flowers at the door

Ringing doorbells, leaving goodies and dashing away {while we were booing neighbors} peeked the interest of my big girl.  

The other day, she asked me to wait at the doorway while she busied herself in the yard.  As I waited, she tore through the yard gathering little leaves and flowers.  When she peeked back at me she asked that I close the door and wait for the doorbell to ring.  When it rang and I opened the door, a sweet little bouquet awaited me on the front step while she hurried around the pillar. 

Oh, what fun it is to leave little surprises for unsuspecting folks {or Momma}!

taking care of pumpkins

Since my little one snatched this pumpkin at a local pumpkin patch a week ago, she has not let a day go by without moving it or shuffling it around the yard.  When it rained, she dutifully moved out of the rain and into the garage.  When we arrive home, she walks up to the font step and picks it up and heaves it around before we go inside.  When we walk out the front door, she takes it out to sit under the shade of the trees.  When we went for a walk, she attempted to take it along but decided not to after she dropped it and it rolled down the driveway.  At the rate she's going, I am not quite sure this sweet pumpkin will make it to Halloween.

the rain came

When the skies darkened from the west and the winds kicked up, it was like a magic signal sent out to everyone.  Doors swung open and kids ran outside while parents marveled at the sight of rain -- a sight that hasn't been seen for many, many months.   Little boats were sailed down the water-filled gutters while umbrellas were abandoned in the yard.  It was almost surreal to see the dark clouds instead of the accustomed blue.  We are so thankful the rain came down today.

 

Caprese Salad

With the basil still abundant, we needed a few more recipes that included this favorite herb of mine.  I ran across this traditional simple salad from here and it very quickly became a favorite.  I hope you will enjoy it too, while the tomatoes are still ripening and the basil is tasty!

Recipe for caprese salad: 

A Country Farmhouse

fresh picked tomatoes (we used store-bought)

fresh picked basil

fresh mozzarella (in a pinch, I use cheese sticks cut-up)

 olive oil and balsamic vinegar 

salt and pepper to taste

barefoot in the garden

I dreaded dismantling the garden this fall.  When it failed to thrive this summer, I knew we needed to dismantle it and start over next spring.  As I tore away the tall sides and dug the dirt away, the kids flocked to me like I was Santa.  The little wheel-barrow made an appearance and the gardening tools came out too.  Shoes were flung into the lawn and little toes squirmed deep into the rich dirt.  They dug, and dug, and dug for the entire morning.  I contemplated leaving the mess because they had such fun playing.  Instead, they helped me move the dirt to another part of the yard that needed a soil boost.  They took turns trying to push and balance the wheel-barrow full of dirt.  

I would have never thought that this long-dreaded task would become such a wonderful morning with my children--well, with the exception of the little one eating the dirt...of course!

BOO!

via

We have begun the "booing" tradition on our street a bit early this year.  After seeing this adorable "BOO" sign and directions at The TomKat Studio, we decided it might be fun to start the "booing" ourselves.

My kids think it is so much fun to look around at the neighbors' doors to see if anyone else has been booed!  By starting early, we are hopeful that our whole street will be "BOOED" by the time Halloween rolls around in a few weeks.  

Enjoy some "booing" of your own!  The free printable sign and directions were found here.  

Happy Halloween Month!

Warm and Cozy: Perfect Banana Bread

via

I love banana bread but finding a recipe without dairy for my dairy-sensitive kids can sometimes present quite a challenge.  When I ran across this recipe for banana bread without a trace of butter or heavy cream, I was overjoyed.

Ingredients:

2 eggs

1/3 cup vanilla yogurt

½ cup vegetable oil

1 cup ripe mashed bananas

1 ½ cups white sugar

½ cup brown sugar

½ tsp vanilla extract

1 ¾  cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

½  tsp salt

*we add walnuts {approx. 1/3 cup chopped walnuts} to ours and enjoy the texture and taste

Directions:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees and prepare chosen pan.

Blend together the eggs, yogurt, oil, extract and bananas in mixer with low speed.

Add in sugars and fully incorporate.  Then add flour, baking soda, and salt and mix until just combined.

Pour into prepared pan and bake 1 hour or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

(Be sure to start checking your banana bread at 45 minutes.  I have had it be done in 50 minutes or heard that it can take as much as 75 minutes.  It just depends on the accuracy of your oven.)

Enjoy this warm and cozy recipe on a cool Fall day!