A Whole Lotta Shakin' Going On

Here's what Hubby and I have been doing with the house lately:

We are winterizing our yard by putting the hoses, hose holders, garden decorations, and Grace's pool in the garage.

We covered my three rosebushes and the hostas with leaves, so they'll make it through the freezing weather.

Hubby's dad tore up the cement walkway that was in the back yard (it once led to the greenhouse), so that next spring we can bring in some dirt and plant grass where it once was.

We have been prepping the front porch for new paint and buying supplies to rebuild our front steps.

We decorated the front of the house with corn stalks, Indian corn, gourds and pumpkins to celebrate the season.

Inside, we are in the process of mudding the bathroom and the craft room, in preparation for painting.

You got that right- we have a whole lot going on.

Can You Do This?

Can You Guess?

Can you guess what this animal is?












If you guessed an opossum, then you'd be correct.

You would also be correct if you said that Judson caught and killed one in our backyard yesterday. Seriously!

Hubby and I were watching some television last night and the dogs were outside playing in the backyard. At one point, I commented that the dogs were being too quiet and so I got up to check on them. When I called for them at the back door, the dogs didn't come. Curious....

I tried calling again, but no response. In my nightgown (note- it was cold last night), I walked into the backyard and tried to spot them. Our yard isn't huge, but it has a lot of trees towards the back. At first I didn't see them and I feared that someone had left one of the gates open, but then I heard a scratching sound.

Not again! Judson had managed to wedge himself between our fence and the neighbor's chain-link fence for the third time. (Side note- the fence I am referring to is located behind our garage and is currently very make-shift. The neighbors on that side have a temperamental pit bull, so the chain-link they already had up, didn't feel like enough of a barrier between our yards. We are hoping to put up a more sturdy, solid wood fence this fall and then it will match the rest of our yard).

Sure enough, Judson was the one scratching on the wood of the fence. At the time, I thought he was stuck and trying to get out. I ran for Hubby, who promptly came and asked for a flashlight. While I ran for the flashlight, he managed to free Judson. When I returned, he shared the grim news- Judson had killed something behind the fence. In the pursuit of full disclosure- Judson has a penchant for killing small animals. In the past, he has killed mice and snakes (just writing about it gives me the heeby-jeebies all over again).

After a quick look behind the fence, Hubby confirmed that it was an opossum. I didn't even realize we had opossum in our area. I guess there are actually quite a few. Thankfully, I have never seen one before because I get a bit creeped out by their little hands and feet- so intricately disturbing.

Anyway, the evening ended with Judson getting a serious scrub down in the tub and a 1/2 hour brushing of his teeth. Today, Hubby has to go into the backyard and dispose of the carcass (I really don't like that word). Geesh.

What a disturbing ending to my Thursday night... and right after I had posted all about my amazing, cute and cuddly dogs.

Bottom line, dogs will be dogs. They are still amazing and cute and I'll cuddle with Judson again in like a week, after I get the image of those little opossum hands and feet out of my head. So distressing...

Adorable Wet Noses

I want to be completely honest with you in saying that my dogs are like my children. I am the kind of person who lets my dogs get on the furniture and on my bed. I totally buy my dogs Christmas presents and they each have their own stocking hanging on the hearth (actually, we don't have a hearth, but they do hang on the bookshelf). What can I say- these dogs have my heart!

Here's a little introduction to my two favorite pooches (complemented by my current favorite cartoon strip- Mutts):

Grace is the oldest. My husband and I got Grace right after we were married- 5 1/2 years ago. She was born to a pure bred weimaraner mother and a German shepherd dad. She is a very muscular and sleek dog, which is aided by her intense love of swimming and running. Honestly, Grace could play 24/7. When she is not athletically inclined, she is a super girly dog; she actually crosses her paws when she sits down!
Judson is our rescue dog. From what we were told, he came from a kill shelter in Indiana. When we got him, he was probably just 6 months old and 15 pounds. Now, he is a whopping 30 pounds! My best guess is that Judson is a mix between a chihuahua and a terrier. The lady who gave him to us was calling him Dingo. He does look like a dingo a lot of the time, but there was no way we were going to let him keep the name. Now, he is affectionately named after Adoniram Judson- one of the first Baptist missionaries to what is now Burma.

Bobby told me, to tell you, that he heard from Cheryl that Tommy likes you!

Today, I want to divulge one of my favorite autumnal activities:

I absolutely love going to the drive-in in the fall. There is something incredibly romantic about sitting in your warm car, snuggling under blankets, sharing delicious red vines and watching a couple of movies up on the big screen. To add to the whole scenario, you have the pre-movie fun- the music of the 50’s and 60’s blaring over the loud-speakers, kids swinging on the swing set, teens tossing footballs and flirting shamelessly, groups grilling burgers, and just the overall ambiance that’s created at a drive-in. Perhaps one of my favorite parts is the short film that shows before each feature- a hot dog, a drink and a bag of popcorn dancing across the screen, advertising the establishment’s concessions stand. Being at the drive-in is truly like stepping back in time.

Thankfully, Hubby and I just so happen to have a great drive-in located in our very own hometown. I remember the first time we went to the drive-in was five years ago; back when we were still googly-eyed newlyweds. That night, we went to see War of the Worlds and Fantastic Four.

The only hitch with going to the drive-in of course, is finding two movies that you like that are playing at the same time. Unfortunately, most of the movies playing in the autumn are pretty frightening. I just can’t do scary movies (believe me- I can’t handle it). At least once a year though, Hubby and I will get lucky with a good, non-scary movie combo. When we do, we pack up the car and the dogs (I love that they can go with us- they enjoy movies too) and head on over to the drive-in.

Here’s to buttery popcorn, a cold cup of Coke with two straws, and a wonderfully romantic evening at the drive-in.

A Night to Remember

Today, I want to reflect on the joy of marriage by sharing pictures from my friend's wedding. She got married this past Saturday in an outdoor ceremony! Having an outdoor wedding in the middle of October was a risk, but the Lord blessed the happy couple with the most amazing fall weather.


I hope you enjoy these wedding pictures as much as I enjoyed the wedding (and that was a lot)! Have a blessed Monday.

Good Morning Mouse

Last night I could not fall asleep. For some reason, I was wired.

To make the situation worse, I woke up extremely early this morning and couldn’t nod off again. At 5:50am I finally gave up trying to fall back asleep and went downstairs. I realize that for some people, 6am is a perfectly normal time to wake up, but that is early for me. I normally roll out of bed at 7:10am.

What did I do at such an early hour? I decided to carve a pumpkin! I promise that this made total sense at the time. Today is National Boss Day and I had the ingenious idea of carving “Happy Boss’s Day” into a pumpkin that I had picked up at Aldi (for only $1.99- awesome). I think this would have turned out to be a meaningful gesture, but in the middle of the word “happy”, I saw a little head pop out from behind the radiator. At first I thought I was delusional, seeing things due to lack of sleep. Unfortunately, the little head popped out again- A MOUSE!

I was surprisingly calm when I saw it, but then I started thinking about how I was standing only two feet away from it with bare feet…. What if it decided to run at me and climb up my leg… or bite my foot (this was totally irrational I know, but it was early).

In the end, I did the only thing I could- I ran to the bottom of the stairs and screeched, “Honey, there is a mouse in the kitchen!!!”

Groggily, he replied, “Are you sure?”

“YESSSS!!!” I screeched back.

“OK.”

“OK? Aren’t you going to come down here and catch it?”

Snoring…. Hmmm, he was obviously going to be of no help. I then tried to get my little dog, Judson, to catch the mouse, but the mouse had already disappeared by the time Judson caught the scent.

Now, I have a pumpkin sitting out by the front door that says “Happy Day”.

You see, I didn’t have enough time left after the mouse fiasco, to finish carving the entire phrase “Happy Boss’s Day.”

C'est la vie.

An Apple a Day...

Now, for my new favorite thing about fall- Honeycrisp apples. Perhaps you have seen Honeycrisp apples in your grocery store and wondered if they were really worth the high price tag- they definitely are. Honeycrisp apples are characterized by an exceptionally crisp and juicy texture. Their flesh is cream colored and course. I find that their taste is somewhere between a Granny Smith and a Red Delicious. True to their name, these apples are always firm and crisp. 

Honeycrisp apples come from a 1960 cross of Macoun and Honeygold, as part of the University of Minnesota apple breeding program to develop winter hardy cultivars with high fruit quality (all very technical stuff). The original seedling was planted way back in 1962 at the University of Minnesota Horticultural Research Center, located near Excelsior in east central Minnesota.
If you are looking to grow your own Honeycrisp apple trees from your leftover apple cores- think again. For the sake of commercial production, Honeycrisp apple trees are not self-fruitful, meaning that trees grown from the seeds of Honeycrisp apples will not produce apples at all. Bummer, right?


To celebrate my love of Honeycrisp apples, I want to share this awesome Apple Glazed Pork Roast recipe with you. Pork and apples are a natural combination. This simple crock-pot meal cooks all day while you are away- it’s the best kind of meal.

Apple Glazed Pork Roast

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 12 hours

Servings: 8-10

Ingredients:

4 lb. pork loin roast

Salt and pepper

6 apples, cored and quartered

1/3 cup apple juice

3 Tbsp brown sugar

1 tsp ground ginger

Preparation:

Trim the roast well, and then rub it with salt and pepper. Brown the pork roast under the broiler to remove all of the excess fat; drain well.

Place the apple quarters in the bottom of a 4-6 quart crock-pot. Then, place the roast on top of the apples. Combine the apple juice, brown sugar, and ginger. Spoon this mixture over the top surface of the roast. Cover the slow cooker and cook on Low 10-12 hours, until the roast is done. Slice it up to serve and enjoy.

If you have a newer, hotter cooking crock-pot, cook on low for 7-8 hours or until the roast registers 155 degrees F.

An Adopted Poem

I love fall!
Fall means apples and cider.
Spying an airborne spider.
Picking pumpkins from bins.
Seeing frost on dog's chins.
Catching windblown leaves.
Having chilly red knees.
Raking nuts on the ground.
Hearing that crisp dry sound.
Watching green leaves turning
And smelling them burning.
Seeing clouds in the sky.
It's fall. That's why...
I love fall.