Harvest Festival

I went out to our gardens this week to see if there might be anything left, just in case. To my surprise I found over 65 items (Gus counted!) that were ready to be picked and brought in. Some were things we planted this summer like carrots and tomatoes, but there were plenty of self seeders and mystery plants that appeared out of no where.

The harvest? 3 cantaloupes, a squash, yellow pear tomatoes, roma and heirloom tomatoes, 5 potatoes, onions I planted last year, 3 green peppers and 8 beets. There is still a lot of parsley left too, but I left it out there for the bunnies.

Apples Apples Everywhere

This fall may win awards in Minnesota for being our best, most beautiful, ever. It has been sunny, warm, cool, crisp, barely rainy and absolutely wonderful for colorful leaves and playing outside in the piles of them.

Two weeks ago we visited my mom's cousin's apple tree (same place we've picked in the past) and brought home FIVE large cardboard boxes of apples. They aren't beauties, but the flavor is good and with a bit of love, they make great apple sauce.

With an hour or so of chopping and chatting time with my mom plus a few hours afterschool, I've been able to make a pretty good dent in the supply. There are two boxes of apples left on the porch that need to be cut up and cooked, but we have 11 quart jars canned and 11 32 oz. yogurt containers put up in the freezer.

Yes, the freezer. I almost cried today when two of my quart jars cracked when I put them into the canner, letting all of the liquid gold run into the canner. What a waste! Looking at the gallons of sauce left to can, I pondered a few choices. Freeze the jars instead of boiling/canning them? No, that would require me to purchase more rings to seal them. Quart ziplock bags? No, that would require buying more stuff. What do we have on hand? 32 ounce yogurt containers... saved in bags in the garage because Minneapolis doesn't accept them for recycling and we take them elsewhere. I'm not positive on the longevity of preserving in yogurt tubs, but with a bit of foil and a rubber band over the top, they seem to be well sealed.

Off to Stillwater

Last weekend we were joined by in-town and out-of-town college friends for a beautiful fall day. Kevin and Julie came up from Des Moines with their kids and asked to take a little road trip from the big cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul. We joined them and Jenn, Charley and their daughter on an excursion to Axdahl's pumpkin patch and market and then to beautiful historic Stillwater.

If you've never been to Stillwater before, please add it to your "must-visit" list, any time of the year. Antique stores, crafty gift shops, restaurants galore, the St. Croix River, an ice cream store just steps away from the water!

We hadn't yet visited the Teddy Bear park and were quite impressed with it. It was tough to figure out exactly which part of the day was the best part for the kids: pumpkin patch fun, Teddy Bear park, or walking with our ice cream cones down to the flooded river and watching the historic lift bridge let the waiting boats pass by. Have you ever seen light posts that are supposed to be lining a sidewalk.... submerged in a river?

Bringing in the Crop

We have had a lovely fall in Minnesota this year. Usually by now all of the tender plants have long since wilted or been zapped by bitter overnight frosts. This year our tomato plants and impatiens are still blooming-- or at least for those people who have continued to water them. Mine grow in spite of a lack of regular watering, weeding or much tending. We've been busy watching the turkeys run around the neighborhood, right?
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Last week we began to bring in the carrots that the kids planted in June. Though we religiously plant them each year, ours have never had much success beyond being finger-sized orbs of orange goodness. Perhaps a child's pinky would be a more appropriate size guage for what we've grown up until now. This week we've been hauling in some downright chunky, albeit short and squat beauties. Our vegetable garden area has dappled sun and prevents us from having a truly marvelous garden, but we have fun with the mixed results. Pea sized brussel sprouts? Bring it on!

Feeling Fall

While the Vikings played today, I got a chance to be outside by myself. Usually I have many little bodies and paws surrounding me to play with and chase and inevitably spend my time making mental lists of all the things I'd like to accomplish. Today was just the day I had been hoping for. With the kids inside with Daddy, I grabbed my rake, bags and trimmer and got to work.

To do:
-cut down/dead head flowers
-empty wilted flower boxes
-rake and bag
-clean up firewood/branch pile
-dig up weeds in the south garden
-pick last tomatoes for counter ripening
-check for remaining carrots
-dig out canna bulbs
-put away hose for the season

I did all but the last two and I feel wonderful. Dragging the firepit to the driveway in the front where I was working, I managed to both fill the neighborhood with the tell-tale fall smell of burning wood and deal with the overflowing pile of accumulated sticks that I trip over every day when I exit the van. I alternated between raking and stoking the fire, pulling dead plants and breaking sticks over my knee. My list is not quite as inspiring as Martha's to-do list is every month in Living magazine, but for a working mom, I'm rather satsified.

The kids joined me later when they grew bored of the game and learned of the fire. I even coaxed Louise in her party dress to join me with the raking. Gus was most at home tending the fire, trying to wave sticks with a fiery end in the air when my back was turned. Carl was happy to help with the leaf bagging process, especially once he figured out that s'mores were a possibility once the work was finished.

Not so many apples

We went apple picking on Sunday with my siblings and their families as well as two of our childhood friends' families. We've lost track of how many years these five family groups have been gathering to pick apples together, but know that every year, as the kids age, it just keeps getting better! Because the spring came early in Minnesota this year, the apples peaked early too. We've always had luck this first weekend in October, but this year was a bust. At least we were apple to pick a few in the orchard (shh!) and bought the rest in their store.
Carl and Maddie were busy speaking Spanish to eachother and eating their apples. Note Carl's new glasses!

Even sweet baby Cooper got in on the apple action!

An Extended Fall

Our October in Minnesota felt like an early winter, but this strange (and wonderful) November really has the birds and plants wondering what to do. The kids, on the other hand, have no problem figuring it out. We've been hanging outside a lot lately with temps in the mid-fifties. Leaf forts, romps in the tree house, bike rides in November.
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And you? What kind of strange and wonderful things have you been doing this lovely fall?

First Day of School

Ron walked an apprehensive Carl to school on Tuesday for his first day of 1st grade. There had been a few mix ups in terms of his teacher, so he was worried about which friends from last year would still be in his class. They started uniforms this year, or standard clothes. The choices are navy or khaki bottoms and a red, navy or white shirt. Very simple. Nice and easy for me. (Too bad I couldn't find his own sweatshirt that morning... don't tell him that it was too small!)

With the first few days under his belt, he's a much happier guy.

Feliz primer dia del primer grado, Carl.

Te quiero mucho.

xoxo Mama

::Ten Things::

Fall is a time I have always enjoyed. The warmth of the summer starts to fade just as we realize that we're ready to pull out the flannel sheets, bundle up in a blanket, cover up the bare legs with pants. The crisp greens begin to fade into a smeary blur of red, orange, yellow and brown. Warm beverages and soups with crusty bread appeal much more than the adventurous and crunchy salads of summer. I look at my yard with a smile, knowing that it is time to put it to bed, time to put away the tools of our every day activities outside, knowing that we can again focus on inside projects. The sky turns a different shade of blue, the golden time of the sun setting is a brighter shade of gold. My fingers chill quickly. My body longs for a sweater. Fall.

I've been reading many lists of "things that make me smile" on the blogs I haunt regularly. Today is the day I will join in with Eren and Amanda and many other inspiring women out there.

Ten Things that make me Smile

:: Skype. Calling Africa for free on my computer with a headset the morning of the election to talk with Stephanie about the big day. Who knew that it could work so well?

::Patching a pile of pants that have been sitting on my sewing table for months. Love the iron-on patches.

::Sweet potatoes. This week we've eaten them as fries, in soup and mixed with Yukon Gold potatoes as a mashed potato delight.

::Winter hats. Louise found this Zippity Zany hat from Hanna Andersson in our mitten basket and has basically refused to take it off for a week unless she's bathing.::Grandparents that like to take their grandkids on dates. All three of my kids spend quality time with their grandparents doing special things, without me asking them to. We're lucky enough to have both of our sets of parents in town.

::Puerto Rico for four days with my sisters-in-law next week. Hasta pronto, playa!

::The color orange.

::The excitement of the Holiday Traditions Exchange over at Sew Liberated. I'm waiting my official match-up, though I recently met Valerie at Sierra Moon and we're going to do our own un-official swap. More details to follow soon. A French match up! I'm practicing my French... fun!

::This little roly-poly bug on Etsy. Why didn't I think of that?

::My new camera (except for the fact that it is in the shop. Hopefully I'll have it back by my trip!)

And you? What is making you smile these days?