Happy Halloween

We are looking forward to a night of trick-or-treaters, carving pumpkins, drinking hot apple cider, roasting pumpkin seeds and maybe even watching a scary movie or two!

{memory lane} Halloween

one of my favorite Halloween pictures of the boys~ in 1999

{life lately}

Happy that Jake was home for a full week for "Fall Break'. It was so nice to have him back in the house and give him a little TLC. He came home very tired from mid-terms and with a bad throat infection. So between the antibiotics, extra sleep and some mama home-cooking he is all ready to get back in the swing of things at school.  :) College takes a lot out of a guy!

Enjoying the beautiful Fall season! Fall has always been my favorite season with the cooler weather, the gorgeous tree colors, trips to the apple orchard, nature walks, college football games.... and  I am soaking every bit of the season in.

Tasting some old and new favorite pumpkin recipes. Pumpkin Bars are always a family favorite and one that I have been making for years. And this Chipotle Pumpkin Soup recipe is one that I will definitely be making again! Delicious!

So pleased that my recent appointment with my cardiologist brought good news in that my echocardiogram showed that my heart function is now at 95%, up from 55% just a year ago! Extremely thankful that the medications are working.

Looking forward to a fun month in November... with a weekend trip to Notre Dame (which includes a football game), a visit and a football game at SJU, celebrating a bunch of birthdays and of course Thanksgiving! I am also looking forward in starting a project that documents '30 days of Thanks' that I will share here starting the first of the month.

apple orchard {snapshots}

We decided to take advantage of the glorious, sunny but cool, fall weather and make our annual trip to the apple orchard. We have been going to Pine Tree Apple Orchard since I was pregnant with Tyler, 23 years ago. Yikes.

I love family traditions!

Family Weekend

This weekend was Family Weekend at St. John's University. This is always a fun weekend filled with fun activities and family time. Friday night we went out to dinner with Tyler and his girlfriend.

Saturday Tyler and I did the Family 5K Fun Run which which is one of my favorite parts of the weekend.

Later in the day there was a chili luncheon and the Johnnie Football game.

It is hard to believe that this guy is a senior already 

and that means that this was our last SJU family weekend. Crazy!

Breaking Bad

Breaking Bad (a hit TV show on AMC) is one that the boys in my house have been faithfully watching for 5 seasons now. This is not a show I have watched but I love hearing each week them discuss the different plots, twists and turns.

Jake sent us a text the other day saying that "Walt Jr." (one of the main characters) played by RJ Mitte was at Notre Dame, and that he was able to go hear him speak.

Jake sent us this picture of him and RJ Mitte & he was even able to get an autograph on a cereal box. :)

("A recurring joke among fans of the show is that Walt Jr. is obsessed with breakfast. This is because the majority of his scenes are with him eating breakfast with the family. Also Walt Jr. always wants to know what's for breakfast."~ source)

RJ Mitte has cerebral palsy and his speech was about 'disabilities, bullying and hope'. Jake said it was a great speech and was so thankful for the opportunity to hear him speak.

{fall 2013} bucket list