Calm Before the Storm

This past weekend was spent battening down the hatches in preparation for Hurricane Sandy's arrival. She was due to arrive Monday, so on Sunday we wanted to get Brady outside to run around so he didn't get a case of cabin fever. This turned out to have been an excellent idea, because we were cooped up inside together for the next two days as Sandy raged outside our windows! In any event, he had a great time running around the yard in the chilly air...

After all the activity, we came inside for a nice, warm bowl of spicy tomato and tortellini soup with kale, along with a side of homemade garlic bread (a favorite of the hubs).

I substituted the cannelini beans and pastina pasta for a bag of Barilla pre-made spinach and cheese tortellini, and added the kale, but the recipe can otherwise be found here: Giada's Quick and Spicy Tomato Soup.

Luckily, Hurricane Sandy turned out to be just another rough storm and not the catastrophe it was supposed to have been (for our area anyway). It did give us a nice four-day weekend at home together, which we are always thankful for!

FALLin' in Love

I know it's been awhile since I've posted, but I haven't had much time to get out and photograph lately. I've been working on my homework for my photography class in between being 20-some weeks pregnant and taking care of all of life's other day-to-day concerns, so it's been a busy fall! Needless to say, this past Sunday we got all gussied up in our Sunday best and went to Willow Park in Camp Hill for a photo session with a professional photographer. She took some very nice shots. Here are a few of my faves:

Brady happened to be in a TERRIBLE mood for the first half of the pictures, he had just woken up from a much-too-short nap (note the puffy eyes). But I was pleased with the pictures anyway. Plus, you can't do much better than the deal I scored for them on LivingSocial, so I'm not complaining. After the session was done, I had a chance to do some practicing of my own with my special little guy all dressed up. His blue shirt combined with the orange leaves made for some GORGEOUS pictures!



The last picture is my absolute favorite. It symbolizes everything I am loving about life right now--the growth of my amazing little boy, and the beauty that encompasses the fall. Fall is, and will always be, my very favorite time of the year!

At the Weekend

This past weekend was a much-needed respite from all the manic chaos of our lives lately. Yes, the floors need to be cleaned, and yes, the laundry needs to be done, but as my husband (somewhat loudly) reminded me on Saturday, "sometimes you just have to stop working and relax!" So, Saturday was all about college football. I made some shredded chicken barbeque in the crock pot...

(Recipe courtesy of RecipeGirl: Slow Cooker Shredded Chicken BBQ)

It came out pretty well. I also made some homemade, red cabbage coleslaw to go with it. It was delish!



On Sunday, we ventured out to a pumpkin patch in Lancaster County, PA with Grandpa Lewis and Grandma Jen. There is nowhere like Lancaster for some good family, farm-based fun! We had a great time picking out pumpkins and gorging on homemade soft pretzels, apple cider, farmer's cheese and above all: WHOOPIE PIES! I don't care what Maine says--whoopie pies are and will always be the best from Lancaster, PA!

 

 

 

All in all, it was a good weekend. We love to take Brady out to experience the world, it is so much fun watching him discover life for the first time!