Pumpkin Picking

Today Dawson, Brady and I went to the farm where we get our weekly veggies and went pumpkin "picking". Dawson's middle brother also joined us in our adventure. Although the owners/workers on the farm had to already pick the pumpkins for us (they ripened faster than they expected), we got to "pick" them off of the lawn area.

Brady LOVED picking up the pumpkins and placing them in our box! We were able to take 6 pumpkins home with us. Brady must have placed about 15 in our box - so, I just had to take them out while he was going to get another one. He was such a great helper - he definitely has that as a gifting.

We were able to take some other veggies home with us including: butternut squash, acorn squash, zucchini, tomatoes - large and plus, peppers - red, little orange ones, jalapenos - eggplants, onions and garlic. So, I have lots of produce to keep me busy for a while! The main thing that I need to get to today are the peppers - I can chop them up and freeze them for later use. I think that I will make salsa and tomato sauce with all of the plum tomatoes that we were able to take! We were also able to take some fresh herbs with us. Today, we chose to take rosemary, parsley and oregano. Below is Brady choosing some plum tomatoes for us to take home, while Daddy is helping Brady reach the tomatoes.

It was a beautiful day to be outside and we really enjoyed getting away to the "country" while having a fun family day.

Start Your Engines!

So, did you guess where we were for our date on Sunday? Is it Friday already???!!!

Let's see - during our date, we were able to see my favorite person there #24 (well, maybe he is not exactly #24, but it is identified with him), we did not get sunburned (thanks to spf 50), my ankles got swollen because of the heat (but my hunny let me put my feet up on him during part of the ride home), and we had to climb about 13 stories to get to our seats (that is what someone said, and I truly believe him!) - and those are the better seats. Well, here is a photo that I took during an interview that I saw of Jeff Gordon!

My Husband was given tickets to the NASCAR race at Dover Downs, DE for last Sunday's race! Besides having to get up at 3am so that we could definitely be leaving our driveway at 4am, so that we could catch the coach bus at 6am - it was a great day! Brady slept over at my sister's house and then spent the next day with Grammie and Poppy and my aunt and uncle (who were visiting from Long Island.

Let me tell you...we were not just given tickets...what was also included in our day was: continental breakfast, snacks and lunch (pre-race), scanners - so that we could hear the race and guard our ears (which was really cool), programs, a hat (with the company logo on it), soft-sided coolers, ticket holders, a track side tour before the race - we were actually standing on the track - and really nice people to spend the day with!

My two favorite drivers are Jeff Gordon (#24) and Jimmy Johnson (#48). Unfortunately, neither of them won...but Carl Edwards did win, who seems like a nice guy too. He stands on the door area of his car and does a back flip when he wins a race - that is pretty cool. We had great seats - we were on turn 4 and were able to see some of the pits really well - below is a photo of Jeff Gordon's.

So, you did not know that I was a NASCAR fan? Well, I am not a crazy one, but I enjoy many sports, and this is one that was introduced to me a few years ago by my BIL, Simms. It is fun to watch now and then - it is even more fun to be there in person!

We had a great time, but it took me until Thursday of this week to get caught up on my sleep! Would I go again - you bet! Hopefully, I would not be as pregnant, and so the stair climbing would not have been so intense and tiring - but I made it! Our next door neighbors have gone to races before and they gave us a lot of good tips for our trip. She said that I would probably not have to go to the bathroom during the race because of all of the sweating that we would be doing...I guess she did not know the power of the pregnant woman's bladder (although she has had 2 kids!). During the race, I had to excuse myself at least 3 times - thankfully, I did not have to go all the way down to the bottom of the stands - I don't know if I could have handled that! I probably would have been spending all of my time going up and down the stairs instead of watching the race! :)

A New Blog - The Literary Gourmet

There is a new blog out there - my very dear friend, referred to as Jane, has begun a blog called The Literary Gourmet! I find it hard to describe my friend in few words - there is so much to her that I love! I think that the title of her blog sums things up a little bit.

I have known my gourmet friend for almost 8 years now, and she has been a wonderful friend through each part of my changing life - new jobs, marriage, babies! She is someone that really cares about what is going on in your life and listens to you. She does not judge you or make condescending remarks - she love me even though we have our differences too. She loves the Lord with all of her heart and she is someone that really cherishes a friendship - just like I do (so, we also have similarities too!). She is like a sister to me.

I have enjoyed learning so much from her - she loves the arts, she loves to cook, and she loves to read and watch Jane Austin movies (just to name a few things). Although she is more than capable of cooking "normal" foods, when she has you over, she enjoys making something special - gourmet! She always knows how to make you feel special - whether it is with delicious cookies, my favorite birthday cake (an amazing fudge cake - this is the only chocolate type of cake that I ever really enjoyed - oh, and a chocolate peanut butter one from an amazing bakery that she had one time too), panini sandwiches, delicious soups, entrees - or just a cup of coffee! She has brought so much joy into my life as I also enjoy the arts and cooking - she has helped to bring this enjoyment into my life.

Welcome to blogworld, The Literary Gourmet! And to all that read this - check it out! :)

Another Great Giveaway...

Head over to 5 minutes for Mom to enter to win a portable hard drive for your computer - it is great to back your computer up in case of a crash! So, if you are interested, click here, and good luck!

Strolling in Style

Here is another great giveaway - a Chicco Stroller. You can enter to win one here and here. So, you will actually have 2 chances to win - and if you win both, I would be happy to "take" one off of your hands! :)

I Could Live With Pink - Could You?

I am talking about a FREE DYSON vacuum cleaner! Check it out over here at 5 Minutes for Mom. Someone will win this vacuum - I hope my husband will still vacuum if I win! :)

Random Thoughts

There are a few things that I have been meaning to write about, but time just seems to get away these days! So, not in any particular order (except what come to my brain) - I will share some thoughts with you!

1. Apple Picking: About 2 weeks ago, our family went apple picking with Nanny and Grandpa - we had a great time! The trees were low enough so Brady could pick the apples and place them in the bag. We picked Gala and Cortland apples. We plan to go again in the next week or so - we will see how our schedule is!


2. Apple Recipes made so far:


Apple Goodie - I made one large apple goodie with some of the apples - it is basically apple crisp, but SO good...I guess that is how it got its name! I will have to share the recipe with you soon...I will have to make another one soon too!


I have also made applesauce and apple butter with the rest of the gala apples. We froze about 12 cups of apple sauce. I made the apple butter for the first time ever and used my crock pot...I am hoping that it is delicious! I would LOVE to get an apple butter recipe from someone that I know - so, if you fit into this category, I would love you to give it to me! :)


I am planning on making more applesauce soon.


I don't have other plans for the apples yet - I am not a big cake lover - I will eat it (as long as it is not chocolate! Although, once in a while, I will taste a chocolate cake to see if I suddenly like it, and I will have to tell you that the only person that has made a type of chocolate cake that I have liked is my friend, Jane - I will have to tell you more about her in another post! I love her to pieces! You can read a little about her here). I am thinking about caramel dipped apples, maybe something else in the crockpot - we will see


3. We went to Wegman's today for the first time. We got to see the crack open a huge 90 pound wheel of Parmesan cheese - we were thinking of buying some, but at $18.99/pound, we decided...maybe another time! :) We enjoyed the few samples that were offered - the cheese, an apple, and a cup of coffee. We also purchased a few items and got a few free items with our coupons that they sent in the mail. One of the things that we noticed was that they had a huge selection of Asian ingredients that we usually have to go to an Asian store to purchase. We were happy about that, but will probably try to support the little store (which is on Dawson's way home from work) - the prices are a little lower than Wegman's too, but Wegman's is not that bad. We had fun, but most of our shopping will be done at Giant - it is closer to us.


Oh, and we bought some deli meat there - and I cannot stand that they have it presliced!!! It gets all clumped up and that really annoys me when I am trying to flatten it out to place in my Tupperware container! I really prefer it freshly sliced!


4. Dawson and I are going on a date tomorrow! Want to guess where we are going? Here are a few hints: my favorite is #24, my sister's favorite is #48, and it is definitely fast paced. OK - those are all of the hints for now, otherwise I might just give it away!!! :)


5. I was reminded the other day that I am so blessed to have Dawson as my husband and I should never take it for granted.


6. I have been doing really well at planning dinner in advance, so that I am not stressed out on the day of the dinner. I have been writing it in my planner, and it has been great. It has been showing me how many different dinners need to be planned per week, and still have a day for leftovers. I have definitely felt success in this area - I just need to get planning for next week! Today and tomorrow are covered! So, I will start with Monday.

7. Scrapbooking - I really need to get back into doing this again!!! It is SO hard for me to do this when Brady is awake - I tried about one week ago at my sister's house. The cute little guy wanted to sit on my lap - how could I deny him! :) Seriously, he wants to see what mommy is doing, I can't blame him - I am still like that when someone is doing something "cool".

8. Baby Announcements - I am thinking about making them myself! I think that I mentioned this in another post, but it is still on the brain. I am having a stamping party at my house (and you are all invited!) soon and I am excited to get some more of the materials that I will need to make them!

9. I will be involved with Walk For Life - to support the pregnancy center that I am volunteering in. If you would like more info on this - let me know!

OK, that is a lot, and I have to go and get some other things done now! Have a great day!