You Ain't Woman Enough to Take My Cookies

Sorry to have been away for a few days. . .we have been busy with fall activities (and my housework has definitely suffered for it, oh well). Between library events, Parents as Teachers, the rec center classes, church, and friends, we have been go,go, going a little too much in my opinion. T. has had a blast with it all, though.

T.'s homemade black Spiderman costume:


Here are J. and T. at a local corn maze we went to with friends on Sunday:


I've been sticking with my menu planning and Monday Sam's Club trip and I think it has helped us with our grocery budget. I've been buying more things in bulk such as flour, butter, and sugar. I have been obsessed with cooking and cookbooks lately, especially those compilation "my best recipe" cookbooks that churches and other organizations sell for fundraisers. The cookbooks I have from our home town have had a few hits, and I found one for 25 cents at a yard sale a few weeks ago that had two recipes for dishes R.'s mom used to make but didn't have the recipe for.

Still on my cooking kick, I checked out Loretta Lynn's cookbook from the library. It has a lot of southern, Appalachian recipes in it, most of which I am familiar with. I loved the stories from her life she included as well. Apparently, her dad's favorite dish was possum and she includes the recipe for it, too. I am also a coal miner's daughter, and my dad liked to eat, of all things, groundhog liver. I'll never forget the time we came home from a summer trip and some kind work buddy had left a groundhog in a paper bag on our porch. In the hot sun. Needless to say, dad didn't eat that one!

We made Loretta's "Mommy's Sunday cookies".

They were yummy and reminded me of a snicker doodle. We dipped them in orange sugar and took them with us to meet a friend and her children at Chuck E. Cheeses on Friday. We also tried out Loretta's fudge candy recipe, which turned out horrible. I will stick to my recipe from the Solo marshmallow creme jar. It is the best.

I made R. some white chicken chili and it was awesome. We had it with shredded Colby cheese, sour cream, crushed chips, and cilantro. I will post the recipe soon, hopefully.

A Devastating Loss

I lost my black New Native baby sling! I decided to go to the thrift store during T.'s once a week class. When L. and I went in, I carried him in in the car seat and threw the sling over him like a blanket (he was sleeping). After I checked out and had little time to spare to get back to pick T. up on time, I noticed the sling was gone! I ran back in and the cashier tried to help me find it, but no luck. And they haven't called. For a week now. It's gone for sure.

I Plead the Sixth

Stephanie at Adventures in Babywearing has this funny post about her state of mind at five weeks with new baby. I can definitely relate, with baby being six weeks now, to the state of her bathroom floors and her wish for her belly to just go away, already! I feel like I'm in such a fog, and every time we go somewhere I just know I've forgotten some important piece of clothing (like pants) or my hair has a tiny dinosaur toy stuck in it. I actually walked around several yard sales in our subdivision with my nursing bra flaps down!

This little guy makes me forget all that:

It's the Great Pumpkin

We had a great time at our local pumpkin patch on Saturday, although the giant hay climbing wall made me have an allergy attack all day Sunday. Which made me slightly grumpy (sorry, family!). We are planning to go with some friends to the apple orchard this Friday, but the weather is supposed to be nasty. We will have to pack a thermos of hot chocolate for sure.



I am reading some "crafting as a business" books I checked out from the library. I really feel God is calling me to get back to my crocheting. After all, it got me a cute husband and darling baby boys! I feel there is a market here in the 'burbs for the toys I make, and there are tons of craft shows around here in the fall. I need a year-long plan and I need to organize and get busy. Wish me luck!

Open Up and Say "Boo!"

Our $2.84 Halloween decorations. . .
created by me!

A Fall Feast

Today was a favorite kind of fall day: overcast and chilly. I had already planned the "Good Soup", and homemade rolls, and decided to make apple crisp for a yummy treat for R. to come home to.

The "good soup" was inspired by the wonton soup at PF Changs, which we love. My version is a staple meal in our house, especially when someone isn't feeling well, as it is full of feel-better ingredients (and shrimp, who could ask for anything more?!?)

I hope to post the recipes here soon. Each time I sit to type someone needs me. Ah, life with four boys!