in fourteen hundred ninety-two ...

images from NH on 9.11.11

Visiting my sister and her babies in New Hampshire for the week. Some shots from this thoughtful day ....

fall's color forecast

August 17th.

Hot as hell.

Dry as it's ever been in Texas.

Still a couple of weeks from college football.

In a nutshell, these are some seriously shaggy dog days.

So I'm going to close my eyes and channel the greatest season of the year: Fall.

Pantone has released the Fall 2011 fashion trend colors, and I'm loving 'em.

"Designers take a painterly approach to fall 2011 by artfully combining bright colors with stable neutrals, reminiscent of how an artist would construct a stunning work of art," said Leatrice Eiseman, executive director of the Pantone Color Institute. "Much like a painter's masterpiece, there is a certain romance to this season's palette."

an apple [cider donut] a day

Two things:

(1) I can count on one hand the number of donuts I've eaten in the past decade. I mean let's be honest: Who among us allows ourselves the sinful pleasure of donut noshing?

(2) Prior to my current visit to New Hampshire, I'd never tasted an apple cider donut.

Both of these unfortunate realities have been remedied during my current vacay. We visited a local Hampton orchard a couple of days ago. And guess what they had? Hint: I have now thoroughly enjoyed sampling the incredibly tasty apple cider donut.

Are these little guys are getting ready to make their donut debut?Folks ... we have donuts.Aidan and me, with apple cider donut-filled bellies:

It was lovely meeting you, apple cider donuts. We'll talk again.

happy halloween {from NH}

Flew from Texas to New Hampshire to spend some much needed time (a) away from work, and (b) with my sister and her brood (since my last visit, baby Paige made her debut and the leaves have changed from green to red and gold). I'm currently blogging from outside, surrounded by frisky dogs, a 4-year-old on a jeep, pine cones, and a blustery wind.

It's nice to almost relax (I'm getting there!).

H A L L O W E E N -- one of my favorite days of the year. And this one is particularly special.

Some shots of Aidan (one of my precious nephews) from yesterday/last night.

pretty li'l punkins

Etched pumpkin

Pretty pumpkin

Luminary pumpkins

Pumpkin cooler

Cookie cutter pumpkins

Pumpkin topiary

From Southern Living

ooey gooey saturday

Weekend afternoon in October ... hmmm ... what to do?

Ah, yes. Ooey Gooey Pumpkin Bars. One of my fall faves. Quick. Easy. And best of all, tasty as all get out.

You might ask, "But are they ooey and gooey?" Yes. Yes they are.

Ingredients

Cake:

1 (18 1/4-ounce) package yellow cake mix
1 egg
8 tablespoons butter, melted

Filling:

1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 (15-ounce) can pumpkin
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
8 tablespoons butter, melted
1 (16-ounce) box powdered sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Combine the cake mix, egg, and butter and mix well with an electric mixer.

Pat the mixture into the bottom of a lightly greased 13 by 9-inch baking pan.

To make the filling: In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese and pumpkin until smooth.

Add the eggs, vanilla, and butter, and beat together.

Next, add the powdered sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and mix well.

Spread pumpkin mixture over cake batter and bake for 40 to 50 minutes. Make sure not to overbake as the center should be a little gooey.

Serve with whipped cream.