What is God trying to teach me?

At the end of last year I was pondering about my word for the year. I just felt a strong sense that God wanted me to work on the word "Release" in my life. This is what I put at the top of my blog for the year.

 "2020 word of the year- Release

Release control of what I can't control. Release worry. Release fear. Release..."

I had no idea that less than three months later our world would be turned upside down. Schools have been released with a possibility that they may not re-open until fall. My business has had to make huge adjustments, only allowing 10 customers at a time, the uncertainty whether we will even be able to stay open. A growing pandemic that covers all the media, everyone's conversation and has my special needs 14 yo in a state of distress. Worry and fear for my loved ones. A desire to go see my family and knowing that I can't or I put them at risk. Fear for my nephew who is fighting for his life! I've even lost the ability to worship together with my church family

Last night I went to bed feeling like I couldn't even breathe much less relax enough to sleep. God brought back to my mind my word. 

Release

Release control of what I can't control

Release worry

Release fear

Release...

I can spend all of my time worrying about things and what might happen or I can make plans to prepare and cope with life right now. I'm not giving up but I am not going let fear and worry consume me. 

Somehow I'm going to have to come up with a plan to keep my business afloat as well as making sure my boys are not slacking in their education. My youngest also needs a routine to help him cope so I have to figure out what that's going to look like. As an extrovert I'm going to have to figure out how to feed that part of my life as well. 

I was at a ladies retreat two weeks ago and we were challenged to carve out an hour a week for rest, however that looks for us. It didn't seem so tough two weeks ago, but now I have no idea how I will be able to find an hour to myself. I'm going to have to dig for that time but I think it's going to be important right now. 

We are all facing a challenge like we've never faced before. Of all the scenarios I've had in my dreams or nightmares of life-changing events this was not on the list. It's frightening! It's overwhelming! But I know that God is bigger than global pandemics, He's bigger than cancer, He's bigger than my business problems and He's bigger than my son's fear and stress. So, as I work on learning to release these things to God I'll be praying for all of you to do the same.

Love,

Kris

Scones

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I make scones almost every day. Scones create a lot of discussion in the food world, from the way the word is pronounced or what shape they take or even what constitutes a scone.

Strawberry

To us Americans the easiest way to describe a scone is a baking powder biscuit with a little bit of sugar in it. Most people add some kind of fruit. When we lived in England I had scones for the first time at cute little cafe in Mildenhall. They were plain scones served with strawberry jam and whipped cream. I was in heaven!! Now traditionally they use clotted cream, but as a yank, I loved having the thick whip cream.

Lavender

I tried making scones a few times but they were never quite right until I found a recipe in a kids magazine that was the perfect recipe.  I've been making them ever since! I put all different kinds of things in this recipe. In the last month I've made chocolate chip scones, eggnog scones, cranberry orange scones, salted caramel scones, maple nut scones, candied ginger scones, cinnamon scones, chai scones, strawberry scones, apricot walnut scones, apple cinnamon scones, raspberry chocolate scones, lavender scones...well, you get the idea. Basically you can put just about anything in a scone. We've even done bacon and cheddar cheese scones. The key to remember is that if you use some very moist you need to adjust your liquid mixture.

Double Chocolate

Here is my basic recipe:
1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
3 T sugar
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
Mix thoroughly and add 4-6 oz of cold, diced butter. Use a pastry blender or fork to work it in the dry ingredients. Add 4-6 tablespoons half and half. Shape into your desired shape and bake at 400 degrees for 10-12 minutes.

Depending on what flavors I use, if I think the scones may be a bit dry sometimes I add a quick powder sugar glaze on top. If I use fresh fruit that may be a bit wet I might sprinkle powder sugar or cinnamon sugar.

Birthday Cake

If you make scones and they don't turn out the first time, don't give up. Scones are kind of like pie crust, the more you make it the more familiar you are with how the dough should feel, how they should look while they bake, etc. If you make this recipe send me an email or post on here and let me know how they turned out. I would love to hear!

Happy Scone Making!

Makers not Consumers

It's funny odd, coincidental that in the last couple of weeks I keep seeing and hearing things about people being makers and not consumers, meaning that we need to be contributing to society more than we take out. But I also think that this means we should be making more of our own stuff and not just buying things out of convenience. Why? Well for one reason I think we need to know how to make things because someday we might not be able to buy it. Or maybe you could make things just for a sense of self-satisfaction that you're not dependent on others for everything that you have. And sometimes it's just nice to know that you can do something that your grandparents did!

I was trying to think what this might look like in my own life. Obviously for people who know me, baking might be the answer. I bake every single day. From muffins, scones and breads to pies and pizzas depending on the day. But..what about the not so obvious things?  For each of us it will vary because we have different needs.

At my house things that can be made instead of bought could be garden produce canned and frozen for future use. It could mean cars repaired instead of replaced. Opening windows in the summer instead of air conditioning. Oh, and I love drying clothes on the line, especially towels!

So, what could you do to become a maker and not a consumer? Or what do you do to contribute to society rather than take from it?

What's Up with Washi Tape?

I'm getting my stuff ready for a scrapbook weekend. I realized the last time I scrapped was the summer of 2017?!?!  Kind of sad when I used to get together once a month with friends and scrap the evening away. 

Things have changed a lot since I first started scrapbooking. It used to be you had a good pair of scissors, some cardstock and a few packages of stickers and you were good to go. Now the girls that go scrapbooking carry several loads of stuff in, as well as computers, dvd players and anything else they need to pass the time. I'm still a pretty basic scrapper. As I was looking online at scrapbook supplies I keep seeing washi tape. It's gorgeous! It comes in all sorts of designs and colors! Look at the examples below:

Glitter and Gold!

Geometrics!

CACTUS! 

Ooh, VanGogh!

 See? Lots of pretty designs and patterns! But I still have no idea what people use it for. Borders? Maybe. I see that people are using it in their planners too. I don't know why though. Guess I'm a plain jane planner kind of person too.

So, if you use washi tape, tell me what you do with it.

Taking the Slow Lane

It's been almost 2 years since I've posted anything. Let me tell you, I am loving my little business downtown but it's definitely taken some time to adjust to working full time.

Slow Lane Coffee

A peek at the the counter

This has become my home away from home. For awhile I was spending almost as much time here as I was at home, but I think I'm finally figuring out a healthy balance.

We are a small town coffee shop and I bake fresh muffins and scones and miscellaneous things every weekday. I bake bread as often as I can. We serve specialty coffees and blended drinks as well as serving light lunches. And yes, we even serve plain brewed coffee. It amazes me how many people come in and ask if we have plain ol' coffee! LOL

If you would like to check out our Facebook page, you can find it here.

I'm hoping to get back to blogging more regularly. Time will tell just how much spare time I can find. Until then, Happy January!

Rethinking a problem

In January I wrote a post about giving up a dream that I had. I was fully prepared to give it up but a dear friend of mine suggested that maybe I needed to take another look at the problem and see if it could be solved from a different direction. And that got me to thinking. What if I could approach it from a different direction? Could we make it work?

All of a sudden the dream was back in full force, I just couldn't let it go. I talked to my husband and told him that I wanted to go for it. If it doesn't work, it doesn't work. But if I don't try I will never know. My husband was all for it, so we are working full steam ahead.

I currently have a purchase agreement on a business here in our hometown and we hope to close next month. Life has taken a big change of direction and my days are full of forms that need filled out, cost projections, product testing and consulting with other business people. Aside from filling out all of the government forms I am enjoying every minute of it. I hope to tell you more about it later! Until then, I am back to work. Have a great day!

A Little Piece of our Lives

 I saw this the other day and it made me chuckle. Here in our little town we have an excellent band teacher. He teaches band at two schools, the middle and high school so they keep him busy going back and forth. He still manages to help kids to love band and they do very well when they compete with other schools.

I was very happy this fall when it was decided that my youngest son would be able to join band because if you don't know this kid has a fascination with marching bands. He loves a good marching band the way I love a good steak dinner. We have watched hundreds of hours of marching bands on YouTube since he was just a little tyke. So the fact that he got to be in band made him a very happy boy. We chose the euphonium for one basic reason, we didn't know if he would have the capability to play and the school had one he could use for free. Yeah, I didn't know what a euphonium was either, I had to look it up.

Last night the middle school had their band concert and my boy got to play. Here is a poor picture of him (lighting was not great) playing his horn. He did so well my heart just about exploded! And then I bawled. Because here was my son, the boy that the dr's said would never develop and should be put in an institution to make life easier for us, sitting in the back row with his classmates playing his horn like every other "normal" kid! Yes, okay, he will never be like the other kids, and really we're okay with that because he is a very special boy who loves babies and kittens and is one of the most honest people you will ever meet.

After the concert we got to watch videos of the concert that other parents had posted on Facebook. I told Alex that I was very proud of him because he played every song and paid attention. He looked at me and said, " I made a few mistakes Mom." I quickly reassured him that everyone made mistakes and that's okay.

At the beginning of the year I told Alex that if he stuck with band for the whole year and learned to play that I would buy him his own instrument. Honestly, I thought he would have gotten tired of it by now and be wanting to quit. But no, not him. He has been looking online at trombones. When I look at his history on his Kindle I see that he's been watching lots of videos on how to play the trombone. Who knows what the future will bring for this young man? I really can't even guess but for now we're just going to enjoy the journey. :)

Book Review

I picked up this book at the library a couple of weeks ago. I already know a little bit about Ben Sasse as he is our senator and has been in the news quite a bit as a conservative Republican who does not flinch when it's time to tell the President that he's wrong. Sasse is a strong conservative who is more about protecting our Republic rather than sticking to party lines so I thought I'd pick up his book and see what he had to say.

Before I start I should say that I don't care to read non-fiction. I actually have to force myself to read non- fiction for work so the fact that I read this at all is probably a compliment to the author. I do like most of what I know about Ben Sasse. He and his wife homeschool their children and as a former college president he obviously takes their education very seriously. Anyway, about the book...

The gist of the book is that our children are spoiled, pampered, self centered and are not prepared for adulthood. The author addresses how they got that way and he is not letting parents off the hook here. If our kids are that way it's because we have made them that way by giving them the best of everything without requiring effort on their part or simply going with the flow of society because it's easier. As a historian he is very thorough in explaining the roots of how our country was in the beginning and how we got to here, but the best part is he is that he also offers some real life solutions to try to get our children to become better adults and thus better citizens. You know what I mean, like working for what they have or learning to serve others and (gasp) even reading a book that isn't in the YA section of the library. He suggests that we teach our children to learn how to solve problems and to be more self reliant. 

Need vs Wants- this is a conversation every person should have with themselves and then with their children.

One thing that stuck with me is how quickly things have changed. He compared college kids today to his experiences 20 years earlier. As a parent raising two different generations I can really relate to this. The things that kids are dealing with now are totally different than what my older children had to deal with. Yes, some things are the same, but many are different.

He also touched on the fact that kids today for the most part are totally removed from the work part of their parent's lives. They don't see their parents working hard all day just to provide for what the family needs. My husband and I were both raised on ranches and we not only knew how hard our parents had to work we were right in there working with them. We understood how much work it took to earn that money so we understood why we didn't waste it on frivolous things. I see that many kids today have no idea about work.

I thought the book was a good read. I did get a little lost in the chapter where he talked about his European travels. I was looking forward to his suggested reading list. This is a list of books he would like his children to read by the time they are 18. Um, well, this is one tough list and I hope his kids are a lot more focused and smarter than me. I did agree with his suggestion that teens should read Shakespeare. When I was in high school we read three Shakespeare plays and I learned not only about how to read and dissect harder materials, I also learned a lot about life and History. I don't think they read Shakespeare in high school now, at least not around here.

One of my favorite parts of the book was at the very end where he wrote a speech that Teddy Roosevelt might have given to a high school graduating class were he alive today. I've always been a fan of Teddy so I enjoyed the speech and even found myself hearing it spoken in what I consider to be Teddy's voice in my head.

So what did I take away from the book? That I need to be more diligent in teaching my kids and grand-kids how to learn to solve problems, to encourage them to be more self reliant and to take opportunities to serve others. That making great adults also makes great citizens.

Note: This morning my 14 year old son asked me when I was going to get him a phone. I said you have a phone. (he has a phone called a Gizmo that can call 4 numbers and only the numbers we programmed in) He said, "No I mean when are you going to get me an I Phone or something like it?"

"Hmm", I said,"Why don't you ask the older kids when they got phones, and trust me you aren't going to like the answer."

By the way I never bought my older kids smartphones. The oldest was in the Navy when she bought her own phone and the younger two had a "dumb" phone when they were 17 and 15 that they had to share and they only used it when they left home since we lived 20 miles from town. Until that time, if they were going out I just loaned them my phone to use. (gasp)

Too Many Pills?

Awhile ago I had a friend comment on how many pills she would have to take if she used the Plexus TriPlex regimen. Now if you look at the catalog you might think that you have to take all of the products but you don't. You only need to take the things that your body needs help with. If you aren't used to taking pills it may seem like a lot but it also seems that most people my age are taking lots of different prescription medicines. Talking to a friend last year and she is on 13 different medicines and to be honest looks and feels terrible.

So, I will tell you what I take on a daily basis. First thing in the morning I take 2 BioCleanse pills with my Slim drink. At lunch I take 2 XFactor multivitamins and at bedtime I take 2 BioCleanse and 2 ProBio5. Yes, that is all, 8 pills taken through the day. But I am not taking anything else. No prescription meds, no over the counter meds. Nothing else and I feel better than ever before.

Plexus- entire days supplements

My husband takes Slim in the morning with Nerve, then at night he takes BioCleanse, ProBio5 and Nerve. It doesn't have to be a lot and it doesn't have to change how you live, but it might just make you feel better.

The best thing  to know this month is that Plexus has given me some codes to share so that you can become an ambassador free if you join by Friday the 26th. I have one code left and I would be happy to share it with you if you would like to join my team.

If you want to just order some products and try them you can do that too! Plexus has a 60 day money back guarantee. So you aren't going to be out anything if you give it a try and don't like it.

The link to my store is on the sideline of my blog. If you have any questions you can contact me through email or even call me. I would be happy to help you find a health regimen that works for you!

There's a winter storm coming...

We're expecting up to a foot of snow by tomorrow night. This isn't anything that really concerns me because where I grew up a foot of snow wasn't much. But apparently it concerned a lot of people because when I popped into the grocery store earlier it was very busy with people stocking up.

Now, I tend to keep my pantry pretty well stocked with the foods that we usually cook. The downstairs pantry has items that we canned from the garden and then the bulk dry goods like wheat, beans and such. The freezer has meat in it, although not a lot. (note to self: focus on  adding to this) My upstairs pantry contains the foods that we eat frequently. I have a simple system, if I take something out of the pantry I put it on the shopping list to restock. This system really works for me and I rarely run out of things this way.

Many people I talk to seem surprised at my system which I find to just be kind of a common sense approach but then I grew up on a ranch 20 miles from town so you didn't just run to town if you ran out of sugar or cinnamon, you prepared ahead of time. Or you did without.

The last time there was a storm coming I saw my neighbor at the library with a large stack of books. She wanted to make sure she had something to read. I usually have a couple of library books checked out at all times but I also have a large library of my own so it's pretty unlikely that I will run out of reading materials. We also have a large game selection so we can entertain ourselves pretty well if we are housebound.

So if a snowstorm comes and I can't get to the store for a few days I will be prepared, as long as we have electricity.

I'm curious, what do you do to prepare for impending storms?

Getting Real: Letting Go of Dreams

For a long time I have had a specific dream. About twelve years ago I thought that dream might actually happen but God had other plans for me. Let me tell you, I did not accept the loss of the dream without wailing and gnashing of teeth. I continually reminded God that I had already made plenty of sacrifices and I didn't need to make this one. Honestly, I spent many hours in tears. I was angry at the circumstances that kept me from my dream and I was angry at God because I felt He hadn't kept his part of the bargain. And just like that, the dream was dead, and I had to find a way to reconcile my heart and trust that God had a better plan.

But deep in the recesses of my heart that dream has still had a little spot. I didn't think about it often but it is still there. And I have kept these pictures in my computer to give me a glimmer of hope.

It's not very hard to find these kinds of images and sayings. If you're in the direct marketing business as I am they are everywhere. And they are a good thing, something to keep you motivated but sometimes they can lead you away from the most important things in life. It's got to be a careful balance, making sure we don't neglect the things that God has entrusted to us, for me that would be  my husband and my children. These have to be non-negotiable.

Motivational images and graphics shouldn't be taken as great wisdom or compared with scripture. The Bible says in Proverbs 3:5,6 "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and HE will make straight your paths." That is quite a bit different than what this sign says. Now I'm not saying this sign is wrong, I liked it enough to buy it and keep it in my office. What I am saying is that motivational quotes should not be our guiding light, the Word of God should be. I would think God wants us to dream big, to want to do great things through Him and for Him. The Bible says to seek wisdom and I am trying to do that.

So, this leads me up to my current dilemma. A few months ago the dream came back. The opportunity rose again. The time seemed right since I have a lot of free time on my hands now. My husband is 100% behind me, and people I have talked too seem to think it's a good dream so I started to get excited again. From a business standpoint, from a worldly standpoint it's a no-brainer, I should be moving forward, but...Oh Lord, why is there always a but? But...people I love may be put at risk and that scares me much more than my dreams do. I have wrestled with this for weeks, considering all the pros and cons and last weekend it became clear to me that this is not the time for this dream. Considering my age, this might be the end of my dream. I would be lying if I didn't say this was one of the hardest decisions I've ever had to make because it was my decision, not someone telling me I couldn't do it. These are the sacrifices we must make sometimes because the needs of others are more important. I am not a martyr, I am not a saint, I am just a mom who knows that my kids need me more than others need what I have to offer. There is a big difference this time, I am not angry at God or the circumstances. I have learned that God's plan is usually always better than mine and I can lay this dream aside without bitterness. Sadness yes, but not bitterness.

Now, the big question is, where do I go from here? God and I are still working on that one. I'll let you know when I have an answer. ;)

Kris

My Word of the Year

I have been thinking about what I want to focus on this year then Sunday our pastor was preaching about the importance of encouragement it hit me like a brick. Encourage! I am very quick to correct and criticize but I am really weak at encouraging people, especially my children.

I see other people who are so positive, people who build my kids up when they talk to them. We have a neighbor who is especially good at this. I swear you can actually see my boys get taller when they talk to him because he is so good at building them up. I am so grateful they have these kind of people in their lives but I also see that I need to be more encouraging also.

Books I Read in 2017

I didn't read as much this last year. I had decided to do a couple of reading challenges and I didn't do any of them. Apparently telling myself that I have to read something is equivalent to rebelling and not getting it done. For the first time in my life I just didn't have any interest in reading. I hope that this changes this year because I really miss reading, just can't seem to focus long enough to get into a story.

Here is the list of books that I read. I I had to choose my favorites of the year they would be:

Nonfiction- Women of the Word by Jen Wilkens

Fiction- This Body of Death by Elizabeth George

• Get Over Your D*mn Self by Romi Neustadt
• The Fast Metabolism Diet by Haylie Pomroy
• Love Story by Karen Kingsbury
• Treasured Grace by Tracie Peterson
• The Cottage by Michael Phillips
• Well Schooled in Murder by Elizabeth George
• Threads of Suspicion- Dee Henderson
• Queen Esther and the 2nd Graders of Doom- Allie Pleiter
• Just One Evil Act by Elizabeth George
• If I'm Found by Terri Blackstock
• The Shadow on the Quilt by Stephanie Grace Whitson
• Miss Buncle's Book by D.E. Stevenson
• This Body of Death by Elizabeth George
• The High Calling of Motherhood by Chimene Dupler
• Lilac Girls- by Martha Hall Kelly
• Next Year Country- A Woman's View by Alma Phillip
• Kristin Lavransdatter by Sigrid Undset
• The Four Color Personalities for MLM by Tom Schreiter
• Eat That Frog by Brian Tracy
• Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay
• Truly, Madly Guilty by Liane Moriarty
• Women of the Word by Jen Wilkens
• Eat Fat, Lose Fat by Mary Enig & Sally Fallon
• Rain Song by Alice Wisler

It's Been a Quiet Month in the Busiest Season of the Year~

December is usually quite busy for me, baking and sewing and attending seasonal events. But this year has been very different. This year I got sick the Monday after Thanksgiving and have been pretty much sick ever since. It started out with an allergy attack and by last week was full blown bronchitis. I am feeling better but still not up to par. This hit me hard and to be honest I'm completely worn down and trying to regain momentum. So, it's a good thing that we didn't really have plans for Christmas. Since all the kids were here for Thanksgiving we are planning a quiet Christmas Day with just the boys. And I am very okay with that. Sometimes slow, peaceful and quiet is the very best thing, don't you think?
We did squeeze in a quick trip to Omaha last weekend to watch our daughter in law receive her masters degree in business organization. This is the first milestone in her goal to become an occupational therapist. She's worked hard and we are all very proud of her. Our son treated us all to see the new Star Wars movie which excited the hubby as much as the boys. I was really just along for the ride. I like some science fiction but have never really been a fan of Star Wars. (gasp, don't tell anyone)
Anyway, the boys get out of school in a little bit so our Christmas break officially begins. I predict lots of movie watching, a little baking, some games and maybe a puzzle to put together. I have a couple of books I want to read, and the boys are looking forward to time off from school.
I wish you all a Merry Christmas and hope you enjoy the holiday in the way that you choose too. Even it's hiding in a blanket fort in the middle of the living room. :)

We are busy enjoying listening to Christmas carols doing a little extra baking. I love Christmas!

The Enchanting Rose Teacup Exchange

A couple of months ago I signed up for a teacup exchange. This was sponsored by Stephanie at The Enchanting Rose blog.The exchange is where you're given a name and address and send some perfect stranger a package of goodies along with a teacup. In exchange you get one from someone else. I have done different kinds of swaps before and it's always been fun. Monica at the Homepun Heart used to do a shoebox swap and it was a lot of fun. Another swap I did was where we all bought the Bend the Rules sewing book and each month made a project out of it and sent it to someone else. One of the best purses I ever made ended up going to someone in that swap. :)

Ok, back to this swap. I had mailed out my package and then had been busy enough that I completely forgot about it so I was pleasantly surprised to find this in my mailbox. It was a little big to just be a tea cup. It was sent to me by Dee in Colorado and was just so lovely!

Here is a look at what was inside my box. She sent me the teacup as I expected, a nice dark coffee, some cookies, a mug rug, a book to read while I have my coffee and some beautiful fabric with teacups on it!

Here is a closer look at the teacup. I love the blues in it and it just took me right back to a little cafe in Mildenhall where I used to grab a cup of tea with a friend.

Thank you Stephanie for organizing this exchange and thank you very much to Dee for such a lovely package! I really do love it!

If you would like to see the other tea cup and mug reveals you can go here and take a look. What fun this was!

A little wandering of the thoughts...

Who would have expected to see a bus from Huffpost in our little town?

 On of my favorite fall recipes. Might have to make some this weekend since it's now November!! When I try a recipe I like I write on it so I remember next time. I also write on the ones we dislike so I don't accidentally make them again.

Spotted on the wall of a library where my friend works.

My pink drink still getting me throughout the day without wanting those sugary drinks I used to crave. I am always eager to help anyone who is looking for a way to help them adopt a healthier lifestyle. My Plexus link is on the side column.

Bake Sale

My son is going to Washington D.C. with his class next spring. He is paying for his own trip but was still a little short so I told him I would help him by doing a bake sale. I made loaves of bread, dinner rolls and about 8 different kinds of cookies.

There was a Ladies Night event at a local hotel where quite a few direct sales companies set up tables, had refreshments and a drawing for a basket of goodies. There was already a gal with a table for Plexus so I decided to do a bake sale and use the funds raised for my sons trip. I paid to have a table there and we had a good evening. I came home with about 3 loaves of bread and 4 dozen cookies. The best thing is I could just toss them in the freezer and I didn't have to bake for the family for a couple of weeks. We have the opportunity to do a larger, all-day event in November. I'm still debating whether to do it or not. I think it could be very good but I need to weigh in the fact that it will be a lot of work to get ready for it. Also, in our community we have one craft show a year and it's that day. If I do the other event I miss the craft show. Decisions, decisions...

 Getting ready was a big job!

 Since the event was at night I could bake bread that morning so it was nice and fresh.

My very few Halloween Decorations

 We have never been big on Halloween. But these are a couple of things my youngest son brought home this year. The Frankenstein is made out of a baking sheet and will hang on the door. He also made the cards at school.

This is a little Lego bat and pumpkin that Alex brought home from the neighbors a few weeks ago. He was so excited! It really is kind of cute.
I told the boys that I thought middle school is too old for trick or treating, considering they are as big as many adults! But I will take them to the Halloween carnival at their old school and let them have some fun.

A Little Bit of Fall Loveliness from Lake Mac

A few weeks ago we had our family pictures taken by the little lake. While we were waiting for the photographer I snapped this because I just loved the colors.
Fall is probably my favorite season. I don't know if it's because we finally get away from the hot summer days or if it's because the colors change and get so intense but I love fall.

I pulled this recipe from a magazine a few years ago and I always think it's a perfect dish for when the weather starts getting cooler.

1 pkg of Hillshire Farm Smoked Sausage
8 oz cooked pasta (I double the pasta and use a whole box)
2 cups heavy cream
2 tsp cajun seasoning
1/2 cup grated parmesan
Prepare pasta, drain and set aside. Saute sausage for 5 minutes, I brown it good, and add cream and cajun seasoning. Bring to a boil and reduce heat, simmer for 3-4 minutes or until it begins to thicken. Stir in parmesan, add pasta and toss.
YUM!