AppleJack Pumpkin Patch

Destination Pumpkin Patch. .

Was the order of the day one chilly autumn morn. .

Twelve cousins (out of 14). .

4 mamas. .

and one grandma. .

Met at a pumpkin patch. .

Where about FOUR HUNDRED other people. .

were enjoying their Saturday as well!

It was a BEAUTIFUL day. .

And it had been several years since any of my kids have enjoyed a place like this!!

I was amazed at all the activities available for the kids. .

The H-U-G-E slide was a big hit. .

But then. .

so was this ginormous tarp that had airflow under it to cause a trampoline effect. .

Even Devin loved it. .

Although, maybe a little bit more when these three cousins arrived!!

In fact, when the older boys arrived. .

We didn't see them for a LONG time as they tromped through the corn maize playing hide and seek!!

They climbed the hay mountain. .

Rode the zip line. .

Giggled their way through this one. .

The RAT RACER!!

We laughed and laughed. .

Even the little ones could make it work!

There were duck races. .

And of COURSE. .

The pumpkin patch!!

It was a lot of work to choose JUST the right one. .

But they each did. .

Eventually!!

After riding the hayrack back to the area where the activities were. .

They started ALL over again!!

Who knew. .

That one lil punkin patch. .

could provide HOURS of entertainment. .

And MILES of ground covered by little feet!!

And the bigger feet. .

That had to follow them everywhere!!

 

We are eager for that ONE night of the year. .

where eating candy AS dinner. .

Is a totally acceptable concept!!

 

Next up. .

The annual Halloween bash!!

Enjoy your weekend!!

Happy Fall, Ya'll!!

I've been missing in action around my blog lately!!

Lots going on for sure!

This one has had LOTS of things going lately. .

He had his senior pictures done a few weeks back. .

Only 60 edited prints that we will have to choose from now. .

Can you spell. .

I-M-P-O-S-S-I-B-L-E??

Yeah!

Me too!

Cami was taking pictures of Becca taking pictures :-)

He and I went to Beloit last week to check out their Vo-tech school. .

We loved it. .

From the program facilities and instructors. .

All the way down to the indoor pool and cafeteria!!

Seems like he will be studying carpentry and heating/air for the next two years!

 

Graduation packets and invitations lists. .

Scholarship information and ACT scores. .

Musical practices and 4-H activities. .

AND. .

social life!!

This guy. .

Is mostly busy with his social life. .

He has been working after school with his dad. .

And studying hard.

He is also starting to think about post-graduation options. .

But mostly is concerned with his girlfriend!

He is our official chauffeur. .

And makes sure his sister gets to her after school church group on Wednesday!

Now he will also be getting Devin picked up after his practices.

Devin has his FIRST basketball practice TODAY. .

We have never engaged in pee wee sports. .

So the opportunity to now get to be a part of that game. .

Is pretty exciting to him!!

He's really been enjoying 6th grade. .

And is on a leadership team as well. .

He is in a close family competition with his oldest brother for the "most extroverted!"

And wants to be a part of EVERYTHING!!

Little girl. .

Has had a very exciting week. .

With lots of things to "count down."

We got to go see her "adopted" sister perform in a college music program. .

We met all the far, far away cousins Saturday. .

at a really fun pumpkin patch (photos will come later). .

And our annual Halloween bash was Sunday afternoon. .

WAY more excitement than one little 6 year old girl should have!!

The younger two had a pumpkin decorating contest at school last week. .

Seemed a little early. .

But glad it is out of the way!

Devin took 1st place in his age group with his carved pumpkin. .the photo isn't great. .

But his jack-o-lantern has eaten the kid who was attached to the leg and shoe!!

This little girly-girl. .

Continues surprising her mom lately. .

With her tomboy ideas. .

She chose her brothers pirate costume to wear for Halloween over her princess dresses. .

And she opted to make a FOOTBALL painted pumpkin!!

She did ALL the work herself. .

And got 1st place in her age group of unassisted pumpkin artists!

TWO happy kids!

Tristan and I have been going through his senior pictures and our family pictures. .

Considering which will be blown up. .

Which will be wallet sized to give away. .

Christmas cards. .

Graduation invitations. .

AHHHHH. .

SO much to think about!!

I can't WAIT to show you all of  my favorite pictures from our session. .

But I need to find a little time to upload them to my computer!!

Hers are MUCH better than the ones I snapped. .

And were a LOT of fun to look through!!

The weather has been DELICIOUS here. .

nice brisk mornings, warm afternoons, and cool evenings!!

I'm picking tomatoes by the plenty now. .

And SALSA day is coming up next week!!

I love spring because of the promises of new life. .

But I LOVE fall. .

for the reprieve in the temperatures. .

the VIVID colors in the landscapes. .

the change over to comfort foods. .

And long, lazy evenings curl up in bed and read and study!!

Wishing you all a FANTASTIC Wednesday!!

More fun photos of our life to come. .

Hopefully sooner than later!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Psalm 100:4

Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise;

give thanks to him and praise his name.

I've been thinking for the last few days about what I am REALLY thankful for. Of course, there are the obvious things. .my faith, my family, our friends, a warm home, my work. .and a multitude of God's provisions for me. I wanted to go beyond the obvious, and reflect on something deeper. There are so many things to be truly thankful!! I finally chose to be prayerfully thankful for mercy. 

Life is hard. .REALLY hard. We're not perfect. .we're human. .ALL of us! We get some things right. .and we screw up plenty of other opportunities. .if you are like me. .it occurs on a daily. .if not hourly basis!! I find it so hard to overcome my "human-ness."
But. .

Great is His faithfulness, His mercies are new each day. Lamentations 3:23
That's my favorite scripture verse in the whole Bible!

The dictionary definition of mercy goes a little bit like this. .

mer·cy/ˈmərsē/Noun:

1.Compassion or forgiveness shown toward someone whom it is within one's power to punish or harm: "the boy was begging for mercy".

2.An event to be grateful for, esp. because its occurrence prevents something unpleasant or provides relief from suffering.

Despite all the things I do wrong. .all the situations I could have handled differently, but chose not to. .all of the times that I have been a person I wouldn't even want as my child. .Despite ALL that..God continues to provide for my needs and those of my family. He has the POWER to punish me regularly for my shortcomings and downright disobedience. .but He DOESN'T!! That is mercy!!  Not only does He not sentence me as I might sentence my kids. .but He also provides for many of my desires. .which are usually different from my NEEDS! WOW! I would love to be a parent like that. .and I am so thankful that I have an eternal Father like that!

Maybe you have read 103:8-14 before with your own eyes. .and maybe you haven't. .Those promising verses follow. .I know how easy it is to skim through the words only half reading. .but I challenge you all to read them. .twice if you can. .and really consider what David was telling us when he wrote those attributes of our heavenly Father.

Psalm 103:8-14

New Living Translation (NLT)

8 The Lord is compassionate and merciful,

slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love.

9 He will not constantly accuse us,

nor remain angry forever.

10 He does not punish us for all our sins;

he does not deal harshly with us, as we deserve.

11 For his unfailing love toward those who fear him

is as great as the height of the heavens above the earth.

12 He has removed our sins as far from us

as the east is from the west.

13 The Lord is like a father to his children,

tender and compassionate to those who fear him.

14 For he knows how weak we are;

he remembers we are only dust

I am SO thankful that each day, God wipes my slate clean and lets me try again. And that, mercifully, He still loves me as much at the end of the day as He did at the beginning of the day.

 

1 Chronicles 16:34 reminds us to Give thanks to the Lord for He is good. .His mercy endures FOREVER!

I would be honored if you would take a moment and comment about something you are truly thankful for today!
Blessings and lots of love on this wonderful celebration of Thankfulness!

Heavenly Father, on Thanksgiving Day

We bow our hearts to You and pray.

We give You thanks for all You've done

Especially for the gift of Jesus, Your Son.

For beauty in nature, Your glory we see

For joy and health, friends and family,

For daily provision, Your mercy and care

These are the blessings You graciously share.

So today we offer this response of praise

With a promise to follow You all of our days.

--Mary Fairchild

Happy Thanksgiving!

Monster Munch (better late than never)

I haven't had time to get this post up yet, but we found a recipe so yummy that I wanted to share it with you, and to be sure that I can find the recipe when I want to make it next fall. We like snack mixes at our house. .you can imagine how much snack food 4 growing children consume.  While not particularly healthy, this snack mix was especially delicious, and it would make great Halloween gifts or handouts for ravenous tricksters.

Our higher level cooking kids were scheduled for a meeting last Friday.  The plan was to make pumpkin rolls.  I decided that we needed another easy project to work on while waiting for the pumpkin rolls to cool enough to put filling into.  I was actually searching for another recipe I had seen years ago--but found this one instead!  We loved it.

The recipe started with popcorn (did you know that October is national popcorn month?? It is, and I can share TONS of other popcorn snack recipes that our cooking groups have made over the years!)

Of course, as usual, much food landed on the floor.

We added peanuts, candy corn, and reeces pieces to the popcorn and drizzled it with almond bark.

MMMMM. .GOOD!

Monster Munch

1 lb of white almond bark

12 cup popped popcorn (1/2 cup kernels)

1 cup candy corn

1 cup dry roasted peanuts

1/2 cup Reeces pieces (we added a little extra--cause really, how could you have TOO many of those!)

Place popped corn into a large bowl (larger than you think you should need). Add the peanuts, candy corn, and Reeces pieces.  Melt almond bark in your microwave, stirring after every 45 seconds. Drizzle bark over the dry ingredients.  Pour onto baking sheets covered with wax paper and let cool. Break into chunks and savor each bite!

Have a GREAT weekend!

Harvest Munchies

I just HAD to share one of our favorite fall recipes with you. .especially in time for a little weekend munching!  I found this recipe many years ago, I think in a taste of home publication.  It was a great hit, and found its way into our home at least once each season!  The recipe is listed out at the bottom. 

This time I made 1 1/2 times the recipe--which worked perfectly with the bag size of the pretzels and two boxes of ritz bits.  I used my big roaster pan instead of the cookie sheets.

Cookin' up the butter (I actually used real butter this time--I usually just use margarine), sugar and syrup.

Mix it all together, being a little careful not to smash the peanut butter crackers--they are a bit delicate--and stick her in the oven for a roast.

After you stir and roast; and stir and roast; take it out and toss the candies in the pot.  It looks really cool if you can find fall colored m & m's--but I couldn't this year--And I hate to admit, that I HAVE, in the past, picked out the undesirable colors--but not this time--everything went!

This mix is good for picking out each piece individually and nibbling them one by one, or throwing a whole handful in your mouth at once, making sure that you have a piece of everything in there.  Try it out...It's easy--and your people will love you!

Halloween Party Mix

11 oz pretzels (mini)

10 ½ oz box Ritz Bits peanut butter crackers

1 cup dry roasted peanuts

1 cup sugar

½ cup butter

½ cup light corn syrup

2 tbsp vanilla

1 tsp baking soda

10 oz M & M’s (Plain)

18 ½ oz candy corn

In large bowl mix pretzels, crackers, and peanuts. In a large saucepan, mix sugar, butter and syrup. Bring to a boil and boil for 5 minutes. Remove from heat, stir in vanilla and soda (mixture will foam). Pour over cracker mixture and stir until coated. Pour into a greased sheet cake pan. Bake at 250 for 45 min stirring every 10-15 min. Break apart while warm, toss with candies and cool completely. Store in airtight container.

Warning: This must not be consumed while mindlessly munching and watching TV. .or reading. .or anything else for that matter.  It has been reported to be addictive and may add unwanted creases to certain areas of your body, in which case, consumption may not be advised for everyone.  Children should have adult supervision while partaking of this treat. .and then again. .so should adults!!
Ah Heck. .Just know that you're GONNA love it, and it might make you fat. .so enjoy a walk in the crisp fall air after you consume the whole pot!

Enjoy!!

The Grass Is Always Greener

I know that I have said it before. .but I think the best thing about gardening is the ever-changing scenery!! I think the flower colors this time of year just pop with color!! I am still seeing monarchs floating through the yard daily.  This guy I caught nipping off the maximillan sunflowers to boost his energy for the trip!

Here's another picture of our roadrunning visitor.  He perched on top of my decorative birdhouse--don't believe that he will be able to come go in for coffee though!

The grasses are now rustling in the wind.  Their feathery seed heads waving gracefully above the foliage.  This particular grass is karly rose.  I haven't been disappointed with her.  This is probably her mature size, and her deep pink/purple seed heads add some seasonal color.

This varigated grass gets about 4-5 feet tall, with seed heads rising above that.  I have transplanted this variety to several locations throughout my landscape.  Too bad I have no idea what to call it!  It adds winter interest as well. 

Here's a spot of maiden grass.  I suspect that next year will be the year to really see how this little one performs.  It seems to have a pink head too.  You also will see some maximillin sunflowers in the foreground.  These little jewels like our environment here and grow like. .well. .weeds :-)  They were taking over in front of my deck, so I transplanted some to my large flower beds.  It will be alright for them to grow wild there (I think).  I transplanted them in late May or early June.  I am just astounded that they actually bloomed!  They make such a big splash of color!

The fun thing about these sunflowers is that they bloom up the entire stalk before they are done for the season.  I knew that I wouldn't be disappointed in the contrast between this flower and the little blue spruce behind it.

The mums are taking off.  The burgundy ones are a little slow this year it seems.  But the burnt orange, purple, and yellow ones are right on time.  These get my attention daily as I look out my kitchen window across the pond.

The grass only looks greener on the other side. .until you actually get over there!! I promise that if you wandered through my gardens you would find plenty of weeds, dead plants, and other problem spots. .the benefits of having my own blog is that I can edit. .and show you what I want you to see (and provide myself with memories of the good stuff--and not the eyesores)  Look around your neighborhood.  See how bright the colors are, watch how the animals (and humans) scurry around preparing for winter, enjoy the last of the flying beauties before they soon become a memory until next year. 'Tis the season to be thankful!