A is for Apple and D is for Domestic

We were very blessed by a sweet family at church this past Sunday and given a large box of apples. My mind immediately went into gear thinking about what I should do with that many apples. Someone told me that applesauce is pretty easy, and I went to allrecipes.com and found a raved-about recipe called Sarah's Applesauce. It is only apples, water, sugar, and cinnamon. It was great, the kids loved it, and we'll be making more tonight or tomorrow!

The peeling, coring, and chopping is easy, but time consuming.

As an added bonus, this next step makes your whole home smell wonderful!

After the apples are baked down, you mash them.

The applesauce is wonderful! Rachel said it was just like at the Flying W Ranch, and Kyle (who prefers processed garbage food) thought it was the best.

I only made a small dent in that box, so I'll keep you posted!

Old Colorado City

Before we left for our extended summer vacation, we told Elise that we had to wait to have her "10th-birthday-with-a-friend" celebration until we got back and got somewhat settled in our new house. She waited as patiently as she could, and we arranged an outing for Elise's July birthday with her sweet friend, Riley. Of all the options, we ended up choosing something very similar to what we did last year (which also included Riley). I have to say, this was one of the best days! The weather was absolutely perfect, and in typical Colorado-fashion, it snowed 2 days later. We went to the Farmer's Market in Old Colorado City and then meandered through the shops at a ridiculously leisurely pace. Brian, Kyle, and Daniel spent a good portion of the afternoon in the Military Surplus store. I'm not as into shopping or window-shopping as I used to be, but this was great fun! It may not sound like much, but the stores are unique, and the Farmer's Market was the best. Wouldn't you want to stroll down this sidewalk?

We sampled and bought peaches, local honey (good for allergies!), roasted corn on the cob, some baked goods, kettle corn, and I'm sure I'm forgetting something. You could also smell the roasting chili peppers a block away, and that is a favorite for me! Wow!

After we dropped our haul from the Farmer's Market in the van, we ran inside the Old Colorado City Library to use the restroom. I had to include this next photo of Elise waiting, just to show you some of the beautiful old wood in that library. We had never been in there before! If you've never been, it's worth a trip just to rub your hand along that beautiful woodwork.

Like last year, we spent a good amount of time admiring everything in the Michael Garmen Gallery. It was just as fascinating to the kids this year. Below are Daniel and Riley.

The next photo is of Kyle, Daniel, and Cousin It.




OK, so I have to explain this next photo. We would push the little button to get the street light to change when we needed to cross. But the kids would stand on one solid white line in the crosswalk and jump feet-together clear to the next, and they did this across every street just about every time. I should've video-taped it, it was so funny! Rachel even used the classic "Elf" movie line, "You have to watch out for the yellow ones. They don't stop." referring to taxi cabs. It was also fun to watch other people watch the kids doing this. Some remained straight-faced and looked irritated (like somehow they were being held up and would just plow right through that red light if there weren't children hopping like rabbits in the street), and some were genuinely amused and actually let out a laugh. We should all lighten up and laugh more, don't you think?



We just had a great afternoon! I'd like to make an effort to get to that part of town more often, where the grass is green, the trees have leaves, and the houses are old and filled with character. It reminds me a bit of home and the east coast. You'd think it was my birthday! But it was a special kind of fun and was a treat for Elise and Riley. Happy (belated!) birthday, Elise. We love you!

Daniel turned 4 this month

Daniel is 4! I know, it's hard to believe, isn't it? It almost seems like yesterday, yet at the same time, none of us could imagine life without Daniel. We had a small birthday celebration at the park this year. He was very easy to please, and this was probably the first year that he was aware (and cared a little) that his birthday was coming. A friend asked him what he wanted for his birthday, and he said, "Root beer!" So we had root beer floats in place of cake. Rachel asked him what he wanted for his birthday, and he pointed to a gift sitting on the counter and said, "I've already got a present!" This picture is at the park on his birthday. I'm also including a little walk down birthdays-past...

"Happy 4th birthday, Daniel!"

Below is Daniel's 3rd birthday. Recognize anyone that wasn't at his 4th birthday? We missed a few people very much!

Below is Daniel's 2nd birthday, and he didn't care about any of the production at all. I don't think they even understand the concept of gifts at 2, so who are we actually having these parties for?

Finally, below is Daniel's 1st birthday, where he really enjoyed the cake and washed it down with a chaser of green beans. He thought it was great. (FYI - he got his 1st haircut as a belated birthday present!) That seems like a very long time ago.

First snow day of the season in September!

It's September 21, 2009, and it's snowing! There's something special about snow in September, I believe (and yes, it's a "good" special!). I woke this morning about 4:00 AM to wind and rain starting, and it turned to snow around 9:30 AM. We ran through the house yelling, "It's snowing! It's snowing!" (or maybe that was just me) It's very cold and windy out. Change is in the air, and I love it. I'm sure that's because we're at the beginning of the winter season. In September, 1989, Brian came to my dorm room on base, told me it was snowing, and we went for a ride in the beautiful, light snow. I think every September snow reminds me of that time.