Pappy's Pumpkin Patch

Yesterday, we had a great family outing in Tyler!

My friends, Jennifer & Jenna, told me about this neat pumpkin patch in Tyler. It's called Pappy's Pumpkin Patch & it's opened on the weekends in October. They have a huge playground, hay bale maze, and several other attractions. The boys had a fabulous time! And the best part is that it is all free! What a blessing this family is to the area...we had a blast and have some wonderful photos to prove it!

A Few More OLD Pictures

I found a few more pictures that I just had to post...

Evan couldn't believe these pictures were of us...he said Daddy looked like Uncle Kevin. :)

This was our engagement pictures that my Uncle Vernon took for us. Don't we look so smitten?

A Blast from the Past

As I was cleaning & decluttering the laundry room storage shelves, I found this picture & just couldn't resist. I'm sure my sister will NOT be happy with me, but I don't mind. I'm the one that looks SOOO crazy with my BIG hair...this was only 20 years ago...1990! The days of the BIG hair! I'm sure Beth Moore would like it! By the way, my very talented Mom made both of our dresses & Shellye's cake!

Blueberry Buttermilk Muffins

I am always looking for good blueberry recipes because we picked so many blueberries last summer! I found this one on cooks.com. It is great!

2 1/2 c. all-purpose flour

2 1/2 t. baking powder

1 c. sugar

1/4 t. salt

1 c. buttermilk

2 eggs (beaten)

1/4 lb. butter (melted)...yes, that's a whole stick!

1 1/2 c. blueberries (rinsed & drained)

Mix dry ingredients together. Make a well; add buttermilk, eggs, and butter. Mix well. Fold in blueberries. Fill well-greased muffin tins 1/2 full and bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes. Best when served warm. Makes 2 dozen.

My Fall Guys

A few weeks ago, our friend, Donna, with

Dimples & Dreams took pictures of the boys during her Fall Special. She did such a fantastic job! I think you still have time if you want to contact her for a session! She has a facebook page too! We were really pleased because she was so patient wit them! Here are a few of the highlights...

Memory Verse #20

Romans 12:12-14

Be joyful in hope,

patient in affliction,

faithful in prayer.

Share with God's people who are in need.

Practice hospitality.

Bless those who persecute you;

bless and do not curse.

More Providence Farm Pictures

For some reason, some of the pictures I uploaded on the other post didn't quite make it. So here are a few more...it was such a fun day!

Running in the pumpkin relay...

Ethan's first pumpkin relay race...he really liked it!

Ethan wanted EVERY pumpkin!

He's trying to get the hook out of the fish's mouth so he can throw him back to safety.

Some of the girls made a presentation on pumpkins.

Peek-A-Boo!

Ethan enjoyed playing in this old boat rather than fishing.

Just one of the many funny faces in his repertoire...

Evan was so hoping to catch a fish, but he didn't! He did catch some later when he & his daddy fished at the lake down the road from us.

Ethan adores Kaitlyn!

Evan enjoyed feeding the goats, but Ethan did not! He didn't like them eating out of his hands.

Rachael Ray's What's for Dinner Tonight!

On Thursday, Rachael Ray had a really good recipe on her show for BBQ chicken and mashed sweet potatoes. It looked so good and I just happened to have all of the ingredients except the sweet potatoes. After a quick trip to Brookshire's, I made this scrumptious meal!

You can find the recipes here: http://rachaelrayshow.com/food/recipes/skinless-bbq-chicken/ and here: http://rachaelrayshow.com/food/recipes/smashed-sweet-potatoes-honey/

I made a few adjustments like boneless/skinless chicken strips because that is what I had in the freezer. And instead of lemon juice & nutmeg in the sweet potatoes, I used some cinnamon & brown sugar. Yummy! I've never made homemade MASHED sweet potatoes before, but I think I'll be doing that a lot more now. Super easy & super delicious! And the BBQ sauce was SOOO good! I'll be making that again too!

Providence Farm Field Trip

Last Monday, we had the awesome opportunity to go on our first Field Trip with Cottage Garden. We visited the Providence Farm, home to one of my fabulous 1st period Study Skills students. :) I've enjoyed getting to know his mom as well. Angela Greenwell (http://www.trustingdaily.blogspot.com/) is such a sweet lady & her whole family did such a wonderful job entertaining us.

They showed us the cows, horses, goats, and chickens. The kids even got to pick up some of

the eggs that the chickens had laid & they got to feed the goats! One of Ethan's favorite thing

s was playing with a toy farm house! Then, we went on a hayride to their pond & the boys got to fish! Well, Eric & Evan fished...E

than mostly played. Austin & Kaitlyn act

ually caught some fish too! That was cool! After fishing, we had a picnic lunch & then they learned a little about pumpkins & played

a few games.

It was such a relaxing, enjoyable day! And the weather could not have been prettier! Thank you, Greenwell family, for hosting our

first field trip this year! You're the best!