Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas from our house to yours!

24 Years....

Twenty four years ago, I married the love of my life. Here's to many more years together!

I love you, Hon!
xoxo

The Reason I Caved....

I am a huge fan of the Real Housewives television series on Bravo. I love to watch the Trainwrecks while they happen...they make me feel so normal. After each episode, Andy Cohen hosts Watch What Happens Live in the Bravo Clubhouse and he always has some wonderful guests to give their take on the latest episode.

He is constantly saying that the viewers can tweet him @BravoAndy and ask questions for the guests to answer. I held out on having a twitter account for the longest time because I'm pretty much a boring Midwest Housewife and don't have that much going on in my life (I certainly wouldn't qualify for a Real Housewife in Farm Country series). I really don't think that people would be interested in hearing that I'm leaving for my part time job! or I just put a meatloaf in the oven!

BUT, because I love Andy soooo much, almost as much as I love my pretend boyfriend, I decided to create a twitter account just so I could follow Andy's tweets. I also 'liked' his Facebook page so that I get updates on my Facebook home page. (I also am following my friend Melisa, and as soon as I created the account, I got an email from her with SHUT UP in the subject line...hehe.)

Anyhow, I'm trying to get up the nerve to tweet Andy and ask him to move to Farm Country to be my bff. I wonder if I send him enough tweets he'll move here...we could do such fun stuff like play Pictionary, drink cocktails, talk about the Trainwrecks, etc.

OR....maybe he'll put out a restraining order on me....stay tuned. ;)

Spiced Pecans

I love going to the mall this time of the year. Our local mall sells different varieties of spiced nuts that smell ridiculously delicious, but the only problem is, they cost about a gazillion dollars for 1/4 pound of goodness. So, I asked my dear friend Sara if she had a recipe for spiced pecans, and lucky for me she did and was willing to share. :) Pecans can be a bit pricey in the grocery store, but this time of the year you may be able to find a good sale price for pecan halves. And you do want to use pecan halves, not pieces, for this recipe.

Spiced Pecans
1 egg white
2 Tbs water
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp allspice
3 cup pecan halves

Whisk the egg white until frothy; blend in the water, sugar, and spices. Add the pecans and toss. Spread mixture onto a foil covered baking sheet and bake for 250 for 45 minutes. Stir every 15 minutes. Spread onto wax paper to cool.

Ahead of the Game

This past weekend, I baked the last of the cookies I'm planning on baking. I still want to make 3 different kinds of candy and some spiced pecans. The cookies are in the freezer until closer to Christmas, when I'll take them out a little at a time for the cookie trays.

Today I finished wrapping the last of the gifts, minus the one that hasn't arrived yet. My cards are addressed and ready to be mailed (tomorrow). It's nice to enjoy the season without feeling like I'm up against the clock....and believe me, most years I feel that way.

We have so many things to look forward to the next couple of weeks.....The Boy coming home; White Christmas (the play); our 24th anniversary; The Girl coming for Christmas; Lori, Mike, and Jamie coming for Christmas; Wicked; our annual New Year's Eve extravaganza with Jim and Melisa. Good times!

It would be even more perfect if our parents could be here, but since they live across the country, we'll have to settle with phone calls on Christmas.

I'm planning on posting recipes for goodies in future posts.
Stay tuned!

PS....I now have a job! Merry Christmas to us!

Hero

For the United States of America, December 7th will always be infamous for the bombing of Pearl Harbor and the beginning of WWII for our country.

Unfortunately, for my family, December 7 took on a whole new meaning in 1993. My father, our own personal hero, passed away.

Daddy, you are missed more than words can ever say.

What I've been Missing and didn't even know it!

We have one child. He's a boy. He never appreciated Barbies, make-up, perfume, etc. (Not that I tried to force those things on him!!!) He has always been 'all boy.'

This year, he's bringing the girlfriend home for Christmas. Her mom has to work, so she's coming down for a few days and two of those days just happen to be Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. How did I get so lucky to have her here for both Thanksgiving AND Christmas?

Anyway...the point of this post is.....it is so much fun to buy stocking stuffers for a girl!!!!

YAY for girl stockings! Oh, and it's equally as fun to fill the boy's stocking too, but it's just different for a girl, that's all. :)

Wow

I just returned from the post office. I mailed TWO things...my father-in-law's Bible that he forgot when he was here and one first class letter that needed additional postage. Ever wonder why the prices are so high at the post office? Get a load of this receipt!


I put it next to my tall hurricane lamp so that you could see how long it truly is. I swear it's as long as my last grocery receipt (when I bought enough food for a week plus Thanksgiving)!

Thankful

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. This past week was fun at our house! The Boy and The Girl came here on Friday the 19th. Saturday we had lunch at Buffalo Wild Wings and then came home for birthday cake and ice cream. (The Boy turned 20 on November 7th and The Girl turned 21 on the 24th.) We had a nice visit with them before they left for her mom's house for a few days. They got back here on Thanksgiving and by then The Man's dad was here. The Man's sister and family also came over for dinner on Thanksgiving and we had a wonderful time.

It really helped to be surrounded by family because I was obviously still feeling pretty down because of Dutch's death.

Yesterday, The Boy headed back to school and starts his new quarter today. It was great to have him home and it's also great knowing that he'll be back home in 3 weeks. Before he left, he carried the Christmas tree upstairs for me and put it together. I got it and the house decorated yesterday.

Now for the fun part...planning the goodies to bake, the presents to buy, and listening to Mannheim Steamroller cds.

I may not have a job at this moment, but I am truly blessed with the life I have. God is good.

Good-bye, our faithful friend

I know that you're now running and playing and no longer in pain. In time, our wonderful memories of you will take the place of the void you left behind.

My friend Amy emailed this quote to me today....
"God turns clouds inside out to make fluffy beds for the dogs in Dog heaven, and when they are tired from running and barking and eating ham-sandwich biscuits, the dogs find a cloud bed for sleeping. God watches over each one of them. And there are no bad dreams."
by: Cynthia Rylant

You will always be my special sweet boy.

Self Defense 101

The boy came home from college and showed this to me. I had to share in case anyone needed to learn self defense.

Happy Birthday, Mom!

Tomorrow is my mom's birthday. In my opinion, she is the best mom in the world! Here are just a few examples:

• after working 3-11pm at the hospital (she's a retired nurse), she would get up in the middle of the night to get me a glass of water just because I 'needed' one.
• while working her shift, she would buy me a Three Musketeers Bar from the candy cart and not get mad at me for rummaging through her purse and eating it before breakfast
• when she was dead tired during the day and would try to catch a catnap on the couch, she would never get mad at me when I would crawl up into her lap, pry open her eyes and tell her to wake up...I'm so sorry, Mom!
  
• when I was in 4th grade, she would pull me from my bed, unlocking the death grip I had on my canopy bed, to try to get me to school. Some days it worked, some days it didn't. I hated 4th grade
• she would bribe me into going to school by promising to pick me up for lunch so that I could spend time with her before she left for pm shift at the hospital.
  
• when I was in 6th grade, she gave up her good paying job at the hospital and became our school nurse so that she could have the same schedule as we did (my dad happened to be one of her principals)....my sister, who was in kindergarten at the time, was her very first patient because she threw up in the middle of her kindy class. good times.
• when I was in 8th grade, she went back to college to get her BS in nursing...she drove 45 minutes one way to school with her best friend...and then she would lock herself in her room with a bag of Doritos and study. BUT, she always made time for the three of us kids and our dad
• she would cook us our favorite meals for our birthday dinners (even turkey for Sam in the dead of summer with no air conditioning!) She always made our birthdays special. We always got bakery cake from Frank's Bakery (those from my hometown know what I'm talkin' about....YUM)
• when I was a junior in high school, my mom graduated from West Liberty State College with her BS in nursing. She got her RN from Presby Hospital in Pittsburgh straight out of high school, but my dad encouraged her to go on for her BS and she did it!
• after junior prom, a few of us headed to Kennywood Amusement park in Pittsburgh. She got up early to fry a bunch of chicken and to pack our picnic lunch. As we were loading the car, she yelled, "Make sure each guy gets a breast!" Seriously, Mom! I don't think she'll ever live that moment down! hehe
• she was always there to wipe our tears, kiss our boo boos, put medicine on our cuts, give out plenty of hugs and kisses, and make us feel homey and secure.
• she is my best friend and I'm fortunate to have her in my life

Mommy, I love you. You are the best ever and you deserve the best life has to offer! You may be 70, but in my mind, you'll always be my mommy!
xoxoxoxo

Gearing Up!

The Boy will be finished with his last final tomorrow morning, then he's heading home for Thanksgiving break! The Man is really happy because 1. he misses him and 2. he claims that there is never any food in the house when The Boy isn't home. whatever. ;)

The Girl (his girlfriend) is also coming, so we're going to have a joint birthday celebration this weekend since her 21st birthday is the day before Thanksgiving. Bring on the cake! Oh, and we're also having lasagna. ;)

My father-in-law will be here in a week, so pretty soon we'll have a full house. That makes me very happy.

I have my Thanksgiving menu all planned (I have had it planned for about a month now...I love the holidays). This time next week, I'll be in the kitchen baking pies and doing the prep work for the big day.

Here is my menu...

• turkey
  
• stuffing
  
• mashed potatoes
• gravy
• sweet potato casserole (have to make a double batch because my nephew will be here!) ;)
• corn casserole
  
• peas and pearl onions
• homemade noodles
• homemade rolls
• cranberry sauce (and I admit to using the jellied sauce because I'm the only one who will eat the 'good' homemade stuff)

Desserts:

• pecan pie
• pumpkin pie
• Dutch apple pie

Mmmmm....I can hardly wait!

This is the year I won't have any excuses....

The past few years, I've been a slacker when it comes to sending Christmas cards. I've also noticed that we've received less cards. I'm not sure if it has anything to do with the digital age in which we live (thanks to the new social networking sites), or because of people's busy schedules.

Being a former Navy wife, most of my friends are scattered across the country. It's great to catch up with them at least once a year through Christmas/holiday greetings. My favorite cards are photo cards with pictures of either the kids or the entire family all together.

This year at Thanksgiving, I'm planning on having The Boy's girlfriend take a picture of The Man, The Boy, Dutch, and I so that I can make my own Christmas card from Shutterfly (I just hope that Dutch cooperates!) There are many beautiful options on Shutterfly's page. Once I know how the picture turns out and the colors we wear, I'll choose the card that coordinates the best.

Shutterfly not only has cards, but also a wide variety of gifts from which to choose. You can make your own calendar, canvas wall art, ornaments, and of course holiday cards. They also have fantastic photo books for people like me who aren't into scrapbooking. I'm thinking of making one to commemorate our Disney trip last year.

Just skip on over to http://www.shutterfly.com and you can get creative in your gift giving this year. Oh, and if you're a blogger and want 50 free holiday cards, follow this link, fill out the form and you'll get information on how you can also share the love. http://bit.ly/sfly2010

Happy Birthday, Son!

Trying to make a long story short (it is a really long story, but I know some people don't like to hear about other people's birth stories, so I won't bore you with mine), I was admitted into the hospital at 10pm on Monday night, November 5, 1990. I was using my breathing techniques (hoo hoo hoo hee hee hee) and really? Didn't do much for me. So, after 31 hours of labor (and yes, I did beg for and receive drugs...so much for being drug free) and after being not so nice to my wonderful husband who was only trying to help (sorry, sweetie!), I gave birth to our wonderful son! They marked the time at 2:55am on Wednesday, November 7, 1990.

Fast forward to today....my 'baby' is now 20! years old! I just blinked and this happened! I remember back in the day when I was a stay at home mom and I would take him to the park in his stroller. I would see all of the moms with older kids and they would say to me, "enjoy every single minute of his babyhood. he'll grow way too fast." And now? I find myself saying the same thing to new mothers everywhere. They do grow way too fast.

But now, the relationship the three of us have is priceless. The Man and I have raised a wonderful, well-rounded young man and we really enjoy his company.

Happy Birthday, Son! Your dad and I are so proud you!
xoxoxo

The Waiting is the Hardest Part...Maybe

Twenty years ago today, I was due to have my baby. I woke up in the morning expecting magic to happen....but not a twinge...nothing. So, I continued my nesting and knew we needed food, so I headed to the Navy Commissary for a huge load of groceries. The Commissary was good for many reasons, one being that the food was a bit cheaper and another was that they had people who bagged the groceries and took them to your car and loaded them for you. Just what a hugely pregnant woman needed!

I waddled into the store and filled my cart. After paying for my food, I walked beside the lady who packaged my food to show her my car. As we were walking, we were chatting away and she asked when I was due. I think I said, "Any minute now...today is the day!" I had a hard time keeping up with her after that because she practically ran to my car. After she loaded the groceries and I tipped her, she looked at me with very wide eyes and said, "Good luck!"

As I was driving home, I was thinking that I didn't need luck. I was going to have this baby in a matter of hours AND I was going to do it totally drug free.

You know what they say about the best laid plans, right?

To be continued....

Go Go Power Rangers....Pizza!

Long ago, when the boy was almost 4, he wanted to be the Red Power Ranger for Halloween. The problem? I needed to make a costume for the Awana harvest party that was a circus theme. I got the great idea to make a pizza costume (slice of pepperoni pizza) when I saw the pattern and knew that even *I* could make that.

The Boy: But I want to be the RED RANGERRRRRRR! (he used to drag his words out)

Me: Sweetie! Think how fun it will to be a piece of pizza! We can dress you all in red and put this pizza thing over the top and you'll just look so cute!

The Boy: But I want to be the RED RANGERRRRRRR!

Me: But Sweetie, there are no Power Rangers at the circus! Think of how original it will be to have you dressed up as a piece of pizza! How fun would that be? You'll be great!

I finally talked him into it (well, I made the costume and put him in it when we got to the Awana Circus. hehe) He had a ball and loved being the only one dressed as a slice of pizza, I'm sure.

Fast forward to the day care Halloween party when he again went as a piece of pizza. Not so great. Most of his little friends were dressed as various colors of Power Rangers and they were flying around the room karate chopping one another. The Boy wasn't happy one bit. Luckily, his day care teacher (who was a bit older and wiser than I was at the time) drew a picture of a dinosaur and taped it to his red turtle neck and let him take off the pizza costume. My boy seriously thought he WAS the Red Power Ranger. When it came time to take the class picture of all of the little ones dressed in their Halloween attire, Miss K talked The Boy into putting his pizza back on, while whispering in his ear that he could leave the dinosaur on his chest, UNDER the pizza. Looking at that picture later, I could tell how proud The Boy was that he was REALLY a Red Power Ranger in disguise! He had us all fooled! ;)

The Time Shopping Saved the Day!

One of the great things of living here in Farm Country is the ability to enjoy living in a small town while having a major city within driving distance. I grew up in a small town in Northern WV that was 45 minutes away from Pittsburgh. I've been to the symphony, ballet, zoo, concerts, baseball games, etc. in Pittsburgh, but it was always wonderful to go back home to our small town. (and when I say small....I mean small!)

When we moved here, we knew we wanted to find a house in a small town. Many people who worked for the same company questioned our reasoning for wanting to live in a town with a prison. Doesn't faze us one bit. In fact, we have a state police headquarters, sheriff's police headquarters and the local police all in one area. Pretty safe small town.

About 6 months after we moved here, our friends who live in the suburbs asked us if we wanted to go to Chicago to see a Broadway play. I was all over that idea! The Man? Not so much. He's not really interested in musicals. However, after Jim begged him, I mean... talked him into it, and after the promise of dinner at The Butcher Shop (now closed, sadly)....mmmmm MEAT....he finally agreed.

So, The Man and I drove to the suburbs and the four of us took the Metra into the city. We got to Union Station early, so we decided to sit and have coffee (Jim and Me), hot cocoa (Melisa), and espresso (The Man). So, we're sitting and talking and people watching, while some Asian woman working in a kiosk is yelling at The Man, "HEY Yummy Yummy!"..... when out of the blue......The Man spills his espresso all over his shirt and pants. He was wearing a dark blue button-down shirt, a tie that had browns and blues (like watercolor), and khaki Dockers. OH NO! We all look at each other......Jim is thinking, "Our day is ruined!" Melisa is checking to make sure he didn't get burned. I yell, "I know! Let's go shopping!" I am such a thoughtful and caring wife! Seriously, I do know that he would never be comfortable walking around with espresso stains on his clothing, so I am thoughtful! ;)

We quickly hail a cab and it was so fun to say, "To Michigan Avenue!" We ended up at Eddie Bauer. The Man grabbed a blue shirt, a pair of khaki pants (thankfully his tie was watercolorish, so you couldn't tell it had espresso on it) and he told the clerk, I'm going to go put these on, take off the tags, and bring the tags to you to ring up. She was a-okay with that. He came out of the fitting room wearing his new duds, asked for a bag for his ruined clothes (that I was able to later get the stains out) and handed the tags to the clerk so that he could pay. She said, "What about the tags for that leather coat?" We looked around....."well, since you don't sell leather coats and this one belongs to me, I don't have a tag!" She wasn't the sharpest crayon in the box and it took her awhile to 'get it.' He finally had to show her the tag inside the coat that said 'Wilson's Leather' on it. Yeah....she finally 'got it.'

After the coffee fiasco and the impromptu shopping trip, we had to hurry to our dinner reservation. We decided to walk (bad idea), so by the time we got to the restaurant, Melisa and I had blisters on our feet and we were miserable. However, dinner was wonderful and we had a good time in spite of the blisters. After dinner, we decided to take a cab to the theater since our feet were killing us. No. More. Walking.

We got to the theater and I was so impressed! The play, Ragtime, was playing at the Ford Oriental Theater. What a gorgeous venue! We settled into our seats and we were transformed to NYC at the turn of the 20th century. I don't remember much about the show, I just remember crying when it was over. I. loved. it. so. much!

After taking another cab to Union Station, and then the Metra back to the 'burbs, we were exhausted. We still had another 1.5 hours to drive back home, but it was so worth it! That was the first of many trips we've made to 'the city' for dinner, shows, touring, etc. We love visiting Chicago, but our favorite part is always coming back home!

Girls' Night

I got an e-vite in my inbox a couple of weeks ago from a friend and former coworker. I was so excited and happy to get it. We're going to meet at a local restaurant for dinner and then we're going back to her house 'for games.'

I'm scared (of the game part, that is!) ;)
xoxo

My First Review!

I have a friend who has been blogging for years. She now has 2 blogs because she also does product reviews for companies. She's been given cars to drive for a few days, food products to test, household products, etc. I think it's fun that she gets to do that. I think it's a great idea because she's a 'normal' person who I trust to give an honest opinion. So, when she told me that her friend from high school wrote a book and asked if I wanted to do a review on my blog, I jumped at the chance!

I received this in the mail yesterday....

It's called The Traveling Tea Ladies: Death in Dallas by Melanie O'Hare-Salyers. Cute cover, right? I turned to the title page inside the book and to my surprise, Melanie had autographed the book for me. She wrote, "Until our next cup of tea, Melanie." How sweet!

The back of the book describes this group of women as "Charlie's Angels meet Steel Magnolias." I was intrigued by the group of friends and the fact that there are actual recipes in the back of the book. My mom, sister, and I have been to a tea room in my sister's small town and we really enjoyed the experience. Since then, we've been dreaming of having high tea at the Grand Floridian in Walt Disney World. One of these days! After reading about Melanie's real life tea room, Miss Melanie's Tea Room in the Great Smoky Mountains of Tennessee, I think it's a must see for my mom, sister, and me 'one of these days.'

I sat down to start the book yesterday afternoon. I didn't intend to read the entire book in one evening, but after dealing with the dental office billing department and waiting all afternoon/early evening for them to return my call (I even missed my book club because I was waiting for their non-existent return call), this book was a fun diversion. I put it down long enough to cook dinner, and then again to watch The Biggest Loser. I then picked it back up and stayed up until I finished it. It was that good!

I love the way Salyers describes the personality of each woman in the book. Another thing I really liked was the food she described and the styles that each woman wore. I am not a trend setter and wouldn't be accused of being 'fashion forward', but it was fun to read about the fashions that each woman wore in the story. Each day in the book, Salyers described what each woman was wearing. Fun! The recipes in the back of the book sound delicious and I will definitely try some of them since I love to cook and bake. The recipes include peanut butter pie, key lime pie, fried green tomatoes, Tennessee corn fritters, chocolate chip scones, among others.

Don't let the sub title fool you. This isn't a dark book. This is a light, fun read that I had a difficult time putting down. It was definitely a page turner! The girls travel to Dallas for Amelia's 20th college reunion at SMU. They come face-to-face with Amelia's old sorority friends, former fiancee, and her old nemesis. Without giving any of the details and ruining the ending, the weekend getaway lasts longer than they anticipated because one of Amelia's old friends was murdered. That's where the mystery comes in and the four friends are on a mission to find the real killer!

I'm looking forward to the next book that comes out in 2011 called The Traveling Tea Ladies: Death in Dixie! You can visit her websites www.Smokymountaincoffee-herb-tea.com and www.TheTeaAcademy.com for more information and some great shopping!

I will definitely be sharing this book with my tea loving mom and sister! Thanks for the opportunity to read and review your book, Melanie!

xoxo

It's a Good Day!

October 12 is a special day. Today is the birthday of my sweet niece Michelle. Happy Birthday, Michelle!

Also, it's the 25th 'anniversary' of The Man's and my first date! Happy Anniversary to us!

What were you doing at 10:10 on 10/10/10?

Yesterday, some friends and I traveled North to Utica, IL for the annual Burgoo Festival. Our first stop was at Cheryl R.'s house for a picture of us before we were on our way.


The 'Burgoo Crew': Dawn C., Amy, Sara, Cheryl S., Dawn E., LeRae, Brooke, and Cheryl R.

We took off with Cheryl S. driving Sara, Dawn, LeRae, and me; while Brooke drove Cheryl R. and Amy.


Off we go!

On the way there, LeRae said, "In one hour, I want to have a bloody mary in my hand!" Alright, Sistah! I'm right there with you! We decided that since it was 10/10/10, that we would have our drinks in our hands by 10:10 and we would document the occasion.

We arrived to the festival and after walking around for awhile and checking out the craft stalls, we decided to visit Joy and Ed's, which is a local bar where we had a delicious bloody mary last year. We ordered our drinks and then the countdown began.....


Finally! 10:10 on the dot!


We KNOW what time it is! ;) (for my hometown fans...sorry about the Bears picture on the wall above my head. What can I say? I live in Chicago territory now. We all know that the Steelers are the superior team! wink wink)


LeRae and Dawn E. enjoying their time together and their refreshments.


Brooke and I enjoying our refreshments.

After our visit at Joy and Ed's, we decided to get some fresh air and do a bit more browsing. Plus, we wanted to find the Burgoo.


Street entertainer.



LeRae and I being goofy....

We finally found the Burgoo!




Stirring the Burgoo. As I was taking this picture, some random guy asked if we wanted to stir the stew and we, of course, said yes. He agreed to take our picture....and the guy in this picture said, "OK, I'm outta here!" WAIT! Come back! ;)


How many educators does it take to stir one pot of Burgoo????


The Burgoo. Dawn and LeRae were nice enough to share theirs with me. It really wasn't bad. It tasted just like beef stew (which is a good thing because that's precisely what it is!)

All of that stirring was hard work, so I treated myself to a piece of blueberry pie. What? I deserve it!



After our snacks, we started walking around again and saw Gene Simmons, so we decided to have our picture taken with him. Don't be jealous. ;)



I think this is a cute name for a club, what about you?


Before we left the festival to go to lunch, we saw these adorable puppies for sale:

Lab/bulldog mix

Bulldogs
Ok, the funniest thing happened while LeRae and I were looking at these puppies. Amy called my cell to find out where we were. I was trying to tell her and LeRae was confused and kept saying, "Are you calling The Man to tell him that you want one? Is he letting you get one? They are 1/2 off today!" Me: "LERAE! It's AMY! She's lost and I'm trying to tell her where we are!" It was pretty funny, but I guess you had to be there to experience the humor. ;)

We drove off the beaten path to Peru (IL) to a pub for a late lunch. It wasn't crowded and it was nice and cool in the restaurant, considering it was a balmy 88 degrees and sunny yesterday. We had such a wonderful time together.

Bloody Marys: $4.00/each x 2ish
Bottled water: $1.00/each
Pie: $2.00/slice
Burgoo: $4.00/bowl
Lunch: $12.xx
Spending time with friends: PRICELESS

Love you girls!
xoxo

Fall Foods

I love grocery shopping in the middle of a weekday. The parking lots are mostly empty, the shelves are stocked, there are no crowds, and there are lots of moms with little ones in the carts. Reminds me of my days as a stay at home mom.

Honey crisp apples were on sale for $1.49/pound. That would be a great price IF each apple didn't weigh a pound! I kid you not!

Fall is in the air....well, actually it's more like Indian summer around here. The sun is shining and it's a balmy 75ish degrees outside. Beautiful!

Before I went grocery shopping, I made my menu. It's full of fall favorites. Since it's just the two of us nowadays, I'll be freezing a lot of soup.

Here is my menu....

• Pork roast, cooked apples, roasted potatoes, green beans
• chili, cornbread
• Mimi's chicken casserole, broccoli
• chicken pot pie
• meatloaf, mashed potatoes, peas
• sloppy joes, baked macaroni and cheese, salad
• homemade pizza
• Italian sausage patties with sauteed green pepper and onions on toasted rolls, salad
• Italian beef, macaroni salad
• ham and bean soup, cornbread

What are your fall food favorites?