{Fall Fun}

The above picture is a collection of items from our busy and fun weekend.

Friday night was Sarah’s 4th annual road race. Our team was the Purple Predators. Knowing it would be cold, we all wore purple fleece scarves. Our driver was a little crazy and out of control – he tried to drive off as his wife was getting in the truck and run people off the road. We did things like climbing trees, hitting golf balls, and scaling the long stairs down to the bottom of the dam all in the dark of night. I was even the first one to get a ringer in the horseshoe challenge. We also learned that Grapette soda from Wal-Mart is the strongest 2-liter bottle of pop. It was so much fun and our team was in a three way tie to win. Unfortunately the Orange Crush’em team was better at picking a number between 1 and 100. That’s two years in a row that we have been in the tie breaker round at the end. Next year is ours, I can feel it!

Saturday, while Scott was hunting, I made the kids help me clean the house. Then I plunged into the box of apples that we picked the weekend before and began the process of making apple pie filling. I have never canned apple pie filling but I think it turned out really good. And it looks so pretty in the jars. I still have lots of apples so I will be freezing and canning every spare moment this week.

Last night our friends and neighbors, John and Kyndra, came over for dinner. Kyndra and I cooked dinner in a pumpkin and it was so yummy. (Thank you Brigitte for bringing Gwen’s recipe to the Recipe Exchange last year.) Zane and Kaylee, the youngest children in the bunch, probably ate the most. After dinner we took apple crisp and apple coffee cake across the street and had dessert with more friends.

We also had our annual Primary Program at church yesterday. (Sorry, I couldn't find anything to put in the picture for this.) Morgan practiced her part all week and was so excited to talk into the big microphone. Then Sunday morning she suddenly announced she did not want to go to church. Stage fright had set in. After a lot of persuading I convinced her it would be okay. She sat up in the big chairs with her class and smiled at me as all the kids sang the songs. She said her part with a little help and did very well. Then as she turned to walk back to her seat she tripped over the step and fell. (That’s my girl.) She jumped up and still had a smile on her face. I learned from her that a smile can help us get through anything.

{Festive Pumpkins}

I did promise to post pictures of the completed pumpkins that I made so, here they are. I finally found ribbon at Wal-Mart but also made some of my own. They are kinda boring but I like to keep things simple. They do make my bookshelf look festive though.

I am off to the store for a can of spray paint. Stay tuned for pictures of the next pumpkin project. ;o)

Silicone Baking?!

Has anyone tried the new silicone baking pans? I have been intrigued by them since they first came out. I started with some silicone utensils but my curiosity finally got me. When we were in LaGrande at the beginning of the month, I found a set on sale at Wal-Mart for half price and decided to give it a try. Besides, I needed round cake pans.

This stuff is awesome! I lightly greased the bottom of the pan just because I have been taught to always grease and flour the pan when baking a cake. I probably didn’t need to but I couldn’t ignore that voice in my head. The cakes popped right out of the pan with no flour residue.

So, here is our Harvest cake that I make each fall.

It is chocolate cake with pumpkin-cream cheese filling and chocolate frosting. Yum!

I have learned my lesson!

Thursday is Morgan’s day for Show’n Tell each week. It’s hard to come up with something for her to share each time that isn’t toys (that’s what she wants to take). Last week I forgot about it until I sent her out the door to catch the bus. I didn’t think it was a big deal but she apparently did not want to be left out. When her time came to share she stood in front of the class and announced that her mom was having a baby and she would soon have a little sister.

When I picked her up from school I had forgotten about Show’n Tell but as I buckled her into her seat she tells me that she told her teacher I was having a baby. I was shocked and told her she needed to talk to her teacher first thing in the morning to explain that is a wish and not true. Then she said, “What about my class? I shared it for Show’n Tell so my whole class knows.” All I could do was laugh.

This week we found something she could share with her class and have been practicing EXACTLY what to say.

{SPOOKY}

Morgan picked out a tall, skinny pumpkin to carve for Family Home Evening. She and Zane were the only ones who could get their hands inside so they got to do most of the cleaning. I love to hear the squeals and giggles as they plunge their hands into the cold, slimy pumpkin stuff.

Morgan was so pleased with her design for the face. As Scott was carving it out she was right there telling him what to do. (Scott was in his pajamas and deleted all pictures that included him.)

Then we had the chore of finding a candle that would fit inside. Fortunately our friend Sarah included a bone shaped candle with our party invitation. It fit perfectly and gave the pumpkin the eerie glow that Morgan hoped for.

How do you entertain 5 children on a cold day?

The answer of course is Turbo Jam. This upbeat workout video is great for helping young children burn off some restless energy when it is too cold to play outside.

Friday I had 5 children ages 2 to 5. I told them I would turn on some music so we could dance and they all began shouting “Turbo Jam!” I was thinking the toddler tunes CD but it’s hard to argue with them. Morgan had to be the leader, of course, and tell everyone what moves to do.

After about 10 minutes they were all starving and thirsty so it must have been a good workout.

This Again?

We woke up this morning to SNOW. Morgan and Zane could hardly wait to go outside and play. After a frantic search for boots and hats and gloves (we are not prepared for winter) I had them bundled and out the door.

When their noses were sufficiently red, and against their wills, I made them come back inside for a bowl of hot soup. The snow continues to fall and Morgan is hoping for enough to build a snowman, we shall see.

The soup apparently warmed Zane right up because after lunch he went and found his swim trunks. This is him saying, “Can we go swimming, please?!” He was sure that we needed to walk to Kyndra’s house and go swimming. I showed him the blizzard outside but that did not change his mind. I have to agree with him though; I am not ready for summer to end either.

Random Memories of my Grandpa

My earliest memory of Grandpa is whisker hugs. When ever we saw him he would give us big hugs and rub our cheeks with his whiskers. He was a practical jokester who loved to tease.

Grandpa was so friendly and outgoing. He loved to go to town and visit people. The amazing thing was he always found someone that he had a connection to. Either he was related to them or had worked with them or knew someone they were related to or they were related to someone he had worked with. Somehow he always found a connection and then carried on a lengthy conversation.

Grandpa was a hard worker. Most of my memories are of him after he retired from the sawmill but he was always busy. He grew a big garden every summer with the biggest vegetables and the hottest radishes. He kept his lawn nice and spent many summers getting wood for the wood stove to keep grandma warm all winter. He always found time to take Grandma Huckleberry picking or build something from wood. He always had a project to work on.

Grandpa drove a hot rod. I don’t know what kind of car it was but there were not very many of them around. It was a cool shade of olive green and it sounded like a race car. He was pleased that he was able to do most of the maintenance on it himself and kept it running good for many years.

Grandpa was always willing to help. What ever we needed – rides here and there or furniture for my first apartment. He would make trips to the store for Grandma to find the exact shade of yarn she needed to finish one of her projects. He would bring her to my home to baby sit and return later to pick her up. Grandpa was always willing to share.

Although we didn’t visit very often it was fun to go see Grandpa. He would show us cards and pictures received from other relatives and always had a story to share. My fondest memory will always be our last visit. I didn’t know that would be the last time I saw him on this earth so I am thankful for the opportunity to tell him that I loved him.

I want {MILK}!

“Watchya doin’?” I heard as I tiptoed passed Zane’s bed, thinking he had gone back to sleep. When I told him I was going to take a shower he quickly told me he didn’t want me to. I assured him I would get his milk first and went to get his favorite red sippy cup. I snuggled him into my bed with his blanket and his cup. Now he didn’t mind if I took a shower. He even went back to sleep when the milk was gone.

“Zane, what do you want for lunch?”
“Ummm, MILK.”
“No. Do you want a sandwich or chicken nuggets?”
“Ummm, MILK.”
“What do you want with your milk? You can’t have just milk.”
“Yes I do!”

How do you break a milk addiction? It usually starts around 5:30am with a shout out from his bed, “I need my milk!” Some days that is all he wants and as he sobs in the middle of the kitchen floor because I am forcing him to eat food I feel bad for him. Hopefully he will grow out of it soon.

Potato Field Trip

Yesterday Zane and I went with the kindergarten kids to visit a potato field. The kids watched the digger load the truck and then dug some potatoes of their own. We have 50 pounds of potatoes so I really didn’t encourage my kids too much but they had fun digging in the sand to find “treasures” as Zane called them.

Morgan found a potato that looked like a rabbit head.

The boy next to us pulled out a giant potato and then Morgan found this one. We decided we liked the baby ones best.

Then we came home and made POTATO SOUP for lunch.

Morgan got a little sand in her eye but other than that it was a fun day!