By Sun and Candlelight

An Autumn Amble ...

~*Amble: n. An unhurried or leisurely walk.*~

One of my favorite things about teaching my children at home is the freedom we have - generally speaking - to do what we wish with our days. Here's where our home learning took us today ...

”Slow down and enjoy life. It's not only the scenery you miss by going too fast - you also miss the sense of where you are going and why.” ~ Eddie Cantor

Kinderweek ~ Leaves and the Letter F

This happens to be peak foliage time around here, so I planned some fun "leaf" learning for our Earlybird this week. Here are a few of my ideas:

Books to Read:

• The Leaf Man
• Red Leaf, Yellow Leaf
• Fletcher and the Falling Leaves
• Why do Leaves Change Colors?

Things to Do:

• collect leaves
• make leaf rubbings
• rake leaves
• (then jump in the piles, natch)
• bake leaf-shaped cookies
• make a leaf mobile

Possible Field Trips:

• go on a family tree walk along the bike path
• stop by the nursery to buy fall flowers
• visit the farm to pick fruit

A Poem/Song to Learn:

Come little leaves said the wind one day ...

Letter F Activities:

• watch the falling leaves
• fall down in leaf piles
• talk about fall (aka autumn)
• play freeze tag
• fingerpaint (yellow/red)
• play follow the leader
• toss the football in the backyard
• work on Friends & Famly photo album
• flip Father Bear's Famous Flying Flapacks (Little Bear, anyone?)
• fly (and honk) like Canada geese
• find fairy homes in the woods
• smell the fall flowers
• look for frost in the morning
• fill the (bird)feeders
• buy fruit at the farmstsand
• arrange a fruit basket (cornucopia)
• play "fur or feathers?" re backyard animals

We are blessed with a warm and sunny week up here in New England - these Indian Summer days are always a treat. (Our winters are dark and cold, and ... long.) I hope these Kinder ideas give you some autumn inspiration, but most of all I hope you are enjoying these beautiful October days! :)

~*This Week's Dinner Menus*~

Bear in mind, this is my projected meal plan for the week ahead. It's always possible that something might come up at the last minute (or I might just get lazy, lol) and then grilled cheese sandwiches and carrot sticks it will be ...

Still - as I like to say - it's good to have a plan. :)

Monday

• American chop suey (w.wheat pasta)
• roasted vegetables (peppers, zucchini, carrots)
• garlic bread
• apple crisp

Tuesday

• ginger-sesame chicken wraps (w.wheat tortillas)
• w/leftover roasted veggies and brown rice
• (cheese quesadillas for kids)
• molasses cookies

Wednesday

• bay scallop saute w/ French bread
• tossed salad
• (macaroni and cheese for the kids)
• crockpot fruit compote (apples, peaches, pineapple)

Thursday

• butternut squash-apple soup (crockpot)
• baked potatoes with broccoli and cheese
• chocolate-zucchini bread

  Friday

• homemade pizzas (w.wheat crust)
• (Bookworm and I are eating out)
• cut -up veggies and dip
• Italian ice cups

Saturday

• meatball subs
• onion rings and french fries
• tossed salad
• butterscotch sundaes

Sunday

• oven baked "fried" chicken
• mashed potatoes
• peas
• cornbread
• cranberry-pear crisp

Hope your week is off to a good start! See you all again sometime soon ...

October's Moon

Theres a ring around the moon
Tonight
And a chill in the air
And a fire in the stars that
Hang so near ... ~ Dan Fogelberg*

It was just after the supper dishes were cleared when Earlybird called out from the family room:

"The moon! The moon! Come see the moon, Mama!"

And what a moon it was. We spent a good bit of time out on our deck tonight, a chill in the air, the darkness all aroud us, and that glistening orb suspended above ...

There's nothing quite like an autumn moon ...

*Who could be my all-time favorite musical artist, child of the 80s that I am. I mean, how can you beat The Leader of the Band? :)

Poetry Friday: October's Party

October gave a party;
The leaves by hundreds came -
The Chestnuts, Oaks, and Maples,
And leaves of every name.
The Sunshine spread a carpet,
And everything was grand,
Miss Weather led the dancing,
Professor Wind the band.
      ~George Cooper

I took this picture just a few minutes ago in the backyard - I just couldn't help marveling at the way the fiery foliage stood out against the brilliant blue sky. We're in for a beautiful weekend up here in New England - sunny, highs in the 60s. Football weather, we call this. :)

I am going to be take a blogging break over the weekend, as it figures to be a busy one for us. I've got about 101 errands to run and Bill is helping my dad with some house projects. I do want to remind you all that tomorrow begins the Barnes & Noble Educator's Discount Week - yippee! Definitely a good excuse to pop in for a pumpkin spice latte and maybe a little early Christmas shopping.

So for now, I wish all my dear readers a wonderful Columbus Day weekend, and I'll see you all again sometime soon ...

Quick & Yummy: Dinner & Dessert

I want to share with you all a couple of recipes that worked very well for us the other night. Both dishes have earned a place on my 2-week autumn menu plan - speaking of which, I'm just working a few kinks out, and once I do, I will post the plan here ...

Sweet and Sour Meatballs

Serves 8-10

(Adapted from a recipe found in Eat Healthy for $50 a Week)

*********************************************

24 turkey meatballs*

1 sweet pepper, cut into 1-inch strips

2 cans (16-ounce) chunk pineapple

2 Tbsp. cornstarch or flour

4 Tbsp. vinegar (white or cider)

2 Tbsp. sugar (white or brown)

1 Tbsp. soy sauce

*Note: I used up some frozen prepared turkey meatballs I had on hand. The recipe actually instructs you to make 32-40 meatballs from 2 lbs. ground beef or turkey, browning them in a skillet before proceeding with the rest of the recipe.

1. In a small pan, sauté pepper in a little water until soft. (I did this in the skillet.)

2. Open pineapple cans; drain, reserving liquid in a water-tight plastic container. (Set fruit aside.)

3. Add to this container the cornstarch (or flour). Shake vigorously until lumps are gone. (I used a whisk.)

4. Pour this liquid into a sauce pan and add the vinegar, sugar and soy sauce. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly until sauce becomes thick.

5. Combine the meatballs, pineapple chunks, pepper and sauce in a skillet (the one you would have used to make the meatballs) and heat through.

***

I served this dish over rice. It made PLENTY and got rave reviews from Bill! Not so much from the boys ("Pineapple and meatballs!?!"), but I hope this dish will grow on them. ;)

**********************************************************************

Cherry Crockpot Cobbler

(Serves ?)

(Found somewhere online.)

********************

1 can (16 ounce) cherry pie filling*

1 cup dry yellow cake mix

1/8 cup softened butter*

*Note: I used a 21 ounce can as it was all I had on hand. Any kind of pie filling could be used in this recipe. (Bill noted that a chocolate cake mix might be tasty with the cherry flavor.) Also, I used a bit more butter than called for as the cake mix seemed a bit dry.

Spread pie filling on bottom of crock pot. Mix butter with dry cake mix and sprinkle over top of pie filling. Cook on low for 3 hours.

***

This was so easy and very yummy! I probably don't have to mention it would be even yummier with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream ...

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About that picture ...

A few folks have asked me about the picture I used in my Daybook entry this week:

This is a close-up of my homekeeping binder - or, more to the point, the cover of my homekeeping binder. I took a sheet of scrapbooking paper I found at the craft store and slipped it inside the clear-view cover. (What would I ever do without scrapbooking paper, lol?)

I thought the design was neat and fitting, but I must confess, this is actually my old homekeeping binder cover. Since this picture was taken I've retooled the whole thing - kit and caboodle, contents and cover, inside and out.

Why would I do such a thing? Well, for one thing, I'm just crazy that way. ;) But for another, the binder really wasn't working for me, and I am determined to make it work for me. By golly.

So, how is your homekeeping notebook working for you? (If you use one, that is.)

The Simple Woman's Daybook ~ October 7th

~ Do stop by Peggy's for all the Daybook links this week. ~

***

Outside My Window ... The sun is rising and golden light spreads across the neighborhood, a light frost touches the lawn in a few shallow spots, a chipmunk scoots up and down the spruce tree.

***

I am thinking ... about the (frightening) economy.

***

I am thankful ... for our home, for my husband's job - that I am able to spend my days at home with our boys.

***

From the kitchen ... For supper there will be sweet and sour (turkey) meatballs with peppers, pineapple and rice, Indian pudding for dessert, and if I have time (and that's a mighty big if) I will bake some banana breads this afternoon.

***

I am wearing ... Vermont sweatshirt, favorite jeans, keds.

***

I am creating ... a little nature story about Jack Frost to tell Earlybird.

***

I am reading ... the morning Boston Globe.

***

I am hoping ... to stay up to watch tonight's debate.

***

I am hearing ... the crackle of the family room fireplace, the pop of the toaster, the boys chattering in the next room.

***

Around the house ... Today, being Tuesday, I will clean the upstairs bathroom and continue the laundries.

***

One of my favorite things ... a new binder to play around with.

***

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week: ... a quiet week with lots of catching up around the house, especially around my workspace.

***

Here is a picture thought I am sharing ...

***

I hope you all have a wonderful day!

~*Nice Things Today*~

It's almost 5:00 as I start this post - things are pretty quiet here and the sun is low in the sky. Bill has Earlybird out on a bike ride - and a long bike ride it is too, they've been gone more than an hour - while the older two are following their own pursuits. Bookworm is buried in his latest read and Crackerjack is playing Legos with a friend. Me? Well, I'm sitting here in my comfort corner, beneath the fairy lights and beside the birdfeeder windows ... I should be writing out bills, but instead, I'm here poking around online. I'm enjoying this rare quiet hour, thinking about what a nice day it was - and I thought I'd pop on to share those thoughts with you. :)

1. Bill had the day off. This is always a good thing, because our day is so much slower and, really, so much more fun when Daddy is home. Today was Bookworm's MIT class, and seeing as MIT is in Cambridge (which is only slightly less intimidating to navigate than Boston) I long ago petitioned Bill to take over the MIT reins. While BW was at class, Crackerjack got to spend the morning and lunchtime at a friend's, which meant a quiet day at home for EB and me. Nice. :)

BW showing off his Quizboard, this month's project.

2. I set up the October Nature Shelf, and as you can see, there are pumpkins aplenty.

These are all homegrown Jack-be-Littles - we've got them all over the house, lol! (And the vines are still producing if you can believe it!)

Aren't they sweet? They will make neat candleholders later this month, roundabouts Halloween ...

3. It was a gorgeous fall day. I say that a lot don't I? Lol, as long as it's not sleeting, I'm good with any kind of fall day. Today had a bit of it all - brilliant sunshine, blue skies, dark ominous clouds at times, too - and that refreshing crisp air. We even had a little drizzle when the sky was at its darkest. I snapped this tiny magenta morning glory blossom when I ran out to fill up the feeders ...

I've noticed the purply blossoms do not open as beautifully as do the blue. Still, I love the way the color scheme echoes the hydrangea plant just to the right of the gate ...

This was taken in the early morning light.

4. I made up two new notebooks: a small take-along holiday planner on the left, and my newest daily journal on the right.

How I love to play around with plain notebooks and scrapbook paper.

5. Our first pot roast of the fall is in the crockpot as I type. It smells SO good in my house right now. The pot roast - though delicious - really does not make for a very appetizing photograph, so instead I give you our side dishes, baking in the oven:

Maple acorn squash and baked russets - yum.

6. Somebody kindly nominated me for an award. I don't know who you are, but I thank you from the bottom of my heart. :) I have been feeling a bit unsure of my blogging lately so this was a very nice boost! (You can follow the new button up there on the right hand sidebar to see my nomination.)

Well, that's all I have for now, but I thank you for stopping by. I truly hope you all had a nice day, too. :) It's now 6:00 as I finish this post, and all my fellas are home (the big and the small). The sun if officially down and the kitchen timers are going off in triplicate. Time to get that supper on the table!

Have a good night, and see you all again soon ...

A Sunday Morning Nature Walk

Oh, what a weekend! These past few days have been the first to really feel like fall. The air is crisp and cool (one might even say chilly) and the light is now that slanting golden kind of light. The kind that melts away earlier and earlier with each passing day. The autumn foliage is on its way toward peak, which in these parts is mid-October ... it will be here and gone before we know it.

So this morning, Bill and I took the boys on a nature walk ~ in part, to honor Saint Francis, the patron saint of the environment. Technically his feast day was yesterday, but yesterday was a busy one for us. This morning was significantly slower, so we bundled the boys up in sweatshirts and headed out back to the trail. We are blessed to live a stone's throw from a lovely bike path that meanders by deep woods, quiet fields and a slow-going river. Lots to see and hear out there - lots of things to remind us to be thankful for the beautiful world all around us.

I have to quickly mention, this trip was also a bit of a reconnaissance mission - I've offered to host my Nature Club here in December, for a birdfeeding class and wassail walk along the trail. I wanted to refresh my memory as to how long the walk might take and what kinds of habitats we will encounter. (More on our new year of Nature Club later.)

But for now, I'd like to share some of my pictures with you all. I'm still trying to get the hang of my new camera - love the tighter zoom, but I can tell it wil take some getting used to. Most of the pictures are self-explanatory, but I've added a brief note here and there ...

There was so much bird activity in this field it was amazing! I didn't get a picture - they were much too fast - but a pair of grouse took off from beneath a bush I passed by! They were *beautiful* to watch. :)

Note the tiny web in the picture above? And how about the even tinier frog below?

The top leaf is actually an imprint in the mud - a fossil-in-the-making as Bookworm called it. :)

I hope your weekend has been a good one. See you all again sometime soon! 

Biggest. Raccoon. Ever.

And he visited our feeders last night, only we think he was probably a she, because only pregnancy could explain that much girth. Plus, she seemed pretty cranky that the feeders were empty. Lol.

Wait, scratch all that. I just looked up "raccoons" in the Comstock book and read that kits are born in April, not October. Of course, that makes sense - what mammal in their right mind would be gestating just before winter sets in? Not that I mean to suggest animals actually plan when to have their babies - instinct usually takes care of these kinds of things.

I then read the following statement, which explains the ginormous size of this coon:

"In the fall, the coon lays on fat enough to last it during its winter sleep." (p. 249)

This fella - or gal as the case may be - is surely all set, then.

Happy Monday, everyone. :)

Thoughtful Friday ~ October Eves

“Listen! The wind is rising, and the air is wild with leaves.
We have had our summer evenings - now for October eves!”

~*Humbert Wolfe*~

This picture would be infinitely prettier without the telephone wires, lol, but I still couldn't resist showing you this picture of the moon rising last night. (I hope you can see the thin silver crescent hanging there just over the treetops?)

I tell you, there is just nothing like an autumn night - the air so crisp and cold and it smells just like I remember when I was a child. (What is it about being outside at night that brings you right back to childhood?) The breeze last night was strong and the light was magical - and I could have spent an hour just watching the moonrise in the southwestern sky. As it was however, I had dinner dishes to wash and a few children to put to bed, but it was a lovely moment while it lasted. :)

Thanks for stopping by today - I wish you all a Thoughtful Friday and a Lovely October, too.