It’s the Great Pumpkin…

Today I’m not here to poll you on whether or not you agree with Halloween. I’m not here to ask who thinks it's right or wrong to let children go trick-or-treating. There are more important things to discuss! Today, I’m here to talk about a little something called tradition.

Growing up, my sister and I got to dress up on Halloween, and go trick-or-treating with Dad. It was tradition. It was also customary for my mom to make our costumes. We went as clowns, ballerinas, ghosts, princesses. We trick-or-treated in the rain, in the snow, in good weather. It was all the same to us – we loved it. We got to be children, and play dress up, and spend quality time with Daddy, and to top it all off…we got candy. I’m all for tradition :)

Another tradition? We would watch this…

Yes we would. I don’t care if you hate Halloween. I don’t care if you love it. Do yourself and me a huge favor – and watch it. Please? Thanks. And while you’re at it, please warm some cider, pop some popcorn, and eat some Halloween candy. And since you're already in the kitchen, could you warm some cider and pop some popcorn for me? And share some of your candy with me? Thanks.

Oh! And have a Happy Halloween!

I Get by With a Little Help From My Friends

What would you think if I sang out of tune

Would you stand up and walk out on me?

Lend me your ears and I'll sing you a song

And I'll try not to sing out of key

Oh, I get by with a little help from my friends

Mm, I get high with a little help from my friends

Mm, gonna try with a little help from my friends

What do I do when my love is away

(Does it worry you to be alone?)

How do I feel by the end of the day,

(Are you sad because you're on your own?)

No, I get by with a little help from my friends

Mm, I get high with a little help from my friends

Mm, gonna try with a little help from my friends

Mm, gonna try with a little help from my friends

Oh, I get by with a little help from my friends
With a little help from my friends.

To you...you know who you are.

The Coen Brothers Were Here

The Coen Brothers. You know...the brothers that grew up in St. Louis Park Minnesota, who wrote and directed Fargo, The Big Lebowski, Oh Brother Where Art Thou? (just to name a few), and most recently - No Country For old Men. Yep - those brothers.

They were here. Right where we live. Filming. Not just in our neighborhood, but on the property where we live.And I missed most of it! McDreamy went out this morning and saw ALL the trailers and tents up and people buzzing around. All the cast and crew had gathered together to enjoy breakfast together.

Sadly, Nick didn't grab the camera (and there were intimidating security guards) and couldn't get any pictures. So right when I got home from work, I grabbed the camera, and we ran out and took a few last parting shots as the trailers were pulling out.

I guess they have been here for 3 days, filming A Serious Man.

Is it okay that I thought there was a feeling of eeriness in the air? And the only reason I say that is...well, it's the Coen Brothers. They make scary, disturbing, unsettling movies. And they were here. And the eeriness? Well I suppose it's just because I'm one big giant scaredy cat. Nonetheless, despite the eeriness, they were here. Filming right where we live. I like that.

Fall Has Fallen...and Food Friday

For the past two weeks, the trees have gradually been losing their boring green color. Replacing it are vibrant oranges, reds, yellows, pinks. There is a crispness in the air. It smells like fall, and looks like fall. Every morning for the past week, upon arriving at work, I said to myself "I need to bring my camera and take pictures." Not that there aren't pretty trees in the city...it's just that of course, there are a lot fewer of them. I work out in the suburbs, and the neighborhood I work in is a cornucopia of Fall's prettiest gems. I finally remembered to grab my camera on my way out the door this morning. These pictures are not perfect, photography wise. I didn't use any special features, or attempt to do anything with them. Really, all I wanted was to capture God's incredible creation, and share it with you.









See? Now do you understand why it's so easy to love fall? God's fingerprints are all over it. He has created the trees to change from green into all of these incredibly gorgeous, breathtaking, each unique and different colors. I am in awe. Will you join me?
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I've had this recipe sitting ready and waiting on my computer for quite some time now. But I had the pictures on my old point and shoot. I just pulled the pictures off, and remembered this recipe. So here it is. My Club Sandwich. Yum.

Downtown

I got home from work today, and Nick says, "Let's go for a walk." I say, "Okay." It's been a long day, and I am very much in need of some time spent with my husband and best friend. We have a beautiful city, and nothing thrilled me more in that moment than thinking of walking in the brisk autumn air, with my husbands hand in mine. So we grabbed our camera, and walked out the door.

Recipes: Times Two

I miss the blogging world. I feel like I rarely get to visit much these days. Which makes me sad. I look forward to being a part of it, and sharing in it, and reading. Life has been hectic and busy, to say the least. But I finally have a night of nothing to do. I can hardly believe that as I write it. But it's true, and here I am, actually sitting down at my computer, writing.
Fall is upon us in the Midwest. And as I've stated before, it's my favorite time of year. And one of my favorite things to do in the fall is visit the apple orchard...which we did! We spent a wonderful afternoon there. And Nick proved that he is the king of picking apples. What kind of a husband would willingly and voluntarily climb to the top of the apple trees to get his wife the biggest fattest apples? The devoted loving kind of husband, that's who :) Ahhh...just one more reason in the un-ending list of reasons why he's my McDreamy.
Anyway...from my peck of apples, I decided to first make an apple crisp.


And to go along with the "fallishness" of the dish, I decided to make Chicken Wild Rice soup.

Jessica and Dave brought over delicious Cheese Muffins (yum!)

and we had the first Autumn meal of the year. And it was quite tasty.

Seeing as it was my first attempt at homemade Chicken Wild Rice soup, I thought I would share it with you. It is creamy and full flavored, and soul soothing.

(Click on image to enlarge recipe)

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I'm Swiss. Something I haven't shared before, but definitely not something I'm reluctant to share. My grandpa and grandma were both born in Switzerland. They moved to America, met, fell in love, and had eight children. Yes, you read that right - 8. Anyway...Europeans have a deep love for good food. My grandpa came from a family of bakers, and my grandma cooked homemade meals for the family everyday. Her expertise in the kitchen and my grandfather's love of food passed on to their children. And inevitably, that was passed on to their children's children (that would be me.) For as long as I can remember, I have loved food. Now unfortunately, food has not always loved me...but I've learned to work with it. You learn to eat deliciously sinful things in moderation, and you learn to make healthful dishes into tasty meals you'll make over and over. I am about to share with you a recipe that is deliciously sinful and you should try and make in moderation. Key word: try. The recipe I'm referring to is my Mom's Chocolate Chip Cookies.

I. Love. Them. Love them. My dad loves them, my husband loves them, my friends love them. They are a cookie to be loved.

And now, I'm sharing them with you. Typically, I'm kind of selfish about this recipe. I like being the one that has the great cookie recipe. But, I feel like I would be doing you a great disservice by withholding this recipe from you. They will change your life.

So make them. Eat them. Love them. Repeat!

(Click on image to enlarge recipe)