Welcome Fall

Lots of fun things happening this fall. We started it off with Daddy's birthday last month (yes, I'm still playing catch up). Chris got a kayaking trip and reciprocating saw from me, and he used his birthday money to buy a battery powered nail gun. Oh the excitement of new tools.

Hannah was very eager to help Daddy open his present...

And she was also very eager to eat his cake...

Pumpkin spice cake with cream cheese frosting...yum!

With our CSA box we've been getting more interesting veggies. Can you name this one?

A Kabocha squash. It's basically a green pumpkin. With the inspiration of my friend Holly, I made a pie with it using my pumpkin pie recipe. The inside is orange like a regular pumpkin, although the puree seemed a little more sticky and less watery than a sugar pumpkin. It tasted really good, and I had so much puree left I made Rachel Ray's Sausage and Pumpkin Lasagna for dinner tonight. Another excellent dish.

We also got an acorn squash the other week. I know, that's not so unusual but I had never cooked one. So, once again I pulled out my trusty Taste of Home cookbook and found this recipe for Honey-Spice Acorn Squash. It was good, but a little bitter because I didn't cook it long enough. And in case you're wondering, I served it with chicken with an apple cream sauce.

Catch Up

It's been a while since I've posted our happenings. Here's what we did in September. Chris took a whole week off and we escaped to Cayucos. We also spent some time with his family and attending his 10 year high school reunion. It was a much needed vacation and we were able to come home very refreshed.

Beach Baby

"Just resting with Daddy"

We ate breakfast at our favorite place in Cayucos, The Sea Shanty. They even made Hannah a Mickey Mouse pancake, without us asking for it.

We spent some time in SLO visiting with friends and going to Farmer's Market.

First, we rode the trolley. Hannah waited very patiently for it.

Then we had dinner at Firestone

Hannah got to meet the bear at Farmer's

While we were up in Soledad, we took a trip to the Monterey Bay Aquarium with Hannah's cousins, aunts and uncles and Nona

Hannah loved being a Nemo fish

Preston and Jenna. Kinley was with us too, but unfortunately I don't have a pic of her, or the adults for that matter. I need to get better at that.

On the way back home we stopped in SLO again to eat lunch at Franks Famous Hot Dogs. During all our years living in SLO we had never eaten there but always heard good things. All around a good lunch.

Another favorite on the Central Coast is the Avila Valley Barn. They have yummy baked goods and fresh fruits and vegetables. Hannah enjoyed feeding the animals and even made a new friend while running around on the lawn.

This is the face Hannah makes when you tell her to smile and say cheese. Does it look a little forced?