kiddos

kiddos

Thursday, September 29, 2011

Fall breeze, Muscadines and Looove!





Right now in the "Upstate"
Fall is in the air and Muscadines are plentiful.
They are ripe and Sweet.
A Burst of flavor in your mouth.

I have a method for eating them.
I find the skin is bitter, so I pop the whole thing in my mouth, then discard the skin quickly.
Then put the fruit between my lips and my teeth, and I suck the fruit into my mouth, leaving the seeds on the other side of my teeth.

It seems complicated, but sometimes the best things are. Right?
They are worth the effort.

How do you eat a muscadine?



On a side note...it was very hard to write about enjoying muscadines without sounding crude and sexual...which is embarrassing...and I had to delete several lines of this because I knew that to the wrong (or right) mind, it might sound like I was talking about something else....and apparently, I might be of that mind as well.

Anyway, I take that as a way of saying...
Serve a big bowl of these muscadines to the one you love!!! Enjoy the fall breeze and a little romance. Have a good evening.

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

You Know You're A Mother If....



while digging in my purse for a pen I found:

2 cars (with little eyes staring back at me)
1 "octopus robot"
1 hair bow
1 pacifier
1 baggie with soiled underpants inside
2 bags of fruit chews
1 bag of buttons (dunno?)
2 diapers
1 sack of wipes
1 wallet
5 receipts

0 pen

What's in your purse?

Saturday, September 17, 2011

The apples of our eye




This year we did a combined birthday party for our two perfect apples. Buttercup turned ONE!!! Bluebird turned THREE! We wanted to do a fun party that everyone could enjoy. One of the best things about living in the upstate is that the seasons are perfect. Fall is full of apple picking and pumpkin patches, corn mazes and leaves changing. Since it is early September, the weather is just starting to change, and it is the best time of year to pick apples. The Sky Top orchard in Flat Rock, NC is only 20 minutes from our home...it truly is my favorite orchard. It rests on top of a mountain and has the best views around. There are also hayrides, play areas, lots of animals to pet and feed, apple donuts, apple cider, and lots of delicious apples to pick. It seemed the perfect place to have a party and it was.
Not that there were not hangups. First, the girl who made the dresses DIDN'T ship them. Well, not at first. I was supposed to have them by Wednesday. When I didn't get them, I shot an email her way. Only to have the reply that she had been sick and had not yet shipped them. She could have them to me by Saturday night or she could reimburse me. I think I nearly had a stroke at this point. I was not happy. I started brain storming with a friend and calling every fabric store in town to try to find apple fabric that didn't belong on kitchen windows. Daddy talked me down and said that I should not try to kill myself making dresses and if they had to wear normal clothes...well, so be it. Fortunately, the seller made it right. She overnighted them (costing as much as the dresses), and also gave me 50% off my next purchase. I received them late Friday night, in time for my Saturday morning party. I must say, the dresses were so adorable...I am glad I didn't have to do without them.
Then, I actually came all the way to the party with my cousin, sans kids to get ready. I left Daddy with all the kids and he would come up behind us. The party was supposed to start at 1030am. At 10am I got a call from Daddy. "Do you have the keys to the car?" The panic in my chest at this moment...."yes, I did". I guess I would have to have this party without the birthday girls. They wouldn't be able to make it.
That isn't true, my dear cousin saved the day and drove all the way back to take them the keys...so they were only an hour late.
Other people were late as well though, so it didn't seem we waited too long before they were there. Fortunately, there is lots to do while waiting.
The weather was perfect with a breeze that kept throughout the day. The food was good. I made apple cupcakes, apple rice crispy treats, an apple trail mix, caramel apple bites. We also had a cooler full of apple juice.

My dear friend Mandy at www.sweetandsimpleparties.com did most of the decorations for me. She made the invites and bunting, "E" tags for the baskets, apple decor and favors. Our favors were little bags full of caramels and instructions on how to make caramel apples with the apples picked at the orchard. She handled most of the tedious stuff. Then i just made food, threw some green and red dotted material over tables, and made the cake stands, and I was essentially done.
My friend angie at www.capturedmemoriesphotographybyangie.com was there to take lots of the pictures you see below. More can be found on her website. These are unedited pictures, I can't wait to see what she does to make them even better.
It was truly a beautiful day. Everyone had a wonderful time celebrating our girls and also enjoying a beautiful day in a beautiful place with their beautiful families.

First for the invites:





Next up, the food:







Adorable decor:








good times: