Festive Fall....

October is such a great month...I love it because of Thanksgiving and Halloween, the crispness of the air, the blowing leaves and decorating for fall. However, I have to say, I am glad it is all over! I will be putting away the clutter to enjoy a nice bare look before I decorate for Christmas. This morning...November 1st, Ella wakes up and promptly tells me that Christmas is next!! Gotta love the anticipation that kids fill you with!

The night before Halloween I got together with my brother and his family for the first time to carve out pumpkins. I made homemade stew with dumplings, homemade rubhard crumble pie and a apple crumble pie. It was delicious! We had so much fun, and the kids except for one, really enjoyed my stew which had plenty of turnip, parsnips and cabbage mixed in with all the other delicious ingredients! I finished off the night by roasting lots of pumpkin seeds...yum!

I had a big pot of beef stew on the stove and I was preparing two pies.

Earlier in the day, I had to clean out four pumpkins with the help of the kids. How is it that after 15 years of carving pumpkins, I only now discover the little carving sets at the dollar store??? They work great!! I'm going to buy a few extra so that I can use them for squash throughout the year. Patricia my sil, brought quite a few pumpkins and she carved out some beauties! She inspired me to carve one out with lots of stars...and this is my favourite, even though my stars are wonky.

I was dreading cutting the tops off and cleaning out the pumpkins till I discovered the $ store kits for carving pumpkins.

I made up treat bags with the help of Ella for the trick or treaters and Ella enjoyed her first Halloween party at pre-school! She dressed up as a cheerleader and is not shy in showing you how to cheer!

The kids all dressed for Halloween were raring to go...well, maybe not Ben...but he had the excuse of taking his little sister around so he will get some candy without having to dress up beyond wearing an army jacket! We are waiting on some friends and cousins to show up to join us and then they are off!







All in all it was a great October, a great Halloween! The only sad thing was my nephew was insulted by a rude adult about his weight...nothing like making a young kid feel bad about himself in the hopes of guilting a kid out of a bag of candy! My brother and sister in-law were really hurt by this...and Patricia talks about it on her blog which you should check out...you see, her son, my nephew has Aspergers and he hasn't gone trick or treating for years...he was so happy to go with his cousing Jack! Why can't people be more thoughtful in what they say?? That old saying of "stick and stones will break my bones but words can never hurt me"...is a lie! Anyways, I hope that Mathew remembers how much he is loved and how we appreciate his unique take on things!

Roasting Pumpkin Seeds...Yummy

Don't throw out the seeds when making Jack-O-Lanterns or cooking fresh pumpkins, or flower arrangements using hollowed out pumpkins. They make great snacks that are rich in fiber as well as vitamins B and E. Kids especially love them. Purists will want only salt as a seasoning, or fussy kids like mine, but if you're feeling adventurous, experiment and have fun with seasoning blends.

1 1/2 cups pumpkin seeds
2 tsp. melted butter or oil (olive oil or vegetable oil work well)
salt to taste
Options To Taste:
garlic powder (my favourite)
cayenne pepper
seasoning salt
Cajun seasoning

Preheat oven to 300° F.

While it's O.K. to leave some strings and pulp on your seeds (it adds flavor), clean off any major chunks. Toss pumpkin seeds in a bowl with the melted butter or oil and seasonings of your choice. Spread pumpkin seeds in a single layer on baking sheet. Bake for about 45 minutes, stirring occasionally, until golden brown.

I like to use parchment paper so that they won't stick to the pan when cooking!


I used a small amount of seeds from a small pumpkin floral arrangement. Even though it only made a small amount, they were gone quickly! That bowl is one of my favourites...a great yard sale find this summer! It was a set of vintage 70's melamine bowls perfect for serving or for little kids!

Giving Thanks....

Thanksgiving

For each new morning with its light,
For rest and shelter of the night,
For health and food,
For love and friends,
For everything Thy goodness sends.

--Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882)

As another Thanksgiving rolls around I can't help but reflect on this past year...there is always much to be thankful for.

This year I celebrated Thanksgiving dinner with my brother and his family for the first time in years! They just returned from Alberta after many, many years awayThey offered to host our first dinner together and cooked the most amazing turkey to perfection! I helped John with the carving...mainly as a second set of hands only...but it was funny to see my brother in an apron! Ben helped to stir the gravy...and I think to snag some turkey skin.

Patricia my sil had set up two tables to hold everyone...and both tables fitted pretty effortlessly in their beautiful dining space...and they were decorated beautifully! The adult table was festive for the Thanksgiving holiday and the kids table was decorated to celebrate the coming Hallowee'n. I meant to take more pictures, but by the time you get the kids served, then eat...the kids had scattered. Thankfully, Patricia is letting me use many of her photos...you should check out her blog for more beautiful pictures.

The kids table decorated with twinkle lights, bottles of poison and bugs in bottles...yum!

Her diningroom is large with the most amazing view of the lake!


My father and youngest brother.

The cousins!

After washing up the first load of dishes and stacking the dishwasher....thankfully Patricia actually acknowledges that I do know how to load a dishwasher, I took off to hang out at their beautiful dock and soak in the amazing sunset with my nieces Kristen and Meaghan. Myt nieces are pretty amazing...and I loved sitting by the water and just hearing their thoughts...luv them!

Isn't this an amazing view....

Dinner was noisy, it was busy, but it was wonderful! To be with my large family, to celebrate the season together, I can't imagine ever wanting a quiet holiday. I love the chaos, laughter and even the squabbles that pop up between the kids...it was a typical large family gathering!

My contribution to the dinner was a homemade blueberry apple crisp. We picked the apples ourselves this week. The blueberries were local berries frozen from the fall. I also made my delicious candied squash plus honeyed carrots and mashed turnip. I always bake my squash...I don't care for a wet squash. However, that day I was worried because I was running the roads doing errands inbetween and taking my son to boxing.

I made Patricia a very pretty center piece for her table as a hostess gift to say thank you for hosting the dinner! I used a fresh pumpkin, carved it out, then added flowers, fall grasses and maple leaves from my garden...except for the sunflowers...I bought those! I thought it turned out very pretty! Oh, and I plan to roast the pumpkin seeds...yum!

I was lucky enough to snag the turkey carcass (doesn't that sound yummy) and right now it is bubbling away on the stove to be turned into delicious homemade stock for soups. Tomorrow we plan to make another smaller turkey since Andy once again worked thru a large family dinner. After you have turkey...you just can't get enough of it.