Halloween Visitors!

Alexis came to Trick or Treat this evening. She was dressed up as Dorothy. The Wizard of Oz is one of her favorite movies. She was in a parade at school today.

This is Baby J.'s first Halloween. She didn't seem to like her costume much. She sure looked cute as a lady bug. Her daddy tried to make her Smile.

Pumpkins!

This was carved by Chris

This was carved by Laurie(me)

This was carved by my brother.

The flag was done by mom, the spider by my brother.

Trick or treaters done by Chris and Charlie Brown by Laurie

It used to be we would set aside a night before Halloween and go to my moms to carve pumpkins. Now it seems that we have all gotten too busy to do this anymore. Chris and I haven't carved pumpkins in a couple of years. Most of the time it took us more than a couple of hours. Sometimes we even had to get out the power tools. But we always had fun, even if one of us hates pumpkin guts!!!(You know who you are!!)

Don't be fooled!

The sky sure makes you think it is a warm summer/fall day. But really it's only 44 degrees and the wind will knock you on your butt if you're not careful.

We were supposed to get lake effect snow last night. We weren't sure what we would wake up to today but we didn't even get enough to stick to the ground:) I'm not ready for the snow yet. It's too early!!!!

Halloween Costumes!

We really aren't dressed for Halloween. We had a carnival at the church we used to go to and we were the ones who put it together. We thought it would be fun to dress up. We bought our clothes at The Salvation Army. We made all the games we played and all the prizes we gave away.

YES!! That is my husband(on the right) dressed as a woman.

Don't forget to change your clocks!

Scrapbook Area

This is a 12x12 paper holder that Chris built for me a few years ago for my birthday.

This is a bargain that we got from Bush industries outlet. We went to a scratch and dent sale and got the bookcase for $15.00. There isn't a scratch or a dent on it!

This is the work area that Chris built for me. I love having so much room that I can spread out.

Chris also built this shelf for all of my punches. Every thing has its place.

Finally a surprise Christmas present from Chris a Sizzix die cutter.

Sunshine!

Today wasn't as gloomy as it has been this week. I went out to the garden to see if anything was still blooming. There wasn't much left.

I couldn't believe that I had a rose bud. It has been so damp this fall, I didn't think they would still be blooming. Our yard is still pretty wet to be raking up all the leaves, but we don't want them to kill our lawn either. Hopefully it will stay dry for one more day and we can get most of them taken care of when I get out of work tomorrow.

Did you know?

Today is October 25th!! Do you know what that means?

Go here and see.

Second Trip

This afternoon Mom and I made our second trip to the Apple Farm. I still haven't made an apple pie yet. I will have to make one this week. Whittier Farm in Ashville, NY has the best Apple cider.

Apples, apples, what a treat, Sweet and tart and good to eat. Apples green and apples red, Hang from branches overhead, And when they ripen, Down they drop, So we can taste our apple crop.

One of those days!!!

The Ultimate Stress Diet

This diet is designed to help you cope with stress that may build up during the day.

BREAKFAST:

1/2 grapefruit 1 slice whole wheat toast 8 oz. skim milk
LUNCH:

4 oz. lean broiled chicken breast l cup steamed spinach 1 cup herbal tea 1 small cookie
MID-AFTERNOON SNACK:

The rest of the cookies in the package 2 pints Rocky Road ice cream with nuts,

cherries and whipped cream 1 jar hot fudge sauce
DINNER:

2 loaves garlic bread 4 cans or 1 large pitcher Coke 1 large sausage,

mushroom, and cheese pizza 3 candy bars
LATE EVENING NEWS:

Entire frozen cheesecake (eaten directly from freezer)

10 POINTS TO REMEMBER FOR THIS DIET:

1. If you eat something and no one sees you eat it, it has no calories.
2. If you drink a diet soda with a candy bar, the calories in the candy bar are canceled out by the diet soda.
3. When you eat with someone else, calories don't count if you do not eat more than they do.
4. Foods used for medicinal purposes NEVER count; good examples are hot chocolate, brandy, and toast; and of course cheesecake.
5. If you fatten up everyone else around you, then you look thinner.
6. Movie-related foods have no additional calories, because they are part of the entertainment package rather than part of one's personal fuel. This applies to buttered popcorn, soft drinks of any size, chocolate-covered ice cream bon-bons, hot dogs, nachos, and all packaged candies - especially if you share.
7. Cookie pieces contain no calories. Explanation: The process of breaking causes calorie leakage.
8. Things licked off knives and spoons have no calories if you are in the process of preparing something; and they are worth minus calories if you are in the process of cleaning up.
9. Foods of the same color have the same number of calories. A prime example of this would be vanilla ice cream, mashed potatoes supreme - and cauliflower.
Corollary: Chocolate is a universal color, due to gravity and the density of the caloric mass.
10. Anything consumed from someone else's plate has no calories, since the calories rightfully belong to the other person and will cling to his/her plate. (We ALL know how calories like to cling!)
Finally, always remember that

"stressed" spelled backwards is "desserts"!

Don't Laugh At Me

These pictures remind my husband of a Halloween costume gone really bad. He wanted to be a mummy one year. So his mom spent the time to tear up some old sheets to make his costume. He got to the party at his grade school and the costume decided to fall off. He can't see a mummy without having flashbacks of that horrible night. (HA HA)

Congratulations!

Congratulations

Randy and Nicki on your New Baby Boy!

We can't wait to see him.

Freezer Jam!

Washing of the Concord Grapes.

Smashing of the Grapes.

The Grape Juice.

The final product.

While Chris spent the morning in the woods, (he didn't see anything today) I made Grape freezer Jam. Our Grandmother used to make it for us every year when we were kids. I had a lot of flash backs today while making the jam. She would let us help take the grapes off the stems and she also let us help smash the grapes. As soon as I finished the jam I had to have a piece of toast. I think it tastes just like grandma's. I will have to give my cousin Geoff some. When he was younger he would only eat "Grandma jam", and he new if it wasn't "Grandma jam" I think it is so much fun making something that reminds you of your childhood.

Baby J.

Just a couple more pictures of Baby J. We took these on Oct. 14th while her mommy and daddy were both at work. We are lucky enough to get to see her almost once every week. It's hard to believe that she is already 3 months old. She has her own personality and her own little attitude. She lets you know what she wants and when she wants it.

We spent some time at moms house tonight. She got DSL for her computer and we had to go hook everything up so she could start using it.

Hope she enjoys it!!

Buffalo!

Mom and I took our yearly trip to Millard Fillmore Hospital today. After she waited 3 hours to see the doctor, she got a clean bill of health. She is now cancer free. I brought the camera along to take some pictures of the disaster in Buffalo. The pictures don't begin to explain what Buffalo looks like. A week later it still looks like there is a lot of clean up to do. It is weird to have something like this happen so close to home.

Scrappin'

click on picture to enlarge

I took this picture of our niece Alexis on Father's Day last year. She thought it was so neat that she could put her "olives" on her fingers. I couldn't help myself by using "olive u" as a title on this scrapbook page. The scrapbook page is a 12x12 layout with a 4x6 picture.

Collector

click on picture to enlarge

I thought I would share one of my collections today. My mother started this collection for me. Every Christmas I get a new "Kim Anderson" figurine from her. I got the first little girl a few years ago. Mom gave the second figurine to Chris and I as a house warming gift when we bought our house. This figurine says on the bottom of it "Friday's child is loving and giving, sharing with friends their passion for living". The third figurine was from mom again for our fifth anniversary. (That was a few years ago also.) It says "Always and Forever" on the bottom. These pictures are only a couple out of my collection. I have many more. I will share more soon.

Autumn Splendor

Bittersweet October. The mellow, messy, leaf-kicking, perfect pause between the opposing miseries of summer and winter. ~ Carol Bishop Hipps

We just aren't ready for winter yet! It seems as though fall is tying to sneek past in too big of a hurry. These are a few more pictures of Lake Placid's beauty.

Fall / Halloween

Click on picture to enlarge

I finally took the time to put our fall and Halloween decorations up. Can you tell that a scooby doo fan lives in this house? The scooby doo blow-up stays in the house because we don't want anything to happen to it. I made the witches hat, the candle and the fence post pumpkins.

Opening Day

Today was opening day of bow hunting season in New York. I got out in the woods pretty early. The weather wasn't the greatest. It was really windy up on the hill where I hunt. You really couldn't here anything with the leaves blowing around and the trees swaying. I stayed out for a while, until it started snowing so hard that I couldn't see either. Not the best opening day. (no bears, so I guess it was better than last year)

Late Bloomer

These are pictures of a Mallow plant growing in our back yard. All summer we waited for it to bloom, but it never did this summer. A few days ago we noticed the leaves of the plant, and it finally got some flowers. These pictures were taken yesterday.

Nice Weather !?!

Can you believe on Monday we were running around in short sleeve shirts? Chris would have been in shorts if he would have brought them with him.

Now the nice weather men are calling for that white stuff!

Well, I'm going to enjoy our fall pictures for a little longer. We hope you enjoy them also.

We Love Rachael Ray!!

Here is one of our favorite recipes. Sirloin Burgers with Balsamic Mayo, Mushrooms and Swiss

1/4 cup chopped onion

1 1/3 pounds ground sirloin, 90 percent lean

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce, eyeball the amount

Steak Seasoning Blend or, coarse salt and pepper, preferred brand McCormick Montreal Steak Seasoning

Extra-virgin olive oil, for drizzling plus 1 tablespoon, 1 turn of the pan in a slow stream

4 crusty rolls, split

4 portobello mushrooms, thinly sliced

Coarse salt and pepper

4 slices Swiss cheese

3 tablespoons aged Balsamic vinegar, eyeball the amount

1/2 cup mayonnaise or reduced fat mayonnaise

Coarse black pepper

1/4 pound baby spinach

2 scallions, chopped

4 romaine leaves, optional

Preheat grill pan or large nonstick skillet Saute onions in a small pan over moderate heat for 3 to 5 minutes until tender. Combine meat with Worcestershire sauce, Sauteed onion and steak seasoning blend or salt and pepper. Form 4 large patties. Drizzle patties with a touch of extra-virgin olive oil. Quick toast your split rolls, then add burgers to grill pan or skillet. Grill or pan-fry burgers 4 to 5 minutes on each side for medium well doneness. Heat a small to medium nonstick skillet over medium high heat. Add a little oil and mushrooms. Season mushrooms with a little salt and pepper and saute until just tender, about 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Pile mushrooms on top of burgers just before you are ready to take them off the grill or out of the pan. Fold each Swiss cheese slice in half and rest on top of mushrooms. Place a loose tin foil tent over the burgers and turn heat off under pan or grill. Allow the cheese to begin to melt down over mushroom and burgers, about 2 to 3 minutes. Combine balsamic, mayonnaise and coarse cracked black pepper in a small dish. To assemble, place burgers with mushrooms and Swiss cheese on bun bottom. Slather tops of buns with Balsamic black pepper mayonnaise and baby spinach.

Give it a try. We think you'll like it. YUM-O