Remembering A Special Time

As the summer days come to a close and Fall sets in on the calendar, I am once again reminded of why this is my favorite time of year. My favorite color of orange displays its many hues from pumpkins to harvest moon sunsets. Comfort foods – soups, stews and roasts – find a place on my table. Sweet smells of cinnamon and spice greet guests as they enter our home. Though I live in a very warm climate, cool breezes occasionally find their way here to dance amongst the trees and eventually the leaves change color before falling to the ground. With all that said, Fall in Texas is more about football than the scenic backdrops of New England, so it helps on these warm Autumn days to think back to a very special trip I took with some dear friends to experience what a true New England Fall really is. Grab yourself a cup of tea or a Pumpkin Spiced Latte and join me as I share some of my favorite memories of that trip through photos.

Everywhere we looked were leaves of different colors.

Make no mistake, the covered bridges are exactly how Norman Rockwell described them.

I found myself mesmerized by this street. I wanted to live in one of these houses just so I could see this every day when I left home. 

Yes! God is a great painter.

Sleepy little towns beckoned us to their shopfronts with these sweet displays of comfort.

I just love that the decorations look just as beautiful as the jewelry in display inside.

Makes me want to go back to Sunday service.

We passed so many "honor" pumpkin stands. If only I could have put them in my suitcase.

You can't buy these at Michaels.

We drove up to a "pick your own" apple orchard. Unfortunately they were closed. So we drove up a little farther to a fruit stand that had plenty of fresh apples and apple cider doughnuts.

We took so many pictures of leaves and every one of them unique.

Julie and I hanging out on one of our Fall Hikes – yes, that is what we called them. We pulled over on the side of roads and just took off with our cameras. What a glorious feeling to not be rushed in this gorgeous country.

I'm so in my Happy Place!

It's not hard to figure out how painters get their inspiration.

Fresh crisp apples anyone?

How about a pumpkin?

One thing I noticed all over New England is that people had pumpkins or jack o'lanterns sitting on their wrap-around porches or stone hedges. Don't you love that you can see the lines still on this one.

Karen made each of us a little hand-stitched owl on the plane. We decided to take pics of our owls in each town like the Travelocity gnome.

Karen, Julie and I shared a moment in time that will forever be imprinted on my heart and soul. I am so happy that we had the opportunity to take this trip and these girls made it so special. Now if I can only persuade my husband to move me back every year from October to November, I would be the happiest girl in the world... I'm jus' sayin'!

Is It Milk & Cookie Time?

September is here which means it's back to school and back to regular routines in this and so many other homes across America. Summer is fun with it's lazy days and schedules, however, Fall is and always will be the season I hold dear to my heart. This is the time that we start penciling in the lacrosse games, orchestra concerts, confirmation and all the other events we can squeeze into one school year. We are also dusting off the crockpot and getting back to planning dinners and baking comfort foods when time allows.

All of this planning and scheduling makes me think back to when I was a kid and the only thing I could think about after school was running home for a snack. I was fortunate that my Mom was a piano teacher so she worked from home. We had to be really quiet when we came in from school in case she was in the middle of a lesson, but we could always forage a snack for ourselves from the pantry. I was not involved in after-school sports or activities like my daughter is today. I had my snack while doing homework and if I got done quickly enough I might have time for 30 minutes of cartoons or get a life lesson in from watching the ABC after school specials. After that, I pretty much played outside till the dinner bell rang. I sometimes wish it was still as simple as I remember it, but the kids today seem to have so much more to keep them busy and because of that we tend to start looking for shortcuts where we can find them. I work part time from home which means on some days I have time to create snacks and dinners that are more labor intensive. But like many busy moms I sometimes have those days where I'm just happy when my kid grabs a protein bar and a bottle of water on her way to practice.

For the most part I always try to be an advocate for baking from scratch, however, I am also a realist and know that there is not always time to go that route. Today is one of those days. I wanted to have a snack for my daughter and her friends when they came home so I grabbed the box of cake mix that I keep in the pantry for emergencies and baked up some super quick double fudge cookies. They are quick and easy and at the end of a busy day for both of us, I'm just happy to see the smile it gives her and not whether or not I get the Betty Crocker Mom of the Year Award. However, if I used Betty Crocker Cake Mix, does that count?  I'm jus' sayin'!

Cake Mix Cookies 

1 box of your favorite flavored cake mix (I used Betty Crocker Chocolate Fudge)
1/2 Cup of Vegetable Oil
2 Eggs
1/2 Cup of Dark Chocolate Chips (you can omit these if you are using a different cake flavor)

Mix all of the above. Scoop onto parchment lined cookie sheets. Bake at 350º for 9 minutes. Let cool and enjoy! Yep, that easy.  Feel free to experiment with different cake flavors and add-in's. I would love to hear about your favorites.