Fall in all its Beauty and Fun

This past week I have still been trying to rest a lot. Which means I don't get to participate in some things. But on the other hand I get nice blessings like cuddling a newborn and having a husband who takes the children on fun outings, leaving me with an amazingly quiet house for a few hours. That has a beauty all its own.

We have had a week of glorious sunny fall days. I LOVE these! Truth be told, it is rather hard for me to contain myself and MAKE myself stay quiet and rest when the outdoors are beckoning me and I recognize there won't be many more of them before the gray, rainy days come. And then I will have to wait until spring for more sunshine. I am learning to be content with the seasons. This is a season to be quiet and give my body (and soul) rest. It is altogether too fleeting and I know it will be gone in a heartbeat. I have learned to savor these moments with my babies because now that I also have older children I know how fast these moments are gone! I don't wish them away at any great speed. As my children are fond of saying to the littlest babes, "You can't grow up."

So I am browsing photos and I came across such beauty in my daughters' photography. I am enjoying my fall colors in a little different way perhaps. The children went with Daddy to a local pumpkin farm that is host to lots of fun activities. They had a wonderful time being active in the fresh air and sunshine, choosing pumpkins for decorations and baking.

In the meantime, I have had even more blessings. I have a very dear friend who sent a gift on the occasion of our littlest Warrior's birth. But it wasn't just that she sent an adorable camoflauge jacket for him. It was that she chose to bless me with a sweater. I can't tell you how much that blessed me! Baby gifts are delightful. But to be thought of personally in the midst of it all and to be graciously given a gift of beauty as a mommy of many just ministered deeply to my heart! (Thank you, dearest friend!)

We ended our week with a wonderful time of fellowship celebrating the Reformation. I was so thankful to be able to go and visit with local friends I cherish spending time with. The children had great fun as well. Good food, sweet fellowship, laughter over sweet children's skits about the Reformers, pumpkin pinatas....it couldn't get much better! The amazing thing is that with several families with many children amongst them, all were quite healthy and no one had to cancel! Hurray! I love celebrating the Reformation too. A fun way to learn history and bring glory to God in an otherwise "dark" holiday time.

Beauty comes in many forms. How precious it has been to see the places of beauty all around me that God has given. Especially in places and through means I did not expect.

Catching Up (a Little)

Life is full. And very good. This past month I have been very occupied with one cute little boy. I am still trying to learn how to lower my expectations for what I can accomplish. My body is keen to remind me and I'm sure that's a good thing. If only I can figure out how to keep up on laundry, make sure all are fed (I do have good helpers) and TRY to have a little bit of a tidy home while resting. I find this even more tricky to minimize how many trips up and down the stairs I take in a day. Besides all that, I am trying to figure out how to adjust my diet. I think we have a mild case of thrush going on. It just so happens (God knew!) that I was reading a book on health and nutrition--I'll tell more about that later--then this issue came up. So I am seeking to keep yeast out of my diet and let me tell you, it's not easy for one who loves bread, and loves to make it besides! But, I am learning so much and being reminded of other things I have learned but have become lazy about. So in all my studying and research, I am coming back to soaking grains and trying to make sourdough bread again. I really do feel better over all having eliminated yeast bread from my diet for the present. So this all has me curious and looking back over my copies of "Nourishing Traditions" and "The Maker's Diet."

My challenge: How to eat well, keeping yeast bread, cheese, most dairy, and most forms of sugar out of my diet for the time being, and keep enough calories for myself and my wee little one. The first couple of days were kind of overwhelming. I would go to the refrigerator or pantry and ask, "What can I eat?" and nearly cry because I didn't know how to answer the question besides yogurt (which I DO like, by the way, but don't want to eat ALL of the time). But each day has gotten a little easier. Still, I do find that taking the time to think about soaking or sourdough is work. And I'm really not supposed to be doing too much. One little step at a time.....

Besides all of this, we had one sweet little Princess who had a birthday:

And a whole lot of grapes to make juice and jelly out of.




MANY blessings for which I am so grateful for. And did I mention we have some beautiful fall sunshine? That's not making it any easier to spend time horizontal, except that I at least have a lovely view from my room. And I should be going there now.....

Caramel Apple Cheesecake Pie

Fall is here which means apples and pears aplenty....Hurray! If you like apples as much as we do and you like the combination of apples and caramel (yum!) AND you are a fan of cream cheese (like cheesecake), then I assure you that you WANT to make this dessert! I came across this through one of my favorite blogs. The picture was enough for me to HAVE to try this. Alas, I have been a bit preoccupied these days with one darling and adorable Littlest Warrior who has come into our family (more about him later). And I have been resting a lot, which has been so good both for my recovery and for enjoying our sweet baby and the many here who dote upon him.

Fortunately, I have some girls who love to bake as much as I do. All I have to do is wave a picture of something that looks like an amazing kitchen creation, and one or the other of them will jump at the opportunity to try it out. So Country Girl 1 made this for our family night treat. And is it ever delicious!

For the recipe, see here. One note: I make my own caramel sauce (easy to do!), so that is what I used for the caramel in the recipe.

I hope you enjoy this as much as we did (is it really gone already?) and perhaps make some sweet memories with your loved ones.