Just a few good things....

These beautiful mums at my front door.

 

Quality time with Claire while her big sister is at preschool.

 

 

Homemade French toast with berries after a LONG run in the crisp fall air.

Good reading material and a hot drink

 

 

These ferns in the meadow behind our house. I don't know why, but I LOVE ferns!

 

 

Collecting leaves with my girls! They are all so unique and beautiful! 

 

There are still blackberries to munch on

 

My garden is still blooming!

 

Picking apples

Last year Nathaniel pruned a couple of abandoned apple trees in our neighborhood. We had high hopes for those trees and they didn't disappoint us. So far this year we have picked at least five heaping bags worth of crunchy organic goodness.

 

There are always a few on the ground that are worthy of saving.

Now that we have picked all the apples within reach Nathaniel has started climbing the tree and tossing them down to me. The girls think it is hilarious.

 

 

This man ROCKS!

 

Claire was so excited that she got to pick an apple all by herself and toss it down to me.

 

Aren't they SO pretty!

 

 

 

 

Hurray for apples!!!!

 

 

Dinner with a friend

Yesterday I spent the majority of the day with my dear friend Nicole.  We cooked a meal together, shared our hearts and doted on another's children. 

Just look at those blue peepers!

 

We gathered the vegetables we needed from their extensive garden, (beets, potatoes, garlic, parsnips, and carrots)  while our children frolicked on the grass on played on the tree swing. 

 

We had a good howl over these "fairy" potatoes. I have never seen smaller potatoes in my life.

 

Nicole used a delicious smelling rub to season the bird before tossing it, along with the scrubbed and quartered vegetables, into the oven.

I love seeing my children enjoy such simple delights.

Amelia was extremely enthusiastic about collecting eggs, despite the fact that they were covered in poop and the girls had to shoo away the hens a couple of times.

 

These green beans were so crunchy and sweet. We gobbled them up before they had a chance to make into our meal.

 

Dinner began with a salad composed of roasted almonds,  heirloom tomatoes, feta, greens from the garden and a homemade balsamic and honey dressing. Even the children asked for seconds.

 

I forgot to take a picture of the main course, because I was too busy inhaling it.

For dinner we enjoyed the MOST tender roast chicken and root vegetables. There is something so fulfilling and delightful about eating something that was picked and prepared only moments beforehand. So fresh and wholesome!

 

 After our incredible meal, we enjoyed the sour cream apple crumble pie that my girls and I made.

 

 

 What an incredible way to the end the day!

The Book: The Rhythm of Family

Lately I have been enjoying flipping through this lovely book written by a woman named Amanda Blake-Soule who blogs over at SouleMama. I love her photography, insights, seasonal crafts, recipes and perspectives.

 

This is a brief description of the book from the inside cover:

 

" Following the course of a year, this book explores the ways we can create deep family connections and meaningful memories through living in tune with the cycles of nature. From stomping around in mud boots in spring to gathering around the wood stove in winter, our activities naturally change from season to season-from the rhythms of the seasons comes the rhythms in our homes, our hearts , our families, and our every day. Paying attention to these changes slows us down; inspires new types of creative and exploration; instills a sense of family togetherness; and deepens an awareness of nature and self that can make our lives, days, family and earth grow stronger."

 

- The book The Rhythm of family

 

 

Bounty

 

We have heaps of fruit piled on our kitchen counter. Plums and apples from the farm behind our house, grapes from my dad's vine, and nectarines and peaches from the local market. They are all so delicious and perfectly ripe. The girls and I love harvesting and we are constantly knocking on people's door when we spot new fruit trees. We always arrive home with sticky fingers and arms full of produce. Claire has been eating her weight in apples these days and I can't get enough of the plums.

 

A couple weeks ago I made my annual upside down plum cake. It is DEVINE! The recipe is by Martha Stewart and it doesn't disappoint.