What is your favorite thing about Fall?
If you haven’t read ,this post on the “5 Reasons I Love Fall” it will give you my full thoughts but to sum it up… It makes me feel warm and happy inside.
What am I most looking forward to this holiday season?
I love giving gifts but this year I have one gift idea that I have been working on for over a year and I could explode with excitement. If I can keep it a secret until Christmas it will be a miracle!!! I can't wait to share it with y'all, as well!
Fall is perfect comfort food weather. What is your favorite comfort food?
Anything in a slow cooker but especially chili. I love the stodginess and all the autumnal flavors you can mix in. Add some fun toppings and you have yourself a party.
Share your favorite pumpkin recipe.
Roasted Brussels sprouts are probably my favorite vegetable so ,this recipe was a no brainer to try. Super easy however, I had a few things I’d change. One, I’m not sure the cranberry sauce made any difference whatsoever so you could totally leave that out even if it felt festive to use it. Also, the ratio of filling to starchy topping was way off in my opinion. It was like ¾ potato and pumpkin. If I made this again I would either half one or double the other. Truthfully, I think I will use the filling to do stuffed acorn squash soon. The flavors would be great together and so comfy.
What’s your favorite fall food?
How do you pick one food? I’ll choose one from a few categories… Food: Chili of any kind. Actually, anything that can be fixed in a crockpot is fantastic. Beverage: Chai latte. It’s like drinking a holiday candle. Yum! Snacks: Anything pumpkin spice… Like pumpkin spice pretzels. Candy: Russell Stover Caramel Pumpkin or Apple
Do you change up your daily look once the new season begins?
I mark the first day of fall on my calendar so I can start wearing plaid and boots. Is it still 9,000 degrees outside where I live? Yes. Does that stop me? Definitely not and I pay the price by sweating myself to death every year.
Favorite Fall Quote
October 23 Make a Difference Day
Trying to narrow it down to one moment that made a difference is next to impossible for me. I can think of the big moments and the small. All of which have shaped my life and outlook. These are some of the things that come to mind on this day…
- The lady at church who told me I was pretty and sang well when I was an awkward teenager who very much disliked herself.
- The teachers who poured so much of themselves into their work that I couldn’t help but fall in love with knowledge and learning.
- The lovely gentleman, who was quite possibly a Hell’s Angel, that saw a very ill-equipped girl trying to figure out where the fluid went after tearing her power steering line while on her senior trip and couldn’t help but step in to rescue… Reassuring me, and my father, that everything would be taken care of without delay.
- The friends who were willing to speak with tough love and help me recognize some very toxic thinking patterns and not leave me to dig my way out alone.
- The grandmother who took a disaster of a prom dress and somehow deconstructed and reconstructed it all by prom night with utter care and perfection.
Little moments of kindness can make a big difference.
“A time for everything…” Reflection
This verse was on my parents’ wedding invitation and I always thought it was odd. Their invitation only included verse 1 but as you read along not everything in chapter 3 is good which is why I couldn’t really understand associating that with this great day of joy and celebration. However, as an adult who hopes to be married one day and who has the honor of watching wonderful marriages all around me, there really is a time for everything…
New babies and parents dying (vs. 2)
Cancer diagnosis and heart attacks (vs. 3)
Sin struggles and broken hearts (vs. 4)
Job searches and house hunts (vs. 6)
Great communication and misunderstandings (vs. 7)
I don’t think my parents could have ever imagined what all the last 40 years would have held when they chose this verse but it truly is representative of life and love and the ebbing flow of beauty wrapped up in all of it.
Do you have a favorite Halloween memory?
I don’t know if this is a favorite memory but it’s definitely one of my oldest Halloween memories and one that would not make sense to my students from a safety standpoint. I remember trick or treating in my grandmother’s neighborhood and there was a house at the end of the curve that had the best treats. A cauldron full of “potions” with dry ice for ambiance and homemade goodies, like popcorn balls and haystacks. I have no idea who this woman was and this was the only time during the year when I would see or speak to her but I remember it vividly. This had to be over thirty years ago.
Fall Bucket Dream List
Pumpkin patch, apple orchard, bonfire, autumn hike, pictures in which you aren’t suffocating in your fall attire
What is your favorite Halloween candy?
Halloween themed: Russell Stover Caramel Pumpkin or Apple
Fun Size: Reese’s anything or Twix
Non-Chocolate: Dots (One of those rare candies that I rarely considered buying in a store but will eat 15 tiny boxes in one sitting.)
October 28th International Cat Day
Ella, Pip & Patch
Have you ever been scared by a movie, haunted house etc?
You have lost your mind if you think I’ve ever been to a haunted house, a fake one I mean. I’ll gladly go to a place that is supposedly haunted in real life because nothing will jump out at me. As far as movies go, I spent a large portion of my college years sitting in dark movies with my thumbs in my ears and my hands over my eyes while “watching” the show. Do you know what’s the worst part of blindly and deafly watching a scary movie. You are still scared because everyone else is either jumping or grabbing you. No ma’am! That is not for me and something I swore off after about 22.
Are you dressing up for Halloween? Share a pic of your costume!
I’m not dressing up for Halloween but Homecoming Week (aka the best week of the year) is currently going on and I dress up for all of that. Here are my favorite HOCO looks thus far…
