new furniture

We have been in desperate need for some new furniture for our great room. The furniture in this room is over 12 years old and this room is definitely the most used room in our house and the most used furniture.

Some of the seems were ripping open. We had green silly putty (from years ago) that was accidentally left on the sofa and got squooshed between the cushions! Luckily, because it was between two cushions it was somewhat hideable! (After that incident, silly putty was banned from our house!)

Yesterday my mom and I went out furniture shopping. Just to start looking. Because this is a big purchase and something that our family will have to live with for probably another 12 years I was sure that it would take me a long time to find exactly what I wanted.

The first furniture store we walked into and the second sofa I saw is the one we purchased. Yes, in less than 20 minutes we picked out and bought a sectional sofa!! This is huge for me because I am not one to usually make quick decisions! =0) I have been debating on paint colors for my living room forever.... but yet I can walk in and buy furniture in just minutes??!!??

And the sofa was delivered today!!! And I love it!!! (These pictures are not the best quality~ the color and texture is off just a little.) Here is Jake enjoying the new sofa.



A view from the kitchen looking over the great room at Drew all curled up on the sofa.



I am loving the new sofa!!



So now I guess it is back to living room paint colors decisions... =0)

memories of Halloween

With Halloween approaching in just a few short days, I thought it would be fun to share some of my favorite Halloween pictures from years past.

::Halloween 1992:: Tyler's 1st Halloween



::1996:: Jake's 1st Halloween that he dressed up in a costume~ what a cute little Elmo!



::1997:: Darth Vader and Mickey Mouse. (This was a week before Drew was born.)



::1998:: A ninja, a dragon, and a power ranger. Jake picked out Drew's costume this year and insisted that Drew would be such a cute dragon. =0)



::1999:: Buzz Lighyear, Winnie the Pooh, and a Green Bay Packer football player. This was a month after we moved into the house we live in now.



::2000:: Mickey Mouse #2, Dracula, and Harry Potter.



::2001:: An astronaut, um...something scary?!, and Bob the Builder.



::2004:: A ninja, a hockey goalie and Tyler later threw on a hockey jersey (and Rollerblades to get to more houses faster!)



And last year Drew was a banana?!?! (One of his friends went as a gorilla =0)



And this year??? I don't think there are going to be any costumes.(Sniff, sniff- I am a little sad about this!)

To see some more fun Memory Lane posts- head over to Scottsville where Erica gave me the great idea for the post today!

And I am also linking to Kelly's Korner for Show us Your Life: Halloween Costumes.

raking

Leaves.




Drew worked hard raking... to save the leaves from being mowed up!



There is a really cute story behind this leaf saving.

We have lived in this neighborhood for 10 years now- but it is still a newer development- with younger trees- so come fall we don't usually have that many leaves on the ground {although that is slowly changing}. Drew and his friends from the neighborhood used to go from yard to yard with a wheel barrel to collect all the leaves they could find. They would put all the leaves in one yard to make one big leaf pile that they all could jump and play in.

So, when Drew saw the grass getting mowed yesterday- he ran to get the rake to save the leaves he could. Evidently there must be a future leaf pile planned. =0)

the season is over

It was a long, hard fought season!



But this picture taken from after Thursday's night's game says it all.



With a 1-2 loss, the season was over.



But the game started out with a lot of hope, anticipation and excitement. There was a huge crowd. And even the high school marching band was there.


It was a small portion of the 300 member marching band- but it still added to the excitement of the night. Tyler is in the marching band (he obviously didn't play at the game) but there were a few extra drum beats and cheers from the band when his name was announced for the starting line up. =0)



A few picture from the game~









The boys gave it 150% and we were so proud for how hard they fought. They received medals for placing 2nd in their section.





Most of the team are seniors this year- so it was especially emotional (for both the players and the parents) realizing that the seniors high school soccer season is over. The coaches looked just as sad as the boys.



After the game, Tyler was about as emotionally and physically exhausted as I have ever seen him- poor guy!



And on top of that he went down with a head injury with about 2 minutes left of the game. He got back up (he was only down for about 30 seconds, but it seemed more like 10 minutes). He is ok- but but it sure scared his mama!!

Friday was a brighter day- he was already talking about playing in an indoor soccer league this winter. And shopping for a letter jacket this weekend. And going to a movie that night. And then headed out the door to a friend's house. =0)

spaghetti and meatballs

Last week I made a big pot of Spaghetti and Meatballs for our family--

And this brought back memories of when I was in kindergarten and my Mom was featured in our town's newspaper sharing her recipe for Spaghetti and Meatballs. (I was only 5, but I still remember the photographer taking this picture!)



My Mom has changed her recipe a lot over the years- and her newer recipe is great-but this is the one I still make and will always be my favorite!

Spaghetti and Meatballs:

For the sauce:
1 large can tomatoes, squashed
2 large cans tomato sauce
1 large can tomato paste
4 T parsley
2 T onion flakes
2 T oregano
2 T basil
4 cloves garlic, minced

For the meatballs:
2 pounds ground beef
2 eggs
1 cup oatmeal 2 T parsley
1 T onion flakes
1/4 cup Romano cheese
1 t garlic salt

Mix meatball ingredients, roll into golf ball size balls and place on baking sheet. Bake in 350 degree oven for 20-30 minutes until almost cooked through.

Brown 1 pound Italian sausage (either ground or links cut into smaller pieces). Add to sauce.

Simmer sauce for 3 hours or more. Serve over pasta. Enjoy!

(To read some of the newspaper article you can click on the image below.)


And if you have a "Memory Lane" post, head on over to Scottsville to join in on the fun!

this and that

I have been busy the past few days doing a little of this and little of that.

*Bible study and coffee with some dear friends*



*Taking the family to a park to get some pictures for our Christmas card*



(This is not our Christmas card- but I thought this was cute with the boys (and the dog) hiding behind a tree. I guess maybe they were done taking pictures =0)

*Spray painting my Adirandak chairs*



*Setting up our Halloween decorations*



*Organizing and rearanging our downstairs family room*



(Does anyone need some OLD VHS's =0)

*Making another batch of Pumpkin Bars and some nummy Tortilla Soup*

*Attending Part 2 of a camera class that I am taking and absolutely loving!!!*



*Cleaning out my garden*



*Watching Tyler and his soccer team win their section semi-finals game this evening (one more game to win and they go to State!)*



Lots of fun things!!!

apple orchard

Today was a beautiful fall day! It was sunny and much warmer than it has been for a while! My car thermometer said '49' degrees! It was NOT snowing, it was NOT raining, and it was NOT too cold! It was perfect!

It was the perfect day to venture to the apple orchard. We have made this a family tradition every fall for the past 18+ years to head out to the Pine Tree Apple Orchard for a fun filled family outing.

Well this year Drew and I were the only ones that wanted to go- various reasons were given- but Drew and I decided the day was just too perfect to pass up. =0)

The first thing we did was to take a wagon ride. This is always a favorite and the scenery is amazing!





Our next stop was a hike up the hill to the corn maze.



This is always so much fun! After entering the maze you look for these wood boxes with letter clues on them. Drew is writing his clue down on his paper.



This year there were 7 letters to find along the maze and these letters are scrambled and spell a word. We had a lot of fun searching for all the clues!



If you get the word correct you receive a prize at the end! A juicy red apple!





Then it was off to the pumpkin patch.



And a sweet lady offered to take our picture for us.



Drew "picking some apples."



(OK, this is NOT a pick your own apple orchard, but I couldn't resist posing Drew for this picture.=0)

And of course at the end, we stopped at the apple barn to buy some apples and some baked goodies to bring home!

Thanks for an awesome afternoon, Drew!!!