Apple Pie, Thanksgiving and some crazy kids.

A few years ago, my sister-in-law made the most delicious apple pie.

I had to have the recipe for Thanksgiving. Pretty tasty for my first attempt.

Whoops... how did those photos get in there? Here is one more :)

This is what our storm door looks like every morning... covered in ice.


The past few Thanksgivings were a mess. Bland turkeys, not totally cooked turkeys.
I had not put much effort into making Thanksgiving a special day for us. It is hard to get into the spirit of a holiday when the holiday is centered around spending it with family and friends.
I was determined to change that this year.

I brined a turkey, made a fresh green bean casserole, stuffing, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, Parker house rolls

(http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2010/11/parker-house-rolls/),

apple pie and I worked really hard to get my cranberries to look like the ones that come from a can!

I even purchased some linens, put out the fine china and polished my antique silverware.

Oh MY GOODNESS! Parker House Rolls! Buttery, melt in your mouth fluffy heaven.

I was going to make rolls... then not make rolls. I decided last minute to go for it.

Every year from here on out, I will make these rolls. They take a total time of about 6 hours since they rise so many times. After the dough circles are cut out, you dip them in melted butter. Then just before you eat them, you open them up and put in some more butter.

Thanksgiving is not meant to be a healthy dinner.... right?

Here is Braeden with his plate of food. The only thing he ate were the rolls. I survived as a kid on rolls and cranberries at Thanksgiving so I was not going to push it.
Miles did enjoy a little bit of everything.

On Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, we were headed out to Waterloo for a Target trip. Yes, we were going to brave the crazy shopping crowds but I needed a dose of "people".

We started talking about what we should have done for the rest of the weekend. We turned around, packed our suitcases and left for Chicago!

5 hours later and I was about to have a panic attack.

SO many people, stop lights, freeways, traffic.

I had my dose of people alright.

I guess I was more used to my rural living than I thought. (although that does not mean that I am enjoying it. At All.)

We did some driving around suburbia getting a feel for the areas since it could possibly be a future move and we took the kids to the Aquarium..... Thanksgiving weekend.

If you go to the aquarium and plan to see any exhibits, do not go Thanksgiving weekend.

We did manage to get in a show and a 12 minute 4-D version of The Polar Express. It was very weird to have the theatre smelling like hot cocoa and water being sprayed in our faces.

What a weekend.

4 Years Old

What does every little boy want to be when they are 4?

A Superhero, that's what.

Braeden had been requesting a Spiderman costume for weeks. Grammy had bought him one... but the original plan was to keep it until Christmas.

Grammy can't keep a secret, she couldn't keep Spiderman a secret for another month either.

So, when the box from my Mom arrived on the back porch the day before Braeden's birthday, we let him open one gift and I pulled the one that I knew was the costume.

For days, Braeden had disappeared and there was a mysterious spider lurking in the corners of my house.

On November 14th, we celebrated the 4th birthday of my big (little) boy. At his checkup he barely cleared 31 pounds.

His favorite things these days are Spiderman, Toy Story and Dragons.

I caught some great faces as he opened his gifts.

Birthday Dinner request: Kraft Macaroni and Cheese
Toy Story Alien and sparkler candles were awesome!

Miles made sure to stay awake for our little party and he had fun getting in on the excitement.

Fiberglass

Back in March, my cousin Meghan and her daughter Madeline came to visit us while we were still living in New York.

Making a trip to Niagara Falls was the thing to do when we would have out of town visitors.

For some reason I thought that Niagara Falls was on the 7 Wonders of the World list.

I just looked it up and I could not find it, so I don't know where I got that idea.

So, let's just say that Niagara Falls is one of the 7 Wonders of the World.

I was able to give her that experience.

Last week, they came to visit us in Iowa. Rural Iowa.

I was so excited that I was again able to show her the sights.

Did you know that Strawberry Point is home to the 8th Wonder of the World?? No??

Well, here it is.... the 8th Wonder of the World.

The World's Largest Strawberry... made out of fiberglass.

Take it in. Take it all in.

Pikes Peak

On the day of Miles' Birthday we took to the trails and enjoyed a beautiful fall day.

Pikes Peak State Park, nestled on the bluffs on the Mississippi River, is nowhere as spectacular as the Pikes Peak in Colorado but it is named for the same man, Zebulon Pike.

We followed the trail down to a spring.

And then caught another trail back up to the top.

There sure were a lot of stairs. A Birthday hug from big brother.

Birthday Boy is One

October 16, 2010.

Miles Westley turned ONE!
Braeden was more excited to unwrap the gifts.
Miles did jump in and play as soon as all the hard work was done.

He did not like the feeling of the frosting at first.
Once he got used to it,,, he had no problem digging in.

And when it came time to take the cake away, he was not too thrilled.
He had fun mashing the cake.

He enjoyed re-decorating the dining room.

I did not have to worry about a sugar high since almost none of it found it's way to his mouth.

Braeden was cracking up over the mess that was being made...

I am afraid to see what Braeden decides to do with his cake next month.

Miles weighed in at 19.5 pounds, 32 inches tall.

He likes cruising the furniture and pushing dining room chairs around.

He has not yet attempted any steps on his own.

He says "a da" for all done.

He blows kisses and gestures "come" when he wants you.

He puts his hand, or a toy, or a shoe to his ear and says "hi".

I guess I am on the phone a lot.

Happy Birthday Baby. Can't wait to see what is in store for you!

Sunrise to Sunset... and everything in between

ABSOLUTELY BEAUTIFUL

This was the sunrise out the back window as we headed West early Saturday morning. We woke up early, were on the road by 6:15.

Boone, Iowa was our destination and a train ride was on the itinerary.

The Pumpkin Express.

Boone, Iowa you ask? Not the birthplace of Daniel Boone but the birthplace of
Mamie Eisenhower, wife to Dwight D. Eisenhower.

Size of the town? A whopping 8.9 square miles.

A charming little town.

Iowa State University is just 17 miles away in Ames.

Des Moines is about 30 miles.

The Boone & Scenic Valley Railroad

The railroad got it's start in the area in 1893... coal mining was the industry.

The coach cars were built in 1927. Everything original.

(except for the energy efficient light bulbs).

The seat backs could be pushed to the other side so that two benches faced each other.

We had been driving in the van a little over 3 hours and were anxious to get going.

(That lady in the pink sweatshirt just should have stayed home.)
The boys were loving the wind in their faces.
Train track on stilts...

The trestle was built in 1912 and 1913 over Bass Point Creek.

Sure, I felt safe!

After about 40 minutes, the train came to a stop at the pumpkin patch. Everyone on the train de-boarded, picked up a pumpkin, snapped pictures and climbed back on board.

Miles was sooooo excited!

The train ride out to the pumpkin patch was quite pleasant. The noises on the train were that of happy, excited children. Folks were taking pictures and kids were laughing.

I think...something happened... at the patch.....

The train ride back to the station was filled with cranky kids and the air was filled with tired, antsy cries. (except for my children, of course)

Dramamine...

Sean took two, hoping that he could enjoy the ride. On the way back he was just about passed out... awake just enough to not let go of Miles.

My children are not ones to just fall asleep anywhere.

So when they do, we know that they are past exhausted.

We made it back to the station and took a quick look around at the different trains.
We left Boone and headed to Des Moines for the first time. We stayed just long enough to eat lunch at On the Border Mexican restaurant. We had not eaten at one since we left Colorado Springs in 2004.

Man, I really miss Mexican food. And man, I really miss traffic. I really do!

We had a 3.5 hour drive home and were delirious by the time we made it.

We did make a quick stop in Waterloo. Birthday shopping for Miles at Toys R Us... and a trip to the Starbucks drive thru so that we could make it that last hour on the road.

It is harvest time in these parts and tractors are everywhere.

A gorgeous end to a Fun day!