me go from sandals to sneakers ~darn.
I hate to have my feet confined.

Although the cool weather turns my thoughts to the fall and baking. I made a mayonnaise cake for Bob's birthday tomorrow (46yrs), which made the house smell yummy and took the chill off. There's no way I'm turning the heat back on! I just prepaid our oil for the winter and it took a big bite out of the savings account!! Tonight I'll make the chocolate butter cream frosting.

I never listed my plans for this month's Great Pumpkin Day so, here goes...

Begin plans for Pumpkin Palooza Day
Set date for our Fall shopping extravaganza

Pumpkin Palooza Day ~

The day that our sons, their girlfriends and my nieces all get together and carve pumpkins. Everyone votes on the winners for each category it's a blast. I hope to invite more people this year. This will be the third annual day.

Time to make the frosting...

Applesauce Sunday

2008-05-10T11:50:00.000-07:00

My love of the fall and everything that goes with it begins in September. Our local orchard has the most wonderful apples and apple cider. Every year in late September my nieces ( Miss Puddin' and Schooch Bug) and I have applesauce Sunday.

Early in the morning, we go to the orchard and buy 2 gallons of cider and 2 bushels of Macintosh apples. It's a really fun day, we make the applesauce (freezes well), and several Jewish Apple Cakes. I keep 1 cake, they take 1 cake home and we give 1 cake to Pappy and Grammy.

Mmm...I'm getting hungry.